Shiro Nakahara's Story

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A princess sitting high atop her tower, trapped and in mourning for her Prince who was blinded by an evil queen. "How tepid," Athena closed the book and sighed. Rereading all of her favorite childhood stories had turned out to be a terrible idea. It seemed as though all of the fantastical battles and delicate princess were nothing more than watery stories with plots to teach children on behaving properly. Artemis had loved these stories though. The two would sit in the same bed every night, Athena listening to the warble of Artemis's story telling tone. Their brother would come in, tease them, then sit and listen, making comments about how nonsensical the fairy tale characters acted. These days, no one had time for a Princess who couldn't save themselves. In a world depending on survival of the fittest, the Princess would have been gobbled by a vampire the moment her tower was discovered. Athena wasn't going to be subjected by the narrow minded stereotypes of the past; she was going to save herself. She was going to save humanity.

There was a knock at the door. The soldier swung her legs over the bed, walking across the wooden floor and opened the door up to find none other than Finnick. "Get dressed, we need to get to the parade square." His expression was wild, he hadn't even brushed his hair. Athena didn't question him, she grabbed her necklace and slipped on her boots, stepping out of the bedroom. "I'm ready, let's go." It seemed as though the entire base had been thrown into a state of panic. There were pages running around frantically, knocking on doors, stopping people to inform them, etc.

"What happened?" Athena asked, but when she turned, Finnick was gone. "Finnick?" Athena slowed, attempting to find her brother but he was gone. "Whatever," she brushed it off, continuing to the parade square. No doubt she would find him there. For now, Athena would have to attempt to stay afloat in the crushing sea of bodies. The way these people were acting, you'd think the head of the Royal forces had called them all there himself. Maybe she would finally be allowed to see some action, the anticipation of such things made her heart race and Athena suddenly couldn't wait to see what all of the commotion was about.

As Athena stepped into the square, she realized that's exactly what had happened. On all sides, soldiers were in position, holding their salute. Athena joined her ranks, mimicking their form and standing at attention. She straightened her back, one hand at her side, the other rigid in salute. It had been a while since Athena was allowed outside on a mission and to be honest, she was growing quite bored of staying inside. If they didn't let her out soon, Athena was going to go mad and then they'd really have to lock her up. A slight smile came to her lips at the thought, she really was a monster, no better than the vampires it seemed. A victim of circumstance, or perhaps the twisted reality called fate. Either way she was going to enjoy her return to the battle field, she still had a lot of ground to cover if she wanted to find the sick bastards who had killed Artemis.

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Gavril panted to himself as he golden gaze watched the training dummy slowly slide to the ground in a mass of clean cut pieces. He hadn't meant to destroy the dummy but he was rather worked up this morning and he needed to rip something apart. He could always stir up trouble with humans but he had made a promise not to take unnecessary risks. The humans had new weapons that could fell even an upper class vampire such as himself and he could not afford to be as careless as he had been in his ventures. He had already paid the price for that and he did not want to make a repeated mistake. Besides his sister would surely gut him if he even dared think about going after the humans without her. She had the same ire and drive to kill the humans for what they did to their father. Just thinking about it made his blood boil. That of course led to thoughts about his half brother and his father's obvious lack of fidelity. Gavril snarled, baring his fangs before he stabbed the dummy to vent out his frustrations.

The vampire turned away from the mess he caused and grabbed the towel he had brought with him to wipe off some of the sweat he had collected through his training before he turned to his sword and inspected it for any damages considering his rough handling of it throughout the morning. He grabbed his sharpening tool and smoothed out the edges to his liking before he sheathed his favorite weapon. It was a black blade that sliced just about anything like a knife through butter. Its handle was as silver as moonlight and the designs emasculate and artistic. He wasn't usually one for flashy blades so there were no gems or gaudy attachments. It was simple and beautiful like deadly art should be. Its sheath was equally obsidian with silver lining and his family's dragon blazon glistened when it caught the light. That was the flashiest thing on the sword.

Before the vampire could fathom what he'd like to do next in his day, a page hurried into the training area like a bat out of hell. He arched an eyebrow at the young vampire wondering would could possibly make the page so flustered. "His Royal Higness! The king has summoned you to an important meeting! He has called upon all the nobility to attend and is about to begin! I am sorry for getting you so late, but I could not find you!"

Gavril's eyes widened. An important meeting was about to be held and he was going to be late? He hadn't even had the chance to wash up after his practice session. His eyes narrowed on the page in the infamous Laurențiu disproving glare that could curdle one's very blood. "This should have been the first place you checked!" he growled as he hastily as he wet his towel and tried to clean off as best as he could as he rushed towards the door. He was always in the training facility so he found the page's excuse a terrible lie. He pulled on his clothing as he made his way to the meeting room. If the king had already started speaking, so help him he was going to find that page later and skewer him alive over a spit! This was unacceptable! Above all things Gavril hated being late to anything. It was either early or on time, but never late!

The vampire managed to slide into the meeting room doing his best to disguise his pant and ran his hand through his dark locks one last time in an attempt to make it look presentable and less disorganized than he felt in that moment. At least his clothing wasn't rumpled. Damn it he valued his appearance and his ability to seem ever calm. Damn page. At least the king hadn't started his speech though it seemed he had made it just in time. He rushed to his seat beside his sister and the prince, a high honor to be seated so close to both the king and the prince. He offered his sister and the prince a smile in greeting though he barely managed a nod to his brother. He even gave a nod to Millicent in acknowledgement of her presence. Unlike many of the other vampires, he did not fear her nor did he believe the silly rumors about her eyes stealing peoples souls. It was just hogwash really. Millicent was an interesting vampire to say the least however and she did have her mysteries... mysteries he wished to one day dispel.

No matter, all that was for later pondering. He turned his attention to his king and folded his hands, ever the model of an attentive and loyal duke. He owed the world to the king and saw him much as a father figure, especially after his own father's passing. He would do just about anything for the man should he be asked. He respected no man higher and was honored to be thought of so highly as to outrank all of the dukes gathered around the table and even the prince beside him. Of the vampires assembled, he also fancied himself the one closest to the king considering the man favored him. Which made his tardiness all the more unbearable. He was going to have to make sure he found that page later and deal with him personally for his mistake.

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"An idiot that knows he's an idiot, is even harder to deal with than an idiot that thinks he isn't."


Thoughts - #7F96A5
Speech - #00004C


Shibuya, 12:30 PM, Oct 26th 2024

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The cawing of birds, the frantic running of various troops, the shouting and yelling at people to wake up. It was all a rude awakening. No one bothered to personally wake Narcis up. As far as he was concerned, going into his room is trespassing the king. Even though Narcis isn't without reason to yell at someone just for entering. The rumors and the myths don't exactly plead not guilty.

Narcis's morning routine wasn't very long. Beauty sleep is the only preparation he needs for the day. Though he brushes his teeth because his policy of non-permanent solution is overpowered by thinking that people with smelly breath is disgusting. He sloppily puts on his uniform. Narcis isn't rushing, even if he is careless with his attire, he's careless about this whole operation.

Glasses and a stick of gum tied the ribbon on his morning routine. Eclipse Winterfrost, to Narcis, names like these are useless. "Just call it, Mint flavored chewing gum." The thought unmannerly barged into his mind as he opened the door and slowly walked outside.

Distraught soldiers were tripping over themselves, being late was punishable. A stern talking to, or for the low-ranking ones, even worse. Narcis grasped the bagel he took from his pantry. Narcis hated simpleton foods such as this one, bland, un-tasteful, any kind of spread couldn't save this wheeled shaped litter. As Narcis was taking his sweet-ass time, taking bites from his bagel. The last of the soldiers got into ranks. Obviously, Narcis was even later then the last of them. Arriving at the end of the line, a few minutes after, even spitting out his gum near the line. Of course someone would notice, and that someone was not particularly pleased.

"You seem to be taking your time, Should I have timed you, Mr. Chevalier?
"It's not called taking my time, I believe in appearance over speed. After you remove that piece of rice below your lip, Shall I give you a lesson?

The man furiously wiped his mouth. He was about to say something, but was stopped by the other generals behind him. The burly individual glared at Narcis before looking forward. Narcis smiled, They can't hurt him. Narcis lazily got into his salute.

"Why are we here so early anyways?" This question quickly crossed his mind, Narcis was sure the people next to him were wondering the same thing. It was obvious that they were going out to the battlefield, but Narcis wasn't very pleased. As much as he enjoys besting opponents, Human or Vampire. Narcis had an intense ear bursting guitar practice session planned for the morning.

Cordelia awoke to the knocking of the door. “Come in.” She murmured sleepily as she sat up, golden locks forming a messy halo around her head. Though Cordelia wasn’t averse to waking up early, her sleeping habits were much like a child’s, going to sleep early and waking up after exactly eight hours. It was only healthy, as her mother would say.

The door was opened to reveal a page, standing at attention as he spoke. “Lady, the king has called an important meeting. He has summoned all nobility to attend.” A meeting? It sounds like something interesting was going to happen, considering that the King would not simply call upon all nobles for any trivial meeting. Perhaps it had something to do with the humans… A murderous look flashed in her eyes for a second. She would never forgive those vile humans for what they did to her father. For every bit of pain they inflicted on him, she was going to repay it ten times over. Still, she smiled at the page politely, nodding to dismiss him before pushing herself off the bed and going toward the dressing room. It wasn’t particularly early, but she didn’t feel as if she was in too much of a hurry. A lady shouldn’t be too early or too late, she should arrive right on time.

Brushing her hair, she pulled her corkscrew curls into two neat twintails, using her ribbon as a hair band. This time, she chose a flowing blue gown to go to the meeting. It was one of the rare few her mother had designed for her, considering the fact that Cordelia had a hobby in making her own clothes. It might be just her intuition, but this meeting was definitely quite serious, and she needed to make a good impression.

Even though it took some time before she decided that she looked satisfactory, Cordelia was still among the first to arrive at the meeting. The seats were rather high, it was obvious that they were meant for those looking like adults. It was another problem with vampires perhaps, but Cordelia could never look her age. She wasn’t a child by vampire standards any longer, though her body was still developing slowly. Swinging her legs under the table, she waited a little impatiently for the others to arrive. “Saxon!” She beamed at her adopted brother in delight, before her attention diverted to a figure clad in red. “It’s nice to see you here as well, Milly!” She called out, giving the Baroness a small wave. Millicent was someone her brothers knew, and though Cordelia had never spoken to her before her brothers seemed to have a good impression of her.

Prince Kyogo arrived next, and he was greeted with a bright smile as well when he took his seat. Gavril was unusually not present yet, however. Cordelia arched her neck, looking for her brother as the other nobles filed in. It was quite odd, considering how much his brother valued his pride. He was always punctual or early in all the years she knew him. He appeared soon however, and Cordelia returned his greeting, though the nod toward Saxon made her frown slightly. The atmosphere between them had been unusually cold lately, and Cordelia never understood why. If she was absolutely honest, she had her doubts toward the prince for causing the sudden distance, but she would never admit that fact. She knew that it wasn’t polite to make baseless accusations.

The King started addressing them then, causing her to snap to attention. Sitting upright in the position that had been drilled into her head, Cordelia crossed her legs underneath the table and rested her hands on her lap expectantly.

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Atsuko woke up at seven in the morning as usual. It was when training usually started, and her body that was conditioned to expect it had not forgotten, causing her eyelids to flutter open exactly the same time as the clock next to her started beeping. Her hand reached out to tap the clock silent, and ruby red eyes stared up at the ceiling as her sleepy mind tried to pull itself together. Ah yes, training. It didn’t take her long to get dressed, Atsuko’s mind was in autopilot as she changed, drowsily brushed her teeth and got ready to do her exercises. It was a routine set, and she had never missed a day of it. Despite how it might appear, her body was tuned to the military style training.

Her morning exercises were long over when the call came for them to assemble, and Atsuko was reading a book about first aid when the announcement for assembly came. Giving the messenger a quick nod, she changed into her uniform impeccably, striding out to join the soldiers in a neat file. Her brother would be disappointed if she arrived late or just on time, a soldier always needed to prepared and punctual.

She held her red scarf closer as she stood on the tips of her toes, trying to seek out the others from a sea of unfamiliar heads. Today’s gathering must be something quite important since there was so many here, but Atsuko didn’t want to lose sight of their group. It might be a sense of security when she was around with them, even though she was positive that most of them didn’t have a good impression of her. Perhaps she just wasn’t good enough to prove her worth.

Asrai slipped out of her bed early as she did every morning. She knew there was really no reason for her to get up so early, especially since at the moment, she had no obligations. She could not help herself though. It was such a well ingrained habit from her childhood home with her parents that she did not even bother with an alarm. Her mind was it's own clock. Always making sure she rose before the sun was able to greet the east horizon and went to bed before the midnight darkness consumed the skies. Her mother and father were firm believers in in the old adage, Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.

She spent the rest of her morning leisurely completing her morning rituals. From making her bed, to eating her light breakfast, and putting on some of her more comfortable clothes. Rising from her daily routine stretches Asrai made her way into her living room to her moderate sized indoor garden. With butterfly-like touches she ran her fingers over their leaves, stems and flowers. Cataloging the progress they were making. Smiling, she spoke to them softly. Whispering sweet nothings to them as if they were her significant other. In a way, they were. Or maybe she was just strange.

In one hand, she grasped her small trimmers and set to work. Some of their vines were wrapping around her small alter set aside in memory of her parents. That could not do. With one Snip and another, she put the blades down and admired her handiwork. Reaching for her watering can, she carefully and lovingly gave each a drink. Making sure not to drown or give any one of them too little.

A harsh and rapid knock at her door made her tense and she swiftly went to answer it. Opening the door to greet a young page out of breath. She tilted her head and waited patiently for him to force out a comprehensible message, thanking him for it when he was finally successful. Closing the door as he left Asrai let out a small sigh and began to pull off her relaxation clothes on the way back into her bedroom.

Emerging from her home and into the throngs of bustling bodies dressed in her immaculate uniform. She hastily made it into the parade square where they were to meet. Seamlessly slipping into the line of soldiers, Asrai stood with perfect posture and awaited the undoubtedly important announcements from the General. Catching sight of her younger teammate, Atsuko, she offered the girl a soft smile.