The next week involved quite a bit of socializing and preparation for the big day. Night by night you trained, and although the week didn't give you as much time as you wanted, it gave you enough to get a feel for the Wolves, make a start with the community, and most importantly, teach the young ones how to harness their frustration into power. Power, that will hopefully be enough to block the Zealots off, and beat them by matter of attrition.

You feel as though you've gotten on pretty good terms with both Gideon and Ragnor, both of whom are simply great guys. You've noticed that, despite their differing ideologies, they have utmost respect for each-other, which is rather pleasant to see. Something that always lay at the back of your mind, though, was that Ragnor claimed that he was going to raid the City, regardless of what choice the group took, but you never understood that. How was he going to do that without support?

Still, the only thing you really feel sad about is the lack of time you were able to have with Cecilia. Even though you've trained together, you really wish you could have talked to her more often, about things other than unleashing her concealed persona: the werewolf. But, you manage to keep yourself jovial enough knowing that if you succeed at stopping the Zealot onslaught, you'll have all the time in the world with your new love. Additionally, you might even be able to learn how to read the mysterious hieroglyphs when times of peace are near.

Bright lights ahead, but you just have to reach it.

As the week passes, you all begin sitting in a circle daily, discussing the plan thoroughly, and then send out scouts to see if the Zealots are sending their men to raid your headquarters. The plan is simple; when you are alerted of the Zealot present, you will block off the entrance with any object available, then hide in secluded corners in the dark maze that is the well, and slowly pick off the Zealots as they pass.

Today is one of those days, and you are warily waiting for the knock from the scouts. Any day now, the Zealots should be coming. Time passes; you do this twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening, to see if they're preparing for a night-attack or not. You hope it's at night, as the Creations would have an advantage, probably. Additionally, you wouldn't have to worry about sun-tan lotion, the tube Kelso gave you will run out sooner or later. And so you wait, everybody around you waiting in silence.

You hear the codified knock: Clunk-clunk-clunk.

Someone lets out a sigh-- today isn't the day.

You go out to train once more, reviewing everything, and then turning back to refill on blood. Gideon gives you a broken plastic-cup with maybe an ounce of his blood. You drink it slowly, savoring the taste. It reinvigorates you, like usual, and you set down to meditate, waiting for nightfall.

That night...

Clunk-clunk-clunk-clunk

That's 4... Is tonight the night?

Ragnor's head poking out of the hatch confirms it, "Everybody, wake up, now!" Hearing this everybody assembles, bringing out spare Zealot armors and weapons. Indeed, even you're surprised by their efficiency tonight.

"Alright Wolves, tonight, we defend our home!" You announce, pumping your fist.

However, unlike most of your announcements, nobody but Gideon roars in applause. Ragnor approaches you with a laugh, "Sorry bud, I think we're making ourselves a new home, tonight."

"Huh?" You look around and it seems obvious that everybody but you and Gideon know what's going on.

Cecilia turns to you with a frown, "Sorry, love... but I can't live in this shit-hole any longer. I just... think it's time we took a stand. You understand, right?"

Gideon moves into the fray, sticking his finger into the taller man's chest, "What do you think you're doing, Ragnor? We, deh group, made a decision!"

Ragnor stares back at the hunchback, "Yes, and I made a re-vote, without the peer pressure the group is used to. Turns out, they trust the Church much less than you do, and think that surviving well is better than just surviving, uncertain if they'll get a next meal. We can be the new Human-race: 'Homo-Creatio,' us, the Wolves, Gideon. Think about it!"

Gideon just spits in disgust, "You fool! This is NOT how we're supposed to get continue! Ragnor, the humans "aren't much worse than we are, for there outlook is for survival as well. We can merge with them after showing how similar we are by not slaughtering them in their City!"

"I don't think so, friend. But if I were either of you, I'd join us for survival's sake only, no way can you survive the oncoming Zealots. I saw them-- several groups of ten and covering ground right now. It's either join us or meet your doom."

You look at Gideon, and his dark eyes just blink out, "Don't."


What it comes to, in the end, is whether you wish to join Ragnor and the rest to assault the city or stay by Gideon, alone and at the mercy of the incoming horde.

You stand by Gideon.

You take a step back, standing by Gideon's side. "I'm sorry too, Ragnor. But I simply don't think think this is the way to go."

Ragnor stares back at you intently, before shrugging, "Alright then, Vamp. I'm not going to force either of you. But what about your ghoul?"

"David?" You look around, searching for him. He is currently standing stiff by Ragnor's side, parallel to you. You're surprised you didn't take note of this already.

"Yeah. I've talked to him, and he seems to sympathize with our cause. But, since I still more than an iota of respect for you," Ragnor pauses, giving you time to understand, "I'd rather not cause strife from after death between us. So, may I ask for you to allow him to come with us?"

With a deep breath, you firmly reply back, "If he really wants to go, then he can follow you to oblivion."

"That is all I want from you, Vamp. See you in whatever hell we end up in, eh?" He smiles and takes a hand out to shake.

You wave him goodbye, but don't shake, "See you on the flip side, man. Good luck."

Ragnor suddenly stands with a more serious attitude, and turns to leave, the Wolf Encampment. Within minutes, Gideon and you are alone. Silence dominates the room for a long while before you speak up.

"Gideon, the Zealots are on their way right now. What are we going to do?"

The hunchback takes his time finding a nice seat to reply from on, "Convince them."

"Convince them of what?" You ask, baffled.

"Convince them that we're the least of their worries."

"You mean sabotage the assault?"

"Of course. You have a better idea?"

"... I can't say, yet. But I can tell you one thing, none of my plans would ever include the possibility of leading the Zealots to kill our brothers!" You bring your palm to your brow, "Seriously, Gideon, what kind of idea is that?"

"One that preserves the sanctity of life that doesn't leech off of others'."

"And you don't think they'll turn right around to kill us?"

"Hey, if you can convince them we aren't actually Demons from outer space, then we should try that out first, but for now I'm satisfied with dying with the knowledge that I helped save the human race."

You try to bring attention to Ragnor's groups.

"So you think the only feasible plan would be to divert there attention for the moment?" You frown, uncertain. The other option wouldn't make too much sense, considering that you fought with the Zealot army not too long ago, but this plan seems... distasteful, unattractive. You're betraying your brethren for those who believe you to be nothing more than a monster, people who believe that anything you do is without reason; good or bad, all mindless mistakes carried out by the Devil himself.

It's a scary thought to you-- people believe that about Gideon and me. While I'm not squeaky clean by any means, at least Gideon is willing to throw away everything just to save them!

Gideon begins to shuffle towards the hatch, "Come on, Vampire. We need to get the message out any way we can."

"Well, we still have a Walkie-Talkie that's probably useable."

He turns back to face you, and his eyes widen, "What? We do?"

"Y-yeah..." You reply, beginning to scavenge through the various in nicknacks the Wolves kept, and finding David's transceiver under the mess. "Nigh certain it still works, too."

He throws his hands up in return, "Then let's do that, genius." You grasp the radio firmly in your hand and get a vague feeling déjà vu as you once again dial it to the Zealot-channel. Click. It's on, sounding out static. You interrupt it with an additional button push when Gideon swiftly grabs it out of your hands. "What the hell, man!"

"I'm doing this." Gideon states, still pushing the button. "Zealots, do you hear this?"

The cool, female voice is back, "Err, hello?"

"This is Wolf-leader Gideon, Ma'am. I need you to call off the Zealots attacking our base, for your own sake."

"Um, we don't negotiate with evil, sir."

"No! God damnit Ma'am, I'm warning you because there are only two of us left in the hideout, the rest are on their way to attack your City right now!"

A pause. "We will look into it, then. Thank you for notifying us, whatever you are." You aren't able to identify her tone that well, but you hope it isn't sarcasm. Either way, she doesn't respond to Gideon's next reply, "Thank you."

The two of you sit down on a broken couch, unsure how to proceed further. "So, if they still raid our stronghold, it's over for us?"

"... Yeah. The way I see it, the best case scenario is that all the Wolves are wiped out by the C.E. Strike Force on the way. I just hope they find Ragnor and the rest after they get us."

"And you're okay with this?" You shout, baffled by this still.

He doesn't answer.

You try to contact the incoming Zealots directly and try to get them to sympathize.

With amazing agility, you turn around to send a powerful roundhouse kick to Gideon, making powerful impact-- just enough to have him on the floor, but not hurt too bad. Meanwhile, you grab the fallen transceiver and angrily scold him, "What is the hell is matter with you, Gideon?"

He doesn't respond, though he sits cross-legged on the floor, staring at the floor as a child would. You sigh, and try your own plan at survival.

Click

You push the button in, too anxious to wait for the crackling static, "Quick, Ma'am, what's the Zealot's Combat Channel?"

It's the cool female voice, again, "Channel 40, why? Who is this?"

But you're already flipping the channels. Now, from 13 to 40...

Gideon sits up groggily, and watches you in silence.

"Incoming Zealots!" You announce, then release the button, and wait.

A heavy, though articulate-sounding voice replies from the other end, "This is Chief. Who is this?"

"Friends. Or, at least, those who want to be. We are the last Creations around, and we want to talk to you."

"What do you wish to speak about, Demons?"

"Mostly about your usage of that term. We want peace, nothing else."

"Huh?"

"We- we know you're coming for us and our hideout. But we don't want to fight."

You wait several moments for him to answer. "Give me your name first."

"Err, Vamp."

Gideon chuckles nervously in the background.

The man named 'Chief' gives a heavy sigh, "Right. And how do you want your meeting to be set up?"

"Any sort of meeting that doesn't include me being shot or speared by your guns sounds good."

"Funny. If you actually wish to do this then I'd wait outside for us to come."

"I... Think you misunderstand." You reply, rather certain about Chief's false attempt to mislead you, "Trying to kill us will not work out well for you. There are other Creations, actual evil ones that are heading for your city right now. If you don't stop them then you're city will be lost."

Static for a while. "Why do you not tell me this sooner?"

"... Do you even believe me?"

"Perhaps," he says, "We may send scout teams to check. But for now I'm interested in what you want to speak about. Are you a man of your word?"

"I try."

"Hmm..." Chief pauses, his low-voice ending awkwardly, "Give us ten minutes."

While you wait for him, Gideon just laughs, "I swear, vamp, if you pull this off then I swear..." He gets up with a wry smile.

"Let's just hope their scouts get good information." You reply, ironically trying to be as optimistic as possible. The chances are slim, but you think this could work out with your unlife intact.

Time passes, and while you didn't count how much you still worry that they may have ditched messaging and are just continuing their march to this area.

"Vamp, are you still there?"

You get out of your day-dream and push the button back to reply, "Yes."

"It... Seems you're right that at there are a band of unknown beings several miles behind us. But this doesn't mean as much as you would hope."

"Oh?"

"How many of you are there in all? What if there are actually much more Creations at your base?"

A reasonable suspicion,  "Then that's problematic for you. But I'd wager that your guys won't be able to take on the ten-or-so of the Creations on the way. So I think getting them first should be more important."

"Ah, but that is a good diversion for ten others to bypass us, eh?"

Ugh. You bring a palm to your brow, uncertain how to answer the perhaps rightfully paranoid commander.

He continues, "Still, you bring a solid point. I think you underestimate our capabilities, however. We will deal with both problems, but for now, how do you wish to meet?"

"I assume you know how to enter the well, correct?"

"Yes, we have figured out your trick."

"... Right, well, send yourself and several of your best man down there and we'll talk. There are only two Creations here, but I assure you we can defend ourselves from whatever harm you might wish to inflict on us."

"We'll be there."

And... Off.

Gideon looks to you, "What now, Vampire?"

You prepare the meet-and-greet and hope for the best.

"We prepare by meeting them at the bottom of the well, like good hosts," you reply with a laugh, "If they kill us then they kill us, if they don't then we have a chance at surviving."

Gideon sighs, "You think they'll be able to stop Ragnor and his men, at least?"

"The Zealot name, 'Chief' seemed confident, but I doubt it. In Wolf-form, the Wolves can easily rip apart anyone in seconds, regardless of armor. Unless they send more than half of their troops all the way back to fortify the city then they have an issue."

"Let's hope they do." Gideon says with a frown. Well, you can go hope by yourself, Gideon. I'm hoping we both survive this ordeal.

The two of you wait for a while, unsure how to proceed. Eventually, you both head down the hatch and into the concrete cavern that is under the well. You make your way past the claw-scratches and to the end, where you notice Ragnor thoughtfully closed the plate from on top, instead of leaving it open.

"This is it, Gideon. Our moment of truth." You begin to say, trying to start a conversation.

The hunchback just nods in return, staring upwards to the closed opening, waiting.

Many minutes pass-by, and when something like an hour passes you wonder whether they abandoned raiding the base at all. You idly stand, shaking in place.

Sand slowly begins to pour out of the holes  the plate, the the miniscule dots sprinkling on top of both you and Gideon. Soon, a vague blue light begins to peek in, and you know that the Zealots are here.

You hear a crackling thud, and soon the plate is kicked over and you notice several flashing figures hunching over the well.

"You there, below. You are, 'Vamp'?"

"One and the same." You call back, "The man beside me is Gideon. You wish to come inside?"

You see some finger pointing from the three men surrounding the well, and one extremely built character jumps from the top of the well, using his armor as a brake by trying to grab onto the surrounding wall. You laugh inside, realizing that he obviously didn't notice the ledges on the other side of the cylindrical opening.

The man takes off his helmet, and what you see surprising you, though you;re not sure why. "I am the Chief." The dark-skinned individual introduces himself, bowing slightly. "I have brought exactly 32 men here, and the rest to find and kill the Demons approaching the City. Now, what do you want, both of you?"

Gideon stares at the man with a wide smile, though he doesn't speak. You sigh once again, "We want you to not kill us, to be frank."

Chief laughs, and calls upwards, "Samuel, Zadok, come down and meet these two... Gentleman."

Soon after he announces it, the two men watching from above the well jump in from behind Chief, crashing into the concrete with a loud crack. The dust settles, and the man continues, "The two of you don't seem too bad, but even the Devil can act gracious-- but that's acting. How can you prove to us that you're actually willing of redemption? How can I trust you?"

The two men behind him near, and although they aren't quite up to his size, they don't seem nearly as friendly.

"Well, for one, we warned you about the other Creations... Wait, how much men did you send to apprehend them?"

"Truth." He nods, "30, why?"

That's 13 Creations against 30 mortals; they'll be slaughtered... You consider how to answer, but Gideon interjects, "Chief, the Wolves on their way aren't pushovers."

"And neither are our soldiers."

"No," Gideon continues, "I've seen their leader in action. He is merciless and faster than anything you've ever seen. Your precious City won't hold up!"

For the first time, Chief seems alarmed, "Wait... You are the only De-- Creations here?"

"Yeah. We have no time to waste, then. If you want our support in saving the city, then we'll need your promise of being vouched for." You state firmly.

Chief nods, while the others watch you both, silent. "You got it. Now let's get get back, before it's too late!"

"Alright then," you say, "Let's get out of here while we can." To show them the way, you rush ahead, using the ledges to climb. Gideon and the Zealots follow you up, where you find a horde of patient Zealots, waiting for orders.

Chief raises his hands and yells, "RETREAT BACK TO THE CITY, NOW!"

The Zealots' formation quickly changes and you begin your march to the city, hoping you get there in time...

You epilogue.

With silent haste, the troops march back to the City. The Chief's strict protocol helps bring the scattered clusters into more orderly groups walking in a rectangular form. You cover plenty of ground in a short amount of time, but the tension builds when a scout comes back with no report on where the Wolves are. By the time you all reach the City, it's darker than it seemed before...

Chief motions over to you, "You see, there?" He points to a corner of the City's hexagonal circumference, "The Sentries would usually be commandeering a light. But I don't see them now." He pauses to think, then speaks out in his powerful voice, "Enter Church-City in five groups of six! Never lose sight of a team member and ALWAYS watch your back. Also, remember to turn off your armor's flash. Now move out!"

Immediately, the Zealots begin to cluster together, forming the teams, and spreading out and marching into the City. Before his new team begins to enter the City, Chief brings you and Gideon over, "Now, how shall we stop the Creations inside?"

Gideon replies, "Especially now in the darkness, it'll be hard to defend against them. But otherwise it's find and then kill. Hope for the best, I suppose."

You don't have a much better answer. You can see that everybody on Chief's team is equipped with silver weapons, and that's the only weakness you know about. It all boils down to how much Wolves and Zealots are left inside.

With a sigh, Chief begins to lead his crew into the City while you and Gideon follow. Even in the darkness the City looks spectacularly flashy-- almost everything made of a flashy metal, with neon lights flashing up every corner. The clanging of metal boots on the harsh concrete makes any attempt of stealth completely pointless, but that doesn't seem to be the Zealot-style anyway. If anything, it looks like your team is looking for a fight. But, after marching through the otherwise quiet streets with no conflict, the group begins to relax slightly. Chief takes out his transceiver, and you can hear some muffled sounds coming from him-- but no response. You look around to notice only another group in a parallel street, but you don't see anybody else. 

Several minutes pass, "Bizarre," Chief starts, "Only one out of the four other groups are responding. You think..." He trails off, but suddenly the world becomes more tense, and you all remain on high alert.

Out of nowhere, a huge blonde beast smashes through the metal door of what you can only suppose is a Church. The massive hulking figure is leaves a literal rip in the opening, and appears to be bleeding from the mouth-- though you're pretty certain it's not from itself. The werewolf stares in your direction, hungrily, and slowly begins to advance.

Terrified, the Zealots in your group begin to open-lightning on it-- though it doesn't appear to faze it in any way, aside from scorching its fur.

"Cecilia?" You yell, trying to distract it by waving your arms in the air. The beast pauses, but then continues pouncing in your direction. You quickly run up to it, and bring all your might into an air-splitting punch at the wolf's protruding jaw. It doubles over, but not before, in an act of desperation, making a huge swipe for the Zealots trying to spear it; about three Zealots were flung  several meters into the air and back to the floor, only not to wake up. Chief manages to sink the tusks of his rifle into the horrid beast before she turns back into your would-be lover-- Cecilia.

You spit, trying to make sure your emotions don't meddle with this. We must take back the City, for humanity's sake.

By now, even the other Group appears to not be responding... "Vampire... We aren't going to win this fight." Chief confesses, clutching at his healthy chest. "What do we do now?"

"You don't know that, Chief. There can't be too many Wolves left..." You reply slowly. As expected, the heavy bounding of paws is heard, and a black Werewolf, standing on its hind legs stares at the remaining of your group with its ruby eyes-- Gideon, Chief, and yourself. The surviving Zealots fled, no doubt to be killed by Ragnor: the black Wolf. With a horrible shriek of a howl, the Wolf slams it's paw into Chief, hitting awkwardly as he tries to dodge though sending him back long enough for the Wolf to focus on you, grabbing you with its paws-- digging his claws into your skin, and throwing your bleeding corpse almost an entire street.

Your body cuts itself on the concrete, and even though it heals itself you can feel the pain of a dislocated shoulder and a broken wrist and several ribs. You manage to get up, albeit slowly, only to witness an Albino Wolf wrestling with a darker one, both relatively similar mass but different in proportion. The white one (Gideon) seems to be shorter, though more muscular, while the stygian Wolf (Ragnor) manages to be taller and much more overbearing; much like how they are in their regular forms.

You run towards Ragnor, hoping to help Gideon out in the fight, but the white monster eyes you while it struggles against the darker one, it barks in your direction, as if telling you to get the hell out of this while they duke it out. As Ragnor sinks his teeth into Gideon shoulder, a horrible howl is let out-- and it soon becomes apparent that Gideon it outmatched.

Taken aback, you meekly help the Chief up-- who's mesmerized by the masochistic display going on by the two forces at work. Gideon grasps the younger wolf by its throat, and manages to get on top in the scuffle. The two continue to exchange blows, blood squirting out into the floor, until... Gideon slows down, and with a final, angry bark-- he is killed.

Ragnor feasts on his killed with a hungry lust; ripping at his enemy's fleshy neck, and happily ripping out and crunching on whatever bones he finds. While Chief continues to blankly stare, you decide that its time you took action on Ragnor, and with the rage built inside of you, the death of Gideon; the one honestly good person you've met, manage to take the Wolf off-guard with a bull-rush. You sink your own claws into the wolf-man's throat, hacking into it. The heavier and stronger animal attempts to crush your midsection with its bare hands before you can kill it, but your swipes prove affective enough with the additional injuries Ragnor got from the White Wolf.

As the fight comes to a close, you find yourself soaked in blood and on top of a dead, un-regenerating corpse. You find the Chief bowing down to the floor, praying in a language you don't understand. After several moments he stands, in shock. Unlike before, there are no sounds; just the deathly chill of the wind.

"What-- what now?" Comes his pathetic voice.

"We... We find the other Creations, and bring them to justice." You bring a bleeding hand to your brow, "Think about it; this can't be the only civilization left, and there are bound to be other Creations wishing to do harm to others. But you and I, we can stop them. We can find a way through the desert."

Chief nods, "But I don't think I can carry on with you, for I just... My legs... they aren't moving!"

With a grin, you sink your teeth into his neck, and suck-- but not too much, just enough to ghoul him. The salty blood isn't as enjoyable since after today's events, but you'd be lying if you weren't.... Thirsty.

The former-Zealot stands erect, ready to be at your command. "Shall we be off then?"

"We shall."


You have managed to survive in your undeath and leave a possible legacy, but the questions remain! What happened to Kelso? What about the Professor? What could have happened if you had chosen a different path?

You restart

Vampire.

Indeed, that is what Kelso called you. You can still hear his cold, baritone voice explaining it to you. Vampires in the tales of Fantasy are glamorized; nigh-immortal, sexually desirable, powerful. But, while you suppose you are some of those things, in truth, you are not much more than an albino with a lot of health issues. The sun, he said, will damage your skin more than anything else. Any sort of foodstuff can't be digested anymore by your barely functioning bodily systems. He claims to have an idea of what the 'Professor' was trying to do to us, but for whatever reason, he has dodged the questions anytime you ask.

Any information other than that, Kelso hasn't revealed. The irking thing is that it is obvious he knows what's going on, but he consistently acts as if it is in your own good you don't know what went on.

The nights have been hard since your escape from the Facility. Most nights you wake up shivering, after all the nightmares you've been dealing with. It's terrifying, and it only makes you wonder what horrible things were done to you at the Facility. You do know that they must have affected your ability to feel. No, not the wishy washy 'emotional' garbage you'd usually expect, but your sense of touch was dulled. While a lot of your senses have been heightened, that one stands out. You feel very little pain from your feet, which is odd; considering how you spent your time running over cracked glass just two days ago, but it seems to have healed recently.

---

Waiting. It should be sunrise by now. Kelso said you shouldn't get out, as you are a creature of the darkness now. He, on the other hand, has been out for the entire night and then some. You're not sure what Kelso is hunting for, but you know that you're beginning to get thirsty. More and more questions begin to build up, and no doubt the bastard won't answer half of them. Even while you ran with him through the night, running across various landscapes. Most are just a barren dessert, though every once in while you'd pass a half-buried house like this.

"Bright lights up ahead." He said. A city only several miles down. Kelso must have gone there for the clothes he mentioned, but you hope he's safe....