History of The Venjuta Bloodline (Part 1)

[Poe]

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​I awoke, quickly taking a shower to wash off the scent from my dinner last night, then finally got dressed. Today was to be an important day for both the Venjuta Bloodline and House Venjuta. My deepest and closest friend Magellian Venjuta had found a historian seeking to scribe our history. House Venjuta, the ruling House of the Venjuta Bloodline and a noble House on Serenno, had been marred in conspiracies and criticism from the other noble Houses, though they have no direct information to what we are. What we are is something as ancient as the legendary orders of the Sith and Jedi, though our history is not public knowledge; which has served us well under the veil of secrecy. We are vampires. To further elaborate, we are a hybrid of two species; the Vahla who are naturally born into the Force and have the Dark Side coursing through them. And we are Sanguinius Vampirika​, an evolution upgrade from our progenitor, the Energy Vampire.

​Now as the galaxy continues to evolve, just as we did, it was time to set the record straight concerning many misinterpreted topics. So I left my room in Castle Venjuta, a massive structure situated on one of the tallest mountain ranges on Serenno that overlooks one of the oceans. Each day I spend an hour basking in the moonlight, soaking up the sweet aroma the ocean offers up to me on the balcony near my room. Tonight, naturally, would be no different.

​"The moon is quite beautiful", ​​came the voice of Hefgard, my personal servant and only human allowed to live in my castle. ​"When is not beautiful, Hefgard," ​I replied continuing to stare out across the blackened waters of the ocean. On a cloudless night such as this, the moonbeams danced hauntingly on the surface of the water, desperately trying to illuminate the dark waters with their love. Hefgard snickered, prompting me to smile from ear to ear, then at once we both erupted into laughter. There was a time when the serene view was not beautiful; but Hefgard and myself refused to speak of it.

​Turning around to face the old man, and the only human friend I have and probably will, I saw the signs of old age more defining on his facial features. It broke my heart to know that one day he would leave me, and though years ago I could have prevented his journey through mortality, I couldn't bring myself to do it. When I looked at him, all I could see was a man I could only hope to be. Where I was cruel at times, he was kind always. Where I ell into fits of rage, he was always the one with a cooler head. If I wasn't what I am, I would have wished for a life like his.

​"Your shuttle is ready, Marlow," ​he finally said composing himself. Outside of the only human allowed to live in my house and the only human I would ever befriend, he was also the only one allowed to call me by first name; despite my rank and title. ​"Thank you Hefgard.. Are you quite sure you don't want to accompany me tonight?" ​I knew his body was growing frail with every passing moon, and that even his eyes were not as they once were; but I always made the offer with the hope he would join me one day. "I appreciate the offer Marlow, but I have my holoshows to watch." ​I smiled knowing he was lying. We both were aware that his days were drawing close to an end, and on the day when he left me to this cursed galaxy alone; he would be buried as a noble in the Venjuta graveyards.

 

[Poe]

​Entering the grand banquet hall, some of the other House members were tending to personal trials such as reading or engaged in deep conversations with one another. Not all in the House were overly thrilled about my meeting with the historian, feeling as though revealing ourselves to the galaxy might encourage backlash and fear; the latter leading to witch hunts. I understood their cause for concern, but our appearance alone was enough to draw worried looks and uneasy body shifts in those that never dealt with us before. I did my best to alleviate their fears, now they just needed to trust me; since it was a democratic vote that placed me at the head of both House Venjuta and patriarch of the Venjuta Bloodline.

​"Evening Lord," ​Rebio said walking toward me. Rebio was a direct link to my bloodline, a cousin whom I spent many of my youth getting into trouble with. During the voting process, he was my biggest supporter, as well as my Uncle Viko, whom was Rebio's Father and brother to my deceased Father. "Hello cousin," ​I answered as we embraced one another. "Have you seen Magellian," I asked as we pulled away from one another. ​"No my Lord. But I heard she was looking for you too."

​We spent a few minutes speaking of House affairs, and of his trip to Danootine to visit one of the Venjuta Bloodline clans there next week. We bid farewell, and went our separate ways. I spent time speaking with the others, once more attempting to put their concerns to rest. ​"Lord, may I have a word with you," ​​Gelifix asked. He was the head of the Royal Guard that protected the House from intruders and wrong doers. ​"Speak as many as you wish, Captain."

​Gelifix wasn't my biggest supporter at the time of the vote, but over time I won him over; and we became hunting partners. Next to Magellian, he also supported my proposal that we only feed off the evil doers. Gods knew the galaxy were full of them. ​"I know this meeting has everyone on edge, but rest assured my Lord, I have faith in you; and even if the others don't quite show it, they do as well." ​His words put my own heart at ease. House Venjuta was a strong, loyal Bloodline and there was no fear of betrayal or assassination attempts that we hear other Bloodline Houses experience; but it was still good to know that the others had faith in me. In the history of the Bloodline, and since House Venjuta formed brining us all under one banner, I was the youngest Count and Patriarch to hold these two most important titles.

​"Gelifix, I need you to do me a favor while I'm gone for the next few days." ​Gelifix smiled, reminding me how he only had one canine left; since he lost the other in a fight with his wife. It wasn't a domestic fight, more like he tried to woo Grina through muscle and might. Who would have thought Grina was that strong. "What is you need, Lord?" I gripped his massive left forearm saying, ​"Keep an eye on Hefgard for me. I fear he might not be here when I return." ​Gelfix, like everyone under this roof, loved Hefgard; each one willing to sacrifice their lives to protect his mortality. "That human is as tough as a rancor. But I'll keep my eyes on him."

 

[Poe]

​I had one more stop to make before heading to the docking platform; the library. This was one of my favorite places to haunt next to my collection of art, artifacts, and various pieces of musical instruments kept in my personal gallery within the castle. The library possessed the most elaborate collection of tomes, scrolls, books, data recordings, and other manuscripts pertaining to history, cultures, and the occult in the entire galaxy. Outside these works, there are thousands of books meant for joyous reading on the shelves. Unlike some of the libraries around the galaxy, there is not a single computer terminal in the library. I believed these mystical works deserved the utmost respect not to share a room with technology; minus the data recordings of course, but those recordings held some information no other ears would ever hear again.

​Scanning the shelves, I was looking for one particular book in general. There was a poet from the times of the former Galactic Empire who had wrote several pieces of poetry, masking his rebellious beliefs within the stanzas. However, former Emperor Sheev Palpatine had learned of this poet and his book, sending one of his agents to kill the author and retrieve the book. The agent killed the author, but the book was never recovered. Somehow, my Father managed to purchase it through some black market dealer and it ended up on the shelves of my library. Retrieving the book, I removed the slip of paper concealed inside; then returned the book back to it's eternal resting place.

I read the single word on the paper, smiled, and folded it in half before sticking it into the inside pocket of my black and red silk suit. "There you are! I thought I missed you, dear brother." ​Junoi, my twisted and beautiful sister, literally came skipping over to me, placing a small peck on my cheek when she arrived. "You're in big trouble, mister. Magellian has been looking for you all evening." ​I loved my sister, more so than my youngest sibling Bruo, who was my over zealous brother. However, my sister had the tendency to elevate situations, or even create drama when drama wasn't needed. When she was younger, she had killed a Jedi just to see if his blood tasted different than those of non-Force users. Luckily, Father had used his contacts within the One Sith to cover up the murder. Since she was Daddy's little girl, there was no consequences or repercussions for her actions. I think that's the foundation that grew into animosity between Junoi and Bruo.

​"I've heard that a couple of times already. She does know where to find me, I mean afterall..." Junoi smirked, then said interrupting me, "Where your bedroom is!" Magellian and I have been friends for a very, very, very long time. Our parents once tried to match us together, but we didn't feel that would benefit us; so we remained friends. The others, those that were close to us, always believed there was something going on behind everyone's backs. That wasn't true of course, but there was something trying to spark a raging fire between us; however neither one of us would take that proverbial 'leap of faith'.

"I mean afterall," ​I continued ignoring my sister's comment, ​"She set the itinerary for the next few days. She knows my schedule better than I. And subsequently where to find me"

 

[Poe]

​When I arrived to the platform, Magellian ​was waiting by my shuttle with three of the Royal Guard of House Venjuta. I told her earlier in the week that I didn't need an armed escort to speak with a historian, but she attempted to sway my judgement based on my rank and title; how I would fetch an enormous price if I was captured by pirates and slavers. We both knew that I, like our species, were dangerous; especially with my witchcraft their for my calling. Yet, she brought guards to my shuttle none-the-less.

​"You're late, Lord," ​she said, gesturing for the guards to enter the shuttle. Watching my unneeded guards file in, I replied, ​"Guess being the Count and Patriarch my words hold no meaning, Magellian." My best friend gave a mock curtsey saying, ​"They do my Lord. Just not with me." ​Smiling, I drew her close giving her a hug. In that brief encounter between our bodies, we both felt the stirrings and gently moved apart.

​"I've decided to join you for this historical meeting." If it was anyone else, I would have denied them the opportunity; but it was Magellian and I yearned for her company, though I couldn't show how much I enjoyed it. "What of your duties in the Senate," I inquired suppressing my raging hormones. ​"The councils have suspended sessions for seven weeks, to tend to personal affairs and family. This frees me up to tend to mine as well, but I've elected to put those off until after this meeting." Motioning her to enter the shuttle, I said, ​"You never did mention where this meeting is taken place."

Entering the shuttle slowly, and putting extra sway in her hips, she replied, ​"No, I didn't."

 

[Poe]

​We arrived on Coruscant just as nightfall gripped the sprawling city in darkness. As vampirikas, the sun's ultraviolet rays wrecks havoc on our exposed flesh, so we tend to cruise through the night while taking shelter in the day. We exited the shuttle on the hovering docking platform and as we moved toward the turbolift Magellian said, "I've always loved Coruscant at night. The neon lights and the undying illumination everywhere just tugs my heart strings." ​I was rather surprised Magellian had chosen Coruscant, since she spends quite a bit of time here during the council sessions. As for myself, Coruscant was beautiful, but what drew me here most of the time was the various art galleries and numerous theatres.

​"We aren't expected to me with this historian until tomorrow, how do you feel about catching a play tonight," ​I said with the doors sliding shut. There was an excellent play being shown about the rise and fall of the former galactic empire; in pantomime form. This, I thought, would be rather interesting. ​"An excellent idea, Lord."

​While we walked toward the theatre, Magellian and myself discussed some of the topics that I would indulge the historian with. There are thousands of years of history surrounding our Bloodline and House Venjuta; though not all our history would be revealed to this historian. There were secrets that should never be made public, like our long standing friendship with the Green Mystic Clan, a Nightsister sect that trains us in Darthomir magic; and so their names would be omitted from the book this historian was planning on writing. Or our association with the Sith, and how through them they teach us about Sith magic; but lately we've been distancing ourselves from them, since we are in a position to teach our newborns about Sith magic. Plus, there are mixed feelings about the Sith among the Venjuta ranks; I for one don't trust the Sith. Nor have much desire to work or associate myself with them, however, any Venjuta is free to conduct business with whomever they want.

​We arrived at the great theatre hall, purchased out tickets, and quickly found our seats. The lights dimmed down to near nothingness as a man dressed as former Emperor Palpatine strolled across the stage. When he stopped, a chorus of music began prompting him to begin the first act, not using words, but body language and extremely comedic facial expressions. I was already beginning to enjoy this show.