Having travelled to Pirate Academy in Tide of Terror, I thought it would be interesting to journey to a very different kind of institution in Blood Captain.
The idea behind Sanctuary was essentially a “rehab” centre for vampires. In the conventional world, people go into “rehab” to deal with their addictions to alcohol and other drugs. Sanctuary is the place for vampires or vampirates who are wrestling with their addiction to blood. Of course, Grace and Lorcan, and the rest of their party, have somewhat different reasons for travelling there.
Sanctuary is presided over by the powerful and enigmatic Vampirate guru, Mosh Zu Kamal. He is a healer figure, who uses various herbs and rituals to bring ease to the suffering.
Sanctuary is very much a blend of the real and the imaginary. For the actual location and building style I was influenced by the kingdom of Zanskar in the Himalayas – think ancient temples and epic mountains. The mountain which is home to Sanctuary is a mysterious one, however, as its topography seems to vary for each individual visitor. For some, it’s an arduous climb to the summit; for others, a “walk in the park”.
Of course, this being a sanctuary for vampires, who cannot - by and large – venture out into the light, most of the compound is underground. Many of the rooms within Sanctuary have particular significance for the vampirates who travel there. For instance, there is the “Corridor Of Discards”, which is jam packed with old keepsakes, photos and other trinkets from the vampires’ mortal lives and “the afterdeath”. And then there is the mysterious “Corridor of Ribbons”…
Then Grace noticed something else. Suspended from the ceiling on a thin rope, between the lights, were ribbons. They hung down like cobwebs, different colours and lengths. “What are these?” she asked. “Ribbons,” Olivier said, shortly. “We are in the Corridor of Ribbons.” “Yes,” Grace persisted. “But what do they signify?” “I think I should let Mosh Zu explain that,” he said.
I got the idea for the ribbons from a number of different places. The most obvious source, I suppose, is the prayer flags you see waving in the breeze in the Himalayas. Another inspiration was from a friend who was doing a training course in psychic abilities and was challenged to analyse the energy in the ribbon someone else had been holding, to find out more about that person. A third source of inspiration came on a trip to New York, where I saw lots of ribbons hanging outside a church to remember those fighting overseas. I took the pictures below and knew I had to do something with them in the story as they were so evocative. Gradually, the various sources of inspiration knitted together and, I think, became one of the strongest ideas in Blood Captain.