Prologue - To Clear A Few Things Up...

This presents the introduction of Olivette Cole, the narrator of the story, and her attempt to clear up some common myths about vampires before beginning her own biography.

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I made the decision long ago to share my story, the story of a young but intelligent vampire fledgling, long before any other vampires deemed it safe enough to emerge from hiding. Vampire stories have flooded the world in the few years that I have been one of the undead and, while this recollection may not be revolutionary, it is real and it is mine. I, Olivette Cole, do not promise the intriguing tale of a vampire rockstar or the sordid retelling of a young vampire falling in love with a human girl. My story is much darker than either of those. While Lestat de Lioncourt  was created in covetousness and Isabella Swan was borne out of adolescent love, I was crafted out of necessity. But I will get to that in due time.

 

The world at large has always been enamored with tales of vampires no matter what the era. Though these tales were originally horrific and bloody, designed to keep unruly children in line, they soon became tales told for entertainment’s sake. What no one has realized in the hundreds of years vampires have existed is how true such a human “fiction” of actually is. It is not as grand as one might think: the true life of a vampire isn’t like an Anne Rice book or a movie with Wesley Snipes. The true life of a vampire doesn’t mean wearing black clothes, ringing your eyes with eyeliner, and dancing in a club while someone sucks on your neck. Vampirism is deeper than the dark Goth glamour people believe it to be. Drinking blood to survive is as spiritual and divine as the need to live is real. The Act, as I’ll call it, is more moving, more terrifying, and more necessary than any human can ever understand, but I will attempt to explain it to you.

 

Simply put, vampirism is the connection of an innocent human being with a damned Otherworlder; a connection so innocent and pure and yet so sinful its mere contradictory power should have rendered it extinct long ago. There are some things that, as a human, you should know about us.

 

Firstly, when a vampire takes their first bite into untouched human flesh, when those first droplets of blood come pouring over the tongue, a menacing and uncontrollable fire takes hold and it is impossible to stop. Even the most powerful of us, the most human-loving, will kill once they have tasted that first drop. Once the flow has begun there is no stopping it. It has nothing to do with a vampire’s strength or weakness; it is merely a physical attribute, an act we engage in to ensure our own survival.

 

Secondly, when one vampire decides to make a fledgling, their strength will not have any effect on the strength of the fledgling. Strength is determined by the amount of struggling that the fledgling endures before the moment of death. In my case, I did not struggle at all, and so I was born a very weak vampire, but again that is to be told later.

 

Thirdly, to find a lone vampire in this new and curious world is extremely rare. While a vampire may not be involved with a large coven they always travel in numbers no smaller than a pair. It is unsafe for a vampire to be alone in this day and age not only because rogue covens exist, some solely to “cleanse” our race, but because  vampire hunters exist and hunt us more fervently now than ever before. Technology has made it easy for them to track and kill us and so, in order to prevent extinction, we travel in groups. I fear we are starting to become like our hairy moon-sensitive counterparts.

 

Yes, lycanthropes are more closely related to vampires than humans think, and there is not war between our races but an agreed peace so long as everyone keeps their distance. It has nothing to do with prejudice and everything to do with survival.

 

I’ve cleared up some common misperceptions about vampires that have bothered me for nearly a decade and I don’t doubt you are itching to hear more about my dark and beautiful race of pale-skinned blood drinkers. However, this story must start with three young humans who allowed themselves to be corrupted by the idea of perfect and timeless love.

 

I was such a human once.

 

Author's Note

If you find anything wrong tell me immediately! :) I'd like as much input as possible on the plotline I'm trying to create and if it seems interesting or unoriginal.