Finston collapsed along the road as he fought to keep air in his lungs. His legs burned and blisters formed on the bottom of his feet from running through the night. His mind kept replaying the moments from the massacre of his friends as sleep tried to lure him into its embrace. Each time he felt himself drift off as he got control of his breathing, the brief glimpse of fangs welcomed him in his mind, jolting him awake.

  “Gotta keep running,” He told no one, willing himself up as his body protested the movements.

  Thundering hooves came barreling down the road, alerting Finston to them. He quickly stood and flagged them down. Joy and relief flooded through his body as the realization that the nightmare had finally come to an end.

  “Halt!” One of the armored riders said to Finston as he rushed up to meet them.

  “Please sir! I need to get to the Holy Order! I have urgent news!” Finston replied.

  “Well, whatever it is, you can report it to me as I am a Knight-Templar Seeker,” a woman with green eyes and dark hair done up in a bun said as she strode forward in between the ranks.

  Finston had never laid eyes on anyone he thought more beautiful than the woman in front of him. His jaw went slack and his eyes went wide as his brain turned to mush at the sight of her. She held a no-nonsense aura about her as she stared down at Finston, waiting for him to answer.

  “Well Bard? Say your piece,” Adeline said.

  “Well… uh, there was this… uh, vampire?” Finston stammered out.

  “A vampire? Where exactly?” Adeline’s hard reply shook Finston out of his trance as she sat forward on her white warhorse.

  “My companions and I were attacked by a vampire that came from the direction of Bonehill Barrows Dungeon,” Finston said.

  “It slaughtered everyone I knew,” He quietly added as the horror from the night began to replay in his mind, clouding his vision with the events that burned fresh still.

  Adeline looked to Ingram, who sat astride his own massive warhorse. The same train of thought circled in his mind when he looked back at her and then at Finston.

  “How long ago was this?” Ingram asked this time.

  “Last night, sir,” Finston said as he subconsciously tugged at what little was left of his muddy black cloak for protection and comfort.

  Ingram nodded at Finston, then turned to signal a few men behind him before he led them ahead on their horses. Finston watched them go by, paying no mind to Adeline that continued to stare at him.

  “You are safe now,” Adeline finally said, making Finston's soul nearly leave his body for the countless time less than 24 hours apart.

  Finston solemnly nodded as he held his head down. The fear from last night finally left his body, but not without leaving a little present behind, as he uncontrollably shook. Adeline dismounted from her horse to place a hand on Finston’s shoulder. A light from her hands followed by a warm feeling rushed into Finston as the adrenaline abated. He felt the aches and bruises he accumulated throughout the night subside until it felt like they were never there to begin with.

  “We make camp here until Ingram reports back!” Adeline bellowed out, “You, what is your name?” Adeline asked him.

  “Finston ma’am, but Fin for short,” Finston said, a lopsided grin replacing his gloomy features from the touch of her hand on his shoulders.

  “Sit with me and tell me exactly what happened and leave nothing out,” Adeline said as she guided him towards the rest of her unit as the men dismounted their horses to look for a suitable campground off the road. The fear that overtook him again replaced Finston’s giddiness.

  “But that would surely take all night and an important woman like you must have important matters to attend to then to talk with me,” Finston tried to avoid reliving the nightmare again.

  “No matter is more important than the sighting of a Vampire on the main continent. It could cause trouble for us all if I let it fester,” Adeline said, not missing a step.

  “Then I will pull out some wine and we can discuss it in your tent tonight?” Finston said with hope to be as close to safety as he could get.

  “No, we will discuss it here and now without the wine,” Adeline said as two men were finishing moving a fallen log into a makeshift seat. She unclipped the sword at her side, unclasped the cloak she wore and sat it down on the log before sitting down herself and crossing her arms and legs.

  “Begin,” Adeline said expectantly.

  “Shall I sit next to you then?” Finston asked with hope again.

  “You are a Bard no?” Adeline shot back, a frown beginning to form.

  “Well, yes-” Finston wrung his hands together.

  “Then you are accustomed to being the center of attention?” Adeline pressed.

  “Yes-” Finston meekly replied.

  “Then we will sit across from one another so everyone within earshot can hear your tale. Begin please if you would,” Adeline said without no room for argument.

  “Can I at least get some food and water, then?” Finston tried to argue.

  “Yes, someone will bring you food and water, BUT you will stay here and tell me and everyone what happened while they prepare,” Adeline gestured towards one of her guards, who then ran off to find the stores of food and water.

  Finston sighed, then sat down on the forest floor across from her and told her about the events of last night.

  Later that evening, when the sun dipped on the horizon, Aldrin awoke to insects crawling over him in the cave he found. He brushed them off of him as a pounding headache threatened to hammer his head in two. Worry coursed through him as the thought of having to go through another mindless killing spree plagued his mind. Slowly standing, he felt great, better than how he had originally been not counting the headache. However, he knew that was because of his newly altered self.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  Begrudgingly, Aldrin braced himself for the slew of system alerts that were waiting to be released. He opened his System Interface, checking to see if there were any changes to it. However, everything remained in the same order luckily, Notifications, Character, Skill Trees, Inventory, Quests, and Settings. With a shaky breath, he willed the system alerts to pop up in his vision.

  Aldrin took a deep breath as he read over the notifications from the prior events. He sat with himself as he read over the notifications back and forth, the tier 6 quest chain issued sticking out the most. His mind couldn’t comprehend what had happened to him as he then stared at the quest. Dreading the next part, he opened his status to figure out what to do next.

  Aldrin whistled when he got to the end of the notifications.

  “Maybe there is a cure for me?” Aldrin said to no one in particular as he looked onwards.