Me, Myself, and I

Prologue

I was running through the forest when suddenly I tripped over a fallen tree branch. The bark sliced right through my knee and left a shallow cut. But the pain wasn't what I was worried about. It was the blood. They could smell your blood from miles away. Vampire-demons. They're vampire heritage allows them to have a higher sense of smell than normal citizens of Clixodia. All of a sudden I hear a tree branch snap, implying that the vampire-demons were close by. I get back up and start running again, but I can't see where I'm going because of the fog in the forest. It was almost dawn and the sky had started to turn from cetacean blue to a light pink. Which meant if I run far enough to the east, I could lose them to the sunlight. Close enough, I could stop right once I ran around a big oak tree. Unfortunately, I got my hopes up too soon. Two vampire-demons picked me up and dragged me to the oak tree right where there were shadows. As they pin me to the tree, I see the third and final vampire-demon which must be the leader, come out of the fog. It appeared to be a male. Tall, muscular and pale. Very pale. He had chocolate brown hair which was common for vampires, and onyx eyes. He comes straight to me and looks at me up and down as if sizing up his next meal. It was at that moment that I realized that I had become prey. I don't dare look at my two captors pinning me to the oak tree. For if I do, with a slight turn of the head, I'm giving perfect access to my neck to the vampire-demon leader. I'm not so sure I'm ready to die yet. So instead, I ask the first thing that comes to mind and only realise how utterly stupid it was after I had already asked the question.

"What do you want with me?" I demand, attempting to gather some courage and keep it. The vampire-demons could sense what you are feeling and I most certainly would not give them the satisfaction of sensing my fear.

The leader only chuckled. "My dear girl, do you not realise how special you are?" he asked me. I shook my head but he continued as if he hadn't even heard me. "Everyone has wanted to get a hand on you since we heard you were. . . different. Now, hold still. Your blood smells divine and if I can just have a little taste before you come back to the base. . ." He trailed off. The male looked at me straight in the eyes before leaning in and grazing my neck with his nose, claiming his property. 'I am no one's property' I thought to myself but I still trembled in fear and I couldn't move. Couldn't do anything but stare at the forest beyond the male. The forest I might never see again. Now, I could feel my heartbeat quickening as my fear level rose.

About one millisecond later, I saw my life flash before my eyes. One moment, I was being pinned to the tree by two vampire-demons along with a male vampire-demon leader who was about to feed on me, the next moment, I was pushed against the tree and I looked down and saw the male leader lying on the forest floor, back facing the sky with an arrow straight through the head. My two captors took a step away from me as I bent down to see if the leader was still alive when two more arrows were shot. One through the back right through the heart, and another one through the head for good measure. Soon enough, all three arrows started sizzling and the body that was once a male, now ashes on the wind. I turn around to look for whoever shot the arrows but all I manage to see are my two captors running away, not wanting to end up like their leader.

I walk a couple of steps from behind the oak tree and look up at the sky. The sun had started to rise and was one third of the way in the sky. Then I see a flash of black. I turn to where I had seen it out of the corner of my eye but whatever it was, it was already gone. I start walking but fell again. This time, the world seemed to blur out of my vision and time seemed to go slower and slower until I hit the forest floor. I hear footsteps coming nearer and nearer but my eyelids start to droop. Whoever my saviour was, I was too tired to thank them. Right as my vision seemed to go away completely, I saw a figure leaning over me. The last thing I remember is feeling something sharp piercing the skin right where my neck and shoulder meet. Then I blackout.