AN: Hey guys, I'm back with a new story. I want to apologize for my absence, I've been really busy as of late. The next update for In the White Light should be out relatively soon but by now you guys can see how bad I am with deadlines. I would like to thank my Beta, Wolfhunter for helping me with my stories. Without further ado, here's Dragon of Domination!
Chapter 1
This chapter has been revised.
He stood gazing at the abandoned factory on the outskirts of the quiet town. A half broken rusty metal fence surrounded the building, it's original purpose was probably to keep wanderers out, but now due to exposure to the elements and time, no longer served any purpose. Stepping over a section of the fence that had collapsed, he made his way to the large steel doors leading into the structure.
He reached out his hand and lightly pulled on the handle. The door didn't budge. Raising an eyebrow, he noticed the door was padlocked and had traces of magic around it.
"Ah, sealing the door with magic," he mused. "I'll give them an extra point for effort."
He placed a palm on the steel door, causing it to glow red for a moment before fading. The padlock crumbled to nothingness and the door swung inwards revealing a completely pitch black interior.
As if he were taking a lovely stroll through the park he entered the darkened building. He blinked and when his eyes opened again, they had taken on a reptilian look, the previously dark building becoming bright as day for him.
He found himself in a sort of entrance hall with a flickering exit sign above the door he had just entered. Noticing marks on the floor, he crouched down on his haunches and ran a finger down the dark red streaks marring the concrete floor.
"Dried blood eh? Either they're really confident no one would be able to find them here or they're more foolish than I had thought."
He stood back up, turning to his left to another door that was open. He poked his head into the room seeing a few dark computer monitors and a office chair tipped on its side.
As he continued down the hall; he came to a large room with several large pieces of machinery and conveyor belts. Unfinished products sat forgotten on an assembly line.
The place looked like the workers had left immediately. In their haste to leave, a few of the machines were still running such as the conveyor belts which creaked as they moved.
It was then he heard the screams coming from his right. The sound was abruptly cut off, eerie silence permeating the area. He headed in that direction into another long hallway, whistling to himself. More blood stained the floor and walls except this blood looked a lot fresher. A single light bulb illuminated the way for him.
"Well at least something in this dump was helpful, thanks light bulb." He then chided himself and wondered if he was going crazy talking to inanimate objects.
Another shriek of terror pierced the air, decidedly female. Quickening his pace he stepped into the biggest room in the building. More machines filled the place but the biggest difference here was that everything was caked in both dried and fresh blood. Voices came from the center of the room.
A row of structure supporting pillars conveniently stood near the center of the room, close enough to the voices that he could clearly hear their conversation.
"Zachaeus you greedy fool!" One said. "You had the last one, it's my turn now!"
The one called Zachaeus sniffed. "I'm the leader so I get special… privileges. Hakan, you and Seskel know that."
"Lies!" Hakan spat. "Who voted you leader? If anyone should be leader, it's Seskel and I! After all he and I are the ones who bring back these tasty morsels for us while you just sit on your worthless hide here!"
Zachaeus growled. "Watch the way you speak to me Hakan. I've never eaten a fellow vampire but if you continue to pester me, you find out how unpleasant I can be."
Hakan laughed. "As if you could even move to catch me you fat tub of lard. I-"
A new voice cut him off. "That is enough. You two are giving me a migraine. Zachaeus, you had the last one, give her to Hakan."
Seskel's voice obviously held some authority because Zachaeus once again growled in anger. Metal chains clinked and a girl's voice pleaded with them.
"Please don't kill me! Just let me go!"
A loud smack sounded as the girl gasped in pain.
"Silence child," Seskel said softly. "You will not escape from this place."
The girl started sobbing.
"Hey! Stop that!" Hakan snapped.
Deciding now was as good a time as any to intervene, he stepped out from behind the support pillars.
"Vampires eh, damn this town is really going to shit. Guess I'll help it out a little by getting rid of you three."
The three vampires whirled around and bared their elongated fangs at him.
"It is not everyday food comes to us of its own free will," Zachaeus said, saliva dripping from his mouth. "You look a lot better than this wench here."
He turned to Hakan. "You can have her, I call dibs on this boy."
Zachaeus's cracked and dirty fingernails lengthened into crude claws. He pounced at the idiot that had walked to his death.
To say Zachaeus was surprised when the boy disappeared and reappeared a few feet away, would be an understatement.
"This one is not very bright, is he?" The stranger asked Seskel and Hakan conversationally.
"If you would do us a favor and just kill him, that'd be greatly appreciated, morsel."
"Hey! Who's side are you on anyways?" Zachaeus screeched.
"Silence yourself fool!" Hakan snarled. "If you cannot kill this child before he ends your miserable life, then you did not truly deserve to live."
The stranger chuckled, the sound dark and ominous. "Very well, I'll do you this one small favor before your lives are also forfeit."
Zachaeus's eyes grew wild and unfocused. "You cannot frighten me with your empty threats boy! I cannot die, I fear nothing!"
"Are you certain about that? Fear is a weed, crawling in the dark," the stranger said in a soft voice. "It grows within the mind, corrupting it. It germinates within people, dividing them. You who believe you are beyond death, have forgotten the simple power of fear. Let me remind you what it's like to feel fear and pain."
He surged forward faster than the three vampires could see, grabbed Zachaeus and drew back his arm, his fist coated in red energy in the shape of a dragon claw. Thrusting his hand forward, he ripped through the startled vampire's chest and clutched Zachaeus's still beating heart and tore it free from the blood sucker's body.
Zachaeus was dead before his body hit the ground, his lifeless eyes staring up at the ceiling.
Tossing the heart aside, the boy vanished from sight again.
Hakan and Seskel stared at their dead comrade in horror.
"Where is he?!" Seskel asked panicking. "We've got to escape!" He and Hakan started running for the emergency exit behind them, all thoughts of killing the intruder, forgotten. They had barely made it five paces when Seskel was impaled by a long metal pole. Blood poured out of the chest wound.
Seskel collapsed weakly as his lifeblood left him.
"No… Please…" He gurgled before falling silent forever.
Hakan instantly dropped to his knees, terror consuming him, causing the proud vampire to be reduced to a sniveling coward. "Please spare me!" He cried.
The boy who had vanished after impaling Seskel, reappeared in front of the terrified vampire.
"You give up?" He asked Hakan.
"Yes! You win! Please just don't kill me!"
"Alright fine, you're free to go," the boy said turning away. "The exit is right there, I better not see your ugly mug ever again."
Not believing his luck, Hakan jumped up and ran as fast as he could to the exit. He could practically taste the freedom when he felt excruciating pain bloom throughout his stomach. He looked down to see two blood red dragon claws protruding from his body.
"How-" he began but whatever he was going to say turned into a long shrill scream of pain when the stranger tore both of his arms out through Hakan's sides, completely ripping the vampire's body in two pieces.
With his eyesight fading to black, Hakan looked upon his killer, the last thing he saw before his eyes went dark, was the red energy surrounding the stranger's hands, mimicking dragon limbs.
The stranger stood quietly for a moment, his head cocked slightly to the side as if listening to a voice only he could hear. He then laughed to himself.
"You actually thought I'd let him go? Come on, you know me better than that. Pathetic fools who prey on the weak try to act like gods, yet when faced with someone stronger than them what do they do? They beg for their lives like worthless cowards. They don't spare their victims, so why would I spare them?
"Who the hell are you talking to? Get me out of here!"
He turned around, the girl he had saved completely forgotten until she spoke. The red energy around his hands dissipated into red wisps resembling rising smoke.
"We'll talk about this later you lizard," he said, still speaking as if there was a ghost he was talking to. "Until then let's get this girl home safe and sound."
He jogged over to the chained girl and held his hand over one of the loose chains that was binding the girl. The metal links glowed red for a moment, then they simply snapped like a twig. After freeing her, he removed her blindfold, recognizing her instantly.
"Hey, I know you. You're Murayama right?"
She squinted as her eyes readjusted to the light. When she could finally see, she looked at him in surprise.
"Issei Hyoudou? What are you doing here? Who were you just talking to?"
He rolled his eyes, deciding to ignore her last question. "Obviously saving you, what else? You think I come here to hang out?"
Murayama seemed to remember her predicament and saw all the blood covering him.
"What were those things?" She asked as he pulled her to her feet.
"Vampires. Now let's get you out of here and safely home. Come on."
He paused to retrieve a small piece of paper and pencil he had brought along for a single purpose. He scrawled out a couple words along with his initials and dropped it on the floor in a spot he knew they'd see it.
He didn't wait for her, walking to the emergency exit, kicking aside a piece of Hakan's body as he did so.
"Mind the blood there, well actually it's everywhere."
She covered her mouth as she laid eyes on the gruesome sight.
"Oh god, you completely slaughtered them. I think I'm going to be sick."
He stepped away from her. "Whoa whoa whoa, If you're going to puke, don't get near me, I'm already bloody enough, I don't need the contents of your stomach on me too."
When the disturbed girl had finished emptying her upset stomach, duo exited the building and Murayama sighed in relief.
"I never thought I'd get out of there. Wait, how did you know I was there? Wait how did you kill them?" She asked suspiciously.
"I've been tracking those three for a while. As for the second part of your question, I'm fast on my feet and good at improvising."
When she looked at him skeptically, he shrugged.
"So, vampires are real and you completely ripped one in half and just say it was from improvising?"
He looked at her out of the corner of his eye but didn't say anything.
They walked on, neither of them speaking until she giggled.
"What's so funny?"
"So you're like a vampire killer or something, like what you see on TV or an Anime?"
He shook his head. "No, I'm a dragon."
"A what?"
"No more questions from you," he chided. "Now it's your turn to answer a question. What were you doing out this late?"
"I always go for a late night run. I think I chose the wrong night to do that though."
He nodded as he kept walking. "I'd say so. Where do you live?"
"Near the school actually," she said. "Why?"
His response was to scoop her up in his arms. She let out a startled squeak and blushed at being this close to him.
"What are you doing?" She asked flustered.
"It's quicker this way. Sorry about the blood," he said "Make sure to shower when you get home. Now which way?"
They arrived at Murayama's home quicker than she had expected. He had be correct when he said it'd be faster with him sprinting. The pair had been spared the odd gazes of people due to it being late and for that she was thankful. She didn't need rumors floating around about her and Issei.
"Well here we are," he said setting her down and backing away. "I'm going to take my leave then, good night." He turned around to leave, only to stop. "Oh and Murayama? No more late night jogs, yeah?"
She smiled. "Don't worry, that's the last one for me. I'll just do it during the day on the weekends."
"Goodnight then. I'll see you at school tomorrow. Oh one last thing."
He put a finger to his lips in an unmistakeable gesture.
"I would advise you to keep what happened tonight to yourself. I'm sure you don't want your friends thinking you're crazy."
She gave a nod. "What if I have more questions about… Whatever you are?"
He pondered that for a moment before he gave her a light smile.
"Well, feel free to invite me over sometime." he gestured to her home. Her face went red as a tomato at his words.
"G-goodnight!"
He laughed and bid her farewell. He had one last stop before he headed home himself. A blood red magic circle burst into existence beneath his feet and he vanished from the quiet neighborhood.
Reappearing near a popular fishing pond, he found the black haired man waiting for him.
"So how did it go?" The man asked not looking back at him.
Issei took a seat next to the man and flopped onto his back, staring up at the dark sky.
"Mm. I'm not sure. The three vampires were there as you said, though they had captured a girl from the school I'm attending and now she's aware of our world. Judging from the symbol I saw on their 'clothes,' those vampires were definitely from the Tepes Faction, though their reason for being in Kuoh still eludes me. It's not like I asked them though."
The man lightly tugged on the fishing pole in his hands.
"The Tepes Faction huh? Very interesting. Thanks for doing this little task for me, I appreciate it."
Issei stood up and stretched. "No problem, there was nothing to do around here anyways. As a reward will you finally bring your little 'wildcard' along with you one of these times?"
The man laughed. "Don't worry, you two will meet soon enough."
Issei rolled his eyes. "That's what you said last time."
He turned to leave but the man's voice stopped him.
"Before you go, I wanted you to know that there will be a meeting between the leaders on the Three Factions soon."
Intrigued, Issei rubbed his chin. "What for?"
"Oh you know, world peace and that stuff. I'll let you know when and where. I'd like you to attend due to your powers. As incentive to get you to come, the White Dragon Emperor will be there."
"It already sounded interesting, now I can hardly wait. Make sure you tell me the exact moment you know."
The man didn't answer. Issei looked back to see the man gone, the only proof he had been there was the fishing pole lying near the waters edge and the words replaying in Issei's head over and over.
'White Dragon Emperor'
Sona Sitri frowned as she and her friend Rias Gremory surveyed the aftermath of the carnage.
"Vampires on our territory Sona," Rias was saying. "And someone took care of them for us. But who? Who would blow out holes in their bodies and is that a heart I see over there? This one here is completely torn in half."
This didn't make any sense. Sona, Rias and their peerages were the only Devils in Kuoh and the only ones capable of tearing these vampires apart like this. Except no one from their peerages had done it. Which meant there was someone else in Kuoh who had power equal or above theirs. Someone they had missed.
Sona's eyes narrowed as she spotted a scrap of paper that looked a little too obvious. Picking it up and turning it around she saw three words and someone's initials.
'For your consideration -IH, student at KA, come find me.'
"Rias come here, look at this."
The crimson haired Gremory heiress came over and stood next to her.
"What's that?" She asked. "A note? What's it say?"
"It says 'for your consideration' along with the initials IH. It also says whoever did this is a student at Kuoh Academy.
Rias looked thoughtful. "I don't know anyone with those initials. I wonder who it could be, after all they did get rid of a problem for us."
Sona shook her head. "I think you're missing the point Rias, there's someone else here who has at our level of power at the least. We need to determine who it is as soon as possible."
"Come on," Rias said. "They can't be that bad if they did us a service. You're a little too paranoid Sona."
Sona's reply was to turn away to leave. "We'd better be getting back now. I'll have Tsubaki look for anyone in school with those initials and I'll let you know what we find."
"Sounds good." Rias held her hands over the corpses and the bodies desintigrated into nothing from her Power of Destruction. "I'll see you later then."
Both girls teleported to their respective club rooms.
"Find anything Tsubaki?" Sona walked up behind her Queen and peered over her shoulder at the computer screen.
"Yes, there's one Issei Hyoudou here. Average grades, mostly keeps to himself. He could be the one you're looking for, his initials and the ones found on that note are the same, but it could just be a coincidence."
Sona nodded. "It may be a coincidence, but the note said it was a student here and hour only potential match. This is all we have to go off of for now. What class is he in, I'm going to go pull him away from it for a few minutes. I'm sure his teacher will understand if it's me dragging him away." She said in her serious voice.
"Hang on let me check. You're in luck Sona, he actually has a free period right now, so if you were going to find him, he might be in the cafeteria."
"Thanks Tsubaki. I'll ask him to join us in the student council room after school. Rias will want to know of this. Speaking of Rias, could you let her know to come here after school too?
"Will do President."
Leaving Tsubaki to contact Rias, Sona her way to the cafeteria. She wondered if this Issei was the person they were looking for. If so, how had he suppressed his power so much they couldn't detect it?
She didn't like mysteries and aimed to find out how he had achieved it.
Issei could tell they had gotten his little note from the stern look on the beautiful student council president's face as she approached him. Her violet eyes stared at him as if she was trying to dissect him with her gaze.
"May I help you student council president?" He asked as she stopped a few feet away.
"Yes, you can. You can come to the student council room after school. I have some questions I'd like to ask you."
He spread his hands in mock innocence. "Whatever for? Surely the beautiful Sona Sitri, wouldn't be speaking to a lower life form such as myself without a good reason."
Sona's eyes narrowed. His only reply to her fierce glare was a wink. For the most part she was unaffected by it save for a light coloration to her cheeks.
"After school. Be there." She turned on her heel and walked away, her posture stiff. He could tell he had gotten under her skin. He smiled to himself.
"Looks like this'll be quite the interrogation."
He found himself looking forward to it.
AN: And that's it for the first chapter! Hope you guys liked it, let me know what you think. Until next time.