Los Angeles defector

Darkness descends

Several dozen miles east of the nameless village lies Black Wind Mountain, a steep and rugged mountain with only a narrow winding path leading to its summit. Throughout history, any place like this, where one person guards the pass, is bound to hold some secrets. Black Wind Mountain is no exception. Dozens of bandits have gathered here, making this their lair, living in the gap between the vampire-controlled area and the resistance army's stronghold. They occasionally harass the villagers, exploit the common folk, and carry out their nefarious deeds.

Robert Wealthy is tall and strong, already over 1.9 meters tall at the age of twenty, a veritable black iron tower. If you think he is a towering hero, then you are mistaken. Despite his imposing stature, he is actually quite timid. With his large build comes a hearty appetite. After his parents passed away, he couldn't support himself, so to avoid starving, he went to the mountains to join the bandits. The bandits were delighted to see his strong physique and immediately took him in. However, little did they know that besides eating, he wasn't good at much else. Hand him a g*n, and he could make a child with a sickle chase him off a cliff. Helpless, they could only send him to guard the winding path leading into the mountain.

The winding path, true to its name, is flanked by steep cliffs on both sides, with a meandering trail in between. The bandits have dug a hidden cave into one of the cliffs, overlooking the entire path. This is the only route into the mountain, a crucial point. The bandits have placed the only Czech-made machine g*n they have in this cave, ensuring their safety and security from this vantage point.

The cave is not very spacious, only enough to accommodate two people. Adding a machine g*n in the middle makes it feel cramped. Robert Wealthy, being tall and big, has to hunch his head while sitting in the cave, feeling quite uncomfortable. The early spring weather is still cold, especially now that it's nighttime and they cannot light a fire. Despite wearing two sets of clothes, he still shivers.

Listening to the mountain wind howling between the cliffs outside the cave, Robert Wealthy is full of grievances. Dinner today still didn't satisfy my hunger, and now I'm cold and hungry, huddled in this hole. It's been almost half a year, when will this end? What did I come up to the mountain for? If I had known it would be like this, I might as well have worked for the landlord.

The one on duty with Robert Wealthy is a small guy nicknamed Skinny Monkey. This pairing was done considering Robert Wealthy's size, so they could only pair him with a smaller person. As the night grows deeper, it gets colder. Skinny Monkey, thinking about the fireplace in the mountain cabin, can't bear it anymore. He wipes his runny nose and says, "Robert Wealthy, my stomach hurts. I need to go back to check. You stay here and watch." With that, he starts crawling out of the cave.

"Goodness, out of ten days, you had a stomachache for seven days. How come you didn't die from it?" Robert Wealthy mutters in a silly and playful manner.

"What the hell did you say?" The skinny monkey turned around and kicked Robert Wealthy in the leg. "If you keep running your mouth, I'll kick your a*s, you coward. Believe it or not." With a sideways glance at Robert Wealthy, who didn't mutter anything further, he climbed out and headed back into the mountains.

After the skinny monkey left, Robert Wealthy kicked the machine g*n aside, curled up and lay down, and started muttering again, "You'll die halfway, you damn dog. You'll be burned to death in a stove, you short-lived ghost. In the next life, you'll turn into a pile of dog s**t, never to be reincarnated again..."

The west wind is clear, the moon is bright, and the cliffs are as sharp as knives. It's already midnight. This infiltration mission requires a multi-pronged approach, a long-distance dash, and striking unexpectedly. Looking at the treacherous terrain under the moonlight, the vampire lieutenant hesitates whether to stop and rest first. Having traveled dozens of miles west from Shadowvale County, he estimates that he will reach the resistance army's base tomorrow, so there's no need to rush at this moment.

The lieutenant who was leading the way ran over at this moment to report the situation. There was a smell of smoke in the night wind, indicating that there must be a camp ahead.

The lieutenant arrived at the front of the team. On one side of the main road were two steep cliffs, enclosing a winding path that extended towards a black mountain in the moonlight. He spread out the map, turned on a flashlight, and carefully compared the surroundings. There shouldn't be any villages here. Resistance army? Guerrilla forces?

The major turned off the flashlight, folded the map, and regardless of what lay in the mountains, since they had come this far, they couldn't afford to miss it. He ordered a squad of vampires to advance along the narrow path for reconnaissance. When they had reached a distance where they could barely see under the moonlight, he waved towards the large group of soldiers armed with bayonets behind him and followed ahead.

The dozen or so vampires in the reconnaissance squad cautiously walked under the moonlight, carrying their bayonets. The moonlight reflected off their helmets, making them appear like floating ghostly lights from a distance, as they made their way towards the Black Wind Mountain.

As they reached a sharp turn around a cliff, the leading vampire abruptly stopped and took cover on the spot. The major, illuminated by the moonlight, immediately raised his hand as a signal. The main force behind also halted instantly, watching ahead vigilantly.

Other than the incessant howling of the mountain wind, nothing else happened. Why did the leading vampires stop? It was because they heard some strange noises, coming from an unknown direction. It sounded like a rumbling noise at first, then it seemed to turn into a whistling sound after a while, and then it morphed into a peculiar clicking noise. These sounds appeared intermittently, mixed within the howling of the mountain wind, making them unclear and impossible to pinpoint their origin.

After pausing for a few minutes with nothing happening, perhaps just caused by the mountain wind blowing through the cliffs, the leading vampires finally decided to ignore the sound and continue moving forward.

When the commanding officer passed through this area, he also heard the sound and finally understood the reason why the reconnaissance team had paused here. Hesitatingly observing for a while, he found a grand excuse for himself: the ever-changing and mysterious nature truly could create marvels, making humans seem insignificant compared to nature's grandeur.

Above their heads, there was a hidden cave where Robert Wealthy was curled up inside, resembling a hibernating bear, dreaming of a cabin, a fireplace, and warmth, sound asleep beside a machine gun...

Under the moonlight, several wooden cabins were scattered around, with wisps of smoke rising from the chimneys. The vampires fanned out in a semicircle, dividing into several teams, each stealthily approaching their targets. Carefully pushing open the wooden doors, the dim glow of the embers illuminated the sleeping bandits on the bunk beds. They tiptoed into the cabins, raising their daggers high, and then struck with all their might...

Finally, a piercing scream shattered the silence, followed by a sudden burst of gunfire, rapid and intense like a storm, carried by the mountain wind, echoing between the cliffs, lasting for a long time.

Robert Wealthy finally woke up, groggily getting up, confused. Who are they leading a team to rob? Oh? That's not right, it's not even light out yet? Am I still in the hole? How could there be gunfire? Rubbing his bleary eyes, he crawled out of the cave entrance and couldn't help but be stunned.

The wooden house on the mountain was engulfed in flames, burning fiercely. The vague shadows of moving figures seemed to fill the mountains. Helmets and bayonets swayed in the firelight, flashing past one by one. The raging fire was being blown by the mountain wind, and the fierce flames leaped diagonally into the night sky, casting a ghastly white light between the cliffs.

Oh my goodness, when did these vampires come? Oh no, it's over, it's all over. Robert Wealthy felt his legs go weak, struggling to catch his breath. Unable to resist, he retreated and shrunk back into the cave, grabbing a machine g*n and huddling in the farthest corner. Despite the cold night, sweat beaded on his forehead, and the sturdy machine g*n and the solid cave walls did not provide Robert Wealthy with any sense of security.

After gasping for air heavily for a while, he finally suppressed the initial panic. Ignoring the trembling in his legs, he dragged the g*n and maneuvered his tall body out of the cave entrance. Stumbling and rolling onto the path, he desperately rushed towards the west outside the mountain, disappearing into the moonlight...