Chapter One: Hot Child in the City

Kira walked in to her new apartment. She'd moved from The Big Easy to The Big Apple. She sat down on the dusty old couch and looked around. She wasn't used to being on her own. Before the move, she'd lived in a coven full of Witches. Half of which would have been committed to the crazy house if they'd been judge by human's society. As a whole, witches loved to party. There was always different factions of the Lore at the Manor and most were half clothed, or so drunk on demon brew that they didn't know their first name, and Kira wasn't any different. The House of Witches was divided into 5 castes: Warrior, Healer, Enchantress, Conjurer and Seeress. Most witches belonged in at least one or two, but Kira belonged in 3 castes: Healer, Conjurer and Seeress. It was rare to have more than two, and she only knew of one witch who'd had all 5. That witch was her mother, but she was killed in the last Accession by a fallen vampire. The Accession is a mystical checks-and-balances system for The Lore. It turns factions against each other every 500 years or so. There are two sides, the Pravus and the Vertas. Vertas were on the side of good...mostly, and Pravus are usually composed of the evil factions. Kira could feel that the Accession was close again. She'd been 3 years old during her first one. The House of Witches fought with the Valkyries on the Vertas side, but they'd lost the 5 Accessions. Kira shook her head to throw off her growing fear of the coming Accession. She looked down at the filthy couch and the bare walls in her new apartment. Well, if I'm going to die soon I might as well go out in style.

Kira waved down a taxi and gave the name of the local hardware store to the cabby. She could conjure all the things she wanted, but she needed to get a few ideas and designs from the hardware store. When she arrived, she walked down each aisle. She looked at the paint samples and grabbed the ones she liked the most. She noted ceramic tile designs and hardwood floor patterns. The amount of conjuring she needed to do would take a lot out of her, but she didn't really have a choice. Witches are mercenaries. They sell their spells or services for money. Kira's castes wasn't exactly rolling in the dough. She couldn't control her seeress powers, and it's hard to profit from something that comes on a whim. Being a healer for a bunch of immortals was mostly pointless, so it only left her conjuring caste. Back home, she mostly conjured precious stones and gems, but to someone who could live thousands of years, they weren't that precious. She thought about selling them to the humans, but that could get risky. Loreans were supposed to be kept secret from humans. Over the centuries, some would slip up which is why humans now had myths about them. But, she didn't want to be responsible for the Witches coming out of the broom closet. Plus, it was getting harder and harder for them to hide in this day and age. The camera phone was not invented in their favor. After going down each aisle and being satisfied with the samples she'd picked out, Kira slipped them into her pocket and walked out of the store.

When Kira got home, she sat on the floor, crossed her legs, and got out the paint strips. She closed her eyes and took slow, deep breaths. She visualized what she wanted, concentrating on nothing but the look of the room. She felt the magic build inside her, letting it roll off of her in waves. There was a slight popping noise, letting her know the objects had just come into existence. She opened her eyes to dark hardwood floors, dark blue walls, and a room full of new furniture. After repeating the process in each room until she was satisfied, she sat on the newly conjured couch and smiled. Now this is much better. No more dusty, old couch. No more walls with chipped paint, and no more dead roaches in the corner.

After her mental pat on the back, Kira decided a little fun was in order. She walked to the dresser in her newly designed room, and picked out the sexiest dress she owned. It was short, skin tight, and blood red. She would prefer to go to a Lore bar, but wasn't sure where the Lorean community was in the city. She couldn't exactly run into the street while yelling, "Hey Loreans! Where's the party at tonight?" So she would have to settle on a human bar. After she finished getting ready, she took the elevator to the ground floor and waved down a cab. 

Kira sat down at the bar and ordered a Gin and Tonic. Human alcohol wouldn't do anything for her. Immortals had a fast metabolism, so she could drink 100 of those and not feel much of anything. That's why they had demon brew, but she wouldn't be getting any of that here so she would have to settle. Kira looked around at the humans awkwardly dancing to the music. Suddenly, her vision started to blur. Oh Goddess, not here! She was no longer in the quaint bar in the present. She was some where in the future and she braced herself for the vision. She was in a dark ally, walking home she thought. Something made a noise behind her and she turned around. A figure over 6 feet tall stood in the ally. She could smell the blood before her mind registered what the creature was in front of her. Blood red eyes starred at her with hunger and menace. His mouth was open in a snarl with twin elongated fangs that dripped with blood. A Fallen Vampire, driven mad by the memories he took from his victims' blood. There was a blur of motion as the vampire started towards her. Her mind snapped back to the present. She'd dropped her glass and saw it shattered on the floor. "Fuck me sideways." she said under her breath.

 "Hey lady. Are you alright? I think you've had enough to drink for the night. I'm cutting you off." the bartender said.

"Yes, it would seem that I have had enough." she replied dazed. This was why she hated belonging to the Seeress caste the most. Who wants to see their death and wait in fear until it finally happens? Right now, she'd give anything to belong to the Warrior caste. There was a witch in her coven who could shoot sunlight out of hands, and she would BBQ vamps like she was at a summer cookout. She was utterly screwed. 

Luka sat in the back seat of a cab with 2 of his pack mates. A scent crossed his nose and he nearly went berserk. "Stop the fucking cab." he yelled as he ripped open the door and ran. "What the hell is wrong with you?" he heard one of his pack mates ask, but he was already 2 blocks away. Mine. The beast inside had found his mate and nothing would stop him now. After running 6 blocks, he came to a stop in front of an apartment building. This was were she lived, but the scent wasn't strong enough for her to be home. He also scented the sweet sickly smell of magic. It was possible his mate was a sorceress or a witch. Which means he was screwed. Non-Lykae didn't understand how the mating process worked for them, and if he didn't somehow get her to understand by the next full moon, when his beast was out of it's cage and in control, then it would take what was his. He'd waited almost 800 years for his mate, and nothing could keep him away from her.

________________________________________________________________________________

NOTES:

Firstly, welcome to my new legacy. I hope you guys enjoyed reading it. This was a short little chapter to start us off and I'll admit I'm a little rusty at writing. Secondly, I know it's off to a bit of a boring and slow start. There is a lot of information that I need to get out so just bare with me. I highly suggest you guys read The Lore page in the sidebar to get a background on everything. Also to non-Americans, The Big Easy refers to New Orleans and most of you may know that The Big Apple is New York City. Thanks again!