Author's note: this is from Seraphina's point of view

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After dinner, Aldus and I sat on opposite sides of the three-seater sofa, slightly facing each other.

He was sipping freshly brewed tea that permeated a soothing sweet scent I didn't recognize.

I was working on my glass of light red wine that came from a local winery. It was perfect to wash away the fattiness of the duck that lingered at the back of my throat.

"I believe that have some questions for me.", Aldus broke the silence.

"Yes. Can we talk openly?"

"Always.", he said with a smile, like I asked something silly.

"Can you tell me about yourself?"

Aldus nodded faintly and his eyes misted slightly as if he was mentally somewhere else. After an unknown measure of time, he started talking and I minimized my movements and breathing in order not to interrupt him because I was eager to absorb his every word. I reminded myself not to ask any questions, fearing that he might take it as me not paying attention.

Aldus told me how he grew up in a castle his family owns, sheltered from the world, and based on the mentioning of servants and guards, I guessed that his family has a high status. From a young age, Aldus was curious about other creatures and when he reached adulthood, he ventured into the unknown, leaving his parents and his younger sister behind.

He didn't specify any dates, but based on his descriptions, I could distinguish different time periods, and he mentioned rulers and prominent figures from history as I listened with awe. He surely saw a lot of things.

I noticed the absence of romantic encounters and I wondered if Aldus didn't have any or if he was avoiding to bring them up. His story was fascinating, and it confirmed my previous speculation that Aldus was driven by his thirst for knowledge.

"My random search for experience and information got a direction with a fated encounter when I met a couple in Paris. Nicolas and Perenelle Flamel introduced me to alchemy…"

The names Aldus mentioned were familiar and I was fairly certain I read somewhere that Nicolas Flamel was a French alchemist in the early 15th century.

My wine glass was empty for a long time, but I didn't care to refill it.

Aldus was traveling all over the world, learning various practices, but since his interest in alchemy sparked, he created his base (several of them) in Europe where he has a number of labs with the biggest one being in Genoa; the same one I saw a few weeks ago after our plight at the local fair.

Aldus ended his story and asked me: "Any questions? I'm sure you have many."

"Where do I start…?", I murmured to myself before asking: "What are you?"

"I am what humans call a vampire."

I had a hunch, but now that he said it, it made me feel slightly uncomfortable as mental images of bloodsuckers from Hollywood movies flashed in my mind. I hoped that my discomfort didn't show on my face. After all, Aldus is my savior who is treating me like his own daughter and if he wanted to harm me, he had plenty of opportunities to do so.

While on the topic of family, I remembered from his story… "You said that you left your family behind and I assume they are alive.", I paused and saw Aldus nod in confirmation. "Where are they?"

"Have you heard of Lemuria?"

I blinked. "The continent which sank in the Indian Ocean?"

"Remove the sank part.", he said with a straight face and chuckled at my perplexed expression. "Not all creatures are good at hiding and there are those who don't wish to hide so they created their own safe heavens. Some call them realms, some call them dimensions, but they all have in common that unless you know where and how, you won't be able to enter."

"You are saying that Lemuria exists, but humans can't access it."

Aldus nodded in confirmation.

"Wow…", I said under my breath before asking: "Is Atlantis real?"

Aldus resumed nodding. "Atlanteans are one of the societies who perfected hiding so that they can live peacefully. It's a place where buildings are made out of the finest white marble, streets are decorated with diamonds and rubies, and gold is a common metal. What we call riches, for them is normal. There was a time when their doors were open for everyone as they were eager to share their technological advances with a desire to make the rest of the world prosperous as they were. However, their early encounters with other creatures proved that no matter what their intentions were, what they had put a target on them. Instead of endlessly defending against thieves and invaders, they decided to disappear."

I could feel my eyes widening to the point of hurting. Why did I think of Aquaman? Does the king of Atlantis look like Jason Momoa? That would be worth a trip.

"Can we go there?", I heard myself asking.

"Sure. I know a few guys who can get us in.", Aldus responded casually and paused before adding: "After you learn to control your power."

And we were back to the power thing. "IF I ever get to control this curse…", I voiced my thoughts.

Aldus turned to face me fully. "Serina, why are you calling it a curse?"

"It's a thing that prevents me from leaving the security our home and your proximity provide. Because of this power, I am a prisoner. If that is not a curse, how would you call it?"

"It is part of you, Serina.", Aldus said seriously. "I advise you to accept it and not push it away because going against your nature will backfire."

I met Aldus's stern gaze and I realized… "You are talking from your experience."

"Yes."

"Can you tell me about it?"

Aldus extended his hand in the air, palm up, and a second later, an exquisite pen appeared in his palm.

"You call this an ability. There was a time when I called this a curse.", Aldus said solemnly. "It didn't take me long after I left Lemuria to realize that feeding on humans will make others see me as a monster. So, I started suppressing my thirst. I would eat what humans eat and I realized that plants barely provide any nourishment, while animals are much better in that sense, but they are unable to curb my thirst. It was like having a belly full of water and still being hungry. In my desire to be accepted, I lived among humans and ignored the urge to sink my fangs into them. One day, something snapped inside me. I remember a girl, she was ten years old… her name was Agatha. She got a kitten from the neighbors and came to show it to me. She was cradling the small animal in her palms as I watched her shrivel in front of me within seconds. I didn't touch her, yet her vitality seeped out of her body and entered mine. The feline was not spared either."

I held my breath as I waited for Aldus to continue, but he didn't say anything. Eventually, I asked: "You can feed on humans without touching them?"

Aldus pointed toward a potted plant that was on the windowsill and I saw it withering away at a rate visible to the naked eye. In less than five seconds, the one-meter tall tropical plant with glossy leaves shriveled and turned into a dry shell that would crack and turn into dust at the slightest breeze.

"It's not limited to humans.", Aldus said. "I can absorb the vitality of any living creature."

I remembered Maria saying how Aldus was using their services, without touching them. Now I understood that this could be the reason as he was absorbing their vitality.

"You see, Serina, I know exactly what you are going through. Your power puts you in danger, and mine puts everyone around me in danger. Every time my thirst acted up, people would die indiscriminately. I secluded myself while learning to control this phenomenon and during that time I discovered how other than consuming life essence within a given radius, I can control how much I take and I can target someone specifically. As I experimented further, I managed to use the same principle with slight adjustments to manipulate objects as well." Aldus paused and the pen from his palm disappeared only to appear on the coffee table in front of us. He looked at me seriously. "Your power is a gift. It's not good or bad, that will be determined based on how you use it."

"You think that my power can evolve like yours did?"

Aldus confirmed. "Based on my observations, abilities are something that we have within us and unusual circumstances can trigger them to manifest themselves. In your case, the incident with Lazarus cracked open the door of the room where your power was sleeping, and you need to accept it and learn to feel it until it becomes your second nature. With enough practice, you will be able to tap into your power consciously and use it to your advantage. The more you use it, the more you will be able to manipulate it. You could adjust the output, set a specific target, and there is a chance that in time your power will evolve into something else. If you can make people fancy you to the point of them forgetting about decency, you might be able to get them to experience other feelings as well, and maybe direct their attention to other targets. Think of it like any other skill that will improve with training…"

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You can see Aldus's photo in the comments...

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