On The Hunt By Jesse http://slicer69.tripod.com/ Vampire hunting. It is, quite possibly, the most dangerous job in the world. It involves long hours, long boring hours, and quick, terrifying encounters with death. Why would anyone want this thankless job? It pays well. I learnt the art of vampire hunting from my father. I can remember him taking me with him on his treks out "game hunting" as early as fourteen. It might sound like an odd way to father-son bond, but it works. When you hunt with someone, you have to trust them, respect them and you place your life in their hands. That is exactly what we did, several times a year, until the winter I turned nineteen. I'm not sure why my father first started taking me along with him. Perhaps he wanted the company. Perhaps he thought it would put some build on my small frame. I never was, nor am I now, good with a sword. My frame isn't right for it. But I quickly learnt to throw a mean dagger and I learnt to tap into something deeper inside of me. Everyone has it, deep inside them. That thing many call magic. It's stronger in some than others. It is often, I note, weakest in those who refuse to believe in it. My father never trusted magic. "What good are words when staring a vampire in the teeth?" he'd ask. He did learn, slowly, to accept its usefulness though. To him it was just another tool I carried with me. Most people expect me to tell them that my father died vampire hunting. That is the end of most hunters. It isn't the case. My father retired at the age of thirty-eight, with the means to live the rest of his days. As I said, it pays well. In his place, I carry on the informal family business. It isn't so bad. I get to travel a lot, I'm outdoors often and it is, if nothing else, important to those who fear vampires. There are many myths about the undead, especially vampires. Most of them are not true, of course. Yes, vampires suck the blood of the living. Yes, they can create other vampires from their victims. However, they rarely do. Most vampires have to feed several times a month. To go about creating more vampires in their paths would be stupid at the least. More vampires equals more competition and a greater risk of being found. Vampires rarely leave bodies behind. Rather, they take the bodies and hide them away somewhere to feed in peace. This makes my job harder. The first clue that a vampire is in an area is usually the disappearance of people on a regular basis. Back to myths. No vampire I've ever seen could change its shape. Nor fly. One other myth is true though. They do hide from the sun. This is a mortal's greatest weapon. Light, pure, natural light is a great defence. Night is their realm. For this reason, most vampires, the ones that live past the first week of their creation, usually live outside of towns. They hide away in caves and abandoned cottages, waiting, preying. That was where the last evening of September found me; Lying in the dirt outside of a hut. Inside, I expected, was my prey, who was in turn, probably feeding on his prey. A farmer had disappeared two days previous and I had taken it upon myself to look about for him. Near he edge of his field I found the tracks. Vampires, dragging bodies, leave odd prints. I had followed while their was still light, heading into the woods. So here I was, waiting, hoping, for the vampire to come out again this night. It was certainly not my plan to enter into his home. Rather, I wanted a quick surprise attack in the dark. I have never figured out whether vampires can, in fact, see in the dark. They are certainly familiar with it. It could be that they simply adjust to darkness, or they may truly see like cats after sunset. Whichever it was, this vampire saw no need for candle light, I noted with disgust. There was no light from the hut and the sun had sunk under the trees. Well, nothing for it but to wait, I thought as I adjusted my weight. I had to keep my throwing arm from falling asleep. It was the quiet that first gave me warning. The woods, even at night, are full of sounds. When a predator is on the move, that changes in a hurry. I'm not sure how long it took me to realize the silence, but I cursed myself for not sensing it sooner. Something was close and I hadn't seen anything move from the hut. I quickly looked about me, sensing more than seeing the dark form directly behind me. The hair on the back of my neck went up and I let loose a dagger at the figure. I didn't care at this point if it was friend or foe. No one sneaks up behind someone in the woods without taking the consequences. The dagger lodged into the form's shoulder and the shadow moved forward. It came, far too quickly to be human. I wasn't quick enough to send another missile into the creature and it was on me in a second. It was close enough to touch, to smell, to see. By the star light I confirmed my fears: Vampire. I woke up somewhere cold. My head hurt and when I opened my eyes, I found it was dark. My sense of balance was askew and I couldn't tell if I was lying down, sitting or propped up. A foot fall beside my head confirmed the first, I was lying on the floor. I wondered, briefly, if the creature knew I was awake and if- "Hello, little one," a cold, rasping voice said from above. A woman's voice, but void of all the good things one learns to expect in a lady's words. I turned and looked up. A woman, dressed in a simple, brown dress stood over me. I noticed then that my cloak, shirt and belt had been removed. My weapons, obviously, had been removed too. My throat suddenly felt dry. "Hello, miss," I replied as calmly as I could. There was a large red mark on her dress under her left shoulder. This was not going to go well. More foot steps. I turned my head, impossibly, from the yellow eyes that watched me. Boots, covered with pine needles and mud came into sight. "So, he's awake," this voice, male, rasped. "I told you I was followed." Two! Rarely do vampires keep company with anyone, even their own kind. This was unexpected and unwelcome. "Hungry?" the woman's voice asked. I suspected she wasn't talking to me. "Nah," the man's voice came back. "Your turn." I felt oddly smooth fingers grip my shoulders and pull me, dizzily, to my feet. I got a shadowy glimpse of the woman's face as she roughly pushed me backward into the wall. Under other circumstances, she may have been pretty. But for me, now, it was the face of death. Pale, lean, terrifying. The figure behind her appeared to be watching. Either out of concern that I might get away or for the pleasure of watching my blood being drained away. "I've never had dancing lessons," I joked half heartedly as she pinned me to the wall. For a moment, just a moment, she seemed surprised that I'd spoken. Then, "That's alright. Let me lead." I felt rope being tied to my wrists. Not going well at all, I thought. I looked about for a way out, a tool anything but the hungry eyes. "Last words?" she asked, mockingly. She was staring right into my eyes, enjoying watching me fight my fate. None were coming to mind. I nodded anyway. When you have nothing to lose, you'll try the stupidest things. I kicked her. While my arms were tied, spread, to the wall, my feet were free. My kick didn't land as I'd hoped and merely knocked her off balance. She stepped back, regarding me with surprise. Then, with a look of anger clouding her features, returned the favour. I thought she might have broken my leg with that blow. I groaned in pain and tried to shut out the rush of static from my shin. "Anything else?" She was toying with me. Like a child pulling the wings from a fly. My mouth was dry. "Nothing else," I croaked. She gave a half smile. The look a cat might give a mouse when it has finished playing with it. "Very well," she whispered. A step closer, she came and put her face next to mine. I couldn't stop watching her. All of my will was unable to rip my eyes from hers or to slow my wildly beating heart. I tired summoning my power to me. But no spells came to my mind; the words would not form themselves in my mind. I could feel her breath on my neck and her fingers dug into my shoulder. Light. That's all that I can remember for sure. Blazing, blinding, white light poured from within me into the small room. For an instant, the vampire's body was highlighted perfectly, then my eyes adjusted, closing off the sight. Burning, I remember the smell of burning as I hung there by my wrists. I got my eyes open again a few seconds later. Light still shone from my chest, my legs, from my very inner being. The blackened and scorched body of the once-woman lay on the floor. The other vampire was curled in a heap on the far side of the room. Whether he had fled or been knocked over, I had no way of knowing. Now, however, as the light faded, he was standing. A quick check told me that the ropes which had bound me were left unaffected by my unexpected defence. But, I noted, my tools of the trade were lying on a barrel in the corner. As the second vampire moved closer, cautiously, I summoned a dagger to me. It lifted and floated silently toward me. He saw it moving along the wall and lunged for me. This time both of my feet came up and smashed into his face. Adrenalin had taken over from fear and the force was enough to knock him over. The dagger landed in my right hand and I stabbed quickly, hopefully at my bonds. I was lucky, perhaps. The rope was thin and frayed, having obviously been used before. My one hand was free by the time the next attack came. One hand was all I needed. The blade whistled up and over, catching the vampire in the side of the throat. Blood, thick vampire blood, poured from the wound. He gasped, clutching one hand over the gash. Then, with his other hand, he smashed me in the face, hard enough to break my jaw. Using my increased range of movement, I stepped into him, driving the dagger into his heart. He swayed, groaned and fell to the floor. This left my dagger out of my reach. My magic was, I found, too drained to pull it out. I instead had to use my feet to retrieve the blade from his chest before setting about to cut my other hand free. I retrieved my equipment and paused only to take the heads of my victims. Victims, for indeed, the tables had turned. If nothing else, this night would pay well.