Adria arrived at the location of the small burial ceremony.
"What's happening?" he asked a soldier by his side.
"Nothing much, sir" The soldier saluted, "It's just the priest of the Akreem giving a sermon."
"The Akreem cult?" Adria asked.
"Sir! we have been instructed to stop calling them a cult." the soldier advised, "I even heard they are now recognized by the government as a church."
Adria was surprised. This was not something he was aware of.
"It is a known fact that Vampires do not drink blood because they want to. But because it is the only medium to soul energy, or as it is now popularly called these days, the Ryeoun energy. It is a corruption curse they carry. The worse kind that could ever inflict a man. Our brother Thomas was, unfortunately, a victim of that curse, and Sister Emma's veins were the solace he choose." The Priest approached the corpse of both people that had been placed neatly on two separate beds of wood.
"None of them should be blamed for this. For this abomination was not their fault. No man desires to be a monster. It is a curse we are not born with but become as a result of the blemish in this world. And that is why we must look unto the Sun who is the god of all souls. For he alone can cleanse us of this sin." The priest picked up a stick by the side and lighted it up aflame.
"Are they any family members or friends of the deceased that are willing to send these brave souls back to the warm embrace of the Sun god?" The Priest asked.
After a few seconds of silence, two men stepped up, "We were friends of Thomas. We are willing to send him on his way."
"I'm a friend of Emma's. I'm willing to send her on her way." A woman stepped up.
"Good! Please come forward," The priest instructed. "Remember to say a few words before you send her on her way." The priest requested as he handed the flaming torch to the woman.
"We had barely arrived a few minutes at the Citadel when we became roommates. I really did not get the chance to know you. But I know that you were a cheerful person. All you told me was that you were going out to have a little fun and when you returned you would give me the full gist. One day when I reach you in the embrace of the sun god, let us talk again, Okay?" The woman placed the torch and the corpse of the woman was set ablaze.
"You were always so brave Thomas. When the roof of the plane was peeled open like a potato, you were the only one that had the courage to stand with your pistol against the menace. While the rest of us were paralyzed with fear. You were truly a brave man. I am glad I met you in this life. May your bravery impress the Sun god as it inspired us." They stretched their hands and placed the flaming torch to burn Thomas's vampire corpse.
"Brothers and sisters! Let us now pray to the Sun god for the souls of these two." The priest instructed and all of them bowed their heads.
Adria also bowed his head. He was not a believer in any god. Especially not in a god that detested Darklings the most. However, like most soldiers that had seen death more times than they wanted to remember, he had hope.
Many people might not know it, but Adria did. He was well aware that the most religious people on earth who ironically were also the greatest fornicators, were actually soldiers.
The Priest concluded the ceremony and Squatterbloat took to the stage. As he did, the priest took a peek at him and frowned.
All eyes were on Squatterbloat as he gave his speech, "It is quite unfortunate what happened to these two only yesterday. However, we are soldiers, and a soldier's life lost means a thousand civilians saved. We will not let these past events quench our morale. We will strive and conquer against them." Squatterbloat pointed in the direction of the Hole, "For our brothers and sisters that have come before us, for the lives of our families back home, and for the rest of the F**king human race. DO YOU UNDERSTAND!?"
"YES SIR!!!" The Soldiers answered.
"Good! I have prepared a little something for us to celebrate the union of these two with our brothers and sisters in heaven. All drinks at the bar this night are on ME!!!"
The soldiers clamored loudly for joy. Adria sighed. He just remembered that Soldiers were also the best at celebrating death.
The Ceremony ended and most of the soldiers moved to the bar.
The base's barroom was a very spacious one. It was one of those locations in the Citadel that showed that the UC had not spared any cash in the comfort of the soldiers here. All sorts of drinks from different parts of the world could be found here. What's more, they were sold for a cheaper price than the outside world.
Adria sat at a table in a corner of the room with a bottle of beer. Although he had a certain level of fame here, that did not mean he was liked very much. And this was by both Darkling and non-Darkling Personnel. The only friends he had were Sqautterbloat and his team, and at the moment, Squatterbloat seemed to be busy. He was after all the second in rank to the Base Commander.
Although another of his pal was around, he knew more than anyone that he would definitely get a beating if he attempted to get a drink with someone like Sasha. Just the thought of it sent shivers down his spine.
"Captain Adria!" A voice called and Adria turned to the source. He was surprised to see that it was the Priest from the Campfire. Adria frowned and pretended not to see him.
"I am Major Dale of the theology brigade." The priest took a seat beside Adria.
"I hear you were the one that stopped the menace of the vampire before it could claim more lives. Is that true?" Major Dale asked.
"I think you got the wrong person. It was one of the new guys." Adria answered without turning his head.
"I also heard from a reliable source that you were the last person to have met the victim before her untimely demise."
Adria turned to the Major, and for a split second, he frowned...