Vampires Realm Prophecy 01 - Child of Light

their blood lie. It was truth, and he had seen it with his own eyes and felt it in his heart. To tell his lord of her existence was to sentence her to death and that would have terrible repercussions.
    He stared at the window, watching the rain streaking down it while he pulled himself together and reminded himself that he’d served this house loyally for over two centuries. Now wasn’t the time to be disloyal, not when he’d worked so hard to get where he was. Not when he was so close.
    “You seem troubled.”
    He heard Kalinor stand and he looked at him out of the corner of his eye. His lord looked worried. He was drawing too much attention to himself. He had to tell him now before he grew angry.
    “You did not succeed tonight in finding the hunter that plagues our city, but that does not mean you will not prevail. You will defeat him. I’m as certain of that as I am of you becoming the Law Keeper for Aurorea one day.”
    Valentine closed his eyes as he felt those words plunge into his chest, twisting there like a knife. He would be a Law Keeper one day, if only he could find his voice and confess to his lord what he’d found tonight and why he smelt of their enemy.
    He took a deep breath and felt tranquillity fill him.
    “The prophecy,” he said the words slowly and looked directly at his lord.
    Kalinor’s eyes widened, his jaw tensing while he waited to hear what he had to say.
    Valentine began to pace, not wanting to see his lord’s eyes when he told him about her. He could feel Kalinor’s gaze following his every move, could sense the anticipation as it hung in the air between them. His lord would know that this was the reason he’d seemed so distracted and agitated tonight. He could no longer go back and keep her to himself. He had to go forwards and do his duty.
    “Go on.” Kalinor encouraged him.
    Valentine sighed.
    “I had no luck in hunting the man responsible for taking two of our best. I ran into something else... something... ” He closed his eyes briefly and replayed the image of her lost in the taste of blood and the thrill of the hunt. Opening his eyes, he looked at the floor and frowned. “Enthralling.”
    “Enthralling?” Kalinor moved towards him, but Valentine moved away, going to the window and staring out of it at the darkness.
    He watched the rain sweeping across the garden and clasped his hands behind his back.
    “She exists,” he said and waited.
    It wouldn’t take his lord long to piece together what he was saying. He would know that the blood he could smell on him would have something to do with it. He didn’t resist when Kalinor caught hold of his shoulders and turned him to face him. His lord’s eyes came to rest on the small spot of red that was still marring his lips.
    “She’s one of them?” Kalinor said.
    Valentine nodded in confirmation.
    “I found her hunting, alone. She appeared to be executing her first kill. They have kept her hidden well... only she did not wish to remain that way.” He looked deep into his lord’s eyes and searched them for an answer to his next question. “Is she dangerous?”
    Kalinor smiled.
    It was true then. Valentine remembered what he’d been told as a youngling, what all vampires were told. In the future, a dark day would dawn and with it would come the end of their existence, all at the hands of one of their own. The one he had met tonight was the child of the prophecy. She was going to destroy their kind.
    Kalinor walked towards the door and stopped with his hand on the handle.
    “For now, this goes no further than the elders. As an envoy, I will visit the house of Caelestis. You will be there at my side to recount what you witnessed tonight and we will see what they have been hiding from us.” Kalinor looked back at him and gave him a grim smile. “Then you will have the proud honour of destroying the abomination.”
    Valentine’s stomach dropped when he heard those words. They had been spoken with a smile that said what a true honour it would be to be known as the vampire who had stopped the prophecy from coming true. He stared at the door his lord had walked out of and felt empty inside.
    He would be responsible for destroying the abomination?
    What honour was there in murdering her? He couldn’t see any, not as his lord could.
    He shuddered inwardly at the thought of killing her.
    He didn’t want to be the one responsible for her death, didn’t want to take eternity away from her. There was nothing