Three
The Shards of Peace

"How she calls to me, and how I love her.
Yet her voice destroys me, and burns my hearing.
She, who can so easily destroy our kind with but one single touch.
She who is the vampires natural enemy.
She who destroyed Raziel, the strongest of us.
She who chooses me as her lover.

Time goes on, and I accept her love most willingly, though it hurts.
This is my gift, like it was Raziel's to have wings; yet to us both, such is our curse..."

- As written upon bloodstained parchment found in former Rahabim territory -

The sun, freshly set, the night anew. The cliffs were my watches, and below was the most beautiful vista my newly established sight had ever beheld. Imagine the scene as it captured me so, a freshly shaped world that Lord Kain himself had forged, and so chosen us to help him in his task.

We were men, in form and appearance, newly risen vampires – fledgling lieutenants at Lord Kain's own desire. We were chosen by him to keep the land in order, an order that favoured our own kind, of course.

Though developed well by mortal age, in vampiric we were merely children. Lord Kain's sons, his 'Brood of Darkness', 'Children of the Night', curious and sometimes careless, as children often are. Yet from such acts of negligence, so it was that we learnt, and Lord Kain was swift to teach.

Upon the tapestry of this scene we stood, seven silhouettes below a faded night, the tides of time passed between us, but these tides could not move us.

Then it was that one silhouette moved away from the others, walking towards the edge of a forbidden moment.

I remember how I first felt when it captivated me. Water. How I had leant so close, nearly catching its surface. But I wished not to, wished not to disturb the surface, lest I disturb her beautiful façade. So I listened intently, hoping to catch the silvery voice of this translucent element.

The majority of the time I was quite possibly one of the most careful out of Lord Kain's brood. One might say timid, quiet, but always watching and listening. Nonetheless, when it came to the element of water, I forgot all worries and thoughts, becoming completely drowned in just hearing its silver whisper.

So it was the water was close to me. Indeed, still young in vampiric age, our empires none existent, and we were still newly developed and but merely a few nights old from out of awakening. This was the moment that Lord Kain had brought us out into the night for the first time, leaving the shelter of our crypt behind us. We had fed, and whilst allowing ourselves to digest the blood, we permitted our senses to attune to the night. Silently, we explored the many gifts that our newly developed senses offered us, testing their limits.

For a while the night sounds fascinated me, as did the world to which I had awoken to.

At that time there had been no explanation of how we came to be. We were simply here in existence, with but a few understandings, that Lord Kain was Master, Lord, Sire, our Father of Darkness. Those of mortal blood were our enemies, and that we should always, always, be careful of who we bestowed our trust in – immortal or mortal it did not matter, for Lord Kain was swift to highlight that in time, both kinds could and would betray you.

All these new elements captivated me. I would be lying if I denied such. For a while I simply enjoyed hearing a distant howl of the wolf, or the stir of the wind... Yet something captivated me more, and that was the sound of water.

It was with a childlike curiosity that drew me to the waterside. One would think that I had never saw water before, though maybe I had as a mortal, when I had been a priest...

I digress and wonder from the story. For that I apologise. Not yet is it time to tell you of what I was, what the others were, what it is Lord Kain told me yesterday...

Or was it the night before... It could have been the night before that... I am not sure, not sure how long I have been here... Time does not matter here, it never really has... The darkness of this place suffocates everything, including time.

It was a river I knelt beside, looking into the depths, attempting to work out my reflection – the sharpness of the features upon my face, how it was my cheekbones were so notable, and my skin so pallid and pale. We were like sculptures, all of us, animated statues of the highest quality.

But soon I was to ignore my reflection and take more notice of the water. The water was too alluring, and the mirrored image of myself was there to flatter me, to tempt me to come closer, and I was far from understanding the danger of the waters touch.

Lord Kain had yet to tell us about the dangers some elements posed against us, water being one of the most deadly. Nevertheless, I should have understood this, and known before acting so blindly.

I stood upon the very edge of a new discovery, and at the same time so close to destroying myself, for she was not yet ready to accept me.

The tranquil, lucid surface was mesmerising in a way. Calling, beckoning. I was drawn to it, drawn and pulled, though I am not certain why it has always captured me so. Just, the element of water seems to hold peace, peace and the solace I have always wanted to find within myself. Peace within my soul. Though, like myself, water has another side to it. Though peaceful, reflective and calm, it can also be fierce and destructive. Perhaps that is why I like this element so, because she remains to be a reflection of myself.

And it was through all these thoughts that I dared to step even closer to the waters edge. My mind was focussed upon one foolish humanlike thought... Why drink blood if you could but drink from this pure element?

But I was being conceited, and inside I wanted more then to just taste her. And when it was I was just about to step into the beauty of this cerulean element so it was the master spoke.

"Raziel." Lord Kain's voice had been deadly calm. "Stop your thoughtless brother, before he decimates himself. I have no intention of resurrecting him once again, should he be so foolish as to fall into the water."

The word 'decimate' was far from me. My mind was not clear, and my thoughts were mixed and clouded with one thousand different whispers that might have been long forgotten memories and shadows of the past. To say the very least, I had no clear understanding of what the word 'decimate' meant. I had thought that we were resolute, that nothing could harm us! How wrong I was. Immortal, yes, but indestructible? No. For immortal we are, but only spared from the grasps of time and the weathering of age.

Raziel was swift to respond to Lord Kain's request. Raziel the oldest, and already adapting to his new world rather adequately. From such my older brother began to lead me away from the danger, one of his then human shaped hands, laced around my arm. The only indication then of the transformation our hands would endure were the sharp brittle black nails at the end of each finger.

So Raziel led his foolish younger brother from danger, yet not before a lesson could be learnt, and lessons are normally learnt through pain. It is how they become lessons, and how we are not likely to forget them.

Lord Kain haltered Raziel's movement. Then without speaking any words he rested his claws upon either of my shoulders and bayed me to kneel. I did so without dispute, intrigued to see where this was leading. Next to me Lord Kain also knelt, and then drew my attention to the water.

For a moment Lord Kain's claws lingered over the waters surface, hovering, contemplating in what seemed like hesitation yet more so thought.

"Take heed in the elements," Lord Kain said. His voice and face was devoid of any emotion as he took a hold of my hand, which like Raziel's at the time, was still mortal looking. With this gesture he fortified the lesson he was to teach me. The lesson he was to teach us all.

The result from the lesson was absolute, and the pain – consuming. A sudden hurt that gnawed deep into my hand, the feeling as if it was being devoured by fire. And for moments I thought that my skin would fall from the bone. I had my eyes closed in a bitter instant, a shrill cry escaping my lips. This pain that sent burning shivers through my hand, made its way up my arm, and exploded in the very nerves of my mind.

"Master, sire! My hand, this pain!"

When I opened my eyes I realised what was causing the pain, that it was but the tips of my fingers that were touching the water. From that moment onwards I came to realise and understand just what water could do to us. I had not realised that from a simple touch, or a simple drop of the liquid upon our skin, it could cause so much torture.

The demonstration only lasted for but a brief second, yet the pain afterwards radiated for what felt like nights.

"You see, Rahab," Lord Kain said, his voice still calm. He closed his own claws around my fragile, mortal looking and wounded hand as if to dull the pain. "Water burns us as if it is acid. It is tempting and alluring, but so are most things that remain to be a danger to us. Water is a natural enemy to our kind. Be careful around such." Though Lord Kain's claws were still clenched around my hand, and though he spoke to me, Lord Kain's eyes rested upon Raziel.

Lord Kain's warning taught me well that night. But it did not hold me back from admiring this deadly element. I just admired it from a safe distance.

It was through recalling this memory that I awoke, clutching my hand in the darkness as if it still burnt. My hand, I looked at it. No longer was it such the delicate hand with the nimble human fingers that had once been skilled in many crafts. Instead those fingers had been replaced with large claws – sharp, brutal and liable to kill with one swift strike if I so desired.

In the consoling dimness of the room I lay upon a bed of soft blankets. My chosen Rahabim lay close, lying in union to that of my body. In turning over carefully, I could feel the breath of one upon the back of my neck. Though vampiric children they still breathed, though merely out of habit then need, however.

Feeling the movement of a chest rising and then lowering with the movement of respiration brought an odd sensation of comfort to me, especially in the early hours of a fading day. It brought reassurance, that though not exactly 'alive' in the sense of being 'mortal', I was still, nevertheless, apart of the world, still interacting within it.

There was no noise, forever silence. The door to the room was closed, and I knew that outside the door my guards were on watch. This too was reassuring.

I mused, mortals had once dwelt in this house, and now it was ours. Though not the perfect vampiric adobe like what we were used to back in our own clan dwellings, it served us well for that day.

Ah, those blissful, blessed moments! How I savoured them highly. Those close to me, keeping each other warm, myself included. The feel of their unnatural heartbeats, feeling their pulse beneath their skin, a communication between bonds hallowed deep and shared through our connection in crimson. To have them close to me was everything.

A fledgling stirred near me, their claws catching my skin as they turned in a moment of restlessness. Another one nestled deep into my back, profound in the embracing arms of rest.

I opened my eyes, and stretched carefully, so as not to disturb the others. How easy it would be, to lie like this forever, and how much I desired it, for it to be forever this way. The thoughts of just being here for eternity were overwhelming and extremely desirable. To just allow rest to come and go, to allow rest to grace my body and do what she pleased, whilst feeling the closeness of my own so near.

These select few who rested with me acted as security and protection. Should someone tempt fate, and get past my guards and break into this room in hope of slaying me, then by disturbance, if I did not awake so quickly from rest, they would. Thus they would be swift to protect and alert me to the danger. And of course, they also served as company. Vampires we are, but do you not think that we do not feel loneliness? Nay, not true, we feel it, and often yearn to be near others of our kind.

The other Rahabim were in rest elsewhere, but still close, their minds all within my own. I was content, knowing that they too, were safe.

I sighed as I regarded the room that I had chosen as my sanctuary for the night, through half closed eyes. Gentle shadows played upon the walls, whilst the rest of the room remained at peace. This room, nothing too grand, but a place of shelter, where we could rest in safety from the prying eyes of the light.

I remember how deep down I had hoped that it would remain this way for a while yet, the sun not yet fully gone from the sky. Just a few more moments with my chosen...

Yet a figure that emerged itself in the doorway suddenly jolted me out of the embrace of rest, causing me to sit up very quickly.

"Raziel..." I muttered, snorting in slight contempt at peace being disturbed, and rubbing the temples of my forehead, trying to calm the vertigo that had suddenly arose due to sitting up quickly.

My elder laughed gently. "I apologise, Rahab, did I awaken you?"

"Nay, Raziel. I was already awake... Regrettably." Absentmindedly, I brushed the long strands of fringe out of one of the fledglings closed eyes.

"What brings you to my door at such an early hour?"

"I was hoping to speak with the learned one of us – the scholar." Raziel looked over to where it was I sat. One of my fledglings sat up, rising suddenly and automatically because his master had risen.

Having followed Raziel's gaze, I turned and regarded the fledgling. There was a dazed look upon his face, the look of someone having just awoken from the depths of rest. Tenderly I rested a set of claws upon his shoulder and bayed him rest. In doing so he allowed himself to gently fall back, eyes closed once more.

"Ah," I concluded, gently pulling myself from the twisted threads of blankets and sprawled fledglings. "Perhaps Turel would be better then?"

I rubbed my eyes with the back of my claws and stretched yet again as I made my way across the room. The night was going to be a cold one. I could sense the chill of it in the air from the strands of a passing evening and an oncoming night. With slight remorse I shuddered slightly, sad that I was going to have to take my leave of peace and instead take back my place in the realms of regulation and duties once more.

"Rahab,"

I turned to Raziel as he passed me my garb.

"I asked for you."

In nodding I replied, "If my elder requests," and slipped into my garb.

We remained inside whilst it was the last remnants of sun were still present, though it was now beginning to give way to the moon. We walked down one corridor whilst I strapped on my armour, securing straps, and buckling buckles tight.

"How is Dumah faring," I asked in random conversation, yet with true concern.

Raziel brought a claw to his chin in thought. "Dumah..." he mused. "Dumah remains to be the stubborn one of us, but he is faring well. Healing at the very least. Though I am afraid his pride will take a bit longer to mend."

In knowing this all to well I smirked, yet the smirk was soon to be replaced by a look of slight unease. "He will have to be careful. I fear that perhaps, from time to time, his pride consumes him. If he allows this to happen – it might be his downfall."

"From what direction did that prediction come from, Rahab?" Raziel's tone was one of slight surprise, but was there any reason to be surprised? For we all knew how Dumah could be at times, headstrong, and such, we all knew deep down, could result in his defeat.

"It is not a prediction, just an observation."

"Then my younger brother truly is the scholar." Raziel smiled. "Dumah will be fine. We shall watch over him."

I sighed, "And keep his head above the waves of arrogance, lest we want him to drown in the depths of such."

"Indeed." Raziel patted me on my shoulder and opened the door to another room.

Human opposition was faltering. Once they had been strong, yet now they were beginning to crumble, their kingdoms being devoured by that of Lord Kain's. Nosgoth was preparing itself for a new rule, a new renaissance, a new beginning, and the time of the vampire was beginning once more. It was a result we all welcomed. However, there was but another conclusion that was fighting for a stance. For although we took land by the plenty, and captured each town and city, there still seemed to be some who eluded us.

Lord Kain's rule was ironclad, yet there were groups of mortals who, somehow, escaped us. It was these groups that set up a human resistance – a barrier which would eventually evolve into a rugged city that offered protection to their kind from us – the vampire threat, the so-called 'poison of the land'. How divine. A city where its people waited for a savour to help them purge us from the land, forever.

Through this group so it was their dilapidated hunters were gathered. Living out some long lost requiem of all those who came before them, all those hunters who had been united under one banner and stirred by the poisonous words of the Time-streamer Moebius. It had been them who had hunted and eventually executed the great vampire Vorador, and now generations later a new breed of 'rag-tag' hunters rode forwards in hopes of achieving what their ancestors had nearly achieved before. The total annihilation of vampires.

Their ancestors would have succeeded in their task of destroying all of vampiric heritage, if it had not been for Lord Kain. No one had expected the young fledgling Kain to be successful in making sure that his race survived against all odds. No one had expected Kain.

The humans mustered what strength they could for the final aftermath. Although not a great threat, they still managed to pick off the younger of our clans – the fledglings and newly developed of our kin, for they were all easy pray for them. It brought us to the ultimate conclusion – we wanted them silenced.

Somewhere, out there in the vast landscape of Nosgoth, was this 'dwelling', where this 'resistance' amassed, a place where they lingered and cowered. The one thing we needed to know was where it was this city of renegades was. It was one piece of the puzzle that we were missing.

"You look fatigued," I commented, as Raziel unrolled a map and made sure the edges would not flay by putting candleholders upon the corners.

"Nonsense," was his reply. He ran one of his claws along a thin margin of land upon the map. He was loyal, fiercely loyal and always determined; I would credit him for that.

Our council the night before had been stretched until it was the first strands of morning's light had peeked in through the cracks of the sealed door. At this point Raziel had drawn the council to a close.

Before it had ended we had spoken of this resistance, how it was that the towns were now being more guarded than ones we had taken before. They were planning something, that was obvious – just what, we did not know.

The mortals we took for interrogation did not know either, or at least, they died before it as they could pass the information onto us. You see, as Zephon would say, 'Pain has its advantages, and yet it also has its disadvantages. But allow the pendulum to swing, and see what we can gain from such.' I must admit, even he had his moments where he could say something of intellectual quality, even if it was still hinted with the want of blood.

And so the six Vampire Lords had gathered. Raziel and Turel briefed us about the outcome of this situation, this siege we had waylaid upon this land, and the conclusions drawn in doing so.

"But this is far from over," Turel had concluded, glancing at Raziel to see if our eldest had any last words.

Dumah shifted in his chair with added anticipation, his wounds were healing but their scars were still present. I could see the eagerness in his eyes, the zeal and wanting he had for more land. It was like it was the ultimate test to him, a way to prove himself, a way to show all that he was strong and quite gifted in the arts of warfare.

"And from here – our next target," Dumah had asked. "Where is it Lord Kain wishes us to go?"

"We are to return," Raziel replied. "Lord Kain wishes us to draw back – for now. But only for now."

In the background I stood, forever silent.

"To withdraw?" It was Zephon who raised the question, his eyes sly, yet Dumah pressed the question onwards.

"It is unlike Lord Kain to request such, there is still..."

"Do not question Lord Kain," I added firmly, my voice picking up from the background. In hearing my voice, the others turned in their seats to look upon me. I ignored Dumah's acidic look and returned the gaze of the group.

"Will you not join us, Rahab?" Turel gestured towards an empty seat at the table. I nodded and took my place, and then it was we sat together and brought other matters forth.

When the map was fully opened, secured, and Raziel silenced as he contemplated it, so I drew near with curiosity, curious to see why he had requested my help.

As Raziel paused in his contemplation, I noticed that one of his claws lingered over a certain stretch of land. I gazed downwards to see the area that his one claw was circling.

"What do you know about this piece of land?"

From reading parchment and scraps of long forgotten and decayed books, from reading wherever it was writing lingered, and from reading the minds of my victims, so it was my knowledge grew. With bits and pieces of information I acquired, so it was I pieced them together – always learning what I could, when I could. When I was feeding, I was not only feeding my lust, but also my mind, feeding it with knowledge that I gathered from my prey.

I turned the map towards me, nearly knocking over a candleholder in the process. Raziel gritted his teeth and hastily caught the candleholder, and then moved it out of the way, for fire was yet another element that could quite easily destroy us.

With what geography I had acquired so it was I studied the land that he had asked me about, noticing how close it was to the water, and of course its direct compass position compared to the other landmarks.

After a few moments I adverted my gaze from the map and back to Raziel. I pushed strands of hair out of my eyes, having forgotten to secure it back after awakening. Though I knew not much about that part of land he had asked about, I had briefly heard of it.

"The Abbey," I stated blankly, affectionately running one of my own claws along the highlighted points of water and land. "I know not much of it, only that which comes from myth and legend."

Raziel leant on the edge of the table, his claws digging into the wood. As I gazed passively at him I noticed how ominous he could look within the right shade, what with the oncoming darkness and the gentle flicker of candlelight upon his face – highlighting the shape of it, his sharp cheekbones, and the curves and lines of his face, and the veins underneath his skin. How the mortals were fascinated by him, and yet also terrified by his presence all at the same time.

"And what abbey do you speak of," Raziel asked, his yellow eyes flickering with an interest that had a devious yet noble hint to it.

"It is said that there is an abbey there, a part of land that holds its own legends and obscurities. But the stories are long, and fragmented." I gestured and smirked. "As about as fragmented as our own history."

Raziel ignored the one comment and went on to ask, "Would it be possible for mortals to dwell there?"

"That I am not sure about." For a moment I was silenced in thought. "It could be possible, it is idealistic, is it not? So close to the water..."

"More then enough." Raziel smiled and took the map back before taking a seat in a nearby chair.

I thought I heard him sigh heavily as he allowed himself to rest for a couple of moments. It could not have been easy being Lord Kain's firstborn. Yet something inside of me whispered and hinted at the fact that he had been through all this before. He was used to being the oldest, he was used to being the leader – the one in charge.

The room lulled itself into peace when no more did we speak. As Raziel relaxed so did the atmosphere. I stood to attention, my stance firm, claws clasped tightly behind my back. I considered my own thoughts for a while, whilst around me I became aware that elsewhere others were awakening with the forthcoming of a new night.

"What was that dispute with Zephon about last night," Raziel asked, looking up.

"It was not a dispute, merely a misunderstanding. Zephon was overstepping his mark."

"There was a mortal involved."

"Indeed. My property. Zephon must come to understand that he can not have everything that he wishes to have."

"It was female."

"Merely property."

Raziel raised his eyebrows in a way that I have seen Lord Kain do many times before, his claws resting lightly on his chin. "I see."

Through a flaccid gaze I looked upon Raziel, I was about to reply, "Zephon has to..." but was stopped in mid sentence, as it was the door to the room was flung open and with it came a Razielim, who literally fell through the doorway.

Raziel's child stumbled to his knees. "Lord Raziel," he gasped, looking up at his master through stands of thick brown hair. His eyes were glazed over and diluted. And then he noticed me and bowed his head. "Lord Rahab." The fledgling was obviously out of breath. "My Lords..." He scrambled to his feet.

Peace was shattered and everything was forced into motion.

Raziel shot up from his chair with a motion that showed great urgency. His eyes narrowed with sudden realisation, picking up the threads of his child's mind before it was even his child could speak of the impending ruin.