Shadows of the Future

Outpost

Disclaimer: The only art I own in this story is art that I had commissioned for the story, all other art belongs to their respective owners and franchises.

Hurokna Ancestral Den:

Aleksander awakens hours later after passing out while sitting on the chair in his room, he sighs to himself as he stands up and stretches. After stretching he looks around the room and decides that he might as well go take a bath, as his uniform is still very clean but he needs something more than wine to wake him up. Placing his sidearm belt on the table, alongside where his MP-40 and other gear, he then walks to the door and unlocks it as he didn't want to be disturbed after getting back to the den. Walking out into the hallway he sees a few maids moving around and cleaning things, but he pays them no mind as he moves to the staircase and is once more surprised by the fact that none of the daughters are walking around. Shrugging his shoulders he goes down the hallway towards where the inside bathhouse is located, finding the room he walks inside and is happy to see that no one else is in there. After getting in the room he strips himself down, folds his clothes nicely, then goes over to the water. He feels the tension leave his body after sinking down into hot water, the water is clearly fresh and also has been filled with some form of herbs or other such things to help with cleanliness and hygiene. He dunks his head into the water before running his fingers through, to help with any greasiness from while he was asleep and also to wake him up. When he had his head dunked under the water, he was unable to hear or notice someone come into the room as well. Unfortunately for him it was not one of the maids, it was Freida, the pack just finished having a blood ritual and she had come to this room rather than going back to her own room. The robes she wore were absolutely blood soaked and had originally been white, but she stopped in her tracks at seeing Aleksander in the water. She stepped to the side and tried to hide behind a pillar, just as Aleksander brought his head back up from under the water.

Running his fingers through his hair briskly to try and get extra water out, he stops as smell of blood finally reaches his nose. Making him look himself over quickly, not understanding how he could've cut himself when he didn't even bring a razor and everything in this room was smooth as well. Looking towards the doorway he'd see the slight puddle and droplets of blood, which made him even more suspicious. Moving slowly towards the edge of the pool he would bring himself out of the water, keeping his eyes on the doorway as he grabbed a towel and swiftly dried himself off. He was unable to see Frieda because she was using a spell to keep herself invisible, but she watched him the entire time as he got dressed and held herself back. The heat was going to be starting in just a few days, she could feel it tugging at her mind and body as she watched him. After he got dressed he walked by where she stood, only a few inches away from her and she felt like her heart was gonna stop as he followed her bloody footprints to the pillar where she stood. He merely raised a brow and slowly backed towards the door, not saying anything as he looked from where she stood to the rest of the room. Aleksander remembered the monstrosities from before they left for the festival, he did not want to deal with them when he was unarmed or whatever was skulking in the room. Frieda wanted to reach out and assure him everything was safe, but revealing herself would likely make things worse then they already were. After leaving the room he walks quickly towards his room, bypassing maids who were cleaning in the process and not minding the looks he received. Getting to the stairs he would quickly ascend them and go towards his room, upon arriving their he closes and locks the door after entering. Grabbing his equipment he goes through the process of checking how much ammo and overall supplies he still has, sighing to himself he realizes that he doesn't have much left, not enough for a sustained and prolonged firefight anyways. Taking count he has roughly has 5 magazines left for his Walther P38 and then 6 magazines for his MP-40, then 2 small boxes of ammunition in his pack. Overall, he would have to ration and limit the amount of times he uses both weapons. Sitting on the couch after looking over his ammunition he reaches over and grabs the pitcher of wine from earlier, then the glass as well. Pouring his a glass he sets the pitcher down and then the glass, pulling a cigarette case from his pack and retrieving a cigarette along with a brass lighter. After getting the cigarette lit he tosses the lighter back into his case, exhaling deeply before grabbing the glass of wine and drinking half of it in one gulp.