Private Tales When a Dog Meets a Wolf

[Volker]

Volker was happiest when he was on his own in spring. He wasn’t currently on a job, which meant he was left to his own devices until Oor had a contract for him. It meant quiet work in sunlight and trees, making temporary lean-tos and beds of soft pine and moss. Everything was temporary, able to be kicked over or burned. He had to be able to abandon a spot quickly.

When the wraith Oor came calling, he expected his dog to obey without question. It was a strange relationship. Volker had been born and bred specifically for war and fighting on contract. Particularly killing Fae, stubborn monsters, roaming gangs of bandits and the like. He was given work, board and means to survive, and Oor profited financially.
It had made Volker very resilient, and Oor very wealthy.

In the meantime, he had peace. Volker was an older man in his autumn years, a bit short and broad. He clearly hadn’t allowed himself to go to seed; he had a lot of strength in those shoulders, and his blue eyes were bright as ever. His grey hair was cut close to his scalp, as close as he could get it, and he dressed simply. He was a utilitarian creature in most aspects.

The most striking thing about him was the roll of knives strapped to one thigh, with human bone for hilts. Every Volker had a weapon that became their only life companion, made from the bones of their mothers. The knives were Rheinhard’s.

He was resting, settled on a log near a fire and cooking. Despite his rustic ways, his cookery was surprisingly complex; wild mushrooms and onion, butter from his pack, and venison he’d caught earlier in the day. A little salt and dried rosemary, and the fragrant meal smelled like something out of a lord’s kitchen.

Andrei

 

[Andrei]

Andrei was currently perched up atop of a sizable tree branch, roughly half a meter thick and sturdy enough to easily support the weight of a full-grown man. As always, he was out at late hours, for him sleep was but an afterthought, and he could go for days without it. Right now, his mind was plagued by other thoughts, predominantly boredom. Nothing interesting was happening as of recent, and he just couldn't bring himself to sit on his ass and do nothing. Andrei had to find something, something to do, something to entertain himself with. Sloth is a sin, just as much as inaction. Andrei looked down, took a deep gulp of air. Yet again, oxygen served him little and his respiratory system was quite primitive, just barely developed enough to allow speech. Still, he felt compelled to sigh. His paper thin lips seemed to rattle, moving with the fluttering exhalation. Andrei reached down to grasp the fabric of his cape, it was velvety and smooth as usual, he shouldn't have been expecting anything less. Most people would find it strange to see a man decked out in aristocratic garb, in the middle of a forest of all places. And to be honest, Andrei's clothes weren't the most suited for forest tracking, still, he refused to part ways with them, and it was too late to think about changing into a different garb.

He looked down to see a man, about fifty-ish meters away from Andrei's vantage point. The vampire knew that Volker was there, he had known it for quite a while but refrained from going down in fear that he would spoil the man out. The more he thought about it, the more did his worries start to appear.... irrational. No one normal is outside, at nighttime in the neck of the woods. Whomever the man was, he probably wouldn't be that surprised to see another person here. Andrei wondered what the stranger was up to, his curiosity flaring up in no small amount. Against his better judgement, Andrei's placed his hand against the tree bark, gently knocking on it with the tips of his bony knuckles.

A part of him felt inclined to strike up a conversation, another part of him advised Andrei to stick to the shadows and observe for the time being. He couldn't shake off the feeling that the stranger wasn't just some... wayward camper who ventured too deep into the forest.

Volker

 

[Volker]

Volker ate quietly, and settled down to spend some time to himself. Sharpening his knives was meditation at this point; pulling out each blade and examining it by firelight, carefully sharpening, oiling and cleaning each blade, then returning it to its spot. There was always something to do, and taking inventory of his supplies was another. Six pounds of dried meat, dried mushrooms, ten bullion cubes, whetstone, needle and thread, charcoal, a jar of poultice for wounds, and an oilcloth for any rain. He packaged it back up carefully, ritualistically, each item painstakingly wrapped in the oilcloth to protect it. He had enough food for a few days but foraging would be wise. Especially with spring on the way.

He would keep his eyes and ears out for hunters as well. Humans and elves would give him several weeks of food apiece, were easily caught off guard, and gave him something to do.

Unfortunately it seemed he was alone. For now, anyway. He crossed his legs and closed his eyes, exhaling slowly. Entering the Well looked to an observer as though he’d simply fallen asleep. However, he was very much awake in his own head. He would practice in the Arena for a few hours, honing his combat training and reviewing his memories of his last kills. Volker never forgot a thing; each memory could be pulled down as a mirror shard from the nest of swirling pieces above the Well, and reviewed.

Magic bled off of him as he sat. Wraith magic. Memory magic. He exhaled it like men would exhale cigarette smoke. Little hints and wisps of the nearly seven-hundred souls inside of him.

Andrei

 

[Andrei]

It was at this point that Andrei decides to descend to the ground. He leapt off the tree branch, plummeting some good ten meters and landing on the balls of his feet. The force of the fall would have shattered the legs of a normal man, but Andrei seemed unfazed. The surroundings were pitch black and one would need quite a bit of effort to even make out Andrei's silhouette, courtesy of the dark clothes he wore. It was his red eyes that gave him away, a pair of glowing orbs whose light penetrated the darkness, betraying his presence. They flickered and weaved as he moved closer, wobbling up and down. Andrei looked at the stranger who seemed...a little bit unconscious. His brain caught the scent of magic, the wispy smokes. He hadn't eaten in a few hours now. Reluctantly, he started to move closer to Volker's position, raising his eyebrow at the strange sight.

Volker seemed to be in a trance of some kind, leaking out tendrils of delicious magic. It took Andrei a great deal of willpower not to close in and start leeching it away with his hands.

“Who could you be...” The male muttered, tilting his head to the side in order to get a better look. His shadow was starting to peel off the ground, clearly hungry, Andrei had to stomp on it a few times to make it subside. He just stood there, wondering what a person would be doing in the middle of nowhere, leaking magic everywhere. Andrei wasn't sure if he should try to wake up the stranger or to simply leave him be.

Volker

 

[Volker]

Volker was deep inside the Well. In the space in his head, there were five doors. The Library where paper records of his family were kept, the Baths and Sunroom for recreation, the Office they were forbidden, and the Arena Volker was currently inside. A huge well lit space of shallow sand shaped to look like a coliseum.

Volker slashed his opponent’s throat with a blade and leapt away. Klaus, his father and the most recent addition to the Well, gurgled angrily and stumbled after him, blood pouring down his chest. He managed to score a shallow gash across Rheinhard’s thigh before he collapsed to the ground. The sands swallowed the body. Being dead, Klaus couldn’t die, and popped up in the sand a few feet away.

Rheinhard squared up with him, and a slender man in the corner marked off a tick mark with a piece of chalk on a whiteboard under ‘R’. “Best out of five.” The man called.

“Shut up, Ferenzi.” Klaus snarled, but he didn’t take his eyes off his son.

“Hey! Hey! We have company! I heard something!” A small boy of around ten rushed onto the sands from the main portion of the Well. A blade sprouted between his eyes and he fell. “Very fucking funny Klaus!” Aluid snapped as he popped back up out of the sand and rushed to them.

“What do you mean company?” Rheinhard asked the boy.

“There’s someone in the camp.”

“Who, you little asshole? Why do we even put you on watch?” Klaus readied another knife.

“Fuck you. You have your eyes closed.” Aluid complained. Rheinhard pushed past him.

“Aluid takes over my spot in the matches.” Rheinhard muttered, and headed into the main area of the Well. He didn’t have time to deal with this, and he certainly didn’t like the idea of someone getting this close.

“Wait what? I didn’t agree to-“ Aluid’s protest was cut off by a sharp gurgle.

Volker’s eyes snapped open to see the red-eyed creature. He lowered his head on his shoulders, like a dog protecting its throat, and bared his teeth. He let out a long, low snarl. He did not like anyone this close.

Andrei

 

[Andrei]

Adrian leered over, inspecting the stranger with an expression of glistering curiosity. He didn't seem upset, nor threatening for that matter, but he was certainly a fair bit taller than Volker and marginally larger judging by his wife shoulders. “Oh? Don't mind me, I was just observing you.” Tilting his head from side to side, Andrei reached up, placing a finger on his bottom lip. “It is a little unusual to see someone so far in the woods, especially this close to midnight. But who am I to talk, I had been sitting on that branch for the last...three or four hours.” Andrei pointed to a large fir tree, about forty meters away from where he was currently standing. It was indeed a big tree, one had to wonder how someone as large as Andrei got up there, in such cumbersome looking clothes no less. “No need to be worried, contrary to what it might look like, I do not eat people, so you are in no danger.” He smiled ever so slightly, a faint, flickering smile. Andrei's lips were alienly thin, even when compared to those of an elf. His smiles appeared sharp, betraying the pointed fangs hiding in the back of his mouth.

Throughout the whole ordeal, he seemed pleased with himself, with an almost cherry attitude, unbecoming of someone who looked as if he were dressed to kill. “Normally I wouldn't bother you, but I couldn't fail to notice the magical energy seeping from your frame.” Andrei's nostrils flared up, as if he were sniffing something out. This magic was interesting, it had a different taste than what he was used to. Sour, almost tangy, with the slightest notes of umami woven in between. “Delicious indeed. Would you happen to be a mage of some sort? I heard that unsanctioned sorcerers have been taking refugee from authorities.” Andrei shuffled in place, brushing off a couple pine needles that made their way into his cape.

Volker

 

[Volker]

Volker stood up and put some distance between himself and Andrei. Vampire. He might have known. He was on his guard now and wasn’t about to turn his back on such a creature, or allow it near him. He had a healthy respect for other hunters, and was keenly aware he was now a target. He balanced his weight between his knees and pulled out his longest blade. The tip was slightly down toward the earth, indicating he wasn’t about to attack quite yet.

Rheinhard never liked to strike first in a confrontation. He would let the other man make his intentions clear. He already had an idea of what the vampire planned, calling him delicious and smelling him like that.

“I am not a mage. Nor am I easy prey. I have killed many of your kind on contract. You would save your time and mine moving on to easier targets.” Rheinhard said coldly.

Andrei

 

[Andrei]

Andrei raised an eyebrow at the man's strange reaction, he stared down at his blade, slightly amused by it. He just waved Volker off, putting an open palm between the two of them. The stranger clearly thought that Andrei was about to eat him. “Close, but not quite, I called your magic delicious, not you. Though, you look like a charming gentleman.” Andrei gave Volker a small wink, walking around him in circles. “But I'll have to disappoint you, as said before, I don't eat people. Flesh and blood are not the part of my diet, can't digest them.” The moon came to the sky as a mother comes to sing a soft lullaby, to ease her children into a star-filled night. Its milky rays illuminated Andrei's face, giving Volker a better look at his features. Skin pale as a sheet of paper, a ghastly mane stretching all the way down to Andrei's lower neck. High standing cheek bones, an aristocratic nose and eyes, glowing eyes with pupils that were sharp as a dagger, resembling those of a wild cat.

“You are not a mage? Strange, it's rare to see someone who doesn't have a formal training but uses such a complex form of magic.” His eyes seemed to flicker, locking onto Volker's own. They made a strange contrast, icy blue and bloody red. “Ah....where are my manners, didn't even introduce myself properly.” Andrei extended his hand towards Volker. It was just as pale as the rest of his body, with long, bony fingers that all but resembled talons. The middle finger seemed slightly longer than the rest, with a small claw extending from its tip. Andrei's hands were unusually large, even for a man of his height. “I am Andrei, and you are?”

Volker

 

[Volker]

Volker wasn’t about to let his guard down. How many lions announced to the gazelles they were going to eat them? He turned in a circle to follow Andrei, and make sure he was always facing the man. He was not about to let the vampire behind him. He still had his stance, and backed away slightly to keep himself out of sudden lunging range. The comfort that the vampire wasn’t after blood, but his magic, was a poor one. Rheinhard was a good steward of the Well, and he wasn’t about to threaten their lives.

This Andrei could be more dangerous to him than a vampire who wanted blood. He growled a little louder when the man thrust a hand toward him. He seemed to be just introducing himself, but there was no way to know if that were really his intention.

“Rheinhard Volker.” He said, his voice short and clipped. This Andrei was an attractive creature, but he wasn’t about to let his mind wander. He was not about to die sucked in by a pretty face. “It is a curse, and one I do not want tampered with, vampire. There is more than my life at stake.”

Andrei

 

[Andrei]

“An interesting name, never heard of it tho.” Adrian looked down at his hand, rattling it gently since he was expecting a shake. “Won't shake a poor sinners hand? Oh well, your loss.” The male shook his head lightly, a little surprised that Volker was putting so much distance between the two of them. It was a little strange, Andrei wasn't trying to make himself look threatening, nor was he going to attack. Still, the residual magic made his senses....tingle. He wasn't quite starving yet, but he could use a small meal, something to satisfy his hunger for the time being. It was as he looked at Volker that he felt a strange presence, like they weren't the only two people present. Except....that was impossible, there wasn't anyone else in close vicinity and if there was Andrei would have caught on to their presence by now. The prospect made him feel uneasy in his bones, but he just shook it off, reverting his attention back to Volker.

“Mind telling what you are doing so far in the forest? All alone no less. I thought you were an unfortunate lycanthrope of some kind.” Andrei got a little closer, bending ever so slightly to get a better look at Volker's face. He was probably in his mid to late fifties, the well-preserved body wouldn't imply that, but his aged face betraying him. Maybe he was a soldier, but what would a soldier be doing in the middle of nowhere? Scouting perhaps? But there was nothing to scout here. Questions, questions.....

A great deal of interest could be derived from this stranger, if nothing, simply knowing what he was doing here was interesting enough on its own. Andrei leaned against the nearest of tree, humming a small tune to himself. “Don't think either of us will be leaving this place anytime soon, might as well get to know each other in the meanwhile. What do you think?”

Volker

 

[Volker]

Volker eyed him. “Consider it a sign of respect that I mistrust you. You have made no aggressions towards me, this is true. You are also not entirely harmless. Reticence and past experiences guide me. You would not be the first vampire to wheedle his way into a meal nor the last.” He told him. It wasn’t just himself he was guarding. Six hundred and sixty five souls were trapped in the Well. The life essences, memories, even magical talents of those men. “I am waiting.” He said stiffly in answer to his next question. “When I receive a contract to hunt, my time in the wilderness is through. It could be in two hours, two weeks, or two months. It is not my place to say but rather the man who holds the leash.”

When Andrei moved away he relaxed slightly. He tended the fire, adding more wood to it, and cleaned up from cooking. He kept an eye on the vampire. “Why hunt in the woods? Your kind usually stick to cities.” He asked.

Andrei

 

[Andrei]

Andrei burst into a chuckling fit, clearly amused by the man's last question. He slapped himself on the chest, head thrown back just a tad bit, it was all so funny to him. He just looked at Volker, an expression of bemused curiosity and positive glee plastered all over. Andrei couldn't prevent himself from smiling, nor did it matter in the long run, he had betrayed his inner machinations already and there wasn't a need to conceal them in the first place. “I am not here to feed, quite on the contrary, this would be a horrible place to look for a meal that would suit my palette.” Andrei looked at the tree bark, digging his fingers into it to leave shallow claw marks. “If I wanted to eat it'd be so much easier to just purchase some mana stones.” His lower lip seemed to quiver for a moment, with the wrinkled chin to follow in suit, it was the slightest expression of disgust on his otherwise flawless face. “Suppose that I could seduce a sorceress of some kind and get a decent portion of my caloric needs out of her. Yet the thought alone is highly repulsive to me, I don't enjoy using innocent people, it's cowardly, a weakling's trait.”

As he moved around the place, it almost seemed like Andrei was levitating. His feet were barely touching the ground, seemingly propelled by a mass of goopy, black substance that accumulated beneath his every step. He couldn't shake off the feeling that something about Volker wasn't quite right, so he assumed him to be a mercenary, hired killer possibly. Judging by the daggers, he probably wasn't too far off. “Mmm no, I came here because I was bored. My body can go for days without proper rest and I didn't feel like sleeping tonight. Snuck out on a moonlit walk, if you get what I mean.” Andrei's eyebrows slipped downwards into an expression that softened his otherwise sharp features. Looking upwards, he gazed at the moon with a face of unfamiliar melancholy. “You just happened to catch my eye, I never had the attention to feed. Plus, you leak of a lot of magic, might want to lessen that, someone other than me could detect you.”

Volker

 

[Volker]

Volker nodded, satisfied with the answer even if he wasn’t sure what Andrei found so humorous. “You are out far for a midnight stroll.” He pointed out. “We are not near civilization, unless you have a home around here I was previously unaware of...in which case I will leave your territory and apologize for the intrusion.” He began preparing his bed; not with blankets or pillows, but by cutting down soft boughs of pine. He arranged them into a nestlike shape, something to cushion him and keep him off the ground, and began cutting away moss from the tree trunks to line it. It would keep for a few nights at least.

“I have no control over my magic. It is what it is, and it is no further. I could no sooner tell the Well what to do than I could cover the moon.” Volker told the vampire. “I am not often told I am...leaking magic. What do you mean?”

Andrei

 

[Andrei]

“No, it is not my territory, never was.” Andrei walked around to find a moderately sized stump to sit on. It was just large enough to be used as a chair. He just had to dust it off, there was a Clapton of wet moss on it. “I've been here....twice, maybe thrice before in a span of several years. It's hardly a place I'd visit frequently.” The forest was far from ugly, but it was remote and mostly uninhabited by humanoids. He wouldn't be able to find much in the way of things to entertain him. The very reason he even came in the first place was to relax his mind from boredom, sometimes the best way to get rid of it was to fall even further into relaxation. Andrei was always someone who preferred a campy, folkish ambient than that of a busy city.

“But hey, it's not a bad place just....a little lonely, not made for you're everything relaxing trip.” Andrei couldn't quite describe it, but the night always felt organically more natural to him. He didn't dislike the sun, nor did he hold any aversions to it, but the night was the one to put his mind at ease. He watched as the velvety blanket rolled across the skies, aged by its shades of black and purple. Readjusting himself to look at Volker, he chuckled, reaching to tuck a stray strand of hair behind his pale earlobe. “I didn't mean it quite literally, but you were in some sort of trance a few minutes ago.” With his palm stretched out, Andrei concentrated to form a sphere of inky goop. It solidified in a heartbeat, it's spherical shape floating mid-air. With a finger gesture he directed it forward, watching as it made a small circle around Volker, turning back and returning to Andrei's hand. It just fell onto his skin, seeping back into his body through it. “Magic was seeping out of your orifices, manifesting a white, wispy smoke. And I can feel magic, much the same way a shark can smell blood. Or how a trained hound can sniff out a hiding vagabond.” Andrei shrugged his shoulders, a little surprised that Volker couldn't control his own Abilities. “Want to tell me that your magic has a sentience of its own?”

Volker

 

[Volker]

Volker startled and got up when the man floated a blob around his head. He didn’t know what it was, or what it would do, and his immediate reaction was to go on the defensive again. He relaxed when it returned to the vampire. “I was inside the Well. There is a group of six hundred men in my skull. They have a living quarters of sorts there. I train, and pass the time there. It keeps me honed and well practiced.” He said stiffly. “It affects me. I didn’t create it, I only inherited it.”

He slowly settled down again. “Therefore I cannot control any...leakage.” He gave Andrei a closer look. A handsome creature to be sure. Most fae and their ilk took great pains in their appearances. “What is your interest in me if not to attack me?”

Andrei

 

[Andrei]

“That's....a lot of people to be living in one place, you know.” Andrei let more of the black goop bleed from his skin, dripping onto the log below. The goop started coming together, forming a small, quadrupedal shape resembling that of a rat. Of course, its legs were longer, as well as its snout. Where the eyes should have been laid a pair of red orbs, silently glowing. Andrei looked at the creature, and it ran up his arm with incredible speed, nestling in his hair just like a rat would. It looked at Volker, making a small squeaking noise.
“It's pretty lively here, can't say that I am any less alone in my body than you are in yours. Sadly, I don't find it that entertaining to talk with myself, the other me is...a bit of a bland guy to be honest.”

One wouldn't have to think too hard to notice that the rodent-esque creature had a mind of its own. Surely it didn't speak or act like a person would, but its ability to act independently of Andrei was most confusing. It seemed to stick close to him, but with enough autonomy that Andrei didn't have to exert direct control. The creature moved and made noises entirely on its own. Its body weaved and ebbed slightly with each movement, as if it was made from a very dense liquid. “That's an interesting question. Think I told you a part tho. It's pretty unusual to see another person so far away from civilization, got me curious as to what you were doing here.”

Andrei rubbed the back of his head a little sheepishly. He looked at Volker with a small smile, his sharp fangs barely showing. “Now if you are asking me why I stayed....well, that's a bit more complicated.” Andrei reached down to grab a branch that was sticking out of the dirt. He bent it over and broke it, before throwing it's shattered remains into the roaring bonfire. He didn't feel bothered by the cold, but Volker probably would if the fire went out. “Honestly? I just wanted to get away from civilization for a few hours, maybe a day. The nature Is very tranquil here. And then I ran into you.” Andrei chuckled ever so slightly, pointing a finger at Volker. “You seemed like an interesting chap, not the kind of person I am used to seeing on a daily basis. And you know what they say about unusual things? That they are eye catching.”

Volker