Entrance to Noble Academy

Just yesterday had been Nikita's birthday - the first one she had ever celebrated with her momma and pappa as well as the castle servants though her pappa had told her it would not be her last one celebrated among them. Today, she had just finished dressing herself and it was still mid evening with the sun just descending over the horizon, wearing a black dress with silver embellishments and a white scarf. Nikita was now five full years old though physically within the body of an eleven year-old. Nikita moved down to the first floor and out the door towards the immaculate black and red carriage which would take her to the Sylvania Noble Academy where she would meet vampires and elder vampires who were students. Standing behind her was Radagask and a detail of nine more skeletal knights, along with her parents who stepped out of formation to both give her a deep hug. Her momma Helena started to cry as she pulled away from the castle, but her pappa embraced her momma tightly to comfort the woman. Nikita vowed that she would be back once she had graduated, but didn't quite expect it to be that easy.

Unlike the schools of the Empire, the Noble Academy had no age limit with many sorts of vampires attending; vampires which had been sired and adopted into one of the minor noble bloodlines, vampires which had been born much like her though to a breeding human rather than a loving vampiress for a mother, vampires who had been born through a device known as the Arcane Womb, or vampires which had gained status as landed esquires due to service to the Kingdom in one way or another. All arriving so that the academy could teach them what was expected of a noble and prepare them for the duty they would face as a noble of the court. As for those of the three royal bloodlines, they were prepared for rulership over their feif (or country in the case of the Dragmirs) or for the high position they would take within the kingdom in the future. If one was destined for the Noble Court of Drakenhof then they would find themselves at the noble academy.

Sitting in the carriage's compartment was Nikita with Duke at her feet, a goblet in her hands as she drank from the blood of some cow in the breeding fields of Morenburg after all it wasn't every day that even a royal could have the precious commodity that was human blood. Cow blood wouldn't weaken them so long as they still consumed blood from a mortal at-least once a week to supplement their eating habit. Draining the goblet, Nikita set it back at it's resting place and looked out to the woodland which separated the estate of Solomon Dragmir and the crowning jewel which was the Capital City of Drakina, which to be honest she preferred the solitude her parents had chosen for her over the hustle of the capital. Perhaps she was lucky then, that the Sylvania Royal Academy was placed upon a space roughly six-hundred acres in size about ten miles outside of Drakina.

They finally passed through the woods and into the noble quarter of the city proper where the nine bloodlines held their estates within the capital (though the main estates of the other eight were within their territories and the main estate of the Dragmirs could be found at the Royal Palace) and the small chateaus of those landed esquires which called the capital home could be found. The carriage quickly passed through and into the common quarter which was occupied by all manner of undead on the streets ranging through zombies, skeletons, liches, dullahans, and vampires. Eventually an apparition would pop up in the streets as well, though would make way for the two skeletal horses leading her carriage. Leaving through the Blood Gate which was the common gate most used, the carriage continued onwards throughout the exit-way where guards could still be seen sparsely, before winding onto the main highway.

Finally, Duke nudged the foot of Nikita who was staring at the ground currently, garnering a pat along the course 'fake' fur of the canine before her eyes were drawn to lights outside the night sky in the distance. The torchlight and magical light was great illumination for the great castle which the carriage was steadily coming upon. Nothing like the small personal castle of her parents, this one was massive with two main stonework roofs which formed the crest of the castle and below, the fortifications with crenellations and machicolations along them. Four massive towers each bore unique heraldry, and each tower was paired with two turrets. The castle sat on a waterfront with drawbridge, and up a hill which was protected by a full stonework wall with proper fortifications. The torchlight of soldiers up on the wall could be seen moving around. The carriage finally pulled up to the gate, the knight in charge of her carriage stepping down and speaking with the two on duty at the gate.

Eventually, the carriage passed into the gardens and then through to a wide berth of land standing between the gate and gardens, and the hill which the castle stood upon. Off to the side Nikita could make out in clear detail arenas, dorms, and libraries. She watched vampires make their way from their dorms out to the castle proper many of which walked aside the carriage yet couldn't see inside due to enchantment. The majority of these vampires bore crests belonging to Macavelius, Toreador, Penumbrae, Mekhet, Gangrel, and Moroi; which meant that she would get to meet all kinds of new friends here at the Academy but that warning her uncle gave her suddenly returned to mind as well. She would have new friends and new threats as well. Nikita knew she couldn't hoard any advantages so spent her three remaining free ability points from before on Stealth, Assess, and Necromancy leaving herself with only two free ability points and four free attribute points from the level-up she had gained defeating Lylith.

Nikita's carriage finally came to it's end and the door was opened by a courtly-looking male and a skeleton warrior on either side, both taking a bow to Nikita who stepped out from the carriage and onto the steps towards the castle. She graciously curtsied to both, then stepped up the sturdy drawbridge up to the inside of the castle proper where many were heading up the grand stairway to the second and third floors for classrooms. One such vampire bumped into her shoulder, a male with spiked blue hair kept short. The boy was handsome beyond belief especially in his school uniform and looked in his early teens as well, causing a flutter in the girl's heart for a moment. The boy continued on, seemingly without noticing her, before turning back and waving. Nikita simply continued through the hall, passing several rooms labeled for faculty use or for storage purposes before coming to a lavish pair of double doors.

Before she could touch them, the doors slid open as if inviting her. Within was an ornate office-room with stark blue and green decorations and seated behind the great mahogany desk was an older vampire male with long grayed hair tied into a braid behind his back and a mid-length beard. The man wore a black uniform similar to that of the school uniforms, though had several differences such as a robe-like coat and a hood. The wooden placquard at the desk read 'Headmaster Mercurio Kertia Vi Trizimere II' which meant that this was the one who Nikita was seeking to be admitted into the school and finish her quest. He looked up from the scroll and smiled as he motioned for Nikita to sit upon which he began speaking. "Ahh, young Nikita at last is it? A pleasure to have you finally within my academy and to think your cousin Crassus just arrived last year well it is certainly a pleasure to have another Dragmir within these halls. I've already arranged your schedule for this first semester per the request of his majesty and will have your luggage including your companion brought to your personal quarters within the royal dorms in the fifth floor of Castle Louville. Finally, here is your Academy Sigil which marks you as a student here. Should you lose your sigil, another one can be commissioned however doing so comes at the price of one-hundred silver lira or one golden lira. Now then, why don't you go look around the castle for the rest of period?"

"Sounds like a good idea, Headmaster. I'll check out the second through fourth floor and then find my quarters on the fifth. Now then if you'd excuse me I'd like to get started immediately." Receiving the Sigil, Nikita immediately pinned the item to her dress for the moment. With everything now discussed and with her beginning class on the morrow Nikita picked herself up and then walked out of the headmaster's office. The pair of doors closed behind her, which didn't bother her in the slightest, so for now she simply head up the double stairs to the second floor. Luckily each of the classrooms seemed to be labeled by subject which would help her find her classes tomorrow. Moving up one of two spiral staircases, Nikita's ears suddenly piqued as she caught a conversation being held on the floor above between what she sensed as a group of five females. From what she had heard it sounded like four nobles were bullying some other vampiress. Something Nikita just wasn't about to stand for.