The moon hung low over Barotac Nuevo, casting pale beams over the bustling marketplace. Even at midnight, the air smelled of fresh fish, overripe fruit, and the metallic tang of blood.
Bjorn's sharp eyes scanned the crowd as he and Zyro weaved through the narrow stalls. The scent of wet fur was faint, but unmistakable.
Zyro's fangs flashed as he grinned. "Looks like we've found our prey."
Bjorn nodded, tightening his grip on his weapon. "Let's hunt."
Zyro clenched his jaw, his hand resting on the silver hilt of his blade beneath his coat. Werewolves didn't usually venture into town, not like this—not in packs.
"This isn't like them," Zyro muttered, his voice barely above a whisper. His crimson eyes glinted in the dim light, focused on something just beyond the stalls. "Too bold."
"Or too desperate," Bjorn replied, his deep voice laced with suspicion. He shifted, alert to every sound.
The townsfolk were oblivious, bartering over the day's catch, unaware that predators far deadlier than themselves were among them.
*****
"Smells like a pack," Zyro muttered under his breath. "But something's off."
Bjorn nodded, his eyes scanning the sea of faces around them. "They're trying to stay hidden, but they're not alone."
As they reached the far corner of the market, the atmosphere shifted. The bustling sounds quieted, and the crowd parted almost instinctively. It was then that they saw them—werewolves, standing in the shadows near an old warehouse. Their fur bristled under the dim market lights, their eyes glowing with an eerie intensity.
Before Bjorn could make a move, the sound of clattering bones echoed from the opposite direction. Emerging from between two stalls were the Skeletal pirates—grinning skulls, cloaked in black, their hollow eye sockets fixed on the werewolves.
"Well, well, look who's here," one of the pirates sneered, his voice like gravel scraping across a stone. "Thought you could make a deal without us noticing?"
The lead werewolf, a hulking figure with dark gray fur, bared his teeth. "We're not here for you, pirate scum."
"Funny," the pirate captain said, stepping forward, his skeletal fingers gripping the hilt of a cutlass. "Because I've sensed you brought back-up. Or are we supposed to believe you were just strolling through our market for fun?"
Zyro shot a look at Bjorn. "They think the wolves brought someone else?"
Bjorn's eyes narrowed. "That doesn't add up."
The werewolf leader growled, his claws flexing. "We don't need back-up for the likes of you. Whatever you're selling, we're not buying."
"Oh, I think you are," the pirate sneered, his skeletal crew spreading out, their bony fingers reaching for the ultraviolet ammunition strapped to their belts. "You bought your own reinforcements, didn't you? Trying to pull one over on us, you flea-ridden mutts."
The accusation hung in the air, thick with tension. Bjorn could see it now—this wasn't just a meeting. It was a setup, one that was about to explode into chaos.
Zyro stepped closer to Bjorn, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. "This is going sideways fast."
"Let them make the first move," Bjorn muttered, eyes locked on the pirates. "If we jump in too soon, we'll be the next targets."
The werewolf leader growled low in his throat. "We don't need reinforcements for a bunch of walking corpses. You want a fight, fine, but we don't take orders from pirates."
That was all it took. In a blur of movement, the pirates attacked first, throwing ultraviolet ammunition into the air. Bright flashes lit up the market as the werewolves dodged and lunged, their powerful bodies slamming into skeletal pirates. Bones clattered and shattered as the two groups clashed violently, sending nearby stalls and merchants scattering in fear.
Bjorn and Zyro darted into action, moving through the chaos. The market had turned into a battlefield, but something still didn't sit right with Bjorn. This wasn't just a random fight—it was orchestrated, and the pirates had jumped on the opportunity.
"Zyro!" Bjorn called out over the clamor, slicing through a skeletal pirate that lunged at him. "We need to figure out who tipped them off. This is too clean."
Zyro parried a blow from another pirate, knocking his opponent's skull clean off with a swift kick. "Yeah, I noticed. But we've got bigger problems right now!"
Bjorn dodged another attack, his mind racing. The pirates had falsely accused the werewolves of bringing backup, but who had set this trap in motion? And more importantly, who were the real players behind it all?
As the battle raged on, Bjorn could feel the threads of a deeper conspiracy winding tighter around them. Someone was pulling the strings, and they were running out of time to find out who.
The ground beneath them shook, and suddenly, a hulking figure leapt from the shadows—a werewolf, its eyes glowing feral yellow.
Bjorn reacted instantly, drawing his silver blade and slicing through the air. The werewolf snarled, dodging the attack with lightning reflexes. Behind it, two more emerged, their growls reverberating through the market square.
Bjorn barely had time to respond when a bone-rattling screech echoed from behind. The skeletal pirates reappeared, their glowing ultraviolet ammunition gleaming in the dim light. The werewolves had been lured into the same trap.
"Skeletal pirates and werewolves," Bjorn growled, dodging a swipe from a werewolf's claw. "This wasn't a coincidence."
As the wolves advanced, the skeletal pirates opened fire, their ultraviolet rounds hissing through the air. One shot caught a werewolf in the chest, burning its fur and flesh. The beast howled in pain but didn't retreat. Instead, it turned on the pirates, ripping through the brittle bones with terrifying force.
"They're not allies," Zyro noted, ducking under a pirate's wild swing. "They're both after something."
A pirate captain roared above the din, raising his pistol. "Take them all down! The cargo's ours!"
But Bjorn had other plans. In a blur of motion, he sliced through one of the skeletal pirates, shattering it into pieces before turning to a werewolf lunging at him. He dodged the creature's powerful jaws and drove his silver blade into its heart. The werewolf collapsed with a guttural whimper.
Zyro, meanwhile, reveled in the chaos. His crimson eyes flared with excitement as he tore into the pirates, sending bones flying. But even as they fought, more kept coming, the werewolves and skeletal pirates clashing in a violent storm of blood and bone.
One of the wolves, larger than the rest, barreled through the melee, its eyes locked on Bjorn. With a snarl, it leaped, but Zyro intercepted it mid-air, slamming the beast into the ground.
"Stay down," Zyro hissed, fangs bared as he pinned the werewolf beneath him.
Suddenly, the pirate captain raised his arm, revealing a device with a glowing core. "Enough games!" he bellowed, slamming the device into the ground. A bright flash of ultraviolet light exploded from the device, forcing Bjorn and Zyro to shield their eyes as the vampires' most lethal weakness filled the air.
"We need to move!" Bjorn shouted, grabbing Zyro's arm as the werewolves and pirates alike recoiled from the blinding light.
As the market square began to crumble under the force of the explosion, the vampires darted into the shadows, dodging falling debris and scrambling through the chaos. The wolves were retreating, dragging their wounded away, while the remaining skeletal pirates dissolved into piles of ash under the ultraviolet barrage.
The lead pirate, a hulking figure with rusted chains wrapped around his ribcage, grinned, though his lips were long gone. "You bloodsuckers are out of your depth," he rasped, his voice like bones scraping together. "This market belongs to us now. You can't stop the trade."
Zyro sneered, his fangs bared. "Ultraviolet rounds? You're dealing in supernatural-killing ammo?"
The pirate captain laughed, a hollow, echoing sound. "Aye. Dangerous cargo for dangerous times. And you've wandered straight into our trap."
Without warning, the pirates drew their weapons—flintlock pistols loaded with ultraviolet ammunition. The air crackled as the first shot was fired, a bright flash of violet light searing through the night.
When the dust settled, the market was a ruin, stalls overturned and bodies scattered across the ground. Bjorn stood at the edge of the wreckage, surveying the scene. "They were after something more than just trading."
Zyro nodded, wiping the blood from his claws. "And now they know we're onto them."
Bjorn nodded, breathing heavily. "We need to find out who's behind this. And fast."