Bite | Changlix vampire au

Chapter 17

It all happened in a blur, Felix saw something out of the corner of his eye and sprinted after it without a word. Changbin ran after him, calling out his name as he did so with no success in catching up. The vampire was way faster than him and soon left him in the dust.

    In a blind panic, he ran in the direction that Felix had gone, hoping that he hadn't gone too far. His footprints led into the forest on the outskirts of the haunted house, the trees growing closer and closer together as he went deeper.

    Just as his footprints were beginning to be cleared away by falling leaves, they swerved to the right, leading down a steep hill to a clearing at the bottom. He went to walk down the hill but ended up slipping and falling the rest of the way down. Brushing the leaves and dirt off his clothes, he searched the area for any sign of the vampire.

    The footprints went a little deeper into the clearing before ending at the deep imprint of tire tracks. The area around the tire tracks were trampled indicating that a fight might have broken out before the car took off. The leaves around the tire tracks were stained a deep crimson, the liquid shimmering slightly under the moonlight.

    Changbin's heart sank, assuming the worst. With shaking hands, he pulled out his phone and dialed the first number that came to mind. Under normal circumstances, he would have called the police. However, since Felix was a vampire, calling the police might cause more trouble than good.

    "Hey, Changbin. What's up?" Hyunjin answered. From the volume of the background noise, he assumed the bar was packed.

    "I think Felix got kidnapped. We left the haunted house and he ran off. His footprints ended at tire tracks and blood," Changbin rambled, his words blurring into each other.

    "Hold up...what?! Okay, try to stay calm. Luckily, I know someone that can make this easy for us. Jeongin! Where's Felix?" There was a momentary pause that Changbin was tempted to break and yell at Hyunjin for taking too long. "You won't be able to get to his location by foot. Minho and Seungmin will be there soon."

    "Thanks for the help, but it's too dangerous for you all to get involved," Changbin insisted. "Just send me the location and I'll figure it out on my own."

    "No can do. Felix is our friend too and there's no way we're sitting by and letting you do all the work. Hang tight, we'll be there shortly."

    He put his phone away, pacing back and forth through the clearing. The tire tracks extended from the clearing to the opposite side of the street they had entered on. There was no telling where they had gone, and it might have taken him all night to get there by the time he found a bus nearby. As much as he hated to admit it, he did need their help.

    Within a few minutes, he saw headlights cut through the gloomy darkness of the forest. He ran down to the road, hoping it was who he thought it was. Surely enough, Minho rolled down the window, Seungmin occupying the passenger's seat.

    "Hop in. We're going human hunting."

    Changbin climbed into the back seat, somewhat shocked to see Hyunjin there, too. It was surprising to see that he had left Jeongin behind with no means of translation.

    "Don't look so surprised. You never know when you might need an imoogi."

    "So what's the plan?" Changbin asked as Minho drove off, leaving the forest nothing but a distant spek behind them.

    "We have a feeling that Felix was taken by vampire hunters," Seungmin said, his voice wavering slightly. "It would be too dangerous for us to help you directly, especially with Hyunjin around. That being said, we'll have you on call the entire time so we can hear what's going on. If something goes south, we'll be right there to help."

    "What if...what if we're too late?" He replied, mentally slapping himself for jumping to conclusions.

    "I doubt we will be. Vampire hunters rarely kill out in the open, so the blood you saw might have been another vampire, or they managed to cut Felix. They usually keep vampires and starve them to the point of insanity before killing them, so we have plenty of time. They won't be able to hurt him before we get there."

    Minho shivered as Seungmin recited his knowledge on vampire hunters. He had fallen into their traps enough times to know the horrors that were in store for any vampire that didn't have the luxury of friends to rescue them.

    "And what are you here for?" Changbin asked Hyunjin. "Having some sea serpent thing attacking people isn't exactly subtle."

    "Oh sweet, innocent Changbin," Hyunjin replied, shaking his head. "Do you really think I'm stupid enough to turn into an imoogi in an area with a bunch of witnesses? I have the power of charisma on my side. Hold my hand for a second."

    Hesitantly, Changbin reached out and held the imoogi's hand just as he had instructed. Green and silver scales began to grow front beneath his skin, barely visible to those who weren't paying close attention. Upon touching the scales, a jot of electricity went up his spine that caused him to black out for a few seconds before returning to reality.

    After that, Changbin stopped questioning Hyunjin's role in the rescue mission and watched on the GPS as they grew closer and closer to their destination.