Private A Good Man is Hard to Find

[Thelma Goth]

<"Are you sure this man is your former master?">

<He looks the same, sounds the same, moves the same way… He even feels the same in the Force.> Despite the circumstances, everything checked out. Still, Thelma recognized the need to be wary.

"Excuse me sir, where did you just come from?"

“In here,” Max answered, gesturing to a door. The sign above the building revealed it was a hotel, though it appeared to be completely deserted, with not even staff members remaining to tend the place.

“Where have you been all this time?” Thelma asked, allowing her emotions to push through. “I thought you were dead. I thought everyone was dead…”

Max hesitated, one arm raised to push the door open. His expression went through several phases, guilt and regret chief among them. “It was necessary,” he said. “I couldn’t have any contact with you. The hunters had access to all our credentials. They would’ve tracked you down, or lured you in…”

“But someone did contact me using your credentials,” she pointed out.

“I know. That’s what I was afraid of,” Max muttered grimly. “I was hoping you’d have the good sense not to listen. That you would assume I was dead and that it was just a trick.”

Thelma faltered, feeling like a chastised child. “I… I wanted to know for sure.”

Max shook his head. “First thing in the morning, I want you and your friend out of here. I’ll escort you back to your ship myself—”

A howl coming from the woods interrupted him. Max threw open the door to the inn.

“Tonight you have to stay here, unfortunately. Now get inside, before we all wind up food for the wolves.”

Silas Westgard​

 

[Silas Westgard]

Location: Dahrtag
Objective: Help Thelma
Tag: Thelma Goth

<He looks the same, sounds the same, moves the same way… He even feels the same in the Force.>

Thelma was right, everything did seem to check out from what she had described of her master beforehand. Even though that was the case, Silas still couldn't help but be on edge from the big coincidence. Giving Thelma an uneasy look he chose to follow the man back to a run down hotel of some kind. It all but seemed abandoned from the outside, that alone made him hesitant in entering.

"Hold on a second Thelma, we are not going in there"

Suddenly, a loud howl that echoed through the fog forced Silas to snap his head to face the opposite direction. It didn't seem close, but he didn't want to stick out here much longer to find out "On second thoughts, we'll take the chance..." he said with a sigh before reluctantly heading inside the hotel with the others.

Still on edge, Silas looked around the room extensively just in case they were walking straight into a trap. Something didn't seem right about all this, and Silas was going to find out what. The knight eased up slightly and peeked out one of the many dusty windows.

"Do you want to explain why you've been held up in a crumbling hotel all this time?" Silas demanded sternly, keeping an eye out to see if he could spot anything in the fog.
​

 

[Thelma Goth]

Silas seemed adamant about not going inside… until he heard the howling. Suddenly it was imperative that they seek shelter from whatever lurked in the woods.

They entered the hotel. Max quickly closed the door behind them, latching it shut.

The lobby was dark. Most of the windows had been boarded up, and the lights hanging from the ceiling were no longer operational. It was also as cold inside as it was outside in the absence of a functioning heating system.

Max turned on an old flashlight, providing meager luminescence in their immediate vicinity. “You’re human, aren’t you, Silas? Unlike us, you need warmth. I think I have a portable heater somewhere around here. If not, you have my permission to build a fire, or whatever…”

"Do you want to explain why you've been held up in a crumbling hotel all this time?"

Thelma’s eyes were fixed on Max, hungry for answers. The elder vampire continued to search for the heater while he spoke. “I assume you’ve already told him everything, Thelma?”

“As much as I could,” she said. “But even I don’t know the full story.”

“Thelma’s mother Genevieve was insane,” Max stated bluntly. “We kept her locked away, but she managed to escape and killed a child in the village. Apart from the natural outrage and hysteria that typically follows such a tragedy, she had also broken the peace treaty between us and the villagers. To be honest, they had probably been looking for an excuse to get rid of us for quite some time.

“The hunters were organized professionals hired by the villagers to exact revenge. Brutal mercenaries, really, but very efficient. It all happened fast. After I spirited Thelma to safety, I holed up in this old place to fight them. I knew they hadn’t finished the job yet, because they were still hanging around the Citadel. I figured there had to be a few vampires still alive inside the fortress. But then the wolves appeared.”

“The wolves?” Thelma echoed. There were wolves on Dahrtag, to be sure, but they tended to avoid sentients.

“Not like normal wolves. These things were huge, ravenous beasts with no fear of people, reeking of the Dark Side.” Max found the heater, but was having trouble getting it to work. “They came out of nowhere and drove off the hunters. Then they started coming after the villagers. I tried to help, but their numbers seemed endless. And then there were the ghouls—corpses of the newly dead which were reanimated by the Dark Side. They would wander around, attacking any living thing they could find, until decomposition caused their bodies to quite literally fall apart.”

“But—how? Where were all these creatures coming from?” Thelma asked, bewildered. “I thought all the tales about monsters in the woods were just scary stories to keep people from straying off the paths…”

“They were.” Finally, Max struck the heater against a hard surface and it blazed to life. “They were just scary stories, until someone inside the Citadel brought them to life. I've been in here trying to figure out what's going on and how to stop it.”

Silas Westgard​

 

[Silas Westgard]

Location: Dahrtag
Objective: Help Thelma
Tag: Thelma Goth

“As much as I could,” she said. “But even I don’t know the full story.”

Silas looked back to the pair of them and focused on what they had to say. The fact Thelma herself didn't know the full story only made things more mysterious, especially when they started to mention the atrocities that wondered the planet "Wolves and undead? this is most unusual" he muttered reflectively. Walking bodies could easily be linked to dark magic formed by the darkside, Silas even had the experience of seeing them himself when he took a trip with Kahlil Noble to a long forgotten lab full of them. They were controlled by an undead brute with significant power. Wolves on the other hand seemed to be a different story.

"Someone or something has definitely created these creatures. I have seen an instance of this once before..." Silas remarked to the pair of them, slowly placing himself down in an old chair "There's unknowing how powerful they can be, but from what you've just said they must be pretty strong in the force to be capable of such feats"

Silas sighed deeply and shot a concerned look to Thelma "This however should not be our top concern. We have only come to search for you, not find a solution to a problem that's probably way bigger than we think. In the morning, we will leave and head back to coruscant so we can notify the council" the knight explained, before finally gazing at the master.

"Will you not be coming with us?"​

 

[Thelma Goth]

“We can’t,” Thelma blurted out, shaking her head vehemently. “If the Council investigates this, they’ll find out everything about me, too.” Her cover would be blown and her secret would be out.

“The hunters who participated in the attack and the villagers who hired them are all either dead or fled in terror,” Max pointed out. “Your life is no longer in danger, provided you leave this place as soon as you can.”

That was indeed something to be glad of, but… “There’s more to it than that,” she insisted. “I don’t want them to know. I don’t want to be treated differently because of what I am.”

“You’re going to be treated differently whether you want it or not,” Max said sternly. “You are different, Thelma. You need to accept that.”

But I don’t want to be alone in my differences, Thelma thought, silent and forlorn.

"Will you not be coming with us?"

“Someone needs to hold down the fort here. I’ve been fighting this thing since it started, so it might as well be me.” There was a weariness in the way he spoke. He may have been fighting for months, but the cracks were beginning to show.

“I’ll stay,” Thelma said. Max started to shake his head, but she persisted. “I have learned so much since I left. Let me stay, please. Don’t send me away again.”

Max grimaced, then sighed. “What about you?” He gestured to Silas, clearly hoping the boy would somehow intervene. “Are you willing to head back to Coruscant without her?”

Silas Westgard​

 

[Silas Westgard]

Location: Dahrtag
Objective: Help Thelma
Tag: Thelma Goth

“If the Council investigates this, they’ll find out everything about me, too.”

Unfortunately, Thelma was right. If he did go to the council they'd investigate her and find out the truth. The Jedi will need to know at some point but now wasn't the time to reveal something so personal "Don't worry Thelma, I won't say anything" he said to her with a brief smile, not wanting to stress her out even more.

"Sir, Thelma is different and I accept that. There's a time and place to reveal such things, if Thelma isn't comfortable then so be it" he said sternly to Max now "Thelma knows what's best for herself, not you." it sounded harsh yet needed considering how long Max had been away from Thelma.

Slowly shaking his head at the two, he sighed when Thelma chose to stay and fight. This was not what they were here for considering Silas promised to pull her out of there if things were too hot. However, Silas knew she'd stay no matter what and he didn't have the heart to leave the girl he loved alone "If she stays, I stay" the knight finally grumbled as he stood up out of his chair "I fear this is a very unwise choice, but I will go along with it. For now, we should better get some sleep and think of a gameplan in the morning"

Walking over to an old sofa he threw himself down back first and looked over to Thelma. He'd left enough room for her to join him if needed, yet if she chose otherwise Silas was fine with sleeping alone

"I've slept in worse places at least..."​

 

[Thelma Goth]

Silas reluctantly agreed not to report the situation to the Council for the sake of keeping Thelma’s secret. Then his whole plan of returning to Coruscant went out the window once she decided to stay. Thelma felt a pang of guilt when she heard him sigh and call it an unwise choice. She knew he was staying for her sake.

He suggested they get some sleep, and flung himself on an old couch. The impact sent up a cloud of dust, prompting Thelma to sneeze. Max smirked. “I cleaned out one of the rooms upstairs for my personal use. You two are welcome to sleep there. I’ll keep watch down here.”

Thelma’s face fell. “I can’t.”

Max raised an eyebrow. “Well, forgive me. I saw the way you two looked at each other, and I assumed—”

“No, that isn’t it,” Thelma interrupted, her face reddening. “I mean, we are—that is, I would certainly like to, but I can’t be alone and idle with him for an entire night. I… It’s too tempting.”

Frowning, Max still didn’t seem to understand. He studied her, then sniffed the air, his nostrils moving only faintly as he caught her scent. His expression grew stormy with realization. “You’ve been starving yourself.”

“No!” she cried. “Not starving, only a little malnourished.” But that was hardly better, wasn't it? “On Coruscant my opportunities to feed are too limited, so I just eat the food they give me at the Temple. It’s enough to keep me alive, though the temptation is always there...”

“Thelma, you shouldn't be fighting your nature,” Max pointed out. She saw that he wasn’t angry, only concerned for her wellbeing. “You can’t afford to be in a weakened state.”

“I brought rations,” she protested. “Enough to last me a few days.” In a softer voice, she added, “Please, master. It’s not weakness to fight temptation. If I throw away all the self-control I’ve built up over time, it will be even harder to get it back…”

Max regarded her in silence for several moments, before he threw his hands up as if in surrender. “Fine,” he said, though his brow was still furrowed with uneasiness. “Do what you will. But, there is a trick which may help you in the future.” He glanced at Silas. “If you want to be around him without feeling the claws of hunger, give him some of your blood. Not too much, or he will become one of us. But a small amount will only alter his body chemistry for a few hours, until it is flushed out. You won’t find him so tempting anymore, and he’ll get to enjoy some of the benefits of our condition for a short time.”

Silas Westgard​

 

[Silas Westgard]

Location: Dahrtag
Objective: Help Thelma
Tag: Thelma Goth

“I cleaned out one of the rooms upstairs for my personal use. You two are welcome to sleep there. I’ll keep watch down here.”

"Thank you Max, but-" before he could explain why they couldn't be alone together Thelma had already started telling him. Silas's face blushed slightly when she admitted they were close instead of hiding it away. He'd love to be as close to her as possible, but with their obvious differences, they couldn't do anything together for more than a few moments.

When they were preparing for the planet Silas and Thelma both had made sure to pack enough food for two days, which in terms was light. It was only meant to be a quick in and out mission where they retrieved Max. So far everything had gone to plan, all they needed to do now was wait out the night and see what was going on with Thelma's home planet. The pair of them were going into the unknown with investigating something strange like this. As long as they trusted the force they'd get through this fine.

Looking at Max, he raised a brow at Max telling him to take some of her blood. Almost instantly, Silas shook his head from taking and drinking his girlfriend's blood like a maniac "I'm not sure about that. If it requires Thelma to injure herself just to draw blood I don't feel comfortable doing such a thing" Silas said, sighing from how unsure he felt from taking her blood just to be close to her for a few hours "I will however give it a try if there is a safe way of doing it" Silas finally said to the pair. It wasn't like they were going to be doing it all the time, hopefully by the time things got more serious they'd be a better solution to this problem.

Slowly getting out of his seat Silas walked to the stairs and stared back at Thelma "Will you be coming with me or are you sleeping elsewhere? Whatever you say, I will respect Thelma"​

 

[Thelma Goth]

In contrast to Silas, Thelma looked quite excited about the idea—though she endeavored to hide it, suppressing her smile and blushing demurely. “Thanks for the tip, master,” she said. “It does sound very… useful.”

"Will you be coming with me or are you sleeping elsewhere? Whatever you say, I will respect Thelma."

“Oh, I… Sure, I’ll come up in a second.” Turning to Max, she whispered, “Erm, would you happen to have a knife I could borrow?”

Max pulled a small combat knife from a sheath at his belt and handed it to her, trying not to smirk or laugh at her sudden enthusiasm. Thelma was perhaps admirable in her simplicity, that she could be so delighted at the thought of merely sleeping in her beloved's arms. She practically flew up the stairs two at a time.

The room Max directed them to was indeed clean, if a little spartan in terms of furnishings. Thelma immediately sat on the made bed, staring at the knife in her hand. “I can do it safely,” she said, talking fast in her eagerness. “You’d only need a little bit. A few drops, maybe. I could make a small cut on my thumb. I prick my fingers with sewing needles all the time. It’ll heal up while I sleep.”

Looking up at Silas then, she recalled how he had said he wasn't comfortable with the idea, and lowered her hands into her lap. “Unless you don’t want to do it. Then we don’t have to,” she said softly. But if they didn’t, she’d have to leave him alone and go find somewhere else to sleep tonight.

Silas Westgard​

 

[Silas Westgard]

Location: Dahrtag
Objective: Help Thelma
Tag: Thelma Goth

“Oh, I… Sure, I’ll come up in a second.”

"No problem..." he said with an uncertain tone before walking up the stairs to leave the two of the alone. Compared to Thelma, he obviously had doubts about whether this was the right way to go about things. Not only was there a chance he could turn into something he didn't want to be, but the fact he wasn't entirely keen on consuming his girlfriend's blood.

After waiting for a short time, Thelma finally came into the clean room and tried to reason with him. Only a few drops? that didn't sound as bad as he was thinking. It sounded much better than constantly cutting your arm just so your boyfriend could be affectionate "You do speak sense Thelma" he said with a sigh, knowing a small thing like that would indeed only heal up while they were sleeping.

Smiling shyly, Silas walked over and put a hand on her cheek. After contemplating it all in his head, Silas had finally made a decision "Fine, let's give it a go" Silas said softly, leaning down to give her a kiss on the lips "But please still be careful Thelma, I don't want you losing more blood than needed and changing me" the knight warned as he sat down next to her and prepared to receive the blood.

"It's going to be weird, but I suggest letting the blood drip into my mouth"

Stars, this was so bizarre.​

 

[Thelma Goth]

"You do speak sense Thelma."

“Sometimes, yes,” she murmured, a fond smile on her lips as he caressed her cheek. His kiss was sweet and left her wanting more.

“If you don’t like it, I won’t ask you to do it again,” she said, growing serious. “I’ll be sure not to give you too much. Being a vampire isn’t something I would wish on anyone.”

Holding the knife firmly, she sliced open the tip of her thumb. A steady stream of blood began to drip from the cut, trickling down her white hand. “Maybe take off your shirt if you don’t want to get blood on it,” she suggested, holding her hand out for him to drink.

No doubt it would be strange for Silas at first, perhaps even unpleasant. But Thelma’s blood had its own weird allure, like a pungent drug which produces an unforgettable high. At the very least, he would likely feel a compulsion to drink more of it, which could be difficult to resist—though true to her word, Thelma was careful to take away her hand before the pull became too strong.

A few drops, that was all it took. She bandaged the wound quickly and efficiently using the supplies from her medkit, then peered at Silas. “How are you feeling?” she asked, leaning over him.

Silas Westgard​

 

[Silas Westgard]

Location: Dahrtag
Objective: Help Thelma
Tag: Thelma Goth

“I’ll be sure not to give you too much. Being a vampire isn’t something I would wish on anyone.”

"I trust you Thelma..." Silas said softly with a slight squeeze of her hand. Watching on, he glared at Thelma make a delicate cut on her finger. Hearing her request, Silas nodded and swiftly lifted it over his head to throw it to the side. His strong, upper body tensed nervously as he opened his mouth, anxiously waiting for the drops of blood to land on his tongue. Eventually, it did just that.

The blood tasted strange and didn't really affect him at first, but after a few moments, his body began to feel a buzz. Silas's eyes slowly got wider when they reached his bloodstream, almost instantly overloading his form with an influx of adrenaline that made him feel like a different man entirely. Looking at Thelma with glassy eyes, he nodded strongly "I-I don't know what to think" Silas stated with an unsure tone "It's almost as if I'm a different person altogether" not in a bad way, but one that showed the blood has boosted things beyond what a regular person would have. Not all of it was good though...

Staring up at Thelma silently, a hand hesitantly rested on her arm before it began slowly moving up "You know what, there is one thing we can do to test if it has worked" Silas whispered as it reached her face. Gently leaning her closer, his other hand raised up to stroke her cheek "Something tells me we've both wanted this to happen..." Silas's head tilted slightly and stayed only a few inches away "You don't know how beautiful you really are..."

With that, Silas locked lips in a deep and passionate kiss. As well as that, his arms pulled her into his chest to truly take in the intimacy they were both giving each other.

Everything they had done had finally led to this.​

 

[Thelma Goth]

Silas’ initial reaction sparked concern in Thelma. She had never given her blood to anyone before, nor could she recall ever having witnessed it being done by another vampire, so even she didn’t quite know what to expect. Using a scrap of bandage, she gently wiped a drop of blood that had missed the mark off of his bare chest, her touch lingering. Was it her imagination, or did his skin feel a couple degrees colder than usual?

She laid the back of her hand against his forehead to check. If there was a difference, it was faint and likely not cause for alarm. If anything, it felt less jarring to touch him and feel how warm he was in comparison to her.

He said he felt almost like a different person. “In a good way, or a bad way?” she asked, stroking his hair. She felt his hand traveling up her arm, and fell still.

"You know what, there is one thing we can do to test if it has worked." Silas whispered as it reached her face. Gently leaning her closer, his other hand raised up to stroke her cheek. "Something tells me we've both wanted this to happen..."

"Yes," she whispered. Her breath caught in her throat as he pulled her closer. She waited until the last second, still expecting to feel the itch of her fangs descending, but it never came. At last her lips parted against his with a gasp, her arms wrapping around his neck, then her legs around his waist as she pulled him over her in the bed…

Downstairs, Max held vigil, his lightsaber hilt resting on his lap. He heard the wolves howling outside. Every night since this all began, he had dealt with these beasts. They beat upon the door, growling and scratching, or tried to find a way through the boarded up windows. They never succeeded, but if they ever managed to get inside, he would be ready for them.

A muffled cry in the distance caught his attention. It sounded human, but it wasn’t like the mindless groanings of the ghouls. Could it be…? Well, it was more than likely just some trick. Unless some poor soul had come to the village without knowing what lay waiting for them…

Clenching his fist, he stood up from his chair and walked over to the entrance. He hesitated, his hand poised to open the door. It was dangerous, much too dangerous. He had to think about Thelma’s safety, and the mortal boy Silas, who was even more susceptible to these threats than she. But then he heard the cry again, closer than before, and couldn’t find it in him to ignore it.

He reached out to unbolt the door—then suddenly found himself blasted back, splinters of wood and chunks of shredded metal showering him as he skidded across the floor.

A hooded figure stood in the doorway, their face obscured. Behind them were the wolves, who came charging into the building, snarling and snapping. Max struggled to rise to his feet, but found himself pinned down by telekinesis. “Thelma!” he shouted, before his voice abruptly died in his throat and he was forced into unconsciousness.

Silas Westgard​

 

[Silas Westgard]

Location: Dahrtag
Objective: Help Thelma
Tag: Thelma Goth

Feeling her lips against his, he allowed his mind to be entranced. Everything else didn't matter right now as he kissed the girl he loved deeply with passionate intent. Silas felt her strong grip pull him down over her, and with that, there was nothing that could stop them from being taken over by lust. Slowly, Silas moved his hands up her body until they reached her shoulders, gripping the edge of her collar to begin carefully taking it off. All Silas wanted right now was her affection, nothing else mattered

After a short time, Silas lay in the bed beside Thelma and took some deep breaths. Looking into her eyes, he gently stroked her cheek and gave the girl a kiss on the lips "You're perfect..." Silas said softly, not caring about the fact she was a vampire. To him, Thelma was just like any other person. She cared for him, and he cared for her "I wish I could stay in here all night, but I've got to take over Max's watch" Silas said with a wink before getting out of bed to throw on his clothes.

They'd have more chances together in the future, all they had to do was get off this planet alive first.

"Right, tr-" right when Silas was going to say something a howl cut him off. The knight sapped his head to the window before rushing over to peek outside. Almost instantly, he caught sight of a hooded figure sending Max flying. The loud crash only proved that as wolves began to flood the building "Shit, Thelma get up, now!" he said to her in a hurried tone before running to the door in an attempt to barricade the entrance.

"I fear we're going to have some uninvited company in a few moments. Find us a way out while I keep the door secure!"​

 

[Thelma Goth]

Thelma lay beneath the covers, her red hair spilling across the pillow. She didn’t open her eyes when Silas kissed her, though the corners of her mouth twitched in a faint smile. It faded as she felt the blankets fall empty, one hand reaching out toward the lingering warmth where he had lain beside her. But she was too tired to protest his leaving.

A loud thud—the sound of the door being flung off its hinges downstairs—made her eyes open. Thelma sat up in bed just in time to glimpse the wolves clambering up the stairs.

These wolves were hideously deformed. It looked as if the sides of their mouths had been gashed or skinned, exposing all their sharp teeth. Their eyes were sulfuric yellow with corruption, and blood stained their matted fur.

Silas shut the door to their room and began to barricade it, ordering Thelma to find a way out. She had already leaped out of bed by then, clad in only her shift. Grabbing her lightsaber, she rushed over to the window, which had been boarded up. With her vampiric strength and a little help from the Force, she began to pry away the boards—

Behind her, she heard the shriek of warping metal and splintering wood. She whirled around, watching in horror as the door caved in on itself, crushed into a ball by a profound telekinetic force.

“Silas, get away from the door!” she exclaimed, prying away the last of the boards over the window.

What was left of the door collapsed. As the dust cleared the same hooded figure who had knocked Max unconscious entered the room. A woman’s pale, slender hand emerged from the long sleeves of their ragged robes; with the Force they seized Thelma, holding her in place before she could escape. Thelma struggled, trying to free herself from their grasp, but their skill with the Force far surpassed hers.

So she lashed out instead, pushing the cloaked figure. They skidded backwards, the hood of their cloak flung back.

“Mother?!” Thelma blurted. The woman’s face underneath the hood was haggard, her violet eyes sunken and her long red hair tangled and dirty, but she still recognized her.

Genevieve’s gaze was wild as she stared at her daughter. “You came back,” she said hoarsely, cracked lips curling in a strange smile. “I knew you would.”

Silas Westgard​

 

[Silas Westgard]

Location: Dahrtag
Objective: Help Thelma
Tag: Thelma Goth

“Silas, get away from the door!”

Silas's eyes widened slightly just before he jumped out of the way, avoiding the door and other objects falling on top of him. Kept in a kneeling position, Silas pulled out his lightsaber and ignited the light blue weapon. The knight prepared for the wolves to begin rushing through, but instead, a figure dressed in robes entered. This was no regular individual, and she only proved that when he grasped Thelma with the force.

"Thelma!"

Snapping up to his feet he rushed to his lover's side as she pushed the hooded figure away, in turn revealing her identity to the pair of them. Silas certainly didn't recognise her but Thelma did "Mother?" he said in surprise, looking between the two to spot the similarities. She never mentioned that her mother was still alive, nor that she was leading a group of wolves to rip them into shreds.

"I know she's your mother Thelma, but she better start speaking quickly as to why she was trying to kill us!" Silas demanded, the grip on his saber only getting tighter by the second. ​

 

[Thelma Goth]

“I didn’t bring you here to kill you,” Genevieve snapped. “I wanted you to come back. I wanted us to be a family again…”

A wolf crept by her side, baring its teeth and growling at Thelma and Silas. Genevieve looked down at it, and it immediately backed off, as though controlled by her.

“You have no idea what went on behind closed doors,” she continued, speaking in a strange, lilting voice. “Your father kept me locked up, but I wasn’t alone. My children were with me, growing from me without any help from him. He called them monsters, and he came to kill them… Bastard!”

Thelma flinched at her sudden shout. “What are you talking about?” she rasped, her heart pounding in her chest. “Children, monsters… I don’t understand.”

“I’ll show you,” Genevieve said with a nod. “Then you’ll understand.” Kneeling on top of the bed, she lifted her tattered skirts up to her waist.

At first, Thelma could only stare, at a loss to comprehend, let alone describe, what she was seeing. There was something growing from her mother, a mass of flesh and blood connected to her side. It was as if what would normally be inside her body had instead developed outside it through some unknown means. The longer she looked, the more of these strange growths she noticed across Genevieve’s skin. Dark splotches that she had mistaken for dirt and filth had spread over her entire body like a disease.

While she watched, her mother reached down and ripped open the fleshy sack that had sprouted from her side. Blood gushed from the wound, and Thelma finally let out a choked scream, covering her eyes with her hands. She didn’t see what her mother pulled out of the tear—some sort of tiny creature, one that would grow into a monstrous thing like the tainted wolves or the ghouls who had attacked the village, no doubt.

“Monsters,” Genevieve hissed. “That’s what Frederic called them, to make himself feel better about slaughtering my children. He would’ve killed you too, if you had been born like them. But now he’s dead. They all are. Your father, the coven, the villagers… None of them can hurt us anymore.” She reached toward Thelma, who shied away from her with a whimper. “I want all my children with me.”

“Don’t touch me,” Thelma sobbed. “Don’t come anywhere near me!”

“You’re going to stay here with me,” Genevieve went on, turning toward Silas. “Max can stay, too. He was always kind to us. But you can’t keep this boy you sired with you. He has to go.”

Silas Westgard​

 

[Silas Westgard]

Location: Dahrtag
Objective: Help Thelma
Tag: Thelma Goth

Silas tilted his head again at how Thelma's mother spoke to her. From what he felt, it seemed like the little vampire didn't want to be anywhere near her. A daring wolf only proved one of those points when it showed off its teeth and began walking towards them, a thread the knight was more than ready for. Thankfully, before things could get any worse the woman ordered the wolf to step away. Silas took a deep breath and looked back to her mother, his head slowly shaking.

Choosing to keep silent, he couldn't help but feel taken back by what was on the mother's leg. He was unsure as to what it was, but it was clear how unnatural and morbid it looked. Something had gripped her, a dark corruption that not only affected her but the Wolves around her. This was far deeper than they thought, and from the looks of things they were sure to find out more soon.

"Thelma will not be going with you!" Silas stepped forwards in between the pair, shielding Thelma away from the individuals who wished to take her. There was no way he was going to let these brutes take her, especially after seeing what they had done to the area around them "I do not care if you are her mother, she clearly doesn't want to be with you" he said sternly, looking the woman square in the eyes "Trust me, we are not like the defenseless villagers you have taken. If needs be, we will fight our way out of this house in order to be safe"

"Thelma means more to me than anything this universe has to offer. I fear in your case, you are only using her for something more sinister."​

 

[Thelma Goth]

Silas placed himself between mother and daughter. Reduced to a crying, panicking mess, Thelma clung to him, hiding behind his back. She felt utterly helpless and exposed, as if something had been uncovered here that was never supposed to see the light of day.

Genevieve wasn’t just creating monsters—she had become a monster. The sort of creature which Thelma was afraid she might turn into if she ever lost control. Crazed, wild, hurting everyone around her.

“Y-You need help,” Thelma said, trying to reach her somehow. “We can bring you to a doctor. They can help you—”

“I don’t need their help!” Genevieve shouted. “Do you know what they would do to me? I’d be locked up again! They would never let me out!”

“Mother, please…” Thelma wailed. She could remember a time when her mother wasn’t mad. That was what made this so painful to witness. She had loved Thelma, but now her love was twisted into something almost unrecognizable. “Please don’t make me do this…”

She clutched her lightsaber hilt in her hand, trembling violently. Genevieve had to be stopped. But Thelma couldn’t bring herself to kill her own mother.

"Trust me, we are not like the defenseless villagers you have taken. If need be, we will fight our way out of this house in order to be safe."

“You will be food for the boneworms,” Genevieve spat.

At her beck and call, three wolves swarming into the room, lunging toward Silas. Thelma jumped in front of him, her lightsaber igniting as she began to cut them down. Not one to be so easily thwarted, Genevieve reached out with the Force toward Silas, trying to drain him of life.

Silas Westgard​

 

[Silas Westgard]

Location: Dahrtag
Objective: Help Thelma
Tag: Thelma Goth

“You will be food for the boneworms,”

Silas narrowed his eyes at her threat and raised his lightsaber before him. Three wolves came into the room to test his skill, but just when he was about to swing Thelma jumped in front of him to cut them down. Thelma managed to hold off two but the third tried to attack from a different direction, forcing the night to spring forwards and drive his lightsaber deep into its chest. Releasing a tortured howl, the wolf fell to the floor motionless, ridding it of his cursed life.

In front of him, Thelma's mother jumped at the opportunity to get back at Silas by using her powers to drain his life. The knight swiftly raised his saber and fell to one knee as her drain absorbed into the blade, keeping grounded while he struggled to fight her off "You... you will not take her!" he said with a grunt before lifting a hand off his saber to try and force push her mother out the window.

He didn't want to do this to Thelma's mother but it was a matter of life or death. They could put feelings in front of their lives right now.​