Hidden Truths - Ethan

Prologue

First of all, it is necessary to say thank you to two great people who made this story possible by giving me creative input. The idea of this story and the characters inside are inspired or fully taken from a Discord RPG with said two people.

Thank you,

MorriganCrow (Twitter: @M0rriganCr0w) and 
brutus_bg (mail: brutus_bg@mail.bg)

for working out the details of the world they live in with me.

~~*~~

Ethan Vinge is someone without clear roots and without the slightest interest to tell you where he comes from. He was rather nobody before and even though this is not his real name, he made it his to become who he is now. He is the Lord's royal guard, not the only one but the leader. They also call him 'Butcher', for things that happened a hundred years ago, but the gossip did not die as of yet. Most of those vampires were not even born back then, but why start from the beginning, when we can start at the interesting part?

We write the year 1848 A.D. and live in the most civilized city and flourishing empire. The United Kingdom has its own charm and the city of London for sure is a great sight on its own. Most of the year the sky is gray and there are a lot of rainy days, even though it's the gate to the new world and economics are very well. 

What all the humans do not realize is the hidden society in the dark. Even in the night a lot of people are on the streets. People who have a bit better eyesight, a bit faster movements, if it's necessary also with a more silent tone. People with fangs and who attend a lot of balls but never are seen to eat too much or drink. Well - they do drink. They stick to the red liquid that gets poured in only. An exquisite drink, which mostly can get mistaken for wholesome red wine, but the taste and smell, oh, it betrays that this is something different.

In the middle of the city, at the dead end of a street in Newington, there is a mansion. One could say it's nothing special; just another Victorian mansion surrounded by many others alike. There are main doors to the right and left of all of those, but one would be surprised if one would try to open it. They are not only constantly locked; someone built brick walls behind most of them. This sounds odd to the unknowing, but the mansion in the middle is the main entry. The other buildings are connected, renovated, forming a hidden structure of a well-connected network of building parts with the highest comfort standards possible.

Nobody unworthy should know about the real size of the nightly society living there. It is the headquarters of the council; the very same council, which got established and ruled by Lord Tristan Blackwood. He was the one to bring peace and wealth to the bloodsucking race, leading them out of the middle ages into a society that does not fear the daylight, while sleeping. No peasants with hayforks would try to come after them; it is the other way round actually. They come to ask for work.

The Vampire's Society of London pays well for their human servants. Over the years, the minister of economics was able to pull the right strings, not only on the stock markets but also whom to threaten to get the fortune on his side. This has no glory, but it built the walls around them, fed the vampires within the boundaries, and made it possible to get wealthy and powerful enough to have a clear hierarchy. At the side of Lord Blackwood, there always was one person: Me.

I insisted on closing as many doors as possible because every entrance needs to be watched and the more they became the less I could be sure to not overlook someone slipping in that does not belong here. I was also the one making sure that those who need to be threatened will remember what they are advised to do. 

A few years ago, the minister of economics wanted to rent our spare rooms. This was the first time he had to face the slightly angry me. I am not a member of the council, but my spot is next to our Lord, where he lends me an ear now and then, especially when it comes to our safety.

Even though his aim is to protect every vampire who lives within our mansion and also to guarantee a certain safety for the ones all over London, I know that I would sacrifice all of them to protect him. There is only one other person I got strict orders on how to treat her after I had some, let's say starting problems. 

Eve Blackwood. She is Tristan's protégé. Even though she is in my guard's training program, her courses and lessons are a bit more specialized than what I teach the others. She has potential. Therefore, she is one of those persons who drive me nuts.

Now, all of this maybe means nothing to you, but here is my story. It is a story about betrayal, desperation, wrong turns and a lot of blood and death, but - and this is important - it is also a story about how I learned who I am. The real Ethan, in case something like this exists. I will not hide from you, because I did for too long, at too many people.

It all starts with a murder or maybe it already started with a visitor. A murder I did not cause, and a visitor I did not like. Or did I? Who knows, people blame me for everything nowadays.

Read on if you dare to find my truth.