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air, staining our vision. Because of the thick layes between the earth and sun, the vampires were able to come out both at night and day now. We had sought this location strategically; there was optimum light where we were based. We were well hidden amongst the forestry, with a river on the east for fishing. The woods also provided a practice ground for hunters who were beginning their training. The roar of the river drowned out the sounds of our animals in the farming section of the Guild.
    My eyes fell on some young apprentices who were training with crossbows. Training begins at the age of four. Rules, regulations, and principles are embedded in young minds from the start. From there on various training and tests are administered on a weekly basis. Throughout their whole teenage years, hunters’ skills are evaluated and judged. At sixteen, only a few are chosen to be a part of the raid teams, others provide the labor needed to keep the Guild functioning. By eighteen, their gifts are activated, and they are no longer apprentice hunters.
    The original hunters already had gifts, so when the first generation was born, scientists did not understand why the children had no gifts. The only rational explanation they could make was that eighteen was a mature age for the hunter to control such an ability. Perhaps it was nature’s way of making sure our species survived. After all, imagine a baby lighting everything on fire?
    I greeted the three hunters who watched over the east side. They slowly opened the doors with thick rope, their bulky arms tightening as they pulled. One of the younger apprentices ran out to me, clutching my long sword. It wasn’t overly thick, but it was elegant, and I could use it quickly on reflex.
    “Esmore, you forgot this,” she called, pushing it forward meekly.
    “Thank you, Urabell. But I was informed of only two vampires.” This information alone was enough for any raider to know that the Barnett would suffice, but the implication was lost on her. She glanced at me quizzically. Urabell looked to be only fourteen, and she was of lower intelligence than others her age. She would never be a part of any raid team, but perhaps she would excel in the cooking sector. I grabbed my sword and sheath, thanking her once again before she ran back toward the underground system. They closed the doors behind me.
    I looked toward the small man-made trail that reached to the fishing nets at the water’s edge. It was always refreshing to leave the walls and be surrounded by the trees, despite the dull sunlight. The sun could be dimly seen behind the clouds. I wished the trees were beautiful and green, like it is said they once were. But here they were dire and dark, almost dead-looking. The trees were almost completely dead, and the leaves had stiffened in time, still attached to the branches.
    A thick fog swept through the trees, settling on the land. This was nothing compared to other parts of the land. The pollution was far worse in the old cities. Fog streamed from the sewerage pipes, even though they had collapsed so many years ago. The earth had lost its original beauty. The fog swept past my ankles as I walked even now.
    I stepped over a gapping crack in the ground that etched deep into the earth. The result of an earthquake. The ground shifted a lot more nowadays than it did in the technology era. It looked as if the ground was in pain with its open wounds.
    My mind drifted to the last batch of humans that were carted to the camps. Although it was my job to save them, I didn’t feel a loss as I watched them go. We had a protective instinct for humans. But over time it became merely a job to us, we held no special feelings for them. In fact, the more research I did, the more repulsed I was by their selfish actions. I would continue to do the task I was born to do until the day I died, but I held no respect for their kind. When found they were transported to the camps we created for them.
    Our camps were