Ulcaras Thilden, a pale man with a freckled face and blue eyes, a well-trimmed red beard, and long curly hair lounged on a fine chair. Dressed in a green embroidered doublet, and black breeches and boots, Thilden looked very fashionable. Surrounding him, was about fifteen other men and women in fine clothes. They sat in groups around tables, socializing and drinking from nice crystal glasses. The large room was lit by heavy chandeliers bearing many candles. Heavy deep-red velvet drapes covered every window.

A man in his early thirties rose from his table, walked up to Ulcaras, and bowed. His dark ear-length wavy hair framed a handsome pale face with grey eyes. His paleness was enhanced by his black clothes, only interrupted by his white, embroidered tunic. On his black jacket sat a big silver brooch.

´The rogue,` he said. ´How long are we going to tolerate him?` He had an angry look in his eye and tapped his foot on the floor irritably. ´He's causing us even more trouble now.`

´How so?` Ulcaras asked, sleepily studying the wine glass in his hand.

The younger man frowned and folded his arms. ´He's wanted now. There's posters all over the district. Vampire hunters are in the area!`

Ulcaras looked up. ´Really?´ He took a small sip from the glass.

The young man nodded. ´Can we get rid of him?`

´Brandal,` Ulcaras said and leaned forward in his chair. ´What's stopping you?`

Brandal looked at his master in surprise. ´I thought you said to leave him be?` he asked tentatively.

´Yes. Because they usually get themselves killed, don't they?` He put the glass down.

Brandal nodded.

´But now, if he's becoming an inconvenience, get rid of him,` Ulcaras said with a calm smile, waving a ringed hand dismissively.

Brandal relaxed his stance. ´Can I do it?`

The master's eyebrows raised. ´You?` His smile widened into a grin. ´You're the youngest of us.`

´I can help him.` A woman in a beautiful green dress rose from one of the tables in the room. Her long blonde hair, braided and fastened up with silver hairpins, was partially covered by a thin, yellow veil. She smiled and curtsied to the master. ´I would like to go,` she added.

Brandal nodded thankfully to her before turning back to Ulcaras. ´Well?` he asked with poorly disguised eagerness.

Ulcaras studied them for a moment, then waved them off. ´Go. But don't draw attention to yourself,` he cautioned.

The woman sniffed and lifted her chin. ´Of course not. We're not amateurs.`

The pair left the room with graceful flair. The chatter in the room increased behind them as the others discussed the outcome. Some even placed bets. Ulcaras leaned back and listened to their talk, hoping this would be a good exercise for their newest member. He'd never been sent out before to kill another of their kind. But with Glissai at his side, he should be fine, he mused.

* * * * *

Sern woke up, his body heavy and sluggish after lost sleep and last night's hustle and bustle, looking for Ranloo. He had slept like a log all day, undisturbed by the sounds of the busy house.

He sat up, yawning and rubbing his eyes with his hands. His gaze travelled around the room. Ranloo sat upright on the other bed, staring at him. Sern's heart skipped a beat and his back stiffened. Almost immediately, he tried to calm himself down.

Was it night already? He must have slept all day. Taking a deep slow breath, he slid his legs over the edge of the bed, away from the vampire. A building panic constricted his chest. He knew Ranloo hadn't eaten last night, and there was no animal outside for him. He set his feet down on the floor, not looking away from the elf, and stood up.

´Mo... evenin',` he said and attempted to smile.

The vampire didn't respond, his amber eyes locking onto Sern in a piercing stare. Sern swallowed nervously. He wished being friends with a vampire wasn't quite this exciting. He slid a foot back over the floorboards.

´I'll just... go an' get you somethin' t' eat, 'kay?` he said in low voice, trying not to agitate him. Another step back, inching his way towards the door. Ranloo followed his every move, silently staring.

Sern reached out with his hand behind him, feeling for the lock on the door, not daring to look away. His fingers found the hatch, travelled along it to the lock, fumbling. The key hit the floor with a rattle. A curse flew out as he automatically twisted his head to see where it had gone. It lay right behind him. He looked back up and flinched. Ranloo had moved off the bed and stood, stooped low. Staring.

How had he moved so silently, Sern wondered in mild terror. Crouching down, he found the key behind him with quivering fingers, grasped it, and slowly stood back up again.

´You're kinda scarin' me now,` he told the vampire, voice shaking. ´I'd love if you'd stop starin', an'... well, lemme leave.`

Ranloo looked like he was about to say something, his mouth opening slightly. But instead of answering, he smoothly shifted forward around his bed. Sern could discern the vampire's sharp canines behind his parted lips.

Barely daring to breathe and only moving his arm, Sern set the key into the lock, turned it, lifted the hatch, and pushed the door open. He took a tentative step towards the doorway, then another, and another, slowly backing out, the vampire stalking after him. Once outside, he reached out and slammed the door shut in Ranloo's face. He forced the key into the lock and twisted.

Then he ran.

Loud bangs resounded behind him as the vampire pounded on the door again and again. Sern bolted towards the animal market. It was probably closed, but the animals were kept there during the night as well. He had no time to buy one this time, he'd have to steal, and quick.

A loud crash echoed behind him. The door. Adrenaline coursed through his body as he sped down the streets. He had to get to the animals before the vampire caught up with him. Of course, he might get lucky and meet some poor bastard in the street. But so far he saw no one.

Careening around a corner, he saw the dark shadow of his friend coming after him at full speed. With a frightened squeak, he accelerated, his life on the line. He took another sharp turn and entered the market. Almost saved. He didn't dare look back as he scanned the stalls for an animal, any animal that was big enough.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

´Hey! Stop!` a voice shouted as he got close to the pens. A guard. Of course, the animals were never left unattended. There'd be more than one about. He'd forgotten about that in his panic.

Cursing, he ran past the guard and jumped over a fence into a pack of sheep. They bleated and darted everywhere as he careened into them. He fell on his face in the pen but scrambled back up.

´I said stop! Or I'll call the city guard on you, thief!` the guard threatened as he gave chase. Sern didn't even glance back as he set off again.

A thud followed by a dull crunching made Sern cringe. He'd rather not find out where it came from. He kept running, zigzagging between stalls and animals. On the other side of the marketplace he slowed to a stop. Sweating and heaving for air, he leaned against a pillar by a house.

He looked back, trying to spot where the vampire was. He didn't see him in the dark, but at least he wasn't following anymore. He stood still, catching his breath for a while. Then voices started yelling from the market. The other guards reacting to the first one's call, closing in. Sern sighed and decided to take a great risk. He had to try and help Ranloo. Even though, right now, it seemed like a bit much.

He sneaked back on shaky legs and located the guards. Circling around them, he avoided the light from their torches. The unsettled animals moved around nervously, bleating and calling. It wasn't hard to go unnoticed. He opened a pen with some cows, picked up a stick, went in and smacked a cow over its back. It bucked and bolted forward. Hollering, Sern hit a few more of the big animals, shooing them towards the opened gate. They rushed out of the pen, causing quite a stir.

Angry shouts preceded the guards as they came rushing towards him.

´Hey!` he yelled and threw the stick at them, making an obscene gesture before turning to run. His legs hurt from the previous day's exertion, but he kept going. The guards gave up almost immediately, busy capturing the running cows instead. He smiled briefly. Everything had gone as planned. Well, almost. Now he had to find Ranloo again.

Finding Ranloo proved a lot easier than he had thought. He barely got down one street before he spotted the tall elf walking towards him. Sern hesitated, prepared for anything. But Ranloo wasn't running, he was walking and upon spotting Sern, raised a hand to show he was alright. Sern closed his eyes, drawing a deep breath. This nerve-racking night hadn't started very well, he thought. Ranloo strode up to him and stopped. Sern noticed that his hands were covered in blood.

´Hello,` Sern said breathlessly. ´Are you done?` He looked Ranloo in his eyes, waiting for a reply.

Ranloo averted his gaze. ´I'm sorry. I was too hungry, I couldn't see it was you.`

Sern nodded shakily, still reeling from the shock. ´Well, you got someone else,` he giggled, unable to quench the sudden bubbling laughter.

´What's funny about that?` Ranloo snapped, an angry note entering his voice.

´Nothin',` he replied, helplessly giggling. He was too tired, too stressed out for this. He couldn't stop. Fearing Ranloo would get offended, he clapped his hands over his mouth.

Ranloo folded his arms. ´Are you drunk?`

Sern shook his head, shoulders shaking.

´What's wrong with you?` Exasperated, Ranloo grabbed Sern by the shoulders, leading him further away, casting worried glances behind him. Tears ran from Sern's eyes as he tried to stop laughing. This situation was too absurd.

Ranloo forced him into a dark alley and pushed him against a wall, not too unkindly. ´Stop it now,` he hissed.

Sern nodded, took a deep breath and dried his tears, avoiding to look at Ranloo for fear of laughing again.

Ranloo searched his face, his eyebrows furrowed. ´What's up with you?`

Sern pulled himself together and cleared his throat before answering. ´You! You scared me to death.` He poked Ranloo in the chest. ´You broke our door an' made me jump into a sheep pen an' fall on my face. Then I had to save you from the guards by letting a bunch of cows loose in the street.` He started giggling again. ´You're a terrible friend!`

Ranloo's mouth twitched. ´And you're a lost cause,` he replied. ´You must be mad, it's the only explanation.` He shook his head, grasped Sern's arm, and pulled him along.

Circling around the market, they returned to the inn, making sure nobody saw them. They found the door wide open, the lock hanging loosely, the wood broken around it. They looked at it for a while in silence.

´So, how do we fix that?` Ranloo sighed, tired of it all. Everything was so complicated since he'd become a vampire. He had lived in a fairly normal orderly world, he'd thought. Then madness had descended on him like a thunderstorm, making everything hard and painful.

Sern shrugged. ´I'll ask the innkeeper in the morning,` he replied and entered the room. Ranloo pulled the door shut behind them, using some force.

They stayed in the room talking for some time. Ranloo made Sern promise to never again go to sleep in the same room as himself unless there was food for him available nearby. Sern agreed, not willing to have another near death experience. But he excused it by reminding Ranloo about the crazy days before. Then they discussed how to move to a new place. They couldn't stay here much longer. Too many were looking for them, and now another person had died almost right by their doorstep.

´I'll go see if I can find Jackal,` Sern said after a while.

Ranloo looked up, raising his eyebrows. ´Who's that?`

´A pal. Kinda,` he answered. ´He can help us find a better hidin' place faster. If I can just find 'im,` he explained.

Ranloo examined his left arm carefully, flexing it. ´Is he hard to find?` he asked absently.

Sern nodded, his eyes following the elf's moves. ´Yes, he's a guild leader. He doesn't wanna be found too easy. But since I know 'im, I'm allowed to find 'im usually.` He smiled proudly.

Ranloo glanced back at Sern, a half-smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. ´You're friends with a guild leader?` he said in a disbelieving tone. ´Let me guess. A thieves guild?`

Sern's smile widened. ´Yeah, of course. What other guild would have me?`

Ranloo laughed. ´I suppose you're right. Okay, will it be long?`

Sern stood and rested his hands on his hips, looking thoughtful. ´Maybe. Can't really say. But I'll try an' be as quick as possible. But don't wait up for me,` he said and winked.

Ranloo huffed, looking mildly offended. ´I couldn't wait even if I wanted,` he replied with fake bitterness.

Sern grinned and left through the back door with a wave.

´Be careful,` Ranloo said to the empty doorway after he'd gone.

Ranloo sighed, sat down and looked about the room. Alone again. He hated to be alone.

He wondered about his family. They must have heard he'd been attacked and vanished in Jaris by now. His children would probably be in complete denial, seeing their father as an undefeatable hero. He closed his eyes, overwhelming sadness threatening to overcome him. Taking a deep breath, he wondered how well Minira would hold up. She was strong. But then again, she had just lost her husband. And he would never see their fair faces again. And it was that vampire's fault. Baleful rage smoldered in his heart at the thought. That vampire had ruined everything. Taken everything from him.

His eyes stung as his hands wandered mindlessly, poking the holes in his tunic, pulling the hems, fiddling with his pockets. Finding something small and square, Ranloo pulled it out and studied the object. A gaming die made from some blue stone.

The memory of the white-robed stranger came to him. He squirmed on the bed, the hairs on his neck prickling. Turning the die around he studied it closely. It looked perfectly normal. But who had he got it from? What had shown itself to him? A ghost? Some dead priest? That'd explain the strange way he'd vanished. He looked at the die again. It was very solid. Could ghosts do that? It didn't sit right with him. And those eyes, they had been so dark, so intense. He shifted and ran his fingers through his hair. For some reason, the man had terrified him. He didn't like it.

Feeling slightly ill, Ranloo placed the die on the table and paced around the room. He spotted himself in the mirror, dirty and blood-stained again. He sighed. What was the world coming to? He looked a mess. He'd have to ask Sern to get him new clothes again. He didn't want to go out looking like this. It would draw too much attention. Sighing, he shuffled back to sit on the bed. His eyes went unbidden to the die. He didn't know what to make of it.