I do not own the BloodRayne franchise. This is a prologue to the original BloodRayne game. The story begins with the birth of our heroine, and it goes through her childhood, loss of mother and family, and her gradual rise to monster hunter. This may be a disappointment for readers who expected lemons and major action. But I want to show Rayne in a different light.

Instead of being an over sexed character, you will see her struggles and her steady self-acceptance after tragedy and horror. There will be chapters with action in it, I will put a note at the top of each beginning paragraph. I hope to make more stories based on her later on. Now with that out of the way, please enjoy the story...

Arc 1: Dhampir

July 11, 1916

St. Monica's Hospital Maternity Ward

New York City

The rain fell from a light gray sky down upon the dirty sidewalks and towering skyscrapers of New York. The people responded to it in various ways. Ladies in long dresses carried dainty parasols while taking their strolls, the prepared had their umbrella's ready and opened them like a blossom in the springtime when the first of many raindrops fell while the unprepared held newspapers, their hands or just ran to escape further wetness. It was a refreshing respite from the summer heat and people continued on their business as usual. At St. Monica's Hospital, the routines of the doctors, nurses and patients continued on regardless.

The patients still demanded the attentions of the nurses and doctors and they too themselves had to keep on with their day administering medicine and care for those in need. One nurse, Veronica Vespa, had to help the midwife attend to a patient and friend, Eliza McDougal, to deliver her baby. The maternity ward was filled with expecting women and she hurried to the room where Eliza had been taken into after she felt the first pains of labor coming in. She had just called Eliza's family about her labor starting and they were waiting anxiously outside.

She hurried with some medicine to help ease the pain and hurried into the room. As she passed through the ward, she could hear screaming coming from the delivery room. Going towards it, she was stopped by a man with an Italian accent thicker than her own. It was the husband of Veronica's neighbor's niece who had moved into Little Italy just three months ago. He asked her if he could have his two day-old son baptized at the hospital since the priest at the neighborhood church charged an outlandish price for his baptisms. Veronica was in a hurry so she told him that she will speak to a doctor about that and hurried to her destination.

She arrived just in time as the midwife and her foreign assitant were wandering where she was.

"Ahhh, Veronica there you are! Finally somebody I can speak English with!"

Veronica gave the midwife the painkillers and tried to help her friend. Eliza was huffing and groaning in pain and soon, with one final scream, the baby's cries filled the room. Suddenly the midwife's assistant screamed. She backed away and yelled something in her native language and ran off like a monster was after her.

"Angyalka, unde ti duci!?"(Where are you going: Romainian)

Veronica and the midwife looked over the baby and saw that it was girl and what may have scared Angyalka. The baby had a thin, transparent film over her head.

"Its probably a part of the afterbirth," the midwife said as she used a white towel to clean the baby.

"In Angyalka's home country, they believe that this is a sign that the child is a vampire or dhampir, or half-human, half-vampire. Needless to say she is a very superstitious woman."

Eliza had heard this and she closed her eyes as she remembered that night nine months earlier when that monstrous man attacked and raped her. His eyes glowed red and he took glee in hurting her. Eliza shook with fright from the memory of that man who wasn't a man and the chilling words he uttered.

"You shall bear my child, a demon child, and it will become like me and destroy everything you know and love my dear, sweet, Eliza."

The way he said her name was akin to a butcher coaxing a lamb to the slaughter. Her tension was interrupted when she heard her friend Veronica speaking to her.

"Would you like to hold her or …" Veronica trailed off, considering the circumstances of the baby's conception.

"Yes, I would like to please."

Veronica gently handed the bundled up baby to her mother. The little baby had a fine fuzz of red hair on her head and her eyes were a vibrant green the likes of which Eliza nor Veronica had never seen. That eye color was the same as that horrible man's but they lacked the malevolence he had and instead were filled with innocence. Eliza was in love with her newborn and saw that this child will have a life with her. Eliza began speaking to the infant.

"I will spend my life with you sweetheart. I don't care how you brought into this world, but I promise I will overcome that and I will be the mother you deserve."

"What will you name her?" came the midwife's question.

Eliza looked out the window and saw the gentle rainfall cascading outside. She knew what name to pick.

"Rain, Rain Amelia."

"That's pretty." The midwife said. She then turned to Veronica.

"Will you please write out the certificate? I'm the worst speller."

"Yes Signora Smith."

Veronica went to do as told before Mrs. Smith stopped her and then turned to the new mother.

"How do you wish to have it spelled? Would you like it as R-A-Y-N-E or do you have a special spelling in mind?"

"You mean R-A-I-N." Veronica stated. The midwife blushed with embarrassment.

Eliza chuckled and thought for a little bit before she spoke.

"I like R-A-Y-N-E. Its a unique way to spell it. I think I will go with that please."

The midwife smiled and she sent Veronica on her way. After a few minutes Eliza and baby Rayne were taken back to the ward and the family was brought in to see the new family member. First came her father James, her mother Sara, Eliza's older sister Tara came in with her husband Charles and their son Benjamin, her younger brothers Conner, James. Jr and Thomas all marched in. They all surrounded the bed in silence. The first to speak was Sara.

"Do you want to keep her? I know we are Catholic but…"

"I want to mom."

"Really!?"

"Yes"

"But why?" her youngest brother said and was rewarded with slap to the back of his head from Conner.

"Are you sure sweetheart?" her father said in his soft Irish tone.

"Yes, I can't be angry at the baby for what happened, it wasn't her fault. It was love at first sight."

Everyone was quiet again until her father spoke up again.

"Alright then, can we see her?"

Soon Eliza's bedside was filled with awwwes and "Can I hold her please?"

"Such fine red hair!" Sara exclaimed upon seeing her granddaughter's fuzzy little head.

"And such eyes," Tara said ,"I have never seen such green eyes before. Their like emeralds."

The baby squiggled in her blanket and made little moaning sounds. Eliza held the baby closer and kissed Rayne's little head. The visiting hours flew by and soon the family departed with the promise that Charles and Tara will come pick Eliza and Rayne up in few days to go home. Eliza settled in with her child. It was peaceful first night for both mother and child.

3 days later…

A very sunny day graced New York City as Eliza was straightening her hat, ready to go home. Veronica had taken Rayne to a doctor for a final check up and Eliza was waiting for her return. It was a sunny day outside through the window. The light made the brick and sandstone buildings outside look beautiful and young. It was hard to believe that over the Atlantic Ocean, a great war was raging in Europe and literally thousands of people were being slaughtered daily in trenches or the ruins of towns. Eliza had seen several posters throughout the hospital advertising charity for the orphans of Europe, beware of the German Hun or donate your unwanted canned fruits, vegetables and meats for the French and English people.

Eliza gazed out the window when her sister's hand touched her shoulder and told her that Veronica had returned with baby Rayne. She was wrapped in a soft, silky cloth and was sleeping. Eliza extended out her arms to collect the child with a smile.

"Ready to go?" Charles asked.

"Yes I am," was Eliza's reply and they set off to leave. As the group traversed through the halls, the hospital personnel walked about with their own personal schedules to follow. Relaxed patients walked about talking, sitting or reading while nurses and doctors looked at clipboards, discussed treatments or personal subjects while visitors waited on important news or were leaving. Charles pressed a button for the elevator and he and his wife and sister-in-law waited for it to come.

Eliza stood patiently by when a pale hand landed on her shoulder.

Eliza jumped and turned around to see a pale woman with short, light brown hair that was wrapped in a light blue headscarf was behind her. The woman was the midwife's foreign assistant that helped deliver Rayne. Eliza thought that maybe she wanted to see the baby she helped bring into the world one last time but the woman's eyes seemed to say otherwise. Without a word, Angyalka took out a small pouch from her left apron pocket and inserted it under Rayne's blankets. Before Eliza could ask why, the woman's icy blue eyes silenced her.

Angyalka spoke in what little, heavily accented English she knew,

"Put in baby's bathwater. Will not burn her."

With that, Angyalka left, leaving the new mother confused. Veronica was coming towards the assistant and she tried to talk to her but the woman spoke in her native tongue and walked off at a quicker pace. Eliza's friend's looked disturbed but quickly smiled when she saw Rayne and walked over. The elevator came up and Charles, Tara, Eliza, baby Rayne and Veronica all stepped into it and descended to the main floor.

That night…

It was a humid that night in New York City and the people were sweating. The affluent had ices and fans to keep cool while the poor slept out on their fire escapes or, if there wasn't any room or they didn't have one, slept out on the street. Eliza was alone with her mother and daughter in their clammy apartment. The men had gone out to the pub for some cold refreshments and to later see a boxing match. Sara was reading in the living room as an old phonograph played "A Bird in a Glided Cage" by Arthur J. Lamb and Harry Von Tilzer.

Eliza was getting the family enamel bathtub ready for her baby's bath. She made the water lukewarm so that Rayne wouldn't get to hot. After she filled the tub the with a good amount of water, she went to get her baby who was snuggled in a little crib next to her grandmother. She took her to the tub, undressed her and placed the baby inside. As soon as the baby's skin touched the water however, steam rose from the surface and Rayne started to whimper.

Eliza quickly raised her child from the water in fright. She checked Rayne, thankfully there were no burns and she saw the steam coming off her daughter was now fading.

"Eliza, is everything alright?" came her mother's question.

"Yes mother, its okay. I think the water was a little too hot for her."

"Alright, call me in if you need anything."

Eliza was at a loss. She had tested the water herself, it was at an agreeable temperature for a baby. Then she remembered the foreign midwife's cryptic words from earlier that day, "Put in baby's bathwater. Will not burn her."

Eliza remembered the pouch that the woman gave her and she asked her mother to get them.

"What do you need this for Eliza?" Sara said as her daughter took the pouch with a thanks and opened it to reveal that it contained a collection sweet smelling herbs. Eliza thought up of an answer. "I thought that Rayne would smell very nice with these herbs along with the Ivory soap. The midwife's assistant gave them to me today." With that out of the way, Eliza sprinkled a generous amount into the water and she put Rayne inside. This time no steam and Rayne seemed to enjoy the water.

Sara and Eliza cleaned baby Rayne and after she was done, she was dressed in a soft linen dress and rocked to sleep by her mother. Rayne slept peacefully as her mother tried to make sense out of what happened. Why did the water burn her daughter and how did the herbs help? She remembered the superstations of the foreign woman and how Veronica and Mrs. Smith talked of vampires. Maybe should could look into the library tomorrow for more information. But now it was getting late and she could hear the footsteps of her father and brothers coming towards the apartment. She put Rayne in her crib while unbeknownst her, someone was watching her from a distance, eyeing the baby with sinister, red eyes.

So this ends the first chapter, what did you all think? If you were wandering about the herbs, a friend of mine told me that vampires are weak against all forms of water and if they need to take a bath, they need to sprinkle herbs into the water. He got it from the manga Rosario. Pretty cool huh? I could write a whole chapter on vampire trivia but this is good enough for now. Please review!