The slow, steady pounding feeling of Gavner’s feet, rhythmically beneath him on the ground of all different terrain drew out for hours as the two vampires trekked through the land. Trees, rocks, and plants of all sorts of shapes and sizes littered the vast land that they crossed. A headwind was constantly blowing in their face, making their running slower but easier to breathe, allowing them to not tire as quickly. As the sun began to draw closer, Mavrik and Gavner began to travel with an extreme urgency. Gavner knew that when the black sky first turned to a shade of indigo, there was exactly forty three minutes until the first light of dawn peeked over the horizon. Until then, neither Mavrik nor Gavner would be burned. Now, the vampires were crossing a large expanse of plains. Grassy fields, as well as wheat, hay, and barley filled the space that they traveled through, but the sun night seemed to be leaving them frighteningly fast. They were now crossing a large plot of farmland towards a wooded area at the other side.

“Gavner, are you sure we are headed in the right direction?” Mavrik called to Gavner over the howling wind as they were running, “I didn’t see anything about another wooded area being near the castle.”

“Well you do not exactly know where the castle is, old friend,” Gavner shouted back through the noise, “There are several landmarks on the way to the headquarters that only Ixian Knights know of. They are enchanted so that those who are not Knights will forget them shortly after leaving the castle. Not even those with the strongest willpower can resist it.”

“Well I hope your ‘landmark’ has adequate protection Gavner,” Mavrik yelled, “Because we-“

The two vampires were almost to the woods when the first light of dawn burst over the horizon, hitting them directly in the face. They both cried out in pain as they began to experience pain in their photo-sensitive skin, but the sun was merely a spur for them to continue on with a vengeance. Once they made it to the protective shade from the canopy of the woods, they could camp out for the day. But making it there would prove more difficult than they had imagined.

As they drew closer to the forest, a huge gorge began to show itself in the ground and Gavner- despite what his burning skin was telling him to do- came screeching to a halt, Mavrik following suit.

“That gap must be at least fifty feet,” Gavner managed to gasp out to his friend, wincing in pain, “The most I have ever cleared was thirty.”

“You can do it Gavner,” Mavrik said, “We don’t have time. Get a longer running start and- ahh!” Mavrik was cut off by a new surge of pain and he doubled over, holding his face, which was beat red now, “Lift your drive leg to the sky and raise your hands in the air like you must grab onto a bar one hundred feet in the air.”

Mavrik could not stand it any longer. He stood up straight and leapt across the gorge with a standing long jump and ran the remaining fifteen feet into the woods under the cover of the trees’ shade. Mavrik was several hundred years older than Gavner was, so it was no wonder that he was able to accomplish such a feat. Gavner was still a very young vampire, however, and even fifty feet was an accomplishment for a running long jump.

Gavner stood up urgently, cringing at the sun’s evil rays, and ran back until he was comfortable with the distance between he and the gorge. Not wasting a single moment, Gavner sprinted to the gorge and leapt with all his might.