Summary: A glimpse into Tyler's history.

Slicing in a downward arc while he turned, Tyler sliced through the Ko-harga demon with an ease that perfectly demonstrated his vampiric strength, which had grown with the centuries and was now unmatched in the vampire world. Most of the upper half of the demon fell to the ground, spilling blood onto the floor and creating a mess that would take smell horrid for weeks.

"Bastard thing!" shouted Tyler angrily as he slid the katana back into the scabbard with a metallic sound that was familiar to him from centuries of use.

The katana was almost as old as he was and had killed an uncountable number of creatures. Humans, demons, other vampires. It didn't matter to him what he killed. With the sword came Tyler's entire history as a master swordsman. He had originally been known as Harold and was fighting in the Battle of Hastings when his sire turned him. For over one hundred years, his sire, a Japanese vampire who was a master swordsman himself, had taught Tyler everything about swordfighting. Together they had practiced, pitting themselves against the best opponents they could find.

Until one night, around the year 1178 when Tyler decided that he had surpassed his master. Vampires usually had a connection to their sires, they were the vampiric equivalent of a mother and father, but Tyler deemed himself to be above his. So, in the darkness that surrounded them, he challenged him, at first attracting laughs from the elder vampire. Those laughs turned to cries of anger as Tyler attacked his sire, almost catching him off guard. They had fought for nearly 5 hours until eventually Tyler caught him off guard and with a kick to the knee, dropped him to the floor. Then, with one swing of the sword he wielded, he decapitated his sire, leaving a pile of dust on the floor which he immediately spat into.

The katana had been his sire's own sword, forged at a time so long ago that Tyler himself didn't know when it was. Taking it as his prize, he travelled the earth. He would kill humans without hesitation, but when he came across someone that could use a sword, Human or otherwise, he challenged them, slowly building up a reputation that made his blade feared in places he hadn't even heard of.

Now it was the year 2000 and Tyler had all but been forgotten.

By his own choosing he had dissapeared around the year 1902, severed all ties with various acquaintances, killed others. He had taken to stalking humanity with a quiet purpose, a purpose that remained known only to him. However, the demon that had attacked him had known his name. That meant somebody knew he was alive and in L.A.

He didn't know who it was, but he knew they would be dead as soon as he did.

© Matthew Smith, 2003