Virgil Lincoln was born in 1713, in the colony of Virginia. Sent by his poor family to be raised by his wealthy, plantation-owning tobacco tycoon uncle Viktor, young Virgil faced a harsh life at the hands of the grim disciplinarian. Viktor was determined to mould his nephew into something useful, and did so with strenuous study, strict punishments and a forced apprenticeship as a secretary and ledger-boy for the plantation's accounts. As unpleasant as his upbringing was, it paled in comparison to the brutal treatment of the slaves in the tobacco fields, and Virgil grew to hate his uncle for that, especially. He started doing whatever he could frustrate his uncle's business, though efforts to cause a loss by fudging the numbers backfired, and resulted in the slaves being put on starvation rations. Virgil was wracked with guilt for what he had done.

One night, as he was sneaking extra food and water into the slave barracks, he met a young woman named Mary. She was one of the older girls, born into captivity on the plantation, and impressed Virgil with her intelligence and determination. He sneaked out of the house several more times after that, bringing her more aid, or books to read, or just to talk with her... and love blossomed. He had even begun to hatch some mad plan to free her so they could elope, when he realised that he had vastly underestimated the depths of his uncle's evil.

Viktor Lincoln was no mere slave-owning tycoon... he was a vampire, and Mary was one of his thralls, a mind-controlled puppet he used to keep the other slaves in line, for they were his foodstock. Viktor decided that the cruellest thing he could do to the heartbroken young man was to let him live... forever. Virgil was transformed into a creature like his uncle, and introduced into the shadowy society of the undead.

The centuries passed, living endless nights, feeding on the blood of the innocent, and Virgil remained a pawn of his uncle, forced to do his bidding and watch the woman he loved and who had betrayed him grow old and die. That is, until Viktor was slain by the legendary hunter – Abraham van Helsing. Finally free, Virgil carved out something of a niche for himself as a mercenary, a freelance troubleshooter. He was something like a bounty hunter, private detective, a messenger, and a knight-errant for other vampires. He would watch out for hunters that had started to trail them, and silence members of the undead that grew too ravenous, threatening their carefully-kept secret. He would broker truces between warring Houses, and help them keep track of wayward thralls.

A slave to his hunger and bound by the complex, feudal ties of vampire society, Virgil is nonetheless a poetic soul who longs for freedom, and a romantic who was hurt by love one too many times.

In his transformation to a vampire, Virgil gained a haunting beauty. His skin is like unblemished ivory across his 6'1”, athletically lean frame. Muscles flow like quicksilver beneath, making every movement swift and graceful; he has the body of a dancer or a swordfighter. His toned, chiselled physique stretches from hard, flat pectorals to a tight and muscularly undulating stomach, with well-defined obliques leading down, and long, strong arms above. Dark, wavy hair streams back from a face with sharp features, elegantly sardonic, arched lips, and eyes the colour of a moonless night sky. Although nearly 300 years old, he appears to be only 26.