You are here because you want to hunt the undead.
I see it in your eyes. Ah, the eagerness. Why so eager? Perhaps a family member died to them. Perhaps your town was terrorized. Perhaps you truly believe them to be the damned. I am here to tell you that you are wrong. I see some of you understand and others are shocked. You'll need more theological instruction. Let me explain.
Doctrine and dogma are constantly changing. When the Church is given hard, physical evidence that something we believe is not so doctrine is changed. After all, if God in his wisdom has decreed the universe is so, who are we to deny what He has set before us? To do so even in the face of His evidence would be pure hubris. We are to discover the truth of his works, not deny them! That is why the theory of Evolution is accepted in the Church. And that is why we no longer consider the undead to be damned.
You see, undeath is in fact a disease. Similar to the Jenova strain but quite different, it has existed and will always exist. The virus that causes it is a lifestream infection that mutates the life energy inside a person, granting them immortality at the cost of no longer being able to produce blood. They also gain many other powers but we will go into that later. That is why vampires have glowing eyes. Like SOLDIERS, they are touched by mako.
Even in ancient times our ancestors were confused as to why crosses and holy items would not affect some vampires. This is because the disease makes vampires more susceptible to mystical energies but only if they are out of tune with them. In other words, a vampire who is truly evil or even just believes he is evil will be affected by the Cross. However, a vampire who was given the disease involuntarily and who strives not to injure others may be able to kiss a crucifix and recite the Lord's prayer. That, along with the proof of the disease… it had been isolated and cultured in the lab… has caused dogma to change. Vampires are dangerous, just as werewolves and SOLDIERS are dangerous. But they are not damned although they are, by their nature, in great danger of falling into the darkness.
What does this mean to you? It means that you are not going out in the world to simply stake every vampire you can find. The law has recognized vampires as people but most prefer to remain unknown, to avoid difficulties. It is our duty, given to us by the courts, to investigate and bring vampire criminals to justice. Your duty is to determine when a crime has taken place and then see justice through.
The foremost crime you will find vampires accused of is taking someone to be their undead consort or servant. You must remember that for a vampire giving the disease to another can be the greatest act of love they have. A few of you are horrified by the thought, I see. But this is very important. We are not to punish vampires who take the willing into the darkness. This is a personal choice. In most cities this will not be an issue. The courts and the master vampires work together somewhat and the master vampire will know what progeny have been created. You will be able to access much help although master vampires cannot be entirely trusted. More on that later.
For the smaller towns matters are more difficult. There may only be one vampire in the area and he or she may be completely unknown to the people. It is easy for them to hide their mako eyes with a bit of illusion. So you often must look to the condition of the corpse and the setting for clues to what really happened. Remember that the townsfolk might lie to you out of grief or be mistaken.
If the body is missing entirely this usually means the vampire has brought it to his or her haven. If they genuinely care for the person they are attempting to turn, they will guard the body until he or she rises or is truly dead. The virus is not always passed on reliably. Now, if the body is left behind this can mean many things…
-Excerpted from the lectures of Ladislaw Varrinta, Excelsior Vampire Slayer
Roxas first met the man when he was a small child, perhaps five. He wasn't entirely sure. Very young in any case. His family was small, prosperous landowners and they were greeting the local Count. He was doing an inspection of his properties and while his parents were landowners, they still owed him taxes and fealty. They were more than pleased to host him as he stayed in their town.
At first, Roxas was awed and a bit shy of the tall, red haired man with beautiful green eyes. He was in his Sunday best and knew this guest was very important to his parents. He was determined to make a good impression for them.
That lasted until the stranger noticed the chess set.
"How beautiful!" He admired it for a moment. "It comes from Shay, no?" Roxas agreed with him on how beautiful the chess set was. The little figures had been carved from fine ivory and decorated with beautiful little balls. The balls were nested inside each other in a style of carving that always amazed Roxas. He had no idea how it was done. Then green eyes settled on him and the elegant older man smiled and picked up a horse, showing it to him. "You like the little horsy child?" Roxas was outraged. His intelligence was being disparaged!
"It's not a horsy!" He said loudly as his parents exchanged a horrified look. "It's a KNIGHT! It moves in an L shape!" The man stared at him in blank surprise for a moment before glancing at the piece in his hand. Roxas' father found his voice a second later.
"I'm sorry Count Axel, it's past his bedtime. Perhaps we should –" But Axel wasn't listening. He was looking at Roxas intently now and the little boy stared back at him challengingly. He wasn't stupid!
"You know how to play little one?" Axel said inquiringly, setting the piece back onto the board. "Show me. We can play a match." Roxas hopped up onto the chair across from him. He loved chess and was more than willing to play a round. Besides, he wanted to prove to the visitor that he could.
He lost of course. He was only a small child. But he proved that he definitely knew how to play and Axel was delighted. His parents relaxed as the Count tossed his head back in a laugh as he took Roxas' King.
"Wonderful!" Axel smiled warmly at Roxas and Roxas smiled back. "I'm sorry for offending you. You're a very bright little boy."
"That's okay. You're pretty smart too. For an adult." Roxas added and Axel's smile widened into a grin. He turned to look at Roxas' parents.
"He's a wonderful child." Axel's tone was warm and Roxas was happy to see his parents were pleased. He'd really wanted to be good for them and he knew this wasn't exactly it, but things seemed to be going well. "He should grow into a great young man. When he's old enough I'd be pleased to take him as a page." Roxas didn't understand what that meant but his parents did. Nobles often exchanged children to serve as pages in other households. If they took Axel up on his offer, Roxas would receive a full noble's education and make valuable contacts within the aristocracy. Best of all, it would be completely free and education was expensive.
"Thank you my Lord. It will be many years but I'm sure he'd make a wonderful page." His father said sincerely as a young maidservant took Roxas off for bed. Things were going very well, they didn't want Roxas to ruin it by having a tantrum. Roxas turned to wave.
"Goodnight Count!" He called and Axel smiled and waved back.
"Goodnight lad. What's your name?" It occurred to him that he didn't know.
"I'm Roxas." The little blonde said and Axel nodded.
"Goodnight Roxas."