Everwinus

  I was 25 years old when my life was messed up a lot more.

  The reason was not an accident, but one of many wrong decisions. But if I could turn back time, I wouldn't do anything differently.

  But maybe I should start from the beginning?

  When I was two years old, both my parents, Gunter and Lambert, adopted me.

  Two vampires, like me.

  My parents died of an overdose of a drug that was still experimental. In their intoxication, shortly before they died from the drug, they thought it would be great to set fire to our house. I guess they were stupid.

  I can hardly remember the fire or the two that brought me into the world.

  I was saved and got new, better parents.

  Gunter and Lambert did their best to keep me away from such a drug-led fate. Halfway successful. I didn't take drugs.

  But my parents had already taken the stuff before I was born, and of course, that had consequences.

  Before me, they had already adopted a boy. Richard, two years older than me, was successful in everything he did. But he wasn't very good with money, which is why he lived in a tiny, cheap apartment after he moved out five years ago.

  In the meantime, he worked in a small blood shop, which he was to take over in a few years. Before that, he trained as a soldier. He served for a year until this life no longer suited him. However, he could not leave the army completely. If the worst came to the worst, he had to fight. A soldier in reserve.

  Our fathers ran a small shop on the outskirts of the town where we lived. Close to the border of the mountains of the werewolves.

  I had never met one, never set foot in their country. It was said that a mad queen would rule there and ensve other people. We, too, had suffered for some time under a mad king. He married the mad queen. Our country almost fell into her hands.

  Now his sister ruled, and she called for a fight to protect our country from said lunatics.

  The worst-case scenario occurred. Richard was drafted to fight the mad queen. He was due to leave in a few days, so our fathers insisted on eating every night as a family until then. In the evening (our breakfast) and in the morning before the sun rose (our dinner). After all, vampires are nocturnal, unlike the few humans in the country.

  There was blood, which was kept fresh with herbs, bread, and a light soup.

  We were not rich; a sumptuous breakfast was only avaible on special occasions.

  Richard was reading a newspaper he had brought with him. The paper rustled as he sipped his cup full of blood.

  "Can I read the newspaper ter?" asked Dad. Günter. We called Lambert 'father'.

  Richard nodded silently.

  "Is there anything interesting in it?" asked father.

  I rolled my eyes. "What's supposed to be in it? War, crazy queen, soldiers... It's always in the newspaper."

  "Good summary," Richard confirmed. "How about you take the situation seriously?"

  "What for? You are going to fight, O brave hero! I have other things to do," I grumbled.

  "And what are you going to do?" asked Dad.

  "Not being a hero!" Richard answered for me. "Beat someone up, or cause trouble in any other way. As usual."

  I ignored him, even though anger was already fring up in me. Richard didn't take me seriously. He never did. I clenched my hands into fists, the only way I could avoid hitting him directly.

  "Richard!" Father shook his head.

  "But it's true. Didn't he just start a fight in a bar yesterday?" My brother put the newspaper aside. "And the day before yesterday too? In how many bars and pubs has he already been kicked out? All of them? And why all this? Because someone looked at him stupidly, the alcohol tasted cheap... “

  I clenched my fists all the harder. "Shut up!"

  "Everwinus!" Dad hissed angrily. "We don't talk like that in our house. You're an adult, not a teenager. Heavens, you're over twenty!"

  "Of course. See you ter..." I got up, left my soup untouched, and left the room. "I'm on a date with friends!" I shouted. Still angry.

  "Teenager." My brother smiled.

  "He's really acting like a teenager!" I heard my father say before I smmed the door and walked down the street. Richard was annoying. And it was even more annoying that he was right. I wanted to volunteer as a soldier, but the army didn't want me.

  I was too aggressive. I had always been, thanks to my biological parents' drug use. Both of my fathers suspected that they had also given some as a toddler. Consciously, or unconsciously.

  I was a problem: Easily irritable, with little impulse control. After many years of therapy with a human psychiatrist in our city, I had a little better control over myself. I only beat up every second person who annoyed me. A true achievement, really!

  And Richard particurly annoyed me today.

  As if he were something better just because he would defend our country and was respected for it.

  So I behaved like a teenager? Nonsense.

  As a teenager, I had been out of control and dropped out of school.

  He should rather thank me, because if I hadn't left now, his jaw would have suffered from my fists.

  I looked at the houses of the small town where I lived, tried to distract myself by peering into windows or looking at the starry sky. As a vampire, the night was my day, and the humans living here had mostly adapted to our rhythm.

  My fathers' small house was close to the outskirts of the city, so it wasn't long before I went through one of the city gates and then followed a road into the swamp-strewn forest. My friends were already waiting.

  First, I saw my cousin Agnes, who was one year older. Her mother, Vionte, was Papa's twin sister. She married my aunt Walpurga when Agnes was seven years old. Agnes’ biological mother. She and Agnes's father were divorced, and we didn't talk about him within the family. He now lives at the other end of the country. A human.

  Agnes talked to Zarko, who had been in love with her since childhood. And just like Agnes, he was only half vampire, even if you didn't see it at first gnce. But the pupils in his red eyes betrayed him. Vampires had no pupils. None visible.

  With Agnes, you could see it at once. One of her eyes was blue like her father's eyes, the other red, with visible pupils in both eyes. She had inherited her mother's brown hair with reddish strands. Zarko, on the other hand, was as blond as I was. Only a little darker. And recently he wore a beard.

  Meusewin was the first to notice me. My best friend and the boss.

  I called them my friends, but that wasn't all. We were business partners, a gang, if you will. Criminals. We founded our 'company' while still at school, and Zarko became Meusewin's right-hand man. It pissed me off, but what could I do? My best friend thought I was unsuitable for this position.

  "Everwinus! You're te!" Our boss grinned. In the darkness of the forest, his skin seemed all the darker, his hair more bck than dark reddish-brown. His eyes glowed with annoyance. "We had said right at sunset."

  I shrugged my shoulders. "My fathers insisted on a family breakfast. They should still be busy with it."

  "And why aren't you busy with it?" my cousin asked.

  "Richard." Again, the anger fred up in me, and I took it out on a tree by hitting the bark. "He's an ass!"

  "Ah." Meusewin only nodded. "Well, now you're here. Reliable, as ever. We have already decided everything important. Without you, because you preferred to py daddy's boy."

  I showed him the middle finger.

  "Dude!" Zarko clicked his tongue. "Calm down!"

  "What are the pns?" I leaned against the tree I had just maltreated and crossed my arms.

  "We're going to raid the pharmacy in two days at sunrise! At this time, there is only one saleswoman left. A human." Agnes grinned. "We pretend to be customers, anesthetize her, take what we need, and disappear."

  I nodded.

  After our st b was almost discovered, we had to look for a new location. From an old, dipidated house on the outskirts of town, to a dipidated, abandoned hut in the woods.

  So far, we had robbed the pharmacies of the surrounding vilges and towns, but we couldn't go there for the time being. We were wanted no matter how well we covered our tracks. And we were perfect at that!

  Nevertheless, the pharmacies were on alert and were guarded. Nobody knew our faces. We always wore masks, knew how to hide our smell, and we rarely left 'witnesses'. Mostly because no one saw us.

  We needed poisons, medicinal herbs, and blood. Animal blood also worked. It was easy to get hold of the blood. I either stole from my brother, or we killed some animal that did not flee fast enough. From all these things, we made the most popur party drug in the surrounding cities at the moment.

  Yes, I didn't take drugs.

  I made them.

  I was also a talented counterfeiter, but at the time, drugs were earning us more than counterfeit bills. And our printing press was broken.

  Robbing a pharmacy in our hometown was risky, but we had customers to supply. Of course, we didn't sell the drugs ourselves. In addition, there were others who were allowed to keep a small part of the profits.

  The drug first led to a blissful euphoria, then to hallucinations. Mostly only positive. It immediately made people addicted. Presumably, no one survived withdrawal. As far as I know, we have not tested it. The drug itself did not lead to death.

  At least that's what Meusewin said. And I believed him.

  Dead customers didn't bring any money, so we had to rob the nearest pharmacy.

  We didn't want dead customers. Dead customers were bad for business.

  Angry customers looked for a new source for their drugs. Also bad for business. And maybe withdrawal would bring death, and then we would be back with dead customers.

  Very bad.

  Currently, our dealers are selling our small remaining stock of the st robbery.

  Our customers wanted only one thing: our drug.

  Not (perhaps) fatal withdrawal, but pure happiness.

  "In two days, then." Smiling, I stared into the treetops. "Can't wait."

  I should never have believed Meusewin, but I didn't realize that until ter.

  sasi