• Chapter 11
    Ruku was born 21 years before. His mother was Cenara, his father Alucard. Cenara had gotten pregnant. In Vampire culture, the chances of a naturally born Vampire is 1 in a million. The fact that Cenara was carrying twins was nothing short of a phenomenon. Alucard was excited for this. The possibility of two heirs who shared his likeness and his abilities made him giddy. On the day the twins were born, Alucard was in for a big surprise. It wasn't male identical twins. It was a fraternal male/female set. He quickly gave the name Shadow to the boy and Shade to the girl. However, he quickly regretted his decision. Alucard had assumed the boy was a full vampire. In reality, he was only half. Alucard talked to the best doctors in the world. They said had they been identical twins, Shadow would have been a full Vampire since Shade was. However, since they were fraternal, the only thing they would have to have in common would be the same birthday. Everything else could be completlely different between them. They tried to soothe Alucard with the fact that they could have easily been born human. He killed them for this. Alucard began to hate his poor young Shadow who only loved him. Cenara left Alucard and chased some good looking human. Alucard took his rage out on his children, but primarily Shadow, who Shade would torture easily on Alucard's command. After all, Shadow was a useless half breed. Alucard then noticed something very interesting, even startling, in their fifth year. He had asked Shade to push her brother down the stairs. Though they were very young, Shadow understood immediately and began to run. Shade's developing Vampire abilities overwhelmed poor Shadow. She caught and easily picked him up and threw him down the stairs. With such force, Shadow crashed his head on the first step and bounced into the air. Red aura surrounded him as he floated in the air. Alucard was startled, Shade even more so. Shadow lifted his head as his fangs grew. He flew towards Shade and punched her in the face. If Shadow had done this any other time, Shade would have stood her ground and laugh at his feeble attempt. This time though, it did hurt, extremely so. Shade was sent flying and when she landed, began to cry. Shadow was ruthless though. He grabbed her by the hair and dragged her. "D-daddy!" cried little Shade. Alucard remained motionless, unable to intervene. He did have a Vampire side and it was superior to Shade. "Shut up," said Shadow, "I'm sick of you. Now, its your turn." He threw her down the grand staircase and she bounced and fell to the foyer. If Shade had been born human, Shadow would have just committed soricide. However, as she was Vampire, Shade cried her little heart out. "Daddy!" she cried over and over. Shadow turned on Alucard and charged. Though he was a child, his Vampire strength was able to knock Alucard down. Alucard punched Shadow in the stomach and sent him flying out of the stained glass window. Shadow turned in the air and grinned at his father as he floated. Impossible, Alucard thought to himself, superior strength, speed, and now flight. Maybe he's a real Vampire, just a late bloomer. However, Alucard was going to be proved wrong once again. Shadow flew towards Alucard and tackled him. Alucard fell on his back and the both of them rolled down the stairs. Alucard swore when he recovered, but had a happiness that said he had a real son. However, Shadow had switched back to normal, his malignant Vampire side gone. It appears he would only become a Vampire under extreme emotional stress Not only that but his intelligence grew during that state and that stayed instead of fading away... Alucard cursed Shadow. He dragged him up the stairs and was intent to toss his forsaken son down the stairs when a voice commanded him to stop. Bewildered, Alucard looked around for the source. "I said that dad. Put me down." He couldn't believe it; Shadow, a five year old, had said that. Apparently, he kept the same intelligence he had in his Vampire state. He lowered him. Nothing remarkable happened during the next six years. Shade was bent on her brother's death, but Shadow outwitted her every time. On the eve of their twelfth birthday, something happened that changed the Vampire clan forever. Alucard's Nightstalkers were giddy every time they were able to torture Shadow. That night the Nightstalker Commander got drunk while celebrating the unit's latest success with Alucard. Shade was sparring with the other Nightstalkers on her orders. Shadow was reading in the library, anxious for the clock to chime midnight. The Commander swaggered in with half a bottle of alcohol in his hand. Shadow looked up and was immediately terrified. Nightstalkers always gave him this sensation and he naturally cowered in the Commander's presence. The Commander chuckled drunkenly and suddenly, swung the bottle against Shadow's head. It shattered into infinitesimal pieces and many of them went into Shadow's small head. He crumpled to the floor, bleeding profusely. The Commander laughed again and proceeded to stomp on his back. Before his boot connected, Shadow caught the foot with superhuman speed. The red aura surrounded him once more and his canines protruded once more; for the second time in his life, Shadow was a true Vampire. He swung the unstable commander against the wall, headfirst. His skull made a sickening crack. Not finished, Shadow walked over and easily picked the Commander up by the collar and grinned. "You've tormented me for as long as I can remember. Now its my turn." He threw the Commander screaming out of the window. As the library was on the third floor, it was quite a fall, such a fall that it killed the Vampire Commander. Shade saw the Commander thrown out of the window and witness his body break though it were a matchtsick. She called the other Nightstalkers and glimpsed her brother in the window. She identified the killer and sent the Nightstalkers after him. Shadow waited calmly for them and burned the first Nightstalker to a crisp. Knowing it would be suicide to try and engage them all, so he took the alternative option and jumped out the window. He saw Shade on his way down and scorched her with a Fire Stream. She was burned and fell to the floor. Knowing there was no turning back and going home, Shadow ran into the woods. Shade recovered and assumed command of the Nightstalkers. She donned the uniform and put the visor down. "Its hunting time," she told her soldiers. With Alucard's clearance, the Nightstalkers were sent after Shadow. Shadow had a hour head start, but Shade had the Nightstalkers. They chased him for two weeks. Of course by this point, Shadow had been human. He staggered into towns and was offered hospitality by some kind hearted folk. But any twelve year old would be exhausted and Shadow was indeed tired. On the fifteenth day, Shade went to a stream by herself to drink fresh water. Shadow was asleep on the brink of the stream. Shade saw him and crept up on him katana drawn. She was standing over him and was about to bury her sword in his chest when her 1st lieutenant called for her.