I'm calling this an AU because, though I will be covering some canon events in the series, I'm changing some things on a fundamental level. Mitchell, George, and Annie will remain their canon supernatural entities, but I'm changing the rules a bit. I won't bore you with specific details here, but you'll catch on as the story progresses. I've always been intrigued by various versions of vampire lore in particular, and I've drawn inspiration for this universe from Underworld and The Mortal Instruments series, but I'm incorporating my own original ideas as well.

On a less academic and more exciting note (at least, I'm pretty excited about it), I'd like to talk about my original character. I've had this idea for a while (since I became hopelessly obsessed with The Hobbit) that I would really like to see Richard Armitage as a vampire, especially alongside Aidan. This idea soon developed into a full-blown character that I started daydreaming about constantly, and so I am happy to finally introduce Lucian to the world!

This story is the first in a series of three entitled The War Chronicles, of which I currently have the second installment in the works.

Thanks for reading and enjoy! :)

Prologue: Break

At night, I feel like a vampire

It's not right

But I just can't give it up

I'll try to get myself higher

Let's go

We're gonna light it up

Tonight we start the fire

Tonight we break away

Break

Away from everybody

Break

Away from everything

If you can't stand

The way this place is

Take yourself

To higher places

- Break by Three Days Grace

A lone figure stands on the pavement outside a small club in Bristol, steel blue eyes gazing up at an overcast sky. As a drizzle of rain begins to fall, he turns up the collar of his jacket with a smirk. Lucian's home country may have changed much in the long years of his life, but an English summer was still an English summer.

As day turns swiftly to night, he can feel his senses come to life. He takes a deep breath of the night air and walks towards the entrance to the club. Once inside, Lucian removes his jacket and takes a seat at the bar.

The club is buzzing with activity. Young people enjoying a free evening mill about with drinks in hand. Some are seated at small tables trying to hold conversations over the blast of the music, while others sway to the beat on the makeshift dance floor. The DJ appears to be taking requests tonight, as the current song playing has a distinct rock edge to it, less typical of these sort of club settings. There seem to be no complaints from the patrons however, as the music succeeds in igniting the energy in the room.

Lucian allows himself a small smile as the second verse of the song begins to play and he catches the lyrics.

At night, I feel like a vampire. It's not right, but I just can't give it up...

Humans, he muses as he takes a sip of his drink. Lucian can recall a time when the human attitude toward his kind was much different. Vampires were hunted down and slaughtered like animals by the fearful masses. Nowadays, vampires were simply the stuff of legend, exploited by Hollywood producers as a means of entertainment. No, he thinks, humans are entirely ignorant of the dangers lurking in the shadows.

Not that humans need fear all vampires. Vampires can survive well enough on the blood of animals, though it does not grant the drinker the same sort of strength that human blood does. Fresh human blood was known to give the drinker a sort of high, and many vampires would become addicted to it. Though it is possible for a vampire to drink from a human without causing permanent harm, this was rarely the case. Most vampires would end up killing their human victims in a haze of blood lust.

It is for this reason that vampire law strictly forbids the attacking of humans. In the old days especially, vampires needed to do everything they could to avoid discovery. Severe consequences were dealt to any vampire that drew unnecessary attention to their community. The penalty for taking a human life was death.

In more recent history, it has become less of a battle to keep these so-called "rogue" vampires in check. With advancements in the medical field allowing for the drawing and storage of blood, vampires could now obtain human blood without causing harm to a human. Vampires in the medical field, being primarily responsible for such advancements, have continued to maintain control of blood banks for the purpose of aiding humans as well as supplying to vampires in an effort to eliminate the killings. The bagged human blood does not induce the same sort of high or have the addictive quality of a fresh kill, but it sustains a vampire much more sufficiently than animal blood.

Lucian casually scans the crowd, taking in the life of the room. This is what he enjoys about humanity; their sheer vitality. Their lives are so fleeting in the vast scheme of things, but they live as though they will live forever.

He catches movement out of the corner of his eye and he stiffens, instantly alert, as he spots a young man prowling through the crowd. The man is fairly tall with a solid build. His hair is unnaturally dark, longish and straight and his eyes are a sort of pale grey. He is clearly going for a sort of rocker look with his studded bracelets and clearly visible tattoos winding up and down his arms. Lucian believes he may have spotted the individual responsible for the current choice of music, however this is not why the young man has so suddenly commanded his full attention.

Contrary to common myths, sunlight is not harmful to vampires, but it does render them comparably weaker; their senses more akin to mortals. As soon as the sun goes down, a vampires senses come to life, their bodies seemingly fueled by the night. Their strength and speed becomes almost superhuman.

And Lucian is no ordinary vampire. He is considered one of the Old Ones; his memories stretching as far back as the Crusades. He has had centuries to hone his senses and his skills. But he doesn't need centuries' worth of experience to spot what is right in front of him. The tattooed man is a vampire, and he is on the hunt.

Lucian keeps the young man in his peripheral vision as he chats up a young woman near the edge of the crowd. The pair are standing very close to one another, and as the tattooed man leans in to whisper something in the women's ear, the pair turn and exit the club through a side door leading outside. At this cue, Lucian rises from his seat, slaps a couple of bills on the counter, and heads toward the door, pulling on his jacket as he goes.

He steps through the side door cautiously, senses even more heightened due to adrenaline. He stands in the alley for a moment, only to quickly turn on his heel as he hears voices off to his right.

As he rounds the corner, Lucian spots the young woman with her back pressed against the brick building... and the man leaning towards her, fangs bared.

Lucian is there in an instant. He grips the man by the shoulder, spins him around, and slams him bodily against the brick building. The young woman, seeming to return to herself, catches sight of the man with fangs still bared and screams. Lucian turns to her, keeping his grip on the man against the wall. "Go," he says, "now." The women spares him a quick glance, then turns and runs out of the alleyway.

Lucian turns his attention back to the man in his grip, his own fangs bared. "What the hell did you do that for," the man groans, indignantly. "I almost had her!"

"What is your name," Lucian demands, boring into the young man with his gaze. "Adam," is the tentative reply.

"Well then, Adam," he continues, keeping his voice even, "tell me, since when has it become common practice to hunt humans, in a public setting, for your own amusement? Or are you not familiar with the laws of your own kind? Would you risk the exposure of our world? Just so you could get your kicks for one night?"

He releases Adam with a shove and takes a step back, awaiting a response. What he gets is not what he expects. Adam, who had not met his eye during the entire exchange, finally lifts is head, and he's laughing. "You must not live around here," he says smugly, "'cause there's a hell of a lot you don't know."

Lucian clenches his fists at his sides and lowers his voice dangerously, "Who is the head of the local clan," he demands. Adam just sneers at him, shaking his head. Lucian takes a step forward, "Who is your leader?"

"He says we shouldn't have to hide," Adam says, "he says the world should belong to us. We have the power. We will live forever. Not the humans! Why should we hide from them? Why should we give a damn about them?"

Lucian grabs Adam by the front of his shirt and shoves him against the wall, "who?"

Adam's grey eyes meet steel blue, "Herrick."

Lucian releases him abruptly, but stands his ground. "Herrick is weak. He's nothing more than a coward," he growls.

Adam sneers. "You really think so? Herrick will lead the Uprising, and he'll kill anyone who stands in his way. In fact," he continues with relish, "he already has."

Lucian shakes his head, "I don't believe you. Herrick will say anything to get what he wants, because fools like you will believe him and follow blindly."

"Really?" Adam boldly takes a step towards him, leaning forward slightly, like he's sharing a secret. "Then what happened to John Mitchell?"

For a moment everything stops, and Lucian is propelled back in time. He sees a pair of brown eyes staring up at him full of fear, but also hope. Fear of himself and what he had become, what he had done. Hope that the man before him could save him, make him feel human again. That was Lucian's responsibility. He had to save him, there was no one else.

Lucian recovers himself quickly and pierces Adam with his gaze. "What are you talking about?"

Adam paces the alleyway, clearly pleased with himself at being privy to this information. "Herrick tried to bring Mitchell in," he begins, "even offered to make him his second." Adam shakes his head in disgust, "but Mitchell wouldn't have any part in it. Said we had no reason to kill humans. That we aren't monsters. Blah blah blah..." He stops in front of Lucian and looks him directly in the eyes. "So," he continues, "Herrick shows up at his front door, takes a stake, and drives it through his bleeding heart." On the last word, Adam jabs his finger into Lucian's chest for emphasis before taking a step back, laughing to himself.

Lucian's head is spinning. He refuses to believe there is any real truth behind this man's words, yet he is gripped by fear. He takes measured breaths in an attempt to control his rage, but he can feel himself quickly losing the battle. And all the time, all he can hear is Adam's laughter.

He fixes the young vampire with a gaze that could penetrate steel. Wordlessly, he reaches into his jacket, producing a cylindrical silver object from an inside pocket. Adam doesn't seem to notice. With a flick of his wrist, the end of the silver object extends to a razor sharp point. Lucian doesn't even blink as in one smooth motion, he lunges forward and drives the stake through the still laughing vampire's heart. Breath escapes Adam in a gasp as he gazes down at his chest in confusion, then raises his eyes to Lucian's.

He stares coldly as the figure before him begins to crack and crumble until it is nothing more than a pile of ash. He stands a moment in silence before reaching down and recovering the stake. As he rises, shaking off the dust and depositing the retracted weapon back inside his jacket pocket, he is consumed by a single thought. I have to find Mitchell.

He turns his face up to the now cloudless and star-filled sky and takes a deep breath of the night air, closing his eyes. Then, swiftly and silently, he turns on his heel and heads out of the alley and into the night.

And so it begins!

For those who may be wondering, the song referenced at the beginning is "Break" by Three Days Grace. I actually did not originally intend to write a prologue, I was just going to dive right into the story the way the plot summary suggests. I was on my way to work when this song came on my playlist, and when it got to the vampire line I was struck with sudden inspiration which turned into a whole chapter. Shows you how my mind works, lol.

I hope this wasn't too boring with all of the history and whatnot. I was trying to explain how things work in this universe without just giving you guys a list of "rules" for the vampire world. I promise it gets better!

I appreciate any and all feedback I can get, so please share your thoughts! What you liked; what you didn't like; I need to improve, so let me know! :)