Inside the marketplace of Stormont, the townspeople went about their daily business. They walked in pairs or small groups; some had serious looks while others looked worried. The air smelled of fresh bread and roasting meats. The distant voice of merchants calling out their specials and the sound of hammers on metal from the blacksmith stalls filled the entire place, giving a lively aura to the marketplace.
Amidst the entire bustling market and people going about their 'just another night,' one person stood out in the crowd. A tall figure, dressed in a black robe that flowed freely on the ground, each stride this person took was filled with confidence and pride.
"Mortals," Kael drawled, looking at the people in the marketplace like they were roaches he could squash just by stepping on them. A condescending look danced on his face. When he heard a man's loud, agonizing cry as he stubbed his foot on something, a soft chuckle escaped Kael's lips.
"Ballister, what better music than the songs of sorrow these warmbloods make," he sighed.
Ballister, who was walking in front of his master, made sure nobody came close enough as he used his body to shield the humans. Not for the sake of his master, but for the unsuspecting humans, who didn't know that a narcissistic vampire was out for shopping, which in reality meant he wanted someone to make a foolish decision so he could have a taste of fresh blood.
"Fresh and golden bread, come have a taste!" A merchant shouted, holding a fresh bread as he tried to call the attention of buyers and passersby.
Kael scowled. With a look of disdain, he replied, "Tasteless tokens," and clicked his tongue.
The merchant brought down his hand, looking at the strange man who had just undermined his hours of hard work. Without saying anything, he continued to call for his potential customers, this time with a defeated voice.
After walking for a while, Kael halted in front of a food stall. His gaze fixed on the woman who was serving bowls of stew to a cluster of patrons outside her stall.
"Master, are you interested in her?" Ballister asked, trying to understand why they had suddenly stopped walking.
Kael turned to look at the boy, his face darkened with a deep frown.
"Apologies, master. If you want her blood, I'll quickly -"
The vampire king sighed, rubbing his temples. "If you don't stop talking, I'll end your miserable, ageless life – a gift I can easily revoke."
Ballister gulped and took it as a hint not to speak again but just to listen.
Kael turned back his focus on the woman. "I didn't know the Wanderers are slowly creeping back inside the kingdom."
"She is a Wanderer?" Ballister forgot the resolve he made earlier and asked. "But she doesn't have the scent of a Wanderer; she appears purely human."
Kael nodded, a small frown creasing his forehead. "I agree. If I wasn't the Great Kael, I wouldn't have noticed either. But that woman is a vengeful vampire, seeking to kill a human somewhere nearby." He scanned the area, looking out for who the Wanderer was out to kill. When he finally found the young man who was drinking alone, Kael snapped his fingers.
"Aha!" He grinned, "Wanderer's mark found."
The Wanderers were a peculiar breed of vampires, deranged by their own twisted desires. Unlike their kind, who thrived on the blood of the living, Wanderers were driven by a hunger for vengeance. They roamed the kingdom, possessed by a burning need to punish those who had wronged them in past lives.
Holding grudges that spanned centuries, they waited patiently for their offenders to be reborn, killing them across lifetimes. Their existence was a never-ending quest for retribution as they sought out their Nemesis in every era. This relentless pursuit earned them their name, Wanderers, for they were forever bound to the cycle of revenge, never staying in one place, always moving.
"Master, can I ask a question?" Ballister continued, looking at the woman who was allegedly a wandering soul.
Kael hummed, "Go ahead, but make wise decisions."
Ballister moved his eyes up as if to think properly about what he was about to say before he continued, "You are the first Vampire, which makes you the king, but...and you turned us, how did Wanderers come about?"
Kael thought about the boy's words for a moment. "My blood was too superior for them," he replied, "I wonder how they're able to hide now plainly among humans."
As Kael said this, he noticed an old man walking with a heavy bag on his back. This caused the Vampire King's grin to widen.
"Things must have gotten quite interesting during my short sleep. The black witches have been learning beautiful arts of concealing their identities so well. Now I know how the Wanderers got bold; they have help." He pointed at the old man with a hunched back who was clearly looking for an unsuspecting human for sacrifice.
Kael's golden eyes slowly moved away from the disguised black witch but quickly returned when he saw a small-looking human girl. The look of excitement on her face was evident despite the hood she used to hide her face.
"Hm," Kael's chest hummed a low vibration. "A different mortal," he watched as the girl slipped away from the side of the woman she was walking with, now going to help the black witch.
"Master, a human is approaching the black witch," Ballister pointed with a worried look on his face.
Kael shrugged nonchalantly, his shoulders barely rising. "Not my circus, not my monkey." The vampire king, who was supposed to protect humans, turned away. "And this marks the end of our shopping. Let's go home, Balli."
Ballister twitched his lips, worried about the poor human girl who was now helping out the black witch. As they made their way out of the market, they passed the girl who was struggling to lift the heavy bag on her head but failed, and the bag fell almost landing on the person in front.
Kael's eyes were quick to notice the bag coming his way, and without waiting for it, he dragged Ballister by the neck, pushing him forward to take the impact. The girl, the bag, and Ballister crashed to the ground.
Kael nodded in approval, dusting an invisible dirt off his cloak. "That was a close one," he muttered, but his triumph was short-lived when the girl stood up from the ground, her blue eyes blazing with fury that only amused the vampire king. Then, she spoke words that drained the life from his undead body.
"You, sir, are a cowardly father! You pushed your own son forward to take the fall just to save your own skin!" Jacquelyn's voice was sharp, her eyes blazing with outrage as she pointed at the towering figure before her.