Red Fang

Chapter 36: Royal Romance

Balfort impatiently paced back and forth across the floor of his bedroom---having already taken his medication---while his wife, Amber, sat at the bedside.

"I really think you were too hard on her," Amber admitted bluntly. "I could hear both of you all the way up here."

"Was it that severe?"

"Yeah, kind of."

The vampire lord groaned and rolled his eyes. "I still can't believe she defends that 'Garson' fellow after he tried to get me killed."

"I wasn't there for the ambush, so I can't judge him too harshly. But he did seem very anguished while we were charging him....."

"Mavis wasn't there for the ambush, either, yet she jumped to Garson's defense immediately. She also doesn't know what he tried to do to me, so how can she trust him at his word?"

Amber got up from the bed and took her husband by the hand. "She trusts him.....so shouldn't you trust her?" she asked, looking into Balfort's eyes. "Think back across the countless years we have raised her. Has the slightest shred of evil ever penetrated our dear Mavis's heart?"

Balfort thought about it, then sighed. "No. Not once. At least.....not intentionally. You know about our blood curse and how it sometimes forces us to kill innocents."

"Balfort, dear.....if I may, I have some advice regarding Mavis and Garson, and what we should do about them."

"What could you possibly say to make me change my mind?"

"Do you remember how we met? How we came to know each other and sire this family?"

A wistful smile appeared on the vampire lord's face as memories of his first meeting with Amber returned to his mind.

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-10XX (Over 1000 Years Ago)-

At the Vermillion Enclave's conception---countless eons ago---the hidden society only consisted of a few vampires at most; it had taken many moons for the civilization to evolve into the bustling settlement it now was. The bulk of the world's vampires still remained unaware of this safe haven's existence, instead continuing to stay on the run against the humans who wished to exterminate them at all costs.

Back then, the "royal family" only consisted of Balfort Ladair himself, with a then-much younger Agnes acting as his chief confidant. The lord had been elected to such a prestigious position by the Enclave's collective population due to his remarkable leadership skills, and under his command, hundreds of vampire refugees were brought into the Vermillion Enclave; a place where, Balfort promised, they would remain safe in indefinite seclusion, free to live isolated lives away from the outside world. No longer would they be hunted by the humans. No longer would they be exposed to negative interpretations of them from the media. And no longer would they be called "freaks", "monsters", and "killers" by society.

Little did he know how badly everything was going to go about a thousand years later.

As Balfort observed the newest wave of vampires being brought through the city gates, Agnes walked up to him---more youthful, vibrant, healthy, and at this point, not yet needing a wheelchair---whilst holding a clipboard. Said clipboard had two pieces of paper attached to it, both of which were practically filled with various statistics that would make an average vampire's head hurt.