The Making of Vampires Ch. 05

The man whose sword she blocked hissed, "Do you really believe my brother could love a woman such as you, not knowing proper womanly behavior and playing as a man? He almost vomited each time he laid with you with your unwomanly ways. You made him sick, but you were the key to manipulating your father."

He would have said more, but Marcus couldn't stand the growing look on Suwon's face with each word that passed through that man's mouth. Marcus stabbed the man from behind through the skull. His sword erupted from the bloody mouth like a strange silver tongue. He yanked if free and pulled Suwon behind him as he thrust his sword into the second man.

Marcus turned to Suwon and shook her gently as he said, "Your father, we must protect your father."

She looked confused. Then Marcus remembered. Gabriel's interpretation spell only worked one way. He could understand Suwon, but she could not understand him. He started to pull her to the back, the last place where he saw her father.

He held his sword at the ready as he spoke, "We have to protect Master Cho. Master Cho. Cho. Cho!" He hoped saying her father's name repeatedly would make Suwon comprehend his intention and it did.

He heard her gasp and say, "Abeoji!" which echoed in his mind as "Father!" He was about to nod, but Suwon ran past him. Startled for only an instant, he quickly caught up to her side protecting her from any danger.

Being taller, he saw the crumpled pile of silks before Suwon did. He pulled her gently to make her change directions, guiding her so they could help the injured man. To late his enhanced ears detected the truth. There was no heartbeat. Then he caught the scent of Master Cho's blood, too much blood. There was no question Master Cho was dead.

Suwon froze for an instant. Then a look of madness crossed her face. She lifted her sword turning the blade down in what Marcus mistakenly thought was a sign of honor until he heard his uncle's voice in his mind, a new and disturbing sensation.

Stop her. She means to kill herself for the disgrace of her actions. She has not only lost face from choosing an unworthy lover, but believes herself to be the cause of her families defeat.

Marcus' hand shot out catching her wrist just as she started the downward thrust. He shook his head. She fought against him trying to free her sword. He held on trying not to break her wrist. Suwon kicked at him. He dodged fearing she would break her own foot.

Sighing Marcus called out, "I need a magic user to still her."

Sophia materialized behind Suwon. She gave him a sad smile and lifted her hand. She held grains of sand and blew to Suwon who struggled only a moment more and then dropped having fallen asleep. Marcus caught her before she hit the ground.

Sophia shook her head. "Martinelli told us of the treachery. How long has he been able to talk into someone's mind?"

Marcus shrugged. "Today was the first time he ever did it to me. It was...uncomfortable."

Sophia shook her head, "Well, I hope he only uses it for emergencies."

Marcus had only a moment as he saw Sophia's eyes grow wide. He threw Suwon from his arms into Sophia who caught the woman clumsily, turned, and lifted his sword to defend himself. He felt the burn as fence post pierced his chest. He was falling and the post was going deeper. He had no control over his body and couldn't move his legs to catch himself or move his arms to push at the post. Marcus felt a queer calmness as he realized death was upon him.

Then he felt his uncle's presence, in not only his mind, but also his body. Martinelli moved Marcus' legs. Somehow, his uncle was controlling his body. Next, he felt his arms move to push at the post and his legs kicked to make his body twist in the air rolling up and over the tip of the post. The pointed tip of the post ripped through his skin and chipped away at his bones, but his heart hadn't been touched. He dropped to the ground and he felt his uncle leave his mind and body. He looked up in time to see a woman in red robes standing beside a man, also in red.

Sophia no longer held Suwon. She pulled a piece of charcoal from her pocket launching it at the couple in red. It burst into a fireball growing in size as the glowing plasma churned on the surface of the ball. It grew until it blocked the image of the couple and burst. An ear-deafening explosion shattered the air knocking Sophia from her feet. As she tried to regain her footing, Sophia saw the heated shock wave rolling back to her.

Sophia screamed, "Fire!" and dove over Marcus trying to protect him with her body. She knew it was pointless. They would both burst into flames and die. Suwon would burn too. If she lived, the woman would be hideously scarred.

Sophia heard the dying scream people burning alive. She smelled their burnt flesh and waited to die. And waited. She looked up to see a glittering dome over part of the battlefield. She felt the hum of energy and followed it back to Gabriel and four other spell casters. They concentrated keeping the dome in place as the forest blazed outside of the dome. Charred bodies littered the field where the dome didn't protect it. She could feel her husband's fatigue growing as other mages cast spells to kill the growing fire.

The warriors in the dome stopped fighting, stunned from the show of power. The enemy threw down their weapons surrendering and dropping to their knees. Martinelli and his men quickly gathered up the orphaned weapons and piled them high. In minutes, the enemy soldiers and the traitors were shackled and bound rendering them helpless.

Gabriel forced himself to maintain the dome. Two of the other magic users helping with the spell had dropped from fatigue. He knew there were spell casters ready to take their place, but he feared that would be too much disruption to maintain the dome, so he persevered with the remaining two knowing they would all lose consciousness soon.

He felt his wife's presence growing nearer. He wondered about her spell. He knew she wasn't strong enough to cast anything so powerful. He would investigate.

Sophia's touch and soft words brought him out of his spell. "My love. It is over. Rest now."

Before Gabriel dropped to his knees, August and Martinelli caught him. They guided him to the ground, but Gabriel asked, "Please, take me to the site of Sophia's spell. I need to investigate. She didn't do it on purpose." He feared someone would take their anger out on his beloved.

Martinelli answered, "Just gather your strength a moment. We all know that Sophia wouldn't try to hurt any of us." He looked around to gauge his men. None blamed her, but some of the humans were wary.

Gabriel tried to stand. "I have to get to the spot before more magic seeps away. I have to examine it."

August sighed looking at the spot where his injured son lay surrounded by magic users healing the young man. His duties as a leader came before his duties as a father and he too had to know what happened. He motioned for Martinelli to help him.

They lifted their brother and helped him walk to the site of the crater, which smoked and hissed with heat. Sophia followed close behind, confused and worried. Gabriel touched the charred ground a few inches from the blackened crater. He felt an invisible wisp of energy, a dying remnant of the magic that caused the explosion. Then he caught another wisp and knew what had happened.

He smiled. "Sophia's magic interacted with a teleport spell. Teleports, when done improperly, can leave an opening that leaks the energy of magic, very much like opening a door. The result of this one was much like oil tossed onto a flame, but instead of oil, it was a fireball. This was devastating. I could not imagine what would have happened if I had cast that fireball, having more power than Sophia, we all would have died before a dome of protection could have been created."

He nodded as if congratulating himself, but his face froze. He slowly raised his face. "It was her. That woman who tried to kill Martinelli in the mountains. Remember, I told you about her after the battle. She met up with a man by the forest and left."

Sophia gasped. "She left with a man here, too. He wore red robes, much as she did. I couldn't see what happened as the fireball grew blocking them from my eyes." She turned to see Marcus sitting up, raw lines running over his chest. "Why did she try to kill Marcus this time? Why didn't she try to kill Martinelli?"

Martinelli asked, "If the fireball did so much damage here, what did it do to them?"

Gabriel shrugged. "I have no idea."

Martinelli felt a wave of despair strike him. He dropped to his knees cradling his head. "His armor. I commissioned his armor to be like mine. We have nearly the same color of hair. She was trying to kill me, but mistakenly targeted Marcus instead."

Just then, the group heard the haggard voice of Marcus. "Well, she failed." They looked up to Marcus with a wearied smile. "How did you take control of my body?"

Martinelli stood, walked to his nephew, and embraced the younger man. "I have no idea. I just took over. I felt the spell paralyze your mind so you could not react and felt the wood pierce your skin. Then I moved for you. I tried to make you dodge so you wouldn't be injured, but I failed. You were nearly killed."

August had approached the two men and embraced them both. "Nearly killed. I never thought those words would bring me comfort, but they do because that means that my son still lives."

***

Marcus, feeling much better after days left to recover, sat watching the judgment of the war prisoners. The spell casters used magic to determine which could serve a sentence to regain their freedom in honor as servants to the new Master Cho, the second son. The prisoners were divided into three groups.

The ones who did not intend to exist peacefully would be sent to the quarry to work until they died or tried to escape. Someone trying to escape would be killed immediately. Therefore, the result was the same. The sentence of working at the quarry meant death.

The second group would become servants of the new Master Cho. To ensure their loyalty, the spell casters magically reached into those men's minds to reveal where their families lived with the threat of retribution to not only be on the men, but their families as well.

The third group was to be executed this day. They were the traitors or men without honor who fought with the enemy. A large pile of timber awaited for the dead bodies. They deserved no ceremony.

Marcus wanted to see the lieutenant killed, but he had died in the battle. Instead, he now waited to see Suwon. He missed her the last few days, but his father and uncle forced him to stay in bed and rest.

He saw her black hair and smiled. Then his smile was replaced by confusion. Suwon walked in shackles with the traitors. He stood as did many of the vampires.

Marcus called out, "Why is Suwon treated like a prisoner?"

Prefect Park hurried over. "I understood you said something about Suwon. Repeat."

Marcus tried to calm himself and forced his words to slow. "Why. Does. Suwon. Walk. With. The. Prisoners?"

Prefect Park nodded in understanding answering with his heavy accent. "She has lost face and shamed her family resulting in the death of many men, including her father and her eldest brother. Therefore, she dies."

Marcus shook his head. "No, she was offered as a wife. I was next in line, but she considered it an insult. I still want her. I fought with honor. My father and his men fought with great honor. I want her in lieu of treasure."

Prefect Park translated for the new Master Cho and listened for his response. Marcus kept from looking relieved. It was obvious the brother did not want to kill his sister, but the man had his honor to think of.

Prefect Park answered, "You can have her, but she has to leave her family lands and never return."

Marcus calmly said, "Fine. That is fair." He knew they would have to forever leave because once he turned Suwon into a vampire, she wouldn't age and her family would notice. He waited while Prefect Park translated for him. His eyes sought out Suwon's, but she wouldn't look at him. He wanted her to see his face, to know he would keep her safe.

August nudged his son and motioned to the Prefect. Looking over, he saw the youngest son standing beside the Prefect looking almost hopeful. Marcus looked at Prefect Park asking, "Please, could you say that again? I was distracted."

Prefect Park bowed slightly as if he had done something wrong. "The younger brother of the Master Cho asks if you need the Service of Unity or if you will leave immediately?"

He almost answered they would leave immediately, but August broke in. "What service do you mean?"

Prefect Park answered, "The service of unity."

Marcus shook his head but his father grabbed his arm. August was a skilled diplomat. His son was a warrior much like his uncle and didn't understand that there was something else going on.

August answered very politely, "Prefect Park, my son does not have a calm demeanor as I do. All this is likely to stir his ire. He expressly stated that he wanted her as his wife. Would that not include the Service of Unity as well? Please, he may feel that Master Cho is posturing and my son may take it as an insult to his honor. So please, we require the Service of Unity."

After Prefect Park translated, both Master Cho and his brother seemed to stand taller. They exchanged more words.

Prefect Park turned to August, now speaking directly to him. "Please prepare the groom. He must be at the edge of the woods of where your party plans to leave at sundown. In most cases, he would bring a gift for the family for taking away something so precious, but in this case, you have already sacrificed your payment. So no gift is needed." He bowed and nodded to Master Cho who quickly walked away followed his brother. The two of them seemed to be racing.

The executions began. Armed guards took Suwon from the line marching away with her shackles in place.

Marcus shook his head. "That was the strangest thing. Why bother with the Service of Unity?"

Gabriel sauntered to the two of them followed by Sophia and Martinelli. "Well, I inadvertently stood near some of the most gossipy men ever." He looked down at Sophia. "You women are falling behind in the gossip department. Those men are professionals." He waited for her to giggle at his humor, which she did. "Those men said that the only way to redeem her in the eyes of her family would be if a man, you, took her away after the Service of Unity as an honored woman and wife, instead of as a slave saved from a death sentence. In their culture, it shows how much respect you have for her and her family. So you give them a bit of honor and erased her shame."

Marcus said, "I need to bring a gift. What do I bring?"

Martinelli answered, "You armor. You were grievously injured, which you were, and now you present it as a sign of your willingness to die for her family's honor."

August smiled. "That is brilliant, little brother. I'll talk with the Prefect to see if that would be acceptable."

***

Marcus had listened carefully to the instructions given by Prefect Park. He rode a black horse into the courtyard. He was dressed in black. The Cho family and their people considered white a color of death and black a color of purity and spirituality. So he had Sophia use magic to make one of his better outfits black instead of the tan it had previously been. He carried his gift in his hands as it showed a greater sign of respect that he felt the need to carry it.

He rode into the courtyard and became distracted as his eyes found Suwon. She knelt on a red pillow in front of a wooden table. She wore long red silks embroidered with gold cranes and silver lotus blossoms. Her hair was up off her shoulders in big loops on her head held in place with twigs of cherries and purple lilacs. White powder covered her face giving her a doll like quality. Black charcoal outlined her eyes and red cream covered her lips.

It wasn't until he heard laughter and felt his horse pulled to a stop that he looked down to see Martinelli. "So do you plan to run your bride over with the horse?"

Marcus didn't bother to cover his embarrassment. "She is so beautiful; I forgot what I was doing."

He wasn't sure who said it, but he heard one of the vampires' whisper, "Let's hope he doesn't forget what he is doing tonight." That comment caused more snickering. He smiled and hoped the same thing.

Marcus dismounted his horse, careful not to let his gift fall or touch the ground. He walked past his bride to her eldest brother and bowed on one knee. "I bring a gift as a sign of my willingness to die for the honor of the Cho family and to show my braveness and intent to protect my new bride, Suwon."

His gift wasn't taken. He remained bowed and on one knee. He grew concerned fearing his gift about to be rejected. He looked up.

Master Cho, tears in his eyes, stared at the black leather armor with the smeared blood on the damaged front. Master Cho tried to stand and would have fallen back into his seat if his brother and the prefect hadn't caught his arms. He approached the kneeling man slowly and took his gift. He raised it high into the air and spoke. The guests gasped. Marcus heard Suwon's heart accelerate, though she had not moved.

Prefect Park interpreted for the vampires who already knew what was said. "Master Cho declares that the spirits of his honored father and honored brother are brought to the Service of Unity by the blood offering of the groom. More so, because the groom lay injured and lived only through magic. Please, Master Marcus, stand and meet your bride."

Marcus caught the title granted to him. They called him Master as they did Master Cho. He wondered if they were on equal footing. He would ask about it later. He stood approaching his bride who remained kneeling with her head slightly bowed. He knelt on the pillow beside her.

Suwon picked up the teapot with shaking hands. She poured the tea carefully into one of the four cups on the table. Three represented her unmarried siblings and one represented her. She picked up a pot of honey pouring a dollop into the cup and cutting off the honey tail with a spoon. She used the spoon to stir in the tea in the cup. Then she opened a small dish on the table. It had different colored flower petals in it. She took out a few and sprinkled them in the tea making sure she had one of each in the tea.

She tried to calm the shaking of her hands a moment by crushing them together. Marcus couldn't control his agitation at her nervousness. He reached out wrapping his hands over hers. He brought her hands to his mouth and placed a kiss on her fingertips. The crowd gasped. He didn't care.

Suwon looked up into his eyes. She turned to look at the Prefect who quickly came to stand beside her. She whispered into the Prefects ears and her words nearly broke Marcus' heart.

Prefect Park, in hushed tones repeated her words. "You cannot kiss her hands as if she were pure and maidenly. You cannot kiss her in public until you have made her yours to erase the other lovers touch from her body. Everyone knows she is soiled and soiled from a traitors touch."

Marcus shook his head. "Repeat loudly for everyone to hear. I demand anyone to challenge my claim to her purity for I will defend her honor and her family's honor to the death. I will kill any who claim otherwise. And I demand proof from any man who claims to have lain with her."

Prefect Park wanted to resist, but he did as Marcus asked. The crowd gasped again. The Cho family looked nervously around fearing someone would challenge the groom. When no one did, Master Cho and his brother tried to hide their smiles. Marcus looked at everyone in the crowd. Some looked shocked. Some looked nervous. But no one challenged him. So he lifted Suwon's hand to his lips again and kissed the back of each hand.