The world was dark, empty and void to him–a meaningless passage of time, right until the very first glimpse of light seeped inside of his abode. He didn’t realize that he had been stuck in a cave all this time, didn’t even know what a cave was supposed to be and more than that?

He didn’t find any inclination to move until it appeared like some dream.

It was the light of the moon, so calm and yet so bright at the same time.

He walked out and saw the sky for the first time.

And it was there that he understood his being and nature

-- Unknown Records, Lost Pages from Daughter of Solomon, House Morganne

"The Trial of Heirs will require a member of each House to participate—an old ritual, an old game to please the Progenitor of our kind. The victor wins a vial of blood from none other than the Progenitor himself if you succeed through the tests."

"Progenitor?" Cassius Blackwell crossed his arms and smirked. "You mean to say that there's someone older than you, old hag?"

"Shut your mouth, brat." Aster Reinhart smiled viciously at him. "This is where all of us will need to get serious—this is what will help cement our place among the factions, so best listen to me or I'll feed you to the wolves."

"How scary." Cassius chuckled. "That would have worked if I was two hundred—but not now."

"Ah, those two always argue don't they?" Etoile de Camille looked over at Harold Hawthorne with a demure smile across her face.

"The plan seems to be quite simple really," Cassius Blackwell turned to her. "All three of you will simply need to put your efforts in helping me and I will undoubtedly win this competition for our sake."

"Boy, even amongst our kind—your arrogance truly borders into plain stupidity." Aster shook her head. "You will be up against those seniors with around hundreds to even more than a thousand years and you dare suggest we support you?"

The young Vampire Lord nodded. "Of course. While you and the others think that age and the purity of blood speaks volumes—"

"It does. The lower down the genealogy, the more diluted your blood becomes." Aster narrowed her eyes. "After all this time, I would have expected for you to actually learn a thing or two, but it seems that you don't comprehend the fundamentals of where our kind gathers their strength."

"I'm just saying that I have an edge—or would you deny that I've been the greatest disciple and student of yours in the last thousand of years, Lady Reinhart?" Cassius smiled and then turned to Lord Hawthorne. "Wouldn't you agree that my strength is comparable to that of yours despite the age difference?"

Lord Hawthorne looked over at the young Vampire Lord. If his family were still alive, Cassius might have still been an ordinary Vampire, his father still leading the House and him simply wasting away his birthright in debauchery and lasciviousness as some of their kind did—but circumstances changed and if the senior Vampire were to give an honest assessment?

Harold's gaze focused on Cassius' aura and then slowly nodded. "Sure," he said.

"Harold!" Aster snapped at him and then narrowed her eyes at Cassius.

It was true that his growth was unnatural, too fast, even among their kind—it would have normally taken at least a thousand years to gather strength comparable to that of a Vampire Lord—but Cassius achieved it all the same.

The bloodline of the Blackwell were not as praised as the others, and it hadn't even surprised Aster when their entire House was first eliminated—but now she looked at Cassius.

A monster even among their kind.

For a moment, Aster wavered and looked away. If she could imagine a Progenitor, if she could put an image into what their ancestor could do... her thoughts drifted off to the young boy in front of her.

"Well, that's one vote my way." Cassius Blackwell cheekily said and then looked over at Etoile. "How about you? If we get your vote, it means that Lady Reinhart here has to acknowledge—"

"Enough." Aster put her parasol down, her bright red eyes leaking power from within as they took in a glow. "Let us say that we agree to put our efforts, the entire lot of it into helping you get past the Final Tests without any hindrance—there will be a blood contract done to ensure that you do not betray us once you get your hands on the Progenitor's blood."

"You know, if nobody has ever actually successfully finished the Trial of the Heirs—then how did you figure out that the prize is a vial of blood?"

"What else would our Progenitor leave us? That man is no longer with us, he is in Eternal Sleep and I doubt that he'd place it within a place accessible for any of us if he truly wishes to rest." Aster said. "As for your doubts, while there have been many speculations as to what the final room of the Trial of Heirs possesses, I do not think that our ancestor would simply leave a test without—"

"Leave a test without any actual purpose besides screwing us over?" Cassius grinned. "That doesn't seem like a strange thing to do. I would do that."

"That seems more like something a Fey might do, or those Smallfolks." Aster replied dryly.

"I mean, can you imagine what the original House leaders would do if they learned that the Progenitor simply wishes to toy with us?" Etoile said. "I don't think he would do something like that... or else, that'd be a waste of life for a lot of our kind."

'It would be." Cassius slowly said, but then he stood up and gestured to them. "Regardless, I swear and make a pact to fulfill what we've discussed—I, Cassius Blackwell, will participate in this foolish Trial of Heirs and discover the secrets of the Final Test. And when I've finally discovered it—be it blood, nothing or something else entirely? I will share it with the four of us. This is a pact I will finish in exchange for your full support."

"Full?"

"Naturally." Cassius chuckled and glanced at all three of them. "This particular Reinhart might as well back stab me if I dare reach the Final Test and take it among themselves—or anyone really. I mostly worry that you'd send a pitiful support my way and then expect me to part with the treasure or answer behind the Final Test. That almost seems like a bad deal, doesn't it?"

Reinhart smiled. "I thought you were confident in your abilities."

"It would be more reassuring to still have someone on your back. I'll only participate if all of you do as well."

"That's—"

"I don't trust your subjects, Reinhart, and I find the folks in Hawthorne too creepy... and as for Camille House?" Cassius glanced at Etoile.

"I'm not exactly the Lord of the House."

"I know, but you're better than any of them. So just trust me and I'll protect you—at least in exchange for a reward."

"You... you're quite a wanton pervert aren't you?"

"What's the use of living if I don't pursue pleasure?" Cassius Blackwell said with a smirk and a shrug. "Those are my terms—well, it wouldn't hurt to kneel down and swear fealty either."

"Dead gods, he's literally the worst and I'm the one who practically raised him. I still can't believe we're entrusting this to him, Harold. Are you sure we don't have any other option?" Aster groaned and searched the other Vampire Lord's face. "Why do we not have any other options? Surely you have a talented brat in the shadows, right?"

Cassius looked a tad offended. "Hey, if you want to knock that bastard from the Rune House by a peg, someone's got to do it around here. And while I could do this for free just to wipe that arrogant smirk across his face, I'd much prefer to have some backup at least. You know he's a slimy bastard."

"I can't believe which is worse. Him actually succeeding or you."

"If you're going to choose, might as well have it be someone on your side, right?"

"We can't really call you as the lesser evil, even in this situation."

"But you're still going to end up supporting me right? Don't worry, it'll be fun and great."