Mature: Desert Moon

[Emora Deen]

Talon released her. She dropped a foot back to the ground, reaching up to wrap her hands around her throat. "Talon..." Her eyes watered with tears, confusion creasing her features.

Talon heaved, staring down at his clawed hands as if they were from another body all together.

[Soran Nightblade]

"Espha, he is injured. He did not want that," Vlad said slowly, knowing her frightened brain would not want to process the message. "Stay with the children, please." He stepped aside, leaving space in the doorway for Talon to come in. He didn't make it a command, but his hard eyes didn't match the gentle tone he'd just used with the frightened woman.

[Emora Deen]

Talon frowned, clenching his hands into fists and turning into the room. He wanted to apologise himself, but a part of him thought it was better if she hated him. He wasn't any good for her, and she needed to figure that out sooner or later.

Talon stepped into the room, standing on marble flooring to keep from ruining any more carpet.

"Yes, master?"

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad scratched the back of his head in a deliberately human motion as he swung the door shut behind them and paced to sit on the edge of the bed. He'd made light of his injuries when he described them, but Vlad knew it was worse. Tenele would not leave her injured brother to fend for himself unless she truly believed he was dangerous. That meant the worst of his injuries probably weren't the ones sliming up his bedroom floor.

"Let's see it, then," he said.

[Emora Deen]

Talon drew his shirt off slowly, stiffly, and let it fall on the floor. Then he turned in a small circle so that his master could see the damage on his body. His eyes held barely restrained menace, a evil that was in all creatures of darkness, one that they were either taught to control, or destined to pursue.

Talon was not himself. He wasn't entirely different, but he wasn't himself. He felt in pain, felt angry, but he also felt blissful, lustful, black as pitch. When he gave into it, he didn't feel the pain anymore.

* * *

"There you go," Tenele told Sho with a smile. She'd built a wall with sticks, straw, mud, and made a blanket door so that Sho's small space could hold the heat and it might not entirely smoke them out of the room. That way they could be close, but not share in the uncomfortable heat.

It was dark, and the night air was starting to cool off the desert. She'd spent most of her time building the wall so the cold air wouldn't undo all the progress they made in warming Sho up.

There was still a lot for them to do. They had to collect the bodies and check for survivors. If there were any, they hadn't been outside. Tenele hadn't seen anyone but Atul and Sho. Anyone alive that is.

"Atul? I'm going to make us something to eat, are you feeling hungry?" Tenele knelt down and began digging through their packs.

[Soran Nightblade]

The king walked with a stiff swing to his left leg as he turned and plopped down next to her. "Food sounds nice," he sighed with only a slight groan in his voice. He let the old wooden shovel he'd been using drop into the sand.

"Nineteen children, Tenele," he murmured up at the sky, letting a different type of pain wash into his low voice, knowing it was there for her too.

* * * *

Vlad took a good look at Talon's wounds. The one near his spine looked especially awful. "Why aren't you with the others?" he asked quietly.

[Emora Deen]

Talon turned dead red eyes on him. "Because I would have killed them," he replied truthfully. "Especially, Tenele. Her blood was not poison to me. The fanatics poisoned their own blood so that if they were to be bitten, they would not be drained and turned."

* * *

Tenele turned her face away, nodding at his words and gathering jerky and bread from the bag. "Was that all of them?" she asked hollowly. "Are there more?" She didn't ask about survivors, he would have told her about those. She turned to him, handing him his portion of the food. "I fed Sho a little while ago."

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad looked him in the eyes. It was Talon's voice, but that wasn't Talon talking to him. He stood up and walked to the younger vampire's back. He didn't given any warnings or orders. He just reached out, and rolled his knuckles across Talon's back wound.

[Emora Deen]

Talon roared, a monstrous angry beast, and he whirled on his master, claws out, ready to cut into him. "Bastard!"

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad popped on a lazy smile. "Hey, I missed this. You haven't called me something like that since I was the monster of the two of us." He stepped forward, into the younger man's claws. "Well? Going to take a slice?"

[Emora Deen]

Talon curled his fingers in, made an attempt, and then brought his hands back. He wanted to. He really did. He wanted to cut the head from Vlad's shoulders and sever his ties with him, take his freedom.

The thought was evident on Talon's face as if he'd said all those thoughts out loud.

Talon turned his eyes to the floor. "Maybe I will," he sighed, and lashed out at Vlad.

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad stood and let the swipe open up his chest. He snarled, but didn't flinch. Instead, he observed, knowing Talon's attack would be felt by his own mind in return.

[Emora Deen]

Talon stumbled on his feet, snarling. He grabbed at his chest with a bloody hand, glaring up at Vlad through strands of silver hair. He growled, like a big wolf. "Karma, I suppose, or maybe just a reminder of my shackles." He straightened slowly. "Shouldn't you be concerned about your wife and lover out there in the desert? What if they run into more of those fanatics? Hmm?"

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad cocked his head, eyes unreadable. "Of the two of us, I'm not sure I'm the one who needs that reminder. Are you worried?"

[Emora Deen]

Talon lifted his head. "No," he replied, as truthful as anything. "I am not worried. Though, I'm sure that would be the correct reaction, worry. But, I'm not. I don't feel it. I don't feel anything but pain, and hunger, and desire."