They were like a school of piranha, swarming the forest and mountainsides. They moved with the focus of bloodhounds, tracking prey through thick entanglements of brush, along narrow and winding hiking trails. They fell upon campsites and cabins silently, grabbing whoever they could find and dragging them screaming into the shadows of the trees.
Dozens of hikers disappeared before noon, their packs thrown carelessly into the underbrush along the side of the trail or into shallow ponds and streams. There was no mercy given, no regard to age or gender. A seven year old boy was pulled out of his mother's arms moments before a sixty seven year old man was pulled into the cold rapids of a dark river. One by one people were dragged off, all carried into the same cave and bitten by dozens of greedy mouths. They were thrown together in a corner, a screaming pile of bodies that would soon lay lifeless as the venom burning its way through their systems killed them.
By the time the first person would be reported as missing, they would all be something else, monsters with flickering eyes and a thirst for blood. From his stone chair the dark man watched, smiling as the numbers in the cave grew. What started as a few dozen had now grown to over fifty, with more screaming victims added by the hour. Under the spectral fire they would awaken as slaves, a bloodthirsty horde bent to his will.
He stood, things well in hand with his slaves. A few final details needed to be aired out, details that needed his personal touch. The main concern is the girl, everything revolved around her. He had no doubt the vampire could track her down, his concern was whether or not she could do it without killing or turning her. If that happened all his plans would falter, it was imperative she remain alive, and human.
Before leaving the cave he waved his hand with aflourish, extinguishing the torches. Let his slaves awaken in darkness, it madeno difference to him. The time had come to set the trap, all he needed was thebait. It was, as the humans say, time to get the girl.
YOU ARE READING
The Last of the Twenty: Broken Pawns
VampireThis is the second book in The Last of the Twenty series. It's still in very rough form, but it's complete. I am working on this series slowly, giving all the books a complete re-write. Hopefully those that read this enjoy what I have sofar!
