Sitting between the salty Marshes of Morva and the tenebrous ancient forest called the Old Wood lies the coastal city of Almare. The antediluvian city sits snugly between these hostile wilds on the northeastern edge of the Blood Lands; the lands ruled by immortal vampires. The swarthy foreign merchants who've come to sell curious trinkets and frightened captives to decadent native collectors provide a means of trade to the Blood Lands as they sail between Almare and their home far to the east where their blind priests engage in an never ending cacophony of dissonant wind instruments to drown out the screams of their faceless god. Mixed in with the far eastern merchants are the Raiders of Armok; groups of thuggish orcs and human outcasts who are said to follow the whispers of ancient civilizations located far beneath the waves. These whispers when interpreted correctly supposedly lead them to the soft targets which the raiders rely on. The pirates much like the merchants of the east come to Almare to sell exotic captives found from coastal villages all over the eastern sea to those decadent collectors.<br/><br/>As for those collectors Raya Ulvenson had heard much for their activities were of great interest to the petty bourgeoisie who frequented the inn she had found herself. They were well known indeed for they were none other than those immortal vampires who ruled all people of the Blood Lands. The vampire clans were divisive by nature and each seemed to have their own pet vices but few were as lustful and greedy as the noble houses who reigned in Almare. The vampires attracted to Almare were those most interested in the pleasures of a diverse and exotic harem and to be a foreigner of any beauty in Almare was to open oneself up to the possibility of getting close to the perverse aristocrats and all the danger and opportunity that came from being within their notice.<br/><br/>The inn was a bit out of the way sitting roughly between the port and the more wealthy parts of the city but off the main road making it a frequent choice for local middle class women seeking a strong seaman for a night while also wishing to not be recognized by her neighbors. The rooms were most commonly rented for only a night and the amorous noises had little difficulty slipping through the thin wooden walls. Aside from lewd endeavors however the inn was very reasonably priced and the tall man mustached man who ran the place was courteous and pleased to have someone stay for more than one night.<br/><br/>And so Raya Ulvenson found herself. It had only been a day since she arrived but she had heard much gossip from the women and sailors who frequented the establishment. She had heard that the ruling vampires were preparing for a feast soon to celebrate the unearthing of some long lost artifact which the count had hoped would bring him some prestige. It was to be a hastily prepared gathering of local aristocrats and the count was in dire need of all the servants he could find from decoration to entertainment. At the same time other rumors pointed to the recent disappearances in the wildlands which some attributed to the disturbance of burial sites as various organizations competed to unearth other artifacts in an attempt to win the count's favor. And of course one could just wander the city from its exotic markets, crime ridden slums, gated neighborhoods, and the sinful spaces where the three came together. As a beautiful foreigner herself hailing from the relatively unknown barbaric tribes of the north she would be able to attract attention no matter where she went; for better or worse. The only question was where to begin.