Night was deep, the moonlight casting a pale gleam on the coffin. In the distance, the sound of sword slicing through flesh echoed ominously.
"Master, wake up already," cried the sword but not with sound. No voice. Only he could hear it.
As the sword levitated on its own, it slashed through swarming rats with ease.
"This blood is disgusting… these souls are… ugh" it groaned, faltering mid-thought, then dropped to the ground.
More and more rats skittered over the floor, biting at the blade. Then BOOM! A thunderous noise cracked through the village.
The coffin burst open. Its lid crashed to the ground, kicking up clouds of dust. The moon's glow illuminated the man inside Valen, slowly rising and stretching.
"Gooood damn, that was a good sleep," he muttered, glancing right. "Ugh, what's going on here? Why are they running like that?"
But the sword… the sword was nowhere in sight.
"Wait hold on. Where's my sword?" he asked aloud, before launching a fireball toward the rat horde just enough power to scare them off.
The swarm scattered, retreating through the crumbling remains of the building.
"Master!" cried the sword, glowing a bright green as it lay nearby.
Valen picked it up by the hilt. "Why are you glowing like that?" he asked, wiping the blade clean and sliding it into the sheath he had kept hidden in the coffin.
He stood, dusted himself off, and stepped out of what remained of the ruined kitchen.
Outside, several armored figures were approaching. They wore cloaks bearing a strange crest the one you shared. The emblem depicted a golden anchor with a royal crown and cross, all set against a divided red and blue background. Above the shield was a knight's helm adorned with gold and blue plumes a symbol of high rank or noble heritage.
"Hey, you!" shouted one soldier, clad in black armor. He looked like a captain.
"Do you even know where you are?" he added.
"Ah shit here you go again trouble," Valen sighed, turning and casually walking the other way. "Please don't chase me," he muttered under his breath.
He picked up speed, dashing toward what looked like the ruins of a forge.
"After him!" bellowed the black knight. Four soldiers followed. One hurled his sword at Valen.
Valen spun mid-run, caught the sword midair, and threw it back with brutal precision—wounding one in the shoulder.
"You are idiot!" shouted the black knight, striking the soldier who had thrown the weapon. "You were supposed to catch him, not kill him! Look what you've done Mathew's going to die because of you!"
And then, without hesitation, he drew his sword and sliced the wounded man in half.
The remaining three soldiers stood frozen, watching in horror.
"What are you waiting for? After him now!" the Black Knight bellowed, his voice like thunder crashing through a stormy sky. Then, under his breath, he muttered with disdain, "It's like dealing with children... must I command your every move?"
He stood like a shadow given form, clad in jagged obsidian armor veined with dark, unnatural light. A tattered black cloak billowed around him, whispering like smoke in the wind. His face was hidden beneath a deep hood, a void where eyes should be, and in his gauntleted hand, he gripped a massive sword crackling with eerie energy. An aura of dead clung to him, heavy and suffocating .
"Ah, these people... who did they even assign to me?" the Black Knight muttered with a low growl, striding forward. In the blink of an eye, he caught up to the others, his presence like a storm crashing upon them.
Valen surged ahead, beginning the incantation of his flame. Drawing his blade, it burst into crimson fire, casting a furious glow across the village. With a powerful jump, he leapt nearly fifteen meters into the air and swung his sword downward, releasing a wave of fire. Two of the pursuing knights cried out Aaaaaaaaaagh, scorched and broken by the blast.
The Black Knight shielded himself using the corpse of a fallen comrade, the flames licking but not touching him. "Damn vampire," Valen heard him growl.
Valen's eyes widened "He knows what I am."
Without waiting for more, Valen turned and fled, his body disappearing into the darkness of the forest, too swift now to catch. Shadows closed around him, but deeper dangers waited in that cursed wood.
"Leave him," Dark knight of the remaining growled. "We need to return to the commander. Report the Marshal's dead."
"And that vampire...he's the one who did it."
By then, Valen was long gone, hidden among the ancient trees, breathing hard, the night thick with threat.