Note: Hey guys I'm really sorry I haven't updated in a while, I've just been living with my mom now and she hasn't got her Internet hooked up yet but we're working on it x.x; And I'm visiting my dad now so I'll be catching up over Winter Break.

Chapter X

There was lots of things Harkat couldn't remember. He didn't know who he was before he died, if he had been a male or a female, how long he had lived.. Nothing. Little People were genderless, but we decided to refer to Harkat as a he.

Their blue robes were for show, but their masks were necessary. If they breathed air for ten or twelve hours, they'd die, so they had chemicals in their masks to purify the air.

"So what you're saying is.. You can die, even if you're already dead..?" I asked, confused.

"Yes. My body.. can die, like.. anyone else's.. If it does.. my soul goes.. back to the way.. it was."

The Little People could read each other's minds. That's why they never spoke.

"No Little Person has ever spoken, in hundreds of years, I presume? Even when dying, or in great pain?" Ariel turned her gaze to Mr. Crepsley and Gavner, who nodded in agreement. "For what reason have you broken the long silence, Harkat?"

He hesitated. "I have.. a message.. Mr. Tiny gave me.. it to give.. to Vampire Princess. So.. I'd have to speak.. soon anyway."

"A message? For me?" Ariel raised her brow.

"What sort of message?" Mr. Crepsley leaned forward intently, but pulled back into the shadows when the sunlight casted down upon his face.

"Is is only.. for Ariel and.. the Princes," Harkat said. "I do not.. think I.. should tell.. you."

"Go on, Harkat, they won't tell anyone," She urged with a reassuring smile.

I nodded. "You can trust us."

"You will.. not tell?" he asked Mr. Crepsley and Gavner.

"My lips are sealed," Gavner promised. Mr. Crepsley finally nodded in agreement.

Harkat took a deep, shuddering breath. "Mr. Tiny told.. me to tell you.. that the night.. of the Vampaneze.. Lord is at.. hand. That is.. all."

"What kind of message is that?" I asked.

"I do not.. know the.. meaning. I'm.. just the.. messenger." Harkat replied.

"The night of the Vampaneze Lord is at hand?" Ariel looked at me, somewhat worried. "Is that supposed to be bad news, Mr. Crep-" She stopped when she saw the expressions on the vampires. Although we had no idea what Harkat's message meant, it obviously meant a hell of a lot to them. They were paralyzed with fear- Faces even paler then usual, bodies trembling.

"Are you guys.. okay?"

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The vampires wouldn't tell Ariel and I about the meaning of Harkat's message immediately- we had to weed it out of Gavner, and it took three or four nights. Apparently it involved something that Mr. Tiny told the vampire princes hundreds of years ago, right after the vampaneze broke away and caused a war. Once the fighting died down, he visited the princes and told them that although the vampaneze had no higher powers, such as generals or princes, one day a champion wold step forward. He would be known as the Vampaneze Lord and the vampaneze would follow him, and obey his every command.

Shortly after the Vampaneze Lord comes to power, supposedly he is supposed to lead the vampaneze into war with the vampires. After a series of clashes, the Lord of The Vampaneze and the Vampire Princess would fight to the death. Whoever won would win the war for their side, but Mr. Tiny had warned that the vampaneze would most likely win.

"I was worried about Ariel, since she supposed to be taken in by the Vampire Clan at a much later age.. If she was blooded this early, then I assumed there was trouble- not to mention the nightmares she has.

"As I told Ariel way back when, It's been said that when a vile climate begins to pervade the earth, it will cause nightmares to those who are sensitive to it. As the Vampire Princess, it is important to be aware of her nightmares and dreams- And she was having her nightmares because of this, I believe." Gavner explained.

"How will we know the Lord when we see him?" Ariel inquired.

"That question has puzzled vampires for as long as it's been asked. Let me know when you find out," He said with a wink, and drew the conversation to a troubling close, his words left hanging in the air.

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About a week later, we reached our destination.

"I don't see the palace.." I murmured, squinting up at the snowy peak of the steep and rocky mountain.

"..What palace?" Gavner replied.

"You know- Where the Vampire Princes live."

Mr. Crepsley and Gavner busted into laughter, As Ariel scratched one of Streak's ears; distant.

"What's so funny?" I snapped.

"For how long do you think we would escape detection if we built a palace on the side of the mountain?"

"..Oh."

Ariel's head popped up, as if she were snapping out of a daydream. "It's inside the mountain?"

"Of course." Gavner smiled. "The mountain is a giant hive of caves and chambers, all connected. Inside it had everything you'll need- coffins, vats of human blood, food, and wine."

"How are we getting in?" Ariel inquired.

"You will see." Mr. Crepsley said, causing her to sigh in aggravation.