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Chapter 2

  • Surprising Recruits
  • Though he was a top sword fighter and a well-deserving combatant, Frederick Rivers always had a problem in covering up his emotions. He laughed when it was funny and he would shed a few tears if something tragic had happened. Many years of training, he still couldn't cover the grin growing upon his lips or fear rising up in his eyes.
  • His sister was an expert in those though. Maybe she wasn't like that to him or to herself, but to other people, she was like a doll-a frowning one at that.
  • It all happened just a few hundred years back when Avellana still had her humanity in tact and he was the one at the verge of losing it. Their father broke her, only for protection of course, but he didn't know that he destroyed every single part of her. Frederick could remember the tense mood that night and the striking words that punched her hard.
  • She turned into someone he had dreaded to see. Even if he was the younger sibling of the two, he was still very protective over her. He didn't want her to become a monster of every child's nightmare, but after what her father had said, it just happened. Frederick was the first and last person who saw the little bit of innocence leave, crashing his sister into nothing.
  • She wasn't the sibling he had back then. She wasn't carefree nor was she rebellious. Avellana was the cold, calculative vampire who could strike at any moment. Frederick shouldn't really worry about this as she could handle herself, but he had always wondered when her sanity might vanish too. And that crushed him.
  • He sighed. That wasn't the only thing that was filling up his mind. Just recently, there were new recruits populating their clan-five of them.
  • Stupid wanderers, he thought with a shake of his head. They shouldn't have changed these humans. All vampires in the world had already made a deal with themselves, and that was to never change a human. They didn't need more careless vampires running around, and the balance between all creatures was already fine.
  • Though that was one of the reasons why he went in the woods to take his mind off things, the main one was because of the little girl. He exhaled sharply, putting a hand on the bark of a tree and letting his fingers slide down. When she had stepped into the borders, her appearance sparked his interest.
  • Being the second-in-command with Avellana while their father was out on a 'business trip', he decided to ask a combatant to search the girl's history...every single part of it. And when that same combatant had returned, he gave information that Frederick was suspecting all along. Lizzie Grey. That was her name. With the thought, his insides curled and wrenched, and tingles shot down his spine.
  • Why was she here?
  • Light blonde hair filled his mind; it was their family's trademark, and those green eyes... they were so similar to his. Could it be? He finally found her descendant. A few centuries of having all hope already lost-
  • A loud scream of terror made his eyes widen. High-pitched and familiar, he furrowed his eyebrows at the sound. It couldn't be, she was supposed to be in training right now. The same voice sounded once again, but this time, it was followed by a string of swearwords-French.
  • Frederick's eyes darkened. It was his sister. The thought made him sped away to the right, running to the location he had heard her voice. Calm down, he told himself as his hands clenched into fists, but he couldn't. This was Avellana for God's sake! She was supposed to be back in the cave training to become a combatant! She wasn't supposed to be here.
  • When he had reached the place, he scowled. It was his uncle, Edmund. He could say that they were acquaintances, but whenever it was between both his uncle and Avellana, he swore there were always cruel words exchanged from them.
  • "Edmund," he spat, glowering at the older man in front of him. The said man turned and smiled, the bored expression gone from his face, and that only made Frederick's blood boil farther.
  • "Frederick," he exclaimed as if delighted. His eyes glittered with amusement. "Nice of you to join us, I was just teaching your sister a lesson."
  • "Couldn't this lesson be learnt in her own clan? And this woods is a meeting place for four clans, not a punishment center. Leave, Edmund, or this little exchange would be heard from our father." He should congratulate himself. With the clipped tone he was using, he was impressed with himself. Frederick glanced at Avellana who was still on the ground, her brown hair disheveled and her hands supporting her from collapsing back onto the grass.
  • Edmund still had a smile on his face, but it started to strain. He gave a mocking bow, "Of course, but do remember that I have a higher rank than you, Frederick." Before he could get out of their way, he called. "Congratulations on earning your combatant title, by the way."
  • He left after that, leaving the two siblings behind.
  • Frederick immediately ran to his trembling sister, pulling her up only to receive a 8
  • staggering glare. He raised an eyebrow. What had he done this time?
  • She pushed him away, wiping the dirt that clung to the fabric of her pants. Straightening her wrinkly shirt, her gaze went back to him. She frowned up at him and crossed her arms.
  • "I could've handled myself," she said. "I'm not weak." Avellana stalked away, her back facing him. He blinked. Only she would think of this as a sign that she was weak, he rolled his eyes and caught up with her quick strides.
  • He scoffed, "Couldn't a single 'thank you' suffice?"
  • His sister whirled to face him, throwing her hands up in the air in exasperation. "For what? Helping me like I'm some damsel in..." she stopped herself, almost softening her gaze but before he could even take a good look at it, her stare hardened once more. "Thank you."
  • Frederick only gave a smile back at her. Though her voice was stiff and forced, it was alright with him-better than nothing, he supposed. Besides, with her breaking the rule in being a combatant, she would face enough humiliation from their father knowing that he would probably ban her from drinking even an ounce of blood for five days or something worse. His nose crinkled at the thought.
  • Avellana deserved none of these. She already had enough problems on her plate these days. From the multiple faces she had been wearing out in public, he bet she didn't even know herself anymore.
  • "There were new recruits, you know what to do."
  • A smirk slipped into her lips and the glint in her eyes returned. "I guess we're going to have the time of our lives," she chuckled, her sadistic humor going through. "Did you tell father?"
  • "He's still out in the meeting with werewolves, from what I remembered," he said.
  • One look at his sister, and he knew what she was thinking. With her fingers twirling and twisting the hem of her clothes before invisibly drawing the marks of the clans, she was wondering what clan the newly recruits would find themselves in.
  • They had all their personalities, but it was sure that one would stand out. And for the both of them it was leadership with Avellana having more of a thirst in power. She furrowed her eyebrows and continued to trace, this time on her skin. Her hair was pulled back, revealing the 'P' symbol they all had.
  • "You would probably sort them, as practice, you know," Frederick spoke. Then the vampire child went into his head making his hand fidget. He waved at her as if to tell her that she should dismiss what he had just mentioned. "I could do it though... as practice." He flinched at his shaking voice.
  • When Avellana tossed him a suspicious glance, he knew he needed to play this one well enough. They pushed through the foliage to reveal a large cave meters above the mountain. There was a small stream beside with bushes surrounding it, and he could spot a few combatants already circling the perimeters.
  • Humans, of course, couldn't see the cave, given the glamour the witch had put. He honestly didn't know what they see, probably just a large oak tree. Frederick looked pass the cave, and there they were. A witch was there with a hood to block her face; the cloak was a few inches above her ankles as it was being wafted by the wind.
  • The three wanderers were inside a large gold circle, and inside of it, held Latin words. When the witch glanced towards him and Avellana, her fingers clicked together and the three traitors stood still. "These are the ones who bit the recruits?" It was eerie and withering. Witches' voice never failed to creep the hell out of him. She didn't need the confirmation.
  • Her hands shot up in the air and red mist arose from the circles, encircling the three. They were now shadows seen from the bloody air.
  • Within a second, she started to chant, "Vos Trangessi sun leges per cognationes suas: concilium."
  • He moved his hair upward, flinching. Unlike Avellana, he hated this. Yes, they do deserve it, but he just couldn't stand seeing them get hurt and die. The cloak on the witch quivered, and the chants had gotten stronger and louder.
  • His glanced at his sister to see her still fingering the large P mark, copying the dark swirls it had and tapping the small word that was in the hole-leadership.
  • Frederick removed his gaze from the mark before looking back at the vampires, the mist already fading. Their pupils had gone from dark to pure white. Their hands shook as their feet transformed to pure dust.
  • "Venturus est debita solveres debes," another wave of black fog erupted from the circle, strengthening the thick air. Now, they could no longer see the vampires in it, and once the witched had clicked her fingers once more, another wave of smoke emitted.
  • The colors of black and red started to blend together, combining to something similar to ashes. He knew what was coming next, as he had watched this same scene just a few years ago. Screams were heard from the mist and it almost felt like a slap on Frederick's face.
  • They moved a bit more forward to signal the witch that the torture should be over already. Well, he was the first one to step forward because from the look on Avellana's face, she was enjoying the show.
  • He saw the hood went up and down, and with a sway of her hands to the right, the murky view disappeared. The vampires in front of them no longer looked the same. Their faces were full of deep cuts and their legs were completely gone, replaced by liters of black blood.
  • Their arms looked so frail and papery that he was surprise that it could still move. The trio's mouths were no longer there and were exchanged by thin lines like those stick-mans children these days were drawing.
  • "Morietur Lamia," the witch ended, her bony hands descending and the three exploded into dust. They floated up in the sky and they scattered to wherever the wind might lead them. They were as good as dead. The elderly woman turned towards them, letting her head bow down once they had come face-to-face.
  • She had worked for them for years that she was always the first the one to call when they had needed a sorceress to straighten the laws right. She was powerful, and after the deal that she and Avellana had made, the enchantress now worked for them.
  • "Thank you," the curt voice came from his sister who nodded at her. Her mouth was shaped into a thin line as she held a face of boredom. There were times when Frederick wanted to know why she was like this, but most of the time, he didn't care. "Delia would lead the way out."
  • Just then a dark skinned woman looked at them. She looked overweight, but that didn't really stop her from training to become a combatant. She was the strongest ones in the batch, but she was a slow runner. A pain really, she could've done well and would receive a higher rank than what she had now.
  • She motioned the woman to follow her as she led her out the trees that covered this area. And now, the siblings were alone once again. "Where are the new recruits?" Avellana asked, her cold eyes staring at him. It was like she knew that he was hiding something.
  • How was he going to tell her?
  • Swallowing down the nervousness that was bulging up his throat, he put on a mask, similar to what his sister was always wearing-an emotionless face. "They're inside the cave," he said. "I let someone explain to them the basis. You could go if you want to, but they're now doing simple training while the other vampires are still out."
  • He didn't want her to go, and knowing her, Lizzie would be dead within minutes of exposure from his sister.
  • Avellana crossed her arms as she walked closer. She narrowed her expression and observed him closely. "What are you hiding?" She knew him too well, and this time, it was simply a curse. "Don't lie to me."
  • Her words hissed through the night air, and Frederick found himself more cornered every step she took towards him. Though she seemed calm in the outside, once she found it all out, it was all over.
  • "Nothing."
  • "I said don't lie," she snarled. "What are you hiding?" Each word had been given emphasis on but he couldn't force himself to answer. Before he could even say anything, a small whimper interrupted them.
  • Shit.
  • Avellana's eyes flashed as she glanced at the source of the noise. She quickly turned towards him, her hand grabbing his arm, preventing him from running. "What is a vampire child doing in Potestatem Borders?"