It was telling of Marcus's past that he looked upon the burgeoning ranks of his followers and wondered when something would go wrong because things had been going far too smoothly as of late. History had taught him that unfettered success was always followed by some sort of horrible disaster that involved screaming, treachery, and plenty of near-death experiences. And unlike a certain somebody, he wasn't a gigantic, flying, fire-breathing reptile who could literally crush his enemies with a thought.

Doomwing had plenty of awesome powers at his disposal, but Marcus had always believed that his telekinesis was the most awesome. Sure, Marcus could use magic to imitate telekinesis, but it wasn't as if he could just go around making people explode or crushing them into mangled spheres of gore. Doomwing could do exactly that, and he wasn't shy about doing it either if people annoyed him enough.

Still, it was hard not to be at least a little bit optimistic. The war in the north had gone very well for him. As was so often the case with vampires, once things really got serious and ancients actually started dying, even the most idealistic of his opponents began to prioritise survival and adopt a more pragmatic approach.

Marcus had defeated several other prominent ancients in battle, which had prompted many of the remaining ancients to realise that, actually, they were perfectly content to serve him if it meant being given a position of authority and avoiding a horrible death. How eminently reasonable. A few of them had been snakes in the grass, but Quintus was very good at detecting treachery while Faustina had several concoctions in her repertoire that were perfect for dealing with anyone planning some good, old-fashioned vampiric betrayal.

He'd only had to kill three more ancients before the others had fallen into line. He'd honestly expected worse. He'd been fully prepared to kill at least twice that number before the others finally got it into their thick skulls that he was more than capable of dealing with their treachery. Fools. Growing up in his father's court had taught him more than enough about betrayal and how to deal with it.

The only major betrayal he'd missed since the long-ago days of his youth had been Kagami's, but the kitsune had been on a completely different level when it came to deception and misdirection. Even Doomwing and Dreamsong had been caught off guard, and neither of the two dragons were easy to fool.

Marcus now had ten ancients under his command, making his faction the strongest from a purely numerical standpoint. The only faction left that could truly oppose him was headed by Aloysius. The other vampire was actually an old acquaintance. He had once been part of his father's coven, and he had somehow managed to survive the carnage when his father had turned on his own supporters.

Marcus had heard of Aloysius over the years although he'd never had a chance to speak to him again. The other vampire had a reputation for being cautious, powerful, and well-versed in all manner of esoteric arts and rituals. Thankfully, however, he seemed free of the insanity that had driven Marcus's father to pursue increasingly horrific lines of research.

Aloysius was supposed to have eight ancients under his command, including several that Marcus held in high esteem. It was a pity they'd joined the other vampire, but the same integrity that made Marcus want them on his side also meant they were unlikely to turn their coats. Even so, he'd sent missives to Aloysius and his followers, promising them position of authority if they would acknowledge his right to rule.

The replies had been straight to the point. Aloysius was going to fight, and none of his followers intended to switch sides.

Marcus could respect that resolve, and he'd spent the past two weeks planning how to deal with Aloysius. The other vampire was older than him, but Marcus was reasonably confident that he could beat him in single combat since Aloysius had focused more on research than combat. However, that was assuming Aloysius was willing to face him alone in a fair fight. Since Aloysius was not an idiot, Marcus doubted that would ever happen. Instead, Aloysius would only be willing to face him with his supporters at his side in a situation that was as favourable as possible.

Damn it.

If only Aloysius was an impetuous fool. Oh well. Marcus had always known that the battle for the north would come down to difficult opponents like Aloysius. But if he could beat the other vampire, then the remaining ancients should all fall into line. None of the remaining factions had more than two or three ancients to their name, and most of those were on the younger side for ancients, less experienced and less powerful than the ancients who followed Marcus.

He was also hoping that once Aloysius fell, the ancients who served him would be willing to accept Marcus's rule. Most of them were quite competent, and he had no desire to slaughter them just because they happened to follow someone else who might actually have made a decent king. Moreover, a fight to the death against those ancients would undoubtedly result in at least a few deaths on his side, which would only weaken his position.

Marcus was about to summon Quintus, so they could discuss their preparations for dealing with Aloysius when the other vampire rushed into his chambers.

"We have a problem," Quintus said. The normally composed vampire looked quite frazzled, and his spectacles were askew.

"Ah." Marcus nodded. "There it is." He got to his feet. "All right. What is it?"

Quintus turned. "Follow me."

Marcus followed Quintus to the walls of their settlement. With Faustina and the other ancients under his command, they had been able to go from a wooden stockade to a proper wall made out of magically reinforced earth, concrete, and slabs of enchanted stone. It wasn't pretty, but it was effective, and Marcus would always choose effective over pretty when it came to battle.

Faustina was already waiting for him at the top of the wall, and the other vampire's pretty features were drawn into a deep scowl.

"We have visitors," she growled. "Look."

He peered over the wall. Huddled outside the wall was a large group of humans and vampires led by one of the ancients under Aloysius's command. There were wounded amongst them, and the ancient – Claudius – seemed to be on the verge of collapse. He was missing an arm and a big chunk of his left side.

"It's been a while, Claudius," Marcus shouted as his own forces readied a variety of spells and weapons at their unexpected visitors. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Marcus," Claudius shouted wearily. "I seek sanctuary for myself and my companions."

"Sanctuary?" Marcus raised an eyebrow. "You do realise that we're on opposing sides, and that your leader and I are probably going to try to kill each other sometime in the next fortnight."

Claudius sagged, and he might even have fallen to his knees if not for the support he received from the female elder vampire beside him. "Aloysius has lost his mind. The other ancients… are dead at his hand."

"…" Marcus stared and then he glanced at Quintus. "Did he just say what I think he did?"

The other man seemed just as taken aback as him. "I believe so."

Marcus shook himself. "I know you to be an honourable man, Claudius, but I'll need more than your word. What proof do you have?"

Claudius shuddered. "I can offer you some of my blood. My memories will not lie."

Marcus's brows furrowed. It was possible for an ancient to poison their blood, making it toxic to anyone who drank it. However, that was usually fairly easy to detect, and Faustina was there. It should be impossible for anyone to deceive her about something like that.

"Very well. I'll send someone down to collect it. Do not make any hostile moves."

In short order, Marcus had a small sample of Claudius's blood. He checked it himself before passing it on to Faustina. The alchemist ran a variety of tests and used a number of different spells and runes before giving it back.

"It's genuine," Faustina said. "And it doesn't appear to be tainted in any way."

"All right." Marcus nodded. "I'll drink it. If anything bad happens, kill them all."

Quintus gave him a toothy smile. "Of course. Treachery should be repaid with treachery, after all."

Marcus took a deep breath and drank the blood.

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Screams.

Blood.

Death.

Aloysius's body thrashed at the centre of an elaborate magical formation. Blood erupted from within him, and his screams trailed off as he jerked back onto his feet. His eyes opened, but there was nothing in them except hunger, a deep, insatiable hunger.

An ancient – Lucretia – went forward.

"Are you all right, Aloysius? Did it –"

She died an instant later, her head torn off before Aloysius's body just… exploded into a cloud of blood that devoured the rest of her. Aloysius reformed, but his body was wrong in so many ways. His arms and legs were no longer the same length, and his ribs protruded from a chest that now featured a gaping maw lined with circle after circle of whirling teeth.

The other ancients reacted at once, launching attacks at the abomination, but they too fell in quick succession. Within moments, there were only three of them left. The other two screamed for Claudius to run and take as many of their followers as he could.

He ran – only for the building the ritual was conducted in to come apart in a shower of shattered stone. A… thing made of teeth, claws, bone, and blood rushed out of the building. It devoured anyone it could catch, human and vampire alike. Spells and weapons flew, but nothing could stop it. Claudius screamed for everyone to flee before turning just long enough to pour every ounce of his magic into a binding spell.

It cost him his arm and a chunk of his left side, but the creature that had been Aloysius went flying back. It crashed into the ruins of a building and roared as glowing bands of magic wrapped around it and bound it to the earth.

"Follow me!" Claudius screamed. "Follow me if you want to live!"

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Marcus staggered as the vision ended. Taking a deep, deep breath, he gazed down at Claudius.

"Claudius," he shouted. "I need to know if anyone in your group came into contact with that thing other than you."

"Why?" Claudius asked.

"Because if they do, you need to kill them right now."

Claudius looked around at the group. "I don't think so. I think I'm the only one who…"

He trailed off as a young vampire at the back of the group began to twitch. His eyes rolled back, and then he lurched forward with a bestial howl. Bone burst out of his arms, turning them into scythes as blood poured out of his eyes to form a crude horn upon his head. He bared teeth that were now too long for even a vampire and leapt toward Claudius.

"Damn it."

Marcus unleashed a seventh-order spell, and the fledgling crashed to the ground as if he'd been struck by a boulder. Despite the pressure bearing down on him, he tried to rise, limbs jerking and flailing wildly. A second spell set him alight, and Marcus kept the spell up until there was nothing left of the fledgling except ash.

"That's why you need to kill them," Marcus growled. "Check everyone in your group – everyone. I'm not letting a single person in until I know they're not going to turn into one of those things." His lips curled. "Use healing magic on them. It won't just be painful – it will be excruciating to them if they've been infected."

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Marcus called a meeting once the group outside had been properly vetted. There had been two more infected people. Neither was as far gone as the first, but Marcus wasn't going to take any chances. Claudius killed them himself after promising to take care of their families. He was honourable like that.

"Okay," Faustina said as she took her seat at the table. "What the hell is going on? What was that thing?"

The other ancients in the room were less vocal but no less concerned. Each of them had lived for thousands of years and none of them had seen anything quite like that before. Only Marcus knew what they were dealing with.

"Claudius," Marcus said. "Why don't you share what happened with everyone else. I got a decent idea from the memories your blood shared, but there wasn't enough to give me the full details."

Claudius slumped into a chair. He'd been given blood to heal himself, but his weariness had only increased. "I'm not sure where to start."

"Start with the ritual," Marcus said. "What was Aloysius planning?"

Claudius closed his eyes and the nodded. "Aloysius has always been a thoughtful man. That was why we followed him. We thought he would make a good ruler. However, your recent successes put him in a difficult position. He knew he couldn't beat you in open combat, so he needed an advantage, something to give him more power. He didn't explain it to us fully, but he spoke of something called a Blood Ascension into a true ancient."

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"What is a Blood Ascension?" Janus asked. The ancient had joined Marcus not long after Faustina. He had an affinity for teleportation magic. Admittedly, he couldn't teleport very quickly or very often. However, he could move large numbers of people a considerable distance. He wasn't much of a fighter, but he didn't need to be, not with powers like that.

"I'm not surprised you don't know about it," Marcus said. "Even my father didn't fully understand it, and he knew more about vampires than just about anyone." Marcus didn't have to say who his father was. Everyone at the table knew, for better or for worse. "In fact, I'd say the only people in the world who still know would be people who knew my father. As one of his followers, I'm not surprised that Aloysius knew – but I am surprised he would even attempt it."

"Aloysius said it would make him more powerful." Claudius's brows furrowed. "He said it would make him stronger than any normal ancient. According to him, that would be enough to end this war. You and the others could all kneel or die, his power would be that overwhelming."

"If it worked, he'd be right," Marcus said. "If Aloysius had succeeded, he'd be at least ten times more powerful than I am now."

"What?" Quintus blurted. "His power would increase that much?"

Marcus couldn't blame him for being surprised. In terms of raw power, Marcus was the most powerful person in the room. Throw in his greater experience and skill in combat, and he could probably take on three, maybe even four of the other ancients at the same time and win."

"Yes." Marcus scowled. "But there's a reason I didn't think he would attempt a Blood Ascension."

Claudius shuddered. "The ritual required some blood and sacrifices, but nothing too… extreme. Aloysius was quite confident about it, and he spent perhaps a week preparing the ritual. When he was ready, he called all of us to attend the ritual. The idea was that if something went wrong, we would be able to intercede." He shook his head. "Something went wrong, all right, but nothing we did mattered." He then gave a brief description of the ritual and what had happened afterward. "As far as I know, the others ancients are dead. As for anyone who wasn't able to follow me… I suspect they're dead as well."

"Or worse," Marcus said. "They could be like those things we've already killed."

"What happened to them?" Claudius asked. "What happened to Aloysius? What is a Blood Ascension?"

Marcus looked around at the other vampires. "I need all of you to swear a magically binding oath bound with blood that nothing that I am about to say leaves this room." He waited for them to give their agreement before nodding at Faustina. "Can you handle the preparations?"

"Of course."

In short order, all of them had a cup full of blood in front of them. It had been made by mixing blood from each of them, and Faustina had performed a ritual that would allow it to bind all of them to secrecy regarding the matter they were about to discuss. Given what Marcus was about to talk about, he would accept nothing less.

Only after they had all emptied their cups did he begin to speak.

"What I am about to say is based on my father's research, my own investigations, and a certain level of informed conjecture. As such, I cannot be certain that it is wholly accurate although I'm reasonably confident that I've got the most important details correct." Marcus folded his hands together. "What do you know about the origins of vampires?"

"We were born after the progenitor of our species performed a powerful ritual," Claudius offered.

"That's pretty much correct, as far as I know. What you may not be aware of is that vampirism itself was probably an accident. My father believed that the progenitor wasn't trying to perform a ritual to become a vampire. Instead, he was trying to bind an astral parasite to his will, and he inadvertently bound it to himself. That's why blood is so important to us – blood is tied to the soul – and why light and holy magic are so effective against us. Our souls are inherently unstable since slapping an astral parasite onto a human soul isn't exactly conducive to long-term stability."

"Well… that explains a lot," Faustina muttered. "Our weaknesses to living water and sunlight are probably caused by that too."

"Correct. Living water carries with it a certain level of life, growth, and nature magic, which is antithetical to astral parasites. Likewise, sunlight is the strongest mundane analogue to light magic, so it can be quite devastating to younger vampires." Marcus sighed. He hated dredging up memories of his time around his father and his court, but he needed those memories now. "My father theorised that as a vampire gets older, the parasite gets stronger, which is why ancients can walk in the sun and aren't completely helpless against immersion in living water."

"That makes sense," Quintus said. "If we are the host and the parasite draws its strength from us, then an ancient would have a parasite that has spent centuries gorging on blood and power."

"Precisely. Now, being a vampire does come with plenty of advantages. If we are indeed the hosts, then it's in the parasite's best interest to make sure we are as powerful as possible. After all, if we die, so do they. That's why vampires are far stronger, faster, and more durable than humans, and why we can develop a host of different abilities, from controlling animals to adopting a gaseous form that can ignore physical damage." Marcus pursed his lips. "The important thing is that we are in control. The parasite is not. My father believed that the reason some fledglings go mad and why we have an overwhelming thirst for blood is that the parasite can occasionally get a little… testy if it isn't fed properly." His lips curled. "That voice you hear in the back of your head when you haven't fed properly in a long time? That might be the parasite telling you to feed if you know what's good for you."

There were shudders all around the table. They had all heard that voice although for most, it had been a long, long time. Fledglings heard it the most often, a voice in the back of their head telling them to feed and feed and feed. As a vampire got older, and they became more efficient at extracting sustenance from blood and other sources, that voice got quieter. For ancients who could derive tremendous power from even small quantities of blood, to say nothing of the other methods they developed to sustain themselves, that voice was basically an unpleasant memory, nothing more.

"Now, we're all ancients here. We are, by and large, the pinnacle of our species. So how do we get stronger? The answer is fairly simple. What if you could fully merge with the parasite? You'd have a much more stable soul, and you'd have full control over all the abilities the parasite might have. In fact, if you were able to fully merge with the parasite, there's no reason you wouldn't experience a qualitative increase in power since you are now very, very different from a regular vampire. There is no more host and parasite. There is only you. That is what a Blood Ascension involves, and that is what a true ancient is."

"Is that why the progenitor and the five great ancestors were so powerful?" Claudius asked quietly. "I never met your father, Marcus, but the stories of him and the others…"

"My father was the least of the five before his treachery," Marcus replied. "But even then… even as the least of the five, he was capable of things that I can only dream of. It would explain why they were so much more powerful than the rest of us. We have to contend with parasites, and, yes, we usually don't notice them since we're the ones in charge, but that doesn't mean they're not there. Using your powers in concert with another entity – even one bound to your very soul – will always be less powerful and less efficient than doing it yourself."

"But something must have gone wrong," Claudius said. "The progenitor and the five great ancestors were never described as… as that thing Aloysius became."

"And that's where things get ugly," Marcus said. "You see, the reason I didn't think Aloysius would try a Blood Ascension is because of what can happen. Basically, a Blood Ascension involves facing the parasite in astral combat and defeating it. You can then devour it and claim its power for yourself. But… what if you don't win?"

Faustina went pale. "You'd lose your soul… or… or worse."

"There are four possible outcomes during a Blood Ascension," Marcus said. "The first and most ideal is that you defeat the parasite, become a true ancient and crush all of your enemies. That's the outcome that Aloysius was aiming for. However, if you lose, the parasite consumes your soul and takes over your body."

"Wait." Quintus scowled. "There are stories… old stories of ancients experiencing great changes in personality after massively increasing power…"

"It is entirely possible that those ancients were the result of the parasite winning and taking over the body. For obvious reasons, the parasite isn't going to behave the same way as the former host. Of course, we can't be sure since my father and his fellows made sure to kill every ancient that experienced a drastic change in behaviour."

"And they'd have good reason to," Claudius said. "Not only would they be strong enough to be a threat but they also wouldn't be like us at all. They'd be a parasite wearing the shape of a person."

"Exactly," Marcus said. "As for the third and fourth outcome, this is where things get nastier still. Sometimes, the astral battle between the host and the parasite is so intense that the backlash ends up obliterating them both, along with the body. Those stories you've heard of ancients just exploding for seemingly no reason are probably based on instances of this. But it's the fourth outcome that is the worst, and I think it's the one we're dealing with. Sometimes, the host and parasite are so evenly matched, that neither can win. Instead, they merge but both are left as little more than husks, and the body is no longer controlled by either of them. Rather than logic and reason, the body is motivated solely by instinct… and the oldest of all vampiric instincts is hunger."

Claudius dragged in a deep, ragged breath. "That thing that Aloysius became… it ate everybody it could reach. Some of the others tried mind magic, but it didn't work."

"Of course not. That thing doesn't have a mind the way you or I do. Instead, it's a bundle of instincts. But do not – even for a second – think that makes it weak," Marcus said. "You're still dealing with something in which the soul of the host has fully merged with the parasite. That grants it physical abilities far beyond any ancient. It is also capable of using many vampiric abilities at a level we can't hope to match."

"Its ability to alter its own body, to control blood, to consume others…" Claudius nodded firmly. "Those are all things we can do, but not to that extent."

"That thing will consume everyone it can reach. And it will grow stronger with each and every person it devours. It's not just drinking their blood and consuming their flesh. It's devouring their souls. I shouldn't have to explain how powerful it will become given time."

"And the others?" Claudius asked. "The ones we had to kill earlier. Why were they like that?"

"Vampirism can only be passed on in certain ways since it involves the parasite in the sire separating a small part of itself off to infect someone else. That is what my father believed. That also explains why the sire has influence over their fledglings – the parasites in the fledglings are pieces of the parasite they have. This thing we're dealing with is operating on instinct, so it's trying to spread itself as far as possible. It is highly likely that every single one of its attacks is at least partially soul based, so it can infect almost anyone it comes into contact with."

The others all rounded on Claudius, and the vampire himself was utterly alarmed. However, Marcus brought his fist down on the table.

"Calm down," he growled. "Claudius should be fine. Think about it. Claudius is an ancient. The parasite inside him must already be quite powerful. Do you really think it's going to let some shard of another parasite take over him?"

Faustina laughed. "Is that how it is? Makes sense. Nobody likes a crowded house."

"Exactly," Marcus said. "The parasites in us ancients should be strong enough to resist being infected although we can still be killed – as Claudius's fellows found out. Everyone else, however, is at risk of infection."

"That still leave us with an important question," Quintus said. "What are we going to do with Aloysius – or, rather, the thing he became?"

"It's very simple," Marcus said. "We're going to kill it."