Chapter one: Of hunting and secret lives

Alma que dio calor

Despues de profanar todo se congeló

Un llanto que se ahogó

Después de muchas noches el dolor te embriagó

(Soul that gave its warmth

Alter it was profaned everything froze

A cry that drowned

After a lot of nights the pain took over you)

Suite Doble-Profanar

1989

The shadows covered the tall building in the financial district of Tokyo. It was the darkest hour of the night, the hour before sunrise. The time where not even a soul wandered the city, or at least not someone with a soul.

Folktales always told that dark spirits and horrible creatures wandered in the dark. But what no one ever knew was that the folktales were true. Or a least a part of them. They were not as horrible as the folktales said. They looked like normal human beings, except for the fact that they drank other's blood to survive.

And what tales never said either was that the Vatican church created a branch of skilled warriors that hunted these dark creatures. The ones that hid in the dark to keep those in the light safe. Exceptional hunters that were trained to eradicate the threat.

A young girl stood on the rooftop of the building, her gaze locked on the streets below. Long shining golden hair falling down her waist, crystal blue eyes focused on her search. A black coat fell down her ankles and a long crossbow hung from her back. Serena was one of the best hunters, but also one of the most rejected ones. Her mother have been a young nun, loved and respected by all on the order, and that assured her life as a hunter, but the other half of her genes were the reason she was so strong, but also so feared.

Her father has been a vampire. Traditional tales that vampires weren't able to have descendants were true, at least a part. If a vampire's mate was a human lady, and he found her without being killed by a hunter, he could raise a family with her. Of course that the idea of a vampire loving a human was stupid. Love, Serena thought while she scanned the area, How can a vampire feel that? Vampires feared the hunters, because they knew how skilled they were. And the chances that a human is meant to be a vampire's mate were small. The mating ritual between vampires required the willing participation of both sides and no normal human being would agree to do so. Until Serena's mother, Marie, did. Marie was young when she first went to her first hunting mission, but instead of killing the vampire, she fell in love. Nine months later she returned to the convent, begging for mercy for her unborn child. She gave birth to Serena and died a few minutes later. The monks and nuns wanted to kill the baby, but the head of the monastery refused. He was Marie's uncle, Stefano Grazziano. He raised Serena as his own and trained her to become a hunter.

A movement on the street pulled Serena out of her thinking. A young girl, around 18 years walked on a near alley. But Serena saw something else, a shadow behind her. Stupid vampires, Serena thought, thousands of years of existence and their hunting techniques are still the same, no wonder why they are so easy to hunt. She stood up and her hand reached behind her back, taking the crossbow out. She searched on her arm, under the fabric of the coat and took out a silver arrow. Placing it on the bow, she waited until the vampire attacked the girl and stood on top of her, leaning to drink her blood. Predictable move, Serena thought, while she aimed to the vampire's back, on the place where its heart was supposed to be. Pulling the trigger, she saw that the arrow stab the vampire on the right spot and it turned to dust. Predictable, she repeated on her mind, this whole hunting thing is getting boring, for six months I had no action. She placed the crossbow once more on her back and jumped to the next rooftop, trying to find more action before the sun rise up.

AVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVA

Serena arrived to the monastery at dawn, after killing a couple of vampires more. She walked through the tall wooden doors of the chapel and went to the study of her uncle. She crossed a lot of nuns on her way there and all of them made the sign of the cross on their chests when they saw Serena. She frowned at them and they backed off away from her. Hypocrite whores, she thought, treat me like a plague but they want me to do their job. She walked through the doors of the study and an old monk raised to greet her with a smile on his old face.

"My dear, you are back! How was your hunt?" He said to her, making a small smile appear on her face.

"Boring, as usual. No wonder why vampires are so close to be extinct." She sat on a chair across the old man and shrugged, "Took three down before I had to head back."

The old man looked at his niece. She was beautiful, but still so lonely and hated. He sighed, making her stare at her with an inquisitive look on her face.

"What is wrong? You seem worried" She inquired.

The old man looked at her face. I can't lie to her anymore, he thought.

"I spoke to the hunters' council"

Serena frowned at the name of the council.

"What do they want?" Those old bastards always want to find a way to screw my life more, last time they called my uncle it was because they thought I had to be hunted.

"They want you to protect someone"

She looked at him in disbelief.

"Me? Since when do they trust me enough to let me protect someone?"

"They said that this kid is wanted by the undead. It seems that he is the heir of the vampire throne, but he is human"

"A human is the heir of the vampire throne? Man, they must be desperate to let a human rule them!"

The older man smiled at his niece's remark.

"He doesn't know that the vampires exist. And the rumors said that vampires are not happy with the choice. They are looking for this young man to kill him. But not the usual ones, he is wanted by the ancient ones"

Serena frowned.

"The ancient vampires? The ones that are so powerful that have killed hundreds of hunters without breaking a sweat? Great, since all the regular hunters would be killed, they want me to do the dirty work! Are you sure that this is not another trick to get me killed?"

Stefano shook his head.

"There is something I haven't told you and it seems that this is the right time to do it. You know that your father was a vampire, right?"

Serena looked at the fireplace and the light was reflected on her eyes, her face getting gloomy when her uncle mentioned her father.

"Yeah, I know. That's why I can jump down a building without killing myself and why all the other hunters hate me. What's new about that?"

Stefano got up and walked next to Serena.

"Your father was a vampire but not a regular one. He was one of the ancient ones."

Serena turned to see him, her eyes wide with shock. She stood up and walked to her uncle.

"Are you telling me that I am a descendant of an ancient one? I am a possible heir of the vampire throne?"

Stefano nodded to her.

"The race to the vampire throne has three contestants. You, being the daughter of an ancient one, the young man you are meant to protect, he is a half breed as well, but he haven't realized his abilities and another full blooded vampire, son of one of the bloodiest vampires in history and enemy of your father. He is known as Onuki and he is one of the ones we don't want to inherit the throne. If he does, the vampires will rise and attack more humans than before, even threatening the hunter's kind"

Stefano walked to the old wooden desk behind them and pulled a picture of a young man with jet black hair and dark blue eyes. He handed it to Serena and she studied the photo.

"His name is Darien Shields and is a medicine student. He was an orphan after his parents died on the battle that killed your father as well. Ever since, the vampires have waited for the three of you to reach the proper age for battling for the throne and the time is approaching dear. You must find him and protect him, before any of Onuki's minions kill him."

Serena nodded to her uncle.

"Where is he now?"

"He usually spends time at library of school or at an arcade, named Crown Arcade. Find him and try to bring him here"

She turned to leave. Great, now I am gonna get caught in a vampire battle. Well Serena, you wanted fun and now you got it.

AVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVA

First chapter!! TaDa!! I know its pretty short, but I promise that the next ones will be longer!! The song is from a Costa Rican band from the 80's named Suite Doble. If you wanna check the song, go to y o u t u b e . c o m / w a t c h ? v Q w 4 Y s G F t Q J k there is the video of the song. It was taped on Cartago, on an ancient sanatorium, which is supposed to be haunted!! I love that place is sooo nice and mysterious!!