If Kamille listened to his warning, she had chosen to ignore it. She couldn't feel any kind of magic coming from the man, and as it turned out... he was just a man, bountyhunter, it would look like. When she approached and gently touched his shoulder, he tried to scramble away in shock, only to fall back once again with a scream of pain. His breath was hard and fast, and when his eyes finally shot up to see them, they could see he was extremely wary and in pain.

"Who are you?! Are you with him?!!? What do you want?"

"Calm down, it's just me and my friend. We're not here to hurt you. We want to help you."

The man tried to stand up again, but it became clear he had a broken or twisted ankle that prevented him from easily walking away. The Witch seemed to notice that, quickly reaching into her purse and offering a potion to the man. Not unsurprizingly, the man didn't seem to trust them right away.

"Are you here for the vampire as well?"

That bit of information took her by surprise. Nobody said anything about a vampire before. And now it made sense that a bountyhunter would be there, of all places. He had no weapon visible, but he looked the part.

"I came here to hunt the vampire. What are you two doing here? What time of the day is it?!"

He suddenly looked startled, looking around to try and see if the sun was already setting.

"No, we're... we're here for the ghost. The ghost of a little girl."

And then, just like Kamille had experienced prior, Vail could faintly hear the cries of the little girl down the dark hallway.

As Kamille withdraws a potion from her cloak, he spots an opportunity to get actual answers from the crazed man. Before Vail can stop her however, the man spills a vital piece of information that causes his blood to run cold.

Vampire? What's next zombies and werewolves? I signed up to dispel rumors of spirits, not monsters who can tear me to shreds. This just keeps getting worse.

Vail puts his hand on the woman’s shoulder as he walks forward. "Wait a minute, witch."

He positions himself above the injured man, looking at the trembling figure with a stoic stare, one that offers considerably less sympathy than his companion. The man could very well be preparing to stab him, although at this range, he was more than ready to catch any weapon the panicked man might have hidden on his person.

"A vampire isn’t something you send a singular person after, you’re hiding something. If you want your leg in working order I suggest you divulge any pertinent information about your contract. We are all more likely to leave here alive if you cooperate, the sun is setting fast, so I suggest that you avoid hesitating."

Vail couldn't give a rat's ass about the struggling man, it was the fool's own fault for taking on a job he clearly couldn’t handle. The first rule of being a contractor was knowing when a job was over your head, it’s not like anyone else was looking after your wellbeing after all. Luckily for this idiot, a pair of adventurers lacking their own sense of self-preservation was exactly what he needed at the moment, he just needed to cooperate.

Vail’s thoughts are suddenly interrupted by the familiar cry of the ghostly girl he had previously encountered. He shoots a look over to Kamille before looking back down to the man.

“Surely you heard that. There is no way you haven’t heard at least some manner of movement while resting here. When did you arrive and how many voices have you heard?”

Kamille stopped when she felt Vail's hand on her shoulder, watching as he handled the man. It was clear he wasn’t your everyday peasant, but rather a seasoned bountyhunter, if his clothes and scars were of any indication - and yet, Vail's stance and firm tone of voice was enough to make him shift uncomfortably in place. At times it looked like his hands were trying to find something, probably the hilt of his sword or any kind of weapon he might have had.

His gaze shifted from the woman, who seemed willing to help without many questions, to the man, who had a much more stern gaze.

"Look, I don’t know how much time I was out, 'kay? I'm not that much of a fool to look for a vampire when it's dark out there. Jared said he knew where the house was, so we came at daybreak, so we'd have more time!"

That was new information: He wasn’t alone. But they hadn’t seen anyone else, so maybe this Jared had been the vampire's last night supper? If the bountyhunter had been at the house for more than one day, it would mean...

It could mean he was to become his next meal. He couldn’t go far with broken legs.

Kamille seemed to shudder when she heard - or maybe felt - the ghostly girl.

"Girl? I........ maybe.... I don’t know, I heard Jared screaming, and then all went black... I guess.... yes, I heard a girl crying... Right before someone hit me in the head..."

Kamille looked over to Vail. It looked like he didn’t trust the man much, so she chose to speak directly into his mind [1], as to not raide suspicions.

Feels like the little girl is just a lure. But that wasn’t an illusion. Not one I could understand to be done by magic. Whatever happened, we should be getting out of here soon. It's getting dark.

Barely she had finished the thought and they heard something moving on the floor beneath them, dragging on the ground, beyond their sight.

The man was starting to panick again.

"You need to help me! I can’t get out on my own like this! I saw nothing else, o'right? No one else! Please help me!"

[1]Message 

Vail groans as the bounty hunter’s response fails to answer his questions. He gives the man a stern glare before dashing forward^[1], grabbing onto the man’s collar with an unyielding grip^[2]. The man’s eyes widened as he jolted forward, but the shock only lasted for a brief moment; his eyes glance toward his coat seemingly on instinct. The gesture doesn’t escape Vail's eye however, and he tightens his grip as he pulls his captive even closer. “Don’t even think about it.”

The witch’s words only add to his impatience, there was no time for this man’s panic. Either they were getting answers or they were getting the hell out of here. Agreed. He replies succinctly through his own thoughts.

“Now, I'm going to repeat my question one more time for you. I want to know about your contract, about your target. Now I suggest you start talking before I break your other leg and leave you as a nice tasty meal to tide this vampire over while we escape. Did your contract mention a girl, or a family, or anything of the sort?”

Before the man could answer, a sound of dragging began to emanate from the floor below the three of them. Vail wraps his free hand around the bounty hunter's mouth, muzzling him as the man begins to panic. His eyes are guided by his ears as the sound moves toward the corner of the room, before stopping. The room is completely still for several seconds, until a set of pale fingers slowly emerge from a crack in the floorboards. The silence continues as everyone is too stunned to vocalize their terror, their only remaining form of communication being their thoughts.

Too late.

---

[1] Bare hands: Dashing Enchantment
[2] Iron Grip

Everyone's eyes wanders towards the slender fingers that creep up between the floorboards, and it feels like everyone's holding up their breath. Maybe if they remain perfectly still and don't make a sound, the vampire - supposedly, at least she assumed that thing to be the vampire - would not realize they were there...

Who was she kidding? She knew what a vampire was capable of. The vampire was aware of every living and breathing thing under his roof. They couldn't expect to ambush it in their own house - much the contrary, it was more like they were on its trap...

Kamille wasn't the stealthy kind. She was the kind to drop fireballs on people's head - perhaps she should put her talents to use. She raised her hand to start preparing a spell.

I'm gonna-

Whatever it was she was going to do, certainly it was not what she ended up doing: whether the vampire felt the flow of mana, or the sheer raise in temperature around the Witch, he didn't allow for her to finish her spell. In a matter of seconds, the pale hands creeping up from the floorboards disappeared, and the next moment errupted violently from the floor beneath the Witch. Hands strong enough to burst through the wood boards like it was made of paper caught the woman's ankles, and she let out a yelp.

The next few moments were a blurr of confusion and screams. The vampire pulled the Witch straight to the floor beneath them, making the rotten floor collapse instantly without effort. The proximity and weight of the two men close to her were probably enough to make the floorboards beneath them collapse as well - and then, they were all swallowed by the darkness.

Until a bright flare of fire filled the room for a second, aggressive enough to make their eyes hurt, a suffocating wave of heat filling their lungs as well as the dust, mold and sawdust. It was clear the vampire had pounced on the Witch, but as soon as they landed on the floor, her whole figure imediatelly burst into fire [1], and now the air was filled with his unholy screech as he was forced away from his pray. For just a second before her fire was subdued, they could see the large shadowy and slithery figure that the vampire was, backing away from the flames.

And then, there was darkness again.

Damn, her ankles exploded in pain. It would be no wonder she hurt herself in the fall.

[1]Full Elemental Manifestation

The silence lingered for a brief moment before the witch’s thoughts suddenly broke through the stillness. Whatever she was communicating to Vail, she didn’t have a chance to finish as the pale hand darted away much faster than it had appeared. For a miniscule fraction of a second, he thought they might have evaded the vampire’s ire, only for his hopes to be shattered just like the floorboards below the witch. Her yelp caused the numbness in his right arm to spread upwards and while his legs moved on their own.

He didn't make it far before the rest of the floor gave out, plummeting everyone into the darkness below. Vail lands on his hands and knees, the damp, rotten wood of the ground floor cushioning his fall. The bounty hunter, unable to move on his own, falls moments after him, landing with a plop and a groan. Vail pays him no mind, turning instead to the sounds emanating from the witch's direction. He continues his dash with no clear target in mind. The darkness of the room was still unnatural, leaving him with only shifting blurs penetrating the otherwise still darkness. Luckily for him, the witch had her own defense in mind, erupting into flames and illuminating their adversary.

His right fist clenches as he closes in. Don't know if this will do any good, but it's not like I've got anything else. He swings just as the vampire shrieks, feeling his knuckles collide with some part of the beast. For an instant he could swear he saw some light emerge from his hand, but it dissipates as quickly as it appears. 

The vampire retreats into the darkness, moving out of Vail's ability to track them. With a brief window of safety, he turns to face the space the flames once dwelled. "Can you walk? I can't carry you and that guy out of here. I can't fight this thing off alone either."

In response to Vail's question, he could hear the sound of broken glass as she let out a small curse. The potion meant for the captive - it was in her hands when they fell, it was only expected for it to break once they landed on the basement of the house. She tossed the broken glass aside, and he would feel a subtle shudder as she wove the next spell, something that looked very simple and small he felt no difference in the surroundings whatsoever. She, on the other hand, saw everything [1].

"Help me up! We need to get out of here now!"

There was urgency in her voice, but the voice he heard once again in his head was focused, collected. Prepared.

I can see him. He thinks he got us in his trap, but we can use this to our advantage. Trust me, and I can be your eyes for you to strike. When he moves, I'll tell you where to hit.

Trust me. Such a simple request, and yet it could be so hard for some - especially for strangers that just met in a haunted bog. She could feel the hairs of her scruff stand up when the cries of the little girl morphed into a childish, malicious laughter, one that might suit the lips of a naughty child that knows she shouldn't be eating candy or staying up late at night.

"...be still now, both of you. It won't take long."

[1]Ebon eyes

Vail’s eyes widened in response to the instructions beamed directly into his mind. The witch’s plan is crazy; they should be getting the fuck out of here, yet she wants to fight. He considers arguing with the woman, but a groan from the wounded stranger breaks any thought of debate. Carrying him would be a liability; this vampire is fast and slowing himself down with another person’s weight would only make him an easier target. Still, if this is going to work, he needs the man to stay still silent. The numbness in his right arm had already started to spread up his torso; if left unattended the next cry or scream may very well cause him to lose all control. He moves as quietly as he can to the man, hoping that the fool will finally listen to him.

Vail lifts the injured bounty hunter by the collar with the same forceful expression as before, only with his intentions reversed. He stares into the panicked man’s eyes as he moves his head in close and whispers. “Listen to me. If we are going to get through this, I need you to be as quiet as possible. Not a word, cry, or groan, you got that?” The bounty hunter’s eyes are as big as they can possibly be, but he gives Vail a silent nod. Holding in a sigh of relief, the ash lander releases the man, allowing him to rest gently on the damp wood floor.

As Vail turns back around, his breathing slows causing the numbness to partially recede as he calms down. His eyes close while the room stands in complete silence, his mind anticipating the witch’s thoughts to reach him long before any spoken word. He lifts his clenched fists in front of his face as he stands ready to strike in any direction the witch may order.
This is a shot in the dark, quite literally, but I’m not planning on dying yet, so here goes nothing.