Briar Rose - Taekook

Chapter 52

Taehyung's words echo in my head. If you ever want to find me, follow the ring. Could this be what he was talking about? I look down at the ring on my finger. "Can you show me? Show me where Taehyung is." It could be my imagination, but the blue beam of light becomes a little stronger. Now, it is undoubtedly pointing towards the woods.

I take a tentative step forward, feeling a bit overwhelmed by the looming darkness of the forest. Is that really where Taehyung had gone? The ring evidently seems to think so, because it pulls me forward, tugging on my finger.

A torch. I needed some sort of fire. Hurrying back to the grove, I look around for a good-sized stick. Finding one, I let it catch fire and hold it above my head, squinting into the darkness of the forest. My grip on the stick as I enter the woods is so tight I'm afraid I'm going to have splinters. Taking a deep breath, I take my first step into the inky blackness of the towering trees.

At first my pace is slow, tentative, because I don't know what's lurking in the forest at night. There could be anything from the normal big cats, to a range of magical species. If vampires were real, why not werewolves? Ghouls? Any creature would view me as a tasty meal at this hour of darkness. The thought makes me more cautious as I trek through the forest, carefully following the thin beam of light from my ring.

After about 15 minutes of traveling at a snail's pace, I gradually start to pick up speed, until I'm jogging. No animal has tried to attack me yet, and the sooner I can find Taehyung the better. I hold my hand out in front of me, following the light from the ring as I carefully pick my way through the high trees. There's still enough moonlight for me to see, but my torch definitely helps.

Not long after I've entered the forest, I'm suddenly overcome by the violent urge to drink. Not water, but blood. Taehyung had explained to me before that vampires could live off mortal food most of the time, but we needed regular stocks of blood to replenish our systems. Go a few days without it, and we would start feeling the nasty symptoms of dehydration. Too long, and it would become absolutely critical to find a blood source. When had been the last time I had tasted any blood? Three days, at least.

Not now...

I'm probably miles away from any type of civilization, and the closest one is up a 3,000 meter cliff. Besides, finding Taehyung is critical right now, and I couldn't afford any delays. The light from the ring pulls me onwards, but after ten minutes, I feel that I can't go any longer with some blood. My feet are giving up on me, and my throat feels itchy and unpleasantly dry. Which means resorting to drastic measures.

One of the perks of being a vampire is that we can hear much better than humans. Almost immediately, I locate a mouse sniffing at the roots of a beechnut tree, no more than two feet away from me. My heart races. Do I dare...?

Careful to make as little noise as possible, my hand drifts towards the mouse, one inch at a time. The mouse, oblivious to my presence, scuffles in the dense undergrowth, trying to sniff out any fallen beechnuts. Its whiskers twitch in jerky caution, then steps forward, right into my range. I clamp my hand down. Emitting a loud squeal, the mouse struggles, biting at my fingers with razor sharp teeth, its tiny feet clawing frantically to escape. I swallow back a wave of nausea as I sink my fangs into its neck, feeling it go limp in my hand. The mouse's blood is salty, not as sweet as antelope blood or even deer blood, but beggars can't be choosers.

When the mouse carcass is sucked dry, I dig a small hole in the ground and bury the mouse's body, before getting up on shaky feet. The blood has done its work, rejuvenating my body and making me feel stronger than before. I start walking again, pleased to see that my stamina seems to have increased too. I can keep up a steady pace as I once again start jogging through the woods.