Ascendant Path of a Lustful Vampire

Chapter 651: Past tense

"Why do you ask?" Caius asked as he raised the stump that was what remained of his right hand. He watched it regenerate first with bone, then muscle, veins, and flesh, until it was good as new.

The hand Athenodora cut and had fallen onto the ground flaked into blood mist that melted into nothing.

The hole in Caius’s midsection healed as well now that Athenodora’s fist was out of it. And it all happened in the seconds it took for Athenodora to consider the question Caius tossed at her.

"Curiosity," she eventually said, "So... do you hate me?"

Caius was going to say no at first. He gained this body after the years of depression had passed. Had he gained his body earlier than that, Caius was sure he still would not have devolved into a depressive state. Not when he had spent practically his entire previous life thinking being a vampire was cool.

Anyway, with that mentality in mind, the answer that leaped to Caius’s tongue was no. He didn’t hate her for turning him into a vampire. Alas, he couldn’t get the answer out.

The memories he inherited were his... They may have belonged to a different person but they were still his. There was a point where the life of the original Caius and the Kevin-soul-imbued Caius intersected. That intersection was very involved in the moment Caius stopped being human and became a vampire spawn.

"You were a cruel, evil, remorseless vampire who came into the room of a thirteen-year-old boy at night and bit him while he was powerless to resist.

You ruined my life. Turned me into a monster. Of course, I hated you," Caius said calmly but with far more venom than he expected to muster.

Athenodora smiled.

"You didn’t have to start with all those compliments. A simple yes or no would have been fine," she said.

Caius rolled his eyes.

"You said your father has sworn to take my head?" Athenodora said.

"He has," Caius nodded.

"And you believe I deserve it," She said. It didn’t sound like a question but Caius could tell that it was.

"You don’t?" Caius asked in turn with a raised brow.

"No, I don’t. Why should I? I’m not bound by your father’s views of morality. If I were, I wouldn’t have even a smidge of fun," Athenodora said.

"Of course," Caius said with a little laugh.

"Yeah. But, you seem to agree with your father. You believe that Valeria and I deserve to be punished for what we did to our spawns," Athenodora said slowly, her red eyes studying Caius’s face as she continued,

"I could hear it in your voice when you were talking about Viktor and Valeria. Blaming her because she wouldn’t let him succumb to his suicidal desires. You believe she was selfish—"

"Wasn’t she?" Caius cut in to ask.

"She was," Athenodora smiled, "And so am I. And thus, she and I are the same. We use people to get what we want regardless of what pain they feel; Valeria using Viktor for pleasure even as he wallowed in madness. And me turning you to torture your father."

"Parallels," Caius smiled lightly, "Just as I said."

"Yes," Athenodora nodded, "It must run in the family."

Caius laughed now and shook his head.

"Nah. It’s just the ways of a vampire. Power-hungry, egotistical, parasitic, sadistic and so much more that leaves many in pain in your wake.

It’s simply vampiric nature."

"Well, every vampire is descended from the very first one so I think that still counts enough to say it runs in the family," Athenodora said.

Caius laughed.

"Yeah. Really, we’re all just one big ’happy’ family, aren’t we?" He said.

Athenodora chuckled but her eyes never left his face.

"I don’t regret what I did to you," she said.

"I know," Caius said, "You wouldn’t be you if you did."

"So you’re not expecting an apology?" Athenodora asked with a smirk.

"Not even in my wildest dreams," Caius said.

"I loved the thought of torturing your father," Athenodora said, "When I learnt he wants to take my head, I felt giddy. The challenge of it. It’s a rush."

"I’m sure it is," Caius said.

"If we ever do fight, I will kill him," Athenodora said.

"I’m sure you’ll try your hardest," Caius said, shrugging.

"And you’re okay with that?" Athenodora asked.

"You learn to accept people for what they are," Caius said, "I think it’s good value to understand what parts of a person are like opinions and can be changed, and what parts are intrinsic to their character and can’t/should not be changed."

"My desire to kill your father is intrinsic to my character?" Athenodora asked with an incredulous chuckle.

"You’ve had years to go after my father. Before the curse, you probably believed you could take him on," Caius said.

"I can take anyone on," Athenodora said with smugness.

"Yeah, but you never did. All that talk of torturing him with my vampirism and you never even checked in to see how effective it was. He was an afterthought. You didn’t think him important enough to keep in mind," Caius said.

"I have far more impressive enemies to let him occupy my mind," Athenodora said.

Caius smirked. He was starting to think her underestimation of Lucian Von Helsing was part of why Lucian won their duel and got away with her head while only losing an arm.

"The point is, if he is not the reason you do the things you do, his death is not intrinsic to your character. You can do without fighting or killing him. It’s just a goal that is as changeable as an opinion," Caius said.

"Hmm. You wouldn’t be saying this to stop me from going after your father, would you?" Athenodora asked shrewdly.

"I’m simply telling you the things I’ve noticed about you. And if I wanted to avoid that fight, the one I’d need to convince isn’t you," Caius said with a little sigh and a look off into Limbo.

Caius was sure he was right about his analysis of Athenodora’s character. In the original canon, her path only really intersected with Lucian’s when they had that death duel. Lucian, however steeped deeper and deeper into his hate for Athenodora and it became a part of his characterization. The reason Caius sighed and seemed so melancholic was that he didn’t know if fighting and killing Athenodora was something intrinsic to his father’s character. He didn’t know if it was something that could only be resolved by the death of one or the other.

"I want that Blood, Caius," Athenodora said eventually, "And you want to give it to me. So let’s cut the fuckery and get to it."

"I want to give it to you?" Caius asked with a little laugh.

"You said ’hated’," Athenodora said.

"What?"

"Before, you said ’Hated’, not ’hate’. Past tense, not Present tense," Athenodora said.

"You think?" Caius asked.

"I know," Athenodora said, "That passion in your voice when you talked about parallels, it came from somewhere true, I’m sure. But it’s not strong enough to be hate. It’s more like anger. A little annoyance.

Above all that, you feel gratitude."

Caius scoffed.

"Please," he said in an attempt at nonchalance.

Athenodora rolled her eyes.

"You love being a vampire. I sired you, Caius. You think I haven’t noticed? You think I didn’t notice the inactivity of your vampiric blood. What do you think drew me back to you in the first place? It was your acceptance of my gift.

When you became a True vampire, I felt your revelry through the blood that connects us. And do not even think to argue that a Blood Mage read something in Blood wrong.

You enjoy what you are. You flourish in it. Whatever was happening during those years of inactivity is no longer present in you now.

The anger you feel is probably a remnant of that period of inactivity. I wouldn’t know for sure. You weren’t interesting enough at the time to pay attention to so I never bothered."

Caius said nothing.

Athenodora continued with a smirk on her lips.

"You told me before that you never lied to me. You never had to. You spent a week reviewing methods my Alchemists already researched to find me a cure. You said it was because you were in a hurry but that was a lie. At least, not the whole truth. I could tell.

You revealed you knew of the Blood of Strigoi on your own when I never would have suspected you would know.

You plotted a plan that ensured I came with you when you could have simply let me go ahead and then gone after the Blood at your leisure.

You knew of the trials and would have gotten the Blood anyway—"

"I needed Philip’s strength," Caius cut in to say.

Athenodora scoffed.

"Come on, there were alternatives. Your allies still at Venuzze would have done well enough. Especially with your knowledge guiding the entire expedition.

No, you wanted me with you because that was the only way you could guarantee my survival.

I have spent centuries manipulating men by the desires they felt for me so there’s no way I read it wrong. You may have hated me once but you no longer do.

You may have once wished for my death but you no longer do.

And that’s why you want to give me the Blood.

And that’s why you will."