Kalen’s Beginning

It is said in the beginning of time, Kalen the first of all noferatu took two human twin brothers, who were considered great warriors in their kingdom, feeding off their blood to the point of death but fed them with her blood in return filling their veins with immortality. Their names were Darius and Domitius. Along with everlasting life they were given immense strength, incredible speed, and the ability to fly. But the brothers would have to spend all of eternity hiding from the sun and feeding on human blood for the nourishment.

Kalen created the third of the immortals when she stumbled upon a beautiful princess named Lodemai. Lodemai was by a lake grieving over her lost lover. The princesses decided to end her life by drowning herself under the lakes surface. Kalen intervened, snatching Lodemai from the depts. of the water, saving her. When she awoke she felt like a new creature, because she had been endowed with immortality. Lodemai was given a pair of beautiful silver flightless wings to add to her beauty and the ability of day walking as the only other vampire besides Kalen able to walk under sunlight freely.

The forth nosferatu born from the first’s blood was a nine year old named Citow. Kalen found the child dying from a fatal sickness and felt a great compassion for her, taking Citow into her arms and exchanged blood, giving her immortal life. Citow was the first’s favorite out of all her children, saying she was a reflection of what the world was meant to be.

The fifth was an old man who went by the name of Nunic. He was a hermit who longed for all the knowledge of the universe. Kanel agreed to give him such a gift, saying he would have to loss something very dear to him first. Nunic agreed. The first stung his ears, ripped out his tongue, and plunged her fingers into his eyes, but from Kalen’s blood Nunic gained true sight. He could see the future and the Past perfect in the darkness of his mind. But in the present he sat shaded from the incinerating sun blinded, muted, and def to everything around him.

The last of her children was Desino. Nothing is written of his human life; only that he was taken and made new. It is said when Kalen looked upon her last son she wept, realizing she was looking into the eyes of the creature which would bring apocalypse to her newly born race. Kalen could not bring herself to destroy her child, even though she new the nosferatu would suffer for it in the end. Instead in hopes of stopping such an end she built a steel prison and incased him into it, burrowing Desino deep into the earth never to be released.

Kalen after watching the vampire race slowly grow decided to leave this plane of existence forever, giving gifts to her children. To Darius she gave a battle axe whose blade was made of a red crystal. To Domitius she gave a sword whose blade was made of a blue crystal. Citow was given a doll specially made my Kalen and Nunic was given his speech back so that he may be able to dispose of his knowledge anyway he saw fit. But to Lodemai she gave the last vile of her blood leaving no instructions of its use.

“I have taken life away from you my children, but doing so I have cheated death for our race.”

Agintio Lupinus

The Conglucie tribes were a group of nomadic people who through their travels crossing the frozen waste land, came upon a strange field of flowers growing out of the snow. Exhausted and near starving, the Conglucie consumed the flowers for nourishment. Many of the tribe perished from the plant’s venom, but the survivors gained the ability to shape shift or transform into wolf-men. The Conglucie believed their new shape shifting ability was their inner spirit beast, unlocked by their ancestors, as a gift to protect the strong survivors of the tribe from the harsh weather and any enemy they may encounter.

The Conglucie had many wars with other natives of their land, exterminating any trace of their existence except for the lonely few survivors spared so that they may be incorporated through a trial to become new shape shifting warriors. The trial consisted of either eating from one of those mystic flowers or being bitten by a werewolf. This was done to separate the weak from the strong. If they survived the change it was believed that they were the strong and in the eyes of the Conglucie strength gave you the right to live.

Through their wars and nomadic travel the wolf people met other shape shifters. Their cousins the Nuwisha, or the coyotes, were the first they came in contact with. The second was the Corax, the raven people or watchers of death, who knew of the wolf children far before their own discovery. The third, whose meeting produced a war between the two races, is the Naga or “snake people”. The forth are the druid healers with the ability to transform into bear like creatures. Many more strange and wondrous races were befriended and many made enemies, but most are forgotten.

Nosferatu Empire Rises

Lodemai created a vast Empire using the strength of Darius and Domitius and the wisdom of Nunic to destroy any army brave enough to stand in their way. Domitius breed a special group of troops consisting of the greatest warriors willing to bow down before Lodemai. They were added to the blood line either by Domitius’ or Darius’ blood, being called sentinels by Lodemai. These soldiers were relentless during the night converting or killing every human in their path. The five elders acted as though their creator had an ever watching eye upon them. So they followed Kalen’s will herding humanity, as she planned, and also conquering the Lycan, making day walking troops and everyday labor servants. Most of the other shape shifting races were wiped out during the Nosferatu expansion, except for a few such as the Corax and the Nuwisha. Lodemai also imprisoned their leader, the infamous Wendigo. Kalen also specifically stated she did not want any mixing of blood, and called it an abomination, a life that would not be tolerated. So Darius took it upon himself to wipe out any and all abominations of vampire and human mixes. Even though the remaining five siblings worked together they still competed as children over Kalen’s favoritism, though she was not there to watch them. This was known as the Golden Age of the Undead.

The Coyote and the Raven

In the beginning before the vicious Naga, Lycan, or Nosferatu came into history, changelings lived in peace. Their existence was profound and defined with one meaning, to watch and observe the human race. The bear men would share their wisdom with humanity, giving out druid healing secrets. The Baste, cat beasts, at one time were humanities’ protectors, believing it a duty to protect those weaker than their selves.

When the Nosferatu and Lycan invasion struck their settlement it was a massacre. Completely out numbered, the Baste and Werebears were slaughtered almost to the very last, leading eventually to the bear man’s extinction. The Baste were beaten down to submission only leaving a few alive to escape. The last of the bear men, named Yuen, passed his responsibility to the Corax, believing the raven people to be the only skin changers with enough wisdom to watch over the human race. The Baste gave their responsibility to the tricky Nuwisha, as the protectors of humanity. Avigilo, a young Corax, and Fallak, the trickiest of the Nuwisha at the time, devised a plan to save the remaining humans from Lupus’ army.

All the silver was taken from the villagers and melted down, then molded into numerous darts. The coyotes built decoys around the village in the shape of people. Lupus’ army raided that night thinking the decoys were the villagers. The ravens above showered silver darts onto the werewolf legion, which caused enough of a distraction for the coyotes and humans to escape. Lupus ordered that all the gold that had been plundered from past villages, be melted down into throwing daggers. Gold is fatal to the Corax. When the lycan started to fire the golden daggers the Corax retreated, but Avigilo was stabbed with one of the golden blades and died. Before he entered the battle, he had a request for Fallak. He asked the shape shifting coyote if he would take care of his spirit egg and raise the baby born from it. Fallak granted the request taking the egg with him when he was evacuating the village.

The Lupus Rebellion

Bloody wars and conquests were carried out in the name of the Nosferatu Empire, by the sweat, blood shed, and death of the shape shifting race sending many important races head first into extinction. After centuries of breeding an army of werewolves eventually they made up a massive majority of Lodemai’s army. One lycan in particular grew above the ranks eventually becoming grand general over the entire Lycan portion of Lodemai’s military. His name was Lupus, the Black Mane as his troops called him.

Lodemai had great faith in Lupus trusting him with information she wouldn’t even share with the other elders. One secret was the location the legendary Wendigo was being held. The other was a secret weakness of the Nosferatu. During the full moon when lycan venom is ripe enough to infect a human with lycanthropy, it is also fatal to vampires. In the confines of his few private moments, Lupus planned the down fall of the lords whose army he commanded. Using the secrets Lodemai so willingly handed to him with trust, he had what he needed to free his kin.

As soon as the sun light, of the day before the next full moon, touched the surface of Lodemai’s Empire, chaos hit the land. Shape shifting guardians slaughtered their vampire masters in their sleep. Lupus gathered the army which was rightfully and finally his and marched them in a stampede to the fort which held Wendigo prisoner. A one way battle was won that day and all prisoners were freed including Wendigo.

All Lycan were gathered in front of the elders’ fortress that night of the full moon, filling the air with gnashing teeth. Lodemai’s sentinels met Lupu’s force, lead by Darius and Domitius. The two forces clashed with silver blade to teeth, claw to fang, moon to the abyss of night. The sentinels were ruthless in their cutthroat tactics, but when bitten their blood poured black and life along with their immortality was taken from them.

It seemed as though the battle was won for the shape shifters, but from their rear came a massive force of human coated in silver chain mail, wielding massive blades constructed from the same metal. The sun replaced the moon signaling the sentinel retreat back into their fortress, leaving the already weakened army to the silver clad force. Lodemai had offered all humans immortality if they bring back a shape shifter’s head, equipping them with the proper gear. Lupus’ force was rolled over in their confusion and inadequate numbers retreating into the horizon, scattering to the ends of the earth.

But freedom was a success. The nosferatu would not dare try and enslave the Lycan again. The survivors of the battle created new packs and new shape shifting lines. Without the mystical flower, that originally bestowed lycanthropy, the blood line would slowly weaken.

Clad of Silver

No one remembers my name, not even I. I was made a new person when Lodemai offered me and my fellow man internal life in exchange for the heads of the wolven shape shifters. I wasn’t going to pass such an offer up. It isn’t our right to live nor were we born with the right to die, but such a thing needed to be changed.

Lupus’ scattered troops lay across the battle ground. The nosferatu corpses’ were in burning heaps from the sun’s blaze. We had not come a moment too soon. The sun light gleamed from our armor like mirrors. We held massive berserker like swords, which were forged in that metal called silver. Giving little time for our enemies to regroup our silver clad force rushed into the thick of them, crashing into them almost shaking the earth. I slung my blade in a twist decapitating a lycan. Dust from our struggling feet caked the air into a sandy fog. Monstrous jaws grappled into my chest plate, taking a chunk of my mail and flesh. He fell instantly from consuming the metal that is so poisonous to his kin.

I plunged my blade into the mouth of another enemy, pocking through the back of his throat. With an overwhelming grip on life he clenched his teeth onto the blade shattering it in half. I pulled what was left away from him going in for a final strike, stabbing through his chest. I looked around me to find their forces diminished and fleeing. We did not chase knowing that the victory had been ours.

I took my trophies to Lodemai who fed from my blood and allowed me to drink upon hers and from it life, which my human self could never understand filled my being. I was born new. Lodemai looked into my eyes through the blackness of her fortress.

From her lips came the words, “Welcome my Reaper.”

The Forming of the Packs

Even though their battle ended with a retreat the remaining Lycan were still able to find freedom in the far reaches of the world. For their crimes of genocide to the other skin changers, they decided a splitting of their power or the breaking up into five separate clans or packs, which was an adequate self punishment. The Bone Marrow clan set Medulla as the Alpha wolf. The Black Mane pack of course set Lupus as the head lycan. The Silver Fang was headed by Wedigo. The Craft Walkers put Facetis in charge. The Shadow Striders were lead by Liam. And of course the Crimson Order was given to Crune.

The packs went their separate ways with no real objective except to not take their freedom for granted and do their best to make admen for their past sins. All lycan accepted this path, except Lupus. He steered his pack in the direction of war, hoping to one day take revenge on the entire vampire race.

The Reconstruction

With the Nosferatu and the Lycan having an unspoken seize fire; Lodemai decided it was time to resurrect her Empire back to its full strength. Slowly she rebuilt her front line of sentinels using some from the Clad of silver, but mostly hand picked physically fit and youthful individuals. Lodemai offered a special place by her side to any female human able to pass through Domitius’ strict requirements. One beautiful woman surpassed Domitius’ critiques and was made into the Jackal, Lodemai’s personal sentinel body guard.

From that she won back her lost human subjects’ favor by building a coliseum for gladiator matches to be held. Baste were forced to fight against hordes of men, other of their kin, lycan, or some damned concoction created in the deepest pits of Lodemai’s fortress. Subjects, lacking loyalty or faith in Lodemai, would be sentenced to life as gladiators in the Nosferatu coliseum and the people loved it.

After that the Empress took half of her troops and the fortune teller Nunic and marched out on a crusade to purge the less loyal from the earth, leaving her fortress and siblings to watch over the empire. She cut her way through kingdom after kingdom until her Empire stretched across two thirds of the continent. On her journey she ran into

The Crimson Order, whose alpha wolf was Crune. They were slaughtered and buried under the countless marching feet of Lodemai’s Empire. She stopped when she reached the very west of the continent and started a new fortress, under the ground reaching into the abyss of the planet.

Resurrection of the Apocalypse

Darius was sitting in the shadow of his chamber, contemplating the possible return of his mother. He recalled memories of the beginning, a time when living in immortal “life” was peaceful. In the state of reminisce Darius realized that he had no memories before accepting the nosferatu “life”. His entire human existence had been erased from his recollection. Domitius walked into the room from the abyss with ghastly stealth. Darius could see in his twin brother’s eyes that something was wrong.

“Brother, the apocalypse walks once again. Desino has returned.”

Desino was out in front of the fortress slaying sentinel after sentinel, cannibalizing on their blood. His body was armored with natural scales. His eyes were yellow, and his skeleton like face held a gaping jaw. Nosferatu blood dripped out of his mouth’s abyss and trickled across his gleaning ebony colored teeth. He had no hair and a green aura tented his skin.

Domitius and Darius met their lost sibling, with crystal weapons in hand, in front of the fortress. They found him crouched on top of a massive pile of sentinels. The two moved in gradually, knowing that it is against Kalen’s commandments to kill one of her first born. Their weapons flared up with red and blue into gulfing flames. Desino’s yellow eye moved to its corner and spotted the two vampires. Ten tentacles extended from Desino’s back, each one with a sharp blade at the tip. All the tentacles lunged forward, missing Domitius but stabbing Darius in the shoulder piercing through his armor and burrowing deep into his flesh. Darius axed the tentacle off, leaving the prong in his shoulder and dodging two others.

Domitius spent his flaming sword in a daunting display, hacking each tentacle striking against him in a blue blaze of fury. Desino jumped from his throne of corpses toward the two brothers, who flew into the night sky to evade the attack. The demon’s wounded appendages regenerated at will. Darius glided across the earth laying his blazing axe into the back of his monstrous sibling, hacking into all the tentacles at the root. Domitius looked in horror at the haste of his brother’s actions. Desino reached back and gripped around the warrior’s neck throwing him to the ground at his feet. Domitius in a desperate attempt to save his beloved brother dropped from the sky and burrowed his blade deep into the scaly mutilated back of Desino, and at the same moment Darius jumped to his feet and bit into Desino’s neck, drinking the blood which flowed from it. Before his brother could drink too much Domitius decapitated the Desino.