Minisode - The Night Carmine Died

In London during the late 1880's, a young man entered a mostly empty pub and made his way to the counter.

"Hey sonny, we're closing up soon. Bit late for a nightcap." The barman told him.

"I would like to order your best bottle." the young man requested.

The barman laughed, "Ha! That's a good one! I was young myself, run along home before you get into trouble."

The young man slammed a sack of British pounds on the counter, "Please, sir. Just give me the bottle."

The barman nearly fell over, "That-That's a...where did you get all this?"

"It's everything I have left in this cruel world, and I don't want it. I want a bottle of the hardest drink you have."

The barman was still for a moment, he closed his eyes as he grabbed a special whiskey he kept just to brag about it to customers who would never purchase it, and set it in front of the young man. "Would you...like a glass?"

The young man grabbed it and turned around to leave, "Have a good evening, sir."

...

Soon enough, that whiskey bottle was halfway empty as the young man drank and grumbled to himself, "Ah...so, this is what's become of you, Carmine? Crawling out of one pit just to be thrown into another?"

He coughed up some of the whiskey, and it ended up in the River Thames. Carmine wasn't much of a drinker. In fact, he detested alcohol, but tonight was a special occasion. He took a few deep breaths before going back to his conversation with himself, "What a joke! You did everything you were told to do! You worked hard, studied hard, you even got into University! But then you got told you're on your own! No help with finances! What was it all for?"

Carmine looked at what was left of the whiskey, and tried standing up. His legs could barely hold himself, "That should be enough...even if my body's survival instincts kick in, I shouldn't be able to get out of the water."

He chucked the rest of bottle into the Thames and decided he'd follow after it. As he approached the river though, he felt his arm being grabbed. He turned to see a well-dressed foreign woman, "My, my, are you really in such a hurry to end your life?" she asked.

"Please let go of me, my lady." Carmine responed.

"Oh Carmine, your head must be swimming in alcohol yet you still treat a complete stranger so politely?"

"...how do you know my name?"

"I know all about you. I know about your brutish father who killed your mother in front of you, the pompous rich man who treated you like a project, and that spoiled boy who took any hope of a future away from you."

"Then you must know I wish for an end of it all. I am done being someone else's victim, now please let me go."

The lady giggled as Carmine tried in vain to pull out of her grasp, "Oh Carmine, it would be a great shame for such a brilliant, well-mannered young man to end it like this. I can offer you so much more."

Carmine paused for a moment, and figured he had nothing left to lose, he looked into her eyes, "Like what?"

The lady smiled, showing the young man a pair of fangs, "Come closer and I'll show you..."

...

"Forgive me, Jacob. You were just in the way."

A few hours later and Carmine was sitting in the hall of his adoptive father's estate. His adoptive father now impaled on the sword of the statue in the middle of the hall. In Carmine's hands was the head of his adoptive brother, Jacob, he had torn it off himself during the confrontation that sparked when he barged into the mansion as a bloodthirsty monster. Jacob had treated Carmine like a brother growing up, but unfortunately he became cold when he learned he would gain all the family wealth.

The hall was littered with the bodies of guards and servants. It had all been a blur to him. Perhaps it was the alcohol, perhaps it was his newfound power, but either way it was a drunken haze now. Carmine was pretty sure he got shot during the fight, but the bullets couldn't stop his new body and the wounds healed fast. He heard clapping and looked up to see the lady smiling, "Well done! I knew you had potential, but that was a brilliant display of superiority!"

Carmine looked back at Jacob's head in his hands, the blood drained from it, and Carmine could taste it in his mouth, "They're all dead...I've slain and eaten them all...I can't claim their fortune now, the law will have my head."

"Not in this capacity. But, you can take all the valuables you wish and burn this place to the ground. With all the bodies here, people will assume you perished along with them in the inferno."

Hearing this made Carmine grin, "You speak as if you've done this before, Lady Lopez."

Lopez smiled back, "I have done many things...and with this wonderful display and gain of wealth, you will officially become a member of The Order."

As the two began pillaging, Grim arrived on the scene. He tsked at the sight, "Another mass death brought on by an inheritance dispute. Why must rich humans be so inconsiderate?"

...

Mr. Dusk here! Initially, I came up with Carmine as simply Dr. Lopez's right hand man who wears all white to reflect sunlight and has a "gentleman" personality. As you can see, I got attached to the character, and gave him a backstory. If it seems familiar, that's because it's an alternative version of DIO's (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure) backstory as he was one of the inspirations for Carmine.

Personally, I'm hesitant with making OCs, but making the High Lords of Chaos gave me a bit of confidence, and I got a good feeling with Carmine. I hope you all enjoy him as well!

P.S. Making Doctor Lopez a vampire was kind of spur of the moment, honestly, but I loved the idea so much that I went with it. Initially she was supposed to be similar to Van Helsing, but then I got the idea for The Order and figured "You know, she's never shown in the show so she can be whatever I want her to be." And so, she's a very powerful vampire!