I had lied to myself from the very beginning, deceived myself into believing that I was being fanciful and overly imaginative. Surely such monstrosities only existed in nightmares? Yet I had lived through a nightmare these past months, and that was no dream at all.?�?�?�?�?�?�?�I was still fighting against the awful truth, not wanting to give in, searching my mind for a logical explanation—but there was none. And the most horrible realization of all was that I had known, somewhere deep inside, ever since the day I first set eyes on Vladec Salei.?�?�?�?�?�?�?�Plague carrier.?�?�?�?�?�?�?�Living death.?�?�?�?�?�?�?�Drainer of life.?�?�?�?�?�?�?�The phrasing did not matter. No euphemism could strike fear into the hearts of men the way that single word
