The Coalition researcher was dusting off the top of a large stone slab, peering closely at the inscriptions carved into it. It was an ancient, obscure dialect. As close as the archeologist could tell it read “…ware, … power. …open …sealed.” But orders were orders. The top brass believed that these ruins in the middle of a forgotten corner of the world contained some power that would aid in their plans and machinations.

As the poor fool was recording yet more of the scribbling indentations, his hand brushed against some hidden mechanism. With a rumbling grown, a black line appeared down the center of the slab. The two pieces slid to the side before crashing unto either side and hell, hell poured forth unto the world.

The archeologist was thrown backward by a force that caved in his chest. Gasping for air, his life force came gurgling up and spilled from his mouth. Before him, he beheld a figure, decayed and covered in wrinkles. The dark visage flew at the man and grabbed at his weakening body. Effortlessly lifting him up, the corpse placed its face against the wound in the doomed man’s chest. For a time, the room was silent, save for the sound of swallowing.

That was not to last, however. Soon, shrieks of terror filled the room and hallways of the ruin as the various personnel ran for their lives. Throughout all the chaos, only one intelligible word could ever be made out on any of the security recordings of the carnage. “…More.”

The call went out from the site director, and Coalition forces placed the area into a strict quarantine. Gunning down or slicing to death even their own men as the damned fools fled the carnage deeper within the ruins. After a few days, when the ruin lay silent, the coalition assembled a team. A team of specialists to investigate the ruins and determine what manner of creature had befouled the operation.

The exact specifics were sealed under the highest authority within the Sage Coalition. Only rumors ever made it down to the lower ranks. Rumors that one fateful week, an entire enforcement squad was all but annihilated, and a new, incredibly tall and pale man began to enforce the Coalition’s will on any who would be foolish enough to stand against them.

The following has been sealed under the highest authority, Code Apocrypha. Failure to comply with this directive will result in enforcement action.

Character Overview

Name: Cardon Voss

Author: Psycholor - If you liked this chapter, check out his original story Tricked Into a New Life, God Must be Screwing with Me!

Allegiance: Sage Coalition

Age: Unknown, apparently 35

Race: Vampyre

Bio: Cardon is impassive and stoic. He does not waste time on idle chat, his only driving motive is to regain his lost power of ancient times and overthrow the Sage Coalition’s binding spell that he has been forced into the control of.

Owing to his nature as an immortal, Cardon’s perception of time is a little bit off. His long rest in his crypt before being found by the Sages was simply “A brief nap” regardless of the fact that it lasted for several millennia.

His longevity also leads to a few personality issues; owing to how quickly they seem to die, Cardon does not bother remembering the names of mortal acquaintances, instead referring to them by a brief description. E.g. Natalie is “The bitchy human girl”. Generally however, mortals are simply “Prey” or “Food”.

In the event that he does meet another immortal, he behaves respectfully until given a reason to do otherwise. Cor Ferrum became “The damn whelp” after he learned of Cor’s involvement in robbing his crypt.

If Cardon comes to respect a mortal, he will treat them the same way he treats fellow immortals, and if he comes to truly respect them, he may offer them immortality of their own, via some of his blood; Vampyre Blood freely given and freely ingested will trigger the transformation of a mortal into a Vampire.

Abilities:

• Blood Copy: By taking in the blood of a victim, Cardon can subsume their abilities into himself, augmenting his own strength. He gains only one ability or technique per feeding and requires practice to master it. This ability does not necessarily kill the victim, though it will place them on the verge of death.
  • Puppet Master: Ability gained from feeding on a Sage Coalition researcher. It is a magic technique that allows him to control objects within a few hundred meters of himself by smearing his mana (blood) on them.

• Sanguimancy: Cardon is able to manipulate his own blood like a normal individual controls their own body. This control extends after it leaves his body.

• Blood Curse: Cardon’s blood inflicts contact paralysis.

• Vampyric Regeneration, Weak: Cardon’s nature as a Vampyre provides him with regenerative capability. In its current state, he has essentially unlimited blood, as he is able to produce new blood fast enough to deal with all but the most mortal of wounds. This ability can be improved by feeding on powerful individuals (other fighters). This does not require the death of the victim, though it will weaken them several for a few days.
  • After three feedings: Cardon’s regenerative ability is now strong enough to regrow limbs after only a few minutes, and close open wounds in seconds.

  • After seven feedings: Cardon’s regeneration is now capable of regrowing lost limbs in seconds, and can regrow his entire body from the neck down after only a few minutes.

  • After ten feedings: Cardon’s regeneration has fully recovered from his weakened state. He is now capable of restoring his entire body from only his severed head in seconds and can regenerate from even less in minutes.

• Pain Resistance: As a side effect of his regeneration, Cardon has an incredibly high pain resistance; he is able to shrug off injuries such as loss of limbs as if they were merely a paper cut.

• Dense Consciousness: Due to the sheer length of time Cardon has been alive, he is adept at mental warfare, though he is unable to initiate it himself.

• Vast Memories: Cardon’s immortality has led to him being able to recall a large amount of random trivia and other information. He does not know everything, but he often recognizes more than he lets on.

• Superhuman Strength/Durability: Cardon is stronger than somebody of his stature usually would be, and is able to absorb blows that would normally cause severe injury, such as punching stone or dropping from height onto rocky ground unassisted.

• Vampyric Resistance: Owing to his nature as a Vampyre, Cardon has complete resistance to low temperatures. Ice magic has no effect on him. He is also immune to poisons and venoms.

• Weaknesses: Standard Vampyre set. Sunlight, running water, requires an invitation to enter a building. Of note is a lack of weakness towards any form of religious artifact. Cardon does not fear the power of any god, though silver is revolting. Once his regeneration progresses far enough, he can overcome some of these weaknesses by virtue of being able to out heal them. They still hurt though.

Appearance: Cardon is a tall figure, at 190cm. He is pale, owing to his nature as a Vampyr. His eyes are blood red and his hair is jet black. He dresses in a military officer’s dress uniform at all times. It consists of a dark blue jacket with folded collar, revealing the jacket's white interior. The jacket extends to halfway down his hips, and buttons down the middle. A black leather belt with brass clasp is worn over the jacket around his waist, creating a crisp "pinched" look. His pants are made of the same material and colored the same shade of dark blue as the jacket's exterior. On his hands, he wears a pair of gentlemen's dress gloves when forced to operate beneath the sun, and on his feet he wears a pare of leather combat boots.

He refuses to answer when questioned on what country this was the uniform of and, generally refuses to speak about his past before being found and enslaved. The sole exception he has allowed to his wardrobe, is an enchanted crystal visor that reflects sun light, protecting his eyes and face.

How they got recruited: His crypt was uncovered by a Sage Coalition archeological research team. Upon opening his coffin, they discovered a dried-out mummified corpse. Upon leaning over to inspect it, the lead researcher was grappled by Cardon when the corpse made a sudden movement. The corpse latched onto the researcher and began to drain them of their life force, its own skin regaining some of its pallor as he did so.

At great cost, Sage Coalition operatives were able to subdue the rampaging Vampyre and place him under a control spell. It was then discovered that he had managed to obtain the deceased researcher’s magic art as a side effect of feeding on him. Though his age and innate power managed to shrug off some of the spell’s controlling force, he is now bound to generally obey orders given to him by Coalition leadership.

ArantChronicles

Thanks to Psycholor for writing such a great chapter. If you didn't understand this already, every character chapter is written by the author of the character.

Here's some big news: we're down to a single character slot! That slot can be either a Nova Ordo member or a Sage Coalition member. We just need one last author to sign on and then we'll be ready to launch into the battles.