A/N: I'm having some issues in my personal life, in addition to getting a second job, so my life feels a little bit turned around. But I have this chapter almost ready to go, and figured it was about time to get it off! Without further ado: some back story for you all.
Bill ended the call, happy about the news but annoyed at the interruption. Nan always had a knack for interrupting in at the wrong time.
She had called to inform him that DeCastro, maker of Victor Madden, had met his final death. It meant an end to the DeCastro reign of mayhem and hopefully would put a cap on the whole Madden PR disaster.
Of course, they had done everything they could to avoid such issues. When Nan Flanagan and the Vampire Council first begun plans for the Great Reveal, they knew the importance of proper image. The group, consisting of 23 vampires of 200 to 400 years old, had each witnessed the difficulties of image during their own time. However, given the success of Carnegie and Morgan in creating a positive long term image, they felt they had the right strategies.
Central to their reveal would be the launch of TruBlood, a blood replacement. No longer would people have to donate blood to help victims in need. Transfusions would become as cheap as buying a carton of milk. And most of all, humans would have no reason to fear vampires.
Bill was approached in the late 1980s, and was tasked with building a database of all living vampires. Such knowledge was scattered, but without an accurate population count, there would be too many variables in designing the Reveal. DeCastro and Madden had been two early additions to the database, and major contributors to the database. Bill's maker Lorena's friendship with the men lead to successes in mapping most of the Western United States.
In hindsight, Bill knew he should have seen the Madden debacle coming. Most vampires lived with the most general idea of their physiology and limits. Aside from a natural aversion to sun light, and craving for human blood, theories and myths filled the gaps.
Madden had spouted many such theories when Bill had last seen him. About the deliciousness of fairies. That blood from Africans helped improve sexual performance. And that bathing in the blood of virgins gave you a host of powers, including flight, greater strength, improved healing, and resistance to the sun.
It was this last myth that caused the crisis. A week after the Reveal, a young college student with a camera phone had caught sight of Madden from a nearby building, and witnessed him hanging young girls up by their feet. With deliberate precision, and evident pleasure, Madden had proceeded to slit each girl's throat, draining them into plastic buckets below. Given the flailing around by many of the girls, they were alive for most of it. The terrified eyes of the girls were visible even through the poor quality video.
By the time police had arrived at the scene, each one of the girls was dead, hanging pale and cold like meat in a slaughterhouse. Madden was gleefully splashing around in a bathtub, apparently licking his fingers with delight. It had taken four SWAT teams to subdue him. Three policemen died in the effort.
The story itself was bad enough. But when the video of the event was posted online, there was an outrage. A Congressional bill passed within hours, outright banning the drinking of human blood in any situation. Soon after, a whole host of other regulations were put into place. Vampires weren't allowed to own or hold property in most states. Vampires had to register with their local authorities. Vampires were not allowed to manage businesses, or be in elected office.
The only redeeming factor in the whole series of events was a small documentary that had been produced months earlier. Aimed merely filler for news stories, it was an interview with vampire historian Sophie-Anne about how vampires are created.
Bill had initially thought the documentary effort was wasted. After all, Sophie-Anne had the mental acumen of a college freshman. But her soft voice, reassuring gaze, and simple sentences were a hit. In the wake of the scandal, humans wanted to know everything they could about vampires.
"There are very few vampires in the world, for the simple fact that it is very hard to make a vampire. Just like a normal human child is a miracle, the creation of a vampire requires the grace of the universe. Any number of factors must align. A compatible maker and child, for instance. The age of the maker. Optimal ground conditions. Even if all known factors are accounted for, the odds are against a human being successfully turned.
"That is why we value life, in all its forms. Human life keeps us alive, and we must nourish it. Our own lives are such rare and unique events, and we must seek to exist in the best ways possible.
"Of course, there are those vampires who have rejected this God given gift. They squander not only their own lives, but those precious human ones around them. I, for one, and grateful that those vampires would face so much difficulty in passing on their evil to another.
Sophie-Anne became a sought after media figure. Alongside Nan, the two women represented the American Vampire League, and spoke at events around the world. Granted, the two women hated each other, but they managed to make a convincing team on camera. Financed by sympathizing humans, and vampire businesses, they were able to further the Vampire Council's agenda.
As Sophie-Anne's star grew, Nan's work became more political. While Sophie-Anne was interviewed in Vogue, Nan went to Washington, London, Moscow, Beijing, and the UN to lobby for vampire rights. It was during one of those trips she had garnered a key concession.
Bill had witnessed the entire event as Nan's assistant on the trip.
"We like you, Nan. And we agree that the whole Madden event was mostly unfortunate. Let's face it, we think working with you Vampers could be pretty good for all of us. Provide some stability. Even out the political dialogues. Bring some money into the IRS. But, and here's the thing, we have no way of knowing if you guys are trustworthy. With every human in this room could undergo some sort of lie detector test. Every human in this room has a straight forward, legal paper trail of their lives. We don't have that for you vamps. You have to understand - we need to take necessary precautions before we make any changes."
Nan's entire body was steel straight. Bill could see the tension rolling off of her. Without missing a beat, she smiled gently.
"So, Sir, what you are saying is that if we can help get you enough information about vampires, and find a way to detect when they are lying, we'll be full citizens? No more restricted areas, or property regulations. Full citizens?"
"Well, we can't stop individual counties or states from making regulations, and can't make any promises..."
"Senators, you know you can. A constitutional amendment would enshrine vampire rights as law."
"A constitutional amendment! I don't know if we can do that."
"Gentlemen." The room fell to a hushed silence. "If I can help get you what you want, you will give us what we deserve." Nan had pivoted on her heel, and strutted out. Bill had followed closely on her heels, alarm across his face. Perhaps he should go back in and correct the deal. The Vampire Council should never have let a woman do this kind of negations to start with. Men understood men, after all. He rushed through the marble corridor after Nan. He nodded to the Capitol police at the doors. They quickly trotted down the steps from the Russell Senate Office Building. Reaching the black car waiting, both quickly slipped inside. A bell rang in the distance, signaling votes in the House of Representatives.
"Do you really think that was wise? Many vampires will be against allowing such intrusion into their lives. Perhaps if you had been a little more delicate in your handling, we wouldn't be forced into having to supply something we don't have," he admonished Nan as the car started moving. To his shock, she started laughing.
"Oh, that's cute Bill. Those men in there didn't want to put every single vampire through a lie detector. They just want the option to put everyone through some sort of bullshit lie detector. They want to know that we don't actually turn into bats, or any other that other horseshit. Which is something we need to make sure for ourselves anyway. We are two steps away from some stupid old timer deciding to do a power grab. They think they need take 'necessary precautions'? Well, so do we."
Bill had concede that she had a point. While the number of 300 year old vampires and older were few, the older vampires presented serious challenges for the new way of life. They were far too beholden to their ways, and unwilling to adapt to be reliable long term. And most of all, some of them displayed worrying abilities, such as flight. They weren't just a threat to humans, but to the new vampire order as well.
A few weeks later, and the Vampire Affairs Bureau had been created as a subdivision to the Department of Homeland Security. Bill was stationed as an American Vampire League liaison, and acted as an agent. Three years of research had finally led to a viable option. A vampire lie detector. Granted, in human form. But a critical part what they needed, nonetheless. Together with the research into vampire physiology, they could make a viable case for a constitutional amendment.
Now, if only Nan would stop calling every hour and let him do his job.
With annoyed steps, he decided to go to the cafeteria before returning to the lab. A young blond sweeping the floor caught his eye. He smiled. Maybe he would treat himself to a little morsel of the real stuff tonight.
A/N: When I wrote the first draft of this chapter, I had included female Senators. However, given the current gender make up of the Senate, and loving the idea of Nan facing down a bunch of self impressed men, changed it. I might bring Nan back to DC just to have her roam around the basement of the Capitol. I bet she would know all of the tunnels and hidden rooms.
If you go to DC, make sure you visit the Capitol. Its one of my favorite buildings in the entire world. From the Great Experiment halls, to the Burmudi Halls, to standing in the middle of the Rotunda when votes go off, and seeing the Speaker and Minority Leaders rush to votes, its a surreal place.