The first thing that struck me was the excruciating pain. My head throbbed. I opened my eyes and dark grey walls greeted me. I sat up and realized I was in a cage. Bloody humans. I was puzzled at how easily they defeated me. Besides the pain, I could think relatively clearly and I had a feeling it had something to do with that mirror…I had not seen myself for nearly three thousand years, I found it fascinating…and frightening. I had changed. But, that fascination would not have drawn me from the battle, it must have had some hypnotic effect. Bloody, bloody humans. I stood up, my hair just brushing the top bars. I lightly tapped one of the bars, a small dent formed. I frowned. They obviously haven’t come across an ancient before or else they would have done better than this pitiful cage. Unless they had another surprise waiting for me. Ah, well. I parted the bars without straining a muscle and walked confidently to the dungeon doors. It burst open with one kick.

A thin, young human stood in the hallway, his jaw wide open. I tilted my head, I was curious as to how the humans had planned to keep me here. He turned around and ran yelling shrilly “The vampire has escaped! The vampire has escaped!”

I walked calmly after him. They had not faced an ancient. The worst they had come across must have been Tanu, and although he was old compared to a human, he was not a millennium child yet. The door burst open and the human with the dirty blonde hair stood before me again. He had the mirror and was smiling.

“I will not fall for the same trick twice, fool!” I growled, lunging forward I grabbed the mirror and it shattered, cutting my hand. Blood spattered onto the floor. I threw the shards at him. He was momentarily stunned by my actions and as he ducked, I jumped over him and ran for the door. The humans in the following room were simply too surprised to react. I was out before they moved and down the next hall. I did not feel like a confrontation with these humans, and I was getting slightly worried about my companions…only slightly. I carried on running, they obviously could not keep up. Soon, I could no longer hear them…which was saying something considering my pointed ears could hear for several miles around. However, I suspected that this castle weakened my abilities.

A trap signaled the human border. Blue flames filled the room but they did not harm me. I stopped in the next room. It was filled with rich red and gold tapestries. It felt warmer and the air glowed vibrantly. Although I was safe from the humans, whose territory was I in now?
I could not sense anyone. I had wasted enough time, I must rejoin my friends and finish this mission. I sat down and closed my eyes. I began to focus, trying to sense where they were. It was very difficult just to get a reading of my surroundings. The very walls of the castle seemed to reverberate. I sighed. This was getting increasingly annoying. After a few deep breathes I tried again. Concentration was difficult, a small bead of sweat formed when I finally sensed outside the walls of the room. I noticed a rhythm in the castle walls. It seemed to be breathing. Whenever it ‘exhaled’, it became virtually impossible to sense anything, but when it ‘inhaled’ I could sense much further than usual. The first thing I sensed was the Dehekon. That was a good start. The trail of the wizard was fading. The wall exhaled and I lost the connection. I swore. I timed the walls ‘breathing’. As soon as it inhaled again I relocated the path the wizard took. He had come across a pack of Zulnaret. It was odd that I could not sense Shendron. I did detect a werewolf hot on the wizards trail. Bloody werewolves. There was no time to lose. The hallway leading away from the human territory, lead to a short cut. Well, whatever creatures lay ahead, they could not be worse than a werewolf.