Atlantis The Beginning Read online

  10. The Vampire Hunter

  The courtyard rang with the sound of clanging metal as we sparred. Julian and Alice were pressing on me, swinging their swords as fast as they could.

  Sweat trickled down their necks as they tried to disarm me, but I was quick. I ducked, as Julian's sword swung over me and pulled him to the ground, before I jumped back on my feet.

  Alice rushed towards me and thrust her sword at my breastplate, but I ducked and struck her knuckles with the flat of my blade. She cursed as the blade fell from her hand, and danced around, clutching her hand.

  ''Scar! I am going to kill you!'', she screamed.

  ''Hahahahaha......!''.

  I almost sank to my knees, trying to control my laughter. But just then, Julian rushed from behind and put his blade on my neck. The next moment, he was lying face down on the ground.

  I sensed Alice charging towards me. I jumped out of the way at the last second and tackled her to the ground.

  ''You are a lot stronger Scarlett'', said Julian. ''But don't let it get to your head. You still don't know what you are up against''.

  ''I understand''.

  I knew it was not enough. If I had to go up against the Emperor, I had to get a lot more stronger.

  ''And Alice'', he said, looking at her. ''Soon, you will be up against enemies faster and stronger than you. You will have to compensate that by using trickery and different techniques. You have to be a lot more cunning. A war is coming, and when it does, the two of you must be ready''.

  Almost three months had passed since I had finally learnt to control my dark side. Now I could stay a whole day without drinking blood and still be in control.

  I was stronger and faster than before, but I still got tired, though at a much slower rate. Since I was only half vampire, the basic human needs still remained. The only thing that had changed was, I had gained more strength and speed, and the thirst for blood. My left eye had healed, leaving behind only a faint vertical scar.

  I had spent the last three months training under the twins, Lucas and Lucy.

  Sometimes I went to the woods on the outskirts of Lycaonia to hunt. Though animal blood helped in getting rid of the burning sensation in my throat, it was not enough to quench my thirst.

  Julian had already made some arrangements for that. He had stockpiled one of the closets in my room with waterskins filled with blood. Alice called them 'Blood skins'.

  Alice was cheerful and carefree as ever. She wasn't even a least bit worried that I was a vampire.

  Julian had taken upon himself to train Alice. She was quicker than before and she had learnt some new tricks. She could not defeat me in a sword fight now that I had the senses of a vampire, but she had given me quite a few scratches with her new dagger. We made a very good team.

  I woke when I heard a set of footsteps approaching the door. I caught the familiar scent of Lucy.

  ''Scar! Alice! Wake up!'', she shouted.

  ''Scar...Get the door...'', groaned Alice from the next bed, pulling a pillow over her ears.

  I dressed up and went for the door. Lucy was waiting outside.

  ''You have been summoned. Call Alice too. Make haste'', she said.

  I shook Alice, but she just mumbled something and rolled over. I grabbed a waterskin from the side table and poured some water on her face. She woke up with a start, gasping.

  ''What happened?!''.

  ''We have been summoned'', I said, controlling my expression.

  ''Why did you have to do that?'', she demanded, glaring at me.

  ''You weren't waking up'', I said, in a matter of fact tone, trying not to smile.

  ''You weren't waking up'', she repeated in a mocking tone , sticking out her tongue.

  The Wolf King, Hector Talbot was sitting on his throne, deep in thought. In the middle of the room, a round table had been kept, on top of which, was a map of Aria. It was surrounded by Alphas and other important members. We joined Lucas, who was standing beside Julian.

  The King rose from his marble seat and walked towards the table.

  ''The Empire is preparing for war. Viktor has already started moving his forces and his allies have been amassing at South Warren'', he started.

  ''Whitewater has already been overrun by the Empire's soldiers. Even as we speak, they are strengthening their defenses at Rockden and Stonehall. It is time for us to retaliate. Do you have anything to say?''.

  ''My lord, Thelma and Theodor still haven't returned'', said one of the Alphas.

  ''Ah, yes. They were supposed to return by now. Do you have any news?''.

  ''Yes, they have sent a messenger to Lycaonia, requesting reinforcements''.

  ''Yes, and I will'', said the Wolf King, turning towards one of the female Alphas. ''Ruth, I want you to go to Ostmount with your pack and give assistance to Thelma and Theodor''.

  ''Yes, my lord'', bowed the Alpha.

  ''The Empire has started sending soldiers and supplies to their bases in the south'', continued the Wolf King. ''We cannot expect any help from Beachcastle. We have to take over the bases at Rockden and Stonehall while we still have a chance''.

  ''My lord, the scouts have reported that Ithacus was attacked by a battalion of Empire's soldiers a few days ago'', said Julian. ''They said that it was guarding an envoy, probably new supplies to the southern bases''.

  The Wolf King looked up in surprise, ''That is grave news indeed'', he said. ''Alistair and Cybele, I want you to capture the base at Stonehall. Rufus and Braden will take over the one at Stonehall''.

  ''What about the envoy, my lord'', asked Rufus.

  ''Ah yes. Lucas, take your pack and raid the supply wagons. Kill all the soldiers and bring back the supplies''.

  Then he looked at me, ''Scarlett Ironfang, you are to accompany Lucas and help the second pack. Your friend can join you if she so wishes. The time has come, and you must be ready. It won't be long before you have to face your destiny''.

  Later that night, I wasn't even able to sleep from the excitement. Ever since I had changed, I had been waiting for a chance to test my new strength. It had been a long time since we were in a real battle. This is what we were trained for.

  ''Are you sure you want to come Alice'', I asked. I did not want her to be in danger on my account.

  ''Yes, of course. Why would I miss it?'', she asked, looking at me incredulously.

  ''Do you realize it is our first battle since the siege of Crystal Mill?''.

  ''Yeah'', she sighed. ''Tomorrow we ride to glory or whatever they say'', she grinned.

  I slumped back on my soft pillow and closed my eyes. It had been a long day. Slowly, I drifted off to sleep.

  I was back in the dark hallway, sweat trickling down my brow. My heart was hammering in anticipation and fear. The two creatures snarled, baring their fangs.

  I drew my sword, bracing myself for the attack. The bat like creature spread its wings and lunged at me, aiming at my neck.

  Suddenly, the werewolf growled and charged, pouncing directly over my head. It crashed into the creature, driving it to the ground. The two monsters snapped at each other, terrible snarls ripping from their throats.

  I woke up, gasping. Alice was looking at me with wide eyes.

  ''I am alright'', I whispered in a quaky voice.

  She rolled her eyes, shaking her head and slumped back on her pillow. I smiled and closed my eyes.

  All the members of the second pack had gathered at the gate. Alice and I had decided to take our favorite war horses, Blackflame and Graybolt.

  Blackflame had a black, shiny coat. He was the only horse who was not afraid of me. Probably because we had been acquainted even before I turned. I smiled as I remembered the time he had tried to eat my hair because it was bright.

  Lucas greeted us at the gate, ''So you two picked the best, huh. Please try not to get them killed, Lucy is quite fond of them'', he said, smiling.

  Lucas looked at the rest of his pack and said, ''We have to move fast. The convoy has already left I
thacus two days ago. We should finish our task before it can reach any of the bases''.

  We started our journey towards Ithacus, as dark clouds started gathering at the southern horizon. We were the only ones on horseback since the  rest of the pack had decided to run on foot. We rode throughout the day, stopping only to eat and drink.

  At sundown, Lucas signaled the company to stop, and we decided to set up camp near a small stream.

  ''Get some rest. We will set out early at dawn''.

  I let Blackflame graze for a while, and then took him to the stream to quench his thirst, after which I tethered him to a nearby tree. He nickered and prodded me with his nose.

  ''Don't worry'', I crooned, stroking his mane. ''I will keep checking on you''.

  Alice tied her horse beside Blackflame.

  ''Hey, how are you doing?'', she asked, glancing at me.

  ''A little thirsty'', I said, as I plopped down on the ground and took out the waterskin from my pack.

  ''I will grab some food. Enjoy your sauce'', she said, heading towards the fire, where the lycans were making stew.

  The blood eased the burning in my throat. I drank till my thirst was fully quenched. I peered inside the waterskin. It was almost half empty.

  ''Don't worry, I brought some spare blood skins'', said Alice, as she sat down beside me with her bowl of stew.

  ''Why?'', I asked.

  ''Because I don't want to end up a blood skin myself'', she replied, giving me a wink, as she blew on her steaming stew.

  ''Don't worry, I won't. At least I will try not to'', I smiled, showing my fangs.

  ''Wow, that is scary, even though they look like baby fangs'', she shivered, sticking a piece of meat into her mouth.

  ''My thighs hurt. I should probably ride more often'', she complained, leaning on her backpack.

  ''Don't talk with food in your mouth'', I growled, gritting my teeth.

  ''Whatever'', she chomped, eyeing me with amusement.

  The next day we started before dawn and rode till the moon was directly overhead, and the stars were shining in the sky.

  We camped near a small vein of the Zhor river. The land was lush with long green grass. I even caught sight of a deer herd.

  Lucas called the members of his pack and spread a map on the ground. ''They have a two day's head start. We must waylay them halfway between Ithacus and Rockden'', he said, tracing his finger along the road that was marked on it.

  ''What if there are vampires?'', asked Alice.

  ''We will take care of them. You concentrate on human soldiers'', he replied. ''If you are attacked by a vampire, please call for help''.

  ''Yeah, I will'', she said, her eyes shining with excitement. I knew she wouldn't.

  ''Get some rest. We have a big battle tomorrow'', he said, rolling up the map.

  Lucas sent one of the lycans ahead of us, to confirm the position of the enemy. Soon the plains started giving way to forest land. I caught a glimpse of the Glair peaks on the distant horizon.

  The ground was covered with soft grass, which muffled the sound of hooves. Tall, dark trees loomed around us, its boughs raised towards the sky.

  Apart from me and Alice, there were thirty werewolves strong in the company. Most of them were huge and bulky.

  I only knew some of them, like Zaros, the moody one. Vossen, who was always ready for a fight. Zaff, the cheerful one, because he was always laughing. They had nicknamed him the Howler, because his laugh sounded like a howl.

  They kept their distance from me, mostly because I was a vampire, but they were not outright rude. The only real friends we had in Lycaonia were Lucas and Lucy.

  As we marched through the dense forest, a cool breeze wafted through the trees, carrying with it two different scents. One was definitely human, but the other scent was different, one I hadn't encountered before. Suddenly, my throat started to burn with desire.

  ''They are nearby'', I warned Lucas.

  ''What?!'', he exclaimed. ''Are you sure? Robert still hasn't returned''.

  ''Positive'', I replied.

  After marching for almost ten minutes, we came across a huge creature lying in our path. It was a werewolf!

  ''No! It can't be. He is dead'', gasped Lucas.

  I jumped down from my saddle and walked towards the fallen werewolf.

  ''He was shot'', I said,  pulling out an arrow shaft from its flank. It had a silver arrowhead. I sensed another presence nearby.

  ''On guard!'', I shouted, as someone jumped down from a tree directly in front of us, blocking the path.

  It was vampire. His breastplate was emblazoned with the Empire's crest. He sneered, baring his fangs and aimed his crossbow to my heart.

  ''Time to die!''.

  I snarled and bared my fangs in warning, but he had already loosed the projectile. I sensed the arrow cutting through the air. My hand instinctively shot out and caught the shaft in midair, snapping it like a twig.

  My lungs were on fire. I growled in anger and lunged, straight at the vampire's throat. He dropped the crossbow in shock, as my fangs sank into his neck.

  ''No!'', he gasped. ''What are you?!''.

  It just tasted right, better than human blood. I couldn't stop. It filled me with power, more power than I had ever felt before. I heard Alice gasp and pulled back. The vampire sank to the ground, dead.

  ''Your eyes!'', gasped Alice.

  Everyone was staring at me in shock. I picked up the vampire and hurled him into a thicket.

  I was a monster who drank the blood of monsters. But I did not care. All I cared about is getting my parents back and killing Viktor.

  ''Let's go!'', said Lucas, giving me a nervous glance. ''The rest of them must be nearby''.

  I wiped my lips, before jumping back on my saddle. I grabbed the reins and urged my horse forward.

  ''Scar, you know vampires are not supposed to drink vampire blood, right?'', asked Alice, as we rode behind the lycans.

  ''Yeah, I know'', I said, ''but I couldn't stop myself''.

  ''You must be one of a kind. Maybe it's because you are part human'', she said thoughtfully.

  ''Alice, they are near. Probably half a mile ahead'', I warned. ''Be ready''.

  The pack stopped at the edge of the forest. I was able to hear the sound of wagons just beyond the trees.

  ''You know what to do'', said Lucas, addressing the company. ''If there are any captives, free them. Kill the soldiers and bring back the supplies''.

  The lycans started morphing. Tremors passed along their spines and their faces elongated into snouts, as hair sprouted all over their body.

  Lucas was the biggest werewolf, with his brown colored fur. He was bigger than my horse. He raised his maw to the sky and howled. The rest of the werewolves answered the cry. The air trembled with their howls as they charged.

  I nodded at Alice and spurred my horse forward. The warhorse broke into a trot, slowly gaining speed, almost keeping up with the wolves. Alice was right behind me.

  The wind whipped at my face as Blackflame galloped towards the enemy. I was charged with anticipation and excitement.

  The Empire's soldiers were frozen in shock. We had taken them by surprise. I spurred my stallion directly towards the group of vampires at the back of the convoy.

  They raised their weapons, baring their fangs at me. I slashed off two of their heads, before I pulled on the reins. Blackflame neighed nervously and reared, pawing at the ground.

  I jumped down from the saddle, just as a vampire charged towards me. I lunged forward, slashing with my sword, but the vampire parried the blow.

  He raised his sword and struck at my breastplate. I ducked and caught his wrist, twisting it till he dropped the blade.

  I grabbed his shoulder and sank my fangs into his neck. He convulsed for a moment before he went limp. I ran my tongue over my lips and snarled. The other vampires staggered back in horror.

  ''Who's next?'', I snarled.

  I picked up the body and hurled it at the vampire
s. They scattered, breaking their group. I slashed off one of their heads, before driving my blade through the chest of another. Both disintegrated on the spot.

  I saw Alice a few yards away from me. She was fighting three soldiers at once. She seemed to be doing well. She was fending off their attacks with her back to the wagon. A  russet werewolf came to her aid, bringing down one of the soldiers.

  I sensed a vampire charging towards me from behind. I ducked and his spear just missed my head. I grabbed the shaft and thrust my sword at his ankle. He howled in pain, sinking to the ground.

  The rest of them charged at the same time, waving their weapons. I could sense their fear. I braced myself, gripping Shadowfang firmly in my hand. Just as the first soldier approached, I struck his shoulder, cutting right through his chain mail.

  The remaining three spread out, coming at me in different directions. I grabbed one of their spears and parried the blow of the second one, but the third vampire was fast.

  I screamed in pain as I felt the spear pierce right through my leather armor.

  I slashed through the arm of the vampire who's spear I was holding. He fell on the ground, clutching the stump, before he started disintegrating.

  The one who had stabbed me was trying to pull out the spear from my back. I whirled around and drove my blade through his throat.

  Before I could draw back my sword, the second vampire swung his blade. I let go of my sword and blocked his blade with my arm guard, but it pierced right through the mail. I ignored the sharp pain and grabbed his sword with my gloves, snapping it in half.

  ''AAARRRGGGHHH...'', I groaned, as I pulled out the spear from my chest. I threw it aside and lunged at the still standing vampire, sinking my fangs into his neck. I felt my wounds closing  as I fed on the vampire's blood. Power coursed through my veins, reviving me completely.

  I looked over at Alice. She was completely surrounded and the wolves were occupied in their own fights.

  I grabbed my sword and called Blackflame. The stallion came galloping towards me. I grabbed the reins and hoisted myself onto the saddle, before urging him towards Alice.

  I gripped Shadowfang in my hand as the war horse charged towards the soldiers. At least these were just human.

  As soon as we reached her, I pressed my shoes against Blackflame's side. The horse reared, burying its iron shod hooves into the back of a soldier.

  His armor caved in and he collapsed to the ground, his bones crushing under the weight of the warhorse.

  I jumped into their midst, sinking my fangs into anyone who came in my way. Rest of the soldiers scattered, but before they could escape, the werewolves bore down on them, tearing them to pieces.

  ''Are you alright?'', I asked Alice.

  ''You are the one who got stabbed'', she said, rolling her eyes.

  ''You saw that, huh?'', I grinned.

  ''I am not going to forget that soon'', she said, imitating me, clutching an imaginary spear at her chest, with a shocked expression her face.

  ''There are still some soldiers left'', I said, mounting my horse. ''Let us see who defeats more of them''.

  ''I am right behind you'', she said, giving me an evil smile.

  With that, we charged into the melee, slashing through the soldiers who were not being mauled by the werewolves.

  As soon as all the soldiers were dead, Lucas ordered the lycans to burn the bodies.

  Some of the wagons were closed, with only a small window at the side. I heard the sound of loud breathing coming from inside. The back doors of the carriage were locked. I snapped off the chains and opened the door.

  At the back of the carriage, there were around a dozen civilians huddled together. They looked at me with fear in their eyes.

  ''Lucas, you might want to see this'', I called.

  He was not surprised to see the captives. ''Probably fodder for the vampire soldiers at the base. They used to take only criminals before. Now they have even started abducting the civilians'', he said, grimacing in distaste.

  ''Free the captives!'', he shouted to the rest of his pack.

  Two lycans were dead, Vossen and Aron, who had been stabbed with a silver sword through their hearts. They were buried in the forest, beneath a huge oak. The rest of the bodies were gathered into a mound and burned.

  The townspeople informed him that some of the soldiers had remained in Ithacus, so Lucas picked ten lycans from his pack to take back the town.

  ''The rest of you, take the wagons back to Lycaonia'', he ordered. ''We will catch up with you in a couple of days''.

  ''We will come with you'', I told Lucas.

  ''Are you sure?'', he asked. ''It is going to be dangerous''.

  ''We are Hunters'', said Alice, rolling her eyes.

  ''Alright'', he shrugged.

  The thirteen of us headed towards Ithacus, along with the civilians. Lucas asked them about the attacks on their town.

  They told him that the soldiers had arrived some five days back. They had killed all the guards and taken their resources, along with the captives. They had threatened to burn the town if they resisted.

  ''According to them, there are less than fifty of them in Ithacus'', said Lucas. ''Be careful though, there might be vampires too''.

  ''Lucky we have a vampire hunter with us'', whispered Alice, winking at me.

  ''How many did you get?'', I asked.

  ''Eight. You?''.

  ''Ten'', I grinned.

  ''Damn it'', she swore. ''Not to worry, there are still more in Ithacus''.

  By the time we reached Ithacus, it was already past midnight. Lucas ordered the lycans to set up camp at the outskirts, under the cover of trees.

  ''Get some rest, we will attack at dawn. I do not want any more casualties''.

  The lycans obeyed him without question. The battle could have been over within an hour, but he did not want to take any chances.

  The lycans were tired. Even the civilians camped with us, since they couldn't sneak back into town without alerting the soldiers.

  ''I am sorry about Vossen and Aron''.

  ''It's alright. They died in a battle. That is what they wanted'', said Lucas. ''You two get some rest''.

  I nodded, before spreading my bedroll on the ground. I slumped down, leaning against my backpack. I tucked Shadowfang under my bedroll.

  I heard Blackflame pawing at the ground. I had tethered him nearby, beside a stream. Alice was already asleep, snoring peacefully.

  Wait a minute! Alice never snored. She was faking sleep, which meant she was up to something. I lay back and closed my eyes.

  After a while, I sensed a movement in her direction. I slowly opened my eyes. She was stealthily walking towards the spot where we had tethered our stallions.

  I waited for a few moments before I grabbed my sword and started following her.

  She took her armor from Graybolt's  saddlebag and started wearing it without making any sound. She jammed her head into a helm and lowered the visor. She fumbled in the bag till she found a dagger, which she strapped to her belt and started walking in the direction of the town.

  She kept to the shadows, as she crept towards the wall. Once she reached the barricade, she slowly edged towards the lone sentinel, who was standing guard at the gate.

  She crept up behind him and grabbed his shoulder. I saw a flash of steel and the next moment, the guard was lying on the ground with his neck slit open.

  ''What are you doing, Alice?'', I muttered to myself.

  I was still staring with my jaw hanging open, when I realized that she was trying to kill all the soldiers by herself. Typical of Alice. I sighed in exasperation and dashed towards her.

  I kept my distance, following a few paces behind. She crept towards the large building down the street, which the soldiers had turned into their temporary base. It looked like an inn.

  She crept into an alley beside the building and climbed in through a window. I was able to hear raucous laughter coming from inside, and a foul stench of alcohol
hung in the air.

  I peered in and saw that all the soldiers were focused on a spectacle occurring at the front. A drunk soldier was harassing a woman, trying to pull her clothes, and another was beating a civilian, who was probably the innkeeper and the woman's husband.

  There were at least thirty of them in the lounge. There was no way she could take down all these soldiers.

  Alice was fuming. She pulled out her sword and stabbed one of them in the back. As he crashed to the floor, all the attention was diverted to her.

  It was a moment before they recovered from their shock and started reaching for their weapons. I jumped inside and snarled, baring my fangs. The ones who were standing near the window, staggered back in fear.

  ''Scarlett! What are you doing here?'', asked Alice, her eyes narrowing.

  ''I was feeling a little thirsty, so I came here for a drink'', I replied, winking at her.

  ''Kill them!'', shouted their leader.

  Alice gripped her sword in one hand and the dagger in other. The soldiers charged at us, brandishing their weapons. One of them swung at Alice, who easily parried the blow and slashed the dagger across his throat. He collapsed to the floor clutching his neck.

  The woman screamed and tried to run, but the drunk soldier slapped her across the face and she fell on the ground, sobbing.

  A feral snarl ripped from my throat as I lunged, sinking my fangs into the first on who got in my way. I fed on his blood, as it sharpened my senses, filling me with energy.

  I ran my tongue over my lips and grimaced at the soldiers, who stared at me in horror.

  They backed away, terrified. I drew my Shadowfang and charged, slashing and cutting through their armor.

  The innkeeper grabbed the woman's hand and dragged her outside, away from the melee.

  One of the soldiers tried to follow. The next moment, he was lying face down on the floor, with Alice's dagger protruding from the back of his head.

  As soon as we had killed all of Viktor's men in the lounge, we dashed out into the streets. Just when we were about to pursue the ones who were trying to escape, I heard a howl, followed by loud snarls.

  Suddenly, the air was filled terrified screams as the werewolves bore down on the escaping soldiers.

  ''Uh oh!'', muttered Alice, looking at the huge brown wolf loping towards us.

  The werewolf started morphing back into its human form.

  ''Are you two out of you minds?'', he scolded, glaring at us. ''There could have been vampires among them''.

  ''Scarlett started it'', said Alice, pointing at me.

  ''I don't care'', snapped Lucas. ''Now go back and get some sleep. We will take care of the rest''.

  ''Sorry'', I replied, throwing a murderous glance at Alice.

  She was still snickering under her breath, as we headed back towards the camp.

            ~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~