"I…." Enzo froze in fright, a shiver running down his spine. It was so close—the monster he thought he could escape from was now right on his shoulder.
"Don't be scared. I won't eat you, I promise," the feline creature said, its sharp teeth spreading into a childish smile.
To be fair, that was a lie. Whether it would devour the young man depended entirely on the next words that came out of his mouth.
"You have the eyes, the hair, and even the smell of a night creature—yet you can walk in the sun. Why is that?" the feline asked again, tilting its head.
It wasn't imagining things. Enzo looked completely different now compared to his original body. Pitch-black eyes with white pupils, silky gray hair like ancient royalty, and pasty ash-colored skin. Aside from having the body of a human, he looked like anything but.
"I don't know what you mean… I've always been able to walk in the sun," Enzo replied calmly, summoning some courage. His eyes darted away from the creature on his shoulder.
"Ahh? Really? That's strange."
The feline was taken aback. You'd think he would know if such a thing existed. After all, even the strongest of creatures blessed by night were cursed by the sun.
"I don't know what to tell you." Enzo smiled coyly, shrugging his shoulder as a bead of sweat rolled down his forehead. He thought about jumping off the balcony to make a break for it…
But the drop down looked absolutely terrifying.
"Bring your hand here. Let me taste your blood."
After hesitating a while, the feline finally made its demand, its gaze lingering on Enzo's left hand and the blood dripping from it.
"That…" Enzo felt weird about it, but he understood he was in a tight spot, trapped with something that could probably kill him with ease.
So, slowly, he raised his hand and let the creature drink his blood.
Suddenly—
"Woah!! That's some high-quality blood right there! What the hell?"
The feline exclaimed, smacking its tongue. "Night creature blood usually tastes like shit. I should know." Enzo's blood, on the other hand, was sublime.
"Wait a minute…"
After a few seconds of savoring it, the creature paused, realization dawning on its face.
"It could work," it whispered.
Enzo was a night creature, alright—the blood didn't lie. But the quality of his blood was off the charts. So much so that… it could wake that person up.
"Hey kid, do you want to get out of this place?"
The feline dropped to the balcony railing, looking Enzo straight in the eyes.
"Out?"
Enzo wasn't stupid. He'd already guessed that this place was a prison of sorts. Otherwise, this strange feline wouldn't be here, hoping to feast on the unlucky.
There were even more obvious signs pointing to that conclusion.
"Yes. I know it seems impossible, of course—this place being made by the Red Sun Legion and all. But there's one thing you don't know…"
The feline looked both ways and whispered,
"This place was made to house an extremely powerful being. One that could break out easily if at full power."
It didn't say who. But Enzo didn't need it to.
Victoria Drakenhart. The Queen of Vampires.
She was his objective as well.
"Okay. If I can help and it gets me out of here, then I will."
Enzo nodded at the feline creature.
"Great! You can call me Nibbleskin."
The feline grinned, hopping back onto Enzo's shoulder with pride.
"Nibbleskin, huh? What a cute name," Enzo muttered under his breath, nearly breaking into laughter. But the creature didn't seem fazed. In fact, it took pride in it.
Together, they walked back into the building. It was much easier to navigate now that Enzo had a guide. Nibbleskin apparently knew a lot about the place, having stayed here for as long as it could remember.
They got along surprisingly well. On the way, Nibbleskin vented his frustrations about eating disgusting night creature meat for years. He spoke so annoyingly about it that Enzo—who now was one—felt bad.
Do night creatures really taste that bad? Enzo wondered, eyeing his pale, pasty skin. Probably.
After about 30 minutes of walking, they came to a stop before a massive iron door—20 feet tall and 5 feet thick. It was sealed with layers of mechanisms that hadn't worn down with time.
"Such engineering… ahhh, old man Noland would probably love this," Enzo muttered.
The old man was nothing if not a total nerd. This would send him into a frenzy.
"Yeah, the Red Sun Legion does have some impressive mechanisms," Nibbleskin added.
The Red Sun Legion… the most terrifying force in the known universe. Capable of unimaginable feats through their steel constructs and the power of fire.
"Anyway… I already figured out the locks decades ago," Nibbleskin said, jumping off Enzo's shoulder and onto the door's many ledges and levers.
In a blur of movement, the creature shifted parts into place and rotated mechanisms with precision.
Then—
BOOM!!
A cloud of dust erupted as the massive doors creaked open, revealing the glowing, ominous red light from within.
"Let's go," Nibbleskin said, landing back on Enzo's shoulder.
"Hehe… do I have a choice?" Enzo smiled bitterly. The light from the room sent a chill through his entire body—it felt wrong.
"Ehnn, not really. The other option is me eating you whole," Nibbleskin said with a grin.
It wasn't really a threat. He couldn't force Enzo to help—but if Enzo became useless, then… well, food was food.
"Okay," Enzo nodded, forcing a smile before stepping into the glowing red chamber.