Prince James(2)

The two men were standing in the dark roof of ''Astoria'' hotel watching the night sky reflecting the multicolored lights of the town.
-My lord, may I speak?
-You know you can always speak your mind especially when we are alone.
-Why did you give permission to that rotten necromancer? He will probably cause many problems during his stay here.
-I know...
-Then...why? You surely knew he is old enough and his partner is one of the most powerful lords of Europe...
-Do you know who is the sire of our lovely Sofia?
-Of course, the prince of Paris!
-Then maybe you know who the major enemy of the prince of Paris is.
-...can't be anyone other than lord Victor vice king of France... The man's eyes suddenly opened.
-That's why you accepted him...as a countermeasure against Sofia and her sire.
-Wasn't it too obvious?
-You never cease to impress me, my lord.
-Though I had a few more reasons to accept him , I don't know why but I strongly feel that this man would be of great help in the times to come. Voluntarily or not!
-Ha! I suppose you want me to monitor him?
-From a distance, give him some space, let him believe he is safe enough and never forget that he is a skilled necromancer even the shadows can't really hide you from his spies.
-Are you teasing me, my lord? You know damn well I dabble in the necromantic arts myself or is it another test of cunning and necromantic prowess?
-....
-Damn! I was sure!
-I don't doubt your powers my sheriff, I just don't want you to become rusty if everything stays calm and quiet. And now you better get to work...
-Always at your service, my lord!

Prince James was left alone on the rooftop, he breathed the air around him. For him it was like recharging his batteries, his destiny lay in this town waiting for him to grasp it.
All these years he had created a unique web of allies around him without them even knowing it.
Whenever someone aproached him he cooperated with him and at the same time he made sure he would contact his enemy to score an agreement with him too.
Everyone believed they were expanding their influence while in fact they were just expanding Jame's.
''Divide and conquer''. This ancient quote was his guide.
His centuries old plans had started paying off and he only needed time and he had an eternity to spend.

His mind travelled several centuries ago before he came to Thessaloniki.
Where he was, he was worshipped as a god but it was not enough. He knew the that times change and he felt vulnerable there.
He was always a fighter but not a stupid one. Why fight a lost war when you can fight and win another day.
He knew he had to stay low and get used to his new status, where he was going they were not in need of a god but in need of a charismatic leader who would climb the ladder of leadership slowly but steady.
He was familiar with that place of course but many centuries had passed since the last time he had been in Greece.
He knew his sire and his ''sister'' were the shadowy rulers of that place but that was aeons ago.
As far as he knew his sire was burried deep enough having surrendered herself to the long sleep and his sister was nowhere to be found since the dawn of the Roman era.
Even if they were to return he would have established his reign and his powers to levels that even they could not surpass.
But he had one more reason to come to Greece and specifically in Thessaloniki.
When you have thousands of nights to live and thousands of days to hide from the sun, reading and researching becomes your best friend.
He read and collected so many documents about his kind, its lore, its origins and its occult.
He specifically paid attention to prophecies about the future of the vampiric kind.
So many signs were foretold about Greece, what would define the Vampiric kind would most propably happen in Greece sometime in the future and he was determined to be there and gain as much as he could.

Fate and luck were in his favor but he knew that he would need more if he was to win this nightly war.
He would need allies of any kind and power. After all you can't become a leader if you have noone to lead.
And his first ally proved to be the most unexpected one, the sheriff of the previous prince of Thessaloniki.
Through the years he continued to collect a wide variety of allies and sometimes even his most trusted allies doubted his choices but until now he had never been proved wrong.
Even that youngling that had lied to him about his origins had his place in Jame's plan.
Jame's didnt know what this place would be but he knew that this Paul Anageropoulos would make a fine ally one day.
He interrupted his journey through his memories, this was not a time to relax, war was coming and he still had many things to prepare for.
He gazed one more time at his beloved city, the city he had been ruling for the last 300 years.
-One day Thessaloniki I will reign supreme above everyone and I promise that whoever believes in me will never be alone again!