Dyo was torn between breaking down and vomiting. The gut-churning sound of the wet ripping and tearing of flesh filled the air. Hreysti coating himself with blood from his new “meal” as he tore chunks of flesh from it with his bare hands.

The vampire seemed to have no control over himself as he feasted on the guts of the man. Piling chunks of intestine and flesh as his mouth shovelled them in. It even ripped chunks off with its mouth when its arms could not keep up or to lap up the blood pooling in the corpse’s body.

Dyo took a few shaky steps forwards as he edged towards his- friend…

It had only been a few moments ago that he was perfectly in control, but now…

He saw why Hreysti had called himself a monster when he had first met him. The vampire in front of him, ripping and tearing at that still-warm body, acted more like an animal than a person. The picture of a feral wolf jumping to mind.

The sickening sound of a bone snapping cracked around the clearing as he ripped a rib away. His hand foraging around as he took a large bite of flesh, the hand coming out with the man’s liver as he started to devour it.

And as he watched the vampire rip it in half with his teeth and swallow it, that was when Dyo’s stomach couldn’t take it anymore. The blood and fluids everywhere, the sounds, the sight of it so close-

He threw up on the ground. His body doubled over with convulsion as he grasped onto a tree for dear life.

The vampire flicked around, hungry eyes staring at the vulnerable demigod.

Dyo looked up, his gaze meeting that of the gawking monster, a small sliver of meat hanging out of its mouth.

In that one, horrible moment, Dyo thought he was next.

Then those red eyes started to tremble, the softness returning as Hreysti’s taut muscles relaxed. His blood lust seeping away as he saw Dyo. His eyes, his tears, his disgust.

Hreysti looked down.

He saw it. The corpse. The macerated, shredded, half-eaten corpse. He felt the thick blood coating him. He tasted the blood and the flesh in his mouth. He smelt Dyo’s vomit coating the ground.

Tears started to well in his eyes and the revulsion in his gut grew. He’d lost control again. He had torn up a human like a wolf and gorged himself on their flesh.

And as he looked back at the man, there was an image from his past. A woman on the ground, tears still on her face with her stomach torn open, the slit on her arm still dripping. The familiar taste on his tongue.

He took his turn to throw up as the tears finally spilt from his eyes. Red vomit spilt out onto the floor, a mix of barely digested flesh, blood and stomach acid staining the ground.

He needed it out. All of it out! All this flesh and blood needed to get out! The taste-!

He threw up again, his entire body wracked by his revulsion as he screamed.

“GET OUT GET OUT!”

“H-Hreysti!”

He didn’t listen as the tears continued to flow, the screams turning into wails, “I-I- didn’t want to do this! I didn’t want this! Not again! Not again!”

The tears continued to stream down his face as he fell to the ground. Hreysti’s cries only growing more warbled and unsteady. The spit filling his throat as choaks mixed with his cries.

“I-I- N-never wanted this-“

A warm hand touched against his shaking body.

Hreysti looked up, bleary eyes catching the horns and watering purple eyes of Dyo.

He flinched away, “No! Don’t look at me! I’m a-“

“Shut up!”

The demigod yanked him up, pulling them close into a bear hug.

“It wasn’t you,” Dyo cried, “It wasn’t you!”

“It was me! I’m a fucking monster! Don’t-“

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“It wasn’t you! I saw your eyes! That wasn’t you! I-It was something else, alright!?”

“B-bu-“

“You’re out of it now, aren’t you!? You didn’t mean it!?”

Hreysti pulled his head back, his eyes meeting Dyo’s. He saw the desperation in them, the despair, the want for his friend to just be okay. He didn’t remember anything from those moments of feasting, but the blood still coated him.

He took one shaky breath.

“I-I’m out of it…”

He was yanked in again to his bawling friend’s arms, his eyes slowly closing as he let himself be embraced.

Ercole slowly pulled his eyes away from the two as he sighed. The muscles in his body relaxing again.

As he looked around, he finally found Shani, kneeling down next to a corpse and- Well- Ripping their armour off as she searched through their pouches and pockets.

“Shani?”

Her head flicked around, “Hm?”

“I admire your ability to stay calm while a vampire is in a flesh craze but- Looting!?”

“What is wrong with it?” She asked slowly, like the reasoning behind what was doing was entirely apparent to Ercole.

“What use do we have for mail that doesn’t even fit us!? And, again our friend over there has been in a very dangerous state until late!”

“We can have it cut down. Blacksmith, you know? Or get money from it. Not all of us have it.”

“It- That actually makes sense…”

“See, it is reasonable!”

He sighed, “I guess we need to cut up the knight’s armour as well then. See if we can turn it into some armour as well.”

She nodded, “You do it.”

He was about to open his mouth before he finally saw Dyo and Hreysti get up. The nervous face of Agrippa also appeared. Behind a tree. A few yards away.

“How would you feel about helping with the scavenging Dy-“

“I- I’ve seen enough blood today. You can do it. I’m just going to go back to the edge of the woods if that’s alright.”

“I-“ Hreysti continued, “I need to get away from the blood.”

Ercole slowly nodded, “I understand, don’t worry. We’ll meet up with you two later. Agrippa!”

They jumped, stumbling out from behind their tree and approaching Ercole- while making sure to stay a few feet away from Hreysti. Their eyes flicking between him and his bloodstained clothes, and Ercole. Her eyes constantly glancing back and forth until Dyo and Hreysti had disappeared into the forest.

“I-I- I’m not going to loot those bodies if that’s alright…”

He sighed, letting out a light chuckle, “It seems like we’re the only people with any tolerance Shani.”

She shrugged, “More money to me.”

He laughed, “So, how was your first fight then? Scary?”

They nodded, “I didn’t expect the blood to be so… vivid… But-”

“But?”

“The bandits are gone now, right!? For good?”

“Probably,” he shrugged, “It all depends on how long it takes for the senate to send a letter back to the local legion. From there they’ll force the prince to take his troops away from his little project that might anger the gods themselves and back onto patrol duty. Bandits roaming around the countryside is not good for a kingdom’s security nor its profits.”

“Are you s-saying more might get in before that!?”

“Maybe. But I doubt they would target a village-“ He stopped, the cogs in his mind whirling, “Why did they target this place.”

“W-what?”

Ercole ignored them, quickly striding towards the largest tent in the camp. The one he assumed to be the dead knight’s. He pushed through the entrance and looked around.

An armour stand, a rickety oversized bed, a dresser- A table.

He walked over to it, riffling through the papers scattered across it, finally coming across it. A parchment covered in writing and sealed with a royal mark, that of the neighbouring small kingdom of Crajka.

Suddenly the entrance cloth fluttered again as Agrippa pushed in.

“W-What is it!? Is it something important!?”

Ercole stared at the letter, “I can’t read much Neuhderhein, nor any Crajek, but I think what we have here is a contract. One signed by the king of Crajka.”

“D-does that mean-“

“They’re not going to invade if that’s what you’re asking. There is no way they could face off against The Republic on its home territory. However, they have always been afraid of the Emorans seizing their old claims from the time of the Republican Empire. So, I think the reason why this knight would pick such a small, poor village like yours to raid is because he was just paid to create chaos. A knight with such a hatred of pagans wouldn’t be too hard to rope into that. It also creates enough of a pain for the local forces to eat up their time.”

Agrippa cocked their head, their eyes focusing as they tried to process the barrage of information that had just hit them.

“It means that you probably won’t be seeing something along the likes of this attacking your village. You should be safe.”

“Wasn’t that what you said before!? Why did you need a letter!?”

“Something just didn’t add up in my head and I got a little curious. Nothing more.” He chuckled.

“Oh…”

“My curiosity strikes, and I have to sate it. It does mean that you can live out your life as a freeman on a farm in the republic in relative safety though. It’s a life many would envy despite the taxes.”

They stayed silent, leaning against a tent pole as they looked down. Something passing over their face…

He cocked his head, “Not quite the life you’ve envisioned?”

“No… I’ve never really thought about anything else and the idea of moving just scared me until…”

“Until now?”

They sighed, “Even as I was panting with air, when I saw the city, it just awed me. A-and sitting down for a meal in the open with all of you was kinda comfortable… Then, saving my village, even with all- That at the end…”

“It all felt good? Like it was the life you wanted?”

They nodded.

“You’re very welcome to come with us. I’ll be with all of you at least until we reach Gaulik and that’s quite far away. There’s a kingdom, the south of an empire, the northern mainland of the Republic and all the Free States between here and there. And who knows, I might keep going after that, I’m just a spare after all…”

“Are you sure the others will be alright?”

“Oh, I feel like they will be.”

“Though- uh- can I ask why you need to go back home?”

“Oh, I’ve got some things to pick up along our journey that might be very interesting for everyone. After I get home, well, I’ve got my sister to help. And oh-! I remind you of that!”

“What is it?”

Ercole chuckled again, a large, spiked smile spreading across his face, “I’d suggest you make your fortune here by picking through this knight’s belongings. Or else I feel our resident mercenary is going to pick this tent clean.”

“R-Right…”