A/N: I wanted to address a comment made really quickly! First all, thank you so much for supporting my story and sharing a love of Seraph of the End! I understand the universe pretty well, as I tend to over-research all my fanfictions. I also understand that vampires don't have heartbeats, but Karina is half human, so her heart does beat most of the time! :D I just wanted to clear that up before moving on with this story! More on why that happens to her will be revealed as the story unfolds! Thank you for your time and enjoy the new chapter!
"Back then, I didn't understand why he hated vampires so much. My dad had told me that we were saving the humans. He said we were the good ones. I was still a kid, you know?" I sighed but a smile grew on my face. "I never got to actually thank you for helping me. So, thanks, Mika. I'm glad we met that day."
Mika smiled softly and leaned in closer. "You're welcome, Karina."
My cheeks grew hot with how close he was. Here in the kitchen floor, it felt like all our problems were far away, and that we've known each other our whole lives. The silence was comfortable, but a question popped into my head. He used to be human… "Mika, why did you help me? You were human then, right?"
He nodded his head, looking up toward the ceiling to avoid eye contact. "You didn't cause this. You were a child, like us. Seeing how terrified you were, it didn't feel right to allow them to hurt you. Whether you were a vampire or not, it didn't matter." He gave a breathy laugh and turned his gaze back on me. "Thinking back on it now, it seems like no one was surprised that it had happened."
It was my turn to laugh. "Yeah, I used to sneak out a lot at home, so Ferid assigned Lacus and Rene to watch me. He made it a point to tell me, too, and I should have known he was baiting me. Getting out of the mansion unnoticed had been much easier than I had expected. At least, that's what I thought back then."
"They let you leave."
Nodding, I swirled my fork around in the leftover syrup. That incident had scared me. "Yes, to teach me a lesson. After that day, I never left without a guard again. Ferid told my father, too, who wasn't happy with me when I returned to Nagoya." Father can be scary when he's angry, and he dislikes it when I don't listen to others.
"There you two are! I've been searching all over," Ferid appeared across from me, leaning against the island counter. His signature smile on his face, meaning he was up to something. He watched us for a moment. "Did I interrupt?"
Blushing, I dropped my gaze to the floor. How much did he hear? Thankfully, Mika spoke up. "We were just catching up."
Ferid laughed and nodded his head. "I'm sure Karina loves that." He definitely knows about my crush on Mika. "But, Queen Krul has called a meeting of all the nobles, and wants everyone to attend. Since Crowley isn't here, Karina will go in his place, since she is his daughter. That makes her of 13th progenitor blood. I have another matter to attend to right now, so Mika will get you to the meeting hall safely." That was an order.
A meeting? It's unusual for such a large-scale meeting to occur. The last time I attended one, was over eight years ago, when the humans released that virus into the air, killing half the population. The vampires went into a panic, worrying about our food source depleting. That's when they called for the human child to be rounded up and taken to safe places, away from the virus. It was shortly after that meeting that I became sick and had to be sent here to the Sanguinem.
Mika stood, annoyed with Ferid's presence. "I will."
Satisfied with the answer, Ferid left us, still sporting that mischievous grin. He had a plan, something he wanted me to do. That's why he interrupted.
I set the plate in the sink, washing off my hands under the warm water. Mika had grown quiet, only following me around. Whatever had silently happened between the two of them, it had affected him enough to cut off his train of though. Kids from the city scurried around us, some glaring, others not making any eye contact at all.
Inside the large meeting hall, one of the older vampires was speaking at the microphone. We were late. Ferid waved at us from his seat, all alone in the row. It didn't surprise me that no one wanted to associate with him. Mika turned and walked off without a word, having completed his assignment. There was no other choice for me.
Taking the seat beside Ferid, I tried to concentrate on what the lady vampire was talking about. A human organization. The Seraph of the End project. None of this made much sense to me. When I turned my head to ask Ferid a question, I nearly jumped out of my seat when he touched my neck. The spot still stung from where Mika had bit me. That hadn't faded yet?!
"You'd do better to hide this, little Karina. It's taboo for vampires to drink each other's blood. I doubt they'd make an exception for you being half human." Ferid traced his fingers over the bite marks again. His calculating eyes watched me. "Mika bit you, I assume."
Covering the spot with my hand, I dropped my head down to rest on my knees. Cursing myself for not taking more precautions, I tried to come up with some kind of excuse. It's unlikely that Ferid would believe it, anyways. The anxiety of this situation was getting to me. Tilting my head just enough to look at him, I said, "I told him to."
Ferid laughed quietly, amused as always. "That's a big step from not being able to speak to him before today. What are you gaining from it?"
His question caught me off guard.
"Oh, come now, Karina. I've taught you well enough over the years to never give unless you get something of value in return. So, what is it you want? To be around Mika? For Mika to finally notice you? I can help you with that." It's a little scary how much Ferid knows. He is over a thousand years old, though. He'd piqued my interest, and he knew it. Ferid waited for me to give in.
I sat back up, still covering the bite mark. "Really?"
He tapped his finger on my nose. "Someone will have to look out for you on this war mission. And while typically I give that assignment to Lacus and Rene, maybe this time our little Mika would be better suited. At least I know you won't run away from him."
That's what this meeting had been about. A war on the human organization. The Japanese Imperial Demon Army. They were responsible for the end of the world, I think. They waged war on us vampires all the time. Before, I'd never been required to be a part of it. "I have to go?" I'd much rather stay here in the Sanguinem, where it's safe.
Ferid had turned his gaze on something else, but nodded. "You're no longer a child, Karina. The Progenitor council won't allow you to remain passive any longer. You are a noble, after all. Even though you lack fighting skills, as a vampire, you do possess strength and speed, no matter how hard you try to suppress the vampire in you."
I twisted my hands together in my lap. The vampire in me. That phrase had been used a lot when I was growing up. Be more like a vampire. Suppress the human side of you. That had been what the progenitor council had ordered when they decided not to kill me. In exchange for my life, I had been subjected to test after test. Research. They wanted to research me, they said. I knew better. I knew that what they really wanted was to see how powerful I could become if they poked and prodded me enough.
The meeting ended, and the nobles began to leave the building. Ferid stood, another grin growing on his face. "Now then, I will arrange that for you, but in the meantime, you'll be sent to the laboratory."
My head snapped up at his words. My heart thudded in my chest. "W-what?"
"Lord Ferid. We'll escort Karina to the laboratory," Rene said with Lacus by his side. The two of them were always together.
Escort me to the lab? Why now? It would be more logical to suspend the research due to the vampires going to war! Father didn't tell me that there would be tests run on this trip. What else could they possibly need to learn about me, anyways?
"Be a good girl and do as you're told. Crowley would be most displeased if you disobey this order. When you're finished, I'll have everything you want arranged for this away mission," Ferid said, as if any of that could outweigh the pain I was about to endure.
There isn't any way to get out of it. If the Progenitor council were to get word that I'd refused to go, they could vote to kill me. It didn't make the fear disappear. Not many knew about this laboratory. It had started out as a building just for collecting blood from the kids entrapped in this city, until I'd been sent here. Then on the very bottom level, it had become a torture chamber for me. Rooms filled with devices that caused pain physically and emotionally. Each time I go is worse than the last.
I might be a noble by blood, but to the Progenitor council, I was a new toy to explore. One day, they hoped I would be able to defeat armies all on my own. But, I don't want any of that. Violence wasn't in my nature. I'd refused to even learn to hold a sword properly. So, the tests became a way for them to control me. If there was a way to force me to comply, they wouldn't hesitate to force their orders on me.
They always forget.
The vampire in me, the part I try so hard to suppress, is wild, fierce.
If I wanted to, I could probably destroy them all.
