FellPoth Short Stories and One-Shots

From the Murky Depths: Chapter 3 (End)

Chapter Warnings: Suicide ideation, implied/referenced sexual abuse, swearing

***

It wasn't long until Lotus's breathing slowed and his body went slack. Checking them over, Rurik huffed out a sigh of relief when he confirmed his servant was merely sleeping.

Scooping Lotus up into his arms, he trudged over to a nearby tree in the blood-soaked clearing and slid down to rest against it. He hissed as the movement caught one of his damaged ribs, but he paid it no mind; the injuries were light enough to heal on their own with the little blood he took in and Mavis could easily wash any bloodstains out upon their return. A few more scars and a brief transformation into his detested bat form were well worth the time he saved dispatching the enemy and getting to his servant.

Watching the gentle rise and fall of his companion's chest as the monster dozed, Rurik maintained half his senses on their surroundings as he let the other half drift with the warm, tingling sensation his servant's touch provided.

~~~

"Hey..."

Rurik paused in his trek down the empty street; a small figure emerged from a narrow alley draped in a long and ragged off-black hooded cloak ending at the knees, a dirty red scarf trailing on the ground behind them, a black shirt and torn dark brown shorts peeking out from a slit in the cloak, and black shoes that were in dire need of repair. The figure seemed to be a skeleton; small enough to be a kid at that.

The figure advanced, commenting in a weary voice, "You smell like blood; did you kill someone?" The question surprised the vampire; he had initially assumed the monster was just hoping to beg some spare change or food off him. Considering he had just left what would be considered a crime scene, it wasn't surprising someone would be able to smell blood on him... he just wasn't expecting anyone to call him out on it, much less some weak homeless brat.

He decided he'd have some fun scaring them. Raising his skull so the stranger could get a good look at his crimson star eye lights and fangs, he smirked, "Yeah, I did; you'd be wise to forget you saw me here or you'll be next."

The hood and scarf shrouded the figure's expression, but he could tell by the way the stranger paused they knew exactly what he was now... then they managed to surprise him again, shuffling forward a bit more with a hopeful lilt to their voice, "Would you? Would you really kill me?"

The smirk fell from Rurik's face; it would be his luck to run into a nutjob. He huffed, "I could, but why are you so interested?"

"Because there's no point to going on," the figure confessed bluntly, their hood dipping forward, "Life's shit and everyone here's a bunch of greedy scumbags. I'm tired of everything, but I'm too weak to do anything myself... but you look strong; you could end it all."

Rurik eyed the monster, the truth of their despair apparent in the familiar odor coming off of them, before stating, "I'm not a charity; I would want something for the trouble... your blood perhaps?"

The kid hunched in on themselves a bit, seemingly at a loss from the request. Before the vampire could tell them to get lost and stop wasting his time, they murmured, "If you bit me... wouldn't I become like you?"

"No," the vampire responded simply, "Becoming a vampire's more complicated than that."

The kid grasped their scarf as they decided, "Good... then you can have my blood; all of it if you can end me."

So they were serious after all.

With a nod, Rurik strode forward. He didn't have a reason to refuse the offering; even if the kid did look frail, they would at least make a decent snack. Towering over them, he commanded, "Remove your scarf and lower your hood then."