Many years ago, before the foundation of mankind, there were only beasts. Creatures that could not speak, beings who the gods cast upon the earth on a whim in hopes of them eventually evolving into something greater. And these creatures all failed.

While a small percentage of lions could evolve and become a griffin, the majority could not. They faced extinction.

While the shark evolved into a megalodon, it could not survive the evolution of the beast named Earth. They faced extinction.

The octopus evolved into the kraken, and vanished from history, becoming a fable.

Facing failure, the gods created something new, a prototype of what will later become humans. They were blessed with the blood of a goddess, and they took on a unique shape from the rest of the beasts who roamed the earth. They became known as 'humans'.

Capable of their own independent thoughts, these humans could consume blood and possessed magnificent strength; tearing trees from the ground with their bare hands. As time passed, they too evolved. Unlike all of the other species, they did not vanish from the world.

However, as a prototype, it was only fair that they are eventually replaced.

The goddess who created them did not wish to dispose of her creations, so she allowed them to remain as they were, continuously evolving. This was the final act of mercy showcased by the deities above, who turned their gaze to their next creation; the next humans.

The prototypes were discarded and new humans walked the earth. These creatures were much smarter than the prototypes and rarely showcased fast signs of evolution like their counterparts.

The gods changed their view on what humanity should be, and thus, the prototypes became no different than the beasts before them. Their evolution was under no moderation, they continued to grow and become stronger as the years went by. They preyed on the beasts of the wild while some lived amongst humanity.

At one point, humanity received a gift from the gods; weapons capable of slaying the prototypes that'd since become known as vampires. The prototypes were no longer human, therefore they were forced to adopt a new name. The vampires were hunted but refused to strike down the creation of the goddess.

It was only when one man rose up did things begin to change. Only after the first king of the vampires rose up with a power unlike any other did humanity back away from the fearful creatures.

To avoid further conflict with humanity and the gods, the vampire king proposed creating a hidden kingdom for their people. Vampires began to vanish from the world, just as the krakens did into the depths of the sea.

Although they were no longer a threat to humanity, they were still treated as beasts meant to be hunted. Humanity continued to mercilessly slaughter and capture vampires for many generations, using them as slaves. The gods continued to supply them with weapons meant to destroy vampires and the other mythical monsters of the world—the vampires did little to fight back.

Ina is a vampire who has survived many evolutions but has yet to experience one herself. Whereas her surviving brethren have risen up to become a new type of vampire, she remains the same. She is an elder vampire who refused to live alongside the hidden vampires under the vampire king's watchful eyes. Her childish persona lulled her into the development of the new humans, all the way up to the modern world.

Even with all of this freedom, Ina feels a sensation of emptiness inside of herself. She feels that there is something missing. No one ever said that the life of an immortal would be fun, but if you claim to have heard it, chances are it didn't come from Ina's mouth.

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Cover art (and illustrations) done by Utopia! - https://twitter.com/inutopiatoday
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