Chapter 3: Lost and Found

Four days had past since I left Ohmanry Star and I seem to have lost Catbriar’s scent. The trek down the side of the Ohmanry Mountains took three and a half days. I didn’t dare run for fear of losing my footing and causing harm to myself where, should I lose a lot of blood there is no one near for me to feed off of. I needed to preserve my energy. Along the way down I would dig out the hardened earth underneath rocks to rest for the day. I could feel the hunger starting to well up inside of me. I could tell that I needed to feed within the next three days, or torpor would be in my immediate future. Thus I preserved as much energy as I could.

I decided that I would make a stop in the small village of Darckston in northern Matadonia, just southwest of Ohmanry Glen to find myself a meal. Walking along the dirt road I did my best to avoid the ruts the wagon wheels had created from all of the importing of goods to Darckston. I heard a roar from what sounded like a lion overhead, and instinctively spun around to the direction of the sound and pulled Sableleaf from its sheath before I hit the ground. I stood motionless, and silent. I focused my ears to hear where the roar might have come from. I never heard another roar, but I did hear what sounded like the beating of massive wings. I looked up overhead and seen a silhouette of what I thought I had seen just one week prior. The Dragon with three heads. I closed my eyes to blink and when I opened them it was gone. This has to be a hallucination from the lack of blood. This is twice I’ve seen that thing while low on reserves. But what in the world is it? It’s big enough to be a Dragon, but it’s somehow altered. No Dragon has three heads. I don’t know what to make of it. Perhaps I should think on it later when I’m not so groggy. As I approached the outskirts of the small village of Darckston I crouched down and began to step lighter than I ever had before. Not even I could hear the crunching of the grass beneath my feet. I ducked behind a large barkless tree and put my back toward the village. I was distracted by movement in the woods. A pack of about twelve wolves were just inside the tree line, watching me intently. I could see that the alpha male was holding something in its mouth but I couldn’t quite make out what it was through the brush and foliage. The leader dropped its head toward me in acknowledgment, and I returned the gesture. As the pack turned to leave I was able to see what the alpha male was carrying in his mouth. A single red rose. Interesting, I wonder what it means. More than likely nothing, perhaps he just liked the flavor of the flower.

I peered around the trunk of the massive tree and seen firelights illuminating from the huts in the village. I moved quickly toward the closest hut that I could without being seen. I snuck around the south part of the abode to see into the streets. A few villagers walked from shack to shack, conversing with each other over this year’s harvest and the failed equipment used to plant the next season’s crop. I sized each of the five people up and decided that none of them would satisfy the hunger. All of them together? Perhaps so, but that would raise a huge alarm. And with me being this close to the Piamrev Bectish and Vontae Whiteraven still nearly three months before he carries out his orders, I do not want to be causing that kind of a scene. I snuck behind a shack quite a ways down. I opened up my senses to try to gauge if any were coming toward me. I leaned my head around the corner and seen a young woman of about eighteen sitting in between the two houses with her knees drawn up to her chest and her arms wrapped around her legs. She was singing an enchanting melody about Nymphs and flowers. I almost felt sorry for what was to come to her. But just then my vision wavered and my knees nearly buckled. I kept myself from falling by latching on to the side of the house on my right. Startled, the girl abruptly stopped singing her song and watched as I fell to the ground blacking out.

I was awakened some several hours later by the girl sitting next to me on a bed dabbing my forehead with a warm damp cloth. I looked at my surroundings to try to gather my wits about me. I seen a small round room crudely decorated with runes drawn all over the walls. To one side was a small fire burning with a kettle simmering over it. The only other thing that I saw was a small table with only one chair. I flopped back down on the bed as my vision began to waiver again. A quiet, beautiful voice spoke, “You should stay lying down. You’re as cold as ice, and I can’t seem to warm you up.” I reached down inside me again to access my power. With a rush of energy I sat straight up and said, “Thank you for taking care of me. But there is something you need to know.” She was as beautiful as her voice made her seem. Her eyes as green as the grass, and her brown hair waved like the ocean. She remained seated on the bed where she was. She slowly blinked her bright green eyes and said, “Tell me whatever it is you need to say.” I stood up from the bed and walked over to the fire and instinctively placed my hands over it to warm them. Realizing that my attempts were utterly hopeless I let my arms hang down at their sides. Continuing to watch the flames I said, “My name is Aerol Reign, and I am the crowned prince of Reign’s Reach.” I turned to look my caretaker in the eyes, “But that’s not the half of it. There is a reason why I won’t warm up. Why I can’t warm up.” She shifted on the bed and looked quite uncomfortable, almost anticipating what I was going to say. However she remained silent. I lowered my head and said, “The only reason why I am standing right now is because I am drawing on reserve energy so to speak. It comes from years of training to become a Druid.” I turned and walked toward the table and sat down in the small chair and said, “But there is even more still. I…” I struggled to find the courage to say it. What if she raised the alarm? I don’t have the strength to fight an entire village. “I’m a Vampire.” I said very quietly.

My rescuer remained motionless on the bed. Then she spoke softly, “I know Master Reign. I saw your bite marks when I was trying to warm you up.” She crossed her arms and cleared her throat. “We are fine Master Reign, so long as you do not attempt to bite me.” She never withdrew her gaze from me and said, “Besides, your curse does not make you who you are. You make the curse what you want it to be.” I hung my head not in shame, but because my reserved energy was becoming thin. I looked at her without lifting my head and said, “I give you my word as a Prince that I will purposefully never cause harm to you. But if I don’t get some blood soon, I don’t know that I’ll be able to control the urge.” She stood up from the bed and walked toward me. She grabbed me underneath my right arm and helped me to my feet, guiding me back to the bed. Laying me back down she asked, “Do you require only human’s blood Master Reign, or can you scrape by on the blood of an animal for now?” She leaned in closer, and I could smell her alluring scent as she did. “Because I don’t have the heart,” she said, “to take another person’s life.” Turning my head away to try to fight my cravings, I said, “The blood of a deer would work just fine. But you’d better hurry, because I’m only going to be able to fight this off for so long.”

With that she stood up and ran out the door. As the minutes passed, my mind began to wander. I wonder how Dante is doing. Is he having as much trouble feeding as I am? After all, he is alone now. Did my Mother and Father put up a fight before they were murdered? Did they die honorably? I wonder why so many different kinds of meat tastes like chicken. My garbled ramblings went on for nearly and hour before the door burst open. My new friend came through carrying a small, near deceased fawn. She laid it on the floor and then dragged me to the floor. As soon as I smelled the blood coming from the wound I drew back my head to reveal my fangs and sank them in to the main artery of the baby doe. Within seconds my veins filled themselves with fire from the blood of the young deer. I stood to full height and drew in a long, deep breath. I looked at my provider and said, “Thank you…uh…I don’t even know your name.” She grabbed a hold of each side of her dress and curtsied, “My name is Cirania Torani, at your service.” I returned the gesture by bowing to her and said, “My lady, I am the one that should be serving you. You have already provided a service to me this evening.” Cirania turned away, blushing. “You flatter me Master Reign, I…” I interrupted her and walked over and grabbed her right hand. “Please, call me Aerol. I am Master of nothing.” I kissed her softly on the hand. Her face turned an even deeper shade of red as she pulled her hand out of mine and moved away toward the fire place. “Is there any place you can go for the day?” She asked. I shook my head, “No, there is none nearby. And the sun is about to come over the Ohmanry Mountains.” I said. “Do not worry, I will find somewhere. Thank you so much Cirania Torani for your kindness and hospitality.” I turned and walked toward the door. As I went to open the door, she said, “Wait, Aerol.” I stopped and faced her. “You may stay here until sundown.” She said softly. “But after that, I wish for you to leave from here.” I made my way to her and placed one hand on her left shoulder and said, “Thank you my friend. I accept your offer.”

As my most feared enemy came up over the horizon, I looked out the window one last time before I pulled closed the shade. Goodness how I do miss the sunrise. I bid my hostess a good day and made my way to my slumber. As the day passed on, deep within my sleep I dreamt. For the first time in my life I dreamt. Flying high over the top of the Ohmanry Mountains I seen the three headed dragon again. Upon the dragon I had seen a rider, a female rider. Her face was blurry, always blurry. I could hear that she was crying. I could make out what the three heads of the dragon were. A goat, a lion, and a dragon made up the three. The rider turned her mount back toward the east, toward Ohmanry Glen. The female let out a cry directed to the heavens. The howl made me clutch at my ears in pain. Whoever this was, she was in distress. And I knew I could do nothing to help her. The rider spurned her mutant dragon toward the middle of Ohmanry Glen. She moved with great speed. She increased that speed with every flap of the dragon’s powerful wings. The flying pair came up over the highest peak of the mountains and aimed at Ohmanry Star. From a league away the female rider let out another howl, this time it represented pain. Ohmanry Star was gone. It had been wiped completely from the face of Allukra. Nothing remained of what was the capitol city of Ohmanry Glen. The rider and her mount flew even faster now. Landing only a few hundred feet away from where the city had been. The female jumped down from her steed and raced toward the barren wasteland that had been a city just moments ago. From the tree line the female seen a group of twelve wolves emerge, the Alpha male nodded toward the human. The other eleven was dragging two bodies in to the sunlight. The Alpha male walked up to the weeping human and dropped a single red rose at her feet. The female knelt down to pick up the offering. She looked the dominant wolf in the eyes, and with his mind he said “I am sorry for your loss. But this was necessary.” With that he bowed again and he and his pack ran off toward the tree line again. The rider approached the two bodies. She seen them stir and then seen their faces, one man and one woman. The man she did not recognize, but judging from his clothing he was a member of the Piamrev Bectish. The woman was her mother.

BOOM! A deafening crash woke me straight up from my deep sleep. I jumped up from bed and had Sableleaf ready and in hand by the time I hit the ground. I ran to the door and flung it open. I began to run at a dead sprint before I was attacked by my worst enemy, the sun. My skin began to light itself on fire. I scrambled as quickly as I could back inside the safety of my temporary home. Once inside, I slammed the door shut and focused on my body healing itself. The door once again flung open and Cirania raced in shut the door behind her. Breathing rapidly, she bent over and placed her hands on her knees. She slowed her breathing and stood up and said, “Aerol, Ohmanry Star. It’s gone. The mountains. They’re gone. I had never dreamt before.