Chapter 2
When he landed in the backyard and looked around him, the first thing he noticed was how clean and cheerful the area was. There were flowers, a patch of grass, a terrace with a few chairs and a wooden table. the flowers were mostly yellow, with a few red roses and some blue flowers Marc couldn't remember the name. Or recognise them at all. There was a small glass house with some tomatoes, paprikas, strawberries and cucumbers in it. He looked around for a place where his cube could've landed, but at first sight he couldn't find it. Suddenly, the hairs on his neck rose and he felt as if someone waswatching him from the windows above him. He looked at tthe window but didn't see anything. But still, there was a strange feeling in the air. It was like everything was silent, and for a reason. The undefined feeling of terror, something dangerous in the air. Marc thought: "It's probably nothing." But still, there was this uneasiness, an itch in the back of his mind, that he could not shake off. He searched everywhere in the yard but wherever he looked, he could not find his precious cube. He walked to the back door and looked through the glass. The scullery was neat and organised, like the backyard. And there it was! On the washing machine, there it lay. But he had to go inside to get it. He briefly considered to just ask him, but he quickly reconsidered. Like that was going to work. He walked up to the door and tried if it was open.
It was.
With beating heart he opened the door very, very slowly. The door didn't make any sound at all, for which Marc was very grateful. He silently stepped inside. When his eyes were adjusted to the darkness, he could see all of the tools hanging to the wall. He walked up to the machine and just as he was about to grab the cube, a voice behind him said: "If you wanted that cube so badly, you just could've asked."
Marc froze on the spot, his hand still stretched out to the cube, and he coulnd't move of fear. What was he going to do to him. He realised he would find out soon enough. But to his big surprise, Mr Fisher said: "Take that cube and come in, we need to talk. Don't worry, I won't hurt you." And he walked through the door to the kitchen. Marc stood there for a few second, indecisive, and decided to go inside after all. He kind of owed him for being such a good sports. And he didn't seem such a bad person after all. So he went inside, not knowing what awaited him. He walked through the door, and looked around him at the kitchen. It was as clean and ordened as the parts of the house he had seen before. There were all kinds of knives and tools that hung at the wall, there was a clean metal cas cooker, shining but not too bright. everything was on order, from the dishes that were drying, to the pots that were ranked in order of size, to the jars with herbs and spices.
He looked at Mr. Fisher and asked him: "What did you want to talk about?" Mr. Fisher didn't immediately answer, but he asked: What do you want to drink? A coke, lemonade, juice of some sort? "I don't know, just give me a drink." Marc said, not really paying attention to him as he tried to look further into the house, where strange paintings and large bookshelves were filled with seemingly old books, that were probably very interesting. When he looked back at the table in the kitchen he saw Mr. Fisher sitting with two mugs with the inscription: Citius, Altuis, Fortius. Marc assumed it was some kind of personal motto. Inside the mug was a happily bubbling drink, with a bright pink color, that seemed strangely appealing. He took a sip and it was like a rainbow exploded inside his mouth. It was like pure happiness was flowing trough his mouth, that every joyful moment in his life was poured inside of this mug and brought to him.
Mr. Fisher saw him looking with surprise on his face and laughed. "It's delicious isn't it? I made it myself." "Mr. Fisher" Marc asked, "What is this drink?" "Do you like it? I made it myself. It's called Aurora's juice. And please, call me Nick, that's my name." "Err, okay Nick, it's really delicious. But what did you want to talk about?" "Well, to get to the point, you being my successor." After this remark there were a few momens of dead silence. Marc coulnd't believe he heard that right. "Um, Tim, did you just say..." "Yes I did. You have to be my successor."
And again, there was a dead silence, which seemed unnatural silent. Marc looked at Tim, trying to see if he was joking. Which he didn't seem to. "I should probably explain this further. I'm actually 279 years old, and currently immortal. I'm also a vampire with enough magical power to level this country, if not for the protective spells and seals. I want you to take over my power and immortality, and for a single reason. I see in you a brighter future than I can make myself. Even if you don't think so. Here, I'll prove it." With saying that, he pointed at the bookshelves in the living room, and took some of them from the shelves, and let them float towards Marc. Marc was terrified, almost in shock from what he was seeing. He coulnd't believe what he was seeing, but a part of him told him that this all was true, that there was a world beyond the normal boundaries he had known for his entire life. "But..." he stumbled, "how is this possible?" "Well, I use the force of my mind in combination with my spirit energy to lift those books. It's a very basic trick, but with great potential if mastered." At this point, Marc was thinking of the things that would happen if he got access to these powers. He could change the world, protect the innocent, do everything that he wanted. But then he realised what Tim said before.
"What was it you said about the protection seals and thingies?" he asked. "Well, that is to protect the world from people like me, and soon, you. They are thousand of years old, and nobody knows how to disable them. Not that they would want that. It also protects us from invading enemies. You can still cause alot of damage even with this reduced energy output." Marc considered this for a while. But he realised his choice was already made. "Okay, what do I do for this? I mean, do you want anything specific?" he asked. Tim smiled and said: "I knew you would say yes. I have one condition. You attend the Erwald school of magic. I will provide you with the necessary goods to go there. I teach there as well, defense courses. But keep this in mind, since I'm the twelfth Progenitor, you will have natural enemies." Marc frowned. "What does that mean?" "Well," Tim said, "There are twelve houses that are considered the strongest in this world. They vary from alchemists to Vampires like me, to attack mages, to priests and assassins. All and all, there are twelve that are the strongest. We are the twelfth, the one banished from the council. In the past, we were too strong, so they set us up, all eleven, and kicked us from the council. So it's logical we have a tendancy to be a little paranoid. So you know, there ought to be some people in that school that won't like you. I know the feeling all too well." Marc thought about it, and the advantages still outweighed the disadvantages. "Make it happen." he said, without doubt in his voice. Mr. Fisher looked at him and nodded. "Hm. Let's go then." What followed was kind of an anticlimax. Mr. Fisher closed his hand in front of his chest, and when he opened it, there ws a tiny shining orb inside of it. He gave it to Marc and said: "Accept it with your mind, and it will go inside you, and you will be my successor."
Marc hesitated. Was it that easy? And how on earth should I do this? And he realised the orb was talking to him. He listened carefully, only to realise he already accepted the orb. The moment the orb went inside of his mind, no, his soul, There was a screeching noise that was slowly getting louder. Tim became terrified at the sound of this. He looked Marc dead in the eye and said: "This is bad. Really, really, REALLY bad." For some odd reason, Marc didn't doubt him. Tim said: "You have one chance. The people approaching are the Counsil, the eleven strongest people of the other houses. You have to consume them trough the connection they are going to make to you. Otherwise, our entire house will disappear. You understand that?" Marc could only nod his head, and before anything else happened, the screeching noise stopped, while at the same time, eleven people appeared around him, in the living room.
"New progenitor of the Twelfth house, prepare to die."
