Sitting upon her lonely throne, Adria the Frozen watched as two delegates from the city that sat on the boarder of Lyonnais and Burgundy, Celeste, approached her.

“We greatly appreciate your attention on this matter, my lady,” said the tall, thin vampire to the left.

“It seems,” began his slightly shorter partner, “That our great city has come under threat from Dijon of Burgundy. They are unhappy with the fact that we pose such a great threat to the humans there.”

Adria sighed. Her country had been at war with Burgundy for two months now, and it was quickly becoming tiresome. One of her best generals, Raphael, a man who, though brutal of temper was sharp in wit and strength, had been off at war for months; as was Cassius, who had been one of her father’s chief generals when he reigned so many years ago.

“We would please ask your majesty for her assistance and support of our city,” said the first delegate.

“Of course,” Adria nodded shortly, “We shall give you the full force we have to offer.”

The representatives smiled, relieved. “Thank you so much, my Lady,” said the first vampire, bowing deeply. “Such a favor shall not be easily forgotten.”

She had no choice, really; there was a strict treaty between her country and the country that ruled the city of Celeste; should one inquire to the other for help, they were obligated to supply it. The Queen leaned foreword slightly, bored. “Is that all you have to say?”

The delegates nodded, thanking her profusely, and were escorted out by several servant girls. She called for her head guard, Ashfield, whom she had left in his post since she first came to power two hundred years ago. He appeared at her side, eager to serve, as always.

“Yes, my Lady?” He asked her, saluting.

“Send a message to General Raphael,” she told him, “And have him bring his troops to camp outside the city of Celeste. Prepare the rest of the army for battle- I expect you to take command as a surrogate general whilst Cassius is unreachable. Is this clear?”

“Yes, your highness,” he nodded, preparing to leave.

“And one more thing,” she told him. He stopped short, looking her curiously in her big black eyes. “I shall be joining the battle,” Adria said quietly, “I refuse to let this pathetic excuse for a war waste any more lives, be it theirs or ours.”

*     *     *

Adria the Frozen was of gypsy descent, but her people had long since migrated to the southern area of France. For a time they ruled the province of Lyonnais, maintaining careful contact and alliances with other European vampires, including those in Britain, who had long since been driven underground.

The Queen came to power at age fifty following the unexpected death of her father. He was greatly respected, ruling over his country with an iron fist and leading his men to war with incredible zeal. When Queen Adria first realized she would have to follow in his footsteps so soon, the Queen became terrified and fell into a deep despair. With the help of the ancient guard Cassius, who worked for a time as her temporary advisor, she was able to quell the war that threatened to overcome her country and maintain strict border control, setting definite limits for the humans. She enforced a harsh prisoner policy, being that every human not associated with the north Holy Roman Empire was fair game to be taken prisoner, eaten, or otherwise killed. She became as greatly renowned as her father, improving the living conditions of both her people and her allies- Adria was credited with leading her vampire countrymen into a Golden Era.

She gained her title at the hands of her scorned suitors, for it was said that her heart had long frozen over. Adria was famous for her great beauty- her pale, milky skin; her big, black eyes; and her long, wavy dark brown hair. However, in her first three hundred years of ruling, she never chose a King. The Queen was determined to wait until she found someone to bring her true happiness; unfortunately, the older she grew, the sadder she became, and the more her heart ached. Her soul became heavy with woe, and it was said that one could see her eyes darken over time, for she had found no man in the immortal world of vampires whom she could call her own.

Adria despised the war for many reasons, the foremost being that the humans were ridiculously hypocritical. Not a single vampire populated the kingdom of Burgundy; and yet, many human cities could be found all throughout Lyonnais. Some were strongholds, and were respected- these were not to be used for food. As a general rule, as long as the humans stayed in their cities, they were safe. This was not true in Burgundy- powerful vampires such as herself were allowed free passage through the state were they traveling elsewhere, but other then that vampires were not allowed in.

Celeste was a major bone of contention between the two regions, as both sought to claim it. For several decades the humans had been left alone in the city, but vampires had recently begun to populate it and lay claim to the inhabitants as food. It enraged Burgundy, and for the past two months the country had been using it as an excuse to invade the northern region of Lyonnais, killing hundreds of her best troops. Vaguely whispered rumor claimed that Dimitri the Merciless, an infamous vampire slayer who was personally responsible for the deaths of hundreds if not thousands, was leading the campaign.

It held every possibility to be a long, hard battle.

*     *     *

“Ninety-five…”

“I estimate it shall take us about two days to make it to the city, Dimitri,” reported Patrick, “And the men are more then ready for a battle.”

“Ninety-six…”

“All the training we put them through seems to have paid off,”

“Ninety-seven…”

“And they’re almost as bloodthirsty as the vampires are.” He chuckled at his own joke.

“Ninety-eight…”

“Are you going to just do pushups all day, Dimitri?”

“Just… ninety-nine… one more…. One hundred.” Dimitri gasped, finally letting his aching arms collapse underneath him. He greedily filled his lungs with air, sitting up and leaning back against the cot in his tent. “Hand me that towel, will you?”

Patrick complied and continued his one-sided conversation while his fellow general toweled himself off. “How fast do you think we’ll get them to surrender?” He smirked down at the still-panting Dimitri.

“You shouldn’t jump to conclusions, Patrick,” he warned, reaching to his left for a shirt, “For all you know, this will be our first lost battle.”

The talkative general laughed, clapping Dimitri on the shoulder. “Yeah, right,” he chuckled, leaving the tent, “Dimitri the Merciless, lose a battle? Maybe in ten, twenty years, but hell, man, you’re twenty-three! You’ve got a long way to go before you’ll be in sorry enough shape to lose on the battlefield.”

“Thanks,” Dimitri grunted after him, despising his fellow officer for the pressure he put on him. He couldn’t place it, but he had a terrible feeling about this one.

*     *     *

Dimitri the Merciless was one of the most incredible success stories anyone had ever heard of. He grew up a farm boy, then worked his way through military school to become one of the most powerful generals the French army had ever seen. His intense hatred of the vampire race impressed his superiors, and his powerful military prowess earned him the title as the next Scipio Afrikanus- just as he felled the great Hannibal, Dimitri, too was expected to single-handedly destroy the vampire race that had terrorized man since the beginning of time.

He had grown tired of seeing humans treated like cattle- starting at the tender age of eighteen, Dimitri had become the most widely respected military hero of his time, winning every battle he fought. His success catapulted him into a minor fame, which he despised. Men shook his hand, women wanted to marry him, and no one ever left him alone. He had a habit of sleeping around, particularly when he was out on campaigns, but he’d never felt attached to anyone, and every encounter left him more hollow then he’d been before. Still though, he found solace in the face that he was exterminating the hated race, one battle at a time.

When the governor had approached him to lead the campaign to destroy the foul southern vampires, he’d jumped at the chance. Now, though, the people had begun to complain about the soldiers being gone so long, so the time had come to end it. The plan was to attack the city that had originally caused the whole mess, and either drive out or kill all of the bloodsuckers that had made themselves at home. Information had come that the army of Queen Adria would be blocking the way, but it was of little consequence. Unfortunately, Dimitri had heard rumors that the Queen of the Lyonnais vampires herself would be joining the battle- it would mean the vampire troops would fight longer, and harder, and that he would be facing one of the most powerful enemies he’d ever dealt with.

Dimitri hoped that he would be given the chance to cut her down himself.