Lilith

Thornhill, Vankar Island

Northern Region,

Kingdom of Ashtarium

October 10th, 6414

12:45 pm

The castle was burning. The huge, pentagon-shaped castle I had lived in for eight years was falling apart. There was smoke everywhere, the roaring inferno spreading like a lake that had broken through a dam. The smoke was stinging my throat, and my eyes were wet, but the discomfort didn't bother me. There was only one simple thought in my heart. One desire that I cared about more than anything. I didn't care about the fire, I didn't care for the burnt bodies that I once knew. I didn't care for anything but just the thought that she was okay. Let her be alright. Be safe. The rest of the world could burn for all I care, but not her. Not Ariella...

BOOM! An interrupting sound and a moment later, my eyes opened and I was no longer in the castle, struck with fear. I was back in the Hypertrain, in the section of the train that was categorized as first-class. I felt pressure on my right shoulder which turned out to be my best friend, Ariella Ashtarmel. She was sleeping on my shoulder, her eyes shut down with exhaustion, her warm breath calming the anxiety that I had felt from the dream I had just woken up from. I told myself that the incident had been two years ago and that right now, we were safe. As safe as anyone on the run could be. We were leaving the region of Kettlia and were currently on our way to the Northern Region. The city of Perium was no longer a haven for us. At least that was what Sanders-Ariella's Caretaker- had summarised before he decided to unpack the lives we had managed to make. I checked my uni and the time indicated that we would soon reach our destination. And sure enough, the conductor's voice came in through the speaker.

"Ladies and Gentleman, I'm pleased to inform you that we have just reached the Island of Vankar. Please gather your things and be prepared to disembark..."

"Are we there, yet," Ariella's sleepy voice muttered as she rubbed her eyes. She opened them with a gasp and looked up at me. "I hope I didn't leave any drool on you,"

"You should be more concerned about your snoring," I grinned at her.

"What! I don't snore," Ella responded with a smile. It felt good to see her smile. When they had left Kettlia, she had been silent and unresponsive. I knew why she had been that way but there was nothing I could do about it. It wasn't wise to stay in Kettlia for as long as they had, no matter how safe the place might have once been. The entire region was going through a major upheaval and it wasn't safe for them to be there while it was going through it. The train finally came to a sudden stop. Sanders who had been quietly paying attention to the outside of their compartment, suddenly got up.

"We're here," He said. I could hear movements from the outside as people were beginning to depart the train. Opening our compartment door was Hector Sandolo, Ariella's other caretaker who Sanders had tasked to guard the compartment. He gave a bow to Ariella and then he began taking the suitcases- Ariella's- while I had to get my own myself. Ariella insisted on carrying one of her backpacks, instead of leaving everything to Hector, the firm pout on her face was the only thing that dissuaded the servant from fighting her over it. When we got out of the train, I felt a slight prick at the back of my neck. Which caused me to take a glance at my surroundings. People were coming out of the train, going about their business. I reprimanded myself. Not everything was a threat to-

"Lil, are you-" Ariella began but then she was cut short by the sudden collision of someone against her. I caught her before she fell as the stranger ran off, Ariella's backpack in his hands.

"Out of the way," Two Peacekeepers zoomed past them, chasing after the culprit.

"My backpack," Ariella said. I didn't waste time, my body reacted before Sanders or Hector could say anything. Power flowed from the pit of my stomach to my knees and then to my toes. I speed past the Peacekeepers, crossing the distances between us within minutes while easily moving through the crowds of onlookers watching them do their jobs. I slammed against the thief, grabbing him by the back of his red jacket and slamming his back on the ground. I took Ella's backpack and used my feet to pin him on the ground, waiting for the peacekeepers to get here. As soon as they arrived, I took my foot off the thief. I gave them space as one of them dragged the thief up. Both the officers and the culprit were staring at me, a stupid look on their faces. There was silence around me and a glance around the tunnel station told me that the crowd was all looking at me. It took me a while before I realized why they were stunned by my actions. I began to hear whispers from the people around me. I ignored them as I paid attention to the Peacekeepers who finally reached me. They too had a look of surprise on their face. I knew the reason behind their shock as I had performed my stunt without the use of any special 

"Thanks, officers for your duty," I said as I left them to their jobs. I returned to where Ariella and the others were. But before I could give Ella her bag back, Sanders got in my face.

"What the hell were you thinking," He whispered, mindful of the people that were watching us.

"I was thinking of Ella," I said as I gave her back her bag. She whispered her gratitude to me which I accepted.

"That...That was not thinking of Ella.."

"You should relax," I said coolly. "All your attitude is going to do is bring attention to us."

"My attitude..." He stopped himself with a long sigh. "Let's move out." I couldn't help but smile at his displeasure. We hurriedly left the tunnel station and got out to the open. Vankar Island was one of the few habitable lands in the Northern region, though the Island was separated from most of the land mass of the North due to certain events that had played out in the past. The Island of Vankar was as far north as one could get in the Kingdom of Kuria, the rest of the land beyond it had yet to be settled by civilization, instead, it was inhabited by savages and barbarians that could survive in that harsh environment. From what I knew of the Island, fishing was one of its major commercial contributions to the Kingdom. I could smell the Pillar Ocean that surrounded the Island even through the Sundome that covered it. The Hypertrain tunnel was what connected the island with the rest of the Kingdom since it was in the middle of the sea. That was how far and removed Vankar Island was from the rest of the Kingdom. I wondered if it was one of the reasons why Sanders had decided to move them here. The bastard still hadn't given us the reason why their new home had to be in this region.

"So how are we getting to Thornhill," Ella asked.

"A ride should be waiting for us outside," Sanders said. "Ah, that is the one." He pointed at the entourage of suits with signposts. The one he pointed at waved his arms, the word Rochester written on the post. So he was able to secure a driver for us.

"You must be the Rochester group," The driver said. He stopped as soon as we got closer to him. I recognized the look on his face.

"You're Vampires.." He muttered. Not me. I wanted to say. But I kept my mouth shut.

"Is that a problem," Sanders said.

"No...No...it's..just that we don't get many Vamps in this area," The driver said as he took us to his vehicle. It was silver-painted, long, and nice looking.

"Good," Sanders said. He opened the door for Ariella to get in but then put his hands in front of me as I made to follow her in.

"Your abilities are the only reason why you're here," He whispered to me. "Stay within your lane, and things will go smooth for you," I stared him right in the face, his black eyes met mine and even with the vitriolness within them, I didn't flinch or back off.

"You should be careful where you put those hands," I said as I pushed past them into the car.

Thornhill was exactly how I had imagined it to be. That was my first thought as I peered through the window of the car. It had been two hours since the train entered Vankar soil. Since we had been driving through the Island, trying to get to a place I had heard so much about, I couldn't help but feel a foreboding sense of dread. It was always my go-through instinct. As much as I had despised Paddington City and knew we couldn't be there anymore, I thought coming here was also a bad idea. What we should have done, was to leave Kuria, and the New World. Go somewhere as far from this continent, either to the east or past the Salt Mountains. Hiding in one of the most popular towns known for its attraction was not something I would choose. Sanders had insisted that this place was the best place to start our lives all over again. No explanation on how it would keep us safe- the bastard rarely ever explained his actions. A flash of light, above in the dark sky revealed the town for a moment in the darkness. The streets were completely devoid of anyone. Most of the buildings looked old and tattered like they hadn't been renovated in a long time. Everything about the town's building seemed to scream "Pre-war" at me. From the signs of decorations arranged alongside every building, It appeared the town was getting into the celebrating mood for Remembrance Day, which only soured my mood even more. The car seemed to be taking us off the main road and into a deserted road that was filled with grasses and potholes. I felt a bump on the left side of my back head which tore my attention from the outside and back inside the car. I pulled the earplug from my ear, the sweet song of punk music dimmed down. I tried my best to smile- an effort that my facial muscles did not like- as I turned my attention to Ariella who was by my side. Her head popped outside through the window, letting in the cold air and tiny trickles of water. Her silver hair was damped from the rain, her face flush from the emotions she was feeling. She turned to face me, her electric indigo eyes bursting with excitement. There was so much emotion in that eyes of hers, that I felt like it could even rub off on me. Her disappointment in leaving Paddington was gone, replaced with the burning emotion of curiosity. Thornhill was a town that she had always wanted to visit back when they were kids. And now they were fulfilling one of her dreams.

"Looks like we've reached the mansion." She said. I peeked out again to see the mansion and sure enough, there was a huge mansion looming over us. And as soon as I saw it, the speck of excitement that I had gotten from Ella vanished. There was a shroud of weird vibe that hung over the mansion. Something that I couldn't figure out. It was the same feeling that I had gotten when I first stepped foot into this land.

"What a charming view," I said with a hint of insincerity. " I wonder how long it will take for it to come crashing down on us."

"This house has been in Thornhill since before the war. You could say it is a historical site that has been preserved for quite some time." Sander said. I turned to stare at Sanders who sat opposite from us. Typical of him to be frowning down on me while giving me a lecture. He was dressed in all black, a black suit, and pants with a black coat that camouflaged him within the darkness of the car. He sat so still that I forgot that he was in the vehicle with us. His pale face contrasted against his scarlet hair though it seemed to go with his black eyes. You could say that he resembled a walking corpse. Didn't blame the driver-who had been human- for being struck with fear. I turned around to stare at Ella unable to stop the comparison between them. Although Ella and Sanders were distantly related, there was a huge difference in appearance between them. Her cheek was warm pink colored, no sign of the alabaster skin color that Sanders had. She didn't sit still like a statue but was filled with a restless energy that even I could feel. She seemed so humanly ordinary but I knew that there was nothing ordinary about her. I had learned, after all, the hard way not to be fooled by Ella's appearance. She may be petite but there was no denying that she could rip jugulars and throats within two seconds. The car came to a sudden stop pulling me out of my thoughts. The door by Ella's side opened and standing outside was Hector, his hand extended for her. Hector, as usual, ignored me which I didn't mind. I got out myself, trying to stretch my limbs from the soreness of the ride as I saw my reflection in the sleek car. I had on a black leather jacket with a red T-shirt, the word "Adicts" written over it in bold white letters. There was a streak of magenta striped across my midnight black hair. Add to the fact that I was wearing huge platform boots with studs and spikes. I so wanted to take my shoes off. I straightened up, my head stretched out to the sky, as my face got soaked from the downpour. I was getting all wet while the others had somehow managed to get an umbrella. I couldn't help but feel a tiny murderous rage at Hector. I grabbed my bag from the trunk as I shot Hector a dark look for ignoring my stuff but getting Sanders and Ella's bags. Ella bounced over to my left side, placing her arms around my shoulder, shielding me from the rain with the umbrella she had gotten from Hector.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"Now we don't want you getting sick in the rain." She gave me a huge grin that revealed a set of perfect white teeth. My heart rate took a huge spike with my palms going all sweaty. Sanders's eyebrow twitched at the closeness between us. I waited for him to say something but he didn't instead he turned around to face the mansion that we were about to spend the next few weeks of our lives trapped in. The mansion looked old, exactly like Sanders said it was. Older and outdated than the other houses in town, with vines spread out across the windows and building. I could tell that some of the windows were shattered, and the crumbling walls were nothing more than a ghostly silhouette of its former existence. I seriously did not like the look of the mansion nor the weird feeling that had gotten stronger now that I was closer to it. A round-back man was walking over to us- he seemed to have been the one who opened the gates- his cloak whipping against the wind.

"So you the new folks who bought the house." The man said.

"Yes, I'm Edward Rochester and these are my nieces Anna and Lith." Sanders pointed at Ella and me. I kept an eye on the strange man as his eyes wandered over us. He froze at me with a shocked expression and just like that it was gone. His face became blank as he turned to Sanders. What was that? Did I imagine it or was I just being paranoid? My hand had crawled towards the hidden blade at my back.

"Name's Dudley, Vernon Dudley. I'm the groundskeeper for the entire estate." He said. " Couldn't believe it when Mrs.Fletcher told me the estate's been sold and the new owners would be coming in soon. But ain't you supposed to be here till next week."

"Well, What can I say? I got tired of the bullshit in the South." Sanders said. Dudley snorted and spat on the ground, a smirk clearly on his face.

"Heard things were getting bad out there." He said. He was referring to Kettlia, the city in Perium that we had run from. "Must be if your kind is moving out of there." I froze, my hand steadily going for the knife that was hidden at my back. Sanders noticed it and gave a slight shake of his head. He knows. I wanted to scream at him but the look on his face made me pause. "Not the first time Southerners have been coming over here since that new King. If you ask me, the whole kingdom was better off with the old family even if they were a bunch of bloodsuckers." Now I wanted to stab him. I turned to face Ella but she seemed indifferent to what he was saying.

"I suppose so. Anyway, we need to get in. The key, Please." Sanders said in a stiff tone of voice. Hector moved over to grab the key from Dudley while we headed towards the Mansion. I moved over to Ella's side as my eyes swept around the building once more. As long as we were going to be stuck here, my number one priority was going to be Ella. I could feel something tugging at the back of my mind. I turned back to see Dudley's eyes on me. His gaze was so sharp for a moment I thought he was sizing me up.

*

"Have you chosen your room," Ella asked me as I helped her move her stuff into the room she had chosen for herself. The mansion was a four-story building, with the addition of an attic, with plenty of rooms to choose from. Ella had chosen a room on the second floor, the biggest one with lots of space, though it was nowhere close to the one that she had back home. Luckily for us, the room came with its bedframe and everything one needed in a bedroom. Even its bathroom. I suppose this room could be considered the master's bedroom. It was large enough. Unlike me, Ella had more stuff, clothes, and dresses that Sanders had bought for her back when we were in Perium. So I figured I could help her out with arranging her stuff.

"I chose the one upstairs above yours," I said as I folded some of her clothes and put them in the dresser.

"You know you could have chosen the room on the other side of mine?" Ella exclaimed throwing a pair of her undergarments at me. I caught it and folded it, leaving it in the dresser.

"Sorry, upstairs just felt better," I said. I groaned as the side of my temple was met with a sickening prickle.

"Still not feeling better," Ella asked me. I shook my head at her. As soon as we had entered the mansion, the weird vibes had turned into slight headaches, aches that were beginning to grow worse as I had taken a tour through the building. Ever since I could remember, I had always had slight headaches from time to time. But this one was worse than the rest. It wasn't coming and going like before. Sometimes I couldn't understand what my body was trying to tell me.

"When was the last time you had headaches," Ella asked me.

"When we left Yorkside," I said. Ella understood what I meant. I could tell from her face that she was looking back into the past, everything that had happened and led us to this town. I caught some flashes of memories. And then her mind was back in the present. She gave me a look and I looked away from her. I didn't like peering into her head like that. It was something that I had trained myself not to do. Unlike others, taking a peek into Ella's mind was easy. It didn't require the usual physical contact that I normally needed to be able to see one's thoughts and emotions. Ella was different. The good thing was that now that she had awakened as a Vampire, it was easier for her to block me out of her head when she wanted to.

"I still don't like the idea of you up there," Ella said. "I wish you were closer to me,"

"It doesn't matter what room I'm in," I said taking Ella's hand and squeezing it. "I'm still going to be looking out for you," The door opened and Hector came in. The bastard ignored me as he gave a small bow to Ella.

"Princess-"

"Seriously Hector, You don't have to call me Princess," Ella said. "I'm not a Princess and I haven't been one for two years,"

"You would think he was smart enough to know that," I said.

"Lily," Ella exclaimed.

"What!" I said. "It's not like it's the first time you repeatedly told him not to call you by your old title,"

"Princess Ariella will always be a Princess to me," Hector said without so much as looking at me. The right vein on my temple throbbed, but I kept my cool. I swallowed my retort at him, letting it fume back in my gut.

"I'm here Princess because I'm about to go to the Synthbank," Hector said. "I was wondering if there was a particular brand of Synthblood you desire,"

"This town has a Synthbank," I said.

"Yes, it does," Hector scowled at me.

"That's good," Ella said. "I was wondering how Sanders and I would be getting our blood." As a newly awakened Vampire, Ella was now an Etherborn. She needed to feed and her immortal body required Ether, a quintessence force that existed within all living things, especially among the Etherborns. Vampires got their Ether by drinking the blood of humans, the lowest of the Etherborns. But thanks to science and technology, Ella didn't need to be like the Vampires of the Old days. The period when Vampires hunted humans was no longer considered the norm. Now there was Synthblood- a perfectly replicated substitute for natural blood from Humans. Though from what Ella had described to me, the taste of it was not like how she had imagined it to be. Not that she had even tried human blood to know the differences.

"I guess I can go for some O positive," Ella said. "I do like that tangy flavor of it,"

"It shall be done, Princess," Hector bowed again and walked off.

"I hope he remembers to go shopping for real food," I said, yawning. For some reason, my body felt exhausted, and the headache from before was beginning to get worse. I rubbed my temple, fighting against the headaches.

"Are you alright," Ella said. "You look tired," I gave her a reassuring smile as I finally put her last piece of clothing away in the dresser.

"I guess I'm just tired from the journey," I said.

"You should rest," Ella said. "You pushed yourself a lot this morning, looking after me" The Journey from Kettlia to the Northern Isle had been more exhausting than when we had first fled from the Royal region two years ago. Sanders had kept us in the dark about where we were heading and we had to go through a lot of illegal channels just to get to the northside of the Kingdom, as far away from the reach of the Royal family. Even though I was mad at Sanders for ignoring my suggestion to go all the way to the Old World, I hadn't come up with a way for us to get out of the Kingdom. Sanders was the one. He insisted that we would be safe here. My instinct was telling me that he was wrong. But there was nothing I could do about it. For now, I had made a promise to myself to make sure to watch out for Ella while we were in this cursed town of all places. And that was a promise I intended to keep. Who knows maybe hiding in plain sight might work out well for them.

_

St. Astarth Orphanage of lost child

Yorkside Region

July 24th 6406

6:35 pm

"Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!" The chants of violence filled the air as Lily's fist connected with Adrian's face. Blood splashed through the air, a metallic stink mixed with the smell of urine and sweat smothering Lily as her fist made good work of his face. They were encircled by a bunch of kids, the excitement and hunger for blood pulling them away from the bleak existence they had been forced to endure since they were born into this world. Lily could feel a rush of adrenaline and something else pulsing through her veins, straight into her heart as she kept clobbering Adrian. She knew that she had to stop sooner than later or else she could beat Adrian to death. But she couldn't. Something-some kind of force deep within her kept her going forward with it. A very small part of her was fighting against it but that part was powerless against the primal force that had taken control of her. She noticed a shadow hovering above her and before she knew it something big was pulling her off Adrian, the sound of the other kid's enjoyment deafening to a low groan of disappointment. A face appeared in front of Lily, the look of displeasure was directed at her though Lily was sure that she didn't give a shit about how the Good sister felt about her actions. The crowd had dispersed with the arrival of the adults, each going back to their lunch tables while Adrian was lifted off the floor by the caretakers and taken away. Lilly turned her head around to take a good look at the Caretakers who had lifted her off from Adrian and sure enough, it was a pale face one.

"Let go of me, you filthy bloodsucker" Lily snarled her teeth at him but he seemed unfazed by the taboo word that she had thrown at him.

"My pleasure!" He smiled a cold deadly smile as he slammed her against the empty table that she had been using for Lunch. There was a blinding white light and a surge of pain within Lily's head as the pain tore away at the adrenaline that had been pushing her. The pale one with the red hair and scarlett's eyes, smiled coldly at her as he tightened his fingers around her throat. She couldn't breath, the sound of her heart pounding hard against her ear canal. Sister Josephine stood by and watched, a look of terror plain against her face as the creature choked one of the children she had been sworn to look after. She tried her best to hide her fear as she cleared her throat.

"Master Sanders! Please forgive her rudeness-"

"Fuck it! Coughed Lilly. The little girl glared at the creature that resembled a human but was definitely not one. " I don't need his fucking forgiveness, you filthy bloodsucking leech" Lilly grabbed his hands around her throat and it was like steel grabbing ahold of iron as she pulled his hands off of her. "I'll fucking murder you all." Master Sanders smiled, the first sign of human emotion that he had shown.

"Oh! So it is true." He said in a sweetly voice that turned the insides of Lily's stomach. "You're the one they bought in from that Place, aren't you. The one who killed ten of my best men before they could subdue you." He let go of her as he turned to the good sister. "I thought she was supposed to be properly inaugurated back into a fashionable civilized manner."

"We have been trying to help with Miss Kain's assimilation but she has ... still shows signs of her impure manners. It is our full intention, with the blessing of the Great Mother, to purge her of all impurity." The good sister said while bowing to him. The Vampire sneered at the human which only angered Lily. She hated the way the creature looked down at her. Like she was nothing but a pest that he only tolerated because he had no choice.

"See to it that she does improve." The creature turned back to face her, the curiosity was beginning to fade away from his face, the blank expression replacing it coldly. "I'll be back in a month's time to collect." He flashed a fanged grin at her before he turned around and marched off.