Lestat's Story in BRIEF

Lestat is born to Gabrielle and the Marquis de Lioncourt in Auvergne, France, during the latter half of the 18th century. Despite the fact that the Renaissance had come and gone, and that they were in the age of Enlightenment, the de Lioncourt family lived in a manner little changed from the Medieval Period. Shunned by his father and brothers, Lestat dreams of a different life, a dream that is shared by his mother, Gabrielle.

One cold winter day, Lestat goes out to hunt and single-handedly kills eight wolves. Something inside of him becomes unleashed through this event, isolating himself further from his father and brothers.

Soon after, Lestat meets young Nicolas de Lenfent, the son of a draper. The two of them immediately establish a rapport and they run away to Paris. Lestat joins a theater troupe to become an actor, but just as he attains his first taste of success, he is taken by the ancient vampire Magnus and is born to the Savage Garden.

One day, the dying Gabrielle appears in Paris to see Lestat. Unable to simply watch her die, Lestat offers the choice of becoming a vampire to his mother, an offer which Gabrielle promptly and gladly accepts.

The two of them become involved in a battle with the "Children of Darkness" coven living under les Innocents graveyard, lead by Armand. Nicki is thrown into the midst of it, and in the end is made into a vampire by Lestat. After effectively putting an end to Armand's coven, Lestat leaves a deranged Nicki with the newly established Theatre des vampires with Armand at its head, and with Gabrielle, departs from Paris around 1780 to roam throughout Europe.

In 1789 (or possibly a few years earlier), the two arrive in Egypt, but Gabrielle decides to leave Lestat. Lestat falls into depression and goes into the earth for a prolonged sleep, only to be awakened by Marius, who gives Lestat some of his powerful blood and takes him to his secret island in the Mediterranean. There, Marius reveals to Lestat the secret of Those Who Must Be Kept. Lestat gets to drink from Akasha, thus gaining more power in a very short period of time.

After parting from Marius, Lestat goes to the New World. In 1791, he falls fatefully in love with Louis de Pointe du Lac and makes him his fledgling. A few years later, he also creates his vampire daughter Claudia in order to keep Louis by his side, but 65 years later, the little daughter turns against Lestat and 'kills' him. Lestat is not only poisoned and stabbed, but is later flamed when he returns to confront Claudia and Louis.

Although Lestat manages to keep his life, thanks to Akasha and Marius's powerful blood, he cannot completely recover on his own. He heads off to Paris in hopes of convincing Armand to part with some of his powerful blood, so that the healing process may be accelerated. Armand, however, denies Lestat his request. Furthermore, Lestat is tricked into sacrificing Claudia's life in order to "save" Louis.

The still-weak and emotionally devastated Lestat returns to New Orleans, where he lives in fear and misery for years. Finally, in 1929, he goes into the earth once again to recuperate through a long sleep.

We next see Lestat in 1984, risen from his long rest and reinvigorated for some fresh adventures. He forms a band and becomes famous as the Vampire Lestat. Louis returns to him and the two are happily reunited, but Lestat's powerful voice has managed to awaken Akasha from her torpor. Right after his first concert, Akasha sweeps Lestat away.

For the most part of QOD, Lestat is dragged around the world in Akasha's arms, going on a killing frenzy. Ultimately, though, when faced with the ultimate decision, Lestat chooses Louis and the rest of his vampire family over Akasha and her vision.

In TOBT, Lestat succeeds in becoming human again. One major point is that he makes David Talbot of the Talamasca into a vampire... And on to MTD. I can only say that Lestat's been in a total state of shock since that episode, in his second deep sleep. Whether he will return again--read The Vampire Armand and Merrick!