THE VICTIMS

"Why did I keep going to this dumb hunt?" she asked. Aric questioned himself while taking another sip from his cup of spiced blood.When he looked around the room at the happy expressions on the other vampires' faces, he couldn't help but let out a sigh.He shook his head in disgust as he pushed a stray lock of his blonde hair out of his face and pushed it back behind his ear. Some hunters appeared to be dressed in the style of safari hunters from the human era, while others wore camouflage, and yet others wore shredded flannel shirts, jeans, and hiking boots. All of the hunters appeared to be in an absurd state of attire.The purpose of the hunt was to commemorate the anniversary of the vampires' victory over the human world with bloodshed.His hometown of Spokane, Washington, was one of the cities that hosted the hunt. Other cities' customs varied widely; for example, some cities openly slaughtered individuals in their city square, while others announced a public hunt in which any p

Aric sat on a high tree branch at the edge of the arena, observing the others as they participated in the hunt by locating and killing the prey one after another.A fool who thought hiding in the cages would trick the hunters was the first to be caught and killed. This was a very expensive mistake.Not much time had passed when the second of the poisoned prey was finally brought down. She was fixated on the moonlight reflecting off the ice as it glistened on pine needles covered in frost.The prey was brought down one at a time. Some were executed swiftly, and their blood was drunk on the spot. Others were restrained, branded, and fitted with collars before being led out of the woods by their new masters.Aric watched everything going on with a visceral revulsion, and he detested that others of his type enjoyed participating in the blood sport.His attention was drawn to some movement along the boundary fence. When he got a better look, he noticed that one of the female prey was grabb

Healing Aric observed as the human's face became white in response to what he said.He ought to have been more mindful that she was not accustomed to following instructions, but this was a skill that she would need to acquire rapidly.He reiterated, pointing to the chair, "I said sit down and take off your top," but she did not budge from where she was sitting.As she moved to carry out his directions, she had a slight quiver in her bottom lip, and one of her shoulders hung lower than the other.While seated, she began a futile attempt to pull her shirt up over her head, gritting her teeth and biting her lip as she strained to move her damaged arm.Aric rushed to her aid after assessing the level of suffering she was experiencing, pleading with her to move quickly.Even though he could see the terror written all over her face as he approached, he didn't give a damn. Because time was of the essence, he had to determine the extent of her wounds as quickly as possible.He assisted her wi

Aric had almost entirely forgotten about his new pet until he heard an unusual chattering sound. At that moment, he was drying himself off.Confused, he searched until he discovered his pet standing by herself in the shower, nude and shivering. She was attempting to rub some warmth into her arms while she stood dripping with water, her teeth chattering behind blue lips.Aric tucked his towel around his waist and walked to a cabinet across the room as he rolled his eyes and said under his breath about people's utter and complete idiocy. He wondered what he was going to do with a pet.Since he had just gotten rid of his previous pet, he had no desire or need for another animal companion.After pulling open one of the cabinet doors, he reached inside, grabbed a beautiful new towel, and then threw it to her before turning.He spat at her, "Dry yourself off before you catch a cold," as he felt the dawn approaching and realized that he was losing his strength. "The last thing I need is for

Aric woke up with the stench of blood left to dry, itching at the tip of his nose.He blinked his eyes to clear the sleep from them and then glanced around for the source of the odor, attempting to recall whether or not he had left a cup of blood out for an excessive amount of time.Aric's eyes came to rest on the cage, and in an instant, his memories of the hunt came flooding back. This caused him to sit straight upright.As he got a closer look, he noticed that the cage was in a state of disorder, that the bed had been destroyed, that the mattress had been ripped up, and that there was a smell of blood everywhere.He sprang from the bed and hurried to the cage, where he quickly unbolted the door and kicked a piece of blood-stained wood out of the way.His companion animal was found snuggled up against the bars on the opposite side of the enclosure, blood and mattress stuffing caked all over her legs and hands.Aric was taken aback when she suddenly jerked her head up and stared inte