The sunlight beat down through the treetops, exhausting Princess Emilia Stark. The dirt path was now peppered with light and show in equal measure. It was unbearable to the point Emilia had to fight with her horse, Khal, to keep her under control. Khal wanted so very much to drink from the nearby stream, but there were more urgent issues at hand. Much more urgent.

Emilia looked up to the blue sky, letting the sun fall full on her face. She and a few of her royal guardsmen--including Zephyr Malconan, her captain--were on a hunt. It being midday and with the sun so high, it was safe to say it wasn’t a hunt for mere fauna. No, it was a prey of the bipedal kind. Human, to be exact. In Emilia’s home, the Pale Kingdom, humans are used for servants, workers, and even slaves should their owners believe as such. And despite them being protected, fed, and clothed, some of them deemed themselves worthy of other liberities and escaped the kingdom walls.

Emilia smirked at the thought of sinking her fangs into their throats and draining them of every last drop of blood. Every human within her land knew the consequence of escaping. It was so simple: Death.

At the thought of her next meal, Emilia felt that familiar ache within her blood teeth. The dry, burning sensation began to creep through her body, rivaling the ache even the sun brought her. Her senses sharpened, picking up every sound, every scent. She knew she wouldn’t have long before the sensations became unbearable.

“My Lady, are you alright?” Zephyr glanced over at the princess’ feral sound. The lady’s flawless skin was a shade paler, almost matching her silver-blond hair. The captain shifted in his saddle. “Should I return to the castle and bring back a lamb? It won’t take too long.”

The girl’s mouth twisted. “No,” she growled. “I can handle a few moments more.”

“What about the wolves?”

“Feh. I’d rather have the joy of hunting them down myself.” Emilia’s voice was sharp and clipped.

Zephyr pulled out the paper that started their hunt. It contain a hastily scrawled message. “Commander Nero informed us that three humans escaped at daybreak,” Zephyr recalled. “They shouldn’t have gone too far, especially with this heat.”

“Fools thought the sunlight would give them a better chance.” Emilia’s eyes glinted. “Stupid. I’ll remember their faces when they...”

The princess trailed off. A soft wind blew, bringing her a familiar smell. Flesh, human flesh. Khal seemed to sense the change and automatically haulted. Dismounting, Emilia stood, watching the forest. Her ears picked up the faint sound of feet running through the lush grass. No more than three hundred yards away. And Emilia was gone before Zephyr and the others had time to register it.

Emilia thrilled in the chase. Close, so close! she repeated to herself, over and over again. Her very core ached, the burning making her lungs feel almost like they would explode. Finally, when she could stand it no more, she saw him. A human male, approximately thirty years old, hiding behind the thick trunk of an old maple, panting and out of breath. As much as Emilia wanted to watch the light leave the human’s eyes, she couldn’t control herself any longer. She attacked instantly.

More, she said to herself, the man’s life force flowing down her throat, I need more! The burning sensation slowly ebbed away, but not fast enough for the lady’s liking. Emilia pulled her lips back from the man’s throat when she was sure there was no more to take. You fools. Why even bother hiding? She dropped the corpse to the ground and looked at her surroundings. She walked a little ways, admiring the dark trees with their full branches. But not full enough.

At the top of a grand maple before her, Emilia spotted the last two humans. She smirked, the red points of her blood teeth peeking out below her lip. Oddly enough, only one of the pair seemed terrified: the older woman. She stared down as though the princess was the Devil made flesh. But the boy...

The woman was in her forties, the boy close to Emilia’s age. The princess couldn’t help it; she let out a disturbing laugh, marvelling at the fright it caused the woman.

“Why not come down and make it easier on your princess?” she asked politely. “This sun is making all this quite uncomfortable for me.” No answer. Her mouth twitched. “Why did you bother to escape? You think I’m a simpering child, afraid of the sun?”

Taunting them, Emilia lept with the ease and grace of a cat, landing on the same branch as the pair. The boy ripped a small, dead branch free, holding it out like one would a blade. The princess’ eyes narrowed.

“The smartest thing you’ve done all day,” she remarked. Her purple eyes burned. “Did you know that wood is like poison to vampires? Not only have you escaped my walls, you’re now threatening my life. Poor fool.”

In one graceful step, she knocked the boy aside and pinned the woman against the tree trunk. Emilia lowered her face and sank her blood teeth into the pulsing blue vein. And when she was done, she dropped the woman from the branch. She landed with a sickening crunch below. Only one more left.

Emilia looked at the boy. He was resilient, keeping hsi footing on the branches as would a seasoned climber. And he said no words, only glared with a fire the princess hadn’t seen before. She cocked her head to the side.

“Are you not afraid?”

“No.”

“Oh? Then, please, tell me your name.”

“Hollis.”

Emilia smiled. “Well, then, Hollis. Since you know the consequences for escaping, I’ll give you a choice. Die where you stand and plummet to the ground below, or become like me. I like your spirit.”

The boy grit his teeth, scrunching his whole face in disgust. “Fuck yourself, monster. I’ll die the way I was born. A human.”

Emilia refused to let the shock of Hollis’ words bother her. She felt a strange feeling engulf her. Forcing a smile, she shook her head. “Pity.” She stared as Hollis reached for another stick, laughing at his fear when she encircled the boy’s waist and softly landed them both on the ground below. “Do not attempt escaping again. You’ve impressed me, so I’m feeling a little generous.”

The princess turned when Zephyr and the others joined her. The captain gave her a questioning look but Emilia turned away. Something in her gut wouldn’t allow her to face the man’s eyes.

“Return the boy to his owner,” she replied.

Puzzled, Zephyr ordered his men to grab the boy. As he and the others followed the princess back, Zephyr glanced to the boy. He was shocked; that much was very clear. His face said it all, but he wasn’t crying or trembling like the others had been. He seemed perfectly normal. Nothing special.

Emilia mounted Khal, complete furious. The weather was far too bright for her sour mood. And what had just happened!? Where did that feeling come from? She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t kill him. She nudged her heels into Khal and they took off in a gallop towards the castle.

*******

Danny Braxton stared up at his ceiling for maybe the fifth or sixth time that day. The sun had been shining all day, and it hadn’t rained in about a week so it was perfect for going outside. But all he had done was lay there, listening to the breeze and birds through his window. With all else he could have done, why he just stayed there was beyond even him.

The sound of the phone ringing brought him out of his trance. Sighing, he rolled onto his side and grabbed the cordless phone.

“Hello?”

“Hi, Danny. It’s Ravi!” Ravira Khoudan’s cheerful voice rang crisp and clear like a bell. “What’re you up to?”

“Nothing yet, Vivi,” Danny replied. He pulled himself onto the window sill, running a hand through his messy dark curls. “You guys have something in mind?”

“Tristan and I were thinking about checking out that group of trees near the hill,” the girl replied. “He said he found an odd cave last time we went hiking there, and he just has to check it out tonight. You know him,” she added with a giggle.

“A cave? You guys are nuts. I mean, yeah it’s a great day and all but... He’ll get mad when he finds out how far back into the property you’re going.” Sheepishly, Danny said, “He acts so weird about that place...”

“Melfice is gone until Sunday, isn’t he? We have two whole days! And the more the merrier. Please?”

“I don’t know, Vivi... As much as I’m loving this weather, I’d rather not get lectured by a scary old man.”

Ravi giggled. “Aw, come on, Danny! Tris says the cave isn’t too far away. Just at the base of the hill.”

Danny hesitated. Glancing out the window to the hill the girl spoke of, he was about to protest when Ravi added, “And if you don’t join us, Melanie said she’s going to stop by and bug you.”

“WHAT!?” Danny grit his teeth. That annoying girl was always stalking him, trying to find out what he was up to or if he was seeing anyone. “And if I do go, is she going, too?”

“No, she said she wasn’t dumb enough to go against your grandfather’s rules. Kinda like what you said, huh, Danny? You guys’d make quite a pair.”

“Ugh, when are you gonna be here?”

Ravi giggled again. “I knew you’d say yes! We’ll be over in about an hour.”

Danny clicked off the phone and glanced back outside to the hill. Though the sun shone and the sky was clear, something felt awfully wrong about that place.