Part 3 - preparation 1245 - 1267

As a small boy I had dreamed of travelling the world and finding adventure. I would brush the horses while I dreamed of far away lands. And yet now that I felt capable of travelling anywhere I found myself trapped in what would become a far more mundane existence than I had as a mortal.

For a time, at least.

The training was long and hard, and once we had mastered our bodies and our hunger (which I found less difficult than my companions) we were moved into classes with the mortal knights and guardsmen where we were taught battle tactics. The concept of the classroom was almost too much for many of these men. Entitled brats who would take the positions of generals one day though birthright rather than merit.

During the night we were now allowed to wander the streets of Warwick but that early lesson which resulted in the destruction of Albright had taught us extreme care.

We learned why we could not move around during the day, the late summer sun catching our skin and reflecting like it were made of some precious stone. Except with me it was significantly less. Such that I felt I could pass during daylight, providing I avoided the rays of the sun when it was at it's zenith.

Our eyes had changed as well as our flesh, turning bright red when we fed, but the colour would fade and eventually turn a dark black. Fortunately we did not see this state very often as it would make us all irritable towards each other.

Five men, living in close quarters, working and relaxing. It was a challenge. We each had a different personality and a skill set which matched that personality.

Smith, as I mentioned previously, was a large fellow, tall and broad shouldered. He had tended the land in his past life, often pulling the plough himself when the mules could not. Despite his size he was quiet and would often sink to the rear during formation attacks. He was the strongest amongst us and there was talk of him being the strongest in our force, something we had no chance to test since we were kept separated from the rest of the guard.

I also mentioned Williams, the burly Scot. He came from a land where wild horses could be ridden and he boasted the ability to ride any beast, a claim I was yet to see fail him. He was short tempered and quick to draw his sword, but when we were in the barracks he was genuine and always had a story on hand to ease our tensions.

Lenster was. Strange sort, always making things from the bits of wood he could scavenge around the castle or steal in town. Mostly he made weapons, but every now and then he would produce an item none of us had seen before. He would dub it with a ridiculous name and the rest of us would laugh.

The final member of our group was Hart, a trained medic in his human life, seemed to have even more attuned senses than the rest of us and would always act as a scout. He found he could no longer practise his healing with the humans, as their blood would awaken his craving.

In fact, it seemed the five of us each had a gift of some kind. Smith had his strength, Williams his animal communication, Lenster the sight to make something from nothing and Hart with his senses which were developed beyond any of ours. As time passed I learned that my gift was that I could walk undetected amongst the living. With my dull skin and my bloodlust only activated by the extreme adrenaline rush of fear or passionate battle I could happily surround myself with them and not so much as bat an eye.

The training continued and the time passed by, sunshine giving way to rain, then snow and then the new leaves. The first year was the slowest and after that the time proceeded to fly. In fact almost twenty years were gone before I knew it. Once we had been trained in combat and battle tactics we were moulded into a unit. The five of us would be used as a secret weapon where required, and this would require our teamwork. Our individual skills became collective and we began to operate seamlessly, knowing when we were needed and when to stand back and let another man handle the situation.

I was disappointed initially when I learned that we had been lied to. The only other man like us in the entire army at our castle was Sergeant Matteson. This explained why we were kept separate from the other men. Over time I learned to live with the deception. In truth, it made me feel better about out situation. Instead of being a trainee, never quite able to join the ranks, we were the elite, waiting for an opportunity to prove ourselves.

Of course over those near twenty years we were allowed more freedom, being allowed to choose for ourselves where and when to hunt, taking regular trips into Warwick, and interacting with the other people who lived and served within the castle.

During the year of 1264 there were many whispers. William was now our ruler, the lady Margery having stepped aside, allowing her to depart to Italy with the mysterious fellows who had never once addressed us. The word was strong that there was a war brewing. The barons were planning an uprising behind De Montford who was rallying his forces to challenge the monarchy. This became all to clear to us one dark night.

I was walking on the castle wall as I did most nights after our work was complete. In the distance I saw a flame growing larger. Quickly I found Matteson and reported to him. He told me to round up the others and head for our quarters, so I did, quickly finding them, thanking the lord that they were as predictable as I.

We sat in silence for a long while, listening for any sign of activity. Suddenly we were greeted with the face of Matteson. He looked flustered.

"Collect your belongings." He barked. "We are leaving."

Wordlessly the five of us followed as we headed up to the wall which bordered the river. We all leapt into the cold water and then took off on the other side at a run. There was the roar of men in combat swiftly diminishing into the night and I wondered what would become of us now.

We met a small detachment of Royalists in Coventry who filled us in on the latest. News was spreading that De Montford had taken Warwick Castle and that only added to his power which was growing from the south.

"Let us meet them in open battle!" Raged Williams in his gruff voice. "They will be no match for us, regardless of their number."

"And risk exposure?" Shot back Lenster, his voice calm as always, thoughtful.

We made our way south towards London where we were informed that the King had been captured. We joined with the Kings army lead by his son, Edward. We rode amongst the men, armour and cloth covering our skin from the revealing light of the son until we reached Evesham. Here we were given our first mission.

The plan was to send the army straight at De Montford's men, luring them into the centre, allowing our army to encircle them. During this phase of the battle we were to make our way to the enemy tents and rescue the King.

When the battle commenced everything went to plan. A small number of guardsmen were retained to protect the king and they would be our first combat kills. I took two with my bow, before I drew too close and took the scent of adrenaline. My senses flared and I was like a wild animal, tearing into the remainder of the guard. Soon they were decimated and the king was ours. I saw the rest of my unit looking at me respectfully. In combat training I had never scented adrenaline before, so they had not seen my fury unleashed. Now they knew.

When we returned the King to our base camp it was clear the battle was winding down. De Montford was not only dead, but bits of him were being paraded around the field as the remainder of his men were gutted like salmon.

The next battle we attended was in Chesterfield, and this was an even more convincing rout, as we set to the Earl of Derby's forces in what was almost a massacre. Our skills were used as we were sent after the Earl's elite bowmen, effectively crippling their long range attack and leaving their lesser number helpless to our swordsmen.

By 1267 we were back in the castle, albeit with a new ruler, William De Beauchamp. It seemed that nobody had thought to inform him that an elite unit of Vampire soldiers were residing within his walls. We were now treated as the other men, training alongside them and trying our best not to kill them. Soon enough Matteson had us separated again and we were once again a secret force.

Then Matteson was called upon to go to London. He didn't know why, but he said it sounded vitally important.