RomaniaxReader~Sustenance Pact~Ch 1

Sustenance Pact~Ch 1~

The vampire grinned and bared his fangs, his red eyes giving off an ominous presence to his already intimidating profile.

You thrust your silver sword at the vampire barely cutting the gap that he left as he escaped your sharp blade. You saw him smirk with an annoying confidence that made your blood boil.

It had been three months since you were given an assignment to track down the vampire that had been sighted in a sleepy little backwater town. You thought it was going to be easy given that this vampire wasn't afraid to expose himself and make habitual attacks, but you were wrong.

He—you found out it was a male vampire shortly after starting the mission—would always find a way to elude your pursuit but just barely. He would leave false trails for you, and when you were close to thinking it was a wild goose chase, he would give you another lead to follow—only to find that it was another maze of clues and disappearances.

Frankly, you were pissed.

You were finally able to get him in an open field at least two miles away from the nearest residence. It was here that only one of you would live to see another day…and you planned on being that person.

Still…he was fast, faster than you had expected.

"What's wrong? Already tired?" the vampire mocked you in his heavy Romanian accent and danced out of your sword's reach.

You gritted your teeth and kept swinging. Talking would only make you break your concentration. You weren't about to let him get the better of you. You had spent far too long trying to complete your mission. While three months ticked away like minutes to immortal beings like vampires, they were three months to you—three months you would have much preferred to spend elsewhere.

Unexpectedly, the ball of your foot landed on something hard and round, perhaps a rock, and stumbled backwards. You gasped in surprise.

Everything was a wild blur from there. A flash of strawberry blonde hair whooshed past you stirring up a cool breeze of dust and loose grass. You yelped as two sharp objects punctured into your skin and dug into your throat. He had bitten you.

Trying to stay calm, you used your hand and heaved the vampire's fangs out of your capillary and made a swing at him. You missed again as he jumped back and took off running back to town.

"Hold it!" you cried sheathing your sword and chasing after him. While you were running, you reached up and touched your neck where the damned vampire had bitten you. Your neck was wet with sticky blood, but as you felt around, you couldn't find the two puncture points where he'd bitten you.

That's strange, you thought.

During your training, one of the most important things you were taught was that once you were bitten, you were supposed to turn into a vampire. So why didn't you?

You snorted. None of that mattered now. You decided to simply be thankful that you were still human and keep an eye on your vampire.

-----

You ran for at least a good mile before a heavy fog started to roll in. The vampire was getting harder to see so you strained your eyes to make out the blurry image still running away.  

When your vision was blocked to a mere two yards (or 1.83-ish meters) away from you, you drew your sword and prepared yourself for any surprise attacks the vampire might jump on you.

Nothing.

The fog cleared after more running, and you realized you lost him for the—actually, you'd lost count of how many times he'd foiled you.

Cursing, you went back to the inn you were staying at after hiding your fieldwork sword in a cranny under a nearby rock. By now, everyone who worked at the inn knew your face because you had stayed there for so long. It wasn't necessary to keep vampire's existence a secret since not many people believed them to be real, but for the sake of several conveniences and preventing hassles, you needed to hide the fact that you were part of a vampire hunting organization, GERUN.

GERUN was the oldest-known demon-slaying organization that was founded some hundreds of years ago. It specialized in vampires, but there were other organizations that focused on other demons and monsters. Nevertheless, all the organizations went their own ways.

You had become a vampire slayer only about two years ago, the youngest female to ever become one, in fact. Ever since you became an orphan through a vampire onslaught, you vowed to take revenge against all cursed blood-sucking leeches. It took a lot of work with you being so young when you made your decision, but you were certain that it would be worth it if it meant doing a noble duty to prevent anymore people from going down the path you had to.

But this guy! This guy…! He was starting to be more trouble than he was worth even if it meant having one less vampire in the world.

After saying goodnight to the innkeeper, you went to your room neatly tucked in the corner of the second floor. From there, you could see the entire view of the town as the inn was built on a hill that overlooked the city. You couldn't complain about the view. It was nice being able to enjoy staring down at the colorful streetlights and flickering lamps amidst the late-night bustle of residents doing last-minute things.

Tired of chasing your target, you decided to call it a night. After you brushed your teeth, showered, and changed into your pajamas, you crawled into bed.

You were about to fall asleep when you felt a draft blow past your exposed face. Immediately, you reached for your spare sword only to find that your fellow vampire was over you already.

"Missed me?" he hissed through his smile.

"If you're going to kill me, why don't you?" you asked in a hushed scathing voice.

The vampire's smile was still glued in place. His red eyes started down at you like a predator moving in for the kill.

"I've been watching you for some time, and I realized something," he said.

"And what's that?" You were beginning to feel your heart race in apprehension of the unknown. If he was going to turn you into a vampire, why didn't he do it? If he said he was watching you, why didn't he kill you?

He leaned closer and closer until his lips pressed hard against your throat. You gasped as you felt his fangs pierce into your skin again. You tried to grab your sword, but your body was immobilized in place. It must've been the bite; his venom was probably seeping into your system by now.

The vampire pulled away and licked his lips of your blood. He grinned mischievously at your frozen state, his fangs still stained a rustic red.

"Do you feel anything? Any pain?" he asked.

"No…" Aside being as still as a statue, you were completely fine. At least you were still able to speak.

"Then you're the one!" the vampire beamed.

"What are you talking about?" you frowned.

"Would you really like me to explain?" he asked.

"Why the hell not? It's not like I can move or anything," you said sarcastically.

"Well, it just so happens that in the world of vampires, there is one mortal for each vampire—even new ones—that is destined to be a power source for him or her," the vampire explained. "That fated mortal cannot be transformed by his or her feeder. You may have noticed you didn't turn into a vampire after being bitten twice, right?"

"Y-Yeah…" you answered.

The vampire looked very pleased, elated even.

"Then that settles it! From this point on, I claim you as my soul mate!"

"What?" You actually wanted to yell, but you couldn't afford to blow your cover or the vampire's.

"I'll do whatever I must to keep you alive," he said. "You're a vampire hunter, right? In that case, I'll help you find them if you promise to give me a little bit of blood for a reward."

"You're in no position to barter with me, vampire!" you spat. "In case you didn't notice, I'm supposed to be killing you!"

"You aren't doing such a good job of that, are you?" the vampire asked in an amused expression.

You growled. Even if you agreed to his terms, you were still a vampire hunter. You couldn't just waltz back to GERUN and say you made friends with a vampire that happened to claim you as his soul mate.

Soul mate?

You frowned at the thought of being a vampire's anything except murderer, destroyer, slayer, etc…

"What if I say no?" you asked.

The vampire crossed his arms and tilted his head.

"It's not like I'm going to kill the mortal destined to be my vital source of power," he answered, "but it's not like I'm going to let her entirely go."

You remained silent. When you didn't say anything, the vampire continued.

"I'll always be close by," he said. His grin widened revealing his fangs. "I know you won't kill me because so far, you haven't been able to touch me~"

So he's been toying with me this whole time?! you thought. Just thinking about being played all these months made your insides quiver with a newfound hatred towards the vampire.

"My name is Vladimir, by the way," the vampire said. "Yours?"

"You don't have a right to know," you said bitterly.

Vladimir chuckled. "I already know your name is _________ ___________. I was just hoping you'd tell me in person."

Crap. He must've gone through the guest log at the front counter at some point, you thought slapping yourself mentally on the face.

"Remember," Vladimir said, "I'll be watching you."

"Yeah, you better be watching me because I'm going to kick your ass when I get free!" you strained to say.

Suddenly, you found yourself able to move again. You rolled over and grabbed your sword and drew it—

But Vladimir was already gone.

You swore to yourself. You just took your eyes off of him for barely a second and he already fled. Sighing, you rolled out of your bed to close the open window the vampire must've used to escape.

Before you drifted off to sleep, you found yourself filled with snippets of the things Vladimir told you. The one…power source…will not become a vampire…Soul mate…

Making a sour face, you pushed those ideas out of your head. You touched your neck where Vladimir bit you again. Like last time, there weren't any puncture marks. At least it would easier to avoid any odd stares from the people back at GERUN. Once you killed this guy, you were going to have some questions to ask GERUN when you got back.

-----

The next night, you resumed your hunting trip again. Vladimir said he would be watching so all you had to do was find another open area and wait for him to come. He was bound to show up eventually to try and negotiate with you.

You waited for a good three hours. You'd gotten used to long waits like this because GERUN trained you to be able to handle long periods of isolation. Once they locked you up in a large dark room for an entire day surrounded with motion sensors. If you moved outside of your designated space, you would have to start all over again, but you passed on the first time, of course.

As the minutes went by, you finally detected the first sign of the vampire approaching: a deathly chill in the air. You readied your sword for Vladimir; tonight, you weren't going to let him get away. In just a few seconds, you were going to catch that bloody bastard and finally get to go home.

Vampires had a way of being able to sneak up on people so you knew that you'd have to turn around to face your opponent. When you spun on your heel, you drew your sword and—

What?

This wasn't Vladimir.

"It's very refreshing to see a female hunter now and then. A young one at that," the vampire said baring his fangs.

You braced yourself and waited for the vampire to make his move. Sure enough, he dove at you. You stepped out of the way and brought your sword down, but you only cut cloth. The vampire made a tight circle around you and grabbed your shoulders. You turned your sword around and stabbed inwards, but he let go and jumped a few feet (or meters) away.

With the vampire farther from you, you could observe the way he fought. It was quite different than Vladimir's style. This vampire was more elegant and smooth whereas the Romanian vampire was taunting and playful—perhaps because he wasn't trying to kill you.

You stabilized your stance and waited for the vampire to come at you again. This time, however, he was much faster. You couldn't even predict where he was going to strike next. Before you could act, a fiery pain screamed at your side. You put your hand to your abdomen and felt something warm and wet.

The vampire's right hand was covered in your blood. He brought it to his mouth and tasted it. A wide grin spread across his face.

"Your blood is very rich," he commented. "I look forward to feeding on you."

You hissed from the wound he gave you. It hurt like hell, but it wasn't anything a little first aid couldn't fix.

When the vampire cleaned his hand of your blood, he made a dash at you. You responded by making a stabbing move at his heart, but your loss of blood made your movements falter, and he clawed at your shoulder.

You made a small noise knowing your [dominant side] was scathed. You lifted your sword, but winced from the pain and clutched your other hand to your injured shoulder.

This guy was on a much more different league than the other vampires you'd previously encountered. On top of that, you were one of the best your faction in GERUN had to offer so why was he able to get you like this?

Your heart was racing. Either you kill him, or he would kill you from draining your blood or from your injuries. Even if you managed to flee, he would have no problems catching up with you.

Sensing that you were lost in thought, the vampire went at you again. You blocked his hand with your spare one and tried to stand your ground as his finger dug into your flesh.

Crap, crap, crap, crap. This isn't good…This isn't good at all…

Suddenly, the vampire released you and flew back. Your eyes grew wide when you saw that Vladimir leaped in front of you.

Your attacker sneered. "Stealing what's not yours, how despicable," he hissed.

"She was mine to begin with," Vladimir said. Since his back was turned to you, you couldn't make out his expression.

"Then you must know that her blood is desirably irresistible," the vampire said with a crooked smile. "I'm not going to let you have her without a fight."

"If it's a fight you want, it's a fight you'll get," Vladimir said. You hinted an air of false confidence in his voice. So even an ancient vampire like him wasn't sure he could beat this other guy.

"___________..." Vladimir whispered to you. "Your blood…"

"No way in hell!" you shouted.

"__________."

You paused. He sounded so trusting like he was putting all of his bets on your help. Then you thought of something. You could help Vladimir kill this guy, and when you were done, you could just turn around and kill him afterwards. Two birds with one stone.

"Alright," you said. You looked over to make sure the other vampire wasn't going to make a move.

As if in an instant, Vladimir turned around and seized you in his gloved hands and sank his fangs into your neck. You made a soft whimper as you felt more of your blood leave your body, but it wasn't in fear. It was a much more different feeling, one that you couldn't exactly put into words.

Vladimir took himself away from you and looked back at the vampire.

"So you found your mortal," he observed.

With Vladimir's back to your again, you weren't able to see his face.

"Scared?" he asked. This time, he sounded more than confident with himself.

The other vampire didn't say anything and ran at you two. Vladimir also took off, but at an incredible speed unlike that you saw even of his opponent. He tackled the other vampire to the ground and tore at him. Startle by his speed and strength, the other vampire kicked Vladimir off and ran for cover.

"Coward!" Vladimir spat and chased after him.

"Hey! Wait up!" you cried. You wanted to go after them, but in your state, you knew you wouldn't be able to get very far.

Cursing, you didn't know what other purpose you had here with both vampires being gone. So much for your plan to kill them. Now both of them were out of sight.

-----

You returned back to your room making sure you avoided the innkeeper's eyes in case he asked where you got your wounds.

After you treated your wounds, you flopped on your bed too tired to change out of your field clothes.

You wondered if it would matter which vampire was killed if they got into that situation. You were supposed to eradicate Vladimir, but there was also that other vampire; he wasn't part of your original mission, but he would become a nuisance if anyone found out you failed to take care of him, too. You were a vampire hunter, after all.

Not wanting to bother thinking about it any longer and still in pain from your wounds, you decided to rest on the matter and deal with it later.

You weren't sure how long you had fallen asleep or how long he had been there, but when you woke with a start at the sense of cold air, you saw Vladimir was kneeling by your bedside.

"What the—!" you cried.

Vladimir grinned. "You're very cute when you sleep, you know?" he said.

"What are you—I mean—did you take care of the other vampire?" you asked.

"Ah…that…" Vladimir looked away sheepishly.

"Did you or did you not?" you pressed.

"He got away," Vladimir said.

"How'd you let him get away? You were faster than him!" You felt a slew of negative emotions bubbling up inside your stomach. God, being a vampire hunter could give you a lot of stress.

"He just got away," Vladimir answered. You didn't think he was telling the entire truth, but perhaps he had convinced the other vampire to stay out of the town.

You sighed heavily. You really weren't in the mood to interrogate this guy.

"So…" Vladimir began. "Are we partners?"

"'Partners?'" you echoed.

The vampire nodded. "If I wasn't there, you'd be a dried up corpse by now. At least give me some credit."

You pursued your lips in a frown. It was true that Vladimir saved you, but only because you were his—what did that other vampire call you?—mortal.

"What's to say I'm not going to kill you?" you asked.

Vladimir didn't seem fazed at all. "You're not going to kill me because you're going to need me," he said.

"If my higher-ups find out I'm housing a vampire, I'm dead meat for sure."

"Does that mean you're considering it?" Vladimir asked with a grin.

You gave him an odd look. Even though you could tell this guy was a few hundred years old, he acted a little childish. Just a little more, and he'd be downright annoying. Why did this guy have to be your vampire? Why couldn't he be someone who couldn't give a damn?

"_________?" Vladimir was still waiting.

You rolled your eyes and groaned. "Okay, okay! But the moment the people at GERUN get on my trail, I'm killing you, understand?"

Vladimir didn't even seem to heed your warning and just sat there smiling.

"This is going to be so much fun~"

"Don't you have a problem killing your own kind?" you asked.

Vladimir shrugged. "You humans don't have a problem killing yours when the situation calls for it. And isn't it good enough that I'm offering to help you?"

He had a point there.

"Why don't we make a pact then?" he asked. "I will agree to help you on your missions to exterminate vampires, and in return, you give me blood whenever you're having trouble."

That sounded fair enough. As long as he wasn't going to get in your way, he wouldn't be a nuisance. He also said you only had to give him blood when you were in trouble like tonight, so you wouldn't become anemic or anything.

"Fine, you've got yourself a deal," you said.

You reached out to shake his hand, but you winced when you remembered your shoulder was damaged.