Prologue Arc I: The King of the Vampires.
A/N: Yo minna! This is (the coolest) Wildfurion once more!
The first thing I need to say is: I'm sorry.
The last try I gave on writing a Strike the Blood fanfic was a HUGE failure of mine. The plot was horrible, the OC was boring, the romance was pretty bad and cliché. I'm really sorry for all of that but now I've learned the lesson and will never ever again write a chapter in a hurry.
This fanfic is probably one of the best ones I've ever written until now. It'll be a detailed tale about the 4th Primogenitor and his story, starting since the medieval ages until the present of the series.
About my OC, I'm publishing his profile on the next chapter (which I'm already writing on my notebook). I hope you like him as he is a bit less serious than Kojou, but also has a more Evil side of him, in which he doesn't hesitate in using his huge power in order to reach his goals. Also, I'll make a poll in order to know whether you'd like original familiars or the ones from the series for him.
Strike the Blood is one of my favorite animes and attracted my attention recently, although I've watched it for the first time on 2013, because of the complex and original plot and the lack of OC fanfics on the topic really surprised me. That's one of the reasons why I keep trying to write this kind of fic for the anime.
About Yukina, Asagi, La Folia, Yaze and all the other characters with the exception of the Akatsuki Family (for obvious motives) will be appearing in the story as normal, although their relationships with the protagonist may be different (he may make his own advances on Yukina or La Folia for example…)
Also my former datee and current loli super-nerd girlfriend is reading everything (except for the notes, if she read them I'd probably be dead) I write so that my texts are the best for you.
Anyways, that's all I have to say for now. Thank you for reading my fanfics!
Prologue Arc I: The King of the Vampires.
Baotou, Yellow River banks, Yuan China, 1280.
The junk ( traditional Chinese ship) swayed gently over the waves of the Yellow River, one of the arteries that irrigated the beating heart of China, the crew, composed of men mostly wearing only pants and bandanas, working intensely to keep the course towards Baotou, inland trade city which prospered on the margins of the great river.
Standing on the junk's bow, the man observed the flux of boats and junks in the city's direction with an intense curiosity. His traveling companions resting their backs over huge rice bags (used as pillows by most of the crew) while waiting for the journey to end.
His looks were peculiar, and differed from any of the East Asian, Indian, Iranian or Arabian people. His beautiful and long red hair flew behind him with the soft breeze, his sky blue eyes observed the Chinese landscape intensely and caught every detail which interested them and his face had traits very rarely seen in that part of the world. He wore a white cotton cloak over a turquoise tunic, white cotton pants and light brown leather boots. There was also a long Zweihander attached to his back, but the sword's weight didn't seem to bother him.
The young man's name was Heinrich (or Henry), Heinrich Albrecht de Ardennes(-Verdun) von Luxemburg-Namur, Count of Luxemburg, Verdun and Arlon, Imperial Chancellor and one of the various princes in the highly feudalized Germanic state in central Europe known as Holy Roman Empire, or Heiliges Römisches Reich in German, his mother tongue.
But… what was a European noble with a very ancient lineage, with ancestors who were counts of Luxemburg under (and descending from) the Carolingian kings of Middle Francia (Lotharingia), doing at the far East? What made him abandon his lands and castles in the prosperous county of Luxemburg?
Simple, the man standing on the junk's bow, watching the flux of people and merchandise up and down the Yellow river was, no more no less, than the 4th Primogenitor, Kaleid Blood, a god-like vampire whose existence was considered just a legend by the Magic Organizations and Holy Orders, a terrible Demon created by the Gods with the single objective of creating a new race of vampires from his offspring in order to bring chaos to this world.
In the time, however, supernatural beings such as Spirits, Yokais, Fairies, Therianthropes, Magic Creatures and even the Vampires avoided humanity due to conflicts between humans and Demons. As such, they went to the only ones able to protect them: the vampires or, correcting the statement, the Primogenitors.
A Primogenitor is a father of vampires who rules over vast territories and both human and inhuman populations, there used to be three of them: Lost Warlord, who ruled over Eastern Europe, Foregazer, who ruled over the Middle East, and Chaos Bride, ruler of a land called Mesoamerica and the Caribbean (She was discovered accidentally by Viking navigators, who landed on the continent, but It was only a rumor by the time) (A/N: I mean, Cristobal Colombo will still discover the N.W.). Each of them had enough power to compare to a nation's entire military and their Familiars can bring great destruction to the land, Lost Warlord, for example, was the one who halted the Mongol Invasion of Europe, while Foregazer destroyes the Crusader forces and the invading armies of the Ilkhanate in the Middle-East.
However, there was one who didn't appear in the registers of most Countries and Magic Organizations: The 4th Primogenitor, considered the World's most powerful Demon.
He was never seen by anyone, nor has he made any decree. He ruled over no countries and didn't have any relatives or friends. The existence of this vampire was just registered in the Book of Prophecies, in which the last verses tell about a god-like vampire who was going to finally unite this world and bring peace to Humans and Demons.
That was one of the reasons for which Henry left the lands inherited from his human parents Ermesinde von Luxemburg-Namur , Countess of Luxemburg, and Valeran de Ardennes-Verdun, Count of Arlon and Verdun. A Primogenitor was accursed with immortality, a slow and lasting torture session in which you watch as all the ones you love age and eventually die. How long would the peasants take to see their lord didn't age? How long would the Inquisition's and Kaiser's armies take to reach his hereditary lands craving for the blood of the Vampire King?
And so, telling the Kaiser he searched for a rare remedy only found on the mountainous lands of Persia, Prince Henry von Luxemburg-Namur left the rich lands of Luxemburg towards the mysterious and distant East Asia, where he intended to find a silent and isolated place to settle.
His traveling companions were two vampire ladies. The first, Evangeline Athanasia Katherine McDowell, also known as Evangeline A.K. McDowell, was his tutor and a petite loli girl with long light blond hair that reached her hips, light green eyes and a not very developed body. The other was Anna von Bismarck, his self-proclaimed Chancellor, a young woman with golden blond hair that reached her mid-back, shiny blue eyes and an extremely sexy body (A/N: Since I'm not very good at describing OCs and in order to make the reader's life easier, they are Evangeline from Negima and Bismarck from Kantai Collection, respectively.). Both girls met the Count in different situations…
Evangeline was a former witch in England when, one day, she simply "woke up" as a vampire, thus being a True Vampire, an existence very close to that of a Primogenitor, with the exception that, because she was born a human, she didn't have familiars, using magic instead. Because of her powers, she was sealed in a tree by a group of powerful Anglo-Saxon, Papal and Norman mages 200 years ago but she was set free by Henry through a contract (thus becoming his tutor), during the Prince's voyage to England to visit his betrothed ,Margaret de Anjou, when he was a still a magician.
Bismarck, on the other side, was a D-type vampire lady and met him some months after he became the 4th Primogenitor, during a Peace Conference between the Kaiser and the 1st Primogenitor, Lost Warlord, in Wien, Austria. She was one of the members of the Warlord's embassy and joined him when he and Evangeline were crossing the Straight of Bosphorus in Constantinople, Byzantine Empire, at the beginning of their journey.
"Hmm… the agriculture techniques in this country are very different from the ones in Germany." Muttered Henry with a thoughtful air and a hand under his chin as he observed the huge irrigated farms on the riverbanks. "I have to take notes on it for the future."
His hand then went for his tunic's pocket and picked a small notebook and a pen up, with which he started to write a report (with even detailed drawings) about the Chinese techniques for producing Rice, a grain not found in Europe but present in most of Asia, that was an important part of the Eastern diet.
That was a habit the Count acquired from his master, Evangeline. Starting their journey on 1272 A.C. (When he was 22 and two years after he became the 4th Primogenitor), during the reign of Kaiser Conrad II. Since then, he and his two companions passed by various countries in the Asian Continent. From the great Orthodox Christian city of Constantinople, in the Byzantine Empire, to the various Kingdoms and Rajs in India. During this journey, the 4th Primogenitor served in various positions, from Satrap of Tabarestan, for the Khagan of the Ilkhanate, to Grand-vizier for the Sultan of Bengal, never staying in a place for more than 2 years, otherwise they'd probably notice he didn't age and would try to either use his power as a vampire for their own good or try to kill him (which was impossible, since Primogenitors are true immortals).
However, recently, a flash of hope attracted the vampire to the far Eastern lands. While working as a merchant in Assam, a Kingdom in the northeastern India, Henry heard of a country to the very far east, an archipelago of islands isolated from the rest of the continent where a people called Nihon no lived. Other merchants also told him there were various desert islands in this archipelago.
And that meant his so expected peace was closer than ever. With this in mind was that he waited for the ship to dock in Baotou.
(Small Time Skip)
Nowadays, when visiting a technologically advanced city such as Tokyo or Dubai, a foreigner tourist gets surprised with the differences between his country and the one he was visiting.
That was how Count Heinrich Albrecht de Ardennes-Verdun von Luxemburg-Namur felt when he entered Baotou, one of the main inland trade centers in northern China. Born and raised at the small villages, fairs and castles in Western Europe, the young Primogenitor was admired with the enormous number of people inhabiting the city. How was there enough food for all? That was another thing to add to his notes.
The city was built over a hill and was surrounded by tall and thick stone walls. The docks, where the trio disembarked earlier that day, were located outside the walls for a better protection of the city from attacks coming from the north.
Baotou was also a hierarchical city, where the nobles, the richest merchants and the Tong leaders (Kind of a Mafia) lived in beautiful mansions in the Downtown District. The common people usually lived around the District and usually lived from hard work and small businesses while the poor lived close to the walls and usually begged for money or food.
The main streets, which linked the gates to the Central district, were usually very large and carts and booths selling from rice wine to silk could be usually seen. The secondary streets, meanwhile, were the great majority of them and resembled alleyways, with the houses' roves almost touching.
Henry observed all of this with a childish enthusiasm, writing everything in the minimal details on his small notebook.
"Heinrich-sama, it's not that I feel bothered by you writing information about the city…" said Bismarck in a slightly annoyed tone, a comic tic mark on her forehead. "But we've been walking around with no clear objective for at least two hours under a hellish sun. We , vampires, get burned if exposed to sunlight you know?"
Noticing his skin was really getting a bit tanned, Henry answered with a playful smile.
"Ara, sorry ~." Said him, then closing the notebook and placing it back inside his pocket with the pen. "We've done enough tourism for today. Now then, we have to meet with…hmmm, what was his name?"
"Geez Henry, you're a real klutz."Said Evangeline with a disappointed sigh "We have a meeting with a merchant called Cheng Wu. According to the agent, he lives in the rich part of Baotou, also known as Central District."
"Oh yeah, Cheng Wu, now I remember it." Said Henry as if he had made a great discovery, making the two girls sigh. "Anyways, let's go! We have a Cheng Wu to find!"
So he started walking… right on the opposite direction!
"Evangeline-san, is Heinrich-sama this klutzy when not working?" asked Bismarck sweat dropping.
"Unfortunately, yes." Said Evangeline with a sigh. "Let's get the count before he gets lost and we have to look for him all day long. Let's go!"
Bismarck nodded in agreement and both followed behind the 4th Primogenitor who, at this point, had already disappeared in one of the narrow streets of Baotou, certainly excited about his research on the foreign country.
(Small Time Skip)
"Hmmm…" said Henry with a thoughtful air while analyzing the address written in Han Chinese( which he learned during his time as merchant in Assam) written on a piece of paper by the merchant's agent. "Is this the right place?"
The vampire trio was standing in front of an enormous Asian-styled residence. The house was located in the middle of a great garden with small fish ponds, where golden fish swam peacefully. All of this surrounded by a 7ft tall white stone wall.
"What brings you to Cheng Wu's residence?" asked the gate's sentinel in a somewhat obvious attempt to intimidate the "visitor", not knowing he was talking to the world's (although inexperienced) most powerful vampire. "State your business."
"Good afternoon, I'm count Henry von Luxemburg." Said Henry with a bow, a common greeting in that lands, before waving his hand at the two girls behind him. "Those are my companions, ladies Evangeline A.K. McDowell and Anna von Bismarck. We're here for businesses with Cheng Wu."
"Master Cheng Wu didn't tell me about any Henry. Much less about an Evangeline or Anna." Said the sentinel seriously. "If you're here to beg, you'd better get los-"
"They are my guests, Liu. Treat them with respect." Said a male's voice behind the sentinel and the trio looked up to see an old Chinese man with a bald head and a long strand of white hair braided back wearing a yellow Hanfu. "So you've finally arrived, Henry-san. Now we can do business."
Henry answered with a smile that Evangeline and Bismarck knew very well, it was the smile he gave when about to enter a negotiation. The young man always got what he wanted in the diplomatic battlefield, it was because of that talent that he became the Chancellor of the Holy Roman Empire, the one responsible for the diplomacy between the Kaiser and other human and non-human rulers in Europe, such as the Pope and Lost Warlord.
"It would be a pleasure, Mr. Cheng Wu." Said Henry as the gates of the residence opened for the trio.
(Small Time Skip)
After taking a bath in the artificial hot springs, which didn't exist in Europe, Henry, Evangeline and Bismarck put comfortable silk Hanfus on (Henry left the Zweihander in their room) and were taken by the household servants towards Cheng Wu's dining room, where the old man waited for them in front of a full table.
The Chinese food intrigued the 4th Primogenitor. The Europeans, usually, gave preference to bread and meat in their meals, accompanied by huge quantities of beer or wine. The Chinese, on the other side, preferred vegetables such as rice (grain not found in his European homeland), cabbage and spices, aside other regional delicacies considered weird or gross in Europe.
The table in front of them was full of rice bowls, dog meat, toasted grasshoppers and other strange foods. Also, there were some bottles of the extremely strong rice wine the Chinese people hugely appreciated.
"So girls." Asked Henry as he sat in front of the low table in the traditional Asian position, sitting on his knees and feet. "Does any of you want to be fed by me?"
Laughing of the joke, the four had a happy meal, with Henry surprisingly enjoying the taste of the toasted grasshoppers and of the rice wine, from which, however, he only drank one glass. He liked to negotiate with a clear mind. (A/N: I have no idea if vampires can get drunk.)
"So, Cheng Wu." Said Henry seriously. One of the few moments in which the carefree and cheerful count of Luxemburg got serious was during negotiations. It was a field which he dominated easily. "I suppose you already know why we're here, don't you?"
"Oh my, you go straight to the point, Henry-san." Answered the old merchant with a smile and a nod. "Yes, you're looking for a ship towards Japan right? I wonder why, though… what interests you in that small and isolated island country?"
This time, it was Bismarck who answered.
"Heinrich-sama is interested in the archipelago for purely academical reasons." Said the 4th Primogenitor's Chancellor seriously. "We are reuniting the Eastern Countries' history before going back to Europe."
"Huh? You're very young for researchers… way too young." Said Cheng Wu then leaning forward. "You're vampires, aren't you?"
Bismarck's hand immediately went for the sword on her hips, but Henry raised his hand in a gesture for her to stop. If they killed Cheng Wu right there, they'd have problems in finding another person able to get them into a ship towards Japan.
"Ara ara, it seems you found out about our true identities." Said Henry with a playful smile before getting an emblem from his pocket. It was an ambassador insignia from the Lost Warlord's Dominion which obviously didn't belong to him, but to Bismarck, although the merchant didn't need to know this. Cheng Wu's eyes widened when he saw it, meaning he knew it's meaning. "I am an ambassador sent by the 1st Primogenitor, Lost Warlord, in order to do a research on the Eastern lands, which are a mystery for most Europeans. Now, do you understand why do we want to go to Japan?"
The merchant nodded and Henry smiled. Evangeline knew her apprentice had taken control of the diplomatic battlefield by manipulating the merchant into believing him. Now Cheng Wu was in Henry's hands.
"I understand, I understand…" answered the merchant who then served two more cups of Rice Wine and emptied his in a single gulp. Henry's, however, was untouched. "But I believe you know the trip's price is very high right? Ever since the Great Khan tried to launch an invasion to the islands, the relations between Japan and the Middle Kingdom have been hostile, extremely hostile. There are rumors that the Emperor is planning a new invasion and various ships are being built in Hangzhou, Canton and other coastal cities in China and Korea. A fleet big enough to transport 100000 Mongol soldiers…"
The count nodded in agreement and the merchant proceeded.
"Knowing about this, are you sure you can pay the price?"
This time, Evangeline took a small leather bag from inside her shirt and placed it over the low table. The sound of coins could be heard from inside but Cheng Wu knew it was something even more precious.
"I believe this shall be enough." Said the former witch and current tutor of the 4th Primogenitor with a smirk. Cheng's hand went for the bag and, when he opened it and saw what was inside, his eyes widened. Inside the bag were various small rubies, the jewels perfectly cut in a geometrical shape. That was Henry's payment as Raja of Peshawar for the Sultan of Delhi, one of the many functions he had in India, but Cheng Wu didn't need to know about it.
There was a brief moment of silent between the two negotiators as Cheng Wu stared at Henry with eyes widened in surprise. The rubies inside the bag were enough for Cheng Wu to buy an entire province as a feudal princedom, an army of slave girls to serve him, build a palace and live like a king for the rest of his life. How rich was the man in front of him?
'What is it? How can someone give so much money in exchange for a safe trip to Japan?' thought him before shivering in fear of the vampire sitting in front of him, the piercing blue eyes never leaving him, even when the man was drinking. He was creepy, Cheng Wu needed to get rid of him the fastest possible, otherwise he'd only bring problems to himself, his family and his city. "V-very well, Henry-san, I know someone whose ship is going for Japan next month."
The red-haired man gestured for him to proceed while taking a sip from his Rice Wine. The burning sensation across his throat bothering him slightly. That drink was very strong, but pleasurable for the count.
"A friend of mine, Li Zhu, is a merchant from Hangzhou. His fortune comes from illegally trading chinaware, slaves, silk and spices for Japanese gold." Said the merchant nervously as the count nodded in agreement. "One of his ships is sailing towards Okinawa, in the island Kingdom of Ryuku, and from there, to Nagasaki, in Japan, where he's going to sell some products for the local Daimyo. I'll ask him to take you three with them in exchange for some favors he owes me."
"I see… very well Cheng Wu, I'll take upon your offer." Said Henry then giving a light bow. "Now then, excuse me but I'll be leaving Baotou this night."
"Why don't you spend the night here?" asked Cheng Wu nervously. "You can sleep in one of the bedrooms and I'll send slave girls, or boys if you like them, to please you for the night. You don't need to hurry, Henry-san."
"Unfortunately we have to do so." Said Bismarck seriously. "Our voyage is supposed to be secret so it would be troublesome if the local authorities found out a vampire is in the city.
'And also because we don't trust you a single bit, your old serpent.' Thought Evangeline bitterly. They knew Cheng Wu would sell them to anyone who paid more money than them and Henry wasn't up to paying bribes to the Yuan authorities just to pass through their territory safely. "We want to reach Hangzhou as early as possible. Henry doesn't want to miss his ship after all…"
"I see…" answered the merchant sadly before giving Henry a respectful bow. "I promise you, I won't fail in getting you three into that ship."
"It was my pleasure to make business with you, Cheng Wu." Answered the count, then getting up and walking towards the door followed by the two women. He then halted by the doorway as if he remembered something. "Oh yes, if you're trying to fool me or my true identity is revealed, I believe you know what happens to Baotou…"
The glare Cheng received from the vampire was harsh and scary and the merchant nodded in agreement.
"Very well." Said the count, then turning back to the door. "Let's go, Evangeline-sensei, Bismarck."
"Hai, Heinrich-sama."
"Yes, Henry."
Answered both girls and the trio left the room, leaving the old man alone to his thoughts and fear of the terrible and mysterious vampire whom he made the mistake to invite for a visit.
(Small Time Skip)
Henry von Luxemburg watched the dark waters of the Yellow River passing under the ship from his place over the junk's bow once more. The crew worked intensely to keep the ship under control as the night hid them from the patrol ships, with one sailor or another stopping to take a glance at the mysterious count for some seconds before returning to work. His two companions just watched him from their resting places.
He was back with his traveling clothing: the blue cotton tunic covered by a white desert cloak and leather boots. The Zweihander wasn't on him, though, he decided to leave it with Bismarck. His long crimson hair was also braided over his left shoulder, instead of flying behind him with the wind.
The Primogenitor was thoughtful (something rare for someone as carefree as him), he had finally found a place to settle. A place where nobody would disturb him, where he could live without being looked up by humans and demons as a king. But he missed something… or better yet, someone.
'I wish she was here with me now…' thought the count as he then clenched his fists tightly while looking at the serene and white moon, which was specially shiny that day. The girls knew who he was thinking about. Henry was thinking about the one he loved with his entire heart, the one who blessed him with happiness and also the one who gave him the curse of eternity.
The count was thinking about Avrora Florestina, the original Fourth Primogenitor and the last of the 12 Kaleid Bloods. He still remembered how he met her sleeping like a princess in a coffin inside ruins of the Tenbu civilization of demi-gods, and how he, a human, ended up falling for humanity's most powerful and terrible enemy, the 4th Primogenitor.
'I wish you were here with me now, Avrora…' thought the world's strongest vampire as he then raised his open hand, pointing it at the white moon. The ship heading silently in the direction of Hangzhou.
'I promise… I'll use your power and make you proud, my love.'
A/N: Don't forget to review, reviews are my thermometer! Love you all (although I love my just one year younger than me real-life loli girlfriend the most), Wildfurion!