Chris: Wow...Six reviews. And one dissed Farina so bad.

Farina: I'm going to kick his ass.

Mia: After you pay me five bucks! HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!! I won the bet!

Farina: You suck. -=hands Mia 5 dollars=-

Sonicfreak2004: Farina: I've got something to say to you! You suck! Chris: She's just a little angry. Ignore her. And sure, the tactician being a vampire is a little odd, but it can still fit with the story.

Angel of Fate1: Thanks Hitomi! Yeah, I'm getting pretty good at writing serious fics....Weird...

Onionbreath002: Neither did I, but I proved us both wrong!

maskedstranger1990: Thanks. I'll try updating as soon a possible and trying to keep the story interesting.

Sword of Seals: Thank you! Yeah, this story is my only good serious fic....

Lord Slasher: Thanks man! I got more than 5 reviews and it started with you! Thanks!

Chris: Oh yeah. I'm having an OC in this story...Because I just thought it up and it would work well. Don't worry, this character has nothing to do about saving the world. She's just another character that joins the party. Nothing new, nothing special.

- Location

" "- Speaking

' ' - Thoughts

--- - dream sequence thing

"Well, our lord, Marquess Caelin, received a letter from his daughter Madelyn. It said that she was living happily with her husband in the plains. It also said that they had a daughter, and her name was Lyndis." Kent said.

"Lyndis?! You mean Lyn? The Lyn that I've been traveling with?" Chris asked in surprise.

"Yep, we believe that she is the grand-daughter of Marquess Caelin. She has her eyes. I was going to tell her this when my foolish partner here decided to butt in." Kent replied, jabbing Sain in the stomach.

Sain winced, grinning a little. "You've got to admit, she's pretty hot. I should know. I've got an eye for beauty."

"Yeah right. You mean that you've got an eye for every single lady in the world." Kent retorted.

Sain chuckled. "Boy, do you know me. Hey, it pays to be my partner. Maybe you'll find a girl for yourself." He quickly proceeded to give Kent a noogie.

Chris shook his head, laughing a little. 'There's been so little to laugh at lately.' He picked up Lyn's unconscious body. "Hey guys. I'm glad to see that you're having fun, but we need to set up camp. It's getting late, and someone needs to watch out for Lyn." Looking one last time at the dead body of Zugu, he prodded it one more time with his foot. The body rolled over and a small slip of paper fell out. He quickly pocketed it.

Kent shrugged Sain off of himself and nodded. "I'm glad to see that someone here has a sense of duty. Let's set up camp here. This place has ample cover for a small campground. Come on, Sain. Let's get our packs."

Sain ginned sheepishly." Uh...Kent...I left our packs at the inn that we were staying in. I'll just go get them." He ran off before Kent could whack him on the head. As he was running, he looked behind him and stuck his tongue out at Kent. However, he tripped on a tree root and landed flat on his face.

Kent sighed. Chris turned to him. "Is it always like this with him around?"

Kent nodded. "At least it's never boring. Come on, Chris. Let's set up camp and get ready for tomorrow." He proceeded to make a small campfire while Chris gently set Lyn next to it. He let out a small gasp and his face contorted in pain, but he quickly got it back under control. However, Kent noticed this and asked, "Are you okay? You seem a little pale."

Chris quickly nodded and turned away. "It's nothing...Just a little spasm of pain. Nothing to be worried about." He strode to a nearby tree and gazed at the stars. '...The lack of blood is affecting me now...Even Kent noticed...I'm going to have to do something.'

Kent shrugged again and turned back to the fire, warming up his hands. Sain quickly ran up with their packs or rations and sleeping bags. "Hey Kent! Did you be a proper old spoilsport while I was gone?!" He dropped the bags and sat next to the fire also, his gaze drifting to Lyn. "She was hurt pretty bad, huh?"

Kent nodded. "Yes, she was lucky that the bandit leader didn't get a stronger shot at her."

Sain yawned and unrolled his sleeping bag. "I'm tired...You take first watch, okay? Wake me up for second watch." He crawled inside and quickly fell asleep. Kent looked at him, and looked at where Chris was. But, for some reason, Chris wasn't there anymore. Kent sighed and tossed another stick in the fire. "It's probably something that tacticians do or something."

While Kent was stoking the fire, Chris was taking a walk across the fields. He knew it was dangerous, but he didn't care. His thirst for blood was slowly inhibiting his common sense. He looked that the paper again and read its message out loud. "You must bring a teal-haired girl named Lyndis for me. I will pay you handsomely and you will get anything you want. Signed, Lord Lundgren." He shook his head and placed it in his pocket. 'Probably some Lycian noble who has a gasbag of an ego.' He continued walking in a daze until he heard the sounds of fighting. He rushed over to where the sound was, and he saw a teenage girl trying to fend of three bandits. The girl was wearing a strange garment. She had a teal kimono-type outfit that was tied to her waist by a light-red sash. Her brown hair was flying out behind her as she parried stroke after stroke that was aimed at her.

"Look at her, boys! We'll get some pleasure today! I get first dibs!" The first bandit was drooling with lust as he moved to strike the girl again. His cronies laughed gruffly at his comment and moved to attack her. The girl backed up, fear apparent on her face as she put up her sword to block a shot aimed at her chest. The other bandits knocked her down and chuckled.

"It's time to have some fun! Come on, girlie!" the leader said.

She struck out last time with her sword, and managed to slash a deep gash on the second bandit. He gasped and fell to the ground. The leader turned back to the girl. "You've killed Grant! That's it, pleasure or no pleasure, you're going to die!" He kicked her in the stomach and then kicked her in the head. Finally, he got ready for the killing blow. Suddenly, though, his arms went limp and there was another figure behind him.

Once Chris had seen the blood leak out of the bandit's body, his self- control vanished. His fangs grew and he rushed to where the leader was. His only thought was blood. His mind kept on screaming the word. He bit into the leader, and savored the bitter taste as blood ran down his throat. The girl was lying on the ground, bleeding profusely and breathing shallowly. The last bandit was staring at Chris, slack-jawed. "Y-Y-Y-You're a monster!" He quickly ran off. Chris dumped the drained body of the bandit leader and chased after him.

"Nobody can outrun a master of the shadows..." He quickly caught up to the last bandit and snapped his neck. He quickly proceeded to drain the body of blood and returned to where the girl lay. His self-control returned and his fangs retracted. He kneeled next to her and felt her pulse, which was really weak. "She's going to die if I don't do something..."

The girl coughed and opened her eyes. She saw Chris kneeling over her and quickly tried to get away. However, she cried out in pain because of the gash in her wound. "What do you want?!"

"I heard you in a fight with those bandits and I decided to help. I was able to take down the other two bandits. Unfortunately, I wasn't fast enough to stop you from getting wounded. It's really bad...You're probably going to die, and the nearest church is too far away. I forgot to bring any healing items also. There is one more way, though." Chris sighed.

"Please. Tell me. I don't want to die just yet. There are just so many more things to learn and to find. And many more skills I wish to obtain. What is this other way you're talking about?" the girl asked.

"Hmm...Very well. The other way is to drink my blood. I'm a half-vampire. If you drink it, you will survive, but you'll get turned into a vampire. A half-vampire to be precise. And you're going to have to travel with me. You're going to have to learn how to control some things. So, what is your choice?"

She coughed up blood and grinned. "Very well. I accept. As I say, it's just another adventure! By the way, my name is Heather."

"Charmed. My name is Chris. This will only take a second or two." He pulled out a dagger from beneath his robes and held his left arm above Heather's mouth. He quickly made a small cut there, and the blood dripped into her mouth. He covered the cut with some cloth and looked at Heather. "So, how is it?"

She swallowed and grimaced. "It's really bitter. But I don't feel any different. Just weak and tired." However, as soon as she said those words, a dark-purple glow emanated from her body. She blinked her eyes in surprise. "What?! What is this?" She looked at her arm, and noticed that the wound was gone. She felt refreshed and more alive than ever before. She struggled up, picked up her sword and put it into the sheath which was tied around her waist. The glow disappeared and she looked at Chris. "Is that it?"

Chris nodded. He tucked the dagger in his cloak. "You're a half-vampire now and you need to come with me. There are many things you're going to have to learn about your new body. Just one question, why did you accept my help? The average person would have screamed and tried to kill me."

"Well, I've always believed in vampires. I don't know. I just do. I've read many studies and there is lots of evidence in the existence of vampires. As for the killing you part, you didn't kill me. If you didn't care about me, you probably would have just killed me along with the rest of those bandits. So, you seemed trustworthy and I believed you. And now you've saved my life, and for that, I'm grateful. Thanks."

"No problem. Come with me, there's a camp set up nearby. Those people are my friends, and you can trust them. Just don't give into any urges for blood just yet, or else I might have to kill you. I've worked hard to gain the trust of them and I don't want to lose it." He headed back for the direction of the camp. "Heather, what weapons are you skilled with?"

She ran up to him and followed him. "I'm mainly skilled with the sword, although I have some experience with the bow. That's it though. What's this group you travel with like? Vampires?"

"No. All of them are full-humans. They're really nice and they make a good team. Now hurry up, they might get suspicious because I was gone so long." He started to run to the camp, Heather quickly following.

They reached the camp an hour or two later. Kent was still on guard duty. He noticed them and waved. They ran up to him, both of them panting. "Hey Kent. First watch?"

He nodded and noticed Heather. "Who's that?"

"Oh, this is Heather. She's fairly decent with the sword and has some skill with the bow. She was fighting off three bandits when I was taking a walk and managed to take down one of them. I stepped in to help and we managed to get rid of the others. I suspect that they may have been members of the group that attacked us."

Kent nodded grimly. "Hmph...Lousy bandits. No order and no honor. Very well Heather. Welcome to our little group. Tomorrow morning we can introduce you to everyone else. You guys had better get some sleep. It's really late now." He resumed sitting down next to the fire, throwing in another stick.

Chris nodded. "Thanks Kent. Come on, Heather. I'll let you use my sleeping bag. Good night, Kent." He left with Heather, leading her where his sleeping bag lay. He lay on the ground and closed his eyes. "Good night, Heather."

Heather gazed at him and slid inside the sleeping bag. She was tired from all of the events that happened today and she quickly fell asleep. She wasn't bothered by any strange dreams and was comfortable though out the night. Chris, however, became plagued by horrible dreams again. He was tossing and turning. He dreamed about the times when the villagers chased him out of their villages, he dreamed about sucking Lyn's blood and leaving her to die. However, this time, there was a new dream among the old ones.

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Now, he was fighting against a strange robed man. He had a sword and he was slashing at this robed figure. However, the man raised his hand and two figures appeared from the darkness. He looked at them and continued to strike at the robed man. One of the figures stepped out and he was astounded to find out it was Lyn!

"Lyn! Boy, am I glad to see you here! Come on, help me destroy this person!" he yelled at her.

She shook her head. "I serve Nergal, now." She stepped into the light and Chris noticed that her eyes were a gleaming gold! Her skin seemed paler, also. She lunged at Chris with her sword and slashed him on the right arm. He gasped with pain and moved away from her, toward the other shrouded figure. He spotted brown hair and moved to her. "Heather! Is that you?"

Nergal shook his head and laughed. "Yes, your little friend came readily when I told her that she could find power here! She has gotten that power, and now serves me! Lyn and Heather! Kill this intruder!"

Heather notched her bow, and fired arrow after arrow at Chris. Lyn crept up from behind and started to slash at him. Chris screamed in agony and fell to the floor. Nergal walked up to him and chuckled. "Never underestimate true power, power that I hold! Soon, you will be a faithful follower of mine!" He prodded Chris with his foot and began tracing a magic circle on the ground while Chris lay there, moaning. Nergal finished with the magic circle and walked back. "Hahahaha...You will be a fine Morph. You won't have to worry about anything ever again." He closed his eyes and began chanting. "Great powers of mine I have taken from thee, transform this fool into a servant for me!"

Chris tried to rise from the floor, but Lyn and Heather kept him pinned down. A blue-white aura surrounded him, and he could feel his will and mind slowly slipping away from him. His thoughts grew hazy and his memories were disappearing from his head. His remaining thought was to obey Nergal to the death. His eyes turned a brilliant gold and he stood. "I am at your service, Lord Nergal."

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Chris woke up in a flash. His brown eyes were wide with terror and he was breathing heavily and panting. His skin was clammy and was covered with a small sheen of sweat. He looked around and shook his head. "It was all a dream...But it seemed so real. That was scary...I will never serve someone like that...The only person I will truly serve is myself." He looked at the camp site. Kent had gone to sleep and Sain was watching the fire now. Except Sain had fallen asleep also. Chris sighed and stoked the fire again. 'Well, I can't go to sleep. Might as well take the watch.' He glanced around the area and sighed again. He leaned on his back and watched the stars.

The next day, Lyn regained consciousness and looked around. She saw Chris tending the fire and Kent getting the gear ready and glaring daggers at Sain. Sain was talking to this girl that she had never seen before. Chris walked up next to her. "The new girl is Heather. I was taking a walk yesterday and I saw her being attacked. I rescued her, and she agreed to travel with us. Don't worry, she's trustworthy."

Lyn nodded and looked at Chris. "Well, if you say she's trustworthy, then she is. You haven't lied to us yet." She walked to Heather and greeted her. They shook hands and began talking. Sain was trying to get their attention but failed and walked dejectedly back to Kent. "Why must the world envy my charms?"

"It's because the world wants to get rid of it. Your charm is so stifling, that no one can stand to be near you. Nah, I'm just joking. But really, you law it on too thick. Lay off a little and you'll have much more success." Kent replied.

"Maybe, maybe." Sain looked thoughtful as he looked the two ladies again. He watched them for a while and then helped Kent with their things. He was packing them up when Lyn came over and looked over his shoulder.

"Hey Sain. So, what are we going to do? I've got a plan for our next destination." she said.

"Well, beautiful Lyn, let's hear it. I'm sure it will be great coming from such a pretty flower as you." He replied.

Kent dragged him off a little bit. "Sorry, guy talk. "He dragged Sain into their tent. "Sain, that was a bit too much. Next time, don't compliment her so much!" He and Sain walked back outside of the tent. "Well, what's your plan, Lyn?"

She nodded at Kent and said, "Well, there is a temple near by that is sacred to my people. I was hoping that we might be able to visit there to get a blessing. Is that acceptable?"

Kent nodded, "Of course, if Lady Lyndis says so."

Sain grinned, "Well, let's get started, right?"

Lyn smiled. "Thanks guys. How about you Chris? And you, Heather?"

Chris shrugged. "Doesn't matter that much to me."

Heather smiled. "Sure. No problem to me."

Lyn stood up and got her stuff. "Well then, let's go!" With those words, they set out for the temple, not knowing what lay ahead of them. All they knew was that there was adventure, and with adventure is always the prospect of danger.

Mia: You're actually updating this on a regular basis.

Chris: Yeah, it's creepy. Maybe because it's my only successful serious fic.

Farina: You should update your GS one. Although it sucked.

Chris: Leave me alone. That was my first story and it wasn't that good. Anyway, R & R, please!

Rebecca: Yeah, do that and he'll actually continue to update on a regular basis!