The northern wind cut through trees like blades, whistling between pines that stood like sentinels beneath a gray sky. The forest had thinned as they neared the Raventhorn region, revealing broken stone paths, half-buried watchposts, and ancient markings carved into frost-bitten bark. Snow fell in slow, heavy flakes, the kind that muted sound and blanketed everything in a quiet weight.
Elias walked at the front.
He moved differently now less like his usual self he moved as if underwater like something drifting through the cold.
Since they'd left the lowlands, the forest had grown darker. The trees thicker. The air colder. Mira had stopped humming under her breath. Toma double-checked his arrows more often. Halric kept a hand on his axe even when they set up camp. Something was wrong, even if none of them said it aloud there senses trained through hundreds of battle told them something was wrong.
As they journeyed through the snow-blanketed landscape, a series of deep, guttural howls erupted from beyond the treeline, sending a shiver down their spines.
They barely had time to form a line before the first ogre came crashing through the trees.
It was massive easily eight feet tall with gray skin, crude armor made of stitched hide and scrap metal, and a jagged bone club that looked like it had broken men before. Its eyes were cloudy white, but it moved with cruel purpose.
And it wasn't alone.
Two more followed. Then another. Six in total, maybe more behind them.
"Shields up!" Halric barked. "Stay close!"
Mira drew her blades, cursing under her breath. Toma knocked an arrow and let it fly, striking one ogre in the shoulder but it barely flinched. Halric threw his axe into another's knee, then drew a shorter blade as the beast roared in pain.
Elias stood still for a moment, staring at the creatures with an unreadable look.
He hadn't fed since they entered the north. Not once. His limbs felt heavier now. Slower. The cold clawed deeper than it used to. And when an ogre slammed its club into the snow beside him, he barely dodged in time.
Blood sprayed as Mira got clipped in the ribs. Toma took a hit to the arm and fell back, groaning. Halric fought like a man possessed, but even he was tiring fast. Their formation crumbled.
They were going to die.
Elias could feel it.
And still… he hesitated.
He hated what he was. Hated the hunger. The fangs. The red eyes that came with every taste of blood. He'd fought to stay human. Held on to the man he used to be.
But Mira was down. Toma was bleeding. And another ogre raised its club over Halric's back.
That was all it took. As something inside Elias broke loose.
He tackled the nearest ogre and sank his fangs into its neck ripping through flesh, veins, and sinew like it was paper. Blood poured into his mouth. Hot. Metallic. Rotten. But it filled him. Lit his veins on fire. Burned through his limbs like wildfire. His eyes snapped open glowing red, burning like twin coals.
He stood up straight, trembling with power.
The ogres paused. Just for a moment.
It was all he needed.
Elias blurred forward, faster than he had any right to be. He grabbed the leg of the wounded ogre and twisted bones shattered with a sickening crunch. The beast howled and collapsed. Another charged, and Elias ducked under the swing, claws ripping across its throat. Blood sprayed like mist.
Mira watched in stunned silence, her own blood soaking her tunic.
Toma stared wide-eyed. "Wh… what the hell is he?"
Elias didn't stop. Another ogre tried to flee. He leapt, tackled it mid-run, and tore through its chest like parchment. There was nothing clean about it. Nothing kind.
When it was over, the snow was red. The air stank of copper and sweat and burnt hair.
And Elias stood alone in the silence, chest heaving, lips dripping crimson.
---
Toma was the first to speak.
"H-he's… he's not human."
Mira shook her head slowly, still gripping her side. "Don't be stupid. Vampires are just fairy tales ."
"You saw what he did!" Toma snapped. "You saw his eyes! His fangs!"
Halric wiped blood from his beard, eyes never leaving Elias.
"He's a vampire," he said calmly. "No doubt in my mind."
Mira turned on him. "How do you even know what a vampire looks like?"
Halric exhaled slowly, like he'd been waiting for this.
"Because I've fought one before. Long time ago. In the Empire's eastern wastes. Thought it was just an old legend until I saw it tear through an entire caravan like paper. Took twenty of us to bring it down. I was the only one who walked away."
Silence fell again.
Halric sheathed his sword and stepped forward.
"Elias," he said quietly. "Come here."
Elias didn't move at first. His hands were still stained. His breath was slow. His eyes still faintly glowed, but they were dimming.
"Come on, lad. You saved us. You didn't give in. That matters."
After a long moment, Elias walked forward. His footsteps barely made a sound.
Halric looked him in the eye. "You didn't drink for strength. You did it for us. That says more about you than the blood ever could."
Mira crossed her arms. "Even if he is one… I guess he's still Shirah."
Toma didn't reply. He just nodded, keeping his distance.
But Elias… didn't speak. He just stood there, letting the words hang.
Then, softly, he said, "Thank you."
Halric patted his shoulder. "You'll always be one of us."
---
That night, Elias sat alone at the edge of camp again.
The wind was calmer now. The fire behind him cracked softly.
He looked down at his hand the same one that had torn a monster in half.
There was strength in him now. Real strength. The kind that terrified him. But also… the kind that could protect.
Maybe that's what he needed to be. Not a man. Not a monster. But something in-between.
---
When morning came, Elias was gone.
No trail. No note.
Just empty snow and footsteps leading west.
A vagabond shadow.
Red-eyed. Cold-hearted.
But walking toward something only he could feel.