In My Blood

Chapter 4: Under Delphie's Shell

As Delphie slowly opens her eyes, the faint memories of the previous night flood back into her consciousness. The air is cool and damp, and the soft rustle of leaves can be heard nearby. Blinking against the dim light filtering through the tent's flaps, the wood elf realizes she's no longer in the secluded grove where Astarion bit her. Pax slithers up her arm to reveal a bloody handkerchief tied around her wounded wrist. She becomes fixated on it, trying to wrap her head around why in the Nine Hells she would agree to this.

Unbeknownst to her, the beast who bit her the night before, sneaks his way between the flaps. The snakes are alerted to his presence but aren't bothered by it. Delphie, however, is completely zoned out, using every ounce of her weakened energy to study the handkerchief on her wrist.

"Good morning, Delphie. How do you feel?" She doesn't jump, but her eyes snap to Astarion's. Despite having a smirk plastered on his face, his eyes show a hint of remorse.

"It's Delphnye." As she glares at him, Pax slithers back down her arm and coils around the handkerchief.

"I told you, Delphie suits you better-"

"I'm fine," She interrupts, wincing as she sits up. "I just feel woozy, I guess."

"I'll pass. Just be glad I'm not a 'true' vampire. A bite from them and you might wake up as a vampire spawn, like my good self. All of a vampire's hunger, but few of their powers." His expression fades from lighthearted to irritation. Not at her, obviously, but at the fact he was always hungry. Always weak.

Delphie cocks her head in genuine curiosity. "Is that how you can stand in the sun? Because you're not a 'true' vampire?"

"Oh, no. I should be cinders in this light. I hadn't seen the sun for two hundred years before we crashed here." There's a glint of sadness in the vampire spawn's ruby orbs. "Someone - or something - wants me alive. They've changed the rules." The somber look quickly disappears as he continues to talk. "Standing in the sun, wading in the river, wandering into homes without an invitation - they're all perfectly mundane activities now. As for my other quirks - well, we can figure those out in time."

"Well," Delphie begins to stand up, trying to regain her balance with a hand on her throbbing head. "I guess we are a team now, so let me know if I can help."

Astarion lets out a small chuckle. "Oh, you're such a sweetheart."

Then, the sound of rustling tents resonates around them. The rest of the camp woke up and they were definitely going to question the puncture wounds on Delphie's wrist.

***

To Astarion's relief, everyone allows him to stay without any stakes piercing through his heart. Thanks to the rest of the party being hopelessly in love with Delphie, she's able to convince everyone he is not a threat to them. After the confrontation, they hear a commotion up ahead. Yelling. Something about a druid being kidnapped and goblins approaching.

Delphie absolutely despises goblins. They're like gnats to her. Maggots that swarm around anything decaying and rotten. To her, they're pests - vile creatures that corrupt and pester for sport. The wood elf doesn't believe in killing innocents, but goblins are far from that in her book. So, you bet your ass she was not going to turn down the chance to rid this world of them.

Despite still recuperating from the lack of blood in her body, the leader of the group follows the sound of the voices with Astarion, Shadowheart, and Lae'zel trailing behind, while Gale stays behind to watch camp. Sure enough, they are met with an army of goblins as well as a bugbear and a worg. They fight alongside a group of tieflings and druids who do not see eye to eye but fight as one when necessary. The exploding colors of red and yellow fill the area in front of a gate leading to a sanctioned druid grove as arrows are notched, swords are drawn, and guiding bolts are thrown.