Changes.
Jarek opened his eyes again. He felt stronger, but there was an alien feeling creeping about inside him. He remembered the orc's striking him down with the axe. He remembered the pain. He remembered the darkness. He tried standing up and nearly fell back to the ground again. He looked around him and noticed the wall of what used to be his house had burned down, giving him a view of the slaughtered villagers lying on the ground. He walked and looked at them curiously.
Curiously?
Only then did it hit Jarek that he wasn't crying. He didn't really feel anything other than anger. There was no remorse, no sadness, no revulsion. Just anger. But there was also the other alien feeling. It was getting stronger by the minute. Jarek couldn't quite put his finger on it, but it felt like hunger.
He pushed the thoughts aside and concentrated on the faces of the fallen villagers. Some of them had outlandish markings painted on their face. At the center of the village, close to Arille's, a group of bodies were placed in a circle with their heads touching each other at the center. Four red flags, bearing the sign of a tiger with a scar on its left eye, were placed around the human circle. He walked closer to the sacrificial circle and froze. Something felt very wrong. It wasn't the dead bodies, it wasn't the blood, it wasn't the horrified look on the faces of the dead. It was the aura of wicked magic that was coming from the dead. Something very wrong had happened here.
Jarek noticed a familiar face among those bodies. A woman with soft features, nearly angelic. A hint of familiarity registered in his brain but was quickly pushed away. It was nearly dawn and Jarek saw the first rays of sunlight creep over the hills. He immediately felt shoulders grow warm. He started to get dizzy and wondered what was happening to him. The rays continued to assault his body until he felt great pain in every joint and muscle. Panic washed over him and something primal, something instinctual, told him to get inside and hide in the darkness. He summoned all the strength within him and ran towards Arille's, since it was the only place that was not completely burned down. Inside he collapsed into an dream.
He found himself laying on snow covered grass. A beautiful face of a woman hovered over his head. Her red eyes were staring deep into him.
"Hello, Jarek," She purred. Her face was beautiful and striking. It wasn't quite the same beauty he remembered from the angelic faced woman however. This one was more dangerous, more alluring. She moved her face closer so the edges of the strands of her perfectly dark hair touched his face.
"You have nothing to say? I am, after all, your savior. Does the savior deserve silence?"
Jarek finally managed to break himself away from those wicked eyes.
"Who are you? Why are your eyes..." he said.
Then she opened her mouth and licked his face. Only then did Jarek see the fangs.
"...va-va-vampire......" he stuttered in horror.
"Yes...Vampire. Me and you. The queen and the prince." she remarked.
Jarek's face screwed up. Prince? Queen? What did she mean? Sensing his confusion, the woman motioned him to follow her. Jarek crawled after her, and they reached a small puddle of water.
"Look in the reflection dear Jarek. Me and you, not so much different." she said as she was pointing towards the water.
Jarek summoned his will power and looked in the water. It was at that moment that Jarek understood.
He too had red eyes.
He too had the fangs.
There, under the moonlight, seeing his reflection in the water, Jarek saw himself reborn.
He stood and faced his Queen. Everything made sense now.
A wicked look flashed in her eyes, and an evil smirk found its way on her face.
"Now dear Jarek, feed." she said as she moved towards him, exposing her neck.
Jarek feasted.