´This is ridiculous! Totally unacceptable! It's your duty to protect us!`

Tealas stood with Odefin a few paces away from the angry merchant who was yelling at the city guard. He had been yelling for quite some time. Behind them reared a beautiful white mansion with numerous tall windows, balconies, and decorations. They waited in its well-kept garden with trees, flowering bushes, and a small pond.

However, the garden had seen better days. Six dead guards covered by white sheets lay on the blood-flecked grass. The lawn was torn in patches where swords had sliced into the ground or people had fallen.

´They were in my room! MY room!` the merchant kept yelling. ´They stole very important papers and killed my guards. This is supposed to be a safe district. How can you call this safe?`

The city guards, a captain, and some other high ranking guards tried to calm the man down to no avail.

Tealas understood why he was upset. Apparently, some burglars had got into his bedroom, drugged him, and robbed him. Then they had proceeded to kill his guards on their way out. Four had been found dead in the garden when they arrived and two more by the small back gate. The remaining three guards were in terrible condition and had been rushed to the healers as soon as humanly possible. None of that was particularly interesting to the vampire hunters. But the way they had died was.

Two guards had been killed by sword slashes, two by poisoning, and the last two had bite marks on their throats. That was the interesting part.

Tealas wasn't sure if this was the right vampire. It was in the wrong district and working together with at least four or five other people. Breaking and entering. Not that it mattered. If there was another vampire, they'd find and kill this one too. But it did complicate things. Looking for two vampires at the same time wasn't practical. So, to be efficient, they should probably ignore this case and try finding out what had happened to the darkelf. This was likely a more experienced vampire since it worked with other people.

The hunters inspected the garden. It was surrounded by a tall stonewall, tipped by metal spikes to discourage people from climbing over. As Tealas studied the wall, a gust of wind caused something dark to flutter from the spikes.

´What's that?` he asked and pointed.

Odefin squinted up and shrugged. ´A piece of cloth? Torn off from someone climbing the wall?` he answered and strode closer.

´That's what I thought,` Tealas mumbled and followed.

He examined the ground for tracks. A pair of imprints in the grass some way off from the torn cloth caught his attention. Probably someone jumping down from the wall and into the garden, he thought. It was a very high jump. Not something an ordinary person would do without good reason. The footprints lead towards the house. He followed them straight to some blood-stains on the wall, partially hidden behind trampled rose bushes.

He studied it for a while, pondering. Maybe someone had hit the wall, fallen down, then walked out through the bushes. Hurt, but still alive. Had the vampire thrown someone? He scratched his scar absently and tried to follow the tracks further, but it proved impossible. There were too many and the city guard had also stepped around in it. Tealas frowned and gave up.

Just as he was about to go, something glinted in the grass. He bent down and picked it up. A throwing knife. He strolled back to where Odefin stood by the wall, stowing the knife away into his pocket.

´Found anything?` he asked.

Odefin shook his head and glanced up. ´I can't get up there without a ladder,` he laughed.

´Maybe we can check the outside?` Tealas wondered quietly.

´Yeah, probably. Why?` Odefin answered.

Tealas walked towards the back gate in the wall. ´I found footprints. Probably someone jumping down from the wall. Maybe there's something on the other side too,` he explained.

Odefin adjusted his backpack as he followed Tealas to the door. They opened it and noticed a scorch mark on the ground right outside.

´What happened here?` Odefin asked and carefully stepped around the mark.

Tealas looked at the cobbles. Small pieces of thin glass lay everywhere. ´Probably the explosive potion the guards got in their faces,` he replied grimly. ´Seems the cloud that erupted in the blast was poisonous. None died in the explosion, but two succumbed some time later. The other three are being treated in the Heldest temple.`

Odefin cleared his throat and rubbed his nose with an uncomfortable look.

´There's no poison here now, Odefin,` Tealas said with a slight smile on his thin lips. ´It's been blown away with the wind a long time ago.`

´You can't be too certain,` he replied and backed away.

They followed the wall on the outside, looking for the cloth on the spikes. Once below it, Tealas searched for tracks again. The cobbles made it hard to spot anything, but in the gravel along the edge of the street, he found partial prints from some kind of impact. Tealas studied them, then glanced back up to the wall.

´He could have jumped over both ways. On the way back out and in a hurry, he didn't take as good care and ripped his clothes on the spikes. If we're lucky, maybe someone has seen a person with a ripped cloak.` He glared around at the alley and sighed. This hunt was becoming slow and tedious. They were always a step behind.

´Do you think this is the same vampire or...?` he asked, looking at his friend hopefully.

Odefin pouted for a second. ´Beats me,` he said. ´It could be anyone. There is more than one vampire in this city.`

Tealas nodded, annoyed about the whole thing. His face hardened. ´We need to get this bastard. Before it kills too many,` he stated. ´I think we should go to that ranger school and ask about this elf. Maybe we can track his family down? Some relatives?`

Odefin studied Tealas with a frown. ´Why do we need to find his relatives?` he asked ´He's clearly not going back home to them.`

Tealas stalked back to the gate in the wall. ´We could use them to lure him out perhaps? Set a better trap? He's not going back to them because he doesn't want to hurt them,` he mused.

Odefin stopped, watching Tealas back for a short moment before following again. ´We can use the boy for that,` he said as he caught up. ´He's probably a lot easier to find and catch anyway. And he's a criminal.`

Tealas spun around. ´Yes. But family would be a lot more effective, don't you think?` he said, his pale eyes wide.

´It's not right,` Odefin began.

´Vampires are not right!` Tealas snapped and turned away with a snort.

A worried frown deepened the lines in Odefin's forehead as he followed.

When they got back into the garden, the rich merchant was still yelling at the guards. Their eyes met and, after a quick hushed conversation, they left. They didn't want to spend the entire day listening to an angry man yelling when they could get things done. First, they wanted to visit the Heldest temple and talk to the surviving guards.

The temple wasn't located in the temple district like most of the popular deities' temples were. Instead, it lay close to some hospitals and almshouses. It was expensive to get treatment from true healers, but unlike doctors, they could heal anything and left fewer traces of the maladies.

Tealas and Odefin left their horses in a large stable beside the lush temple garden and went in. Orderly flowerbeds with healing plants and herbs lined the path. Some had signs by them, warning people from touching. They were highly poisonous, but if used correctly, they could become healing potions and antidotes.

Clerics meandered through the garden, tending to plants, and patients in areas with benches and gazebos.

The temple itself was an elegant stone building with tall narrow windows, topped with many high pointed roofs adorned with stone gargoyles in the corners. Alcoves with statuettes decorated the walls. In the middle of the temple, where it opened up into a small courtyard, lay another garden. In its centre stood a white statue of a female Astra. A winged humanoid being in robes with a finely chiseled face, a feathered tail, and long wavy hair. The Astra held a chalice that poured water into a fountain below the statue's base.

Tealas and Odefin entered through the big temple doors. They were greeted by a young cleric dressed in the white and gold robes of Heldest. Her brown hair was twisted into a knot at the back of her head, and a silver necklace with the head of a unicorn hung around her neck.

´Good afternoon, gentlemen,` she said pleasantly. ´Please, leave your arms in the weapons house.` She smiled and gestured to a room on her left. ´No weapons are allowed inside,` she explained as they hesitated.

´We would rather not leave them here,` Tealas said, glancing into the room.

´If it makes you more comfortable, I can lock it.` She produced the keys from her belt.

The hunters nodded and complied, removing their weapons and placing them against the wall. A trickle of unease ran down Tealas' spine as he left the room. The cleric smiled, locked the door, and hung the keys from her belt.

´What's stopping people from taking the weapons or your keys?` Tealas asked. The young priestess didn't look like she could defend herself if someone were to attack, he thought.

To his surprise, she smiled confidently. ´They're welcome to try. Now, what brings you here? I assume you're here to visit someone,` she said and studied them. ´You don't look like you require help yourselves.`

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

´We're here for the three guards that were brought here this morning for poisoning,` Tealas explained.

Her face hardened. ´They are in the infirmary. They were close to death. I don't know if they are well enough to accept visitors yet. I can inquire if you wish?` She studied them with her kind blue eyes, waiting for their answer.

´We're coming with you,` Tealas answered.

She fiddled with her necklace uncomfortably. ´I really think I should ask the tending cleric first,` she protested.

´We're in a hurry and it's of the utmost importance,` Tealas said with conviction. ´If they are awake, we need to talk to them.`

The young cleric nodded slowly. ´Come with me then,` she said. ´But be quiet and don't disturb the other patients. And if the tending cleric says they're not ready to talk, you'll leave,` she stated firmly.

The hunters agreed and followed her into the beautiful temple.

They entered a room with many beds in neat lines, patients laying in about half of them. Thin white curtains covered the windows, allowing for light to pass through but making it hard to see inside. The guards were in beds beside each other. One sat up, looking tired and pale. The other two slept.

An old cleric with a long grey beard tended to another patient, a young girl with a flushed red and sweaty face. He looked up as they entered. The priestess spoke quietly with him for a few moments before nodding to the hunters. They were allowed to talk with the guard.

Tealas and Odefin explained who they were and asked what he had seen. Anything at all that he could remember was of importance they told him.

´I'm not sure,` the guard said tiredly. ´We came out of the house and saw that our comrades had been killed. There were several darkly dressed strangers in the garden. They fled as they saw us.` He coughed and lifted a mug from a table beside the bed to his mouth and drank. ´I remember a big man with a big, black beard. Like a giant,` he said, somewhat impressed. ´I'm not sure about the others. But one jumped over the wall. Had long black hair, I think. I couldn't believe that anyone could jump like that.` He looked up into the ceiling as he remembered the sight.

Tealas and Odefin exchanged glances.

´We ran after the others,` the guard continued. ´They went through the gate in the wall. But when we came out, one of them threw something at us. It exploded into a cloud.` He paused with a glance at the sleeping guards beside him. ´It was some kind of poison. Illar and Hasrik were completely engulfed by the cloud. They didn't make it.` He sighed. ´We all felt terrible afterwards. Coughing and lungs hurting. It took about an hour before they died. We felt worse and worse and were rushed to the healers.` He drank some more from the mug.

Tealas was intrigued. It seemed as if the darkelf might have been involved after all. Unless there were more black-haired vampires in the area of course. ´The one that jumped over the wall. Did you see what it looked like?`

The guard shook his head to Tealas' disappointment. ´I didn't really notice him until he jumped. He had long dark hair and a black cape. That's all I know.` He studied the hunters for a while. ´What was he? No normal human can jump like that.`

´A vampire,` Tealas said grimly.

The guard stared at him, took a sip from the cup. ´Makes sense, I suppose. It sure wasn't normal.` He was interrupted by a coughing fit that shook the entire bed.

Odefin sidled back, covering his nose. Tealas hid a smile behind his hand.

The old cleric walked up to the hunters, glanced at the guard, and firmly told them to leave. ´He needs to rest to regain his strength,` he said. ´He shouldn't talk too much.` The old man stroked his beard and ushered them out of the room.

They retrieved their weapons and ventured out into the blazing hot sun again. Odefin puffed in the heat after the cool rooms in the temple, and Tealas used his hat to cool himself off for a bit before putting it back on.

´Sounds like our vampire after all,` Tealas said with a focused look as they went to the horses. ´It's joined a group of some kind it seems,` he mumbled. ´I didn't think it would be possible for such a young vampire. It must be very strong.`

Odefin gave Tealas a worried look. ´Yes, it's unusual. He shows a remarkable amount of control already,` he answered. ´To be able to work in a group like that, even fight with them. If it is him.`

Tealas grimaced and kicked his horse into motion. ´It is! Let's go to the ranger school.`

Odefin hurried his heavier horse after his friend with a sinking feeling in his stomach. Not only did it seem like the vampire was a lot stronger than they had suspected, but now Tealas were going for a plan that he didn't agree with. It didn't feel right. But maybe it was the only way, Odefin thought miserably. He threw a concerned glance after his friend. Tealas was beginning to show signs of being overworked again. They needed a break. This had been supposed to be a quick matter, not a long chase.

* * * * *

Brandal and Glissai walked along the streets, looking around, smelling the air. They had been searching for the rogue vampire for a few days. It had become increasingly hard to search since the city guards had increased in numbers and ceased following their normal routes. They could appear anywhere and at any time.

The blonde woman frowned in annoyance and puckered her lips. She heard them again, marching feet from a nearby street. They had spotted a pair of vampire hunters early one evening, looking around and talking with some Eldon paladins. Those pesky Eldon knights made it really hard to get anything done, she thought angrily. Hunting was hard and they had to run further away, into other areas, to be able to get any kills without being noticed now. That in itself was also risky. They were trespassing on other clan's territories. If they noticed, they might retaliate and attack them.

Hearing the patrol closing in, she poked Brandal on his shoulder with the back of her hand, jumped, grabbed the edge of a nearby roof and pulled herself up in one swift motion. She turned and held out a hand for the younger man.

He ran and jumped after her, grabbing her hand and was quickly pulled up. It had taken them only a few seconds. The guards marched down the street, oblivious to the shadows on the roof above.

When the guards had passed by, they jumped back down again. Brandal landed on all fours, stood back up and brushed his hands off, frowning. Glissai looked him over with a humorless smile.

´Why are there so many of them?` he said and ruffled his ear-length dark hair with a hand. He looked down the street after the patrol.

´The stupid rogue has poked the wasps' nest,` Glissai replied and set off again.

´But where did he go?` He hurried after the woman.

They had found out that the vampire had a helper, a young boy. And they had found their old hiding place. But where they had gone then seemed a mystery. And even worse, Ulcaras Thilden, their clan leader, was mocking them for not finding the rogue.

Glissai was displeased. All she wanted was to prove herself and help Brandal get more experience. She didn't like being mocked. She tossed her head in pride and annoyance as she walked towards the inn. Brandal observed in silence and followed.

´There he is.` Brandal nodded towards a figure standing by the inn.

Glissai looked up and sniffed the air. A cloaked man leaned against the building, his face hidden within the shadows of his hood. She recognized his unwashed smell. He was a spy and an informant that wasn't bound by loyalty to any guild or faction, though he was involved in more than one. Maybe he'd give some information about the rogue's whereabouts, she hoped. He had probably fled the area. It was too dangerous with all the paladins and guards, and he didn't belong to a clan and so he wouldn't care about entering other vampires' territories. He probably didn't even know about them.

They walked up to the spy and causally nodded as they passed him by. He straightened lazily and walked along with them.

´So, what did you find?` Brandal asked impatiently.

The man regarded him briefly before turning to Glissai. She nodded. ´There's a thieves guild...` He held out a hand.

Glissai gave him a displeased look but produced a small leather pouch. It jingled as she placed it in his hand.

He opened it and studied the contents for a short time before pocketing it. ´There's a rumor that a vampire joined a thieves guild in Riverside district. The Iron Lock,` he mumbled.

´What do you know of the vampire?` Brandal asked.

The man looked flatly at him and held out a hand.

With a sigh, Brandal gave him another small pouch of money.

The man smiled, his teeth gleaming in the shadows of the hood. ´It's a pointy-eared one. A desert-elf or something. Dark,` he said. ´There's a lot of whispering about it. They wanna keep it quiet. But there's always those who can't keep their mouths shut. So I had a look.` He gave a sudden, dry laugh. ´Sleepin' like the dead.`

´Was that all?` Glissai asked.

The man nodded, glanced around and walked away from them, following an intersecting street. The vampires' eyes met, glittering with excitement.

´We'll have him soon,` Brandal said with a smile. ´He'll pay for causing us this much trouble.`

Glissai nodded. ´Let's go to Riverside and have a look around.` She lenghtened her steps into a run, her fast footfalls barely making any sound.

Brandal hurried after her lithe figure as fast as he could. He wasn't as fast or as strong as her but wouldn't let her outshine him that easily.

* * * * *

´It's not up for debate.` Jackal steepled his fingers in front of him on the table and looked sternly at the red-haired young man.

´But he scares me.` Gesald fidgeted. ´He threatens me all the time.` He looked hopefully at the guild leader.

´I gave you a job. A quite easy job in fact. Whenever the vampire is in the guild, follow him and see that nothing happens, and give him what he needs.` He paused and gave the young man a steely gaze. ´Is that too hard for you?`

Flustered, Gesald shook his head. ´It's not too hard!` he said, raising his voice. ´But the vampire doesn't like me and I'm scared he'll attack me.`

´If he does, he's out of the guild quicker than he can blink,` Jackal replied and leaned back in his chair.

´But if he does, I'll be dead!` Gesald protested.

´You'll be avenged if that happens,` Jackal said coolly. ´But he's promised not to.`

Gesald paled but realized he wasn't getting anywhere with this conversation.

´And threats, what's that?` Jackal continued. ´Has he tried to kill you?`

Gesald shook his head, his red hair flying around his face.

´Has he beat you?`

Again, Gesald shook his head.

´Has he threatened to kill you?`

´No, but...` Gesald tried again.

Jackal hit the table with the flat of his hand and stood up. ´Then get out and do your job,` he said slowly and clearly. ´If you cannot take some angry words and threatening looks... What are you doing in a thieves guild?`

Gesald swallowed audibly and took a step back. ´I'm... I'm sorry. I'll do it,` he said weakly. He didn't want to be thrown out. He was scared of the vampire, but being alone in the streets without the protection of the guild was much worse.

´Good,` Jackal said and sat back down again. ´What are you waiting for? Get to it.`

Gesald hastily left the room, his heart racing. He couldn't ”get to it” right now, however. It was afternoon and the vampire still slept. He was happy about that. Hopefully, the elf would leave the house soon enough and do whatever he was doing. But every time Gesald met those orange eyes, he felt weak and vulnerable. He was sure the vampire knew it.

Why couldn't those crazy people who worked with the monster watch him? It didn't make sense to force him to do it. He was just a normal man. He was good at remembering things and keeping things orderly. He could steal fairly well too. But he wasn't a brave fighter and if attacked, he was sure the vampire would kill him. Stuffing his hands into his pockets, he went to the dining room. Better get something in his system before dark. He always worked nights, regardless of whether the vampire was around or not, keeping track of who came and left the building. He also had a book to deliver, he remembered then.