'So, where are we going to find that vampire burg?' asked Tipper.

Ulric looked at Iphigenia. She shrugged. 'I never had to deal with vampires before, Wolfie, so I have no experience with them or their habits.' she said and looked at Elzbieta. 'You?'

She thought for a moment. 'There are some very old tales about us elves fighting a few of them, but they don't tell us anything much.'

The other girls said the same and Ulric looked at Valdys. 'Anything in the library?'

'Nothing more than what Breann told us.' she said. 'They must have been a closed off society for a very long time.'

'Vampires in my old world were depicted as creatures who sleep during the day because they turn to ash in the sun, while garlic repels them and a wooden stake through the heart kills them, and they can transform into a bat or sometimes even into smoke. Same here?'

Valdys chuckled. 'Well, they don't turn to ash in the sun, but they are very sensitive to its light. I haven't heard of garlic repelling them, but a stake through the heart will kill them permanently like anyone else. They regenerate fast, so you'd have to cause severe trauma for it to be lethal. Many do possess specific magical abilities and often are able to transform into other creatures, so bats is just as likely. I have no other specific traits listed in the library.'

Ulric nodded. He expected some differences. 'What about turning others into vampires by biting them?'

'That would require a ritual. Otherwise they're just feeding.'

'Well, that's one worry less if any of us is bitten.'

Rachael chuckled once. 'I don't think I'd feel less worried about being killed by loss of blood.'

Ulric pricked up his ears. 'Ah. True.'

Iphigenia looked back at the dense and dark forest. 'I think we'll have to go around quietly until we find someone we can talk to, or find the burg or a road leading up to it first.' The others agreed, and they all set out silently along the nearest animal trail.

***

Both Elzbieta and Ulric heard the noise up ahead much later, looked at each other, and halted the party with a hand signal. 'Something's going on.' Elzbieta whispered.

Ulric sniffed the air. 'Blood, humans, animals. Might be serious. I'll check it out alone.'

Iphigenia put her hand on his back. 'I'm coming with you. Someone might need our help if it is serious indeed, Wolfie.'

'I agree. I'm coming as well, darling.' said Elzbieta.

Conchim glanced at the others. 'I think we're all coming, hubby.'

He was happy and proud to see their willingness to stay by his side. 'All right. We'll have to move silently though.'

Their pace quickened when the noise became more clear as the cries of people falling victim to large predators.

Ulric caught the first glimpse of a massacre, large black canines snarling around bloodied bodies on the ground. 'Bloodwolves!?' he said, although they didn't smell quite the same as the ones he had encountered before.

Although they looked like them, the bloodwolves were more grotesque with larger muzzles and fangs, bones nearly visible through much rougher fur, and misshapen ears and tails. A couple of people tried to fight them off with spiked sticks, but they wouldn't last long with their wounds.

'I'm going in!' said Ulric and bolted towards the fight.

'We're right behind you!' said Iphigenia and drew her weapon along with the other girls.

The victims were first just as startled as the bloodwolves when a new one crashed into the ones attacking them, then again when a group of different women doled out a world of hurt on the vicious monsters, including a dragon.

The slaughter didn't last long at the hands of the strangers, but the survivors backed away when Iphigenia approached them with her bloodied sword in her hand. 'Don't be afraid. We're here to help.'

The two young men and a woman glanced with fear in their eyes at Ulric and the small dragon.

Iphigenia looked back at the two as they inspected the corpses of the dead people and monsters with the other girls. 'Don't worry, they're friendly.' she said, and squatted in front of the frightened people. 'Your wounds look bad, let us help before you bleed to death or catch severe infections.'

The three let the party treat their wounds and introduced themselves as Miria, Gandar, and Relco. 'We were driven from our settlement when they set the hunters upon us.' said Relco.

'They?' asked Valdys while she cast healing spells to close wounds.

'The masters.'

Miria sipped the potion she received from Elzbieta. 'You are not from here.'

'Correct.' said Elzbieta. 'We're travelling and ended up here.'

Gandar's eyes went wide. 'How!? No one can cross the cursed border walls alive!'

She though it wasn't safe to reveal their route yet. 'We had an accident in the mountains, fell down, were swept along by rapids, then ended up here.'

The man sagged and sighed. 'Of course. You might enter, but there's no way out of here.'

'What's going on exactly?'

'The masters are vampires, and we're nothing but slaves to them.' said Relco. 'We maintain cattle for them which they feed on, but will feed on us as well if they feel like it.' He gestured at a monster corpse. 'Or set their hunters on us for sport and punishment.'

'And the walls?' asked Valdys.

'Too high and slippery to climb, with poisonous plants growing at the base, and lethal magic embedded into them.'

'Where were you headed to?'

'To a village not far from here, hoping we wouldn't burden them with our numbers.' said Relco, and let out an exasperated sigh as he looked over the dead bodies of his former fellow villagers. 'But that is no longer a concern to us.'

'Can you make it on your own?'

He nodded. 'But where are you going?'

'We'd like to have a look at the vampires. Where do they live?'

Miria sat up at once. 'Are you crazy!? You want to go to them!? You'll be killed!'

Valdys gave her a reassuring gentle smile. 'Don't worry about us. We'll stay out of sight and we're tougher than we look.'

She looked at Valdys and the others and had to admit they had a certain confident aura, and they killed a pack of hunters in no time. She gestured into one direction of the path. 'Follow this path. You'll come across another one leading to their burg on a hill.'

Valdys checked the last of the wounds on Miria. 'Your wounds will heal over time, so you can go on your way.'

Miria gave her a grateful smile. 'Thank you for saving us.'

'Promise us you won't tell anyone about us though. We don't want any unnecessary attention.'

Miria let out a chuckle. 'We promise not to tell. No one would believe us anyway if we said we were saved by your party of different people, especially one with a bloodwolf and a dragon.'

Valdys glanced sideways at her companions. 'I know what you mean.'

Iphigenia stepped forward. 'Would you like us to bury or cremate your dead?'

Gandar shook his head. 'I think it's better to let any vampires checking up on the result of the hunt think that we've all died in the fight with the hunters.'

She nodded. 'It is, yes.'

The party sent the three victims on their way to a hopefully better future, and Ulric looked at the girls. 'I'll keep my nose open for more of these beasts.' he said, and took point with Elzbieta as they went on their way to the vampire burg.

***

The path and the one it crossed ran relatively straight through the forest. By the time the lights of a large stone brick burg on a steep hill came in sight, only one small pack of the hunting monsters had experienced a brief regret before they perished by the hands of the party during their trek. The lights behind several windows of the burg were the only brighter points of light against the backdrop of the faint sunlight shining through the dark clouds. 'That's quite the place.' said Ulric when he estimated it to be two or three times the largest one he knew of in the old world, with several thick, round towers around the edge. 'Just how many vampires might live there?'

'Even if they're stronger than the people they keep as slaves, they still need to have enough numbers to keep control over an entire country.' said Elzbieta.

'Storming in is out of the question then. Finding a secret way in might be difficult.'

'I'll have a look from the top of the trees.' said Conchim, and flew up high enough to look over the trees, but not so high as to be easily seen. 'I see more lights at the base of the hill. I'll bet there's a settlement where those enslaved people live.'

'We'll see if we can find this Celesta there, or someone who knows her.' said Iphigenia.

'But carefully.' said Elzbieta. 'We don't want to alert anyone who might warn the vampires.'

Ulric nodded. 'We'll see if we can find a hideout nearby first.'

***

Ulric sneaked around the edge of the shabby settlement while camouflaged, helped by the darkness. Houses huddled together were barely standing while the many pens for cattle were in much better condition. The people went around listlessly along the muddy paths. Even the children had more in common with grumpy old folk than regular playful children in other countries. 'This is just a widespread dump.' he said over the familiar link.

'Any sign of the vampires themselves?' asked Iphigenia from the abandoned house a little away from the village.

'Nothing. I doubt they would want to set foot in here anyway.' he said. He pricked up his ears when he heard someone say the name Celesta. 'Hang on.'

He rounded a house towards the conversation taking place between a woman and a man, and observed them from behind a smelly barrel.

The woman in her early thirties with a long, blonde braid wore a dress with the same drab looks as the clothing on the elderly man leaning on a walking staff. The fabric had several colours of yellow and green and blue, but they all invoked sadness. The man sighed. 'Can't you have someone else do this?'

The woman glanced up. 'f I don't do this, count Shivag is going to be in a bad mood.'

'But?'

She spread her arms in exasperation. 'Last time he was in such a bad mood, he had a hunter chase two villagers and made bets on which one would be killed first.'

'But, why you, Celesta?'

'Because he prefers the sound of my voice when it comes to reading books out loud. I've told you before, dad.'

Her father sighed again and leaned more on his staff. He knew the vampires did things on a whim and tolerated no resistance, even about trivial things like someone reading one of their history tales out loud to the group for entertainment.

Celesta looked up at the burg. 'I have to go now, dad.' she said, and walked away briskly.

Ulric waged startling her against losing track of her, and decided to take the chance. He hurried around the side of the house, quickly grabbed her from behind and covered her mouth with his paw while no one saw them.

She moaned and struggled while he backed off behind the house again. 'Sorry to do this, but you'd scream if you saw me before I could tell you why I'm here.' he said in her ear.

She stopped struggling and tensed when she saw the muzzle in the corner of her eye.

'First of all, Perat told me to seek out someone named Celesta here at the burg. He said she could help us. Can I let go of your mouth without you calling for help?'

Her eyes widened at the mention of Perat, but then relaxed slightly and nodded, and Ulric removed his paw cautiously from her mouth.

'You saw Perat?' she whispered. 'Is he all right?'

'I'm sorry to say he's dead. We talked to him in an asylum abroad, and he knew he wouldn't be able to stay sane. We helped him find a peaceful end.'

'He's really dead?'

'Yes.'

She sighed and sagged a little in Ulric's embrace. 'I suppose I should be glad he wasn't torn apart by hunters, as I feared.'

'I will let go of you now, but my appearance could frighten you because of those hunters. Please don't run away.'

The sight of his muzzle had already warned her of that. She nodded again and Ulric loosened his grip. She turned her head carefully towards him and gasped. She took a step away from Ulric, but he was glad she didn't run. 'My name is Ulric and there's a story behind why I look like this that even I don't fully know.'

She looked him up and down. 'If this didn't seem so unbelievable, I'd think the masters were playing a trick on me.'

Ulric chuckled. 'I'd say the same thing if I were you.' he said and gestured behind him. 'Will you come with me? My party is currently hiding out in an abandoned place nearby.'

She glanced behind her.

'If you prefer somewhere that's more comfortable for you, that's fine with me as long as we can talk in private.'

She pondered the options where she could take him, but thought it was best to come with him instead, and gave him a nod. 'I'll come with you.'

'Thank you.' said Ulric and offered his arm. 'The others are of normal species, so you don't have to worry about other demon beasts like me.'

She hesitated for a moment, laid her hand on his arm, and he escorted her to the hideout.

She gazed in wonder at the others when Ulric led her inside, especially at Yingshien. 'I am dreaming.' she muttered.

Iphigenia chuckled once. 'A normal reaction, but although it seems so, we're real.' She offered her one of the few good chairs that were available in the house to sit on. 'Have a seat and we'll tell you why we're here.'

After a quick explanation of their search for the artefacts and how they came to hear of Perat, Celesta saw the broad picture. 'I do know a way to enter the burg undetected because I work there, but I can't tell you where they might keep such a stone, if they really do have one.'

'Leave the finding to us.' said Valdys. 'You only need to help us inside.'

Celesta gazed at everyone. 'All right. Give me some time to make sure the way is clear. If they catch us they might just kill everyone in the village for helping you.'

After Celesta left, Tipper spoke up. 'Can we trust her not to say anything to the vampires?'

Ulric looked out a broken window. 'Perat said we could trust her, and I don't think we have much choice if we want to find out more about this place.'

'We're not exactly blending in with the people to snoop around ourselves.' said Elzbieta.

***

'This is it.' said Celesta as she pointed at the partially hidden crack in the rock at the base of the hill later in the day. She pulled the bushes in front of it aside. 'The crack leads up into the lowest basement of the burg. At one time a boy climbed it and ended up there, but was found and killed for sport. The masters never found out about the way in though, mainly because they don't care about the state of things until something is broken enough to trouble them.'

Ulric looked up at the ragged insides of the crack. 'Looks wide enough for me to climb.'

'Your flying companions can enter through a gated window if they keep close to the rock and you can pull the bars away. I think the stone it's in is broken enough to do that. I haven't found out where the artefact you're looking for is, but there are a few larger chambers with different kinds of treasure on the ground floor, and I suspect some of the masters to have some in their private chambers.'

Ulric looked at the girls. 'Ready to do this?'

'I have to go now before someone misses me and asks around.' said Celesta. 'Good luck.'

'Be careful, and avoid the burg if you can in case things turn out bad.'

She gave an appreciative nod, and hurried back to the village and her duties, and Ulric began his climb. 'Val, can you shield everyone from falling rocks when they come loose as we climb?'

'Already on it, my love.' she said as she finished conjuring up a protective small shield above everyone's heads.

Some way up, Ulric estimated they could make the climb safely enough. 'Come on up. So far there little trouble climbing.'

***

Ulric spotted the cracked basement floor above him after the long climb. 'Almost there. I see the floor.' he said. 'I'll have a quick look.' He climbed silently far enough to stick his head through the crack in a corner of the dark basement. He didn't see much by the dim light coming in from a couple of large grated windows, other than a few low pedestals with coffins on top, but he smelled nothing more than dust nearby. 'Seems no one's here.'

He helped up the girls onto the floor and went up to one of the windows. The masonry around the iron bars was cracked in many places, and he used a spike on his hand to hack away as much of the stone and cement as he could, and pushed and pulled with all his strength.

The masonry cracked more while the grate moved farther back and forth, and with one hard pull, one corner came completely loose. Ulric gave it one more hard pull with a muffled grunt and his feet planted against the wall, and fell back at the crack of the stone, with the grate on top of him.

'Wolfie, you all right?' asked Iphigenia as she helped pushing the grate aside.

He gave her a thumbs up. 'I feel like a super being with super strength.'

She giggled. 'You are, Wolfie. You are.'

Elzbieta looked outside and around. 'Conchi, the window's open. You and Ying can come up now.'

Conchim looked up at the dark facade of the steep hill. 'All right, we're coming.' she said, and gestured up at Yingshien. 'We can enter the burg.' Yingshien gave her a nod, and both flew up as whispers in the night thanks to Conchim's wind boost.

Ulric gave both a paw and pulled them inside when they reached the window, and they all gathered in the middle of the basement. 'So far so good.' said Iphigenia. 'Now where do we go?'

Valdys pulled out one of the artefacts. 'Remember when these pulsed at the square where Rachael and Handil were? I automatically recorded the spell that the lich used in my library, and began dissecting it when I had time. I isolated a few parts and I think I can cause any nearby artefact to pulse as well now, only less visible than back then. But it will still be seen by anyone close to the stone.'

'That's a big risk and will alert them to our presence.' said Iphigenia. 'Maybe we should try searching the chambers Celesta mentioned first.'

'I agree.' said Ulric. 'As long as we don't know for sure how strong those vampires are, we should keep quiet as possible.'

They all spun around at the same time towards the creaking lid of one of the coffins as it opened.

The pale young woman in frilly dress yawned and stretched as she sat up.