1 Bloody Night [part 1]

As if knowing what would happen that night, the moon hid away behind the cover of the clouds. Villagers were sleeping in their abodes, tired after a day of hard labor. Only two people were awake, the night's village watch.

The village was located deep in a forest in the mountain, with some farmland to cater to their needs. It was made out of wooden houses, and there was a stream of water flowing by its side. The number of villagers didn't exceed two hundred. Their main source of income were furs and firewood. Traders escorted by hired mercenaries would visit once every month to resupply and buy. This year's harvest had been good, so everyone was in a good mood, which lead to a slight increase in numbers as compared to last year.

The taxes they had to pay had been on the low end, as the kingdom of Rosenwuld was at peace with its neighbors. No one really cared for a small mountain village, many had not even heard about it. But that would change after tonight's events.

Today was Harry and Richard's turn to patrol. Their duties were simple, keep an eye out for fire and any beast that would find its way in the village. Should anything happen, they would need to ring the bells, thus alerting everyone.

Both men were walking while holding torches, but they couldn't see much. It was a cold night, but hopefully there was no rain. Richard was in his thirties, quite tall and had a sturdy build. Harry on the other hand was around twenty, he was a little bit overweight and was of average height. Both of them had gone through some training and were able to withstand the cold without trouble. Both were silent, because they didn't want to disturb those sleeping, or maybe because they didn't really have anything to say.

It was already past midnight. Richard stopped walking and faced a direction in the dark.

"What's happening? Did you see something?", asked Harry.

"I'm not sure", answered Richard. "I thought I saw someone"

"Want me to check? Might be old Wilson cheating on his wife again." Snickered Harry.

"Might be." Laughed Richard as he started walking towards one of the small houses which was at the skirt of the village, right by the forest.

Harry followed him and when they both reached the house, they smelled a faint scent of blood. Both Richard and Harry got tense and reached for their hatchets. Richard went in first and almost fainted from what he saw. The whole room was wrecked, four corpses laid on the ground with their eyes wide open. They looked dried out of their blood and only a small puddle remained on the ground at the level of their necks.

This horrified Richard to the bone and as he turned around to run away. He saw Harry standing there, as in a trance. No! There was someone or something behind him and 'It' was latched to his neck. That something quickly let go of Harry who dropped to the ground lifeless. It looked at him and their eyes met. Its pupils were red, and as it smiled to Richard, he saw two blood dripping fangs.

The thing in front of him suddenly moved and faded into the darkness. Before he could do anything, Richard felt his neck being perforated by two sharp points. He started losing consciousness and things quickly went dark...

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.

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Not too far from there was a small decrepit house. This house, in contrast to the other houses around it looked as if it was abandoned, the door was replaced by a piece of cloth that fluttered with the wind and offered no protection whatsoever. There was only a small cupboard, a makeshift bed, a table and two chairs as furniture. On the small bed were two people snuggled against each other to get some warmth.

One was a very old man, with almost no meat on his bones. If not for him trembling from the cold, one would assume he was dead. The other was a young teenager, seventeen or eighteen years old perhaps. He as well didn't look healthy, as he was very skinny and looked frail.

The old man had once showed up at the village, many years ago with a baby in his arms. He was a stranger, but the village welcomed him. As he grew older however, no one cared for him or the child. He was a stranger and would remain as one in the eyes of the villagers. No one really knew who he was or where he had come from, but they didn't really care as he didn't harm anyone. This small house had been built by him alone, he had never gotten around to finish it as his health deteriorated.

Some had started to see him as a burden, but soon enough the child grew older and could do some basic work and provide for both himself and the old man. They had almost nothing to their name, and thus didn't make much. The little food the young one earned wasn't enough for the both of them, but they had no choice.

The old man, as most would call him, had a name that wasn't from the kingdom of Rosenwuld. He was called Archibald, and the child was named Adam. Their skin and hair color were much darker than the other villager's, and they had light brown pupils. This was one of the reasons they were never really accepted.

Both of them were trying to get some sleep, when Archibald's trembling started to calm down.

"Oi. Old man, you still alive?", asked Adam with a grin.

"Adam, listen to me very well" answered Archibald in a serious tone after some time, which alarmed Adam. The old man usually was carefree and wouldn't miss a chance to make a joke. Even in the most desperate of situations, he would still find a way to laugh it out.

"I want you to leave the village, right now", continued Archibald. "Run as far as you can, and don't look back. Go now! Go!"

"What!?", said Adam. Was this a joke? He thought.

"There's no time. Something evil is in the village, and no one can stop it.", said Archibald. "Don't worry about me. Quickly, go!" added Archibald in an authoritative tone. He grabbed Adams arm tight and looked him in the eyes for a few seconds, and then pushed him away.

"What about you?" asked Adam.

"Don't worry about...sigh" sighed Archibald as he turned his head towards the entrance of the house and stared at the darkness.

"How surprising! You can actually feel my presence.", said a voice from the outside.

Adam turned around and couldn't see anything at first, but then a man wearing a hooded cloak entered the house. His eyes emanated a red glow, and his skin looked pale. It was dark, but shadows could be seen moving all around him.

There was a short silence as both sides observed each other, then Archibald spoke.

"I haven't seen one of your kind in a long time." Said he as he then turned to look at Adam with a saddened face. He then stood up and looked at the stranger once again.

"There's not much for you here, the other houses have healthy people.", said Archibald.

"That's for me to decide", answered the stranger. He then looked at Adam, then at Archibald with a smile on his face.

That smile made Adam feel a shiver run down his spine, as if he was a prey looking at a predator. He felt afraid of the man standing in front of him and wanted nothing more than to be away from that place. It was then that a light emerged from behind him.

He turned around, only to see Archibald with his arm extended towards the stranger...and there was fire forming in his palm! Is that the rumored magic he had heard about before? When could the old man do something like that?

This scene made the stranger lose his smile, as he awkwardly jumped backwards to run away. There was a shadow that covered him just before the fire condensing in front of Archibald's hand formed a ball and then projected forwards, went out the door and hit the ground in front of their house. There was an explosion that lit up half of the village. When the light disappeared, a charred crater was left where the fire ball had landed.

Adam turned around to look at Archibald once again, only to see him smiling at him. His eyes then lost focus, and he fell down.

"OLD MAN!", rushed Adam. But when he grabbed Archibald, the later was lifeless. He had left this world...

Adam didn't have the time to mourn, cry or shout in rage. His shock and sadness didn't even have the time to settle in before he felt something grab his shoulders from behind, and two sharp points perforating his neck. The thing then quickly let go of him. He reached for his neck and tried to block the blood from rushing out. It hurt! But he quickly lost consciousness and fell down...