Chapter 122: Family
Trajan sat atop the roof of one of the traditional style wooden houses, his empty eyes shining slightly red. The roof had four long arches on it, down each corner, and was covered in shingles that were stained gray. He was sitting near the middle of it, his hands folded together.
He took in a deep breath and then let it out.
A single tear dripped down his face, falling to the roof silently, like the last light of evening fading into darkness.
Probus was dead.
“My friend… my brother…” Trajan’s hands trembled as he looked at them with his energy vision, hands he clenched together and held around himself, hugging himself.
“What am I to do without you?” He whispered quietly, his voice ragged,
“You were all I had left.”
A few minutes prior, Trajan had been pacing back and forth inside the small house.
The other Wizards that were here with them were all practitioners of Blood Magic. While most of them had a focus on practical tracking, several of them had studied some forms of Healing Spells, to a higher degree of effectiveness than the single Healing Spell he knew.
Their efforts, especially on a fellow Vampire, would far surpass anyone they would be able to find in the city on such short notice.
Several minutes had gone by since they’d retreated. In that time, the Wizards had cleared the room, going into several emergency Rituals and Spells, pulling out every stop to try and save Probus.
The wounds Probus had taken were horrid, but if it was just a normal blow, even if it crushed his throat, he would be able to regenerate from it. Maybe he’d need a Light Pill or some other form of Healing Magic or Light Magic to aid him, but the natural regenerative prowess of a True Vampire was far from weak.
The Diamond Wizard, however, had infused his attack with the Power of Law.
Trajan rubbed his hands together as he looked around the room he was standing in, able to pick things out distinctly despite ostensibly being blind. It was sparsely decorated, just a small rug on the ground, with a large wooden table and a few chairs around it in the center. A few random paintings hung on the walls.
A door opening caught his attention.
Helena had walked in, her face pale. The dress she was wearing was stained brown and grey with dust and stone, the edges of it slightly torn from the wild melee.
Trajan had nodded at her and then returned to his pacing.
Helena watched this, wringing her hands.
“I’m sure he’ll make it, Trajan.” She began, her voice trying to project confidence.
Trajan had simply shrugged, looking at her with his empty eyes.
Helena went over to the middle of the room and sat down, pensively waiting.
The duo didn’t have to wait long, however. Just a couple of minutes later, one of the Grandmaster Blood Wizards came out of the room.
The Wizard, an elderly Vampire known as Panon, and one of the Blood Wizards that normally studied Fate Tracking, spoke aloud, his voice solemn.
“The injuries Lord Probus suffered were extreme. The Law energy remnants managed to spread throughout his entire system, shredding into his internal organs, muscles, and nerves.” Panon began, his voice solemn.
Trajan interrupted him, slowly closing and opening his eyes,
“Just cut to the chase. How is he?” He slowed to a walk and stood still, his empty eyes looking at Panon intently.
Helena gulped as she saw this, her left hand squeezing her right arm tightly.
Panon looked back at Trajan. He broke eye contact, however, looking down after a moment.
“The injuries he suffered sent him into shock immediately. They were functionally equivalent to a King Class attack that had spread throughout Probus’ entire body.” Panon began, but was cut off again,
“How. Is. He.” Trajan’s words were cool.
Panon looked up and shook his head.
“He didn’t make it.”
“…”
Panon bowed quietly and backed away as he finished speaking, heading back to where the rest of the Wizards were, in the other room.
Trajan stood stock still, not moving a muscle.
Helena, on the other hand, gripped her right arm so tightly her wrist grew pale, blood unable to pass through it. She didn’t betray any emotions on her face, but her left arm shook slightly.
A tense silence moved forward, one Helena tried to break.
“I’m so sorry Traj-”
“Silence.” Trajan whispered quietly.
“I didn’t mean-” Helena began again, but was immediately cut off.
“SILENCE!” Trajan spun around, his eyes flashed red as he looked at Helena. The air around him exploded with energy as he took a step forward, raw power fluctuating wildly in the room.
“This… Probus should not have died today.” Trajan began, waving a finger in front of Helena. His voice was loud and twisted, full of emotion.
“I know. I am so sorry. I never mean-”
“No, of course you didn’t MEAN it.” Trajan cut her off again, his empty eyes stabbing into her,
“But this… this is YOUR fault, Helena. We depended on YOU to lead us.” He spat, his eyes flashing a brighter red,
“When the situation went awry, it was up to you to take charge and alter the plan. To adapt.” He continued,
“We should have left immediately once the Shades and Borrelians were there together. There was no realistic chance of us achieving anything. Waiting there was a suicide mission.” He finished, his voice trembling.
“You are correct. I was wrong. It was my mistake.” Helena didn’t run from the blame, closing her eyes as she acknowledged his words.
“Hahaha… hahaha… oh yes. Just… a mistake…” Trajan’s arms shook as he laughed,
“A mistake that has stolen my brother from me.”
Helena clenched her right arm behind her back even tighter, her nails digging into her flesh. A small, line of blood dribbled down her arm, slowly dripping onto the ground behind her.
“I’m sorry.” She whispered quietly, her voice stilting.
There was a quiet pause for a moment.
“…”
“You are sorry? YOU are sorry?” Trajan’s words cut straight to her as he began to walk away, the broiling energy around him flowing powerfully. He moved all the way to the exiting door, nearly blasting it off as he opened it.
“I hope you weep for him, Helena.” Trajan said, turning to look back at her,
“Because if you were to die, right here and now, I would shed no tears for you.” He slammed the door shut behind him with such force that it partially disintegrated, leaving behind the lonely figure of Helena, her shoulders slumped, blood streaming down her right arm.
Back on the roof, Trajan sighed, rubbing his blinded eyes, his energy vision strained under all the stress.
“I was too harsh, Probus. I let my feelings overwhelm me.” He shook his head slowly,
“My friend, how I wish you were here with me now.” Trajan’s shoulders slumped, his head bowed as his heart twisted, feeling hollow.
tap tap
Trajan looked up as he heard a tapping sound ring out, someone landing on the roof near him.
He stared with a tired, lackluster face at the robed figure that was standing only a few meters away, unable to muster the emotion to feel surprised. In his energy vision, the being looked largely the same, nothing special.
“Trajan, of the Aurelius Reavers, yes?” The figure’s voice was melodic as it spoke, full of charisma. The tone was a neutral one, neither entirely male nor entirely female.
Trajan stared back at the figure.
“Who are you? Leave this place. I must grieve.” He looked down at the roof again, folding his hands together.
The robed figure shrugged, taking a step back.
“I could leave, if that is what you truly want, Trajan.” The figure spoke, nodding its robed head.
“But I don’t think you want that. After all, don’t you want to save your friend?”
Trajan looked up, for the first time since Probus died, a fire appearing in his empty eyes.
“Do I want to save my friend? Of course… but my friend… he is already dead.” He spoke aloud, his words feeling oddly surreal to him. His head, and his heart, was currently in flux, making even normal thinking difficult.
The robed figure paused, and then slowly began to unravel the hood and robe that covered it. The strips of cloth that were tied on underneath the robe, helping complete the disguise, fell away slowly.
Revealing a beautiful gold skinned humanoid, with slightly pointed ears and long, gorgeous golden hair. The being’s face was just faintly masculine, one of sheer, utter beauty.
The man smiled, revealing a set of pointed teeth.
As Trajan looked at him, he felt a stirring in his blood, one he could ignore, but only after a small amount of effort. It was a faint desire to look at this being…
And obey him.
He blinked slowly as he recognized what he was looking at.
The Originators. The Firstcomers. The Ancestors. The Royals.
He was staring at an Ancestral Vampire.
The Ancestral Vampire smiled at Trajan, his voice calm and kind,
“Your friend is dead. But it is not too late to save him, to truly bring him back to life. Just as he was before, the exact same.”
Trajan stared back, his hands shaking. Partly from excitement, partly from worry.
Partly from hope.
“How?” His voice broke as he responded, instinctively knowing the being in front of him, a being from myth and legend, was speaking the truth.
The man continued to smile as he heard Trajan’s response,
“You must simply take my hand and join me. Your friend deserves better, as do you.” He held out his hand to Trajan,
“Reviving your friend will be as easy as…” The Ancestral Vampire held up his other hand, putting two fingers together,
SNAP
“That.”
Trajan looked at the stranger, and then at his hand, his eyes flashing once more. Memories ran flush in his mind, of the adventures he had with his best friend, the years they’d shared, the friendship they had built. The brotherhood they had bonded over.
The sense of family he felt, a sense he’d felt with no one else.
Instinctively, once again, Trajan knew everything the Vampire was telling him was true.
Trajan looked at the stranger’s hand… and then reached up with his own, grasping it.
Immediately, a blood red light began to flow between Trajan and the other Vampire, one that carried with it a sense of royalty and power. This bloody light spun around each of their arms, twisting and turning. Mystical symbols appeared within it, flashing with dark promise.
The magical Ability that only the Ancestral Vampires held. An Ability known as Blood Contract.
“Who… are you?” Trajan’s voice sounded odd to his ears as he spoke, his head heavy.
The Ancestral Vampire smiled wider, helping Trajan to his feet.
“My name is Mello.” He gave Trajan a warm hug,
“Welcome to my family.”