Father, Brother, Son: The Saga of the Northman family

by angie9281

NOTE: A previously published story i accidentally deleted. This is the story about how Eric, Godric, Pam and Nora slowly came around to becoming a family and the bond they came to share with each other

Chapter 1-Viking

It had been a long night as the fire burned. Having taken his find off the pyre and put him into the ground, all that could be done was to play the waiting game. Surely this one was a fierce warrior, a Viking who would never yield to anyone nor give up. Having earned the respect and admiration of him, Godric had thus taken a road he had never once gone down. Soon, he would have created a new vampire and one he hoped to train in his own ways. He himself had been trained to be ruthless, vicious and bloodthirsty. But over the decades, centuries, Godric had come to see the suffering and pain he had helped to bring into a world that was already more than full of it. For the past hundred years, he had sought to mend his ways and to instead help protect people from other vampires that were heartless murderers butchers. It seemed almost ironic that he had chosen a Viking for becoming his first progeny but then again, he knew of Eric's back story, of the slaughter of his family. And he knew that there was a capacity for love and caring in his heart and so he would try to train him to straddle the line. To not be weak but to not be cold and callous either.

He sat on a overturned log as the last sparks of the funeral pyre went out. It had been two days and he was growing worried that somehow, he had not done this properly. Then he saw the mound of dirt where the hole had been dug beginning to stir, a hand rising out of it. Godric moved over closer as he watched the scene play out. Covered in bloodied and stained clothes from his final battle as a human, the tall blonde emerged from the deep ole, looking up into the night sky and finding himself not alone, seeing the face of the one who had come to him as he lay on the pyre.

"Am I dead?" he asked as he blinked, stretching as he climbed out of the hole. He felt better than ever and knowing how bad he had been injured, he knew there could only be one explanation.

"You are more alive than you have ever been, though there are many changes you need to know about, for your own good. Sit down and I will begin to tell you about your new existence."

The Viking remained where he stood. "I want to go after those who destroyed my family. Now." and he turned from Godric and began to walk away.

"As your maker I command you to stay here and listen what you need to hear." Godric said calmly and coolly. He had not wanted to have to play this card but he was not about to let someone so powerful and new to this world to go out on his own.

The impulse to do as e was commanded overtook him and he was surprised as he obeyed. He took orders from no one save for his father and even then it was sporadic at best. "How did you do that? Make me do as you told me to?" Eric was not pleased as the blazing blue eyes glared at the creature before him.

"I can see you are impatient but that will only get you killed unless you know all you need to know. Your old life has ended and I have given you a new one. My name is Godric and I am your maker and you will learn a great deal from me. But until I believe you are in control of your new abilities, I can not release you."

The blonde Viking frowned. "You're making me a prisoner."

"No. I merely need to make sure you can control your skills without harming innocent people. I have spent centuries trying to atone for the horrors I took part in and even now, I still try to make the world a little better. Guilt is a powerful force and I have carried mine for a very long time. I don't want to have you suffer as I have nor do I want to see you get hunted down for doing something terrible. Which brings us back to why you will be traveling with me."

He paced back and forth before the tattooed man who had in a short amount of time completely turned his life into…well, something unknown. But as angry as he felt and as restless, he was excited to take on this new challenge and to learn what he could now do. "If you expect me to bow to you in gratitude for giving me a new life-"

Laughing gently, Godric shook his head. "I do not expect that of you and I know you will soon come to see you are not a prisoner. I only do this for your own good. Now, I think it is time begin with the basics."

Chapter 2-Maker

"So I can't go in the sun, I can't drink or eat anything but blood….." Eric made a sneering face as he said the last part. "But I'm also stronger, faster and if I become strong enough and live long enough, I could even fly?"

"Only the oldest and/or strongest can do that." Godric replied as they sat by the fire he had made. Something began to approach them. "you heard that noise, I suspect?"

Saying nothing, the Viking peered through some thick brush and was surprised. how well he could now see in the dark. There was a group of men scavenging the remains of his former men. As Eric watched the bodies of his friends being ransacked . As the anger raced through him, he felt a funny sensation in his mouth. Godric had told him that he would quickly gain control over when his fangs dropped down but for now, the timing couldn't be better. "Feels funny." he muttered as e touched his fangs with his fingers carefully. "but I think they will certainly come in handy."

"If you are thinking about going out there and slaughtering them, I don't blame you. But vengeance is not the answer-" too late, the Viking leapt out into the clearing and began attacking the men, taking on all 12 at once. He recognized most faces from the battlefield, faces who were responsible for taking the lives of many of his friends. They too recognized Eric from the battlefield but as soon as they saw him move with such unnatural speed and the fangs he now bore, they were all too eager to try to retreat. "I command you to stop. Kill no one." Godric emerged into the clearing, his voice neutral but his face showing a little pity to his new protégé.

Stopping dead in his tracks as the last wounded warrior ran away, Eric rounded on Godric. "I wanted them. You know I did, they would have killed me of they had the chance."

"You provoked them into battle. If you had remained hidden, no violence need have taken place. I was hoping for some wild animal for you to perhaps try to test your new abilities on. I am not a bloodthirsty creature. I have compassion for all living beings. But you do need to learn somehow. Come, will go hunt for some wild animals,."

Looking at the bloody scene with the pyre still smoldering, a thought came to the Viking. "My men didn't provoke you yet you had no problem killing them." he was looking for something before they moved on.

"Defending myself was all I was trying to do. They would have done anything to keep me from you and I was forced to kill them. To save you from certain death. I took no joy in doing what I did and assure you they died swiftly. Painlessly."

Pursing his lips as he was able to finally put his fangs back up Eric found what he was looking for. Picking up the large sword and reluctantly taking a belt from one of his men, he strapped his sword around his waist. "I'm ready to get away from this place. To find the one who killed my family."

"You have no real need for that weapon. You are a weapon." Godric said, nodding at the blade.

"This is all I have left of my family. My father's crown was stolen my his murderer and from what you told me, I can never return home to take my place as my father's heir. So I am nothing more than a nomad now. Looking for revenge."

"You may think you have lost everything but you have gained a great deal. I know this may be a confusing and difficult time for you and if I had the power to give you back your family and restore things as they were, I would. We can only move forward, not backward."

Rolling his blue eyes, he glared at his maker. "Do you always speak like this?"

"I only want to help you heal from the terrors you have seen and to give you a new life. Wherever we may wind up, I vow I will help you avenge your family. But I need information from you. Tell me about the night your family was killed. The more details, the better for I have been around a long time and I have seen and heard things."

And so Eric spun the tale about that fateful evening, desperate for any help that could put them on the right track to finding the culprit.

Chapter 3-Sister

The manor house was one of the largest in the area, as luck would have it the owners had been killed from the plague spreading across the land. And rumors were running rampant that people who tried to claim the house as their own had never come back. And after the 5th disappearance, it was believed the house was cursed and so no one dared even pass by the place any longer. The information trail had long since went cold as the two traveled over Europe for the past many centuries and now they had remained here in London for several decades now, unaffected by the illness that was wiping out a good amount of the population.

"Want any more?" Godric had been drinking from a body that was almost dead from the plague. Not wanting to harm innocents, he knew the disease would not effect him or Eric and though he didn't need as much blood as he used to, he had been needing a bit. "Before it goes to waste?"

Rising from a cushy high backed chair in front of a roaring fireplace, his longtime companion strode into the dining room, looking at the body sprawled on the dining room. Dressed in a long sleeved white shirt and tan trousers, his long wavy dirty blonde hair was framing his pale face in delicate waves, Eric's fangs popped out as he came towards Godric. "I suppose I could use a touch more. Then I plan to go back to retrieve the precious gift that was nothing more than a object to the king. Are you certain she will do well with us?"

"I think the time is right for our family to expand. From what I you told me in your talk with her, she has the perfect fighting spirit that I saw in you. Go get her before it is too late."

Leaving the manor, the vampire made his way fast to the makeshift infirmary where he had first met her. He had wanted to ask permission to bring her back before just taking off with her and now that he had the go ahead, he hoped she still had the flicker of life inside her that was needed for the conversation. He stopped as he saw people milling around her bed, a priest appearing to give her the last rites. Moving swiftly, he pushed past them and lifted her off of the bed.

"What in the devil are you doing?" demanded the priest as several others came to his aid. "You Can't take her out of here, you'll-"

"Spread the illness? I daresay its spreading even without her being moved out of this….sty." Eric sneered as he scooped her up. But the men all banded together and blocked his escape. Wanting to simply kill the men, he knew he had not the time nor the permission of his maker. Rather he smiled. "Brave men you are." he said slowly as they all were drawn to his eyes, their defensive positions slacking as they fell into his control. Glamouring, Godric had long ago told him, was a very important talent for him to possess and it certainly had gotten them out of many a tight position over the last many centuries. Sweeping from the room, leaving the dazed men in his wake, he was back at the manor house quickly.

Having already prepared the hole in the ground Godric stood at the front door patiently as the woman was cradled in the arms of Eric.

"Good evening Miss Gainsbourough." Godric gently stroked her hear as she struggled to kill begin keep her eyes open. "You are about to begin a new life, the illness will be taken from you and you will begin anew. I will ask you once more if you are certain this is what you want?"

She looked up at Eric. "I only have just met you and have not known him much longer." she looked at Eric before looking back at the second man. "I am near death and have nothing to lose. I do not fear death or whatever may be ahead of me."

Godric looked at her and smiled. "I think I have chosen well then. Place her inside and make certain we are covered well. The fear of us will keep curious people away as it has for decades now." as he watched Nora be put gently into the hole he followed suit as he lay next to her and looked up at his progeny. "I know you will someday have your chance to be a maker and having taught you and watched you, I have faith you will choose wisely and be a good maker as well. Bury us, the sun will be up shortly."

And so taking a shovel and coupled with his vampire strength and speed, he buried the two under the soil, hearing only the cries of utter misery of the people nearby as more and more fell victim to the plague that had taken so many already.

He was patient only to a very limited capacity and as he paced back and forth next to the grave, Eric watched as a hind began poking out through the soil. As he helped to dig them up, he first found his maker and helped him out of the hole with one hand. And then a second hand poked through, one daintier yet as strong as Godric's was. Pulling her out of the dirt, Eric helped her out of the hole. She looked around and dusted herself off as best she could. "How do you feel?" Eric asked her as he looked at her face which was looking up at the clear night sky.

"Everything….it's so much more intense. Clearer. And I feel….I don't believe I have ever felt as good as I do now."

"As you should be feeling. You have literally been reborn into something better than you were." Godric took her by the hand. "You have a new family now, I, your new father and now you have a brother." he nodded at the tall blonde beside her. "Word has it, you were the last of your family to remain?"

Nora nodded, tears beginning to roll down her face. Even in the soft moonlight, she saw that her tears were no longer normal. Somehow it didn't bother her. "Yes, I lost my parents first, then my brother and then both of my sisters. For a little while, I thought I would be spared…"

"But you were." Eric said as he looked down at her. "I was saved from death and have spent the past many centuries learning and watching humans die from illnesses while we thrive. You too will thrive. But you do need to learn as I did of your new abilities and talents."

She touched his long dirty blonde hair and ran her fingers gently through it. "I suppose I was right in saying you had the look of destiny about you, wasn't I?"

He nodded. "and I believe you do as well, or you would not be here. Now, we need to go inside and prepare for the daylight. Or we will all be joining your departed family."

Nora nodded . "I don't suppose there is a chance of cleaning myself up first?"

"We have a grand home here. Of course you can and I believe that the former owners of this place have some clothes appropriate for one as exquisite as you." Godric replied as he led them back into the house.

"What happened to the ones who lived here?" she asked, feeling that she already knew the answer before she could complete the question. "Oh. I suppose it is not a surprise, really."

"Tomorrow night we will begin teaching you all you need to know. " Godric replied as they reached the basement of the manor house where there were three crypts in place. "Until tomorrow night then." he said as he lifted her up and helped her get situated in the wooden coffin, where only a thin later of velvet lined the inside. She found it oddly comfortable as she fell asleep quickly.

Chapter 4-1903

She had become a fierce fighter and gained control of herself far easier than her brother had which was the reason she was about to be released. "I want you to have full freedom and to make something of yourself. As much as I would like to have you remain with us, the time has come to let you go. It has been three centuries since you joined with us and I feel you are ready.."

Nora nodded, her British accent cracking with emotion. "I believe I am ready as well and I vow to do you both proud. And I will try to keep in touch with you, I promise.."

Godric looked at Eric before turning to his youngest progeny. "Then as you maker, I release you and wish you all the best."

"And you had better keep in touch." Eric replied as they stood in the second story of the hotel, standing out on the balcony . It was a warm and muggy evening here in Boston and the trio had been traveling all over the world, learning and training. Not to mention the long and winding path for Eric to find the ones responsible for slaughtering his family. It was that drive and anger coupled with impulsive killings of people he suspected were involved with the crime that was keeping him tied to his maker. They had came to America a couple of centuries ago after hearing tangible information that the suspects had fled to the east coast. so far, nothing.

They said noting as they all left the building and walked to the nearby train station. Neither of them really had need of traveling with much. If they needed something, clothes and such, they needed only to glamour people and they would have it. As it was, she carried only a small suitcase containing a couple of outfits she had grown to love, along with some jewelry. "Well, I suppose this is it. I know have a feeling you're not one for goodbyes, big brother but-" Nora stood on tip toe and gently kissed Eric on the cheek. "It's not going to be forever, you know. We will meet again, provided you don't drive Godric mad with that reckless an stubborn streak of yours and he has to put you down." she said jokingly, though there was a shred of truth to her words. He was rash, impulsive and had a temper to boot and though still under the yoke of his maker, Eric was still a danger to peopled be until the time Godric felt he was safe enough and ready for his own release.

"I wish you would stay." he replied as he took her hands into his own. "I don't want you to leave." he looked down at r wit a intensity in those blue eyes of his.

She took him gently by the hands. "I know you would never admit it, but I know you love having a family. A unusual family, but still…..I know you have never gotten over losing your own all that you have to let me make something out of myself. I know you will do the same but you only will when you take more of the teachings of our maker to heart." her English accent was so soothing to him usually but tonight, it only pained him the more she spoke. The train began making noises as it prepared to leave. "I will see you again. I promise. Sooner or later, destiny will bring us together again. But unless you are prepared to swallow some of that pride of yours and learn from Godric, then I don't think I dare come across your path again, brother." with a sadness in her eyes, she boarded the train with her meager belongings and left the others in her wake.

"Are you alright?" Godric asked his remaining progeny as the train slipped into the night. "You can not fool me trying to keep that blank look on your face. I have known you for a long time and can tell when you are upset and troubled."

"I don't want to talk about it. Let's go home." he replied curtly. "And I want to learn everything you can teach me to survive and fit into the world. I want my freedom. True freedom." and with a nod, Godric led them back into the city where there was more adventure for them to be had.

Chapter 5-San Francisco 1903

He had been told how it was done and had even experienced it himself when he had been turned, though admittedly, he had been at the brink of death when it had occurred. He couldn't bear to let the prostitute who he had taken such a liking to just end everything. He saw something in her and knew it was like how Godric had once told him that he had seen something in him that had made his mind up to turn him. And now, as he rose from the grave and waited for her to follow, he looked down into the grave and saw Pam's lifeless body beginning to ever so slightly move. He had not even had the chance to ask Godric about doing this, as his maker had went to get some errands done, whispers of the whereabouts of those possibly responsible for the deaths of Eric's family so long ago having been the apparent mission. He had come to trust Eric more lately in the months since Nora had left them and so here he was, bringing a new vampire into the world for the first time. For a moment he feared what Godric would say, do in response to discovering the new vampire. But maybe, he didn't need to right away.

"My good dress. Ruined." the woman said as she was helped out of the grave. Dusting herself off, she looked up at the sky and then to the face of the man who had saved her from certain death. "You did it…..didn't you? I'm like you now?"

"Yes." he replied gently. "But there may be repercussions for what I have done and I do not wish to keep secrets. After some deliberating, I will reveal you to him and hope that my punishment will not be terrible. I was not about to allow you to die there in front of me. I care about you."

Pam arched a eyebrow. "You barely know me. We go back, what a few days, at most? I mean, you're handsome and all and I am grateful for what you've done for me but-"

"I am not taking what I just did to you lightly and you need to learn that you can't just slip back into your old life as a….lady of the evening, shell we say? You've already witnessed first hand how brutal and conniving vampires are with that Lorena and that southern gentleman pet of hers. You think you can just go off on your own? No. you are mine until the time I see right you can be released to go off on your own." he paused, thinking on the many times he himself had been lectured in this way, gently, by Godric and here he was now, lecturing his own.

Pam pursed her lips before smiling smugly. "You are unlike anyone I have ever met. I can not even begin to wonder what your story is. Where you came from. How long you've walked the earth. What I know for sure though is that you will teach me what you know and that we will be together a long time. Vampire or not, I am still a woman and we tend to have pretty decent intuition.

"Then let's go introduce you to what I suppose you could call your grandfather now." he replied, leading her out of the shadows and he gripped her arms gently, looking around carefully. "Hang on tightly."

Obeying, she was stunned as instead of moving like the wind in a horizontal manner, they instead launched upwards, landing a distance away at a sparse looking house that looked rather dreary and abandoned. "For such a nice dresser, I find it hard to believe you live in such a place."

"We prefer remaining hidden as best as possible for survival. To draw as little attention as possible, though it is fairly impossible. We must feed, of course and animal blood does not do the trick. We travel from place to place, all over the world as necessary." he let her into the house which looked much better inside than out, lit by lamps and lanterns.

Entering the warm living room, seated in a tall high backed chair sat a simply dressed man reading a book. As he looked up and saw Eric, he looked relieved. Until he saw the woman behind him. Racing over to Eric, Godric threw him to the floor, anger in his voice as his fangs came out. "What have you done? I did not ever give you the permission to procreate. To make such a choice without asking me. And here I am trying to give you more freedom, believing you have learned and matured after all these centuries."

"He saved me. I wanted this." Pam interrupted as she stepped forward and looked down at them. "He wanted to give me this gift because he believes in me. No one has ever believed in me before. My parents have shut me out in the years since I became what I was. He has empowered me and wants to help me become something better."

Godric frowned and slowly got up off the Viking. "Is this true? You saved her?"

"She wanted this. She was in pain and she reminds me of….well, myself all those years ago when you came across me. I gave her a new purpose. You believed in me and I believe in her. At least, I pray you still believe in me. I will accept punishment if you think I deserve it but I will not apologize for doing what I have done."

There was a silence that dragged on for what felt like forever. "I knew there was decency in you. Underneath the bravado, the pain and suffering you have gone through yourself over the centuries, I always wondered if there was a chance for you to redeem yourself. To be the good person I know you had the chance to be. And this night, you have proven that you have maintained some of your humanity. The love and kindness that you don't want to admit to yourself is there, is, and will always be there, no matter how many walls you put up to keep from being hurt again. There will surely be more pain in your future. Life is not easy for humans nor vampires and suffering is always hand and hand with happiness. That is why I am not punishing you, but rather commending you."

"There. You were worried for nothing. Feel better?" Pam said as she admired herself in a mirror on the wall, trying to fix her mangled hairstyle and clean up some of the dirt that was on her face. "I hope there is at least warm water around here for a hot bath."

The tension in the air dissipated as Godric and Eric got up off of the floor, the older vampire offering a hand, which was reluctantly accepted. "However, I advise you to not make a habit out of making new vampire just because you can. I am over two thousand years old and you and Nora are and will likely be the only ones I will bring into being. It is not something to be trifled with."

"I wasn't even planning on making this one but here we are and for some reason I think she will be more than a handful for me to deal with, much less creating more vampires to keep track of."

Laughing, Godric invited Pam to the living room where her new way of life was to be explained to her in further detail the evening was still young and though pleased to have done some measure of good, there was still more than enough torment within Eric to keep him troubled as the thoughts of his sister and the thirst for vengeance against those who killed his family raced in his mind.

Chapter 6-A Lead in the Rubble

The scent lead them back to Europe just as World War II was ramping up. In a abandoned and shelled out building, Godric and Eric had killed some SS soldiers, taken their uniforms for themselves and in front of their eyes, saw the woman turn into a wolf and back again, a mark on her shoulder fitting in perfectly with marks they saw on others. And there was something nagging at Eric telling him that back all those centuries ago, he would have seen that mark on the wolves that had killed his family. There was little doubt that they were on the right track.

"Paris was such a beautiful city once and I know it will be again." Godric said as he, Eric and Pam strolled the streets of the eerily quiet city. The war was over and now construction was beginning, a first step in healing the people and the city after such violence and horror that the Nazis helped wrought. Though they managed to keep undercover, it was too much for the trio of vampires to take out Nazis here and there, feasting on their hateful blood and keeping them from their terrible deeds. But still, they were also finding themselves once more at a dead end as to the hunt for where the wolves were coming from, who they worked for. Every trail they had come upon had eventually turned cold and as good as they were at tracking, they realized that whomever, whatever they were dealing with was all the more cunning and clever than they had bargained for.

They were staying well hidden in the city, moving from building to building, carefully as to not only go undiscovered, but not wind up caught in a building that would come down in broad daylight. One evening, after going out to look for some new clothes to wear at some of the few shops not harmed in the war, Pam returned to their temporary home, a boarded up home that was one of the better building remaining standing. Dressed immaculately in a pair of black stilettos, a black calf length skirt and a silk mauve blouse, she didn't miss a beat as she kept her purse slung over her shoulder. Her capture was wriggling as she maintained a tight grip with her right hand. "This was a rude interruption to my shopping. I think he may be of some use to you." she shoved her prize at her maker who caught it by the throat Removing the blindfold she had put over the scraggly figure, it was revealed to be a man, appearing to be no more than forty.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Eric sneered as Godric looked on. He saw it on the man's neck, the mark that had caused him such torment. Gripping the man to the point of choking him, Godric touched him gently on the arm.

"We will not lower ourselves to his level if he truly is what we believe he may be. We can get answers, you know that. Quite easily." Godric gave him a knowing look. "Let him go."

Reluctantly, Eric obeyed and instead of trying to run off, the man looked almost crazed, his eyes wild. "I knew you'd not be able to go though with it. Master said that would be your weakness. What will cause him to win and gain what he will. He was always destined for greatness. He's been around even longer than you, Viking."

Simmering, Eric was trying hard not to go at the man again. "Pam, where did you find this…thing?"

"I was trying to do some shopping…what little there is to be had and I overheard him mention something about moving some treasures to the states. Somewhere down south. Apparently whoever this guy works for is about to become king of one of the southern states. He's already gotten settled in a really nice mansion and has guards all over the place. He's rich and powerful and three thousand years old, from what I gather."

"What else can you tell me? I need names, descriptions." Eric said, trying to maintain his tamper. But he once more took the man by the throat and with a unfortunate blind rage, inadvertently crushed the man's windpipe and the bones and his neck. The body sliding to the floor, a usually cool faced Pam looked stunned as Godric shook his head.

"That temper of yours once more has gotten the best of you, has it not? You desire your freedom and when I think you have accomplished something, you take two paces backward."

"I don't think it was a total loss. We learned something we didn't know before." Pam interjected, ready to defend her maker. Over the past four decades since joining this bizarre family, she had proven herself more than a little loyal to Godric and it was clear to him that she would die for her maker if the need arose.

"I suppose we will need to make preparations to return to America then?" Eric said in a wooden voice, staring at the body on the floor. "Judging by this fellow, it would be wise to leave her tonight, at least get out of the city."

Chapter 7 -Diverging Paths

Having wound up in Texas and having remained there for several more decades, Godric had come to a conclusion one day in August, 1960. "You are as prepared as I believe you will ever be. I have been offered as position as a sheriff here in Dallas and with all of the murders of innocent people going on, something needs to be done. I have faith in you and Pam here that you can get what you need and if I should hear any further information, I vow I will send it to you. It is time for the parting of the ways. Not forever."

Eric laughed coldly. "Nora said the same thing when she departed and we have not heard nor seen from her since she joined the authority. Like we don't matter. No attempt to try to see us again…" the pain lingering from her being gone was still very much fresh. Pam touched his arm gently.

"I will make sure he is well cared for." She said to Godric as they prepared to feast together one last night before they took off for what they hoped would be one of the last legs of their journey. Louisiana.

Nodding, he gestured for them to join him in the small room they were in, a glamoured woman was on the table and would feel no pain from the upcoming biting. As old as he was, Godric didn't need to take much and easily stopped himself after a few gentle nips. And to his pleasant surprise and relief, he watched as his own progeny was able to control himself and also stop before it was too much blood lost for the man. Pam, se was stubborn as a human and now as a vampire, she was just as stubborn. But she ad just recently gotten the hang of ending her feeding before it was too late. Five minutes later the man was having his wounds healed and was glamoured, off to the streets of Dallas where he would chalk his temporary weakness and lingering mark on his neck to a dizzy spell resulting in a accident.

"I want to remain with you. All of us together." Eric said, almost pleadingly.

"I am releasing you as of this moment, though I have no doubt that any orders I may give after the fact you would do without question." Godric said as he put his hands on the shoulders of the Viking, who was kneeling at his feet. "I release you Eric and will always care for you. Make certain that which I have taught you is not lost to your pride and temper. That what you seek is not lost for your pride. You are one of the most powerful beings to walk the earth now I would suspect and with your improved powers, the least of all you can fly-you must use these talents to keep our family safe."

"I want to remain with you. I don't trust humans that they wouldn't find out what you were if they ran into you. That somehow they could capture you. Or worse."

Smiling, the older vampire shook his head. "We have kept out of human attention for centuries. As things stand now, humans believe vampires to be nothing but myths. Stories. I was fine for the two thousand years I existed before I met you and I can care for myself. You should not need worry about me. You're afraid, I can tell. Not that you would ever admit it. But you have your own child to protect and guide now. You are not alone and I assure you we will meet up again. All I wish for you is to settle down, and start something of a life for yourself. You can do that as well as track down the culprit who caused you such pain. There is something I should tell you." Godric pulled out a thin envelope with the symbol of the Authority upon it. He handed it to Eric.

As he tore the letter open and read it, his eyes fell to the signature on the bottom. "From Nora? She requested me be put in place as a sheriff?"

"Sheriffs are not just handed jobs. There is much deliberation that goes into selecting a sheriff and as it so happens, in area five of Louisiana, there is a…..vacancy. Apparently the last one was prone to wanton human killing and thought she could hide that fact. But she was caught in the act and given the true death. A good word was put in for you and among our kind, you have a legendary reputation.

"In the letter she confirmed something else. What I seek is in fact in Mississippi. She says she dare not get too detailed for her and my own good….."

"Bide your time then and soon I am sure you will get what you have longed for. This is where I leave you two. I too am beginning a new job as sheriff in area nine in Dallas. I hope to do my part to keep peace between our kind and humans. Enough blood has been spilled at my hands and that of others. Goodbye Pam." Godric took her hands in his and kissed them gently. "Be sure to take good care of him."

Pam stiffened as if the suggestion that she wouldn't was put out there. "Of course."

Turning to Eric, Godric looked up at him and put his hands on his cheeks gently. "Keep track of that temper. I know I may waste my metaphorical breath, but think of me and what I tried to teach you should you find yourself in a bad situation."

With that, the ancient vampire had gone and left his family even more splintered, fractured than it had already been.

Chapter 8-Business Opportunity

They had lived under the radar in Shreveport for some time now, patiently waiting for the moment where they heard anything new on the shady figure that had been hunted for so long. When it was learned that it was a matter of a few weeks before the news would be announced that vampires were in fact, real, the two took to taking some serious time into deciding what they would do with their lives here. They were becoming rather bored and since being made sheriff, Eric had certainly become more powerful than he had been before and it in turn, made it all the more easy to get what he wanted. The word now was not something he would just accept.

"This place. Is disgusting." Pam sneered as they toured the empty building. "I was hoping you would have wanted to open a place in New Orleans, somewhere a little more interesting. But-"

"No matter where we open the bar, it will be lucrative. People have had a fascination with our kind for a long time and when they learn we're real and that they will always be around at this bar of ours, it will only mean we get rich."

"We've got plenty of money already, thanks to glamouring people out of it. And the money Godric gave you before he left us." Pam said. "You really want to go through with this?"

They entered a small room that shot off the main room. "A good place for a office, don't you think?"

As he headed down the stairs to examine the basement, he brushed some of his long blonde hair back from his face. "You are not even listening to me are you? Are my complaints falling on deaf ears?"

"If this so called Great Revelation can be something for us to profit from, then why not? I have loved our travels, but I think it is long overdue for roots to be made. To settle down. And surely, you wouldn't rather opening up some frou-frou little bakery and you bake cupcakes all night?" he raised a eyebrow at her.

"You think it will help get leads on you family's murder." Pam replied flatly, crossing her arms over her pale pink dress.

He said nothing as he pushed open a hidden door in the basement. "I think I could put some of my personal things in here for safe keeping. I've amassed many old weapons from back in my time and I despise keeping them in a storage locker…"

"Maybe this could be a dungeon for you.." Pam quipped as he closed the door to the hidden room of the basement

"Hmmmmm….." he replied, lost in thought. "I think you may be on to something. Should I happen to find anyone who knows any information, I could use a place to interrogate without disrupting a business. The realtor said that the basement was pretty much soundproof."

"And where is the realtor anyway?" Pam asked. `

"I don't need some person in a suit and tie showing me a building. He came by the house this morning like we had planned and I decided we didn't need a tour guide. Glamoured him into giving me the keys to this place and I put him in the basement at home until we return. He'll be fine, furnished basements are rather nice. especially mine."

"Yes, it is." Pam admitted. She and her maker had bought a pair of sleek and stylish homes in a upscale, gated community and tended to try to outdo each other with renovations. As it stood, Eric had just managed to get a hit tub, small arcade area and a blood bar installed in his own basement. Not to mention the plush leather sofa and chairs. The realtor would not be uncomfortable during his stay. "But I stall say, ,my closet and bedroom alone would score me more points than your whole house combined." bar.

"Yes, if all the judges happened to be women." replied the Viking with a smirk. "But seriously, I think we'll take this building for ourselves and I can have this place ready just in time for the news to be out there. Not going to lose out on any sales."

Chapter 9- Opening Night

The buildings exterior was white with a single door leading into the club. A black door with a red awning over a red carpeted path leading to the door was the only real embellishment the outside had. In the single window that was present, a window painted black to keep all light out, a red neon sign denoted the name of the new club. Fangtasia, as Pam had inadvertently come up with after flipping through the television channels on tv one night, seeing the old Disney movie Fantasia on air. "I always thought Disney could use more of a bite." she would tell Eric later as they agreed on the club name.

In the days since the Great Revelation, the fear and interest in vampires had increased tenfold but the people who wanted to be around them, the fangbangers, as they were newly christened as being, were packing the bar full night after night.

It was their first week in business and they were a hour away from opening. Pam had a surprise she had wanted to give her maker on the first evening but delays in the shipping had caused a delay. After taking a few sips from the delivery man as punishment when the gift finally arrived at her home, she was ready to reveal it.

"What's this all about?" Eric frowned as he emerged from his office, having been scouring the receipts of the last week. There was couple of stairs that led to a small stage where normally it would be used for dancers. Instead, a wrapped parcel with a big pink bow rested, waiting to be opened. Circling the large object, he eyed Pam. "It's not my birthday, not that I have celebrated it much….did you buy yourself something for your birthday? You've been known to do that before and I know how you do like to show off."

Smirking, she gestured for him to open it. "I think you will have a better seat. The best in the house, to ensure that we have booming business every night. People have heard about you but have not seen you. They want to see the Viking vampire on display. Trust me, it will make for a good business move and I assure you, I will make sure you are not bothered by some clingy fangbanger."

Removing the wrapping paper and bow from the object, he was somewhat surprised to see what was inside. A gilded throne with a black leather cushion on the back and seat. He was silent for a moment before looking at her. "I like it. I do." he sat down upon the throne and looked out at the bar and the small raised platforms where the dancers usually performed. "I do want to be more hands on…."n

"Well, like I said, I can make sure no one gets their hands on you. I think your presence will certainly get a lot of buzz. Your reputation is legendary, of course."

He nodded, his smile fading. "Thank you for this and I will use it.." he got up and began to head back to his office. There was definitely something troubling him and she knew just what it was.

"There's something else." she said, pulling out a envelope from her purse. "It came in the mail today and…..I wanted to wait for the right time. We still should bide our time but-" the letter was snatched from her hands as Eric took it and read the short letter in the very familiar handwriting.

Chapter 10-Reckoning

Much had happened since e night he had gotten the letter from Godric. Not only had his maker voluntarily met the sun, but he found himself harboring feelings for the one who had been kind enough to be with him that morning when a part of him was lost to him forever. He had not felt like this about anyone, much less a human in many centuries and never as strongly as he did now for the fairy waitress. But for now, those feelings needed to be put aside. As he infiltrated deeper into the Russell Edgington regime, making himself appear more than a little loyal to the king of Mississippi, Eric was planning on when and where he would finally get his vengeance. Unfortunately, thanks to several snags and unfortunate events, he was instead forced to bury the vampire king in cement, bound in chains of silver.

As glad as he had been to be reunited with his sister Nora, he had been upset to see her practically brainwashed in the whole nonsense of Lilith, to say nothing of the fact that he was reunited with none other than Edgington himself. Swallowing his pride, he had even gone to far as to pledge loyalty to him, knowing full well he was so close to his grasp, yet so far. He dared not make any rash move, not yet. Not until he had the chance to get his sister out of the blind faith she had in the Authority and in Lilith.

After they had been given a drop more of blood tat was supposedly from the so called goddess, they both watched as their beloved Godric appeared before them, only to be killed before their eyes by Lilith. After that, Nora had snapped out of the religious fervor and was able to get out of the authority building with him.

Briefly they separated, as Eric knew where he could find the one person he had waited centuries for to get his hands on. Off into the night he and Nora flew until they reached a empty field where he saw Russell Edgington approaching the entrance to the fairy nightclub, the fairies behind the threshold trying to use their combined light to keep him at bay. But he was incredibly strong and was slowly pushing through the blinding light and the force that came with it. Pulling out something from within his black leather jacket, he swooped in as he took his shot. Grabbing the ancient vampire king from behind, he placed the stake just over the still heart of the one who had caused him so much suffering.

From a safe distance away, Sookie and the other faeries were watching the tense scene, not quite relieved. They would not be safe until this monster was finally eliminated, which appeared to be imminent

"I waited ten centuries for this moment. I suppose I should thank you, for if you hadn't done what you did, I wouldn't have fought so hard on the battlefield, got as wounded as I did and became what I did. In that regard, I guess I should be grateful. And now, we end this." plunging the stake deep into his sworn enemy, a enemy that not once but twice he had been forced to swallow his pride and pledge allegiance to. He enjoyed the sight and feel of the ancient vampire exploding into a bloody mess all over him. He was just as relieved to see that Sookie and the other faeries were unharmed and safe.

Epilogue

The safety deposit box stored in a vault underneath his manor house was opened for the first time in a very long time. After everything he had gone through with the maenad, witches, Lilith, the list seemed to go on. At least he had finally gotten rid of the one creature he had sought out for so long. From the box, he was holding the crown he had stolen back from Russell what seemed like an eternity ago. And still fresh also was the loss of Godric. Grateful for Sookie being with his maker at the end, he was nevertheless feeling that hole that he knew could never really be filled. Nora too had joined his maker in the true death and as thankful as he was to still have pieces of his family intact still. Hell, he was even getting to care somewhat about Tara now. And with Pam and Willa, he was not about to let any of them fall in to harm's way. Over the past many months, he had had visions of his maker, pleading with him to not exact vengeance, to spill more blood.

"You still have that stubbornness, that want for revenge that in retrospect perhaps I helped to make flourish in you. I was hoping you would find another way to expel your enemies without bloodshed." the ghostly image of Godric came to him as he stared at the artifacts in the box, the crown still in his hand.

"I tried once to be rid of him without causing bloodshed. He would have finished off our family if given the chance. This time, I showed no mercy and now he is gone."

"And I agree you did what needed to be done. I see the wearied, the sadness in you that you refuse to let others see. You do not have to keep others at bay, though I know you have thawed out, so to speak in recent times."

"Since the day I met that fairy, I feel…different. And I am not sure if I like it or not. But it bothers me, for reasons I struggle with.

The spirit of his maker nodded. "You fear being seen as anything but a warrior. That is all you have ever known and though you clearly have love for others, the girl, this fairy, is different. It is all I ever wanted for you, to find some happiness after all the suffering you have endured. The hurt, the losses and the fact you've kept it mostly to yourself, its bound to make your heart hardened a little. But I want you to remember that you can allow yourself to be happy and that you can let yourself relax. I am certain that there will be more trials in your future and more pain. Life is not easy for humans or vampires and never will it be a cake walk. I leave you with my wish that you can do as I have advised. You can be strong and happy. And be able to fight and show love." with that, the ghostly image vanished, leaving the Viking to ponder just what his life was now and what it could be.

The End