Chapter 5: The New World

I stayed with the Volturi for almost four decades. During that time, I got to know, not only Aro, Caius, and Marcus, but the entire Volturi guard.

Every vampire I talked to was honored to be a part of the guard. They felt they were doing their own duty in keeping our race a secret from the humans. Sometimes, parts of the guard were called out to handle a troublemaker. But that did not happen often and while I stayed with the Volturi, none of the three brothers or the wives ever went with them.

Aro, Caius, and Marcus were intriguing. They seemed to share much of my love for learning, especially Aro. The regularly attended performances and balls, but they always kept to themselves, away from the humans. A human painter, Solimena, often painted pictures with them. They were like gods in all the paintings, always higher than everyone else. In some of the pictures, done during my time with them, I too, was depicted with them, the blonde figure next to the two dark-haired ones, and the snowy-white one.

I came to respect them for their refinement and civility, but I never got over their insistence on feeding from humans. And they always tried to convince me to try human blood. They said it would keep me stronger, and sate the thirst that still gnawed at my throat, though the longer I resisted, the easier it became. One time, they even tricked me into remaining in the turret room when their unsuspecting travelers came to call. The scene had been the most grotesque sight I had ever witnessed. That night, I decided I had stayed with the Volturi long enough. We were at an impasse. Neither of us could convince the other to change their ways. It was time I moved on.

So I went to Aro and told him of my plans to leave. I would travel to the New World. Europe held little interest for me anymore. It was too set in its ways. I needed a fresh start. The New World was where I could find that.

"I am sorry to see you go," Aro admitted. "You are truly an interesting vampire and an academic after my own heart. I wish you well with your choice in the New World. Come and visit me sometime."

I had been surprised at how well Aro had taken my news. But I was not going to push my good luck. That night, I left Volterra.

I travelled north, over the land that I had lived in almost a century ago. I did not have to worry about anyone noticing me. Anybody who had known me before was either dead, or so old their memory was not what it used to be. I went farther and farther north, crossing the Channel once more. But this time, I went to Ireland, rather than England. There I met a coven of Irish three vampires, Siobhan, Liam, and Maggie. Maggie, the youngest, was gifted by being able to detect lies. I stayed with them for another decade, and then roamed Ireland and Wales.

For some reason, I was reluctant to leave. I kept telling myself it was because of the political problems in America. They were in the midst of their Revolutionary War. My English accent, even though it was not so pronounced after my lifetime of travels through France, Spain, and Italy, would brand me as a Loyalist. I needed to wait until things cooled down.

In the end, I bought passage on a ship across the Atlantic, to the new United States of America. The United States was still in a state of turmoil, trying to establish their government. It was the early 1800's, over a century since I had been born. And I had been 23 for 138 years now.

I settled first in Philadelphia, taking a job as a private physician. Over the last 137 years, I had figured out just how long I could stay in one place. If I started at the age of "20" or so, I could stay in the same place until I was "35". Then people would start to wonder. In Philadelphia, I met a nomad named Garrett. Garrett had fought in the Revolutionary War and had been changed about 20 years before I met him and had been wandering ever since.

After staying as long as I could in Philadelphia, I moved farther north to Massachusetts, attending universities up north. At each place, I stayed until I was thought to be somewhere between "30" and "35". During the Civil War, I remained in the North, working at war infirmaries in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Connecticut.

I moved to Columbus, Ohio in 1905, beginning like I had done so many times before, at the age of 20. It was there that I met a young girl named Esme Platt. Esme had been climbing a tree when she had fallen and broken her leg. Esme's parents had brought her to the local hospital, where I was working. Even as a child, Esme had been very beautiful. She was brave when I set and put a cast on her leg. We talked about her mostly, only briefly touching on me. I was quick to change the subject, after telling her that I had graduated from Harvard Medical School and had moved to Columbus in 1905. She said something about her friends, and I took the opportunity to change the subject. I did not even stay long enough to remove her cast, one month later, I moved on. I was working night shifts in Chicago when the Spanish Influenza hit.

I was working on my second century and things were getting very lonely. It was obvious to me by now that no vampire I was going to come across would take on my lifestyle. It was not easy, even though I was more than in control of my thirst by now. I could handle flowing human blood with only a bit of thirst. I did not have to hold my breath anymore. And on a day to day basis, I was not tempted by the smell of humans or the sound of their heartbeat at all. For a long time, I had been contemplating making a companion. But I was not quite sure how it worked. I knew that vampires were venomous. I had tasted the venom plenty of times when I had battled against my thirst in med school, during the job, or if a human even scraped their hand in my presence. I also figured that the venom was what changed people into vampires. But I did not know how much was needed, or even how long the transformation normally took. I only knew the consequences of it, and that was part of why I was so reluctant to make another vampire. I did not wish this lifestyle on someone who had another choice. Lucky for me, the choice was made for me.