Hell's Reapers

Prologue

Star and Marco sprinted through the dark forest, the sounds of their heartbeats echoing in their ears. Andrenaline and terror surged through their veins as they ran for their lives, weaving their way through the nightmarish maze of bushes and trees.

Marco panted heavily, trying to maintain his pace.

One foot in front of the other, one foot in front of the other, one foot in front of the other...

His heart felt as if it was about to beat right out of his chest. Everything hurt. His legs, his arms, his head, nothing was spared.

His machete weighed him down as if it were a million bricks. His shirt clung to his back like a new layer of skin, glued together with his sweat. He had never felt so unclean in his life.

Narrow beams of moonlight were all they had to guide them through the treacherous forest. Slivers would peek through the trees, illuminating the way for them. Try as he might, he couldn't shake off the feeling that they were being watched. It was a completely silent night, far too silent. No crickets chirping, no animal noises, only the crunch of the fallen leaves underneath their muddied shoes.

Star wiped the sweat of her face. At this point even the cold forest floor looked inviting. But she couldn't. She had to keep going. They were so close, if they could just make it back to the castle...

Please don't let them all be dead, please don't let them all be dead.

Dark shadows watched them from every tree they walked by, seeming to enjoy their suffering. Marco's eyes darted side to side as he ran, trying to keep an eye out for movement. But it was pointless to do so in a forest like this. His machete felt like a million bricks, weighing down his every movement.

By know their speed had become a slow jog that still left them gasping for air. But they had to keep going. He kept reminding himself as he went along, that the parched mouth, the aching feet, being drenched in sweat...

None of it would compare to what would happen if they were caught.

"Marco!" Star whisper-yelled at him. She had seen something moving—right out the corner of her eye. He had been so caught up in his thoughts, he had forgotten about the danger they were in! A rustling noise alerted him to their left. He held his own machete up, poised to attack.

A flash of white came out of the dark, sword in hand. Marco's life flashed before his eyes. It let loose a horrifying screech that shook the whole forest, with a manic grin that scared the life out of him.

Within seconds it was right in front of him, moving at the speed of light. Marco could see the razor sharp fangs protruding out of it's mouth as it nearly gored his eyes out. Star charged forward to save her friend, magic wand turning to a dagger midair. The world slowed down as she nearly made contact. The empty, soulless eyes of the hideous beast locked with hers for a second before she was swept away like a mere nuisance.

Thump!

She was thrown against the bark of a tree.

She grabbed her head in agony, trying to somehow stop the searing pain. The world lost all color and sound for a moment, with nothing but blurs and spots of black covering her vision.

The vampire begin slashing away at Marco with it's blade, as he blocked and parried and barely dodged every blow, great booming sounds of chaos and battle echoing through the troves of trees. but he successfully survived every blow thrown out at him.

In the heat of the fight, Marco had no time to worry about Star. It was act fast or die. The vamp may have been faster and stronger than Marco, but fortunately not very well trained with a blade. It was only a matter of time before he tired out.