"Whaaat? John beat a troll? That can't be true!" Reina cried, voice tight as she blurred away from a crushing swing delivered by the towering figure above her. She had no idea the creature had not been fully grown, only a juvenile with an oversized body, the same young troll John had fought and finally felled to escape the cave with his grandfather.
Caden, fighting just a few steps away on the rocky ground, had just told her that Leonidas and John had returned and survived. He had decided to share that piece of information in the middle of the carnage just to see the look of shock on her face. A light, almost taunting smile touched the lips of Caden. "I am sure there is more to the story, Mother."
"Enough small talk! Focus on the battle!" Helen cried out. Her voice was sharp and commanding, cutting through the thin mountain air and the chaotic roar of the clash.
Nearby, the vampire knight Paul imbued his spirit force into his sword until the metal hummed with a lethal energy. He ran across the frozen earth toward the massive dark figure while the massive creature was preoccupied with attacking Reina and Caden. Paul launched himself into the air, strategically landing on the back of the giant and thrusting his sword into its flesh with all his might. As before, the steel failed to pierce the iron-hard hide of the monster, but the sudden prick was enough to grab the attention of the giant.
The giant let out a guttural roar and thrashed its massive body with such violent, bone-jarring force that Paul was thrown from its back. He tumbled through the air for a brief second, struggling to regain his footing, before the monster made its move. The giant spun around with a speed that felt impossible for its massive size. It delivered a thunderous kick that connected squarely with the chest of the vampire knight, sending him soaring high into the air like a soccer ball. Paul felt the sickening vibration of multiple bones within his body shattering from the sheer, bone-crushing force of the blow.
"No!" Reina cried out. Her voice was filled with a hollow, jagged despair.
The giant looked up at Paul, standing still and patiently waiting for the descent of the knight. Paul tried desperately to move his body, but his regenerative abilities were far too slow to respond. This natural healing factor had reached its absolute limit, drained completely by the relentless cycle of being broken and mended throughout the long, bloody night. Now, in the moment he needed his strength the most, his internal reserves had run dry.
As Paul flew through the air, he could feel the cold, biting wind of the high altitude and the heavy, freezing rain lashing against his face. The downpour was relentless, soaking through his clothes and stinging his skin, further dulling his already fading senses. Blood leaked from his nose and mouth, mixing with the rainwater that streamed down his cheeks. He was starting to lose consciousness. He bit his tongue in a final effort to force himself awake, but the pain was distant and had no effect against the overwhelming numbness. His vision blurred, the gray clouds and the dark mountain peak spinning around him like a violent, watery whirlwind.
With each passing moment, the edges of his mind began to fade into a deep black. He struggled to focus as his thoughts grew hazy and the sounds of the struggle below became muffled, distant echoes. The terrifying sensation of weightlessness gave way to a creeping, heavy chill.
"I am sorry, everyone," he thought. His internal voice was a whisper in a vast, dark room. "This is where my fight ends. I cannot hold on anymore."
Caden immediately sprang into action. He imbued his fist with hellfire, and huge flames danced around his hand, hissing as they fought against the relentless, freezing rain. With a burst of extreme speed, the vampire shot forward and punched the giant directly on the knee. The impact fractured the bone and left scorched, black marks deep in the flesh. This was enough to knock the massive creature off balance, jerking its head away and preventing it from swallowing Paul.
Helen used this chance to jump high into the air, her silhouette sharp against the stormy sky as she caught the unconscious vampire mid-fall. When she landed on the ground with Paul in her arms, she quickly dashed away. She vanished into the gray veil of rain, taking him to a safer location well out of the reach of the monster.
The dark giant fell to the ground with a loud, heavy thud. Caden looked at his fist, surprised to see it was mangled and torn from the force of the strike. Blood leaked from his fist and arm, and shards of white bone were protruding, giving it a grotesque, ruined look. However, the regenerative ability of the vampire quickly kicked in. Every damaged piece began to heal itself at an astonishing rate, the bone sliding back into place as the skin mended.
"How are we going to kill this creature? It seems only hellfire can damage it," Reina said, watching her son's hand heal with a cold, analytical eye.
"It seems I'll have to rely on long-range attacks, though the only issue is that long-range isn't my strong suit," Caden admitted, testing the grip of his newly healed fingers.
"If only your father was here. Where is that man when you need him?" Reina mumbled, her voice thick with frustration.
It was not long before the giant slowly got back to its feet, the wound in its knee already completely mended. With fury blazing in its eyes, it looked straight at Caden, the vampire that had just given it a painful experience.
"Mother, that thing is angry and it is looking at us!" Caden warned. When he turned his head to coordinate their defence, Reina was already long gone.
"Mother!" he cried out in exasperation, left alone to face the towering threat.
====
Meanwhile, Zeno pushed through the jagged hole in the wall where he had recently launched Kilo. He moved with a predatory intent, his mind fixed on ensuring the leader of the Storm Hornets was permanently put down. In a war like this, there was no room for error or mercy. As he navigated through the wreckage of multiple destroyed walls, the air thick with stone dust and the smell of ozone, he wondered just how much force he had truly used. At this point, the clothes of Zeno were in tatters, leaving his upper body completely bare to the damp mountain air. His physique was in top condition; his muscles were beautifully defined and corded like steel, with no scars visible on his pale, porcelain skin.
Suddenly, a faint, rhythmic noise echoed from the floor above. His sensitive ears picked up the voices of two men, likely mercenaries from the Storm Hornets. Zeno did not hesitate. He conjured a small, concentrated flame in his palm and pressed it against the ceiling, quietly burning a hole just wide enough to jump through.
Zeno pulled himself through the opening and onto the upper floor. He was immediately met with a sight that sent a freezing chill through his veins. Two men had committed a barbaric act, having chopped off the arms and legs of a female vampire maid. They were busy assaulting her, driven by a sick opportunism despite the chaos currently engulfing the castle. The maid had tears streaming from her wide, terror-stricken eyes, her mouth gagged with a rough piece of cloth to stifle her screams.
The two men were startled by the sudden presence of the vampire standing behind them. When they saw his half naked frame and the lethal light in his eyes, terror rushed through their bodies. They scrambled in a blind panic, fumbling to pull their pants up as their arrogance vanished.
A cold, murderous glint appeared in the eyes of Zeno. "Humans are vile creatures," he hissed, the words dripping with a deep-seated loathing. "To think that you two were thinking about getting your cocks wet during a war."
"Shut up, you leech!" one mercenary snapped, his voice cracking as he drew his sword. "Die!"
The man rushed toward Zeno with his blade raised, but the vampire was already a blur of motion. Before the mercenary could even blink, Zeno was standing inches from him, driving a fist deep into the stomach of the man. The mercenary felt as if his soul were leaving his body as the air was punched clean out of his lungs. He slumped to the ground, grasping his midsection tightly as he gasped for breath.
The other swordsman tried to make a run for it, but Zeno was far too fast. The vampire grabbed the human by his neck from behind and brutally smashed his face into a nearby stone wall. The sound of his nose shattering echoed through the room. Zeno then seized the left arm of the man and snapped it in two with a sickening crack. The man began to scream like a pig, a high pitched, desperate sound, but Zeno was not finished. He systematically broke the remaining arm as well as both of his legs, leaving the man a twisted heap on the floor.
"Death would be too kind; I want you to suffer," Zeno whispered.
While the man lay on the ground screaming in agony, Zeno turned his focus back to the mercenary he had punched in the stomach. With a cold, clinical precision, Zeno began to shatter the bones of all his limbs as well. The second man joined the first, screaming his lungs out as the vampire dismantled him. After lining them both up next to each other, a pair of broken, twitching husks, Zeno looked deep into both of their eyes. He used his vampire ability to compel both of them to be perfectly still, forcing them to remain motionless even though they were in great agony. Finally, Zeno went to the female vampire.
Seeing her lying exposed on the table, her body mutilated and her face stained with tears, caused a rare, heavy ache in the chest of Zeno. He reached out with a steady hand and gently removed the gag from her mouth.
"Please, Master, do not look at me," she pleaded, her voice a broken whisper. "I am so ashamed."
Zeno gently lifted her by the back of her head and held her close to him. "I am so sorry, young miss. I am so sorry. Do not be ashamed. I did not kill them. I will not take that away from you. I am going to pick you up and let you feed on them. When your wounds heal, then you can do with them what you want."
Her tears fell immediately, but he patted her head as he held her close to his chest. She was in great pain, her limbs severed. The two men on the ground, still compelled to be motionless by the vampire's earlier command, could only cry out in extreme agony. "Please, Master, forgive us!" one wailed. "We will never do it again!"
"Yes, Master," the other begged, his voice trembling with terror. "We made a mistake. Do not kill us. We are prepared to be your slaves!"
"Shut up!" Zeno roared. The sound of his voice was like a physical strike. He gently held the female vampire by her waist from behind and placed her onto one of the men for her to feed. The mercenary screamed as the fangs of the female vampire dug deep into his neck. Her eyes turned a vivid red as she drank his blood, while the other man watched in horror, his friend being sucked dry while he remained frozen by the vampire's will.
Zeno knew her limbs would eventually grow back, and she would deal with the remaining mercenary herself. He turned and walked out of the room, leaving the man's screams for mercy behind him.
After about ten minutes of walking down the hall, a sharp crack suddenly appeared beneath the feet of Zeno. Two calloused hands burst through the stone floor where he was standing, trying to grab his ankles, but he was too quick. He stepped back as the stone shattered into jagged pieces.
"What the hell?" Zeno muttered.
A familiar figure then jumped through the shattered stone. "Hey, Zeno, did you miss me?" The man who emerged was none other than Kilo, and he looked and felt fundamentally different than before.
"Hmm. Impressive, human. I admire your tenacity, and you have gotten powerful as well. However, the outcome will be the same either way," Zeno stated, remaining completely unfazed.
"Hehehe. Oh, but I beg to differ. This time I will be the victor." Kilo sported a huge, unsettling grin, sharp black teeth protruding from his mouth as the mercenary leader prepared for round two.