Breakfast

Saleth was walking down the familiar street of Sanguinem when he heard the sounds. The vampire noble paused in his steps before continuing on in the direction of the yells. He turned the corner to see a small group of the humans they held captive there in Sanguinem running towards him. "An escape attempt...?" The silver haired noble mumbled before stepping in the human's path.

The children slid to a stop and glared at him with eyes burning with their desire to escape. One of the taller boys held a sword in his shaking hands as he boldly stepped towards the powerful noble. Saleth merely sighed at the bold movement and lazily looked at the small group. A few of the common vampires were already surrounding the group from behind with eyes filled with hunger. The short noble frowned at that sight, knowing that these vampires just cared about blood.

Mikajia sighed as he wandered through a dark alley in Sanguinem. He didn't have any particular destination in mind; just wanted to keep himself from standing too still for too long. He ached to go outside, but he knew he would get worse than a scolding this time around if he left without a viable reason. He wanted to smell the fresh night air, taste the humidity that clung to the wisps of wind, feel the brush of the branches as he darted through the forest, hunting for his newest prey. He hated being handed his food; it was so boring and uneventful, that more than once he'd made a blatantly obvious display of disobedience to the progenitors, just so he could liven things up a bit.

Just as he sighed once more, thinking to himself that this day would end just as disappointingly as the others had this week, that's when he heard it. A small explosion rattled the streets and alleyways around him, before some shouting filled the air. Mikajia's eyes darted in the direction of the sound before his lips slowly formed a smirk, and his eyes lit with excitement.

"Finally." He said quietly to himself before launching himself twenty feet into the air and lightly landing on the rooftop of the closest building. He darted across the roof's quickly closing the distance to the source of the commotion. With another lithe jump, Mikajia almost silently landed in a crouch a few feet from Saleth, a noble vampire he'd come to know quite well in his years since his transformation. As he stood up, his eyes darted around the area, and in roughly a half second's time, allowed him to glean all the information he needed.

A half second later Mikajia's eyes shot towards a common vampire; it's eyes focused entirely on the children in front of him, their red crazed with bloodlust. It could only focus on the potential meal in front of it, entirely blocking out the world around him. Another half second later Mikajia darted over in front of the vampire, his sword Shi no Tenshi already drawn and held in his right hand, the blade pressed firmly to the neck of the weak minded common vamp. And with a cold calculating voice said, "Tell me. Are you really so weak minded, that you would allow your bloodlust to take over so easily from such a pitiful display of defiance? You're supposed to be better than the human's, not equally as simple minded and foolish."

Mikajia pressed the blade to the vampire's neck a little harder before issuing a final threat, his voice soft now, but somehow even colder, and far more menacing, "Make another move like that in front of me again, another pitiful display of your lackluster willpower. And I'll make sure you never have to worry about your bloodlust ever again. Understand?"

The common vampire, who'd been staring at Mikajia with wide terror filled eyes, gave the smallest of nods to Mikajia's words. Mikajia's entire demeanor changed instantly after the nod; a soft smile curved his lips as his eyes softened drastically. "Good." He said before almost chuckling and sheathing Shi no Tenshi on his back.

Saleth turned his head slightly when he heard something land on the ground near him. It was another vampire noble he encountered a few times in the past couple years. If he remembered correctly his name was Mikajia. The silver haired noble watched as the other noble draw his sword on one of the common vampires and threaten him. Red eyes carefully watched as the noble finished threatening the commoner and sheathed his sword back onto his back. He swiftly looked towards the other vampires and saw that they were keeping some distance between them and Mikjia, but still surrounding the children so they couldn't escape.

The vampire noble redirected his attention back onto the children and saw them wince when he looked towards them. The boy who had the sword looked at his companions before glaring at him, "Get out of our way, bloo-" The boy gasped when Saleth suddenly appeared right in front of him.

Before the child could even react he lifted his leg and kicked the boy right in the stomach, the sharp heel of his boot digging into flesh. The boy flew back from the force and knocked over a few of the other kids onto the floor. He calmly placed his foot back on the ground and waited for their next move.

Mikajia didn't even bother turning around when he heard the child try and yell his insult, already know what was likely to happen. When the dull thud of the noble's foot connecting with the boy's stomach sounded behind him, Mikajia almost lazily turned to glance at the child bowling through his friends behind him with the force of the kick. "Now now, dear Sally. If you're not careful, you'll kill the thing. And what a pity that would be." Mikajia said, his tone nonchalant and laced with sarcasm, as he turned his half lidded gaze towards the children; eyes falling on the one boy in particular that had been kicked, and who was apparently the ring leader of the group.

"But mostly. It's bad manners to play with your food." He said as he strolled over to the group of kids sprawled on the street, their faces a mixture of terror, anger, and pain. "Isn't that right boy?" Mikajia said as he squatted down in front of the group, his eyes locked with the hate-filled ones of the child. His eyes were cold and unyielding as he simply stared at the child, waiting for an answer that would apparently never come.

A corner of his mouth tilted up in a small smirk, before he chuckled and tilted his head slightly and said, "You remind me of someone I once knew kid. And he would have been about your age as well. He thought silence was golden too." Mikajia took a deep breath before sighing as he said, "Such a pity." 

Saleth frowned when Mikajia addressed him. Ever since they first met the much younger vampire insisted on calling him Sally. He could not understand why he was being called that in the first place. Had the younger noble misheard him when he introduced himself? He would have to ask the other noble in the future.

He merely watched when the younger noble approached the child he had kicked down. An old memory from the past popped back up in his mind as he watched Mikajia's interaction with the child.

It was raining large droplets of water. But he didn't pay that any mind. His attention was on the child in front of him, unconscious on the ground. Blue eyes slowly blinked before looking up at the darkened figure next to him. "Drink." The deep vice ordered. "Drink?" His soft voice seemed to echo around them as he looked back at the unconscious child. "You need human blood to complete the transformation, Saleth."


He tilted his head with a curious look and ran his tongue against his new fangs, being careful not to draw any blood. Human blood, huh? He stepped forward and sat down on the wet grass next to the unconscious child and pulled the child into his lap.


"Bite the human's neck." The deep voice was commanding. He obediently shifted his position and brushed the child's wet hair aside to gain better access to the pale flesh. He paused with his mouth just centimeters away from the child's neck. "I'll be able to get my revenge as long as I'm not human, right?"


"Correct." He closed the distance and sank his fangs into the unconscious child's soft flesh, welcoming the metallic yet sweet taste. Blue eyes slowly turned red as he drained the child completely.


The short noble shook his head slightly, shooing the memory away, before focusing on the much taller noble.

Mikajia tilted his head once more as he looked at the boy. The child did in fact remind him of another; a human boy he'd met in the not too distant past. For a breath of a moment, Mikajia's eyes would swim out of focus as that memory resurfaced.

"They willingly sign up for this?" Mikajia asked the man as they walked the streets of Sanguinem. It was mere hours after the man who called himself Darkour, had brought him down to this marvelous city, to his second manor, and changed him. Gave him his blood to let him undergo the transformation that would alter the rest of his life. He was speaking in reference to the vast number of humans lining up to willingly give their blood in the donation area for the vampires. It was remarkable to him.


"Yes. And why wouldn't they? We provide them with shelter, food; allow them to stay with their families. And all they need to do in return, is give us their blood. It's a pretty good thing they got going on here, wouldn't you say?" The man said in response. But before Mikajia could say anything in return, he felt something heavy run into his legs before hearing an "Oof."


Mikajia stumbled back a step before looking down at the ground in front of him to see a small human boy sitting on the ground in front of him, and another human boy standing just a foot behind him. The one standing had a look of near horror on his face, while the others' eyes only held anger. "Sorry." The boy on the ground mumbled, his tone obviously saying he wasn't sorry.


"Now, see, why don't I believe you?" Mikajia said as he stared down at the boy, but before the child could spit out a response, Darkour had stepped forward grabbed the boy by his throat and lifted him cleanly off his feet, letting him dangle in the air. A second later, as the other boy tried to run, the older vampire quickly appeared behind the boy and lifted him off the ground too. He clenched his hands around both of their throats, cutting off their circulation so they couldn't breathe, and then motioned for Mikajia to follow. Moments later, they found themselves hidden away in a small corner in an alley. Darkour tossed the boy that had tried to run on the ground, but still held onto the angry one, merely keeping his hand around his mouth so he couldn't yell.


"Here's your first lesson as a vampire." The older vampire said to him, "As you have obviously already realized, we need blood to survive. What you don't know is that blood directly from the vain is the most potent, and will provide the best results. And another thing. Here in Sanguinem, feeding directly from humans is illegal, and will result in punishment. So I suggest you do it quickly. Figure I'd give you a treat for your first time. Now hop to it, before someone sees." He said to Mikajia.


Mikajia stared down at the frightened child as he gasped for breath, his vocal chords apparently crushed, seeing as he could barely croak out any words. Mikajia turned his gaze back to the noble before letting his eyes finally rest back on the child. He began to step forward, disappearing before reappearing behind the kid when he tried to run; grabbed him by the throat and slammed him into the wall before quickly sinking his fangs into the boy's throat.


It took him only a short moment to completely drain every last drop from the child. As the body fell limply to the floor, the older vampire began to laugh, "Now that's what I'm talking about. Almost no hesitation whatsoever. It's been many years since I've met someone like you. I usually have to goad them into it, but not you. You just dove right in. You know what? Here, I was going to save him for myself, but I think you deserve a prize. You'll find the feisty ones tend to have some of the best blood." Darkour said, before practically tossing the boy to him through the air.


The boy flailed just before Mikajia caught him, then also slammed him into the wall. But this time, instead of jumping right in, he looked at the child first. His breath was coming fairly fast as he studied the human boy's face, the blood from his last drink dripping down the edges of his mouth and off his chin. "What's your name?" He said to the boy, to which the child simply continued to stare him down, unflinching. He had to give the boy some praise for still trying to stay strong, even though his death was inevitable.


Mikajia smirked as the boy continued to stay quiet. "Alright then. Don't answer me. It doesn't really matter, it won't change what's going to happen. You're still going to die." He said before laying a hand on top of the human boy's head and tilting it to the side, "I just figured you might like at least one person to remember your name after you died. But if not, that's fine by me too." He said, and then slowly lowered his head down till his teeth were less than an inch from the neck.


Just as he was about to sink his fangs in, the boy whispered one single word, "Joshua." Mikajia drew his head back a few inches to look back at the boy's eyes as he said, "Very well Joshua. I'll remember you." Then not even a second later, sunk his fangs deep into the throat of the defiant child, completely draining him in seconds. As he let the drained body fall to the ground, Mikajia stood up fully, letting the blood course through his system completely invigorating him. His eyes shot to Darkour as he spoke a question, "I'm curious. Why did you want to know the boy's name?"


Mikajia took a deep breath before he spoke, "I wanted to know his name, because he held a certain spirit. It was the kind of spirit I once possessed. It's a spirit that deserves to be admired, and remembered. So regardless of the fact that he was my food, I still wanted to know his name." He said, and then smirked. He knew his answer wouldn't really be able to be understood by many, and that it would likely confuse the man. 


And he wasn't wrong, because mere seconds later, the noble began to laugh loudly as he turned from the alley. "You really are something boy. I have a feeling you're going to make something of a name for yourself here." He said over his shoulder as Mikajia began to follow.


When his eyes refocused, not even a full second had ticked by. Mikajia reached forward, quick as a flash and plucked the blade from the boy's hands, and began twirling it in front of himself. "So what's your name boy?" Mikajia said, but this time, kept his eyes locked on the ordinary blade in his hands as he spun it around.

Saleth curiously examined the younger noble when he saw his eyes seem to go out of focus. Was Mikajia also remembering a memory from the past? He didn't voice his question since he didn't want to distract the taller noble from whatever he was remembering. However, the memory seemed to last only a short while since he was asking for the child's name right after plucking the blade from the child's hands.

The boy gaped in shock at the speed of the noble before scowling angrily. The boy stood up and straightened his back, looking the noble in the eyes. He kept silent, refusing to answer the question that was directed at him. The children behind the brave boy started to whisper among themselves before a small shriek startled them. Saleth turned away from Mikajia and looked for the source of the shriek.

Saleth frowned when he saw one of the common vampires holding a small girl to his chest. It seemed like the low ranking vampire couldn't hold back anymore and had snatched the small child from the group. He could see that the girl's neck was completely exposed to the low ranking vampire and knew that any second now he would sink his fangs into her neck. "What a bother..." He mumbled before walking towards the vampire.

Saleth could see the vampire look up when he drew closer, most likely alerted to his presence by the sharp clicks his heels were making against the ground. "Surely I don't have to remind you that drinking directly from the livestock is against the law, right?" The vampire flinched at the icy look the short noble was giving him. "N-No, Lord Saleth." The vampire's voice had a hint of fear in it. He stared at the vampire for a while longer before turning around back towards the others.

Mikajia sighed once he heard the scream, looking over to see the foolish common vampire from before. Apparently he'd been unable to control himself.

Pathetic. Mikajia thought to himself, then watched as Saleth confronted the fool. It didn't take long for the blond to reign the commoner in, reminding him of the illegality of what he was about to do, his tone laced with a warning. A moment later, the child was dropped back on the ground before she quickly scrambled back over to her small group. Mikajia momentarily considered lopping the fools head off right then and there for doing exactly what he'd told him not to. He watched the blade of the sword as he twirled it fast as a blur, toying with the idea, but ultimately deciding not to. If for no other reason, than he'd rather not deal with any progenitors at the moment.

"Alright." Mikajia said then, feeling all eyes on him as he stopped the spinning of the ordinary blade, just before stabbing it several inches deep into the concrete in front of him. "Play time's over. Back to your houses." His eyes and tone were no longer soft or joking, it left no room for argument. But just in case, "Any more outbursts or defiance, will be dealt with harshly." He said, and then stood up, his eyes flashing to each of the children in rapid succession before finally landing back on the common vampire. He held his eyes on the fool for only a moment, but long enough to stress his point.

"Escort the livestock back to their pen's please. And without any slip-ups. If you do, we will know. And you, will no longer have a head." He looked to each of the rest of the commoners letting them know that none of them were an exception. "Now go. I have better things to be doing with my time than babysitting children." He said, and watched as the common vampires quickly nodded and began ushering the children back to their homes.

Saleth narrowed his eyes at the small group of children when Mikajia started speaking. He carefully listened to the orders he was giving the commoners and was pleased to see that he didn't have to add anything else. The common vampires muttered, "Yes, Lord Mikajia," before rounding up the kids. The short noble could see that the leader of the group still had fire in his eyes as they were led away from the nobles.

He briefly considered his options before beckoning one of the commoners over. The vampire hesitated before cautiously walking over to the silver haired noble. "Yes, Lord Saleth?" The vampire bowed his head as he stopped next to the noble.

"Keep an eye on those livestock," Saleth glanced in the direction of the children before focusing on the commoner next to him. "Don't hesitate to eliminate any nuisances." The low ranking vampire's lips twitched upward before regaining a blank expression as he bowed once more. "Yes, Lord Saleth." The vampire slipped away to follow the rest to escort the kids back to their home.

End of thread.