A/N – I do not own any characters from LOK, but Azrael is mine, all mine mwah ha ha…well this version of Azrael is mine, there are many Azrael's scattered about the fics :) Meg will probably make an appearance as she usually does. This is written mainly from Raz's POV, but it was necessary to have bits of Azrael in it as well, it's not as bad as the 7th lieutenant for jumping (honest!) x

This is for Raven who I'm sure asked me for an Azrael fic at some point…hmmm…

This is set some years after B0, when Kain is in the process of raising the vampires and people still think the vampires have been eradicated, oh how wrong they are mwah ha ha.

Chapter 1 – The Mighty Have Fallen

(Raziel)

I shouted my disapproval as my body hit the floor. I had barely hit the ground before I was on my feet, rushing towards the door that was closing on me. I didn't make it in time and the heavy, metal door slammed shut as I reached it locking me within. I shouted again and kicked the door, but not even my superior strength was enough to break it open and it didn't take long for me realise I was trapped here.

I let myself turn and fall against the door, my vampiric eyes adapting almost instantly to the darkness of the cell. I looked around in dismay; I was being held in one of the Sarafan prisons after I had foolishly overestimated my abilities as a fledgling and challenged a gathering of their soldiers. I chuckled to myself as I realised the precariousness of my situation. I had been a vampire for over three years but was still considered a fledgling, my sire, Kain had taught me often enough that one of my age was still vulnerable and weak. I, like my brothers, Turel and Dumah was not to go out in the day or if did to be with either Kain or Megara, my sister. When I hunted, if I was inclined to hunt the Sarafan knights, I was to hunt the newcomers, the weak or the isolated, but I was only to challenge a fully fledged Sarafan knight if I was absolutely sure the victory was mine.

Now I had disobeyed the golden rules set down by my master. I had gone out during the day and not only had I tried to fight a knight, but that knight had been far from isolated and had called for enough backup to take a group of vampires let alone a single fledgling. I was reminded of the story Meg had told me of when she had been a fledgling, younger than me, she had challenged a Sarafan knight and almost lost her life. Indeed if Kain had not intervened she would have. Now, I was in a far worse situation, rather than ending my life they chose to capture me and lock me in here, while they decided how they would extract my knowledge. It was of no surprise to me that they were ecstatic to have captured me. My sire and sister had been hunting for years before I came on the scene and since Kain had raised my brothers and I, the Sarafan numbers had been slowly decreasing. Though they refused to believe vampires had returned, though they had no absolute evidence to the reappearance of vampires within Nosgoth, it was a suspicion that would have constantly played on their minds.

Part of me felt slightly embarrassed that I had exposed our existence to them. Kain wanted our lives to remain shielded from the humans so they could not hunt us out as they had tried to do once. Now, Kain wanted our existence to only become apparent to them when we were moving to conquer them. I dreaded to think what he would say when he found I had destroyed that part of his plan…then again I dreaded to think what he would say when I returned period…if I returned.

(Azrael)

My eyes fluttered open and I could feel myself being held between the two Sarafan who had been sent to pick me up. My head still throbbed where they had hit me and my legs hurt where they dragged behind me, against the stony floor. I raised my head, painfully slow to look at my captors, they were both familiar to me. I had seen them countless times when I was younger, among the many that would search my house and the neighbouring houses trying to root out anyone who may have been hiding vampires from their bloody campaign, but I knew of no reason why they should come for me now, of all times.

The two that held me now were far stronger than I, so I knew better than to struggle. Instead I took note of where I was being taken and let my head drop back down, partly from the pain and partly because I saw where they were dragging me to.

I was being taken to the main Sarafan headquarters. The place where all prospective Sarafan trained and enlisted, though admittedly since the eradication of vampires less people became taken with their cause. The building was still on an impressive scale though. The training area still existed as well as the largest vampire prison in Nosgoth, which one would think would have closed or been renovated, with no vampires to hold there why keep a vampire prison? The execution area, through which I was passing was still smeared with the blood of past exploits. Vampiric bodies still sent a shiver down my spine as I passed their impaled bodies, their faces frozen in the most horrified and pained expressions, an eternal testament to the Sarafan's 'noble' crusade.

I was dragged within the building and taken to the Sarafan commander's office. Portraits of Moebius and Mortanius, the founders of the Sarafan and the beginners of the crusades hung around the room. I had had the misfortune of gracing Moebius' presence once before and I knew from experience he was in no way the noble and strong warrior that he was portrayed to be here.

The Sarafan commander, a tall, well built soldier sat behind a desk where he appeared to be writing details in some kind of log. He didn't look at up when I was pulled in, instead he finished his work, placed the book, carefully aside before he rose from around the table and only when he was standing the opposite side of his desk, before me did he look at me and speak.

"Well now," he said, smugly as if some grand scheme had come to light, "We know what you've been up to and what you've been doing, so why don't you come clean and we can punish you for your crimes?" his eyes bored into me. I glared up at him in disbelief,

"What crimes?" I demanded, feeling myself being released and pushed forward to face the commander, "What are you talking about? Why have you brought me here!"

The commander continued to look at me calmly, "Come now, we all know that your family were keen vampire sympathisers, during the crusades."

"Yes!" I snapped, "and we were imprisoned during the crusades for it. My father and brother was executed for it, that was all years ago, why have you brought me here now."

"I have reason to believe that you have been helping vampires," the commander said. He still remained smooth and calm, leaning coolly against his desk, watching my confusion and anger.

"When!" I demanded, "You of all people should know there haven't been vampires in these parts for years, I admit we helped vampires then, but my family was punished for it and myself and my mother were granted anonymity when we were released after the crusades ended." I tried to understand what he was saying. It was true; my family, living in Nachtholm, had been one of the most prominent vampire sympathisers during the crusade, but we had paid the price for it and worst of all we had failed. Our attempts came to nothing the day the last vampire, Vorador, had his head off. But this had all been years ago and since then my mother and I had moved to Uschtenheim to start afresh, I had been returning to Nachtholm on business when I had been picked up by the Sarafan. I had had no contact with vampires since before we were arrested months before Vorador's execution. Besides, vampires had been totally eliminated, how could I have had any contact with any of them?

I didn't like the way the commander was looking at me. He had some kind of smug, evil smirk on his face. "So you say, you haven't been in contact with vampires?" he asked, slowly.

I glared at him, struggling to grasp what he was saying and it didn't help that my head was throbbing from where they had hit me. "How could I have? You killed them all remember?" I snapped, though I realised my choice of words more than revealed my resentment to them. Hardly the best thing I could have done right now.

"See if we can jog his memory," the commander said, no longer addressing me. I felt the arms of my initial captors come about me once more, "Take him to his friend," came the order. I had no idea what he meant and I didn't have time to protest as the two dragged me, forcefully from the room and down the corridor toward the cells. I recognised the way and part of me was lost in memories as I thought of how years ago I had been dragged down the same path. Some things had changed, last time I was struggling, last time the prison was filled with the screams of tortured vampires and human sympathisers, this time the way was silent and I knew from experience not to struggle.

Ironically they took me to the same cell. I don't know whether even they realised it, it was probably more for convenience and ease as it was the first cell to come to. Unlike last time where they opened the door and took me in to ensure I was…comfortable, this time they took me right to the door before they opened it. The door was opened just a split seconded as they opened it, shoved me through it and slammed it shut after me.

I steadied myself and looked back at the door, somewhat bewildered at their haste. I took this opportunity to finally massage the bump where I had been hit and I sat against the wall, looking around.

I froze as a growl resonated throughout the cell. My eyes darted around the cell and then I saw him. In the corner of the cell, opposite me, sitting against the wall, glaring at me, fangs bared was against all odds and defying history was a vampire.

TBC