: Origins :

[Enver Marshall II]

So, I've got another journal or whatever it is you call these things. That's three in about a year. I'm hoping this one will be different. The others just talked about things that were going on and didn't offer much depth. This one; this one is my story. My origin's story. No, I'm not proclaiming to be some super hero or anything like that. Hell, I'm not even claiming to be a hero or a fighter at all. I just don't want to forget what has made me, me. Or what will make me me. We live forever after all.

I met her almost two years ago. I was escaping something. Or, more like someone. Maybe my whole life back in Cali. Didn't have much going for me there, so I decided to hang up my hat. Or, so I thought. I was only here a couple days when I was bombarded by some guy who was friends of my PR rep at the time, who asked me to come to some gig to speak to people. Because that's what I do. Connect with people, I guess.

Why she picked me? I don't know. I'm not sure I would have even picked me. Strung out on coke and booze, I'm sure I would have given me a second thought. But she did and it is what it is. So, now I'm a vampire. It's not all it's cracked up to be. With great power, comes great responsibility or something along those lines. Just didn't know how much power I'd have until it was too late.

[Enver Marshall II]

I would come to learn her name was River later. A shadow and it seems I'd become a vampire, like her, but my path was different. My story would be different. I'll admit, at first, I might have thought I had a pretty sweet deal. Doing things I couldn't do months, weeks, hell, even the night before. Maybe I pushed some boundaries, most of all my sire's.

I would be introduced to a few more vampires, in what a lot of people labeled, "family." I wasn't much of a family man then, and sometimes, I'm not sure I am today. There are definitely a few people I'd do anything I could for. Those people, I'll talk about at a later time.

So, she gave me this new life and taught me a few things about it, but the woman would keep on dying. I didn't think it affected me much, but now that I look back at it, I think it did. More then I care to admit, even today.

My new superhuman powers would end up getting me killed a few times. Some, for all the right reasons, and some, for what I thought were the right reasons, only to find out later, they weren't the right reasons, and some, for the not so right reasons. Death didn't bother me then, and maybe it still doesn't. At least, not my death.

I found myself free floating for a good while, until I found something that anchored me down. I'll talk about her later, she deserves a lot more time then what I've got tonight.

[Enver Marshall II]

Her name wasn't always Melody. I knew her as Lyric and before that I knew her as someone else. I'll not give that detail out, because it's not my right to. Everyone deserves some privacy if they want it, I know that better then anyone else.

Truth is, I wasn't looking to make any creations. I could barely keep my own **** together, so to think of me trying to figure this life out with someone else, just didn't seem like a smart thing to do. But I let my humanity get the best of me, like it did a lot for the fist two years or so of this life. It's why I ended up doing a few other things, that I'll talk about later. This is about her. Not them, or me, even. Not this entry at least.

So, I made her a vampire and told her everything I knew of. Which wasn't a whole heck of a lot. The kiddo's River had were either dying all the time, or were never around. River wasn't around much either, so my hands were kind of tied. I told her the low down. I told her who I was outside the bright lights of Hollywood. Who I wanted to be sometimes too. I didn't know what I was doing, but she turned out alright. She turned out better than alright. I know I've got her in my corner, even if the rest of the world shits on me. She's an amazing woman and my pride and joy. I'd never tell her that, because we don't talk like that about each other, but if I had a kid at some point in my life and it happened to be a daughter, she'd be something like her.

She's got my passion at times. I see it ignite like a wild fire from her on the occasion about the things she cares about. Even if she doesn't admit it. The caring bit. She's tough as nails and not someone who I want to be on their bad side. And having her in my life for about a year, I've come to realize that I love her. Not in love with her, but I love Melody. And I try and make her think outside the box and try and help her get more out of this life that we share together then most vampires get out of it. I never thought I'd love someone again, and like I said, it's not that kind of love, but I do love her. Didn't realize it at first, but as I sit here writing my origins story, I figure if I can't be honest here, where can I? Besides, who knows how long I'll be here for? If Eskoph is right, then we're damning ourselves each time we go around killing some poor bloke or lady. Might come a time where I don't come back and I figure this is my legacy of sorts too. So, she'll know. You shaped me, kiddo.

[Enver Marshall II]

I'm going to circle back to when I was still wetting my whistle in the vampire world. I meant a woman by the name of Echo. I can't even remember how. I think it was when I considered myself Grigori, even though Riv's had VeL going for her. We became friends and after a while, a little more than friends. More like, after a long good while. She really opened my eyes to what shadow vampires were really like. Sure, Riv's is one, but with her gone and dead all the time, I got my real first taste of what a shadow was when her and I spent some nights together.

I know I said I didn't think I'd love someone again in my latest entry, but Echo was before Melody. I loved Echo, even though I always knew it'd be Mal in the end. That ******* penguin ring always nagged at me. Maybe even more than my first ex-wife. That's saying a lot; well, at least back then. But, Echo was easy to get along with, even when we were just friends and nothing more. Yeah, we fought on and off too, but the times we weren't fighting, were really good.

I'm getting side tracked though. Shadow vampires. She's really got it tuned down to an art, in many ways. When I start to learn some of her tricks, I'll be thinking of her and the things she taught me. Much of the same when I learned my Killer abilities and thought of Melody.

We haven't talked in a while and it is what it is. I know she's happy being back with her husband after all this time and I know she's staying out of trouble (not that she was in a whole heck of a lot), but she deserved a mention in here too. She really looked out for me and Melody more times than I can count on one hand, when she didn't have to.

Thoughts: Are Shadows on the opposite spectrum of Allurists? If so, might explain some things.

[Enver Marshall II]

I'm going to veer off all the women in my life for a moment because it seems I've got a harem or something, but that's certainly not true.

Can't quite recall how I met the guy, but he's someone I would call my best mate. Maybe someone I'd even call brother. We've got a few of the same ideas, but he did things I didn't have the balls to do until fighting along side him. He'd do anything for the fight of good and I would too. Just in different ways.

His name's Killian and I've spent most my vampire existence at his side, or the side of Fifth Column. Doesn't matter which it is; I was in Fifth because of him and because of him I supported Fifth. So, sort of universal in thought, right? I'd never been more comfortable in a place with people I see once in a blue moon. Hell, I'm not even that comfortable around my creations, or River.

Yeah, he's not the most reliable and truth is, he's off pissing around a lot, but I don't need a leader. I know what I need to do and how to do things effectively. And the guy knows it. I'm in my thirties and pretty sure he's not much younger than me. Can't recall, really. Doesn't matter.

He's dedicated and I can't recall a time when I'd ever been so dedicated to something before meeting him. I think I owe that trait to him. Even when the city's blasting him, the guy's singing his song loud and clear for everyone to know. Yeah, I can attribute that quality to him.

I'm not sure what life will be like without the back and forth ******** in Fifth with the guy, or what I'm going to do now, truth be told. I've a few ideas, but I guess it depends on what goes on behind closed doors. Maybe this is the end of the road for me.

Nah, he taught me better than that.