8

Lilith

Thornhill, British Columbia

Canada Region, K.U.R.A

October 12th 6414

12:15 pm

 After I had gotten my ID and everything was set straight with Alethia, we were led to a room that had an Ether gate. I could feel Neil and Ben giving me the side eyes but I ignored them as I observed my new sword. The sword was a shortsword with a double edge blade, a silver hilt and guard. At the sides were a couple of runes engraved on it, each runes responsible for the enchantment of the blade. Enchanted blades were weapons of great power that were known for causing disaster. Just one enchanted blade of the lowest quality could destroy a village while the most powerful one were known for wiping a nation. That's how powerful they were. Before the dawn of the Dungeons, Enchanted weapons were rare, the knowledge of how to make one lost to the annals of time. But now one could find an Enchanted blade on all kind of warriors. I didn't really care to know what grade my new Enchanted blade was since I had no mana or aura to activate the blade. I was just interested in the craftsmanship of the sword. Alethia opened a door and allowed both four of us to enter through before following us. There were two columns that was generating a pool of white light, the light a hole through space that lead to another location. Alethia stood near the gate and signaled for them to walk through.

"This gate should take you right to the Dungeon's entrance. From there you can access the gate that would take you inside," Alethia said.

"Let's get this over with," I said. To be honest I was a little interested to see what a dungeon would like and what kind of living beings Mana beast were. After my experience in the Dread forest, hunting Demonic beast and killing them, I wanted to gain a new experience or maybe a thrill. I entered the portal first to make sure nothing was waiting on the other side before Ella followed and then Neil and Ben. We had appeared in what looked like the woods that surrounded the town. If I remember properly, Enoch estate-our new home-was part of the forest, mostly in the backyard of the Mansion. And within the woods, I could sense something. I could feel an eerie feeling just oozing out of the forest. Like it was calling out to me. I was half tempted to go and investigate this sensation but I couldn't afford to. I couldn't leave Ariella alone even with Neil and Ben. Sanders said the town was the safest place for Ella, that the Royal family would not be able to chase them here. So if Ella was protected by threats from the outside, what about from within. The dungeon was a very dangerous place, so I have been told numerous times. Ariella was just an Advanced rank cultivator. So even though as a Vampire, she possessed astounding Regeneration that made her semi Immortal, she could still be killed. I couldn't let anything happen to her. Anything. My desire to protect the girl made the space around me tremble. 

"Lith," Ella called me by the other name I was using as my identity in Thornhill. I realized my mistake of letting my emotions affect my environment so I reeled in my emotions. Ben coughed eyeing me as he pointed to a clearing in which a large tower could be seen.

"I think the Dungeon is in that direction," He said. I nodded and waited for him to lead the way. Neil walked up to Ella, a look of excitement equal to that of hers on his face.

"If you go further in the woods, you might come across lesser rank Magic beasts." Neil said.

"Really?" Ella questioned. 

"Yes. Most Raiders normally use the weakest one in the forest as some kind of tutorial before challenging the Dungeon." Neil said. "Ben and I used to practice and train here before we felt we were ready for the Dungeon." I still couldn't believe that this lanky human was a Sorcerer with an advanced rank Cultivation. I thought back to that receptionist woman who had tested me and realized that she too was a human who awakened magical powers. I have only been in this town for two to three days and already I've come across three Awakened humans that could cultivate. It was worth noting that in the Capital where we came from, Awakened humans were not something that one saw a lot. Humans were the weakest of the nine seven races and even with cultivating, thanks to their base strength being weaker than the other race, a human of the same rank as another member of a race was still weaker. In the end, the Base foundation still mattered. We ended up in what looked like a plaza, with all kinds of stalls installed. Sellers of all types were propositioning their items while buyers walked around the stalls, looking at various items. I couldn't believe my eyes as I saw the scene before me. I could smell fried meat in the air, Vendor stalls with different kinds of meat drew my interest. All around us were Dungeon raiders in their fighting armor, some sitting underneath the shade of a tree, a mug of beverage with them as they laughed and talked among themselves. The entire area was bursting with excitement and movement. And in the middle of the plaza, was a long tower that pierced through the largest and tallest trees. Even with all the tree branches, there were still places were the sunlight from the dome passed through. 

"This way," Ben said. As much as they wanted to check out the items that were being sold, they did not have much money on themselves as they had paid for their license which cost a lot. Which was why they needed to explore the dungeons. They could make up the amount they lost and much more. They moved through the crowds that were gathered, moving towards a place where people were waiting to enter the dungeon. There was a podium, and a man dressed in a black uniform of the Dungeon association was speaking.

"Remember, those of D rank and below must pass through the Tutorial trial. Only those of C rank and above are allowed to explore the Dungeon Tower. Any D ranks found breaking the rules will be fined and barred from exploring the Dungeon."

 I turned to the others, unlike Ben who had been given a C rank, Ella and Neil had been given a D rank due to them being Advanced rank Cultivators. I checked my ID to see the B rank I was given. Alethia had judged my strength to be somewhere around Master rank in the cultivation system. From what I understood about cultivation, there were four stages to the ranking and sixteen ranks that cultivators could ascend through. The first stage was called the Mortal stage. In this stage, the ranking was as follows:

Beginner rank

Intermediate rank

Advanced rank

Expert rank

 After the Mortal stage, an Expert would ascend into what was known as the Pseudo Immortal stage. Yes, the whole point of Cultivation was the chance to gain true Immortality, unlike the Immortality that most Etherborns were born with. In the Pseudo Immortal stage, the following ranks were:

Master rank

Grandmaster rank

Semi saint rank

Saint rank

As for the other stages, to be honest I didn't know much about them as Cultivation was not something I paid nor cared much about. The fact that I could remember those two stages said something. I yawned as I listened to Ben come up with a plan for us.

"So since you two are D ranks, you have to take the Tutorial floor. And since I doubt Lith is going to let Anna go by herself...," Ben's eyes moved to me. I gave him a smile which made him roll his eyes. " I think we should all try the tutorial floor. What do you say, Lith."

"Fine by me," I shrugged just as the noise behind us picked up.

"Move aside," someone behind me whispered. I turned around to see the crowd around the Tower parting away to let an entourage of people walk forward. My eyes landed on the one leading the way. It was a girl, a slender petite girl with brown hair tied in braids and fair skin as snow, the freckles on her face visible from the sunlight that seemed to follow her movement. She was adorned in a white battle armor that fitted with her skin, a rapier sword tied to her waist. There were like around nine to ten people following her, but I didn't pay any attention to them because I was struck by the beauty of the girl. At the same time, it was like the girl had felt my presence because as I looked at her, her eyes landed on me, the emerald eyes shining so familiar to me, like something I had seen before in my dream....ugh!....Damn it. The headaches again. I tried my best to ignore the pain, brushing it aside as the girl's mouth drew into a cute smile.

"That's Jennifer Mcclough," Neil whispered to Ella. "She was a fellow student back in High school." I could tell that she was around the same age as me, eighteen years old or maybe a year older. I felt the brush of her Cultivation which took me by surprise. She was at the Psuedo-Immortal stage, at the beginning rank or close to the second rank. I couldn't tell.

"She's a human," Ella said.

"Yes," Ben said with a grunt. "The most powerful human in town," I was flabbergasted by what Ben had said. The aura around the girl as she walked away from her groupies startled me. It reminded me of my presence, though hers wasn't as suffocating. Still, I did feel a slight cold to it. The girl, Jennifer stopped in front of us. She turned to Neil and Ben giving them a nod before she turned her attention to Ella, and then to me. 

"I don't believe I've seen you here before, " Jennifer said. "Are you new in town?"

"Yes, though I must say I'm surprised at your insinuation that you remember every dungeon raider in this town," I said. I felt Neil and Ben grimace behind me while Jennifer's groupies frowned at me, a look of murdering rage blasted at me. I couldn't help but salivate at the thought of fighting them all.

"Yes, I make it a habit of mine to know all Dungeon raiders in Thornhill," Jennifer said with a sweet smile and then she chuckled. I was thrown off by her friendly nature. This was not what I was expecting. I was expecting her to get ticked off by my rude behavior, and then her being pushed by her groupie to get into a fight with me. I felt a slight headache creep up. She turned to the sword by my waist and pointed at it. "That's an Enchanted blade is it not."

"Yes, it is. If you excuse me, my group and I need to get going," I said. The ache was getting stronger. Something within me was agitated and I needed to spill some blood.

"I don't believe I caught your names," She said.

"I'm Anna Rochester, and she's Lith Rochester, my sister," Ella said.

"Lith, huh? Well, I'm Jennifer Mcclough. It was a pleasure to meet you," Jennifer said as the others and I left for the Dungeon, my desperation to get away from that girl had reached an all-time high.

****

"Careful, now!" I said as a Goblin ran straight up for Neil who was standing still, a staff in his hand, preparing to cast his spell. We were in the depths of the tutorial floor, having cleared most of it, fighting and killing Goblins, humanoid beasts that had green skin and low-level intelligence. we had encountered other kinds of Mana beasts but most of what we found were the Goblins. To me, this was a walk in the park as I only had to use just one punch to cleave their heads from their bodies. To the point that my right fingers had been filled with Goblin blood and brain matter. I didn't care for the smell of death, as it was something that filled me with warmth, though I could see the way Neil and even Ben looked at me with fright. Ben wasn't that bad. As a Lycan, he was awfully strong, with his claws and fangs that he could use as a weapon. He was also swift, leaping from one goblin to another tearing them apart with his claws. But even he started getting tired from fighting these green creatures that just kept coming. Ella also impressed me though, to be honest, I wasn't surprised by her. I knew what she was capable of. Always behind me, Ella had a black crossbow which she was able to fire a volley of arrows to impale the Goblins from a long distance. Ella was skilled with the bow and it was her favorite weapon to use, as it was something that went well with her bloodline ability and Battle art. But the one that caught my attention the most was Neil. I did not expect him to be as talented as he was, able to perform instant casting without bothering with the weaving of the spell formula, able to just conjure the elemental spells from thin air with his mana. I only know gifted Sorcerers that could cast spells instantly without the visual aid of the spell formula, a golden hexagram circle that represented the six elemental energy that filled up the planet. But Neil was able to accomplish such a feat, able to use both fire and earth elements. It was quite astounding that he had more than one affinity to the elements. I knew full well that to be able to use the six elements was a sign that one was blessed by nature itself. And such an individual had an easier time cultivating their Magical powers. As the Goblin approached Neil, he pointed his staff at the Goblin and cast a fifth-tier spell. A block of stone was crushed into a swirl of dark green light and then from the light, a couple of metal rods pierced the Goblin that was coming straight for Neil. Neil smiled though exhaustion was beginning to wear up on him. Meanwhile, I kept going at it, swinging my fingers through the skulls of so many goblins that I then lost count of how much I had killed. Even though I had lost count, I was still aware to make sure that I retrieved the white Orb that was always left behind when a Mana beast was killed. The White orb was the core of a mana beast, said to contain their essence which cost a lot of fortunes out in the real world. After a while the Goblins stopped attacking, sticking to the shadows of the trees that surrounded us. The tutorial floor of the Dungeon resembled the forest back in Thornhill which made it feel like we never left the place. After the Goblins stopped attacking us, we stopped by a lake where we could rest and relax, soon enough leaving the tutorial floor as we had finally cleared the requirement to enter the main floors. I was washing my fingers in the lake, getting rid of the goblin blood as Neil filled his canteen with water. I turned to look at him, lots of questions running through my head.

"You seem very good at spellcasting," I said. He smiled at me like I had given him a bag of money. "Even without your grimoire, the fact that you could instantly cast shows you're talented." Grimoires were the embodiment of a Sorcerer's Magic, said to appear when they awaken their Magic power. I had seen Neil use his grimoire a couple of times, but later on, he began to cast his spells without it. "When did you awaken?"

"At the age of ten," Neil said. "I mastered Simple Magic during that time as a rankless."

"That's quite impressive," Ella said. There was a wildness to Ella as she was counting the Mana cores that she had retrieved. "With your talent, you could make it as a Dungeon raider."

"Sorry, but that's Ben's dream. I plan to leave this place as soon as I make enough," Neil said.

"Oh! Where do you plan to go," I said. The world was big and large, with so many places. Did he intend to leave Ashtarium? 

"I plan to head to the east, where the Galadh Institute of the Sorcery Art is located," Neil said. I blinked when I heard it. The east was on the opposite side of the western hemisphere beyond the Atlas Ocean that separated the New continent from the rest of the Old Continent. The Eastern continent was said to be similar to Ashtarium in that all races were accepted there, unlike it was in the Main continent of Europa. The Europa continent was a land of hardship and division, a place I would not recommend any humans to go to. 

"Do you plan to become a scholar," Ella asked.

"No. I wish to learn more about the Arcane art. About Magic and accumulate knowledge," Neil said. "And then use my Knowledge to find out the truth behind the Dungeon towers." After Neil was done speaking, there was silence around us with none of us saying anything. To be honest, looking at Neil, I couldn't help but feel quite jealous. He had a goal, a purpose that made the future look brightening to him. But me on the other hand, the only purpose my life held was Ariella. I live and die for her. It was the only worthwhile thing I could find in this world. Without Ella, I didn't know what I would do with my life. Maybe I would still be in the Dread forest, slaying Demonic beasts or any Vampire I could get my hands on.

"That's quite a lot," Ella said obviously impressed by Neil. Neil chuckled like it was nothing.

"I know." Neil said. "Don't you find it exciting. The mystery behind this place," Neil looked up at the blue sky that stretched for miles. Even though we had entered the Dungeon, it looked like we had gone into a different world in some kind of alternate dimension. 

"I do," Ella said. Which was the truth. It was then that I realize why I felt ticked off by Neil since I met him in the music shop. He had this innocence about him that reminded me of the former Ella before her family was killed in front of her. He had this look of curiosity within him, like the world was a puzzle and he needed to dig deep and find out it's secret. "I've always been interested in history, especially the history that has to do with the old age." Ella was a nuthead for the history books, her collections of the Old age items was what led to my interest in punk music. The Ashtarmel family owned a collection of old age tech, something that was hard to come by. 

"Then why not come with me to Galadh. It also offers courses on Battle art that help with your cultivation," Neil said. He was beaming at Ella, the lovesick crush in his eyes made me forget about the good mood I was having towards him.

"Don't pester the girl with your own fantasy," Ben growled. He was done resting, and was standing up, the atmosphere of being on break gone. "We should move on. I want to tackle some of the Mana beast on the first floor," We got up and followed the path that lead to the gate that would take us straight to the upper floors. It was a pillar of light in the middle of the woods, similar to the white light that came from an Ether gate. I felt the pull of the light as the space around us shifted. When I opened my eyes, I found myself in the middle of a town square, a town square that looked similar to the town square of Thornhill. I blinked as I wondered how the hell did the Dungeon replicate the town of Thornhill. Just like the plaza in the woods where the dungeon entrance was, there were vendor stalls with merchants selling their goods.

"The first floor of the Dungeon is said to be a copy of the town itself," Neil said. 

"From what my Pack told me, Mana beast sleeps during the day, and then attack during the night," Ben said. "Looks like we came during the Morning phase."

"So what now," I said.

"Don't you know," Ella said. "We explore."

-

Outside of the Royal Palace of the Ashtarmel family

Yorkside Region,

Capital Kingdom of Ashtarmel

August 11th 6406

10:30 am

Lily wished she was back in the room Ariella had chosen for her. She was outside in the courtyard, Ariella practicing her archery skills. Her instructor, Sanders- Lily still couldn't stand the sight of him- was showing her the proper way to wield her bow. The courtyard was spacious, enclosed in a circular shape, trees were paved on the ground, providing some kind of shade against the blistering sun. Lily was under one of those trees, watching Ariella. It had been a week since the King offered for her to stay with them and she still hadn't gotten used to being around other people. She had spent those weeks locked up in the beautiful room that was now hers. It was a better upgrade from the first room she had ever slept in. They had given her space to deal with the news of her Father's death but Lily still couldn't deal with it. She was only out here because she was curious about Ariella. The girl was only eight years old but the way she held her bow, her marksmanship as the arrows found their way within the target circle, Lily was impressed. She could dimly remember doing the same practice with her father outside their mansion, the smile on his face when she hit the target....wait did he ever smile. The memory was there but when Lily tried to focus on it, there was a ringing pain and then blankness. She should stop. She thought. Damn it. She was sweating and uncomfortable, the heat from the sun was something she hadn't experienced before. She missed the cool breeze from the Dread forest, where it was nighttime all day. She had never seen the sun, only the moon once in a month. She was looking up at the white ball of light, her eyes adjusting to the blinding light.

"It's fake, you know," Ariella said. Lily blinked away from it and faced the Princess. She was sweating, her silver blonde hair was damp with sweat across her forehead, her white practice shirt was sticking to her skin. "The sun up there. It's artificial, made by the dome that covers the entire Region."

"Where I come from, it's night all the time," Lilly said.

"The Dread forest right." She said. "I've read about it. It's one of the places struck by the Eternal night."

"Eternal night," Lily said.

"You know, the phenomenon that helped us win the Long War," Ariella said. Lily shook her head. She had no idea what the Long war was.

"You don't know." Ariella sounded surprised. She crossed her legs on the ground in front of Lily, smoothing her face in a serious expression. "The Long War was the war of Races that happened thousands of years ago. It was between the Vampire race and the Children of the Light. According to the history books that I'm reading, the other races were divided among the Vampire factions and the Children of the Light's faction."

"Children of the Light. I haven't heard of any race known as that." Lily said.

"That's because their name was stripped from the annals of time, forgotten by history." Lily said. "Just like how their kind was wiped into extinction. After the nuclear attacks-"

"The Eternal night was inflicted by the Ansgar noble house," Lily said.

"Yes...Wait...how did you... I thought you didn't know anything about the war." Ariella said.

"I don't," Lily said. She was confused. How did she know that? The memory was there, the nuclear blasts, the radiation from the other side that was poisonous against the Vampires. Father taking her away from their home and into the outside world. Memories were rising up, followed by the pain. Lily wanted to fight through it, but the pain was too much. She was grateful for the blankness that took the pain away. "I don't know how but I just knew about it. The same way that I know what a Vampire is and how to kill it."

"You've killed before, haven't you," Ariella said. Lily feared that the girl would be scared of her and somewhere deep down in her heart, she wanted the girl to be scared of her. To fear her so much that.... but Ariella didn't seem scared. No... What was in her eyes wasn't fear that Lilith had been expecting. Instead, it was sadness... or was it pity. No...it was curiosity. She looked at Lily like she was a puzzle that she felt like diving deep into and exploring. There was a tinge of innocence to it. Either way, that opposite reaction from what she was expecting drove her mad.

"I had to. I had no choice but to." Lily said. Did she, though. She did have a choice if she could remember properly. The lives she had taken, the lives that she didn't have to snuff out were very vivid in her mind. But then again, they had been weak. And she had been strong. "I had to do everything in my power to stay alive." Lily got up from the ground. She did not like the look that was on the princess's face. This little girl....This girl was raised in a bubble, with no idea of what life really was about. You were either weak or strong. Kill or be killed.

"Don't look at me like that. You don't know what my life's been like. What it's like to-" To kill. To take a life, whether it was a monster or a human. killing was still killing. The feelings were still the same. That glorious moment when she ensured that the life was gone and the intoxication from it settled in her bones. A part of her missed that feeling, craved for it. It had been a while since she satisfied that urge. To go hunting... for a life to take. If she wanted, she could snap Ariella's neck, push her arms right through her chest...spill her blood and take her lifeforce and make it her own....No... what was she thinking. Hot-blinding shame froze the flames of desires that had been sparking within her chest. She didn't want to hurt her. Not this girl with the innocence etched within her eyes. It was those same eyes that had stopped her from rampaging in those cells down the basement. The desire to kill was still there but like her memories, it was getting dimmer. How was this possible. She always gave in to her urges. So why did she feel the need to reject it around those eyes? As long as she was by the Princess's side, It seems she could control the urge to kill. Was that why she had agreed to stay here. To be around those eyes. Lilith wasn't so sure but she didn't mind figuring it out.

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to snap at you," Lily whispered. She felt a wet sensation on her cheeks, so she instinctively wiped it off. Crying...She had never once cried before in her life. At least as far as she could remember.

"It's okay...Oh no, you poor bird." Ariella crawled under the canopy of the tree that Lily had been resting on. Next to the root of the tree, was a sunflower bird. The bird was twitching on the ground, trying its best to unfold its wing and fly, but it couldn't. It was hurt. Ariella picked the bird gently while cooing at it. Lilith could sense the damage to the bird. How did it get hurt? Was it her? Had she lost control somehow and released... the bird was dying. It was more than hurt.

"Give it to me," Lily said. She took the little bird from Ariella into her own hands.

"What are you doing." Ariella wondered.

"Shh. I'm trying to concentrate." Lily said. She closed her eyes and went deep within herself. She felt the tip of that strange desire to take life...but that wasn't what she was after. Next to it was something else. She felt the rush of energy spring up within her fingers, she focused the energy into a single spot in her palm and willed it into the bird. And just like that, the bird was ok. It sprang up, squawking, its lifeforce brought back from being drained. The bird flew away, right back to the sky. Ariella was shocked. She had on a half-smile.

"How did you do that," Ariella asked.

"I don't know," Lily said. She had never healed something before. She had only been able to absorb life force when she killed something. But she had managed to do the opposite. Send some of her own lifeforce into the bird to try to heal it. There was still so much that she didn't know about who she was. Or couldn't remember.

"Ariella, Why were you surprised when I told you what my last name was.?" Lily asked. She remembered the look on the girl's face when she had mentioned her name. Ariella's half smile turned into a full blown smile. She grabbed Lily's hand.

"Come with me." She said.

*

They were in Ariella's room, Lily sitting nervously on her bed while Ariella was searching for whatever she was looking for. The room was bigger than the one Lily had been given, though the color of the wall was the same pale lavender color. Her bed was Queen size, the duvet was laid perfectly on the bed. Ariella was by her desk which was covered with all kinds of books. They were probably the history books she had read. Ariella gasped as she found what she was looking for and jumped on the bed. She had this excitement on her face.

"Here it is." She said. The book was small and black with a gold colored cross on its front. The word "Bible" was written in gold letters. "I knew I had heard the name "Cain" before. Not many people go by that Family name." She opened the book and began to read out loud.

"8And Cain said to Abel his brother, "Let us go out to the field," and when they were in the field Cain rose against Abel his brother, and killed him. 9And the Lord said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother? And he said, "I do not know: am I my brother's keeper?" 10And He said, "What have you done? Listen! your brother's blood cries out to me from the soil. 11And so, cursed shall you be by the soil that gaped with its mouth to take your brother's blood from your hand. 12If you till the soil, it will no longer give you strength. A restless wanderer shall you be on the earth." 13 And Cain said to the Lord, "My punishment is too great to bear. 14Now that You have driven me this day from the soil I must hide from Your presence, I shall be a restless wanderer on the earth and whoever finds me will kill me." 15And the Lord said to him, "Therefore whoever kills Cain shall suffer sevenfold vengeance." And the Lord set a mark upon Cain so that whoever found him would not slay him.16And Cain went out from the Lord's presence and dwelled in the land of Nod east of Eden. 17And Cain knew his wife and she conceived and bore Enoch. Then he became the builder of a city and he called the name of the city like his son's name, Enoch." She stopped and looked up from the book.

"That's a weird story but what does that have to do with me," Lily said. Ariella closed the book.

"Cain was the firstborn son of Adam and Eve," Ariella said. "The first humans ever."

"Sounds like he was the first murderer," Lily said. Ariella nodded.

"And you want to know something else," Ariella said. "He's also the first human to become a New-blood Vampire."

"Wait! He was a Vampire." Lily said.

"Yeah. According to the Holy book of Lilithism, Cain was the first mortal to drink of the divine blood of the Great Divine Mother." Ariella said. "The first to go through the Rebirth process and become a Vampire. He was the first prophet."

"And you think this Cain has to do with who my family is," Lily said. She got up from the bed and began to pace around the room.

"Think about it. You're named after the Great mother, and you bear her prophet's first name as your family name." Ariella said. "It's too much of a coincidence." Lily grabbed the bible from her and opened it to that same passage. She reread the passage, the word's registering within her brain.

"He was cursed," Lily said. "God cursed him for spilling his own blood."

"We don't know if that is true," Ariella said. "The bible was just a book written long ago by humans who barely knew the truth. The Holy book of Lilithism says he was blessed with great powers. This could explain how you were able to heal the sunflower bird." Bless. Curse. Lily felt the opposite of blessed. The truth was ever since she opened her eyes in the Dread Forest, ever since she was abandoned, her life had seemed cursed. And now she learned that it came from some divine being."If we can get to the church's library, we might be able to get more information on the Kains. What do you say,?"

"Fine. I want to know who I am," Lily said.