Spellcaster series #1: The Neophyte

The Council

TRISTAN

"Why would Lord Voltaire invite us exclusively while there are still basically every other Vampire present?" Jesse asked, his eyes scanning the Lair.

"Something tells me they're scared," I replied. "Look at their faces, their body language—like refugees from a war-torn place."

Wynona chimed in, "I agree. There's something off. Did Lord Voltaire tell you anything?"

Jesse shook his head, "Not much. But he did mention that there was a surge in reports about djinn attacks in the Worldly realm."

Father. I turned to Jesse, reading his expression. "Do you think it is related to the attack at my parents' home?"

"That's what we are here to find out."

"Good grief, is every Vampire here?" A voice wondered aloud.

I turned to see a long, black-haired female Vampire with Lord Voltaire. Beside her was the Neophyte, Heidi. She was only as tall as the female Vampire's shoulders but still stood out like a sore thumb in her band t-shirt and black leather jacket. There was a scar above her right eyebrow that was not there before. Did she get into more trouble?

"Hey, we're going in," Wynona said as the doors to the dining room opened.

Vampire ushers stood at the sides of the entrances as we walked in. We all took our seats and the council began after the doors were shut. Lord Voltaire began by thanking everyone for attending. The High Court, as he called it, was attended by all nine Grand Masters and us three. And Heidi, I supposed.

I turned to her, something made me, and caught her looking away. Did she hold a grudge against me? She was not the first student to do so.

"Thank you all for joining me at such short notice. We must prepare ourselves for the worst, I believe," Lord Voltaire began in his rich baritone. "We must not look for trouble until it comes to us. We do not know what or who is sending them. We must prepare our defences and work as one. Together, we will be stronger."

The others nodded in agreement. He continued, "Do we have any objections? Speak out, if you will, for this is the time for counsel."

"What defences do we have?" A voice asked from the other end of the long dining table. I knew that voice very well. My grandfather and many other former Sages knew it very well too. I suppressed an eye-roll.

The air in the room grew tense. I glanced at Heidi, wondering what she took of all this, but she remained composed and curious. For a Neophyte, I admit, she impressed me. I turned to Lord Voltaire who waited patiently for that voice to continue and it did.

"I believe that our defences are not up to par with what we have coming for us. But if we strike first, we can win this war."

"Our defences," Lord Voltaire replied, "are our forces, allies and kingdom. We have a civilised society designed to move freely between different realms. We interact with each other closely. We are one unit, Grand Master Augustin, and we shall work with that."

Grand Master Oldie let out a laugh through his nose. Then he scoffed, "You speak like a Vampire who has forgotten his power and responsibility. I say we go out there and fight this war."

I could not resist it any longer. I rebutted, "It is not a war yet. However, it will be if we go in guns-ablazing like you suggest. I agree with Lord Voltaire. We do not know what we have in store for us so we cannot judge our defences with weak reasons to attack."