Life of Blood [Closed]

[Lucyfer]

The black, wide-brimmed hat obscured the features of the individual approaching the abandoned town. The man imagined it was a woman from the long hair, but the leather attire she was wearing obscured her features from this distance. The long coat, in particular, made it difficult to ascertain what she was.


A man observed her approach as anxiety started to grip him with each step forward she took. There was something inhuman about her, though his mind couldn’t understand why.


The sun was directly above them, minimizing all shadows.


And yet, the black-haired man was certain of it. He lifted a walkie-talkie up to his lips and pressed down the button to say, “We may have a problem,” lifted his finger from it, then pressed down again to add, “We have a stranger approaching, north side. I’m going to investigate.” With that, the man rose and ran across the roof he had been sitting on. His feet didn’t slide, and he reached the edge, hopped down and reached one gloved hand up to catch the edge of the roof. With that grip, he swung himself into the open window and landed neatly on his booted feet.


He jogged down the steps of the home, and out into the open street. He moved forward, reaching what they’d determined to be the entrance of the town, and he waited.


The woman didn’t cease her approach. He could tell her hair was not some light shade of blonde soon enough, but white. ‘But how?’ She came to a stop some feet away from him. Very little of her skin was visible beneath her leather attire, and in fact, he didn’t get a good look at how pale it was until she lifted her head so he could see her eyes. They were scarlet in hue, abnormal, though he’d been told his violet eyes were unusual.


Red only meant one thing. His mind didn't draw up the name immediately, but he knew it wasn't good. “What do you want here?” He demanded of her, reaching for the blade at his hip.


“You have a vampire held hostage.” She answered, speaking in something of a soft monotone. “I am here for the vampire.”


“Friends?” A wicked smile cut across his lips, “Sorry darlin’, but we intend to do away with the vamp.”


“You’re making a mistake.” She continued in that quiet monotone, a confidence in her posture and tone that was difficult to ignore. He noticed then that she had a sword on her, partially obscured by the way the coat hung. It was on her back, though, so he didn’t imagine it was much of a threat. It would take her time to get such a long thing out of the sheath on her back, or so he thought. “The vampire you’ve caught is on your side.”


He sneered, “That so? And why should I believe you?” A once-over, “What are you?”


“Dhampir,” she answered, and his eyes went right back to her face, back to her eyes. Understanding dawned. “Evidently you’ve heard of them,” they weren’t common. Vampire unions with humans were rare, and rarely were they consensual any longer. Rarely were they products of love, and so rarely were the children allowed to live. “You have no reason to trust me,” and so she laid it out plainly, “but if you refuse to give me a chance, I will have no problems cutting through you.”


He did consider the fact she wasn’t just attacking him, or the others. She was talking. Even so, he spoke harshly, “Shows how much you’re on our side.”


She retorted, in that calm, monotonous way, “A vampire who sympathizes with humans is worth a hundred rebels.” For it was the truth. In this world, where vampires were gaining power by leaps and bounds, those vampires who would stand against that progress were becoming more important by the day—and too many of them were being found out by their kindred and executed, or else stupid rebels killed them.


However, she didn’t wish to kill them. Seeing that talking alone was going to get her nowhere, she reached back for her sword. With a tug to the left, the blade left its sheathe, the latch that kept it there opening with that bit of pressure, and she threw it to his feet as he grabbed for his knife. She held her hands in front of herself, “I have no desire to spill any blood, though. Your group is skilled, and I admire that you have captured her.”


She felt a smirk pull at her lips, but didn’t allow it to manifest as the man in the dark jeans and tank top looked down at her blade, dumbfounded. He put one booted foot over it and kicked the sword further away from her. ‘Now can we please move forward?’ More than anything, she wanted out of the sun, and there were plenty of nice houses here. Apparently, at least one good enough to store a vampire in, too.

 

[NightNurse]

"Would somebody please explain to me why exactly you have sentenced me to death?" The vampire asked, peering through the silver bars put over the door to the room she was being held in. "You have held me here for days, I deserve to know why you want to kill me!" She said, louder this time. She pulled on the chains around her wrists. There were more chains around her ankles, preventing her from moving much. The chains were heavy and uncomfortable, and she had been changed up like this for days now.


"Oh, well, if you deserve to know why we're going to kill you, I guess I have to explain everything." A voice said. The vampire sighed. She was glad that somebody had finally replied to her, but she wasn't happy with the voice's sarcastic tone. She recognized the voice as the one belonging to who she assumed was the leader of this rebel group, based on how many times she had heard him giving orders.


"If you are going to kill for no other than the fact that I am a vampire, you are a narrow minded fool." She said, leaning against the wall. She was sitting on a bed pushed against the side of the room. "I have no loyalty to the other vampires. Then again, I have no loyalty to the human rebels either, but I do find your rebellion admirable." She said, tugging at the chains again. She knew that struggling against the bonds was in vain, because even if she did get free of the chains, she was unarmed and outnumbered. That didn't stop her though.


"If I were you, I would put more effort into catching and killing vampires who actually pose as a threat to your little movement." She continued. She heard the leader's voice again, and after a moment he stepped into view.


"You're willing to say anything to try and save yourself, aren't you?" He sneered at her through the bars. The vampire glared. "You can beg all you want. We're still going to kill you."


"I'm not begging." The vampire grumbled. She had too much pride to do something like beg for her life. She would, however, argue for it. "I can be an advantage to you." She argued. "I know things. About other vampires, leaders of groups, I've worked with them. Betrayed them." The leader shook his head slightly.


"You haven't even given up your name." He pointed out. "How am I supposed to believe anything you say, when I don't even know your name?" The vampire sighed.


"Only because I wasn't sure if anyone was listening." She said. "My name is Carla Davenport. Yes, I am a vampire but I am not a part of the vampire side." She said, watching the leader.


"Not a part of the vampire side? What, then? Are you on our side?" The leader raised an eyebrow. He obviously didn't believe her.


"Not necessarily. It's called self preservation, love. It's not the difficult to understand." Carla let out a soft sigh. "In the last century, though, I have sided with more humans than vampires." Lately, she had been particularly bitter towards the other vampires. "Look, I don't expect you to believe me, but I am asking you to just listen. I'll make you a deal. Ask me anything, and I promise that I will answer to the best of my availability. In exchange for information, you let me live." She watched the leader, hoping that he would be smart enough to realize that she was telling the truth. She really didn't want to die.


The leader opened his mouth to say something when one of the rebels he had watching the town connected him through the walkie-talkie tucked in his leather jacket's pocket. The leader scowled at the mention of trouble. He pulled out the walkie-talkie and held it to his mouth, turning away from the prisoner and walking down the hall. He heard the vampire call after him.


"You have to believe me!" She yelled. She sounded more than a little frustrating. He ignored her, going over to a window and peering outside. He spotted two figures, although he only recognized on of them as one of his rebels.


"If you think that the stranger poses an immediate threat, kill them." He instructed. "If not, bring them to the building where we're housing the prisoner and I'll deal with them." He said, pushing the toe of his worn combat boot against the wall. Catching their prisoner hadn't been easy. He didn't want some stranger showing up and jeopardizing the execution. The other rebels in the group were getting antsy. Finding this current vampire had taken longer than Merlin had thought it would. The rebels he led needed to feel like they were making some amount of progress, or they would begin to lose hope in their rebellion.

 

[Lucyfer]

The walkie talkie buzzed through, and disrupted any actions or words that would have followed after the sword was kicked. It was then the dhampir let a smirk come to her lips, “Am I an immediate threat?” She emphasized the word, to the man’s disgust. She found it rather fortuitous that they wanted to bring her to the place where the prisoner was.


It would mean much less killing if they decided not to get along with her. She’d just kill those in her way and off she’d be.


The man didn’t answer immediately, but walked to pick up her sword. Then, he made a gesture, “Follow me,” he directed, and she did as told, following behind the man and towards a house not too terribly far. The man shoved open the door but didn’t bother to hold it open. The dhampir caught it before it could slam in her face, and strode calmly in.


Gabriel nodded to Merlin in greeting, “That’s her. Dhampir. Been saying some nonsense about how the vampire we’ve caught is on our side.” Gabriel’s tone suggested his doubt on the matter.


The dhampir removed her hat. She disliked it immensely, but it was necessary in the sun. From where she entered, she couldn’t see the vampire they had captive, but she did speak to the rebel’s words, “Carla Davenport can be.” Her eyes shifted from the one who greeted her at the entrance to the town, to the figure he gave deference towards. Perhaps this was the leader, then. That would make things much quicker, “She isn’t well liked among her own,” murdering her sire hadn’t done her any favors. The dhampir imagined using the name would help the case. She had never met Carla, but she knew of her. She kept tabs on many vampires, after all, so she could properly hunt down the ones who deserved death.


Too many hunters just killed vampires for being vampires. They were almost as bad as the vampires themselves, unwilling to think of compromise or ways of living together.

 

[NightNurse]

Merlin nodded back at Gabriel as he and the stranger entered the building. He watching the stranger closely, looking surprised when Gabriel said that the stranger was a Dhampir. Despite hunting vampires almost his entirely life, he had never seen a Dhampir in person. He knew what they were, of course, but they were so rare it wasn't often someone came across one. His green eyes narrowed at what she said about the prisoner.


"The prisoner said she was on our side. I didn't believe her, obviously." Merlin said to Gabriel.


Carla heard voices from down the hall. She frowned at the conversation. "See, leader?" She called out, loud enough for whoever was down the hall to hear her. "I told you I was telling the truth." She said. She had no idea who would be here speaking on her behalf. She heard that whoever it was, they were a Dhampir. That was surprising. Whatever the Dhampir's reason for defending her, she was right. Carla wasn't well liked among the other vampires.


"I'm not sure who the Dhampir is, but she's right." She said, looking towards the door. Merlin heard what the prisoner was saying and frowned, turning towards the Dhampir.


"Who are you, and how do you know who the prisoner is?" He questioned. "And why isn't she well liked?" He asked, glancing down the hall. He didn't believe either one of them, but somebody showing up to defend their prisoner was surprising.


"I can answer that." Carla called out. "I killed the man who turned me." She fell silent then. She didn't regret killing him, but could she do it again she would have done it differently. Made it look like it was hunters or rebels that killed her would be husband. That way, she wouldn't have been treated as a traitor. Which she was, but siding with the vampires all of the time would have been helpful. Now, she was stuck siding with whoever believed her. At the moment, she was pretty sure both sides thought she deserved to die.

 

[Lucyfer]

Well, at least these rebels were willing to listen. Carla immediately called out, confirming she was alive and conscious. The dhampir did not call back out to her, for of course Carla would agree. She was trying to save her own life. “My name is Evaline Adal,” she answered, doubting her name was known.


Had this been two hundred years ago, the Adal name might have been. Her father hadn’t been an unknown. Opinions varied wildly, but it held weight. There were some vampires who knew she was still alive and spoke of her. “I do my research on vampires before I hunt them. I happened to research Carla,” she told the leader, calm and cool. “Her reasoning is the story I always hear. She killed her sire for blessing her with immortality, is how the vampires phrase it.”


There were plenty of humans who did not want that blessing. Evaline’s mother had been one of them, and her father had always respected that. Her gaze moved to the one in black, “Would you want to be a vampire?” She asked him.


He looked immediately revolted at the idea, “No.”


Evaline nodded, “Would you do the same in her shoes?”


“More or less. I wouldn’t continue living.” There were always those humans who would pick suicide, too.


“Then you can understand how a vampire can be aligned with you,” even if she was unwilling to take her own life. She wondered if this boy would actually do that, when put in the situation. Perhaps if he was able to do it the first day, but after? No, she imagined his resolve would waver.

 

[NightNurse]

Merlin glanced back down the hall, towards the room where the prisoner was being held. If what the vampire and the dhampire said was true, then killing the vampire would be the wrong thing to do. If Carla had been telling the truth about being a help to the rebels, then killing her would be foolish. But if they were lying then freeing the vampire, and leaving the Dhampir free, would be putting all of the group in danger. He scowled.


Carla let out a soft sigh at what the one rebel said about not continuing to live as a vampire. "Suicide isn't an option for all of us." She grumbled, leaning against the wall and letting out a sigh.


Carla had never been afraid to end her life. That wasn't why she hadn't killed herself. There were a few reasons that she was still living. First of all, other vampires had heard her kill her sire. She had planned on killing herself after killing him, but she didn't have time. Then, after being locked up for killing her sire, she hadn't had the means to end her life. After she finally escaped, she had wanted to find her brother. She had, but he hadn't reacted to her the way she hoped he would. He called her a monster, and didn't believe her when she said she hadn't chosen to be turned. It was after she ran away from her brother was when she realized that she couldn't end her life. She was afraid to. Of course, now she was used to being a vampire.


Carla shook her head slightly. It was amazing how something like her brother's rejection could still hurt, even after a few centuries. She hadn't realized how lucky she had had it when she hadn't been immortal. Pain repeated itself in a human lifespan, yes, but now it was endless.


"Could you people please just hurry up and make up your mind about what you're going to do with me?" She called out. "These chains are hurting me." She said, tugging at them again.


Merlin let out a frustrated sigh. He turned towards Gabriel. "Do you believe them?" He asked, running his hand through his hair.

 

[Lucyfer]

Gabriel considered what had been said. What weighed on him, of course, was the thought of the unwilling vampires. He wanted to retort that there was always an option. If the vampire had wanted to die, they would have given her that death. He supposed, though, that it was a difficult decision. A life feeding on others could be justified.


‘Not to me.’


Even so, he could imagine it. He had that much creativity left. “Shit, Merlin,” he shook his head, but not in answer, in frustration and uncertainty. “I don’t know. I find it difficult to believe, but I can see how it might be.” He looked to the sword he still had in his hand, “Let’s…let’s give them the benefit of the doubt. If we’re wrong, we still outnumber them,” and they were at least presently disarmed.


“Thank you,” and with that, Evaline made to move by the two rebels and into the room where the vampire was. She knew the vampire couldn’t go walking to freedom in the sun, and the rebels were going to want their help. She was concerned about the vampire’s health, and whether or not she was starving to death. She wasn’t certain how long Carla had been in here, after all.

 

[NightNurse]

Merlin nodded thoughtfully. "Alright, let's do that." He said, turning and walking down the hall. He watched Evaline closely as he stepped into the room where they were holding Carla.


"You try anything, you die. That goes for both of you. Got it?" He said gruffly, going over to Carla and taking the chains off of the vampire's wrists. She winced, scowling down at the red marks on her wrists where the chains had been. Merlin unchained her ankles as well before straightening.


"Got it." She said, standing up. Her legs felt a little shaky from not walking much for the past few days. She took a few steps before leaning against the wall. She looked over at Evaline with a curious expression.


"You said your name was Evaline Adal, right?" She said. "I knew about what happened with your mother and father. I'm sorry that they were killed." She said, watching the Dhampir. "Thank you, for coming here and helping me out." She said with a smile. Despite the smile, it was quite obvious that days of captivity had taken it's toll on the vampire. She looked exhausted.

 

[Lucyfer]

Gabriel followed the two of them to where the vampire was being held, holding the sword tighter as he watched the vampire released from her chains. He noted that Evaline was also watching her with something akin to curiosity on her otherwise expressionless face.


To Evaline, it was clear that the vampire needed a bit of time for recovery, which no doubt meant she was starved. A comment slipped Carla’s lips, and Evaline returned the smile, “Thank you,” there was no pain at the memory of either parents. She had come to terms with it in the centuries that passed. It hadn’t been their death with put her on this path, but love of them and a deep understanding of her father’s views.


“And you’re welcome,” she walked forward, by the rebels,


“What happened to your parents?”Gabriel asked. It was strange, asking about the relatives of vampires, or dhampir...he tended to just assume they didn't have people who cared. Their society seemed brutal enough.


One shoulder was lifted in a shrug, “They were executed,” as if that was the obvious answer. To her, it was. “It was centuries ago.”


Gabriel blinked. He hadn’t known dhampir lived so long. He hadn’t been sure about their lifespans, or really, much of anything. So, he was shocked as the next question slipped Evaline’s lips, directed to Carla. “Are you opposed to dhampir blood?” The question came, because she knew the vampire needed to feed, and none of the rebels were likely to donate. Dhampir blood wasn’t the most sustainable to other vampires, since it had that touch of unlife to it, but it was still better than animals and worked in a pinch.


Evaline would get by a little longer. She could eat their food, after all. Eventually, she’d need to drink blood, but it was not an immediate need. “You look as if you need something.” It was her polite way of saying that Carla looked terrible right then.

 

[NightNurse]

Carla looked over at the rebel holding the sword, noticing that he tighten his grip on it when she was unchained. "I would have to be a complete idiot to try to attack you right this second, don't you think?" She said, looking a bit amused. She turned towards Evaline when the dhampir asked her about the blood. She paused with a slight frown.


"I don't know." She said. "I've never fed off of a dhampir. You're the first one I've ever met." She said. "I didn't even know vampires could drink from dhampirs." She said thoughtfully. She figured that made sense. Dhampirs were part human, after all. She nodded silently when Evaline said that she looked like she needed something. "It's been almost a week. So, yeah, I need something." She said, brushing a few stray hairs out of her face. She probably looked terrible. Not drinking or sleeping for almost a week tended to do that to a vampire.


Merlin watched Carla and Evaline with a raised eyebrow. "Uh... sorry about your parents." He said to Evaline. It may very well have been hunters or rebels that killed the dhampir's parents, but given that her parents were a vampire and a human, it may very well have been other vampires.

 

[Lucyfer]

“I’ve met complete idiots,” Gabriel defended when the vampire spoke to him. He didn’t think the woman before him was a complete idiot—neither of them, really, but he still didn’t plan to let his guard down.


Their talk moved to blood, and his skin did crawl at the thought. It wasn’t so much the feeding aspect as the risk that came with it, for him. Perhaps it didn’t apply to a dhampir, considering what they were. For him, he was too paranoid that he’d be turned into a vampire by their so-called kiss.


Again, at the comment of her parents, Evaline shrugged it off. “Thank you,” she supposed it was only polite to thank people for their consideration, but as she’d said—centuries ago. As such, she moved on and kept with the present moment. She offered out her arm, “I’d prefer the arm, but if you must drink from the neck I won’t stop you.”


Gabriel took a step back from the pair, glanced to Merlin, and then glanced towards the exit out into the hall. They needed to talk, and figure out what their next plans were going to be, considering their plans to kill this vampire had just taken a rather unexpected turn. Besides, he really didn’t want to watch someone get fed from.

 

[NightNurse]

Merlin saw Gabriel glance at him and then the door. Merlin glanced back at Carla and Evaline before turning and leaving the room. Turning towards Gabriel, Merlin let out a sigh, running his hand through his hair as he tended to do when frustrated.


"Okay, quick frankly I don't know what to do about either of them." He said, nodding towards the door leading to the room he had just walked out of. He knew that, as the leader, he was supposed to be the one who always knew what to do. His parents had always seemed to know what the smartest thing to do was. Of course, that was until one wrong decision had costed both of his parents their lives. Since then, Merlin was paranoid about making the wrong decision and causing the death of his rebels. Or himself, for that matter. "I have never met a vampire who was on our side. I don't think my parents ever did either. And with the dhampir.. her loyalties could go either way." He frowned.


Carla watched Evaline, hearing the rebels leave the room but not paying much attention to them. "Alright." She said, taking a few steps forwards Evaline. Taking the dhampir's arm in her hands, she bent down a little and bit into the woman's arm. Her eyes fluttered shut as she drank. Evaline's blood was different from human blood. It wasn't as, well, human. But it was certainly better than nothing.


Carla didn't drink much, just enough to make her feel better. She didn't know how much blood a dhampir could lose without feeling ill. She pulled away, wiping her mouth on the back of her hand. She looked at Evaline, smiling slightly. "Thank you." She said. "I really appreciate you helping me out."

 

[Lucyfer]

The bite was not a thing that the dhampir enjoyed. She took in one deep breath right before the woman bit into her arm, and let it out slowly as the blood was pulled from her veins. That was the bothersome part—that movement out. It was sickening if she focused on it for too long, and so she tried to distract herself by trying to listen to what was being discussed just outside.


Her breath came out in a sigh of relief when the woman finished, and she immediately drew her arm back and pressed her hand over the wound. She applied pressure to help stifle the bleeding and gave a nod, “You’re welcome. I suspect you’ll need to rest, until the sun goes down at least, but I would…request you consider how we might assist this group.”


Carla wasn’t known for being one of the overt rebels. In fact, the incident with her sire was considered by some to be a personal issue. Nothing that reflected her true feelings towards vampire society as a whole. Evaline knew that might be accurate, but she was being optimistic. “The way things are need to change. I hope that you see that.”


~***~


Gabriel crossed his arms, not in any angry way, when Merlin began to express that he wasn’t sure what they ought to do next. He glanced towards the room with the two bloodsuckers and tried to think of options and possibilities.


Merlin wasn’t wrong. This was a strange situation. Vampires supporting humans wasn’t unheard of, but he hadn’t ever seen it happen in his lifetime. He just remembered his former master used to speak of them in disgusted tones, claimed they all deserved what they got which was, always, death. It had made him think they might be extinct, though he supposed that so long as new vampires were ‘made’, there was always the chance that they might be with the humans.


And then…dhampirs. Well, that was just a whole bundle of strangeness. He didn’t know enough about them. His former master hadn’t known much, either, except that he didn’t like them. “Well,” Gabriel looked back to Merlin, meeting his green eyes, “I suppose we should hold off announcing this to too many,” not until they had a plan, “and I guess…talk with them some. If they are with us, maybe they know a thing or two about how to get at the vampires that are against us.” They had struggled with that. Knowing the weaknesses of vampires was good and all for killing them, but they could only go individual by individual.


Actually destroying the system was a different matter entirely.

 

[NightNurse]

Carla nodded when Evaline mentioned rest, going over and sitting back down on the end of the bed. She frowned slightly at what the dhampir said about assisting the group. "Yeah, I have to assist them somehow or they'll kill me." She said, looking at Evaline thoughtfully. "Do you support the humans completely?" She asked. "Or are you like me?" She paused. "I don't really support either side completely. I side with whatever side benefits me for a time being." She clarified, glancing towards the door.


"So, at the moment, that side would be the humans." She said, looking back at the dhampire. She nodded slightly at what Evaline said about things needing to change. "I agree." She said softly, looking almost sad. How things were right now, she wasn't really accepted by anyone. She knew that wanting to find a group to belong to was a selfish want, especially compared to the horrible injustices that people faced, regardless of what they were. Humans killed vampires for no reason other than the fact that they were vampires. In return, vampires turned around and did the exact same thing to humans. She supposed it was a similar case regarding dhampirs.


-*-*-*-*-*-


Merlin listened to Gabriel, nodding at what his fellow rebel said. "I really don't know how the others will react to this. One could argue that making a deal with a dhampir isn't as bad, since they are half human, but a deal with a vampire?" He shook his head slightly. "I really don't want to lie to everyone else, but for the time being I really don't know if telling them the whole truth is the best option." He frowned.


"Yeah, talking with them some more in the probably the best option." Merlin said, glancing towards the door for a second. "If there's one thing we could always use more of, it's information." He said. Information wasn't easy to obtain. First of all, getting information from vampires, even if they've been caught, isn't as easy as one might imagine. A lot of them were fiercely loyal to each other. Catching vampires at all wasn't easy, as they were rarely in an area where they could be captured without alerting other vampires. Finding and catching Carla had mainly been a stroke of good luck. They had only been tracking her for a while, after they had received reports of a lone vampire who didn't seem to have active communication with her fellow bloodsuckers. Of course, catching a more powerful and high ranking vampire would have been better, but the rebels took what they could get.


"Alright, let's go find out what they know." Merlin said. He was really hoping that the vampire and dhampir could tell them something the group could use. If they couldn't keeping them alive for this long just made him look bad. He turned and headed back into the room. "I hope you're done feeding, as that's something I would rather not watch." He said, entering the room.

 

[Lucyfer]

‘Ah.’


What Carla revealed was not surprising, but Evaline found it disheartening. Her eyebrows lifted, but that was the most she gave as a physical reaction to Carla’s words. “My conscious would not let me sleep if I were like you,” it was a harsh way of putting it, but it was cowardice. Picking the winning side, simply because it was the winning side, was cowardice. There was no nice way to put it.


She respected the vampires who were staunchly for human enslavement a touch more, because they stuck to their guns. They fought and died for it. She disagreed, of course. She hoped to change their minds, but that only happened rarely. “I’m for neither,” that was the honest answer, more honest than ‘both’. Vampires wanted humans enslaved. Humans wanted vampires eradicated.


Both was impossible, when she looked at the extremes. “I just want them to live side-by-side” And Evaline would die for that. “There’s no reason they cannot.” Not in her head. Vampires didn’t need to kill to get blood—heck, they didn’t even need to take it from humans, if blood banks could be set up. If humans could see the benefit of having the years of experience that vampires had, and if vampires could see the innovation that came from humans….


Of course, that was the problem. They didn’t see these things.


The rebels returned then, and Merlin seemed to state the obvious about the situation. Obviously, Carla was done feeding. Evaline kept her hand on her wound.


Gabriel spoke up, “Look, we’re willing to trust you, but you’re still going to need to prove you have our best interests at heart,” he told the two of them, looking from the dhampir to the vampire. “If we’re on the same side to putting down the vampires who are causing this mess and enslaving humans, then prove it.”


Evaline arched an eyebrow, “And how would you have us do that?” Then she folded her arms, just so the wound was still kept out of sight, “I am not inclined to begin such serious discussions while I do not know your names, and while you continue to hold my sword.”

 

[NightNurse]

Carla raised an eyebrow at Evaline with an amused smirk. "Alright then." She said. Obviously the dhampir didn't agree with how Carla thought. She nodded thoughtfully at what Evaline said about vampires and humans living side by side.


"Well, I mean, everyone living side by side peacefully would ultimately be the best thing for everyone, but I really don't think it's that simple." She said. "The majority of vampires and humans alike are surprising stubborn when it comes to their beliefs." She looked at Evaline, remembering when she had thought that vampires and humans could live alongside each other. She had tried to convince the vampire who turned her that if he just let her remain human, they could coexist. Of course, he and the other vampires in the group he belonged to hadn't listened to her. That hadn't even been the last time she had tried to convince somebody that humans and vampires could get along.


Now, she no longer believed that vampires and humans would ever change their ways so drastically. So she did what she could, doing whatever it took to remain alive. Although she wasn't quite sure why she even tried to live. Those thoughts were interrupted when the rebels entered the room again. She looked over at the rebel who wasn't the leader, and nodded.


"Well, as long as what's in your best interest is also in my best interest, you have my cooperation." She said, looking from rebel to rebel, narrowing her eyes at Merlin. "But try to put me in chains again, and I'll kill you. I will not cooperate with you people if I'm treated as a prisoner." She paused. "And I agree with her," she said, nodding towards Evaline. "I'm not discussing anything more with you two until I know your names."


Merlin looked from Carla to Evaline, narrowing his eyes slightly at the vampire. "My name is Merlin." He informed then. "And his name is Gabriel." He said, nodding towards the other rebel. He looked over at the dhampir, shaking his head slightly. "You're not getting your sword, or any weapon for that matter, until I am completely sure that both of you are on our side." he informed her. "Forgive me for not taking any unnecessary chances with you two."

 

[Lucyfer]

‘You think I don’t know that?’


There was no commenting more on the vampire’s opinion. After all, she fell into the group of stubborn beliefs, hers being self-interested. Even if she, and so many others, had thought that what the dhampir said was best, few ever worked for it. The dhampir could work at it the only way she knew how, which was unfortunately with violence.


Which meant not having her sword was really quite bothersome. She could show them how absolutely useless that thing was going to be to them, but instead, she simply glared at the denial, and let her back hit the wall. Evaline had heard Merlin’s statement time and time again, and Eva still had no idea how one proved what he was asking. “Again,” she said, her voice still that ever-calm tone, but with the hints of an edge now, “You have not told us how we might assist you in proving this.”


Gabriel didn’t discard the tone, but he decided it was likely in his best interest not to comment on it. He frowned and tried to think of what, indeed, could prove things to them. He asked, “What would you be doing, now, if you weren’t here?”


Evaline arched one white eyebrow, then shrugged and said, “I was in this area in the first place to deal with Lord Hercine.” He styled himself a Lord, anyway. He was certainly old enough to be considered among the vampiric aristoricracy, and got away with far more than the regular vampire.


He was even known among the humans, since Gabriel blurted, “Alone? That’s—”


“—suicide?” She completed his thought, again fighting the urge to smirk as he glowered. “For you.” She’d been doing this for years. Vampires, like humans, reacted to dhampir the same—with wariness. There was never an outright attack. She’d been invited into several homes before she put the blade through their back.

 

[NightNurse]

Carla looked over at Evaline with a curious expression at the mention of Lord Hercine. She felt a familiar pang of anger and grief that came along with the mention of the vampire. He had wronged her one hundred years ago and yet, she was still angry. Lord Hercine had had a friend of Carla's executed. Carla's friend had been human, and after being accused of rallying other humans against Lord Hercine, she was killed. Which would have been bad enough. But Lord Hercine had lied to Carla, agreeing to the deal Carla proposed and then killing Diana, the human, anyway. So the rebels Carla had killed, and the leader Carla had delivered to Lord Hercine, had died for nothing.


"Well, thinking you can take down Lord Hercine yourself is brave. It was also foolish and suicidal, but brave." She commented lightly, swallowing the lump in her throat. One hundred years ago, Carla hadn't been able to figure out how exactly to kill Lord Hercine without getting herself killed in the process. Luckily, she had been smart enough to realize that going after the vampire alone was a suicide mission.


Merlin watched Evaline thoughtfully. He had heard of Lord Hercine, although he or his parents had never had anything to do with hunting the vampire. If the dhampir had been planning on dealing with the 'Lord', then obviously she had some sort of plan on how to do it. Which could end up working out well for Merlin and his group. Taking care of a powerful vampire like Lord Hercine would definitely make his rebels feel like they were making a difference. Merlin glanced over at the vampire, who had looked almost angry when Lord Hercine's name was first mentioned.


"Do you know him personally?" Merlin asked, looking at Carla with a suspicious expression.


"No." Carla lied. "I just know enough about who is he to know that him dying would be a great thing for the human side." What happened between her and Lord Hercine was, quite frankly, none of anybody else's business. Plus, she couldn't have the rebels thinking that she wasn't really on their side, just using them to get revenge on a vampire who had wronged her one hundred years ago.


Merlin paused, frowning slightly. "To answer your question," he said, turning towards Evaline. "To prove that you're on our side, you can help us take care of Lord Hercine."

 

[Lucyfer]

A quiet laugh escaped Evaline at Merlin’s final comment, “What’s so funny?” Gabriel inquired, and watched as the smile slipped lazily onto her lips when the laughter ceased, and she glanced between the two humans.


“I can take care of Lord Hercine. Perhaps even Carla could,” she motioned towards the vampiress, “But I have no plan that has ever involved the use of humans.” She supposed she could try to think of one, but two centuries of working on her own made that a rather difficult task.


“And how would you do it alone then?” Gabriel couldn’t even believe he was hearing that. Suicidal indeed, more than this Carla vampire.


“Simple,” she said, “Lord Hercine won’t kill me on sight. All I need is a few seconds close to him.” The problematic part would be his guards and escaping them, or killing them, but she’d done it before. She was arrogant enough she could do it again. After all, she wasn’t dead yet.


Gabriel scowled, “They don’t know you?”


“Dhampir look alike,” and she didn’t give her real name to the vampires when they asked.


Dhampir did have some common characteristics—fair hair and red eyes among them. The fact they were rare only helped her cause. It was unlikely Hercine had ever actually met a Dhampir, so she could easily give the name of one of those dhampir who were loyal to the cause of vampires, and be given entry.


No one had gotten a decent picture of her. How could they? She had a shadow, but no reflection. Wonderful thing, that.

 

[NightNurse]

Carla raised an eyebrow at Evaline. "If killing him as simple as waltzing in and stabbing the guy, don't you think somebody would have killed him by now?" She asked. 'If it was as simple as she's making it sound, I would have killed him by now.' She thought.


"And yeah, I probably could take care of him. The problem is, he's such a powerful vampire I can't imagine he's ever not surrounded by guards." She said. "I can't imagine he's stayed alive for so many centuries by being super welcoming of strangers to his community, especially ones that are half human." She said, giving Evaline a pointed look.


Merlin narrowed his eyes slightly at Evaline when she laughed. "You asked how you could prove you're on our side. Helping us kill Lord Hercine is how you can do that." He said. "So, we need to come up with a way to kill the vampire with minimal risk involved because I really don't want to lose any of my people." He said, folding his arms across his chest. He turned to face the vampire with a glare when he heard Carla chuckle.


"Well, if you don't want to lose any people I really wouldn't recommend just going there and killing him. If you do that, his people will hunt your people down until all of your people have died horrible deaths." She stated.


"Do you have any ideas? Because I would just love to hear them." Merlin asked, sounding a little irritated.


"Well," Carla said. "In terms of how to hunt him, no. I don't typically hunt down people I want dead. Typically, I make them trust me and then betray them, thus causing their death in one way or another." She said with a slight smirk. "And before you think it, no, that's not what I'm doing with you people as I have no reason to." She clarified.

 

[Lucyfer]

Two centuries of experience, and she was being told by young humans and a vampire that her idea wouldn’t work. Going it alone was unacceptable, even if it was a way she could clearly prove her worth. So, Evaline went silent and listened to them talk. ‘Of course there are guards. Of course he has lived this long for a reason. Of course he’s wary.’


But she was too arrogant to care. She’d played this game hundred of times.


Gabriel was listening, and his face screwed up at Carla’s suggestion. He saw the pull of a smirk at Evaline’s lips, and couldn’t help but say, “You have plenty of reason to want to screw us over!” They had just captured Carla, and they were planning to kill her, after all. “But maybe you have a point…if you’re wanted dead in vampire society, perhaps,” he looked to Merlin, “Could we ransom her? Set up a meeting point off Lord Hercine’s grounds? He’d have less guards then, and we could secure the area with the others.”


The dhampir arched a brow at their idea, but sticking with silence, said nothing. She was curious how Carla would react to being ‘ransomed’ to the vampire.

 

[NightNurse]

"Well, true." Carla said, looking over at Gabriel. "But if I don't at least try and cooperate with you people, you'll kill me. So, at the moment I can't do exactly to you without being killed by the other members of your group." She pointed out.


Merlin huffed at the vampire. "You're right about that." He said, narrowing his eyes at the vampire. Carla raised an eyebrow at Gabriel's suggestion. "You would use me as ransom? Darling, you insult me." She narrowed her eyes at him.


Merlin raised an eyebrow at Gabriel's suggestion. "Well, I mean, maybe." He mused. Carla let out a groan.


"Okay, so, couple things. First of all, were you born yesterday?" She asked Gabriel. "Do you honestly think that the vampire Lord would have less guards around outside of his home, meeting up with human rebels?" She asked. "Second of all, I killed one vampire two hundred years ago. Of course, I've done things since that, but murdering my sire is the only thing they can prove that I did." She paused, looking over at dhampir.


"If we're ransoming off anybody, it should probably be her." She said thoughtfully. "I'm sure Lord Hercine and his followers have heard of a dhampir that kills vampires. And since there aren't that many dhampirs, I'm sure they would believe that one committed most, if not all, of those murders." Evaline had probably killed most of the vampires Carla was thinking of anyway. "Or, of course, we could give them you." She said, looking over at Merlin.


"I'm sure Lord Hercine would just love a rebel leader." She said. 'I know he loves to get rebel leaders.' She thought.


"No." Merlin said flatly, giving the vampire a pointed look. "I'm not being ransomed off. Because if something would go wrong, obviously the first person they would kill would be the one right there, who they thought they were getting."

 

[Lucyfer]

The dhampir had to bite her cheek to keep from commenting, several times. ‘Oi.’ Two hundred years, and this is what her life had come to. Two hundred years, and she was still dealing with this level of inadequacy. She thought humans were good at passing down information. Where were the hunters like Alexander?


Her thoughts drifted to the ‘good times’ until conversation turned to offering her for ransom. She glanced to Carla, then to the hunters as it was suggested they could be offered up.


Gabriel shook his head immediately at the thought.


“No way,” Gabriel said. “I’m not going to be offered up. You’re the only one who really makes any sense, if not as someone for Lord Hercine to kill, then as someone he wants to restore. A vampire captured makes them all look bad. We could say you’re someone else. He won’t know till the drop-off point. Though….” The comment about not having less guards came back.


Evaline let out her breath in a sigh, seeming to read what was on Gabriel’s mind, “By necessity there will be less guards,” Gabriel’s attention snapped to her. His violet eyes did narrow on her, seeming to wonder if she had read his mind or if his thoughts were just that obvious.


She spoke without acknowledging the look. “He has to leave some to guard his property. I doubt he’d spend money to hire more guards. He will bring his elites, though, and they will be prepared for assault. That’s the difference if we don’t strike him at his home.” There, the guards wouldn’t be ready.


That was always her advantage.


Her gaze shifted from Gabriel to Merlin. “If you think the ransom plot is still a good one, you can use me. Use my real name, use the name of another dhampir—I don’t care. My life will be in your hands,” she tilted her chin up a bit. “Is that good enough for you?” It was certainly showing a measure of faith in Merlin that he didn’t yet deserve, but someone had to do it. Eva knew it wouldn’t be the humans. Carla was too selfish.


To move this along, she’d have to be willing to play the worst role in all of this. It was the only way she was going to get their trust. “I don’t even know of other dhampir. I didn’t even know of you,” Gabriel noted, expressing his ignorance. However, Carla had known the name. That ought to mean this Lord Hercine should know her, too. Hate her. He glanced to Merlin. He was game with this idea if Merlin was.

 

[NightNurse]

Carla looked amused when Gabriel mentioned Lord Hercine wanting to restore her. She highly doubted that, but voicing that thought would put her in a position where she would have to explain how she knew what the vampire did and did not want. She looked over at Evaline as she talked about the guards, smirking slightly despite herself.


"Ah, yes. A group of human rebels trying to outsmart a group of vampire elites." She said, glancing from Merlin to Gabriel with an amused glint in her eyes. "What could possibly go wrong?"


Of course, Carla knew exactly what could go wrong. Lord Hercine could, and probably would, do the same thing to the rebels that he had done to her. Which was lie. Lie, and tell them that they had a deal while he never intends to let anybody leave. So, it would be a matter of whichever side attacked and killed the other side first. Of course, she didn't voice her knowledge. She would try and figure out a way to not be around when the 'deal' took place, saving herself. After all, what was it to her if these rebels died? Gabriel had been right when he said that she had plenty of reasons to want to screw them over. He hadn't been wrong.


Although actually screwing the rebels over would be more complicated than simply withholding some information about their target. Carla didn't give withholding the information a second thought. It was none of their business. Plus, there was always a chance that this group would win. Of course, the vampire elites had a higher chance, but it wasn't like Carla was letting the rebels run off to a certain death.


Carla raised an eyebrow when Evaline offered up herself as bait. "Well, isn't that noble of you?" She said causally. She looked over at Gabriel.


"Her entire family was sentenced to death. Including her," she said, nodding towards Evaline. "But she escaped. As far as I know, that death sentence still stands. And even if it doesn't, there are always all of the vampire that she has murdered. In the vampire's eyes, those murders made her deserve death."


Merlin listened to the conversation in silent, looking over at Evaline with a frown. Yes, her offering up herself to be used as bait was good enough. He tried to work out how being in the position of the bait could benefit Evaline in some way, if it could make her able to betray them, but he didn't think so. With any luck, Lord Hercine would be dead before anyone could betray the rebels to him.


"Okay," he said finally. "I think that just might work." He said, looking over at Evaline. "And, to answer your question, yes. Offering yourself as bait proves that you're on our side. So, if you remain loyal to the plan, you have my trust." He said. He looked over at Gabriel then.


"You can give her her sword back." He said slowly. It was probably an idea to give Evaline back her sword. It was a show of good faith, if you will. Plus, Evaline was outnumbered, so even if she did try and attack someone, chances are he or Gabriel could stop her.

 

[Lucyfer]

‘Everything will go wrong.’


Evaline wasn’t completely relying in the others. She knew better than that. The smirk that touched her lip at that didn’t leave when she was called ‘noble’. It endured through the description of her lurid past by the vampiress. She watched the faces and expressions of Merlin and Gabriel.


Gabriel was clearly fighting with himself over how he should feel. “It still stands, unless I show I am not like my father.”


“What condemned him to death?” Gabriel asked.


“Take a guess.”


Curiously, Gabriel didn’t. Merlin’s order to return her sword came, and he just held it tighter. “She hasn’t actually done anything yet. She even asked if that would be enough.” If Evaline hadn’t been so confident throughout this, Gabriel might have relinquished the sword with no argument. As it was, how confident she was that she could kill Lord Hercine on her own, that she could even play bait, bothered him.


Evaline rolled her eyes, but shrugged the sheathe of her sword off her back, “Here, then,” she held it out to Gabriel, “At least keep it properly, and bring it with you when we go to see Hercine. I’ll reclaim it there.” Once she got out of whatever bonds she’d have to pretend to be trapped in. She hoped they knew how to tie a decent knot that looked difficult, so she could slide her hands out simply.


Gabriel took the sheathe, and she asked, “How are you planning to get word to Hercine?”


“I know how to get into the cities,” Gabriel answered. He didn’t reveal how. He was marked liked some once-slaves, and that tended to grant him passage. He could slip into a city, get the message into the hands of one of Hercine’s servants, or to the general mail, and run off. Hercine would be given a place and a time, but no more than that. No correspondence would return to the rebels.


Gabriel just hated going into the cities. He was consistently paranoid that one day, someone would recognize him as escaped.