The vampires began gathering
before midnight. Ordinarily there
would be much laughter and gaiety accompanying the reunion of old friends, but not this night. There was no cause for celebration. This was a tribunal summoned from across Europe by their soverign to decide the fate of one of theirown.

They stood and bowed their heads in deference to their queen as she entered the marble-tiled hall. She was a small woman, hardly more than a slip of a girl when she came into power, yet none would dare challenge her authority. What she decreed tonight would affect them all. Though none would admit it, a few feared that their soverign would make the wrong decision for the rogue on trial was a member of her own immediate family.

The Queen sat, and with a wave of her slim white hand signaled for her subjects to do the same.

"We have a difficult task ahead of us,* she said. She paused, looking over the faces of those assembled. "There are those among you who would doubt our ability to sit in judgement in this matter." She paused again taking quick notice of those with a faint glimmer of guilt in their eyes. They would bear watching in the future. "Familial ties are not an issue where the safety of all is concerned."

The vampires nodded their agreement.

The Queen continued. "We are
ready to hear the arguments. The prosecution may begin first."

"You must render your decision, my darling. The others are growing restless."

"Let them wait," the Queen answered sharply. Her expression softened as her consort came nearer and placed his arm around her small waist.

"Your decision was made even before ypu heard the arguments."

The Queen nodded. "Yes. It's quite obvious that Clarence must be stopped. We should all be ruined now if our mortal allies hadn't covered his trail."

The consort agreed. "We should be thankful that he chose to slaughter those
unfortunates whom no one
will miss."

He paused.
"It is not your fault, my
darling. You had no way of
knowing how he would react
to the change until he was
of age. Some minds are
simply too fragile to
carry out the necessary
deception by day. Clarence
cannot contain his true
Nature. He would have been
wise to do as I did, drop
from the mortal world, let
them think me dead so that
I would not have to carry
on with the charade."

The consort sighed then
continued. "I envy you, my
darling. I should go as
mad as Clarence and your
grandfather if I had to
masquerade for the mortals
still." He stroked his
Queen's smooth, pale cheek.

The Queen smiled. "It is you whom I envy. The only reason I don that padding and theatrical make-up to age me each day is because I am entirely too selfish."

"No."

The Queen patted her consort's hand. "Yes. I, too, may tire of the charade one day, but for now I must go on with it. It is the power, pure and simple. To be soverign and wield power over two empires, mortal and immortal is intoxicating and I crave it as surely as I crave human blood."

She smiled ruefully. "Perhaps I am also mad. Perhaps the next tribunal will decide if I live or die."

"Do not be ridiculous."

"Is it ridiculous, Albert?
We all have the
potential to run amok
as Clarence has."

"To drink the blood of mortals is our nature of course, but to torture, eviscerate and leave the evidence is inexcusable."

The Queen nodded. To be a vampire did not automatically make one a monster. "Let us get the sentencing done with."

Again the vampires rose and bowed as their queen entered, all save the accused.

"We have reached our decision. The accused shall rise."

The rogue vampire stood, nonchalantly smoothing the edges of his moustache as his thin lips curved into a sneer.

The Queen was offended by such insolence. "Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence, this tribunal has found you guilty of all charges. Your recent actions in Whitechapel and callous disregard for our laws leave us no choice but to render the ultimate penalty." The Queen paused as the defendant's mother broke into sobs. She continued as the distraught woman was taken from the room. "You are sentenced to die at sunrise. Have you anything you wish to say?"

The madness blazed in the Vampire's dark eyes. He smirked. "If I had it to do again, Your Magesty--I would." He began laughing wildly, continuing to do so as he was led away.

Shortly after sunrise the Queen's consort came to her. "It is done."

Victoria nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Did he say anything, Albert?"

"He said that we could kill him but that his legacy would live on--the legend of Jack the Ripper."