I stare at myself in Lore's bathroom mirror; a panicked man covered in blood. Peeling off my shirt resembles ripping off a bandaid. My body aches, muscles screaming with the pain of one who ran a marathon. The clothes lay forgotten on the floor. I slip into the shower. The warm water tickles my skin, carrying the blood to circle around my toes.

Did this really happen? Lore, the man I... I've come to deeply care for is the serial killer I was sent to find. He has been here, right under my nose, all this time. He's the father of the children I've come to care for. The man who has brought me to his home, who made me see the church for what it truly is, who has given me a chance to become more than what the church made me to be. The images I saw--what Olere revealed--Lore did that.

I run my fingers through my hair, down my neck to wrap tightly around my chest. Though the water's warm enough to steam, I shiver. I gnaw at my thumbnails until they rip. More blood drips from my nails, following the rest down the drain.

What Lore has done, it's towards bad people, like tonight. Aja, that sick disgusting bastard hurt me and now I--oddly enough, it does feel better. Thinking his name didn't bring about the memory of him on top of me, the pain, or his lecherous grin. He is gone. Dead. Not out in the world living a life he doesn't deserve to live. A strangled laugh leaves my lips, then another. Each makes my chest ache. Tears build in my eyes. I don't know why. I can't stop crying. I press my left hand against the cut along the fingers of my right hand. The pain reminds me that this is real, that earlier happened. Aja is dead. I killed him and I don't feel any remorse and I don't care that I don't.

There is fear though, that much is certain when I jolt at the sound of the bathroom door opening. My senses are all over the place, otherwise I would have known Lore was entering. I hear his clothes hit the floor. He brushes back the curtain donning a quiet expression. While not as bloodied as me, it's clear Lore handled the body in some manner. Streaks of red rest along his arms where the blood must have gotten under his clothes and I think a bit in his hair that now rests along his shoulders.

"You've been here a while. I'm surprised the water is still warm," he says, hesitating by the edge of the tub. When I make no move to prevent him from entering, he steps into the tub.

"I didn't realize," I mumble. Lore takes my hand. Even after what happened, what he said, and what I've learned, my heart continues racing from his mere touch. Not in fear, only in desire, even admiration, and I don't know what that means. Have I gone mad?

"You've yet to heal this?" He hums, observing the injury along my fingers.

"I don't want to. I don't know how to explain it, but it's a reminder. The pain lets me know tonight actually happened."

Lore raises my hand to kiss my knuckles. "So be it, but we must at least tend to the wound."

"Okay." I grab a nearby rag to dab the blood from Lore's arms.

"I didn't think you would be so calm about this," he says, allowing me to comb my fingers through his hair.

"I wouldn't call this being calm. My heart is ready to burst. I can't think straight, but knowing that he's gone, I...am I a monster to be relieved? To be happy?"

"Asking a monster if you are a monster is a bit counterproductive." He snakes an arm around my waist, pulling me into his warm embrace. "Monsters are rarely born. They are forged. We have been forged, Seren. You by a church meant to protect you and I by a world unaccepting of my kind."

I rest my forehead against his chest. My ears ring from a headache that threatens to burst my skull. But as Lore holds me, when I feel his lips brush against my temple, there's moments of peace. The noise in my head dissipates.

"I didn't believe in fate or destiny until I met you," Lore suddenly speaks.

"What do you mean?"

"Call me crazy, but I believe we were meant to find each other," he says, running his hands soothingly along my back. "A paladin of unbelievable strength leaving the church who forged him into a mighty weapon and a dhampir capable of magic none will ever suspect. Is it not strange that these two lost souls somehow found each other?"

"It does seem an odd coincidence," I answer. This evening has left me reeling. I don't know if I've truly caught up, if I realize what has been done and what will happen. The answers to my questions are obvious, yet I continue to speak them as if I need to hear every piece a thousand times over to believe them. "You've truly killed more than the Seymours?"

"I have," he replies.

"You're truly the serial killer the church is searching for?"

"I am."

"You kill--"

"Those who deserve it," Lore interrupts. "I kill those who rape, torture, and murder others like us; the abandoned, the unloved, the unwanted, the mistreated, and the damned. Whatever you wish to call us, I deal out the justice the world has never given us."

His lips set into a thin line, then curl like the wicked snarl of a wild animal. "They take advantage of us, using power and faith to rule over those incapable of protecting themselves. We're expected to lay down and take it, to let them walk all over us. The church is not the only one guilty of this. The church searched for me because they realized someone had discovered so many of the dirty secrets they've been hiding."

My wide eyes have Lore leaning in to whisper, "Do you think they were unaware of what Priest Aja had done to you, to the other boys?"

My stomach churns. I don't want to believe it even after all that has happened.

"Not everyone knew, of course. Olere, for example, is unlikely to have known." I release a relieved sigh that lasts no longer than a second for Lore continues speaking, "But power calls to those who will abuse it. The church created a space for the wicked to grow powerful, to abuse those gullible enough to follow them. Then there's the mortal monarchy, complacent and vain. You don't hear much because they don't want you to, working behind closed doors to get what they desire, no matter how immoral. And lastly, there is the vampire monarchy; equally as treacherous and greedy. All of these organizations feed into one another, drowning the rest of us and never expecting any to stand against them, at least none worthy."

Then Lore looks at me, somehow desperate and overwhelmed. He smiles, crooked and painful, his arms now trembling around my waist. "This has always been my way of fighting back, of taking control, making them terrified of the monster in the dark, the one they cannot understand or catch, but we can change that. You and I, we can be so much more. You understand, don't you, Seren?"

I don't know if I do. I don't know what he's implying. There's too much going on for me to think. Maybe Lore knows this because he presses his lips against my temple, easing the tension that has come to settle into my very bones.

"Let's finish here. It's best if I tell you more while we're seated," he says.

That's equally overwhelming to hear. There's more when I can't believe there could possibly be more, but he's right. My legs are weak. I'm exhausted, so Lore and I finish up in the shower. Afterwards, he takes flames to our clothes, burning them to ashes in the sink. The ashes filter down the drain, removing all evidence of what transpired tonight. Even my bloody footprints once left in Lore's room are now gone. Did Draven or Lore clean them? No doubt Draven knows about all this too. He's the one Lore's always calling upon and his trait, that is mighty useful, but I don't have the chance to ask. Lore takes my hand once we've both dressed, guiding me to bed.

"What more could you possibly have to tell?" I ask, fearing the answer.

Lore appears as fearful to give it. He hesitates, holding my hand tight enough to cut off the circulation. Then he sighs and reveals a truth I couldn't have imagined, "There is a reason Valyork has yet to attack Earth again that has very little to do with the lack of technology. There is a reason the mortal monarchy and the Holy Church will not attack each other and that is because all three leech off one another. The Holy Church sends their nonbelievers far away under the guise that they wish to lead different lives. The monarchy quietly gathers up a few so as to not lead to suspicion and sends them to Vexsis to join the blood farms. It is a system, one where the church is able to rid itself of any who may harm them, where the monarchy is paid a very hefty sum for their participation and discretion, and the vampires get to gorge themselves on mortal blood, a mage's blood at that. While all three wish to break free from one another, their parasitic ways have worked for centuries, so that man you saw in Vexsis, you were right. You most certainly knew him."

Lore's words hang heavy on the air. One could argue that my life changed the moment I met him, in ways I could never imagine. All that I thought I knew has been stripped bare, laid before me as unrecognizable. My faith, my trust, lies in shambles, scattered in a darkness I was led to believe was light. The life I have led, what I have done, feels meaningless. Those I've killed were taken under the orders of an organization so corrupt that I wish to see it bathed in blood and darkness, to watch the pristine white walls crumble as flames sear everything to ash.

"I know this is a lot to take in," Lore adds.

"A lot is an understatement." I release a strangled breath and another. "I... I don't get it all. If this benefits the vampires, why are Valyork's children attempting to start trouble?"

"They're cocky bastards who believe they can overtake Earth and seek out blood when they wish without having to pay for it. And of course they hate the Holy Church for killing many of their innocent brethren, as well as starting that ridiculous rumor that we came from some dark master. Valyork may be paranoid, but he fought relentlessly in the Vampire Wars. He knows the cost of war. He would rather pay for blood than risk the lives of his people on a chance."

My ears start to ring again. A headache has formed so powerful that I almost vomited a second time this evening. Lore rests a hand on my back when I lurch over, allowing my head to hang between my legs. I was right to assume the church was lying. I was very wrong about what they were lying about.

"How have they never been caught? How do you even know this? Do you have proof?" I ask.

"They have been caught, but when three powerful entities work together, you can imagine how easy it is to be rid of trouble," Lore replies, once again hesitating to further elaborate. "The Holy Church does have quite a few well trained individuals to handle those they rather not hear from again."

Well trained individuals meaning those like me and the champions. The rebellions we were sent after or vampires we sought out, there's a chance they knew the truth. A chance they hoped to reveal that truth to the world and we were the perfect kill squad.

"The knights of the king take care of mortal... pests, I presume?"

Lore nods. "Just as Valyork ensures no one knows he is the one buying humans for the blood farms. It's believed there's a powerful black market, even within Vexsis. I don't even know who all is involved in his lies."

"How did you learn of this?"

"I've always had my suspicions since my first visit to Vexsis. I found it strange how many mortals they had, considering the way they treat them. I searched for the black market, which is when I found that there's very little trading of mortals between Vexsis and Earth. That meant something else was afoot, so I continued keeping an eye on missing persons. I noticed many were former members of the church and kept watch. They are sneaky about it. Took me almost a decade to finally catch the knights stealing some poor sap in the night."

"I don't know what to do with this," I admit, pressing my palms against my aching temple. Lore rests his hand beneath my chin, bringing me upright to look at him. His eyes hold an almost excited glint, like he has discovered something grand.

"I am not the only one who knows of this. The Red Moon is aware too."

"Is that meant to make me feel better?"

"Trust me, I wouldn't be working with them if I thought they would cause too much trouble. I've always avoided them because many of their past leaders lacked any real vision. They merely wanted to start trouble, but now," Lore grips the back of my neck, pulling me in to rest his forehead against mine. "Now all the pieces are falling into place and we have a chance at tearing it all down."

"How?"

"Like I said, a weapon forged by the church, a dhampir with magic, an entire revolutionary group, and even a member on the inside--"

"We are not bringing Olere into this," I interject, trying to retreat.

Lore keeps a firm hold on me. "He's already involved. The church will discover what he has been looking into. Is it not better to involve him in hopes that we can stop the church before they get to him?"

I press my hands against Lore's chest. He releases me, donning a frown.

"I think I need to rest before we discuss this more. I'm...I feel like my head is going to burst," I say, shifting into bed so I can bury myself within the covers. They aren't shields capable of protecting me from spells, but they are warm and that eases me. Not enough to rest, but enough to breathe normally.

"You're staying here?" Lore asks.

"Where else would I go?"

"Your room."

"Do you want me to go to my room?

The bed shifts. Lore's body presses against mine. He holds me as tight as he was before, telling me his answer before he says it, "No. I want you to stay here with me."

"I want you with me too." I shiver at the touch of his lips against the back of my neck. Then his forehead rests against my back, his legs entangling with mine. If the situation were different, I'd laugh over his adorable nature. His need to practically make us one, but right now I need that too. I don't know what will become of me without him.

He was right to warn me. These are truths I cannot unsee. They're truths that will keep me up for many nights to come, maybe the rest of my life. In a twisted way, they make me feel closer to Lore. The secrets he was hiding, I know them now like I always wanted. Though far more than expected, I wouldn't change anything. I wouldn't want to be anywhere other than right here in Lore's arms, knowing he'll be with me when I wake.

- - ┈┈∘┈˃̶༒˂̶┈∘┈┈ - -

So sorry everyone! I got caught up with some tedious stuff today, thought I was done and could relax, then remembered I had to update. Reminder, my patreon is 15 episodes ahead. My patreon exclusive will post there February 1st, so if you want to give it a try, go to patreon.com/Twoony or follow the external link. Anyway, there we have it, those in power are corrupt bastards using one another to benefit themselves and harm everyone else. Did you expect the conspiracy to be this widespread? What could possibly happen next, hmm?