For Disclaimer read chapter one
Chapter 4: The past is Past part 1
Adrian found himself in a place he did not know, but this time he was not in Kai's body instead he was like a soul floating in the air and could hear Kai speaking to him.
"Do not be afraid , I'm going to tell you your past life as I relive it. No harm will be done to you like the past dream."
"But was it your going to tell me?, and where is Dorian?" Adrian asked with a faint of fear in his voice.
"Aw you speak of the vampire prince Ran, do not worry he will be reliving the past life with me.
"Now Adrian will you let me start my story?" Kai said in a soft voice.
"Yes prince Kai" Adrian said going silent waiting for Kai to tell his story.
" If I said I met my vampire price at a ball at the king's palace, would you believe me? Of course, it is easier by far to believe it now. But then it seemed an impossibility. The king was my father and the queen, my mother, or so I thought. I was merely the fourth son and sixth child of the king and queen's eight children, with no hope of the throne. When have you heard a story about the fourth prince before? I flatter myself that this may be the first".
At least my status meant that the courtiers and servants did not trouble themselves to hide their thoughts from me. I learned much of what happened in my father's kingdom from them, most important, that none of my father's subjects had any reason to love him. I also heard the whispers before Prince Ran arrived.
"Did you hear? One of Princess Aura's suitors, he's a real vampire! From beyond the mountains of the Western Wall, I heard." And so it went until I might have pitied the fellow were not so intend on pitying myself.
Still, something about him intrigued me and I imagined what he might be like before he arrived. I wondered, along with the court, why on of the vampire princes would aim so low as one of my sisters. Not merely because I loathed each and every one of them, mind, but because the vampire kingdom beyond the mountains was rumored to be full of beautiful women and men alike.
It was also said that the vampires were rich beyond the dreams of mortal men, and deathless in the bargain. They seldom intruded on the lands of men since their infatuated victims often gave themselves up by choice. Why bother with a living bride, especially one like Aura who was neither beautiful nor kind? True, there were other tales that said that the vampire's powers were fading and that they could no longer hold their lands as they once had. But I had no way to judge the truth of any of these rumors and gave them small consideration.
On the night that the vampire prince arrived, I sat sulking in my usual corner of my father's banquet hall with Kirin the jester. Kirin, like me, was short and blond, slender and elfin in the court of dark giants that ruled over the peasants who looked like us. That was one reason I liked him so much, the other being that, as the butt of all the jokes that weren't directed at me, he was my companion in suffering.
Not that he saw in as such. "Fine fish, tonight, lad. Eat up! We may not eat so well again tomorrow." He belched contentedly as the last of the fish he had purloined from the kitchens cashed into his gullet, then scowled at the door. The scowl made the scar on his cheek twist into something fierce and harsh for a moment before his face lapsed into his usual foolish smile.
I turned to see what he was looking at and saw that the vampires had arrived. The word does no justice to the way they appeared, their eyes old and full of secrets, their faces perfect in their weird splendor. They cam in, silent as cats but fro the clink of their armor, trailing in the wake of their prince.
To see a score of them in company, shining in my fathers court like small suns, was a magnificent sight. And yet there was something about them that sent shivers down my spine, as if they might turn and begin to hunt amongst us without warning. There was a bit of the monster about them still, despite their wisdom and beauty. Then it was that I caught my first glimpse of my sister's suitor. He was tall and slim like the others but somehow gave the impression of a speed and strength that would be hard to match in battle. His face was pale, white and beautiful, and his hair flowed long and black in a queue down his back. But it was his eyes that me believe that he was the creature of the rumors. Their silver-gray gaze swept the court with a could, hungry look like a hawk newly unhooded.
He caught my own star in their grasp from across the room and I gasped, struggling like a fish on a line. There was something in his gaze that felt as though a single black gloved hand held my soul and saw all that I thought and felt. I blushed and tried to look away, afraid of having been caught gawking. The strange prince smiled a thin smile with no hint of fangs and slowly, oh so slowly released me from his eyes. When I was able to breath again, Kirin was giving me a strange look.
"Don't look at him directly again, lad. He can command your soul if he's all the say he is. The king would kill you with his own sword if he saw even a hint of that come about. Let Aura lie down with the living corpse and have whatever good there is of it."
He spoke the truth. The king, my father, had wished me left to the mercy of the wolves when I was a child a thousand times. I could not have said why he hated me so, other than I was the only one of his children that resemble my slim, golden mother. Perhaps it was more that he could bear to see her in my face. Whatever the cause, any infraction, real or imagined, could spark his rage and give him the reason he craved to be free of his least-loved offspring. I glanced at the scar on Kirin's face, a relic of time when he stepped between the king and the object of his wrath, my ten-year-old self. It took no effort to nod my agreement. What was he to me, this vampire prince from beyond the Western Wall who desired the hand of my most hated sister? I turned away.
Once the pleasantries were complete and the prince had been presented to Aura and the important folk of the court, the evening began in truth. My father had not stinted the flood of gold necessary to bring about the most magnificent feast I ever seen or heard of. If all manner of delicacies and gallons of sheep's blood alone were enough to sway the heart of the prince, then Aura was as good as wed. idly, I wondered if the blood had truly come from sheep or if my father was bleeding the unfortunates in the dungeons. I spared a small thought for their agonies, poor souls. The cold distance of my father's face as he sat on his throne brought me no more comfort than usual. In fact, the vampires looked almost likely in comparison. I shuddered and turned to the small plate of food that Kirin had seized from the main table.
The banquet went on around us, turning from food to entertainment and from thence to dancing. I would have sat on in my corner at peace were it not for my sister Erika. When the dancing began, nothing would please her more than that her ugly brother would stand up to dance with her, painting her as a beauty in comparison. Erika simpered and pretended to smile down at me, her eyes cold as the prince's, withholding all her usual taunts behind closed lips. Yet her face spoke volumes and it was as if she spoke aloud, so her silence was no boon. By the time we finally danced in a pairing with Aura and her prince, I would have given anything to be forgotten. He glanced at me again, eyes burning through me with a mocking stare. Aura whispered something to him and he looked deliberately away, contempt written all over his features. At that moment, I hated him more than my entire family, were such a thing possible. Had I any skill with a sword, I might have challenged him at once but since I had none, I finished the dance with what dignity I could muster. Then I turned on my heel without a word to Erika and left the hall to begin the long, weary climb to my half ruined tower room. I was done with feasting. I seized a flagon of my father's finest wine as I sipped it as I walked, remembering the prince's eyes. He had looked at me as though I were nothing, as though I could never be worthy of his notice. The realization made my heart raced with anger. I stormed along the passage, paying little attention to my surroundings. That was why I didn't see Aura's vampire when he appeared in the corridor before me so suddenly that we nose at me.
"Are you always so rude, dwarf prince of the Northern kingdom? You leave your sister unpartnered and unescorted, you smash your unwanted self into your father's guests these things don bode well if we are to be one clan."
He towered above me, as did all at the court except Kirin, and blocked my passage so that I could not ignore him. "Move aside, sir. My sister may barter her body and soul to you but you will never be a brother to me as long as I draw breath." I was shaking with fury now, glaring at him as if I could force my was past. With a speed that made me gasp, he spun me back against the stone wall and braced his hands against the frock at either of my shoulders so I could not flee. His face was inches from mine as he hissed, "You are quick to assume that your sister is good enough for one whose lineage stretches back to the Elder Kings, foolish brat. I see that the blood of your kingdom's Old Ones runs true in your veins, yet even they are children compared to the years of my people."
What Old Ones did he mean? I had heard the tales of the ones who lived here before my great-grandfather conquered the kingdom but all of those folk had been destroyed or enslaved. There was nothing left of them but me. I nearly shrugged as I dismissed my thoughts. Who knew how the vampires entertained themselves? Perhaps he simply lied. His eyes burn into me as if he read my doubts. I was wrenched back from my thoughts to find myself still held captive by a being I despised. I found the words to say as much. "What do you want with her, then? Our lineage is as good as yours, creature of the night . My sister can marry any on of a dozen lords."
"You were simpleminded farmers when my people took the Western lands. Your sister is worth nothing more or less than the alliance she brings and the lands that will be linked to mine. As her husband, I will occupy the throne of this sty and this kingdom will be mine, or have you forgotten that?"
The blood burned in my veins. "Sty? I wonder that you bother to soil your hands with us then, great Prince! Or are the tales true? Do your powers fade with time and your lands slip from your fingers?" I did not expect an answer and he did not grant me one. "As for you ^Å.." he bared his fangs as hi hissed, Do you think I could not command you to love me if I wanted to? You would beg for the honor of my notice then." I could see his fangs when he spoke and I knew that some of what I heard was true. He might control me or even kill me in an instant and I was powerless before him. I looked deep into his eyes, forgetting Kirin's warning and took a long breath. He smelled of wild magic and something else, something I could not name but it pierced me so that I found my anger again. "Oh, all powerful Prince! Now I see the error of my ways and prepare myself to adore you in any way you see fit! How weak do you think I am, monster? Save your powers to bend men or your will for my father and my sister and let me pass." His eyes darkened at my sarcasm and for a moment my knees trembled. I could feel the cordlike strength of the muscles in his arms on either side of mine and I knew I could not defeat him in battle. So we remained for an eternity until he dropped his arm and turned from me with a curl of his lip. He stalked away before I could demand to know what he was doing in that corridor so far from the quest quarters.
I opened my mouth to call after him, to demand an accounting of his actions but no words came. Instead I, too, turned and continued toward my tower, trying to ignore the shaking of my hands and knees. I reached my room without further incident and bolted the door behind me before I collapsed on my hard bed. There I lay, wrapped in my threadbare blankets and tried to forget what I had just seen.
Writers notes: tell me what you guys think of this chapter I hope you guys like it. There will be more of Adrian's and Dorian's past life together soon so let me know if you guys have any ideas for the next chapter write me at
shyboyjoey@gmail.com or you can post here http://www.quicktopic.com/39/H/qx58BJrqyT2E6