"Not so tough now, are ya, Baby-Face?" questioned the general, smirking at Baldassare as he aimed his gun. His expression changed into a scowl, however, as the Girasol vampire grinned.
"Pfft! You're not so bright." Snarked Baldassare, holding his arms out as if he were welcoming the other man into an embrace. The bullet that had entered his shoulder fell to the floor behind him as his wound sealed itself shut. He smiled a haughty, tooth-filled grin as he held his nose high into the air and looked down on his foe. "Y'know, if you were smart enough to use the right bullets, I'd be pretty fuckin' scared! C'mon, Pauly! Gimme yer best shot!"
Elam's eyes widened, realizing his mistake. He had been playing in the Russian Roulette tournament, and the rules clearly state that no anti-freak bullets were allowed. It would be a shame if one of their valued guests were to accidentally die, after all. He knew, for a fact, however, that Baldassare's personal revolver always came with deadly bullets.
"Let's play a game." Baldassare suggested. "You like Russian Roulette, right? This time, though, it's all or nothing. We use my gun."
"Are you fucking crazy?!" the Gentleman demanded. "Why the fuck would you want that?!"
"Pauly…" began the other man. "Pauly, Pauly, Pauly, Pauly… You just don't get it. Not everyone gets to choose to be a vampire, y'know. I've been trying to finish myself off for years, since nobody else apparently can. Still, when it comes to drawin' the curtain for real, I just can't seem to do it myself." Baldassare spun the barrel of the revolver before pointing the barrel at the side of his head.
"You've just given me an excuse." He added, putting pressure on the trigger. He didn't even flinch as the hammer pulled back and he heard a click. Baldassare then proceeded to point the gun at the other man. His foe put his hands up and took a step back in order to retreat, jumping as the coven leader pulled the trigger.
Click!
"That's two down. Four to go." Spoke the Girasol vampire. Placing the gun back to his own head.
"Stop fucking around!" shouted Elam, puffing himself up to seem threatening. Nevertheless, he still flinched at the sound of the click from the other vampire pulling the trigger.
"Three…" Baldassare counted, pointing the gun back toward Elam, a grin spreading across his face as the man yelped and placed his hands over his head at the sound of the click. "Four… Two left, Paul. Which will it be? Me? Or you?"
This time Baldassare hesitated. He didn't place any pressure on the trigger right away. This could be it. This time, he closed his eyes and furrowed his brow, biting his lip as his hand shook. The pounding of his heart in his chest boomed in his ears as he braced himself for what was to come. This was just an excuse to go through with it, right? If he lived another day, so be it, if he didn't, would he care? No. If he was dead, he wouldn't, now would he? With that thought, Baldassare finally started to add pressure on the trigger.
BANG!
A gunshot rang through the large room and blood splattered over the cushions of the nearby seats and pooled beneath the body that fell to the floor with a loud thud. Yet there was something peculiar about the sound that was somewhat off-putting. Baldassare was still standing. Slowly, the Girasol vampire cracked open an eye, widening both of them and unconsciously lowering his weapon at the scene.
His foe was dead and across the room stood a demon with a sword in one hand, and a gun in the other. It was pointed where the other vampire stood, leaving Baldassare the last vampire still standing. The room was silent. The only ones left were Baldassare, the victims in cages, and the demon. Ciel lowered his gun before making his way toward Baldassare.
The Girasol vampire was frightened. As the demon closed in on him, his body tensed and his eyes clenched shut. To his surprise, however, the Phantomhive simply slapped the gun out of his hand. It clattered against the floor and Baldassare looked up, confused.
"Don't do that again." Ciel sternly instructed, his expression serious. "I'm not sure if you knew this: but you're basically the only person who keeps the special zone standing. If you go, then everyone in it will suffer."
Baldassare was silent for a long time before he spoke again. How could he forget? He did care about the people in the Glen, but he also cared about himself. Could someone who is trapped in the form of a child ever be taken seriously? Even when he took potions to change his face, he would still always turn back.
Like he had said, vampirism wasn't always a choice. He didn't choose to have his family torn from him and to be doomed to walk the earth at night for all eternity and feed off of the life-force of others. Who would choose that? The ten-year-old human Baldassare certainly didn't. He missed being able to taste sweets and he missed the sun. What was once delicious now only tastes like ash, and what was once warm, gentle rays have become blistering and painful. Baldassare wanted them back. He wanted to grow up. The very name of his coven, "Girasol"-, "Sunflower", was in part because of this wish. It was impossible now, though. When one is incapable of moving forward, or even moving back, what hope is there?
"You wouldn't understand…" he muttered, furrowing his brow as he looked away.
"Maybe I don't." Ciel said. "That doesn't change the fact that people are counting on you. I know that 'forever' is terrifying. I know how losing your humanity is. I've wasted a hundred years worrying about it, after all. When I dared to pursue happiness instead, however, my blackened world became a much brighter place. Don't do that again. There are many whose worlds would be much darker if you did."
"Are you trying to guilt me?"
"Not sure. Is it working?" asked the Phantomhive. The man leaned closer, getting almost directly in the vampire's face. "Who provided the funding for Sister Dorothy to repair the church so she could provide both church services, and provide education to the community? You did. You didn't have to, but you did. Who keeps the majority of London's vampires off of the streets and out of trouble? You do. Who decided to cooperate with this mission in order to keep H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. from raiding the Glen? You did. It was all you, and should you disappear, it would all fall apart. You can keep up that tough act of yours all you like, but you do have a heart. Your despair is proof of that."
With that, the Phantomhive stepped back again, sheathing his weapon and leaving the Girasol vampire with widened eyes and mouth agape. Ciel turned and headed toward the stage, flames surrounding him as he walked, returning him back to his usual appearance. How could this be? The Watchdog, the boogeyman that frightened everyone from children to the most hardened of criminals in the supernatural world, who could viciously slaughter and entire auditorium of vampires without much trouble, had expressed concern for both Baldassare and the special zone? How could this person be the same monster? It simply made no sense whatsoever.
Ciel hopped up onto the stage walking straight up to one of the cages. The humans inside understandably cowered, especially the ones who had been so bold as to look up from their hands and witness the display that the demon had just presented. Others only heard the noise, followed by the silence and the stern whispers of the bluenette before hearing his shoes pad against the floor of the stage. They drew closer and closer until they finally stopped.
"Don't worry, we're here to get you out of here." The Phantomhive stated in a calm voice, trying to sound comforting. His words did no good as the humans still quaked in fear, pressing further and further away from him and into the back of the cage. Ciel uttered a sigh before pulling out his cell phone.
He couldn't contact the rest of his squad, as Brasher possessed the radio. Perhaps splitting up wasn't such a good idea after all. Even though he didn't want to do it, and even though it went against orders, Ciel had no choice. He dialed a number before placing the device up to his ear.
"Hey, Jim? It's me…"
A/N: 'Sup, dawgs?
To be entirely honest, I don't really like this chapter. I feel like I didn't handle this very well, or I didn't use enough detail or something.
It just seems... off...
Ah, well, it's 2 A.M. and school starts Monday, so I wanna be updating like a motherfucker.
Until the next chapter, my duckies~!
