The morning came, the sunlight shining through the barred window. Virgil woke up while being dragged out of the cell by different guards than the ones that had thrown him in last night and brought forcibly into a large stone court room. The windows were too high to see anything but the sky, and they too were barred. Sitting on elevated stands were around a dozen grim faced men in black robes. In the center, slightly in front of them was a figure with silky smooth, chestnut hair and a pale, pointed face. He stared beadily down at Virgil as his black combat boots echoed around the otherwise silent room. Hands cuffed behind his back, Virgil was forced into the seat directly in front of the court, and the pointed faced man spoke.

"Virgil Crowe. Is that your name?" The judge asked.

"Yes," Virgil said, his head hanging down, not daring to make eye contact with someone who could hang him with a wave of his gavel.

"Yes sir. I will not tolerate disrespect," the judge sneered. Virgil bit back the remark, "there's no need to call me sir," knowing that nothing good would come out of it except a small moment of satisfaction, and simply nodded.

"Mr. Crowe, you are charged with three accounts of theft- you stole food and coin from Lord McNamara, food from Lord Chandler, and attempted thievery from Governor Duke. How do you plead?"

Virgil knew that no matter what he said, he would be killed, so he told the judge "guilty," and prayed for a quick death.

"Very well. Now, as I am a merciful man," Virgil tried not to scoff, "I shall give you two options."

There was a pause. Virgil couldn't believe what he was hearing. Was he really going to be given a choice in the matter?

"Virgil Crowe. You may either be hanged in the morning, or be sent into the woods to perform a noble quest to exterminate the vampire that has plagued this town for years. If you succeed, you will be cleared of all charges and rewarded very handsomely. Your failure, however, can only end in death." There was a ringing silence in the room. Virgil actually looked up, shocked. Did this usually happen to captured criminals? He looked back down and contemplated his options, not knowing how long they would allow him to think.

He had rarely gone outside of town due to the warnings of vampires.

If he took the quest, his death was more than likely. But on the off chance that he succeeded, he'd be free! He could go back to his mother! Ultimately, it was a choice between certain death, and almost certain death with a chance of freedom. It was terrifying to think about, but the best decision was clear.

"The quest." Virgil said, with as little fear in his voice as he could manage.

"Very well. You will be given a week's rations and a map to lead you to the vampire. You will start the quest in two days time. Until then, you shall stay imprisoned. Adjourned," the judge slammed his gavel on the wooden sounding block and the guards took Virgil away once again.

At least Virgil knew he would not be flogged or stoned or any of the other terrible ways he had imagined himself dying. The only thing Virgil was uncertain of was whether he would be able to say goodbye to his mother. That's all he wanted- make sure his mother knew that he was sorry and that he loved her.

There was nothing in Virgil's cell to keep his thoughts away from the vampire he would be sent to kill. Virgil had heard stories about the unholy bloodsucking monsters from the other children as scary stories. He had never quite believed the full extent of what the older children had told him- that vampires would drain his blood, tearing his head off his neck to drink a fountain of red. That they could only be stopped by the sunlight or a cross. That they were undead creatures of the night that would kill him before Virgil ever saw them coming.

But now Virgil tried to recall every story he had been told- the story that Elizabeth had sworn was true, about the one where her uncle had been kidnapped and turned into one of the long-fanged monsters. What was her uncle's name again? Timothy? No- Virgil remembered- Terrence Williams, the baker that had gone missing. Virgil hadn't known him, as he had supposedly been kidnapped about twenty years ago, a couple years before Virgil had even been born. Virgil thought it much more likely that a wild animal had broken into the bakery or something, but now that Virgil was about to be sent off to kill a vampire, he supposed it wouldn't hurt to remind himself of the story Elizabeth had told one year at the town's annual bonfire.

She had said that one night, when she was very young, Elizabeth and her father heard a noise coming from the bakery, as they had lived right next to it. Her father went over to investigate what the terrible shrieking noise was, and he saw something he never recovered from- her uncle was screaming and lying in a pool of shimmering red blood as a figure stood over him, sucking out his blood and drinking it. The figure turned around and saw Elizabeth's father and fled, taking her uncle with them.

Of course, Virgil doubted that was what really happened, mostly because it came from Elizabeth, who was known for exaggerating stories, but Virgil needed everything he could to be prepared for his hunt. He tried to recall everything he had been told about those creatures- from old wives tales, to the warnings his mother told, to the exaggerated stories the older children used to tell to frighten Virgil and the younger kids.

 He just hoped it would be enough.