~Alistair POV~
"Swain!? Get in here now!!" I rasp loudly, as vomit immediately constricts my vocal chords.
The crystal goblet is thrown to the wall with as much force as I remove the noxious copper and sulfur from my sight. The resulting crimson stain drips down the wall slowly and I know that will take an hour to clean but I don't care.
The vomit comes, and I retch loudly as the contents of my stomach make its way onto the floor and Swain finally makes his entrance.
"Sire, I'm here! What has happened?!" He asks as he looks about the room with terror, haughtiness, and disdain. He's been my manservant for eons and this is a major mistake on his part.
"Theodora was made aware of your situation, sire. I double-checked her references and made sure that she was able to comprehend simple language. She will be fired immediately." He bowed low and made his way to the hall and called for assistance in cleaning the space.
I emptied my stomach again and was led out of the room by two more aids as the cleaning crew entered. Swain was barking orders as I was lying on a chaise lounge. I was feeling faint as I looked around the room at the apparent opulence and regal portraits stared back at me.
I was born into this world and I couldn't even actively participate. This curse that I held that the rest of my family never had to deal with caused me to almost succumb to my almost apparent end multiple times. This was not the first time that my reaction had occurred.
Swain came back in and bowed low again before me. "Alistair, my deepest and most profound apologies for my incompetence. Theodora has been fired and I will seek another housekeeper to work in her stead."
He hovered over me and looked deeply into my eyes as he placed his hands on either side of my face and the racing pace of my heart and head stopped pounding. His energy transfer was complete and I was able to sit up and look around the room.
In all the lore I had seen and heard on the television and online my case was a laughable rarity that made me feel not quite true to my legacy.
I was of royal blood, my great, great, great grandfather was Vlad the Impaler; but who would have thought there would be something as ridiculous as a Transylvanian who was allergic to blood?
"Alistair" Swain began again as the aids cleaned me up and got me a new robe and clothing for the day. "Your curse is getting worse I fear, and we need to talk about your father and his decree. Your birthday has brought about the need to go over the line of the trust that is in place for your ascension."
I sat up, my concentration on the words that he was going to speak. "Continue," I stated flatly as I shifted on the chaise lounge to get comfortable. His energy transfer had given me control over my nausea and he took my hand in his and the pounding headache and dizziness finally receded.
"The ascension will need to happen soon, your father is coming to the end of his viability, and his lapse in judgment with the care and regard for our food supply has been a severe point of contention, especially among the nobles. The banks are starting to dry up as we are seeing more and more hybrids needing the resources. " Swain sighed deeply.
I looked at him and asked, "Why are there more hybrids? I thought that we had a law in place to stop them from occurring except for special occasions."
" We are still looking into it, sire. The investigation committee hasn't turned up quick results due to the bureaucracy that is in place. They start, only to be halted as our supplies continue to dwindle."
He looked at me, his deep-set eyes and his furrowed brow indicated his next statement might be even more alarming. " We also have the need to secure the royal bloodline. The most recent princess that was your betrothed has been murdered."
"Rachel? " The woman to whom he spoke was here a week ago, and her family was grand. I was actually thinking that I would be able to start planning for my coronation because I had liked her so well. Her grey eyes and laughter had been grand. And I felt a connection to her very quickly.
" What happened?" I dropped my gaze as Swain proceeded to fill me in on the grisly details including her slit throat and staked heart.
" It's to send a message that they aren't happy with the monarchy. We are performing sweeps online and on the ground sir to determine what is happening. And then of course the attempt on your life today, now also has to be taken into account." Swain sat and put his head in his hands. "You know that I do everything for you sire, this should be my resignation, but I humbly beg you to stay on."
" Relax Swain, There is no need to cower, I know that as royalty this kind of situation is par for the course. But my ascension can't take place without a bride and I clearly can't continue with things the way they do without a sustainable way to continue."
"Sir, the results have come back, and you can ingest red, but only with an AB negative RH factor, Its rarity has been an issue and we know that if we are able to secure that type of donor for you we will be able to have you be sustained and be able to breed to your father's content."
"Since the other princess is gone we will need to find a way for a new royal to be crowned. We need to find a new princess for you soon."
'Would it matter if she was actually a commoner? If she has the red that I need all we need to do is find her," I said thinking aloud.
"Sire, what do you suggest?"
" A televised live search, we can start placing fliers and canvasing the space in the country. We also need to go international since our supplies of red are so diminutive"
" I will get on it right away sir." Swain left and I thought about what was going to happen next.
Lightning flashed outside the window, followed by a thunderclap that rattled the walls, making me flinch. Somewhere out there, in the storm, was the one I needed to complete my ascension. I just hoped I could find her before it was too late.