The Vampire's Apprentice

By Alain's best estimate, it was just after midnight by the time the four of them left town, searching for the old man. They were all on foot, the town's horses having been mauled and killed by the undead hordes already. Alain could only hope that they'd reach the old man before another wave of corpses washed over the town.

"Do we know where we're going?" Felix asked.

"There were directions in the book," Az specified. "It said to head straight west through the desert until we see a covered wagon set up next to a tent."

"That's it?" Alain questioned. "That's all it said?"

Az nodded. "Yes. Let's hope the old man hasn't changed positions since it was written, otherwise we're going to have a problem."

"Understatement of the century…" Alain muttered. "Sable, is there a way to speed this up?"

Sable hesitated. "...I suppose so."

"What does that mean? Why do you sound so uncertain?"

"You know some of the old folklore about vampires, yes?"

Alain blinked, recognition crossing his mind. "...I recall that you confirmed some of it. That means you can turn into a bat, right?"

Sable nodded. "The transformation is not pleasant, but in the interests of time…"

The four of them stopped. Az, Felix, and Alain stared at Sable as she took a breath, then looked up at the moon. She said something in her native language, and then as Alain watched, her body began to shift and contort. Her joints and bones popped and cracked as they were forcibly compacted down to size, and her skin ruptured as her body was reshaped, black blood leaking from her skin. A scream wrenched its way from her throat, and Alain went to step forward, but Az stopped him by holding out a hand.

"Wait," he commanded without looking back to him. "Let her transform."

"She's in pain-" Alain began.

"She is used to it, believe me. You interfering would just make things worse." Az glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. "Leave it alone, Alain. Trust her."

Alain reluctantly nodded, then took a step back. He looked over towards Sable again, and as he watched, her body seemed to suddenly collapse in on itself as she was re-shaped. It only took a second or two, and when it was done, there was a small black bat standing there, staring at them with red eyes. Alain took a tentative step towards it.

"Sable…?"

The bat, predictably, didn't respond. Instead, it spread its wings and took flight, its silhouette backlit against the full moon and the stars. It soon disappeared into the night, the only thing marking its presence being the flapping of its wings.

"Do we follow after her?" Felix asked.

Az shook his head. "She will scout the way for us. Stay here and wait for her, no matter how agonizing doing nothing may be at the moment. Trust me, my lady knows what she's doing."

Alain let out a tired sigh, then took a seat on the desert floor. Felix sat down next to him and retrieved a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, then offered him one. Alain stared at it in surprise.

"You had cigarettes this entire time?"

"Yeah," Felix confirmed. "Why do you ask?"

Alain didn't respond. He scowled, but accepted the smoke, then lit it and took a drag. Him and Felix sat there for several minutes, smoking, while Az watched the skies for any indication of Sable's return. Eventually, the flapping of wings greeted them, and Sable landed between them. Alain took a step back to give her some space as she transformed again, trying his best not to retch at the sight of it.

"What happened?" he asked Sable as she stood up straight, having finished her transformation. "Did you find it?"

"I did," Sable confirmed. "Right where the book said it'd be. Come on, I'll lead the way."

Sable took off on foot, going slowly enough that Alain and Felix were just barely able to keep up with her. After several minutes of running, Alain saw it – the covered wagon and the tent, out in the middle of nowhere. Curiously, there was a robed figure sitting out in front of the tent, warming themselves by a small fire. Cautiously, the four of them approached, Felix and Alain keeping their hands on their revolvers the entire time. As they drew closer, Alain opened his mouth to call to the figure, but the man beat him to the punch.

"I was wondering when the vampire and her companions would come to me directly," he said, his voice heavy with age and fatigue. "Come. Sit. Warm yourselves by the fire. I will do you no harm."

Felix and Alain exchanged a glance, but did as the man asked, tentatively taking a seat next to the fire. Az and Sable stood behind them, both still guarded.

"You need not fear me," the man said to them. "I am but an old man."

"You're an old man who gave a madman the power to raise the dead," Sable growled. "Why should we trust you?"

The man shook his head. "A mistake, one I intend to rectify now."

He reached up and lowered his hood, showing them his face for the first time. He was olive-skinned, with dull green eyes and a shaved head. Bizarre tattoos covered his face – Alain couldn't make sense of any of them; they looked to be in a foreign language of some kind, though he couldn't place which one it was. Still, the sight of it all gave him pause for a moment before he finally found himself able to speak again.

"You knew Sable was a vampire," he said. "How?"

"How many species of bat do you know that have red eyes?" the man answered. "Once you know what to look for, identifying creatures hidden by the Veil becomes as natural as breathing. Every creature has a tell, even though some may disguise themselves. It is almost impossible for one to completely pass as a human for very long."

"Let's cut to the chase," Felix said gruffly. "You gave Ansley the knowledge of those rituals."

He nodded. "I did. It was a mistake."

"Mistake or not, we need to know what he intends to do with them, and how to stop him," Alain emphasized. "Which is why we came to you. You're the only one we can rely on."

He shook his head. "You cannot hope to fight him, even with a vampire on your side."

"We have no choice," Az remarked. "It will likely be hours before the Army or the Tribunal can send a force to assist. To our knowledge, nobody has yet given them warning. By the time they get there to render aid, Ansley will have completed the ritual, and the town will be no more."

The old man was silent for a moment before a soft sigh escaped him.

"...I am Xavier, son of Sakis and Sofia," he said. "My ancestors were fascinated by the Veil, as was I. I grew up exposed to it. And yet, I am old now, with no heirs to pass my knowledge onto. When someone came by expressing interest in it, I found myself enraptured." He shook his head. "It was a mistake to believe he had benevolent intentions. I should have known better."

"That's not important," Alain insisted.

"I am aware. You wish to know what he intends to do with those rituals?" Xavier looked to Sable and Az. "Tell them, vampire and companion. I am sure you both know already."

Alain and Felix looked back towards them. Sable hesitated, then let out a sigh.

"...I was hoping to avoid telling you both," she said. "But from what I've been able to gather so far, Ansley and his men intend to make themselves immortal."

Alain's heart skipped a beat. "Immortal…?"

Sable nodded. "Yes. His men – the sheriff, mainly – are already closer to it than, say, you and Felix are, but a wight's immortality is imperfect. They can still be killed, though it is much harder than killing a normal mortal. I can only assume Ansley turned them into wights as a test. He likely intends to cast the correct ritual on himself later tonight."

"Why wait?" Alain asked.

"The immortality ritual requires a sacrifice and much preparation," Xavier explained. "The steps must be completed in a specific order and in specific intervals in order for it to work. Completing it properly requires the complete sacrifice of another person's soul – not an easy task. And the penalty for completing the ritual improperly is severe, to say the least."

"Why not tell us this right away?" Felix demanded. "Why wait this long?"

"What good would telling you earlier have done?" Az countered, crossing his arms. "And besides, if mortals have proven anything over the years, it's that the idea of immortality is appealing to them. The idea spreads like wildfire from mortal to mortal. The ritual has been attempted again and again throughout history."

"And… has it ever worked successfully?" Alain asked.

"We have no way of knowing," Sable said quietly.

Alain blinked, then looked back to Xavier. "How do we stop him? He has some kind of barrier up, protecting himself from anyone who would want to breach and take him out."

"The barriers are created by human sacrifices," Xavier informed them. "The solution is simple – find what remains of those sacrifices and place them at the base of the barrier. Do this, and the barrier will dissipate."

"And what about dealing with Ansley?" Alain asked. "If he manages to complete this ritual before we can get to him, how do we stop him then?"

Xavier turned towards Alain. "If he manages to complete the ritual… you will not be able to stop him, at least not with any methods known to me."

"Fuck…" Felix breathed. "Hell of a time limit you've put us on, old man."

"Then we'll just have to cut this short," Alain announced, rising to his feet. "Thank you for the help, Xavier."

"Wait," Xavier announced as they all turned to leave. The four of them looked back to him, and he motioned for them to stay for a moment as he disappeared into the back of his covered wagon. After a bit of searching, he came back with a large chest, which he placed on the ground and then opened.

"That outfit is unbecoming of a true vampire such as yourself," he announced to Sable. "I think you will find something from the old country to be much more appropriate for what you are about to do."

Sable moved to him and looked inside the chest. As Alain watched, a smirk crossed her face.

"Yes," she said as she pulled several new articles of clothing out of the chest. "These will do nicely."