Richelle Mead - Frostbite

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Table of Contents

For Kat Richardson, who is very wise.

PROLOGUE

THINGS DIE. BUT THEY DONT always stay dead. Believe me, I know.

Theres a race of vampires on this earth who are literally the walking dead. Theyre called Strigoi, and if youre not already having nightmares about them, you should be. Theyre strong, theyre fast, and they kill without mercy or hesitation. Theyre immortal, toowhich kind of makes them a bitch to destroy. There are only three ways to do it: a silver stake through the heart, decapitation, and setting them on fire. None of those is easy to pull off, but its better than having no options at all.

There are also good vampires walking the world. Theyre called Moroi. Theyre alive, and they possess the incredibly cool power to wield magic in each of the four elements earth, air, water, and fire. (Well, most Moroi can do thisbut Ill explain more about the exceptions later). They dont really use the magic for much anymore, which is kind of sad. Itd be a great weapon, but the Moroi strongly believe magic should only be used peacefully. Its one of the biggest rules in their society. Moroi are also usually tall and slim, and they cant handle a lot of sunlight. But they do have superhuman senses that make up for it: sight, smell, and hearing.

Both kinds of vampires need blood. Thats what makes them vampires, I guess. Moroi dont kill to take it, however. Instead, they keep humans around who willingly donate small amounts. They volunteer because vampire bites contain endorphins that feel really, really good and can become addictive. I know this from personal experience. These humans are called feeders and are essentially vampire-bite junkies.

Still, keeping feeders around is better than the way the Strigoi do things, because, as you might expect, they kill for their blood. I think they like it. If a Moroi kills a victim while drinking, he or she will turn into a Strigoi. Some Moroi do this by choice, giving up their magic and their morals for immortality. Strigoi can also be created by force. If a Strigoi drinks blood from a victim and then makes that person drink Strigoi blood in return, well... you get a new Strigoi. This can happen to anyone: Moroi, human, or... dhampir.

Dhampir.

Thats what I am. Dhampirs are half-human, half-Moroi. I like to think we got the best traits of both races. Im strong and sturdy, like humans are. I can also go out in the sun as much as I want. But, like the Moroi, I have really good senses and fast reflexes. The result is that dhampirs make the ultimate bodyguardswhich is what most of us are. Were called guardians.

Ive spent my entire life training to protect Moroi from Strigoi. I have a whole set of special classes and practices I take at St. Vladimirs Academy, a private school for Moroi and dhampirs. I know how to use all sorts of weapons and can land some pretty mean kicks. Ive beaten up guys twice my sizeboth in and out of class. And really, guys are pretty much the only ones I beat up, since there are very few girls in any of my classes.

Because while dhampirs inherit all sorts of great traits, theres one thing we didnt get. Dhampirs cant have children with other dhampirs. Dont ask me why. Its not like Im a geneticist or anything. Humans and Moroi getting together will always make more dhampirs; thats where we came from in the first place. But that doesnt happen so much anymore; Moroi tend to stay away from humans. Through another weird genetic fluke, however, Moroi and dhampirs mixing will create dhampir children. I know, I know: its crazy. Youd think youd get a baby thats three-quarters vampire, right? Nope. Half human, half Moroi.

Most of these dhampirs are born from Moroi men and dhampir women getting together. Moroi women stick to having Moroi babies. What this usually means is that Moroi men have flings with dhampir women and then take off. This leaves a lot of single dhampir mothers, and thats why not as many of them become guardians. Theyd rather focus on raising their children.

As a result, only the guys and a handful of girls are left to become guardians. But those who choose to protect Moroi are serious about their jobs. Dhampirs need Moroi to keep having kids. We have to protect them. Plus, its just... well, its the honorable thing to do. Strigoi are evil and unnatural. It isnt right for them to prey on the innocent. Dhampirs who train to be guardians have this drilled into them from the time they can walk. Strigoi are evil. Moroi must be protected. Guardians believe this. I believe this.

And theres one Moroi I want to protect more than anyone in the world: my best friend, Lissa. Shes a Moroi princess. The Moroi have twelve royal families, and shes the only one left in hersthe Dragomirs. But theres something else that makes Lissa special, aside from her being my best friend.

Remember when I said every Moroi wields one of the four elements? Well, it turns out Lissa wields one no one even knew existed until recently: spirit. For years, we thought she just wasnt going to develop her magical abilities. Then strange things started happening around her. For example, all vampires have an ability called compulsion that lets them force their will on others. Strigoi have it really strongly. Its weaker in Moroi, and its also forbidden. Lissa, however, has it almost as much as a Strigoi. She can bat her eyelashes, and people will do what she wants.

But thats not even the coolest thing she can do.

I said earlier that dead things dont always stay dead. Well, Im one of them. Dont worryIm not like the Strigoi. But I did die once. (I dont recommend it.) It happened when the car I was riding in slid off the road. The accident killed me, Lissas parents, and her brother. Yet, somewhere in the chaoswithout even realizing itLissa used spirit to bring me back. We didnt know about this for a long time. In fact, we didnt even know spirit existed at all.

Unfortunately, it turned out that one person did know about spirit before we did. Victor Dashkov, a dying Moroi prince, found out about Lissas powers and decided he wanted to lock her up and make her his own personal healerfor the rest of her life. When I realized someone was stalking her, I decided to take matters into my own hands. I broke us out of school to run off and live among humans. It was funbut also kind of nerve-wrackingto always be on the run. We got away with this for two years until the authorities at St. Vladimirs hunted us down and dragged us back a few months ago.

That was when Victor made his real move, kidnapping her and torturing her until she gave into his demands. In the process, he took some pretty extreme measureslike zapping me and Dimitri, my mentor, with a lust spell. (Ill get to him later). Victor also exploited the way spirit was starting to make Lissa mentally unstable. But even that wasnt as bad as what he did to his own daughter Natalie. He went so far as to encourage her to turn into a Strigoi to help cover his escape. She ended up getting staked. Even when captured after the fact, Victor didnt seem to display too much guilt over what hed asked her to do. Makes me think I wasnt missing out on growing up without a father.

Still, I now have to protect Lissa from Strigoi and Moroi. Only a few officials know about what she can do, but Im sure there are other Victors out there who would want to use her. Fortunately, I have an extra weapon to help me guard her. Somewhere during my healing in the car accident, spirit forged a psychic bond between her and me. I can see and feel what she experiences. (It only works one way, though. She cant feel me.) The bond helps me keep an eye on her and know when shes in trouble, although sometimes, its weird having another person inside your head. Were pretty sure there are lots of other things spirit can do, but we dont know what they are yet.

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