FSE

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I am playing a game with myself called "lets see how many active story lines I can do at once." This will make five. Lets hope I can keep up with them all. Anyway, here we go, a more mythologically based one this time. I hope you enjoy it.

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The forest was silent, as if in contemplation of the night. As a boy I had always enjoyed the night, especially the night sky. It had always comforted me, even on the deepest, darkest and therefore most dangerous nights. I sat up from where I had been lying and looked about me. Something in the wind didn't smell right to me. The scent was unfortunately familiar and much less than comforting. I felt my heckles raise at it and I sighed. 'The war continues once more.' I thought. I got to my feet slowly and rushed off in pursuit of the scent. It seemed that it was once again time for me to fight. For an hour, I ran onward, only the scent trail allowing me to track my prey. Finally, at midnight, I came upon the physical trail of those I sought. The tracks were only a few hours old. I smiled, sprinting off under the light of the thin sliver that was the moon. The new moon was tomorrow, which meant I had tonight and tonight only to hunt them down. My grin widened. A chase was always interesting. I sprinted off through the trees ever quicker, my cursed blood pumping with magic energy, driving me faster towards my prey. For all the speed my foes would have, I was always going to be faster.

When the moon sank beneath the distant hills and the sky began to lighten, I paused atop a rock formation, my heart hammering in my chest, winded, but exhilarated. On the floor of the valley below me was the great king's road, wide and paved with cobblestones. A small party of armor clad knights rode along the road, surrounding a smaller figure on a horse in the center. My sharp eyes picked out the details of a feminine form mounted on the horse. She was slumped in the saddle with weariness, and I couldn't see much about her. But, from my vantage point, I also saw the trap the knights were walking into. More than forty lesser demons waited among the trees on the side of the road, hidden from normal eyes for the moment by dark magics. I could also see four winged demons in the tree tops. But most interesting to me was the wire thin figure standing well back from the edge of the trees. It was dressed all in light leaching black, but its skin was as pale as marble. Silver-white hair glinted slightly in the darkness and I knew what I was looking at. A vampire stood there.

I started to turn back to leave, as there were far to many of them for me to fight on my own, but, as the wild braying of demons filled the silent morning air, I caught sight of the features of the female on the horse. They stirred something within me and I stopped, my hand drawing my jade infused silver longsword from where it was sheathed across my back. Turning back, I kissed the ornate sun cross medallion around my neck for luck and sprinted down the slope, my perceptions already speeding up. I knew that my intervention would just as likely cause my death at the hands of the knights below as the demons, but I didn't care. Swift and silent as the moonlight itself, I sprinted down the slope, my grey cloak flowing around me. Warned by the foul magic of its craven blood, the vampire turned just as I struck at it. Its hands came up to block my blow, noticing too late what my sword was made of. The blade of my sword passed through the vampire's arm and through its neck as easily as if it hadn't been there at all. The vampire's black blood sprayed the ground and I swiftly reversed my grip on the sword, driving it through the creature's heart before it could regenerate its lost limbs. For the first time, the vampire screamed. A high, piercing wail that chilled the blood rose from its severed head, splitting the night. As the vampire's body turned to ash, I raced towards the road. I had a few minutes when the demons would be dismayed at their commander's death and that was always the best time to strike.

The sounds of battle and the screams of men and demons filled air that was starting to stir with the wind, heralding the approaching dawn. Knowing I had mere moments to act, I leapt onto the road, my blade cleaving into one of the winged demons as it floated over head. When I landed, I leapt again, not staying still for any amount of time, slaying the fluttering demons as they floated above the battle. Just as the sun peeked over the horizon, washing the valley with light, the battle slowed and I felt my body shifting once more, becoming smaller and human, but I didn't stop. My blade plunged into the last of the winged demons and I turned around. A single knight still stood, standing protectively before the girl. Both of their horses had already fallen, their steaming corpses slicking the ground with their blood. A half dozen of the lesser demons remained, staring at the armored man with evil yellow eyes. They hated the sun, but they had tasted blood and their lust for it allowed them to ignore the hated orb in the sky until their prey died. The sun was at my back and I raced towards the half dozen, using the last magic strength of my still changing body to quicken my pace.

My sword slashed quickly and took down two of the unsuspecting demons. The knight claimed another and the remaining three turned to run. Anger flared in me and I clasped a hand to the medallion around my neck. Words of magic fell from my lips and the demons shrieked, their flesh splitting as if hundreds of small blades were cutting them. They died a moment later and the sun rose fully, my body returning to my human form in the same moment. The knight held his sword up in the ready position towards me until he could see me clearly and then he sheathed the blade. I smiled slightly; if I hadn't been totally changed already, the knight would have attacked me. Cleaning the long blade in my hand with a cloth, I walked towards the pair and the knight spoke.

"We owe you much hunter." The knight said. "I am Knight Captain Isander of Gulnia. What order do you hail from?"

"The Slayers of Auré." I stated and pulled the silver and gold cross from around my neck. Its design was highly ornate, representing the demon slayers devoted to the god of the sun. The white rune cloth that I my clothing was made of also belonged to that order. "Why were you traveling here with so few soldiers? Didn't you know that the king's road is plagued by attacks like this?"

"We were separated from the rest of the caravan back in the fortress." The knight reported, waving a hand down the road where they had come from. "My lady took ill and we were forced to wait a few days before leaving. The fortress guard could not spare anyone and we were assured by a soldier in the castle that we would be safe with just my fellows and I."

"What was his name?" I asked, suddenly suspicious.

"He called himself Revamir, if I remember right." He said and reflected for a moment. "Now that I think on it, that is a very strange name."

"Revamir?" I asked and he nodded. I chuckled for a moment and sheathed my longsword. The knight spoke again as I started to check the fallen soldiers.

"What is so funny?" Isander asked, checking another soldier nearby while the woman stood staring around at the carnage, her face very pale beneath the veil that had fallen over her face.

"Revamir is an anagram for Vampire." I stated, kneeling next to a knight who still lived and checking his wounds.

"What?!" The captain asked, looking at me with a surprised expression.

"Vampires are notorious for playing games with their prey." I said and the knight regarded me with confusion again. "Being immortal is terribly boring."

"How would you know that?" The knight asked, laying his hand on his sword.

"I have fought a fair few of them in my time." I stated, not even acknowledging that he was on the verge of drawing his blade. "You can trust me captain. If I wanted you dead I would have let them kill you. This man will live if we get him help quickly."

Isander rushed over and checked him. "Kanic." He said. The man opened his eyes slowly and mumbled something before his eyes closed once more. "He must live. He is one of my best friends." The captain said and a wolf howl shattered the air. It was too deep to have been voiced by a real wolf and it sent a shiver down my spine.

"We have to get off the road, more are coming." I said, grabbing the wounded knight under one shoulder and starting to haul him upright. The captain took his other side and we managed to get him onto his feet despite his heavy armor.

"This way." I ordered and we moved into the trees nearby. It was very slow going, carrying the wounded man in armor. We had barely gotten on top of the ridge when I could sense them coming. Without a word, I abandoned my hold on the knight and swiftly moved off to the right, grabbing a branch of a tree and snapping it off. The moment the branch broke, a foul scent filled the air and I tossed the branch across our path. Then, I returned to carrying the wounded knight and led the way towards a thicket of the same trees as the one I had broken the branch off of. We hurried into the trees and I broke a few more branches. The girl looked like she was about to throw up at the stench and the knight looked like he was going to protest on her behalf. I put a finger to my lips and whispered, "Not a word or we've all had it."

The knight kept silent and I turned to watch the road. We had not watched for more than a moment before the loping form of a werewolf came around the bend, its red eyes blazing with the light of its curse. Moments later, a mass of lesser demons came around the bend after it, accompanying a figure in a black cloak. The cloaked figure looked at the carnage and then motioned for the wolf to search us out. The werebeast sniffed the air carefully, then headed off along our path. The figure and the demons moved after the wolf with ease, apparently not afraid of ambush. The werewolf followed our trail until it got to the broken branch and I held my breath, hoping that it would do what I thought it would. It bent low over the branch and took a deep breath and then sneezed loudly. I smiled. My plan had worked. The wolf kept right on sneezing and then it let out a low howl and loped back to its demonic master. I smiled as the group moved back the road and headed along it once more.

"How did you do that?" The knight whispered as we hefted our burden once more.

"The sap of these trees may stink to high heaven to us, but it is about a hundred times worse to a werewolf." I said keeping my eye out for threats. "At first, the smell is intriguing enough to attract the wolf, but when it takes a deep breath of it, the creature will be unable to stop sneezing, much less track anything by scent."

"How did you learn all these things?" The knight asked in amazement. "I have spoken to many hunters before and they did not know the things you know."

"A lifetime of experience teaches much." I said, sadness at that statement welling up inside. "And I have had fought more than most hunters can claim."

"Then why aren't you in the Slayer's training cadres?" He asked, looking about him. "A hunter with your experience would be needed there to train more."

"For reasons of my own." I stated, ducking a hanging tree branch. "Many a vampire and demon have died because I am out here hunting, not in there training."

The knight seemed satisfied with that answer and we walked along in silence for a time. I guided the small group up and down several hills and I noticed that the girl was looking more and more tired and sick as we walked along, but I wanted to cover as much distance as we could during the day, when the demonic powers would be weakest. Finally though, as we descended into the valley, the knight spoke up.

"We should stop for a moment so we can tend to Sir Kanic." He stated and I looked at the wounded man for a moment, considering him. His face was pale and had an odd greenish cast to it.

"Yes, let's." The girl said and I thought her voice pleasing, though I still hadn't seen her face because of the noble woman's veil she wore.

"There is a glade on the other side of this hill." I stated, looking up at the sun. "We will stop there."

"Very well." Isander stated. A quarter hour later, we entered the clearing and laid the wounded knight down in the grass beside the stream that ran through it.

"Let's get his armor off." I stated, and began to take pieces off. Most of the armor came off easily, but the breastplate had been slashed open and a piece of it was sticking into the knight's chest. When we tugged on it, the man groaned in pain. "Here, hold him down."

"Alright." Isander said, bracing his friend with his hands. I grabbed the breastplate and with a quick jerk, I pulled it out of the wound and off the wounded man. He cried out when it came free, but now we could get to his wounds. I reached into the pack I carried and brought out some bandages. The knight's wounds were very severe and the one in his chest didn't look too good. I opened his shirt with a knife and examined it. The flesh around the wound was starting to turn grey and I shook my head sadly.

"This wound may be beyond hope." I said and Isander looked at me in surprise.

"What do you mean 'beyond hope?'" He asked, looking at his friend.

"I mean that I have seen this kind of wound before." I said and reached into my backpack and began hunting for the only thing that might help the knight. "The graying of the flesh around the wound is a sign of a demonic poison in the wound." At last, I found what I sought. It was a small green pouch and I opened it to reveal a small amount of precious jade powder. "If we are not too late in treating his wound, we might give him a chance, if his will is strong enough." With that, I sprinkled a pinch of the powder into the wound and it started to smoke. The knight on the ground writhed in pain as his flesh made a sizzling noise and Isander grimaced.

"What will happen if he dies from this wound?" The captain asked as his friend quieted.

"If we are lucky, nothing." I said, bandaging the man's wound. "If we are unlucky, he will rise as an undead."

"Hunter, what is your name?" He asked suddenly and I finished tying the bandage before answering.

"Galen, son of Anton." I said and watched as the wounded man's eyes closed at last.

"Galen, what chance does my friend have?" He asked and I sighed.

"In truth, not much of one." I replied, looking up at the knight. "The Necrosis poison kills most that are infected with it. The only chance that your friend has is that the jade cleared the poison before it reached his heart. If it has, then he has a slim chance of over coming it. If not, then it is all through his blood by now and nothing I would recommend can stop it."

"What can stop it?" Isander asked. I hesitated a few moments before answering.

"The only creatures immune to Necrosis are werewolves." I replied and the captain looked horrified. "I told you, it is not something I would recommend."

"Then I must pray that we got to his wound in time." The captain said and then removed his helm, kneeling with his head bowed. He began to speak a prayer to Auré, the holy words echoing in the clearing. I sat down and looked up at the sun while the knight prayed, we could not afford to waste much more sunlight, but hurried prayers did no good. A few times, while I looked around the clearing warily, I noticed the girl's eyes upon me, but I made no mention of it. Finally, the knight got back to his feet and spoke. "We should take the remaining hours of sun to sleep."

"No." I said and he looked at me strangely. "We should move while it is light and camp in the night."

"But the demons are stronger at night." He said and I nodded.

"Yes, but marching around at night is much more dangerous, especially when you are wearing armor." I stated. "To travel at night, you need to move silently to avoid attracting attention. If you don't they will be on you before you can go more than a league. In the day, there is sound to mask even your armor's noise. Also, they do not fight well in the daylight if you should happen to have to fight them."

"Princess Julianna, are you well enough to travel more today?" The knight asked and the girl nodded. With that, the knight lifted his wounded comrade and supported him as we walked onward. "Then we will go on."

***

For the rest of the daylight hours, we journeyed on, headed towards the distant land of Gulnia. If we had been traveling along the king's road, the journey to that land would have taken at most a week, but I knew that without a large convoy of soldiers with us, we would stand little chance upon the road. As it was, with a wounded man and woman who didn't look inclined to fight, we stood a much better chance traveling through the woods. When the sun at last sank behind the hills, we stopped to make camp in a small clearing in the center of a dense grove of trees. I quickly gathered dry firewood and started a blaze with a piece of flint. When the fire was blazing, I reached into my back pack and lifted out a pale green branch.

"What is that?" The knight asked, looking at the branch in my hand as I set it next to the fire. "I have never seen that kind of wood before."

"This is a branch of a tree from the sacred grove of Auré." I said and the knight's eyebrows raised. "When it is cast into the fire, it will cause the fire to burn with the intensity of the sun to our foes, but it will be normal to us. When the true night begins, add it to the fire."

"Wait, where are you going?" He asked as I strode towards to the edge of the clearing. I paused at his question and looked up. The sun was sinking below the hills and I knew I had to leave the clearing soon.

"To keep watch." I said, lifting the branch of a tree to step beneath it. "There is little doubt that they will be searching the woods for us by now. The fire will be as a beacon to them."

"Why are you going to leave the light of the fire then?" the knight asked and I suppressed a grimace. I could feel the curse that lived in my blood, dormant in the daylight, beginning to awaken. "The demons only get stronger in the night."

"Yes, they do," I said, striving to resist the curse as the familiar tingling began in my flesh. "But if there is one thing I have learned, it is that with the night, comes their arrogance. And that gives me an advantage. Do not leave the firelight." With that, I strode into the night, the grey cloak I wore allowing me to vanish into the last light of the twilight.

When I was out of sight of the clearing and the firelight, I knelt between a group of trees and gritted my teeth, feeling the surge of magic in my blood as the curse took effect once more. A spike of pain in my guts caused me to double over and I gasped. The curse's hold on me was lessened by the lack of moonlight brought by the new moon, it could not remove it totally. It was less painful than it usually was, but that didn't make it fun to have your body altered against your will.

My body was swelling with each surge of magic, muscle growing ever denser, and bone realigning. I gritted my teeth harder, grinding them against the howl of pain that threatened to break loose from my throat. I had vowed long ago that no matter what, I would not allow the curse to make me cry out. The pain began to fade away and I smiled. I had won again. I looked down at my body once more and smiled. The pain faded totally away and the curse had taken effect. My body was covered in grey fur, and my body had realigned. With no moon, my form was still human aside from the fur. If even a sliver of the moon had been present, my body would have been wholly like that of the werewolf that we had seen in the clearing. I shivered suddenly and wrapped my grey cloak around me tighter. The smell of demons was on the wind once more. I smiled slightly and drew my sword, rushing off into the night in pursuit of my prey...

***

"Where do you suppose Galen went?" Julianna asked, looking at her sworn protector.

"Off hunting probably." Isander answered, looking up at the night sky. He held the strangely warm branch of the sacred tree in his hand and he was idly stroking its bark, waiting for the time to throw it into the campfire.

"I have never known anyone like him." She began again and Isander nodded. "There is something about him that is strange, something I don't quite understand."

"The hunters are a strange lot," The knight agreed, wondering if it was time yet to use the branch. "But this Galen fellow is strange even for them. Still though, he has been right every time so far."

"I still think that there is something he is not telling us." The princess said, yawning widely for a moment in exhaustion.

"Yes, but I think he is entitled to his secrets." Isander stated. At her questioning look, he spoke again. "You must understand princess, the demon hunters, especially the Slayers of Auré, have seen more terrible things in one year than any one should see in their entire lifetimes. Their lives are often very short because the demons are always stronger than we are. And a hunter of Galen's experience has seen many things that would make others die of fright. Auré alone knows how they carry on through all that. By comparison, my life, which has hardly been easy, is a cakewalk."

"I still want to know what he is hiding." She said, laying down with her arm pillowing her head.

"Trust me, some things are better off being left as secrets." Isander stated, tossing the branch into the fire. As the green wood burned, it released a sweet scent to the air that comforted him. Julianna, the girl he had sworn to protect with his life, smiled and closed her eyes, soon falling into slumber. Isander sighed and drew his war sword from his side. Its blade was notched with age and he wondered for a moment at the life he had lived. His father had been a knight captain all his life and Isander had taken over for him when he had matured. But sometimes, he couldn't help but wonder what his life would have been like had he pursued the hunter's path like Galen. 'Probably a lot shorter.' He decided and went to check on Kanic...

***

When the sun had risen again over the forest, I returned to the camp to find all three of my current companions asleep. I smiled as Isander woke up at my approach, his hand going for a drawn sword that lay at his side. When he saw me he nodded and spoke, sitting up next to the dieing fire.

"Your sword is bloody." He remarked and I nodded, getting a cloth from my pack to clean it with.

"As I expected, a few of the vampire's servants came looking at the fire." I stated, wiping the blood off my blade. "I made sure they never saw anything anymore. Any trouble while I was gone?"

"None at all." He said and I nodded. "That branch was the cause I think."

"I know," I said, sitting and sheathing my sword once more. "Unfortunately, they are very precious things and I only have a few."

"Well, lets get some ground covered today so you don't have to use them." He said. I smiled and nodded.

"How is your friend?" I asked and a shadow passed over his face.

"Not well, he has remained pale." The knight said. "His skin has stared to turn grey."

"Well, all we can do is wait." I said and he nodded. "Let us get the princess up and we will get moving."

"Right." He replied and went to wake the princess and Isander went over to check on his friend.

By midmorning, we were already several miles away from the campsite, plodding along through the forest with as much speed as we could muster. All through the day, we journeyed and I kept catching the girl looking at me. I still did not make an issue of it, but it bothered me a little. If she got curious enough to come after me at night, there would be much trouble. When night came, I went off again to stand guard and I knelt once more on the ground, feeling the intense tingle of the curse coming on again. I looked up and grimaced in hatred at the sliver of moonlight that floated in the sky above me. The curse would be fully upon me once more tonight.

The jolt of pain shot through me again and I gasped once more. I never got used to that. My body was swelling again, swelling so fast that my skin and clothing were splitting into shreds. I shuddered at the sight of ribbons of my skin fluttering to the earth around me. I growled in pain and shut my eyes tight to the pain. No howl would be loosed from me tonight. A half minute later, the pain faded away and I stood. Though I stood straight, my legs were bent back like those of a wolf and a long tail protruded from my spine. A snout and wolf ears rose from my face and I shook myself, the last bits of skin and cloth falling from me easily. The clothes would not be a problem. A gift from my father, they reformed around me with the curse's slumber. I scented demons around the clearing where I knelt and I drew my sword.

An hour later, fifteen demons had fallen to my sword. 'Not my best' I thought, 'but respectable.' I was standing as still as stone, the grey cloak hiding me in moonshadow as a pack of small demons wandered past me, headed for the firelight of the camp. The moment the last one passed me, I moved, my longsword cleaving its way through the last demon's neck in silence. I killed the second in line with the same ease before the rest of them noticed me. The remaining four charged at me, their claws bared and dripping with foul toxin. I grinned, showing white fangs to the moonlight. 'Their mistake.' I thought and slashed the head from the first at it came at me. I parried the blow of the second and drove the point of my sword through the third. I loped off the fourth's hand at the wrist and spun around, driving my sword down into its chest from above. The second creature slashed at my back and I whorled around, my blade dragging free from the dead demon easily, slicing the second demon in half. I came back to stillness and looked about me.

There was still one around here somewhere and I looked around me once more. Too late, I looked up into the sky. A winged demon fluttered above the small clearing, cackling with laughter as it flew away. I shook my head. Now we were in trouble. My hand might have just been forced. I looked up towards the lightening horizon and felt the curse starting to fade. I waited out of sight of the fire and felt my body become human once more, the white clothing appearing out of thin air as the curse went away once more. When I was human again, I went back to the camp.

"We must get going as quickly as we can." I stated when I entered the campsite. The knight and the princess looked surprised. "The enemy knows where we are now. One of his winged minions got out of range before I could kill it. By nightfall, we will have to contend with all of them.

"I am worried about Kanic." Isander stated and I looked at the wounded man. His skin was still pale and drawn and had taken on a sickly ashen hue. "An increase in pace might kill him."

"I know, but we have to chance it." I said, already hurrying to pack my equipment. "We are close to the golden wood, a sacred place where the vampires cannot enter. If we are quick on our feet today, we can reach it by nightfall."

"Then let us go." Isander said, hefting his wounded comrade. We headed out of the clearing quickly a moment later. As we walked, the princess stared at me with a strange look on her face and I finally spoke up.

"May I ask what is so interesting about me princess?" I asked, not looking at her and staring around us as we walked, keeping an eye out for the lethal enemies I could sense were near.

"What?" The princess asked, looking at my back with surprise.

"I have noticed you staring at me since I found you." I stated.

"Oh, I am just wondering how you can keep going for so long." She said evasively, "Don't you ever sleep?"

"No." I replied. "I have not needed sleep since I received the blessing of Auré." A brief feeling of anger filled me as the memory of that day rose in me. Banishing the memory back into the depths of my mind, I continued to look around for enemies. The princess was still staring at me, but I had stopped caring. All day, we heard the sounds of demons around us. We moved quickly, but as the sun began to sink behind the hills, I knew that we had failed. The golden wood danced in the distance with the breeze of the end of the day and I sighed.

"Build the fire quickly." I stated and laid my pack down. "Our only chance is to last until the morning. Here, put this on the fire." I ordered, handing the knight another of the green branches, one of my last. "We must be ready and soon."

The knight laid his friend down beside the ring of stones that would soon contain our campfire. While he did this, I reached into my pack and placed the small green pouch of jade powder into my belt. I also drew from the pack a pair of enchanted knives and bound them to my belt. One was made entirely of jade, the other pure silver. Finally, I came out with a pair of daggers that had blades made from jade and silver. Turning to the princess, I spoke.

"Can you use one of these?" I asked, offering one dagger to her. She nodded and took the long battle dagger, sliding it into the sash she wore at her waist. Then, with the fire blazing brightly, we stood in the clearing with our backs to each other, weapons in hand. The sun was setting and I knew that I had to move out of the camp soon. From all around us came demonic voices, crying out for blood. But then, as the sun sank, we heard a voice, loud and clear from the forest to the right.

"You have led us on a merry chase through the forests." The voice said and I felt my cursed blood run cold. That voice was oh so familiar to me. "You are to be commended." All at once, the cowled figure of a vampire walked into the clearing from the shadows. "And hunter Galen, it is a pleasure to see you again."

"You again?" I asked, feeling the curse beginning to surge in my blood and I began to concentrate on stopping it. As the familiar tingling began to come over my body, I drew my long sword and turned to face him. "I have killed you twice, and this time, you will stay dead, I swear it."

"Now, now hunter," He said, and I detected a grin on his pale face beneath the hood. "Is that any way to greet an intimate friend?"

"Isander, defend the princess." I ordered, feeling the sun sink below the mountains. I had less than a minute before I would be unable to hold back the curse any longer. And that had been the vampire's intent of talking to us. "I will help when I am able."

"What are you talking about?" The knight asked, his attention on the demons that prowled outside the clearing.

"I don't have time to explain." I said, gritting my teeth as the curse threatened to break free. "I am asking you to trust me no matter what happens."

"I will." He said and drew his sword. Moments later, the last of the sun retreated from the world and I gasped, the curse surging to the fore. I doubled over and sank to my knees, pain slamming my guts. The curse was always worse when this creature was near to me. My body was swelling again, but this time the transformation was swifter than it ever had been. The pain too was even worse now. I shuddered as I felt my skin begin to tear. That was even more painful than it usually was and I felt my clothing tear as I swelled beyond what it could hold. I cried out as my skin ripped into shreds and fell from me, revealing grey fur to the moonlight. I heard the princess scream at the sight of my transformation. Only fifteen seconds after it began, the transformation was over and I rose to my feet from where I had knelt, my body huge. Though the pain was more terrible in the presence of this vampire, the curse also brought much more power to me as well. The other demons in the clearing stepped back from me, suddenly not so confident. I smiled and let out a fierce howl to the night before advancing on the Vampire.

He waved a hand and the demons leapt forward, seeking to slay Isander and the princess, but I shot forward in a leap, my blade slicing through a pair of the smaller demons. I fought with great ferocity, slaying a dozen demons in less than two minutes, defeating almost the whole side of the clearing by myself. Then, I was alone before the vampire.

"Impressive." He commented, letting his hood drop. "But then, you were always impressive in battle, which is why I was all too happy when you were bitten. But, I have not the time to play with you this night, so I will leave you with my latest servant. Good night Galen."

With that, he turned away from me and walked off into the woods. I started after him but the werewolf that I had seen on the road suddenly charged at me from the side, knocking my sword from my hands. I caught its jaws with my hands an inch from my throat. It growled and I slashed with my claws, cutting open the skin of its chest. The wolf reared back from me and I growled ferally at it, my sword forgotten for the moment. In moments, the enraged wolf leapt at me, bearing me to the ground next to the remains of my clothing. The creature's foul saliva dripped on my neck as it tried to get its jaw around my throat once more. I grunted as its claws cut into my flesh, then smashed my forehead into its sensitive snout and slashed with my claws once more, cutting more of its skin to ribbons. But the creature was far from dead, a fact evidenced by it chomping down on one of my arms. That pain was enough to bring me out of the rage I had been in and I reached over my head with my other hand, searching for the weapon I knew I would find there. When I found it, I gripped it with my hand and suddenly stabbed with the silver knife.

The wolf's eyes went wide and the red eyes of his cursed form faded to normal human eyes. The creature staggered back to its feet and I rose to mine. The werewolf stood there for a frightening moment, the hilt of the dagger flush with his chest, its blade stabbing into his heart. Then, the wolf nodded to me and it fell to the ground, its body becoming human again for the first time in who knew how long. I located my sword on the ground and then turned around in time to witness a horrific sight. Julianna was fighting with a pair of demons and holding her own, but Isander was standing still, staring at the body that once been a noble knight. Sir Kanic had risen from where he had lain beside the fire. The knight, Isander's old friend, was striding towards his captain, eyes sightless and flesh ashen grey. When the undead beast reached Isander, I heard him speak.

"I am sorry old friend." He said, and stabbed with his sword. The war sword's steel pierced the creature's heart and it let out a horrific moan before falling to its death again. Isander stared down at the body of his friend for a few moments, and therefore did not see the danger he was in. I ran forward as quickly as I could, but a trio of winged demons soared out of the sky and blocked my path just long enough. The demon sneaking up on the brave knight captain clubbed the man on the back of his head and Isander fell. Then, I was forced to watch as the demons carried him off, armor and all. The winged demons felt my rage immediately, all three of them falling within moments. I started to charge after the knight, but a cry drew my attention to the princess. One of the demons was down, but the other had sliced a gash into her side and she was down on her knees, the demon above her, ready to strike her down. I didn't hesitate. I threw my long sword. The weapon spun end over end a few times and connected with the creature, dropping it to the ground as the jade infused into the blade lit with fire, turning the creature to ash in moments. With that, the fight was over. I went to retrieve my sword and turned to face the princess.

Not surprisingly, she was standing back, the silver and jade dagger I had lent to her in one hand, the captain's long sword in the other, still in fighting position. I carefully sheathed my drawn blade and put my hands up in a non-threatening position.

"Easy princess, I am not going to hurt you." I stated and took a step towards her. She raised the sword higher, its point toward me.

"Stay back." She ordered, her voice trembling with fear. "How could you? How could you be a hunter knowing what you are?"

"Please princess, put the sword down and we will talk." I said, obligingly standing still. "Can't you see that I am on your side?"

"Werewolves are evil." she insisted her arms trembling with the unaccostumed weight of the weapons, "You stay back!"

I reached one hand slowly to the jade knife I carried and she tensed up, thinking I was going to attack. Slowly, I drew the knife and then gripped the green blade with my hand.

"Yes, werewolves are evil," I stated and showed her the knife in my palm. "But if I was evil, wouldn't the jade of this knife react to me?" She looked uncertain and then her face hardened.

"How do I know it is actually jade?" She asked and I knelt beside the body of the slain demon. Gripping the handle of the knife, I stabbed the body. Instantly, the jade flared bright green and the body swiftly turned to ash. The princess at last lowered the sword so it's point was on the ground. "Alright, I will listen, but you cannot expect me to trust you again."

"That is fair." I said and sheathed the knife again, but before I could explain, the Vampire's voice came back, echoing on the wind among the trees with some dark enchantment.

"This knight is valiant and pure." He said. "And he will make a fine servant for me. Know that the next time you see him, he will be mine." With that, the voice faded away.

"We have to help him!!" Julianna said urgently, looking at me beseechingly.

"No, even I am not crazy enough to try that." I said. And she looked at me in

shock.

"He is a noble knight, a pure man who trusted you and you are going to abandon him to his fate?" She asked incredulously, her hand gripping the hilt of the sword so strongly that her knuckles were turning white. "You are a coward to abandon a man such as he so easily."

"Look princess, if you knew what going after him entailed you would not be so keen to go charging after his captors." I said, whirling to face her. "If I thought that there was even the slightest chance that we would succeed, I would go, but we don't stand even that chance."

"What do you mean?" She asked. "The way you fight a vampire should be no large problem."

"A vampire yes." I said, and shook my head, grimacing as my wounds closed over, the curse keeping me healthy once more. "But that is no ordinary vampire. It is a Vampiric lord by the name of Redamarc. No one knows how to kill a vampire lord, not even the hunters. Aside from forcing him into the sunlight, nothing will kill him. Believe me, I have tried. Twice I have thought that I killed him, and twice he has risen again. He lives in a mountain fortress built by his powers near here. He has nearly a hundred minions under his control in his fortress and we two alone cannot slay that many."

"Please, I do not know what you are, but I know that somewhere in you lies a human soul. I am begging you." She said, coming close and hanging onto my arm. "He would go into the darkest circle of hell to save me and so I must do the same. He is a close friend of mine and I have to try. Is it not your oath to protect the good people of the world?"

"It is." I answered and sighed, going over to gather my clothing and weapons again. "And so I must try."

"Besides, I may be able to help you to kill Redamarc." She said and I looked at her in surprise. "I was trained by the priests of Auré themselves."

"Then perhaps it can be done after all." I said and hefted my pack to my shoulders before heading out in the direction the demons had gone. "We must hurry or he will be dead before we can get there."

"Then let us run. I can make it, I promise." She said, and it seemed to me that she was saying it more to herself than to me. I nodded and began to run, pausing every now and then to check for the tracks of the demons and their captive. 'Another chase.' I thought, continuing my run. 'Life just keeps getting more interesting every day...'