Heirot

Vlad narrowed his eyes at Tenele. What did she expect to accomplish by being on her feet? Her leg was obviously broken, and he doubted she could stand. He slowly bent down and placed Tenele's feet gently on the ground beside him, but didn't let go of her. His hand was firmly around her waist, balancing her slender body next to his.

"Interesting. You followed my trail here, which means you're not ordinary lackeys. Very interesting. You may be worth fighting. Yes, VERY interesting indeed," Vlad said, a psychotic smile growing on his face. Part of the speech was bravado, but there was real anticipation in his eyes, curiosity about these creatures. He recognized them as something similar to him, though no life kings were products of science, no two experiments the same. Vlad was eager to test the differences in their craftsmanship, so to speak, but he also couldn't afford to leave Tenele unattended, not with this many enemies nearby.

"Well, I see that we have some things in common," Vlad smirked, "I can feel it coming off you; your power has the same stink as mine. But what about brains? Does it move you, too? The urge to know which of us is better," Vlad said almost jubilantly. He was actually excited, a glow forming behind his eyes as his pulse sped up.

Tenele put all her weight on her good leg, her other leg hanging limply next to her good one. The creepy vampire tilted his head back straight, angled slightly foreward to peer through his stringy black hair. "The woman is in the way. Remove her."

Suddenly they swarmed in and Tenele cried out, not from fear but sheer pain. She was grabbed and snatched from Vlad and tossed carelessly out of the way. She was thought to be the weakest link and they knew they could take care of her once the vampire was out of the way. Tenele skidded through the snow, coming to land next to a cart. She was as still as death, looking nearly naked in the snow. Then, after a moment she shifted, stirring and then finally pushing herself up with one hand. She leaned against the side of the cart, unable to do anything more than that. Her weary eyes opening and closing slowly.

The leader looked back at Vlad. "Shall we?" he asked, raising his arms to extend out at his sides. The other vampires began to circle around him now. Then suddenly they rushed in, some disolving into bats and others staying there human forms. All lashing out at Vlad with claws and teeth.

Vlad watched them drag Tenele away, and it was an effort not to stop them. He had to hope they'd be more interested in him than killing her for the time being. After all, it was very rare for their kind to meet, especially with these odds.

Vlad braced himself as they all leapt toward him. He decided to ignore the bats; they were too distracting. If he tried to engage them, he'd be too distracted to fight those that remained whole. Instead he ported behind one of the humanoid vampires and thrust his claws in long spikes through the vamp's back, dragging upward into his ribcage. He thrust the claws of his other hand into the back of his neck and twisted, wrenching the flesh, but had to withdraw as another vamp came at him from the side. He knew he hadn't killed the vamp, but it wouldn't be jumping around for a few seconds. Vlad ported back to the center of the group, the last place they'd be expecting him to relocate to, and smiled fiercely. The bats were swarming around him, pecking off tiny bits of his flesh. It was annoying, but Vlad was accustomed to pain, and his greatest concern was the trouble it caused his vision.

The leader of the vampires was watching with amusement, waiting for his chance. Then he flew forward towards Vlad. Ripping and clawing at Vlad. He spun in a quick circle, directing his feet in an arch to kick Vlad's head, coming back around for a second attack. He continued his attack while his bat friends nibbled away.

Tenele faded in and out, but still was able to keep up with some of what was happening. She watched, wondering if Vlad would be alright. Wondering if he was strong enough to handle 5 vampires that were almost equal in strength to him. The snow covered ground around them was beginning to be died with the color of blood.

Vlad crashed sideways as a kick caught him in the side of the head. It was strong enough to send him into the brick wall of the building next to him. He caught his weight as he came off the wall and was immediately met by a swift punch that crushed his stomach against the wall. There was enough strength behind it to go straight through a normal human body. Vlad grunted angrily and shot forward at the vampire, his claws tearing cold slits in his throat. Vlad gathered himself for another attack as the vamp went on the defensive, backing away.

Unfortunately he had more than just that to worry about. He noticed a first coming from the side just in time to port out of the way, but when he reformed a yard back a stiff roundkick immediately met with his back and sent him shuttling across the ground. Bats continued swarming onto him at every opportunity he gave them. His body healed fast enough to keep up with their nipping and tearing, but Vlad realized now that they weren't trying to kill him. This was a battle between no life kings. It was all a matter of who ran out of power first. The bats were a constant sap on his blood supply.

Vlad narrowed his eyes and threw his arms outward, palms up as if inviting some darker force to manifest inside him. "Come forth, my servant," he said in a low, strong voice, his eyes alive with power. A swirling black-red portal formed in an oval above his head. "Let's see if you can do this," he sneered, and his hellhound dove through the portal like a flaming apparition, landing on powerful legs just in front of Vlad. He could feel the investment of power that the spell required, like breath climbing from his lungs, but he wasn't worried yet.

The No Life King backed up a few steps, standing in awe at the sight of the magnificent beast before him. He glanced at Vlad, who was really a fine breed of No Life King. The first, so naturally he would be the most powerful. All other No Life Kings had been modeled after him ever since his fight with Shea. However, she had forgotten how to teach them the trick of calling forth a beast from the underworld.

The vampire hissed and huddled down for a moment, claws growing longer and longer until they were more like swords. Then he went for the Hell Hound while some of the bats took the form of two human shaped No Life Kings that lashed at Vlad with their own sword like claws.

Tenele could only sit and watch, helpless... Unable to help.

The hellhound skirted stealthily around the vampire, using its lower height and powerful legs to its advantage. Coming up from the side, it ground its teeth into the vampire's throat, crushing down until it found bone and not stopping even there. It wasn't until the no life king got an arm free and stabbed its claws into the hellhound, running through its side, that the beast made a monstrous keening sound and released its neck, landing back on the ground. The hellhound was injured, but not impeded by the pain. It was a creature that would fight and fight until it was literally incapable of movement. It turned in a pacing motion around the no life king and dove in again, its fierce claws finding his chest. It bit down once more on the no life king's neck and tore at it, ripping the head from the body., then landed on the ground with the head still hanging from its enormous jaws, watching the body to see if it was truly dead.

Vlad didn't have much attention to spare for his hound as the two vampires came at him at once with their long swordlike nails. They were longer than Vlad's, he'd give them that. But in his opinion, it meant they were compensating for something. That smug thought didn't change the fact that their speed and strength seemed similar to his, and there were two of them. It meant than when he evaded one way, the other vamp would counterattack the other. Vlad ported, spun, kicked, slashed, his blows finding their targets, but everywhere he turned a new attack seemed to gouge into his flesh. His body was starting to feel like swiss cheese.

He was in monster mode, feeling no pain, just the mad frenzy of the hunt and the challenge as he battled these creatures. Vlad finally pounced at one of the no life kings and threw him backwards. Grabbing the vamp's head, he pressed in on it with both hands until it crushed, splattering blood and thicker things across the dirt road. For good measure, he dug his claws into the neck and literally razed it off.

"Your friend here is not so tough after a-.." Vlad stopped suddenly as a swordlike claw drove through the back of his neck, straight through his windpipe. The claw wrenched his whole body sideways, slamming him against a brick wall. The impact crumbled some of the bricks, spilling dust onto the ground at his feet. Vlad's eyes glowed as he moved to break free, only to have the vamp drive his other fist into the side of his ribs. Vlad didn't have much option but to take the blow. Unless he did it a certain way, the act of breaking free could sever his neck from his shoulders, and he couldn't afford that. He wasn't even sure if he could get back from it.

So a series of deep punches drove into his side, until his tunic was literally saturated with blood and his chest no longer looked like a chest, but a deflated, shapeless mass. Vlad flung his claws out fiercely, managing to swipe across the vamp's cheek at maximum range. The vamp drew back at the sting, withdrawing his blade.

Another weakness. You still fear pain, Vlad smirked to himself, though his throat was wide open and he couldn't speak the words. But as he came back under his own weight, he realized with a rush of heat in his mind that he was losing it. His hellhound had been eating bats out of the air, healing its wounds, but now it turned toward him, a loyal and wary stare from its dark eyes. It sensed its master's weakness. Vlad met its eyes and raised a finger outward, summoning a return portal. The beast understood, and leapt back through it, the portal closing behind it.

Vlad stood and began walking toward the remaining enemies, one in human and one in bat form. He was ignoring his injuries, but the biology of it made him walk unnaturally, like he wasn't all in one piece.

"Vlad!" Tenele screamed as she saw him assaulted so. She fought and struggled to stand, crying out every time as her broken leg buckled beneath her. Finally she dragg herself to a standing position, leaning against the cart. She happened to glance down while she was using it for support and saw a number of weapons that she hadn't noticed before. They had been lying out and slightly overed in the snow, but they were still useful. She grabbed the bow and the bag of arrows, having to take her hand off the cart. She lost balance and fell over with them, sliding once again into the cold snow.

She took one arrow head and the shaft of another arrow under her broken arm to brace it. Quickly she began carving a miss-shaped holy rune into the shaft. If there was one thing she knew about No Life Kings or vampires in general, they were weakened if not killed by things blessed with symbols or prayers. She wasn't a priest, so a symbol was going to have to do. If she could just hit him in the right spot.

She took the arrow, pushing herself into a sitting position. She then looked down at her broken arm. "Shit," she muttered when she realized it would be hard to use a bow with one arm. She pulled herself up onto the cart again, glancing around for an alternative. Hanging just above her head was a nicely made cross bow. She couldn't reach it with her hunched over form. She would have to jump.

She glanced back to see the beast ripping into Vlad's side with his fists. There wasn't any time! She gritted her teeth and pushed off the ground with her one good leg. She grabbed at the crossbow, managing to yank it loose and fell back down onto the side of her broken leg and arm. She screamed, but quickly gritted her teeth as she slapped the arrow in with her good arm. She braced the crossbow with her knee, pulling back the string and cocking it. Then with one hand she raised the crossbow and fired at the human figure, nailing him directly in the back of the head. She wasn't sure what it would do to him.

The pain in her leg and arm was becoming over welming and she could barely keep herself awake. The only thing that was keeping her awake at the moment was the fact she had to make sure Vlad would be alright. Then she could rest. She just didn't want him dying because of her.

Vlad was too distracted with his battle to notice Tenele's struggles, but when an arrow shot in front of him and went straight through one of the vampires' heads, he followed the trajectory back to her in amazement. She was a resourceful, strong woman. A woman he had no intention of losing in this battle. He turned and simultaneously noted that 1) Tenele's mark had collapsed to the ground and was writhing in agony with the holy arrow burning a trail of smoke in his brain, and 2) The one remaining no life king had decided that the girl had become annoying. The last enemy teleported in front of Tenele and drew back its hand, claws spouting from its fingers as it moved to rip into her chest.

There was no time for hesitation. Vlad ported in front of the vampire, so close to Tenele he could have fallen backward over her. His bloodied form dripping onto her as he met the other vampire's blow The vamp's claws dug into his chest, and Vlad's plunged into his arms, and it became a shoving contest, like two swords locked in battle. This vamp had been in bat form, and had taken very little damage so far. Vlad sneered in his face, and teleported them both several yards away from Tenele. The other vamp hesitated, surprised. Good, Vlad still had tricks they hadn't seen yet.

The two went at each other with such a vengeance that it was hard to tell who was wounding who, which strikes missed and which drew blood. Soon they were both so bloodied that they were practically indistinguishable from one another. In the end, both monsters collapsed onto the ground and fell still. Vlad's body had blackened and stretched into something that couldn't only be described as a viscous pool of blood. The other vamp just lay there, looking like any mortal that had been beaten bloody and left in a gutter.

Tenele closed her eyes, unable to watch as they went at eachother. Unable to watch him get hurt. She laid in the cold snow, shivering and in intense pain. When she no longer heard the fighting she raised her head shakingly. Vlad was lying in the snow... bloody and still.

Her breathing quickened. He seemed so far away. "Vlad?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "Vlad!" It still wasn't loud enough for him to hear.

She worriedly moved, wiggling and struggling. She drug herself across the ground, pulling herself with her good arm and pushing herself with her good leg. She had to pause every now and then to rest. She was weak, and growing weaker. However, her goal that had kept her awake so far had been Vlad and that would be what would get her to him. She was crying, though hadn't noticed, groaning as she drug herself across the ground.

She crawled over to the first body. It was hard to tell which was which. They had the same hair color and both were covered in blood to the point that she couldn't tell which one was Vlad and which one was the enemy. She looked at the first body and it was definitely not Vlad, she had to get close to realize that. With a tearful wince she bagan to move away from the form and towards Vlad. "Vlad..."

Vlad's eyes were wide and vacant, staring up at the cold sky above them when Tenele spoke. Her voice seemed to spark something in him, a faint glow in his eyes. Nothing else changed, but slowly, the blood and hunks of flesh surrounding them began climbing toward them, sliding across the snow. They collected at Vlad's body, joining it until it began to take a more human shape again.

Vlad's eyes finally began shining with effort, looking really alive instead of just like still marbles. His reconstructed body looked firm and strong under the few shreds that remained of his clothing. By chance, there was enough of his pants left to still cover his decency, but that was approximately it. His shirt lay shredded over one sleeve and then hung in a torn strip across his other side, leaving his torso bare.

When Vlad's body was whole, it took another few seconds before he could see though his eyes. When he could, he glanced down at Tenele, staring at her intently. Crap, they had to get back to Lowight. Anywhere but here, before more could come. He tested his arm to see if it would move. It did. He used it to push himself up into a sitting position, and then embraced Tenele carefully, one hand cupping the back of her head to his chest and the other arm around her back to touch only her good shoulder. He avoided her wounds, but held her against him, taking a few human breaths just to calm himself. When he'd passed out, he was sure she'd be dead when he woke up. She'd saved his life in spite of her wounds. She was amazing.

He focused on that in preference to the screaming pain that was burning through his body. He was hungry. It was a bad sign. But they couldn't afford to stay here and find the missing villagers. Shea knew they were here, and she could have more where that came from. He cursed under his breath and held her tighter. His power swam over them, somewhat hesitantly, and they appeared somewhere miles away in the forest. Vlad sagged against her as they reformed, drawing a heavy breath.

Tenele wrapped her good arm around him, holding him to her when he sagged. If it were possible her skin was burning even more and she was shivering uncontrolably. "We... need... to rest..." she said through her shivering. She clutched Vlad, holding onto him as if the hold onto his strength as well. So far he was the only reason she was still conscious.

"We won't make it to Lowight.... unless... you rest and... eat..." Tenele glanced down at the warm wet feeling trickling down her side to her hips. On her side and noticed that one of her wounds had reopened and blood was slowly seeping out.

"Shall I carry you?" Tenele asked jokingly.

Vlad made himself sit up straight. His complexion had gone from its usual pale to a grey-white color. "That would be nice," he smirked to her comment about carrying him. "But we can't wait. They could be following us. He didn't need to glance at the bleeding wound on her side to know it was there. His senses were going crazy for it, his hunger compelling him to have her. "You're bleeding," he said quietlly.

"No..." she lied, forgetting that he could sense things like this. She pulled herself closer to him with her good arm as if sheilding the wound. For a moment she was really quiet and then she finally said, "We won't make it with both of us like this."

She moved her scratched and battered hand to his face, rubbing it lightly with her finger tips. "I had occupied myself with the idea I was going to die in that cave... or lying under that man that you killed. Here I am... in the cold being held by you again... I'm dreaming aren't I? This is another one of her tricks..." She was shaking now, her broke arm pressing against the wound.

"You're not, and we're both going to live," Vlad said sternly, and knew it was an unfair promise. He was having his doubts, and she had to have noticed. Running away was not on his list of strong points. If Shea sent more of those things, they wouldn't be able to fight them off. If he tried to port them back right now, he could lose himself to hunger. Not much point in rescuing her if he wound up using her for fuel.

"Fine, let's stop here and rest," he said, climbing to his feet. He walked to a bush nearby that had long, ribbonlike leaves. He began pulling the leaves off the bush, collecting them into a pile. He could hear running water nearby. Grabbing the leaves, he went back to Tenele and picked her up carefully. "We're relocating," he said, and carried her toward the stream nearby. His arms were different than when they'd supported her before. They trembled faintly with effort, like human arms would.