The Vampire's Apprentice

Alain let out a loud, panicked shout as he was sent flying backwards from one of the Creature's stray hits, his shotgun slipping from his grasp. Felix and Jasper opened up on it, pouring as much lead into its torso as they possible could, but the bullets didn't even seem to be penetrating. Whatever the Creature's hide was made out of, they had next to no chance of piercing through it on their own.

Someone pulled Alain to his feet; he turned and saw that it was Sable, who was looking over him, concerned.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"I'm fine," Alain told her, shaking himself out of his punch-drunk stupor. "Just a bruised ego."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, stop looking at me like that, you're weirding me out."

Alain shook his head once more, finally succeeding in clearing the haze that had settled over his mind. He looked around the shoreline, taking stock of the situation as it unfolded in front of him. The fight had just started a few seconds ago, and already, Az had been brushed aside like an insect, while apparently, Felix and Jasper were hardly even worth the Creature's attention. Instead, it continued to stalk over to where Az was. As Alain watched, Az came stepping out of the forest, the faintest trace of anger visible on his face.

"Oh, he's pissed," Alain noted.

"Indeed," Sable said dryly. "Come on, we need to-"

A sudden, far-off screech cut through the night air. Alain grimaced, scowling as he did so.

"Great, these guys again…" he muttered, already irritated. "Sable, go help Az. The three of us will take on the zombies."

"But-"

"Don't worry about us. If anything, this is going to keep us safer than fighting the Creature, since it's clear we can't do anything to stop it."

Sable bit her lip, but didn't argue, instead nodding softly. "...Just stay safe."

With that, she turned and rushed over to where Az was grappling with the Creature, both of them locked in a stalemate. As Alain watched, she barreled into the Creature, which knocked him off-balance enough that Az was briefly able to overpower him and force him to the ground. That was much as he got to see, however, because the sound of underbrush crunching underfoot suddenly tore him away from the fight.

"Felix, Jasper!" Alain called, picking up his shotgun and pulling the stock to his shoulder. "We've got company!"

"You can't be serious!" Felix shouted back as he came bounding over, in the middle of thumbing loose bullets into his rifle. "Cajun bigfoot is one thing, but zombies, too? That's just bullshit."

"Focus," Jasper urged. "We're all useless against the Creature, but someone needs to keep the zombies from making things worse."

"My thoughts exactly," Alain confirmed. "Look sharp, here they come!"

From deeper in the forest, several people came lumbering towards them, their arms outstretched and their jaws gnashing as moans and groans escaped from them. Alain wasn't sure if zombies ate flesh the same way undead did, but he wasn't about to find out. His shotgun barked twice, and each shot was punctuated with a zombie falling over, dead.

"Cover me, I'm reloading!" he called as he broke his shotgun and fished around for some fresh shells.

"Alright, we've got to talk about getting you a new gun after this!" Felix shouted over the gunfire as he took aim at zombie after zombie. "Seriously, this two shots thing is garbage!"

"Would you both focus?!" Jasper demanded, his own rifle firing as fast as he could pull the trigger and work the lever-action. "There must be two-dozen of the things closing in on us!"

Alain finally snapped his shotgun shut, but it didn't last, the gun running empty almost as soon as he'd finish closing it. His ears rang from all the gunfire, but he didn't let that stop him, his hands continuing to move as a blur, taking aim and firing and reloading as fast as he could.

It lasted for as long as it took for Sable to come flying into him from behind, sending them both sprawling. They ended up as a tangled mass on the ground; Alain was left with his head spinning once more, while Sable rolled over onto all fours and glared at the Creature, gritting her teeth.

"Nenorocit!" she snapped. "Futu-ți paștele și dumnezeii mă-tii astăzi și mâine de nenorocit!"

Alain blinked in surprise at the sudden tirade of what had to be angry profanity as it came spilling out of Sable's mouth. He didn't get a chance to dwell on it for long, however, as Sable soon launched herself at the Creature once more. He could only stare as she rushed the monster down once more, jumping onto its back and sinking her fangs into its throat before tearing outwards as hard as she could. Blood arced through the air, and the Creature let out an agonized howl that drowned out even the gunshots erupting from Felix and Jasper's weapons. They all stumbled, clutching at their ears and wincing, though thankfully it was over fast.

"What the fuck just happened?" Felix asked, gunning down yet another zombie as he spoke. "Did Sable just cuss that thing out in Romanian?"

"I think so," Alain said, still dumbstruck. "I'll admit, I didn't think she had it in her." He picked up his discarded shotgun and reloaded it, but a quick look around showed that the zombies had stopped coming. With the area now mostly clear, he turned back to the Creature, intending to jump into the fray and help Az and Sable.

He was just in time to watch both of them grab at the wounded Creature's head with both hands, then tear upwards with all their might. There was a sickening tearing sound, and in the blink of an eye, they were both holding the Creature's head, still attached to most of its spinal column.

"Oh, God…" Felix said, retching. "That's disgusting…"

Sable, for her part, seemed inclined to agree. She stared at the head and spine in her grasp, shuddered, and then dropped it to the ground unceremoniously. Az, meanwhile, took a breath, then looked over to her.

"Are you alright, my lady? That monster was tougher than I anticipated."

"I am fine, Az," she confirmed. "If a bit irritated."

"That's one hell of an understatement," Alain said, the three of them coming over to join her and Az. "Do we even want to know what you said in Romanian back there?"

"No," Sable said instantly. "It was… unbecoming of me. Royals do not utter such profanity."

"There's an exception to every rule." Alain turned his gaze to the fallen Creature, carefully tapping its corpse with his boot. Naturally, it didn't move. "Anyway, the job's done. I say we head back."

Felix shifted. "I'm inclined to-"

Az suddenly stiffened, staring out into the treeline. "Movement."

"Movement?" Alain echoed, following his gaze, his grip on the shotgun tightening. "What is it? More zombies?"

"No. Far too fast to be a zombie." Az's eyes narrowed. Without waiting for further confirmation, he began to march into the forest, stopping at a nearby tree. Leaves were still falling from it by the time he got there, which took Alain by surprise.

"Whoever it was, they were fast," he said. "Tiana or a pack member of hers, maybe?"

"Unlikely," Az grunted. "There's only one type of supernatural creature I know of that can move that fast on such short notice."

Alain caught on instantly. "Vampire…? What, you think the Tribunal was here?"

"We already know they were going to be watching us," Sable pointed out. "Though admittedly, that does raise several other questions…"

"We can worry about that later," Alain insisted, staring up at the sky. "Looks like the sun's about to come up. I don't know about all of you, but I'd rather get this done and over with and head back to town for some rest."

"Finally, someone says it…" Felix said tiredly as they began to walk back to Tiana's home. "I feel like I'm about to pass out…"

​XXX

"The job's done," Alain announced as they pushed their way through the door. A few Rougarou were standing guard in the foyer, and immediately turned towards the five of them, snarling as they did so. It didn't last, however.

"Stand down, all of you," Tiana announced, stepping into the room. She stopped a ways away from them, a hand on her hip as she appraised them. After a moment, she nodded. "Very well."

Alain paused. "...Just like that? I thought you would have demanded proof."

"You five look terrible enough that I can tell you've been in a fight. And given that there isn't much out in the swamps that can do that to a vampire and whatever the tall man is, I'm inclined to believe you outright. Though if it makes you feel better, I will be sending some of my pack to confirm the kill."

"Enough talk," Sable growled. "We've done as you asked. Give us what we came here for."

Tiana shrugged. "A deal is a deal. You want to find Heather so badly? All it'll take is the right bait, and as luck would have it, you happen to have that in your possession already."

She motioned to Sable, only for Az to step forward.

"No," was all he said.

Tiana was unperturbed. "I am simply stating a fact. You want to draw her out, you'll need to make it worth her while."

"We are not putting my lady in danger-"

"Az," Sable said firmly, quieting him. She turned back to Tiana. "What do we need to do?"

"It's quite simple, really," Tiana stated. "Come with me, I'll get you all set up."