It began with a scream. It was a short and sharp one that silenced far too quickly but Elias heard it clearly because of his strong senses.
Elias stood at the edge of the Crestford clearing, inspecting the new lumber stacks beside the half-built barracks, when he heard a strangled cry cut off mid-breath. His body went rigid and instincts snapped to life. He turned slowly when he felt the wind shifting. His eyes looked at the darkness as if he could see through its veil.
There was nothing but the sound of wind yet he felt the chill in it.
"That is enough for today, you all can leave." men counting the log stopped.
The one cutting it looked relieved and confused at the same time as they turned to look at him. They all wanted to know what happened suddenly. But when they watched his dark face, they bowed instinctively and turned to leave.
"Sir… the cost.."
"Not now, leave!" he repeated in a low but commanding voice that earned nothing but obedience. The men spoke no more and turned when he threw a dagger at the ground.
"Take it! And leave in groups. Make sure that no one is left behind alone." his voice left goosebumps on their skin.
They looked around as if trying to see what he could but found nothing out of the ordinary. Yet, for some reason they knew he was right. They picked up the dagger. A few took their axes with them as they left in groups.
Elias did not watch them leaving. He was looking at his left as if waiting for someone to tear the dark veil of night and come out.
The air grew heavy, thick with the copper tang of blood. Horses reared in panic and torches flared wild in the gathering dusk.
A blur shot past the northern watchpost. It was too fast for the eye, but Elias saw it.
Three figures leapt from the shadows. They were tall, lean, with unnaturally pale skin and sunken eyes that glowed red like embers in the night. Their teeth were long, curved jagged things meant for tearing. Their claws stretched like blackened bone.
"Vampires," Elias whispered, drawing his coat back and unsheathing the twin daggers at his belt.
One of the creatures lunged at him with inhumane speed. He went to tear his throat open with a sickening crunch but Elias held it with his throat and pushed him on the ground. He met the first vampire in the center of the road with no hesitation, no warning.
The creature snarled and slashed downward with both claws, aiming for his throat. Elias ducked low, spun, and drove one dagger straight into its side. It was deep, fast, vicious but it did not make any difference to the vampire. The wound healed with the speed of open eyes.
It screeched and recoiled, spinning to backhand Elias with a strength that sent him sliding back across the dirt.
Elias barely caught himself. his boots dug into the ground and blood dripped from his brow, but he didn't flinch.
He flipped the dagger in his palm with his eyes turned cold.
They all smiled as they stood around Elias and titled their head with their eyes glowing with a predatory look in them. "You are the one?" they stared at him from head to toe before meeting his eyes. Blood dripped from their jaws, gleaming red on their pale faces. Their eyes glowed faintly, like embers buried beneath ash. "You are weak! You do not need us to kill you."
One of them shook his head feeling it was a waste to come so far for him. Elias didn't flinch, he held the dagger tightly in his hands.
The second vampire lunged this time with his claws extended and teeth bared. Elias twisted sideways at the last second, catching the creature's arm and using its momentum to slam it into the ground with bone-crunching force. The vampire howled and thrashed, but Elias drove his boot into its chest, pinning it before tearing a stake from the strap on his back. But he could not hurt him.
The third vampire was already there. It tackled Elias from the side, slamming him into a wooden post so hard the timber cracked. Elias grunted, tasting blood in his mouth, but he retaliated instantly with his elbow crushed into the vampire's temple. and as it staggered back, Elias seized a broken spear shaft nearby and rammed it into the vampire's stomach. It screeched, feral and guttural, still writhing to claw him even as blood sprayed out.
But just taking a step back to breath was enough for it to repair its body. It watched Elias with growing amusement as it licked its limits, drinking its own rotten blood there.
The third came from above, dropped like a hawk from the overhanging trees and held Elias tightly. It pulled him higher from the ground with a vicious smirk on its face.
"You are no match for us." his teeth peeked, jared and horrendous threatening him but Eliasd only felt irked. He had dealt one of them earlier but it was no match for this one. They were not much more in strength. But they have strong healing abilities that he could not handle.
Elias used his full force to kick the vampire on his chest forcing it to let him go. He fell on the ground with force and the vampire moved closer to attack again. Then he raised both arms to block the strike. The vampire's claws raked across his forearms, cutting deep, but Elias gritted through the pain and shoved upward.
With a roar, he flipped the creature over his head and slammed it into the lumber pile behind him. Logs scattered and the creature hissed and vanished in a blink, reforming behind Elias with supernatural speed. But Elias was faster now.
He ducked the claws that sliced for his throat, spun low, and swept the vampire's legs from under it. Before it hit the ground, Elias drove his dagger into the vampire's neck, dragging it out in a crimson arc. The beast screamed, flailing wildly, but Elias straddled its chest and hammered a silver spike through its heart.
That was when their eyes widened. The moment silver touched its heart, ash burst from the wound. The creature convulsed once and died.