When Heli walks into the room, he's greeted by Jakah, who just about throws himself into Heli's arms.

"Where have you been?" Jakah exclaims. "We were looking everywhere, when we woke up and you weren't even with Viken. I was so worried."

Jakah looks up with an expression that reflects his concern, but what Heli notices is something else. Jakah's cheeks are tinged pink, he looks healthy and is even radiating the slight warmth of someone who's just eaten and is full up on fresh, hot blood. As he looks around the room, Solon and Jaan have the same air of well-fed.

"Nevermind about me," Heli restrains himself from shouting. "What have you been doing? Where'd you get blood from?"

Jakah takes a step back. Solon shifts nervously where he's sitting on the bed.

"You told me off about vampire hunters while you're going out and doing what?" The volume of his voice pitches higher as he continues. "You're the one who's going to put us in danger!"

"You said he was an idiot, so why worry-" Solon starts but Heli cuts him off.

"I was wrong, alright! I was wrong about everything! He has ideas to kill us I never even considered!"

He takes shallow breaths as the others gape at him.

"You weren't looking for me if you were out eating who knows what, were you?"

Jaan steps forward now, and places his hands on Heli's shoulders.

"Would you calm down? We have everything under control so it's not that big of a deal."

"Of course not," Heli snaps back. "It's not a big deal when you can eat, and you can sleep and you're not-"

"You haven't been sleeping?" Jaan's voice shifts to a gentler tone.

"How can I when every time I close my eyes, I just see her standing over me."

"Since when?"

"I don't know, since we got here."

"I hear yelling," Eugene opens the door and walks in along with Viken.

Heli's head and shoulders droop as Jaan takes his coat and scarf and pulls him over to the bottom bunk of the bed.

"You need to rest, come on."

"I can't," Heli whines. Jaan sighs.

"Would music help? Ambient noise? Something else to focus on?" Viken offers.

"You're just going to use magic on me," says Heli.

Viken shrugs. "If it helps, what does it matter? I'll put something on the radio."

Heli tries to protest but finds himself under the covers with Viken kneeling on the floor, fiddling with the radio as he usually does, trying to find something in the local stations to put on.

"I think our options are classical music or disco. Man, I haven't heard any good music since we left home"

"Why didn't you bring some 8 tracks to play in the van?" asks Eugene.

"I didn't think we'd be gone this long."

"I have to tell you about Peter," Heli says. "I mean, where I've been all day."

"Can it wait until tomorrow?" says Jaan.

Heli tries to sit up but Jaan pushes him back down. "No, it's important. I saw Jino. He's a Shadow."

A few moments pass before Jaan responds. "Jino? A Shadow? Are you sure it was him? Being sleep deprived can cause hallucinations, you know."

"I know what I saw, and it was for real."

The others exchange looks.

"She's messing with you again," Jakah says. "That must be it, she is in your head."

"Not anymore," Heli sighs. "I told you before, she's not."

"After we tried to find the others, we carried you upstairs," says Solon. "Your arm was bleeding, but there weren't any wounds."

"It bit me," says Heli. "The snake."

"In your mind?"

Heli nods as he stares up at the bottom of the bunk above. Maybe there was something of her lingering and seeping into his subconscious, forcing him to stay awake so he'd be worn down, just like Peter described.

"I thought remembering everything would be better," he says. "Like I'd be more at ease knowing what happened."

He doesn't feel the need to affirm that he in fact feels even worse than before, so he concludes with something else.

"There was a Shadow, Peter tried to shoot him."

"Hm," Jaan hums. Viken looks up at him as he rises from where he had been kneeling bedside. "The rest of us will figure it out, you need to sleep."

"I know what I saw," Heli mumbles again, but now that his head is on a pillow the exhaustion is setting in.

"We'll find something you can eat soon," Viken whispers.

His eyes close as Viken nestles the radio by his hand. Quiet clarinet music plays a pleasant melody. He tries to focus on the notes, but the others are talking just outside the door and though they're whispering, their voices are perfectly audible.

"He has to be mistaken," Jakah says. "I mean, Jino?"

"He wouldn't," Solon agrees.

"It's possible, though isn't it?" adds Eugene. "You saw how much she messed him up."

Heli imagines Eugene gesturing towards the door, meaning him. Eugene doesn't know Jino like they do.

Jaan's tone isn't one of disbelief, but disappointment. "Let's just try and find him first."

Their voices grow distant and Heli lays in silence in the dark. He should go out and look for Jino as well, but he doesn't know where he would begin. There was no trace of him in the cemetery.

The others return sometime later, just before the morning light. Heli rolls over, the radio still playing by his head, and he hears Jaan sigh loudly. They all settle down for the day and one by one the sounds of their breath quiets, but with each hour that passes, a black snake leaps from the depths of Heli's thoughts, posed to sink its fangs into his flesh.

It feels like ages before the room is alight with the orange of evening. Heli opens his eyes to see Solon is still sound asleep across the room. The radio is no longer playing, and since the switch is still in the ON position, he figures the batteries must have died. Someone is knocking on the door and Heli rolls out of bed, hoping that it's Viken. Not only is he unrested, the hunger in his stomach has transformed into an uncomfortable, sickly feeling.

Opening the door just a crack, he's disappointed to see that it's Peter.

"Were you asleep?" Peter asks. "I don't mean to disturb you."

"No, I was up," says Heli, still not trying to look like the nocturnal sort.

Peter smiles. "I was hoping I could make up for putting you through it yesterday. Do you want to come down to the lounge for a while?"

"Sure," Heli says. "I'll be down in a few minutes."

He doesn't particularly want to, but after changing clothes and washing up, he finds Peter in the lounge at the same table they had met. He sits down in the shadowy corner and Peter slides a large glass full of amber liquid in his direction.

"What is this?" Heli asks.

"A local specialty. You really can't say you were here without trying some."

That doesn't answer the question but Peter is already halfway through his glass of the same. Heli takes a sip. His first impression is of something like the taste of bread, with a sharp, acidic accompaniment. He can't say it's pleasant, but as it dawns on him he's never actually tried alcohol before, he has no idea if this is what it's supposed to taste like or not.

Peter takes a long swig from his glass with somewhat of a faraway look in his eyes, so Heli makes an attempt to initiate conversation.

"Did Hermina go back home?"

Peter shakes his head. "I'm still trying to find where that vampire spends his days. I was sure it was the cemetery. To be honest, I thought that's why you and your friend were poking around there, too. I wouldn't have brought you along otherwise."

"Even though I said vampires weren't real?"

"I figured we were both trying to bluff each other," says Peter. "You seemed to be hiding something, so I assumed. So again, I'm really sorry."

He takes a long drink, and quickly finishes the glass. He gets up for another before Heli has even consumed a quarter of the drink in front of him. Truthfully, he can't say it's very good, though there is something familiar about it.

"I also had to gauge your intentions," Peter continues. "Not every hunter is so glad to have another one encroaching on their job. I'm always glad to have some help, at least when it comes to stopping monsters."

Heli, halfway through another sip of his drink, not wanting Peter to think he wasn't able to match his pace, chokes.

"Are there a lot then? Other hunters?"

"I've met a few. I've never met anyone who'd heard of my uncle who wasn't a hunter." He takes another long swig, and Heli follows suit. "Enough about that, though. What about you? What do you do all day?"

"Do?" Heli repeats, stalling as he tries to think. Telling Peter he spends the days barely a step above death wasn't going to cut it. He doesn't have a job, if that's what Peter means. There must be something interesting he can actually talk about. "I travel a lot."

"Oh yeah?"

"Used to be with a carnival," Heli says.

"Really!" Peter smiles. "I can't see you yelling at people to step up and win prizes." He chuckles.

"It was more, um." Seeing to Lamia's every whim. It hadn't been long before she was leaving the set up of her fortune telling tent to him, but she had never needed him to draw people inside. She was always able to manage that on her own. Always leaning into her pillows, incense burning, watching as he dealt with any spilled blood.

"Staff management," he says. "But that was a number of years ago."

"You don't say," Peter leans back in his chair and polishes off the last liquid in his glass. It's quickly refilled, and he listens as Heli recounts abbreviated versions of the more interesting points of carnival life.

"He never did figure out how Jaan won that bear," Heli laughs. "Of course it was all rigged. Everyone knows that."

"I'm impressed you'd admit it!" Peter laughs along.

Though he chooses his words carefully, part of him wishes he could just tell Peter everything, and explain the real reason he knows Dr. Himmel, the true nature of the carnival. Maybe he'd be able to help him ward off Lamia for good, get Jino back and figure out where Shion and Noa might be found. Maybe they could have been friends.

A vision of Peter's vampire hunting kit and the unwavering stance he took, pointing his weapon at Jino's heart banishes the thought. He'd have to just settle for a guarded conversation, no matter how comfortable things seem.

"What about nowadays, or for fun?"

Heli hums as he looks around the room, trying to come up with another good response. The lounge is filling up with other guests as the sun goes down. The scent of warm food fills the room as it comes alive with indistinguishable chatter.

"I like games," Heli says. "Viken and I play a lot of different ones."

"Is that your punk rocker friend?"

Heli nods. With the gesture, he realises a peculiar sensation spreading through his body. His head feels like it's floating, not quite tethered to his body. Not quite a dizziness, but as he stares into the bottom of his glass, any more of this and the room might start spinning. The closer he gets to finishing, the stronger the sharp taste becomes. Drinking this is becoming a struggle, as each sip is even more disgusting.

"That's cute," Peter says.

Heli blinks. Peter is smiling, relaxed in his chair as he looks back. But it feels like he's across the room, but just right across the table. Heli tries to concentrate on what he's saying, but for some reason, he's hard to hear. His voice just blends into the noise of the room and Heli's mind wanders.

He's just gotten a full day and night of rest, but he wants to put his head down and go to sleep.

He pushes aside the glass, nearly empty. Eugene's voice echoes in his head.

Is he drunk?

Looks like they'd get to find out what happens when a vampire drinks alcohol, and it's not a nice feeling.

"Are you alright?"

Heli is leaning into his hand, his elbow on the table.

"I'm fine," he says. "I don't usually drink-"

"Let's take a walk outside." Peter pulls Heli up the arm.

He stumbles, but Peter keeps him upright and guides him out the door.

"Isnnit cold?"

"A bit warmer today, doesn't it feel refreshing?"

Peter half-drags Heli through the town as he rambles on about how cleansing the cool air is for his mind. Heli only hears about every other word. His head is the opposite of clear, but rather foggy and muddled. Peter is right in saying the weather is warmer than it was yesterday, but it's still not a nice temperature. In addition to being chilled, the detached feeling in his head is settling into his already unhappy stomach.

"I feel sick," he mumbles. "I'm not, you know, it's not with the alcohol drinking, that I um…"

He trails off, but Peter laughs without breaking his stride.

"That's really funny, especially since it wasn't alcohol I gave you. Come on, Heli, we're almost there."

Heli stops and Peter pulls on his arm with a hard tug. He tries to push away. Peter keeps a hard grip even as Heli tenses. He's reeling as he now recalls the weird taste and just why exactly it seemed familiar.

"You've poisoned me," he gasps.

"Only if you happen to be a vampire."

Heli can barely lift his head. His eyes are stuck watching their feet as they traverse through the slushy streets.

"I'm not-"

"I had already figured it out, but you confirmed it twice. I told you, vampires kept awake are careless. Even just a couple days without sleeping, and they might slip up and tell you about a carnival, forgetting they'd described the very same to an old doctor at an orphanage, several decades ago."

There has to be a way out of this, but Heli's thoughts are all arriving at dead ends. Had Peter known this the whole time? Heli feels like a real fool…of course Peter would have figured it out. Vampire hunting is something he takes seriously, and he's proved well enough he has real experience. He likely figured it all out from the first time he saw Heli.

Heli has been so naive to believe otherwise. His attempts to hide things in plain view have been a joke.

"I knew you were a vampire, but to also be Heli, the very one from my uncle's journal! What were the chances!" Peter continues. "I couldn't believe it when Hermina said that name."

"How?" Heli and Hermina had been alone when she revealled his identity, and she didn't mention it once after Peter arrived back upstairs. So how could he possibly-

"I'd had Hermina's room bugged for a while, since the vampire visits started becoming more frequent."

"Bugs? What kind of insects are in her room? How's that supposed to…?"

"No, not those sorts of bugs. Bugged. Like in a Bond film. Pretty neat stuff."

"None of these words make any sense." What on earth is this bloke even saying?

But again Peter laughs. "In short, I have everything you two said on tape. You know that cloaked vampire, don't you?"

When Heli doesn't respond Peter continues.

"Where did he take Hermina?"

"I don't know."

"Are you sure? Maybe we could negotiate. Her life or yours?"

"I don't know," Heli repeats. He groans as Peter hoists him up a set of narrow steps. With a start, he looks up to see they're in the cemetery. Peter pulls a large key from his pocket and opens one of the mausoleum doors.

"I spent a long time looking for the vampires in here, but alas, there were none. At least I'll be able to deal with you without any prying eyes, as they say. Too bad, since my uncle seemed to really like you. I think he wanted to take you home."

He pushes Heli in first, and Heli stumbles to the floor. The mausoleum isn't terribly large. Set in the middle of the building is a stone sarcophagus, with just enough space on either side to comfortably walk around. Each wall is set with stained glass windows with ornate geometric patterns in blue and yellow. The light grey stone is covered with dust, dirt and the corners are piled with old, dried leaves. Heli reaches for the sarcophagus in an attempt to pull himself up, but Peter sends him back down with a hard kick. From the inside of his blazer, he pulls a wooden stake.

"I don't mean to say I was ever afraid of you, but when you mentioned something about a curse, I sure was relieved. I take that to mean you can't bite me right? No wonder you're so weak."

No matter how many times Heli tries to push him off, it's no use. Peter is tenacious as he leans down.

"It always strikes me as ironic that a heartless creature's weakest point is its heart."

Heli's eyes dart to the door. It's open just a crack,but he already knows there is no one there. No one is coming to help him, not this time.

Then save yourself.

A renewed burst of energy flows through him. With a hard shove, he sends Peter backwards. His back slams into the stone wall, the stake dropping from his hand. He scrambles to grab it, but Heli kicks it out of his reach.

"I can't bite you, you're right," Heli says, glaring down at Peter as he struggles on the floor. "But there are other ways I can hurt you."

Dark thoughts pour out of him. It's impressively easy to grab Peter's mind, he offers little resistance to the onslaught of the worst memories Heli can muster. Peter squeezes his eyes shut and covers his ears, but Heli doesn't relent.

He remembers it all just as clearly. The cold, dark pain being unable to move, lying in a damp coffin for decades. The despair of betrayal as Lamia looks down at him with disgust on her face as the pain of his curse rips through his body. He makes Peter relive each second of it with him, the long years alone.

He remembers the uncertainty in his last years of the orphanage, the nagging anxiety of an unknown future. He shows Peter the heavy sorrow that hangs in the air of the sickroom, the wrapped bodies of children as they are carried away.

Heli too is dragged, his arm freshly bandaged to an old storage attic room. The door closes and locks with a click. He peers out the cracked glass of a foggy window and sees the old Dr. Himmel, his shoulders dropped as he leaves, defeated. Ominous footsteps sound overhead and he gropes through dark halls in frantic search as monsters threaten to drag them into emptied rooms.

His vision darkens as his mouth fills with the taste of blood. From the deep shadows, a hand reaches out and brushes his cheek.

He severs the connection and drops to his hands and knees. Peter slowly opens his eyes, uncurling from the defensive position he had taken.

"I'm not heartless." Heli is trembling as he catches his breath. "I'm not heartless."

Peter is silent as he sits up. He doesn't make any move towards Heli, and it's just as well. That last trick really wiped Heli for everything he had left. If Peter tries to renew his assault he doesn't know how much more he could defend himself. He's already sinking to the stone floor, utterly drained.

"Yes, it was me your uncle talked about. Maybe we could have been family, but that's not how things worked out."

"Heli!"

The mausoleum door is wrenched open. Viken peers in, a torch aloft in his hand and wide-eyed.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

Peter stands. "Get out! Don't you understand the danger-"

"Oh, sit on it, would you?" Viken pushes past him and squeezes himself beside the sarcophagus. He pulls Heli up into a sitting position and hands him a glass bottle. "Drink"

Heli uncaps the bottle. The blood inside is a welcome sight, even if it is lukewarm and somewhat coagulated.

"Where did you get this?"

"Took all freaking day to find, just drink it."

Heli leans into the stone wall as he complies. He feels a bit better, as his energy is restored and the sickly aftermath of garlic ebbs.

"You found me again."

"Wasn't hard. Of course someone saw you two leave, looking here was the best guess." Viken turns his attention to Peter. "What do you think you're playing at, huh?"

"I'm doing what's best. Letting these monsters live isn't-"

He's interrupted by a punch to the face. He recovers quickly, returning a cold glare.

"Don't you realise the lives that could be saved?"

Viken raises his arm to hit him again.

As Heli finishes gulping down the entire bottle of blood, something shiny on the grey stone catches his eyes. He sets down the bottle and leans forward, spotting a small, silver object resting behind the back corner of the sarcophagus. He picks it up and wipes away the dirt. It's a small silver cross, set on a fine chain.

"Viken!"

"What?" Viken has a grip on Peter's collar.

"This belongs to Jino." Heli scans the mausoleum for anything else out of place. "Was he in here?"

Viken lets Peter go to help investigate. Peter's eyes bulge as comprehension of the object in Heli's hand dawns on him.

"You shouldn't be able to hold that!" he exclaims. "How does it not hurt?"

As if on cue, a sharp stabbing erupts in Heli's palm. Blood oozes from a cut opening across his hand. It's not the burning he might have expected in the flesh that's actually in contact with the silver. This wound is old.

The cross vibrates and the chain begins to float. Startled, Heli loses his grip on the cross. Instead of falling, it darts to the sarcophagus, wedging itself firmly in the crack between the lid and the base, still quivering despite its inability to move any further.

"What is happening?" Peter asks, a hint of genuine concern edging into his voice.

Heli explains the circumstances of his previous contact with this cross and Viken's face lights up.

"Sounds like a memory curse," he says. "Contact with you would have activated it. I think it's trying to get inside."

"Let's open it then." Heli springs to his feet. The stone lid is understandably heavy and even with whatever small amount of assistance Viken can provide, it's strenuous to move. Little by little they manage to push it aside, and it tips over with a crash to the floor.

The interior is completely black. Viken shines the torch into a seemingly endless hole. There's no coffin or anything as far as they can see, just a straight drop into the ground. As soon as it's free, the cross jumps in and disappears. All three of them peer down.

"What do you suppose is down there?" Viken whispers.

"Vampires, clearly this is where they've been hiding," Peter replies.

"I'll push you down there if you don't shut up."

"No, he's probably right," Heli says. "I'm going to go down there."

"Don't think about going alone," says Viken. "I'll go get the others-"

"I think it's trying to lead me to Jino," says Heli, and without waiting for further response, he takes a deep breath and plunges into the depths. Unable to see the bottom, his landing is less than graceful, but he picks himself up unscathed. Viken's torch is a tiny pinprick above him.

"I'll go too." Peter is barely audible, but Viken's yells are clear as day.

"The hell you are! You think we'd just let you go and kill them?"

"Viken!" Heli yells up. "I'm alright, can you drop the torch?"

"Okay, just a-" Viken's shout dissolves into the sounds of a scuffle. There's a light thunk, and the light drops down. As it grows larger, Heli can see it's in the hands of Peter Himmel. Heli grabs him, only minimally out of the intention to break his fall.

"What did you do to Viken?"

"I just took the torch, I didn't hurt him."

A string of expletives confirms Viken's status.

"Don't think about trying to ambush me in the dark," warns Heli.

Peter puts up his hands. "I don't have any weapons, you're safe for now."

"Viken! We'll be back as soon as I figure out what's down here!" Heli shouts back up.

"Fine," Viken responds. "See you on the flip side, then."

Peter shines the torch around them. There's only one way forward, a long tunnel of hard, packed dirt. Tree roots stick out from the walls. Heli is a little nervous about the passage as there is nothing reinforcing or holding back the crumbling ground. He expects it to collapse at any moment.

Peter must share the same anxiety, as he's silent for a few moments before finally asking, "How do you plan on getting back up?"

"Up will be easy. I can see the top."

He doesn't expect Peter to understand what he means, and he doesn't elaborate. Peter doesn't ask. They continue in silence until Heli notices the torchlight has grown significantly more orange and dim.

"Oh, dear," Peter mumbles. "Do you have more batteries?"

"Why would I?"

A few moments later the beam grows narrower, and finally goes out.

"Should we go back then? It was a straight tunnel, we can find our way back as long as we just turn around."

Heli turns to face Peter in the dark. He can hear his laboured breath so he knows exactly where he's standing. In the dark he has the upperhand, and he can imagine Peter is aware of this. But he has no intention of calling it quits. He's not satisfied, not yet.

"No."

He presses onward, hoping the tunnel continues straight in this direction and he doesn't end up with a face full of dirt wall. Peter hesitates, but Heli can hear footsteps following him.

"I didn't want you to come with," he reminds Peter, to no response.

Suddenly, near his feet, a small flame bursts to life. Another light appears beside it, then another, spreading out in front of them. Hundreds of candles of all heights ignite, casting a warm glow and revealing they've walked into an open cavern. Water drips from overhead, and a pile of tiny bones crunch under their feet. In the centre of the space sits a cloaked figure. A dark hood obscures his face, but the silver cross is settled on the rock beside him.

Heli runs forward, circling around until he can see Jino's face. He sits cross-legged, his hands on his knees and eyes closed as if in deep meditation. Heli grips his shoulders and gives him a shake.

"Jino, please, please come back. Please."

Jino's eyebrows furrow. Heli isn't sure what to expect when he comes to. Would he be a Shadow like the others, determined to carry out Lamia's wish to destroy him?

A myriad of expressions cross Jino's face when he sees Heli in front of him. Surprise follows confusion and ultimately his mouth widens into a grin.

"No way," he says. "What brings you here?"