"Heaven hath no rage like love turned to hatred,
Nor Hell a fury, like a woman scorned".
William Congreve - 1697
A tale about two girls
Born the same day in the empire.
One in the palace, the other
on the desolate Isle of Sorrow.
One named Tanis.
Her mother was the Queen of Abelar.
The other called Kara.
Her mother was a vampire demon.
Tanis was born a Princess with privilege.
Kara was orphaned and became a servant slave.
Different mothers, but sired the same father.
Therein lies the tragic seed of these 24 tales.
Two girls on a dark quest.
Haunted by visions of their destiny.
Struggling to control urges.
A child of light...
A creature of darkness...
This tale begins with Tanis'
dark vision of the near future.
So, where is this renowned father?
Will father show his face to you, sir?
A shallow womanizer fashions
himself a dashing wit.
Perhaps he cannot hear
your whimpering, sir.
Pathetic palter.
"Tales Of An Ancient Empire"
First Tale
"Resurrection Of Sin"
Three Weeks Earlier
Isle Of Sorrow
off the coast of Abelar
Very quick.
Move.
Some other dog beat us
to the treasure.
Hear that?
No, please.
Mercy.
I will serve you.
Abelar, does it still exist?
Abelar?
Ah, yes.
Ruled by a queen, Eldoria.
She has passed on.
Her eldest... eldest child Ma'at
is queen now.
Really?
I won't harm the queen,
but I will make you do
with her seed.
Not that it matters now.
I... I was wondering...
- how... how your enemies...
- To dust.
That will sting.
And now?
And now,
say, "l won't feel anything
except a little sting".
Second Tale
"Call Of Destiny"
The Kingdom Of Abelar
Tanis.
Tanis.
Are you listening to me?
- Sister.
- It is upon us, your dream.
It's happening.
After all of these years, the Sorceress
has somehow returned from the dead.
Levana.
Please don't go.
Go, Lenor.
Please, find safety.
All of you leave at once.
I will alert the General,
Your Highness.
And we must find he
who saved us before.
The Mercenary?
Your father.
But, our father is dead.
He died saving Abelar
from the Sorceress.
Your father is not mine.
I was sired by the king but...
you...
you were by this mercenary.
Mother said you were
the king's child to protect you.
You must leave the past behind.
Our kingdom needs us now.
Kingdom Bush is not my father?
No, but he who is lives.
If we so be separated
mother said this will lead you to him.
With this token, he will know you
and you shall know him.
And this will help you
to understand the sorcery.
My Queen.
They are within the palace,
Your Majesty.
You must come now.
You have to go.
No, come with us.
My Queen,
you both have a long time
to struggle.
I've trained you well,
Your Highness.
You are ready for what comes.
Stand.
Third Tale
"Succubus"
We can make sure of your safety
if you follow this hall.
It will lead you out of the palace.
But what about you?
My duty is to remain here, Kara.
No.
If you stay, then so will I.
You can do nothing more here,
Dernier.
The Royals will scheme
to save their skins.
We will be left to fend for ourselves
and not always with the truth.
They have no regard for us.
But I am sworn to...
You have sworn to love me, Dernier
or was that just to weaken my will.
I love you.
Then save us my love.
- I must kill the infected.
- Leave her. She's a friend.
It's your wish.
Fourth Tale
"Crossing Thresholds"
There, it leads to a quay
where our boat waits.
- It will take you to Durris.
- Durris?
An outlaw city?
If he still lives the people
there will know his whereabouts.
Tanis,
I'm fine.
Remember what I said.
If we so be separated,
you must find him.
We've run out of time.
Run, Tanis.
- But sister.
- Hush.
You're not a child but
a Princess of Abelar,
a leader with responsibilities.
Act it.
Find your father.
Save our people.
They count on us, Tanis.
- I can't do this alone.
- You must.
Go. Now.
I command you.
Do not look back...
or rest.
It's been what, 20 years?
Where's your mother's lover?
What was his name again?
It seems to have slipped my mind.
He has not slipped mine.
Why, of course.
He sent your father to the Abyss.
I must have thought
of a million different ways
to make you and your mother suffer,
but nothing was ever terrible enough.
I mean, how do you repay someone
who buried you alive for 20 years?
Nothing smelled like life,
Your Highness.
You must be wondering
how is it she is back
looking so wonderfully restored.
Clearly, we watched your destruction.
Clearly, you shouldn't have
given the final rights
to a high priest with designs
on your throat.
A pity he perished with some
mysterious plague upon his return.
Who knows what lives in dust?
And who are you?
Go,
go.
- Where is my seat, Your Highness?
- I'm not sure.
Kill her.
Get the girl.
The palace is lost.
- The Queen is dead?
- Or worse.
What are they?
Vampires.
But we will not die tonight.
I could fight harder.
You leave the killing to me.
What is to become of us now
or the kingdom?
My master is the son of a race.
But, there is always a need
for a pretty servant,
and there is one against me as well.
- What is it?
- Hush, hush.
Why the guards they are so daunting?
They're trying to kill us.
What?
It is read.
- It's my fault.
- No.
On your life run.
I have always loved you.
I will.
Fifth Tale
"Initiation"
And now, a ladder across the Abyss
that I might free my father.
In my stead,
you will awaken my seed.
She is the true daughter of my race,
and though half human,
she will be human no more.
Ah, Dernier.
- I'm sorry.
- No, you're not.
You used me.
What?
No, I loved you.
Really?
Yes, right,
I was using you, Dernier.
You are evil.
Becoming a vampire isn't even
the worst of me.
That and more.
Are you going to kill me now?
Bite my throat,
drain me of my blood?
I want you.
I could soothe you, Dernier.
You could use someone like me
for a slave.
I have too much over the past.
I will bring victims to you
to fulfill whatever dark
fantasies you have.
I will do whatever
I have to do for you?
You are a monster.
I will bow to you, Kara.
Kara, bow to her.
Life takes many forms
in many worlds
and she's in her final metamorphosis,
her chrysalis.
Why me?
You are special.
But you've always known that.
Special in a way that no one else
could see until it was too late.
And even as a child,
you have always been cunning,
intelligent,
depraved.
You have tried to blend in
or be a human,
safe,
but even as a child you knew
you were different,
filled with dark corruptness.
Are you ready to be free?
You're free now
but not yet fully transformed.
I have pity for those who can walk in the
curse of light and among these creatures.
We have much more work to do
before we can be safe.
I sent the princess to the reefs.
If she's dust,
find her.
Know what she's plotting,
and most importantly with whom.
Why me?
Because she will know and trust you
when she's most vulnerable.
And if I refuse?
You've hungered for this day
when you could be who you are
and what you are
to let those dark urges free.
Mother said this will lead you to him.
With this token
he will know you
and you shall know him,
and this will help you
to understand the sorcery.
You're not a child
but a Princess of Abelar,
a leader with responsibilities.
Act it.
Find your father.
Save our people.
Douras
My princess.
You shouldn't have been wearing this?
Please.
Sixth Tale
"Gathering Of Helpers"
- You cheated, Dog.
- What?
Go weep to the gods.
You will die.
I shall cleave your thick ugly faces.
No dog cheats me and lives.
Thankfully, I'm not a dog
but I do like to cheat.
Now, I'm gonna have to kill you
like a bitch pup.
Holy shit.
I want this man.
She wants me.
I'll tell you what, wench,
let me kill this dog
and then I will bed you so hard...
Somebody you want me.
Wench, you've diminished
my reputation.
It could be diminished, sir?
Why bog me,
did I do your mother, huh,
or, uh, sister perhaps?
The last of it,
the late great Abelar
and how it came to be overcome.
- Sir.
- I mean no disrespect, lady.
I noticed your cloak.
It came from the palace guard.
So, it is.
Like yourself, I barely escaped
these foul creatures.
I'm here to spread the word
of what these eyes have seen.
- You've seen much.
- Aye.
In this one world.
That's why you're here.
You've seen far too much, sir.
Brother and sister?
Different mothers
but a common father.
And you say we were meant
to find our father?
Exactly. And together
we're to destroy the Sorceress Xia
and return Abelar to the people.
Uh-huh.
So, Princess, you speak
for the Royal House?
That is correct.
How much am I to be paid
to save your precious Abelar?
Paid?
I didn't mention anything
about a bounty.
We do this because it's right
- and just and it's what we should...
- This sword will not be drawn
until it received proper compensation.
You disappoint again.
Oh, my lady,
one night in bed with me and...
I'm your sister.
Half.
How could I expect any nobility
from a pig like you.
Wait.
Look,
your tail holds a certain fancy,
but I am in need of coin and I'm willing
to take your word that there will be a bounty.
What do you know about him?
Well, not much.
Nothing at all.
Nor a trickster?
Aye, but this trickster knows
where our sister may be,
and to her our dear father.
A sister?
Where?
About that bounty?
If your word proves true,
then you shall have it.
I gave you my word.
That should be sufficient.
I am called Aedan.
And what are you doing here?
What?
Can't a brother help his sister?
After five years?
No.
This comes with some terrible price.
You're not a woman
with many an option.
There's a foul tempered undertaker
and eventual traitor
wanting to see you skinned at dawn.
And what is this act of brotherly
love going to cost me?
It's more privilege than the price.
We get to save Abelar.
I don't think I'm dressed appropriately.
Plus, of course, there is a bounty.
And where would you
get real bounty?
From Abelar.
She's your sister.
But maybe a...
little more.
Well, what is your name?
You would like to sit down
and have a drink with me, huh?
Tell us the tale, sister.
A fortnight ago
the Sorceress Xia captured Abelar.
My sister, the Queen, was murdered.
Xia?
Didn't father
put that Devil wench down
or is that another tall tale?
Well, clearly he didn't put her
permanently down,
thus creating an opportunity.
She's back and she's taking Abelar
with sorcery.
Which is to say she's infested Abelar.
Don't you have
any conversation for me?
You are so beautiful.
It's all Greek to me.
She will continue to feed,
to spread her darkness
until the next full moon rises.
- And then?
- Oh, this part is good.
Xia will open the doorway
to the Nether Worlds.
You were saying?
Thus ending our very existence.
It's all so dire.
You see, sister, there's no bounty
too great for saving this world.
Say we fancy the idea for a moment.
And that there is this massive
bounty in gold, of course.
Aye, what makes you think us three here
can stop this Vampire Queen?
I told her we're lovers not fighters.
When need to have a plan,
something less daunting, more rewarding.
- I am at a loss.
- We should take the traditional action,
and hire mercenaries,
like our dear father.
Yes, yes,
but we're under time constraints.
In only a fortnight
the moon will be full.
- I have a thought.
- It was only a matter of time.
Malia, you will find father and see
if he has any ideas on the matter,
and I with what funds to princess
has on her presently
will arrange for a dozen armed men.
Not just any men,
no, no, no, but the type with honor
and courage enough to win back Abelar.
By the gods I've heard that there are
experienced barbarians in nearby Primeria,
precisely the type of warriors
that we needs. So, the Princess...
she can wait here at Durris for our return,
you know, holding down the fortress
- sort of thing.
- Or let us split the funds you possess,
give us both a chance to hire
the best warriors we can find on our way.
Aye, that could work as well.
Well, sister?
You take me as a fool at your own peril.
You are both much less
than I'd hoped.
At the prison I spoke to the magistrate
and he gave me your recent histories,
- theft, assault, cheating, embezzling...
- Right.
- Pick pocket and street whore?
- I have never picked a pocket.
You're both are the lowest
of character,
but my sister was firm
and we must find our father
and you are my only hope.
We'll need horses.
I can acquire them.
- Are there other brothers and sisters?
- Ah, yeah, yeah,
she's a day's ride away
in a village called Chiba
Agreed then to Chiba Village.
Our father still lives?
I suppose. Last summer he was
carousing in the secret of Nobu.
That was years ago.
The dog is likely dead as a cock, though,
rotting in some dungeon.
- 55.
- 50.
And I suggest we seal this fast.
What's going on, sir?
Having an adventure, sister?
- A bitch dog.
- Come to lose again?
It isn't long now.
An entire new world.
I use Xia's body as a conduct.
It's a doorway.
What have you learned?
The princess seeks one like her father.
The warrior who helped with Mitadonia.
He can see us fall into the Abyss.
Reduce her to dust.
Should I kill them now,
the Princess and these two fools?
Learn the whereabouts of this father.
As you wish.
Chiba Village
I tried to find father once
right here.
- What was it like?
- Ah, it was like this...
except for people trying to kill me.
- It's early yet.
- Maybe they'll remember you.
Oh, Malia, they would
if they were still alive.
I meant what was it like to see him?
I didn't see father.
I found Rajan,
our half-sister.
Stay put.
What does Rajan do here as a trade?
You mean when
she's not drunk or passed out?
Hello, sister.
I have a wonderful opportunity for you.
No, thank you.
It did not work out last time.
It's only because you lack
a sense of humor.
What do you think they seek?
This drink.
Sister told me great stories
about father...
although I thought she spoke of a hired
mercenary sent to save Abelar.
That was before I knew
he was my father.
The man who I thought
was my father, the King,
well, he was killed by Xia.
You really want to know
who father is, God's truth?
Yes.
Our father is the lowest
form of cowardly dog,
a man who takes advantage
of wives or widows,
sells out his cohorts for coin
and runs from a real fight.
That's who father is.
What's the matter?
You don't like the truth?
You married, have sons?
Luckily, no.
They're not so bad to look at.
Your whores?
Rajan, say hello to your sisters.
- More family?
- And with your help, we four...
will save Abelar
before the full moon.
The full moon is six nights away.
Time is short.
Ho, an adventure.
Alana.
Alana?
I'd forgotten her.
She's all grown and ready
to leave this stink hole.
Alana, your favorite
uncle has returned.
Don't you remember me?
I remember.
As formidable as she is,
the girl is but a girl.
I meant no offense, niece.
I taught her a few things in my days
as emperor's assassin.
Yes, I can see.
Sir, this is the most serious
and most dangerous mission.
It's the Sorceress Xia we must destroy.
The Vampire Queen.
- Yes, and it is not suitable for a child.
- You think I'd be afraid.
Look, it's time my Alana
saw the world,
had a few wild, bloody adventures.
And vampires and sorcery
are all a part of that.
The truth is, she will love many
and leave many more choking
on their entrails.
A sister, hah?
And a princess no less.
Do you plan to rob her?
Give me a little credit.
This comes at a good time.
I was worried.
How so?
With my adventuring
and killing days were behind,
I wouldn't be able to give her
proper parenting.
Oh, betting brutes, horrible wars,
ghastly death, and it's all still ahead of you.
I am sure it's all with my daughter.
The gods must choose
to smile upon me.
You would really cut
my throat back there?
Of course, uncle.
Yours particularly.
Sweet girl.
What of grandfather?
Might he want to go as well?
Grandfather?
Our father?
Aye. He might crave one last good battle
before setting down the sword?
- He's still killing?
- Oh, that rascal, his sword is always poised.
Want to meet the old dog?
Oh, let's be off.
There are kingdoms to save
and men to bed.
I prefer wenches.
Then he lives?
Why not use your sorcery
to destroy them all?
Sorcery hasn't been needed
until the full moon,
but it's now needed instead
of your cold steel, Kara.
Her father was a great sorcerer
callously taken by gods
let alone by human
yet this one day.
But how is that possible
against their power?
Because there exists a breed
of creatures who fears nothing.
So they can accomplish anything.
You describe a distinct human trait.
We cannot chance these five meeting up
with one called father.
They would alert him.
Aye.
So what do you suggest?
I think an early strike as they arrive
in Nobu Village should do it.
I would need two
of those like myself,
day walkers.
And the father should be found.
See who wants their blood.
After I manage this task.
What do you wish to be made, queen?
No,
I want my soul back.
After all the power you have felt
in your veins?
I want to be who I am,
what I am,
not one of you.
Should I fear you, Kara?
You know what lies within me
and I am what you need me to be.
Should I fear you?
You already do.
Seventh Tale
"Reckoning"
We will wait 'till there is some separation.
Then take them one by one.
I don't expect much resistance
except by the princess.
All in all, they are a pathetic group.
He comes here every evening
to sell his catch.
Catch?
He's a fisherman now.
Now, now, ladies,
you'll have to accept my apology.
I must leave.
There's an adventure in the offing.
Now, mark my words,
if I didn't have to go off
and save Emperor Micah's kingdom,
I would surely have you
all to bed... again.
Can I see that spear right there, please?
Never mind.
There, why the long face, huh?
It is for the grand adventure
that we live.
And it's not just the adventure itself.
It's the willingness to risk
everything for it.
Something chased you off the street.
What is your trouble, girl?
Something very terrible.
And what was that?
A vampire.
I know it's dead, but
still I saw the things.
You see, I believe you, girl.
This day there are vampires in Nobu.
So, I'm off.
Oh, my, could you send an old rogue off with a proper farewell?
I believe we have
an adventurer here.
I can taste it.
May the gods smile
on your adventure, child.
The next time
a warning would be nice.
Where can I find her?
Come now.
Levana,
- Kara?
- Your Highness.
You know what do with them.
This is your life now?
I have no life just the sins.
Bleak and bleaker.
That princess and they that
hold it are under the sword.
Mind your own business, sir.
Nobu has always been a refuge
where marriages are by
and large human.
Now changes come to Nobu.
The world evolves.
Aye, mostly for the bad.
Do we have a quarrel, sir?
Have we met?
In the days before
I sought the peace of the sea,
I knew your kind.
Well, maybe I am sick
but I was pleasured by the killing.
They deserved to die.
I loved hearing their suffering,
seeing their terror,
and the begging and screaming.
There was real pleasure in that.
Sometimes life does not
unfold as it should,
and I do not have to explain
myself to you.
I ask again,
do we have a quarrel, sir?
I am presently engaged.
Eighth Tale
"Reckoning Of Sins"
Did I do your mother, huh?
So, where is this renowned father?
Will our father show his face
to you, sir?
A shallow womanizer who fashions
himself a dashing wit.
Perhaps we cannot hear
your whimpering, sir.
Pathetic palter.
I know you'll have my head for that,
but not if I have yours first.
What is this?
I would appreciate that back.
Come and take it.
I ask you once
if we had a quarrel.
I knew the princess.
Now we have a quarrel.
Joy that's not marred by love.
We have much to celebrate now
that the full moon is seen.
You, me,
the great love affair we shared.
The love by which you
destroyed my father,
and had me with your stick to dust.
But I harbor no grudge.
Well, perhaps just a bit
of heartbreak and spite.
And bring that ridiculous rebate
of a weapon of yours.
Tales will continue
"Tales Of An Ancient Empire"
"Red Moon"
What does that make him?
Is he an active vampire
or is he a quarter vampire? I mean,
what... what is it?
Do you kill everyone you see?
"Tales Of An Ancient Empire"
You know, next time
a warning would be nice.
Translation: dima360 [notabenoid.com]