Keys to the Repository Part 1

Keys to the Repository.

Melissa De La Cruz.

Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys: Essays About the Friends.h.i.+p Between Straight Women and Gay Men For my family: Mike, Mattie, Mom, Aina, Steve, Nicholas, Joseph, Chit, and Christina, and the memory of Pop The possession of knowledge does not kill the sense of wonder and mystery. There is always more mystery.

-Anais Nin.

Dear Constant Reader, When I was growing up, I was a huge fan of Stephen King's books (I still am). And something I remember so vividly about reading his books is that once in a while he would include a letter to his readers in the introduction. These letters were addressed "Dear Constant Reader" because as he published more and more novels, it became apparent to him that his readers were eating them up-reading them as fast as he could write them, and so he wanted to thank them for that, and to celebrate it as well. In his letters he would give us a little insight into how he wrote his books, what inspired them, how they were written, and what he thought about them once finished.

I loved these letters. I think I secretly enjoyed his letters a little more than the books themselves. As someone who had read all of his books, I was fascinated by this glimpse into their inner workings, and to be told something more about the stories-a background history, an inspiration, a governing idea, maybe-that was not to be found in the pages themselves.

If you are holding this book in your hands, I hope it's safe for me to a.s.sume that you are my Constant Reader, and that you are curious to find out a little more about the world of the Blue Bloods beyond what has been available in the novels so far. And for that, I am extremely tickled, humbled, and gratified. It's always been a dream of mine to write a book like this, a companion book to the series. I absolutely adore companion books. On my shelf next to my many Stephen King novels, you will also find The Dark Tower: A Concordance, Volume 1 and The Road to the Dark Tower: Exploring Stephen King's Magnum Opus.

I'd like to share a little bit about the Blue Bloods se-ries-how I first imagined it and how it came to be and how the work is going.

The story behind the story, so to speak. As King says, "Some people don't want to know how sausage is made; if so, skip this and go ahead to the real meal." So if you don't want to hear about the backstory, you don't have to read this. But if you do, here it is.

When my editor asked if I ever wanted to try my hand at a horror/fantasy book, I responded with a resounding YES! YES!

YES! As soon as I got off the phone with her, my mind was whirling with so many ideas. I knew from the beginning I wanted to write a big epic fantasy, like my favorite books from childhood: King's Dark Tower series, Isaac Asimov's The Foundation trilogy, J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles. But I also wanted to set the story in the modern world, like J.K. Rowling's wonderful Harry Potter books, which reminded me, as an adult, how pleasurable reading books could be. I especially wanted to set it in New York City, my home, which I had just left and missed terribly, as we had moved to Los Angeles in late 2003.

It just happened that at the time my editor called, I was tooling around on the Internet and had found a Web site that listed every pa.s.senger on the Mayflower, along with their notable descendants.

The list was the "lightning bulb" from the beginning: I thought, what if all these wealthy, important, and influential Americans (the list includes the likes of the Bushes and the Roosevelts, but also- which I thought was more interesting-American icons like Oprah and Marilyn Monroe)-what if all these great people had come to be that way because they were . . . (da da dum . . .) UNDEAD?

(BWAHA-HA-HA-HA.).

My other idea was that I very much wanted to have an origin story for my vampires. I had yet to come across a vampire novel that had one. I wanted a believable explanation for their existence. I had always loved the story of Paradise Lost and found Lucifer's fall incredibly romantic and tragic. And so: the Mayflower, the New York elite, and vampires as cursed angels who fell with Lucifer- my outline was really starting to take shape.

I imagined a large, sprawling story with a huge cast of characters. Some pieces came into place easily: three girls, three different motivations. Schuyler, the shy girl who might hold the key to the Blue Bloods' salvation; Mimi, whose superficial facade masks her true nature; and Bliss, who hides a dangerous secret.

Other pieces, like how the Lost Colony of Roanoke figured into the tale, came as I was writingthe first book. Soon I was off and running, and now, five years later, I am more immersed in the story than ever. It is alive in my mind, the Blue Bloods' saga dominates talk at my dinner table (my husband is a supportive sounding board), I spend my days turning over plot points, and I can't sleep if I can't solve a character's dilemma.

In these pages you'll find the mythology of the Blue Bloods explained, some new stories featuring our favorite young vampires, and a sneak peek at what's to come. I should warn you, The Repository Files, which include character profiles, were written by rather crotchety historians who work for the humorless Committee, so you might find their estimation of the characters a little astringent. Also, while the Repository might think they know everything, careful readers will observe that in certain instances their knowledge is somewhat limited.

Thank you for welcoming the Blue Bloods into your library. I have very much enjoyed the journey that has brought them to your shelves.

I don't remember how Stephen King said good-bye to his readers, but for me, it's always a very fond . . .

xoxo Mel.

THE REPOSITORY FILES.

The following doc.u.ments you are about to read contain top secret and cla.s.sified information concerning the history of the Blue Bloods. These records were compiled and maintained by Conduit Renfield, the Repository's longest-serving historian, along with higher-ranking scribes and their interns. The Committee employs a secret underground network of Wardens, Venators, Conduits, and interns to keep their members safe and also to keep track of their actions and whereabouts. In Blue Bloods (or Repository Record #101), Mimi Force said of the Committee Wardens: "It was eerie how they knew so much about you-almost as if they were always there, watching." She was right.

ONCE UPON A TIME IN PARADISE.

The Fall and Rise of the Blue Bloods It was the beginning of the end. Lucifer, the Prince of Heaven, the Morningstar, the most beautiful angel of all time, became so enamored with his own beauty and power that he came to believe his light was as great as the Almighty, and that the throne should be his and his alone. And so he gathered his loyal army of angels for the War to End All Wars, and with swords blazing, trumpets blasting, and h.e.l.lfire in his heart, he came to claim what was not his to claim.

The battle was a day of black smoke and searing flame, clas.h.i.+ng swords and cracking whips. Alas, with victory in Lucifer's grasp, at the crucial moment to deliver the crus.h.i.+ng blow, the twin Angels of the Apocalypse-Abbadon and Azrael-his most loyal lieutenants, stayed their hand. They betrayed the Morningstar and knelt to the golden sword of Michael instead, turning the tide of battle. But it was too late to save themselves.

All the rogue angels were banished from Heaven. They woke to the cold of the earth as immortals, condemned to walk the world forever, and cursed until the end of days to feed on the blood of their human brethren. Where once they were angels, they were now "vampyres." Angels of fire and death. Soulless creatures bereft of light and love, with the immortal blue blood running in their veins.

But they were not without hope. Gabrielle, the Virtuous, out of love for her people, chose to descend with them, to bring a ray of light to the d.a.m.ned. She was joined by her mate, the mightiest of them all, Michael, Pure of Heart, who could not bear to spend eternity apart from her. Gabrielle and Michael were called the Uncorrupted, vampires by choice instead of sin.

Together, Gabrielle and Michael established the Code of the Vampires, a foundation of rules that would govern their community through the centuries, and help them to forge a way back to their glorious home in Paradise. The life cycles of the vampires were coordinated to match a human lifetime, and so the vampires followed the rites of life (Expression), death (Expulsion), and reincarnation (Evolution).

But Lucifer and his minions remained contemptuous of their fall from Paradise. They had no desire to regain G.o.d's grace or to live by the Code. They preyed on their fellow vampires, feeding on their blood and memories until they became beings of chaos, misery, and delirium. Their blood turned silver, and they were called Croatan, the Silver Bloods.

For a time they were subdued and controlled by the power of the Uncorrupted, and for centuries served as the Blue Bloods' slaves.

That is, until the day the slaves rose up against their masters in a merciless slaughter. Thus did Michael declare war against Lucifer and his followers, seeking revenge and bringing death and havoc to his enemies.

The war culminated in a final battle in ancient Rome, when Ca.s.sius (Michael) unmasked the emperor Caligula, who was revealed to be Lucifer himself. Michael sent Lucifer into the fires of h.e.l.l by the point of his golden sword, forever locking him behind an impenetrable gate.

After Rome, for millennia the Blue Bloods lived in relative safety. However, every hundred years or so, rumors persisted of attacks on young vampires in Venice, Florence, Barcelona, and Cologne, but information was inconclusive, and later suppressed.

For all intents and purposes, the community believed the Silver Bloods had been destroyed.

Distressed by the rise of religious persecution in Europe in the seventeenth century, a coven of Blue Bloods crossed to America, looking for peace. But the ancient evil followed them there, with a rash of mysterious disappearances at Plymouth. A few years later, their entire settlement at Roanoke was taken, with no clue as to their whereabouts except for a lone message-"Croatan"-nailed on a tree.

During this time of chaos in Plymouth, John Carver (the angel Metraton) called for a White Vote to challenge the leaders.h.i.+p and gain the t.i.tle of Regis of the Coven. John and his wife, Catherine Carver (the angel Seraphiel), were convinced that the Silver Bloods had never been fully vanquished and that a traitor Silver Blood was hidden among their ranks; that one of their own was Corrupted.

John Carver agitated for vigilance and an investigation.

But Myles Standish (the archangel Michael) was equally pa.s.sionate in his belief that the Silver Bloods no longer walked the earth. For the first time in Blue Blood history there was disagreement within the Conclave of Elders. But John Carver lost the White Vote, as the Conclave chose Myles Standish, thereby confirming their faith in Michael once again. The Carvers lost their governing position in the Conclave, their lone opposing voice silenced under the Regis's ironfisted rule.

As the years went by, the Blue Bloods grew comfortable, satisfied, fearless, and proud. They ama.s.sed vast wealth and influence in the New World that rivaled the grand palaces and empires they had built in the Old. The Silver Bloods had neither been seen nor heard from since Roanoke. As far as the ruling Conclave was concerned, Croatan were a myth; their existence legislated out of Blue Blood history.

In New York City, the Conclave leaders.h.i.+p established the Committee, under whose aegis the vampires ran the Board of Trustees of the New York Blood Bank, among other educational inst.i.tutions and charitable causes, as the Blue Bloods continued to advance their mission to bring art, light, truth, and justice to the human world.

ONCE UPON A TIME IN NEW YORK . . .

Four hundred years after the disappearance of the Roanoke colony, the mysterious attacks on the vampires began again. In New York City, Blue Blood victims were being taken during their most vulnerable period, their adolescence, before they are fully in control of their powers. Aggie Carondolet, a student at the d.u.c.h.esne School, and four other teenagers, were fully consumed to Dissipation, their life force drained from their veins.

Half-blood vampire Schuyler Van Alen, along with her human Conduit, Oliver Hazard-Perry, and fellow Blue Blood Bliss Llewellyn, attempted to solve the murders and the disappearance of their friend Dylan Ward, who was charged with the crime.

Schuyler's investigation brought her in contact with her secret crush, Jack Force, and to the malicious attention of his twin sister, Mimi. The Force twins hailed from the richest and most powerful Blue Blood family in the city. Their father, Charles Force, was the latest reincarnation of Michael, the vampires' immortal leader.

Schuyler learned the truth about the Silver Bloods from her grandmother Cordelia Van Alen, who was fatally injured after a Silver Blood ambush. Following Cordelia's last wish, Schuyler left for Venice to find her exiled grandfather. Lawrence Van Alen returned to New York to tell the Coven the same thing he had told them back in Plymouth as John Carver: he suspected that one of the oldest families of the Conclave had been Corrupted, and was hiding a powerful Silver Blood-perhaps the most powerful Silver Blood of all.

After Aggie's death, the Carondolets called for a White Vote to replace Charles Force, who was then the Regis of the Coven, their leader. They were unsuccessful in their attempt. Like the Carvers centuries before them, the Carondolets were promptly banished from the council. Charles Force refused to believe that the Silver Bloods had returned. He dismissed the deaths as random anomalies, not the work of their old, mythical foes.

But he could not stop the Committee from calling in the Venators, the Conclave's secret police force, to investigate the murders, sending one of them to enroll at d.u.c.h.esne, the elite private school that many of the victims had attended. Kingsley Martin, the Venator a.s.signed to the mission, was ordered to discover who among the young Blue Bloods had been drawn to the Dark Matter, a sign of Silver Blood Corruption. Mimi Force was the strongest suspect.

A Silver Blood attack at the Repository of History, the very center of the Blue Bloods power, left the Chief Warden murdered.

Mimi was charged with the crime and brought to face a blood trial.

Only a vampire with Gabrielle's power would be able to clear her by reading the true memories embedded in her blood. Schuyler, as Gabrielle's daughter, agreed to perform this act. In the blood memory, Schuyler discovered that Kingsley Martin, the Venator and allegedly a reformed Silver Blood, was the true culprit, and that Mimi was innocent. Schuyler also found out that Jack Force returned her feelings for him. But this discovery was complicated by the fact that she had recently performed the Sacred Kiss with Oliver Hazard-Perry, marking him as her human familiar, bound to her by blood and love.

Under Lawrence's influence, and after the embarra.s.sment of the blood trial, the Conclave called for a White Vote, and for the first time since the Blue Bloods' banishment from the Kingdom of Heaven, Michael was no longer Regis, as Charles Force lost his position. They named Lawrence to lead them in his place.

Kingsley Martin disappeared after the trial, but was brought back to the fold when Lawrence discovered the truth behind his actions.

Charles Force had secretly ordered the loyal Venator to call up a Silver Blood from deep inside their most protected stronghold.

Kingsley, a reformed Silver Blood himself, had set up Mimi to perform the rite, but at the last moment she had been too weak, and he had performed the dark spell himself. According to Charles, the call should never have worked. It should have been impossible. It was a test that was supposed to have failed.

Now even Charles had to admit that their immortal adversaries had returned. A broken man, he turned his back on the Conclave, wasting his days locked up in his study. In his absence, Mimi promoted herself to the family seat in the council.

The Silver Blood attacks continued, and the Venators reported trouble in Corcovado, where the demon Leviathan, Lucifer's brother, was imprisoned. Lawrence departed for Rio to secure Corcovado and left the Coven in the hands of the Regent, the second-highest-ranking Blue Blood, Nan Cutler.

Alone in New York, Schuyler had problems of her own. Her lost friend Dylan Ward had returned unexpectedly, displaying signs of Silver Blood Corruption, but her secret love affair with Jack Force took up all her attention and distracted her from the danger. But when the whole Conclave was called to Rio, Schuyler suspected something and traveled to the city as well, hoping to aid Lawrence.

During a dinner party to welcome the Blue Bloods to the city, the Silver Bloods revealed themselves at last and, led by the traitor Nan Cutler, slaughtered the members of the Conclave and left the house to burn with the Black Fire. Mimi barely made it out of the party alive, but it was her hand that felled the false Regent.

Schuyler and Lawrence rushed to Corcovado only to experience more grief. Through Lucifer's trickery, Leviathan was released and Lawrence slain. Before dying, Lawrence pressed Schuyler to fulfill his legacy and bring salvation back to their people. During the aftermath of Lawrence's murder, Bliss Llewellyn discovered a startling revelation about her provenance.

Back in New York, in the absence of a Regis, the Coven named Forsyth Llewellyn Regent, to preside over what was left of the Blue Blood leaders.h.i.+p-a Conclave made up almost entirely of retired Elders and Wardens. They blamed Schuyler for causing Lawrence's death, and she fled New York with Oliver rather than face her sentence. Schuyler bade good-bye to Jack as well, for loving him could only lead to his doom.

Schuyler and Oliver traveled around the world, one step ahead of the Venators chasing them. In Paris, she was captured by no less than Jack Force himself. Meanwhile, Mimi had joined Kingsley's team to hunt for Jordan Llewellyn, who had been kidnapped by the Silver Bloods in Rio. Bliss, left at home in the Hamptons, desperately fought for the mastery of her soul.

Charles left for Paris to hunt Leviathan, only to get caught in his own trap. The Conclave, reduced to seven ruling houses, proposed a resolution reinstating Charles in the position of Regis when he returned. But Forsyth Llewellyn had other plans. He immediately called for a White Vote, nominating himself as Regis, under the orders of his true master, Lucifer.

Before the vote was tallied, Ambrose Barlow and Minerva Morgan, two of the oldest Wardens on the council, brought a d.a.m.ning anonymous letter about Forsyth to Mimi's attention. Mimi stalled on giving Forsyth leaders.h.i.+p of the Conclave by withholding her approval.

Now, the Conclave remains leaderless in a time of great darkness. But there is a good omen at last: Allegra Van Alen finally awoke from her dreamless sleep with words of wisdom and hope for her two daughters, the light (Schuyler) and the shadow (Bliss).

As our story continues, the fate of the Blue Bloods rests in the hands of the newest generation of vampires and their loyal human Conduits. Can Schuyler, Jack, Oliver, Mimi, and Bliss work together to bring back peace and safety to their community? Or will Lucifer and his Silver Bloods destroy everything the Blue Bloods have worked so hard to build in their earthly home?

FAMILY RECORDS:.

VAN ALEN.

A formerly prominent New York family whose influence and largesse was instrumental in the founding of modern-day Manhattan, the Van Alen name was once synonymous with power, privilege, and patronage. But the family fortune has been dwindling for many years, now reduced to a few real estate holdings and nothing more.

SCHUYLER VAN ALEN.

Half-blood Birth Name: Schuyler Theodora Elizabeth Van Alen Chase Origin: September 1, 1992, New York, New York Known Past Lives: None: she is Dimidium Cognatus (half-human, half-vampire), the first and only one of her kind.

Bondmate: None. Schuyler is a trueborn new spirit with no heavenly past.

a.s.signed Human Conduit: Oliver Hazard-Perry List of Human Familiars: Oliver Hazard-Perry, no others Physical Characteristics: Hair: Black Eyes: Blue Height: 5'7"

Schuyler is the only daughter born to immortal mother, Allegra Van Alen (Gabrielle, the Uncorrupted) and mortal father, Stephen Chase, her mother's only human familiar. The Van Alens were once one of the community's wealthiest and most ill.u.s.trious families, but fell on hard times when Allegra broke her blood bond to her brother Charles (Michael, Pure of Heart). Home is a shabby mansion on 101st Street and Riverside Drive. Other Van Alen holdings include a Nantucket compound, and a pied-a-terre in Paris (currently rented to visiting tourists).

Schuyler was born premature, and as a baby was perpetually underweight. Her pediatrician noted that she did not speak until her fourth birthday, when she suddenly began using whole sentences.

Her primary caretaker, Cordelia Van Alen, her maternal grandmother, refused to allow speech therapy, insisting that her granddaughter was perfectly capable of speaking and would do so when she was ready.

School reports from d.u.c.h.esne indicate that Schuyler was a quiet and thoughtful child, socially awkward, and if not for her best friend and human Conduit, Oliver Hazard-Perry, would have been a complete outcast. She excelled in Language Arts and Applied Arts, and was once honored by the faculty for diligence in her studies.

According to medical records from the Committee physician, Dr.

Patricia Hazard, Schuyler's half-blood heritage means she has many powers that vampires her age do not, but also that her mixed blood makes her weaker and her Transformation to vampire unstable. Her immortality is in question due to her human progenitor.

Schuyler's birth was a flagrant violation of the Code on her mother's part, and the Conclave has not yet come to a formal decision on her fate. Because it is said that the daughter of Gabrielle will bring the Blue Bloods the salvation they seek, Schuyler has been allowed to live. For now.

Schuyler Van Alen spends most of her time alone; she has a fondness for museums and long walks in Central Park, and made it a habit to revisit her comatose mother in the hospital every Sunday.

The following is a report from a Repository intern currently enrolled in d.u.c.h.esne: Intern Report #101 Schuyler Van Alen dresses like a nineteenth-century street urchin in thriftstore castoffs, but was recently tapped to be a model by New York's top agency during a casting call held at school. She gives the impression of being short of stature yet is in fact slightly taller than average. Her best friend, Oliver, calls her Sky, and according to a poem written in his diary (filched from his locker and scanned while subject was in cla.s.s): Her blue-black hair falls in curtains Surrounding a delicate heart-shaped face Blue eyes set deep in a pale, almost ivory complexion Stunning Beautiful Schuyler Even those not so enamored will grudgingly accede that she is attractive. The beginnings of her Transformation came right on schedule in her fifteenth year, with the discovery of thesangre azul on her forearms. Duly inducted into the Committee during the first semester of her soph.o.m.ore year, she has displayed questionable judgment in the process of her Transformation. Her attendance at Committee meetings is inconsistent, and she recently performed the Sacred Kiss with her human Conduit, in a flagrant violation of Committee rules. According to Dr. Hazard, she had no other choice but to do so or she would have succ.u.mbed to a sickness and the loss of consciousness that felled her mother.

Intern Report #202 While retiring in nature, Schuyler displays an unerring ability to attract the attention of the opposite s.e.x. She was spotted dancing with Jack Force at the fall Informals, and rumors have it that her infatuation with d.u.c.h.esne's most handsome and popular student may be returned. During the after-party at the Four Hundred Ball, she was spotted kissing a fellow masked reveler. Conflicting reports have the boy in question as Oliver Hazard-Perry, Kingsley Martin, or the most likely candidate, Jack Force.

Intern Report #303 Schuyler's infatuation/relations.h.i.+p with Jack Force appears to have grown since she was ordered to move to the Forces' town house after her adoption by her uncle, Charles Force. Several interns have confirmed sightings of Schuyler and Jack entering a residential building on Perry Street separately but within minutes of the other (real estate records show apartment 10 N. t.i.tled to the Benjamin Force Trust).

From a page from Schuyler's journal: "To love Jack is to ruin him, to risk his very life. His eventual bonding with Mimi is law, it is life and death. I must leave him. I cannot keep doing this to Oliver, who loves me so much and whom I love as well. I cannot live with the guilt anymore. I have to say good-bye."

(Renfield's notes continued) Schuyler Van Alen was put to a Committee hearing after the events in Rio, where Regis Lawrence Van Alen was murdered. She has been on the run for a year since the trial, but we can a.s.sume she returned to New York, as she was spotted at the bonding ceremony of Madeleine (Mimi) and Benjamin ( Jack) Force at St. John's Cathedral.

We have pieced together the story and have discovered that Schuyler was hiding in the city under the name Skye Hope, using her shape-s.h.i.+fting abilities to pose as the daughter of an ex-hippie traveling singer.

Details on the events at St. John's are still coming to light.

Eyewitness reports state that a silver mist appeared in the church, and the demon Leviathan himself abducted Schuyler, and they disappeared into the world of the glom. Venators on the scene reported that Jack and Mimi Force also disappeared at this time.

Several minutes later, Jack and Schuyler emerged from the glom, Jack gravely injured and bleeding heavily. Guests at the scene testified they witnessed Schuyler offering her blood for him to drink. She was overheard telling him that as she was half human, that her blood could save him. Jack Force was then observed performing the Sacred Kiss on her, risking Corruption.

Schuyler was last seen at John F. Kennedy Airport with her faithful human Conduit/familiar, Oliver, but at the last moment, conflicting reports indicated that she entered the terminal with Jack Force, with Florence, Italy, as their possible intended destination.