pierced the trees, countless insects buzzed into action, but suddenly they scattered in unison. On the grass not ten feet from the fateful tree there lay a boulder, and from behind it a figure in a blaze of vermilion had appeared.
âWell, I finally manage to get that vampire bloom out of me, only to find this odd turn of events. They said something about trading three lives; all that leaves is Gillis, Lady Ann, and me. I donât know whoâs going to be spared, but I think it would be best if I took my leave as soon as possible.â
â
III
â
The scene in the village was far worse than Juke and the others had ever imagined. For lack of a better word, it was hell. The ground, the houses, the well, the stablesâeverything was stained with blood. Inside and out, villagers dyed vermilion had fallen, and regardless of whether or not they still drew breath, thin geysers of blood gushed from each and every one of their pores like some sort of parlor trick.
Having no choice but to leave the dead where they lay, they went around injecting those who still lived with the medicine. Even for a village the place was still pretty big. Theyâd only covered a third of it by twilight, and the group had no choice but to depend on lanterns and the lights on their wagon to continue their work. Even after theyâd given the people the injections, most of them were too far gone and died. On seeing the corpse of a baby that couldnât have been more than a few months old, Gordo and Sergei sobbed out loud.
Keeping away from the group while they were absorbed by their ghastly task, Lady Ann stood outside the wagon. She heard Gordo cursing and Sergei crying inside a crude house. The cute little girl couldnât understand what made them so sad.
Human beings grew old and died. She understood that. But what about a Noble like herself? Lady Ann had already lived nearly eight centuries looking exactly the same as she did now. And she would probably stay that way foreverâso long as she didnât take a rough wooden stake through the heart or decay in the light of the sun. Wasnât that wonderful?
As a Noble, it was extremely difficult for Lady Ann to comprehend the grief humans felt in the face of death, and it gave her a slight feeling of superiorityâor it should have. And yet, for some reason, a desolate wind blew through her heart. The way the dead girl that shared her name had looked remained now in Lady Annâs brain. Ann would never move againâshe would never come back to life. How pointless. How frail. Thatâs what it meant to be a human being. For those who died and those they left behind, death seemed something unspeakably cruel. Yet that girlâthe other Annâhad worn a peaceful face in death.
Someone had once whispered something into Lady Annâs ear: I envy human beings. Because they live as hard as they can, and die still wanting to live some more. Come to think of it, all the Nobility Lady Ann knew were shrouded in a kind of indolent ennui. Splendid masques and solemn plays in golden opera houses all drifted by like a lazy summerâs afternoon reeking of blood and death, but for all their laughter, the Nobility were weary. They were tired. Oh so tired. But what would come next?
From the very start, Lady Ann couldnât be expected to understand the beauty of mortality, but what she did feel was vague anxiety and a pang of futility. Despite this, a ten-year-old human girl had died looking satisfied. Is that what it meant to live as hard as you could?
Gordo and Sergeiâs words faded into the distance, and Lady Ann felt as if sheâd been cut off from the world. There werenât any stars in the sky. There wasnât even a moon.
âLady Ann,â someone called out to her.
She turned, but there was no one there.
âYou canât see me in the darkness. Because the night is a world made from the shadows.â
âMajor General
âWell, I finally manage to get that vampire bloom out of me, only to find this odd turn of events. They said something about trading three lives; all that leaves is Gillis, Lady Ann, and me. I donât know whoâs going to be spared, but I think it would be best if I took my leave as soon as possible.â
â
III
â
The scene in the village was far worse than Juke and the others had ever imagined. For lack of a better word, it was hell. The ground, the houses, the well, the stablesâeverything was stained with blood. Inside and out, villagers dyed vermilion had fallen, and regardless of whether or not they still drew breath, thin geysers of blood gushed from each and every one of their pores like some sort of parlor trick.
Having no choice but to leave the dead where they lay, they went around injecting those who still lived with the medicine. Even for a village the place was still pretty big. Theyâd only covered a third of it by twilight, and the group had no choice but to depend on lanterns and the lights on their wagon to continue their work. Even after theyâd given the people the injections, most of them were too far gone and died. On seeing the corpse of a baby that couldnât have been more than a few months old, Gordo and Sergei sobbed out loud.
Keeping away from the group while they were absorbed by their ghastly task, Lady Ann stood outside the wagon. She heard Gordo cursing and Sergei crying inside a crude house. The cute little girl couldnât understand what made them so sad.
Human beings grew old and died. She understood that. But what about a Noble like herself? Lady Ann had already lived nearly eight centuries looking exactly the same as she did now. And she would probably stay that way foreverâso long as she didnât take a rough wooden stake through the heart or decay in the light of the sun. Wasnât that wonderful?
As a Noble, it was extremely difficult for Lady Ann to comprehend the grief humans felt in the face of death, and it gave her a slight feeling of superiorityâor it should have. And yet, for some reason, a desolate wind blew through her heart. The way the dead girl that shared her name had looked remained now in Lady Annâs brain. Ann would never move againâshe would never come back to life. How pointless. How frail. Thatâs what it meant to be a human being. For those who died and those they left behind, death seemed something unspeakably cruel. Yet that girlâthe other Annâhad worn a peaceful face in death.
Someone had once whispered something into Lady Annâs ear: I envy human beings. Because they live as hard as they can, and die still wanting to live some more. Come to think of it, all the Nobility Lady Ann knew were shrouded in a kind of indolent ennui. Splendid masques and solemn plays in golden opera houses all drifted by like a lazy summerâs afternoon reeking of blood and death, but for all their laughter, the Nobility were weary. They were tired. Oh so tired. But what would come next?
From the very start, Lady Ann couldnât be expected to understand the beauty of mortality, but what she did feel was vague anxiety and a pang of futility. Despite this, a ten-year-old human girl had died looking satisfied. Is that what it meant to live as hard as you could?
Gordo and Sergeiâs words faded into the distance, and Lady Ann felt as if sheâd been cut off from the world. There werenât any stars in the sky. There wasnât even a moon.
âLady Ann,â someone called out to her.
She turned, but there was no one there.
âYou canât see me in the darkness. Because the night is a world made from the shadows.â
âMajor General
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