A Vampire's Tale

4 The Hunter's Demise

A new energy and vitality filled Milas' body as all the previous pain and fatigue seemed to disappear like the memories of a dream. The terror filled Milas with a new will to live and that would only be accomplished if he ran.

He got to his feet and ran in the direction that Jill had taken. He could hear the rigorous pumping of his heart as it supplied blood and strength to his worn out muscles. He focused on the traces of broken twigs and branches left behind by Jill's frantic escape. Milas seemed to enter a higher state of focus where nothing else but his escape mattered. If he wasn't so focused he may have realized that he was moving with the speed, agility and grace of an experienced tracker.

Soon, he could hear Jill's footsteps and the new hope he received was turned into strength that was fully utilized by his legs. Yet despite the increase in speed, the distance never reduced. Infact, it seemed to be increasing.

'Why is she so damn fast.' Milas thought in anger and despair when he realized he couldn't reach her. "Slow down! Its me, Milas!"

Milas yelled when he caught a glimpse of her disappearing back. He slowed slightly as he expected her to wait for him. His heart almost stopped from shock when Jill yelled back without turning around or slowing down. "Don't lead it to me you idiot!! Go die alone!!"

That was the last thing Milas heard before Jill's running speed seemingly turned into a form of teleportation. She disappeared between the trunks of trees like an apparition. The sting of betrayal didn't last as the fear of being alone with a blood thirsty creature baying for his blood completely overshadowed it.

Milas' heart went into overdrive as his previous fear turned into rage. A rage that made him want to feed Jill's words to her. He gave chase to the long gone Jill with a new determination. Deep down, Milas knew that his anger was just him looking for someone to blame for his eventual demise. He could hear the sound of feet stepping on leaves behind him.

The sound got closer and closer to him till it was close enough for him to hear the heavy breathing of the creature. Something grabbed his previously injured shoulder and yanked him back. Milas felt the burning pain of fingers digging into his open wound. The pain added to the force of the pull made him stumble and fall on his back. He quickly lifted his arms into an X shape to protect his head from the attack that was sure to come. He braced himself but the hit never arrived. Milas looked up and stared at the figure that was clad in leather armour. The weave of which maximized on flexibility and aeration while providing amazing defense. His gaze landed on his attacker's face and those brown eyes that stared back at him with a hint of insanity belonged to someone he knew.

"Adrian, what the heck do you think you're doing?" Milas asked in a strained voice.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm merely buying myself more time to escape by sacrificing a burden." Adrian replied with a cold tone devoid of emotion.

"Yo... you don't have to do this Adrian." Milas' voice was filled with fear for his life.

"Why do you think we hired you back at the village? We needed someone strong enough to carry our stuff yet worthless enough for his disappearance not to matter. Were you really dumb enough to think we would pay 30 silver coins for an inexperienced porter for no reason? Pathetic!" Adrian lifted his sword at the end of his little speech. Milas was helpless to defend.

"I would have apologized for doing this but we both know that I won't mean it." The sword came down on Milas just to stop inches away from him. The blade shook as its wielder trembled in fear. Milas didn't know what made Adrian change his mind and he wasn't going to wait for him to recover. A kick landed on Adrian's groin and he keeled over in pain. Milas then grabbed the hand with the sword and used to pull him to the ground. He wrestled the sword from his grip and immediately swung it at Adrian's thigh. The sharp edge made a deep cut that soon oozed blood. Milas used the sword to support his weight as he stood up.

His gaze met that of the creature as he finally understood why Adrian froze. The creature's hands were soaked in blood all the way up to its elbows. Its face was even worse as a mixture of blood and drool dripped out of its open maw. The worst thing was that all its injuries had vanished.

Milas backed away from the creature while staying focused on it incase of any movement. Adrian tried to drag himself away but the creature stared deep into his eyes making him give up on any attempts of escaping. Milas tried to run but the creature growled at him when he made the first step.

The creature's gaze moved between the two humans. It seemed to be chosing its target. Its sight landed on the sword in Milas' hand before it snarled at him.

"You cannot be serious. What the sh...!" Milas couldn't believe that he was the one being attacked. The creature was upon him and Milas only had time to lift the sword to block. Claws struck the blade and pushed him away. Milas' body hit a tree with the back of his head receiving the largest impact.

His vision blurred but the creature was already attacking before he could recover. Milas' body moved on its own and a clang was heard as he miraculously blocked another hit. His body went into autopilot as he slashed forward. His vision was still hazy but he felt the sword strike something. His body moved again and he thrust the sword forward and upward.

Milas remained in this position for sometime as he waited for his sight to return. A warm liquid flowed onto his hands that tightly gripped the hilt of the sword. Milas looked forward and his eyes widened in amazement.

The once fearsome beast now looked completely defeated. Its clawed hands lay on the ground, cleanly severed at its forearms. The sword itself rested in the creature's maw with most of it sticking out the back of its head. Black blood flowed down the blade and covered Milas' hands. Milas was in awe of his own achievement. He turned his head face Adrian who was still on the ground clutching his groin and the wound on his thigh.

Milas frowned and his gaze turned cold and filled with murderous intent.