Matt Forbeck - Marked for Death

Esprл closed her eyes tight and screamed again. “Aunt Arnaya! Help me!”

The impulse to leap to the child’s aid surprised Te’oma as it awakened in her heart. She shoved it aside, suspecting it was just a side effect of throwing herself so completely into her role as the girl’s aunt. Even if she wanted to do something for the girl, it was out of her hands now.

The man spit in the girl’s face, and she opened her eyes in rage. Her voice caught in her throat, and Te’oma followed her gaze. Two other pale-skinned figures stood behind the first. Each wore a long, black cloak embroidered with a red mouth filled with teeth as pointed as their own. They glared at the girl.

“Look at me,” the man holding Esprл said. Once the girl’s eyes locked with the monster’s, Te’oma felt Esprл’s will slough off like an old snakeskin. She no longer felt the urge to scream, to fight, to flee. She awaited his orders, nothing more.

“Sleep,” the man said, and Esprл did.

Te’oma caught the girl before she slipped to the ground. “Tan Du!” she said. “I had things well in hand.”

“Would the justicar agree with you?”

“He interrupted me.”

“We do not have the time to toy with our prey, no matter how pretty,” Tan Du said. He took Esprл from Te’oma’s arms and caressed her soft cheek.

“Where are the others?” Te’oma asked. “What happened to the foot soldiers?”

Tan Du grinned. “They were expendable.”

“You lost two score of the finest Karrn zombies? And of the seven of your kind we started out with we now have only you three? You call that a success?”

“We have what we came for,” said Tan Du. “That is all that should concern you.”

Te’oma steamed at the vampire for a moment, then turned away. She couldn’t bear to look at him.

Tan Du gazed down at the young elf in his arms. “Is your horse nearby?” he asked.

Te’oma looked back over her shoulder and nodded.

“Excellent. The others will lead you through the darkness.”

As Te’oma watched, one of the vampires transformed into a massive, slavering wolf with glowing red eyes. The other morphed into a monstrous bat and flapped high up into the air on its leathery wings. No matter how many times Te’oma saw this, it always disturbed her. The changes weren’t natural like hers. It was as if the vampires forced their new forms upon the world-as painfully as possible.

“They will cover the ground and the air,” Tan Du said. “All you need do is follow them from here.”

“What about you?”

Tan Du smiled. “I have business.” He nodded for Te’oma to lead the way, and he followed. He carried Esprл in his arms as if she were as stuffed with feathers. When they reached Te’oma’s horse, Tan Du and the other creatures stopped several yards away. The horse whickered at them. This brought a private smile to Te’oma, who felt pleased to be truly alive at the moment.

Te’oma continued on ahead. When she got to the horse, a massive black-coated gelding, she stroked his sides and face and whispered kind words to him. Once the horse was calm, Te’oma rummaged around in his saddlebags and pulled out a wax-sealed vial. She uncorked it with her teeth, which she altered to make as wicked as Tan Du’s, and swallowed the pungent liquid in a single gulp.

The potion burned down her throat like homemade liquor and formed a lump in her stomach. She waited for a moment until she felt the warmth spread through her veins. In an instant, she recovered from the beating she’d taken at Kandler’s hands, and she was ready to travel.

“Better?” Tan Du said as Te’oma walked back to him and took Esprл from his arms.

“I feel as good as I look,” the changeling-elf said.

Tan Du smiled. “Good enough to eat.”

Te’oma turned her back on the vampire and strode back to her horse. She pushed Esprл up onto the beast’s back and then hoisted herself up behind the girl. She steadied Esprл in front of her and then looked down at Tan Du grinning at her. Te’oma wanted to wipe that self-satisfied look from his face, but she reminded herself that now was not the time.

“ How long will you be?” Te’oma asked.

“Not long. Maintain your mindlink with me. I’ll use it to follow you.”

“As you wish.”

Tan Du stepped toward Te’oma, and the horse skittered away. “Be off,” the vampire said. “I can hear our guests arriving.”

Te’oma turned and spurred her horse to a trot. She and Esprл rode off after the bat flapping away in front of them. The wolf dogged their heels, goading the horse to a gallop.

Tan Du chuckled. Remembering his business, he leaped into the air and transformed into a bat. This was his favorite form. He loved to feel the breeze beneath him as he cut through the air with his light, lithe body.

The vampire flapped into the air until he had enough altitude, then glided down silently until he reached the roof of Kandler’s house. He perched there and watched as Kandler, Burch, and Sallah sprinted toward the place.

As the trio charged up the path to the house, Tan Du resumed his normal form. With all their attention on the house’s door, the three didn’t see him until he announced his presence. “She is gone,” he said from the edge of the roof.

The three stopped dead in their tracks and looked up at him. “Ah-ah-ah,” Tan Du said as Burch raised his crossbow to fire. He always enjoyed torturing the living, and this encounter would be particularly sweet. “I’ve seen you with that thing, dogface. Put it away.”

Burch held his weapon steady, still pointed at the vampire’s heart. Kandler pointed his sword up at the creature. “What do you want?” the justicar said.

Tan Du stood and smirked. He could smell the justicar’s fear rolling off him like a skunk. “To talk. Like civilized people.” He gestured around him with a flourish and said, “I realize that this is not a civilized place, but I think we can rise above that.”

“Where’s my daughter?” asked Kandler.

“Ah, right to the point.” Tan Du smiled, baring his fangs. “Very direct. I like that. It’s refreshing.”

“Answer me!”

Tan Du frowned, disappointed that the justicar didn’t seem interested in sparring with him. “The girl is safe. For now. One of my associates has her. I believe you had the pleasure of meeting her earlier. She was a bit worse for wear after the encounter.”

“I want her back here right now!”

Tan Du nodded, soaking up the justicar’s rage. He loved few things more than making good men lose their temper. Irrational people were easy to manipulate. “I’m sure you do. What father wouldn’t? But I’m afraid we can’t do that.”

Kandler shook his blade at the vampire in incoherent rage.

Tan Du spread wide his hands. “If you want to blame anyone,” he said, “look at your new friends. They led us here.”

“You blame the fox for running ahead of the hounds,” Sallah said. The light from the silver flames of her sword flickered across her implacable face.

“The hunt is over now,” the vampire said. “We’re leaving. If you follow us, the girl dies.”

Burch’s crossbow twanged as Tan Du finished his sentence. The bolt shot straight for the vampire’s heart, but it ricocheted off the creature’s chest.

Tan Du knocked against his sternum with his knuckles, eliciting the same tinny response as the bolt. The armor plating he wore had held, but he knew that the shifter wouldn’t make the same mistake twice. “That was your last chance,” he said to the people below. “Leave us alone, or I’ll wear that sweet little girl’s heart on a necklace.”

Before Kandler could respond, the vampire faded to mist and floated away.