Blood Slave

Prologue

Centuries ago, a horde of werewolves attacked the nymph kingdom. A peaceful people known for their healing powers, the nymphs were ill-equipped to fend off the wave of brutality spreading bloodshed through their lands. 

Within two seasons, the nymph queen was captured, and her people enslaved. She was put to death to prevent the more powerful healers from inciting a rebellion, but it spurred a mass genocide. It was during that time, that the werewolves quietly cultivated an immunization to silver. The surviving nymphs were scattered to militarized forts along their borders.

The other Nocturnes didn't take long to connect the werewolf's conquest of the nymphs with their sudden immunity to silver. At a change of the moon, the vampire clans made their bid for life in the sun.

Secreting into werewolf strongholds, the vampires captured as many nymphs as they could and took them to ancient underground cities where they were used for harsh experimentation. When a cure was finally created that allowed every vampire to walk in the sun, the nymphs were all but destroyed.

Eager to meet their enemy on an unencumbered playing field, the vampires divided the remaining nymphs among their clans and went to war with the werewolves.

Unfortunately, the war attracted the full attention of humankind. On their own, humans were not strong enough to battle the reigning vampires, nor to subdue the fury of the wolves long enough to keep their territory. Humans created machines of metal and fire through their combined genius, automatons that could go unmanned into battle and kill on their behalf. And much later, to repair sustained damages during combat.

During a week-long battle, the Nocturnes realized that the automatons were no longer obeying their human commanders. In the days that followed, the human territory lost all power, and half of their population was massacred practically overnight. Notices were sent to the remaining humans and Nocturnes that unless peace was reached, the automatons would create more of themselves and wipe out all non-mechanized lifeforms. The border wars were declared over.

Today, the killing machines are called Reavers; they ensure that each species is strictly policed to remain within their given territory, but resources are not what they once were. The new generations of werewolves are displaying unexpected reactions to silver, and young vampires can't stand direct sunlight for more than a few hours without severe burns. Human scientists proclaim that vast amounts of land have disappeared into the ocean.

Only eight nymphs remain.