TOPF - Heartblood (1874)

"Johnathan! Carol! Follow my voice and look for the light!" William trudged further into the bayou, darkness drawing near on all sides. He'd told the boy countless times, be back before dark, and never play out in the bayou. You couldn't see the gators in the daylight let alone like this. Spinning the lantern around held up high, William looked into the water for signs of blood or debris that might signal the worst but found nothing. His poor vision rendered everything outside of the glow of the lantern nothing but inky darkness. The gnarled trees rooted to the side of the water bed, the ripples in the water signalling something below the surface, the constant scuttling of the foliage did nothing short of terrify the man, but he persisted in his search.

Crossing over to the other bank and its narrowest point allowed him to stay mostly dry from the shin up, this far into the wilderness as he was every step became a potential hazard, like the earth had risen up with nothing short of the intention of trapping him here, pulling him into the swamp to never see his family again.

"Carol! Can you hear me? Come on dear I have a spare lantern for you!" Walking further into the swamp cutting through more of the dense foliage, he came across a wall in the distance, or what he assumed to be one. It was a tower of ivy caught in the glow of the lantern. Making his way over William trudged along keeping his eyes peeled for either of the missing parties.

Carol had been nothing short of foolish, the impulsive woman, running off as soon as the child arrived.

"Mr and Mrs Mcullagh, I'm so sorry we, we, we were all out in the, erm, the swamp, dare it was. Johnny got stuck and we heard noises, we ran! I'm so sor-" cutting the words off in his head lest he dwell. Carol hadn't heard another word out the young girl's mouth anyway charging off into the night with naught but her nightdress on. Foolish, and now he's out here alone trying to find them both. Reaching the wall he did a quick spin making note of his surroundings, beyond the wall lay more swamp land but it seemed uninterrupted where as to his left and right he could see river water swirling through the earth, no doubt filled with predators. Seeing that he was penned in with only one option he trudged forward and around the wall.

The structure itself was nearly non-existent, he could barely make out the material under the ivy for how thick it was but with it still standing he could only presume brick. Taking a note of the ground, whatever had been here was long since reclaimed by the earth.

A whine sounded in the distance followed by the sounds of the surrounding plants being trampled and pushed out of the way. Williams attention snapping up he froze staring out into the darkness that lay beyond his lantern. His breathing stilled in shock, and the acrid stench of smoke started to fill the area. William panicked slowly reaching for the colt at his side, before he could get it clear of the holster an explosion came from behind him. Falling back in surprise his revolver lost in the ruins and his lantern coming to a painful crunch as it cracked on the rocks, gas escaping and the light beginning to flicker. Managing to hold his indignant cry at the awful situation, William reached for the dying lantern, thrusting it out in front of him only to see the back end of a wild boar charging into the undergrowth ahead.

"FUCK!" Willing himself not to scream any more and failing William rose to his feet. "LISTEN HERE BOY YOU BEST GET YOUR BUTT HERE RIGHT NOW YOU HEAR ME. IF I HAVE TO SET ONE MORE FOOT IN THIS GODFORSAKEN SWAMP IMMA WHOOP YA SO BAD YOU'D WISH THE GATORS GOT YOU." Waiting for the response that never came, the bayou itself failing to recognise the dishevelled man, he swiped his hand across his ruined shirt feeling a sting. Raising his hand in front of his cracked lantern he could see his hand was littered in little cuts from the quick meeting it had with the rocks beneath. Finally making his way across the ruins and back onto earth he took one forlorn look at the dying embers of his lantern.

Having taken the spare lantern from his belt, luckily hooked to the front causing it to land in his lap when he fell, he lit it from embers of the old, before taking the old lantern and dousing it's flames for good. Continuing forward with little more than tragic determination William continued.

"Carol love, please find my voice. If we go back, we could get some of the boys from the town to help us, and get a whole search party. Maybe get those new boys with all the weapons to help scare off the critters" Not expecting a response he kept walking. How shocked he was to hear a, a moan? It could be any sort of animal, perhaps another pig. Before he could pick a new direction he heard it again, noticing ahead of him plumes of smoke in the air, he followed the sound to its source.

"Carol is that you? Can ya hear me?" Almost tripping on the twisting root of a tree he steadied himself not to fall again before he heard something again.

"-leave it." The accented words giving him hope, he tried to work out where it could be coming from and settled for just beyond a small pond. Making his way through the bullrush, careful in his steps for gators or snakes he came upon a clearing, the place his mind would begin to unravel.

Beyond the brush, William caught his first sight of what would be his undoing. A dark chill replacing the usual balmy temperature of the swamp. Dimming the light of his lantern he looked on, spotting what appeared to be the source of the acrid stench. A burning cabin lit in the distance by the lakes edge wreathed the surrounding area in an orange and red glow. He could barely make out what we saw in the light, reaching for his binoculars that always sat on this belt and thankful to find only one of the lenses cracked he held them to his face to observe. In front of the flames the first thing he noticed was what looked like a body, a man maybe? Dark clothes covering his body with the telling sheen of blood coating him. Pulling the binoculars away William closed his eyes and took a deep breath. William wasn't a coward but he was no fool, he had stumbled upon something here tonight he shouldn't have and he had to make the quick decision to leave and try and get home hoping his family did the same, or... William continued to look through the binoculars.

The second thing he noticed was, confusing. He could clearly see bare legs, speckled with mud, further up the body however he could see what seemed like a bare pale back, almost, no, as pale as a corpse hunched over it. Blood and marks littered the bare flesh of the back only partially concealed by fiery red hair that had long since become matted with some kind of filth. Looking at the scene he couldn't work out what the hunched body was doing, he could see slight movements and the head was hidden behind the torso but it seemed pressed to the body of what he assumed to be another corpse. Maybe saying final rites to a dead friend? William had no idea, pausing again to run his hand across his bald head feeling the back covered in mud and ivy he took one more look down the lenses and instantly panicked.

After regaining control of his breathing he took another look only to spot again another man stood up, pale and covered in blood, he wore naught but a white work shirt that looked like it had been sliced from nape to stomach and drenched in blood. That wasn't what scared him most though, the short man stood, shock still staring into the distance, directly at William. It was impossible though with the lantern dimmed and behind a rock, surely he couldn't see him. After what seemed to be an eternity the short man turned looking to the person hunched on the ground, unable to read his lips he didn't see the information given, nor did he see the feral smile as the woman on the ground sat up releasing the body held in her lap, as the second figure rose from the ground with little but thin cloth pants on her person he noticed the second body.

"Ca-Carol God. WHAT THE FUCK HAVE YOUSE DONE."

Both figures stood still, the woman facing away, eyes locked on the short man before her, his face impassive and his body still of any movement.

"I SAID WHAT THE EVERLOVING FUCK HAVE YOU DONE TO HER." His rage consumed him like an inferno lighting every part of his being on fire, this may have been why he failed to notice how frigid the bayou had become. His breathing anything but under control as he approached he took stock of the situation again, the first corpse he noticed was thankfully, definitely not Johnathan, the throat of the corpse had been torn open all but tearing the head from its shoulders, the face a broken mash of bone and viscera. The rage dimming only slightly at the horrific sight he turned his eyes back to the couple noticing the woman was now facing him, his eyes widened like moons as his lantern slipped from his grip falling to shattered against the blood soaked earth.

He doesn't know what he noticed first about the woman, was it the claws that were stained with blood and gore tipping her fingers. Was it the lengthened fangs hanging from the cruel smirk, or the gore and blood that was coating the woman's bare chest and face. It all painted a vivid picture of death but what he focused on most was her eyes. Crimson fire shone in her eyes like a gateway to hell William had stumbled upon, in front of him stood a demon no doubt, her eyes reflecting the cruelty and malice within.

"Wh-what did you do to her?" It left his mouth in a whisper proud he'd only stumbled once as his eyes never left hers."

"Ate her by the looks of things." Swallowing William looked down but his poor wife looked intact, her head bent at a queer angle. Looking back expecting the woman to be staring at him he found she was looking down, staring at his hand with focus, he slowly raised his hand and her head followed, her irises beginning to over take the crimson iris beyond.

"Persephone, feed. We need to get home and get you cleaned up." With that the woman's head snapped up making eye contact, only one word leaving her mouth before he followed her command.

"Run."

He begged his legs not to fail him, as the word left her mouth he did, he ran as fast as he could. Uncaring for what lay at his feet and just praying to God he didn't trip. As he dipped in and out of trees, around bushes and ponds he made his way to the edge of a river quickly, quicker than he should have.

"Fuck, fuck. God no." Spinning around trying to get his bearings, he could see nothing but abyssal darkness on all sides and ahead, quickly looking to his side he thinks he catches a streak of white darting behind some trees before a giggle sounds of further to his right she couldn't have travelled that fast. Not seeing a way out he jumped into the water. The water was cool on his skin coming to sit below his shoulders he slowly made steps away with only his hands and head cresting the surface. His eyes were darting across the water looking for ripples of movement, unaware that all life in the river had fled at the approach of the apex predator following him. As he continued to wade across the water one step saw his boot sink further into the mud getting entangled into some roots or debris under the water.

"No, no, no please. Just come on." William continued to tug at his foot until it came loose and with a burst of momentum caused him to falter and stumble slipping below the surface momentarily. Water and mud surged into his vision quickly blinding him. As he gasped for air and flailed he quickly made contact with a muddy wall, the bank. Grabbing forward with both hands he managed to pull himself above the surface and out of the water. Retching up some of the river's contents,William managed to rise to his knees taking deep breaths of air. Looking around to try and see anything he locked eyes with the demon sitting on the other side of the water, freezing yet again.

"You haven't made it far yet, I'll give you ten seconds to get up and run. Go!" Staring in shock before he stood trying to run again but hampered by the dirt and damp clothes pulling him down, exhaustion finally catching up with him. He made it only a few steps before a tree root tripped him, bringing him tumbling to the ground. A teasing giggle sounded in the distance.he managed to climb to his feet running on pure adrenaline he spun around only managing to see a pale blur lunge forward over the lake and landing with grace on the other side, just before him.

"Well I'll be honest I expected a bit more of a chase but honestly you've done me a favour, I really need to get home and wash, and having meals delivered out here, is unexpected to say the least." As she finished her sentence he reached for his revolver intent on killing this demon. Sadly his hand came upon an empty holster as he gulped looking on in fear. He watched as she stalked closer.

" P-please I have a boy, he's only 14 years and he's lost out here. I-I just need to find him. I won't go to the clergy or nothing." The words spilled from Williams mouth, it would eat at him to leave Carol alone even in death out in the swamp with demons surrounding her but what else could he do, he had to find his boy and live for him.

"The clergy? What could they honestly do to help? Trust me, very little goes on within those walls to help those outside of them." He looked up at the demon and regrettably anger slipped back into his voice.

"What would you know on the church demon, your kind would burn within their hallowed halls." Before his sentence had even finished she had tipped her head back with a hearty laugh, her fangs bared even still, recovering slightly she looked back at William mirth clearly written on her face even behind the bloody covering her mouth.

"Much more than you and please don't worry, I'm not a demon. I never made it that far" before his brows could even furrow she had lunged forward with fangs bared and crashed into him.

William's head hit the mud with a wet thud, his entire body was filthy, he was tired, exhausted, scared, and alone. The woman, if he could even call it that had moved in a blur, he was unable to react before she grabbed him by the shoulders and pinned him to the floor. He looked up at the pale skin contrasted by blood, seeing a body covered in pink scars and marks, a particularly large circular scar on her chest where a heart would lay. The beast noticed his wandering eyes and must have thought he was looking elsewhere given the salacious look on her face, as her body slithered down closer to his he tried to press himself into the dirt away from her, only now realising how unnaturally cold she was. Her face stopped inches ahead of his, the crimson glow leaving a faint light in his face. She looked down to his neck and seemed almost mesmerised.

"You're not breathing." The words left him in shock. What, what was on top of him? She looked back into his eyes.

"And unlike yours hammering away I also have no pulse." She looked at him waiting, he could tell she wanted him to work it out. This was no demon, but it may be equally as unholy.

"V-Vampire" the whisper left his lips followed by an urgent prayer. With that a smile slowly creeped back onto her face before she sunk down fangs burying into his neck.

A moan sounded in the air and he wasn't sure who from, as the fangs struck he felt a sharp pain like ice shoot into his veins and quickly, quickly fade, overwhelming him, his blood felt like it was on fire begging to escape his veins, yet it still clearly was flowing within him urging other body parts on. God what is happening to him, her body sunk lower almost moulding to his and he couldn't bring himself to stop her. His head lay still and without tension for the first time in weeks, as he closed his eyes feeling the wet licks at his neck as his own life's essence continued to feed this unholy being he found he couldn't bring himself to care. Why had he been out here in the bayou in the first place? What did it matter? All he could think was that this was right he was giving his blood to help someone else and - he felt her head pull away from his neck and saw her facing out into the darkness, blood continued to drip down from her mouth staining her chest further.

"Please, don't stop it's o-"

"Silence" the command flicked in his direction was obeyed, he didn't want to upset her, this perfect being that had chosen him to feed her. But, why would he want that? He blinked quickly, raising a hand to press to the wound on his neck still lazily leaking his blood. He watched her stare into the distance, the crimson fading from her eyes when she looked back down to him they had faded to a light green.

"Looks like someone's got questions for you."

He couldn't read her face, was this a bad or a good thing? He swivelled his head to where she had been looking willing something to come into his vision, and it did. The short man walked out of the shadows, even as they clung to him looking to pull him back in.

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"Run" the words had barely left her mouth before the mortal took off into the night. He was a stocky man so he wouldn't get very far, especially in such hazardous terrain. Persephone stretched to try and work out the pain trapped within her muscles.

"It'll fade, honestly a hunt will work to circulate the blood you've drank and get you healed further."

Persephone turned to her Sire, shame clear on her face. The embers to her left lighting the swamp and painting a murky image with Alexander standing in its center like a pale avenging angel.

"I'm so-"

"There is nothing to apologise for, you're newly turned and weren't aware of your surroundings. It's a lesson we all learn one way or another." Alexander approached his Childe, taking her head between his hands tenderly and looking deep into her eyes.

"This is my fault, I let my eyes off you while you were hunting, I should not have let the queen's messenger distract me. I will make this up to you."

Persephone could hear the pain in his voice, the anger she had first seen as she surged back to life once the steak was removed from her chest was gone. Leaning into his bloody palm she turned to place a kiss on each.

"Thank you so much for coming for me, I don't remember anything between feeding and seeing you again, but, thank you." Closing her eyes she leaned into her sires embrace enjoying the skinship. Lost in his scent it's easy to forget the previous horror, it's a twisted irony that the silver steak the Hunter had buried in her heart sent her into stasis avoiding feeling any of the further surface damage he inflicted to her body. Feeling Alexander begin to pull her from him, they made eye contact, understanding passing between them.

"I'll always come for you, never thank me for that. We can clean later, first you need to feed, go hunt." With a last peck to his cheek Persephone took his words to heart and took off into the bayou in search of her prey.

Persephone spotted the man at the edge of a river clearly looking around to see if he should swim. She could smell the fear pouring off him in waves almost stronger than the blood staining his hand. Letting loose a laugh as she ran, shaking out the stiffness that had festered in her bones, she ran through the trees enjoying the feeling of being free once again. She hadn't had a chance to check what day it was yet l given the wards on the shack the Hunter kept her in. Alexander said it had taken two nights not including the one she was taken to find her. God how lucky she was that he didn't get bored and behead her there and then, two years would be far too short for an eternity. She wouldn't let this cow her, she would grow more aware and be a better vampire, seeing Alexander so scared, so, human, was unnerving to say the least.