Helle everybody! I am back!
So, if you haven't followed my other stories, I posted last week that due to the C-virus outbreak things have been a bit crazy out here. I lost two weeks of time due to that damn thing because my college closed down and all DOD personnel are on a travel ban, so I had to fight to get my stuff back from my college dorm. So, I now take online classses, which is a plus though.
Also, my cousin caught it too because he works in a hospital cafeteria, so that's going to be pretty interesting. He's fine right now though.
In other news, a review from the Guest known as Guest asked if Jaune was going to get a partner in crime. And he shall.
A Seras Victoria to our Alucard. A Rubedo, Nigredo, and Albedo to our Gold.
I've also started reading some Faust, so we might see some influence coming up in this story.
One more thing, I have also renamed all of the chapters and shall name them from here on out.
Jaune lay on his back, staring into the night sky. His left leg hung off the building he perched himself on. The boy's face was expressionless, yet, calm despite the former. His mind elsewhere and in deep thought.
This whole day had been a nightmare for Jaune. That damned gym class just put the boy in the spotlight once again. People were asking questions Jaune didn't have any answers too. They were speculating on the reason behind this change. Frankly, the events of yesterday's fight didn't have as much fallout as this morning. How the hell was he supposed to live that down?!
Sprinting faster than a group of students comparable to Olympic track athletes would have anybody asking questions, right?
Of course, it would. Especially if no one had ever seen that kind of speed from the boy before.
Jaune asked Ruby what time he got and that surprised him even further. The fact he shattered a world record should have been a great thing anyway. Except, this left him with a sour taste in his mouth.
Luckily, Ruby didn't gush over it. Not like Pyrrha, despite it being kind of unusual for her. His childhood friend practically lost her mind when the realisation hit. Jaune couldn't remember Pyrrha ever acting like that. It would have been funny had they been playing a board game or some strategic exercise.
She was the worst out of everyone Jaune knew.
The rest of his friends, save Nora, were either confused as to what happened or left the boy alone. The bubbly Valkyrie hounded the boy for a while, claiming Jaune to be a superhero in the making before Ren pulled her off him. Anybody else who came up to Jaune wondering how he managed to outrun Pyrrha like that didn't have their own Ren on hand.
How the hell am I supposed to deal with this?
Any sage advice, voice in my head?
*Crickets Chirping*
Great...
Never here when I want him, and always shows up at the worst times...
With no reply from the voice, Jaune let out a loud huff of frustration at his abandonment. The boy instead decided to focus on the task at hand. He threw his right leg over the edge of the roof and sat on the precipice of the alleyway below. Not a soul around aside from himself and the sounds of the city.
He had come back to the area where he butchered those gang members a few days ago. Not the same alley since that was cordoned off by the police, but one of similar make. Pretty much every corner and street of this city had some form of back-alley like this one. Most large metropolises did. One just had to choose from the options.
The reason for Jaune being here was to get some blood, however. That battle with the German Vampire had depleted everything he had in him. The small pool the man had given the boy for his troubles wasn't enough to allow Jaune to use his familiar, so he had to replenish. It was just a matter of waiting for someone to wander into the alley he perched himself above.
Waiting for someone to walk down the wrong alley was only part of tonight's plan. The end goal for this evening was for Jaune to experiment with his abilities. Really, it was to see how far his body could go and what changed since last night.
Any information would be helpful right about now. If Jaune had to deal with vampire hunters sometime in the future, it would be best to know his limits. Crocea Mors especially. If that was going to be his killer app, Jaune needed to understand every facet of the object. More than how to use it, but how to take advantage of the rules surrounding the blade.
Hopefully, it's not just a sword...
Lo and behold, someone did come waltzing down here off the beaten path after two hours of waiting. A woman by the looks of it. She seemed like she was in distress, holding her purse close to her body. The click of her heels rapid in pace. As if she were trying to fast-walk away from someone.
While observing the girl below, two men appeared at the end of the alley. The woman thought she could have gotten away by dipping down this corridor but instead stupidly trapped herself inside with no way out. She realised this, backing into the wall and staring at her pursuers. The men didn't mind this, calmly strolling towards the girl who looked to be having a panic attack now.
"All right," one of the men began. Clothing more akin to rags, giving Jaune the impression he may have been some kind of drug addict. This idea reinforced with the circumstances. "Hand over the purse, and we can avoid the rough stuff."
Heh. At least he's considerate.
Continuing to play bystander, Jaune noticed the first man's friend beginning to grow antsier. He seemed to be the more rash one out of the two. Confirmed as he went for a knife in his jacket without warning and used his other hand to grab onto the straps of the handbag.
"Give it up, bitch," he shouted, tugging back hard. His strength was not enough to rip the bag away. Only earning himself the fearful cries coming from the girl.
I know where this is going...
Having seen enough, Jaune slid off the edge of the building and allowed himself to fall nearly thirty feet to the concrete below. He crashed into the ground, landing on both feet with no injury whatsoever. His body absorbing the shock despite a fall that would break a man's legs from that height. In fact, his graceful descent made it seem like his body was but a feather.
Yet, the sound of Jaune's shoes hitting the pavement warned the men there was another party in their midst. The participants in this mugging looked to the entrance of the alleyway, finding a figure standing before them. With the light to his back and another above the boy, his face was entirely shadowed beneath his hood.
Get out of here... Jaune used his head to direct the woman to leave.
She wasted no time running out from behind the man with the knife and out of the alleyway. Jaune waited for her to leave entirely, hearing her heels click against the concrete until they went around a corner. As she disappeared, the boy withdrew his hands from his leather jacket and took his first step.
Heh... They're humans.
Jaune was sure of it.
Had they been vampires, the boy would have known immediately. He couldn't smell anything on them aside from their putrid body odour and the scent of blood. The antsier one was the worst of the two, sweating like he'd been sitting in a sauna all night long.
Not the higher quality prey Jaune was used to, but they would do for tonight's purpose. He just had to make this quick in case the German Vampire was around.
As Jaune approached the men, the knife-wielder thrust his blade towards the blonde's abdomen. The point of the knife came at the boy in what seemed like slow motion. It was just like the fight he had yesterday, time nearly stopping in Jaune's wake.
He sidestepped the attack and clamped his left hand down upon the offending wrist. The pace in which this took place, left the man looking around cluelessly only to find a vampire staring directly into his eyes. To him, it was if Jaune became a blur only to reappear right next to him. A show of superhuman speed.
The Vampire smiled, showing a set of fangs off to the man. His expression immediately contorted into a fearful one.
Jaune pulled the man forward and off-balance, causing him to stumble gracelessly. Before he was allowed to fall to the ground, Jaune cocked back his right arm, balling his hand into a fist at the same time. There was no warning for the man to react as it sprung forth and directly into his chest. The punch made contact with a loud crack emanating from within, and the force behind it picked the man up and off the ground.
He was sent sailing back into the brick wall, crashing into the solid surface. The hard face did not allow him to pass through it, stopping him midway through his flight. The mugger only stayed there for a fraction of a second before cartoonishly sliding down and onto the floor. As he fell to the ground, he slumped forward dead. Killed instantly from a single blow.
The second man saw this go down and decided to run for it. Jaune turned around, watching him get about ten or so feet on the boy before doing anything about it. He looked around for anything to use, only finding a wooden broom handle. The haft snapped just above where a mop head would have been.
Jaune took the broken tool in his right hand, cocking his arm back like one would when throwing a javelin. He made one step forth before rocketing the rounded end at the fleeing bandit. It sailed through the air like a bullet would, slamming into the man's back and passing straight through him.
This piece of wood carved a perfect hole in the man, barely slowing as it exited his body. Jaune watched the pole continue past a pair of bystanders and across the street. Its final destination was a brick wall where the wooden haft buried itself nearly six inches into the face.
Gotcha!
The man stumbled, having just been speared through the heart. He reached for his chest where the hole was, realising what had happened. Still, he continued to flee, making another two or three steps before his legs gave out. The man fell to his knees before collapsing on his side. From there, Jaune could no longer hear him breathing.
As everything settled down, Jaune acted fast, phasing into his mist-form and scooping up both men. The three forms quickly ascended up and beyond the rooftops in a matter of seconds. The swarm of bats continued onward until Jaune found a suitable location off in the distance. His sights set on the suspension bridge hanging over the bay.
Even with the weight of two grown men, Jaune did not feel burdened by it in his mist-form. It was like they were weightless to him. Or simply, this form did conform to the same standards as his natural body did. By means, such as magic or something unknown. Jaune did not have the knowledge at hand to understand the reasons. Only that this phenomenon did occur.
...
After what felt like mere seconds, Jaune touched down on top of one of the bridge's towers. The one closer to Vale and the bay itself. Here, he dropped the corpses on the ground, allowing them to land with a splat. Blood draining fast from one of the bodies.
Jaune decided to take care of the man he impaled first, picking him up by his collar and turning his head to expose the jugular. The boy grimaced slightly from the smell as his enhanced senses picked up far more than he wished. The corpse smelling like really old cheese.
I feel like I'm gonna throw up... Jaune forced himself to hold back a gag, taking in a deep breath of air away from the body. Come on, Jaune... You can do it!
Getting over with it, Jaune bit down on the man's throat, penetrating the skin with his fangs like a syringe. The blood immediately began flowing, filling his mouth and getting taken up into his fangs. Luckily, this taste was so much better than the smell the boy was picking up. Had that not been the case, Jaune would have thrown up right here.
Soon, the man's blood began running dry. Most had been lost due to his wounds, but there was enough there to be worth the trouble. As the flow dried up completely, Jaune dropped the corpse off to the side. When it hit the ground, however, he heard a splash. The boy looked to his feet, noticing the pool that had formed below him.
His body didn't even wait for his mind to catch up. Jaune fell to his knees and leaned forward, nearly licking up the blood before he stopped himself.
Are we really doing this?
He may be a serial killer at this point, but Jaune still had standards. Licking up blood from what was probably one of the most bird poop encrusted surfaces in the entire city was pretty low. Lower than killing two drug addicts and another serial killer. Those two just balanced each other out at this point, actually.
No, I can't...
As he moved to pull away, Jaune noticed the pool beginning to shrink in size. Like with his regeneration or when he killed those gang members. All of the pooled blood on the ground started travelling into his hand rather quickly. Jaune continued to watch as the ground soon cleared itself of any trace of evidence.
So, it doesn't have to be on my skin either. I just have to touch blood to make it work.
Cool. That's good to know.
That meant Jaune didn't just have to drink the blood either or cover himself in it. A parting glance with his hand was all that was necessary. This new discovery led the boy to consider other options instead of having to bite someone to gain blood. Perhaps killing them with his sword was all that was needed?
Jaune stood up as the blood pool was finally dried up. He looked down at his arms to see the gore even penetrating his father's leather jacket. A fact he hadn't been aware of yet. It didn't seem to have to be just cloth or skin to absorb blood. Somehow it managed to bypass the leather and make it to the other side.
What if there's something else I'm missing here? Need to play this safe just so I don't lose anything.
The Vampire did a once over of the scene before him to make sure there was nothing else amiss. There was no more blood acting oddly on the ground. No shadows following him with the figure of a woman. The corpses didn't seem to be getting back up either. Even the one Jaune just bit. However, as he scanned the area, the boy noticed something on the first body's neck.
What's this?
Jaune turned him over to expose the wound again. This time, the bite mark had changed. Instead, of two holes where his fangs would have been, it was now a bite similar to that of a shark. A single band of torn flesh with individual teeth marks he could make out. This was on both side of the man's throat as well. Jaune had not meant to cut into both sets of jugular veins.
Backing away from corpse again, Jaune reached up and into his mouth to feel his teeth. Indeed, they had changed. Jaune could feel that every one of his teeth were now a pointed tip. Some were veering off to the side a bit, but all were similar in direction.
How is that possible? My teeth were perfectly fine earlier. I knew I just had fangs too.
Maybe this is something else or another version of my fangs? They couldn't have transformed that quickly...
Jaune shook his head, not knowing the mechanism behind this. He decided to put off trying too hard to think about it for now. There was still another corpse to take a bite to drink from.
And it was a damn fine night to do so.
...
Finishing up, Jaune rolled both men to the bridge's edge. Where they stood, it was probably a couple hundred feet down to the water below. Nothing in terms of evidence aside from a few wounds would be able to connect back with Jaune. Not that cops would investigate too hard with what were probably two homeless guys Jaune just killed.
A sad fact, but something to keep in mind. Suicides may not have been investigated very thoroughly either. These men were simply at the bottom rung of society's ladder. No one would pay them any mind if they just up and vanished one day only to wash up on shores of Vale.
Why did I just think that?
Feels kind of dark now that I think about it...
Jaune tore himself from those thoughts and back to disposing of the evidence. Everything about what he was doing here was for self-preservation. The boy was looking out for his number one right now and prepared himself to stick with that. He could debate the morality of what he'd done after mastering his vampirism.
All of this was to protect his family and friends. Sacrifices needed to be made to ensure this future.
Without any more thought, Jaune rolled the first man over the edge. His corpse plummeted to the waters below, vanishing with a splash at the bottom. Following him was the second man, his body tumbling down the whole way only to unceremoniously end up in the bay a few seconds later.
We're done here. Where to next?
Jaune looked around for a direction to head in. Many places in California were perfect to look for in a test site. Even if one didn't choose this state, there was plenty of others with nothing going on in their own swaths of deserts or open fields.
Maybe Utah? They had nothing going on there aside from salt flats and mountains. Nobody would notice if anything was amiss if Jaune unleashed some sort of magical bomb in the middle of nowhere.
Ah, who am I kidding?
Jaune chuckled to himself, hopping over the railing separating himself from a four-hundred foot plummet. He allowed himself to fall for several seconds before transforming into his mist-form.
What's wrong with going to a nice place closer to home?
The swarm of bats turned upwards and began flying off to the east, covering a massive distance in only a fraction of a second.
[Twenty Minutes Later]
Jaune touched down in a patch of desert somewhere near Death Valley. This nearly lifeless expanse of land hardly had anybody living inside of it. Aside from one or two military bases close by, of course. Other than a few thousand soldiers, nobody was around to disturb tonight's grand events.
Shit, it's cold!
The boy pulled up his hood to shield his head from the weather. Even for a desert, it could get very cold in the middle of the night. A mere fifty degrees with a gust of wind passing through was enough to send Jaune scampering for a source of warmth. His vampirism not giving him any benefit either.
Okay Jaune, let's make this quick!
He held out his right hand, reciting the Crocea Mors' poem out loud. As he finished the incantation, the boy's right palm started to heat up. This warmth growing to a mild one like he'd been warming his hands next to the fire. Nothing like the searing hot iron placed against it like before.
Hurt's less now, so that's good.
Jaune wasn't sure why. Maybe his body was only becoming attuned to the magic? Or it could be he was getting used to the pain. Possibly the ghost? Nothing to point at any of those reasons, however.
"Hugghh," the boy let out a frustrated groan, twirling the blade around in his fingertips.
A part of Jaune was really starting to hate having all of these unanswered questions. Eventually, he would have to begin writing them all down to keep track of everything.
Maybe somebody wrote a book about this? Fat chance of finding it in the library, though...
Jaune grasped Crocea Mors in both hands with one at the tip of the blade and the other on the handle. His eyes carefully studied the seemingly immaculate sword for any clues. However, there were no symbols, but only a single sentence inscribed towards the guard, running up the blade on both sides.
Das Ewig-Weibliche Zieht uns hinan.
Well... it's German...
Jaune took some foreign language classes, mainly Spanish, in his freshman and sophomore years, so he couldn't be sure. But Crocea Mors didn't sound like it was a German word or phrase. Actually, Crocea Mors was closer to something like Spanish anyways.
Nothing a quick search online wouldn't fix. The magic of the internet would solve all.
Okay, let's try to see if I can mess with you, Crocea Mors. I forged you, so there has to be something I can work with here.
Jaune held the blade out in his right hand, focusing all of his attention on the shape. The first time he forged the blade, he had no prerequisite design in mind and only let it come into form. Maybe if he recited the poem again with a new profile pictured in his head, it would work?
As he did so, Jaune noticed Crocea Mors begin to heat up, turning into a white-hot plank of steel once again. This heat not burning his hand, but instead felt cold to the touch despite it. The blade soon expanded both in width and length, finding mass where there should have been none. The weight coming to around a few hundred pounds now.
There could have been no way for the blade to grow like this without siphoning materials from the environment. However, with all things in this past week and a half, the impossible could clearly happen. This blade was only another representation of mechanisms breaking Jaune's understanding of the world.
After a few more seconds, the blade finally took Jaune's desired shape. And frankly, it was too big to be called a sword. Too big, too thick, too heavy, and too rough, it was more like a large hunk of iron. Something that a freaking superhuman would be using to slay demons down in the pits of hell with a smile on his face.
Jaune had the sudden urge to shout the name Griffith as he beheld the massive blade. The thought caused another chuckle to erupt from within the boy's throat.
He tried to swing the blade once, finding it to be far too heavy for even him to manage. As Jaune's strength failed him, the tip of the blade buried itself deep into the soil. Attempting to even lift the sword again made no meaningful progress.
Well, that worked out. Kind of large for my tastes, but I won't have to worry about hiding it since I can summon it any time I want. What if I made it smaller? A sabre?
Jaune went through the same motions again, reforging the blade into something far more elegant. The mass and shape of the blade decreased as it did so, astounding the boy who took witness to this. Eventually, the weapon was no longer this behemoth of a buster sword, but a thin, curved sword for use on horseback.
Before he was allowed to perform any other feats with the blade, the magical sword vanished in a puff of smoke and electricity. Its disappearance scared the boy, causing him to shield himself. However, as there was no explosion or surge of pain erupting from his right hand, he calmed for the moment.
Okay, I ran out of fuel... Blood makes it work I guess, so I'll need to find more pretty soon if I'm going to keep experimenting. That can wait for now, though.
The last thing Jaune was curious for tonight was to see how far he could push his body. The feats he performed at the track and during the fight with the German Vampire had him wondering. With how Jaune's enemy was able to move so fast he could effectively disappear, the boy should be able to replicate such a feat. Most likely to a lesser degree, but something close to it.
Jaune's reaction time and speed were both increased to beyond human levels already. The boy still felt like he could push himself farther than what he had done yesterday. In fact, it only felt like he'd put less than a quarter of his strength into that sprint. A minor effort, but not everything he had.
So, the boy knelt down like a sprinter would, placing his right foot underneath him and his other extended. To the sound of a phantom starting gun, Jaune rocketed forth, pushing off his right foot and into a full sprint.
This first step was more like a leap into the air, propelling the boy nearly thirty feet in a single bound. The stress of inertia subjected to Jaune's body made his internal organs have to play catch up with the rest of him. Even the boy's eyes pressed against the back of his skull.
"HOLY SHIT," the boy shouted as he overestimated the amount of strength put into his leg.
The sheer force behind this explosive start kicked up a mountain's worth of dust into the air behind him. A small crater where his foot pressed against the soil remained. The next step was the same, only launching Jaune in a lateral direction instead of vertical as he took control of his movement.
Jaune didn't even try to keep his hood up, long since abandoning the notion of his disguise. The boy's mane became slicked back with the rush of the air against him. Everything about this moment like when he leapt off the bridge. Only a lot more exciting than when he tried killing himself.
This excitement bringing out the young child inside of him. Jaune didn't stop to examine his surroundings, pushing towards a large mountain off in the distance. Every step, bringing the boy closer to his destination.
Come on, Jaune!
One another bound, Jaune increased the force in his leg as he pushed off of it. This resulted in the boy getting thrown over one-hundred feet into the air! His entire body no longer felt itself succumbing to the pressure of inertia.
No. He ignored it entirely with the rush of adrenaline in his system. This experience far outstripping any roller coaster he had ever been on. Not even his motion sickness showed its head.
"WHOOOOOOOO," the boy shouted in glee. "HELL YEAH! HAHHAHAHAHaaaaaa!"
[Ruby: Several Hours Earlier]
The sun had just started to go down, casting a spell of twilight over Vale.
Ruby and Yang were walking home after a successful shopping trip for the supplies needed for this weekend. The elder of the pair had a mischievous look on her face to counter the happy yet content expression of Ruby. The younger was unaware of the cogs beginning to spin inside Yang's head, however.
"So, Rubes," Yang began, moving a few inches behind her younger sister. "You excited about this weekend? Going out with Nora, Ren, and Jaune for some fun?"
Ruby blushed a bit at the mention of her friend. Especially with how Yang emphasised his name like there was something else going on here. Which there wasn't! Ruby never thought about him that way!
Stupid Yang! I know what you're trying to pull!
"Yep," Ruby cheerfully agreed, going along with her older sister's tease. "We haven't gone out together for a while now!"
Ruby couldn't really remember the last time they went out as a group either. Most of their gatherings were the boys hanging out or when she and Nora decided to go with Yang to the mall or an arcade. Together, they would go to Jaune or Ruby's house to play video games or something like that. But with how warm it was starting to get, the young ravenette wanted to change things up a bit.
"Just make sure when you guys get to the tunnel of love, you pop a mint before you go in," Yang suggested teasingly.
This idea caused Ruby's blush to burn a little brighter than it had previously. Her red hoodie was starting to match the colour of her cheeks now. Even thinking about the two kissing, which was Yang putting the picture into her head made it even worse.
"It's not a date, Yang," Ruby growled through her teeth.
This only served to cause the blonde to laugh lightly at the younger girl's expense. Not like there had been enough teasing when Ruby proposed this idea. Yang had been a lot less forgiving then but actually helped at that point.
"I know," Yang agreed, still keeping her playful tone. "But it can always become one. Or it might turn romantic..." The blonde skipped ahead of Ruby, turning around to face the girl as she walked backwards. Her lips contorting into her trademark Chesire grin. "Just think about it... Once Nora and Ren leave for the night, you two might be all alone. Jaune's family might be out doing something else, and I might forget that you were hanging out. Next thing you know, the two of you are watching a movie and then..."
Before she was allowed to continue any further, Ruby interrupted the girl mid-sentence.
"NO-NO-NO-NO-NO," Ruby started shouting, putting her fingers inside her ears. "I can't hear you, Yang!"
This reaction was only cover for how Ruby was really feeling right now. She pictured the moment taking place right after Yang stopped. The two sharing a gentle kiss before... several other things might happen. One of them may have been really dirty, but she was fifteen dammit! Not a ten-year-old child to be shielded from that kind of stuff anymore!
"Awwwww," Yang feigned a disappointed whine. "Can't an older sister hope her darling baby sibling gets a boyfriend?!"
Before Ruby could get her reply out, Yang's right foot stepped into a large puddle on the ground. The liquid contained within splashed outwards, coating most of the blonde's white sneakers in the dark liquid. As soon as she noticed, Yang let out a frustrated groan at the ruined shoe. The girl kicked her leg a few times to attempt removing the liquid.
"Really," Yang barked angrily, holding her bags up higher as she stepped out of the puddle. "Who the hell dumps their dirty ass water all over the street?"
Oh my god...
"Yang," Ruby began, starting to grow a horrified expression. "That's not water..."
The two looked towards the origin of the puddle simultaneously. There, the sight they laid their eyes on prompted the girl's blood to grow cold. Each was staring at what looked like a massacre.
Ruby saw what were most likely over a dozen corpses strewn about the alley. Their bodies cut to pieces. Not drawn and quartered, but cut into cylindrical sections with every limb and body part sliced into individual hunks of flesh. The wounds themselves were perfectly straight. Not done by a saw or a sword. Ruby didn't know what could have done this.
She let out a scream seconds after realising what she was looking at. Ruby dropped her things regardless of where they landed, backing into a nearby vehicle. Her breathing immediately increasing ten-fold with a surge of adrenaline into her system. The girl's right hand came over her chest, gripping the hoodie harshly in an attempt to calm herself down.
Oh, my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!
She couldn't take her eyes off the bodies. There was so much blood.
So, Ruby walked into the California Chainsaw Massacre. Traumatising.
I am not a merciful god. With vampires running around Vale, someone is bound to walk into a feeding zone. Ruby and Yang just happened to be the ones.
But I guess that means their weekend excursion is going to be cancelled.