text: Stealing from a vampire just seems like a bad idea even if you were properly prepared. No, you're going to follow the rules to the letter on this one.
  
  Time passes and eventually the sun starts setting and you begin looking for the secret button on the right wall. As it turns out, this uses up plenty of time because you have a hell of a time finding the damn thing since it's in a near inaccessible place behind a solid stone sarcophagus.
  
  After stretching and reaching for the thing, you hear a click and a section of the floor on the left side opens up. You look down, but only see a dimly lit stairway, which you hope leads immediately to Isabella since you don't really want to potentially work your way through some catacomb maze.
  
  You walk down a few steps and then call out to Isabella.
  
  "Isabella?!" you shout.
  
  A few seconds later you get a response.
  
  "A visitor that knows me? This is a surprise. Your voice doesn't sound familiar however, so I can only assume someone who knows me must have sent you and I can guess who that might have been." You hear Isabella call back.
  "Um, Ral sent me." You say.
  "(Sigh) I thought so. He's too cowardly to face me in person, yet he probably wants something from me. Well come on down, I promise I won't bite."
  
  You're still a bit nervous about all this, but this is the task you've been given, so down you go.
  
  When you get to the bottom, you find a better-lit crypt that is fairly clean all things considered. You see several sturdy coffins lining the walls and you can also smell a faint whiff of some sort of flower. Nobody is here, though you see another entryway, which looks like it leads further into the bowels of this place.
  
  "Stay in the foyer! I don't want you wandering about my home! I'll be there in a moment." you hear Isabella shout from that direction.
  
  You aren't kept waiting long when a woman appears from the crypt entryway. Ivory skin and long raven hair, beautiful and young looking though certainly older than you. Isabella is the exact idea of what people have in mind when (and if they bother to) think of a vampire, the only thing that's missing is the royal or elegant clothes which isn't wearing. In fact she's not wearing clothes at all.
  
  You might be more inclined to look at her naked body if she weren't a vampire, but since she is, you aren't sure what the etiquette is.
  
  "Okay, you can stop adverting your eyes, I'm a vampire not a medusa. Besides, you know you want to look anyway."
  
  Well that answers that question.
  
  "Well? You going to tell me what Ral wants or are you going to just stare at my tits all night?" Isabella asks.
  "Is this a trick question?" you ask.
  "Look, I'm going to give you exactly one minute to tell me what the hell Ral wants or I'm going to start getting angry."
  "Apologies, I just wasn't quite expecting this. Ral wants some of your gray blossom and in exchange he's given me this, to give to you." You say and pull out the jar of sprite blood from your pack.
  
  Isabella walks over to you and when she's right in front of you, you feel very anxious as she stares at you. You know Ral said she can't charm you, but you feel like she's doing SOMETHING to your mind.
  
  She takes the jar from your hand and opens it, giving it a sniff. Her nose turns up and her demeanor becomes more annoyed.
  
  "Ugh, what is this shit? Is... is this sprite blood?" she asks.
  "Yeah, Ral said you liked it." You say.
  "Then he's a forgetful fool or deliberately trying to insult me. I hate sprite, it was brownie blood that I liked! Either way it's apparent he cares nothing for our time together and just wants something as usual. Biggest mistake in the recent century was going out with him."
  
  While that's a bit of interesting information, you're far more concerned about your own ass now that Isabella seems displeased.
  
  "Okay, well I guess I'll just leave and let him know then... " you say.
  "Wait, where are you going?" Isabella suddenly grabs your arm. It isn't a hurtful grip, but it is strong and cold. Her expression is predatory and you feel like you're about to become dinner. Maybe she isn't able to control your mind, but she's doing a good enough job of putting fear into you anyway.
  
  "I... don't suppose it wouldn't do me any good to beg would it?" you ask.
  "No. However, I can see by this symbol on your arm, you are magically enslaved to Ral and despite him being disrespectful to me, I shall not act in kind and kill you since I know how hard good servants are to come by. I haven't had one in decades. However, YOU have to make up for Ral's failings." Isabella says.
  "So, what do I need to do? Go collect some brownies?"
  "Hah, well that would be ideal. But you'd have to travel all the way to Gnarlwood to even find a population of them and even then I doubt you would have the means to even capture one, let alone enough to fill a jar. Not to mention that would take far too long and we need a quicker solution."
  "And what would that be?"
  "You need to go get me dinner and the closest location is Dert obviously."
  "So you want me to go bring someone to you?"
  "Ah, no. Not just anyone. I want you to bring me a child. Girl, boy, doesn't matter. Youthful blood is always the best when it comes to humans."
  
  While you probably would have had some difficulties even bringing in a regular Dert citizen, you believe you could have justified it if you brought in one that tends to be an asshole towards you every time you visit. But a child? You're a little hesitant on that request.
  
  "I... I um... I'm not sure... " you say.
  "Why not? If Ral told you he needed you to kill a child you'd do it." Isabella remarks.
  "And that's only because this fucking spell would compel me to, it wouldn't be like I'd enjoy it."
  "Tch. That's an excuse. You could easily kill yourself rather than kill a child. The geas doesn't prevent that."
  "Can't you just do it?"
  "Sure I could, but I'm asking YOU to do it. Now if you want the gray blossom, you're getting that child for me, although... "
  
  Isabella at this point presses her entire body against yours and sniffs you, particularly your neck.
  
  "You're a teenager, so I suppose your blood would do. It doesn't smell like you've been befouling it with a bad diet at least."
  "I thought you said you weren't going to kill me?"
  "I'm not. I'm just going to drink a little of your blood and I'm not even going to bite you unless you ask me to. I'm giving you an out here. You can either let me feed on you, or go round me up a kid from the village."
  "How do I know you won't just kill me or get so excited that you won't stop feeding on me?"
  
  Isabella chuckles a bit.
  
  "You think your blood is going to be just so tasty that I'm going to lose all sense of control? You certainly have a high opinion of yourself! But honestly? You don't know. But isn't the mystery of the unknown making it all the more curious for you?" Isabella asks with a cold touch of her hand to your cheek.
  "Not really." You say.
  "Well tough shit, because those are your options."
  > let her bite you
  "I can't do it. I mean I'm flexible on a lot of shit, but yeah I just don't think I can go get a kid for you to chow down on. I mean I'm not judging since I know that's what you have to do, but I can't be a part of that." You say.
  "Hm, how wonderfully moral of you. So does that mean I have your invitation to bite you?" Isabella asks.
  "I... I guess so. I'm just going to roll the dice here and hope to Yag that you're honest."
  "Oh I'm honest."
  
  Isabella smiles and at last you see her perfect white teeth complete with the slightly large fangs. You just hope this isn't the last thing you see.
  
  Isabella pushes you up against a wall and presses up against you in a half seductive half predatory fashion.
  
  "So... are you ready?" she whispers in your ear.
  "As much as I can be I suppose." You answer.
  "I want to hear you say it. I want you to beg me to penetrate your skin with my teeth and feast upon you like the chattel you are." Isabella demands.
  "Wha... what?!"
  "Say it!"
  "Okay! Okay! I want your fangs inside me! I want it so badly! Give it to me!" you exclaim.
  
  Without another word, Isabella bites down on you and you feel her fangs enter. It hurts at first and then it's uncomfortable, but after a few seconds of Isabella sucking, you're starting to just feel weird. It's kind of sexy really.
  
  As she's doing her thing on you, you start to feel dizzy and light headed. You think you might collapse, but Isabella is holding you up so you don't fall.
  
  Oddly despite believing that you're very likely going to die, you decide to at least get one thrill out of the situation and wrap your arms around Isabella's lovely naked body and grab her ass in the process.
  
  Then you pass out.
  
  The next day you wake up in the middle of the graveyard. Your neck is sore and you've got a letter in your hand. You read it soon after you realize you're not dead.
  
  Thank you for a lovely evening. Your blood was quite delicious; I suppose you were right to worry that I may not be able to contain myself, however I resisted much to your relief no doubt.
  
  In your pack, you will find several gray blossoms from my garden, I hope Ral finds that adequate because he's not getting any more from me and you can tell him he's still an asshole.
  
  I have also kept the sprite blood. I don't like to drink it, but I know of other uses for it.
  
  May your servitude to Ral end soon.
  
  Isabella
  
  P.S. Don't be a stranger, now that you know the way.
  
  A dubious offer to be sure, but at least she seems to like you, or your blood at any rate.
  
  It's a little sad that vampire violation is the best thing that's happened to you since leaving Teckleville.
  
  At least you didn't kill a kid you suppose and you got to touch a vampire's ass. So, that's something.
  
  After checking your pack for the gray blossom, you get up off the ground, rub your neck a bit, and set off back towards Ral's place.
  
  When you arrive, Ral is in his lab so you just go lay down since you still feel a bit lightheaded from the blood loss.
  
  Eventually Ral finds you.
  
  "You're back. Well?" he asks.
  "There are a bunch of gray blossoms sitting on the table over there." You say.
  
  Ral looks and goes to gather them.
  
  "Hm, didn't expect to get this much. Guess she really liked the blood." Ral says.
  "I'll say." You snort.
  "You didn't have any trouble?"
  "Not really. She was very accommodating."
  "I am very surprised to hear that."
  "Oh, she did tell me to tell you that you're still an asshole."
  "Ah, well that does sound more like her."
  
  Ral, satisfied with your explanation and quite frankly just happy you got him what he sent you to get, takes his leave.
  
  You suppose you could have told him the whole story, but would it have even mattered or would he have even cared? No to both.
  
  Besides, you figure what happened between you and Isabella was "special" enough that it should just remain between the two of you.
  > time passes...
  Year 19
  
  "... and stay away from my daughter, mage minion!" you hear the angry farmer shout as you run away and still attempting to get your pants back on.
  
  You soon make it out of Dert and take a breather.
  
  Ever since the citizens of Dert finally realized that you were "working" for Ral, (Nobody ever really bought the herbalist story) their attitude towards you hasn't gotten any better. If anything they're even less friendly.
  
  Good thing for you they're a bunch of ignorant cowards at heart because they're reluctant to just string you up since they think it might draw Ral's ire somehow. A few even believe you're magical. You aren't really going deter that sort of thinking despite the reality that Ral could probably give a shit if you got killed or not.
  
  Of course some (like bored wayward farmers' daughters) find your "mysterious aura" enticing. Another type of thinking you aren't exactly going to deter either.
  
  Still, you probably shouldn't push your luck. Fear and hesitation can easily be overridden in a quick moment of violence. Then again, it's not like you've got much else to do with your time.
  
  You return to Ral's home and find that he's actually expecting you AND he doesn't have a menial task for you for a change.
  
  "I need you to go get me a blood gem." Ral says.
  "Blood gem? Gee, that sounds like it involves vampires again." You answer.
  "No, no, no. There aren't any vampires this time around, just a lot of sotakians or lizard folk as you might call them."
  "Didn't know there were any sotakians in the area."
  "There aren't, you'll be going to Sotak Swamp. The sotakians use blood gems in their idols, so just seek out one of those and you should be good."
  "Uh, not that I don't live to serve thanks to the spell that forces me to, but isn't that pretty far away? I don't think I'm making it back in a week and that's if I even knew how to get around there in the first place."
  "Don't worry about that, you're going to have a guide and you're going to be teleported to a relatively close to where you need to be. When you get the item and back to the original location, you'll be teleported back here."
  "Hm, well I guess that makes things slightly easier, who is this guide?"
  
  Ral points to a small winged being flying in from the next room. You guess he's a fairy of some sort, but you couldn't guess what kind. He doesn't look happy.
  
  "This is Tych, your sprite guide. He'll be able to direct you to where you need to go." Ral says.
  "Sprite huh? Weird to see one alive this time rather than just the blood." You say.
  "Yes, Tych you could say was most inspired to save his own life when I first encountered him. In return for his servitude rather than death, it was he who gathered twenty of his kind in one place and made that process a whole lot easier."
  "Wait, how long has Tych been here and where's he been? This is the first time I've seen him."
  "Oh he's been here maybe about as long as you have and you haven't seen him because I tend to keep him in my lab where I can keep a better eye on him. Sprites, like most fairy folk tend to be tricksters and Tych in particular is one of the more treacherous of his kind. In fact you may find him to be very friendly towards you since he'll probably be trying to convince you that you two should work together to escape. I of course advise you not to listen to such nonsense that will only get you into more trouble."
  "Great, and you're sending this little devious bastard to guide me?"
  "As long as you insist on sticking to the task I've given you, he won't be able to resist helping. So don't listen to anything else he says and you'll be fine. Think of it this way, you're his direct superior and what you say goes."
  
  You're not sure about this, but as always you have little choice in the matter so you gather up what equipment you believe is going to be useful and return to Ral who says a few words and before you know it, you're blinded by a flash of light.
  
  As you're still shaking off the effects of temporary blindness, your guide is in no hurry.
  
  "Take your time plivik. It's been awhile since I've been outside so I'm going to enjoy every moment we're out here." Tych says in a high pitched squeaky voice that almost makes you want to laugh.
  "Where exactly are we anyway?" you ask finally getting over your condition and finding yourself in new surroundings.
  "Oh we're in Gnarlwood Forest, not too far from the border of Sotak Swamp. More specifically we're in a fairy circle or an old abandoned one at least. Of course even abandoned ones have magic to them, probably why Ral sent me with you too. Makes the teleportation connection easier for him to cast. He's not nearly as powerful of a wizard as he thinks he is."
  "Hm, well he's still got the pair of us doing his dirty work."
  "True plivik, but that won't last forever. If we work together we'll be able to overcome his magic that's binding the both of us to him."
  "Oh? How so?"
  
  Tych giggles a bit.
  
  "Ral has made a big mistake in letting me come back here! We fairy folk as you may know are magical by nature, but I cannot break our magical chains by myself. However, my village isn't too far from here and it would help the both of us plivik. With their help, Ral's spell could easily be overcome." Tych says.
  "Why would they help me? I'm not a sprite." You ask.
  "What does that matter plivik? You're still a being in need of help. I can see you're not a bad person, and just like me, you are just forced to serve a bad master. If you tell me to guide you to the other sprites, we can go right now."
  "You keep calling me plivik, what does that mean?"
  "Oh, it's just a word in my native tongue. Just means friend."
  "We're friends all of a sudden?"
  "We both don't like Ral and wish to be free of his chains correct? I'd say that already makes us have enough in common to be friends even if we just met, plivik."
  "Ral said you would be friendly towards me to do something underhanded and that I shouldn't pay any attention to what you have to say unless it directly involves the task."
  "Well of course he's going to say that, plivik. He wants to keep us divided. He also told you that I lead twenty of my people to be ground up into into blood paste. I guarantee that I would never do such a hideous thing even to save my own life! He used a spell to capture us all and it was only by pure luck that he decided to keep me around as a pet to torment. You know he keeps me in a glass jar on his lab desk and shakes it around?"
  
  You can see how this is going to go. You're going to have to play "Who's the liar?" the whole time during this task.
  
  "I think we should stick to the task for now." You say.
  "Oh I understand your hesitation. How about this, we go get the blood gem first and when we return here then you can decide to return to Ral or go to the sprite community I mentioned. That should give you time to decide whether I'm trustworthy or not. Just think about it okay?" Tych says.
  "Hm, I suppose that's reasonable."
  "Great! Now let's get this task underway then."
  
  Tych goes on to tell you due to his own capture, he's hoping that his information about the area is still the same. He tells you that from your position he knows that there should be a sotakian place of worship within a day's walk.
  
  "Now if we head north and then west there's a clearer path to where we need to get to. We're going to have to be careful to avoid elven patrols though. Just hope they aren't on heightened alert because that's going to make sneaking around a lot harder." Tych says.
  "I don't suppose the fact that we're planning on desecrating one of their enemy's idols would make them friendly?" you say.
  "A good idea, but it wouldn't make any difference. Elves are a bunch of territorial assholes. They think EVERYTHING in Gnarlwood forest is under their control. As a human, you'd still be seen as an interloper and most likely killed. And as for me, well let's just say it wouldn't be much better than Ral's magical enslavement."
  "Sounds like it would just be easier to immediately go west and bypass the patrols."
  "You would think that, but chances are it would take just as long due to all the high marshes and sinking bogs in the area. That's not even counting whatever creatures are lurking there. Not even the sotakians make their homes that way and consider it sacred ground due to the daquala population in the area."
  "Wait, what's a daquala?"
  "Oh, they're a creature about the size of one of your dogs but a whole lot more vicious and meaner. They can also camouflage themselves to practically be invisible. However, I don't think they would necessarily be a problem, they tend to sleep a lot and most of them should be hibernating this time of year. You're more likely to get swallowed by quicksand or a giant swamp serpent honestly. Still, I suppose if we got lucky it would cut our time by half. Up to you, plivik."
  > go through the swamp
  Either way sounds dangerous, but if one way is going to be quicker, you might as well take that one though you have one major concern.
  
  "You sure these daquala things are hibernating?" you ask.
  "As I said, most of them probably are this time of year, but that's not certain. I still say the quicksand and sinkholes are more of a hazard, since I'm going to be able to tell you if daqualas are in the area. Their camouflage doesn't work so well against Sprite eyes." Tych remarks.
  "Good, then you keep a look out for those things and let me worry about where I step."
  "Very well plivik."
  
  Before you set off, you break off a piece of a low hanging branch so you at least have a good sized piece of wood to test solid ground with.
  
  Doesn't take too long before you and Tych get to the edge of the forest where the ground is starting to become more noticeably wet and softer. You start using the branch as well as relying on Tych to scout ahead.
  
  Tych goes on to say, he's fairly certain that there is a smaller sotakian village if you keep heading west. He also mentions that it should still have some sort of idol since the sotakians are pretty serious about their worship.
  
  As you and Tych travel through the swamp, you find that Tych is a bit overly talkative in general. He even acknowledges that he is, but he's just so happy to talk to ANYONE who isn't Ral. Most of his talk concerns Gnarlwood and Sotak swamp and how elves are a bunch of assholes, so it isn't completely useless banter though you're more concerned with his chatter calling attention to you what with the invisible monsters possibly around.
  
  "Hey look, while I get that you like to talk, I also like to live. I'm already not happy about being ankle deep in water, so cut with the chatter and keep an eye out for those invisible things or whatever your magical pixie eyes show you." You snap.
  "Pixie? I'm fucking sprite, not a fucking pixie you fucking plivik!" Tych angrily responds.
  "... fucking friend... what? Wait a minute, what does plivik REALLY mean?!"
  "Take a guess asshole! Fucking pixie... "
  "Alright! Alright! I fucking apologize! Shit, I didn't realize there was that much of a damn difference!"
  
  Tych sputters for a moment, as he's too angry to even speak about your ignorance on the matter.
  
  "There are a shitload of differences!" he exclaims.
  "Well how would I know, both of you guys are tiny and fly around with your little wings right?" you say.
  "How would you like it if I called you an orc instead of a human because to me you're both big, ugly and stomp around on your feet because you're not blessed enough to even have wings in the first place?!"
  "Ah, but orcs are green and that's a very obvious difference!"
  "And pixies have less shiny wings! Have you even SEEN a pixie? They're not as pretty as we are and live around fucking fungus! If they didn't have wings they'd be as low as brownies!"
  "Okay, keep your voice down, you're getting all excited and the whole point I was trying to make in the first place was for you to shut the hell up."
  "No! I'm not going to shut the hell up when it comes to... "
  
  And then right before your eyes, you see the side of a large reptilian face pass right in front of you as it swallows Tych whole. The rest of its long legless body follows as it splashes back into the water.
  
  It might not have been a daquala, but Tych did mention large water serpents in the area.
  
  The serpent makes a second pass and while you block with the branch you have, you still get knocked down.
  
  Now that you're in a more prone position, he serpent attempts to coil around you. You pull out your short sword at this point and give it a few hacks, which is enough to cause it to swim away though you aren't entirely sure if it's gone. Not like the water is transparent enough to see through given how muddy it is.
  
  You stand up and make your way out of the area as quick as you can. You dropped your branch somewhere in the water when you got knocked over and with Tych dead, you try to go back the way you came because you certainly aren't going to be able to navigate through the swamps this way.
  
  Your only hope is get back to the forest and follow the road into the swamp and hopefully from there you'll be able to find a better path to a lizard village. This isn't a good situation.
  
  And of course it only gets worse when it gets darker and you're jumping at every unfamiliar sound thinking that it's some beast ready to pounce. Naturally you end up going thigh deep into mud thanks to being preoccupied.
  
  You curse and struggle at first until you remember that you're not supposed to struggle when in this situation. Of course you're waist high by the time you remember.
  
  You stop struggling and try to find something solid to grab on to so you can pull yourself out. For once you get lucky and manage to slowly drag and twist yourself so you can grab ahold of a rotten stump.
  
  "Okay. Okay. I can get out of this... " you say to yourself.
  
  It takes awhile and sometimes it feels like you're being pulled in deeper by some force other than just nature, but eventually you make it and drag yourself out. You're soaking wet, muddy and tired, but you're out.
  
  "Shit... thank Yag... damn... " you pant.
  
  Not wishing to be in this part of swamp by the time its pitch dark, you get up using the stump once again as leverage, along with a nearby soft rock.
  
  Soft rock?
  
  And that when you find out your left hand was not on a "soft rock" at all, but a sleeping daquala who completely drops the camouflage when you wake it up.
  
  It's so quick that you don't quite see what it really looks like except that it has many teeth.
  
  Many MANY sharp teeth.