The next morning, Marianne and Verena were sat up in bed, holding each other as they spoke quietly. "I really do want to, Marianne. I want a family. I want to have a life with you. I'm just... not ready. Practically, or emotionally. I'm still trying to adjust to the change of having my Will work properly, and with all this bullshit around my class and whoever's after me, it's just not the right time."
Marianne leaned in, kissing her gently. "I know, love. I know. I feel the same way. Just know that, when that time comes, I'm right here."
"Okay..." Having finished the serious discussion that had lasted around fifteen minutes, Verena climbed out of bed, heading towards her closet. "Now, come on. We have to have a serious talk with my parents." As Marianne reached for her maid's uniform, Verena caught her hand. "Oh, no you don't. My parents both know about us, now. Mother talked with father last night, and I will not have my woman wearing the clothes of a servant." She pulled a gorgeous, black dress from her closet, seemingly brand new. "Mother had this sent over this morning, before you woke up. You're going to put it on, and I won't hear any complaints, got it?"
Marianne paused for a moment before choosing not to argue. "Alright, alright. I'll wear it." As she pulled on the dress, she turned to question Verena. "So, if I'm not your lady-in-waiting anymore, what does that make me?"
The moment Marianne's face was free, Verena ambushed her with another kiss. "The only thing that matters. The woman I love."
Marianne felt her cheeks burning as she adjusted her dress. "By the way, how did your mother get my measurements?"
Verena let out a soft chuckle as she shook her head. "Apparently, mother didn't just notice how we felt about each other before we could tell her. She noticed how we felt about each other before we did, at all. She kept your measurements from last time you got a new uniform."
Marianne shook her head, sighing. "Of course she did." As she finished putting on the new dress, she turned to Verena. "How do I look?"
Seeing the look on her lover's face, she wondered, briefly if that was a mistake. Verena walked closer with a predatory smile. "You look positively ravishing." Then, she leaned in, gently biting Marianne's ear as she whispered to her, "And it makes me want to ravage you, my love."
Marianne felt herself start to heat up and lean into the vampire's touch. But before she could lose herself, Verena stepped back with a smirk. Marianne pouted, glaring at Verena. "You're incorrigible."
Verena gave her a quick peck on the cheek before walking towards the door. "Only because you make it so easy. Also, you do enough teasing, yourself. You deserve it."
Marianne sighed as she joined Verena at the door, but then Verena did something she didn't expect. She wrapped her arm around Marianne's, holding her close in a clear display of affection. Marianne blushed furiously. "Verena..." The young vampire, however, just smirked at her before opening the door. She led Marianne down the halls of the mansion, her head held high and her expression one of pride. Marianne, on the other hand, was mortified. She could see servants standing in small clusters, whispering to each other as they looked at the couple walking down the hall. It seemed that, with her parents now aware of their relationship, Verena was perfectly happy with the whole city knowing, as well, by the middle of the day. Marianne leaned in to whisper to her love, harshly. "Verena, what in the nine hells are you doing?"
Verena just chuckled. "I'm staking my claim. And yours." Verena leaned up, kissing Marianne gently, which just embarrassed her further, as they were still in the middle of the hall. "You're mine now, love. And I'm yours. I want to make sure that all the power-hungry, status-chasing, little bastards that keep trying to court me know that I'm taken." She smiled up, looking at Marianne with a tender love. "Furthermore, I'm proud to be with you, Marianne. Why wouldn't I want to let people know that I've managed to snag such a wonderful, caring, gorgeous woman. You need to remember, dear, I have a Will of sixty-six, now. I'm very comfortable with who I am. I'm proud of my accomplishments. I'm proud of my body. And, most importantly, I'm proud of my love."
Marianne was blushing even harder, now. However, this was for an entirely different reason. Instead of embarrassed, she was overjoyed. "Verena... Thank you. Thank you, so much. I love you..." When Marianne leaned in, initiating the kiss herself this time, the gossiping of the servants in the hall became even more furious, but neither woman cared. They just walked proudly, hand-in-hand, to Dominik's office.
When the two stepped into the office, Dominik and Lucile were speaking softly to each other. When they saw the two, holding hands and smiling softly, Lucile just grinned, but Dominik sighed, shaking his head. "Verena..."
His daughter, however, held up her hand. "Stop. Father, there is nothing you can say that will change how I feel. I love Marianne, and I want as much time with her as I can get." She stepped forward, her gaze firm and her voice unwavering. "I know, without a doubt, that if I did as you would have me, the regret I would feel over what I could have had with her when I had the chance would hurt far more, and far deeper, than the pain of losing her. I've made my decision, and if you can't respect it, that's your problem, not mine."
Dominik was stunned. He'd never seen this kind of determination in his daughter. Her tone left no room for debate, and her surety left him bewildered. "I... okay. You've clearly thought about this. If that's the conclusion you've come to, I won't argue."
Verena smiled in relief as she sat down. Marianne was still staring at Verena in shock. She was still adjusting to Verena's new Will, and the sight of her standing up to her father like that, especially for Marianne, was a surprise. Then, as her mind caught up with the situation, she blushed furiously, moving to sit next to Verena. "Sorry, I was just surprised."
Verena just reached out, gently squeezing Marianne's hand before smiling playfully. "You're embarrassing me, love." Marianne just blushed harder, electing not to respond.
Dominik leaned forward, looking at his daughter. "Alright, you wanted to speak with us, and I find it very unlikely, based on how you were acting about it, that your relationship with Marianne is the only subject."
Verena shook her head. "No, the primary subject is much more important. My class."
Dominik's eyes went wide, and he momentarily lost his composure. "What!?" Upon turning to his wife and seeing her calm, unruffled demeanor, his eyes bulged. "Lucile, did you know about this!?"
The Countess calmly turned to him, smiling. "Of course. Verena told me last night."
Dominik spluttered, staring at his wife with a look of betrayal. "Why didn't you tell me?"
Lucile answered calmly, in a matter-of-fact tone. "Because it wasn't my secret to tell. Verena asked me to talk to you about her and Marianne, but she did not do the same about her class."
He just slumped, sighing heavily. "Fine... fine..." He turned back to Verena, recovering a portion of his composure. "You have your class."
Verena nodded. "I do. It seems mother's blood runs stronger in me than she realized."
Dominik turned to his wife, this time in confusion, but before he could speak, it dawned on him. "You don't mean..."
Lucile simply nodded. "My grandmother. Apparently, our daughter has a bit more succubus in her than we thought."
The Count just sighed, giving up on his noble demeanor, altogether. "Fuck..."
Verena leaned forward, looking at them both. "I need to ask you both some questions, and we need to talk about the immediate future." Hearing the serious tone in her voice, they both gave her their full attention. "First, and most importantly, does the phrase [Primal Avatar] mean anything to either of you?"
Dominik started to speak, shaking his head, but he was interrupted by his wife. "What did you just say!? Verena, did you just say [Primal Avatar]?"
Verena was shocked, but she nodded. "Y-yes... Why? What does that mean to you?"
Lucile's face went pale, an impressive feat for a vampire, and she trembled slightly. "The number of mortals to whom those words have meaning is quite possibly as low as the double-digits."
Everyone in the room was shocked, but it was Verena who managed to form a sentence, first. "Why did you specify mortals, mother?"
Lucile took a deep breath before she began. "The knowledge of the [Primal Avatar]s is a long held secret of the immortals."
This truly stunned the other three. Of all the races in the world, there were only four types of beings who were truly ageless. Each one was a powerful variation of their respective race, and they were so rare that a millennium could pass without an individual race giving birth to a new immortal.
Archfiends, demons of unrivaled power who, unlike their lesser brethren, didn't need to feed on the sins of those around them to survive, and thus had little need to deal with other living beings, at all.
Archangels, incredibly aloof angels who held themselves above the rest of the world, rarely ever interacting with anyone besides each other.
Elder Dragons, often thought of as the only 'true' dragons, each one lived in isolation, deep within the wilds of the untamed regions of Orellia.
And High Elves, elves with a connection to nature that was magnitudes stronger than any other, who lived in harmony with the spirits who naturally gravitated to them, standing as guardians of the balance between nature and man.
Each had terrifying power, both as a part of their nature, and due to their absurd levels, from living so long. Furthermore, immortals were extremely isolationist. Most barely interacted with mortals once a century. The number of secrets they held was unimaginable, and if the [Primal Avatars] were truly one of them, Verena may have even more problems than she thought. With all three stunned into silence, Lucile began her story. "It was over eight-thousand years ago..."
*****
The true nature of the [Primal Avatar]s was a mystery, even to the immortals. Only they knew what they truly were, and they seemed fundamentally incapable of sharing the secret. Their power was unmatched. A fully realized [Primal Avatar] was strong enough to even challenge an immortal. They would appear on Orellia at varied intervals. Sometimes, it would be as short as a few thousand years, and sometimes it would be as long as tens of thousands.
Each one had power relating to a different aspect of existence. The exact Aspects were not always the same, but there were common threads. Each Aspect would seemingly mold itself to its bearer. While one might be the [Avatar of Wrath], their successor, in the next generation, could instead be the [Avatar of Passion], or the [Avatar of Slaughter]. However, there was one avatar who changed everything.
She called herself the [Avatar of Power]. She sought dominion, and she used any means necessary to gain it. She was savage, ruthless, and she had an unparalleled understanding of the system. She subjugated her enemies, bending them to her will, and binding them with her abilities. She threw the world into chaos, and each foe she defeated made her that much stronger, as she imposed her will over them and forced them into servitude. By the time the world realized how big of a threat she was, even the other [Primal Avatar]s would fall to her strength. She subjugated multiple of them, turning their power on their allies.
Left unchecked, she could have led the whole world to ruin. She nearly did. In the wake of her conquest, more than eighty percent of the world's population was wiped out, and technology was set back by millennia. Her defeat was only achieved because of a nearly impossible alliance. Seven immortals, and five [Primal Avatar]s, joined forces to bring her down.
The Archfiend, Thraxus, [The Blazing Eye], used his prophetic powers to identify the perfect time and place to strike, and lent his predictive gifts to his allies, to know the mind of their quarry. The [Avatar of Solitude] used the full extent of his strength to isolate their battleground, physically, magically, and even temporally, from the rest of existence, allowing them to fight unrestrained, for as long as was necessary. The twin High Elves, Roland, [The Voice of the Wild], and Serena, [The Hand of the Wild], brought the strength of the Soul of Nature itself to bear against their foe. The [Avatar of Decay] brought the force of her rot onto the body of their target, and the [Avatar of Despair] brought the force of his very will onto her mind.
The Archangel Azrael, [The Blade of Light], defended those not directly fighting from the overwhelming might of the conqueror. The rest reigned down blows upon the tyrant who had brought them all together. The [Avatar of Wrath] fought with the beautiful savagery of a wild heart unbound. The [Avatar of Life] unified himself with the Soul of Nature, unleashing the might of the world itself. The Elder Dragons, Korwyn, [The Crimson Sky], and Morgren, [The Azure Wind], called forth a tempest of fire and ice that moved with such unity they felt, not like opposites, but like two halves of a greater whole. And the High Elf, Soraka, [The Spirit Edge], struck with the might of the world's strongest spirits.
None could tell how long the battle took. Outside of space, outside of the flow of magic, and outside of time itself, a second, and a century, felt no different. When the conflict had ended, and the dust settled, Thraxus, Azrael, Korwyn, Morgren, and the [Avatar of Solitude] were the only ones left alive. All others, including the [Avatar of Power], had fallen. However, as she died, their foe made a promise. She swore, with her dying breath, that she would return. When the [Primal Avatar]s next walked Orellia, she would be reincarnated in her successor, and she would have her revenge.
The immortals were never told how, but the [Avatar of Solitude] assured them that her words were more than empty threats. What she threatened was possible, and his words suggested that she had already done so, in the past. The surviving immortals made a pact that day. They prepared. For eight thousand years, they readied themselves for the day that the tyrant would return. There was just one problem. None of them were in a position to do what they had sworn.
Over the years, Azrael grew paranoid and distrustful, hiding away in the home of the Archangels, where he would not even speak to his fellows.
Korwyn and Morgren disappeared less than a thousand years after the war ended, never to be seen again. It was never known if they had simply hidden away, or if something more sinister had happened to them.
Finally, Thraxus, though still determined, was crippled by the battle. The backlash of several people with whom he was sharing his power with, so deeply, dying, crippled his prophetic and predictive powers. Where he could once divine the course of fate, now he could barely see shadows of what may be. Insightful prophecies had been replaced with vague feelings, and he was reduced to a shadow of what he once was.
So, he did the only thing he could. He followed the guidance of his residual power, and waited. He waited for millennia, until the feeling changed. He knew not why, he knew not who, but he knew that one of his descendants, one who was not a demon, but who still respected his kind, needed to hear this story. He knew, immediately, where he must go. The only descendants he had who fit those criteria were the vampires of house Asmoria, and among those vampires, when he told his tale, was a young woman by the name of Lucile Asmoria.
*****
A heavy silence filled the room as Lucile finished her story. The information was a lot to take in, and the implications were even heavier. They sat in silence for nearly fifteen minutes before someone spoke. It was Dominik, and his question was simple. "Verena, what is your Aspect?"
Verena was not overly surprised. While she hadn't explicitly stated that she was a [Primal Avatar], it wasn't a difficult conclusion to reach. She just sighed heavily before answering. "[Avatar of Connection], so it doesn't sound like my predecessor was one of the ones involved in that battle. It could be possible that I'm the successor to the [Avatar of Life], but that's a stretch."
They all nodded, agreeing with her assessment. Marianne spoke next. "It's more likely that your predecessor was one of the ones who was subjugated by the [Avatar of Power], but Verena, this leads to the next issue." She looked at her love with worry. "Who was trying to keep you from awakening your class?"
Verena's parents were confused. It was Lucile who voiced her concerns first. "Marianne, what do you mean? Someone was trying to keep her from awakening?"
So, the two women explained it to them. The anomaly with her Will, the title the system had given her, the messages about interference with her surroundings. They told them about everything, except the voice that had spoken to Verena. Then, they explained their worries. "So, we're leaving, soon. We can't stay here. Whoever was messing with me will know that I've broken free of their restraints, and they won't sit idly by. Marianne and I need to be gone before they arrive, whoever they are." She smiled calmly. "Thanks to Marianne's concealment skill, and my ability to copy it, they won't be able to track us through any means but mundane ones, and we can stay ahead of mundane pursuit."
Both of her parents had grim faces, but they realized that she was right. So, Dominik stood, a resolute look on his face. "Well then, we'd better start getting you two ready."