《The Vampire King》 Chapter: 0 - Prelude Marcus the first vampire was once a simple farmer working his fields but one day a woman came walking along up to Marcus it was hot and she told him that he looked like a man that could use some refreshments. Marcus was not a man to decline a drink from a beautiful woman so he drank deep he said his thanks and continued working his fields. But he felt queasy and decided to get some herbal remedies from his local village but once he got there he saw smokes on the horizon. He rushed to see what was going on but all he found was undead walking the streets he picked up a hammer and started destroying the dead wherever he found them. Eventually he destroyed all the undead and he felt sleepy he once again saw the woman but her appearance was changed now she looked like an ugly hag! He rubbed his eyes and then he saw it all around him the dead men, women and even children of the village the drink he thought the drink it had made him think they were undead and now he had killed them all! The Hag laughed with a raspy voice ¡°MY LORD KAIN I OFFER YOU THIS SACRIFICE SHALL IT PLEASE YOU GREATLY¡± the skies darkened and blood started to fall from the sky it trickled over marcus who was on his knees in the now blood soaked earth.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. The appearance of the hag changed again but now it felt more real her old features became young and she once again became the young beautiful woman Marcus had seen before. She came towards him and with gleeful smile she put a dagger through marcus heart it would be a great mistake for when Marcus awoke alive during the night he felt an empty void where his heart would be his mood darkened and he became enraged. Marcus went on to go on a rampage of death and destruction for a hundred years looking for the hag that had hurt him so. But he never found her he eventually gave up, he found that he could create children through feeding this brought him some comfort because now he would not have to spend eternity alone. He became obsessed with creating a new life for his family and created a great vampire kingdom, there he learned blood magics and Necromancy among a few other disciplines. But all good things must come to an end and so it did. The mortal races united against the vampire kingdoms and eventually they won and Marcus was imprisoned in his coffin and buried in sacred soil so as to never bring his evil into the world again. Chapter 1 - Disturbed The Vampire king Marcus had slept for a long long time but for the first time in hundreds of years it had been disturbed. He opened his eyes and looked around in his coffin above him he could hear someone digging but he could also make out voices even though it was meters of dirt between him and his new companions. They were talking about the riches of king Marcus and how he had been buried with it all and how they would all be rich when they had plundered his tomb. My tomb, Marcus corrected himself they would pay dearly for such transgressions he could not move Marcus had not been sealed inside his coffin voluntarily his people had risen up against him and Marcus had been forced to hide inside his Adamantium coffin because they had attacked during the day his undead soldiers had been destroyed and the were unable to break it open to kill their beloved leader inside so they buried him in a cemetery under sanctified ground creating an inescapable prison. So Marcus had been left to slumber until until he became a mere legend. He would not make that mistake again¡­ Two hours passed as he could hear the digging getting closer soon the world would tremble soon. Another hour passed and his liberating grave robbers finally started hoisting up his coffin. They had not yet discovered that the coffin was made of Adamantium the most durable Material in the known world. Marcus felt as the grave robbers placed his coffin on a cart and he laid there smiling he had not tasted blood in hundreds of years the taste would be sweet but because he had not been drinking blood regularly he had grown quite weak. It was only temporary but it could pose a problem if the grave robbers knew what they were doing. But Marcus doubted it they did not seem to suspect that he was even a vampire.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. Marcus made a mental priority to attain new information about the state of the world first change he got. The ride was uneventful and they finally arrived at the robber presumed hideout. Marcus once again felt his coffin being lifted up and carried inside the Robbers complained that it was heavy but one of them encouraged them and said that the heavier it was the more gold they would find inside. Marcus knew they would only find death and despair. They put him down and within moments tried to open the coffin it was locked. They tried everything from pickaxes to magic nothing worked and after much complaining the robbers agreed that it was time to retire and start up work tomorrow. Now was Marcus¡¯s chance after he listened closely for any breathing nearby he lifted the cover of the coffin and stood it up it felt good Marcus was naked his clothes that he had been wearing had rotted off. Marcus had bone white long hair and a Long white beard the vampire''s body still grew body hair even though they were technically dead. His body was pale like a corpse but it was in peak physical shape his muscles were toned and would make any woman blush and every man go red in envy. Marcus looked around it was still dark but the blasted sun would rise in a few hours. He smelled around and quickly picked up the scent of the grave robbers. He looked around and saw that he was standing in a cave that branched off into several corridors the room he was standing in was the common room several tables were around and a bar with some bottles of booze was at one of the corners. He stalked in the shadows almost smelting into them seamlessly he followed the scent it finally came to head when he entered a large cave with several beds placed haphazardly around the room. Marcus walked over the the closest sleeping burglar kneeled beside him and bit deeply into his throat sucking at the jugular the blood was maddening. The craving for blood became insatiable for Marcus and he simply let his inner animal take over. When Marcus awoke he found himself covered from head to toe in blood around him lay the bodies of the robbers blood, guts and other internal organs were everywhere. Marcus simply smirked lifted his hand and swept it across the room and only moments later the bodies of the Robbers started to stand up their guts hanging from their torn ribcages and their eyes white as a blind man. 32 in all Marcus had a start of what would become his great revenge. Chapter 2 - Potency Marcus knew he was dreaming but it felt so real he was back in his Citadel walking through his court he could see the first of his children and their children paving a path for him, all around they him they venerated him, adored him but also envied him. He knew that they were ambitious, he had encouraged it after all only the best of the spawns were allowed to join his family. The rest would were not worthy, Marcus himself did not usually spawn family members anymore he instead allowed his first children to procreate and spawn their own children and and only the strongest among them were chosen to join his family. The clan achieved this through a ritual called the ¡°Bloodletting¡± it was simply pure ritualistic combat where the children of the various vampires would fight in a pit to the death and the survivor would join the clan and after proving their worth further was he or she allowed to spawn his own child and then the process would start again. If your spawn was killed he or she was too weak then you would need to find another and only in very special circumstances and the with the blessing of marcus himself would you be allowed to acquire another spawn but this was very rare and only common with the first born of Marcus. He took the hands of both his favorite mistresses Juliana and Catherine, Juliana had long black as night hair her face was pale like most vampires and her look burned with an unholy fire that would make the most hardy men quiver in fear. had been blessed with an aura akin to a pulsing black star- It was rare but sometimes before back it takes power back with it from the lands of the dead . but Cathrine her whole being was graceful and fluid not a muscle moved without permission to Marcus they were two sides of the same coin. Then he thought how could it have gone so wrong? Marcus awoke just as the sun went down on the horizon he walked to the common room to find that his zombie warriors standing over 4 bound and gagged humans Marcus had ordered the zombies to hunt during the day while he slept. He had done this by giving one of the zombies sentience and he had become the primary lieutenant of marcus a completely loyal minion to Marcus, Marcus had named Magog if he proved himself useful Marcus might consider converting him into a death knight but not yet the process was tiresome and time consuming. Marcus looked at the prisoners ¡°Magog where did you find these specimens?¡±The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Magog turned his jaw it was chipped giving him a slight difficulty speaking ¡°Master we found them hunting game closeby we caught them unaware when their lookout fell asleep.¡± Marcus walked up to the captives, inspecting them he turned their cheeks studying their features. ¡°They seem strong, did any of them give you any trouble?¡± Magog paused a second contemplating his answer ¡°one cleaved a warrior¡¯s arm off master it was this one¡± and he pointed to a blond female sitting slumped her Marcus lifted her head and she seemed barely conscious on her forehead was a large gash leaking blood it dripped down her face and to the cave floor. ¡°Interesting¡± and then Marcus bit into the female''s jugular he took a large drink from the warm blood before forcing himself to let go and no kill the female. He repeated the process on each of the captives, Marcus was testing their blood every living being has a certain degree of potency to their blood and vampires were experts in measuring it. Three out of four of the captives had sufficient blood potency the rest Marcus did something different to he made them into half breeds half vampire, half human. They would make excellent spies for Marcus as they could walk in the sun undetected by the normal human population. They were not however ageless like a normal vampire but they would still live 200-300 years before dying to old age. The process was simple the victim would drink the master vampire''s blood and become bound to them and utterly loyal they can however be cured of their vampirism and become a human again but they would still retain their enhanced abilities that come with being a Halfblood. They also usually become vampire hunters using their new abilities to hunt their former masters most efficiently. Marcus had the new Half Bloods let loose they would go to the biggest cities around, intergrate and then report back to him as spies of the mortal realm. Marcus decided the would do some recon on his own he had the one human who didn¡¯t have enough blood potency brought up the human''s blood still had it¡¯s uses. He gripped the man''s throat using his claws he ripped it apart blood soaking everything and Marcus started to speak the dark words of power the blood slowly started to retreat backwards from the walls and ground into a pool of blood completely red blank. Marcus kneeled by the pool of blood and with swipe of his hand a face appeared. ¡°Show me the land i find myself in¡± The disappeared and and the blood transformed into a 3d rendering of local area. Marcus pulled his hand back zooming the image out it showed a large area of woodland with several hamlets interspersed between to the north there was a large city to the west the start of a mountain range and the the east a murky swamp and finally to the south the woods continued until large cliffs cut it off and a large ocean panned out before the horizon. The spell expired and without haste Marcus marched out into the darkness of the forest his entourage of undead warriors following him four of them carrying the adamantium coffin like pallbearers during a funeral. Chapter - 3: The Gorge Marcus had been walking throughout the night and using his darkvision and enhanced senses to successfully navigate the vast forest. Finally he reached the end of the forest it opened up into a lush green gorge that separated the forest a small river leading through it. Even though the ground looked peaceful and untouched but Marcus felt death permeate through the earth he knew that many people had died here a long time ago He switched his attention to the gorge he scanned it from left to right and what caught his attention was a small hut built into the base of a destroyed monument. The structure had long since fallen over and was no longer visible probably covered by the earth with time.Marcus decided to investigate he left his undead warriors by the treeline and walked towards the hut. Marcus felt a presence inside the hut it was definitely magical and it seemed to be associated with nature he proceeded forward more cautious than before. First marcus moved to investigate the monument base and up close he could make out severely damaged writing. He examined the words the language was known to him it was the basic human tongue but the dialect was not native to his Empire. The Eternal Empire. It read: ¡°This monument commemorates the fallen for the courage in the battle for Arkens gorge where the heroic army of light defeated the vile undead forces of Overlord Haldiram. The text continues with a long list of names that detail the fallen. Marcus face was grim, Overlord Haldiram was one of his first born, a select group of the first vampires Marcus created. Haldiram had been a mighty necromancer before meeting Marcus and he had been adopted into the fold just because of his skill with the dead. He had been an invaluable asset but also a loved son, he was also instrumental in the creation of the first undead legions. Marcus did not like to think that one of his sons could be gone forever but after so long it could be a sure possibility.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. His thoughts were interrupted as someone from inside the house tried to close the front door as quietly as possible Marcus quickly shrouded himself in the darkness and further concealed his magical presence he had been foolish to get caught off guard it would not happen again. Soon a woman in her mid 20¡¯s dressed in a robe made of large green leafs appeared and walked up to the spot where marcus had stood moments ago she studied the spot probably trying to figure out the presence she had sensed.Marcus studied the woman she also held a wooden staff in her right hand with a goat''s skull attached to the end of it giving it a menacing look. The woman turned and looked into the darkness trying to see if anyone was out there. While she had been looking out into the darkness Marcus had taken the opportunity to gain a better terrain advantage and had used his agility to quickly scale the monument as he stood over her ready to pounce if needed he stood up and lowered his defences that concealed him. The Woman quickly turned to look at this new presence she staggered back at the sheer weight of his magical presence as it hit her. But the effect did not last very long she seemed disciplined and instinctually started to cast a spell she took out a seed from a pouch at her waist and threw it at Marcus mid air it started to glow green and it sprouted into a long wooden spear. It flew unnaturally fast towards Marcus he was not surprised in the slightest he usually get¡¯s this reaction so of course he had taken the time to prepare himself for an attack he started to use his speed fully and time started to slow down. As Marcus turned his body to evade the spear but instead of letting it fly past him he caught the spear mid air twirled it around in his hand and threw it back at her but he did not want to kill her yet... so he had aimed for just below her feet. It came a bit closer than intended as the spear flew straight between her legs almost impaling her lower abdomen she looked down and then up in absolute disbelief. She was about to reach for her pouch once again but Marcus had other plans he leaped from the base of the monument. Landing with his hands around her throat and feet pinning her arms in check. He had her on the ground she squirmed and fought to get free but Marcus did not budge he raised his hand curled it into a fist and punched her unconscious.Before she lost consciousness he simply whispered in her ear ¡°sleep little druid we have much to discuss¡± Chapter - 4: Resurrection The Hut looked smaller from the outside but inside it was almost livable, it almost felt like home from before¡­ Marcus shrugged and turned towards the tied down Druid he had his undead warriors tie her to a chair and for good measure stand next to her with blades drawn. Marcus had relieved her of the staff and the pouch of magical seeds, Marcus lifted the staff weighing it in his hands, Inspecting It. It was of remarkably good quality craftmanship and inside the Ram head he could spot a green nature crystal it gave of a powerful magical aura. The pouch was also interesting there were several different kinds of seeds inside Marcus assumed they were all tools for her to use like the spear she had thrown at him. He handed both items to his Ghoul lieutenant Magog and started inspecting the Hut there was a small campfire burning but remarkably there was no firewood inside interesting and very typical of a druid. Marcus could see a table with two chairs and a bed but the wood was carved weirdly the wood looked like it had grown into becoming this certain item. Druids Marcus scoffed and continued his inspection he recognised several plants and herbs on a nearby shelf he knew them from his days as a farmer some of the ingredients were quite rare at least back in his day they were not they could be the most common plant around.. Marcus turned back to the Druid her head was slumped forward but Marcus could hear her heartbeats they were intensifying she was obviously masquerading as being asleep. Marcus pulled up one of the chairs and sat down in front of her. Marcus snickered ¡°My dear it is bad manners to doze off while entertaining guests don''t you agree?¡± Her head lifted and looked Marcus straight into the eyes ¡°I don''t remember inviting you¡± Marcus smiled showing his large white fangs ¡°oh how rude of me i haven¡¯t introduced myself, you may call me Marcus¡± Marcus put some emphasis on the name to make it clear to him that he was that MARCUS. She spit on the ground in disgust ¡°Vile Vampire i thought the brotherhood of light hunted you to extinction and yes i see your look i don''t know who you are!¡± Marcus was shocked but he maintained a complete stoneface. she must be lying he listened to her heartbeat it was regular no sign of lying. But she could have anticipated that.. I can''t believe her not yet i would need proof. Marcus stood up and turned towards the monument ¡°I have been asleep for sometime fill me on the last...hundr no thousand year?¡± She simply looked away ¡°i¡¯m not giving you anything you might aswell kill me now and get it over with¡± Marcus turned and walked closer he pulled her face towards her and kissed her she tried to evade but Marcus gave her a kiss then he looked into her ice blue eyes ¡°Give me what i want or i will burn this forest to cinders and sow it with salt i shall erect a new monument commemorating your failure for all eternity then i will hunt down all your brothers and sisters, burn down your temples and rape the earth mother herself if i have to!¡± He stood up took the sword of the left guard held it to her throat and asked ¡°what will it be?¡± The druid looked at Marcus with utter despair he wasn¡¯t bluffing he would actually do it and somehow i really believed him!A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. ¡°Where should i start¡± she replied defeated ¡°Start after My Empire the Eternal Empire fell what happened afterwards also what is your damn name woman!¡± The druid adjusted her seat ¡°my name is Helen and i have never heard of your so called Eternal Empire¡± Marcus flew up in anger he kicked the chair sending it flying into the wall shattering it into splinters. Then almost whispering ¡°don''t test me¡­ my Empire was the greatest the world had ever known it took the combined strength of the dwarfs, Elfs and humans to even challenge me and yet i still live!¡± Helen looked nervous maybe he was lying but was believing his own lies? ¡°Eh¡­ Marcus you are immortal yes? Well then maybe you¡¯ve just slept a very long time maybe even too long?¡± Marcus stood still in his tracks maybe just maybe it had really been that long Marcus knew that the history was written by the victor. The Eternal Empire is no more he must find one of his children one of them must be alive! He then looked at the ground and with a renewed smile he turned towards Helen. ¡°What do you know of this battlefield?¡¯ Helen looked at Marcus trying to figure out his angle. ¡°I don''t know much more than what the monument says good guys vs bad guys, Bad guys lost¡± Marcus took out a knife and walked towards Helen she closed her eyes accepting her end instead she found herself free. ¡°Follow me¡± Helen didn¡¯t think she had any chance against this very powerful vampire he was probably an ancient of sorts but she had never met one so it was a vague guess at best. Helen had been assigned this forest only 5 years ago by the Druid council to watch and protect it from evil forces oh boy had she failed. Marcus led her to a small hill in the middle of the Gorge Marcus turned to her ¡°Give me your hand i have need for your blood¡± She reluctantly put her hand on his he held it up taking his knife he sliced a her hand and the let the blood drip onto the small hill. As soon as Marcus had left the Hut he had started to search the surrounding for a presence any presence all of the combatants of this battle were all decomposed beyond resurrection except maybe one if Marcus was lucky he was still here. Marcus felt the presence get stronger and stronger before finally arriving at a small hill but Marcus recognised a burial mound when he saw one. I saw the blood drip from her hand onto the ground the ritual would be easier with Druid blood they had a connection to the earth and blood helped smooth the process I kneel down and put my hand on the earth i smear the blood and i start searching. I feel him my child Haldiram he is dead but his connection to me and the dead will help him rise again it will take all my strength he has been dead for a long time i can feel it and bringing him back will be a huge strain on my powers. I need a buffer i will only take what i need i look upon Helen and smile kindly before leaping with my fangs ready i plunge them into her neck she screams but i ignore it and i drain her to the brink of death and then let her drop to the ground she would live barely. I continue the ritual i find Haldiram buried down there i start pouring my energy into him rejuvenating him i can''t stop no matter how hard it becomes. I can hear his soul screaming to let him stay dead he was happy there he wants to go back but i know Haldiram better than he knows himself. I am his father and my family will be whole again even if i have to drag them from hell itself i will have them all back! The ritual feels like days the Undead even have to put up a tent around me lest i become incinerated by the sun. They hunt for animals and bring me rabbits, beavers and even an elk animal blood is weak but it can sustain you if the need arises. I feel the last of my energy go into Haldiram body i have felt his bones regrow, his flesh knitting itself into a tapestry. I pull on his soul one last time and finally it gives i hear him scream, I scream back and like a newborn baby Haldiram claws himself out of the earth i look at him proudly. He looks at me in utter shock and then collapses i catch him and his first words before falling unconscious is ¡°father you have returned?¡± I lay him down and as i slit the throat of a rabbit to pour in his mouth i say ¡°i have my son¡± Timeline chapter BV = (Before Vampires) AV = (After Vampires) 0 BV: - the great misfortune:Marcus a farmer works his fields, becomes tricked by a witch who has him slaughters his home village he then becomes cursed by kain the god of murder to walk and prey on mortals till the end of time. 500 AV - The golden age: Marcus has firmly established his own realm he proudly proclaims it the Eternal Empire for it will reign eternally. Under the control of Emperor Marcus the empire expands until it brushes up against a mountain range that is formed like a crescent it starts in the cold sea in the north of the continent and stops at the warm south sea surrounded by scorching desert Marcus names it the Shield mountains. Over the next decades Marcus has the few passes that exist sealed with great strongholds and has a permanent legion assigned to each pass and guard towers in between to watch for intruders that sneak across the mountains. Inside the Empire Marcus implements a class system that puts him as the head of the power pyramid and his First Spawn beneath him they are each assigned their own province to govern as they wish they gain the title of overlords. After the ruling class comes the Military class which is composed of other undead beings like ghouls and Halfbloods etc etc they are also include a large overseer class which commands everything from individual squads to entire cohorts. The Overseers also manage administrational duties like blood taxation etc and oversee the human population more directly compared to their vampire overlords. It is also important to note that the workforce of the Empire is almost entirely composed of undead beings just because they are inexhaustible and quite competent under direct leadership. At the bottom are the humans who still live in this Empire they are de facto cattle but this works to their advantage since they are mostly left alone to their own devices sometimes the males are called up to fight in the auxiliaries but they mostly provide tributes of blood to their Vampire overlords and of course their corpse once they die but renowned auxiliaries are exempted from this if they so wish. Marcus acknowledges the resource that the humans provide and he often encourages his human subjects to procreate because he knows that if the human population dwindles and can''t keep up with the vampire population then his family will surely perish. The other races are in a very small minority in the Eternal empire, they fled to their homelands when Marcus and his clan took over. 660 - 678 AV - start of the solar war: A new religious sect worshipping Kellor the god of light spreads like wildfire through the Eternal Empire the new sect preaches the destruction of all undead and most importantly the vampires themselves it causes mass unrest and eventually armed revolts. The vampire overlords first use force and crackdown on the sect but they know that they can kill too just because it¡¯s their foodsource, the sect knows this as well. After a year of revolts the Eternal Empire finally thinks it¡¯s dealt with the brunt of the sect when a major revolt in one of the Eternal Empire''s biggest cities and the seat of a Vampire overlord is taken from the inside. The Overlord is powerful and kills many cultists but eventually he is dragged out into the sun and incinerated. This is the point in the war when the other powers on the continent put aside their differences and unite into one massive army they know that one vs one they would have no chance against the behemoth that is the Eternal Empire but together they can crush it to dust.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. With the border strongholds lightly defended due to the undead legions being called away with pacifying the human population. The Army of light as they have come to call themselves bulldoze through the border strongholds and spread out towards the major population centers of the Empire. Marcus recognises the threat of the army of light poses and he also knows that he can''t fight an external war and an internal one at the same time so he eliminates the one can control. He has every human subject in all major cities still controlled by his vampire overlords put to death and drained of blood, then raised as undead soldiers. He now knows that now he simply has to wait the advantage of having a completely undead force is that they do not need sleep, food or drink and most importantly time. The general of the army of light recognises and does not plan on losing the initiative to Marcus he assembles his army and the human survivors of Marcus''s purges and go straight for the Citadel capital of the Eternal Empire and the royal court. The army of light arrive faster than Marcus even thought was possible and start laying siege. Marcus quickly start recalling his armies to relieve the siege but they would arrive too late. The General that leads the Army of light is the herald of Kellor and has been gifted with extraordinary powers. At night he walks forward towards the black coloured walls of the Citadel and looks up at the battlements he sees the legions of death upon it. But because it is night there are also vampires among them dressed for war in black full plate. The general of light smiles, he raises his arms towards the spy and as if ripping apart the night sky itself he makes it day. The vampires on the battlements all die when the rays of sunlight hit them creating a genuine confusion among their masters died before they could be issued an order so they stand there dumbfounded. The army of light charges towards the walls with ladders and battering rams the undead sub commanders start to try and organise a defence they lose precious minutes as the enemy gain ground. But soon start releasing volleys of arrows against their mortal counterparts. The battle for the walls are fierce the undead hold their ground but the flaw of Ghoul commanders is obvious they are simply not able to command the undead force like a Vampire. It is useless and a retreat is called. The battle continues in the streets of the citadel. The Army of light show their real metal when they deploy their priests of light on the captured walls they cast spells that dispel the binding of whole cohorts of skeletons. Usually a vampire mage would have countered them but the undead have no defences against it. Soon the Ghoul commanders are forced to commit their monstrous units bone giants and flesh golems to charge the army of light leaving only piles of meat in their wake. They pave the way and the undead regain some momentum. But the army of light deploy their bright paladins who wear full plate of volcanic metal that still have fires raging on them they burn the bone giants and flesh trolls to ash and the momentum is regain for the army of light. Marcus was horrified when he saw his children disintegrate before his eyes he almost perished himself. if it wasn¡¯t been for his supernatural agility carrying him to safety of his coffin in the knick of time. 678 - 712 AV - The start of the Vampire wars: In a matter of hours the whole citadel is overrun by humans who destroy everything. They find Marcus coffin but due to it being adamantium they can''t destroy it or open it so the general of light and his most trusted followers carry Marcus to a remote church and buries him in consecrated ground. For several hundred years the brotherhood of light guard the cemetery but eventually due to reasons lost to time they and the world forget about the cemetery and who lays there. The Eternal empire falls and and new humans build on top of the former cities. When the Overlords that were on their way to assist the siege learn that Marcus is dead they turn to grief then to anger they unite for the first and only time and drive the humans out of the lands of the Eternal Empire. Then the first born children of Marcus gather at the ruins of their capital citadel. At first they agree that the empire should be kept together but then there is the question who should succeed Marcus as Emperor? The meeting ended in blood and the wars ended in disaster they all carved up the Eternal Empire and Marcus¡¯s legacy and fought for humans as livestock and meat for their wars. Eventually all sides became too weak and after several years of fighting the Army of light invaded again and finished off the fractured Eternal Empire. Hundreds of years later Marcus is awoken by a band of grave robbers. Chapter - 5 Reunion and Cults Haldiram looked up he was laying in a coffin he recognised it instantly it was his father''s. Haldiram Struggled to sit up, his whole body ached and groaned as he pushed himself out of the coffin and onto his feet. Haldiram studied the room he found himself in, it was a large cave with a single door in and out was he a prisoner? ¡°No wait i remember¡­ Marcus? Father? Could it truly be him? Haldiram stumbled forward towards the door he tugged at the handle and it opened with a squeal he felt thirsty but if marcus was here there was only one way to find out ¡°FATHER!¡± Marcus heard Haldiram¡¯s shout, He had just been reviewing the first reports from the ghouls he had sent out almost a month ago much has happened they had been very informative but that had to wait. His son needed him, with a brisk pace he reached the room that Haldiram had been resting in he had let his warriors place Haldiram in his personal coffin to keep him safe. Marcus saw Haldiram standing in the doorway ¡°My son i¡¯m glad you are up we have much to discuss.¡± Haldiram pushed himself towards the nearby table, he steadied himself and standing upright ¡° I can''t believe it is you father, how are you still alive father?¡± Marcus walked up and put a hand onto Haldiram shoulder i does not matter all i¡¯ll say for now is that i was never dead only trapped but what matters now is figuring out what has happened in my absence tell me.¡± Haldiram felt his strength waning and grabbed a nearby chair he started ¡°you will not like what i have to say father. But i feel you need to know, we failed you miserably after you disappeared after the siege of the citadel we presumed you dead. Marcus stood over his son with a grim expression ¡°continue the truth Haldiram, the whole truth no matter how dark¡± Haldiram spoke at length of the time after Marcus disappearance (see the Timeline chapter for more information) When we were weak the mortal races returned to finish the job i had never laid claim to the throne so my forces were largely intact. So i quickly marched to the mountain passes to defend them but when i arrived they had already been taken. ¡°ENOUGH¡± Marcus was clenched his fist in anger his fingernails digging into his flesh and blood dripped from between his knuckles. ¡°I... I expected more from you all¡­ my sons and daughters i expected more instead of continuing my legacy you destroyed it. You have given me much to contemplate but for now you and i must look to the future once i have gathered all my children and reclaimed my empire we will discuss this but for now we will forget for now¡± Haldiram simply nodded he lowered his head in shame Marcus was right after all they had all acted like spoiled brats. ¡°What now father?¡± Marcus motioned for Haldiram to follow, Haldiram raised himself and followed as best as he can. They Entered the common room the tables had all been removed except for one which was placed in the middle. There was a large bronze bowl in the middle it was filled to the brim with fresh blood. Marcus walked up to the table he lifted two cups and filled them with blood from the bowl and offered one two Haldiram. ¡°A toast, In defeat plan tomorrow''s victory¡± Haldiram drank deeply from the cup he felt refreshed he wanted more but resisted his impulse to drink the whole bowl of blood. Marcus turned to the bowl and continued his incantation the blood started to boil and then shot up to create a sphere of blood. It worked much like the map spell that Marcus had used to survey the surroundings. Haldiram recognised the spell it was a communications spell quite useful. Marcus spoke to the orb of blood ¡°Viscera continue your report¡± Haldiram interrupted ¡°Who is this father?¡± Marcus explained that ¡°Viscera had been one of the grave robbers who had dug him up and that he had turned the survivors with enough blood potency into ghouls, her mission had been to infiltrate the nearby city¡± Marcus once again turned back to Viscera ¡°continue¡± As Viscera spoke ripples became visible across the blood orbs surface ¡°My Emperor this place is known as Harvok and it is the capital of a small city state within the greater Jorvathi Confederacy. From what i have been able to gather the Greater Jorvathi Confederacy is the principal human superpower on the continent and from what you have told me. It seems they now own most of your empire''s former lands except for a small coastline in the north.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Greater Jorvathi Confederacy seems to be an alliance of many large city states like Harvok who have banded together to form a larger nation. They seem to favor decentralisation and leave all foreign policy to the border city states. If war were to come all other city states are obligated to support the city state who was attack but if it is an offensive war by one of the city states other cities may support but they are not obligated to. Marcus seemed indifferent but Haldiram was more curious ¡°how have you acquired such an intricate knowledge about the inner workings of their government?¡± Viscera responded ¡°All the information about their government is public information the blue-stripe accords as the agreement is known are public knowledge, it is encouraged by normal citizens to learn what keeps the Greater Jorvathi confederacy together without it the city states would have nothing to keep them from destroying each other. Haldiram ignored Viscera and turned to Marcus ¡°Father how long have you been active in this age?¡± Marcus responded ¡°little over a month now you have rested for almost 3 weeks, know that dragging the soul back from the underworld strains the mind and body. You may experience adverse side effects, visions and seeing the dead but you know all this of course death is your expertise after all.¡± Haldiram nodded ¡°yes i know, but father what do you need me to do anything to earn back your trust.¡± Marcus turned back to Viscera ¡°how large is the cemetery in Harvok?¡± Marcus was betting that their traditions were still the same as in his age. Viscera responded ¡°yes my Emperor there are several smaller ones outside the city but the largest is in the Cathedral of Kellor. Beneath it i¡¯ve heard there is a very large collection of catacombs filled with the dead of soldiers who have died in the service of the brotherhood of light and i¡¯ve heard that that the centerpiece of the cathedral is the grave of a champion of light.¡± Marcus rubbed his chin, could it be him? No no he would be buried in the greatest of their cities. Marcus gaze turned to Haldiram ¡°they have buried their doom beneath their city with that army we can take the first step towards our return. But remember both of you we must remain hidden until the enemy is weak and has turned on itself. Surprise will be our greatest advantage for as long as the mortal races think us dead we can act with impunity. Viscera how is the cult that i ordered you to gather progressing?¡± Haldiram spoke up ¡°Cult?¡± but Marcus hushed him ¡°speak Viscera¡± Viscera spoke but with a slight hint of hesitation ¡°slow my Emperor we need more capital to attract new members but my most recent survey puts us at 50 human followers. Many are outcasts of all sorts but a couple are guards and clerks in the city nobody of importance yet my emperor¡± Marcus responded ¡°that is unfortunate but understandable under the circumstances i will make sure you receive more capital once we acquire it¡± ¡°Most gracious my Emperor¡± ¡°You are dismissed Viscera¡± with ¡°My Emperor¡± the blood orb slowly started to dissolve into nothing as the blood¡¯s potency was expended. Haldiram repeated his question ¡°a cult father?¡± Marcus turned to walk away motioning for Haldiram to follow ¡°yes Haldiram, your cult more exactly¡± Haldiram stopped dead in his track, ¡°My cult?¡± Marcus stopped aswell and turned to face Haldiram ¡°yes a cult dedicated to the worship of the undead, i¡¯ve thought long on what went wrong how i failed the first time and i¡¯ve decided that since we can''t live without the humans we must have control over them. The cult of Kellor swept through our livestock without hinderance. If we had cultivated our own religion promising eternal then i believe things would have turned out differently.¡± Haldiram considered it for a moment ¡°you may be right father, if we could draw from a class of religious zealots that would be glad even honoured to die and feed us. It could change everything but what god do we dedicate this to father? Aborash the god the dead? Or Nazumar god of undeath?¡± Haldiram did not dare speak the last name the could think of Kain god of murder. Even the first born did not dare speak the god of murders name in the presence of their father. Marcus simply shaked his head ¡°no my son you and me our kind we are the gods our servants will pray and sacrifice themselves to.¡± Haldiram was stunned ¡°but father¡­ Marcus please don''t tell me you believe yourself a god?¡± Marcus laughed ¡°no of course not it is simply theater for the masses to keep them in line to the slaughter and maybe we might even draw our second born from the most competent of the faithful but enough of this for now. My plan is to make all the firstborn a god in our new pantheon you Haldiram will be the god of the faithful their link to us. I will be the god of the dead and the rest will be decided when they are found.¡± Haldiram felt uncomfortable he was not a faithful man but the gods did exist, the eternal empire had been destroyed by the champion of one. But now was not the time to question his father later he would try to dissuade Marcus from this path and maybe make the religion into one of the existing gods instead. ¡°I understand father what now?¡± Marcus simply turned ¡°we let slip the dogs of war¡± as marcus followed by Haldiram walked outside the cave into the moonlit forest 100 undead warriors stood in formation. Magog walked up to marcus in his new suit of half-plate with a tabard with a red handprint on the front, the new symbol of the cult of undeath. ¡°they are ready my Emperor¡± Marcus turned to Magog ¡°this is my son Haldiram you will go with him and half of our warriors show the way to the churches east of Harvok that we scouted before.¡± Magog nodded, and Marcus turned to Haldiram ¡°you know what you must do kill everyone no survivors, raise the dead and take all valuables i will do the same.¡± Haldiram smiled towards his father he was ready this is what he did best ¡°i wouldn¡¯t do it any other way¡± Marcus padded his son on the shoulder ¡°good now go we¡¯ve wasted enough darkness¡± Both parties split up into the dark night Chapter - 6 Plunder Haldiram was standing in second church their little warband had hit. All around him lay the broken bodies of the priests of Kellor unarmed they had falsely assumed that Kellor the god of light would protect his them. Alas they had not expected Haldiram one of the greatest necromancers of his age to knock on their door. Haldiram Chuckled, he removed his foot from the neck of the high priest who ran this church. Stepping off Haldiram kicked the high priest onto his back with a loud thud and sounds of pain from the injured high priest. Haldiram kneeled down beside him and looked around at the carnage ¡°All you are is to be cattle, being led to the slaughter, your purpose is and forever will be to feed my kind¡± The High priest looked at him with a sorrowed expression and with his final breath he uttered ¡°Lord forgive them for they know not what they do¡± Haldiram looked at him almost pitying almost, He stood up and shouted for Magog not soon after the ghoul captain stepped inside the church, his whole body was soaked in blood from head to toe. ¡°Did you catch the once who fled?¡± Magog nodded ¡°Anyone alive?¡± Magog held up one finger ¡°Bring the mortal to me and find me some nails and a hammer¡± Haldiram looked down at the dead high priest ¡°I know exactly what i¡¯m doing¡± Magog came back dragging a young blond farm boy by the hair he was kicking and screaming once he arrived he threw the boy onto the ground in front of Haldiram Haldiram studied the boy he could smell that he had recently wet himself ¡°You will do, what is your name boy?¡± The blond boy simply looked at the ground either too afraid or too stupid to answer Haldiram nodded to two undead warriors they lifted the boy up and pinned him to the church door. Another undead warrior came forward with a hammer and nails and started to hammer them into the boy''s exposed palm. Haldiram looked on in silence, he was not a cruel man but in his experience having a reputation for it is better than not having it. Psychological warfare is the simplest and cheapest way of conducting a war, if the enemy is too afraid to face you in battle you¡¯ve saved yourself both time and resources. Haldiram turned to magog ¡°status report¡± Magog spoke with a cold calculating voice his allegiance was not to Haldiram but to Marcus but his master had given him an order to follow this new master for the time being. ¡°20 mortals dead in total, 200 potential graves, 200Kg of gold and silver in the form of church artifacts and personal belongings and 1 barrel of blood. Haldiram listened attentively this was a good first raid now it was his time to perform. ¡°Bring the barrel of blood to the graveyard and the corpses of the recently slain. Before moving to the graveyard Haldiram walked up to the Blond boy that was now weeping slowly. Haldiram pulled out a knife and plunged it into the stomach of the boy with the boy screaming Haldiram plunged his hand into the open wound and pulled out the boys guts and let it hang from his stomach to the earth. Later Standing at the crossroads that separated the graveyard Haldiram lifted of the lid of the barrel, he could see the red liquid inside. He scooped up a cup and drank it was delicious and then he started to chant the forbidden words, over and over again he could see the nature around him starting to die, how the tombstones start to crack. Then the blood started to float from the barrel into the air, Haldiram started to direct the blood to flow around him. He was using the blood to lure the spirits of the dead who were buried here and in exchange for the blood they would animate their old decayed body. And not long after the earth above the graves started to part as newly animated corpses started to claw themselves to freedom and join the undead horde.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. 210 new undead warriors moved to join the herd, but first Haldiram ordered that the graves be reburied and none would be the wiser. Haldiram and Magog with their horde continued on to sack two more churches before returning to the cave. All in all they had plundered about 600 more undead warriors and 700kg of gold and silver. Marcus had led his troops through the forest he was leading them towards a lonely monastery it¡¯s inhabitants marcus had a bone to pick with. The monastery was a training grounds for the warriors of Kellor, the hated brotherhood of light. It was midnight when the small band of 50 undead warriors arrived at the monastery, Marcus surveyed the surroundings around the monastery. The building itself was quite large the centerpiece was the main chapel where they would conduct regular prayers to Kellor the god of light and presumably the senior members of the brotherhood. There were also a courtyard where the brotherhood of light¡¯s recruits would train until they were released as full members. The courtyard was flanked by two wings the the right was presumably the dormitory and to the left was an administrative building with classrooms and other necessities and the whole complex was surrounded by a 2 meter tall stone wall roughly 20 centimeters thick and a wood gate facing the courtyard. Marcus decided to sneak up and acquire more information alone since his undead warriors were somewhat useless in the sneaking department. Marcus quickly and efficiently scaled the wall and was on the other side in seconds without wasting a moment he dashed towards the left wing of the monastery hiding himself in the buildings shadows. He surveyed the courtyard nobody around the were most likely not expecting any sort of attack since the whole complex is dedicated to creating elite warriors for the brotherhood. There were no guards at the gate it was locked however, Marcus grabbed the bars on each side of the lock, braced and snapped it Marcus was about to order his warriors to enter the courtyard when he felt it damn¡­a cleric Marcus turned around towards the courtyard in the middle of it was a single man he was dressed in a white robe but Marcus saw through the curves of his figure that he was wearing heavy armour most likely enchanted as well. But then it struck him what was he doing why was he scurrying around like a frightened rat? Was a mere burglar or the founder and ruler of all vampire kind no no no this would not do. Marcus walked slowly forward towards the cleric, the undead warriors pushed the gate open and slowly followed their master into the courtyard. From the chapel several dussin white robed individuals holding all manner of weapons started to walk slowly up and stand behind the cleric. Soon both forces stood face to face one dark another light marcus made a note of commissioning a painting of this moment it was very symbolic. Marcus and the Cleric both took a step in front of their forces the Cleric spoke first. ¡°You dare defile this holy place with your filth vampire i have hunted your kind before and i will cherish this moment, praise be to Kellor may his light shine upon us this fortuitous night.¡± Marcus simply smirked ¡°you have it all wrong cleric Kellor may rule the day but i rule the night you are free to prove me wrong you and me i relish the challenge.¡± The Cleric turned towards two individuals behind him they both nodded ¡°as you wish vampire you and me but i see you have no weapon¡± Marcus channeled his shadow magic the magic flowed from his hand until it formed a sabre made from pure darkness. ¡°Oh i have my weapon right here¡± If the cleric was surprised he did not let it show as he pulled his sword from his scabbard it erupted in a bright flame illuminating the arena. Marcus twirled his sword around him simply unconcerned ¡°oh this will be fun¡± Marcus made a couple of quick jabs at the Cleric testing the waters, it was easily deflected the Cleric however did not seem to be interested in games and quickly went on the offensive. Marcus used his agility to evade one strike another he ducked while simply ignoring to attack savoring the battle. Marcus jumped back to gain some breathing room, the Cleric was clearly not amused ¡°fight¡± Marcus twirled his sword ¡°as you wish¡± and with a smile the true battle began. The shadow blade struck the clerics flaming longsword the picture was out of legend. The swordsmanship of both combatants was impressive but Marcus had done this a lot longer than his opponent he knew all the tricks and moves in the book some of them he had even invented. Marcus swung his sword in an arc nearly cutting the cleric apart but he avoid within a hairsbreadth both combatants made an overhand cutting motion locking blades the cleric held his blade with both hands marcus aswell but in an unexpected motion he prepared to evade while he at the same time disabled his shadowblade making the cleric fall forward marcus dodged the incoming blade but the Cleric was stumbled forward and in a quick motion marcus grabbed the clerics head and snapped his neck. The Cleric motion carried him flying into the dirt, the remaining brotherhood of light warriors looked in stunned silence ¡°Sorry to interrupt the grieving but i do have a timetable to keep¡± motioning for the moon The roar of the warriors of Kellor was music to Marcus''s ears he simply smiled as the forces of darkness and light, undead and mortals fighting to the death the battle was glorious and the victory would have surely gone to the warriors of light if not for the sheer battle prowess of Marcus killing with the strength of 100 men he was unstoppable and soon Marcus finished of the last warrior of light. After the fight Marcus raised the now dead brotherhood of light recruits to join his undead horde, While marcus lost 40 of the undead warriors he set out with he gained 60 new undead warriors from the dead. He quickly ordered them to loot anything of value and all the weapons they could find while he rested and worked on a special project. Marcus walked over to the dead Cleric laying on the ground he kneeled down and started stripping his armour he had plans for it. When all was said and done Marcus had a horde of 70 undead warriors, they looted 500 weapons of various kinds, 50kg of gold and silver in forms of religious artifacts and one suit of magical full-plate.