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The flavors exploded in my mouth—savory, spicy, tantalizing.
But beyond the taste, it was the act itself, the sheer primal hunger, that consumed me.
“Emilia!” Mayn’s strong hand wrapped around my arm, yanking me away from the vendor’s stall.
The vendor, a middle-aged man with a graying beard, stared at me in shock.
“I—I’m so sorry,” I stammered, the remnants of the meat still clinging to my lips.
The realization of my actions hit me like a freight train, and a wave of embarrassment washed over me.
Mayn quickly handed the vendor some money, murmuring an apology, before guiding me away from the scene.
The sounds of the city, which had faded into the background during my episode, now roared back to life.
“Emilia,” Mayn began, his voice gentle yet firm, “are you alright?”
I nodded slowly, still trying to wrap my head around what had just transpired. “What… what was that? Why did I do that?”
Mayn led me to a quieter alley where we could talk undisturbed. “It’s a side effect of the Vendikar poison,” he explained. “The transformation it induces isn’t just physical; it alters cravings, instincts, even behaviors. Eventually, you’ll become one of them.”
“One of what?”
“Them.”
A Vendikar. My mouth fell open and felt dry. “But… I’ve never… I mean, I don’t eat meat! Not for years!”
Mayn placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. “It’s not your fault. The toxin amplifies certain desires, making them uncontrollable. The craving for blood is just one manifestation.”
Blood?
I gulped.
I leaned against the brick wall of the alley, feeling overwhelmed. “How do we fight this, Mayn? If I’m turning into…” I couldn’t bring myself to utter the creatures’ name. “…into one of them, how do we stop it?”
Mayn’s eyes, reflecting the dim city lights, bore into mine with unwavering determination. “We’ll get to the cure, Emilia. And until then, I’ll be right here, helping you every step of the way.”
His words offered a small comfort in the vast uncertainty that lay ahead.
* * *
The cool night air was filled with the distant sounds of the city: muffled voices, the distant hum of vehicles, and the sporadic barking of a dog.
As we darted through alleyways and side streets, Mayn keeping a close eye on the shadows, a sudden chill of unease settled over me.
It wasn’t the biting cold that got to me, nor the growing hunger, but rather an indescribable feeling that we weren’t alone.
Mayn’s pace quickened, his strides purposeful and his eyes scanning our surroundings. “Stay close,” he murmured, his voice barely above a whisper.
The fact that he was on edge, too, did nothing to soothe my fraying nerves.
Rounding a corner into a narrower, dimly lit alley, I barely had time to register the dark figures emerging from the shadows.
I knew instinctively what they were.
The Vendikar.
Their sleek, ominous forms glinted menacingly under the scant light, their eyes devoid of any emotion.
