Chris heads over and start looking for the rebels they met earlier, Hermes the cheerful ignorant self-appointed leader, his sister Medea the calm and merciful sorceress and Roland the quiet mastermind behind the team. After some effort, he finds them on the lookout for the "loose vampire" nearby, they had some kind of formation while doing so, Hermes was marching forward as the spear-head he is, Medea behind him covered by his towering mass, Roland walking backwards covering the rear. Chris approaches them and tell them that his sister needs help near the end of the Marsh and they follow him right away.
"Lets hurry! Maybe the vampire lurking nearby got her off guard for a second!" Hermes shouts, starts to run and breaks their formation which is clearly Roland's Idea as he was very annoyed by his move.
Medea and Roland follow Hermes and Chris, Roland was frowning in the way, staring at Chris and Hermes running in the front...
Meanwhile Eleanora was slowly walking as she held her own left arm with the right one, grunting in pain, she was not in good health from inside, she did cover her fatal wounds that the Duke caused as she fought him, she needed to prioritize her moving ability over other trivial wounds and broking bones from the force of explosion she absorbed through her back. She had at least 3 broken ribs, her left arm was not broken but it almost did, she was running out of blood as well, she over used her vampiric abilities in that fight, she pushed her primal mending spell power to cover the vital and important areas in her back, she pushed herself to the limits by keeping those fast movements along with high focus with her heightened senses, not to mention the Crimson spear spell, and above that all she didnt recover after the fight, unlike the twins fight she did not drink her victim blood this time, it was a matter of time before she faints in couple hours if she didnt get some mortal blood to start recovering her stamina and then some more to recover the rest of her wounds.
"I really over did myself... if I didnt overwhelm this type of person he would keep overwhelming me, he was no ordinary rebel, he is even more experienced than those twins, he didnt hold back anything, he was a professional assassin that completed a number of contracts before... including master Mirals, father... I didnt even get the chance to get actually close to him like I wanted to." She coughs badly "...I need to get some blood after that intense fight, but I would never use that filthy blood of his!" She looks around, the trees and bushes were eerily silent. "Tsk, no Lizards or any animals nearby... those rebels surely did great at picking a safe hideout... I have no option but to wait for Chris, my final resort so nothing goes wrong." She sits down and leans into one of the small trees nearby. After few minutes, she heard the hurried steps of a number of humans coming by, putting her hand on her axe as she stands up, she realizes from the sound of steps that they were three mature humans, and a younger one, as she understood that these were the steps of Chris and the three rebels she didnt waste a moment, and quickly forced herself to jump to the tree, hiding herself up there.
"Huh? Why isnt she here? She told me she would wait for me and some help right here... I-I am worried..."
Chris started to panic, after all all what Eleanora told him was to just go and bring "help" of the small rebel party here. Hermes didnt stand idly at all and kept looking around, eventually sprinting deeper into the marsh. "I will look over there! Maybe she moved from her spot so the vampire dont get her!" Roland wanted to stop him but he was already to far to hear his quiet voice so he just let a disappointed sigh instead. "Dont worry kid, I am sure your sister is alright, she is a smart hunter after all I am pretty sure she just hided nearby for extra safety, stay here with Roland he will keep you safe, I will go look at the opposite direction over there!" Medea patted Chris and calmed him down. Roland annoyed by his careless team moves, turns to Chris after Medea can no longer hear them out.
"Hey kid... my instincts are telling me that there is something wrong here, I dont like the way you keep calling people to and fro, care to explain anything to me before its too late?"
As Roland sent a serious distrustful stare at him, Chris started to get anxious, he tried to thing of something, anything, he made up some sort of story to make him look less suspicious, but he could not use it anyway, because before he opened his mouth to speak, a sharp cry echoed into the empty Marsh, it was Medea's voice, a cry of fear and terror, and maybe of pain. Hermes rushed as a crazy man at the voice direction ignoring Roland attempt to stop him.
"Hermes wait we have to stay tog--!"
While pushing him out of his way and continuing to rush, Hermes replied as well.
"I will not let Medea die without trying to protect her!!"
Roland grabbed Chris closer to him, and took out his weapon.
"Stay close... even that I have my doubts about your weird actions kid you are still a human, I will protect you."
Without any much doubt, a scream of Hermes can be heard not too long after he disappears into the bushes, both Roland and Chris looking fearfully from a side to side, putting there backs against eachother to cover each others back. But there was nothing but silence...
After about five minutes.
"M-maybe we should go check up on H-Hermes and Medea?" Chris stuttered, Roland simply shock his head.
"They are probably already dead, if we carelessly moved around we will end the same... keep your eyes open okay?"
Chris nodded and then turned back to stay on the look, then out of one of the trees Eleanora jumped right at his direction hands first, just like how a hawk prepare to snatch its prey, Chris didnt even realise this was Eleanora, the way she just jumoed out of the tree all of a sudden scared him out, he screamed as he ducked down covering his head and closing his eyes, hearing Chris' scream Roland turned around quickly but even so, he never managed to see what actually hit him.
SPLATTER
Chris felt some hot liquid falling on his left cheek, some drips of blood, he turns around to see Roland barely standing with shaky legs as Eleanora was hunched over his snapped head, she broke his neck and thrusts her fangs deep into his neck with a fierce manner that caused some blood to splatter, couple of seconds and Roland falls into the mud of the marsh, his dry and weakening body unable to carry the weight of them both. Chris staring at this sudden strike unable to know what to do or what to say just stay there watching, his heart trusts Eleanora, the big sister that always took care of them back then, but his brain and instincts were shouting with fear for him to run away, he choose to believe in the sister he knows.
After about half a minute, Eleanora took her fangs out of Roland's neck, she sat down on his dead body calmly and turned to Chris, Chris who wanted to say something, but she spoke first as he wasnt so sure to what should he even say.
"You are scared, I can see that... but it makes me happy that you trust me and did not run away... thank you Chris, and sorry for the sudden ambush, this Roland had a sharp mind, if I tolr you my plan he would have noticed something wrong and would threatened you to tell him or even hit you, but if I left you as ignorant about what is going next just as them, he wouldnt doubt you at all..." she smiles at him with a genuine warm smile, Chris titters.
"Actually, he did doubt me after all, he said he didnt like the way I keep calling people here and there, probably because I called all of the guards earlier for that false vampire in the forest, then came to them and told them to come in the other direction to help you out." Eleanora eyes widen slightly with surprise.
"I guess I didnt give him enough credit, it would have been nice to have him on my side if he wasnt a rebel... but anyway, I took care of them just like how I said I would. I didnt really want to kill those three even though I gave them somewhat useful informations... I really feel sorry about them, if I had found some animals to recover my stamina with their blood I would have let them go, but nothing replaces a human blood quality after all." She gazes into Roland dead body. "We probably should move a little further into the marsh, the other rebels may come by and find out what happened, lets head to Kevin's." Eleanora stands up and cleans of the mud and dirt she can out of her hunter outfit.
"Why Kevin's though? His friend have a nicer place in its closer to us than Kevin shop." Chris asks confused, Eleanora turn to him with a confused smile.
"I simply didnt know about this 'friend' you are talking about, but if its closer then speak less and lead the way!" She waves her arms open, then quickly lowers her left arm.
The two march to Kevin's friend, Palro, who had a small open brick-room in the middle of the marsh, a floor made out of mossy grayish red brick and short walls three walls and an open side but no roof. The area was calm, the quiet sound of water coming from nearby, Palro room had a large bookshelf filled to the brim with books that somehow survived the moisture of the marsh and are intact, as well as huge two piles of books infront of the bookshelf, between those two piles of many old books was a simple chair with a sentient skeleton seated on it, Palro himself, with a book in a hand and resting his skull on the palm of the other hand, wearing some blue robes above all those bones, the deep blue color and the lines and shapes on it gives an aura of knowledge and power, the way he was seated on the chair while reading the book by itself gave him more of that aura, but the simple old creaking wood chair ruined the vibe flow.
THUK
The skeleton Palro closed his book and the sound echoed at the silent area.
"You again kid? And who is that with you? Cant a skeleton read in peace ever here?! Ahh, the things I do for the sake of research..."
"Hey Palro! We are just here to have a rest, I wont make a noise, promise! Oh and this is... Eleanora!"
Chris gestures at Eleanora proudly as if he is showing of a prize.
"A human child and a young vampire going together, intriguing... say Lady, why would you keep such a nuisance around you if he have no benefit at all? An emergency supply of fresh blood perhaps?"
A frown drew itself on Eleanora's face.
"We are family... I will never drink his blood, even if he offered me to do so."
Chris holds her palm.
"She is my great smart sister!"
Eleanora smiles at Chris.
"I mean no harm nor I want to disturb your reading any further, we simply ask for you to give us a moment to rest here under your protection... I need some rest to fully recover from a dire battle I just went through. Will you allow us to sir Palro?"
"I see that the kid already gave you my name..."
Palro toss the book to the pile near him and lean forward, and cross his arms as if ready to give a speech.
"I will give you three riddles, I am not a bad person I just dont want to keep brawn heads near me, so if you at least got 2 of them correct I will give you my word to protect you while you stay here, have a seat, you might need to think alot about those ones."
She nods. The old wooden bench creaks calmly as she sit on it, chris walks more to the edge of the room and sits on the floor.
"I am not into Palro riddles nor do I want to bother you too, I will just be here until you are through with it." Chris says as he picks up a stick and starts drawing on the mud nearby Palro brick room.
The "bonely" riddles begins!
"First, lets give you a short one... it dampens as it dries... what is it?"
Palro let a bone cackle, enjoying the moment.
Eleanora starts to think to her self.
"It dampens as it dries... it gets wet as it dries thing or something... hmm, maybe its a towel? But what if there was a trick? Maybe he doesnt mean actual physically wet and physically dry? I dont think so... I will just go with towel... i guess?"
As Eleanora finishes her deep thoughts she rise her head and lock her eyes at the skeleton enjoying her effort to solve the riddle, she could almost see that skull resemble a smiling face.
"The answer is a towel, as it dries surfaces it gets wet itself."
Palro's loud laugh echoes through the silent area.
"Towel! A towel! How simple and how smart! I never thought of it like that! I was thinking of a cloud actually, when it rains it dampens, but when it rains it eventually dry out! I would you say you passed greatly!"
His bones clack and as he claps with his palms.
"On to the next one, this is a lovely one, I know you will get this one right, In the distance you look, you should always peer, It gives you a glimpse, Of how you appear, what is it, my dear?"
Eleanora let a giggle escape her libs.
"Know I get why did you say that this is a lovely one. The answer is a mirror, correct?"
Another "boneful" clap fills the area.
"Precisely! You are smarter than you look arent you? You have passed two riddles, and you have my word to protect you while you rest here, but I would love to see you solve my third riddle! I will ask because I dont want to be rude with such a great guest. Do you wish to hear it?"
Eleanora nods with a smile at his offer.
"Great! This next riddle is my favourite one, prepare yourself!"
Palro shifts in his chair, fixing the way he sits to probably prepare for bringing out his best riddle, or as he said, his favourite one.
"I wear a leather coat to keep my skin in working order. I escort you to other realms, worlds and dimensions without a magic portal. Who am I?"
Eleanora lowers her head in thinking, this wasnt quite uour simple riddle type.
"Leather coat... leather skin or cover... escorts me to far away and impossible places without magic... and also the favourite of Palro... hmm a leather coat will keep it functional and protects its insides... maybe a journal? As its insides can let you travel through someone else story and life... no no, its rather a regular book! He said this is his favourite riddle and he is clearly surrounded by two large book piles and a towering bookshelf from behind him as well, it must be a book, a leather cover and endless wonderful stories, theories, history..."
Eleanora snap her fingers as the idea was set in place.
"Its clearly a book, right?"
Palro stands up and bow gently at Eleanora.
"You have my respect, you are surely and without anu doubt are not from those other braindead vampires that are only hungry for power, you have manners and you are indeed smart, you will be always welcome here... friend."
As the slow chill wind comes by carrying the faint sound of quiet water Eleanora rests and heals her wounds, she shared small talks with Palro every now and then, Chris just settled down and actually decided to read one of the books, Palro gave him a simple story book that he can understand, but he made sure Chris promises him that he will handle it with care first.
After Eleanora had fully recovered, she and Chris bid Palro their goodbyes as they leave, heading for the city, Lychway City.
The faint Luna light along with the quietness of the treacherous march fades to the increasing noise of the city...
The murmurs of people, the yells in the markets, the sounds of experiments from the alchemy workshop, the screams and shouts from the night court as people train and spar... the blood smell is fresh as ever in this damned city, be it a murder in the dark alleyways, a prisoner execution or even just the smell of red juice barrels moving to the "hangedman" inn and noble houses as well.