Nobility (Vampire Hunter D)

The Nobiliy are a vampire civilisation that features in Vampire Hunter D.

History

The Noble Greylancer in Noble V: Greylancer.

The Nobility (Japanese: 貴族, Hepburn: Kizoku) were a race of vampires that inhabited the Earth.

It was said in the distant past long before the Nobility rose to power in the world that the people who had been preyed on by vampires were locked up in a holy place and treated with incantations and electronics.

For a long time, the vampires had predicted that humanity would end up destroying themselves and made preparations. They contacted others of their kind around the world in order to work together. In secret, they had developed a hidden super-power source in hidden fallout shelters of their own design that also contained the machinery needed to help rebuild the world. Then, in 1999, full-scale nuclear war erupted amongst the human race with major cities destroyed and those not being killed instantly exposed to intense radiation. The scale of destruction was to the point that mankind was unable to rebuild and only a few survived as civilisation regressed to the Middle Ages as they lived in the ruins of their world.

Within 2,000 years, the vampires rebuilt the world using their knowledge of sorcery and super-science with them subjugating humanity.

However, within five short millennia, this period would come to an end. The Nobility’s Academy of Sciences had developed a method of mathematically analyzing fate, and, after they cross-referenced these figures with the historical import of all known civilizations they canceled all presentations on the findings of their research. When they came under fire for this decision, it was the Sacred Ancestor who came to face the critics,appearing in public for the first time in a millennium to control the situation. This one pronouncement of their godlike Sacred Ancestor alone had met suspicion and denial from all Nobles. The Sacred Ancestor referred to those propping up their civilization as transient guests.

A bizarre rumor that had circulated briefly among the highest-ranking Nobility was whispered that the Sacred Ancestor had sworn himself to a human maiden where they would produce vampire/human dhamphir offspring.

Around 5,127 years ago, the decline of the vampire race began to affect their species. The Nobility had also constructed the Frontier Center for Calculation where they conducted top secret experiments at this facility to prevent this fate. However, their science had already come to the conclusion that their decline was inevitable. To them, this unavoidable decline also meant eventual extinction. Looking to avoid this fate, this site began trying to genetically combine humans with the Nobility. These experiments were conducted in secret in one area of the Frontier as most of the Nobility found it repulsive to even consider such a thing and detested the thought of mixing with humans. Ultimately, the opposing faction involved in the experiments was destroyed and those privy to the secrets fled the ruins that were abandoned for the few thousand years.

The repeated uprisings by mankind led to the Nobility engaging in dozens of armistices with the humans. Each of these times of peace were only maintained for a short period.

Overtime, the vampires eventually lost the enthusiasm and the desire to maintain the transportation networks they had once established. The decline of the Nobility also led to a similar decrease in the number of monstrous beasts that inhabited the world.

By 12,090 A.D., the Nobility seemingly existed to only terrorise humans on the Frontier.

Overview

Despite what was known, there were a great many mysteries from a biological standpoint that remained on how the metabolisms of the Nobility worked.

The sleeping patterns of vampires were the opposite when compared to humans namely that they tended to be awake at night whilst they slept in the day.

The notable bite left on a human was known as the Kiss of the Nobility.

Vampires dealt with their victims in two different ways. They either drained all the blood from their prey in one feeding and left a corpse. Alternatively, they could engage in repeated feedings that could turn a person into a companion. The latter depended on whether the Noble took a liking of their victim. Sometimes, a person joined the ranks of the vampires from a single bite whilst others were bitten across months only to die in the end.

When mating with humans, the genes of the respective races came into conflict with one another. Generally, it was the physiological traits of the Noble parent that proved dominant within the dhampir offspring's body. Generally, they inherited nearly half the strength, sight, hearing, and other physical advantages of a true vampire. Their greatest advantage over a Noble though was their adaptability. Similar to their vampire parents, dhampirs craved sleep by day and wanted to be awake at night. However, it was entirely possible for dhampirs to follow the tendencies of their human genes and live like mortals thus allowing them to operate in the day. Though able to resist their fundamental biological urges, operating in daylight severely degraded a dhampir’s condition. Their biorhythms fell off sharply after midnight with it reaching its nadir at noon. Direct sunlight could also burn their skin to the point where even the gentlest breeze was pure agony. In some cases, their skin might even blister like a third-degree burn with them also facing ebbing biorhythms brought fatigue, nausea, thirst, and numbing exhaustion. Fewer than one in ten dhampirs could withstand the onslaught of midday without experiencing such punishments on their body.

The powers of a Noble grew over the passing years.

Other abilities available to them included cryptesthesia, the black arts and psychic abilities. These talents could be used to help divine the future.

Those humans that became prey to a Noble were typically isolated in their respective village or town until the vampire was defeated. If not destroyed, the victim was driven out of the settlement or even killed. This was custom because if the vampire was stopped from feeding on their preferred victim then they went into a rage and would attack anyone in the settlement. Some towns and villages were even noted to had been destroyed in such a manner.

All the true Nobility in the world were united under the thousand Greater Nobility, the seven kings, and the legendary dark lord who rules them all. Below them were those of the Lesser Nobility consisting of lower ranking vampires. As the ruling class, they felt they were entitled to take measures to ensure the rebellious feelings of the lower class were kept in-check.

As a species, the Nobility were said to have an underlying spark to live that was far less tenacious than that of a human. Despite their mystic-might they wielded at night, in the light of day vampires were said to be feeble creatures that were easily destroyed by a single thrust of a stake.

In a ironic sense, it was said that the Nobility felt a strange kind of affection towards humans. Though historical facts showed that vampires did not demonstrate affection, but rather acted as if human beings were lower than machines.

For currency, they were known to had made use of Aristocrat Coins the Nobility. When the revolutionaries finally managed to take power, they destroyed vast quantities of these coins in order to get their new government’s economic policies off to a good start. One of them was worth at least a thousand dalas on the black market.

An item wielded by the Nobility were their capes with a secret trick being able to manipulate them to work as if they were a sentient being. These were said to be a secret trick learnt by these vampires and taught to a select few by the Sacred Ancestor.

The vampires had used all their knowledge of psychology and cerebral biology in their attempts to plant fear in the human mind throughout the six or seven millennia of their reign. The results of this was that even after the vampire civilization had long since crumbled that it was rare to catch even a glimpse of one about allowing them to take residence in the midst of their human 'foes' and like a feudal lord could hold complete mastery over the region. Centuries of psychological conditioning left many humans feeling complete terror when facing the Nobility. Scores of centuries of brainwashing by the Nobility came to seep well into the subconscious of the human mind.

Vampire Hunters have their own special techniques of identifying and classifying the Nobility.

It was through their unparalleled knowledge of biology and genetic engineering that allowed the vampires to create legendary monster after another into the world of man. Among these included werewolves, were-tigers, serpent men, golems, fairies, mer-creatures, goblins, raksas, ghouls, zombies, banshees, firedragons, salamanders resistant to flames, griffins, krakens, and more. Though their creators neared extinction, the creatures still ran rampant on the plains and in the mountains of the world. The vampires were not so eager to exterminate the mutant creatures humanity feared so much in the years just after the war. In fact, the vampires loved the vicious beasts and had nurtured them, and even created others like them with their own hands.

Such guard beasts were descended from the original demons and magical monstrosities propagated by the Nobility where after generations passing numerous mutations and new species had been born. Unlike the vast majority of the artificially created beasts the Nobility, most varieties of pixies were exceptionally amiable.

One item within the arsenal of the Nobility was the Time-Bewitching Incense. The perfume in this candle could change day into night and vice versa. Once lit, it was capable of paralysing those with vampire blood preventing them from moving a muscle and leaving them in agony so long as its light stayed bright.

The Nobility’s Academy of Sciences had developed a method of mathematically analyzing fate.

They could manipulate the weather freely and interstellar travel was achieved through hulking matter-conversion rockets. Even the Nobility’s golden age of science was unable to unravel the mysteries of their unique biology.

For reasons unknown, the Nobility had chosen to share their genetic engineering expertise with the human race. Thus, hereditary diseases were a thing of the past with even the names of the diseases being no longer remembered by humanity.

They had embedded a dozen weather controllers beneath seven continents that maintained heat and humidity levels all year round. Occasionally, violent thunderstorms or blizzards that was written into the controller's programs in order to provide some unpredictable seasons.

A great many castles had been built by the Nobility in the Frontier region, all of them for the express purpose of providing a base from which they could rule over the mortals. The Nobility usually chose a spot on high ground to build their castles, so they might look down and see the humans below them.

All seven continents had a web of super-speed highways with the centre being an automated cyber-city known as the Capital. It was the product of cutting-edge scientific technology.

Among the life forms created by the Nobility included:

• Nightclouds : a host of white, semi-transparent membranes that swirled above the landscape where they then started to come together to form a single mass. Once it had drawn itself together, the glowing cloud swooped down on prey where the oddly shaped organs became visible through their partially transparent body. These artificial monstrosities spawned by the Nobility were able to reform itself from single cell organisms. By day, the cloud remained in the freezing extremes of the stratosphere, and at night they came back down to earth in scattered form to hunt for prey. They were dangerous carnivores that would form a single mass when they found a victim, enveloping their prey from all sides to digest and absorb it. They posed a major threat to lost children and inexperienced travelers, and, along with dimension-ripping beasts, they caused a great many people to go inexplicably missing. Electromagnetic barriers were one of the few defences capable of fending off Nightclouds.

The Nobility often resided in castles that were well suited for their vampire lords. One characteristic of them was there were gorgeous sleeping chambers that were ready for guests and other visitors. Though there were none for the lord and their family. Instead, they slumbered in a place most befitting their rank, an exalted place that was the stuff of legend namely in coffins beneath the earth. These were situated in vast subterranean chambers filled with tiny organisms, where the stench of dankness mixed with the sweet perfume of ancient soil.

The Nobles government in the Capital constructed special defensive structures at strategic locations along their transportation network. These were known as Shelters that possessed a special steel plating that was only a fraction of an inch thick yet could withstand a direct hit from a small nuclear device. In addition, there was a vast array of defensive mechanisms to dispose of any attackers. The most important feature though was that there was no evident point of entry

Space exploration had been achieved by the Nobility with exploration parties having left their footprints on a number of planets outside the solar system such as Altair and Spica.

Members

• Sacred Ancestor :
• Lawrence Valcua :
• Carmilla :
• Noble Greylancer :
• Magnus Lee : a male Noble holding the title of Count and territory in the Frontier with him being over 10,000 years old.
• Meier Link :
• General Gaskell :

Notes

• The Nobility were created by Hideyuki Kikuchi where they featured in the setting of the Vampire Hunter D universe.

Appearances

• Vampire Hunter D:

External Links

• Vampire Hunter D Wiki Entry

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