The origin of Robert Dallion

France 1738;


Robert Dallion (pron. Robear Dal-yon) was born just south of Orleans, France. His Family was fairly high class for the area. His Father owned about a third of the surrounding land. Robert was the youngest of three children. In 1748 when Robert was 10 his parents were killed by smallpox. This created an incredible fear of Death in him. It had never really occurred to him that everyone would die at one time or another, and no amount of money or possessions would change that. His Brother Jacques inherited everything but a small commission for Robert and Sarah.

After his parents death, Robert became fairly obsessed with immortality and the occult. He traveled whenever possible, mostly through carnivals and Circuses doing odd Jobs and assisting whenever he could. For 17 years he sought every magician or Fortune Teller that he could find. During this time all he found were fakes and frauds who played with cheap parlor tricks.

In 1765 he was traveling as an amateur magician, using some of the parlor tricks he picked up, with a Gypsy owned carnival. While touring Germany they came across a young Englishman named Stefan and a strange young woman believed to be of Egyptian descent called Maral. The two were pleasant enough and could pull their own weight so they were allowed to stay with the tour as long as necessary. Robert was fascinated with the strangers, who never joined in the evening dinner and kept to themselves a lot. No one asked them their last names, for if anyone respected privacy more then gypsies, Robert had never encountered them. A few things changed after their arrival though, the most prominent being the new setup schedule. Stefan suggested that the tour travel into town during the day and have the whole camp setup at night, so when the town awoke the next morning the carnival would be up and running bigger then life.

Both of the strangers had an unusual air about them. Stefan was obviously the one in charge. No one was certain of their relationship because though they appeared to be close enough in age to be a couple, they obviously were not. Stefan appeared Mid/Late 30’s with Maral only a few years younger. They appeared to be more than friends and less than lovers. Stefan treated her almost as a daughter. He was about 5’11” with blonde hair, but gave the impression of being larger than that. He had a look in his ice blue eyes that would instantly intimidate anyone, a very cold, emotionless gaze. Maral on the other hand was a beauty. Standing about the same height as her companion, but her demeanor was different. She seemed innocent, dangerous, and seductive at the same time. She had waist length black hair and cool green eyes.

It was while traveling among Rumania and Germany that Robert‘s life became more “interesting”. Whenever he was not practicing the tricks he used in his acts, he was searching for more “real” magic. He had accumulated a few books (nothing that were of use to his search). Mostly he was forced to rely on legends, rumors, and fables that never amounted to much. It was in Rumania that Robert first heard the legend of the Vampyre.

Robert and Maral had gotten quite close in the last few months. She had a mysteriousness about her that attracted him like a moth to the flame. When Maral learned about Robert’s studies and attitudes about the supernatural she soon introduced him to Stefan suggesting that Stefan might be able to help Robert with his act. Robert had begun to believe he would never see “real” magic until that night. In the months to come Robert spent his time evenly split between studying with Stefan, and being alone with Maral. They took long walks by the river and talked all through the night. Whenever Robert brought up the future she got very withdrawn and would change the topic. Unlike the Gypsies they rode with Stefan and Maral stayed to themselves and was obviously hiding something. In as close knit a society as theirs, anyone who would refuse to join them for meals and never seen before night caused stories to start

Robert merely scoffed at the Gypsies for their superstitions. He refused to believe anything that hinted at his friends being bad for the group. He actually got into a few physical fights with a couple of the more important men of the camp. Oddly, the only time he found he wasn’t welcome at Maral’s tent was after a particularly bad fight (which he had lost) (badly). He was bleeding from cuts on his face and hands. Maral took one look at him in horror and demanded he leave.

Doing as she wished and feeling heartbroken Robert went and sulked in his tent. The whole attitude of the camp had changed. There was a distinct edge in the air when ever Stefan or Maral made an appearance. In their case the camp regarded them with fear and suspicion. For Robert however, he had lost whatever respect he had gained in the last few years and was once again treated as an outsider.

The next night Robert went to visit Maral to try and gain an explanation for his dismissal the other night. Robert got a sinking feeling as he passed Stefan’s tent. Not wanting to waste the time, but having a terrible feeling about what he would find if he looked, Robert went into the tent. Just as he feared it was completely empty.

Racing as fast as he could he reached Maral’s tent finding it in the same condition as Stefan’s. The only thing left was a lily he had given her from one of their walks by the river. Almost daring to hope he raced to the river screaming her name out. When he realized he was alone he sank to his knees in despair.

Robert waited this way for what seemed like hours. Suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder. Whirling about in shock he saw Maral standing right behind him. She seemed so glad to see him and sad at the same time Robert had to ask what happened? She told him how Stefan had decided it was time to move on. They talked about many things for many hours including marriage, when as always she got very withdrawn. Sensing this may be the last time he ever saw her he didn’t back off this time. She seemed almost heartbroken and cursed Stefan under her breath. Robert asked her what Stefan had to do with this and she replied that he was the reason she couldn’t love anyone. When Robert asked her what she meant, she turned to go. She couldn’t just leave in the middle of the night she explained... not from him. She slowly turned away saying how it was a “mistake to come back”.

From behind them both they heard a chuckle. “Your mistake was falling in love, and you WERE warned.” Stefan walked out from a shadowy path. He looked at Maral and asked her if he was coming with them or not. At the mention of this Robert jumped into the conversation telling Stefan that he HAD to go with him and would do whatever it took. Maral whispered how this had been a mistake, but Stefan answered that it was too late to worry about the past. He took Robert to the side and looked him over for a while thinking. Robert never took his eyes off of Maral. When Stefan spoke again it wasn’t to Robert but Maral. He told that her he wasn’t certain that this was a mistake. They had the answer to Robert’s goals and they both enjoyed his company. At that Robert’s gaze flickered to Stefan and whispered, “what goals” quietly. Stefan slowly leant over his ear and whispered soft as a breeze “immortality”.

Robert was dumbfounded. He just sort of stared at Stefan and Maral not sure he heard and very sure he didn’t understand what was happening around him. Maral seemed torn with uncertainty, hopeful but scared. Stefan looked at Maral seriously and asked her one last time if she wanted him to join them. She looked in Robert’s eyes and quietly said “yes I want him to come” Stefan simply nodded and stepped aside. Maral took Robert a few feet away and asked him some very serious questions about life and death. Robert was sure it was some kind of cruel joke being played on him by friends he had confided his fear of death in. Until Maral’s Eyes flashed and fangs became visible. Shocked he stumbled backwards into the steel grip of Stefan. “Do you know what we are?” Stefan whispered through his own fangs.

Robert just looked back from Stefan to Maral and thought for a moment, the initial shock wearing off. “Vampires” he spoke with awe. “Bright Lad” Stefan smiled. “We are what you want to be; Immortal.” Stefan continued “ You have a choice now that neither of us will violate. Immortality has a price. You will never see sunlight again, you will need to hunt, KILL. Mortals around you will slowly waste away and die. Can you handle that, and Do you even want to?” Robert quickly answered “Yes Absolutely!” His quick answer seemed to distress Maral a little and she ran up and insisted he think more about the consequences, but he convinced her that this was what he had always wanted and had to have. Stefan walked up behind Robert and tilted his head. “Then there were three” Stefan chuckled. Suddenly Robert’s neck was on fire. The pain was unbearable and seemed to last an eternity. The last words he heard before fading into darkness were “Maral find him his first!”

When he awoke the whole world felt different. Everything was... different. Before he could contemplate what was happening he felt for the first time, the hunger. Stefan and Maral were standing nearby. “Welcome to forever, young Robert, you’re almost there. In this stage you wont last long without feeding” Stefan said. That was when Robert noticed the young woman lying on the ground next to Maral. As Stefan lead him over to her, realized that he could hear her heart, and...... smell her blood. With a little coaxing the deed was done. As he drank of her blood he never felt closer to anyone in his life. Her memories, her feelings were his. and then it stopped. Robert looked down at his hands and saw the blood. Just as he was about to scream Maral embraced him in a way she had never allowed before and the thought of what he had done left his mind.

And they live happily ever after...........for about Seventy Five years

The three of them traveled most of Europe and Asia and even a little Africa. Robert learned all the lessons that he needed to survive; when to hide, when to fight, when it was time to move on. Robert learned other lessons too. Stefan knew “Real” magic. He claimed to have learnt it from Merlin himself (though Robert never believed him).


1838
After spending nearly 3/4 of a century together Maral left Robert. She wrote him a very short note that had a very clear meaning..... ‘It was time to move on’. Robert and Maral had left Stefan back in 1796 about a decade after Stefan had taken a new ‘son’, by the name of Joseph. Maral felt comfortable enough to leave him now that he had company of his own and Robert just wanted to stay with her.


1850
Robert was in an awful state. He began to realize that there was one lesson he never truly learned, destroying his own conscience. The weight of killing for so many years had come down on him. It was different when Maral was there. The killing had a purpose. It was a means to an end. He had something worth living for. Now he was very empty, unfortunately the years of cheating death had only heightened his fear of it.

It was around this time that Stefan returned. He explained that the Father always knew when his children were in trouble, and young Robert was most definitely in trouble. He had thought that Robert had learned better over the years. They alone were eternal. Not humans, Not friendship, Not even love. To endure immortality you had to rise above them. Robert couldn’t do it. It wasn’t so much the feeding, but the killing that he had grown to hate. He now feed on corpses and animals. It wasn’t what his body wanted but it was sustaining.

No longer feeling the part of the parasite, Robert rejoined society. He would move from place to place and identity to identity. Robert was no longer content to live amongst gypsies and other lower class people. He started associating himself with wealthier and wealthier people. Every twenty or so years he had to return to a low profile for a while but he enjoyed the civilized parts of town better.


1870
Robert found another woman. After being alone for almost thirty years he chose to bring her across into his world. Rachel had a darker side than he had realized. She enjoyed killing and was too reckless and “open” for safeties sake. After a terrible argument she actually tried to destroy Robert. Fortunately Robert was able to destroy her first. She tried to stake him but he was able to catch her on fire and the building collapsed around her. Robert hasn’t heard of her since. It was around this time that Robert ran across Maral again. It was in England about 1873 that he saw her at a party. After much explaining Maral convinced him it was for the best what had happened. They were still Family. Stephan, Robert, Joseph and her had too much past to let disagreements get in the way.

Seeing her again reminded Robert of his old carnival days. Robert decided to start the act up again. The biggest problem he encountered was that being a public figure made it harder to move on, but it was worth the added difficulty. Changing Stage names every ten years, dropping out of site for maybe five and coming back into the game. Some of the old timers still identify him as Robert Marland an exceptionally good stage name he used from ‘74-’84.


1890
Robert has just returned to the stage under his true name. He has already traveled in France and England , when he decided to continue his tour in America.......