The town of Montfort, where I grew up, is about two-thirds of the way between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. When I was still alive, we rode for a day to get here. Tonight, I only ran for two hours and reached the suburbs.
I should have died long ago. Even if my heart was barely clamped and my head was mostly still on top, the severe trauma I suffered should have been my end. Instead, I was fed a few mouthfuls of blood so powerful, so incredible, that it expanded my healing and is pushing me forward even now.
I've run before and any effort can quickly lead to thirst. This time, I ride on the wind of infinite energy, on the never-ending fountain of vitality. Even now, I feel satisfied.
I didn't understand what God had given me; I just knew I had never heard of anything like it. Whatever talent I have, it is rare and precious. Another debt.
I slowed down as I recognized the familiar house. At this time of night, the roads were empty and the sky was covered with clouds, making it difficult to notice me even if someone was staring out the window. I still have to walk through fields and trees to get to my back door. I don't want to take any risks.
I came to my family’s first sugar cane field. Winter is coming, so they lie empty. I keep walking. The damp earth and trees gave me a strange smell that reminded me of home, and I paused.
I've done it. My main purpose, the goal I had pursued since I woke up under the fort, had been achieved. I held on to this feeling, this idea of freedom, this idea of coming home, to maintain my sanity and determination in situations that threatened to break me and leave me helpless. I now realize that now that I have achieved these priorities, I don't know how to continue. These are not implementable plans, they are ideals without follow-through.
I sat on a tree stump.
What do I want?
I'm a monster. If I wanted to go back to my old life, my family would know sooner or later. To make matters worse, the news of my return will spread all over the world. I might as well send a message to Lancaster and ask Gabriel to come to my house with sharp blades and silver nails.
I don't want to stay. I still wonder how my father and brother are doing. They need this closure as much as I do.
I don't want to die.
I don't want to be a slave.
All these are negative desires. They are the absence of things. They are not goals I can strive for.
I was overwhelmed and decided to read Ximena's letter. She probably has some good advice. I took out the heavy envelope from my large backpack and opened it. I noticed in passing that it was coated with something, no doubt to protect it from the liquid. They really thought of everything.
The first line is a series of strange runes, all wedge-shaped and pointed. It looks like someone stabbed the paper and the ink is black blood oozing from the wound. I blinked and the meaning was obvious.
Blood Sister, if you can read and write Akkadian, please use it in our communications from now on.
I won’t even question how this knowledge got into my head.
The rest of the text is in English. Ximena's letters were the same and evenly spaced. There wasn't a single smudge on the paper, which was exactly what I expected from the straight woman.
"My dear Ariana:
After reading these words, the first thing you should do is leave the city. Avoid the entire area around New Orleans like the plague, and stay out of Baton Rouge! You must not attract the attention of our peers, at least for the next ten years. Let not our efforts be in vain, for I cannot save you a second time.
The second thing I want to tell you is, be careful when you go home. I don’t blame you because we’ve all done it. May this experience hurt you more than it hurt me. By the same token, be careful not to be noticed, and for the sake of all you hold dear, don't try to live your old life.
You can't fool humans for long. If the vampires don't notice, Gabriel will. Don't be fooled by their failure at the Fortress. They are an efficient and ruthless bunch who have put an end to many fledglings. Underestimate them at your own risk.
Now that I think you're out safely, I want to give you some thoughts. Your first priority is to survive another year and a half. As a fledgling, you need a lot of nutrients. You need to drink a lot of blood every night and finding blood is not easy. You can eat lone travelers, outlaws, and escapees with relative ease. Small villages may offer hunting grounds, but only for one night.
You have to remember this. No matter where you go, you are an outsider. You will attract attention, and attention is not your friend. As a vampire, you are more dangerous than most individuals in the world. You are also isolated, at least for now.
Don't let yourself be discovered and cornered. Don't let people track you. Always be one step ahead of others and your life will never be in danger. But let the crowd know what is going on among them, and you will die. A hundred men may fall before you, but still your death will be in vain.
The only place where you can remain anonymous is in nameless cities. Even so, without the Master's support, you'll always be in danger. At least until you call in your allies, you should proceed.
For obvious reasons, you should avoid territory belonging to locals, as a lone white woman will always be too noticeable at night.
You can go where you want, but I suggest you stay away from the other two vampire colonies on the continent. One is in Charleston and the other is in New York. Try to avoid using them.
On a more practical note, I wish someone could have given me some advice when I first set out:
Create a fake identity and make it believable. Stick to it. The more familiar you are with it, the less likely people will think you're lying. be consistent. Changing names and roles in each village won't protect you from the Order of the Phoenix, nor will it keep vampires from stalking you. This only increases the likelihood of a decline.
Be sure to drink water before you need it, otherwise thirst will take away your life-saving option.
You must find a place to spend the day at least two hours before dawn. If the sun hits you while you are sleeping, you will never wake up.
Don't try to pet a dog, cat or any other animal. They can tell what we are.
Always keep a clean set of clothes and, if possible, clean socks.
Don’t forget to clean any blood stains behind your ears.
Don't use fire to distract the pig; it will never work as intended! The same goes for wild boars and bulls.
Um?
When people welcome you with a smile, it means they think you are a fugitive and a member of their family is already on their way to the police station.
last but not least
Hide the body.
I end this letter with a sigh of regret. Ximena's words were instructions and warnings, not instructions on how I should live my life other than survival. I was just delaying the inevitable. As much as I hate it, I have to reflect on it.
What do I want?
I wanted to create something for myself and then cultivate it. When I was young I wanted to build a stable and later a brewery. Based on what I learned from Jimena's letter, that's probably not possible. I might be able to do this in the future. After all, I'm never too old to start a new project.
If I can't build, at least I can travel. I could go to Florida or Texas, or even to the Anglo lands in the north. I could even go to Canada! Or, Paris! London!
No, this is a terrible idea. I needed to cross an ocean even my master would not risk without preparation. This will also expose me to other tribes. For this lonely vampire, there is no Paris, no Barcelona, no Berlin. I want to make the new world my own.
Yes. I can travel, I can discover new things, meet new people, and eat them! Wait until I finish this.
Suddenly, my mood plummeted. I made it all the way here and now I'm wasting my time making stupid plans that may never be completed. I am……
I'm scared.
Okay, I said it. I was horrified by what I was about to find. What should I do if they try to kill me? What should I do if they die?
no no. They can't be dead. I won't accept it.
I stood up in a hurry and strode towards the building. I was almost there.
cabin.
I walked slowly to the place of my childhood.
It was burned to ashes.
No!
Black smoke clung to the stone foundations and the few surviving beams. Charcoal is black and shiny, its surface smoothed by a season of rain. The small fireplace was half collapsed, and nothing of the furniture remained. I stepped forward and knelt down. I grabbed a handful of black dust.
What happened? Why did it disappear and why was it so small? My cabin is very tall. Big and sturdy, with a canopy bed! This pale imitation, this pathetic excuse for a dump should not be the place of my childhood! I can't accept it.
Is this a joke? Is this some kind of trick? Is there a hiding place further away? Maybe I'm remembering it wrong and this must be a shed and the real thing is further away?
I'm crying.
I silently wiped away my tears with a clean tissue. I am very sad to lose this place. Why? Why am I so sad? I looked up at the silent watcher, and suddenly my heart reached my refuge.
The sky was still dark and cloudless. Staring at it gives one a sense of boundlessness. I looked down at those fortified walls that would have dwarfed those of the Roman Opidan, and walked inside.
The door opened in front of me, uninvited. The interior is warm and clean. The bed occupies the center of the room, surrounded by furniture and strange trinkets, each symbolizing an important memory. The fire roared in the fireplace, the wood hissing contentedly.
I walked out and ended up sitting in the damp ashes.
This is what I feel like, the death of innocence. Six months passed and the world moved on. It didn't wait for me.
I stood up. No. this is nothing. It's just a building. I won't let something like this break me. I reject.
I continued walking forward, and after a while, my childhood home came into view.
It is a two-story colonial house with wood painted white. An outside terrace leads to a grand entrance. I knew every room in it, every nook and cranny, but there was still one big problem.
I couldn't get in, at least not without an invitation. I need my dad to invite me.
I walked to his bedroom window, on the second floor side. I jumped up. I easily grabbed the ledge with both hands, dug my claws in, and looked down.
It was so impressive that I had to remember to jump to hide from my pursuers.
I turned my attention forward, facing a shutter. sure. My index finger slid forward, the wood cracked, and I opened the lock. The shutters opened with a scream from rusty hinges. Inside, a dog started barking.
I stared out the window and closed the curtains. Dad must have heard that, right? He should have stood up, brandished a giant iron poker, and roared threats at anyone who dared disturb his property and rest.
The door opened with a bang and a woman walked in with her puppy. I bowed my head and let go.
"Roger, someone opened the shutter!"
"Damn woman, I told you to wait for me."
"Dad? What happened?"
I stood still. Curse, this is my aunt and her family. What are they doing here? Where is my father?
"You stay there, I'll go outside and take a look."
"dad?"
"I said, stay there."
Does he want to go out on his own initiative? How convenient.
Roger left the house with a lamp, a dog, and a loaded rifle. The little white thing kept barking until it caught my scent.
Then it started shaking.
I jumped down from the terrace and landed quietly behind him. I grabbed the man's neck with both paws. He froze and dropped everything to hold my hand. I let him struggle wildly for a few seconds, then I increased the pressure.
"I have some questions," I whispered.
"A
i?!"
I stopped. I can not believe it. Did he recognize my voice? Roger and I were never close and we hadn't spoken since last May. How? How could he?
"Ali, is that you?"
"No!"
"Ali, what's wrong with you? We can help-"
"Silence! I don't--no! I ask the question. Yes. And you answer. Now tell me, where is Daddy?"
"I'm sorry, we have to-"
"Where is he?"
"In dependence!"
I can't take it anymore. What the hell was he doing in a dependency? It was the servants' quarters! I turned Roger around and threw him against the wall.
"Why is he there? Why not here? This is his house!"
"I can tell you!"
"Please don't hurt my dad!"
We both turned to a small child, my nephew. For the first time, Roger's voice showed real panic.
"Please... Lucien, no. Go home."
"Aunt Ali?"
No, this is wrong, this is all wrong, this should not happen!
They don't belong here! This is the nest! Kill the intruders, drink them dry, and display their bodies as a warning to the vampires
No!
No.
This is my home. This travesty on life has already taken the life of human Ariana, and it will not take her family again. I reject. I am not a slave, not to the Lancastrians, not to God, not to my instincts. This cannot be tolerated.
I let go of the old man who fell to the ground. Lucien looked at me in surprise. God, he must have seen teeth. Now they know. I should kill them just to be safe, I could easily dispose of the bodies.
What's wrong with me?
I have to go.
"Where?"
"Tom's old house. Wait!"
I stopped but didn't dare turn around and face them.
"It's hard for him to accept your disappearance."
"Then why isn't he in his bedroom?"
"He drank too much and burned down the rest hut and almost burned down the house. He moved out. We were taking care of the slave and his investment while he, um, wasted away."
"……I see."
"Ali, what's wrong with you?"
"You didn't see me, uncle. You never saw me here. I'm dead. Do you understand?"
"We love you, Ali, we are your family. - That's it."
"No! I can't. I really can't. I would put Lucien and Sarah in danger. I would endanger all of us."
"I see. Is that goodbye?"
"This is."
"Well, I wish you the best and I'm sorry."
"Bye Roger."
"Goodbye, Ali."
"Goodbye, Aunt Ali, take care."
I rushed towards a group of small houses. It only took me a few seconds to find the right house and knock on the door like a rage. It took him a long time to answer, long enough in fact for the others to wake up. I do not care.
Finally, he opened the door and we stared at each other, dumbfounded.
It's him, it's really him.
"Let me in."
"Ali?"
"Let me in, damn it!"
Surprised, he made the slightest movement and that was all I needed. I pushed him away and he closed the door behind me. Only a small candle illuminates our surroundings.
The place where he lived was a shabby house filled with rickety furniture and empty bottles. It smelled of alcohol, digested alcohol, and sweat.
We remain silent. I didn't even turn around to face him. I jumped when someone knocked on the door.
"Mr. Reno, are you okay?"
"Yes. I'm fine. Please don't disturb me."
"As you command, sir."
We turned around at the same time. I wore a winter traveling outfit and a cloak, but my head was bare and my hair was free.
I look exactly like the woman who left his house in July, right down to the same hair length. However, he is only a shadow of his past.
His sickly skin stretched taut over his frame. His blue eyes were sunken and lacked their former sparkle. His shoulders were slumped, his back was hunched, and even his proud blond beard was unkempt. I think this is a travesty. I was the one who was abandoned, and he was the one who couldn't let go.
"Is this really you, or are you playing some cruel joke?"
His voice was cold, but his face betrayed a sea of pain, a constant sadness that not even a bottle could dilute.
"I……"
I hesitated, then I decided to be honest.
"I'm sorry, I don't know."
I started bawling like a child. God, I'm so pathetic. The proud vampire who was once undefeated in the Great Gauntlet battle was now a mess. My father took me in his arms and hugged me. I lean towards it.
Let's stay like this for a while.
God, I really hope this doesn't stop.
After a while, I pushed him away. He let me go.
"You cried and splattered blood on my shirt, daughter."
"It's dirty anyway."
"Tell me what happened."
I started gushing as soon as I opened my mouth. The story that unfolds is a mess. I talked about being cursed, dying, needing blood, running away, my friend Ximena, the first time I met her, fighting in the moat, running errands, the big eyes in the sky. He talks a lot of nonsense and never interrupts me.
After an enjoyable hour of work, I was exhausted. He wiped his wet cheeks with a tissue and I waited for something, a verdict I thought.
"Do you believe my daughter died in the basement?"
"I guess so," I said hesitantly, "I don't think I'm human."
"Is she in pain? Did she call me?"
I looked at him. His face is a mask. Should I tell the truth?
He would never believe a lie.
"Yes. That's what I did."
He sat down and cried again. We've cried a lot in the past hour. I even stained the front of my dress.
"I never thought you'd come," I said.
I sat down.
"There's nothing you can do. I know it's not fair, but I can tell you this: even if you find me, you will die."
"I let you down."
"No, you don't. You make me happy. For the past nineteen years, you've made me happy. That's what you do, Dad. Killing thousand-year-old monsters was never part of the deal."
"If I had known-"
"But you can't."
We sat in silence.
"Do you really want to leave?"
"Yeah. I came here to get some closure. We all do."
"I guess."
"Where is Achilles?"
"Sign the contract in Houston. I believe he has accepted your death."
"I expected nothing less from my practical brother. How is Constanza?"
She recovered but was left with scars on her face. A good doctor from the city followed and they were to be married in April. "
"Glad to hear that."
We stayed in comfortable silence for a while. I don’t believe I’ve ever been sober for so long after death. I was vaguely aware that I needed to hide somewhere for a day, but right now, I couldn't bring myself to care.
"I have to leave Dad."
"Yes, I think you do."
His eyes suddenly widened in shock and a silly smile appeared on his face. I felt like I was imitating that expression. It's great to see him get a little life back.
"Hang on! I have a birthday present for you before you go!"
"What? What do you do?"
I finally realized that I will be 20 years old this August. I was so focused on running errands and surviving that I never thought about celebrating.
Dad ran into the bedroom excitedly and rummaged through various things. I heard him mutter a curse and say triumphantly, "Aha!" and he came back with a long leather holster.
"Dad! Really?"
"Indeed! I asked Talleyrand to make it for you. Try it!"
I opened the cover and pulled out a brand new rifle.
“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! This is so good!”
I jumped up excitedly and touched the smooth mahogany stock, the silver-engraved shooting mechanism, and the long barrel. Weapons are the product of art and love. I aimed like I'd had it my whole life. It's well balanced and light, but I guess I should be thankful for my new strength.
"Incredible! It's like it was made for me!"
"This is it. Talleyrand used your precise measurements."
“Oh, Dad, that’s such a great gift! Thank you, thank you!”
I jumped up and hugged him again, laughing the whole time.
"Wait, I haven't told you the best part yet!" he replied with a smile.
For a while, my dad went to great lengths to explain to me how special this gun was. This is a newer design that uses paper rounds, loaded from the breech of the gun rather than the muzzle. The barrel is even rifled for improved accuracy. Indeed, the wonders of science are endless.
After that, it's time to say goodbye.
I silently shouldered my backpack, put the holster on it, and pocketed the ammunition bag. My father held my shoulders and gave me one last hug.
It was the first time in six months that I hugged someone I wouldn’t eat.
He pulled back a little and caressed my cheek with his rough thumb.
"I remember you telling me you were not my Ariana, but you were wrong. You still have the same spirit, the same ambition, God forgive me, the same love for the unladylike things."
"Father!"
"Shhh, hahaha, let your dad finish. Do you think that the reason you are human is my daughter? That is not the case. You are my daughter. You are always changing and growing, and this particular change is the latest and The scariest thing. Don’t despair, don’t give up on your past and our time together, okay?”
"Don't make me cry anymore!"
"Haha, not bad."
"Same for you!" I burped twice and replied: "Sir, you'd better clean yourself up. Don't make me feel ashamed."
"Oh, trust me, I will."
I turned and walked to the door to avoid losing the last bit of self-control I had. I'm excited tonight, more than usual. The strange blood may be to blame, but I have no regrets. I think I need it.
"Take the key to the St. Landry warehouse. You can rest there today, Ariana?"
"Yeah?"
"You have enemies. Show them some respect. I don't want to lose you again, you hear me? You can't die in front of me."
"I promise."
"Okay, let's go now, don't forget to write a letter!"
I sped away from Montfort feeling as light as a feather. I didn't expect everything to go so smoothly. I raised my head and exchanged a look with the silent watcher. Tonight its gaze softened.
"I hope you enjoy it as much as I do."
The way forward is clear.
