Hundred and twenty - four

“Strike your foe with no mercy! Make sure that you finish the opponent in front of you, the moment you get an upper hand. I don’t want any pity or compassion here. I don’t give a fuck if they’re your comrades. Finish them off!” Damien screamed, over the loud grunts, sheathing and clanging noise of metal. The whole training ground was filled with blood, sweat, and guts that spewed out from the respective vampires, lying lifeless on the floor.

Damien had been working hard of late, making sure to train his men, the best he could, and in the most brutal way possible. He gathered as many soldiers as willing and able vampires, invited them over to the training arena, and forced them to battle it all out, to the death. This was his way of winnowing out the chaff. His way of picking out the strongest men and discarding the weak ones. In this process, the number of troops would reduce as they continued fighting, leaving out the strong and resilient, before allowing them to train more and more