Cassandra panted as she attempted to catch her breath and calm her heart. It was the most emotional she had ever felt at singing a song since this was the first one she had dedicated to her mother. She took deep breaths, attempting to calm her nerves as much as she could.
Someone came and patted her on the shoulder. She turned and saw Shinji nodding at her, a small smile on his face. All around, the rest of the vampire musicians smiled at her, as if trying to encourage her. Then, Shinji nodded to the audience, who were now crying for another song. It seemed that as of now, they weren't completely satisfied yet.
Cassandra could feel the night coming to an end. She looked toward everyone else on the stage, nodding for them to take their places. She now walked forward, facing the audience as she held the mic up once more. "Too bad… I only have room for one more song."
Disheartened moans echoed from the audience, though none could refute her words. It was really getting late after all.
"So tell you what…" Cassandra grinned. "Why don't you use every last ounce of that energy right now, and enjoy this final song with me? What do you say!?" She screamed out the final question, and in response everyone around cheered loudly.
"Alright everyone!" Cassandra said to the vampires on the stage. "You heard them! Let's do this!"
*Insert Unknown Actor (Under Night In-Birth)*
Once again, the vampires began to play their instruments. And for the last time tonight, Cassandra began to sing.
Clashes sounded through the trees. It was hard to believe that such a battle was being performed by two humans. No, that was inaccurate. The two were more than just simple humans.
Anju yelled as she swung the scythe again, forcing the man back. While he defended well with his clawed gauntlets, he was astounded at the force she threw at him. Still, none could be more surprised than Anju herself. While she did her best not to show it, her astonishment at the power she now wielded was without compare.
Is this from Yuki too? She wondered as she readied herself for another attack. Everything from the way she held and used the scythe; her movements; her supernatural strength. Nothing else explained it save for the after-effects of being bonded to Yuki.
"Seriously?" The man growled. "What in the actual hell!?" He dove at her again, his claws outstretched. Anju merely raised the scythe, blocking the claws before stepping to the side. Twirling it in her hand, she spun around him, aiming the blade for the back of his neck. Immediately, he arched backward, the blade barely missing his chin. Anju took this opportunity to punch him into the ground.
She winced as soon as her hand made contact. While she was sure she had gotten an effective hit in, she wasn't prepared for the ache that now throbbed through her arm. It seemed that the man was tougher than she thought.
"Oh that's it!" He snarled, kicking his legs upwards. Anju winced as his boot slammed into her face, sending her toppling backwards. "I didn't think I had to get serious on a kid, but you've really pissed me off now!" With a furious cry he jumped toward her, his claws now aiming for her shoulder.
Anju recovered quickly, rolling away to avoid being stabbed. He shredded through the earth, releasing the claws and kicking dirt into her face. Anju cried as sand got into her eyes, leaving her open to a vicious kick to her abdomen. She crashed through the trees, toppling a few of them over before she slammed back into the ground. The man leaped at her again, his claws aimed straight for her heart.
Anju raised her weapon again, blocking the possibly fatal blow. However, she gasped as her arms felt the shock of the attack, almost leaving them numb. She gritted her teeth as she tried to keep the claws from inching closer to her heart.
"I knew it, I should have just killed you from the start!" He growled. "You're too dangerous to leave alive!"
Anju stared back with reddened eyes. She felt that she was already at her limit. He was slowly beginning to overpower her despite her giving every ounce of effort to stop him. She thought about the students who would most likely be finishing up with the concert. If she failed now, then he would go after all of them. Innocent people would be hurt, and who knows what kind of chaos this would cause? Still, her arms were feeling tired and threatened to give way any moment.
Please... Anju pleaded to whatever had awakened this power inside her. Grant me more strength… Please!
"Time to die kid!" The man cackled as he drove his claws closer and closer. They slowly inched toward her heart, ready to stab through her skin and into the organ below.
Then, something crashed into him from the side. Anju registered his look of shock as he was sent flying into a few trees, breaking through them. As Anju recovered, she looked up to see who her savior was. She blinked in surprise as she saw that it was no one she knew. Rather, it looked like herself.
Or to be more accurate, it was an apparition of herself. It looked similar to her; the hair, the height, even the shape of its head and figure. However, it was akin to a shadow, covered completely in black while glowing with an eerie red pulse. Also, Anju couldn't help but notice the huge bat wings sprouting from its back, and the blood red eyes on its blackened, featureless face.
"What are you?" Anju whispered as she got to her feet. The shadow apparition didn't answer. Rather, it pointed straight towards Anju heart. "You are, from inside me?" Anju frowned, still baffled in an attempt to take all these things in. Firstly her inhuman speed and strength, the weapon she had conjured from thin air and now this? What was this world coming to? What was she becoming?
"You… bitch…" Anju turned to address the man she had been fighting. He looked injured, attested by the blood dripping from his nose. "Seriously, that was the last straw. You are so going to die, here and now…"
Well, I suppose I'll worry about all this later. Anju nodded as she bent her knees, her scythe ready. Beside her, the shadow apparition rose into the air, claws now sprouting from its fingers. If we keep fighting him like this, I suppose even I have a chance to restrain him. Anju nodded to herself – and the shadowy being beside her – as she broke into a run.
"Why you little-!" The man growled as he charged at her in response. He decided to go for Anju, the current source of all his rage and fury. His claws raked the ground before he forcefully tore upwards, uprooting a good amount of the earth along with a tree, making it a makeshift projectile to strike at Anju with. Anju frowned as she halted, knowing taking a direct hit from that would likely incapacitate her. She wondered how to dodge before the shadow apparition came in front of her. She watched its body morph into a protective bubble around her, shielding her from the attack.
Anju broke into a run once more, the shadow shield now opening up to let her pass since the attack against her was gone. She somehow sensed the shadow return to its humanoid form and fall behind, ready to support her in battle.
"Hrrragh!" He snarled as he drew his left arm back for a strike. Anju parried, but left herself open to the right claw. However, the shadow covered for her, its own claws meeting his.
"A 2V1?" He yelled. "This ain't fair dammit!"
Anju strained back against him as he attempted to force himself through. She strained against his raw strength again, feeling the burning ache in her arms. They trembled as she attempted to keep him at bay, her strength slowly waning against his. However, she knew that despite it all, she had to hold against him. If she were to falter here, he would likely turn his bloodlust toward all the other students in the school. I can't let that happen! Not when everyone worked so hard for the festival!
The shadow now writhed, slowly twisting the claw away, much to the man's surprise.
"You're going down!" Anju roared as the shadow now overpowered him, swinging him around by the arm and slamming him onto the ground. As soon as he bounced off, the shadow torqued, crashing him into the earth again, and again, and again. Then it threw him high into the air before returning to Anju, lifting her into the air toward his falling figure. His eyes widened as Anju raised the scythe. With all the force she could muster, she swung the blade at him, slicing through his body and slamming him into the trees below. He hit the ground hard, attested by the massive dust cloud that sprang up.
Anju now felt herself get carried down by the shadow. She watched as it carefully set her on the ground before landing beside her again. Shadow, huh? She frowned. Perhaps that was what she could name it. She couldn't think of anything else. Was this thing similar to Akira's summons? She had so many questions, though she wasn't sure if 'Shadow' could provide a clear answer.
"Uh-oh…" Anju blinked as she turned in the direction the man had fallen. "I hope we didn't injure him too badly…" 'Shadow' didn't answer. It merely stood there, like a watchdog alert for the slightest movement. Anju sighed. "Well, I guess we ought to go and find him. Explaining this to the chairman is going to take quite some time though. I suppose Queen Ai ought to know as well. Maybe she can tell me more about this pow-"
Anju barely finished before her entire body dropped. Like a stone that sank in water, or a tree that had been uprooted, Anju fell to the ground, crying out as she hit the floor. She tried to get up, but her body wouldn't move. She couldn't even muster the strength in her fingers.
What the hell? She thought furiously, noticing that now the red streaks in her hair had vanished while Shadow writhed as it faded away. Then, she felt a sensation in her throat, something burning inside her, as if a red hot iron was being shoved down her gullet. The pain was almost unbearable, and Anju had to fight the urge to scream aloud. She suddenly remembered the words Misaki used to describe a vampire's thirst.
Is that it? Anju frowned as the burning sensation continued. Am I thirsty? What the hell is happening to me!?
Someone panted. Anju raised her head, her eyes widening as she saw the man clamber out from the trees. His yellow eyes were ablaze with feral fury as he spat out blood, while more dripped from the massive cut in his chest. "You… little… bitch…" He gasped as he stalked toward her, murder in his eyes. Anju groaned as she attempted to force her body to move, to get up, to do anything.
Her pinky twitched, no more.
"I'll kill you…" He hissed, the feral anger in his face making him less human by the minute. The black claws on his hands also twitched, the red spots now enlarging and turning from something that looked like eyes to something that were similar to eyes while their edges became serrated, resembling teeth. Anju watched as the black now covered his entire arm with red lines stretching from the 'eyes' like veins. He roared as the blackness now spread across his chest and up to his neck. A small sliver of it reached his eyes, a spider-web of darkness forming like a savagely applied mascara. Anju watched as his bruises immediately healed, while the cut in his chest vanished.
"Hah…" He breathed before his sadistic sneer returned. "Man, I totally didn't think I'd need to use this whole thing against a kid. Seriously though, you might have been able to kill me. But I guess you ran out of steam eh? Oh the things I could do to you right now…"
Anju groaned as she tried to move, but all of her efforts were futile.
"Well, I suppose I still ought to bring you back alive." He grinned as he walked toward her. "Sorry about that outburst. It was incredibly unprofessional. But hey, I still owe you for the pain you caused me." Drawing his leg back, he lashed a vicious kick toward her face. Anju cried out as her whole world spun before she landed on her back, the impact knocking the wind out of her. Despite not being able to move, she could tell that she was bleeding from her mouth and nose.
"So how about this?" He continued as he straddled her still body, gesturing to his claws that now seemed less of a hand and more like the gaping maw of some unnatural beast. "For every hit you gave me, I'll give you one slice. Now, how many times did you smack me around I wonder?" He tilted his head, lost in thought. "Damn, after all that smacking around I actually forgot. Was it maybe thirty times? Yeah, I guess it was. So… thirty cuts. I hope you stay alive after it all."
The man now ripped open her shirt, exposing her belly. Anju attempted to wriggle, but her body still wouldn't move. The man gleefully twirled his index finger over her belly button before he made up his mind to give a small cut on her side. Anju gritted her teeth as the pain flared, stifling a scream. Despite being helpless, she didn't want to give him the satisfaction of how vulnerable she was. He paid it no mind before he went up to her shoulder, his claw now digging into her flesh. Once more, Anju tensed up, a cry of pain escaping her lips.
"Ooooh, that must've hurt." He chuckled. "Well then, I guess next one will be on the face?"
Anju stared back at him defiantly, not wanting to entertain him further.
"Damn girl, you are tougher than the other female vamps I've carved up." He snickered. "But I wonder how long that will last." He hissed as he pointed his index claw toward her face, tracing the air over it similar to making a sketch. She watched his face twist into unbridled glee as he drew his hand back, ready to slash at her.
His glee then turned into shock and surprise as a gloved hand crashed into his neck, twisting his body painfully and knocking him a few meters away. Anju felt someone now haul her off the ground. Looking up, her eyes widened at the identity of her savior.
"Hell Cliff…" Rodin shook his head as he carried her under his arm. "I know you are one twisted piece of shit, but to think you were sick enough to do that to a kid… Didn't you mom teach you manners?"
"Rodin…" The man known as Cliff replied. "I always wondered what would get former number four out into the open. You know the price of betraying us, right?"
"I left you guys because you only wanted to kill." Rodin said coldly as he put Anju down. "Killing vampires that hurt humans and get away scot-free is one thing, killing every single vampire that exists is another. I joined to make sure justice got enacted, not to become a murderer."
"Heh." Cliff snickered. "Don't go around flaunting all that false sincerity. You just decided to get a conscience is all. What happened to the man known as the 'Devourer', eh?"
"That name means nothing to me." Rodin growled.
"Haha!" Cliff cackled. "Damn, you aren't the Rodin I remember. Hell, you look like some great big pussy cat the way you are. I bet even I could beat you the way I am now."
Rodin frowned as he cracked the knuckles of his right hand. "Cliff, walk away. You have this one chance."
"When I could actually take you down?" Cliff asked, a mad look in his face. "Are you kidding me?"
Anju watched the entire exchange. It didn't take any special power for her to see the bloodlust that dripped from their very bodies. Cliff's blacked body appeared to be reacting to it, the red veins pulsing brighter and brighter. Rodin however had a more subdued ferocity emanating from him. She finally realized that what she saw back in town days ago was merely a tamed beast. Now, she could feel the savagery starting to grow, like a beast that was readying itself for a life or death fight.
"Don't say I didn't warn you." Rodin growled menacingly.
Cassandra breathed as she finished the song. Together with all the musicians, she finally took a bow as the cheers erupted from the audience.
She was all smiles as she faced them. She had to be, less she otherwise gave away the fact something had gone wrong. She had been feeling it for some time now, a nefarious presence in the school followed by the raging clamor of battle. As they left the stage however, she could tell that the vampires had sensed the same thing. After a few seconds of thought, she issued her order.
"Gabriella, report to all the Hunters. I fear something has gone amiss. And do keep it quiet. We cannot have the students dissolve into a panic." She said into the earpiece.
"Understood." Came the reply.
"And the rest of you." Cassandra now addressed the others. "Stay vigilant, and keep your eyes on the students. If need be, we will be the final line of defense for them."
"As you command." They answered in unison.
"Anju!" Akira called out, breathing heavily after his quick run through the trees. His mind constantly wandered between her and the moment she had put her lips to his. He had never seen her so flustered to that extent. Before he could even say anything, she had run off. While he was sure she wouldn't do anything stupid, he still worried about her.
Because you actually love her? Came the distracting thought. Akira furiously ignored it, focused on finding Anju. He resumed his search, frantically looking at every nook, cranny and shadow.
Then, light footfalls came from behind. Akira turned to see Ichigo come up. "Ichigo? What are you doing here?"
"Just a hunch Kuran." Ichigo replied. "You remember that feeling back in town? Well, it came back, and it's stronger than ever."
Akira frowned, unsure of what he meant. However, as his breathing steadied, he soon found that he was right. The dull throbbing he had felt back then had returned, only this time it was more like a wariness than anything else, as if some sort of unimaginable creature had appeared. As he realized this sensation, he frowned. Why hadn't he felt it sooner? Something like that was unlike him.
"Hey, Kuran? The hell is up with you?" Ichigo asked.
"Ichigo, have you seen Anju?" Akira asked. "We got separated during the concert and now I'm unsure of where she is. I did see her run through here though."
Ichigo sighed in exasperation. "That idiot. Why run here of all places? Does she even remember what happened during the dance?"
I might have something to do with that… Akira thought, believing for now it'd be best to not tell Ichigo. The last thing he needed now was being lectured by him. "Well, whatever the reason, we ought to focus on searching."
"Easy for you to say." Ichigo scowled. "This place is freaking huge! Where do we even start?"
At this, a loud crash sounded, causing them both to snap their heads toward the sound. It was then accompanied by more crashes; the sound of trees toppling.
"Oh hell…" Ichigo cursed as Akira sprang into action. The two of them sprinted through the trees, following the sounds of carnage that echoed through the air. The minute they neared, their eyes widened at the sight of Anju lying against a tree.
"Anju!" Akira exclaimed, running to her side and gasping at the wounds and blood on her body.
"I'm okay." Anju said. "It's just, my body won't move."
"What in the hell were you doing idiot!?" Ichigo growled before another cloud of dust exploded around them. Both boys looked back to see two men battling each other. One was a man matching the description of the one they knew as Rodin. The other was a man with long black hair and yellow eyes. However, it was the way his arms looked and the inhuman claws upon his hands that shocked them. Even more shocking was how they were ripping apart the earth and upending trees with just their bare hands. If Ichigo didn't know better, it was as if he was watching two vampires fighting each other to the death.
"Son of a bitch!" The black-haired man cursed as he hit a tree, splitting the trunk in half. With an animalistic snarl, he lunged at Rodin, who ducked under and them snapped his fingers around the offending claw. Rodin tugged down, pulling him over his shoulder and slamming him into the ground below. Rodin then aimed a punch at his grounded opponent, who immediately rolled away, causing Rodin's right hand to crater the earth.
"Not bad Cliff." Rodin chuckled, as if he were just fooling around. "I guess Arthur has been training you well."
"Ah shut up!" Cliff glared. "I swear, someone has to cut your tongue out! Maybe then you'd realize how annoying you are!"
"Aww, but that's such a big part of my personal charm." Rodin moaned. "Can't you at least try to cut out my pinky?"
Cliff merely roared and charged at him, claws outstretched. Rodin merely sighed as he grabbed one of Cliff's arms and twisted into him, simultaneously jabbing his elbow into his gut. As Cliff tried to breathe, Rodin followed up with a quick punch to the face. Next was an uppercut, then a knee jab followed by a forward somersault kick that drove the man down to the ground again. As Cliff sprang upward, Rodin grabbed him by the face and rushed forward, dragging the back of his head through the dirt before spinning around and flinging him into a tree. Cliff's head slammed into the trunk, the impact now causing the tree to topple over, forcing him to painfully land on it once it fell.
Cliff coughed as he grasped his cranium. Blood was now dripping from his forehead. "You… bastard…" Then suddenly, he grimaced, falling to his knees as his body trembled. From the perspective of the three teens, he appeared to be in great pain.
"And it finally kicks in." Rodin sighed, cracking his knuckles. "How long has it been since you ate Cliff?"
"Shut… up…" Cliff growled.
"Freeze!" Came a shout. Everyone turned to see men clad in black clothes surrounding them.
"Death Dealers." Cliff said as he glared all around. "Why does everyone like to rain on my parade?"
"I swear man, I had nothing to do with this." Rodin answered, his hands flying up.
"Quiet, both of you." One of the Death Dealers snapped. "You both will be taken in for questioning." he turned to another Death Dealer who was armed with a crossbow. "Cuff them!"
As the Death Dealer nodded and attempted to apprehend them, movement in the trees caught their attention. From out of nowhere, black tendrils descended and attacked the Death Dealers, swatting them to the ground.
Ichigo dodged quickly while Akira pulled Anju away. Rodin himself swatted away the attacks, all the while retreating. "Tch…" He frowned. "So she came too huh? Figures Cliff needed babysitting."
The tendrils now withdrew before snaking out of the shadows again, this time forming some kind of protective barrier around Cliff. Upon closer inspection, the objects appeared to be some sort of cloth.
"Cliff… You… Too much… Commotion… Avoid…" Came a cold voice. Anju looked up to see a small shape now descend next to Cliff. Her eyes went wide as she spotted the blonde haired girl wearing a block gothic lolita dress, and the fact that she had no arms. She was also shocked to see that the black objects where actually connected to said dress, and they supported her as she drifted down. No, perhaps it was lifting her down?
As soon as the girl landed, the black ribbons surrounding them retracted from the ground, exposing white porcelain triangles lining the end. Slowly, they shrank until they formed a shawl that was draped over the girl's shoulders.
"Giselle." Rodin nodded. "Should have known you'd be here."
"Rodin…" Giselle noted. "No words… You… Traitor…"
"Yeah well, I never went to you for proper conversation anyways." Rodin answered. "But I'll just say this, buzz off. You know I'm stronger than you."
"Dislike fact… But… Cannot oppose… You… Former Four…" Giselle nodded. "Cliff… Retreat… Remaining here… Risky…"
"After all that shit I just went through!?" Cliff snarled. "Hell no! We were supposed to bring that girl back! I didn't get that ass-whooping for nothing, you hear me?!"
Giselle didn't reply, instead turning her gaze at him. Instantly, one of her shawl's tails expanded rapidly. The porcelain décor now transformed into blades that resembled fangs, while a single red eye appeared on the middle of the shawl. Quickly, it slammed into Cliff, pinning him to the ground. The shockwave that followed was a testament to the force behind it.
"Silence… Now… Vampire Knights… Approaching… We… Disadvantage… Thus… Retreat…" Giselle rebuked him. While her ruby eyes appeared nonchalant, there was a certain cruelty in them that made Anju decide that compared to Cliff, this girl was stronger. Much, much stronger. Then, Giselle turned the same gaze to Anju, tilting her head as she studied her.
"Unfortunate…" She finally said. "Mission… Failure… However… Observation… Interesting… Perhaps… Will be forgiven…" Then she hauled Cliff-who had now ceased his struggling-off the ground. "Goodbye… Girl… Meet… Soon… I assure…" Two more tails of the shawl now expanded, though they took on a different shape than the clawed one that held Cliff. All watched as they raised upward and flapped, taking both Giselle and Cliff off the ground. Without restraint, Giselle flew through the sky, her form soon being obscured by the clouds overhead.
Author's Note:
And there is the next one. I've finally managed to get time for this, so I hope to be able to upload a little more frequently.
Regarding Anju's powers, I honestly had a tough time deciding. Trawling through old fighting game footage didn't help much, but then I remembered another powerful vampire character from the hit series Overlord. Shalltear Bloodfallen's skills were the main inspiration of Anju's current powers, and rest assured they are merely going to grow from here on. But if you have other ideas, do let me know and I'll see how I can fit them in.
As always, please read and review.
Jdbl00d