𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀. . . nishimura riki ✔

𝗳𝗶𝘃𝗲. vivere militare est

'There is nowhere to run!'

The dense forest exuded an air of encroachment as towering trees loomed overhead, their branches reaching out with an inquisitive curiosity.

Suddenly, the tranquil ambiance shattered as unseen jaws clamped down on Riki's ankle, causing him to crash down onto the forest floor with a resonant thud. As he grappled with the pain, the white wolf responsible for the ambush found itself ensnared by Riki's quick reflexes. With a swift and powerful motion, he flung the creature against a nearby tree.

Yet, the battle was far from over. A black shadow darted through the foliage, poised to strike. In a split-second reaction, Riki sidestepped the impending attack, narrowly evading the lunging black wolf. Taking advantage of the opening, he countered by delivering a forceful kick that sent the dark predator tumbling away.

A whimpered sound echoed throughout the silent forest.

It was there he felt it, a heartbeat. Inside of his chest, his heart was beating. Panic gripped him, causing him to seize his chest, placing a hand over his heart. This could not be true. His heart could not be beating. For it to beat, he needed blood — to have blood he needed to be alive. And he was not — right? He was not. He was a vampire. A vampire was not alive. They had died and been granted the blessing of immortality.

'You said you did not kill!' Riki said. 'So why are you trying to kill me?'

'Are we?'

Such a sweet voice, for such a vicious creature.

Darkness surrounded him, two shadows, two wolves. They were stalking him, walking in circles around him.

'You are!' his voice was accusing.

'Are we?' 

This time, the voice was darker, deeper; Harrow.

A suffocating darkness enveloped him, a claustrophobic abyss akin to the calm within the eye of a storm. Wisps of black mist danced around him. The anguished symphony of souls screaming reverberated through his skull like a haunting echo, an unsettling cacophony that seemed to penetrate his very core.

Amidst the dark void, the outlines of faces emerged — ghostly visages distorted by suffering and despair. Pleading eyes bore into his soul, tear-streaked faces contorted in silent cries, beseeching him to cease whatever ominous course he found himself on.

'What is this?!' he cried out, desperation etched across his face as his hands instinctively clamped onto the sides of his head, attempting to shut out the cacophony of voices assaulting his mind.

'Poor thing.'

'The Riki-vampire is confused, little Star! Now's the chance to bite!'

The realisation struck him like a cold, unforgiving breeze — death had arrived. There was no other plausible explanation for the torment he was enduring. Panic set in as the certainty of his demise clashed with the disbelief that he, immortal by nature, could be facing such an end. The nightmare unfolded, a relentless cascade of suffering that begged for release.

A relentless pounding pain reverberated within his head, the mist swirling around him, amplifying the disorientation. Was this truly the throe of death? If so, why was the privilege of pleading for Astralis denied to him? Why, cursed to suffer at the hands of the two faces of death, did he find himself in this grim predicament? The questions echoed, his mind spiralling in a maelstrom of confusion and fear.

'I do not wish to die.' He was pleading, actually pleading.

A fervent wish clung to his thoughts — this had to be a nightmare, a silly and stupid one. He clung to the belief that he would awaken with Jungwon and Sunoo peering down at him with confusion; the nightmare dissipating like a wisp of smoke.

Denial wrestled with the harsh truth; vampires did not sleep, yet, in this aberration, perhaps there existed an exception. That had to be it. This was just an exception!

The shadows stopped moving, as if frozen in time.

And then, that familiar laughter, so innocent and child-like.

'You are not dying.'

As if dispersing like dissolving clouds, the mist lifted, revealing the familiar forest landscape beneath it and a starry sky above. Yet now, the celestial canopy was obscured by relentless rain, pelting down upon him with a silent, incessant whirr, each drop akin to shards of glass cutting into his skin.

'You amuse us, vampire,' their voices echoed, resonating in the air as they reverted to their normal forms — or as normal as they could be. Strangely, in their humanoid shapes, they appeared more humane, the once horse-like figure now absent, and Harrow standing on his own. 'However I believe we got what we wanted. For now, we will continue to watch you until the day we meet again.'

Silent and still, Riki offered no response. In a gesture that felt oddly tender, Harrow took hold of Astralis' hand, guiding her into the depths of the dense foliage with a graceful waltz.

Riki prayed that would be the last time he saw them.