128 Choices

"I can't believe I have to do this again." I groaned in frustration.

"Do what?" Nisi asked in wonder as she stood next to me.

"Give a speech." I answered her.

"Oh! What's wrong with giving a speech?" She asked me in wonder as she tilted her head towards the left.

"Don't worry about it Nisi, let's get this over with."

I was not in the mood to play twenty question with Nisi, one fun fact about the gnome was that once she's started asking questions, she doesn't stop, not for one second and it's quite frustrating at times. I made my way outside the tower and had to hold my breath at what I was seeing; vampires, as far as my eyes could see.

Whatknew that the blue district made up at least half of the entire vampire population in the pit, if not higher, buy right now I'm sure that seventy percent of that half was standing right in front of me.

There's been a significant change to all of their lives, their lively hoods(if it could be called that) has now been cut off from them. And it was all because of me, so for lack of a better word, they're here for an explanation, and to shift blames.

Of course not all of them were here for that reason, but without a doubt, I now had to take care of all of them. At least until they were all capable of taking care of themselves. I moved out of the tower and past the barrier, I was about to say something when a stone came hurtling for my face.

I couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, milliseconds before the stone even got to within a hairs breath of me. I mean seriously it was a stone, I doubted that would even tickle me at this point in time unless it was thrown by a significantly stronger person.

Kodak's hand appeared in front of me as he grabbed the stone, then proceeded to crush it to dust in a show of power. His red eyes glared into the crowd and went right to the wiry looking vampire with a dirty cloak over his shoulder.

He had a full beard, though it was as unkempt as the rest of his body, and his eyes had a fierce look of define dance in them as he stared at me with all the animosity his body could muster. Kodak was about to go make an example out of him, before I placed my hand in his shoulder, stopping him.

"I get that you guy's are angry and...…." He didn't even let me finish before he interrupted. Seems like this guy has a chip on his shoulder.

"Angry? We're furious. Because of your meddling we're all going to starve." He souted at me

"I understand that, but you all have to think about....."

"Think about what, since you've been in this pit, you've cause one problem after another, and I'm sure there's more to come in the future. After all we've been suffering from your actions long before you even stepped your foot into the dancing caves of Noxis Nyx.You're a plague to the vampire race, but what more can I expect from a human!"

It was not his wordsthat scared me, but the fact that most of the people around him were agreeing with him. I had to do. Something fast or he could very well turn the entire vampire community in the blue district against me. And I really did not wan to find out the outcome of such a scenario.

"I understand your fears, I understand you're worries."

"Do you understand our fears, do you!, really, huh. What do you know about...…"

"HEY!" I screamed at him.

There was such force behind my scream as I released a mist of blue soul energy out of my body, it quickly spread and disappeared over the frames of the vampires standing here. It was an intimidating enough display that reminded every single vampire around that I was not pushover who could be shouted over.

"You were all living like slaves!, like you're lives were worth less than the dirt under your feet! How long do you want to live like that...hunh! TELL ME!"

I paused for a moment to let my outburst sink in a bit, anybody or any creature will fear change, especially since it was one as intense at this.

We all feared the unknown, no one wanted to have their future be uncertain no matter the circumstances, and as prisoners, their future was very much uncertain, but that was a position that has taken them a few thousand years to get used to. It was the status quo that had grown up in, and raised their children in too.

Beyond a reasonable doubt, my actions had shaken them, it has thrown the foundation they built for themselves over the centuries into disarray, and so they were scared. But this douche bag in front of me seed adamant to make things a whole lot more worse than it actually was.

"I understand you're all afraid, but what I offer you is not starvation or an uncertain future, but freedom, Power! And a PROPER LIFE!"

I moved closer to them, and made sure they all could see me by having a previously prepared bottle of blood break and as it did so, I used the blood spilling out to form a round disk almost two meters in radius and let it raise me up, high enough that they all could see me.

"Are you hungry, well there's a temporary situation for that. But regardless, as long as I'm alive, none of you would ever go hungry. When you were all under the power of Adein you all worked for your meals, believe me when I tell you that it would not be any different here, but it won't be at the expense of your dignity or your lives. The vampires are an ancient race of warriors, though it's nothing to be proud off, we were the best killers in all of history. I'm giving you all a choice right now, will you submit, and swear fealty to me, to my coven, to my family. If you do so I assure you would all be taken care of." I said to them.

"So what you're saying is we all have to swear our lives in servitude to you, to be able to survive?"

The annoying vampire from earlier suddenly asked.

I knew at that point I might have made blunder, my words were not crafted properly enough, and there were several insinuations that were not meant within them.

But regardless, I knew what I wanted to do here, and that was to be honest to this people, it was a principle I wouldn't let go of no matter what. I'll let them make their own choices, but I'll still tell them what they're getting into. I was a very different person than the scared boy who woke up alone in a cage half a year ago.

"Don't get me wrong, those of you who choose to serve me, will have the responsibility of serving me and those who refuse to swear. You would be soldiers, protectors of the legacies of the vampire race. And because of that, you would all have better treatment, which includes becoming free from your seals immediately!"

A clamor broke out, voices were raised as eye's widened at the innuendo. They talked amongst themselves, with some sounding hopeful, and others choosing to be skeptical, thinking it couldn't be that easy or as simple as choosing to serve me. They needed proof, and I was ready to give them that.

"Varsessa, Kodak, Gus, please would you take the stage."

The mother and her children were quite known amongst the vampire community in the blue district. Her story had been one of the really tragic ones that had brought the community together in other to comfort her.

But now watching the mother and her two sons, climb disks made of blood, step, by step, ascending slowly until they were standing right behind me, eyes blazing blue and gold to show their ranks. I sat down on my own disk and let my legs enable from the edge, swinging them leisurely.

"Many of you know who they are, Varsessa is an attendant to both my bond mates, Xaseah Theolheim Cor, who I might add is also an unsealed Vampire of the rank Nosferatu. And Asha Ysmir Leona Cor, who is also my legal wife, and an elder, the very person to be unsealed among my family. I'm not just asking you to serve me, I'm welcoming you into a family that will look after you and yours, and give you a chance to decide how you want to live you life. If you don't want to serve, you would not be forced to, and even then you will still be taken care off, until a stable economy of sorts springs up to help the survival of all the vampires in blue district. You wouldn't be followingme without benefits, but it still has to be your own choice. And I can't promise you would be safe, because from now on, you would be living on the edge of the blade, training, hunting and growing in strength for one singular purpose...total freedom from the council of light, and the right to shape our own destinies."

They were silent as they thought over what I just said, the choice was entirely up to them, and I would not fault anyone of them for choosing not serve.

After all, they now had a chance at freedom, but I was offering another shackle, though I was giving a lot of benefits with it. But choices had to be made, decisions had to be taken, and a destiny had to be chosen.