A/N: Well hello everyone. I now have the first chapter of the second story in the Veiled Truths series. Now if you haven't read legacy you might want to do that because this one gives some spoilers for it. Also this one has far shorter chapters than Legacy (thank god, huh?). Most of Legacy character aren't in this one but if you were a fan of them don't worry some of them make appearances. Also if you didn't know this story is named after a Rolling Stones song which if u listen to it can kinda give you a feel for the mood of this story.

Paint It Black

Kell Hound (That's right I changed my pen name.)

Chapter 1: No Colors Anymore

A pair of soft lips tenderly caressing his forehead awakened Rett. At first he ignored the gentle awakening hoping he could drift back to his blissful dream. Once realizing that his attempts were futile, the young looking man opened his infinitely black eyes slightly to see who had disturbed his sleep. When he saw the woman who answered to the name Suryu, he grumbled to himself and turned his back toward her muttering in a vexed voice, "Leave me alone. I was havin a good dream."

Suryu sat up slightly. Her tiny frail figure was wrapped snugly in the brilliant crimson halter tip she wore and dark tight fitting jeans. She uninterestedly entwined a lock of her fine ebony hair around her slender fingers. Rett looked at the Asian woman whose appearance didn't seem to be old enough to drink. It was her eyes that hinted at her true age. They were deep and endlessly dark. The blackness showed an intelligence and wisdom, which could only be gained through thousands of years. Her flawless alabaster skin was almost completely white. The color was in complete contrast to her dark eyes and the locks of raven-colored that circled her beautiful seductive face. She stopped playing with her silky soft hair. The tress, just as the rest of her hair ended at a length just above her chin. The vampire woman playful traced Rett's bicep and whispered into his ear, "Is it of me?"

"I only dream of you in my nightmahes. This dream I was enjoyin," the man responded turning toward her with an irate look on his face. He then continued to curse at her in his deep gruff voice that rung with a strong Boston accent.

The vampire smiled slightly and ran her fingers through his hair, "If you hate me so much then why do you stay?"

Rett looked up at the ceiling not answering. He knew the answer but didn't want to tell her. If he told her it was because he depended on her to show him what he still had yet to understand, she would laugh at him an exploit this weakness he had. He furrowed his brow annoyed and angry at himself for this weakness. He looked away from the vampire, whom he was forced to stay with. He got up to avoid answering and walked out of the room as the gorgeous, ancient, deadly Suryu laughed. It was a laugh that still caused Rett to cringe when he heard it. In the thirty years he had been a vampire, he still couldn't stand that cold cruel laugh tinted with malice.

He walked out into the hall of Suryu's home. Everything over elaborate as if she couldn't stand having even an once of the place bare. The carpet was lush and filled with extravagant designs and colors. It felt so extraordinary under Rett's bare feet. He still wasn't sure if it felt this way simply because of the still new to him heighten senses or if it was just that it was because of the carpet its self. Rett honestly didn't really care. He ignored the carpet and the careful done wall scrolls from Suryu's homeland that hung on the walls. Everything the owner of the house had spent her money to lavish the house with he ignored. The young vampire got to the bathroom. Just like the halls and every room, it too was over decorated as if to desperate to hide something hideous.

Rett turned the golden handle of the sink and splashed the cold water that came from the faucet on to his face. As the icy cold drop fell off his face he glance up only briefly at himself in the mirror. He simple grumbled to himself for his reflection was a sharp reminder of what he had become a few decades before. He appeared basically the same. His short dark chocolate colored hair still fell in front of his eyes. A few tresses refused to obey gravity sticky up with a tenacity no comb or brush could subdue. The young vampire's face was still his own handsome strong feature that had drawn Suryu to him. His form was still medium muscular with various scars on it. All of them were from some fight or another while he had been human and were faded to the point were they were barely noticeable on his clear skin. However, a little more than three decades had paled his once tan skin to a pasty color now, not white like the female vampire that awaited him in the other room but far fairer than a human could have. The eyes shadowed by his dark lashes and sometimes hidden by his soft brown hair weren't the hardened brown eyes he remembered he had in life. They were like all vampires an endless pool of darkness, ensnaring the human that looked in them. Those few changes in his appearance were what made Rett wish the myth about vampires having no reflection were true. He had been informed that it was a half-truth. Vampires with enough skill over there own power could hide their very presence and with it their reflection. It was a skill Rett was yet to learn but wished to as soon as possible, simply because he didn't wish to see himself in the mirror.

The young looking man returned to his room. The black haired woman looked at him smiling devilishly. "You are truly exquisite," she told him with a pride in her voice. She stood up and wrapped her arms around his waist as he searched through his dresser for a shirt. She slender finger ran across his bare pale chest making their way upward. One finger wrapped itself around the necklace Rett never took off. It was a simple metal chain with two things dangling from it. The first was a dog tag with Rett's name on it with some other information he had forgotten what it stood for. The second was a small golden wedding band; it was a match to one Rett wore on his ring finger. It was the ring Suryu played with as she whispered in his ear, "You are amazing. No one is so skilled at killing as you. You would be even better at it if you would forget your mortal life." She clutched the ring in her hand and continued, "This is unnecessary. Why do you cling to you're old life, when you have me?"

Rett took one hand and remove her grip from his dead wife's wedding ring. "Why do you cling to me, when you know you can be what I want?" he retorted.

Suryu's face contorted in irritation. She glared at him. "You're such an annoyance!" she hissed storming out of the room. her grace matched that of a cat and her high heels made a sharp click against the hardwood floors in Rett's room.

Once he was alone Rett change from the baggy cotton pants he had worn to bed to a pair of faded ripped dark colored jeans and a dull gray t-shirt. He refused to be one of Suryu's puppets and dress up nice because she wanted everything to be over done. The young vampire got a surge of pain in his veins as he got dressed. It made him realize why Suryu wanted him to wake up. He needed to feed. Countless times Rett remembered passing out from alcohol at night before feeding and not bothering to feed for several days until he was too week to move and Suryu had to bring a human to him. He tried to prevent it from happening because Suryu had caught on to the fact he didn't like to feed of teenage girls and young women who resemble his wife.

Rett dragged himself to the local bar. The place looked deserted from the outside. The bricks were old and some on the edges had crumbled a bit. Their coarse surface was covered with dirt and grime. The only thing that gave them an illusion of the red they once had been was the flickering light of the neon sign in the window. A drunk lied against the building singing to himself. He sat there unshaven in stained clothing reeking of alcohol. He smiled when he saw the vampire come in. the man stumbled over to him and asked, "So whose the lucky lady tonight?"

Rett pasted right by him ignoring to the comment of the man who was probably the only one besides the vampire who came to the bar regularly. Rett pushed open the heavy door of the place. Inside was scene just as dismal as the outside. The stools at the bar where rusty with the cushioning torn and tattered. The bar they stood by wasn't in much better shape with its worn wooden counter. The tired young man behind the counter stood there busily washing a glass with a rag. He looked at Rett with worn pale brown eyes and nodded as a greeting for the regular. Rett looked around the smoke filled room as he took a seat. "What would you like tonight?" the bartender asked, "Some Rum? Vodka? Tequila? Whiskey?"

The vampire ran his fingers though his hair as he continued to scan the room. "I'll just have a few beers. I need to stay sobah tonight."

The young man nodded and got Rett a beer as the vampire pulled out his wallet. "You picking up a girl tonight?" the young man asked placing two bottles of beer on the counter than took the money Rett handed him.

Rett's eye focused n on a young girl putting off the advances of an older man who seemed didn't seem to happy. Rett watched as the older man hit her and shoved her off her seat. "Somethin like that," the vampire muttered. He drank his beer and watched as the couple. The man finally pushed her outside and out the back door of the bar as Rett finished his drink. He vampire took one last swing then stood up and followed them. He stood there in the shadows and the man slammed the girl against the brick wall. She was pleading his him to let her go. The man cursed at her and insulted her as he hit her so hard she fell to the ground. She tried to run but the huge man grabbed her by the arm. Rett pulled a cigarette out of his pocket and lit it. He deeply inhaled the smoke as the man noticed him.

"What fuck you doin' heah? Ya wanna watch or somethin' boy?" the man laughed. Rett walked over to him and blew smoke in the man's face. The man cursed at him as the girl looked up and pleaded for the vampires help.

"Ya bettah walk away punk if you know what's good fah ya," the man growled. Rett looked at the girl and the pulse on her neck. He felt a sharp pain in his head and chest. He knew he must have been pretty hungry if just looking at her caused the pain. Usually their blood had to hit the air before he felt the pain in his head. Rett looked away from the girl to man who was about to rape her. The man was cursing at him but the dark haired man wasn't paying attention. He just stood their smoking.

The stranger seemed rather angry but figured Rett wasn't going to do anything so he turned his attention back to the girl. The vampire threw down his cigarette and stepped on the butt. "Big guy like you pahobably has lot of blood in em, huh?" The man looked at him confused as he continued, "You pahobably got mah blood than that little giahl theah." The stranger just rolled his eyes and was going to ignore him. The vampire punched across the face. The man stumbled and released his grip on the girl. Rett grabbed the large man by the color of his shirt. His fang extended as the human's eyes widened in fear. The dark haired vampire sank his teeth into the man's neck. All the pain in Rett's head and chest quickly disappeared as the warm red liquid ran over his tongue. His victim struggled at first but it only made Rett savagely rip into his throat more. The girl stared at the vampire who saved her in horror.

A voice yelled at her, "Run!" Rett pulled away as the last drops of the now dead man's blood were drained. He watched as the girl ran. He let out a sigh a bit upset that now he was going to have to find someone else to feed off of so he wouldn't be hungry for a few days. He started to walk away when him heard someone mutter some chanting. He turned his head to see who was in the alley with him but before the dark haired vampire could see the owner of the voice a small blast hit him in the back. He spun around and growled at his attacker baring his fangs. Rett felt a numbing pain in his shoulder and saw that some smoke was from a hole that was burnt in his jacket.

The vampire walked over to his opponent who was swear as he fumbled through his the pockets of his denim jacket. The stranger finally pulled out a piece of paper and began chanting as he read the words on the paper. Rett realized the young man he was facing was probably a sorcerer's apprentice or maybe a cleric in training. As a beam of light formed as the man chanted some foreign language Rett confirmed it probably was the latter of the two. Either that or he knew enough to use a light spell on a vampire. Since he was struggling so much the dark haired vampire doubted it. The young cleric finished his spell which Rett attempted to dodge but got hit in the side of his stomach. Before the man could say finish casting the spell again Rett dashed over and gave him a right hook. His opponent slammed against the wall. A small amount of blood came from the young man's cracked lip. Rett felt a twinge of pain in his chest and head again when he caught the faint scent of blood. The vampire grabbed the young man's throat and began feeding off of him. A surge of power followed into Rett as he feed off the cleric. At first he assumed it was from the man's training but quickly realized this power was too dark to be human even though the blood definitely belonged to a human. The vampire cursed as it came to mind what this young man was. He pulled himself away and dropped the bleeding man to the ground. He held him down with one foot and asked, "Why the hell would a blood bond be a cleahic?"

The young man looked up at him. His eyes were a pale green raven colored hair that spiked up despite an attempt to keep it neatly combed. He looked over his lean form to make sure Rett hadn't caused anything to bleed. He rubbed the side of his face where he was hit, the hairs of his neatly trimmed goatee brushed against his hands as he did so. "What the hell's a cleric?" he asked with an English accent.

"Someone you uses only light spells," the vampire responded rolling his eyes, "Like a monk or pahiest."

The young man laughed, "I'm far from being bloody priest."

Rett eased his foot off the stranger's chest. "Who has claim to you?" The young man looked at him confused as he stood up. The vampire sighed, "You ah a blood bond of a vampire, from the taste of youah blood I would say a powerful one. That is mainly the reason why I'm letting you go but befah you leave I want to know who you ah bond to."

"Oh. Well the wanker told me not to tell anyone. Apparently he isn't very popular with other vampires off," the human replied brushing himself off.

"And was it his ider that you staht being a soahceahah and hunt down other vampiahs," Rett questioned.

The young man scratched his head and replied, "Well no. He didn't seem like a …well how shall I put this… moral vampire. He has just himself to be a rather disliked individual. Why?"

Rett shrugged than started to walk off. He as about to return to the bar and find himself another meal when it accrued to him that this could be his chance to escape Suryu. The vampire turned to back to the sorcerer who was once again shifting through his pockets. "Just how powerful is that vampiah who youah bond to?"

The young man looked up and shrugged. "I heard he was pretty up there as power goes. I suppose you would have to be because he has gonna himself into a bunch of fights with some bloke named Frost and survived."

The vampire started laughing, "You actually believe him when he told you that?"

"He wasn't the one who told me. A witch did and then a demon hunter did and then a few other people told me," he asked, then smiled as he found what he was looking for.

"You sahious?" Rett asked a bit unsure what to say. He put his hand to the small puncture wounds on his neck and began to say the words written on the paper. When he finished, he took two finger to check to see if the wound was still bleeding. He sighed in frustration when he discovered his spell hadn't worked.

Rett rolled his eyes. "Don't you know anything. You can't use a healing spell on youahself. Even I know that and I nevah pahfahmed a spell in my life."

The human glanced up at him and asked in a frustrated tone, "Is there a reason why you are still here?"

"I got a pahposition fah you," the vampire stated. The human looked at him skeptically. Rett continued, "I'm not exactly suah how to use the powahs I have gotten since I became a vampiah. If you convince youah mastah to teach me a few things then I'll help you find someone who can do a bettah job teaching you to cast spells." The young man thought for a moment. The vampire grumbled to himself as he walked out of the alley to the sidewalk light by a dim street lamb. "If youah not gonna do it just say so."

The sorcerer's eyes widened a bit when he say Rett's face in the light. "Wait," he stated catching up. He caught up with Rett and stated, "I'll do it." He held out one hand. "I'm Danny."

"Whatevah," the vampire grumbled walking away, "Let's just go."

"Do you mind waiting until I bandage up the wound on my neck," Danny remarked as he held one hand over the wound, "the one you gave I might add." Rett rolled his eyes. He ran one of his fingers against his fang to cut it open and squeezed out a few drops of blood from his finger. He moved the scorer's hand away and wiped the drops over the wound. Danny wiped off blood in disgust. "what the hells wrong with you? It's not enough that you have to bloody gash open my throat but now you have to wipe you're blood on it too! I'm probably gonna get…" The young man stopped yelling as he realized his wound had disappeared. "How did you that?"

Rett grumble, "Vampiah blood heals injuahies. Most use it so the bite mahks ahn't left on the body. It's the only thing my siah taught me."

Danny followed, "So wait you don't know how to use super strenght?"

"Yeah," Rett nodded.

"or super speed?"

"Yeah"

"You don't know how to fly either?"

"Yes," Rett growled starting to get annoyed.

"What about that thing where the vam-" Danny started.

"No I don't know how to do that or any othah powah you can think of vampiahs have. So stop asking me," the vampire glared at him.

The young man jumped slightly from being snapped at. The two walked quietly for a few mintues before the black haired man finally asked, "Didn't you want me to take you to the bloke who I'm bond to?"

The vampire kept walking and informed him, "I want to get a drink first."