Chapter 26

Taka was ready to kill everything in sight. He had somehow lost his visual on Alucard and was working on finding him again. The fresh wave of Isaac's demons did not help. He barely even noted that Sumi had not left his side. Thankfully, they had been at the edge of the attack from that blasted woman. Sumi had been able to jump back fast enough to avoid it.

His short sword was slicked with just as much ichor as blood and nearly gathered some more before his attention was snagged by a scream. He quickly stabbed the man that had been in front of him before he turned to see what had happened. The crowd seemed to clear, and he saw one of the vampires turning to dust.

It looked like the bitch had tried to bite Alucard's pet and paid a heavy price for it. Not that he cared. The only thing he saw was the fact that he had an open shot. He pulled his bow around, only to be distracted once again by the sight of Alucard speeding toward the woman. His bow was already up, but he hesitated. The arrow tip wavered unconsciously between the two.

However, the decision was made for him in the next second when Isaac came from behind and stabbed Alucard. The next few seconds passed in a blur as Taka tried to follow what was going on. Isaac had been attacked by the other two that had been with Alucard while the pet was on her knees in front of her master.

Taka cursed Isaac for being the one to take down the dhampir, but only for a moment. He could already tell Alucard was done. The amount of blood on the ground was more than even the son of Dracula could recover from, even if the knife hadn't struck his heart. He was still half-human, after all.

He could tell the woman was trying to revive her fallen lover, but he ignored it as his grip firmed on his bow. A second later, an arrow flew, and his aim had never been an issue. Though time seemed to slow as the woman was struck, and he suddenly wondered what he had unleashed.

Trevor and Sypha had been fighting a knot of demons together. It was something they had come to perfect while on the road, after all. Neither of them thought beyond the moment until they heard a scream ring out. Sypha gasped at the sight of a bloodied Eva, but that didn't stop either of them from racing to where the woman was pushing herself up.

Neither one of them made it before Alucard, though they weren't far behind. That was a good thing. Trevor growled when Isaac stabbed the dhampir in the back before the Morningstar was instantly flying. He knew Sypha was right behind him as they worked to keep the Forgemaster from finishing what he started.

Sypha spared a glance down at her friends as she passed, and almost wished she hadn't. Still, she didn't have time to stop. They had to take care of the man in front of them first, or it would do no good.

The two of them managed to push Isaac back, though not without injuries. The strap he carried along with his knife was a dangerous thing. Luckily, Sypha had managed to burn the hand that held it before he could jerk it off Trevor's arm. She knew her lover would need to be healed as soon as possible, but first, they had to survive.

Despite their focus on Isaac, Sypha's head still snapped to the sound of another scream coming from Eva. She almost wished she hadn't looked. Alucard was still on the ground, but now he was covered in blood spatter across his front as well. Eva looked like a doll whose strings had been cut as she hunched forward. It was made all the worse by the arrowhead that was protruding from her chest.

Sypha knew there was probably little she could do, but she still turned to try and save them both. Though she hadn't even made it all the way around before Eva looked like she was jerked upright, and her head was thrown back. She opened her mouth as if to scream, but instead of sound, a light suddenly surrounded the woman. It was difficult to tell if it had started with Eva and shot into the sky or the other way around.

Sypha barely had time to note that the light seemed to somehow be getting denser. Hard on the heels of that thought, she noticed that it looked like there was another form coalescing in the rays just above Eva. She gasped when she finally made out the shape of wings. However, as soon as she did, the light scythed outward.

Sypha covered her face out of instinct and was shocked when the light only knocked her off her feet. Otherwise, it felt like a warm breeze. She knew it wasn't the same for all the beings around her as she could hear the slicing of flesh and the howls of demons before they exploded. The nightmarish sounds went on for more than a minute as the last of the demons writhed and turned to ash. When they finally stopped, an eerie quiet descended on the battlefield.

Sypha waited a few seconds before she finally lowered her hands and pushed herself up. All around her were the burnt husks of demons and men picking themselves back up again. It seemed that the humans were the only things left alive in the area. She also saw Trevor pushing himself to his feet a short distance away. The man they had been fighting could not be found. That fact didn't make her feel any better, but she needed to know her friends were alright first.

She turned back to where she had last seen Eva to find that the light had still not faded, but it had dimmed enough that she could see the winged man that was emitting it. She watched in awe as he reached down and touched the arrow in Eva's chest before it disappeared. When that happened, the other woman seemed to deflate. She started to fall across Alucard, but shockingly, he somehow caught her. Although that looked to be the extent of his strength, as he couldn't even sit them both up.

Thankfully, he didn't need to. Eva stirred and sat back with a groan. At least until she saw Adrian's eyes open, then she threw herself on top of him, causing them both to groan again. Sypha barely heard his response to Eva's tearful exclamations. "I'm alright. Or at least I will be." Adrian's reassurances did little to slow Eva's tears. Nor did she pushing back. Not that she had the strength to.

Sypha and Trevor had reached them by that point. The Speaker reached down to help her friend up, though her eyes hardly left the angel that had retreated to a short distance away. Part of her was fascinated. She had never heard of an angel appearing to people outside of the biblical references. Though she had no doubt, this one was Eva's father. He had to be.

Trevor had also moved to help Alucard up. Most of the men that could still stand had started gathering around with wide eyes. No matter what they had believed about Eva, there was no denying the angelic presence in front of them.

Eva tried to push away from Sypha to approach the male but nearly fell. Instead, the Speaker helped her forward. She still stopped them a short distance away from the angel. Eva eyed him for a moment before she opened her mouth to speak. It snapped shut, and her jaw clenched. It took her several seconds to find the words she needed. "Are you my father?"

That was not the first question she intended to ask, but somehow was what she wanted to have confirmed most. The male's expression was hard to decipher, especially with the light surrounding him, but he still gave her a nod. Eva's jaw clenched, and she managed to step away from Sypha without falling. "Why? Why are you just now showing yourself to me? Why did my mother have to go through so much hell without you? Why-" She had started to ask why he had allowed her mother to die, as it was obviously within his power to have stopped it. That was one question she didn't think she could handle the answer to. Not yet.

The male let out a soft sigh and took a step forward. When he did so, the light around him faded. He gestured around him as he spoke. "I know you have many questions. I will not leave, but first, do what you must."

His reminder finally triggered movement in the rest of the group. Some of them scrambled to find any of their fallen comrades that were still alive. Others worked on scanning the area for remaining enemies. Most of them were still unable to move.

When Striga entered the fight against the blonde man, she had not known that he was Dracula's son. That fact was made evident while they fought. He held more power than most vampires she had ever faced. She was even further impressed when she remembered that he was half-human. Not that it made any difference. He was still an obstacle and needed to be removed. The renegade Forgemaster was equally impressive, for a human. That did not buy him mercy from the vampire general. Both males had to die.

She noticed when Isaac switched tactics and went after Alucard, but that did not change her focus. Both men were dangerous and needed to be treated as such. She had lunged for the dhampir while he was down, but to her shock, his sword came around and took her arm. The loss caused her to roar.

However, she had little time to react. Before much could be done, she watched as Alucard raced across the battlefield to where Carmilla had just been turned to ash. The sight caused a fire to burst inside Striga's chest, but her military experience told her to wait. As much as she hated it, she realized that she was at a disadvantage.

Now that her mind was clearer and thinking of the consequences, she knew several things were working against them. Not only were Lenore and Carmilla both dead, but with the loss of the Forgemaster, there was no telling how long the remaining demons would stay loyal. Not without some compensation.

It only took her a moment to make a decision. She turned her back on the battlefield and raced to where Morana was fighting against a group of humans. Her roar was enough to make them fall back. At least long enough so that she could grab her lover. Morana was smart enough to not fight as Striga took her away from the battle.

Striga doubted Morana had seen Carmilla fall, and she knew she would need to share that information, but it could wait. Her instincts were telling her to get away before it was too late, and the light that had bloomed where she had been only moments earlier was only further motivation. She was shocked when a handful of Hector's demons followed but didn't bother ordering them to stay. They were already out of time.

By the time she made it to the top of the rise and put Morana down, they were nearly blinded by a flash in the valley below them. When it cleared, the carnage below was astronomical. Not only demons but any vampire left down there as well were all obliterated. Morana's grip on her arm was tight as she turned with a glare. "Carmilla?"

Striga took a deep breath before she shook her head. "She is gone."

Morana's grip tightened, but no more words were said. They both burned with the pain of loss. It was only a few minutes later that Striga turned them to leave. They would rebuild Styria, but it would take time. Now, they would return and mourn their losses.

Isaac had not known what to think when he saw the light form around the Nephilim. However, he had no doubt it would not serve him well. He barely had time to brace himself when the light shot out and cut down any remaining demons.

He was knocked off his feet along with the rest of the people. He was not harmed as it passed, but it did feel repressing. It only took him a moment to realize that his advantage had been nullified. Staying now would only invite disaster.

He was up before the sounds had even died down around them. He didn't bother looking at the fallen. The knowledge that he had lost his army was enough to make him angry, but not to despair. He was still more than capable of creating another. Those were his last thoughts as he raced off before any of the others were even on their feet.

Taka had been frozen when the light first appeared. He had no idea what to expect. Though, he wasn't given time to do more. Sumi grabbed him and was trying to race away almost immediately. Unfortunately, they did not make it far enough when the light burst forth from where the woman had been kneeling. It took him a moment to realize what had happened when the light struck them both, and the lamia that held him screamed before she fell to the ground in two pieces.

His eyes were wide as he watched the pieces writhe for a moment before they fell to ash and blood. He knelt in front of the pile and stared for an unknown amount of time. Finally, he reached out a shaking hand and let some of the ashes fall through his fingers.

He had not been kind to Sumi. Her appearance was that of a monster, even if she still stayed by him. He had treated her like the demon she was. Now, she was gone again. So far from his reach that he would likely never see her outside of the afterlife. Regret warred with rage in his chest as he finally stood. No matter his actions, the whore would pay for killing Sumi again.

He gripped his sword tighter since he had dropped his bow. It didn't matter as long as the bitch died. He then raced forward with a roar. None of the men were close enough to stop him as he headed straight for the group in the middle of the ring of destruction.

Luckily for them, the noise allowed them ample opportunity to notice him before he could reach them. Trevor frowned as he let the Morningstar go. This boy had gone too far. More than once already. Instead of killing him, he wrapped the boy in the chain and yanked. Taka fell a short distance away, though he never lost his scowl as Trevor dragged him closer.

Eva put a hand on Adrian's arm, but that didn't stop Trevor from kneeling down and glaring at the boy. "You. I wasn't even there, and I'm already sick of seeing your face. You must be stupid."

Taka snarled in response. "She killed Sumi!"

Adrian shook off Eva's restraining hand and stepped forward with a glare. "No, I killed Sumi, and you were given a warning that I would do the same to you if you came after us."

That was all Trevor needed to hear. He brought his dagger up for a killing blow, but a strangled sound from Eva reminded him that it was more than just the humans there. The idea that an angel was standing a few feet away made him pause. That was all the opportunity Eva needed. She tried to race to grab Trevor but ended up falling before she reached him. She was still close enough that she reached out a hand to grab his wrist. "Don't. This isn't justice, not when you are killing a defenseless man."

Trevor huffed as he pulled his wrist away, and Adrian frowned as he helped her back to her feet. He didn't spare a glance at the fallen man before he spoke. "He has tried to kill you more than once."

Eva grimaced at the reminder and looked away. Her gaze fell on her father as he stood and silently watched it all. When their eyes locked, he answered her unspoken question. "I cannot condone the taking of any human life, no matter the reason. However, I will not interfere now that the demons have been annihilated. The choice will be up to all of you."

His answer caused many more questions to well up in Eva, but she turned away. Now wasn't the time. Instead, she looked back up at Adrian. His scowl was still firm. "I refuse to allow him the chance to hurt you again. He has already shown that he feels no remorse. This all started because he threw you out of a window, and still, he shows no regret for his actions.

When he let her go, Sypha immediately moved in to turn her away. It wasn't that she didn't agree with the men, but she knew Eva would need someone to be there. She doubted her friend was any less convinced of the boy's guilt, but she could still understand her hesitance.

Adrian watched the women for a moment before he turned back and repressed a growl. He refused to allow the boy to live, but he could agree to not kill a bound man. He gestured for Trevor to remove the chains. Belmont raised a brow at the request but complied when he saw the sword floating nearby.

As soon as the chains were off, Taka jumped to his feet. His sword was still in his hand as he lunged toward Alucard. Adrian stepped to the side to avoid the attack. He even waited until Taka was facing him again before he lunged forward with a snarl. Taka hadn't even realized he had been stabbed until Adrian pulled the sword out. The boy watched the dhampir's eyes as he fell. They were lit from within as the fires of his rage burned. Those burning eyes were the last thing Taka saw before the blackness claimed him.

A/N: I'm not sure if this chapter gives closer or creates more questions, but rest assured we still have a little to go. I hope the next chapter answers anything else you might want to know. Thank you all for sharing your time with me, and feel free to let me know what you think so far. Cheers!