A tale of vampires and angels: Demons rising

Chapter Three: Serena- A rather awkward encounter

The palace of the vampires was grand, no doubt. Despite the seemingly uninviting appearance of slate grey stone and black turreted roof tops that stood up like stakes, closer up Serena could see the intricate weaving of vines cascading down the side of its framework, and the illustrious assortment of darkening roses in the gardens. Grotesque gargoyles flanked the entrance to the palaces' wooden doors and a fountain spewed water in flickering bursts. Yet although the sky was dark with sinister clouds and the ground shrouded in a deep mist, the place held an ethereal beauty amongst its walls. Serena frowned. She couldn't quite perceive if she was entering a formidable palace, or a house of horrors.

"My Lady," Cohen announced, dipping his head a little to avoid her gaze. After last night's events, Cohen had been livid that she had left so abruptly, leaving him to search until the morning to find her- by which time she had fallen asleep in the presence of a large oak tree. Unimpressed and upset by her actions, Cohen had begun to treat her like he always did when he was angry: toneless and with an unnerving calm.

"Mightn't I suggest that you allow your guards to make the first move into the castle? The vampires are notoriously territorial creatures and I'd hate for you to have to..." Cohen took a moment to deliberate his words. "...run away." A sharp pain throbbed in Serena's chest. Cohen sure knew how to make someone feel guilty.

"I am the Princess of a fine realm, I think I can manage, Cohen," She levelled, trying to match Cohen's harsh tones with her own. The cruel hands of guilt began to twist and wreath in her insides.  A harsh lump rose in her throat.

To stop herself from losing her cool, Serena refocused her attention on the grand doors that had scaled into view, and alighted on the moss ridden ground beside them. Twenty or so angels from her kingdom had been chosen to see her off, and so her accompaniment followed suit as they too landed beside her with the same elegant grace. With a deep breath, the Princess pushed open the door.

To say it was fit for royalty would be an understatement. The inside of the palace was so lavishly decorated with flowers, bunting, and banquet tables that the room almost seemed to burst at the seams. The tables were filled so high that the food appeared to tilt and wobble on feeble legs. There was a bustling demeanour of busy work, which Serena had unpurposely cut short with her elaborate entrance. This, of course, naturally posed some awkwardness for The Princess as a hundred pairs of vampire eyes turned towards her. A chill ran down her spine. She gulped.

"My Lady, may I advise you keep walking. I'm afraid freezing will only draw attention to yourself," Her butler whispered into his gloved hand, and proceeded to usher her on quietly through the crowd of glaring vampires.

"They are much paler than I thought they would be, it's almost like they have bleached their skin or something," Serena remarked in low tones to her butler, whose curly blonde hair was combed and trimmed for the occasion.

"Careful, the Aristocrats regard their appearance very highly, you'd be unwise to insult them," Cohen warned sharply, his feathered wings folding behind him with an irritated 'swup'. Upon hearing this Serena shut her mouth to prevent any further comments from spilling out. Instead, she regarded them closely. Many of the vampires had pale or light shades of hair in varying lengths, which Serena thought of as curious. Some had dark crimson eyes, while others a viscous bloodthirsty purple, which -just from a glance- turned her blood into an icy water. As she walked, she met stares and the occasional fanged snarl from busy workers in the palace, all of which avidly avoided her presence in the most indiscreet of manners. She certainly felt like an outcast in this privileged high up society.

Yet, it was odd, she pondered, that the Palace, (being the heart of Sezaria) was surrounded by towns and cities of varying degrees of wealth and worth. Upon travelling, Serena had observed horrifically deformed vampires- half-breeds so she was told- that behaved so vilely she could scarcely call them vampires any longer. Others: who lacked control lusted for the blood of her companions upon their travelling through the towns that they had glided over. This led her to be utterly surprised when the least she was met with was dirty looks and snarls from the vampires of the castle. Such a sense of hierarchy didn't seem possible and yet... here she was.

"Princess Silver-shadow," A voice called from ahead of her. A happy voice, gentle, and yet, it was the voice she longed not to hear.

"King Edrec," Serena acknowledged, forcing a amiable smile for her betrothed, "How lovely it is to see you." Besides her, Cohen cordially returned his greetings to the King of the Elves, and made his way to stand slightly ahead of Serena, his stance seemingly protective.

Edrec was handsome in a way only Elves can be. His slender face and bright eyes gave him the appearance of someone younger than his age. With long brown hair and fine vestments he certainly looked the part of the groom. Serena looked up to him again, this time catching his eye. A faint glimmer of light was extinguished. Could it possibly be he was regretting the situation? The Princess shook herself. It wasn't possible that an experienced man such as King Edrec could ever have thoughts as such. Instead, she turned attention to something else.

Beside the king, another man stood alone. By looks alone, he couldn't have been older than twenty, and yet, his unearthly aura, bone white skin and piercing yellow eyes could only mean that this was a vampire- and so he could have been six hundred for all she knew.

Serena didn't even try for a smile.

"Princess," King Edrec beamed across at her. "This is the Prince of the land of Sezaria, and a good friend of mine. His name is lord Ventrue, Prince of the Ventrue aristocratic bloodline of vampires." Approaching slowly, Serena came to a halt near the two men at the foot of a magnificent throne of gold. Cohen eyed her closely, nudging her to encourage at least partial conversation. Serena observed this unusually dark haired vampire, trying hard not to stare at the tattoos on his left shoulder, or the oddly gothic piercing in his ear- of which such extremities were not permitted by the angel elders. Serena shook herself from her daze.

"A pleasure," Lord Ventrue affirmed, softly, almost like a whisper, though his low tone made sure that Serena understood it most certainly wasn't a 'pleasure'.

"Likewise," Serena exchanged coldly. If the vampire couldn't hide his allegedly obvious distaste, neither would she. The two exchanged bristled looks, and Serena forced herself to not avert her eyes from the chilling glare of the vampire Prince. Sensing the tension rising between the two, King Edrec stepped in.

"Allow me to show you to your temporary quarters," he offered, holding out his hand. After an internal panic, and a sly kick from Cohen, Serena took it.

"That would be marvellous," came her smooth reply, impressively good mannered for the likes of her. Serena pulled up her gown and ruffled her folded wings, allowing herself to feel more at ease amongst the vampire's layer- if at all possible.

"If you would follow me," King Edrec gestured, pulling lightly on her hand. The king swished his great robe that trailed like a of gold and purple river behind him, and began to lead her away. As she passed, Cohen shot her a desperate look as the realisation of being stuck with the Prince of the vampires took hold of him. He mouthed a subtle 'help me', to which the only help Serena could give was a hasty thumbs up before being dragged by King Edrec down a long, sweeping corridor with herself in tow.