Chapter Text
There were few occasions when Stanley needed to use his gun to kill the aberrations that were now lunging at his throat, baring their fangs. His skill with the knife was usually enough to kill them with a single stab to the heart, but now the enemy outnumbered him, and Stanley wasn't going to waste any more time with a swarm of rats like that.
“Commander!”
Charlotte's voice rang out behind him, and Stanley spun around quickly, shooting a huge winged monster that had lunged at him in the head with a single shot. The beast fell to the ground half dead, writhing on the earth, then tried to crawl away with its long claws. Despite its efforts to stay alive, Stanley didn't think twice about finishing it off by plunging one of his knives into its neck.
A sigh escaped his lips and the man looked around, analyzing all the corpses lying at his feet with the same precision with which a hunter made sure his prey had fallen into his clutches.
Seconds later, he took a white silk handkerchief from one of his coat pockets and, under the soft moonlight, wiped away a few drops of blood that had splattered on his right cheek, leaving a soft crimson hue on his skin.
“You didn't need to yell at me, Charlotte,” the carefree tone of his voice contrasting sharply with the grotesque scene around him. “Next time, make sure you care more about the lives of civilians. We've had enough casualties these past few days.”
The girl nodded, embarrassed, and Stanley lit his twelfth cigarette of the day, wrapping his lips around the filter for a gentle drag, sinking into the bitter taste of tobacco.
“We should inspect this entire area,” Brody said this time, taking a few steps toward his commander. “Those creatures could be hiding in the treetops, ready to attack at any moment.”
“That's why we're here, isn't it?” Stanley's eyes locked with the other man's, and Brody couldn't help but take a step back. “I've been questioning some of the residents of the neighboring villages, and in the last three months, more than 150 disappearances have been reported, the victims of which have still not been found to this day. Well, except for a few.”
Stanley paused, taking another drag on his cigar. Soft smoke escaped his lips, and the man smiled slightly, looking back at his companions.
“Several bodies have been found which, despite their poor condition, have been identified as some of the people who had been reported missing. And each and every one of them shared a very curious characteristic,” the cigarette holder brushed his lips again. “The blood had been completely drained from their bodies.”
Charlotte looked away, clearly uncomfortable, while many of the men surrounding Stanley frowned. Some of them gripped their weapons more tightly, watching their surroundings for any strange movements in the undergrowth of the forest.
“Interestingly, it is suspected that most of these crimes have taken place in the same location,” Maya said, stepping up to stand beside her commander with a map in her hands. “In Valdemar.”
“I'm glad you always follow my lead when it comes to drama, Maya,” Stanley murmured, the smile still on his lips. His face suddenly turned serious and his attention turned to the rest of his men. “Tomorrow, at first light, we will head there. I will not tolerate any delays, so make sure you are ready by then.”
Silence fell over the scene and Stanley dropped his cigar on the ground, then stomped on it with the sole of his boot.
“Any questions?”
A few of his men shook their heads, while others didn't even flinch. Many of them were still listening for any sound or movement in the darkness of the forest, fearing that the enemy was closer than they thought.
“Oh, and one last thing,” Stanley's voice echoed through the trees again, drawing everyone's attention to himself. “We now have the identity of the prime suspect in these murders and disappearances. I've been investigating and questioning some of the locals in the area over the last few days, and apparently, the man calls himself—”
A bat flew out from among the treetops, startling everyone present, who pointed their weapons at the animal with trembling hands.
However, Stanley beat them to it and shot it down with a single accurate shot to the head, still wearing a sly smile on his lips. He glanced sideways at the bat's corpse, expecting some kind of supernatural reaction from it, but, to his disappointment, nothing happened.
His eyes fixed once again on the audience in front of him, ready to continue his speech from earlier.
“... Xeno Houston Wingfield.”
Valdemar was quieter than Stanley had ever imagined. It didn't seem like a normal town: its streets were completely empty and silence had taken over, leaving behind a city that seemed to be occupied only by ghosts.
Despite this, his steps led him directly to a small tavern where there still seemed to be some trace of the life that Valdemar had once enjoyed in the past. The wooden doors opened with a gentle push of his hands, and as soon as he entered, a female voice welcomed them.
“Foreigners!” exclaimed a blonde woman as she leaned on the bar, bending forward slightly. “Please take a seat wherever you can. What brings you here?”
The place reeked of alcohol and tobacco, and Stanley couldn't help but grimace in disgust at the sight of blood and vomit in some corners of the room. Various looks of disgust were directed at the group of men and women who entered the tavern, especially at the commander who led them, revealing the feeling of rejection that the inhabitants of this town shared towards strangers.
However, Stanley ignored all this and simply leaned one arm on the wooden counter, lighting another cigar with one of the decorative candles beside him.
The rest of his men stood beside him or behind him, while others took seats at the various empty tables scattered around the room, trying not to make eye contact with the other villagers who were still looking at them with suspicion.
“Good morning, miss,” Stanley's voice broke the silence in the tavern as he took a drag on his cigar and smiled gently. “Do you know anything about the disappearances that have been happening in this town over the last three months?”
As soon as he said that, one of the villagers jumped up from his chair and pulled a revolver from his belt.
The barrel of the gun pointed directly at Stanley, who glanced sideways at the other man, raising an eyebrow. His eyes revealed unparalleled hatred and sadness, and for a few seconds, Stanley thought the stranger was going to shoot him without hesitation.
The rest of his men also pointed their own weapons at him in an attempt to defend their commander, but Stanley gestured for them to lower their weapons.
“And what do you know about that?!” the man's trembling voice echoed off the walls of the tavern. “What are you here for?! If you're just here to ask questions and get information for the press, I swear to God that...!”
The gun in his hands twitched slightly, and Stanley feared that the trigger would be pulled accidentally.
“Henry, please...” The tavern owner spoke, trying to calm the situation. “Put the gun down. These men are only here to help, aren't they?”
The corners of her lips were painted a soft red, and Stanley unconsciously reached his free hand into one of his coat pockets, realizing that he had forgotten his own lipstick at camp that very morning.
He scolded himself under his breath, then fixed his eyes once more on the woman's, smiling kindly.
“That's right, these last few days we've been taking care of the beasts that lurk in the woods surrounding this village,” he explained calmly, pausing his words from time to time to take puffs on his cigar. “However, the number of creatures seems to be increasing, and the number of murders and disappearances in the area, according to the reports I've read, has not decreased. Furthermore, it has come to my attention that the main focus of the attacks is this town, Valdemar, so we have decided to focus our attention here to try to find the source of these crimes.”
The townsman looked him up and down suspiciously, and seconds later, he slowly lowered his revolver, letting it rest in his leather belt once more.
“I would appreciate any information or assistance you can provide. Any clues or rumors you may have heard, even if they seem nonsensical or dubious, could be key to putting an end to these crimes.”
After finishing his short speech, Stanley fell silent, observing his surroundings in search of any gesture or change in expression or posture suspicious enough to warrant questioning. All he found, however, were dark circles under the villagers' eyes, probably from lack of sleep, as well as sad and melancholy faces that showed not a hint of hope behind their gazes.
Stanley sighed, dropping his cigarette on the floor, “Well, in that case, does anyone here recognize the name Xeno Houston Wingfield?”
As soon as he said those words, the atmosphere in the tavern changed in an instant, and the tension in the room grew exponentially. The townspeople looked at each other, frightened, not quite sure what to say or whether it was really worth opening their mouths.
However, one of the men rose from his chair and, his lips trembling, confessed to Stanley what everyone else was afraid to say.
“He showed up here about three months ago.”
“Which coincides with the increase in crime around the village,” added Stanley, smiling slightly.
“That's right,” the man nodded, then swallowed and continued. “He settled in an old castle built on one of the mountains surrounding our village. We call it ‘Piatra Umbrei’. That place hasn't had a good reputation for some time, but since Mr. Wingfield appeared, no one dares to walk on that mountain. Most of the hunters who have ventured there have not returned, and those who have returned have reported seeing horrors from another world.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the man sat back down, exchanging nervous glances with his neighbors, who had only nodded in agreement with his words.
“Understood, thank you,” Stanley looked at the rest of his team, the smile still on his lips. “Our target is this Mr. Wingfield. If we do things right and no one does anything stupid...”
His eyes fixed on Charlotte, who looked away.
Stanley turned his attention back to the others and lit another cigarette, taking a drag and exhaling the smoke through his lips.
“...we can finish him off tonight.”
“Everyone says the same thing,” Maya sighed as she sat down across from Stanley. “A man with peculiar manners who dresses in black, white hair, dark eyes...”
“And the parasol,” Brody added, chuckling softly.
“Oh, yes!” Maya laughed too and leaned forward, whispering softly so that only Stanley could hear her. “Some witnesses claim to have seen him walking at the foot of the mountain or even in the village during the day, carrying a black lace parasol.”
Stanley's eyebrows rose subtly and Maya nodded, then took a bite of the piece of meat between her fingers.
The blonde barmaid from earlier came over seconds later to take away the empty beer mug that Brody had drunk in less than ten minutes and serve him another, humming softly as she left.
Stanley watched her leave out of the corner of his eye, smoking his tenth cigarette of the day.
“I can't wait to see him with my own eyes,” he murmured, smiling. “I just hope I can enjoy, even if only for a few minutes, some minimally interesting fight with him.”
“He's killed hundreds of people if we take into account the bodies found in the surrounding area, in addition to the disappearances,” Charlotte added quietly, using her cutlery to eat her meat. “He won't be easy to eliminate.”
“Those were just civilians,” Stanley shook his head.
“Regardless, I doubt he's like any of the other brainless monsters we've exterminated so far,” said Brody.
“Can we change the subject?” Maya sighed wearily, chewing the meat in her mouth. “Work away from food, please.”
Stanley chuckled softly and nodded in agreement. He had a feeling that this Xeno guy was going to give them a lot of trouble for quite some time.
His attention then turned to the meat served in front of him. He dropped his cigarette on the floor, then stepped on it, without even bothering to check that it was indeed extinguished. He picked up his cutlery and, just as he plunged his fork into the beef to cut it with his knife, screams were heard in the street.
The rest of his companions jumped up from their seats and drew their weapons from their belts, ready for whatever might happen next.
Stanley, meanwhile, cursed under his breath and also got up from his chair a few seconds later. His right hand gripped the handle of his pistol tightly, while with his left he took another cigar from one of the pockets of his long black coat, then put the mouthpiece between his lips.
“Does anyone have a light?”
It took Charlotte less than two seconds to light a match and nervously offer it to her commander. Stanley held it carefully between his fingers and brought it close to successfully light his cigar, smiling softly as he felt the smoke slide into his mouth.
“Thank you, Charlotte.”
No sooner had he said that than a large, black, winged creature entered the tavern, breaking the window panes. The monster writhed on the floor, emitting a sound that could have ruptured the eardrums of anyone within two meters of it. Its wings were partially burned, probably by sunlight, and Stanley saw this as the perfect opportunity.
The creature looked around, baring its fangs. Its large ears moved gently, detecting the cries of fear from the humans around it, and then it lunged at one of them, trying unsuccessfully to fly away. As soon as it stretched out a leg, a bullet pierced its neck and the monster fell to the floor, completely lifeless.
Across the room, Stanley holstered his gun, smiling, and then walked calmly out of the tavern.
There appeared to be several people injured in the street, some more seriously than others, so Stanley ordered some of his men to help the victims by offering them medical attention. Meanwhile, his eyes scanned the surroundings of the street where the attack had taken place, trying to find something that would give him a clue as to what these strange beings were.
He and his team were vampire hunters, yes, but apart from the surroundings of those villages, they had never encountered creatures like these before.
They specialized in killing bloodsucking monsters that bore a disgusting physical resemblance to humans, but against all odds, these creatures had nothing to do with them. Vampire’s skin lacked body heat due to the absence of blood flowing through their veins, and their eyes tended to be somewhat peculiar in shape, lacking any sparkle. They had long fangs to feed on the blood of their victims, and their nails were usually elongated, like those of a wild animal.
But the creatures attacking that area had nothing to do with what Stanley classically identified as vampires. These monsters looked like deformed bats the size of wolves, with fangs as long as those of the beasts Stanley specialized in killing. What he was sure of was that, like bats, these creatures were blind.
His eyes fixed on the mountain that the inhabitants of Valdemar had referred to as ‘Piatra Umbrei,’ paying special attention to the old castle that stood at the top.
Finally, Stanley sighed and lit another cigar, using his own matches.
“Commander,” Charlotte called, appearing behind him, “do you need help with anything?”
The man glanced at the girl out of the corner of his eye, raising an eyebrow, then smiled and nodded.
“Yeah, thank you for asking. While I go and investigate that place over there,” he said, pointing with the hand holding the cigar to the mountain that had been the center of his attention seconds before, “I need you to make sure my men don't follow me or get into trouble. Can you do that, Charlotte?”
The girl pursed her lips, not quite sure how to answer.
“B-but I don't think it's a good idea for you to go into that mountain alone, Commander.”
“Are you implying that I'm not capable of killing a single vampire?”
“No!!” Charlotte shook her head, frightened. “But... I think, for your safety, it might be good to have someone... accompany you. J-just in case, only if you want, of course.”
Stanley chuckled softly, pretending to be touched by her words, then looked at her seriously.
“You're not in a position to make suggestions, Charlotte. Follow my orders, and if you behave yourself, I might consider letting you accompany me on a mission in the future.”
Charlotte opened her mouth to contradict him, but with just one look from Stanley, she quickly closed her lips and lowered her head.
“Yes, Commander,” she murmured.
“Good.”
The conversation ended there, and Stanley's eyes returned to the dark castle that stood on the mountain peak. His lips curved into an excited smile, and he felt adrenaline take over his body, consuming him from within.
He couldn't wait to meet this Xeno guy and discover all the secrets he had up his sleeve. And then kill him, of course.