Prologue One - Adriana Gervais - 19 yrs old

           Adriana Gervais, third daughter of the Emperor of the Vampiric Empire, was a mouthful for anyone to say. Privately, anyone who knew her called her Ana, because it fit her better.

           At six feet talk with a wild mane of auburn hair and skin that glowed under moonlight, she wasn’t someone that needed an impressive name or title. Ana wasn’t delicate like her sisters or mother in appearance. No, she was the spitting image of the female form of her father, Emperor Franco Centauri Gervais, the Emperor of the Vampiric Empire, the Blood Demon Himself.

           Ana’s claim to fame was her personality because it didn’t go with her appearance at all. She’d cultivated it like that. It was a protest against everything her mother and sisters were.

The heir was Ana’s sister, Tatiana Gervais, and don’t you dare call Tatiana, Ana, that was criminal? Highly insulting to Tatiana and her delicate nature. That explanation always made Ana snicker. Her eldest sister was a crazed viper in silk and lacy.

           Then there was the spare, Dionysius Gervais. Ana’s parent counted on her being male, hence the name. Dionysius was sweet by nature, but their mother and older sister ruined that by forcing her to be a traitorous and catty courtier.

           Their mother, Lolita Gervais, the Empress of the Vampiric Empire, Life Partner to the Blood Demon Himself, was no better than any of her offspring. In fact, she outdid them on all accounts without even breaking a sweat. She could back stab with the best of them, with words or daggers. Lolita was not one to be opposed. She couldn’t afford it being the life partner to their father. She wasn’t his fated life partner, as they called the blessed few that found this chance union.

           They all understood that within the Elite caste, especially the royal family, a pairing was to gain or maintain power and influence of the family. Ana could count the few pairings she knew that were truly happy, fated, or loving. Her mother maintained a watch for someone to remove her from her seat on the throne beside her life partner. So far, she’d been successful.

           Today was a week after they considered Adriana an adult. She’d failed to avoid her horrendous birthday celebration and suffered through all the false well wishes and each useless gift. No one appeared to know or care what interested her and aimed to please her parents with their proper gifts for a royal daughter.

           Ana was just thinking about how she’d lost the annoying birds that were keeping her up every night since she received them. She came back from training with other courtiers of her skill level. She was dirty, sweating, and looking forward to a long bath. Ana looked forward to a relaxing night with little to do at all. She wanted to sit down and read. Decompress from the annoying inferences and snide comments about how her skill was a shadow of her father’s. Like that was an insult. They knew him for the blood he shed in countless battles. Honestly, Ana believed the accounts were exaggerated, but who was she to bring that up? It would only look like she was jealous or trying to slander the throne. Something no one wanted to be accused of it was a free ticket to the dungeon.

           Yes, the palace really had four kitchens and a dungeon. It boasted an execution chamber and a moonlight viewing room. Ana wasn’t sure which room her mother secretly was fonder of between the last two.

           Upon opening her bedroom door, it surprised her to find her mother, both of her sisters, and an army of servants bustling about her room. Here she was, expecting a quiet and relaxing, neat room. Then the reality is quite the opposite. “What’s going on here? Mother?” Her sharp green eyes took in all the things her mother messed up, and she failed to appreciate the mess created by her mother.

           “Mind your manners, Adriana dear. That unforgivable.”

           “Fine, hello mother, Tatiana, Dionysius. To what do I owe this disaster to this time?”

           “Adriana, stop this insolence this instant. We don’t have time for that. You and your sisters must get ready. Didn’t the messenger find you and inform you that the Emperor, your father, has a sudden dinner engagement and expects every one of us to attend?”

           “Ah… That would explain the gowns and ribbons, etcetera. It looked like a lace bomb exploded in here.” Now why her mother expected the servants and their help to lug all their things from their room here to her room so that they could dress in her cramped apartment?

           Ana deliberately chose a smaller apartment, hoping it being farther away from them and smaller that her mother wouldn’t pull this stunt again. Sadly, that plan appeared to Ana to have failed miserably.

           “Mother, I am a grown adult, as are both my sisters. We can dress ourselves without help from you or your mad army of maids.” Ana waved her hand, inviting them all to leave her apartments. Honestly, just because she’s the Empress and their mother, she pulled some very strange stunts like this.

           “Not in your lifetime. This is so much easier to explain what is happening to everyone in one shot. You really must hurry. What have you been doing? You’re so dirty. Mary has drawn you a bath. Now don’t dawdle, we have a lot to do.” She tsked when she caught sight of Ana’s posterior, she’d been thrown into a rather nasty mud puddle that morning and she’d ignored the wet icky feeling most of the day because if she’d gone to change then she’d be considered too delicate to fight. It was all ridiculous, really.

           “Fine, talk fast then. And what’s so great about this sudden dinner?”

           “Count Rudolpho Saint Germane wasn’t able to come to your birthday celebration or his sons. He’s coming to pay his respects tonight. You don’t want to disappoint them. Into the tub and wash up right now.