Ivares checked his links, a mental connection to his subordinates, and noticed two of them living out their lives peacefully. The other two were too far for him to connect with instantly. Of the two he could reach, one appeared to be the leader of a large company, while the other was drinking somewhere. Both seemed to pause when they sensed his probing mind, but they quickly returned to their tasks.
"It seems Caleb and Warren are fine. Well, at least one of them is doing something productive."
The sound of their master's voice caused the two ladies to stop their bickering and face him; they knew exactly who he was referring to.
"Yes, Caleb is handling our finances in this age—a large corporate CEO," Evalyn confirmed. "As for Warren, he's probably in some pub hitting on human females. He hasn't changed in centuries. I tried fighting him recently to test his loyalty, and he somehow still has the edge over me. Other than that, he is still as loyal as ever, Master. He may be gone most of the time, but he always returns instantly if something is amiss here."
Evalyn paused to look at Bonnie, who was glaring at her, before continuing: "As for Bonnie here, she has never left the premises. I doubt that is loyalty, though. I believe it's more about being lazy, especially when she spends hours watching those k-dramas."
Bonnie flared up at those words, lifting her hand toward one of the screens.
"Wait, no, sorry, you are as loyal as any of us… please don't," Evalyn pleaded. She knew that Bonnie's magic was directed at her personal computer and quickly decided not to antagonize her further, at least in her work area.
"All is well… in this regard, at least," Ivares said. "Now I believe you both know what I want to do next. Before we meet the girls, we need to strengthen our power a little. I'm sure you know that I am feeling a little weak and terribly hungry right now, and I don't want to meet her like this."
Both Bonnie and Evalyn nodded. They had been in that same parched state for the last couple of decades; even the finest blood could barely sustain them. Since their master was the source of their power, they needed him to be at his peak so they could follow suit.
"I have selected a few, Master… young, but brave. I've decided to put them under Warren, who needs something besides drinking for a change."
Evalyn began pressing a few buttons on the monitor, while Bonnie watched her, a mixture of pity and a smirk on her face.
"I noticed they're all guys, though," Bonnie mused. "Maybe someone doesn't want some competition…"
Ivares didn't really mind who was going to be in the first batch of new servants. He wouldn't have much time to interact with them, but he desperately needed loyal minions for a change. This time, he would ensure they were properly marked, binding their loyalty and taking away much of their inherent freedom.
"Shut it, cow! I know you have a few pictures you wouldn't want me to pass around!" Evalyn retorted. She finished her task and hurried to her master's side. Bonnie, not wanting to be left out, walked toward him and took his other hand.
Feeling the two's soft but cold touch for the first time in centuries, Ivares smiled. He was starting to regret having left his covenant because he couldn't bear to part with his beloved for so long, but he was glad the two had waited for him.
Within a few seconds, Evalyn's shadow magic warped them to a new area: a large hall where ten individuals were standing at rigid attention. Every one of them looked up at the three, as if Evalyn, Bonnie, and Ivares were on a stage.
"There, ten of the finest, Master. The best of the best—all experts in various fields but mostly ready for combat."
Ivares looked at the face of each youth. He noted they were not all human; some were Elven, others Dwarven, and some smelled of mixed race. He paused, looking at two individuals in particular. He could have sworn they were Dragonkin; their large tails were a dead giveaway.
"Are you sure they are ready and know what this entails?"
"Yes, each one was selected after extensive research and a thorough background check. Some were even sent here by the other races to keep the pact going. They will probably expect something back, but that should be fine. We will be receiving more benefits even if we have to give away something."
Ivares looked around to see if one of them reacted differently, using his powerful gaze that caused a seductive aura, and yet none of them flinched or moved. A few of the humans reacted, but only with a change in pupil size, nothing they could control.
"They look strong enough. Great going, Evalyn."
The girl beside him nodded, almost ready to jump to cheer, but the many eyes around her made her stop in her tracks. She was one of the proud leaders of her master's units; she was not going to have him lose face.
Bonnie, who came here with other intentions, looked around, her face indifferent to the many handsome youths. She was just working out what they would wear as the maid and keeper of her master's house. Most of the new recruits were going to be around the mansion when not training, so she wanted to settle on a good uniform right from the start.
"Well, let's begin; we have so much to do."
Ivares, requiring only his own essence to forge the Covenant Pact, closed his fist until his nails dug into his palms. A few drops of his blood fell onto his shadow, which instantly began to writhe.
The two girls, unable to resist smelling their master's blood from up close, tried to stand still while gripping onto their sanity. Ivares smirked, watching their reaction, knowing he would need to handle the two personally later, but for this moment, it would be far more beneficial for his blood to be given to the others.
As soon as enough blood was fed toward his shadow, it began to spiral strangely toward the troop in front of him. Then, each recruit was pierced by one of the shadow's tendrils, a light poke just above their heart. The shadow simultaneously drained their essence and infused them with his own concentrated blood.
The process was fast, and the recruits held their ground until the moment Ivares's blood entered their system. It was then that many groaned in despair as their bodies violently began to take on a new, darker form.
Well, at least the majority of them. Three of them stood still, seemingly in meditation. The three included the two Dragonkin, who smirked instead of lowering themselves, and another boy, blonde-haired with strange blue eyes, before they began to slowly turn red.
"Three tough ones, huh? I guess you picked a good batch, Evalyn."
Ivares knew it was going to be hard to find at least one that could stand up to the injection of his blood, but three of them proved him wrong.
The others soon followed after, getting themselves in order. They began to get back in position, even if they seemed ready to fall over.
"Good, you all eat and then rest. I am glad none of you died or showed weakness; you have all made me proud!"
Ivares, who felt the instant connection with the ten new strong souls, began to feel much better. Not yet at his peak, but he was at least not going to go hungry for a few months.
Taking one last look at his new vampires, who were scrambling to rest and feed, he patted Evalyn's back. He was certain she had pulled every string, perhaps even broken a few rules, to acquire this caliber of talent. Though he could easily delve into her memories to review every deal, he decided to grant her the benefit of the doubt for now. He was lucky to have such passionate subordinates.
Still, it was no time to keep standing about. Now that he felt power course through him with each connection made, he was ready to head out and finally meet his mistress, or in this case, the twins, to find out what became of her.
〈 Arwin - Shift in the Bloodline 〉
Before they were told to leave, Arwin stopped to look towards his new master, one of the few remaining vampire lords and one of the Keepers of the Pact.
Nearly twenty years old, he was supposed to have followed in his family's footsteps as a hunter, and yet he couldn't—not because he didn't want to, but because his family and clan were wiped out.
It was when all that he cherished was taken from him that someone suddenly stood there, extending a hand to help him not only get back up but also give him another option in life.
He turned his attention toward Evalyn, the Blood Wraith, one of the few who everyone knew of and feared, no matter their race.
Unlike the stories passed down in their clan, she seemed different from the tales. That day, her hands did not have a speck of blood, and her beauty was something else—nothing like the stories that said she looked old and ghostlike.
Upon thinking about that, he noticed her stare before he decided to pack up and leave.
Today, he was branded and given new power. He was made a member of the notorious Shadow Legion, one of the vampiric bloodlines that not only controlled blood but also had a unique power that dealt with the shadows.
As a hunter, he never had access to this kind of power. All of his clan's history was destroyed in a simple but effective slaughter. The cause still eluded him; they were caught off guard in the middle of the night, but something told him it was a planned massacre by more than one enemy.
Not that his clan had few of those. It was a prosperous one with centuries of rich history. Sadly, they were on a decline, and most hunter bloodlines were too. The Valerius—a family from the Roman era—was the same. Something was definitely causing their bloodlines to weaken, and so he had no other choice but to accept being a damn vampire to fight whoever was causing all of this.
As he began moving towards the dorms given out for the new recruits, he spotted the two others who, like him, were able to survive the dreadful change into a bloodsucker while standing.
The two Dragonkin were visually like any human, except two horns protruded from their heads and a tail behind them. The two were clearly related but not siblings; one was blue-scaled, the other red.
"Look who it is, the human who was able to keep up with us!" Mador, the red-scaled one, spoke out loudly, clearly proud of their tenacity.
"It was hard, but it seems we made it. Nice to be at the level of you two, though."
Arwin didn't really know or want to talk to the others here, mainly due to his hunter's code to kill all nonhumans, but that was now in his past. He had turned into that which he hunted, so he tried at least to change this aspect of his life.
"Our level? I think you are getting a little ahead of yourself. We still have our strength and flames. You? I think you will only have the blood control and that shadow ability… we will always be above all of you." The red-tailed Dragonkin smirked. He was half a foot taller and way thicker than Arwin, even if Arwin hit the gym daily.
"Relax, Mador, he is fine for just a human. We are simply just the apex, and with this new power, we will remain that way, so you don't have to keep stating the obvious." Xenas, the blue-scaled one, yawned, releasing a very small fireball as he let air out.
"Xenas, you are right. Now let's go; I don't want to just drink human blood. I want some meat to go along with it!"
The two seemed to have forgotten Arwin as they moved into the large dining room. He, however, didn't care; he even liked being alone once again. Unlike the rest, though, he was going to train all afternoon. He wanted to get a grip on his power; he felt it—a good response with the shadow aspect of his new and improved body.