Rebirth

Chapter 3

Sitting there, Lucien's hand in his, Gabriel finally felt secure again. Lucien was okay, still drowsy but no longer on the brink of death, thanks to the medallion that the man had given him. Gabriel couldn't remember his name, but did recall that he said he would be making his way over to the home where he was now. How he could find it, Gabriel didn't know, but he trusted the man despite his usual apprehensiveness. After all, he had just saved Lucien's life. He glanced closer at the amulet, and noticed that it had a strange cross-like symbol on it, surrounded by words in a language that Gabriel didn't recognize. He had so many questions- what was this mysterious language that everyone had been speaking? Who was that crazy woman who had attacked them? And most of all- why?

He figured that the man would answer all his questions as soon as he arrived. For now, he turned his attention to Lucien, whose eyes were now finally open. "Gabriel.." he whispered, "Where are we?" Gabriel gripped his had tighter before answering, "We're home. It's okay. You're going to be okay." Lucien's eyes were filled with an appreciation that Gabriel had never seen. Lucien pulled himself up slightly, looked Gabriel directly in the eyes, and sweetly said, "You saved my life..." Gabriel felt his stomach flip. What was this emotion he was feeling? He simply answered, "No.. it was someone else.. I didn't.."

He was cut off by the sound of the front doors opening. Lucien asked, "Who is that?" Gabriel answered, "The guy who saved your life. Come on, lets go." He helped Lucien up and they made their way to the grand foyer, a magnificent room of dark wood and red velvet carpets. Golden candelabras lined the walls, giving the room a soft glow, and vaguely illuminating the figure that stood there. Gabriel walked in, and finally got a good look at the man.

His first reaction was pure admiration at his beauty. He was tall, had long, curly blond hair, and piercing gold vampirian eyes. His cheekbones were pronounced, and his skin fare but not pale, and his jaw was beautifully sculpted. His eyes trailed along his features, seeping in how he seemed to glow in the candlelight. He was mesmerized to the point of silence.

Lucien, however, didn't feel the same. There was a primal feeling deep in his chest, and he knew exactly what it was, but refused to even entertain any thought of it. He looked at Gabriel, who was staring dumbfounded at the man. The feeling intensified the more he looked at Gabriel. He stepped forward, and the sound of his footsteps bringing Gabriel out of his daze. Lucien kept his eyes on the man, and observed him even more meticulously than before. He did have to admit- the man was gorgeous, and it made Lucien feel a bit insecure- and the way that Gabriel seemed to be enthralled with his presence frustrated him most of all.

Lucien extended his hand, and said, "So you are the one who saved me? I cannot thank you enough." The man grabbed Lucien's hand with both of his own and shook it, and introduced himself. "Angelo D'Oria, at your service." Lucien noted his Italian accent, mostly just how strong it was. He hadn't heard a voice like that in a long time, and it reminded him if when he first learned English all those years ago, and how his French accent had made him almost unintelligible. Now, the hundreds years of speaking English had whittled his accent down to a small twang that strengthened or weaned depending on his word choice. It also reminded of Folina again, and how her Spanish-accented French sounded so beautiful when she would speak to him. He pushed the thought from his mind, and focused back on Angelo. Angelo said, "And yes, I know exactly who you are, Lucien de Marchand." Lucien replied, "It seems like everyone knows who I am now. I thought we," He gestured to Gabriel, "Were the only ones... I was so mistaken." Angelo gave a sincere smile, and said, "The situation is worse than anyone could have ever imagined." Lucien said," I can tell. Here, let us discuss this more. Have a seat."

He led Gabriel and Angelo to the back section of the foyer, where there was a small sitting area. The men sat, and Angelo took a deep breath, "Where do I begin?" He asked. His question was hypothetical, and so he began, "There are so many other types of beings. Other vampires, casters, a myriad of other things that we don't know much about..." He stopped for a beat, then continued, "I'll come back to vampires in a bit. Casters, the beings I just mentioned, are the issue here. Casters are beings that use magic- there are hundreds of types of them, some insanely powerful and some no more powerful than the average human. Most of them hide in plain sight, and are no threat to us. But there are a few that are.... troubling us." He stopped, the expression on his face full of scorn. He continued, "The woman who attacked you is named Alice Cortez. She a caster who has a vendetta against any and all vampires. The even worse part is that she isn't alone. The man that was with her is powerful as well, though not as powerful as she, and they are both under the protection of one of the most power casters of all time. She goes by Madame Morrigan, and that's pretty much we know about her. Her very existence is shrouded in secrecy." He looked to the 2 men sat across from him, seeing if they were still following what he was saying. They seemed to be listening intently. Lucien said, "Well, as unfortunate as it is, it seems simple enough. But where do you fit in in all of this?" It was a question that Angelo had been anticipating, and was ready to answer. He began, "That is a bit more complicated. You see, I am part of a... group... of other vampires. We call ourselves the Church of Rebirth, our embers being the reborn. We have been together for about 45 or so years now, finding more of our kind and having them join us. We were led by the oldest vampire in existence- his name was Marcus, he was a Roman, born in 1328." Both Lucien and Gabriel were shocked at the number- he was 690 years old. Angelo continued, "He was... immensely powerful, and an amazing leader. He was loved by every one of us. But... Alice found him, and used a type of magic so powerful that even Marcus couldn't defeat. We still don't understand how, but... she killed him. We immediatley found out all that we could about her and her past, but it really wasn't much. Ever since then we've been practically been waging war against her. I've begun studying her type of casting, incantations mostly. I've also become somewhat successful with article enchantments- attaching magic to physical objects. The medallion I gave you? Enchanted by yours truly."