Ren lunged, his sword ripping through the falling snow. Just before it bit into Kijima's neck Kijima slumped forward. The lack of impact threw Ren off-balance; he skidded sideways in the snow, grunting as he redirected his sword up to block Kijima's counter-attack. His sword sank into the metal of Kijima's wrist gauntlet. He'd attacked Ren barehanded, his sword still strapped to his back.
"Playtime," Kijima snarled. Blood dripped slowly from his wrist, thick as honey. Ren back around him in a circle, drawing him away from Hikaru.
The bard had other plans. The only warning Ren got was a shout of triumph as Hikaru sank his knife into Kijima's neck. Kijima reached behind him, the knife crushed farther in as he grabbed Hikaru and dragged him up and over his shoulder to hang in the air before him. Hikaru twisted in the air, his face already turning red.
Kijima's sight of Ren was blocked, his attention focused. Ren braced his sword and rammed it beneath Hikaru's arm, shoving forward with a roar as he pushed Kijima back, pinning him to the tree with a sword through his heart.
"Bastard!" Kijima yelled, his voice breathless with pain. His hands scrabbled at the sword, cutting his palms on the sharp length.
Ren ripped away Hikaru, throwing the bard several feet away into the grass. "Run," he said. "Far."
Ren's medallion glowed a dark black, light pulsing as it was sucked into the gemstone at the center. He began to whisper, his cadence picking up speed as the sounds of Hikaru crashing through underbrush faded into the distance. "Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus, omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursio infernalis adversarii, omnis legio, omnis congregatio et secta diabolica. Ergo, omnis legio diabolica, adiuramus te…"
Kijima laughed. "Exorcisms on a vampire," he said. He snapped his teeth at Ren, lunging forward up the sword. His eyes glowed the same bright red as the blood dripping lazily into the snow. "It will not work, mercenary."
An inch farther. Kijima obliged, his chest pressing against the hilt of the sword. Ren ducked down and pulled Kijima's sword from its scabbard, the vampire far enough from the tree to release it without catching. Kijima slammed against the hilt; it broke free of the tree. Ren slashed at the same time, breaking Kijima's head free from his shoulders.
"Libera nos," he said, holding the hilt of the sword as his friend's body slid down off its length into the snow.
He sheathed his blade, dropping Kijima's in the snow beside the body. The woods were silent. Ren walked into the night, leaving Hikaru behind.
The Fuwas would be waiting for his report that the wedding was off.
Reader, yo, this creepy thread is done. Can't move on without Kijima. The End.