I watched in the minds eye of my special errand boy. He was busy in the D.C.V.C., in the office outside the meeting hall for the D.C. council.
I had to laugh as I watched the head of the D.C. Guard and his lieutenant breezed through the doors and crossed the room, ignoring the shouts of the receptionist. The Council was in a "private meeting". That usually meant they were in the middle of one of their plotting schemes for more land.
The head turned on her sharply, "We have an apointment. Tell them Spencer's here. They'll open up."
He waited until she'd pressed the intercom button, then kicked the giant old wood door open, causing them to slam rather loudly before he grabbed the lieutenant and pulled her into the room.
I smiled, "Ah Spencer Reid, did I really make you that angry?"
The Council stared at me as I pulled a nervous Alicia into the meeting hall.
It looked like any CEO's meeting room, only the floor was dark glossy wood that was stained in places from their meals. The table was alot grander, it looked like it belonged in a palace somewhere, not stuck underground. The chairs were a dark black with high backs that went far above the Council's heads, the heads almost reaching the ceiling. And, behind him, where 3 large windows should have been were 3 paintings depicting the History of the American Vampires. Our history wasn't that much different from the humans. Some of us traveled with the Europeans here, and some of us had lived with the Native Americans up and down the Americas. The first painting showed a map with the left side depicting the Americas with Native Americans sporting fangs mixed in with humans. Some of the humans were getting eaten by us, and some where just mixed in. On the right showed English, Spanish, and French people and vampires alike boarding ships, and in the middle of the first painting showed us eating some of the ship passengers. Their bodies being thrown over board, lost at sea.
The second painting depictied the more famous vampire stories and ledgends over the years, when the myths were regarded as fact and the stories were considered truth. I always looked for the one about my master. He'd been one to lead search parties going out to look for the missing people he and i had eaten. He'd carried this task as the one to bravely search to no end for the forever missing people while I hid in away in our cabin back in the village, devouring the missing people in bloodthirsty bites. He kept this up until I'd regained full control of myself; for nearly three years. It was one of the stories in this painting because the Council found it quite ironic and always had a good laugh about it whenever i walked in, sometimes making me the butt of their jokes. Needless to say I didn't laugh with them.
Also in the second painting, near the D.C. area, was an elaborate portrait of all 13 Council members. It showed them as glowing and bright young men with shing faces and adoring vampires surrounding them. They sat on gold thrones and held bowls of blood that spilled over from being so full in outstretched hands.
The third and final portrait showed a map of the United States, a box in the upper left corner for Alaska and a box in the lower left corner for Hawaii, that showed all the clans across the U.S. a portrait of each current clan leader taking up most of the space. the D.C. area showed the same portrait as the second of the Council, only their were more surrounding vampires and a black circle with 13 black spikes was drawn around them. My picture was painted on the largest spike, Alicia's on the second largest.
The Council members, really ancient old vampires who dressed like english kings from the Reinassance, sat around the table, all looking up questionably as we barged in.
"We need information and it cant wait." I cried, throwing Alicia to my side. She curtsied to the Council, lifting up the end of her coat like a dress.
"Certaintly young Spencer." The Head, thats what we called him. He was so old no one but the older Council members knew his name, said, bowing his head in my direction. He grinned a yellow toothy grin, something evil glinting in his black eyes.
I've never trusted him.
I ripped the paper showing the strange Tattoo and gave it to the Council member at the end of the table to pass along. His eyes grew wide for a second before the mask of calm returned, then he passed it along.
"A small group of vampires was hunted down by my team and I a week ago tonight. Our database cant which clan the mark belongs to." I felt Alicia tug on my jacket sleeve, "And, one of our own has gone missing. We're currentley searching but we cant seem to turn anything up." I felt stupid reporting this to them, when we oursleves didn't know if Dex was simply hiding.
The Head finally took the paper and stared at it for a long while.
"This mark," He said after a minute, "Is the divine mark of the "Rex Novi Orbis" (A.N. I got the Latin translation off of google translator and i know how unreliable that thing can be so if im wrong please please please tell me!)"
Alicia glanced at me confused, "King of the New World." I whispered.
"Exactly." the Head smiled, "Clever as ever young Spencer."
okay, i may not trust him, but i liked him at the moment.
"The mark of the Rex Novi Orbis was used around the time after Columbus discovered the Americas. Vampires began swimming themselves to the Americas. To escape the suspicions of what they really where, for adventure, to see new things they never themselves thought to see. Among them is an ancient Vampire, said to be one of the first Vampires, who sailed on Columbus' ship when he returned and then left them, going off on his own.
"The Vampire, who no one knows the name or face to this day, traveled up and down. going to the farthest reaches of todays Canada to the depths of the South Americas. he went and collected stray vampires for his own clan. he did so, going up and down the continent collecting, until he had the largest clan ever recorded in history. not even the clan you and your Guard protect in D.C. young Spencer could match his.
"Anyway, when he had decided his clan was large enough, he settled somewhere, now i hope your not about to ask where dear girl because i dont know! the large underground city has been lost to us forever. some say it was destroyed when he was.
"Oh that's right Alexander, im getting ahead of myself, anyway," The Head laughed, "The Rex Novi Orbus set up his kingdom underground, to keep the humans coming. If he just set it up above ground he would be attacked. and when the humans realized what his kingdom was made up of, practically all the vampires in the Americas, the humans would leave. go back to their own countries where they could better protect themselves. so he built underground. a large and elaborate kingdom for him and his followers. he adopted this mark you see. had it branded on his protectors, had it sewn into the flags above ground marking the entrance to his home and tapestries that decorated the walls of every home in the kingdom. He himself wore it as a medalion. Its said it was destroyed when he was, although when im not sure. Our history is much more scattered, having to run and hide or be found and killed young Spencer. I believe it would have been a decade before the American Revolution. Some of the vampires wanted to go off on their own. see the rest of the world. but the king wanted them to stay, keep his kingdom large.
"So the vampires revolted, battling the protectors, and there was quite a number of protectors mind you. enough for an army! the subjects were evenly matched against them.
"but there was one fighter, its believed, among them who had lived very close to the king. He was the leader. so, when the two armies were battling he himself marched straight into the kings Great Hall and declared his betrayal to the King. The king of course was astonished at the mans betrayal. but they fought nonetheless. both were equal in everything; experience, willpower, skill, and bloodlust. they could have gone on forever except that the king was weakend ever so slightly from the life of ruling. not to mention his pain at a life long friend declaring hsi allegiance to the King's enemies.
"And so, Rex Novi Orbus was defeated, the clan destroyed and the underground kingdom left to lie in the depths of mystery and myth. never to be walked in again. the only thing left to survive is the mark." the Head breathed deeply adn set the paper down in front of him, leaning back and folding his hands together.
"So, the vampires we hunted down were the Rex Novi Orbus' protectors?" I asked.
The Council burst into fits of giggles.
"No my dear young Spencer." The Head laughed, wiping his eyes. "Like i said, the only thing to survive was this mark. the protectors were destroyed along with the kingdom and the king. to this day, there are no remaining vampires loyal to Rex Novi Orbus, much less the protectors!"