The moon was out, but the clouds were not. It was a clear night, which helped the shadows that cloaked the city of Lomedor appear far more frightening and strange. They also provided cover for a single figure that hurried amongst them, snarling lowly as it searched for prey. Thus far, the choices had been poor; the occasional tramp whose blood was most likely diseased was all that was up for grabs. The figure was growing ever more impatient and frantic; it needed blood. Emerging from the shadows for a brief second revealed it to the world, under the moonlight that shone down eerily to illuminate its identity. Lord Horváth, a nobleman in the Lomedor high society and a secret vampire. Disappearing back into the dark as quickly as he emerged, the vampire lord continued to hurry through the alleyways and back-streets of the city; although there would no doubt be more pickings on the main roads, it was far riskier a chance for being caught. As such, he was forced to simply roam and wait.
For nigh on two thousand years, Horváth had been a vampire and had prowled the streets of Lomedor every now and then to keep his energy up. As a result of the length of time he had spent feasting on the blood of humans, Horváth had come to not only tolerate the taste of blood, but to love it. To need it. The taste. The flavour. Horváth lusted after it. That was why he was so choosy; no mere tramp would be good enough for a vampire of his standing. No, he wanted something pure, something delicious. Something he could literally sink his teeth into. After another hour of roaming, he found it. A girl, sleeping silently at the mouth of an alleyway, was practically begging the vampire to feast on her, and Horváth had no intention of disappointing.
Leaping down from the rooftop he'd been standing on, Horváth landed without a sound a short distance behind the sleeping girl, deeper in the alleyway, and began to approach her. As he stepped forward, he opened his mouth wider, allowing his fangs to begin protruding outwards like daggers. It had been almost a month since he had last fed; a dangerous length of time to go without feeding for a vampire of his age. As he came within feet of the girl, he removed an empty vial and label from the pockets of the long robe he wore; he would collect a sample of her blood during the first bite before setting it aside and gorging on her. When he came to a halt directly behind her, he gave a quick look outwards away from the alleyway to check for guards and, seeing none, swooped downwards, claws bared and fangs ready to pierce her sleeping flesh.
Fendrel didn't know why, but leaping from building to building always gave him a sense of exhilaration. Especially at night. He didn't know why, but something about the night air always filled his lung and swept away his fears. He felt free. No guards to haggle him in the streets, no bandits clumsily attacking him with dreams of revenge, and no commotion of crowds from the markets. This was true bliss. For a Rogue like Fendrel to actually appreciate peace and quiet was such a weird thing, but he treasured it dearly. He stopped on the top of a sturdy structure and stared into the lunar star that shone brightly against the blackish gray sky. Not a cloud in the sky to obscure its image or a star to steal its glory. It was a majestic sight. He felt its rays envelope him and fill his body with a centered calm.
He couldn't remember the last time he could feel so relaxed. His whole life had been about fighting and causing a havoc. He knew only aggression and pain. His heart had been sealed off to the world and hid behind a curtain of shadow and darkness. But...Victoria. She seemed like just another beggar brat without parents who needed some gold. What he found out was that she was so much more. She had this talent of bringing out the good in anyone. She did it for him. Victoria showed him that the world had more to it than fighting. She showed him beauty, peace, and most of all...love. He was forever in her debt, whether she knew it or not, and that's why he protected her. He would fight for her until the day he died. It was that simple.
A familiar scream snapped him out of his thoughts. He was coming from the east. And it sounded like Victoria! What was she doing out of the house!? Fendrel growled and drew his longsword, which was rusted and scratched all over, before rushing off in the direction of the scream. He jumped from building to building pushing his body to the limit of its speed. He had to save her. He couldn't afford to lose her. He couldn't! His eyes opened wide as he spotted her running through the alleyways being chased by some man he didn't know. He snarled and dropped down almost instantly, landing between the man and Victoria. His sword was already raised and an aura of utmost hatred seemed to waft off of him like a fire. This wasn't a fight he was going to enjoy. He was going to kill this bastard for making Victoria scream. He glanced back at Victoria with fiery eyes.
"Who is this guy? What did he do to you!?" Fendrel asked. He didn't even care that she was out of the house when she wasn't suppose to. He just wanted to protect her right now.
"S...Sorry, Fendy. I was just looking for...for Íomhar, to make sure he was alright, when I got really sleepy. I just went to sleep in some alley and this...this freak tried to bite me! I woke up and he was leaning over me with his mouth open and these sharp fangs! So I pushed him and ran!" Victoria said, tears welling up in her eyes. Fendrel turned back to the man. Sounded like a Vampire. Fendrel growled and rushed at him without a second thought, making a slash towards his neck.
The scream took Horváth by surprise, so much that he took several steps back away from his prey in shock, barely feeling the girls hands as they shoved at his chest. This gave an opening for the man who suddenly leaped down from nowhere, landing between the vampire and the girl, who by now was very much awake. A quick exchange of words took place between the two, which Horváth only just managed to catch as he recovered from the sudden turn the situation had taken.
"Who is this guy? What did he do to you!?" The man asked the girl frantically.
"S...Sorry, Fendy. I was just looking for...for Íomhar, to make sure he was alright, when I got really sleepy. I just went to sleep in some alley and this...this freak tried to bite me! I woke up and he was leaning over me with his mouth open and these sharp fangs! So I pushed him and ran!"
Before Horváth could say or do anything, the man sprang into action and lunged himself at the vampire lord, aiming for his neck. Horváth dodged the attack with relative ease, sliding to the side as the man rushed him, but the speed and agility shown by this sudden opponent did give him cause for concern. Retracting his fangs temporarily, for they often did more damage to himself than the enemy when in a fight, the vampire then made his move, pushing upwards with his knees and leaping into the air, soaring over the human and aiming a kick downwards towards his head. Making contact with something, but unsure if it was what he had aimed for, Horváth landed on the other side of the alleyway and sprang around ready again. He had no weapons or armour himself, having traveled light and expecting an easy kill, so he knew he had to be extra cautious with this opponent. The sword looked brutal.
"You do not know what you are dealing with." he called out from the shadows that cloaked him; the light from the main street illuminated his opponent who was nearer the mouth of the alleyway where the girl was, "I suggest you leave immediately!"
Not waiting for an answer, Horváth jumped up again, hurtling himself through the air, but not towards his enemy. Instead he went for the wall of the building that made up the right side of the alleyway, using his vampire biology to stick to the wall and run along it on all fours like an animal; in combat, that was what Horváth was, an animal. A savage beast. Hurrying along the wall, he leaped off when he came to the end, nearest the girl, and threw himself at her once more. She screamed and rushed out of the way, and Horváth landed where she had been only seconds before. Straightening up and drawing himself to full height, Horváth stood in the mouth of the alleyway, his two prey now trapped inside as he had been, and snarled viciously. He was weaker than his usual self due to the lack of energy from blood, he knew this, but he couldn't let them know he was at anything but his full strength.
Picking up one of the barrels that sat in the corner of the alley's mouth with ease, Horváth then threw it at the two of them, aiming to hit the man and disable him long enough to grab his prize and leave the area before he was recognised and identified by one of them. If that happened, he wouldn't let them leave alive.