Tähti Tribe

The rhythmic sound of drums filled the open space into the sky, and the gentle light of the sun embraced the crowd that celebrated underneath it. At the center of that crowd, there were three people who everyone fought to talk to.

The girls danced, either undulating their bodies or swaying their hips to the music created by the harps, blending perfectly to the beats of the drums. Following the lead of the coquettish dancers, they teased everyone with the scrap of clothing that covered barely enough of their skin. One particular woman, with a hint of danger and pleasure sealed in her eyes, fixated her eyes at the man at the core of the festival; he was one of the three bearers of the holy sword. Someone whom everyone currently rejoiced for having born on this particular day. How great would it be to be his next wife?

Unfortunately, this tan man- who had the right amount of muscles in his body to melt just about any woman in the tribe- seemed to have his eyes currently set on one girl. His third wife who also carried the holy sword. The tribe gave her nothing but praises for being strong despite being a born a woman. She's beautiful, to boot.

The scent of grilled meat whirled around the place, enchanting everyone with its savory scent; it's smoke lingered and danced with the guidance of the warm air. Women wore tight dresses with the most revealing tops, and men wore tank tops and plain pants to show off who had the most muscles. Once their energy depleted from dancing and participating in mini-tournaments, they were able to replenish themselves with the abundance of meat hunted by their men (just earlier this morning) in the forest near to the entrance of the Yang Nation.

A man behind the barbecue stand grew more and more irritated at the person in front of him. His thick lips pressed together in annoyance as he glared at the pale brunette, "if you're not buying anything, can you stand somewhere else? You're chasing away my customers!" It was true. If everyone wanted to be around those three holy sword bearers, she was the exact opposite. People avoided her like a plague.

Vivian paid no attention to the yapping man and stared at Matthew in disgust. "How can he just smile like that like he did nothing wrong?" She was 99.9% sure he was Hunter's attacker. No, no, looking at that treacherous face of his, she was 120% sure he attacked Hunter.

"He probably didn't think he was doing anything terrible," a pleasant voice spoke right next to her, contrary to the spike of blood pressure that his comment provoked. Vivian restrained her mouth from wording out a snarky response. This skinny man was around Helen's age; she still respected the elders worthy of respect. Prominent dark circles hid behind his circular lenses. Vivian crossed her arms.

"Did you not sleep much again, Lee?" her glare finally left Matthew to gaze at the man next to her. He smiled and tightened his tie before looking away. There was nothing he could hide from her sharp eyes.

Vivian sighed, "your patients would wonder about your credibility as a healer if you can't even take care of yourself."

Lee's eyes darted around the area with an awkward smile on his face. He wanted to drop this subject as soon as possible. He did not want her to know that he lost the information they have accumulated about the properties of the holy sword, and that he was up all night looking for it. His eyes stopped at someone whose eyes looked dull in the middle of the crowd. He didn't hesitate to change the subject of the conversation. "How's Hunter doing?"

Vivian's face immediately fell, and she looked at Lee like a child who told on someone for stealing her candy, "he's still mad at me. Every time I try to talk to him he never fails to lecture me," she sulked, remembering the times Hunter scolded her for letting him suck her blood. He had the audacity to lecture her when he was the one who kept teasing her about it before!

*

"It's not the same. We were both aware I was joking." The wind blew, rustling through the leaves of the trees around them.

"What? Can't hear you." Vivian walked towards the salt lake and ran her hand against the water.

The day after the terrifying life and death situation happening to Hunter, Vivian requested to be taken to the lake at the edge of the forest close to the Yin Dynasty. Maybe he'd talk more about what happened to him.

Vivian looked at the reflection of the forest behind her on the clear water, and breathed in the soothing fresh air. She gestured towards Hunter and he sat on his legs.

Ah, peace and quiet. Vivian flopped sideways on the grass, her head cushioned with Hunter's lap. She grabbed the pen and notebook she carried with her, and wrote on her side.

"You asked me to take you here just so you can write in your journal?" Hunter asked, unamused.

"Hey, I like it here! It helps me calm myself," Vivian snuggled closer to Hunter's stomach. "Besides, you know it's not just a journal."

"I guess you love me this much, huh. I thought you'd be happy if I died 'cause no one will bother you anymore," he joked and Vivian grumbled.

She stopped writing and turned to look at him in the eye, "can you not make a joke out of this?! What were you doing that injured you that badly in the first place?"

"Not telling," Hunter stuck his tongue out like a child and Vivian humphed before writing again.

"Vivian."

"Don't ever do that again. I could tell how terrified you were," after a moment of continued silence, the childish man turned her face to catch his eyes.

"Well, then don't get yourself in trouble again," Vivian blinked away the tears that formed in her eyes. She hated seeing his pale face, panting and wincing in pain. Who cares about being afraid? She'd offer her blood to him again if she had to. There's no way she'd let her loved ones die in front of her again.

"You have to be the first person there when I finally invent something that could let us fight even the noble vampires. You and Helen both."

"I can't promise that—"

"I don't care! Promise me you'd stay away from trouble so we could be together until we both die of old age," Vivian sat up to face him directly, but he only stared at her, dumbfounded at her remark. His grin bloomed like a flower, and Vivian immediately thought back to her declaration.

"Are you proposing to me? That really sounds like a proposal. When are we planning the wedding?" Hunter looked at her with eagerness, similar to the face he always made when reading his favorite comics.

"Huh? No! Stupid!!" Vivian punched his shoulder in embarrassment, only to regret it immediately when Hunter yelped. "Oh shit, sorry!"

*

"You know, Hunter really likes you," Lee chuckled before facing her with seriousness, "Matthew had been instigating fights with him but he never paid him any attention until Matthew bad-mouthed you."

Vivian's face mirrored his seriousness. "You were there?"

"Yeah, they always end up arguing outside the Main Hall, which happens to be right next to my house." The beat and the music slowed down, setting up the mood for a romantic dance. It was time for the females to dial-up their appeal.

"I didn't think they would seriously hurt each other. Luckily, I walked outside when things got eerily quiet, so I saw him laying down in a sorry state," Lee added.

"Was there anyone who tried to help him?" the Main Hall usually bustled with activities. This festival celebration thing was an example.

"I love the people in this village, but they can be cold-hearted sometimes," so no. Vivian glared at any person she saw. These ignorant people were the root of all their problems. She could not believe they would treat Hunter horribly despite being in the front line to protect this village. They've always treated him nicely on the surface, but being a vampire still separated him from them. Plenty of times they would treat him unfavorably when he's interacting with her.

The increasing number of couples eating each others' faces off made Vivian want to gag. Ugh, she wanted to go home so bad. Her eyes landed on Matthew dancing with one of his wives, and Vivian's fury reignited. Lee faced her, confused, as he chewed on his chicken meat on a skewer.

"I can't believe Matthew would use the sword on him! That asshole cares more about showing off than protecting the people in the village," Ah, she's so annoyed she wanted to grab him by the shirt and hit him in the face repeatedly. She did not care if it was his birthday. Remembering how critical Hunter's condition was tempted her to ruin his festivity.

"I apologize for not helping with Hunter's condition. I wanted to treat him in my house but my wife didn't like the idea." Splashes of barbecue sauce found their way to Vivian's brown jogger pants. She looked at the barbecue vendor and glared at him. As a response, he motioned his arm like he was trying to chase away a stray cat. Vivian rolled her eye before turning back to Lee.

"It's okay. I'm thankful that you were there to help him."

A force snatched Vivian from behind, quickly wrapping their hand around her neck. This person buried his face on her shoulder as he embraced her tighter. She felt his presence coming towards their way, so she wasn't surprised by this man-child's sudden actions. "Almost done?" Vivian turned her head towards Hunter.

"Ya," he kissed the cute, aristocratic nose that fit perfectly with her face. Hunter's fangs protruded when he flashed his boyish smile. Like the rest of the men in the tribe, he wore a black tank top paired with black pants. His pale arm muscles bulged through, rivaling Matthew's. His face was the balance between cute and manly, with the golden nose stud piercing on his tiny, flat nose, and his strong jawline. He had a plump, kissable lips that women in the tribe couldn't resist. The very reason why so many women glared at her when they see her. Vivian pinched him on the cheeks.

"Stop being so affectionate in public. You're going to give people heart attacks." People still danced and talked, but their eyes lingered longer towards Hunter and Vivian's direction, cautious of their every move. Some whispers emerged from the crowd.

[Ugh, I feel uneasy with those vampires in the village. Honey, protect me]

[I'm telling you when those wretched creatures turn against us and attack us, it would be the end of the village] Matthew and Isabelle, the two other holy sword bearers looked at Hunter in annoyance. They were all supposed to stay together and announce the increase in frequency of vampire attacks in the village after the event, yet there he was flirting with his vampire mate.

"Don't care. They're always like that," Hunter leaned in to kiss Vivian, but she stopped him in time, and she gestured to Lee who looked very uncomfortable.

"Damn it, Lee, why do you have to be here," Vivian pinched his ear at his protest.

"Did you thank Lee for helping you the other day?"

"Of course!" Smiling, Vivian removed her left hand from his ear and patted his head. "Good boy." Hunter leaned in and used this opening and his speedy reflex to steal a peck against Vivian's lips. "You little-"

Multiple quick footsteps wiped the tiny smile on her face. The area was instantaneously filled with at least twenty Jasper vampires, lurking around the tribe, waiting to pounce at any time. Similar to humans, their eyes were brown, but Vivian was able to distinguish the glint of their eyes from humans' after fighting against them for years.

"Careful!! They' re not humans," Matthew warned before pulling the dagger out from his waist. He waved it to transform into a long sword plated with pure silver. Isabelle followed his actions.

"Woah, woah! Put the swords down. Let's all relax. We don't care about anyone else in this village except him," a peculiar Jade vampire with blue, white, yellow, and red face paint in fourths of sections moved forward and pointed his thumb at Hunter. His left and right cheeks were painted with hearts and diamonds. Vivian's hand wrapped around Hunter's.

"We won't hurt anyone else as long as you give him to us peacefully. What do you say?" the spade and the club shapes drawn over the vampire's eyes stretched until one can no longer see the whiteness of his eye. Vivian could feel the ends of her hair stand. She searched for a couple of tiny metallic balls in her pocket.

Matthew stepped up with his arms up in the air, the sword now sheathed, "we value the safety of the whole above the individual. Hunter, the choice is still up to you, but I want you to remember that being chosen by the holy sword means risking your life for the sake of the villagers."