Heading down the mountain was honestly harder than coming up it, and that was the most frustrating part. Some of the steeper parts that I wouldn’t have hesitated to slide down or do a sort of running hop down I had to go around, as I wasn’t about to chance disturbing Laura’s gear. I was also fighting to get my new senses under control. I could smell fear off of many creatures, and see their bodies faintly throbbing in the dusky light of the forest was incredibly distracting. Should I happen to turn my ear just right, I could even hear their hearts thundering in their chests. I was so distracted with trying to control my senses, that it didn’t quite register that I was hearing branches cracking as people moved through the forest until they were almost on top of me. Leading the way was Colt.

“Hey there Colt!” I called out, and their entire group immediately froze. Spears were immediately pointed in my direction, and if I hadn’t seen the life force splitting off, I would have never have noticed someone circling around to my left in order to get behind me.

“That you Brandon?” He called back, staring right at me.

“You know it is. What are you guys doing?” I called back.

He looked at the others before turning back and replying, “Don’t worry. We’re here to end your suffering.”

“Suffering?” I asked, until it hit me. They thought I was a vampire! I called back, “Whoa, hold on there. I’m no vampire.”

“Don’t worry Brandon. You did good not attacking Molly, and while she’s a bit upset, she’s safe. You can rest easy knowing that you did a good deed.”

“And I’m telling you I’m not a vampire Colt! Would you listen to me for once?”

“Brandon, you aren’t going to fool anyone. You always were a terrible liar.”

I shook my head at his words, knowing that I wouldn’t be able to get anywhere. Once Colt got an idea in his head, it would take the king himself to change it. Wait a minute, what’s that? Out of the corner of my eye, I caught the barest hint of a flash. When I turned, I got an idea. “Hey Colt, you know vampire lore probably better than I do. How many times has a fledgling been able to stand Solarus’ light?” As I asked it, I strode into the lone sunbeam that had managed to make it through the canopy, turning to stare right at Colt.

“Wha? How are you not dying?” Colt demanded.

“I’ll tell you, but first you have to tell whoever it is that is circling around behind me not to shoot me. I’ve already faced death once when the sun rose this morning. Don’t you think that’s enough for one day, Old Klein?”

I heard a chuckling from the spot of life force I could sense, but I still couldn’t make him out until he stood up. “Not many can catch me in these woods boy, and afore today I’da swore you would never have the skill. You may have faced death, but when he sent ya back, ya didn’t come back as a human, didja?”

“No, I’m not a human,” I said. My revelation caused a few bowstrings to tension, but Klein saved me.

“Glad you can admit it. Easy there fellas. If he can find me in these woods, some of us would already be dead if he meant us harm.”

Colt came closer and said, “I’ll admit, unless you were turned immediately into a master vampire, you wouldn’t be able to withstand the sun. Nobody outside of legend was ever turned immediately to master, so you can’t be a vampire. But until you get within the light of the protective runes, we’re going to have to treat you as a danger. Hand over what you’re carrying and let us tie your hands together.”

I was shaking my head halfway through his demands, and countered, “I can’t do that. I was told by Solaris to take these mementos to her family, and I’ll not be handing them over to anyone. I know you need to be cautious, so let’s do this. I’ll walk in front of you to the village, and you can follow along ready to plant an arrow through my heart. When we get there, I’ll walk up and touch the runes if it’ll make you feel better.”

Klein answered, “That’s a fair response Colt. I know there was an outsider ‘round here recently, and them clothes he has are a lot finer than what anyone here could afford. Let ‘im take the clothes. With his hands full, he isn’t going to be able to attack us, and I doubt he knows how to use the sword.”

“Stick them with the pointy bit?” I chuckle as I start walking, letting the others fall in behind me. Colt brought six people including Klein, I guess he was taking the threat of vampire me seriously.

I heard Klein chuckling behind me, answering my joke, “If you just try and stick them with the point, you will be missing about 90% of the utility of a sword. Come on.”

And so our tense party headed back towards town, slowly picking our way. Klein was supremely helpful, calling out small side trails he knew of. It wasn’t but an hour later that we came across the road. As our pace sped up, I found myself thinking back on my past. Especially since Colt was now walking next to me. I was given a second chance, something most people only dream of. The question was now this, was I going to go through life as the same farmer’s son with a chip on my shoulder?

“Colt.”

“Yeah?”

“I’m sorry for how I’ve treated you. I never should have said you didn’t have what it takes to make Praetorian.”

“What’s bringing this nonsense on?” He grunted.

“A lot of things. This whole second chance thing. What you did last night. It’s still a bit blurry, but I know that I was a vampire last night, and was on the edge of killing Molly. Despite that, you dared the very edges of the village protection. You stood tall in the face of danger, and didn’t let any of it show. Anyone that can face a vampire one on one like that and keep his cool must have what it takes to become a Praetorian,” I explained, taking a moment to collect my thoughts. After a minute, I continued, “Not only that, but I was a dick to you for so long because I was jealous.”

“Jealous? Of me?” Colt asked incredulously.

“Yeah. I was a poor farmer’s son. I barely got enough schooling to learn math. Not only that, but I’m clumsy as all get out. Not many girls would go for a blockhead like me. You were always good at anything you did. Then we started trying to one up each other, and I went after the only part of you I thought was vulnerable. Your dreams.”

“Ah shit, well isn’t this awkward,” he chuckled before continuing, “Did you know I was jealous of you as well?”

“Me?” I stumbled for a second, before picking the pace back up.

“Yeah. Seems so petty now. Remember Delilah?”

“Delilah.” I half groaned, thinking about the girl I had more than a few fantasies about. “What does she have to do with it?”

“She shot me down. Said I wasn’t brawny enough, and she liked those guys with visible muscles. You, Terrence, even George. I knew I had no chance then.”

“What are you talking about? You are strong!” I countered.

He chuckled, and fired right back, “Strong, yeah. But I don’t have the same types of muscles you do. Hell man, I saw you spend a day plowing a field because you guys couldn’t rent an ox. You were unstoppable, just kept going and going. Take a break for lunch, and back at it. So I got jealous, and tried to take out my feelings on you. I should have said it long ago, but I’m sorry too.”

Stunned by what he was saying, I fell into a silent walk. He was jealous of me? Ridiculous. But then again, Delilah had grown fairly close to Terrence lately. Was she really attracted to muscles? But Colt was strong and quick, smart too. He was also a guard, and one of the top ones. Only the captain could hold his own against him, and from what rumors were around Colt was quickly closing the gap.

“Step into the clearing and stop for a second, we need to let the guards know that you aren’t a threat,” Colt ordered, tearing me from my daydreaming. I frantically looked around for a second, realizing that we were only a minute or so away from the village.

“More backups?” I asked.

“Yep. If we didn’t return by an hour after lunch, the Captain was going to head out. If you returned alone, they had orders to shoot you.”

“Joy.” I deadpanned, stopping and letting him head on toward the village. I made sure that I was standing in the sun, enjoying the heat on my face. I did notice that my ability to sense lifeforce dropped when in sunlight. Even the bright lights of a human was simply reduced to a bland red that didn’t stand out from normal colors at all.

“Mind tellin’ an old man how you managed to catch him in the woods?” Klein asked, chuckling when I shrieked at his sudden appearance. I might have also jumped a bit, and ended up about six feet away.

“Damn sneaky old bastards with their damn sneaky sense of humor,” I mumbled, chuckling along with them as I made my way back. I went on to explain, “It’s nothing that I did really. I can just see lifeforce flowing through the body like a vampire. That’s why I was able to see you.”

“Ah, that explains it. Thanks, and if you ever find out anything that blocks it, let me know will ya?”

I nodded and readily agreed, “Sure thing.” Before we could get talking again, Colt waved us forward from the walls. I headed in with the hunters falling in behind me, and though they all had an arrow to the string, they were all relaxed. Instead of the gate though, I headed off to one side where I could touch one of the runes of protection. While the runes weren’t a perfect defense, everyone knew that not even the strongest of vampires could withstand touching one directly.

“Lord Solaris told me that you were coming, and that you had his blessing. This is just further proof. Welcome back, Brandon.” I turned to see Father Ennurian standing next to Colt.

“Father,” I replied with a slight bow.

He smiled, “Oh enough of that. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to head out with the others, but they were gone by the time I had gotten all the stuff I needed. We have a meeting with the village elders in the church, and your sister is insisting on being there. We have a lot to talk about, most of it involves you. I know it’s a bit young, but are you ready to discuss your future?”