His blood and Horace''s doesn''t work...how about Reba''s blood? He could try her blood, there''s no harm in trying! He addressed Horace. "Watched these bloodsuckers...they''re acting strange to me...they might be waiting or nning on something..." he ordered.


    "Yes, My Lord!" Horace replied.


    ??


    Graven disappeared from the area.


    He appeared outside his father''s mansion, hovering in the air. There are bats on the rooftops and the majority of them were hanging on the branches of the trees.


    The bats are everywhere...probably thousands or millions swarming all over the town.


    This is the first time it happened and something tells him...this is not normal!


    Something is not right about this!


    He vanished from the air and appeared inside the living room of the mansion. He walked towards the cab and knocked on the hidden door.


    "Who are you?" the servant asked.


    "Graven," he answered.


    The servant looked at the peephole and after rifying that it''s indeed the son of their employer he opened the door right away. "Pleasee in, Sir!"


    Graven stepped into the basement and descended on the stairs, a few secondster, his feetnded on the ground floor of the basement.


    He found his father ying ball with the little boy Nichs while Cooper was looking at them, sitting on the wooden chair nearby. He didn''t see the two women loitering around the area, they must be inside their room. "Father..." he said.


    Sir Nichs looked at him. "Son... what''s the news outside?" he asked.


    "Not good, Father!" he answered grimly.


    Sir Nichs stood up. "Let''s talk inside the room," he said.


    The two men entered the room. They sat on the bed facing each other.


    "Tell me, what kind of worst?" Sir Nichs asked bracing for the worst.


    "The bats swarmed the whole town. There are bats right now on the rooftop of this mansion and there are plenty of them hanging in the branches of the trees outside, they''re everywhere!" Graven told his father the truth.


    Sir Nichs''s face showed fear and worries. "How long the bats will stay in town? Do you have any idea, son?"


    Graven shook his head. "I have no idea, Father. I''m still thinking of a n right now," he replied. "Ie here to warn you not to let anyone out of this basement. Right now, this ce is the safest ce to hide. Several people already died bitten by the bats outside their homes, it''s dangerous to leave the house right now. The moment you step outside, the bats will attack you in droves and they will drain your blood until you die," he exined.


    Sir Nichs nodded his head. "Okay, I got it!" he replied.


    Graven stood up. "I''m going to visit the women and then go back outside to remedy this huge problem," he said.


    "Be careful, son!" Sir Nichs said worriedly.


    "I will, don''t worry about me, Father!" Graven said and left the room.


    He went to the room of the girls and knocked on the door.


    Reba opened the door. "Graven! I''m d you''re here! I''m so bored here! What the news outside?" she asked, opening the door wide for him to enter.


    "Bad," he answered. Graven walked inside and sat on the bed next to Laura who is reading a book. "How are you?" he asked her while looked adoringly at her face.


    Laura looked at him. "I''m fine, we''re fine," she replied.


    "What''s happening out there?" Reba asked again.


    Graven looked at Reba. "The bats are scattered all over the town, they are on the rooftops and hanging on the branches of the trees everywhere waiting for the people to go out of their houses and attack! There are already several casualties all over the town," he answered.


    Laura gasped in horror.


    Reba''s face shows no reaction for a few seconds, then she speaks. "This can''t go on for a long time. Sooner orter the people will eventually have to leave their houses to get food somewhere. Those who are well prepared can stay inside their house for a few days but those poor people who weren''t able to stock a good amount of food supply in their pantry, they will be the first to die either due to hunger or they will be bitten by the bats," she said.


    "Yeah, you are right," Graven said. "I tried luring them away with my fresh blood and Horace''s, but they ignored our blood. I sessfully annihted the four groups of bats attacking the viges outside the town by luring them with my blood, but those bats upying the town right now just ignored my blood. I found it weird," he said.


    Reba''s brows knitted together. "Really-? What''s the difference between the bats that were swarming South Pond Town right now than those bats attacking the viges outside the town?" she asked.


    "I have no idea!" Graven said in an exasperated voice. He looked at Reba. "Let''s try your blood, maybe it works this time. I need to lure them away from the town with fresh blood and burn them into ashes once they''re already out of town," he suggested.


    "Okay, no problem," Reba agreed. She stood up and rummaged the insides of her bag and produce a small bottle. "Here, let''s fill this with my blood!" she said and opened her palm.


    Graven summoned his knife and made a tiny cut on Reba''s index finger.


    Reba ced the bottle below her finger to catch the droplets of blood.


    Graven watched the small bottle nearly half-filled. "That''s enough!" he said and grabbed the bottle and put its lid back.


    Laura wrapped a clothe around Reba''s index finger.


    "I''m going back outside. No one is permitted to leave the basement because it''s dangerous outside!" Graven stood up and left the room.


    The two women looked at each other.


    "It looks like we''re going to be stuck inside this basement for a long time unless Graven could find a way how to drive the bats away from the town," Reba dered.


    Laura sighed. "I''m worried about those who were unable to stock foods in their houses," she said.


    "Me too..." Reba said.


    Since there is nothing she can do about the worsening situation outside, Laura resumed reading the book she was holding in her hand.


    ~


    Meanwhile... Graven appeared in the air at the za.


    He zoomed towards the bats hanging in the branches of the trees and poured little droplets of Reba''s blood into the bats.


    A few secondster...still nothing happened...the bats ignored the blood.


    Graven was getting frustrated. The bats were exhibiting odd behavior! It irritated him! He emptied the bottle of Reba''s blood pouring it intentionally into the cemented ground.


    The bats ignored the blood on the ground.


    He took a deep breath... he pondered for a moment.


    How about Laura''s blood?


    Why not?


    There''s nothing to lose... if Laura''s blood still fails to lure the bats away from the South Pond Town... he and his men need to take down the bats one by one no matter how long it will take them to finish them all.


    He vanished from the za and appeared a few minutester inside his father''s mansion going back to the basement.


    After knocking on the hidden door and identifying himself - the servant let him in.


    Graven went straight to thedy''s room. He knocked twice.


    "Reba opened the door. "Graven, why you''re back early? Does my blood failed to lure the bats away?" she asked the obvious.


    "Yeah," Graven said. "I''m here to try Laura''s blood," he said, looking at the love of his life.


    Laura was silent for a moment.


    Graven sat on the bed. "Would you allow me to take a sample of your blood? Your blood might work when everything else failed," he said gently, asking her permission.


    Laura nodded her head. "Okay," she said. She extended her index finger to him and fixed her gaze on the wall.


    Graven holds her hand and steady it. "It would hurt a bit, but the pain won''t kill you," he said tenderly.


    "It''s okay, just do it! I''m ready now for the pain," Laura said bravely.


    Graven''s knife appeared in his palm, he quickly made a small cut on Laura''s index finger and put the bottle below the finger to catch the droplets of blood.


    Laura flinched in pain.


    A few minutester, Graven finished extracting Laura''s blood after the bottle was near half filled.


    Reba wrapped a clothe on Laura''s finger.


    A few minutester, she stood up and took her ck hooded cape from the cab, and donned it.


    Graven looked at her in confusion. "Where are you going?"


    "I''m going with you outside..." Reba replied.


    "Why?"


    "Just in case Laura''s blood will do the trick..." Reba said. Then she whispered something in his ear.


    Graven was silent for a moment, digesting Reba''s words slowly.


    Laura was looking at the two - wondering what are they talking about? Why they seemed to hide something from her?


    Graven finally agreed to Reba''s suggestion. "Okay, go ahead," he said and handed her the bottle filled with Laura''s blood.


    Reba began rubbing Laura''s blood all over her body.


    Laura''s eye widened, her brows knitted together. "What are you doing, Reba?" she asked.


    "Rubbing your blood all over my body, let see if it works..." Reba answered.


    "B-but why?" Laura insisted to know the reason why.


    "You will knowter after I''m back," Reba replied and looked at Graven.


    They nodded at each other.


    Reba covered her face with the hood.


    A few secondster...Graven and Reba disappeared from the room leaving Laura in a state of confusion.


    Reba and Graven appeared in the town''s za.


    They waited for a few minutes...


    Somehow, the smell of fresh blood that was smeared all over Reba''s body attracted the bats... they''re starting to fly towards Reba who was already hovering away from the za.


    Graven was following from behind.


    "It works!" Reba mouthed to Graven.


    "Yeah! So...they''re looking for Laura''s blood specifically?" Graven said in astonishment.


    "Indeed!" replied Reba.


    They flew towards the direction of the north side, getting further away from the town, the bats were now leaving the town, still following Reba and Graven.