Alesco:

"Alesco, come to me." The hissing voice of the master fills my mind. I am sitting in a wooden chair, in a dark room. The others are here, gathered in a solemn silence, waiting. The master told us to wait here for instructions. Although Fabian left for a while, he is back now. To feed the humans, he said.

We brought the humans in. It was easy. Too easy. I'm wondering more and more why and how they took control, how we ran from them for so long. One hundred years and their power was held in a single silver dart laced with poison. Nothing more. They are weak, they are foolish.

We placed them, alive, in cells the master had prepared. The one they call Darren was in bad shape, unconscious and weak. But his heartbeat was strong, so I am sure he will survive. The journey back here was filled with painful temptation for me, their bodies warmed by a beating heart and flowing blood. I craved that blood, its warmth and its strength.

I walked ahead of the group, with no human to carry of my own. I'm not sure I could have resisted otherwise. What has the master done to me? Even now I feel it, lingering like an unwanted tick. None of the others seemed or seem to be affected by it. I thought of asking Wynn about it, whether he felt it, but I didn't want to in front of the others. Of course I know they crave blood, we all do, in hunger. But this is different, stronger, almost uncontrollable. Almost.

I rise from my chair and Wynn looks up at me with a questioning look.

"The master has summoned me." I say. Wynn gets to his feet and moves to join me. The quiet voice of the master fills my mind again.

"Alone. Come alone."

Wynn must have heard it too because he stops and looks at me. Uncertainty and anger fill his eyes. He knows he cannot fight the master. Cannot battle the power he wields.

"I will be ok brother. Do not worry."

The cells are in the same building, down below the ground. I step through the door leading to the staircase. I step heavily down the old wooden steps, causing them to creak. I enjoy hearing the creak of the floor beneath my feet, I enjoy making my weight felt. We are natuarally silent and stealthy and I enjoy being different.

The corridor below is dimly lit, the light drifting from around a corner. I walk towards the corner, towards the light and I hear the shuffling of humans, the beating of hearts, their deep breathing. I smell their scents, the scent of bodies and fear and blood, it pulls me forward. I quicken my pace and move around the corner.

Floating above is a single orb, the only source of light, free and untethered.

The master is there. He has a human held by the throat. The other humans are standing further along the grey, stone corridor. One is lying on his back. I cannot tell if he is injured. Another kneels at his side, tending to him, so I assume he is. I recognise Darren at the front, staring intently at the master, standing stock still as though fixed in place. None of them have noticed my presence in the dimness.

I stop where I am as the master reaches for his hood. "Now you will see." He says to the human he is holding. He is a giant of a man, larger than the master, but his human strength means nothing.

That unusual feeling of fear trickles through me and my body shudders. I have never seen what lies beneath that hood, never seen anything but the inpenetrable darkness.

The master's hood slithers from his head, resting against his back. I step back without thought, shock replacing my fear. I see the closest humans recoil too, looks of terror etched onto their faces. The head is like nothing I have seen, rising up, mouth open with four, pointed fangs. Beady eyes, black as the deepest night. Black, scaled skin. A cobra. Two flaps of the cobra's skin open at either side of its head in a fierce display of aggression.

The human being held by the throat lets out a howl, a cross between a scream and a groan as the pink, forked tongue flicks in and out. Tasting, sensing.

"Now you will see." The master says again. The mouth moves as it speaks, and the hissing words sound in my mind. Venom spits from its fangs as they plunge into the humans neck in a quick strike, blood spurts into the snake's open mouth. The master's hand lets go and the body drops to the floor.

"Now, Alesco. Come forward." It says.

I walk, as though pulled, towards the master. I smell the blood, stronger than ever. Rich, sweet scents overtake my senses. Pure, instinctual desire takes control.

"Drink."

I grab the prone body and lift it easily. Blood is flowing out in pulsing motions. I raise it to my mouth and drink deeply. The sweet taste so familiar, yet so alien. I immediately feel the warmth travel through me, feel the familiar tingle of strength and power. I drink deeply, as though I've been starved for a lifetime. Everything around me disappears. There is only me and the blood, liquid life rushing into me.

I feel a satisfaction like I have never felt before and I drop the now lifeless form to the ground. It lands with a thud. I raise my head, licking my lips and look around. My already keen and powerful senses are stronger, sharper. The beating hearts sound like pounding drums. I look at Darren's face and see it as though for the first time, every bead of sweat, every line and scar. His green eyes look at me, filled with terror and shock, he steps back, unable to look away.

I feel strong. Stronger than I have ever felt. My entire body tingles with residual power and life.

I look at the master. Its black, beady eyes are on me, fanged mouth closed. Though not visible, I feel the smile from this creature, feel the joy radiating.

"My venom will take effect. Watch now how your race was born Alesco. How my children of darkness came to be." It says.

The dead human stirs. I look down. I feel no fear, the blood has erased that. The punctured neck is rapidly healing over. The bald head is sprouting hair, black as the night. The skin, already pale from blood loss, is losing colour. The eyes snap open, glowing red, and flick from left to right, looking, searching, unsure.

The master moves with speed, bursting from the robes and landing with a thud. A full snake circles the new vampire. At full length it is huge and thick. Thicker than the vampire on the floor. The forked tongue flicking in and out rapidly.

The new vampire stirs and makes an unsteady move to lift himself up. His full speed and strength unrealised and untested. The jaws of the snake, the master, open wide, dislocating with an audible click. It slithers forward consuming the vampire's entire body in one, rapid, fluid motion.

"Frank, no!" One of the humans shouts. I look round as he runs towards us. He's thrown back by an invisible force, and lands on his back. The others say nothing.

In a swirl of black cloak the master is standing before me again, the one they called Frank gone from the world, a smear of blood barely visible on the stone floor now the only sign that he lived at all. The snake is gone, the master is hooded once more, clothed in darkness.

Vampires came from a snake? I am unsure how it could be. Why wouldn't we know of this? Before coming here I had never heard of such magic, such power, such creatures.

"Vampires are my children." The master says. "Born from my venom. With serpent souls and serpent teeth, and the venom within. Perfect creations. Made to rule, made to win."

I say nothing. This creature is the creator of our kind? Father never told stories of our origins. But mother said he was one of the first here, one of the oldest. He would know if it is true.

"Master. I brought the humans as you asked. How do we free my father and brother? How do we end the Hunt as you promised?" I ask.

"My child. Already I am stronger. Already we can grow the darkness, closer and further. We shall bring the darkness to our enemies. And we will break them at their source."

I glance at the humans, unsure whether they can hear our exchange. The Master's voice does not carry with sound, it is a mental, telepathic communication, almost hypnotic. Darren's horrified eyes stare at me. Is it fear I see? Or is it something else? I don't know why his look affects me. He is a human, nothing more. A hunter sent to capture us, sent to change my species into a weak and feeble creature of flesh.

And yet I feel something. The blood wiped away my fear, gave me strength and clarity. But something else grows within, another alien feeling, another unusual emotion. I am affected by the look in his eyes, affected by the pain he is in, as though I can feel it myself. I look away, back at the master, pushing it from my mind.

"What will become of these humans?" I ask, pointing at them.

"They shall feed our power, Alesco. We shall use them as fuel to wage our war, to regain our position. You felt it already?"

I felt it. Yes, I felt it. The power. And I sense the master has grown in strength.

"The darkness already grows." He says, raising his hands."You feel it growing, feel its power."  He reaches out towards me, touching my head. My head snaps back and my eyes close.

I'm surrounded by trees, beneath the shadows of the night sky. I hear the forest sounds and wolves howling. In front of me and ahead I see sunlight and blue sky filtering through the canopy above, trickling down to the forest floor.

I'm moving towards the line of light, moving fast, swirling mist surrounds me, moving with me. I can't stop. As we hit the border of sunlight the mist rises up and the sky changes, turning from blue to black, the suns rays vanish as though fleeing from us, retreating before our might. We move fast, swallowing the light with our darkness, charging ahead, consuming all in our path.

I see and hear the creatures flee, hear their cries of fear and shock, but the darkness swallows them too. I am the darkness and the forest is mine.

My head snaps back and I'm in the corridor, the darkness of the master gazing at me.

"You see it Alesco? We are growing, even now. Every day we will close the gap, we will bring the darkness to their door. And then we will rise, and then we will free your kind and you shall take your place as leader."

That vision was just like the other. It felt real, too real. Like I have just run through the forest bringing the night. But I'm here and I have never left. So it cannot be. Yet I feel certain that it's true, that the darkness has grown, that we are closer to the hunters than ever before.

"Within days we will be ready, my magic will protect an army and victory will be ours."

Only days and father will be freed. Clemente will be freed. And the oppressive hand of our human foes shall be lifted. I remember the vision, I remember the feelings, the joy of the power.

I look at the humans, and lock eyes with Darren. He does not look away though I sense his fear. I see it clearly etched into his features, hear it in his heartbeat. He allowed me freedom. Without him I would not be here, and this would not be happening. I do not understand the mixture of feelings and emotions that are washing over me as I look at him.

I turn to the master. "Very well, but I want him as a vampire." I say, pointing at Darren.

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