He'd said girls shouldn't be hunters. The pain of her swelling lip and eye was nothing compared to the impressive lecture she was being read. She wished that she could see if he was getting punished too. After all, he'd been fighting too. She'd known she was wrong as soon as she'd seen blood. But he hadn't stopped, so she hadn't either. The elder droned on, about how they couldn't fight each other. It became dull and her eye was swelling shut...
Her eyes opened but the dizzying fall was still there, beneath her feet. The bottom dropped out of her stomach and tears filled her eyes as she tried to haul herself back onto the roof. Her hair was getting into her eyes, and she swore, somehow, she'd do this, and she'd show them all that she could be as good as them. Feeling the tiles under her knees, she raised her bright eyes to the rooftree. The wind whistled through her tunic, tried to push her off again, as she stood, and resumed her climb.
It was windy, and she had noticed that Kelan wore an earring. A good sized tear drop of blue, hanging from a hoop in his right ear. When asked about it, he'd pushed flyaway hair over it again, and smiled crookedly. 'A reward,' he'd said, 'well a present actually - from a merchant I helped.' He'd shrugged. 'I don't know why I'm still wearing it after all these years, really.' He tugged on it gently, and shook his head. 'Well, it's pretty, at least, la? But I think there are more important things to think about.'
Charu woke up just as the first rays of light began to cap the horizon. She stared at the rising sun for long moments. It had been a long time since her dreams were so calm and her sleep so resting. The young woman got up to dress, and found she was holding something. Blinking, she opened her hand, and discovered a familiar blue drop in her palm. She poked it with one finger, and found the silver ring was still attached.
"Huh," Charu huffed, and blinked a few times, then she gave up on wondering and got dressed.
Kelan faced the rising sun, eyes shut, arms spread wide as if to welcome it. Charu politely waited until he lowered his arms and turned to face her before handing him his earring. He didn't say anything about it, just clipped it back in place.
"Ready?"
"More or less."
"Then let's go, little sister."
She followed him, without sighing, but she was thinking to herself "I don't want to fight werewolves."
Luckily they didn't have to. Stealth took a great bigger part of the plan than Charu had thought- but then, that was why she was learning form Kelan. The manor of the vampire was quiet, almost deathly silent. Sneaking in daylight was difficult without benefit of deep shadows, but since most of their opponents had excellent night vision anyway.
After the brilliant daylight of the outdoors, the cool, dim of the manor's interior was gloomy by comparison. One ray of light fell on a crest that had been painted on the wall. She looked at it briefly, but was swiftly distracted by a matter of greater importance. The dusky skinned woman sniffed as quietly as possible, and pressed the back of her glove to her nose, which itched unbearably. Her eyes started to water, and she willed herself not to sneeze. Kelan looked at her oddly over his shoulder, and arched an eyebrow. She shook her head, and replaced her glove with a handful of her cowl. Then as suddenly as the feeling came on, it went away. Charu lowered her hand, and sniffed experimentally. Nothing. She shrugged. Kelan motioned forward and they moved down the hall.
They didn't seem to be getting there, hall after hallway - every time they turned a corner, there was another hall. They moved quickly, but time still passed without any noticeable change.
"I've got this funny feeling we've been going in circles," she muttered.
"Hmmm?"
"I don't know why, but well we haven't found anything. This entire manor can't be halls! We should have found something new, or gotten somewhere!"
Kelan stared at her as if she had two heads, then suddenly pressed his hand against the side of his head.
"Are you alright?"
"Shhh." His eyes were shut, and he looked as though he was listening, hard for something. He frowned, and opened his eyes. "I think you're right, little sister. Something's not right here."
"What should we do?"
"We keep moving," the fair-haired hunter said. "Keep your eyes out for anything unusual."
Moving slower now, they continued. After a few moments, Charu stopped, brows draw together.
"That crest..." she said, pointing. "I saw it when we came in."
"Me too. I think I've seen it a few times since then," he replied. She nodded. Kelan stepped up to the wall, and ran his fingers over the crest.
"It's painted on," he muttered to himself. Charu started to say something, but he held up his other hand, running gloved fingers over the crest again. "I think it's a confusion."
Charu raised an eyebrow, still confused.
"It's making us miss things that we wouldn't," he explained. Kelan traced his fingers over it again.
"Then if we break it, we'll find something that would lead us out of the hall way?"
"A door, or a fork," nodded the older hunter, taking a step back. "But I don't think this is the original crest."
"So there's more than one?"
"There might be."
"Easy way to tell." Charu flicked her hand and drove a throwing blade into the crest, then jumped back as it began to crackle with energy. "Oops."
After a moment, both the blade and crest were black.
"That wasn't a bad way to do it, little sister. Impulsive, and thoughtless, but not a bad way to do it." She smiled crookedly. He jerked his thumb down the hall. "I hope you have more."
Charu sighed and headed down the dim passage, eyes skimming the walls.
"Hmm..." thought Kelan, not for the first time. "There is more to this girl than meets the eye."
It took four more crests before she found one that burst into flame when she pierced it. A side corridor flickered into view a few yards away. From the boot marks on the floor, they had passed it several times.
"Right," Kelan said, "Next time we meet other hunters and are discussing what we've been up to, this doesn't get mentioned, right?"
"Saru," Charu said smartly. He leveled a cool blue gaze on her, and she smiled weakly back.
"I'm going to pretend you meant that seriously."
Charu wondered who dug these basements. It wasn't something that they mentioned, or taught, but every hunter she talked to talked about sublevels. Basements over basements. Wine cellars, crypts and pits. Somehow, she didn't see the nobles digging them themselves. And if they had humans dig them, then where did the nobles live in the meantime? Charu shook her head sharply and focused her mind. At least these halls weren't that much different then the ones upstairs, being carpeted, and wood paneled. Most of the doors opened on rooms much like any other, except for the lack of windows. A swift organized search and they found a bedroom with a heavily curtained bed. No vampire was ever helpless, but catching one sleeping was as close as they came.
Kelan drew his sword, and Charu slashed open the curtains to reveal the bed.
It was empty.
"Shit," said Kelan.
Charu was a bit more emphatic, swearing in each of the four languages she spoke.
"The confusion!" she spat. "We must have been there for longer than we thought."
"It can't be dusk already!"
Charu was already moving out the door, running full tilt towards the stairs.
"Charu!"
She was quick, but Kelan had the advantage of having longer legs, and got her just before she reached the stairs, spinning her around.
"Do not run off like that."
"I'm sorry." Her eyes looked up at him, cold silver shards. "But... don't you trust me to take care of yourself?"
"Nothing about this has gone like we thought, little sister," he growled, "I wouldn't let anyone run ahead like that."
"I'm sorry," she repeated.
He sighed deeply.
"Let's go."
They slowly started going through the upper halls.
"Which way did we come in?"
"I'm not sure," Charu said, eyes shifting back and forth. She glanced right then left. "I feel a draft."
Kelan sniffed the air. "It smells like dusk. Damn it."
"Should we come back tomorrow?"
A cold wind swept past them, and Kelan looked down the broad hall. "I don't think that's going to be an option, little sister."
"Well shit."
They turned and headed into the breeze.
He was putting on a show, she could tell. The wind was filling the hall with a damp dark smell. The vampire was wearing a long suit coat, and a ruffled, red lace trimmed shirt. His trousers were black, brocaded with red, tucked into shiny black riding boots. His hair fell back starkly from his face in a shoulder length ebony curtain. His eyes were deeply shadowed, and dark. He had a cruel mouth.
"Did you really think it would be that easy?" he demanded archly. "I've been expecting you."
"Damn..." thought Charu.
"I don't think that's going to matter," frowned Kelan, eyes narrow and hard. The vampire lifted his chin and looked down his nose at him, then saw Charu behind the larger hunter.
"Hmmm." The vampire arched dark brows, and stared past Kelan's shoulder. "Interesting that you brought a friend."
Charu stiffened as he looked at her. It felt like he was looking through her clothes and staring at her naked - and it was not a pleasant feeling. She gritted her teeth and glared back at him as coldly as she could. The vampire smirked.
"You bring poor backup."
"I trust her."
His eyes were so dark - she knew someone with eyes like that... What was she doing, she was here for a reason - why was he smiling like that? "You may want to rethink that."
"I think I'm fine the way I am." He drew his sword, a long, broad blade. "Little sister?" She didn't answer. He glanced over his shoulder. "Charu?"
Her eyes were blank and there was a faint expression of confusion on her face, like she was staring at something she couldn't understand. Kelan shook her by the arm but she continued staring.
"I wouldn't worry about her, I'm sure we can find something for her to do, after you're dead."
"I won't be the dead one." The tall hunter frowned.
"I wouldn't be too sure."
Kelan rushed silently, sword held steady at waist level. The vampire dodged under his arm and gave a single hard strike, which knocked the tall man backward twenty feet.
"Right," snarled the hunter, "Why should this be easy?" He attacked again, coming in first low then high. A flutter of lace fell to the ground. "Shit." This time the blow hit with a strange, meaty sound, and Kelan hit the wall beside the door. His sword clattered to the floor, as he pressed a hand to his chest, and saw the blood. "Damn it," he breathed, and slid down the wall, collapsing onto his face with one last sigh.
The exhalation Kelan gave as he collapsed to the floor was almost lost in the echoing hall. But it snapped Charu out of her daze. Her face whipped around, and she saw the mess that he'd made of Kelan. Her chin trembled, and she turned to look back at the vampire who was looking at the bit of lace hat had been cut from his shirt with a rather thoughtful air.
"If you have harmed my brother," the small woman said quietly. "I... You will have to make peace with your gods." She tossed her cloak back and raised one hand to the handle of her sword.
"I did not fear him, and I will not fear you, little girl."
"If that is how you feel," she acknowledged. "Then that is how you feel." Her blade slid from it's sheathe with a deliberate hiss. Even the sound sounded sharp. The blade looked like it could wound the wind, and an inscription of a blessing flowed up the silvery metal.
The vampire chuckled, still not impressed. "You won't be the first."
"On the contrary, I think I'll be the last," he retorted.
"Kei-la!" She moved fast, in a whirl of blue fabric. Her opponent was faster. Her blade blurred and blocked his blow. She glanced at it.
"A sword. How... common."
"We all have our hobbies." The steel of the vampire's blade moved in a swift crescent, which she barely blocked. The dark haired woman swiftly moved to the offensive, blade slashing and colliding with her opponent's weapon. The noble was obviously surprised as they traded blows- Charu was just glad that he was too amused by the swordplay to use any tricks.
"I tire of this - join your 'brother.'"
