Part Three: (Or the part in which Toltek runs into unexpected company, a falcon decides it’s okay to stalk people, and he crashes a party with exceptional cake!)

***This part will be written in Toltek Brightstar’s POV unless otherwise noted***

Dammit. Not again.

I woke up with my father yelling for me downstairs. I rubbed my eyes and started another Jynx-less day. It had been, what, a month since she had disappeared? Her sister had followed less than a couple weeks afterwards. I’m not too sure. I could’ve been two days, maybe three since it all happened.

I missed my best friend ever since she disappeared. Her mother was worried sick over her and I promised Miss Merida that I would find her daughter if I could.

I think I had a few tricks up my sleeve.

“Toltek! Get down here!” My fathered called. Grabbing the smock hanging on the wooden peg, I trotted downstairs. My father’s smudge stained face was black with the grease. He handed me a box of arrowheads. Today was fletching day.

“Four hundred need to be done by the end of today.” He spoke gruffly. My eyes went wide.

“Four hundred!?”

“The guard is ordering a big bundle of them. Tols, we’re getting good pay for this!” He exclaimed. With a sigh I nodded. He smirked and ruffled my hair. I shooed his hand away and went out front.

“Hey, Brightstar.” Sophie from the bakery down in the middle of town grinned as she passed. I waved and sat down behind the bench. The hours of work seemed to loom before me. I could get seventy five, maybe ninety arrows made in an hour. As long as I didn’t have to go search for string, I would be popping these arrows out in about six hours or so.

I got some string and wood and started to put the arrowheads on the tips. There was a specific way to heat up the wood and put the arrowhead on. The stove was already heated up so I started to get everything set up.

The sun’s blazing heat was chilled by a winter wind. Soon enough, I was shivering and searching for a cloak.

I wondered as I passed the three hundred and second arrow, when someone would invent a machine that shot tiny metal pellets. That sounded like you could cover more distance than a sword or bow!

When I finished the last arrow, I set the pile inside and tied it up with string. My blistered hands were worn and sweaty. The palms stung where I had accidentally burned myself. I hoped the local guard would pay us well. Hell knows we could use the money.

As soon as I got the signal from my father, I quickly made my way to the barn that I spent most of my time at. Wrapping my deerskin cloak around my shoulders, I walked up to the door and raised my hand. There was an empty, echoing sound as I knocked on the door.

“Toltek. It’s good to see you.” Miss Merida smiled. Her features were worn and the bags under her eyes said that she had lost many hours of sleep. I gave her a gentle hug as she patted my brown hair.

“Do you mind if I take Lullaby out?” I asked her hopefully. Her lips cracked into a grin.

“Of course. Looking for her again?”

“As always. I’m going to scout out a new area that I haven’t mapped.” I told her. She nodded, looking at the worn tops of her ragged shoes.

The deal we had, ever since Jynx went missing, was that if I could borrow a horse for a while, I would look for Jynx and Sparrow. She always lent me Lullaby, a snow white mare with crimped hair. I had a little notebook in my pocket with a piece of charcoal to mark out the spots I had checked.

“Thanks, Miss Merida.” I closed the door behind me as I left and went up to the barn. Opening up the doors, I walked into the familiar stable.

The window let in light and kept it warm. The equines’ breath came out in foggy snorts. The snow white mare in the middle stall called out a greeting as I stroked her nose.

“Come on, Lullaby. It’s time to ride again.” I sighed longingly. Although I came back from hours of searching every other day with no results, I always hoped to run into one of two things.

First, I wanted to find Jynx or her sister. I wanted to find them alive and bring them back.

Second, I wanted to find a Witcher.

I knew that if I could find a Witcher, I would find Jynx. Why? That day that she was taken from us, I saw a strange man in the bar. He looked pale and wore all black. That immediately set my brain off and told me that all was not right.

As soon as Jynx disappeared, so did the man. That was enough evidence I needed. I took a few days off work to travel to the town south of us. Wrensted housed a library and I took a couple days to learn as much as I could.

I had checked up on my lifelong dream, to be a Witcher. I learned what I could at first. I soaked up every bit of knowledge. I learned their documented ways. After hours on that subject, I start researching possible black arts targets.

There was necromancers, but they typically wore robes, not cloaks. They had symbols scrawled on their arms in deep shades of scarlet, but weren’t inked, like this man had been.

There were witches and warlocks, but most were mentally unstable and liked to be more…reclusive. According to documented Witcher cases, witches/warlocks didn’t come out to towns all that often.

And then there was the vampires.

Black hair and pale skin….that’s the stereotypical vampires. But not every immortal conforms to that. There are many types of vampires, or at least, many clans. Each clan has a different look, different set of characteristics. The rule of thumb is that a person will join the clan that they were turned by. A Wu’run that bites a human will make the new vampire a creature that has traits like a Wu’run.

Although most vampires are typically part of a clan, there are those that go solo. Most of these vampires don’t last long.

There are the Wu’run clan. The name translates roughly from the ancient vampiric language to our current language as Flesh Devourer. As the name describes, these vampires are exceptionally vicious-even to their own kind. They actively seek out humans to devour and consider it a sport. They live in warmer climates in the south, near the swamps. They have greenish skin and can be distinguished by the unusual long, stark white hair. Inks include any creature that is a “pet” to the vampires, typically on the legs.

The Lunam clan are supposedly peaceful vampires that feed on livestock and are considered ‘monk-like’. Although this is what is believed, the truth is that the vampires spend years in a trance state. The hungrier they get, the more powerful they are. When they come out of their trance, they are known to ravage towns and shred any living thing to pieces. They aren’t the normal pale vampires, but have a golden colored skin with bright yellow eyes, like that of a daisy. Most are inked with a couple circular tattoos on the arms and legs. Sometimes, a word will be written across the forehead.

There are the Vulcan clan. Unlike most vampires that will go out and slaughter humans, this clan is thought to keep humans as a “pet”. They don’t kill, but rather capture. The innocents are kept in cell and endure torture until death. This clan is commonly seen with a large, dark wolf-like beast called a night hound. A Vulcan vampire can be identified by inks down the arms or on the chest. They have pale skin. Unlike most vampires clans (Who are often recluses), these vampires are cunning and will go into towns just to scope out the scene. They don’t seem bothered by the sun, unlike the Urdin who are very sensitive to bright lights. Location of residence? Unknown. Considered one of the most dangerous vampires, tread with caution….

The Urdin….

And that’s where I had stopped. My notebook had been filled with notes on the man and compared to the Vulcan. I was convinced it was a Vulcan vampire. At that point, I was nearing a panic attack and felt like I had to see the nearest Witcher I could find.

So now, I hoped that I would find a Witcher so he or she would help me kill the vampire that took Jynx. Saddling up Lullaby with these thoughts in mind, I led her out of the barn and closed the doors behind me. She snorted impatiently as I leapt on her back.

We were off as soon as I kicked my heels to her side. She started at a light trot as we took the usual path. There was a new section of the forest I wanted to explore. It would lead up to the coast line.

Lullaby’s rocking gait started to lull my sense of sleep into reality. I see why they named her Lullaby! Her gait was so smooth, it could rock you to a land of dreams if you weren’t careful!

I clicked and she slowed to a halt. I fingered the handle of the sword strapped to my belt. I never left home without a weapon. We met a branch in the path and I steered the horse down that way. She snorted in annoyance. This wasn’t the usual path we took!

“It okay. I know that it’s different.” I patted her neck. She whinnied and I chuckled. Lullaby sure had a lot of personality. Maybe if I ever earned enough money, I would buy her from Miss Merida one day….

We slowly picked our way through the knots of roots that stuck out of the barely worn path. The trampled dirt didn’t look very used. Lullaby snorted and her ears flattened. I looked around for the cause of what made her flatten her ears.

She trumpeted a warning and balked as I peered through the trees. Only when I looked ahead did I notice what she was staring at. I stroked her mane to calm her down as my own breath hitched.

Four men in blood red cloaks and silver armor stood in my path. They were mounted on heavy war horses, each a dark grey color, like that of a hurricane. Their weapons stood polished and silver. I felt the fear crawl up into my throat.

I knew what they are. I knew from the pictures.

They were Witchers.

Notes

Sorry that I didn't warn you part two was ending so soon! Well, we're on Part Three and it's going to be a shorter part of the story! (Sorry!)

Anyways, this part is about Toltek and some Witchers. I bet you can guess what happens next. XD

The contest is going to be ending in fifteen days! Now's your chance if you want to participate in a creative competition. So far, I have five people entered. Yeah for that! I'm hoping to have a few more people join and the stakes will be higher. If you HAVE ALREADY MESSAGED ME saying you're going to participate, here's a reminder: DON'T FORGET TO SEND ME A LINK! If you're participating, I need you to send me a link AS SOON as your entry is posted on the site :) Thank you ever one!