a soft kind of love

Demetrius: And so the damned descend upon the doomed, like wolves dragging sheep to the slaughter.

Caleb: [suspiciously] Very eloquent. You don’t care to join them?

Demetrius: Nor do you, as it appears. I have seen you with your sister. She relishes the hunt. You do not. Indeed, I suspect you do not care to uphold many of our kind’s expected customs.

Caleb: I don’t appreciate strangers remarking on my private habits.

Demetrius: We pass no judgment, friend, and you cannot blame us for our caution in approaching. It is a rare privilege to encounter a truly open-minded creature of the night.

Samantha: [with a slight twang] Forgive Demetrius for his endless speechifyin’. He died afflicted with Romantic poetry and never recovered. I’m Sam. That’s Brandy. Point is we’ve noticed you’re different from the others.

Caleb: And how is it any of your business if I am?

Demetrius: Imagine I told you I stand before you now with not a single drop of blood infecting my veins?

Caleb: Impossible! [doubting himself] Isn’t it?

Brandy: It’s true. We all do.

Sam: Though we don’t exactly go shoutin’ it from rooftops, ‘specially in this crowd.

Brandy: But we thought we could trust you.

Demetrius: And even lighten the burden of your existential load, if you wish.

Caleb: [dumbfounded] But… how?

Demetrius: With this, a single humble fruit.

Caleb: Is this a joke?

Demetrius: Not at all. See how it glows at the core? That, my friend, is plasma — to put it plainly, essence, life — encapsulated in its purest form.

Brandy: It’s not really blood that keeps us going but what’s in blood. That stuff’s in here too.

Sam: It tastes like shit and never quite sates your thirst, but it will sustain you.

Caleb: How can something like this exist?

Demetrius: The tree bearing this fruit comes from the Old World, though I cannot say its true origin. My maker chanced upon a withered husk in dusty Tartosan soil and coaxed from it new growth. I aimed to spread the good news of its existence, but this ilk has proven largely uninterested, too crazed with bloodlust to revere this gift of nature. Still, I have encountered enough like-minded individuals to make the effort worthwhile. Now, how would you like to experience enlightenment?

Caleb: [visibly hesitates]

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