Blood.
That is what Vampires consume. Blood is essential to most living organisms. They keep them alive. Without blood, they will he empty husks of dead.
But blood is more than just something that fills the body of a Vampire. Blood is what they must consume, lest they starve and die. Human blood in particular is the most common type of blood in a Vampire's diet. A Human's blood is the richest source of nourishment, allowing Vampires to be satiated. However, this means that Humans must he targeted by the Noxian race, solely for their blood.
For this reason, many Vampires see Humans as nothing more than animals. They see humans as nothing more than livestock. Like a Human seeing cattle as their source of food, so does a Vampire see Human as their cattle.
Human blood isn't required to be consumed by Vampires. Any type of blood that isn't Noxian will suffice. Some Vampire Clans will adopt a different diet, a completely different lifestyle than most. Animal blood can satisfy a Vampire but it won't provide the proper nourishment or strength as Human blood would.
That being said, Human Blood can be considered the ultimate source of a Vampire's livelihood. It is their instinct to crave human blood, it is what drives their hunger. No matter what, they will seek to hunt a human down and drain their blood. Only Vampires with a powerful will can resist the Bloodlust, preventing it from controlling them.
Vampires are Noxians, children of the night. They are but one race of the many children born over millennia, given home and comfort in the shadows.
It is said that Mother Night gave birth to Vampirism as a deterrent for powerful Primordial Humans, to hunt them down and drain their blood. Stories say that the oldest Vampires are as powerful as they are because they consumed the Blood of these Primordial Humans. But all of that is neither confirmed nor denied.
What is true, however, is that Vampirism is older than the majority of the Noxians. Even older than Lycanthropy, older than the Witch-gene, and even older than the Wishmakers.
With that in mind, Vampires are seen as the elite race of Noxians. This gives them a massive sense of superiority, even among their Noxian brethren.
As Noxians, Vampires are categorized into two major groups. Among those two groups, there are smaller categories that Vampires fall into.
The First group is the Higher Vampires. Or the True Vampires. They are Pure-Blooded Noxians and descendants of the Original Bloodlines of Vampirism. They are genetically Noxians, born Vampires, and considered to be legitimate Vampires.
Higher Vampires can procreate, having pure Noxian children that carry their powerful blood. However, they can only procreate with other Higher Vampires. This resulted in millennia of selective breeding among the Vampire Clans and is among the biggest factors of their political relationships.
When a Higher Vampire is born, they will usually develop rapid aging. Within a year, their body will develop in one of many forms, ranging from a small child to a young teenager.
However, it is not uncommon for a newborn Higher Vampire to stay as a baby or toddler throughout it's first two years.
When the Higher Vampire reaches its 20th year, their aging stops and they will remain that way for centuries until a certain point in their immortal lives.
The Second group of Vampires are Lesser Vampires, or Turned Vampires. Also known as Impure or Filthy Vampires, these types of Vampires were formerly human before being turned via the Blood Infusion. While they aren't Pure-Blooded Noxian, they are Vampires regardless.
Upon being turned, these Vampires enter a development stage known as Fledgling-Lust. They get a massive craving for blood and will not be fully turned until they ingest Human Blood. Should they fail to do so, their bodies will destroy themselves and they will die. After ingesting Human Blood, they become Fledgling Vampires, the first type of Lesser Vampire.
Many Vampires that have terrorized humans over the course of History were Fledgling Vampires, driven by their newfound hunger, which could not be satiated by anything.
Lesser Vampires are looked down upon by the Higher Vampires as they are impure. But Lesser Vampires have risen to the prestigious ranks among their brethren.
The Blood Infusion is a specific blood technique that Vampires inherently have. Activating it, it allows them to inject their blood into a human host, infecting them with Vampirism. A Lesser Vampire can only be turned via a Blood Infusion and depending on how refined the Infusion is, it will determine how their minds is affected in the Fledgling-Lust.
Lesser Vampires were created as a way to further spread Vampirism, to provide more servants for Mother Night. Despite the prejudice they endure among their kind, they are regarded as Noxian.
While there are more types of Vampires within their main two categories, there is only one kind of Vampire that reigns supreme and stands above all.
A Vampire Lord.
Vampire Lords are powerful Vampires that possess incredible abilities and sovereignty over their brethren. They are considered to be the mightiest of the Noxians, rivaled by the Alpha Werewolves and Grand-Witches.
They possess Blessings, abilities that are either innate or obtained. The Vampire Lords are forces of nature, capable of destroying anything in their path with both their personal power and the influence over other vampires.
Despite that, most Vampire Lords calmly rule over their respective Clans, overseeing their affairs and keeping their brethren out of trouble.
Vampire Clans are factions among the Vampire Race, either comprised of Higher Vampire Families or Lesser Vampire groups. They are necessary to maintain balance in the Underworld and they keep their rogue brethren in check. In order to prevent other Noxians or Humans from exploiting them, The Clans have enforced many Laws. There are around a dozen Clans, each varying in size and power, but all of them enforce their rules with certainty. Not all Clans possess a Vampire Lord as their leader, however. But despite that, all Clans are recognized by the Underworld and their vampiric brethren.
They must remain unseen and undiscovered so they could be untouched by the sun.
Clearly, a Vampire's biggest weakness is the Sun, which combusts them into flames. But there are other ways to slay a Vampire. The famed wooden stake to the heart is but a myth, or at least it is thought to be. Only a select few vampires can be slain with a wooden stake through the heart.
Removing the heart or head of a Vampire will kill them. It doesn't matter if they are Higher or Lesser, that is their weakness. That being said, it will be incredibly difficult to perform such a task.
With this in mind, Vampires are considered by Humans who are aware of Noxians to be incredibly dangerous predators. They are feared and hunted themselves, as a way to protect humanity. This innate fear of Vampires that Humans have developed has led to the sparks of conflict over the years.
In the Underworld, other Noxians have blamed Vampires for endangering them. As Humans are as relentless and dangerous as they are frail. Despite them being allegedly inferior to Noxians, Humans have done more than enough damage on Mother Night's children.
There is currently a ceasefire in a conflict known as the Unseen War. In which several secret Human Factions have agreed not to engage with many Noxian groups. The Vampire Clans are among these groups, as they do not wish to prolong a war with Humans. Especially since said Humans have Noxian traitors backing them and even Humans with Blessings.
What are Blessings?
Blessings were gifts from Mother Night, given to her Noxian children as a way to give many of them a chance to survive any infighting. It is widely believed that an Ancient War between Noxian Races completely crumbled their populations, allowing Humans to hunt down the remaining remnants.
Another belief is that Mother Night felt pity for Humans at one point, as they were being hunted down and enslaved by Noxians. She would then grant certain humans Blessings in order for them to survive.
Blessings are abilities, powerful in their own right. They are what give many Noxians their might, allowing them to survive in the unrelenting Underworld.
Humans that obtained Blessings would be used to hunt down Noxians, specifically Vampires and Yokai. They would be feared by the entirety of the Underworld, gaining myth-like reputations.
They are the reason the Unseen Wars are at a ceasefire.
But eventually, that ceasefire will end.
*****************
It was a cold and dark night, where nothing but the sounds of nocturnal animals in the distance were heard. There was something in the pavement of the parking lot behind a closed store.
There was nobody around, it was already past midnight. Everyone who had been awake during the sunlight hours was already deep asleep by this time.
But of course, that meant that the Nightmares would emerge from the shadows.
On the pavement, the figure of a young man was seen lying down, a pool of blood forming around him as his eyes were half-closed. His chest was ripped apart, blood pouring out of his wounds. Blood covered his mouth as his neck had some gashes. His entire body was pale, almost completely devoid of color. His faint blue eyes were staring up into nothing, as if he were already gone.
But he still lived.
His breath was faint, but visible, in the cold. There was still a bit of light in his eyes, slowly disappearing as the feeling in his fingers was becoming duller and duller.
The young man slowly gulped, licking his lips as if trying to get a taste of something. He couldn't taste anything, not even his own blood that was smeared on his face.
While most of his body was numb, he still felt some sharp pain on his chest and neck. That was the only thing keeping him conscious, the only thing that kept him alive.
He didn't want to drift into sleep, knowing that there was a high possibility he could die. He just stared into the night sky, counting the stars through the clouds.
He said no words, he couldn't say anything. All the strength he had was being used to breathe and stay conscious. The thought of forming a sentence was draining in it of itself.
He didn't know what had become of him. He doesn't even remember what happened.
He was walking home from his job, having just finished his late shift. All of the sudden, he was attacked by some people and the next thing he knew, he was already on the ground while bleeding out.
As he lay there, motionless, he was able to hear a footstep next to him.
He looked to his left, not being able to move his head at all; his eye simply darted to the side.
He saw a figure before him, almost blurry. This was because the young man's vision was getting weaker by the second.
He tried focusing, narrowing his eyes a bit more to try to make out what was before him.
It was the figure of a pale man, wearing a dark trench coat and a bowler hat. The man had crimson and circular sunglasses, covering his eyes.
"Silver Reyes." The Man said, his voice deep, "That is your name?"
The Young Man blinked, a bit confused by this. He didn't know who was before him nor he knew why the man spoke his name.
The Man placed his hands behind his back and looked to the side, his breath visible. He then let out a sigh as he shook his head, his dark grey hair shaking slightly.
"To think it would come to this." He said, "I never imagined that clan to make a move like that. Quite ballsy. And stupid. They will get punished for this, I am quite sure."
Silver blinked, saying nothing.
The Man then looked at him, "Be sure to thank Our Lady." He said, "For she is the reason I have come to your aid."
"Aid….?" Silver thought to himself
The Man looked back to his side, seeing that on the ground several meters from them, several severed limbs were in the ground. The bodies of multiple men were piled up not too far from there as blood smeared the entirety of the pavement.
"This is sure to spark some conflict." The Man said, "We will have to act quickly and thoroughly. I will put you in Stasis and wait to see what Our Lady commands."
"You sure are lucky, Silver."
**************
Silver opened his eyes, letting out a slight groan as he moved his hand up to his chest.
"Ugh….." He managed, "W-What….?"
The moment he made a movement, his head throbbed. Following immediately after, a piercing pain shot through his body as his head felt like multiple searing knives were repeatedly stabbing his brain.
"A-Arrrghh!!" He turned to the side and fell off what seemed to be a bed, "Grrrgghh!!!"
As he clutched his head, he felt an immense hunger pain, shooting straight throughout his body. His hands and legs began trembling as a cold sweat covered his body, drenching his face almost immediately. Chills crawled up his spine as he buckled over, leaning his forehead against the cold stone floor.
"W-What is happening to me….?!" He said as the cold sweat changed immediately to a sensation of fire spreading through his body, "A-Arghhh!!!!"
He tried standing up and immediately stumbled against the wall, his vision becoming blurry. The hunger pain slowed down but his throat became dry, his lips cracked as the feeling of something digging into his skull was felt.
Silver collapsed on one knee and clutched his face, "W-What is going in?!" He exclaimed, "A-aahg…."
His body convulsed and he collapsed completely on the floor, pain shooting through his body as he began to drool uncontrollably.
He slowly got to his knees, fighting against the pain and the shaking of his entire body.
"M-My body…." He said as drool didn't stop coming out of his mouth, "What is happening to my body."
"That's quite a reaction." A voice said, "Seems you haven't entered the Fledgling-Lust yet."
Silver turned to see a man standing in front of iron bars. It was the same man he saw back when he was bleeding out in the parking lot.
"Y-You…." Silver managed as his eyes became bloodshot, "Did you do this to me?!"
The Man had his hands in his coat's pockets, his eyes hidden behind his shades.
"If I did, what would you do about it?" He asked, "All I did was save your seemingly insignificant life. But Our Lady says you aren't insignificant. I wouldn't know….I am a mere servant after all."
"What is happening to me?!" Silver exclaimed as he tried getting up
"You underwent a Blood Infusion." The Man said, "You are soon to transition into a Vampire Fledgling. In order to not die, you must ingest human blood."
Silver widened his eyes and stared at him, "W-What?!" He exclaimed, "V-Vampire?!"
"I didn't stutter." The man said, "I said what I said."
Before Silver could say anything else, his body began to twitch violently as he buckled over hard.
"Ggghhh!!!" He groaned in pain as his eyes began to cry tears of blood, "A-Arrgghhh!!"
"If you don't ingest human blood…." The Man said, "Your body will crumble and you will die. Quite the predicament you are in. So tell me…..do you wish to live? Or do you wish to die? If you live, you will become a Vampire….driven by the thirst for blood. If you die.....well, I will not sugarcoat it.....you will die."
"W-What....is happening.....?!" Silver yelled out in pain
"You don't listen, do you?" The Man said, "You're in transition. Right now, you're entering the Fledgling-Lust. You will crave human blood and will become a mindless animal until you die."
"AAAAGGGGGHHHHH" Silver bellowed in pain, "URRRGHGHh!!!"
"For crying out loud, Julius." a voice said behind the Man, "Give him the fucking blood."
Julius, the man who was standing outside the bars and staring at Silver, stepped to the side as another man walked up to him. This one was much taller, yet thinner and lankier.
His long white hair was tied in a ponytail, nearly blending in with his pale white skin. Large, round black shades covered his eyes with a white swirling pattern. He was wearing a sleeveless black shirt, which was skin-tight.
"Doc." Julius said, "What are you doing here?"
Doc was holding a blood bag in his hand, which Silver immediately noticed, "Came to help him transition." He said, "Our Lady's orders."
Silver's eyes turned blood red, a vicious snarl emerging from his mouth, "B-B-Blood....." He said, a menacing tone was heard, "Blood...!"
Doc slid the blood bag through the bars, "You must be parched." He said as the bag dropped to the ground, "Drink up."
Without wasting a moment, Silver swooped the blood bag and bit into it, snarling like a wild animal as blood sprayed everywhere. He swallowed the blood down and gulped as it covered the entirety of his mouth and neck. He looked up as his eyes were completely widened, his mouth agape as two sharp fangs replaced his canines. A low hiss escaped his mouth, filling the cell that he was in as his body stopped trembling.
He then buckled forward as he coughed repeatedly, leaning his arms on the ground as he groaned still.
"Hm." Julius said as he crossed his arms, "As always, it can be quite anticlimactic with some Fledglings. It is their instinct to consume the blood...fascinating."
Doc tilted his head, "Yea..." He said, "So, who is this guy?"
"Silver Reyes." Julius said, "He was attacked by The Unaligned. Multiple, around seven of them. But they were Lessers, though. Nothing I couldn't handle.."
"Oh. Those savages?" Doc said as Silver's body went limp and he lay on his belly, "What could they possibly want with a human like this? They already have their own blood banks. They don't need to attack a single human. He must be a target of some sort. "
Silver was panting heavily, his senses going haywire as his head began to throb, "Ahhh...." He said as he closed his eyes, a high-pitched sound ringing inside his ears, "S-So....loud....."
"Those are my thoughts as well." Julius said, "Our Lady said she wanted him as well. Even wanted to perform the Blood Infusion herself."
"Is that so?" Doc said, "Oh well, isn't he a lucky fella?"
Silver's eyes were slightly closed, and a loud rumble was heard from his stomach as he tried to move. There was a numb feeling in his fingers as he tried to move.
"A Fledgling." Julius said, "Arise, Silver Reyes. You are now a Noxian....a Child of the Night....."
"A Vampire...."
****************
Silver's eyes opened, his stomach growling loudly. There was no pain in his body; however, there was only a numb feeling spread all over him while he lay on a bed.
He slowly sat up, "Ugghh....." He managed, "What.....?"
"You're awake." Doc said as he was sitting down next to him, "Good. You slept for two whole days, quite a short nap, eh?"
Silver looked at him, confusion was all over his face, "W-Who are you....?" He said, "Where am I? What did you people do to me?"
"Call me Doc. My real name doesn't matter." Doc said as he was twirling around a butterfly knife, "I am the Castle's Head Doctor, serving under Lady Priscilla of The Darkclaw Clan."
"Darkclaw...?" Silver said, "What the fuck is that?"
Doc smirked slightly, "One of the Great Clans of the Underworld. But obviously, you wouldn't know anything about that. Up until recently, you were nothing more than a mundane human. Or so we thought. I do wonder why Lady Priscilla decided to turn you right away. I was going to dissect you while Julius kept you in Stasis.....to see what was inside you.....after all, the Unaligned were quite interested in you."
"Vampires..." Silver said as he looked down, "W-What the fuck is happening to me.....? This is a Nightmare, huh? This can't be real..."
"Ohohoho...." Doc said, "You felt it....the Hunger.....it's real, it's very real.....you're one of us now. I'm against it.....hell, we're all against it. For Lady Priscilla to use the Blood Infuse herself, it is unbecoming. But we cannot do anything else but accept the fact that you're one of us. You're a little Darkclaw Fledgling."
"Fledgling.....?" Silver said
"Newly turned Vampire." Doc told him, "In your case, a Lesser Vampire."
"I....." Silver said, "I want to go home...."
"Good one." Doc said with a chuckle, "There is no home for you. The Unaligned have definitely ransacked your house. They probably already targeted your family, if you have any. For sure, they're all dead."
Silver looked at him, "I have nobody."
"Lucky." Doc stood up, "They would have ripped them to shreds, just like they did to you. But oh well, not much we can do about it if it were the case. Lady Priscilla's orders were to keep you here....and now you're ours. Or hers, in fact."
"What the actual fuck is going on.....?" Silver said, "I was just going back home from work.....why.....what the...."
"Quit sulking." Doc said, "As a fledgling, you need to learn how to contain your thirst. There is so much for you to learn, Silver. There is no time to be bitching about."
Silver glared at him, "Who the fuck do you think you are?!" He exclaimed, "You think you can just kidnap me and turn me into a bloodthirsty parasite and get away with it?! What is wrong with you?! I'll-"
"Shhhh...." Doc covered his mouth, "I am not in the mood for a fledgling like you to test me. Especially when I have shown him quite the hospitality. Be nice, brat."
Silver scowled, veins popping on his forehead, "You..." His voice was muffled, "I'll-"
Doc stepped away, "I've heard enough from you." He turned around, "A fair warning; if you try to attack anyone, Julius will subdue you. And let me make this clear, he is quite ruthless when it comes to Fledglings misbehaving. Just because Lady Priscilla herself turned you, it doesn't mean he will go easy on you."
Silver stood up, his entire body feeling light, "I...." He said, "Let me go home.....I left something important there. I am not joking....I...."
His head began to throb, and he got a powerful urge to drink something. It was deep within, the craving for blood. Silver couldn't explain it; it was quite instinctual. It is as if he had known the taste of blood all of his life, and at that moment, he was yearning for it. The more seconds that passed by, the louder his stomach growled and the drier his throat got.
He closed his eyes, "Ahh....."
"That's quite the loud growling." Doc pointed at his stomach, "We ought to satisfy that with some food."
"F-Food....?" Silver panted slightly, "V-Vampires eat food?"
"Yea, to get rid of the persistent growling. Your stomach is empty." Doc said, "Water it down with some fresh blood and it'll be a heavenly meal."
"You're....sick....." Silver scowled, "What kind of monster drinks blood with food.....?"
Doc pointed at himself and then at him, "Us." He said, "We do that. You're a Vampire now. A Lesser Vampire, a Fledgling. You are now part of our little group, our culture....our brethren. But you best behave yourself. I don't want you to become an embarrassment in front of Our Lady."
"Vampires...." Silver said as he slowly got to one knee, the feeling in his stomach getting stronger, "I'm going to be sick."
"If you don't get a bit more blood, you might." Doc said, "You barely made it past the transition. The Fledgling-Lust was skipped, which is good. Fortunately, you weren't anywhere else other than here. You might have ripped a poor human to shreds in that state."
"S-Shut up...." Silver said with a scowl, "Don't talk to me that way."
"Let's go." Doc said, "Lady Priscilla is waiting."
"Who is this Lady?" Silver asked, "What does she want with me?"
"Why Lady Priscilla wants you is beyond my own knowledge." Doc told him, "But I'll tell you what she is. She is the Leader of our Clan. She is the Lady of The Black Mountain. One of the strongest Vampires in the Underworld."
"A Vampire Lord."