My Weekly Midjourney Post!
I'm doing a weekly post on my journey with Midjourney, an AI art generation tool. I pick a character from the Evaranverse and see what Midjourney can make based on my prompts.
This week it's Valerie Simmons. She's an Outsider, someone who's crossed over from another dimension. She's over a hundred years old, and like vampires, she craves drinking blood. Most vampires are Daedroulds, and she is the only non-Daedrould vampire on the planet. She is also the last of her kind from a large group that had crossed over in 1906. Since then, her sisters were killed and even hunted due to their superiority complex.
It was down to Valerie and her last sister, who had married a Werebadger. Their family was gunned down by the Faith Militia's slayers, and Valerie sought revenge. She killed Zeke, the leader of the slayer group but had been caught. It was Dalton Kingston who found her near death after having been tortured in a trailer park. He rescued her and gave her a second chance, and in Otherworld, Book 1 of The Inspector Dalton Files, she joined his team.
Over the previous century, she had become an assassin, but only took contracts against those involved in criminal activity. It was lucrative for her, and she used her natural speed, strength, and enhanced senses to down targets. Her close-quarter combat skills were excellent, and she was well-versed with many weapons from hand weapons to guns.
She made a name for herself due to how long she did assassination work, and while her sisters had high profiles with wanton disregard of the impact, she kept to the shadows. She also was a master of disguise and also used her infiltration ability as well as social engineering to get close if needed. As of Wildblood, Book 5 of The Inspector Dalton files, she's been Evaran-touched and has gained a heightened regeneration factor on her already impressive one.
As a Zikarian, she forms strong bonds with those she bites. Sexual encounters mean little to her, but she is aware of the impact it has on humans. Although most vampires give bite jobs, hers is more potent due to being a Zikarian, and she is far more selective about who she gives that too. She doesn't care for the gender of whoever she is with as the quality of their blood is the most important attribute.
Her weakness is lightmires as their blood tends to be of the highest quality, even more so than a WildBorns, although she knows Lightmires hate vampires and have the ability to stop them in their tracks.
She has a non-exclusive relation with fellow team member Rick Westmoreland, also known as Executioner, a former legendary slayer. He is growing on her, and for the first time in her life, she is with a group where she can form longer term bonds. She credits Dalton with her second chance and rescue and looks up to him not only as a leader but also a great friend, something not common in her previous life as an assassin.
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A snippet from her perspective from Lightville, Book 2 of The Inspector Dalton Files, when she deals with Viktor Sokolov, a former assassin colleague:
She hustled up the stairs and paused at the landing to ensure there were no traps. A level later, she stood outside a door. Based on his scent, he had recently been there. She pushed the door open and stepped back. Nothing happened. She peeked in but yanked her head back when a bullet flew past her.
“Ah, so they sent you. Valerie Simmons. Ex-assassin. Traitor,” said Viktor.
She scowled. “Sorry you feel that way.” She activated her comms with Todd and Evot, then whispered, “I’ve found him. Come when you can.”
“Not just me…there are others. You betrayed the code,” said Viktor.
She laughed. “There’s no official code. It’s just an unofficial agreement for how things operate. The rules are broken all the time and then used to justify whatever.”
Viktor sneered. “Perhaps. But working with the Earth Ward as part of an inspector team? Not assisting the Star Lotus clan in freeing their members that were detained? You’ve fully stepped out of the world.”
“And I don’t care. I do what’s best for me, and right now, that’s apprehending you since you took a shot at one of us. I have to ask…why Todd?”
“He was more valuable dead than alive. You, Dalton, Brad, and Rick were worth more alive and have things of value to certain people. The last thing I need is capturing you four, then Todd deciding to be a hero. Easier to take him out,” said Viktor.
Valerie grimaced. “Contract work. Great.” She watched as Evot entered as a swarm of flies in a nearby room. Todd was on his way up as well. “I’m going to guess the Facilitator was involved. I never figured you the type to work with the likes of Septimus.”
“I suspected he was the contractor,” said Viktor. “All I had to do was watch that room for your team, pull them over here, then I was free to capture or kill them. Kill Todd first, then maim Rick on the way over. Brad would have been knocked unconscious by the gas, and Dalton would have been stunned. Easy pickings. Unfortunately, there was an unknown variable.”
“Evot.”
He scoffed. “Whatever that was. Not much on it but enough to know it had detection abilities. In the past, you would’ve worked with me on this.”
“That’s the past. This is the present. Also, you would not have stunned Dalton.”
