The wind tore past him like a living thing.
It clawed at his black cloak, snapped at its edges, and pressed cold fingers against his sweat-soaked skin. His breath came in sharp, ragged pulls. Every inhale burned. Every exhale tasted like iron.
He did not slow.
Behind him, the forest groaned.
Massive trees loomed like ancient giants, their bark blackened and hollow, their branches skeletal. No leaves stirred. No insects sang. It was a forest that had forgotten life.
Above the dead canopy hung two new moons.
Both red.
Twin crimson eyes watching the world below.
Kaelor did not need confirmation.
The twin red moons meant only one thing.
He was in the territory of the Vampiric Houses.
His masked face tilted slightly, just enough for the moonlight to catch his eyes.
Red irises glinted beneath the half-mask that covered his face from nose to chin. In his arms, wrapped tightly in dark cloth, a child stirred.
The boy's small face peeked through the folds.
One eye glowed faint red.
The other… blue.
Kaelor's jaw tightened.
"Just a little farther," he whispered hoarsely. "Hold on."
A sudden ripple disturbed the air behind him.
Presence.
Not one.
But, many.
The forest trembled.
Blood magic ignited the darkness.
Scarlet streams shot through the air like whips. Kaelor twisted mid-stride, shadow-walking between tree trunks as blades of hardened blood slashed through the space he had just occupied. One caught his side.
Pain exploded through him.
He stumbled but did not fall.
"Capture him!" a voice thundered through the forest.
"Don't let him take the child!"
"We are the ones meant to kill that child — or the King will have our heads!"
Kaelor gritted his teeth and pushed forward. The hidden cave was close. He had left
markings along the path — subtle carvings, a broken branch stuck upright in the
earth.
There.
He saw it.
The branch marker.
Hope flared —
And died.
They were already there.
Vampires emerged from the shadows like nobility stepping onto a stage. Cloaks of dark
velvet. Silver embroidery. Eyes glowing like dying embers.
They encircled him.
At their center stood a man clad in ornate black armor — crimson lining, polished
boots, a high collar embroidered with a sigil of a bleeding rose.
A Turned Noble.
A general.
The wind shifted.
Kaelor's cloak fluttered open just slightly.
The moon crest carved into his knife gleamed in the red moonlight.
The general's eyes narrowed.
"I thought you were one of us," he said smoothly. "Those red eyes fooled me."
Kaelor smirked beneath the mask.
"Oh? I get that a lot."
The general's gaze dropped to the child.
"But I did not expect a Lunari to be foolish enough to trespass here."
Kaelor adjusted the child in his arms.
"Well," he said lightly, though blood trickled down his side, "I've always been bold."
"You are reckless," the general corrected. "Hand over the child. We will grant you a
painless death."
Kaelor tilted his head as if considering.
"Hm. Are there any other choices?"
"No."
"Then I suppose I'll give you a large and heartfelt no."
The general sighed.
"That was disappointing."
He lifted his hand.
"Kill him."
The forest erupted.
Blood rose from the ground, from the bark of trees, from the air itself — condensing
into blades.
Kaelor vanished.
Shadow-walking.
The vampires hissed in confusion.
A faint blue glow ignited near the cave entrance.
A magic circle flared to life beneath Kaelor's feet.
Symbols spun.
The air distorted.
The general's expression hardened.
"Blood Sword."
The accumulated blood snapped into formation — dozens of floating crimson blades.
They shot forward.
"Shit—"
Impact.
The world exploded in red and blue light.
The magic circle shattered the ground. Trees splintered. A shockwave rippled
outward.
Silence fell.
Smoke curled upward.
The vampires lowered their arms.
"He's gone," one muttered.
The general stared at the scorched earth.
"He did not leave unscathed," he said coldly. "If he survives, he will bleed for
days."
A younger vampire trembled. "The King will kill us."
The general's jaw tightened.
"Find a vampire infant," he ordered quietly. "We will present it as proof."
Cruel laughter echoed through the dead forest.
But the general remained silent, eyes fixed on the destruction.
If I see you again, Lunari, he thought, I will not miss.
Blue light fractured reality.
Kaelor crashed onto hard earth.
The magic circle collapsed beneath him.
He rolled, clutching the child protectively. His side burned. Blood soaked his cloak.
He looked up.
The forest here was different.
Alive.
The air smelled clean.
The moons above were no longer red — one silver, one pale blue.
His eyes changed color similar to a blue sky.
"…The fluctuation," he muttered weakly. "The blood magic disrupted the coordinates."
Helooked down at the child.
"You're alright," he breathed, relief breaking through his pain. "Thank the moons…"
Darkness crept into his vision.
He leaned against a tree.
Hoofbeats.
Wheels grinding against dirt.
A carriage approached.
Kaelor's blurred vision caught sight of armored figures.
The carriage stopped abruptly.
A woman leapt down first — muscular, confident, carrying a battle-axe across her
back.
She approached cautiously.
"Stay alert," she warned her companions.
A priestess followed, robes flowing, staff glowing faintly.
"We should help them."
"They look suspicious," the armored woman muttered.
"What is suspicious about an injured man and a baby?" the priest replied calmly. "We
can question him later."
A massive man with a white mustache descended last, shield strapped to his arm,
greatsword resting on his shoulder.
"The priest has sense," he rumbled. "If we leave them, they'll die."
The mercenary crouched beside Kaelor.
She pulled his mask down slightly.
Her eyes widened.
"…Those eyes."
But before she could say more, Kaelor lost consciousness.
The child whimpered softly.
The priest lifted him gently.
"We take them," she said firmly.
The carriage turned toward the distant fortress.
Stone walls rose ahead, tall and proud.
Banners snapped in the wind.
Soldiers lined the gates.
This was human territory.
The continent of Veloria.
And whatever had begun beneath the twin red moons…
Had just crossed into the realm of men.