The crew followed Kane out of the ballroom. He was carrying Maeve his in arms. He had convinced Crimson that Maeve needed to rest, thus the ‘’reception’’ had to come to an end. Disappointed, the eccentric vampire had however allowed Kane to put Maeve to bed.
As soon as the doors shut behind them, Kane urged the crew to leave the castle : ‘’Maeve’s not safe here, not with Crimson around. He’s already pushed her limits before. But this, this is the first time he almost kills her. Let’s go’’ he told the crewmates, leading them toward the castle’s front doors.
‘’What, you are coming with us ?’’ Sinbad asked skeptically.
‘’If Crimson thinks you’ve abducted her, he and Xander will slaughter you. If I stay with her, he will trust me and think I will bring her back.’’
‘’Why should we trust you ?’’ Sinbad asked him defiantly.
‘’Because you have no other choice’’, Kane replied.
‘’Our ship is anchored at Sarania’s port,’’ Firouz protested, worry painted on his face. ‘’It’s more than an hour away from the castle. I’m not sure she can make it that far’’. The beautiful sorceress, still unconscious, was pale as death.
‘’Our camp is closer from the castle. Would that be okay ?’’ Doubar asked, worried for his redhead lass. Kane nodded.
‘’Let’s not waste any more time. Take your horses’’, Kane instructed them. He took Maeve’s horse and got on it. Rongar helped the vampire install Maeve so she could lean comfortably against Kane’s chest. The group rode about forty minutes before they reached their tents.
‘’It’s about time we arrived’’, Kane told the sailors as he jumped off Maeve’s horse, carrying the sorceress in his arms. ‘’She has trouble breathing’’. Even though he couldn’t feel worry or fear, the crew could tell it was pretty close to what the vampire was trying to express. Kane, Firouz, Sinbad and Bryn ran to the first tent, which was Sinbad’s. They installed Maeve on the improvised bedding. Her breathing was erratic.
‘’You’’, Kane pointed at Bryn. ‘’You stay here with me. And you’’, he turned to Firouz and Sinbad, ‘’please step out of the tent’’.
‘’What are you planning, exactly ?’’ Sinbad scolded.
‘’Undressing her and removing her corset’’, Kane answered, expressionless.
‘’Of course. It will allow her to inhale more deeply,’’ Firouz nodded in approval. He walked out of the tent. Sinbad glared at Kane. He didn’t trust him at all. It made the vampire chuckle. ‘’Don’t worry, captain. I’m not attracted to living females anymore’’. Sinbad walked out, exasperated. A few minutes later, Bryn and Kane walked out of the tent too.
‘’She is doing fine, her breathing has steadied’’, Kane informed Firouz. The whole crew sighed of relief.
‘’I suggest you start a fire and settle yourselves for the night’’. Kane walked to Maeve’s horse and reached for her bow and arrows.
‘’What are you doing ?’’ asked Doubar.
‘’Getting myself a snack. The pigeon was nice, but I’m still hungry’’, he explained, before walking off to to forest so he could hunt. He was back half an hour later, carrying a dead boar over his shoulders.
‘’Lovely snack’’, Doubar said as he, too, still felt hungry.
‘’Well, I thought I could bring you sailors something to eat’’, Kane smiled.
‘’Why, aren’t you going to eat it ?’’
‘’I couldn’t help but notice you didn’t seem to enjoy watching me drinking the pigeon’s blood’’, Kane smirked. ‘’So I feasted upon a deer, in the forest. Besides, I only drink from the living’’, he added, glancing at the dead boar.
‘’Well, let’s charbroil it’’ Doubar laughed as Rongar helped him carry the dead animal to the firepit.
‘’How is Maeve doing ?’’ Kane asked Bryn, who was sitting by the fire.
‘’Firouz and Sinbad are watching over her’’, she answered, glancing at the captain’s tent.
Kane walked to the tent. To his surprise, Maeve was awake and chatting with Sinbad, who sat beside her. Firouz was checking her wounds to make sure they were healing without any infection. Kane and Bryn had previously undressed her completely, so she was now lying on the captain’s bedding, with a sheet covering her from her feet up to her armpits.
‘’Kane !’’ she exclaimed, smiling, when she saw the vampire walk in.
‘’I’m glad to see you are feeling better’’, he said to her.
‘’Yes. Thank you’’.
‘’I should have known Crimson would be a problem’’, Kane added in a way that could be interpreted as remorseful, though again, he was unable to humanly express it.
‘’Kane is the one who rescued me’’, Maeve explained after she saw the puzzled look on Sinbad’s face. ‘’He found me on the shore months ago, passed out and about to be assaulted by pirates. I was too weak to fight, either by sword or magic. He was out hunting that evening.’’ She chuckled. ‘’He really scared those men away ! And he has cared for me ever since’’. She turned to look at Kane. ‘’You’ve been a true friend to me’’.
Kane shook his head. ‘’Friendship is not a feeling I know, not anymore’’, he told her.
‘’You could have let me being assaulted or killed, but you didn’t. You chose to help me. You’ve always protected me from Xander and Crimson. That’s what friends do, Kane’’, she protested. ‘’They make sure those they care for are ok. Just like you did tonight. You have a good soul…’’
‘’I don’t have a soul’’, he interrupted her. ‘’And you’ll endanger yourself if you start thinking vampires do’’.
‘’Then how would you call what you’ve done tonight, if it’s not friendship, goodness or care ?’’ Sinbad asked, overall grateful for Kane’s help. The vampire shrugged. ‘’Duty, I guess’’, he replied before walking out of the tent, soon followed by Firouz.
The two sat by the fire with the rest of the crew. They now all thought of Kane as being rather sympathetical, even though he was a vampire. At least, they didn’t fear him anymore.
‘’Kane, how come you’ve stopped drinking human blood ?’’ Bryn asked him.
‘’Oh, it’s a little experiment. As a man, I was to become a clerk. I was schooled early, and was mostly interested in sciences and medicine. When I became a vampire, I struggled a lot. I tried to fight against my nature, against what I had become. I had always seen myself as a virtuous man, who had faith. And I had become a soulless beast. I started reading about foreign cultures. Humans are not conditioned to eat other humans, yet many cultures are known to have practiced cannibalism, either for religious or warfare purposes. So I thought, maybe vampires could feed from what they were not initially conditioned to eat, too. It took me almost a century to give up human blood completely’’. He smirked. ‘’Imagine being fed with the gods’ nectar all your life, and then suddenly having to drink flat water only. It would most certainly do the job … but it wouldn’t be half as satisfying’’.
‘’It’s interesting. Your background,’’ Bryn told him, smiling. ‘’Though, you sure don’t look like a clerk’’.
‘’What about Xander and Crimson ? Who were they ? ’’ Doubar asked. The crewmates turned to Kane, also curious to learn more about the two other vampires. Kane chuckled.
‘’Well … Xander was a decorated officer. But no surprise there, for he also was a powerful sorcerer.’’
‘’Black magic ?’’ Bryn asked.
‘’Yes. It is also the reason why he still has what you could call magical abilities, like his telekinesis. Crimson and I, however, do not possess any, except we are physically stronger than most humans.’’
‘’Which is logic, since you have now become our predators’’, Firouz thought out loud.
‘’Exactly. As for Crimson, the castle we live in is actually his. He was the duke of Sarania, about two centuries ago.’’ The crew looked surprised.
‘’But now … who’s governing over his duchy ?’’ Doubar asked. Rongar shrugged.
‘’No one, really. The castle sits right in the middle of the forest. From there, we can access at least a dozen villages which are all self-governed. It is litteraly Xander and Crimson’s hunting territory. The villagers know that the castle exists, they also know frightening creatures live there. Of course, they noticed some villagers tended to disappear, from time to time’’, he smirked.
‘’A clerk, a warrior and a duke …’’, Firouz stated. ‘’I would have thought Crimson would be your chief, but Xander seems to be the most powerful. Any hierarchy between the three of you ?’’
‘’Again, no. It’s useless now. We met because we were turned into vampires by the same Elder, Crimson being the youngest vampire, so to speak, among the three of us. But our social statuses were totally irrelevant’’.
‘’Why did you need a hunter, if Xander and Crimson used to go hunting by themselves?’’ Bryn asked.
‘’As most men from the nobility, Crimson has always lived in luxury. He always had people doing whatever he didn’t feel to like doing himself, for him. Why would he go hunting if someone agreed to do it for him ?’’ Kane replied. ‘’When he met Maeve, he aknowledged her skills. But moreover, it was a way for him to keep her all for himself.’’
‘’I thought you said vampires couldn’t feel … lust or that kind of feeling,’’ Doubar shrugged.
‘’It’s true, we don’t. But I’m sure you’ve all noticed how eccentric Crimson’s personality is. As a living man, he was one to always have fun, enjoying beautiful women’s company, eating and drinking from the finest foods and beverages, dressing in the finest fabrics and wearing the most expensive jewelry. He was bored, then Maeve came in. Even though he can’t feel lust, he still enjoys beauty. She’s his personal porcelain doll. He’s playing dress up with her.’’
‘’That’s creepy,’’ Doubar muttered, ‘’Poor lass’’. Rongar nodded in approval.
Kane stared at them before starting to chuckle again. ‘’You all think Crimson is controlling her, don’t you ?’’ he asked the puzzled crew.
‘’Controlling or toying with her. Anyhow, he’s taking advantage of her’’, Firouz replied.
‘’Well, you got it all wrong,’’ Kane smiled. ‘’She’s the one who’s controlling him. She’s got him wrapped around her finger’’.
‘’That’s not what I saw’’, Doubar protested.
‘’That’s not what you THOUGHT you saw’’, Kane corrected him. ‘’Maeve’s the one who suggested she could hunt for them, so she could stop Crimson and Xander’s merciless slaughter. She’s the one who brought the idea of bringing only criminals to them. Sarania is a small port, but many sailors, merchants and pirates stop by. Criminality is routine, here’’.
‘’She’s willingly sacrificed herself’’, Bryn said softly.
‘’She was alone and had nowhere to go. She had nothing to lose trying to be helpful’’, Kane nodded. ‘’But Crimson is becoming more of a threat to her. I’m not sure she will make it if he ever drinks from her blood again. He has no self-control’’.
The crew remained silent for a few minutes.
‘’Are there any female vampires ?’’ Firouz blurted. He blushed as the crewmates glared at him. ‘’Scientific curiosity’’, he protested.
‘’Yes, though I haven’t seen many in the past centuries’’, Kane smirked. ‘’Their hunting strategies are … quite different, to say the least’’, he added mischievously.
‘’Is Sinbad still with Maeve ?’’ Doubar asked Bryn. ‘’The boar is almost done cooking.’’
‘’I guess’’, she answered.
‘’Little brother !’’ Doubar called. ‘’Dinner’s ready !’’.
‘’Alright Doubar’’, they heard their captain yell back. He walked out of the tent a minute later. As he sat to eat by the fire with his friends, Kane observed the crewmates. He suppressed a smile as he realized they were all clueless. But vampires have good instincts and accute senses. *Oh well, captain. I’m the only one who knows your secret* Kane thought, smiling.
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