It was a long cold night when a sudden light cut through the skies. It was bright enough to shine through the foliage, and send a curtain of hot wind through the trees. The comet descended into the far distance, and was taken as a blessed omen by the drow.
Rain learned quickly from her new concubine that the drow saw such things as a sign from the heavens for renewal. Apparently, deep underground such signs were often ignored, and thus lead to what they called, ‘the times of waning’. Now that they could bask in such starlight again, they were eager to regain their lost customs.
Children played in the springs waters, as the drow’s women worked overtime to pledge themselves to young men. Already, almost all the men were claimed. Several had disappeared in the shelter of their tents to consumate their love underneath the star fire.
“They’re worried you’ll claim more of their men, so the women are working overtime to ensure that you cannot.” Tjere sat next to Rain at the base of the ruined temple. She was wearing her armor, with a short sword attached to her belt.
Rain smirked, “Like they could do anything to stop me.” She meant it as a jest, but there was a hint of truth in her voice.
“The drow bond for life, so your new snack will never be allowed to mate with anyone else.” Tjere spoke quietly. “It’s kinda sad really.”
Rain had no idea where Szordrin was at the moment. Last she saw him he was looking for fireword. Her curse marks throbbed against her flesh, it wouldn’t be long until she would enjoy him again.
“I’ll be sure to reward him for his…sacrifice,” Rain teased. “If he lives long enough, I may even let him impregnate me.”
“I’ve never seen a child from such a pairing. Who knows what trouble that’ll bring.” Tjere sighed, and leaned back against the cold column of stone.
For several minutes, the two simply sat there watching Rains subjects enjoying the festivities. Rain wondered what kind of god they worshipped, and how truly loyal they would be to her in the future. She also wondered if they would follow her from the safety of the glade. If so, how would she protect them?
Rain looked over, and wishing to change the subject, tried ask Tjere the very same question she asked Namire the day before. “So tell me Tjere, what is it that you want?” The question caught Tjere by surprise. The dhampir leaned forward and looked squarely toward Rain as if she had done something wrong.
“I merely wish to serve my lady.” Her shoulders were shaking. “Why? Did I do something to displease you?”
“Why do you think I’m displeased?” Rain raised an eyebrow. “I’m merely curious.”
Rain had to reach over, and place a hand on the dhampire’s shoulder to calm her down. For several minutes that small comfort helped Tjere contemplate the question.
“I only wish to serve,” Tjere answered finally.
“Come on,” Rain couldn’t help but feel a little annoyed. “You can be honest with me. You heard me promise Namire to find her a life-mate. Don’t tell me there’s nothing in that bold heart of your’s that you desire.”
Tjere chewed her lip for a few minutes before finally summoning the strength to speak openly. “I can’t stand vampire’s,” her declaration was full of spite. “Do you know why?”
“Tell me…”
Tjere cleared her throat before continuing. “Far to the north of here is a land known as Ukrasti. Have you ever hear of it?”
Rain shook her head, “Can’t say that I have.” In truth Rain knew little of the world beyond these forests, or beyond this very grove.
Tjere paused, listening to the music of the drow. Her eyes danced between the shimmering campires and starlight cast against the water. “It is a cold land, winters are seemingly endless, and beasts are a plenty. The only good thing about it is that the wild animals are quite large, so there was always an abundance of food. Ukrasti is populated by many tribes amid the frost lands, yet all of them follow similar traditions.”
Tjere clenched her fingers as she continued. “My mother was not a strong woman. She was born sickly, and prone to illness all her life. Such was the way of things that more often than not, only the strong survive. Don’t misunderstand, my tribe didn’t abandon her. The tribe is a family, they cared for he the best they could. But because of her illness, she was likely never to marry. No man would bond with her, for she was too weak.”
Such customs seemed cruel, but not altogether strange. If the tribes weren’t able to produce strong children, they would likely die out swiftly. Rain kept that to herself, not wanting to interrupt Tjere’s story.
Tjere continued. “My mother was a good woman, she worked hard to support the tribe the best she could. She learned how to cook and clean, and always embroidered, even when she was bedridden. I learned she was always sad, sad for not being able to partake in hunts or guard the tribe when the men were away. She was barely able to take care of herself, and if it weren’t for all the tribe sisters she certainly wouldn’t have made it as long as she did.” Tjere looked down to the floor. “I’m sure she thought of herself as nothing more than a drain on her people, a waste of resources. But like I said, food at least was plentiful.”
There was so much tension in Tjere’s tone, so much anger and longing.
“One night, a traveler came upon the tribe.” It was then that Tjere’s voice became hallow, as if a thick ocean of spite were buried underneath a thin layer of resentment. “He was garbed in dark crimson, almost the color of black. He claimed to have wandered away from his caravan by accident, and needed a place to stay.” Tjere’s teeth glinted from the light of campfires. “Naturally the tribe was skeptical, and protective. They didn’t welcome him with open arms, but he was willing to surrender his weapons, and even offer a gift to the chieftain for a nights stay. H gave him a small pendant of pure gold.”
It was then that Rain noticed a similar pendant dangling from the dhampire’s belt. It’s gold was so tarnished it held no glimmer at all.
The dhampir noticed Rain’s attention, and shot her a grin. “That night, after drinking with the other men, and sharing stories amongst the fire, he found his way to my mothers tent. I’m not sure what he saw in her, or what he even said. What I do know is that she welcomed his attention, and his warmth.”
“I see,” Rain found herself drawn into Tjere’s tale.
“That morning he was gone, as if he vanished with the night. No one knew where he went, or even how he slipped past the tribe. Some whispered he was a ghost, or a phantom spirit. None of them knew what a vampire was, or what they were capable of. None of them even knew his real name.” Tjere hesitated before continuing, “I hope I’m not boring you, my lady.”
“Not in the slightest. So did you ever find out who he was?” Rain asked.
“Something like that.” Tjere brushed her hair back and caught her breath. “Needless to say, my mother found herself with me only nine months later. It was a miracle that she survived childbirth, and was healthy enough to nurse me. The tribe was horrified by me, for it was easy to see that I wasn’t normal. My pale skin shunned the daylight, and my white hair was said to be a curse, and that’s not even mentioning my teeth.”
To emphasize the point, Tjere showed off her razor sharp fangs. “It wasn’t long before my mothers milk wasn’t enough to sate my hunger. And one night she let me nurse from her own veins. She did so in secret, and I grew stronger. So much stronger, in fact.” Tjere’s voice drifted away for a second, as if lost in thought.
“When did your tribe discover that you were a dhampir?” Rain couldn’t imagine she could hide that secret for long.
“It took them a while to discover my nature. After a few years, my mother felt confident enough to let me play outside, and I learned how to handle the sun. I had to hide my thirst, but it was painfully obvious that I was different. My tribe didn’t shun me, keeping to tradition over fear, but they never trusted me completely.”
“I can only imagine,” Rain tried to comfort her.
“At age twelve, I was expected to serve the tribe. I was always hungry, and suffered to keep my thirst at bay. My mother did her best to let me sup on her, but I couldn’t bring myself to continue. She was always so sick, and feeble. I felt guilty sapping her strength. When the time came that I had to go on my first hunt, I could barely stand.”
Rain couldn’t imagine seeing Tjere so weak and vulnerable. She couldn’t help but wonder how long the dhampir had to hold back her thirst before succumbing to such a state.
“The rest of the tribe assumed I had inherited my mothers weakness. My hunting party found themselves caught by a wild wyvern, and her pups. We lost three among our number before we found ourselves trapped in a cave. It was clear that we would soon suffer the same fate.”
Tjere looked up to the foliage above. “It was then that I decided to…embrace my gift. I drank the blood of one of my own tribe, one who had perished from his wounds. The rest of my kin were horrified, and then amazed to see me grow strong enough to fight the wyvern, and its pups, by myself.”
“That had to be a sight,” Rain could only imagine what it would’ve been like to see Tjere taking on an adult wyvern. According to rumor, they grew at least twenty feet tall.
“My hunting party couldn’t look me in the eye afterward. When we returned, the tribe was amazed to see me healthy, and strong. The chief even thought I might’ve been gifted by one of their gods. But it wasn’t long before my kin told him everything.”
“The chief locked me up. I was bound, shackled, and forced to linger in the sun. The tribe cursed me, spat on me, and threw rocks at me!” Tjere’s voice had grown venomous. “I had to watch them drag my mother out into the snow, and stone her before my very eyes.”
Rain was frozen in horror.
“They said she was guilty of breeding a monster!” Tjere shed no tears, but her eyes were full of anger. The dhampir took a moment to collect herself before finishing. “That night, I swore I would make them suffer. I leaned down, and drank the wet pool of blood my mother had left behind. I then broke free from my shackles, and slaughtered everyone that threw a stone at us. By the time I was done, I found the damn pendent the chieftain still had, and left behind everything else.”
Rain felt cold beads of sweat dripping down her shoulder blades. “They deserved it. But I don’t see why that warrants your hatred of vampires.”
“I searched far and wide for the one who sired me,” Tjere picked up a rock from the ground and cast it to the trees. “When I discovered who it was, I ventured to the Demon Lords domains to meet him face to face. He turned out to be an arrogant creature, not prone to leaving his castle. Whatever made him venture to the lands of Ukrasti, was a mystery to me at the time.”
Tjere took a moment to look up at Rain. “Do you know what that damn vampire said to me, upon seeing his daughter face to face?”
“That he was happy to see you?” Rain tried to lighten to the mood.
Tjere actually chucked at the suggestion. It was the first time Rain saw the dhampir laugh, and found it delightful.
“He told me he was proud that I slaughtered an entire tribe of barbarians. That he needed to stir up some chaos among the Ukrasti, and sowed his seeds among all the tribes, just to see what would happen.” Tjere spat on the ground. “I found out later that over half the tribes of Ukrasti were gone, as if erased from fate. That allowed him to expand the Demon Lords domains even farther to the north without hinderance.”
“I’m sorry,” Rain simply had no idea what to say. In a way she admired the vampire’s tenacity, and creativity. The scheme must’ve undermined dozens of tribal societies, all by their own doing. She wondered if any of the vampire’s prodigies managed to integrate with their tribe, and if there was a tribe out there led by a ferocious warrior like Tjere?
Clearly, Tjere wasn’t proud to be used like a pawn by her own father. “Vampires are arrogant creatures. Prone to insert themselves where they don’t belong, and quickly forget what they were even doing. I wish they were all dead.”
“That’s why you don’t want Namire to find another one, even though it’s for my own plans?” Rain asked.
“You asked me what I wanted…” Tjere stood up on her feet. “Please don’t bring another vampire to the camp. Please, there must be another way to achieve whatever Roien has told you to do.”
“You’ve worshipped Roien longer than I,” Rain still wasn’t sure if she truly worshipped her. “Would you have me sacrifice these drow, just to go north?”
“Gladly, if it means we can ignore the trappings of another vampire,” Tjere’s response was cold, and harsh.
“I’m sorry, my precious Tjere.” Rain reached out to touch the dhampir’s cheek. “But I’m going to have to decline your request, for now. Think about something else, please.”
Tjere let her chin rest against Rain’s palm. “As you wish, my queen,” her voice barely contained her pain.
Tjere by Ivanna
