Ever since the first night I awoke, I feel more alive than ever. It has been seventy years hence. In that time, my brethren and I were taught on how to fight our enemies. We learned how to use weapons and our own vampire abilities. We each have super human strengths, but it varies amount ourselves. Dumah and Turel would compete from time to time about who was the strongest, while I can float the longest distance for the longest time. We also had the whisper ability, which allowed vampires to communicate over a great distance. Once again, this ability varies, the more closely we work together, the easier it was for us to communicate, and vice versa.
We rode alongside Kain many times into battle, and each time we emerged victorious. By now, Kain has conquered most of the major cities on the Southern Sea Coast, he claimed Provance, Freeport, the town of Abel, and seized control of the Eternal Prison. The human slaves have finished constructing the complex around the pillars, and there, Kain set up his permanent base of operation.
However, there was still a broader range of territory to take over in the inlands. Lately, our scouting soldiers either came back badly wounded, or haven't returned at all. Rumors spread like wild fire about a feral enemy in the northeast, near Vasserbunde. Even our top ranked soldiers came back defeated. This was why Kain gathered us up today to meet him at the Pillars.
In his most glorious honor, he presented himself before us. Seated at the high throne of the pillars, was Kain, our master. Today, he wore his war armor, forged from the exoskeletons of spider demons he fought in his past; the armor had three spikes rearing from his left shoulder, while another curved blade protruded from his right shoulder. He often wore this armor into battle. It gives him better protection.
Like the remains of a once majestic and powerful beast, the pillars now crooked, worn, and ruined stands as a symbol of Kain's power and devastation. I couldn't help but admired the beauty of the throne room around this structure.
As for us, we no longer wore the half rotten rags we were buried with. We now have our own set of armors. We each wore a black chain mail, covered by plate armors bearing Kain's clan symbol. Our weapons bore the same icon.
"My generals, I required you to lead troops into the north."
"What is it, sire?" Asked Dumah.
"You have heard of the feral enemies near Vasserbunde?"
"But it is only rumor." Zephon answered.
"Rumor or not, I will not take any chances. Go and see if this is true. If it is a threat to us, find and destroy it."
"When should we leave?" I asked him.
"You are to leave tonight. Each of you, take four of your best men, pack but pack lightly. Remember what I had taught you and trek cautiously."
We bowed to him and set forth northward immediately.
An hour have passed, we were now riding in the northern forest, towards our destination. I was leading our troops. We each brought along four humans with us, each credited for their own combat skills.
"I wonder if the rumors are true." Melchiah broke the silence.
"I think this is all just a test from Kain." Dumah replied.
"And why would he do that?" Turel questioned him.
"Maybe Kain has a few secrets that is not beneficial for us to know." Dumah suggested.
"Hold your tongue, I will not have this spoken of our master!" Turel retorted.
"Enough! We can settle out Kain's purpose later." I don't need discord right now. So I couldn't risk any arguments, even if it was minute and pointless. "We will be in Steinchencroe soon. We should gather up any information that may be useful, and move on."
We rode silently onward as the town of Steinchencroe came into view. But as soon as it was within reach, I knew something was wrong. The stench of death and chaos loomed over it like a fog. Nobody stood guard at the town gate, but the gate has been bend and twisted like it was made of paper. The townhouses were ravaged, doors were broken down, windows smashed, inch deep claw marks were seen everywhere.
As we surveyed the town, not a single living human was in sight. We only saw corpses; peasants, guards, our own men, slashed and ripped at various places. The scent of decay was so rich, even our men had to stand aside to avoid vomiting.
"I guess we have all the information we need." Zephon said sarcastically.
"We should move on then. Be on your guards." I ordered. I had the feeling that whatever did this was close.
"Wait, I hear something." Turel stopped us.
"I don't hear anything at all." Said Dumah.
"Just concentrate and listen." Turel brush back his shoulder length hair, put his right hand to his ear, and turn slowly to the direction of whatever he heard. "This way!" He pointed at one of the houses. We rushed in after him. Inside the dark house, Turel walked over to a pile of debris and piece by piece took it apart. Underneath the rubble, we found one of our soldiers, barely breathing.
"Do you still live?" I asked him anxiously as I bend down.
"…. Lieutenant Raziel…." His mouth quivered, as if every breath draws out his own soul. "…They tricked us…"
"Who did?" Turel demanded.
"…Wo…es…." The soldier drew his last breath, and died, along with the clue as to what we were up against.
"Did you hear what he just said?"
"No, I didn't catch the last word." Turel shook his head, and slowly put the dead soldier back down. We left the house, puzzled. I didn't feel pity for the man, but it was a shame to lose another soldier. We started for the northern gateway of the town, when I notice Zephon was missing.
"Where is your commander?" I asked Zephon's men.
"He's still inside the house, my lord."
I paced back to the house, annoyed at the delay. When I went inside, I saw Zephon feeding on the deceased soldier.
"Zephon, this is not the time for a feast."
"I was merely replenishing myself."
"We have not engaged in any battle. I don't see your reason for replenishment."
"It was a waste of good blood if we were to let him rot."
"You may have as much blood as you want once we defeat the enemy."
"Raziel, if I didn't feed on him, I might feed on your men when hunger overwhelms me."
At lightning speed, I held my sword tip at his throat. Frustrated and annoyed, I could end his life without a second thought. But then I will have to answer to Kain. "Zephon, I do not need this now. Should the sun come up before we find a place to settle, we will not live to feed on anything else. I suggest you stop your insolence, and move on. We must find out what did all this, so we can make preparations before dawn."
Silently, but resentfully, he walked out of the house, and rejoined the troop.
Not before long, we heard the sound of beating drums echoing through the woods, the smell of roast meat and wine flowed in the wind. As we reached the source of the music, we found a bonfire, surrounded by people, dressed in exotic clothing. They all wore fancy and refine materials, the men wore wide floppy pants, the women, were very scantly clad, even more than Ezra when she was young.
"Gypsies." Melchiah pointed out.
The leader of the gypsies, an elderly man with a gray beard and a round stomach approached us with a friendly face. My men drew swords and took stances. I gestured them to stand down.
"Lord Kain's men! Welcome to our home!" he greeted us, all too friendly.
"We are in search of the feral beings, old man. Do you know them?" I asked him.
"Nay sir! We have been here for the last two months. You see, this is our sacred ground. Generations after generations, we stop by here to celebrate our heritage."
"We have just come from Steinchencroe. The whole place was destroyed." Dumah told him.
"We were told of that, so none of our folks went near the area."
"And what about Vasserbunde?"
"I'm afraid not, that town is alive and well. One of our women just went there this morning to gather up some supplies at the market."
"Is that so?" I was skeptical, and confused. Whatever destroyed Steinchencroe, have left these gypsies alone.
"Dawn is approaching, my lord. May I suggest you stay at our camp until tomorrow night?"
"There's no need. We are in a hurry."
"No need to hurry." Zephon replied. When I turn to him, I saw his reason, two of the gypsy girls have wrapped themselves around him, and another was all over Melchiah, rubbing his baldhead.
"Zephon, keep those harlots off of you."
"Easy, Raziel." Rahab stepped in. "I think the elder has a point. The sun is due to come up within one hour. It is best if we found shelter."
Reluctantly, I agreed. Zephon and Rahab were a pair of their own intends. But nonetheless, what Rahab said was true. The sky was now a bright purple shade, and surely, dawn will come very soon. So, we slept in the gypsies' tents. Build thick from cowhides; they prevent the deadly sunlight from entering. Aside from Turel and I, the rest of the generals had 'entertainment' before dawn. Our soldiers stood guard outside while it was daytime.
The next night I awoke, and before I opened my eyes, I felt that something was wrong already. I no longer smell the roast food, nor did I hear the crackle of the bon fire. Nervously, I got up and walked out of the tent. And once again, I was greeted by death. The camp was deserted. Blood splattered on the dirt and the sides of tents. Bodies of gypsies and our soldiers littered the ground. The rest of my brethren came out with the same surprised impression.
"What happened here?" Zephon cried. He kneed down to one the gypsy girls he talked to last night.
"We were attacked." Said Dumah.
Out of my four best soldiers, three were dead. The last one could barely stand up. "My lord…" He breathed heavily. Covering the gash wound on his stomach.
"Nicholas. What happened here?"
"The gypsies!" He coughed painfully. "They weren't human!"
"What do you mean?" Melchiah asked.
"At dusk, just hours before your awakening, they drank sheep's blood and became half wolf, half man creatures!" He moaned painfully. "Everyone of these…. they were wolf-men…every single one."
"This is blasphemy!" Zephon refused to believe.
"Let him continue." Rehab stopped him.
"We fought them back as much as we can, and took down a few ourselves, but we were outnumbered…." He took some time to regain his breathing. "They all headed north."
"Rest inside the tent, and wait for us to return." I commanded him. "I guess we found our enemy."
"What do we do now, Raziel?" Melchiah asked.
"First, look for survivors. Then, we go repay our gypsy friends for their hospitality."
Out of twenty-four warriors, only five survived, barely. They all stay behind in Nicholas' tent. In their conditions, they would only be a burden for us. But from now on, we need to be on our best guards.
We ventured northward, the six of us ever so cautiously as we trek through the woods. Our hands gripped the weapons nervously, not knowing whether we were being watched or not. Turel would stop us every time he heard something peculiar in the foliage. And suddenly, I had the strange realization that this may very well be a test from Kain.
We reached the town of Vasserbunde. The town looked like a normal town. The houses weren't destroyed, carriages neatly parked on the streets, market stands nicely piled with goods. No stench of decay, although I do smell blood. We walked down the streets carefully, and saw sheep blood smeared on every door. And before we realized it, we were ambushed.
Wolf-man creatures lurked out from every corner. What Nicholas said was true. These creatures had heads of wolves, they stood on two bent legs, their bodies were covered with dark gray fur, and they had human hands, but armed with razor sharp claws. There were tens, if not hundred of them, and it seems like they took control of the whole town.
With weapons in hand, we engaged battle, six of us against a countless dozen. We swung our swords and pikes at them; cut one down, only to be attacked by another. With his strength, Dumah took one by the hind legs and swung it at the others like a club. Melchiah, Zephon and Rahab stood back to back in a tight trinity against the onslaught. Turel and I did the same thing.
As more werewolves approached us, we became separated. Turel and I were driven to the northern part of town, towards the mountain.
"We're separated!" Turel yelled over the gnawing and snarling of our enemies.
I looked around and saw a tavern. It seems like that was where the werewolves are coming from. "We should go there, and destroy the source!" We fought our way through the streets and into the tavern. In there, we forced our way into the cellar. And we saw that the tavern was really a place of rituals. Skulls and bones littered the floor, on the far side of the wall was a high altar, and at the altar, was a large werewolf, with a patch of sliver hair running down its back. It looked at us with red glowing eyes, and slowly, it spoke.
"You do not recognize me? I am the gypsy elder."
"What have you done to this town?" I demanded.
"Kain will seize control of it soon." Said Turel.
"This town doesn't belong to Kain! Your master is a murderer and a thief!" he bellowed.
"Cease your madness now or I will have your head on my trophy wall, old man." I didn't like his accusation at Kain.
"Hundreds of years ago, we were the wolf clan gypsies. Your master raided our scared cave and took our lupine magic. We cannot control our transformations since. We became curse to drink sheep's blood to retain our sanity and our human forms, but if we rid the world of Kain, we may lift the curse."
"The curse is of your own doing, how else would you explain the werewolves coming out from this cellar?"
The creature laughed. "We may not have control to inhibit our lupine forms, but I didn't say we can't induce it. Did you think we will surrender this town to you without a fight?" He looked around, "I don't see Kain. I may be a wolf, but your master is a cowardly cur."
"I had enough of this! Before dawn, I will have your dog head served on a plate for my sire!"
We rushed forward. The werewolf leaped at us, claws raised. Instantaneously, both Turel and I had a slash wound, on opposite shoulders. But we made our attacks worthy as well. The lupine gypsy has a gash wound on his abdomen from my sword, and a stab wound on his thigh from Turel's pike. It leaped at us again, and this time we dodged out of its way and jabbed it from both sides. The stench of the blood made him feral, and he was no longer conjuring up words, just making sounds of a wild beast. It jumped at Turel unexpectedly, and landed on him. He attempted to bit his neck, but Turel's arms were keeping him away. Their strength was equally matched. I swung my sword at him and managed to stab him on his waist, imbedding the sword. The beast howled in pain, as blood oozes out from the wounds. Turel took the chance to tackle it down. I picked up his pike and pinned the creature to the floor at the chest, crushing his ribs and that canine heart he has. The beast no longer struggled. He stared at us, breathing shallowly, heaving with hatred. His red eyes no longer burned as bright. With his last might, he forced out his last words.
"Kain will damn our world…" I took my sword, and beheaded him. We found a bag, and place the head in it. Strangely, the body reverted back to that of the old, chubby elder, but the head, remained that of a werewolf.
We exited the tavern, the other four lieutenants, came up to meet us. The whole town now resembles Steinchencroe, with bodies of dead gypsies lying about. The rest of the werewolves have scattered. We were all exhausted. All six of us were covered with slash wounds; it would take more than an hour or so to heal. The feral enemy was finally defeated, we head home.