I had never had an out of body experience before hand, it was strange being able to look at the stone box that held my body. I wondered if this was what Lestat did, he did explain how he was able to hear what went on around him. I sent my consciousness out of the cave and looked at the island from up in the air. Time seemed to be in fast forward, I watched the sun set and rise multiple times in the span of a few seconds. Wondering just how far I could let my consciousness wander I began to head towards the Mikaelsons village. Surpassingly it reached the village without an issue. If I focused I could still sense my body, but my consciousness was now hovering over the ashes of the white oak tree. I backed away and watched as another white oak sapling sprouted in the forest from a nut a squirrel had lost.
As time went on I watched as the village expanded into a town and more people flocked to Mystic Falls. I checked back on the island, there was still nothing there. I flew back to Mystic Falls, just as the town grew even larger. I had seen several large ships on the horizon from the coast of Florida, going back to Mystic Falls I saw several other villages spring up. The terrain slowly changed from lush green forests to the startings of a large village. It was honestly amazing to see humanity progress. I willed time to slow as the village finally turned into a town.
I shot my consciousness back into my body and I woke up with a gasp. My body felt stiff as if I had been asleep for too long. Which I was, if what I saw was accurate I should now be in the 1800s. I pushed the sarcophagus lid open and felt the air rush in. Looking down at myself I smiled, I wasn't a shriveled mess. I felt lethargic but I wasn't weak. I sped around the cave to check for the stuff I had stashed. Everything was still where I had left it.
'Maybe the island is disguised so people don't see it, there's no way people pass this island and not get curious as to what's on it.'
I emptied the bag of stakes into the coffin and sovelled a few handfuls of gold coins in. Soon I was speeding out of the cave and towards Mystic Falls, it was nightfall there was no one in the streets. It was strange, it almost felt nostalgic being so close to modern times again. I found a clothing store and undid the lock with the dagger. I tried a few outfits and stuffed a few that fit into a small duffel bag I found in the back. I changed into one of the new outfits and left a few gold coins on the counter. I went back to the caved to drop off my old clothes and the stuff I had picked up before returning to the town. The duffel bag now filled with gold and gems.
By the time I returned to the town the sun was rising, they probably didn't know about vampires yet. Walking to a trash bin I took out a discarded newspaper. The date was March of 1862 about two years before Kathrine showed up. Throwing the newspaper back in I silently made my way around town looking for any stray drunks so I could feed and regain my full strength. Spotting a lone man stumbling around I quickly dragged the man into an alley and tore into his throat. I drained his blood, careful not to get any on my new clothes. I cleaned myself up before disposing of the body.
Feeling the fresh blood rejuvenate my stuff muscles I let out a sigh of content. I walked over to the town hall and waited for the rest of the town to wake up. Hours later I was ushered in by a petite woman who introduced me to the mayor.
"Good day Mister Mayor, my name is Seth Williamson, I spoke with your assistant earlier about the possibility of buying a plot of land here."
"Please, call me Benjamin. Well Mister Williamson I'm afraid we do not have land for sale at the moment we do however have a few homes available to buy."
"If you insist then you can call me Seth, and that would be perfect Benjamin. I will be paying with precious gemstones if that is alright with you."
"G-Gems?! Why, y-yes, that is perfectly acceptable."
I smile and I let the small duffel bag fall with a solid thump on his desk. Opening it slightly I let him catch a glimpse of the gold coins as I extracted several sapphires and a large fist sized ruby.
His eyes nearly fell out of his head, "An inheritance, from my late relative. He had quite a collection of these."
It wasn't much of an explanation but it would cover my ass for now. He takes the stones with shaking hands and examines them. He calls his assistant in and tells her to bring the town jeweler. As we waited the mayor prepared the paperwork and the deed to my new home. We discussed what I would be doing in the town and I gave the mayor a made up yet plausible backstory for myself. The portly man arrives several moments later and examines the gems.
"These are genuine Mayor Lockwood."
The mayor nods and the jeweler takes his leave. Shaving hands with the mayor I leave the town hall with the deed to a house just a bit out from the town square. As I walked to my new home I was stopped by a bearded man and a woman who looked like she would have rather been anywhere else.
"Seth Williamson, I hear you purchased the old Steelhead property."
"My, my, word travels quite fast around town."
Shaking the man's hand I took a closer look at him. I recognized the woman from the show, she was the Salvatore brothers' mother. This must mean the man was Giuseppe.
"I don't believe I caught your name Mister?"
"Salvatore, Giuseppe Salvatore, and this is my wife Lillian."
I offered her a smile and I shook Giuseppe's hand. I remembered her being dead or at least gone by this time in the show. Maybe coming to this world has changed that. I wondered what else my presence had changed.
"You are a lot younger than I expected, Mister Williamson."
"Just Seth is fine, Mister Williamson was my father. I feel rather old when people call me that, and I may not look it but I am twenty years old" 'give or take a thousand years'
"Then just Lillian is fine as well."
Smiling at the couple I bid them farewell after Giuseppe and Lillian offered me dinner at their place as a welcome into the town. They had insisted that as founding members of the town that it fell to them to welcome me. I saw it as a way for them to gain influence with a potentially rich investor. I accepted their offer and we set a plan for the end of the week at around four pm.
I made a mental note of the event and continued to walk to my new home. Except calling it a home would be an understatement, the place was fucking massive. The outside of the estate looked like your typical southern plantation. Though there were visible signs of neglect, such as the overgrown grass and the vines beginning to crawl up the gate.
As much as I hated to do so I would need to hire servants. Sure they'd be seen as 'slaves' but I would make it clear to them on the first day that they were to be treated fairly in my home.