Hmmm. Bela? That's a girl's name, isn't it? Anna wondered as she slowly got used to her real body again. She wriggled a bit and froze.
How long had she been away?
Everything was wet. Her clothes, her bedding—even the mattress. She let out a loud growl, jumped up, and felt ashamed and humiliated. She took off her wet pants and took a quick, cold shower. How stupid was she? Anna was truly mad at herself. She was supposed to take a break after they were ambushed.
She forgot how hungry she was and washed everything that was stained. There wasn't enough room to hang them properly, so she had to improvise. Anna set her air conditioner to the highest level, put the mattress in front of it, and hoped it would dry faster.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck..." She groaned, overwhelmed by embarrassment. After a few moments, she finally calmed down, sat on the ground, and forced herself to eat something.
How could she have been so stupid? How could her life be so different from a mere game? She felt so small and inferior. A thick string of anxiety wrapped around her heart as she rolled the tasteless mash around in her mouth, trying her best not to puke. Did it always taste like mud?
Lost in memories, she tried to remember how those tiny strawberries tasted, how his lips kissed her hungrily, licking the remnants of the taste from her mouth when she teasingly refused to share with him. Anna had to close her eyes to forget where she was and tried to peek back in time when she could still embrace him, get lost in his arms, and forget her miserable life.
She put the bowl on the ground and touched her cheeks and neck, pretending it was his fingers, gently gliding acros her skin. But that only made her hunch down and burst into tears, muffling her whimpers with her hands.
It hurt. It pained her. The memories and the tiny voice in her head, repeating over and over the same thing.
You are not worthy of his love.
Anna desperately reached for the helmet, trying to escape this hellhole. She hated it. There was little to no room, and she couldn't breathe properly or see the sky or feel the soft breeze. Not to mention the warm sunlight she loved so much.
She didn't care that she was lying on the floor. She didn't care that she should finish the meal either. Enough was enough. An hour in here was more than she could bear.
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"I'm back," she breathed quietly, trying to raise her head from the table where she had previously put it. But she became more confused. Glasha held her in her arms and did squats, using her as a weight bag.
"Oh, I'm sorry," she yelped, putting her down. Mazoga also jumped down from her sister's back, realizing their workout was over.
"Aren't you two tired?" Anna laughed when she noticed sweat glistening on their foreheads.
"Just a—" Glasha opened her mouth, but her sister quickly hushed her.
"No! We're not tired. We're used to hard work. You can rely on us," Mazoga reassured her almost aggresively.
Anna smiled and nodded before glancing in the dark corner.
Bela, the Vampire prince ~ neutral ~ 14% HP
He slept curled up in a ball, like a stray cat. Or an injured pup, as she had called him earlier.
"That Bela boy is awake. Don't let him fool you." He's too hungry to fall asleep."
Anna heard Tameka's voice and turned toward the door with a grateful smile.
"You're back already?" She said, watching Tameka lift two backpacks for the sisters. Tameka even handed Bela a clean shirt, trousers, and a heavy coat, which Bela accepted with obvious suspicion.
"I got a wheel of cheese!" Glasha jumped up after examining the backpack, turned to her sister, and held the small piece in front of her face. "Look how big it is! She likes me. I told you she looks at me a lot!" She whispered, trying to sound calm but failing miserably to tone down the excitement in her voice. This prompted Mazoga to peek inside her own backpack, and she pulled out smoked meat wrapped in paper and some dry flatbread.
"We're probably just supposed to carry the supplies. Don't get your hopes up," Mazoga hushed her, crushing her sister's enthusiasm. Tameka was unconcerned by their quiet dialogue and stepped outside to wait with Arlov before they finished packing.
"We'll wait for him to change into clean clothes, then we'll continue on our way. We lost plenty of time while dealing with that group," Anna said, turning to Bela, who had just fastened the new trousers around his hips. They were so loose that he ripped a thick strip from his old shirt to use as a belt.
"Bela," she said, grasping his attention. "Can you survive in sunlight? I don't really know anything about your race," she apologized after he slowly lifted his head as if his body were weighed down by an unseen power.
"Yes," he said quietly. "It will hurt, but I can follow you outside. We have only about an hour until dawn anyway."
It was hard to even speak. His throat burned, and the only thing he could think about was her thick, hot blood flowing to his mouth and filling his aching belly.
She promised to feed him. She promised. Bela knew she would fulfill her vow; he was sure she had the ability to soothe his nerves. He was calmer than before, though he had no idea why.
"Are we ready?" Anna asked, having made sure he was dressed, and stepped outside, closely followed by Bela, holding onto her shoulder. Arlov and Tameka took the lead, knowing the best way to get back to the gate, while Glasha and Mazoga closed the group. Bela had to close his eyes from time to time to try to preserve his vision, but his eyes still teared up and burned. He ended up pressing his face against his inner elbow to make it more tolerable.
After what felt like an eternity of blindly walking behind her, Bela felt a warm touch on his shoulder and came to a halt.
"Look at me," Anna said, watching his swollen eyes briefly glance toward her face. His hazel irises covered a larger area, and his pupils had contracted into vertical slits rather than circles. She found it really pretty but said nothing.
"Drink," she said, stepping closer to him and raising her wrist to his mouth.
Was she really offering him her blood? Herself? Bela held her hand with trembling fingers and bit her without a second thought. His mind was overpowered by the thrill and pleasure flowing into his mouth. He got a better hold on her, bit into her inner elbow, and opened bigger veins. He guzzled her blood with overwhelming gratitude and love.
"I'm all right. I can handle him. Let him eat," Anna whined, tears filling her eyes, when Mazoga stepped closer with an angry frown. She was outraged. How dare he use their leaders' kindness like that?
It was only natural for Bela to lean toward her hand and slide even further to cling to her neck, his favorite place. But the two sisters ripped him away from their leader before he could tear her soft flesh.
"Ya brain-scrambled heathen!" Mazoga growled, her furious sister by her side.
"Fucking apologize!" Glasha snarled and helped Mazoga hold him down. But they struggled. They thought they could finally shake off the label of being the weakest in her group. Yet this man gave them a hard time without even trying.
"He needs to eat. Otherwise, we are all in danger. Let me feed him," Anna said as she drank the second bottle of broth she had made earlier. It was specially made for injuries associated with blood loss. Her level was so high that her wounds had already started to heal themselves. "Bela, Calm down. I said I would take care of you. No need to rush," she said, seeing how disturbed he was. He was like a malnourished dog trying to get back to its bowl. She was sure she could bear the pain; it would only last a few moments.
Anna bent down to his level and tried to offer him her wrist again. But as she did, he broke down. Glasha flew two meters away, and Mazoga hung on to him for dear life as she was dragged in the dirt.
He pinned the woman down and ripped open her neck with his sharp teeth. He lapped up her sweet blood, trying to suck out as much as possible.
At first, she lost her breath from the pain, leaving her to silently groan, her small fists hitting his shoulders in failed effort to push him away. But it got better after a moment.
"It's annoying as hell, but I'm all right. Just give him time to calm down," Anna said, raising a thumb.
It didn't hurt that much. He must have damaged most of her nerves because she could only feel a dull, throbbing sensation around the wound.
It was a pretty spectacular view. She watched as the rest of his hair fell off and was replaced with short, soft, black fluff that would be hard to notice from a distance. His skin color also changed, going from a dark ashy brown to a darker yet warmer tone with a noticeable blush. He was hyperventilating, and she couldn't tell if that was a good thing. Bela even coughed when he accidentally dipped his nose into a fresh, bloody wound and breathed it in by accident.
He quickly bent down, though, and continued where he stopped, panting heavily and trying to swallow as much as possible. When the flow slowed and he had to work for every gulp, he finally relaxed and fell asleep like a baby at its mother's breast.
Anna found it adorable, but she was clearly the only one who thought so.
Arlov helped lift his body up, then dropped it back on the ground when Anna managed to crawl away, unfazed.
*He could be useful. I can see his dreams. He is strong,* Tameka knelt beside him and touched his forehead with her thumb.
It frightened her a bit. He was nothing like her or Arlov, who knew how to control their emotions and anger. This one was different. He was a young rebel who had grown so strong that he was scared of his own power.
*You were the first one whose orders he actually followed. And you called him stupid moron and he let you live. That's good.* She said without the slightest movement of her lips and raised her head.
"Thank you, Tameka. You are truly helpful," Anna said as she held her head still, while Mazoga did her best to spread healing ointment into the gaping wound in her neck.
They were by the side of the main road and the sun set some time ago, yet there were still some groups and individuals trying to get into the city. The gates were closed, Anna realized. That's why he was unable to leave, as he was practically blind in the daylight.
She glanced at the guy sleeping by her feet and leaned closer, totally captivated. His skin was moving, twitching as his arteries pumped her blood through his body to reconstruct his muscles and heal his injuries.
Bela, the Vampire prince ~ neutral ~ 16% HP
Though it was slow, she could already see a difference in his state compared to when she first saw him.
"Don't move. I'm not really good at this," Mazoga murmured as she held her still while closing the wound. It wasn't perfect, but she was satisfied with the result.
"Anna? He's moving again. I didn't notice at first, but he's clearly on his way to Misha."
Tameka got into her head and handed her the sacred map. She pointed to a pinkish dot outside the circle depicting Drud Meccel.
"What is that?" Mazoga asked, unable to hide her curiosity.
"You remember the High Orc you smelled on me the day we met?" Anna sighed and smiled. "That's him. On the other side of this world."
"Poor man," she sighed. "Being this far from you must be unbearable."
"I think he's doing just fine," Anna said, slowly standing up. She was a bit lightheaded from all the blood loss.
Glasha loudly disagreed.
"How can you be so cruel, saying things like that?" She snarled, frowning.
"Shut up. She probably doesn't know," Mazoga hushed her.
"Doesn't know what?" Anna asked, offended by her harsh words.
"Shut up for once. I'm going to say it," Mazoga said, silencing her sister. She lowered her eyes to meet her leader's. "He clearly picked you," she said, as if this sentence could explain everything.
"He adores you. It was so obvious; how could you not have noticed?" Glasha wondered out loud, and was rewarded with a painful jab to the ribs.
"Of course she noticed. She's not retarded," Mazoga growled, frustrated.
"Well, of course I noticed," Anna agreed, trying to recall what they did to each other.
*Ewww, stop. That's so gross,* Tameka whined, jumping up from Arlov's lap, no longer using his thighs as a stool. He didn't seem to mind the sudden change; he just stood up, straightening his back with a loud crunch, assuming they were going to leave.
"Look, men from our tribe are very good at conveying their interest, just as they are good at ignoring women they are not interested in. Believe me, we know. Our mates are very important to us once we're sure who we want to keep by our side. So, tell us, how did he introduce himself?" Mazoga asked with high hopes.
"Well he - " Anna started slowly, trying to remember every detail of their first encounter "I healed his wounds. We talked a bit. And he wanted me to join him in his camp. And we ended up … you know …" She was ashamed to talk about it in front of these two, both women clearly eagerly waiting for every word that left her lips.
"You fucked?" Glasha smiled with shining eyes.
"He did some things to me, and then we bought a room that same night," she said quietly, glancing at Arlov. He lifted sleeping Bela and slowly headed in the direction they were supposed to go, accompanied by Tameka, who held an open map in her hands.
"Of course, they fucked," Mazoga breathed out and rolled her eyes, to finally hush her sister, "You liked it?" She turned to her leader once again, asking another seemingly innocent question with a grin that was anything but innocent.
"Obviously," Anna muttered, lowering her eyes to her bare feet.
"Now, imagine how he probably feels. If you don't want him anymore, you should find him and tell him. Or give him another chance. Just don't let him roam around desperately looking for you. That's straight cruel," Mazoga explained as she picked up her backpack to catch up with Tameka, who didn't care that they were all left behind.
Anna followed them, too, moving further away from the growing number of fires by the gate. The fires belonged to humans who trembled in fear on this warm night. They were unaware that the one they feared most was carried away like a bag of potatoes with a content smile and a full belly.
They stopped for a break around midnight. Anna had given up, annoyed as hell by his constant nagging.
"I'm not your blood bag to be used at your convenience," she growled. To her surprise, Bela apologized.
"Sorry," he said, his eyes glued to her neck.
*He needs it. You adopted him; you should feed him regularly,* Tameka reminded her as she sat down and massaged her sore calves from the long walk. Arlov watched her before sitting by her side and shielding her from the wind.
"We need to reach the capital as fast as possible, or I won't make it in time. We can rest for a few hours, but then I have to rush. Right now, you're a dead weight. You need to prove me wrong if you want to stay."
"I'm sorry," Bela repeated, captivated by the blue vein on Anna's cheek.
"Take what you need. We'll take a short break before walking until sunrise. We can all sleep in the morning," she said, tilting her head to the side so he could bite into her soft skin more easily.
It was so unfamiliar. He had never experienced this level of trust before. All his life, he had only encountered fright and dread during his numerous hunts in these mountains.
Bela crouched down, lowered his head to her level, and stepped closer, ignoring his instincts to gryb her and hide with her in some undergrowth, where he could feast on her for the whole night. Without another word, he opened her artery and sucked onto her neck. He held her shoulder and nape to cling to her more tightly, gulping the life from her veins.
"I need a break. My head is spinning," she groaned after his embrace tightened.
His hot breath and sharp teeth touched her sensitive skin, licking up the blood that leaked out. Bela managed to step away and collapsed right beside her with a blissful smile and closed eyes. He panted heavily, and she could see his skin shivering.
Anna watched him for a short while, before she used a few broths and rubbed a bit of pale mash into her wound. She laid down and logged out, knowing well she is not going to spend much time in her apartment anyway.