Total pages in book: 153
Estimated words: 140462 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 702(@200wpm)___ 562(@250wpm)___ 468(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 140462 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 702(@200wpm)___ 562(@250wpm)___ 468(@300wpm)
Sylvan laughs, and I just love that sound so much. I might not see his cute face right now, but I imagine it with ease. “Where did that idea come from? Yes, vampires exist in the Nightmare Realm, but I have never met one, and I don’t really know where they might reside. Or maybe they’ve gone extinct? Some say they live on the Darkmoon.” He leans over my head and points to the sky. “Others say that they retreated to some far-away land beyond the Grief Ocean.”
I look up so fast Sylvan has to grab my horns to avoid falling off. [They live on the moon? What?]
“We can find out more, if that’s your wish. But first we need to find safety. And I have to admit, I worry how we will survive the journey to the nearest city. We lost close to everything during our journey, even your redpole. In fact, we will need to forage for our meal tomorrow. Elven settlements may be safer than the wilds, but we will be paupers. I was not prepared to have to earn my keep.”
[I could work as a pack animal,] I point out, placing my paw on the mossy steps leading up to the main entrance into the castle. A crest is carved above the door, but vines have obscured it too much for us to spot any details.
Heat flashes through me out of nowhere, making my heart beat faster, but I shake my head, and it passes as abruptly as it overcame me.
Sylvan laughs. “Don’t be ridiculous, Hawk. I just told you we need to lie low. Even the markings on your face might get us unwanted attention.”
[Okay, but I could keep you safe in the forest, you know so much about all the alchemy thingies. You could gather the expensive shit, and then we’d sell it. Easy. And in no time, you’d have a little shop, we could live above it, and… whatever else you’d like to do between fucking and eating crispy delicacies from all over the Nightmare Realm.]
Sylvan strokes my neck. “Actually, that doesn’t sound like such a bad plan. I love to learn, you know? I’d love to have time to read, research, find out more about the creature you’ve become. And maybe find those vampires for you, if you’re so keen.”
I yelp in agreement just as we face the damp-scented doors, and my call resonates through the hall ahead as if it were an oversized megaphone. Several purple shapes emerge from the building, floating through the air in jerky, rash movements. They screech, and I turn my head after them as my stomach growls.
Sylvan sighs and slides off my back, his gaze following the bat-like creatures now perched high in the nearby tree. With long ears and powerful hind legs, they look like winged hares, but their purple fur and beady eyes make it clear they aren’t of my world.
My coat is so long on Sylvan, it drags over the stone floor as he steps forward. “I used to love them. Hot, crispy, salty wings. An absolute delicacy. But since Lord Kyran’s Dark Companion, Luke, has adopted one and treats it like a baby, the court is banned from consuming bats. At least, since I was banished shortly after that ridiculous decree came to life, I didn’t have to bear it for too long. Imagine having to smuggle them in.” He laughs and stretches his body. I’m glad to see he can make light of the situation.
I don’t get the desire to eat bats out of all things, but he stares at the flying critters with such longing I wish I could catch them all for him. [Then we’ll have to find a place where they’re a cheap, popular snack.] I want to tell him more, but the strange heat dashes through my body again, and I groan, lowering myself to the cool stone.
Is that what the hot flashes my mother told me about feel like? Could it be that my hormones are changing because of the transformation?
“Everything all right?” Sylvan asks and kisses my skull, just above the hole I have instead of a nose. “I have some ideas as to which cities we should consider settling in. I only read about them, but unlike vampires, I’m sure they still exist.”
[Tired,] I say, and as a burning ring closes around my chest, I shed the wolf skin. Moments later, I open my eyes with my forehead pressed to a patch of moss.
Sylvan scoots down to me, and the touch of his cool fingers on my nape is such glorious relief. “Of course you are, you carried me all day. I slept on your back, but you barely got any rest. Let’s see if it’s safe inside. The dungeon used to hold werewolves frenzied with bloodlust, but I doubt any could have survived since this place was abandoned.”