Disclaimer: I love these characters, but I do not own them. Only their fate is in my control.
Prologue:
The wars in the south raged on. It was the late 1800's, perhaps early 1900's. While humans fought each other during the day, another sort of battle occurred when they slept. When darkness fell, they would come out in massive numbers and set out to destroy each other. They fought for territory, for rights to kill humans in that territory. They were vampires. The armies were made up mostly of newborns - strong & stupid. The younglings had the lust for blood, but also a lust for destruction. They weren't the easiest to control, but they enjoyed the fight. They just needed to be pointed in the right direction.
Now, though, the numbers of humans being killed, despite the daylight casualties, was enough to be noticed. Someone, well, a few 'someones' decided that it was time to intervene and reinforce the rules. The powerful ancients in Volterra prepared to make the journey across the world.
At the same time, a young man anxiously awaited the time when he could join the humans in the daylight battles (oblivious, as most humans were, to what happened after dark). He was still too young. He would sneak out at night and watch as the sky lit up, accompanying the sounds of gunshots, as the final shots were fired for the day. Someday soon, he thought, then his life would change. He had no idea how right he was.
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Author's Note: I'm entranced with alternate beginnings for Jasper, and I couldn't resist an attempt at bringing Jane into this one.
Let me know what you think!
Love, SV