Despair, grief, hopelessness; the air permeated with them, so thick it could choke a man. Within the bowels of a looming mansion was a pit that rivaled one's most horrifying nightmares. It was filled with the smell of sweat, blood, and the moans of those who have since forgotten who they were. A vampire stood regally overseeing from his raised balcony overlooking his domain as his minions scuffled busily checking each miserable individual. He clutched casually an intricately carved cane topped with a skull wrung through with serpents. Tubes lined the walls, red and swollen with blood of the most desirable kind.
A wave of pleasure ran through Duke Carvas as he reveled in his absolute power here. He could have chosen to spread his operations outside of his home, but truthfully he had always been a bit of a micromanager. One couldn't trust others to do things right the first time. What better way to make sure of this than to bring work home? Besides, the giddiness of seeing their contorted faces was just too precious to leave to bloodthirsty simpletons. His thoughts were interrupted as one of the said simpletons attempted to make a subtle swipe at some blood that had strayed from the sloppily placed line in one prisoner's arm. Quickly he raised his cane and brought it down with a precise and sharp snap. The sound echoed off the pit walls. All stopped to look up at him then to turn and stare at the one who had broken the cardinal rule: never drink the blood unless explicitly handed it by the Duke. Not a word was said several workers stopped what they were doing to drag off the screeching perpetrator, never to be seen again.
"Quiet," whispered the Duke with a sadistic smile. "You'll disturb my pets." He eyed his little treasures he had been collecting gleefully as he turned his attentions to a ward standing behind him. "What is it?"
The ward bowed and stepped forward, apparently very much accustomed to the absolute loathsome sight below, and whispered something in the Duke's ear so as not to rouse the workers below. The Duke's eyes widened and then narrowed happily as he registered the news.
"Is that so? Excellent! Bring her here to me, unharmed." He was about to return his attention to below when the ward continued. "Kawaski is with them." The Duke raised his eyebrow, before flippantly responding.
"Ace? Bring him as well." A smile spread across his face. "He may not be unharmed. Alive! But a few broken bones wouldn't hurt." The ward bowed once again before retreating.
"It looks like my day's just been made."
The unrest had spread and now, it seems that the scattered incidents were starting to gather into a formidable army. No one knew what they sought after and who was leading them, but the aftermath was all of the evidence needed to indicate that no quarter would be shown to any who had the misfortune to stand in their war path. News spread quickly of one burnt out village after another. There was no rhyme or reason to why one was attacked versus another. Granger studied their activity, mapping their course as best he could and each night he was left befuddled. This failed to follow any semblance of a pattern he had experienced in the past. It wasn't until one evening he overheard the whispers of some servants in the hallway that everything began to fall into place. They spoke of Yori and Aria and very quickly it became apparent that there was more to their relationship. Most of what was said was conjecture, but rumor had a way of becoming a beast all its own. He made efforts to quickly confirm his hunch.
He found Lilith in the library, taking up the task that Hanabusa had abandoned to chase after their daughter. She steadfastly placed one book after another onto the shelves, briefly taking a moment to read the title and rifle through the pages. Perhaps it was her own curiosity or it could have been her parental need to examine what kinds of ideas her daughter would be ingesting in the future. Either way, Granger paused for a moment to watch her as she focused completely on the task at hand. He felt his heart clench, forcing him to catch his breath, just loud enough for Lilith to hear him. She jumped, reflexively resting a hand on her throat.
"Gods above Granger, I wish you wouldn't do that!" she said with a shaky smile. Every time she spoke to him he was reminded of how much she had grown into a woman with her throaty voice and gentle articulation. It warmed him. Her smile faded into a look of concern. Forgetting the book she held, she stood gracefully and swiftly went to him, hands extended to cup his face. It took everything he could not to jerk away, afraid of what kind of reaction he might have should her skin touch his. The muscles flexed along his jaw ever so subtly. She didn't say a word as her eyes roamed the crevices of his face, the worry lines that even immortality could not fight. It felt as though it was forever before she finally spoke.
"When was the last time you slept?" Granger gently pushed her hand away, finding her touch nearly unbearable, before stepping over to the shelves to feign interest in the books.
"It is of no import," he said casually. Lilith frowned delicately. Something had inextricably shifted since he had arrived at the estate. His affection had not wavered, but the distance had grown. She chalked it up to time spent apart and thought with them together now it would quickly revert back to the way things were, but it seemed as though Granger was stubbornly fighting it. And it hurt more than she cared to admit. Her anxiety over the matter had begun to eclipse thoughts of Hanabusa's absence, something that she found to be deplorable and even was reduced to silently scolding herself quite often. Granger continued.
"I thought I might inform you that I plan to send word to Hanabusa requesting his swift return home." Lilith absorbed this for a moment before reacting.
"I believe that unnecessary. Our daughter is in greater need of protection than us. Is that not your purpose here, to ensure everyone's safety?" He turned almost too quickly before checking himself, but his eyes betrayed the intensity of his feelings.
"To ensure your safety." Words left her as she felt her feet dissolving from under her and for a brief moment she wondered how she was still standing. Shaking away the spell he had cast on her she clenched her hands in the folds of her skirts.
"My daughter is an extension of me and her safety takes priority. Any parent would say the same." Apprehension and warning bells went off in her head as the full power of Granger's attention was suddenly put solely on her. She would have looked away and fiddled with something else, perhaps a tassel on a chair, or tracing the grains on the wooden table, but his gaze wiped all thoughts from her mind but him.
"But is she an extension of you?" She felt her heart sink and the bottom of her stomach drop out to allow the heart to hit the floor. He knew! She began to visibly shake as she took a deep calming breath. That was all he needed to see before drew his own conclusion.
"Of course she is. I don't know what you're implying by…" He stalked forward only two steps but it was enough to force what she was going to say next freeze in her throat.
"You've never been good at lying, Lilith." The sound of her name rolling off his tongue, the deep resonating tones of his voice entrapped her once again. "She is not your daughter." He said forcefully, almost with a touch of anger. His statement triggered something in Lilith. A raging fire sprang up to swallow the unease that had grown throughout her body. Her chin shot up, her eyes narrowed and Granger felt the whispering touch of fear as he saw he had awakened something.
"That's right. She is not my own, but I sure as hell raised her. I may have not been very good at it, but when she cried and no one was there for her I held her. I soothed away the fevers. I had sleepless nights when she became ill. I had my heart ache every time she pulled away from me. Smiled at her and loved her as much as anyone else could. I wasn't perfect but I did the best I could. Everyone is obsessed with bloodlines and Aria has taught me that all of that is a load of tripe. Sayori Wakaba may have birthed her, but I am her mother!" Her eyes were inflamed with righteous purpose, and though she was shorter than him, it felt as though she was two heads taller. Granger opened his mouth to respond, or so she thought.
"Be quiet! I'm not finished! I have lived the last decades as a person I did not recognize and Aria saved me from myself. If her life is in danger, I as her mother will make sure she is safe at all costs and if that is at the risk of our estate crumbling then so be it! If you send word to Hanabusa to abandon the pursuit of my daughter's safety I will cut you and my entire family off forever. Do you understand?" she growled warningly. That fire, he could see it now. It was a tigress defending her cub and he knew at that moment he had stepped in it and miscalculated the depth, so he backpedaled as quickly as he could by agreeing silently. Satisfied that her words had reached him she ducked around him and resumed the task of placing books on shelves albeit with an almost violent vigor. Granger saw immediately that the conversation was over and made as gallant of an exit as possible. His tail was far from between his legs, but he would also be the first to admit he would think twice before taking Lilith head on when it came to her daughter.
"I can smell her," he hissed. "Her heartbeat is in that direction!" Yes, he and his two other buddies had been seeking out the Blood Share holders, natural or not. Yes, they had killed and slaughtered in accomplishing this. But the pain and addiction was great and overwhelming that any would find their sanity slip away, at least that is what they kept telling themselves. The Blood Share was too strong to resist once experienced. It is a fire that will attract any and all only to incinerate them into ash, a useless, unrecognizable person. He could hear his own heartbeat and feel the gnawing hunger for the Blood Share, but he could no longer remember his name, where he came from or whether he was once human or vampire. He remembered the war and the strange liquid that had been passed around to him and his comrades. That man, a hooded figure holding an intricately carved cane, had approached them with an air of familiarity that was almost disconcerting. He bore promises of power and longevity, but had conveniently left out the side effects. Never to sleep again, to forget one's self and purpose, to crave the constant company of the Share, the murder and rampaging, it was something they had not wanted and only became aware of it too late.
He realized their movements had become more erratic since their last Share at the village was unsatisfactory. He was almost positive the bloke was only ¼ vampire, if that, making the natural Blood Share less potent, but this new one, the one they hunted now smelled of the real deal. It was a perfect combination. He inhaled deeply and his nostrils flared. Yes, this one would keep them for a long time. His thoughts were swamped by the deeper need and artificial instinct to hunt down his prey. He and the two others with him threw caution below with the rest of their humanity as they picked up speed, charging headlong towards their goal, hunched forward with bodies contorted into a bestial pose. Vision became like a tunnel, focused only on one thing. They were almost upon them.
At that moment, he had a sudden flash of foresight and slowed down his pace, hanging back. His companions seemed to ignore their own and barreled out of the trees. He watched as one was immediately shot down with an arrow through the throat as the other wrestled with a large brute of a man. Baldy managed to wrap his hands and arms around his comrade's neck before twisting in a swift, precise motion. A sickening sound of bones cracking echoed throughout the area. He growled low in the back of his throat and listened closely as the two men discussed the kills. Where was she? She was with them, he could smell it! As if hearing his demands she suddenly walked into his line of vision from behind a tree. She brandished a knife in one hand as she approached cautiously the bodies of the recently departed. He willfully held in his desire to rush forward as the others had done, look where that got them. Her companions weren't normal humans. He took another smell. A Blood Share participant. His eyes fell upon the young man as he wrenched the arrow out of his victim's throat.
The stalker tipped his head slightly, eyes unblinking. Had this participant manage to claim a willing donor? Seeing the hunger deep behind the other's eyes he came to the conclusion that this one was stronger and was not drinking, at least not recently.
"Only two?" said the woman, shaking slightly and obviously unaccustomed to such violence. The men grimly scanned the area.
"I'm sure the villagers said there were three of them," said the young man, as he scratched the back of his head perplexed. Baldy remained silent and raised his hand, a warning to stay quiet. The other two froze.
The survivor leaned back and slowly edged his way further into the brush. He flinched as his heel pushed a pebble down the slight slope behind him. The response was immediate. As if out of thin air, a throwing dagger appeared in his upper thigh. Howling in outrage and pain, he took off running, realizing he stood no chance against these humans. Cursing in whatever language he could still remember, he yanked the offending weapon out of his screaming muscles before running headlong in the other direction.
Ace made a move to go after the wounded survivor but Vaugt barked for him to stand down.
"He'll be back. He won't stay away for long. For now we need to search these two and then burn the bodies. Who knows what other kinds of critters will come crawling in if we leave them here." Ace glowered, feeling slightly offended, but realized Vaugt was right. They needed to clean up and quit of the area as soon as possible. It was never good to stay in one place when being hunted.