“Lord Qian.”

“Yes, Your Highness?”

Taeyeon stopped along the walkways on the outer walls of the castle. Lord Qian kept her distance behind the Vampire Lord. The cold winds blew past the railings of the outer walls, the combined sigil of the Royal Vampire family emblazoned on the flags cracked in rhythm as they clung to the tower spires.

“Tell me about your people. I have heard and read of the Easterners from my teachers and from the many books about our kind, but I have not seen nor met any of you… until now.” Taeyeon turned to her guest, before moving towards the banisters overlooking outside the castle. “Tell me about their lineages.”

“Yes, My Lord.” Qian replied, “I will start with mine.” Qian stepped forward and followed after Taeyeon. “I am Qian, the sole heiress of the Song family situated in the Orient. My family has been part of the Eastern royals for centuries and we have been mediators between the Oriental magicians and sorcerers ever since they have began practicing the craft. I have been tasked to seek out the Western lords in hopes of preventing the sorcerers from destroying the ancient pact that us, night creatures, have made with them.”

“My second in command is Yiyun of the Liu Clan.”  

Taeyeon turned to face her guest, “I have not heard of such clan from the East. Are they, perhaps, younger in origin?”

Qian shook her head, “No, My Lord. The Liu Clan has evaded everyone for centuries. Yiyun has told me that her family’s main lineage has settled in one of the southern islands of the East and have kept to themselves until the turmoil of the Oriental Mainland brought chaos to their shores.”

“So, she was sent along with you to help preserve her family line.”

“Yes, My Lord.” Qian nodded as Taeyeon began to walk once more with the Eastern vampire guest in her heels.

“And what of the two younger vampires?” Taeyeon spoke once more before turning to face her guest, “One of them has something odd to her.”

Qian halted in her step, “They both came from the same land outside of the Oriental Mainland. My people and I called it, Joseon, which they had adapted on their own. The older one is Sunyoung of the Park Clan. She lived in the capital of Joseon, the southern city of the Peninsula. Her clan has specialized in archery, coming from a line of elite soldiers.”

“And the other one?”

“Jinri of the Choi Clan, one of the most powerful clans of Joseon. She was the rebel youngest child of the family and had been trained in every secret art that the family knew. Her clan has held sway of the Joseon empire for decades even if its rulers changed every time. They have served the palace behind the scenes and have been involved in the land’s politics and underground dealings.”

“It’s interesting how you have come together with one purpose.”

“We were actually a larger group when we started the journey, but the sorcerers sent their own mercenaries to try and stop us from getting here. We have… lost some good people along the way.”

“What happened to them?”

Qian unveiled a white cloth from her girdle and showed it to the vampire lord. Taeyeon took it and examined it.

A golden dagger embossed with rune-like writings on the blade. Taeyeon held it to her eye level, a frown ghosting over her face as Qian observed her reaction to the artifact.

“Do you know what it is?” Qian inquired, wondering if the Vampire Lord was familiar with the weapon.

“It’s inlayed with ancient runes. Not many of our kind are familiar with them.” Turning to look at her guest, Taeyeon handed back the weapon, “Be careful with it. This was specially made to kill our kind if it was placed on the right hands.”

“What do you mean, my lord?”

“Only those who can recite the spell may use that dagger to its full potential. Now, tell me, how many pursuers did you have and were you able to kill them all?”

“I am not sure, my lord. Forgive me.” Qian bowed, “I may have brought danger to your doorsteps.”

Taeyeon’s frown deepened, “My guards will take care of them and besides, this abode is enchanted with spells that even the most learned of sorcerers could not break. Sooyeon had made sure of it after Yuri and Yoona had caused a ruckus within our halls.”

They both made haste into the grand halls of the Jung palace only to chance upon a newly awakened Yuri walking calmly down the hallway, alarming every servant she had encountered.

Yuri was rubbing her eyes when she noticed Taeyeon and Qian a few paces away. The Kwon family heiress immediately straightened herself and prostrated before her liege. “Lord Taeyeon, forgive me for being a nuisance for the past few months. I-”

Taeyeon was in front of her in a blink, helping her straighten from her submissive posture. With a hand to the shoulder Taeyeon patted her cousin, “All is forgiven, Yuri. You were struggling from your bloodline’s curse. My twin and I have relieved you of it. We have removed Yoona’s as well.” Taking a step forward, Taeyeon beaconed for her kin and her guest to follow her.

+++

Soojung watched as Sooyoung and Jinri duked it out in a bare-handed fight. Jinri used an open palm hand-to-hand combat while Sooyoung had her knuckles up. The youngest member of the Jung family could hear everyone around cheering for both vampires as they sized each other up before the two combatants went for the offense.

Fists and palms were thrown in the air, missing, and hitting their marks much to the crowd’s delight. Both sides never spared a moment as they used their bodies to block the blows. Then, Sooyoung lifted a leg to ram her knee against Jinri’s hip, only to be blocked by the Eastern vampire’s arm before Sooyoung received a hit to her gut. It was an open palm filled with force that sent her reeling back against the wooden enclosure of the training mound.

Hyoyeon and Sooyeon grimaced when Sooyoung’s back hit the wooden fence with a loud impact. Sooyoung let out a groan before wiping the blood from her chin, standing tall as she raised her fists before charging. She faked a left hook before quickly following it with a spinning kick, hitting Jinri square on the face.

The rebel of the Eastern vampires face-planted on the muddy ring. Jinri released a grunt before pushing herself from the ground. Brushing the mud away from her face, she took a deep breath before turning to land a right hook at Sooyoung. The older vampire shook her head to recover from the sudden punch as they both squared off once more.

Both opponents blocked out their spectators’ shouts and cheers as they focused on one another. Sweat and grime beaded their skin as they moved forward to exchange another set of blows. Knee hit a side, a hand slapped a face, an arm