Indelible {Kronas17 x CalamitousNag}

His nose wrinkled at the other's questions. Why was he asking this? He didn't really want to go into the particulars of it--especially, not with the type of creature he despised the most.

The truth of the matter was that Sirris had never killed a vampire. As the alpha's son, he had been taught and trained in how to dispose of the enemy, but he had never been allowed in the immediate vicinity of one. There was a reason for this, though it was never spoken aloud. Even he himself did not question when scouts his age were sent to investigate vampire threats and he was left behind to enjoy the comforts of home. No one ever spoke of his father's extreme anxiety over losing another family member. The alpha's mate, his mother, had led one of the scouting campaigns one time long ago and it had been the death of her. She had died protecting their clan. Sirris's mind went back to the night before and how Lady Sarka had mocked his father, saying how his mother would have been a better fit for leader. While his alpha never denied this fact, he didn't deserve to be so needlessly reminded of her loss. Neither did Sirris. And neither would he trust such intimate information with the very kind who had played a part in it.

Uriah had asked a question, however, and Sirris would not deny him an answer. His reply was short and concise. "No," he stated with such finality that it highly discouraged any further prying. Instead, Sirris continued imperiously, "Our people do not needlessly take life. We kill only for food. Rogue lycans are simply ousted from our society--this is torture enough. They'd only be dealt with if they actively planned an attack on the clan. The same approach we use for our... enemies." His voice was hardened with challenge, but he did not directly engage the vampire.

As Sirris spoke, his eyes kept vigil on the vampire's actions, watching as he marked the way they traveled. It was a smart move in case a diversion should disorient them.

When the vampire stopped, so did Sirris, abruptly. He frowned when the vampire seemed to stutter in his actions. Was something wrong? He nodded carefully when the vampire said to go right, watching as the vampire passed him up.

He made a mental note to consult the map in his pack before the night was over.

To get his mind off of his misgivings, Sirris decided to retart the conversation again. "You ask such pointed questions. Of what interest is it to you if I have? Do you have a running tally going? Looking to compare your number of kills? Don't take it the wrong way if I'm far from impressed."

The trees were increasing in density here and his misgivings multiplied. "Please tell me you're recalling this path only because you've just looked it up this morning." Sirris's eyes flitted around, trying to gauge their surroundings. Something was off.

The woods had gone silent.
 
Uriah's mind was hardly on the path, yet alone the path at hand. and instead on washed out memories that had no business resurfacing decided that now out of all times they wanted to seep back in. His breathing had calmed down to a minimum like it had been before and he almost didn't acknowledge the statement the other male had said or the recent string of words that spewed out of his mouth. So Sirris had never killed an enemy before, it interested Uriah in that moment who had had his innocence stripped early, learning about what had to be done if needed when it came to protecting his coven. " I honestly do not really have an interest on those you have slain or haven't and I certainly am not keeping mark. Simple conversation on this trip would be nice every so often".

At the shorter males comment Uriah stopped once more and glanced around the thick sets of trees. " I'm recalling this path because I remembered the way, though it was years ago. The forest didn't halt in its changes, but if you want to verify my memories feel free to check the map" he motioned towards Sirris with a slight nod and then picked up a small rock, moving it between his fingers before flinging it into the empty path in front of them. The male was right, the forest was dead quiet. No signs of animals moving around, nothing but Sirris heavy breathing and the breaking of small twigs underneath his shoes. " Stay on your guard" his voice came out low as his eyes continued to scan out the area around them.

After moments of silence there was a fast breeze from behind along with rustling causing Uriah to clench is jaw and slowly remove his bag from his side, placing it on the ground. Now he understood why it was so eerie and quiet, the perfect place for banished to lie. Along trails where people travel so they can feed and the reason there's hardly sounds of wildlife. His brown eyes looked over at Sirris before a cracking sound from above them caused Uriah to lift his head towards the sound but as soon as he did a force slammed into his side sending him flying back a few feet. Uriah stumbled back before blocking the attack from a fellow brethren, a cast out vampire. His eyes were a low silver, teeth bared as he lunged for Uriah's throat but he was stronger, using his force to kick the vampire back as he got up.

The cast out wiped his bottom lip of blood before grinning, his eyes scanned both Uriah and Sirris quickly and then he went on guard. Uriah's breathing increased as his fangs extended, eyes almost black he waited for the cast out's move when he realized that he wasn't alone. There was two of them. Uriah glanced up at the tree above Sirris and then down towards the banished before him. " Instead of having your help cower in the trees, tell him to come down and make this even". The vampire narrowed his eyes obviously pissed that Uriah had caught on but nonetheless the other jumped down. He was slightly bigger in size but he looked as if he lacked skill and speed, just heavy blows.

No one made any moves yet, silently sizing up their opponents before Uriah rolled his eyes, eyeing the smaller vampire that had attacked him earlier. " I'm bored already, are you just going to stand there like a statue and accept your death like the worthless coward you are, or die with what little dignity you have left". A small smirked formed when he saw the vampire practically fuming at the mouth, his silver eyes narrowed, " You're a dead man walking".



​
 
Sirris nodded carefully at the vampire's assertion to be on his guard. He should have known. In all truth, he wouldn't be surprised if their true mission was to be the willing victims of an ambush.

Or would he alone be the victim?

Sirris unhooked the axe at his waist, gripped it tightly and widened his stance. He did so in a way to keep his "companion" in sight while also scanning the forest around them. Uriah may have talked of duty and honor but saying and doing were two different things. He did not yet know this creature and he would take no chances.

The stone that Uriah tossed seemed to be a primer for it wasn't long before the sound of movement could be heard behind them.

It was quick.

Before his mind could catch up with the happenings around him, Uriah had been attacked and they were no longer alone. Sirris didn't move to intervene and Uriah got to his feet in short order. The irony that he was the only lycan in this situation wasn't lost on him. He was far from consoled when a second vampyre, more quietly than the first, emerged to join them after Uriah's beckoning. The deftness with which the large undead moved contrasted strongly with his physical appearance.

Great. Not even 24 hours in and they had met twitchy and golem.

"I would have been quite alright with the skewed odds," the werewolf snarked at Uriah before he even realized it. He forced himself to remain calm, not liking that this could be a three on one fight.

Twitchy grinned from ear-to-ear while golem flexed his muscles and cracked his neck. The gesture seemed out of place and Sirris suspected that this vampire had been turned versus being of the blood. These sorts were fabled to be quick in speed and slow in thought, a side-effect of their human origin. This could potentially work in his favor--if it was true.

Uriah spoke up. If the two rogue creatures had decided to attack then, Sirris would have died, because he couldn't help but turn and gape at Uriah. "Bored? Was that entirely necessary?" he sneered, before turning back to the two at hand. He wasn't entirely sure if Uriah was a victim here, too, or if this was an act to cover up their true intent--

Sirris reeled and tears came to his eyes, caught off-guard by a fist buried in his stomach. Golem, late to the party, had decided to strike first. He had been on Sirris before he could blink--a vampire fueled ability, no doubt. The werewolf had to fight the urge to double-over and breathe, but Golem's intended bite still managed to catch him in his shoulder. Sirris cried out and used the brief connection to knee the vampire hard in the gut. Golem sprung back and away. He wasn't so dumb after all--Sirris needed only a short distance between them to wield his weapon.

Sirris was out of breath, frazzled, and quickly losing his--shit, he was the only one hear with a heartbeat, wasn't he? He went on the defensive and stood ready to face all three. He would not survive these odds but he would give them hell for trying.

Golem was licking and sucking his fingers as if he had been starved for ages. Sirris felt sick to his stomach, disgusted to even be in the presence of such mindless creatures. The bulky vampire looked from the lycan to the taller of his kind who had appeared in the forest with him. The growl he emitted was feral. The tall vampire was attempting to take his meal from him. He would fight. The large vampire sprung toward the tall one, teeth bared and claws out. He aimed to grapple with him, swinging clawed hands in an attempt to disable his vision.
 
Uriah wasn't expecting the bulkier of the two to attack first, his speed was enough to land an unsuspecting powerful blow to Sirris who doubled over just slightly, pain and shock written all over his face. Seeing the vampire attack made Uriah keep up on his guard, the smaller one was antsy, eyes always moving as he made meaningless gestures with his body that made Uriah looked him over once more. The lanky ones eyes were devoid of something, the silver was duller than that of a full born vampire...so he had been turned and pretty recently too. For a split second his eyes shifted over to Sirris to check his well being, something he cursed himself silently. Since when did he care about someone else's well being other than his own? Oh right because they were heading to common ground and for some odd reason Uriah would feel the missing of his presence, well more like having someone to tick and bother when he felt like it.

When the lanky one lunged this time Uriah was ready. The back of his heel dug into the dirt slightly applying enough pressure and when the males claws went to wrap around his neck he moved hastily to the right and then drove his elbow into his back, watching the lanky male hit the ground at a powerful thud. Yes he had truly underestimated the situation and Uriah's strength. In itself he was strong from years and years of training, something he doubted this turned weakling would ever catch up to, but it wasn't only that. Uriah had drank human blood and that alone gave him enough of a boost to last a few hours. A sharp blow struck his rib cage causing Uriah to grunt and then stagger back before another blow came to the other side, but not as powerful before jumping back a yard.

Clutching his side Uriah sucked up a sharp breath before standing upright once more, his dark silver eyes now black as he glanced from the heavier vampyre back to the one he was currently fighting. The male was trying to inflict damage on continuous points on his body to made him weak, a good tactic if Uriah hadn't picked up on it. Lanky was trying to weaken him so that the bigger one would be able to take him out and then he would go after Sirris himself. So the guy is actually smart. Uriah thought to himself before waiting for the next blow. It seemed like everything he did sent the guy off into a frenzy of hits so if he ticked him off enough Uriah would be able to have his moves down pack. A small smirk tugged at his lips follow by a light huff and like clockwork the male was back on the attack.

His feet moved quickly as he danced around the male, dodging most of his blows and bringing his hands up to block the other, waiting for an opening. Right when the male lunged at his sides again Uriah had his throat in his hand before the man could even blink, his eyes bulging as he brought one hand up to free him from the grasp that was crushing his lungs. Uriah gritted his teeth before slamming the male into the tree two times until he sensed the heaver male coming at him. When he neared Uriah threw the smaller males body at his partner which halted him for a few moments.

​
 
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(( that was some gud writin'! ))

He'd been raised better than to abandon someone to a fight just to save his own ass.

Then again, if Sirris was the only one *willing* to save his own ass, his father couldn't argue with that logic, right? Thank goodness his father wasn't there. If he knew the odds, the Alpha would likely be beside himself with panic.

Hell, Sirris was beside himself with panic. So when both rogue vampires seemed to turn their focus onto Uriah, Sirris was fighting against every instinct possible that was telling him to *get the hell out of there*. Shit, life wasn't fair. How could he ever expect a fight between vampires to be?

But, alas. He couldn't let the cowardly side win--it was against everything he knew and believed in.

Not to say he was going to jump in and fend them off, either. In fact, Uriah seemed to be making pretty good work of them. While Golem was sucking every last bit of Sirris' flesh from his fingers, Uriah was countering every one of Twitchy's moves, dodging every assault thrown his way. For a moment, Sirris just stared. Every once and a while his eyes would flick back to Golem and then they'd be wrested away again as they tracked Uriah's movements. He couldn't help but examine his traveling companion's fighting ability. Uriah was agile, considering his size. It was obvious he'd a warrior's training. Sirris had heard that the undead could be hundreds--perhaps thousands--more years older than they appeared to be. He wondered just how many years Uriah had been trained to fight.

And then Uriah was throwing Twitchy.

At Golem.

Damnit, Sirris *snorted*. Golem had been rushing Uriah and had too much momentum and too little time to stop himself before his body collided with Twitchy's. Golem stumbled backward, seemingly dazed by the force with which they had hit before he tried to recover and attack the taller vampire again. Golem took to screaming, slashing furiously at the taller vampire. There was no rhyme or reason to his method, just a flurry of angry attacks.Though Golem was quick to Sirris' eyes, it wasn't clear how quick he was in comparison to Uriah.

Sirris caught himself. What did it matter? Uriah could hold his own.

Sirris's eyes slid towards Twitchy's location. If Uriah was in on the ambush, it had obviously been a failed mission seeing the mutiny that had occurred. Using this opportunity to snuff out an opponent didn't seem an entire waste of time.

Gripping his battle ax, Sirris charged towards where Twitchy had landed. Swinging his right arm over his left shoulder he prepared to slash with the battle ax, aiming for Twitchy's throat. Sirris' moves weren't fancy. Some might even call his people's way of fighting crude. However, they didn't miss chances by using special techniques. If they drew, they meant to kill and Sirris wouldn't waste time trying to do it.
 
Uriah watched as the force sent the heavier vampyre staggering backward while the thinner males body landed with a thud on the ground. Just as Uriah took a few slow breaths the dumb one was back on the attack, lashing his arms with swings that missed his face by quite a bit. He was so blinded by rage that his swings were reckless and power with no precision was such a waste. Uriah jumped back as the bigger male charged, bringing his arms up to block the raging blows towards his body, grunting only slightly as some landed and more than a few missed. The male seemed to become more enraged with the mere fact that Uriah hadn't once dropped to the ground nor had be returned with blows of his own.

See twitchy was much more smart...well smarter than hefty, he had a plan when he attacked but this guy was simply a hit and kill. No thought just action, and that's what got you killed. A sharp blow to the side of his skull sent Uriah back as the side of his head banged into the tree, the bigger vampyre grabbed him in means of lifting him up but Uriah sent a quick kick to his knee, hearing the snap the bigger male dropped slightly letting out a pained groan. Uriah's first connected with his jaw and then a fury of blows followed and one after the other they landed, each time before hefty was able to put his hands up to counter. The males movements were getting slower, he was hurt, weak and Uriah planned on finishing him.

When hefty lunged at him he quickly moved out the way moving behind the bigger male and wrapping his arm around his throat while the other rested on the back of his head. Despite the males struggles his grip was deadly tight and he was letting go. Hefty grunted and tried moving to slam Uriah's back into the tree, only to have him apply pressure and halt the guys movements. " This has gone on long enough" Uriah ignored the desperate struggles and snapped his neck feeling the struggling body now lifeless and simply weight against his body. Standing up he winced slightly and stepped over hefty's body towards Sirris.

Both enemies were now dead Uriah felt himself relax slightly but he was still on guard in case there was any more. His gaze traveled over Sirris was was evidently injured from the battle. Without really asking for any permission Uriah slipped his fingers underneath the fabric of Sirris's shirt, lifting it up slightly feeling the tensing of his muscles and the warmth from his smooth skin. " Bruised ribs and such but you should be fine" His voice trailed off slightly as his fingers moved to the small cuts and bruises before retracting his hand quickly and then walking over to pick up his bag. " Since we've been delayed, feel free to check the map to verify and maybe even finding another way. I have a feeling if we continue to venture on this path we'll run into more of them.". ​
 
Twitchy had done more dancing around than Sirris could keep up with. He was adamant about not switching forms for such a lowly enemy, but there was no hiding the fact that his humanoid form had its disadvantages. Twitchy's movements were... well... twitchy and the vampire clearly trumped his own speed. He missed the vampire on several swings but finally, a counter swing from his battle axe landed, cutting the vampire across the torso. It was just enough to catch the vampire off guard. Sirris moved as quickly as he could--not wanting to give the vampire time to recover--and took the parasite's head. It hit the ground with a soft thud as the vampire's body soon followed. The skin appeared to gray on the spot, already rotting. Sirris turned his head and spat his disgust.

He finished in time to see Uriah walking his way. Perhaps he and his kind had not planned this assault after all. Sirris narrowed his eyes as the vampire approached and froze immediately when the vampire lifted his tunic without any warning. Sirris jerked backwards, putting distance between them, only to have Uriah's fingers ghost over the cuts he had received. A low growl emanated from his throat and he bared his teeth. He was still holding his battle axe but he surprised himself when he did not lift it.

Unbeknownst to him, his wolf had apparently imprinted on the vampire, accepting him as a packmember and one capable of trust. Apparently, his wolf was broken.

Highly agitated and jerky, Sirris swung his pack around to fish for the maps he knew he had stashed there. Eventually he had to put it on the ground to find what he needed. Just as his hand touched parchment, a glint from the corner of his eye caught his attention. His eyes moved up to the source, landing on Twitchy's decaying body.

He removed the map and crawled towards the shriveling corpse. Something was hidden under Twitchy's sleeve. As he reached to pull back the sleeve, he fell backwards on his ass with a hissing scream. The skin on his left hand pulled from the bone and split open into bloody postules. The map rolled away, forgotten, as he cowed and held his bloody hand, trying his best to quiet his own cries.

Only one thing could do this.

Sirris clumsily reached for his pack, dumping the entire sack as he searched for the herbs to calm the allergic reaction.
"S-silver," he mumbled distractedly. "He w-was carrying silver. A blade."

He fumbled with the herbs, crushing them against his swollen hand. He looked up to Uriah. "Why would he carry such a thing?," Sirris spat, finally calming as the herbs numbed and soothed his burning hand. "Does silver not also affect your kind?"

It made no sense. The two vampires that attacked them had both appeared to have been recently turned. The fact they'd be armed with a silver blade of all things made no sense. Silver wasn't exactly easy to come by and a silver blade didn't fare nearly as well as a steel one. The only real reason to even bother carrying one was to kill a lycan.

Had these 'rogue' vampires been waiting for them? Specifically them?

"Uriah, do you have silver on you now? Is it common for your kind to arm yourselves with it?"

Rogue vampires shouldn't be able to afford such a weapon. Where had they gotten this blade?
 
Uriah had occupied himself with checking his satchel to make sure that the contents were still in the bag and in one piece. Satisfied that everything was where it was supposed to be he dusted off the bag and then placed it on his shoulder before the sudden shout from behind him grabbed his attention. His brown orbs focused on Sirris who was now on the ground clutching his hand for dear life and frantically searching for what Uriah made out to be healing herbs of some sort. Walking over to the other male he saw how severe the burns were and then turned his attention to the slain vampire, catching a glimpse of something flash across his eyes. So they were carrying silver with them. Crouching down Uriah pulled back the smaller vampyre's sleeve and picked up the silver blade in his hand to thoroughly examine it.

" There's no way they were just carrying this just because..and recently turned vampires, just looking at them I know they wouldn't be able to afford to buy weapons laced with silver on them.....unless someone gave it to them". The situation was highly likely, especially just sitting on one of the trails leading to the main city there was just no way that the run in with those two low tier vamps was just coincidental. " Silver doesn't effect vampires like they effect lycans...it's like your weakness and to us it's simply silver". Uriah moved the blade around his fingers before placing it in his bag just in case. " No I do not have any silver on me, although I was advised to bring some form of it, I felt it wouldn't be needed" his eyes locked with Sirris before looking back down at his hand.

" My kind, the ones who head out and scout do indeed you silver against their enemies but silver is hard to come around so we use it sparingly and for certain measures. From here on out we need to be extra careful. If someone is trying to kill us before we reach our destination the only thing I can think of would be the humans themselves, the ones who don't want to share the land but rather kill two birds with one stone". He huffed and then raked his fingers through his wild hair from the fighting. " If the herbs don't work fast enough I can tend to your wound much faster, though I am almost certain that you wouldn't like the method" Uriah smirked as he eyed the darker male and then picked up the maps that had rolled off due to his hand. " If you can find another way that would kept us off the main road and out of sight that would be good. It might take us a little longer but I'd like to not get into another fight any time soon".​
 
The redness was still there but the herbs succeeded in slowing the reaction, allowing his body a chance to try and heal itself. It wasn't instantaneous, however, and it was painfully obvious his hand was about 3/4s the size of what it originally was. It'd take some time for the flesh to mend itself. Sirris cursed his situation--he didn't particularly like the idea of Uriah being witness to just how badly his kind reacted to the element.

Sirris eyed the blade that Uriah took into his hand. His eyes slid over to the other dead vampire's body, wondering if he, too, had been stashing a secret weapon.

"It surprises me that they did not use it. Perhaps their hunger for fresh blood outweighed the need to eradicate a lycan." Sirris' eyes widened when Uriah placed the blade in his bag. The vampire continued talking, as if the action wasn't a big deal.

"No, I'm certain I wouldn't," Sirris sneered at Uriah's offer to help. "As you can see I'm a bit incapacitated at the moment--why don't you roll out the map for me, eh?" Sirris bit out, teeth bared. Sirris grit his teeth and stood, still cradling his injury but trying to reclaim some part of his dignity. "Perhaps... it wouldn't surprise me," he scowled, agreeing with Uriah's idea that the humans may be the true perpetrators. It made sense to try an alternate path, but with creatures similar to themselves in pursuit, was there truly any place to successfully hide from danger?

His wound wasn't healing fast enough and he couldn't exactly pretend that his flesh hadn't almost melted off the bone. He was in a terse mood and the fact that Uriah had stowed away the object that caused the condition was increasing his ire. "And just what need have you of that blade? Why not leave it here to rot with the corpse?" Sirris challenged, tangerine eyes sharpening and boring into the vampire, challenging him for the truth.
 
Uriah smirked and then placed his hands up in defense at Sirris's aggravated laced comment and then moved past him to pick up the scrolls off the ground. Of course he didn't want to take his help, it was scary not knowing something so instead of teasing the darker male on the matter Uriah opened one of the scrolls and let his eyes wander down to where they were at and to the point where they wanted to be. Keeping on the trail that they were on was indeed the fastest way but there was the potential risk of running into more of those exiled who had intent to kill them. Uriah was so focused on the map that he almost didn't hear Sirris's comment about the silver blade.

Seeing the anger in Sirris's eyes amused Uriah to say the least. Pausing with the scroll still in his hand he walked over slowly, his head tilting to the side slightly before reaching into his bag and pulling out the object that caused the darker male pain. " Oh you mean this thing?" His fingers twirled the blade through his fingers before locking his brown eyes with Sirris's light ones. " I'm holding onto this thing incase we run into your kind, that and It would help us both when we reach the city to know who made these or gave them to the two idiots on the ground. His hand lifted bringing the blade near Sirri's throat slowly but not touching, just hovering. Uriah's eyes danced of slight amusement before lowering the blade.

" Why? Do you think that I'm going to use it on you" Uriah almost let out a laugh before placing the blade back into his bag and then resting his hands on either side of Sirris so he had nowhere to go. " If I wanted to kill you I would have done so the minute our clans had parted ways, I could have killed you during the battle, and even now..." His voice trailed off looking down at the wounded hand Sirris clutched. " I could have just used the blade on you but I haven't" Uriah leaned closer slightly not breaking their gaze, " If I wanted to kill you, you'd be dead". His face was now emotionless before leaning back and then rolling up the rest of the maps. " We'll have to go back a few ways and take higher ground, it actually will do us good in scanning our surroundings".

Looking down at the other males hand once more Uriah shook his head before resting his hand on his ribs that had been hit from twitchy as they headed back. He had hoped that it would have been a much faster battle with the human blood still moving through him but the deed was done. As they walked Uriah started back up on his book, glancing up at Sirris every one and again and then at his wound. He didn't care...right? The fact that he was even second guessing the whole thing made Uriah tense up, closing the book that he had began to loose focus on and placed it back in his bag.

​
 
Sirris didn't quite know how to react, so when Uriah brazenly waved the offending object in front of his face, he had to fight the instinct to lop the vampire's arm off. How insolent! The tiny hair's on Sirris's face stood on end with each pass of the blade and when the bastard brought it to his throat, thick veins rose to the surface of his skin, showing purple against the dark tone. The amused look on Uriah's face sickened him. The creature was without honor! How dare he taunt him with death and expect amicable cooperation.

Uriah rolled up the map, seemingly having come to a conclusion. It was only duty that kept Sirris from attacking him--or simply abandoning the missive altogether. So in lieu of a physical attack, Sirris relied on his words.

"Don't you dare threaten me, Uriah," Sirris's head turned as he tracked the vampires movements and the way the creature gripped his torso. He appeared injured in some way. "You are surprisingly cock-sure all of a sudden. Don't tell me you're feeling confident because you've found a weapon that even you didn't think to bring," Sirris' voice was almost a purr with the amount of hate it carried. Just when he thought they had a sort of shaky understanding, the vampire went and openly threatened him. He was beginning to weigh the benefits of their arriving together to the human territory. What use was it to fear the humans when your worst enemy was at your back?

After they had gotten a ways away, Sirris had calmed enough to be civil--his version of civil, anyway. In truth, now he just really wanted to fuck with the vampire.

"Your reasoning for keeping the blade is sound, Uriah, but I dare say you're not exactly encouraging a friendly atmosphere," Uriah mused as they began to head back toward the stream's path. They were likely to run into human encampments on this new path. Who was to say those meetings would be any better than running into rogue creatures?

"Seeing as you've had many chances to kill me--and remind me of it quite frequently--why exactly is it that you don't want to?" Sirris asked. He said it as evenly as he could, as if he was trying to make simple conversation. Absent-mindedly, he raised his injured hand to his lips and began to wash it with his tongue. The healing skin was itching something fierce now. "We are sworn enemies after all. It's the natural order of things," he paused suddenly before throwing a pointed glare Uriah's way. "Are you lonely?"

The stream was in earshot now and could finally be heard over the din of cicadas. The insects were unseasonably early this year but their cry signaled the oncoming night. The day had gone quickly--and eventfully.

"Before we head on our new path, would you care to rest a moment?" Sirris eyed Uriah, his gaze settling on the vampire's torso where he had occasionally been stroking it. "Do you need to?"
 
Uriah had been silently cursing the slain twitchy male whom had inflicted pain to his ribs. The throbbing sensation was there and every so often when he leaned a certain way there would be a sharp stinging pain that would make him grimace. it was his fault nonetheless, being as to how he allowed the man to deal continues blows to one side so that he'd let his guard down. Yes it was the smoothest play but he could have saved himself some pain if he had just attacked a full force instead of conserving some energy. As Sirris's words rung out through the trees Uriah barley glanced in the other males direction or paid him any mind in that regard. Why hadn't Uriah killed him? Well that was something that he couldn't quite answer himself.

Uriah....lonely? It was a question that he had never gotten before. In a way there was more than just a straight laced reason as to why he hadn't killed Sirris. " Despite us being sworn enemies I don't have an urge to just outright kill you, and as I said before we both have something in common. We don't want to fail our people and I for one am going to see to it that it does not happen". His hand fell from his bruise rib to his side and the quietness between the two began again, Uriah drumming his finger along his thigh and every so often clenching his fist from the nagging pain at his side. Growing up Uriah always had someone around him, servants that tended to him, trainers that taught him combat, an older brother that always had his back so was he really lonely?

His fingers traced ghost like shapes along the fabric of his clothes, Uriah stopped at Sirris words, their eyes locking before giving a stiff nod. " I think resting here would be good for the both of us" he spoke up ignoring those crimson eyes that latched onto his injury. Shifting in his position Uriah took the satchel off his shoulder and then lifted up his shirt halfway to inspect the annoying pain. The area of impact had some purple and blue bruising but he could feel his body fixing the flaw on his skin. Uriah made a small face poking at the wound before continuing to pull the material over his head. " I guess you could say that I am" Uriah eventually spoke up, his brown eyes locking with the darker male. " Lonely I mean" clicking his tongue Uriah turned and moved towards the water as he cleaned the dirt and grime off his body from the fighting.

It had never really bothered him that he never had someone close to him. His older brother was around yes but that in itself was complicated. Uriah removed his pants and then submerged him his underneath the water. He had always been the prodigal son, the one that was going to represent his people, his grandfathers pawn..a solider and was Uriah happy? No one asked because no one cared and he never expected anyone to because that's just the way it was. There was no room for weakness and those who were weak didn't last long, being void of feelings and being ruthless yet precise was what set you apart from the rest. From the weak. Uriah re emerged, his hands wiping the water from his face before releasing a shaky breath and then moving away from the water, his hand moving through his wild wet hair.​
 
Out of nowhere, Sirris jumped suddenly.

Unbeknownst to the outside observer, Sirris had literally bit his own tongue in an attempt to qwell it. His taunts had failed in their purpose; he hadn't expected the vampire to answer honestly and thoughtfully. He instead studied the vampire's reply, curious to know why the other bothered to answer.

"So you mean to say you don't want to let the other vampires down? That's funny, your kind don't strike me as the collectivist type. Is that what you crave, vampire? A sense of belonging? A family?" While prying, the questions held no malice. If anything, they belied Sirris' ignorance of other cultures. Having been born and raised with pack mentality, standoffish vampires made no sense to him. In a way, it was how he would describe Uriah, though this vampire was more vocal than any Sirris had ever met.

Not to mention that Uriah was the *only* vampire that Sirris had ever met.

Sirris watched as Uriah took the invitation to rest and began to remove himself of his clothing. While frowned upon in these modern times, historically Sirris's people were very comfortable in their natural skin. Nudity wasn't anything that fazed him and with it, too, came a lack of shame. He openly inspected the vampire's body as it was revealed to him, frowning slightly at the injury that marred his torso. He seemed surprised at the vampire's ability to bruise.

Sirris's eyes wandered up to meet Uriah's when he spoke again. He tilted his head, confused. "You reveal your weakness to me?" Sirris watched as Uriah waded into the water and he followed, rolling up the sleeve of his tunic as he dropped down by the stream bank. The vampire could be on to something; Sirris slid his injured hand below the cool surface of the water. "I suppose it makes no difference. As much as I hate you, I can't abandon you. We are now packmates--do you know what that is?" Sirris asked a bit too condescendingly. "After all, you willingly travel with a lycan and so that means you must abide by lycan rules. It means there is no longer an "I", no longer an "I want". Your actions--as well as my own--now affect both of our lives." The sneer that had settled on the werewolf's face soon softened into a teasing smile. Flicking water in the direction of the vampire, Sirris declared, "Lonely no more."

"Now, how long shall we rest? For the night? Is that enough time for you to save face?" Sirris asked, all too seriously. He supposed his contrariness hadn't entirely disappeared.
 
" My kind strive on being perfect. The perfect look, body, being able to heal from if not all wounds and our intellect. We all have been raised to be better than those before us,to learn from their trial and error so the same things do not happen to us and it was worked". His coven was skilled in more ways than one and each person knew what was expected of them. At a young age they would train you in three things: Combat, Knowledge, and your Mental State and depending on where you excelled at they would already have your future in the coven picked out for you. For Uriah he had excelled in all three which made things much easier being the grandson of their Master.

Uriah silently watched Sirris as he sat along the bank, placing his inured hand into the water before speaking, and this time Uriah was more than surprised at his words. There was this weird feeling in his chest, a feeling that he couldn't quite put into words...but it was nice and that alone startled him. So they were pack mates huh? " Yes I do believe I know what the term means, spent a couple years brushing up on things like that". Uriah shrugged his shoulders slightly before putting on his pants and then looking down at the wound which had now fully healed and the bruising was no more. Uriah poked at the healed area before reaching for his shirt and blowing out a slow breath.

The playfulness washed off of Sirris's face as quickly as it had come causing Uriah to raise an eyebrow slightly and shake his head. " Nope my wounds more than healed" he gestured down towards his rib before picking up his satchel and then checked their surroundings. " My wounds heal pretty fast, that one however was damaged in the same spot continuously so it took slightly longer for it to heal all the way. We should just rest for the night, eat if you need to and I'll have time to finish reading my book" Uriah slumped down against one of the thicker trees and then opened the book he had been wanting to finish. About an hour or so later his upper lip twitched followed by his fangs lowering which caused Uriah to close his book and get back on his feet. " I'm going to feed".

He said nothing more before heading into the thick of the trees and then eventually finding a mare to sink his fangs into. The liquid doing its job and pulling back he wiped the blood from his mouth and then closed his eyes. Usually when he got hungry his body would have random spasms like his upper lip twitching, his mind often drifted towards food and if he went long enough without eating his mood would change drastically. When Uriah returned back his brown eyes traveled towards the shorter male before walking over and squatting down next to him. " Do you ever think there will come a time were our people will be at peace? I mean I highly doubt it but it's a thought that comes into my head every once in awhile". Uriah reached out and poked at Sirri's side before taking out his book and turning his attention to it, " I mean at first I wanted nothing more than to kill you but you aren't so bad..when your not so tense and brooding".​
 
As Uriah emerged from the bank, Sirris pulled his hand out of the water and stared down at it. The smirk on his face was a bit self-depracating as he looked between his own injury and the vampire's. When Uriah stated that he'd be going to feed, Sirris wondered if there was some correlation between the vampire's need for blood and his rapid healing. Most likely, Sirris concluded and he rose to find a tree to recline against. This would be a good time to observe the other and allow his body a chance to recover.

After Uriah had gone, Sirris settled back against the bark of a sturdy oak tree. He took out one of the maps he had brought with him and plotted the course.

It was of no coincidence that the humans insisted that they were to meet in the town of Vidin, Bulgaria. Though relatively small, the town had endured several occupations over the centuries and even boasted a fortress as one of its distinguishing features. This was a town that was accustomed to and prepared for conflict. Sirris had the sneaking suspicion that they may be headed into a warzone. As the odds increased against them, Sirris suspected more and more that the two of them were not meant to make it out of this encounter alive. They would have to work together if they wished to survive anything the humans threw their way.

Sirris's ears wiggled at the sound of approaching footsteps. Before he knew it, Uriah had rejoined him. He considered the vampire's question and turned his head up to look at him. "Peace I highly doubt," Sirris agreed with him, "but a peaceful cooperation is more imminent. We can't go on doing things as we once did--we're in the minority now more than ever. And the humans know it." He searched the Uriah's face, unwittingly looking for signs of the other's vampirism. It was unreal how well vampires could so easily blend in with their common enemy. So caught in his envy, Sirris jumped a considerable amount when a sharp object poked his side. It took him a moment to realize what it had been and he looked at Uriah with wide eyes. Innocently, he tilted his head in question before his eyes narrowed. "Tense and brooding? Excuse me for not signaling the welcoming committee at the prospect of laying my head down next to a mortal enemy," the werewolf bared his teeth noncommittally as he settled back against the tree.

His contrariness was back.

"What? No leftovers for me? Perhaps you need more training in what it means to belong to a pack. Vampires," Sirris rolled his eyes as he turned away from Uriah and stood before climbing up into the low branches of the tree. His action allowed him to hide the smirk that played across his lips. "You plan on staying down there all night? Oh, wait--what is it that your kind do at night? Do you even sleep or do you reserve it for storytime? I can't say I trust a creature that doesn't close its eyes at some point during the day." Considering they themselves were probably the most dangerous creatures in this part of the woods, Sirris didn't have too much anxiety about catching a few winks of sleep.
 
Uriah folded the current page that he was on before bringing his gaze up at Sirris's comment. He honestly hadn't thought about bringing the remainder of his kill. It was still new to him..being a pack as the other male would say. His needs was now the others and vise versa. His neck rotated slightly while shifting his upper body up against the tree again and watching as the darker male scaled the tree in a matter of seconds. Uriah snorted at the questions thrown at him regarding his sleeping habits, which he found amusing. " We don't need to sleep like humans or your kind. Most of us do take naps I guess, I would be one of them. So no you don't have to worry about me watching over you while you sleep...unless you want me to" Uriah teased as a small smirk played upon his lips.

About fifteen minutes after re opening his book Uriah frowned glancing up at the now night sky that was hindering him from continuing from finishing up the last few chapters of his book. Yes he had no trouble reading in the dark but it wasn't something that he necessarily liked, so instead he closed it and then scaled the tree mimicking Sirris's earlier actions. His brown eyes bore into the others tilting his head slightly and then rested his legs on either side of the sturdy branch, legs dangling as his upper body shifted to his comfort. Uriah let his mind wader back to his coven. He had no doubt in his mind that his father was getting their warriors prepared just in case the peace treaty didn't go through, his grandfather would be resting in this time, and his brother? he had no doubt that Alric was meddling in things that didn't concern him but that was nothing new.

After some time Uriah allowed his eyes to close, listening to the sound of Sirris's breathing finding comfort in his rhythmic sound. Uriah shifted slightly before quickly opening his eyes and looking around. He had forgotten that he had climbed up the tree to rest and shifted slightly more than he should have, almost falling out the tree. He brought his hand to his face for a moment before rotating his shoulders and dropping down to the ground with a thud. His fingers played with the ring on his finger as he looked around and then crouched by the river, dipping his fingers into the cool water and splashing it on his face. Sirris hadn't stirred yet so Uriah stood from spot and re climbed the tree quietly and sat directly in front of Sirris observing his sleeping state.

The shorter male looked completely peaceful, his face ridden of any primal aggression that Uriah usually was used to seeing. In general he wasn't used to seeing other people sleep and back in his cover Uriah simply trained, fed, and trained again and when there was some free time in between Alric always manged to get him into some mischief. Uriah leaned forward his finger ghostly outlining his features before sprinkling the leftfover water that lingered on his fingertips. Uriah tilted his head to the side and raised an eyebrow, " And how long do you need to sleep?". ​
 
As Sirris's eyes grew heavy, a sudden sound had him jolting to awareness. "Uriah....?" Sirris asked before realizing it and was instead answered with the sound of the vampire dropping to the ground.

He watched through slit eyes as the vampire approached the river and appeared to be resting by it. Was the vampire uneasy? Disturbed? Had there been some issue in the tree that caused the vampire to descend so quickly? Sirris was sure Uriah could handle his own should he choose to stay on the ground for the night, but Sirris was getting the impression that Uriah may not be exactly at ease in natural habitats.

'Likely sheltered,' Sirris concluded. Uriah was born of royal blood after all. Vampires didn't strike him as the type who liked getting their hands dirty.

"I suppose they don't like high places, either..." Sirris mused aloud, his eyes sliding closed but not yet comfortable to sleep. He wasn't so much afraid of an ambush by an outside party as he was by Uriah doing a complete 180 and turning on him. Perhaps that was the cause behind the vampire's restlessness. Considering what they had been through earlier that day, Sirris had doubts that Uriah would consider attacking now. Then again--he didn't exactly know this creature, now did he? Packmate or not.

Sirris feigned rest, instead using the time to focus on counter-actions should the vampire attack when he was most vulnerable. A disturbance in the air and a spray of water had Sirris's eyes popping open only to be confronted by the sight of brown. Apex predator though he may be, no one liked to be cornered. Sirris pressed his back into the tree before he knew it. His body had to adjust quickly to maintain his balance atop his perch. His heartbeat was strung high and he bared his teeth out of pure, natural instinct.

"It would be nice if I could *get* any sleep..." Sirris growled, a level voice barely feigning his fight-or-flight response. "Boundaries, vampire," Sirris growled as he challenged Uriah. "Or is it your habit to invade the space of others around you?" Sirris had a feeling he wouldn't get any rest tonight. "And while they're resting, no less?'
 
Uriah feigned a look of disappointment before leaning back to give the darker male more space, ignoring his barred fangs which did nothing but amuse Uriah. He didn't require sleep like mortals did, the most he had ever done was take naps or what he would call them " long blinks". Of course the body needed to rest in order to fully recharge but it was never more than a mere thirty minutes tops. His brown eyes scanned Sirris over once more before dropping from the tree and then couching in front of it with his back pressed firmly against the wood. " I don't make habit of invading others personal space..just yours". His eyes shifted through the darkness moving around constantly in case anymore sneaky turned were out for them, and humans too. Eventually the only sound came from the wind and the rustling of the leaves and Uriah found himself slowly closing his eyes and his body relax.

Warm brown eyes and a smile that was as radiant as ever bore into familiar small brown ones. Uriah starred up at the woman who birthed him and watched as she hummed a gentle tune while raking her slender fingers through his short hair. It was immediate comfort and he found himself pressing into her warm embrace and holding onto the thin fabric of her shirt so tight that his knuckles were turning white. He didn't want to let go because if he had a feeling that it would be his last. That warm smile slowly dropped as his mothers gaze shifted over to Ronin and then their leader. A swift nod before she pried Uriah's fingers from her shirt and pressed a warm kiss to his forehead and he reluctantly watched as she moved past the two men and into the small building. " You must be strong for your family, for someday you'll be the one to lead this coven" Ronin's deep voice forced Uriah's eyes from the same building his mother had disappeared into and nodding his head he watched his father mouth something to Alric before turning and walking away.

" Your not focused Alexander, pay attention!" A swift blow to Uriah's right temple caused him to stagger back a few feet and wince in slight pain while Alric wasted no time and lunged for another attack, this time he parried away from the blow and countered with a jab of his own. " Nicely done, another". For awhile the two went back and forth, Alric training him while Ronin silently watched from his seat, cup in one hand and a small book in the other. Uriah jumped back and waited for the next barrage of blows but nothing came, instead Alric stepped off to the side and Ronin rose from his chair. Silver eyes locked into Uriah with utter intensity as he removed his light tunic and then rotated his neck. " Show me what you've learned". The man was relentless and Uriah found himself knocked on his ass more times then he could count. Blood pouring from his mouth Ronin simply eyed him before reaching for his cup and book. " More training" That was all he said. That was all he ever said.

" Uriah my dear boy" The sound of his mothers voice woke him up as he glanced around the empty room. " Come to me" Jolting up from where he laid Uriah cracked open the door and peered down the long hallway to see a brunette woman with her back facing him. " Mother" Uriah called out but there was no answer. Instead the woman turned the corner calling out for him to follow and Uriah's small feet moved as fast as he could to keep up with her. With every corner she seemed to have gotten further and further away until he was outside the coven starring at his mother who was now standing still and weeping. Slowly he moved towards the woman becoming more hesitant as he neared. " Mother it's me. It's okay" Just as he reached out to touch her shoulder the woman turned around, blood spilling from her mouth and neck. Uriah jumped back but the woman continued. " You weren't strong enough" Her hands grabbed a hold of Uriah who was to petrified to move. " You couldn't save me!".

Uriah shot up clutching his chest and panting as he quickly looked around and then stood up. The dreams were starting back up again. His hands moved over his face wiping away the seat from his forehead and then looking up to see the early morning sky. How long had he napped? He assumed for a few hours which he didn't dwell on, instead his mind traveled back to the dream that felt so real, it was almost like he was re living that moment again. Moving to the stream he threw water over his face before returning to his satchel and tossing it over his shoulder picking up a small rock in the process he beamed tossed it directly above the other males head. " Lets get a move on" Uriah grunted while messing with the ring on his finger.
 
Sirris sneered in reply, but didn't do much in the way of encouraging Uriah. If he was bored enough to entertain himself with antagonizing the other, Sirris wouldn't give him the benefit of a distraction. Just because he was petty.

The night was pleasant enough. Peaceful. Sirris found it a welcome change of pace and a reprieve from the action of the day. If daily ambushes were what they had to look forward to, Sirris was certain he'd go mad 3 days in. While conflict certainly kept things interesting, Sirris preferred peace and stability to constant action. He felt no desire for constant dramatics and attention seeking. There was a reason why he didn't thrust himself to the front of his clan's hunting parties.

Sirris was able to get a few more winks of sleep before the lightening sky and stirring birds woke him up again.

He yawned silently and stretched, his eyes drooping closed every so often. What finally forced his eyes open was the sound of stuttered breaths that caught him off guard. Sirris went still and listened. Sirris didn't particularly want to know the cause of the harsh breaths, but when he heard Uriah stir and the sounds of water shortly thereafter, he figured it wasn't much to comment on.
Though it did get him thinking--and probably not in the best of light. What had the vampire been thinking about? Had he been awake all this time? Was the cool water to force him awake or calm him down?

A sudden, superfluous thought flitted through Sirris's head: what if Uriah wasn't as good at controlling himself around the flesh and blood mortal as he so feigned? Was it bloodlust that made him so restless? Sirris was well aware that his understanding of vampires was overly stereotypical and certainly unfair, but he just couldn't trust them enough not to act within their nature. Didn't every--

Sirris's eyes bugged open when the sharp flint of stone struck the bark above him. It rebounded, falling to the ground below and Sirris was not far behind it. He leapt from his perch and landing nimbly on the ground.

Okay. All bets were off. Sirris was pissed and if this is what taking the higher ground got him... well, then.

"I'm not nearly ready," Sirris bit out, as he brushed roughly past the vampire. He lost a piece of clothing the nearer he got to the stream bed. He'd have to climb the tree again to retrieve his pack (hot-headedness made for ineffective planning), but now, he felt like a swim.

Soon Sirris was bare as the day he was born as he strode into the stream and quickly dipped under.

Okay, maybe not the brightest idea to take a swim when the sun hadn't yet warmed the waters, but his point was made.

"Off so quickly, Uriah? Maybe a cold bath would do you good," Sirris quipped before ducking under. His mass of curls floated atop the water when he submerged, making it fairly obvious as to guess his location. He stood abruptly, gathering his hair and wringing it. He flipped the mass over his shoulder before dipping again and beginning to wash. "At the least it'd wash away your ill attitude."

Sirris paused with his hands on his chest, the golden sealing ring contrasting sharply with the deep tone of his skin. He appeared to be in thought. "On second thought, maybe you shouldn't. It'd pollute the water," Sirris sneered as he turned his back to the vampire. He tilted his head to the left and the right, as if attempting to shake the water from his ears. In reality, all it truly did was offer a nice display of his bare, defenseless neck.

It wasn't like he was picking a fight.

But, then again, he was.
 
Uriah dropped his hands to his sides upon hearing a small thud behind him followed by the comment in which he responded with a simple grunt. His mind was way to preoccupied by the dream he had awoken from, his mother.... the vivid images felt all too real for him and that constant reminder replayed over and over in his thoughts. You weren't strong enough. You couldn't save me. Clenching his fist Uriah frowned as he briefly watched Sirris remove his clothing but he couldn't lie, maybe the cool water would help him rid those antagonizing images from his mind. " An attitude is something you're all too familiar with I see but I guess Its okay since your kind is known for being hot headed". A small smirk worked on Uriah's lips as he found more ways to push the darker males buttons before re approaching the water.

He would pollute the water? Uriah fought back a small chuckle before removing his upper garment and then removing his shoes. " If anything you'd be the one to dirty up the water. Your kind is known for your...animal like ways of living" Removing his lower half Uriah moved into the cold water and then submerged his whole body underwater before coming back up and running his hands through his hair. His brown eyes followed Sirris's movements in the water taking in his larger form as he moved his long mane out the way exposing his neck and then turning so that his back was facing him and his neck was fully exposed. Was he really letting his guard down? Uriah moved through the water and it only took him a few seconds until he was directly behind the darker male.

Uriah had never figured Sirris to be the man to let his guard down, especially with his open distaste towards Uriah's kind and after everything that had happened to them recently. Rolling his eyes Uriah leaned forward so that his lips brushed against Sirris's ear, " I never pictured you to let your guard down" his mouth dropped down until to reached his neck where Uriah's lips twitched as he grazed the males skin. His mouth parted but he didn't extend his fangs but pressed his lips to the warm flesh before moving back some, his eyes darkened some with silver seeping through. " You should be more careful if it were anyone else..they would have taken a bite". Uriah floated around the water briefly stopping to wash himself before stepping out the stream and then grabbing his trousers and throwing them on and reaching for his satchel to grab his book. " Whenever your done we should get moving" Uriah voice was sharp not bothering to look in the males direction as he leaned against the tree and picked back up where he left off.


 
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