The Black Raven

First Contact

The test was something all new recruits had to go through. It made sure that no one carried any vampiric diseases or was a new fang hiding amongst us. The first time you go through it is the worst, it's nothing like modern tests. You know when you go to see if you've got chicken pox and they'll take a scrub of a spot or a test to see if you're allergic to something and the worst you'll get is a sting when they draw blood. The tests at the academy are painful, excruciating  and that's if you aren't carrying the disease.   First they strap you down to the chair, thick leather bands are wrapped around your hands, arms, feet, legs, waist, chest and head. You are almost completely immobilised and all you can do is scream. They start the test by drowning you in garlic juice. You think that that's not bad but they hold your eyes open and squeeze it into your eyes, your mouth, forcing you to swallow, your nose, forcing you to breath it in, they even pour it in your ears. It burns. Even if your not a vampire, it stings like putting lemon juice on a fresh cut but a hundred time worse. If it burns your skin they know that you are a vampire, if it doesn't they move onto the next trial. Only full vampires are affected by garlic so if you a new fang or carrying the disease it will just burn as if you are human. The second trial is worse. They cut you. Not deep enough that it won't heal but deep enough that it is painful. Wrists, ankles, neck, stomach. Just shallow enough to stop humans from dying. Then they wrap up the wounds and leave you tied up, starving and thirsty for  two days. Even worse they leave tied to a wooden stake in the middle of the court yard. After the two days is up the take you down and look at your wounds. If they are healed they know you are a vampire or carrying the disease, if not you go on to the third and final test. New fangs don't heal fast immediately and don't burn immediately either, so it comes down to the third and final test. The third test you think would be simple, but it is anything but. They lock you in a room, alone and then they do multiple things first, the room begins to fill up with blood. Thick and warm, as if it were fresh out of someone. Then they suck out all the air of the room and see if you faint or not. The blood would normally drive a new fang crazy, they'd be crazy with longing, sometimes they would drink it, sometimes they would try and ignore it for they're own good. This trial only goes for five minutes, four minutes of blood, one without oxygen.  Any vampire or new fang would be unaware of the lack of oxygen and act normal but anyone else would be chocking or fainted. Any longer then five minutes and the none vampires could be seriously harmed or  they might die altogether. 

No one ever wanted to have to do the test more then once, but I'd done it twice and I didn't want to do a third one.

*

Eric walks me through the grand halls all the way to the oak door that leads to me room. I feel uncomfortable being around him and I just want to slip inside and be myself but I don't, I need to do it in a way that he won't get suspicious. 

"I'll tell everyone that you're here, but you had best make up a good story to why you left." He tells me as he takes a step back from me so I can open the door.

"Sure," I nod and give him a smile. "I'd best go clean up, then."

"Yeah," He gives me a smile and I glide forward kiss him on the cheek.

"See you later." I whisper.

"Bye." He responds as I turn and shut the door behind me.

*

As soon as the door closes I let all my spells drop, glad for the heavy curtains. I look around at my room, nothings changed. My bed is pushed against the far wall with its simple checked pattern cover neatly arranged. The plain wood shelves around every wall stacked with the spell books I was forced to memorise to "Expand my power". I go over to my curtains and whisper "Signaculum." Under my breath. There's a strange squelching noise and the curtains meld into the walls so no light can filter through.