The Oracle
Third Passage of the Harvest Moon
This is the first of three special editions of the Oracle. Each member of the Oracle staff is taking two passages of holiday from their duties, and thus the next three Oracles will be written by only a single one of the staff members. Of course, this means that one of them must have their holiday broken in two, and we’d like to mention that Tirian valiantly volunteered to take the first and third passage off.
These special editions will deal with a single subject each passage.
Noble Vampire Stirs Debate
Lady Amelia is sixteen years old, with a pretty face and brown curls. She’s also a vampire.
"The man who turned me was older," she said. "I met him when I was coming home late from shopping last moon, and he called from the shadows, saying that he needed help. When I approached close enough, he pulled me in with terrible strength and bit into my neck."
Encounters with vampires are often told in a more intimate light, but Lady Amelia’s story certainly isn’t uncommon. Vampires can leave their victims drained but alive, they can kill them, or, if they desire, they can ‘turn’ the person by breathing life back into them. When this happens, the victim becomes a vampire themselves, and will be bound, as if charmed, to the vampire who turned them.
"I felt very drawn to Araad for a period of about two passages, during which time he made me do horrible things. He would ask something of me, and I couldn’t help myself. Then he was slain, and I felt suddenly free. I went immediately to my father and confessed all."
Together Lady Amelia and her father, Lord Erik Teridor, went to the city magistrate. Their act has brought a long-hidden policy of Queen Lillian’s into the public light.
"We’ve been called ‘vampire friendly’ in Aranor," says Storm, the Regent of Aranor. "The reason is that, traditionally, vampires have been hunted and burned with great fervor, and here in Aranor we don’t give them a high degree of attention."
The question is why. History has shown us that once a vampire scourge gets out of control, it is very difficult to contain. There are many who feel that vampires are simply monsters, and that they should all be destroyed. Queen Lillian has finally opened up to telling us the real city policy on vampires.
"Our philosophy," says Storm, "is to make vampires less dangerous by being more lenient with them. In most civilizations, vampires are killed if they are discovered. Vampires get around this difficulty by killing their victims, so there is no one to report them to authorities. In Aranor, we take vampire reports very seriously, but if it can be proven that the vampire is an upstanding citizen, if they never kill their victims, and if they never create more vampires, then we will award them with leniency. This encourages vampires to select willing victims or, at the very least, to make sure that their victims are not permanently harmed. The other advantage of this policy is that it encourages vampires to police each other’s behavior, because if one vampire is ‘breaking the rules’, it sheds a negative light on all of them."
Storm expects this admittance to generate a high degree of public outrage. But Queen Lillian, with her usual candor, told me that ‘those who don’t like it can move to Masalla.’ I presume that she was defending the Aranorian policy which grants opportunity for all, up until the time when they prove that they cannot cooperate in Aranor’s society.
Lady Amelia’s father is pointing out another factor – that we can see some of the vampires as victims instead of monsters.
"My daughter had no choice in this – she was attacked and victimized, and no known magic can cure her ailment. Her family and willing friends have consented to provide for her new needs, and she harms no one. Why should she be executed because of that?"
He went on during a recent debate with city officials to suggest two possibilities for ‘curing’ the vampire problem. The first is to allow known vampires to register with the city. They would have to prove that they have sufficient willing people to support their needs. The second possibility is to create a city or island where vampires could live, and where criminals or willing caregivers could supply nourishment.
Both ideas were decried by Lady Ametta, Magistrate of the River District and one of the most outspoken opponents of vampires.
"Could you imagine if we allowed either of these?" she asked. "If we allowed vampires to be officially recognized and protected by the city? Aranor will become nothing more than a haven for these highly dangerous monsters! And an island would just give them a breeding ground where they can multiply and eventually plan raids to supply their growing needs."
Lord Teridor points out that Saravai, the island ‘prison’ for lycanthropes, has been extremely successful, and hasn’t given the Old World any major problems at all. Still, he pushes for the first idea, which would allow victims of vampirism to lead otherwise normal lives.
"All good and well," says Lady Ametta, "but vampires aren’t normal people. They’re undead creatures who prey upon the living."
The debates continue to rage, and two public forums will be held on the steps of the Library of Aranor next An Ilé and next An Meja. The city will consider making changes in its policy at the end of the Autumn Moon, and an official hearing will be scheduled for the last passage of that moon. Until then, Lady Amelia will have to wait in tense expectation.
Lord Kieran
To the Oracle Collection-- Year Two