When Sarah opened her eyes, she was standing in a massive gothic castle entryway. Curved staircases wrapped around either side of a black marble fountain that had a constant flow of red liquid. She recognized the smell immediately with her heightened senses. It was blood. She felt her fangs extend and the usual yearning. The usual arousal. For some reason, her blood and physical intimacy were linked when she was a vampire. If she stopped to think about it, what could be more intimate than drinking someone’s blood?

Sarah was oblivious to her surroundings besides the blood fountain slipped her fingers into it. The thick fluid was indeed blood. She lifted her finger to her mouth and licked it. As the coppery fluid crossed her tongue, she closed her eyes. Where the blood came from wasn’t really a concern for her at the moment, just that it was fresh. Goblets were hooked into various nooks around the edge of the fountain. She picked one up and held it under one of the streams of blood. She took a large gulp of it and filled it yet again. After several more goblets full of blood, she placed it on the black marble of the fountain’s base and licked her lips. She let her tongue slide along the bottom of her fangs. Whatever universe she had slipped into, her hostess was a vampire.

She spun around in a slow circle and realized there were massive stained-glass windows that rose up the wall of the grand entrance. In the center was a representation of a noble looking man. He was silhouetted by blood red stained glass. To his left was a stained-glass representation of a pale looking woman holding aloft a sword, the flat of the blade touching the tip of her nose. To his right another woman this one held her hands up and lightning crackled between them. Outside the windows flashes of light indicated a brewing storm.

Sarah looked down at her hands. They were slender and pale. The skin on her palm was smooth and uncalloused unlike her own hands in the world outside. Her nails were painted blood red. She looked down at her current body. It was slender, slightly shorter than her own. She lifted up a handful of her hair. It was black as the darkest night.

“Daughter, perhaps when you’re done admiring yourself and drinking all our blood you might consider getting your armor on and taking your knights to deal with invading Paladins as I asked you to an hour ago? Our citizens are being indiscriminately slaughtered as I speak.”

Sarah looked up to the source of the seductively dark voice. The man was beautiful, handsome wouldn’t encompass him. The length of his dark hair rivaled her own. His features were exquisite. He wore a black button up shirt with his sleeves rolled up. Sarah had always been a sucker for exposed forearms and rolled up sleeves. She licked her fangs as she admired him. He inspected her with his striking eyes. The irises of which were blood red. She had only one concern beyond the blood, she had a feeling she couldn’t just turn off vampirism here like she would in her real body.

“When is dawn?”

He raised one of his beautiful black eyebrows.

“What kind of nonsense are you spewing? These are the Night Lands the Sun God dare not shine here. Go deal with the incursion. The High Council has decreed these invader’s life forfeit. Once you’ve dealt with the Paladins follow their trail back to Lands of Light and confirm this is not a prelude to another Crusade would you?”

Sarah wasn’t quite sure if dying here would kill her outside, so she decided to try to divert her host’s father by pointing at the stained-glass depiction of the woman with lightning between her hands.

“Why not send her?”

“You would send your mother into battle? What has come over you? Does your God not decree as part of your faith to protect the innocent at all costs? Why do you delay when innocent farmers are being slaughtered?”

Sarah blinked a few times. How does one protect innocents and survive by drinking blood alone? She suddenly realized she’d also been asked to enter the Lands of Light, that sounded sunny. She looked up at the man again.

“I’m a vampire, how would I survive the Lands of Light?”

“Are you unwell? First, you’re drinking blood fresh from the fountain instead of depending on that ridiculous ring you wear. Now you forget you wear an amulet that protects you from the cursed sun?”

“Are innocents really dying? If this is a land of night… how do people farm?”

Sarah could hear a growing frustration in the man’s voice as he spoke again.

“Light stones, how else? Are you quite done? Or would you like to ask more inane questions instead of performing the duty you swore too Lady Aurelia Eventide Bloodwake? You’re acting like a child by the Unholy Gods, you’re seven-hundred-year-old vampire lord!”

The last bit definitely reminded Sarah of the way her mother would use her full name when she’d messed up.

“Where are the Paladins?”

He motioned towards the grand doors.

“The scouting reports are with Iona, perhaps you should listen when I speak to you.”

He spun around and folded his hands behind his back. He moved deeper into the interior of the keep. The disappointment in his voice hit Sarah like a punch in the gut. She truly didn’t know him from Adam, but she’d heard it in adults voices before. She moved towards the grand doors and pushed her way outside.

Sarah was greeted by a force of twenty armored soldiers riding black horses. The horses possessed blood red eyes. The soldiers were armed with a bow and a sword each. Some were quite human looking. Others looked like vicious flesh-eating monsters. One was a skeleton. The woman at their head was pale and blonde, also very beautiful. She looked over Sarah’s host’s body with judgmental blue eyes.

“We have been waiting for the better part of an hour my lady, will you be joining us anytime soon?”

Sarah wasn’t really sure how to respond.

“Sure, I guess.”

The woman frowned.

“Praise be to Madb, Lady Aurelia is going to join us, she guesses.”

The troops laughed. Sarah looked around. It would seem she needed to get some armor and a horse. Probably a weapon of some description. Where any of that might be, evaded her. Sarah decided to bite the bullet so to speak and motioned the blonde woman forward. The woman hopped off the horse. Her heavy silvery plate armor clanked. She patted the horse’s flank and approached Sarah with her helm tucked under her arm. She lowered her voice.

“What is it my Lady?”

“I seem to have forgotten where I left my sword and armor.”

The woman’s blonde eyebrow arched.

“Are you quite alright? An hour ago, you were ordering us to prepare to leave immediately, now you can’t remember where your armor is? By Madb you’re worrying me.”

Sarah was about to ask who Madb was but then bit her lip. She’d heard the name before. It was a pagan goddess as far as she knew. She’d heard her grandmother invoke the name when she was casting a spell once.

“I drank from the fountain.”

The woman frowned.

“You’d better get right with Madb before we leave. Drinking blood! What were you thinking? Did you forget your vows as well?”

“I had a moment of weakness.”

The woman pointed towards a set of doors by the stables.

“Best pray for forgiveness old friend. Your armor is in your personal armory as it always is, I suggest you leave the holy blade in its sheath for this. Madb would not look kindly at it shedding the blood of her holy order. Even if they are murdering innocent people.”

“Wait, if we’re followers of Madb… why are her Paladins attacking us?”

“Because unlike you and I they are blind fanatics paving the road of good intentions with the blood of anyone they deem tainted. As usual. I just hope it’s not another Crusade. Too many good people died on both sides. The high priest in Stormlund needs to take his head out of his bloody arse.”

Sarah turned to head towards the armory but was held back when she felt a strong hand on her shoulder.

“You are not yourself, my lady. Perhaps you should sit this one out.”

Sarah wanted to agree very badly. Then it hit her that if not for her arrival here the troops would have left half an hour ago and now more people would be hurt. The least she could do was go see what was going on. As a vampire there wasn’t much that could do permanent harm after all. She knew she had access to Enid’s fighting skills, most of which were with primitive weapons.

“I’m fine. Which direction are they?”

The woman pointed towards the gate.

“Due north, My Lady.”

“I’ll catch up. Go ahead. We can’t let the farmers continue to suffer.”

The woman nodded. She hopped on her horse with no effort. Sarah was a bit shocked. But then it dawned on her she heard no heartbeat from the woman. She pondered if the blonde woman might be a vampire as well. Sarah realized fully half the group she was looking at lacked heartbeats of any sort. The blonde woman saluted to Sarah before motioning the squad of knights forward. They galloped over the drawbridge and into the darkness beyond.

When Sarah grasped the handle of the armory door there was a small shimmer and it opened for her. Inside was far bigger than the outside. Like the packs she’d seen in Enid’s memories. One of the long walls was covered in wall hangers for weapons. Swords of all shapes and sizes. Some glowed others dripped green fluid. All looked quite deadly. An armor rank held a suit of gleaming silver plates. Leaning against the legs of the armor was a round shield. The symbology on the front was a rising sun backed by an open palm. Another wall held lances. The final wall held several bows.

She stood in front of the armor and held out her hand to grab the first piece. She was shocked to find it shimmered out of existence and encased her. It was lighter than she expected. Her movement wasn’t so restricted as it would appear it would be. She leaned down and picked up the shield. She slipped it over her shoulder onto a hook. The years of wearing armor in Rome experienced by Enid had transferred to Sarah in their mixing of their minds so this felt quite natural to her. She looked over the swords. She drew the most glorious from its sheath. The silvery blade reflected the torch light. She saw Enid’s green eyes appear in it.

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“So, off to slay a dragon then?”

Sarah wrinkled her nose.

“I thought you weren’t here, while I was here.”

“I’m everywhere you are. This one is a good sword, well balanced, but it is likely the holy blade you were warned against using. I’d take it but make sure to grab another.”

“And how do I know which to bring?”

“You want fire? You want acid? Lightning? That black one looks fairly dangerous.”

Sarah reached for the black sword. It seemed familiar in some fashion.

“Looks like Bloodseeker. Though it’s much better crafted. I would guess it serves a similar function, draining blood?”

“Well, if I’m supposed to be a Paladin would I really use a blood drinking sword?”

“Well, whatever you’re going to choose you best do it quickly or you might miss the battle.”

Sarah shook her head.

“Why are you so eager to get me into battle? Aren’t I just a child?”

“You fancy yourself a hero, now is your chance.”

“But aren’t Paladins like… good people?”

Enid laughed.

“This lot sounds like the witch hunters in our Middle Ages. I believe you’ve found yourself in the middle of a war between two sides of a church.”

Sarah laid her gauntleted hand on each blade in turn. She felt drawn to the fire sword so she pulled that from the wall. And slipped the sheath over her shoulder which caused the sword to slip under the shield hook and lay across her back diagonally. The holy sword she grabbed with the intent to hook it up to her saddle. Thanks to Enid she also knew how to ride a war horse into battle. She went to the stables and found a jet-black horse with a single spiral horn rising from its forehead.

“She has a freaking unicorn?”

The unicorn approached and nuzzled her. Its glowing purple eyes looked her up and down. Sarah strapped the holy sword to the saddle. She lept onto the unicorn’s back. Her vampiric strength made the plate armor seem like it weighed nothing. She leaned forward.

“Let’s go save some farmers?”

The strange unicorn reared slightly and launched itself forward in a hard gallop. As she crossed the drawbridge she looked down. She realized it was a bad idea when she noticed it seemed to be a bottomless chasm. Her mount surged along the road at a speed that rivaled the motorized vehicles she was used to. Sarah laughed joyfully as the wind rushed through her hair. She could feel Enid’s own joy as the unicorn galloped so quickly it seemed to hover above the ground.

Her joy quickly turned to horror when she found herself in the smoldering remains of a small farming village. Charred bodies lay where they fell. Men, women, children. None were spared the wrath of their attackers. She saw the squad of knights up ahead. Most were still mounted. A quarter of their number and their blonde leader were off their horses and inspecting the remnants. Even the fields had not been spared the torch. Nothing was alive save the newly arrived knights who were not among the undead. The blonde woman spoke again.

“They have never dared come this close to the keep.”

All eyes turned toward one of the knights when she called out. Sarah watched skeletal knight with flaming red eyes drag a rather vicious-looking creature by the back of its leather armor. Its skin was grey, and its teeth had formed into rows of razor-sharp fangs reminiscent of a shark. Its eyes were glazed over and a ghostly pale blue color.

“Lady Iona, I found this sniveling coward hiding in a freshly dug grave.”

The knight threw the ghastly looking man at the blonde woman’s feet. Sarah nodded slightly, so that was the Iona her hostess’s father had mentioned. It made sense. Iona walked around the loathsome ghoul. Her eyes had grown cold and angry.

“You sup on the High Lord Morgan’s provisions of flesh in exchange for service as a guardian to his people and this is how you serve them? Hiding in the earth while they burn? It is by his grace you have avoided the most holy blade of Lady Aurelia.”

The groveling thing shielded its face with its clawed hands as it spoke.

“Please my lady, there were too many. What is one wretch such as me to do against a horde of holy warriors wielding the light?”

Iona glanced up too Sarah. Sarah didn’t respond she just stared down at the pathetic creature. It must have once been a man, but all vestiges of his former life were long gone. She’d never looked upon one so loathsome before. If she were human, the shreds of flesh and bone that clung to its teeth would have turned her stomach. Iona patted the flank of her majestic warhorse. She looked back at him.

“You do your duty worm. You know the punishment for desertion. You hid from the blades of those paladins only to face justice at the blade of another.”

With no warning and in one swift motion she drew a sword from the sheath on side of her saddle and swept it through the ghoul’s neck. There was a flash of pure holy light and his body disintegrated. Sarah heard Iona whisper a prayer.

“May he find peace in Madb’s light.”

Iona slipped her sword back into the scabbard and pulled herself onto the horse. She motioned to one of the feral looking undead that served among her knights.

“Take two men find their trail.”

Iona looked too Sarah.

“Any other orders My Lady?”

Sarah shook her head. Her eyes drifted over the remains of the villagers, stopping on a pair of small bodies. In her mind they could have been her brothers. This was no game. No fake universe. It felt just as real as her own. She realized all of these casualties were her fault for showing up here. Had she not made this choice the real Lady Aurelia might have prevented their deaths. She looked at Iona.

“We need to stop them.”

Iona nodded.

“We will my Lady, we will. The embers are still orange. They have not gotten far.”

Sarah looked away from the smoldering corpses. Her eyes drifted to the sky. No stars, no moon graced the darkness above them. Just a soft purple glow. She looked at the trees in the distance and realized that the leaves were not green but had a slight purple hue. Above the burning fields globes of light floated. Everything was so strange and new. The suffering of innocents in a pointless holy war was all too old too her. Iona’s blood hounds emerged from the woods to the east and motioned towards the group. Iona lifted her hand and motioned towards the feral knights. Sarah followed. When they reached the trackers, Iona spoke to them quietly. Sarah’s supernatural hearing picked up the entire conversation as if she were standing by them.

“My Lady, they have set up camp in a clearing. There are fifty of them. They have a watch. Only a few wear the holy order’s crest.”

Iona nodded and motioned to the one knight who wore no armor. Sarah hadn’t seen her face it had been covered by a deep hood. Her gloved hands looked delicate enough. The woman moved forward.

“My lady?”

“Dame Sutra, summon the wraiths, order them to deal with the lay people. Then set up with the archers. Do what you do best.”

She looked at the rest of the knights.

“Undead deal with the lay people. Lady Aurelia, the living and I will deal with the priests and paladins.”

Iona glanced at Sarah. Sarah nodded in response. She saw no reason to stick her very inexperienced nose into the planning of the attack.

Sarah’s eyes were drawn to the slight woman who wore no armor. She had hopped off her horse and pulled her hood back. Horns spiraled up from her head. Curly black hair hung over them and a pair of pointed ears. Her skin was a deep red color. Boney ridges replaced eyebrows and her fingernails pitch black and ended in vicious points. She reached out her hands and started to weave a pattern in the air. Her red eyes turned into black pools and when she spoke the words, they took on an echoing quality. Finally, she spread her hands and a pulse of energy flowed over Sarah. She’d seen magic before, of course she was going to a school with mages. It was never like this, there was darkness to this.

If someone had asked Sarah what happened next, she would have responded with the most metal thing she’d ever seen. Purple rifts appeared around the demonic looking woman. Out of them ripped several cloaked figures. Each in a deep hood and holding a scythe. The woman pointed in the direction of the camp and spoke in a strange language. Sarah understood it as she understood all languages, the command was simple.

“Devour them all.”

The wraiths swept through the woods seeming to pass through the trees if they didn’t exist. Sutra pulled herself onto her horse and galloped further down the road. The archers trailed her. Iona pulled back her reigns and the knights began to gallop towards the camp of the Holy Order. As they approached the sound of horrified screams rose up.

Sarah watched as one of the wraiths reached into a man’s chest. The man’s body twitched as all the vitality ripped from his body. When his body fell a new wraith rose from the remains. The scene was being repeated all over that half of the camp. She saw a woman hold up a symbol and heard her pray to Madb to deliver them. A wave of holy light pulsed from the woman and several wraiths were disintegrated. The light could not save the woman from the vicious black arrow that struck her in the throat. Merciful death never came for her as the wraiths swarmed her. And what remained of her soul joined their rampage.

Sarah heard the telltale chant of arcane magic coming from up ahead. She saw balls of fire appear in the sky. She did what she had been trained to do at Aurelius Academy. She cast a shield spell over herself and the knights that surrounded her. The massive meteors of fire stuck it fruitlessly. Iona looked at her with wide eyes. The man began to chant again and an arrow struck him in his chest interrupting whatever he was trying.

Iona overcame her shock at seeing her Lady cast an arcane spell and drove her troops forward. The lances of the knights struck home on several targets. The mage broke the arrow’s shaft off and began to chant again. Sarah weaved her own hands and chanted a counter spell. She wasn’t sure it would work here like it did on Earth 3. To her relief the power the mage was channeling blew up in his face. While he was recovering, she chanted a paralysis spell. He tried to counter but she was quicker, and he froze in place. In truth that was the breadth of her spellcasting prowess. The first years weren’t allowed to learn destructive forms of magic. And so far, they’d learned a light spell, a shielding spell, counter spell and paralysis.

One of the surviving armored paladins charged at her. She blocked the blow with her bracer. She hadn’t killed anyone yet and was trying to keep it that way. The paladin wasn’t going to make it easy for her to keep to that. She drew her sword and parried another blow. She blocked another and another. He was inexperienced and telegraphed his attacks. She could have ended him several times but was staying defensive. Her mount wasn’t so patient and when her opponent was off balance, he found himself skewered through the neck by the spiral horn. The unicorn neighed in annoyance. The paladin fell to the ground holding his hands over the wound trying fruitlessly to staunch the flow of blood. He could not heal it himself because he could not speak. Sarah wanted to save him but in truth she was also tempted to finish him off by draining all of his remaining blood. She licked her fangs but pulled the unicorn away. Her host had sworn off drinking blood and she’d respect that though it felt like a form of masochism to Sarah.

The battle was over quickly. The paladins and their attached forces had been no match for the ferocity of the undead and their summoned wraith allies. The wraiths had vanished into the woods leaving many drained corpses in their wake. The rest were dead or dying by blade or arrow. A few were just charred remains from lightning strikes that had seemingly come out of nowhere. The only living member of the invaders was the mage. Sarah’s paralysis spell had spared him. Though he would die soon if the wound in his chest were not tended.

Iona and Sarah stood over his motionless form. Sarah knew from experience he was well aware of everything going on around him. She imagined the horror he must be feeling being surrounded by the enemy. She also knew she could release him at any moment with a wave of her hand and a few Latin words. Iona looked at Sarah.

“My Lady, what would you like to do with him.”

“Heal him.”

“He is a murderer, My Lady, are you sure? Death now would be the most merciful option. Your father’s methods…”

Sarah frowned slightly. She heard Enid speak.

“He is also the only one who can tell you if this is just advanced recon for a bigger attack.”

Sarah pursed her lips and decided to listen to Enid’s wisdom. She spoke to Iona.

“He is the only one who can tell us if there are more coming.”

Iona stood up straight.

“What do you mean? We can just have Sutra to question the corpses. He is a mage, letting him live is dangerous.”

Sarah looked down at the Mage.

“Let’s do both.”

*****

Sarah never got to see the end results of her choice as she was awoken suddenly by Serena’s hand on her forearm. The flight attendant they had annoyed was leaning down.

“We’re about to land, please buckle up.”

Sarah blinked a few times readjusting to her actual reality and pulled the belt over her waist and it clicked. She looked at Serena and offered the black sphere to her. She whispered.

“That was intense.”

Serena gave a half smile.

“I wouldn’t call the Hidden Isles intense. They were kind of quiet.”

Sarah shook her head.

“I wasn’t on the Hidden Isles. It was a kingdom of the undead. Paladins were attacking, but I was a paladin. It was so surreal. I tasted and felt everything as if I was there.”

“That’s because you were there Sarah, not in body, but in mind you were there. It was your reality. Sounds like the Night lands. Strange, I’ve only ever been to the Hidden Isles.”

“I think its because I identify…or Enid identifies as a vampire so much it pulled me into one. She was beautiful. I’m sort of jealous.”

Serena laughed softly.

“Maybe one day you can enter as you. Its always more fun that way.”

“Nope, no way. You might have been a Disney princess, but I was in a nightmare.”

“Were you a princess?”

Sarah pondered that for a few minutes.

“I suppose I was. But I don’t think Disney would make a movie about a vampire princess. The blood fountain and flesh-eating knights might turn off their target audience.”