Token Huntress (11 page)

I
changed my clothes into my usual attire. I decided it was best just for now to wear a long leather shirt instead of my sleeveless one. I didn’t want them asking me questions that I obviously couldn’t answer. I met my team in the weaponry room again.

The team was smaller than what it had been yesterday. Kora and Kasey looked at me suspiciously; Teary indifferently; and James just pouted angrily, not able to make eye-contact. Dillian looked tired, the bags under his eye evidence that the foresight took much out of him. But it did not break his spirits, and he gave me a small smile. One James obviously begrudged, as he immediately shot Dillian a murderous look. I couldn’t help but want to walk up and slap him for his stupid jealousy. When we got back, this would be something I would have to deal with.

To my surprise, Tori was standing with everyone, his hands crossed over his chest. When he looked at me, it was not with his usual contempt. His eyes were filled with respect and he now looked like a man. I was saddened to know that such terrible circumstances had to happen for him to respect me as his Token.

              “What of Corso?” I asked. Everyone looked down, except Dillian. I inhaled deeply, preparing myself for what they would now say. I had failed him; he must be dead. I failed. The tally of members who had died under my charge had grown. Were we out of our league? I internally slapped myself.
No. I have never, and will never, doubt my skill or that of my fellow hunters
. This was because Campture permitted him to use such a stupid weapon from the past.

              “His leg had to be amputated,” Kasey explained nonchalantly. Her upbeat tone bothered me. I gave her a pointed look. She shrugged her shoulders at me childishly. “What? He could have died. It’s good that it is just his leg.”

              “He is still battling for his life, though,” Kora interrupted, slightly more seriously. “It’s all up to the infirmary now. We did what we could. He has been dismissed from the raid team. He cannot function with one leg.”

              Swallowing this, I nodded, thanking them. I felt almost sorry for the loud-mouthed Corso — he lived for the raid team. But now with only one leg, who knew what would happen to him?

              “Status update on the transport team?” I asked. Campture was being vague in her descriptions; she would usually go into far greater detail.

              “Nothing yet, no one has returned. We aren’t yet sure if it was delayed, if they are in hiding, or if something else has happened,” Teary answered.

              “Can you not see them?” I asked Dillian. He looked at me as if he had only just walked into the conversation, his mouth slightly open. He looked horrible and so awfully tired. In fact, I was hesitant to take him on our outing.

              “It doesn’t work like that, Es,” James said. My glare was more intense than I had intended it to be. He quickly dropped his gaze.

              “I am still trying to understand it myself,” Dillian interrupted. “But I get shown things. I don’t get to choose, they just happen. I saw a few things, and pieced them together over the night with Campture, who could see the same as me when she read my mind. Everything leads to this exact team going back into the city. There we will find a Council member, fight off a few more. It will be a challenge but everyone will be unharmed. This is what will lead us to the right information about where the Council is stationed. This much Campture and I clued together.”

              This was good news indeed. Suddenly an image of Chase flashed into my mind: the water dripping over his lips, his stone-cold abs... I closed my eyes in irritation. Why am I seeing him? When I opened them again, everyone was looking at me in suspicion.

              “Teary, what have they supplied you with?” I asked, dismissing their looks and walking over to assess what was in her bag.

              “The same as last time, except I was given three grenades as well.”

I thought about this for a while.
Grenade.
The word rang a bell. She pulled one out from her bag, and I held it up to the team. “These were used a few times when Drue was Token. They are effective when there are a lot of vampires surrounding. All you do is pull this pin. They have adjusted these ones, however. Last time they used one, another hunter was blown apart because they were too close. Now there is a time limit on them. So once the pin is pulled, ten seconds is allowed. Obviously our team will be aware of this timeframe and find cover by then.”

              “Esmore?” Tori called, walking toward me with my sword and Barnett bow in hand. His head was bowed reverently as he offered the items to me. I now looked at him differently. He held much respect for me, I could tell from the way he looked at me. It was reassuring to know he did not hate me because I was unable to protect his fellow apprentice. His gift of my weapons was a token of that respect. “Campture wanted me to give you back your weapons.”

              I took them from him with feigned indifference.

              “Well, if that is all, we will leave now. I saw no clouds, so this will be a full days’ run. We won’t stop until we are at the edge of the city. We will rest there for the night. If anyone cannot come, they must speak now. I will not hold it against anyone if they don’t think they are up to it.”

I had Dillian in mind as I said this, he looked terrible. But no one stepped forward. Dillian deliberately ignored my eyes, knowing that statement was intended for him.

              “Right, move out.”

*

We only made two stops. Each time I called for refreshments and a small break, mostly for Dillian’s sake. I could see he was struggling with the pace after very little sleep. I didn’t know how this new foreseeing skill of his worked, but by his exhausted expression and sunken eyes, it took a lot out of him, I could tell that much. I had great respect for the fact that he did not ask me to stop. He continued pushing.

              Looking at James broad back as we ran, I was reminded of when we began sparring at the young age of sixteen. At first it was to train and test our skills against one another, but then things flourished into something more. It was enjoyable to have such a tough opponent. All the female apprentices wanted him. I couldn’t help but be flattered back then. Eventually it became more, and we started a relationship — one that was happy and playful. But slowly the sparring stopped as he began to see me more as his girlfriend than a worthy challenge. Shortly after that, when my hunter eyes vanished, it seemed he only wanted to conceal me, like a damaged animal. Looking back at it all now, that was when the problems began.

              We found our way through the forest. There was very little fog to interfere with our sight and no vampires to be seen. We were about ten kilometers out from the city when we settled down to camp. We had stayed in this position once before. It was a good location: a cave on the side of a hill. It gave us a visual of the city, but no further as the fog lurked over the ground. We took turns to watch, two at a time. It was Teary and James who were to take the first shift, followed by myself and Dillian, but looking at him now, I knew I would insist he sleep instead. Kora or Kasey could take his turn.

              Tori walked over to me, tightening his leather jacket around him and puffing his chest up as he came over to me. He had seen me looking at Dillian. “I can take over Dillian’s shift, if you would like, Token Huntress,” he offered. I considered it for a moment. He had proven himself to be a very gifted apprentice when we had last fought together. Looking at Dillian, who was searching for his water bottle, I knew Tori was a much better choice for now.

              “That would be appreciated. Please inform Teary of the change,” I asked, tapping him on the shoulder in thanks as I walked past him.

I could feel James’ eyes on me from afar as I crouched next to Dillian. He looked paler than usual. “How are you fairing?”

He rubbed over one of his eyes before scratching his head. “I’ve had better days, but I will be okay after a few hours’ sleep.” He dropped his tone to a whisper only he and I could hear. “How are you? You could cut the tension with a knife.”

              I took a seat beside him on the edge of the rocky ledge, looking out toward the city. The sun had almost been engulfed by the land. “Because of what? My imprisonment by my own kind, my boring relationship issues, or my confrontation with a Council vampire?” I deadpanned. I knew that no one could hear. Campture could not read our minds from so far away. Here, we were free.

              “What!”

              “He followed us from the city; he was the one who shot me with a paralysis dart. Last night, when you had your first... uh... vision, I was confronted by a vampire on the south. He was faster than me, stronger than me. Dillian, he knew my name.”

              Dillian didn’t hide his shock. His lips parted in surprise as he tried to consume this. He looked behind us, making sure no one could hear. James was scraping his sword down a tree trunk to sharpen it as he watched us warily. Right now he was the least of my concerns. He could not be so jealous after how quickly he had turned on me last night.

              “What did he want from you? Did he try to kidnap you?”

The more I thought of his movements, the more I realized they were not threatening. He did not even carry a weapon. I thought about it for a while, pausing as the image of him popped into my head again. The water sliding over his chiseled abs. His wet, glistening black hair. I refocused myself. How filthy of me to admire him — a vampire.

              “He only asked me about my huntress eyes,” I finally said. Dillian did not interrupt as I continued my train of thought. I remembered him saying we were...
familiars
. “He said we were familiar, but I have never met him before. What do you think that means?” I asked, rattled by my own inability to decipher it. Did he mean that we were acquainted or did the word
familiar
hold a far greater significance? My stomach tightened with desire at the memory of his cool touch.

              I slammed my hand angrily into the ground. Dillian flinched in surprise and I looked at him apologetically. I tried to suppress my thoughts. The sudden ache of my knuckles was the only thing taking away my lingering thoughts.
He is not a man
, I reminded myself.
He is a disgusting vampire
.

              “Did you tell Campture about this?” Dillian asked. At my hesitation, his eyes bulged in disbelief. “Esmore, there was a Council vampire outside our Guild. They know of our location. What if they ambush us now? How could you not tell her that?”

Everyone looked up as his volume rose on the last sentence. Luckily they did not know what it was he was yelling about. He regained himself, pinching his nose. “Sorry, I am tired. But Esmore, you know the potential consequences of this. There are people back there who are unprotected. People I care about, even if you don’t.”

              I was ashamed of my actions. What could I say, I did not have time? I wanted to figure it out myself first? There was no excuse I could use to justify it. And the more I thought about it, the angrier I became. Why had I not told her of him? Before recently, I wouldn’t ever hold something like that from her, even at my most defiant. I felt like my mind was tricking me.

              I rested my hand on his shoulder, deep in thought. “Don’t worry. I promise I won’t let anything happen. Rest, Dillian.”             

T
hat night I did not dare sleep in case my mind drifted like it did the night before. I did not want to dream of a vampire. I hated how my body ached for him. I should have shot another arrow when I had the chance. I was sitting on the edge of the rock, watching in the trees below. I had the daunting sensation that the same vampire was watching me. I couldn’t help but feel a pull toward him, but I tried to suppress it. If he were here I would have seen him by now.

James took the opportunity upon wakening to advance on me. He sat down beside me. “Es, we have to talk…”

              “James, you betrayed me yet again. Your head is so far up Campture’s rear-end it is not funny. I cannot trust you,” I said defiantly. In a way, I hated him, yet there was something that stopped me for saying what I really wanted. I realized I feared being alone. Was that selfish of me? I preferred doing everything on my own, so why would such a thing bother me?

              “I only tried to protect you. If you would have just listened, everything would have been okay,” he said, his tone slightly deepening.

              “I do not take orders from you. You cannot force me to do anything I do not want to. You don’t own me, you don’t control me, and you certainly cannot protect me. From any punishment from within the Guild walls or out here. I had so much respect for you once,” I said harshly, rising to leave. He caught my hand, and I was angry at him for it. Before I could act on that and hit his hand away, the reflection of something caught my eye.

              I looked deep into the trees, thinking I had seen Chase pull back into the woods. If anything reflected, it would be the blue gem of his earring or necklace. I was disturbed by how much attention I paid to his jewellery. There was nothing there; was my mind making things up? I could no longer feel the pull of his presence.

              “Es,” James said, reminding me that he still held onto me. “We need to work this out, I know we can.” He took my hand, kissing my knuckles gently. I stared at him, unmoved by the action. “We will discuss it when we get back to the Guild,” I said, retracting my hand and walking away.

*

Soon it was dawn and everyone was awake. Dillian looked much better. His skin glowed. Obviously he had not suffered any more visions last night.

              “Okay, we keep tight in structure. Kora and Kasey, you are to take the back; James and Teary take the sides. Tori, you are centre; Dillian and I will be frontal. If you hear or see anything, you stop the group instantly and we find cover in the closest place.”

              Everyone was prepared, but there was a slight resistance in all of their eyes. If I hadn’t looked for it, I may have never seen it. An unsteady group was something that we couldn’t work with. But after what had happened only days before, they were all unsettled. I gestured for us to move out. For now, the sun was very bright and hot. We shouldn’t see any sabers unless we were to go deep into the darkness of buildings or sewers. I didn’t like that we were walking into the city after a premonition. But if both Campture and Dillian had already seen it, I had to believe that was evidence enough. After all, it was the biggest clue we had in finding the Council.

              We began running at our heightened speed, and we were on the edge of the city streets in only minutes. I held tightly onto my sword with my right hand and my Barnett bow with my left. I flicked my fingers in the direction right to us. We would search around this side of the city first. What made it hard was the fact that although Dillian had foreseen us being in the city, there was nothing specific to look for. We had to simply hope we would stumble into the area in which we were meant to be.

              After walking around a quarter of the city, we were becoming frustrated. “If I may speak?” Teary said in a whisper. I approved. Teary had been working the raid teams for a while, so her advice was greatly appreciated. “Perhaps we need to go more inwards again, Esmore. I doubt that the Council would be on the outskirts. If anywhere they would be hidden somewhere in the middle. Perhaps we need to split up to cover more ground.”

              I considered her theory, but was against being torn apart. “We will go deeper into the city, but will not split up. If the sabers’ numbers have grown, then it is not a risk we can take.”

Teary nodded in agreement. So we walked into the city, but it was absolutely dead. Much like it always was. I had only once been in the heart of the city. This was where Drue, my previous Token Hunter, was killed. It was dangerous in the centre as it was shrouded in tall towers. It was too easy for the team to be torn apart, and it would take us longer to escape into the outskirts if we had to flee. A silent wind brushed through the city. On this side there were very little bones from corpses. On the west side, however, a large amount piled up, and cockroaches infested the streets.

              It was reported when the vampires overpowered the humans that most had enough time to escape. The east side was a richer suburb, so of course they were given priority. The rest had not made it in time. I imagined that if it were only one hundred years since that era, then the city would reek of death. But now, it was a ghost town. I could not picture its former glory. Street posts had bent through time and were now dipping eerily over the dark streets. The roads had large cracks in them. Most windows had been shattered. Droplets of stained blood had not been wiped by the thick layer of dust and grime. And this was considered the cleaner part of the city. The other side’s fog was thicker and it crawled densely around our ankles.

              A flicker of motion grabbed my attention and I arched my Barnett bow in that direction, only to realize it was a shred of curtain flapping in the wind. Still it surprised me that the buildings survived after all this time. It made me consider how selfish the human race had been, how congested their population once was. Although the vampires were disgusting creatures, they did not destroy the earth further. Humans, however, monopolized the resources, draining the earth dry. Their technology was obviously no match for the simple fangs of vampires.

              We searched around the buildings and what were once glorious parks with fountains. Now dead and covered in fog, I questioned how much of this was once truly of value? If humans saw this all now, would they regret how they polluted the world? I think they wouldn’t, for they were too selfish of a race to understand. Was the first hunter familiar with these customs? Did they know and feel the loss of human civilization?

              Continuing to search through the abandoned park, we found a large bridge. Its structure was still mighty amongst the fog. I had not yet had the chance to see it up close, but it was something that I had always wanted to look at. Out of curiosity, I wanted to look down at the still water. Was it abundantly full of water in those times? Was the water sparkling clear or a dirty grotesque color then as well?

              Movement caught my eye again. Near the water fountain sat a figure. I raised my Barnett bow. It was a girl in a wheelchair. I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. What was a girl in a wheelchair doing here?              I looked to Dillian, who was looking between her and me. I flagged my team to spread around the girl in a circular structure. She must be human. Kora, Kasey, and Teary distanced themselves to the left. James, Tori, and Dillian kept to the right, as I kept my position at the front. Slowly, with my Barnett bow held high, I walked toward her. I could feel the presence of the others quickly circling around her, waiting for my go-ahead.

              After walking through cracked path and dead grass, I was only a few meters away from her. But she seemed not to have noticed. She was facing the water fountain, looking at the shattered cement heap. In her hand she held a small yellow flower. Looking around the area, I could not see one living plant. She was wearing a pale blue dress which had long sleeves. Creeping up behind her from an angle I could assess her front as well. I noticed that she also wore a purple scarf, partly concealing the red-gemmed necklace she wore. It reminded me of the one Chase had.

              She was humming to herself, and when she looked over her shoulder, it was me who was more startled by her calm composure. She was very pretty, with pale-brown eyes and a ghostly white tinge to her. But she was noticeably sick with something. Her hair was long and golden, but as a breeze swept through it, it moved unnaturally. She was wearing fake hair. Under her eyes was a ghastly brown color. This girl was dying of something.

              “Hello?” she said, her voice raspy. I looked at the positions of my team members, unsure of what to do in such circumstances. I did not care for humans, but this girl, she struck me as odd. How could she be in the middle of the city by herself in such a weak state, without having been attacked yet? I considered how we could possibly take her to safety. She looked too fragile to move. She was so tiny, and she looked to only be in her mid-twenties.

              “What are you doing here?” I asked suspiciously, still searching our surroundings, waiting for a trap or ambush. Was this girl some sort of bait? Although I already knew she was not a child, her presence gave off a very innocent vibe.

              Suddenly, I was overwhelmed by many presences surrounding. I raised my bow into the direction of Dillian and shot behind him at where a vampire crept from the shadows. Council vampires. The others were already aware and began fighting the closest ones to them.
This girl was bait.
I looked at her angrily, wanting to kill her.

              A ghastly snarl ripped through all the others. The Council vampires were holding back one of their own. He was blonde-haired and very tanned, with blue eyes, average in build. But as the others struggled to contain him, I realized he was a much stronger vampire. They were holding him back. It was not a chance I could let slip.

              Aiming for his chest, I shot an arrow. Already he had busted the face of two of those who held him and snapped the neck of another who tried using a sword against him. He dodged my arrow, growling savagely. Before I knew it he was already in front of me, his speed incomprehensible. He backhanded my bow away from me. He went to grab my throat but I narrowly dodged it, taking hold of his arm and swinging myself over it.

              I balanced in a crouching position, aiming to strike my sword through his chest. Before I had the chance, he kicked me across the face, knocking me a few meters along the gravel. I collected myself quickly, having to focus intensely on his movements. His speed was the same as Chase’s. I inhaled deeply, summoning my intense feelings from within.
I can and will kill him
.

              James ran toward him with his sword. The vampire grabbed him around his neck and I took this as my opening. James skin hardened into metal so the vampire was unable to snap it. James was a decoy. He threw James into a tree over ten meters away. The vampire moved himself so he was in front of the girl in the wheelchair. She looked down as she toyed with the yellow flower in her lap.

              Even when I conjured all my strength, his speed was unmatched. He grabbed my sword with his hands, blood spurting everywhere, his eyes now savage on me. In one swift movement he threw it away, grabbing my throat, ready to rip out my heart. His fangs were very large and blood dripped over them. Had he bitten into one of his own comrades? I could not breathe, but I did not gasp for air. I would not fall so far as to want mercy from his kind.

              Before he plunged his fingers into me a hand stopped him. My heart pounded, yet I was not scared to face death. A swift movement was made and I fell to the floor, holding my throat. Whoever had grabbed his hand tore him away from me. I looked up in front of me to see the familiar coat. It was Chase. His back was to me as he faced the vampire who had almost killed me. Did the Council really have such old and strong vampires right under our noses?

              “Don’t touch her. She’s mine,” Chase snarled, holding two swords.

              “She threatened Whitney!” the other vampire spluttered.

              “Tythian.” The small voice of the woman from behind him broke the tension. “It’s okay, we can go now.”

He buckled to his knees in front of her, cupping her face gently. “I’m sorry,” he whispered to her. “I did not know they would use you for this.” She gently caressed his face. In amidst the ghastly noises of weapons scraping against one another, it seemed to them that nothing else mattered as they gazed into one another’s eyes devotedly.