It was late at night, and a woman walked carrying a bag while looking around, appearing worried. Her steps were clearly hurried as she walked down the dimly lit street, glancing at the corners with concern, but the street remained empty.
Until she passed by an alley, and after a few moments, she heard footsteps behind her. Her body froze, and she tried to walk faster, but her pursuer kept pace. The woman searched with her eyes for a store to hide in, but before she could run, a man quickly passed by her side, violently yanking her bag from her grasp.
The bag's strap separated, and it was torn from the woman, who screamed in fear as she saw the thief running, about to turn the corner.
However, as he turned, a punch landed on his face, sending him tumbling backward into the middle of the street, rolling and coming to a stop on the other side. The woman watched in surprise as a figure in a green cape, half of their face covered, with a bow slung across their body, and a weary expression, sighed and said, "Such an ugly sight; the criminals in this neighborhood are getting more decadent."
As the thief, wearing a cap, got up and pulled a knife from his belt, he stammered, "V-Vigilante? What are you doing here?"
"Why, a fan?" Oliver showed a smile beneath his balaclava and approached the criminal when he stood up. "What kind of question is that? I'm here to put you in the cage."
The criminal continued to stare in fear as he raised his knife, but Oliver walked into his range and said, "Look, I won't use the arrows. So put that junk down, or the worst you'll get is a kick in the behind."
His words made the criminal tremble, but he advanced, raising his hand with the knife. However, in an instant, Oliver kicked the criminal's legs out from under him, causing him to spin in the air and land on his back, once again rolling and groaning in pain.
Oliver slowly raised his leg and kicked the criminal in the back, sending him crashing into the wall of a house with a slight impact, and he remained on the ground, groaning.
Oliver approached and took the bag from the ground, along with the knife, which he crushed lightly while walking over to the woman and handing her the bag, saying, "Hi, good evening. Do you happen to have some paper?"
Some time passed, and the criminal was unconscious and tied to a lamppost with a piece of paper affixed to his forehead, reading, 'Bag Thief.'
Oliver was on a rooftop, bidding farewell to the woman, who waved with a smile as the vigilante nodded and then leaped between the rooftops. Oliver roamed the neighborhood for a while and stopped on the roof of a tall building, coming to a conclusion.
"I focused on areas other than my own backyard to avoid suspicion, but crime seems to have decreased considerably in all these regions." He approached the edge of a building and crossed his arms, looking pensive. "Crime wouldn't decrease so much with just a few dozen criminals apprehended. I leave the apprehension work to the police, but in the end, some information leaks out, even if the arrows disappear after some time. It seems that walls have ears."
With a deep sigh, Oliver jumped and thought, "There's something going on."
After leaping across more buildings, he arrived near the house where the vampires lived and observed from the rooftop. "I'm not fully recovered yet, so I can't go too far. It's better to check something to decide on my next move."
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As he approached the edge, he saw the window open again and watched Wander, just as emaciated as before, eating a reddish soup, making Oliver furrow his brow as he pondered, "Is this what I'm thinking?"
But then, Zoe appeared at the window, about to open it, but when she spotted Oliver, she waved and signaled for him to wait.
Some time passed, and the vampire alerted the other two. Wander also peeked out the window, and Dylan approached. After a brief conversation, the two vampires jumped out of the window and transformed into bats, flying over to Oliver.
One of the vampires passed by and transformed into Dylan, who stood next to Oliver and said, "Hey, we have some news." But then he looked surprised and remarked, "Did you change your outfit?"
"Yeah, a little," Oliver lowered his balaclava, revealing his face without bandages but with a tired expression, and then he continued, "Well, I want to hear, but what should this be?"
Oliver pointed to his shoulder, where a bat rested, and Dylan also looked at it with confusion. They watched as the small creature observed something, and then the bat flapped its wings and flew over to Dylan, turning back into Zoe, who landed and said, "It's as he said, but before we talk, Wander wants to join this meeting..."
"What a quick change of attitude," Oliver reassured his expression and crossed his arms. "We haven't yet reached a conclusion about the extent of the doctoress power, so it's better not to risk it. Or did you discover something so important?"
"It's precisely because we have news. Perhaps we've made some progress regarding the doctoress and the vampires..." Oliver raised his eyebrows in surprise, but then nodded, expecting their answer. Dylan continued, "As you asked, we researched legends of vampires in fiction on various platforms because you mentioned there's no set formula..." He paused briefly and looked at the window where Wander was observing, nodding to indicate that he should proceed. "We conducted tests we could and came to the conclusion that the moon can influence this."
"The moon?"
"Yes, we matched the dates. It's been nearly a month since Wander received the order to kill you. It took us a few weeks to find you and then we fought..." As he spoke, Oliver recalled the battle where the three of them seemed to be evenly matched. "But a few days after we lost, Wander was fine, injured but recovering. Then, he heard the voice again, confirming that you were alive and knowing that we had failed... that's when she imposed this rule for us to kill you, or else Wander would die."
The calm expression faded from Oliver's face; he furrowed his brow, and slowly, certain points began to connect in his mind. "The theory that vampires and creatures of the dark are influenced by the moon is real?"
"Yes..." Dylan extended his hand and explained, "During the day, the sun bothers us, but not to the point of burning as some lesser-known legends suggest. From there, we can guide ourselves a bit more about what else might influence us, and we discovered that the moon, which seems to act at the peak of vampires' power, also..." His voice trailed off, and he was looking at the window, where Wander was observing. "Some legends mention that the peak strength of dark creatures is only during the full moon, but other books discuss the main phrases of the moon related to life and death, but also at its height..."
"Most legends primarily mention the full moon, so if we're basing this on myths..." Oliver interrupted Dylan, squinting as he said, "Apparently, the most well-known myth gains more power and influences vampires, but the second myth still exists, albeit weakened..."
"Yes," Dylan responded.
Dylan was surprised to see the vigilante reaching that conclusion, but Oliver simply averted his gaze, and Zoe continued, "And in four days, it'll be a full moon again, and when that time comes, Wander will likely..."
Her final words were feeble, and an unsettling silence hung in the air. Oliver furrowed his brow, observing as both Zoe and Dylan lowered their heads. In the end, the vigilante let out a sigh, crossing his arms as he turned to look out the window.
As he watched Wander, the vampire appeared to be concerned. Even though he was weakened, Oliver could still see a glimmer of determination in him.
"Older legends get lost along the way, but the more prominent ones endure. In the end, nothing is created; everything transforms," Oliver spoke into the air, sighing once more before continuing, "With three of you, you should be able to research more extensively than I can. But numbers alone won't lead to a conclusion. If you believe Wander can participate, then fine. You did well; don't worry. I have a plan."