Chapter 1 Part 5

"Vampires!!!: I screamed at the top of my lungs.

I ran pushing people deeper into the Holyberry bushes and commanding them to stay where they were with more than just words I compelled them to obey with magick as well. Once they were safely tucked away, I moved with all my elven speed towards the anchor bridge that connected my beautiful home to its current location.

All the way there, I found bodies of our hunting party. All the way there, I found fallen members of the cities watch. All the way there, hope for finding anyone alive sank.

Across the bridge and to the right, lay the mystical teaching families To the left, my area was the artistic families. This is where I made my way. I ran with all speed to my home, barreling through a group of fighters that were in the midst of a horrendous battle with more than a couple of vampires. I knew that when I crossed paths with them again, they would no longer be among the living and with my knowledge came the feeble prayer that they will not be among the undead as well.

I rounded a bend in the road, heading for that familiar House that held my family to find my mother and brother fending off a fiend. My father had fallen already before the onslaught, and lay in a twisted lump, his life's blood leeching out onto the ground. I reacted with the speed of thought, magick springing from the very bottom of my soul. A gout of flame jetted from my finger tips, igniting the fiend's clothing and spreading quickly to the very beast himself. Screams the likes of which could only be described as unholy erupted from the vampire, rising to mingle amongst the clamor of battle and the death song of those dying by the hands of the vampires assaulting Skyguard Keep. I had never seen anything like the devastation that was around me, even in the height of the battles that we, of the Adventurer's Guild had ever been involved with. This was just total and utter destruction with no rhyme or reason other than to destroy.

I raced to my mother's side as she fell faint with exhaustion. It seems that here, in Skyguard Keep; the battle had been raging for more than five hours. I could now see why the devastation was so complete. I could also feel the city sinking from the air. The mages that kept the city aloft were either dead, or in the midst of battle themselves. I summoned up what magicks I could that were all battle worthy and began to place other protective magicks on my mother and my brother. There was a second thought, but it would prove to be my own undoing. I spun around to accomplish my act when I was struck down. I felt as if I had been slammed by the fist of a Hill Giant or some other such insanely strong creature. Blackness was all that came of it. Blackness and pain. I awoke to find a trio of vampires holding me up in front of what was obviously their leader. Silence, I felt would be the best thing for the moment, so I observed instead of spoke.

The vampire to my left stated, “Lord Augurscan, this one has spirit and potential, do you want us to turn him, sire? The other two giggled with anticipation, but my mind ran to what they meant by turned. Knowledge of what it entailed sprang up from some source deep within my mind. A secondary thought came to me at this time. I would one day have to follow this fount of information that lay deep within my soul, but only after I had gotten myself out of this current situation. Thinking lightening quick, I pulled a quick spell and fired a barrage of magick missiles directly into the chest of the two vampires holding me, when they let go, I leapt toward the leader, who with a simple wave of his hand put a halt to my forward movement. I was held in my spot, midway between earth and air.

"Yes. There is a fire in your belly, young one." Augurscan began. "I think you will be quite a nice addition to our army of darkness. Vhal-drador, would you care to do the honors?"

"Lord, I do believe that this honor belongs to the young one who captured him in the first place, your very own man at arms. The Drow warrior, Dombra. I would think that it would do well for his morale that he brought down one of the sundwellers."

The Lord, Augurscan, laughed at the suggestion, but I could tell it was the type of laughter that actually agreed with the situation posed before it. It was the kind of laughter that could send a chill through the skin of a being from the vast tundra during an ice storm. The unfortunate thing was that with the ice behind the laughter also came a mind numbing realization. They planned to make me one of them.

"Yes child." The creature said. "You will be one of my minions. You will be nothing more than that. EVER." His gloating was enough to restart my thinking processes again. How in the Gods was I going to get out of this? What the hell could I do with this?

A spell, quick and simple sprang to mind, from that oh so dark and secretive area that knowledge was being pulled from, keying in once again that oh-so-blatant acknowledgement that I would someday have to excise these dark recesses of knowledge.

I watched as the Drow made its way to me, fangs adding an unnatural feature to an already unnatural face. Though I have met many a Drow that I have respected and even enjoyed fighting side by side with, this one was even a perversion for the Drow peoples. A blood hunger just barely under his own control was being tempted with my throat exposed to him by others who had joined the fray. His movement was almost quicker than my keen eyes could keep up with. I muttered the words of the archaic spell just as the vampire sank his fangs into my neck. Oh sweet Goddess!! The moment that they pierced my throat, there was such a sensation of peace, love, trust and Hope!? Could this have been the magick, or was it something else? I, honestly, couldn't tell you exactly what went on with my emotions at that moment, but something did click for me. I KNEW beyond the shadow of a doubt that I would remain me. At least mentally. Physically I would change greatly.

I awoke some three days later, to find myself half buried in the ruins that were once one of the most beautiful cities on all of Shalisterra. I looked around and found my father's and several friends' bodies, however, I did not find my mother and brother. A silly thought crossed my mind only once. Why was I looking for THEM?? When all was said and done, they would find me. I hoped anyway.

My dreams quickly faded through the centuries that I have seen. There were glimpses here and there of all that I had lost, all that I had learned and the friend that had traveled them with me. All the hosts of pain that I had seen, felt and hoped coalesced in a myriad of images and emotions. Most of them filled with loss and sorrow.

None knew the loss, the sorrow, or the gratitude that I felt towards Johanish, who abandoned his homelands, family and future to stay with one such as me. He knew his mission, as did I. That was to find a cure for what I was infected with and see to it that this unholy alliance of disease and dark magicks. I awoke from the dream in a pool of cold sweat. When my vision cleared, and the red haze of vampirism cleared, I noticed that there were several warm bodies in my tent. Natasha had seen to that. Just as she had seen to their receiving my dreams. It was, after all, her responsibility to see to my safety. She was my wife. It was she who sent me back in time to help me deal with my own hunger. It was she who gave Johanish the Alabaster Stake to end my life should I not be able to learn to control my hunger.

I looked around at my friends. Those I called family. Those I called friend. All with tears streaming down their faces, but the one that struck me to the core was that of Kassandra. Her face not only wept with true feeling for what I had been through, but also had that look of "you son of a bitch. If you had only trusted me enough to tell me from the onset, I could have helped. I know it"

There was no time for platitudes; however, battle was upon us.

End Chapter 1 Part 5

Written By: Belfazaar Ashantison

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