Eternal Night

Chapter 1: Hunter, Prey

Avek von Leonheim hurried along the streets of his city. The moons were bright in the sky today, both a blessing and a curse to those who walked in their light. The vampires, in their many shapes and forms, did not walk the streets when their light was brightest, for it gave away their pale skin and piercing eyes, which contrasted with the sinister glow of the moons. However, some were brave enough to try. Avek knew he stalked one who feared no light, or repercussions. The trail of blood, mixed with rainwater and brine, gave him away. Its stench roiled across the thoroughfare, so much so that carriage-bearing horses turned about, whinnied, and fled upon sensing it. The reeking scent of death was not new to the city of Leonheim, and its pungent odor grew in potency with every passing night.

The trail of blood ended in an alley, not far from the local Cathedral of Tava. Ironic, it seemed, that the monster would stop there. It was said that Tava, the only goddess the Leonheims worshiped, rewarded human bravery with the light of the moons and punished sinfulness with eternal darkness. And now, Vampirism defiled the sacred place. They all knew a darker night was to come, and soon. "Sacrilege," Avek heard his men mumble. The trail led to a corpse, obviously a fresh kill. Avek analyzed it carefully. Under the deceased's fingernails were necrotic sheets of tissue, and her face was obviously contorted in agony. The gaping wound on her neck glistened in the moonlight. "Sergeant!" yelled Avek. A tall, gruff man of stern stature stepped forward. "Your will, my Lord?" he asked. "Take this body to the burial crypts," he said, his voice weighted down with worry, "Give her all of the cleansing funeral rites." "Is she infected, my Lord?" asked the sergeant. Avek glanced condescendingly at him. "Since when did we assume," said Avek, "that a corpse defiled in such a way was not infected? If she does not receive the rites, she will be an Urg three weeks from now." Urgs were the Unliving, fresh from the grave and eager for blood. Sometimes they looked vaguely like the people they used to be. Other times, they were fungal aberrations or half-decayed monstrosities, no trace of human features evident on their corrupted form.

"My Lord!" a younger voice cried, "You may want to see this!" Avek looked up from the body to see a young Corporal in the Leonheim Guard, frantically pointing to a spot in the shadows. He got up, and slowly walked to the spot where the young soldier was pointing. There lay a severed arm, its owner nowhere to be found. Avek kneeled near it and examined it. It looked many months dead, decay already evident in full measure. Yet no blood surrounded it. No trail lead to or from it. "I believe, young sir," said Avek, "that you may have found something belonging to our man." "Sir?" said the young soldier. "This arm was long dead when you found it, and yet it obviously hasn't been here long," said Avek confidently, "No, what we're dealing with here is an Urg and nothing less." The young man shivered. Avek, seeing this, put his hand on the soldier's shoulder. "Don't worry boy," he said, "We'll bag this scum, yet. Pay attention once I corner it. I want you to see how I dispatch this beast," Avek grinned. "The knowledge will help you later." The soldier clenched his pike tightly, but grinned alongside Avek. He nodded approvingly, then rejoined the sergeant, who was still examining the body. "My Lord Leonheim," said the sergeant, "The body is ready for travel to the Cathedral, we- by Tava's grace!" The body was stirring. It twitched at first, fingers and toes ticking. Then legs, then arms, then the mutilated form lifted itself from the cobblestone. "Urg!" yelled Avek, "Stand back! She's mine!" The soldiers obliged. Avek drew his sword, three feet of shimmering Moonbound Silver, the only substance Vampiric Abominations feared. All, save the Urgs, that is. The newly risen corpse glanced at Avek's blade disapprovingly, but only for a moment. He saw it's now whitened eyes wander to his neck, contemplating the best way of reaching the jugular vein. The aberration shrieked, a gurgling sound like a hawk struggling for breath underwater. It charged, a now gaping maw with beginnings of fangs aiming right for him. But Avek knew how Urgs hunted, and how they fought. He waited for her to get close, grabbed her by the throat, and buried his blade in her gut. The creature shrieked, this time sounding like the woman she once was, and then crumbled to dust, leaving only her apparel behind. He looked down on the pile of ash, remembering the once fair form it took. "Oh, how even beauty is despoiled before corruption," he whispered to himself. The sergeant ran up to Avek, a bewildered look on his face. "Sir... that woman... she... I thought you said three weeks? She had only been dead a couple of hours!" he stammered. This truly worried Avek now. Urgs only formed after the host had been dead for a minimum of three weeks. This woman's turning took mere moments. "All the more reason to track down the original hunter," said Avek, "If we find the one responsible for these feedings, we stop the problem." He returned to the severed arm. "This belonged to our perpetrator," he said, withdrawing a sample of tissue and depositing it in a glass vile, "I will use it to track the menace down myself. Sergeant, see that your men are ready when I summon you again, for it will be to hunt this monster down and purge it." "Sir!" replied the sergeant, "Alright, you lot, establish a perimeter! Patrol in groups of three! No man stands alone, especially now!"