She read the documents once more, as she marched surely through the huge corridors of her castle. Her second in command walked close behind, answering firmly all her inquiries.

“How many?”

“Enough to pose a threat, sire. Some towns have suffered a few attacks. The insurgents have noticed our… diplomatic dispute with other clans. A village near our northern border is in dire need of support, for it was raided by a small squad.”

She turned a corner, pondering deeply every fact.

“Do we have any hints of where they hide?”

“Our scouts are trying to track them. Everything points to the forests that bridge our land with the one of Idris. His descendants are far too preoccupied with their hierarchical disputes, so the insurgence does not find much resistance while traversing their domain. Not that many rebels are venturing, but we can’t deal with them as efficiently as before; we are unable to chase them if they cross the delimitations of our territory.”

“If we don’t solve our political disputes or counter the raids thoroughly, the situation will only worsen.”

“Indeed. They know we are vulnerable at the moment. And we all know humanity never lets an opportunity pass by.”

She walked out into the courtyard, heading for the armoury at the opposite side of the castle.

“The soldiers patrolling those areas may be able to deter a few assaults, but they can’t bring them to an end. We need to confront our attackers aggressively, boldly. They need to be inflicted with fear.” She raised a nail, commanding with a resolute tone. “Gather my most adept men; I shall deal with those intruders personally. We part tomorrow, and-“

She shut up. Even her official blinked, because they both heard a few guards yell. The shouts echoed from above.

“Halt, now!”

Nerys stared blankly. She did not know if to chuckle or cry, because she saw a figure running fast through the upper ramparts, chased by a group of guards. Of course, it could only be Bastian.

The altercation had surely started when he tried to test himself and his new strength, by climbing onto something recklessly. Of course, that had disturbed a sentry, which promptly tried to put a stop to his misbehaviour… unsuccessfully.

Instead of stopping, her fledgling had doubled down on his actions. What started as a relatively safe climb had turned into a brash display of vampiric agility. He refused to obey other vampires, and by trying to evade one guard with a sprint, he only caused many more to join the chase.

He was dashing fast at the moment, trying to lose the soldiers behind him with elusive jumps, which he aimed at lower walls and edifices. Like a true tactician, he used the difference in altitude to gain distance, deter his pursuers. They were not as willing to leap as chaotically as him, for they respected the stillness she demanded in the castle.

Nerys sighed and observed the thoughtless pursuit. Part of her was not very troubled by the sight, for she was slightly proud of the strength and agility displayed. During the past month, Bastian had gained more of her traits, and he had felt bound to test them due to instinct. Still, that did not mean she approved his brash behaviour… He was not that skilled, and mishaps were common in his endeavours.

She and her brethren winced, because one of his jumps did not go as planned. With a yelp, he tripped and tumbled down the roof of the quarters. Luckily, it was not a huge fall, and vampirism granted endurance. He did not break any bones when he collided against the stony ground of the courtyard with a loud thud and grunt. Even if he did not get any injuries, the hit still hurt.

“Oww…”

Bastian scowled once his vision cleared, because a shadow was looming over him. He raised his gaze, and of course, Nerys was looking down at him with a stern and exasperated glare. She shook her head, and then handed the documents to her second in command, without looking away from those silver eyes.

“Take care of it.”

“Yes, sire.”

The official hurried away, knowing what to do. Meanwhile, Bastian stood up slowly, giving Nerys a sheepish glance. She was unfazed and unimpressed, tired of his rash audacity.

“Didn’t I tell you to take it easy?”

He outstretched with a groan, smiling somewhat, even if he got a few bruises.

“You told me to understand my change, didn’t you?”

“Yes. But not in such a crude manner!”

“Oh, come on…” He pointed tauntingly at the guards that were glaring at him from above. “They were the ones to act rashly! I was just exercising, honing my skills!”

“You were climbing like an animal, latching onto things with your nails. That is no training, but a disturbance to their vigilance!”

“Ah, no, I need to correct you right there! I have not clawed at anything, because I gripped all the edges I jumped for like a human would! I’ve done no harm!”

“You could have hurt yourself! I’m glad you just fell from that low roof… If you had stumbled over the edge of a tower, I would have been forced to gather your splattered remains!”

“Actually, if my calculations are correct, jumping down from a tower is not that unfeasible. The northern one looms over a nearby rampart, which would be a good landing spot if-“

“Thank god they began to chase you…”

“Have some faith in me, dammit! I’m doing my best!” He smiled a little, having lost some of his apprehension for his condition. Where there was fear, now there was wonder. “You wanted me to be optimistic about this, and I’m trying to! The disease is horrible, but there are positive facts about it! For example, I no longer need light to read at night, thanks to my sharp eyesight! Hell, my blindness has receded a little! I feel more energized lately; I can stay awake all day and night! No longer will I be scolded for missing a meal, because I can just feed once and forget about it for days! I also-”

She just sighed, finding his fluctuating disposition draining.

“Fine, do whatever you want if it keeps you from sulking.” She turned for the armoury, remembering she had to make preparations. “Don’t maim yourself while I’m gone.”

He blinked, taken aback.

“Wait, you are leaving?”

“Yes. I don’t know for how long, perhaps weeks. There are matters I need to attend by the borders.” She whispered under her breath, tired. “I wonder if it is wise to leave you alone…”

Even if he had come to terms with the fact that he had to drink blood, he was still a clueless fool sometimes. He did not understand his senses and needs completely, but he did not want to admit that fact.

“You don’t need to worry about me; I’ll be fine! Sunlight can’t hurt me anymore!”

“I do not fear external factors like the sun or rain, but your callowness. We both know that this confidence of yours is temporary, a façade that dissolves with ease. You may deny the hunger again without my supervision.”

“Can’t deny it, because I drank all that I needed! You told me I would be sated for a whole month!”

“Yes, but I could be gone for longer than that. If you delay feeding, you could easily lose control. I know you try, but you don’t really understand the hunger and its capriciousness. There are many things you don’t grasp yet; the only scent you can trace is the one of blood, and you don’t control your growing strength.”

He frowned, because she was critical of his inexperience. She got into the armoury, and he chased after her, vouching for his aptitude.

“I am willing to learn! You’ve only taught me the fundamentals!”

She halted in front of a rack, where her huge black armour hanged. Her sharp green eyes were reflected on its metal, and she looked into them thoughtfully. She kept quiet for a minute, but then she turned and acknowledged his vexed gaze.

“Teach you…” An idea crossed her mind, one that she had not wanted to consider yet. “Yes, I think it is time I unveil your full potential. You shall not simply exist, but thrive.”

For some reason, the way in which she whispered that last word irked him.

“Thrive?”

Nerys knew that Bastian would dislike her next words, but she said them anyway.

“You are coming with me.”

“…What?”

She had expected that baffled look on his face. And so, she explained calmly and firmly.

“You must follow my ways and learn how to fight as your new self. You are a vampire now, part of my court. Hell, technically, you are a noble. Due to it, you are burdened with certain obligations. You must prove what you are capable of, Bastian.”

“Did you just call me a noble?” He laughed nervously, eyeing his necklace subtly. “I don’t think I do that title justice, Nerys.”

“From a hierarchical point of view, you are one. How to explain this… I have not shared my affliction with anyone since my early days as a vampire. Martha was the first to share my curse, and my other officials followed after. They were the ones to keep expanding my bloodline. Now, you are a fledgling, yet you hold more importance than most due to the fact I sired you directly.” She had not told him all this before, because the mere idea of being a vampire had haunted him enough. With his understanding, however, she could count on him as his liege. “There are few I trust as much as you, Bastian. I could always rely on your judgment… And I wish to keep on doing it, by having you as my advisor and right hand.”

She stepped closer to him, and then laid her claws on his shoulders, gently. His eyes met hers timidly, but they displayed that loyalty she knew well. She spoke seriously, caring yet fearful.

“If I were to die someday, you and my officials would be next in line. I would wish to rest in peace, knowing you can live on in the domain I leave behind. For it, I need you to embrace your vampirism, and challenge this hostile world.”

Bastian took a deep breath and scowled, finding her words grim, yet truthful. Nerys had to ponder the worst of possibilities, for reality was always cruel.

“This really gets to one’s head, doesn’t it?”

“It does. And I hate to have to share it with you.”

Nerys stepped away, to grab her helmet. Bastian stayed silent as she commanded, her graceful expression hidden under that draconian mask.

“We leave tomorrow night.” She left the armoury with one last whisper. “Choose carefully your equipment. It won’t be a journey of leisure.”

His silver eyes closed, understanding that his change had only started.

——-

The night was dark, and also cold. They were far from anywhere, in the wild, roaming vast fields and forests. The fortress was far away, and they would need to travel for days to reach it again.

Their camp was established at a hill, near the border. The first days there were uneventful, for their time was spent scouting with some soldiers. However, it did not take long for her to bring him into the woods, alone. She had tracked down a small group of rebels.

She led him through the forest, with intent. Both were armed, prepared. She carried her sword, while he had a dagger and a new crossbow. The two wore light armour at the moment, for they were prowling, silently.

He was not stupid, her intentions were clear to him. She wished to end those rebels, and sadly, he did not feel any sympathy for them. Two days ago, they had crossed a village that had been raided, and he felt the same ire as her. Houses had been burnt down, and a few civilians had died.

Those insurgents did not deserve his pity, but he still did not relish in the thought of their deaths. He had killed before, and it took a toll on him. Nonetheless, if he had to do it again in order to help others, he would not hesitate.

The two roamed for a full day, and the moon loomed high when they stopped. Nerys nodded to a tree, and then proceeded to climb it without a word. Bastian followed, quite easily, for she had taken some time to instruct him on how to move silently in the dark. Once they were high enough, they perched on a branch, crouched in the shadows. She stayed quiet for a while, but she eventually whispered, almost soundlessly.

“Can you sense it?”

“Sense what?”

“Pay attention. Take a deep breath, there’s a faint distant sound.”

He obeyed, and he hated it. There was indeed an echo, which only beings like them could hear. He had to focus to discern it, for his hunger was sated.

“Heartbeats.”

“Indeed. What else do you perceive? Look closely past the shadows of the trees.”

His sharp silver eyes glinted in the dark as he glared. There was a trail of smoke in the distance; he saw it, but he also picked up its scent clearly. It came from a small campfire, which he would not have noticed as a human.

“I see.”

“Good.” He paled even more when she whispered darkly. “You’ll learn to hunt tonight.”

He smiled very anxiously, because he had only expected her to teach him how to lurk and move as a vampire, nothing else.

“I already know h-how to track wildlife. W-we don’t need to hunt a deer or-“

“We’re not hunting animals.”

He looked again at the faint light and smoke. There were voices, he could hear them. He turned his head very slowly to stare at her, with an unnerved trembling grin.

“You can’t mean…”

She did not only intend to kill those rebels, but set them up as prey. Her next whisper was direct and blunt.

“You’ll feed on them.”

He began to laugh, very quietly. She sighed, because those silver eyes soon rolled back, and then he fell down the tree with a thud.

———

The sun loomed over their camp. The soldiers that roamed it sighed, unable to escape the echo of a strong argument, near a fire.

“I’m not going to bite a human, much less hunt one!”

“You must!” Nerys snarled, because Bastian gave her his back with a scoff. “If one day I’m gone, you will need to survive! You need to learn how to submit an unwilling target! Now you have the opportunity to do so, without guilt!”

“I will feel guilty, no matter what!” He glared at the ground, mouthing a profanity before continuing. “I’d rather starve than prey on someone.”

“Yes, let the hunger grow… You will lose your mind, attack humans mindlessly, and then fuel the flames of a beautiful pyre.”

He was having trouble controlling his emotions, and the disease aroused anger much more than any other.

“I can’t do it, alright?! You said I would not have to be a predator!”

“You won’t be such a thing! A predator hunts innocents, and these insurgents are far from it! They are vile, like some vampires you killed! There’s no difference!”

“It’s n-not the same, dammit! A-at least we did not-“ He knew she was right, but he could not bear the thought. “Rebels don’t feast on vampires!”

She pointed a claw to the distant fields, where a village stood.

“When vampires hunt humans, they consume blood for a purpose. Meanwhile, when most insurgents pursue vampires, they kill in the cruellest way possible out of spite. They burn your new kin alive, constantly, when they could give them a quick end instead. Tell me, do you really believe that feeding is worse than those tortures? They are your enemy now, and they will not doubt to subject you to them.”

He closed his eyes and clenched his fangs, unable to deny her words. They had lurked close to where those rebels hid, and they had caught a glimpse of their camp. He had seen the corpse of a lone vampire, into which the insurgents had stabbed multiple stakes. It did not seem like it had been a quick death. That sight was unforgettable, and it reminded him of many similar ones he witnessed in his past. He could not refute that the acts of some humans were dreadful.

“Nerys, I just…”

She gave her ultimatum, and he listened to it, not due to instinct.

“You need to hunt, Bastian. I don’t like it either… In fact, I hate it. But it must be done. If you don’t learn to seize your prey, you will end up dead. They will pierce you slowly with stakes or burn you on a pyre. You will sate their self-inflicted bloodlust.”

Nerys refused to say more; she stayed silent for the rest of the day. Bastian surrendered to her will and kept quiet, defeated. He waited for dusk, with an uneven heartbeat.

———-

The night was deadly silent. Two figures watched from the shadows, crouching on the branches of a tall tree. The moon rose tall in the sky, providing light to the humans that roamed a secluded camp.

With the sun gone, tiredness soon overwhelmed the men. Even though darkness surrounded them, their heartbeats were calm, for they did not expect anything to lurk in the dense forests. Only one rebel stayed awake, for the rest laid down to sleep. They did not know it, but it would be the last time they would rest willfully. They would soon be forced into an eternal slumber.

The two figures moved, soundlessly. Two pairs of sharp eyes glinted behind the human that kept watch. Those gleams would not be the only thing to shine under the moonlight, for blood would be spilt.

A huge shadow loomed, and before the rebel could know it, a big claw slammed itself over his mouth. His scream was silenced as two large fangs sunk into his neck, making sure to rip open his carotid artery. While he struggled weakly under that deadly grip, a smaller shadow moved fast.

The tall vampire snarled silently and dropped the corpse, the kill fast and efficient. Her green eyes narrowed in exasperation, however, because she noticed that her fledgling did not do as instructed.

Bastian had unsheathed his dagger, quick to approach a man that slept. Instead of sinking his fangs as she did, he cut the rebel’s throat cleanly, silencing a pained gasp with a hand. He killed fast, as efficiently.

Nerys let out a silent growl, for he had feigned conformity before their attack. He had said he would bite, but it was clear that he had lied to her. Still, she could not afford to argue with him, not now. Both stopped glaring at each other, because another human woke up with a jolt, having heard the dying breaths of one of his comrades.

“Vampires!”

All ten remaining rebels were now alert, getting to their feet with their weapons in hand. She could only growl in annoyance.

“Shit…”

Bastian saw Nerys outstretch her arms and open her big claws, taking an offensive stance with a loud hiss. She dashed towards their foes, not bothering to unsheathe her sword, her own body deadly enough. Meanwhile, he gripped his dagger tighter, not having nails as sharp as hers.

He did not hesitate to kill. His agility allowed him to dodge their slashes with ease, and four soon fell to the ground dead. He could have bitten or clawed at them, yet he only used his weapon instead.

She did not show the same apprehension towards her nature. If there was an opening for it, she mauled and maimed. Her fangs were deadly, and she did not doubt to bare them. Moreover, not only was she dangerous, but resilient. One rebel tried to strike her with a torch, and to his horror, she did not even blink. The fire did not hurt her; it did not even scare her.

She snarled and slammed a claw around that rebel’s neck, to then raise him up in the air. The other three that still lived shivered, for her fangs sunk again, deeply. After a fast pull and rip, she let that unfortunate human drop at her feet, to lunge for the rest.

The earth was painted in red by the time the fight ended. With no one left to stop her, she could afford to take her time feeding. She kept the last living man in a headlock, not needing to use much force to keep him still.

She did not stop, not until there was no more blood to consume. At last, her feral and invigorated daze faded, and she let the corpse fall from her hold. Her green eyes moved subtly, wishing to see what her fledgling was doing. Once more, she was disappointed. There was no red on his lips, no hint that he had bitten during the fight. All his foes were dead, due to the stabs of a dagger.

“Bastian…” He refused to meet her gaze, knowing she was glaring disapprovingly. “You’ve wasted your chance.”

Those sharp silver eyes glinted, darkly. She blinked, because he sheathed his weapon, to then crouch by the last human he killed.

“I haven’t.”

Nerys snarled, for Bastian began to feed on the deceased, who still had blood to spare.

“You shouldn’t do that.”

His fangs slid out after a minute, carefully. He let down the corpse slowly, as respectfully as he could. His next whisper was sorrowful, but also firm.

“It is still blood.”

“If you bring them down with a blade, blood is wasted, spilt. And any that is left is not as fresh, so it’s less satiating. The disease senses life, and you should heed those instincts. You must bite, and subdue any struggles with your claws. If you feed on the dead, you will be seen as a weakling, a scavenger.”

All clans believed that feeding from a corpse was something degrading, an act that was only committed by savage loners or shameless peasants. Such a principle did not arise due to their respect towards the dead.

“I have little care for those arrogant anathemas.” He stood, and then turned away to leave behind the carnage. “I’ll feed as I wish. As long as I do, you can’t denounce me.”

He walked away, without waiting for her to follow, headed for their camp. She just sighed and averted her gaze from the blood, understanding his intentions and motives.

They had gotten rid of the rebels that afflicted the region… But she knew that more would come, and that the bloodshed would continue.