Hello again everyone! Welcome back and thanks for your patience. Had a good deal of fun writing out this chapter, and I certainly enjoyed my military leave and being able to visit family. I won't say much more here. Enjoy the chapter!
The contraption, residing on her arm and weighing it down, was undoubtedly interesting. She'd thought that since the moment she first saw it, a strange metal box, cylinder in shape, with a blade sprouting from it front and a strange piston at the back of it, that held the ability to retract and release a blade at high pressure.
Even with how fascinating she found it, when the bastard was forcing her to use it, as well as wear the rest of his gaudy, dark leathers, it had struck a nerve. Nevermind that she thought the leathers looked respectable, even made him- and would make her- look dangerous in a way she could admire. Nevermind that, after wearing it, she'd discovered it to be quite comfortable in spite of how thick and the many layers that made it up. She even acknowledged that having the extra coverings made her feel just a hair safer.
So yes, her irritation had spiked quite high, though it was beginning to wane. It did spike whenever she saw him looking at her for too long. Stupid bastard; he really was infuriating. He'd given her that damn bell, telling her to beckon him 'whenever she needed' as if she was some damsel in distress. Her face scrunched up, the bottom of her teeth showing and her eyes narrowing as she even thought about the idea that she needed anyone to rescue her.
Yes, Vasyl was an infuriating, stupid human. She gave him a side glance as they entered side-by-side into Oedon chapel from the graveyard they'd left that crazed Henryk in, as well as the old bitch. Her gaze shifted to the worthless human woman clothed in black, and then the somehow even more worthless, lanky and boney red-robed monstrosity that vaguely resembled a man. Her eyes drifted back to Vasyl.
Why did he care about these people, including the old bitch they'd helped take down that Henryk guy with? Was it a human thing, to care about things generally worthless? He certainly didn't need them; from what she'd seen, he was more than capable of dealing with most things on his own.
And it wasn't as if the two in this place would ever be of actual help. Kagura could vaguely see an angle where helping the old bitch made sense; she was another hunter. She knew her way around those knives of hers. That said, Kagura also suspected her usefulness had little to do with why Vasyl had helped her. Her brow scrunched together in thought. Well, whatever. She wasn't here to figure out how humans worked. In fact, she had no real purpose here. The only things keeping her was curiosity, the continuous drip of true freedom, and a chance to grow strong enough to break her bonds.
Vasyl took a hard left, stepping out into the same courtyard they'd entered what seemed like so long ago, a well in the middle of the spiral walkway. To the left was the path they'd taken to Old Yharnam. Kagura could see some blood on the ground, but the corpses of those bulky, towering men were gone. Perhaps a beast had dragged away their corpses for a quick meal?
She was led to a path on the right, encountering neither man nor beast as she followed behind her guide as they began moving up a series of stairs. He looked over his shoulder back at her, gesturing with a finger in front of his lips.
Taking softer steps, she listened carefully. It only took a moment to hear why; stomping footsteps, each one sounding a few seconds apart from each other, were heard ahead of her and to the left. There was some sort of staircase, one that went both directions, the right path heading upwards and the other below. Keeping quiet, she watched a massive foot stomp on the stone in front of her. A moment later, its next foot hit the ground, and she got a much better glimpse at what exactly it was.
It was massive, standing nearly seven times her own height. Yet it held no bulk; its chest looked like it was barely hanging onto decayed skin, it's ribcage visible against the bare skin clinging against it. Its chest was like a poor beggar, no muscles to be seen. It was as if this giant had been starved its entire existence. Its legs and limbs were long and lanky, cloth wrapping covering what looked like numerous slash wounds. She saw its feet were shackled together, forcing a sort of stumbling walk.
An axe was being dragged behind it, clinking against the stone steps as the giant continued to move. A top hat sat on its head, and a white cloak hung over its shoulder and obscured its back and some of its upper body. She also saw a large brass bell hanging from its neck, and as she got a good look at it face, there was a distinct lack of features. All she could really say was that the giant had wrinkled, sickly looking skin and sunken eyes.
Vasyl stalked up to it from the side, avoiding being spotted. Kagura waited to see his plan. As the giant took another step, Vasyl moved even closer, unfurling his saw cleaver at the same time as its foot shook the ground. The rumbling concealed the sound of his weapon transforming, and as he passed by the back foot of the giant, he struck.
His jagged blade dug into its calf, serrated metal tearing through flesh easily. It was lodged fairly deep into the giant's leg, and Vasyl pulled, blood spilling the street behind him and staining his leather. The giant stumbled briefly, but seemed to realize it was being attacked; it swung its axe behind it in a wild attack, the metal skating and skipping across the stone ground in a show of sparks. Vasyl leapt over the low swing, barely clearing the sharp edge of the axe, and dashed forward beneath the giant's legs.
Whipping his blade forward, he caught the giant's other leg with a much quicker strike. It tried to stomp on him in retaliation, and Kagura decided it was time to act.
As Vasyl dashed backwards following the giant's attempt to stomp on him, Kagura began moving forward; she watched as it hefted the axe far over its head and slammed it down at Vasyl in a strike strong enough to shake their surroundings and leave a miniature crater in the ground.
The attack was avoided with some effort by Vasyl, but more importantly, the giant had thrown everything into that swing, even his body. It left him hunched forward at an unnatural angle over his axe; its head was as close to the ground as it was ever gonna get. Rushing forward, Kagura pulled the lever and heard the distinct chink as her stake driver primed its blade. Leaping as it began to rise, the tip of her weapon met the giant's skull; she pulled her lever once again, releasing the stake in nearly perfect timing. Yet she was leaving nothing to chance; she forced her wind forward at the same time as the sudden release of her blade, beckoning it forward with the force of the released, pressurized steel.
It was everything she wanted and more. The left half of the giant's skull exploded, the power behind both the force of her blade and the wind she sent with it enough to send its brain smattering against a building a dozen or so feet away. The giant's death was instantaneous, and it stumbled over onto its side. She admired her handiwork, seeing where her blade had penetrated the right side of its face, just below its eye. Half the giant's face was simply gone, as if it had never existed to begin with; the only thing to suggest it ever had a left side was the splintered, jagged piece of bone on what was left of its head that had once clung to the rest of its skull.
Vasyl stood beside her, looking at what she'd just done. "An excellent strike, Kagura." And, without a doubt, it had been. Smirking, Kagura turned away from the bloody giant.
"Of course. Now, let's get moving." Vasyl, judging by the crinkling of his brows and the slight scrunching of his eyes, was smiling. Kagura ironed out her features as they turned and began moving up the stairs.
Was that what fighting with a real weapon was like? She loved her wind, of course, but there was something captivating about the glint of steel that was dyed crimson with blood. And, really, just the knowledge that if she had messed up, she was in much greater danger than if she was using her wind made her shiver in delight. It had been intense. Maybe all those idiots swinging around swords had a point.
Vasyl was looking at her out of the corner of his eye. That mask of his shifted as if he was about to say something before it stilled and he looked away. Kagura rolled her eyes, taking a glance at the surroundings as they continued up the stairs. It was like they were in a valley, buildings surrounding the stairwell as it led forward, towering at varying heights, all made of stone. She wasn't sure she'd ever get used to this place. There were more of those damn statues, clothed in long robes that obscured most of their features and bodies. Impressively, she could tell no two statues were the same.
What a strange city. It hardly even seemed real, even now. Kagura turned her eyes up to the sky, only the dimmest of light still visible. The dead of night was rapidly approaching as the sun dipped below the horizon. There was probably no more than a few hours until midnight.
"As I thought," Vasyl said, startling her from her thoughts, "the gate has opened." She looked ahead and up at the gate. Easily as large as a daimyo's castle might have, made of what appeared to be thick metal. It made sense, if the intent was to keep beasts out, that all barriers be made of thick metal.
"Well, c'mon then," Kagura said, stepping past him as he stared at the open gate with a furrowed brow. He sighed before following after her. Kagura was too busy looking around in wonder to notice, however. Directly ahead were man-made mountains of stone that masqueraded as buildings, the gleam of brass and the reflection of windows giving the otherwise grey creations a charm that was not lost on her. Most stood tall and rectangular, but it did little to retract from the beauty; some stood smaller, some a bit wider, and a few in particular reached so high she struggled to comprehend it, even now. They were bunched together so tightly it seemed as if they were all connected, the sheer number of them rivaling the densest of forests.
The varying heights reminded her of a true mountain range, the dips and rises almost like an art. The roofs of some buildings were sharp like spikes; pointed tips that seemed more akin to a defense against some great beast than a natural cover against the elements. Perhaps they were? Others, however, had tops far more normal in appearance; some were rounded in a circle, some were more of the traditional style even she could recognize, two diagonal sides that would direct water off the top. Some seemed to be unable to make their mind up, the styles overlapping in certain parts; one corner of a building may have a spiked top for a roof, only for the rest of the sides to angle down in a traditional manner. She could see a large stone archway far in the distance, attached to a watch tower of some sort.
But the most eye-catching was certainly the largest of all the buildings in this city; a stone tower that stood as the highest peak of the man-made mountains. A strange, metal circle stood out prominently near its top, built into the stone and shining in the dim sun. It was designed so strangely she couldn't truly make sense of its purpose, but it was certainly captivating.
Kagura's eyes drooped just a hair and her lips pulled themselves up in a smile, however brief. "It's beautiful," Kagura said, or perhaps she thought; frankly, she was too enamored by the sight in front of her to care if she'd spoken or not. Why could her home not be this incredible!? Why must she wander on dirt roads, when these damn stone ones existed?
"...I suppose it is, in a way." Vasyl paused in his speech, and Kagura tore her eyes away for only a moment to stare at him. He met her gaze. "To me, such a sight, I can't help but wonder… is this truly how man is meant to live? Enamored in their own glory, living in clock-towers so high they can't see the beauty of the flowers below or the elegance in the rippling rush of a blue river?
His eyes shifted back to the wonder in front of them. "No. Such a place, I don't believe it is meant for me."
Kagura shook her head, barely believing what she'd just heard. He… he didn't consider this incredible? "Rivers, dirt roads, wildlife…it's all so much less than this," she said. Rivers, flowers, they just existed. This was something more than simple existence. This was an art, a man-made creation which rivaled the best nature could ever muster. Vasyl hummed, but kept whatever thoughts he had to himself.
She continued walking forward, looking around in wonder. Vasyl trailed behind her just a hair.
Kagura heard something other than the vague caws of crows to her left, and a quick glance caused her to dash backwards. It was another one of those large, masked guards, the first people she'd seen Vasyl fight upon arriving in Yharnam. He had one of those spikes in his hand, but the other held a strange metal container, one that almost resembled a teapot in a way save for some attachment it had at its top, which was more akin to a gun.
That was why, when he pulled the trigger, she leapt to the side and threw herself on the ground. She felt the effect instantly, but it wasn't metal rippling through her body in the form of bullets. No, instead, it was an intense heat. Fire had shot out the nozzle of the strange device, and it was rapidly approaching the sort of range it needed to cook her alive.
As she was scrambling back to her feet, Vasyl brought his pistol up and fired; it hit whoever was on the other side of the flamesprayer, as they rippled out of existence for just a second. Only a second, however, before the stream of fire continued again, and Kagura found herself next to Vasyl and being hoarded backwards. A quick glance behind showed, unfortunately, that they had nowhere to go.
"Shit! He's trying to trap us," she said, and Vasyl's eyes narrowed.
"Quite." Vasyl said, trying to sound calm and cool or some stupid shit.
Kagura was over it. "Enough with your damn lax attitude! We ought to be doing something so we don't get burnt alive!" If he was content to just say stupid shit, then fine, but she was going to do something. Priming the stake driver, she lined up her arm and the weapon attached to her arm in a manner similar to a gun.
She'd been practicing it some back in that graveyard, but she was pretty sure she could use the stake driver as a sort of medium, but not one with nearly as much control as her fan. The blow against the giant had proven her correct. Still, it at least gave her a means to attack from range. Vasyl had begun reloading his pistol at a rapid pace as she finished taking aim.
Pulling the lever she held it for several seconds beyond what she'd done while practicing; she could hear a straining sound, and when she heard the metal screech, she released the lever; the stake primed inside the device on her arm shot out with insane force. She willed the wind around its tip to form, and it shot forward in the same shape as her stake.
Vasyl had his own pistol at eye level and had just finished reloading as her bladed wind met the fire, penetrating past the first layer of flames towards the bastard before the fire seemed to be pushed backwards, following the wind stake she'd just shot into it, and grew in size. The flames died off a moment later, revealing the guard clutching at his face in pain; she could see where his mask had melted.
He lowered his hand for a moment, glaring at the two of them. The guard went to raise his flamesprayer again, but Vasyl pulled the trigger on his pistol and fired. The guard went up in flames, Vasyl's shot having hit the flamesprayer itself causing a miniature explosion of fire to consume its wielder.
Kagura dropped back on her bottom, wiping at her forehead and removing a bit of sweat with a swat of her hand off to the side. Vasyl stared at the burning body of the guard without much pity or care. "I had a plan in mind, you know," he began, but Kagura cut him off.
"Then maybe tell me!?" She demanded, not moving from her spot on the ground as she glared at his stupid, masked face, "You insufferable idiot, for all I knew you were as stumped as I was!" He crossed his arms, looking off to the side. She did the same; where did this human get off, acting like she was wrong?
"You're right, I ought to be more communicative." he conceded, to her surprise. "I simply thought you had more trust in me, but our partnership is rather recent. These things can't be rushed." Kagura didn't say anything for a few moments, and neither did Vasyl. As the flames of the guard died out, Vasyl dusted himself off and Kagura finally returned to her feet.
He didn't say anything to her as he began walking, taking a quick glance at another large gate that seemed to be locked and blocking their direct path to the Grand Cathedral. His path instead took them down a side alley, where another one of those guards was. This one didn't have a flamesprayer, however, and Vasyl dispatched him with particularly brutal methods; a full strength kick to an overextended knee had snapped the man's leg in half, and a follow-up, overhead swing of Vasyl's cleaver dug into his skull with a sickening crunch. He was discarded like trash. Vasyl pulled the blade back and sprayed himself with a bit of blood, content to watch as the body slumped on the ground.
He continued forward, and Kagura looked at the body for a few moments before following after him. As they reached the end of the alleyway, Vasyl glanced to and fro before turning left. She took a glance to the right, to see where he'd decided not to go, to see a street with an abnormal level of mist. No wonder he wanted to avoid it.
As they were walking, Vasyl paused, turning to a window that was lit up on his right. Mustering himself up to stand a little straighter, he approached, tapping on the window softly three times. "What? Who's 'ere?" A distinct, male voice called out.
Vasyl's eyes almost seemed to light up, and that confused her a bit.
"My name is Vasyl; I'm-"
"Oh. You're not from around here, are 'ya?" The voice interrupted, and Vasyl stiffened. His hand tightened around the handle of his saw cleaver. "Yeah, that's right; I can smell your kind from a mile away. A no-good, boot-licking outsider, one who's come to join the hunt? What a pathetic idea."
"Shut your damn mouth," Kagura piped up, far too annoyed at seeing Vasyl being made to lose that shine in his eyes due to some human fool.
"Oh, what's this? A wench, too? Another dirty outsider. I bet you two keep each other warm at night; Gods know no one else would wanna. Disgusting." Kagura stepped towards the window, but Vasyl held up a hand to stop her.
"Leave it, Kagura. This attitude is rather common-place."
"Damn right it is," the insufferable voice continued. "Maybe you'll take the damn hint and leave my city."
Vasyl began maneuvering off, continuing down this alley way. Kagura approached the window, and with no small amount of glee, slammed her stake driver between the metal bars and shattered a small portion of the window. "Watch what the hell you say, human, or I'll string you up for the beasts to have."
"G-Get away from my castle!" He stuttered, though not quite as scared as she expected him to be, "Crazy beast- crazy wench!"
Giggling lightly to herself at his poorly concealed fear, Kagura moved off after Vasyl. He'd already stopped at another place, in front of a door, this one also marked by a lantern and burning incense.
"...A queer scent," a female voice spoke through the door, "but I'll take it over the stench of blood and beasts any day." Vasyl was still rather stiff as the woman continued speaking. "That said, I'm off during hunts, darling. So if that's what you're here for, do come back in the morning."
Vasyl chuckled. "Actually, I'm a hunter-"
"Oh, thanks goodness! Might you know of any safe place?" She paused, and Vasyl loosened up a bit. "Not to be a bother, but I've very little incense left, and the night is insufferably long. A bit of company might help make it bearable, hmm? There must be some nice place to run off to…"
"Of course. Oedon Chapel has more than enough incense, and is already housing a woman of the church I found while out on the hunt. There is a kind man who tends to the chapel there, as well."
"Thank you, darling. I've some things to pack up, but... maybe I'll see you there?' She said with a giggle.
"Perhaps you will," Vasyl said. Kagura resisted the urge to sigh at the antics of a human whore, but whatever, her being happy to see Vasyl seemed to have done something to cheer him up. He turned away from the door with a bit more light in his eyes.
"Enjoy speaking with the whore?" Kagura said, and Vasyl rolled his eyes.
"It was nothing of that sort, Kagura. I am simply glad to be able to help another on this night."
As they passed by the man's window once more, he dared to speak. "Bunch of two-bit nonsense you outsiders are peddling, and that damn wench is all the more the fool for believin' it. Go ahead, then. Spill the same lies you were selling her. See if I buy it."
Vasyl sighed, turning to face the window. She saw his gaze linger on the freshly made hole in the window. His eyes drifted to her. She rose a brow. He turned back to the window. "If you want safety, go to Iosefka's clinic. She's offering respite to those in danger on this night."
The man burst out laughing. "Iosefka? That delusional little doctor girl? She's as clean a freak as they come during the nights of the hunt; she wouldn't let a damn baby into her shop, much less a whore and some dirty outsider like you."
"Believe what you will," Vasyl said, deciding to spend no more of his time on this bothersome human.
"Bah. I will, you rotten outsider, spreading lies. Iosefka, letting people in her clinic? What a laugh."
Marching away, Kagura followed alongside him, seeing his eyes gazing down the alleyway filled with mist. Buildings hugged each side of the alleyway, tightly packed and she imagined from above it would look like a cliff pass. Kagura decided that moving through the mist was a poor idea, so instead she began to gesture with her left hand, going to use her wind to clear it-
Vasyl grasped her wrist, stopping her before she could. "Leave it. It'll work in our favor." She jerked her hand out of his grip, glaring into the mist before resigning herself to his decision. Fine. If he wanted to bumble around, she'd just stay back and let him take the risk. Vasyl kept his saw cleaver ready as he stepped into the mist, and his steps didn't make a sound.
She followed behind at a more sedated pace, and as they moved into the mist and it got harder to see, Vasyl stopped and glanced to his right. He promptly took a step forward and swung his weapon to the right; a gush of blood mixed with the white mist and stained what little of the ground they could see. There was a soft squelching sound as something hit the ground; it was the dismembered head of a villager, his face covered in black hair reminiscent of beasts.
Vasyl flicked some blood off his saw cleaver before continuing to move into the mist. He took a sharp turn to the right, and Kagura saw him putting his ear up to a door. He didn't hear anything from there, but his eyes suddenly shot behind her; he raised his pistol and fired. Kagura turned to see a staggered beast-man, his form more like a wolf on hind legs than a human who was infected. Fur covered all of him, though he did seem to still have a jacket on, ripped though it was.
The beast roared, and her eardrums nearly burst at the intensity of the sound.
The bullet had staggered the crazed creature, and Kagura wasn't going to wait for it to recover. She slashed with her extended stake driver, cutting it across the stomach before swinging her arm back and across its chest. It staggered more, but looked down at her with an aggravated growl before swinging a strange saw at her.
She dashed back to avoid it. The blow cracked the stone beneath, and Kagura primed the stake by pulling the lever near her arm; it retracted to its pressurized form. She moved forward while it was moving back from its hunched over position. She slammed her stake driver into its chest and pulled the lever once more, releasing the pressurized blade. The blade easily penetrated through the hard bone of its sternum and pierced the heart inside.
With a sneer, she retracted her blade, pushing the beast off with her foot as it slumped on the street. Vasyl moved beside her, looking at her kill and giving a sharp nod before his neck craned to check their surroundings. He seemed to be focusing somewhere in particular, and she realized it was a dim light. Vasyl started walking towards it, only to pause and swing his blade to the right in an almost casual motion. It caught a crazed villager in the chest, cutting him open easily.
He didn't stop to watch the body fall, instead he kept moving forward towards the light. It revealed itself to be a simple lantern when they got near enough; Vasyl approached the door quickly, knocking on it three times and no more.
"Heh, praise you! Praise the church- the whole damn church!" It was a deep male voice, his words tinged with insanity- "Best of luck huntin', best luck of all!" Vasyl hesitated, ready to speak, but shook his head and turned away.
"The degradation of sanity in this city," he murmured, staring at the ground below, "it seems to affect everyone."
"Not everyone," she said, not exactly comfortable with this mopey Vasyl. " The two from before seemed to be fine- even if one was a whore and the other an idiot."
He nodded, conceding her point. "True enough, I suppose. A-And we certainly have our sanity together. Eileen and Alfred, as well." Shaking his head, he stopped staring at the ground and gave her a nod. He began to reload his pistol, the process taking a moment. When he was done, he spoke.
"We should continue on."
The two moved through the mist once more. They began to hear the words of a mad-woman from a building to their left. "Ohh, we've the deepest gratitude. For the church, and all they do for us. The deepest, widest gratitude, yes... Heh heh, yes…"
Vasyl stumbled to the side, one hand coming up to clutch his shoulder as the unmistakable boom of a gun went off. He'd been shot, it seemed. Kagura narrowed her eyes and gestured with her left arm; a gust of wind swooped down from above and rode the stone road forward, pushing away all the mist that clouded the street.
It revealed a villager who was reloading his rifle. Vasyl rushed forward to cut him down, closing the distance in record speed and slashing across the man's neck as he tried to use his rifle to block the strike. "Away, away!" the man yelled in his insanity, only to be silenced forever more as blood gushed from his throat.
Kagura walked forward, only to see the gleam of another rifle on a balcony forward and ahead. She grabbed Vasyl by the wrist and pulled him back; a bullet bounced off the stone behind where he'd been standing. Deciding to take care of the rifleman, Kagura primed her stake and brought it up to eye level, taking aim and releasing the mechanism. A blade of wind shot through the air, slamming into the bastard's throat and, while not completely slicing his head off, cut halfway through his neck.
"Impressive work," Vasyl complimented. Kagura was about to respond before she heard a mad man yell.
"Beasts!" A glance above showed a villager holding a torch on the balcony, who yelled something incomprehensible behind him. She could see the light his torch provided show silhouettes on the buildings behind; there were a handful of villagers, as well as one of those hind-standing, large beast-men, his transformation nearly complete.
The light disappeared, and Vasyl took a moment to adjust his saw cleaver to its more compact form. Kagura approached his side as the hoard of crazed residents entered the long alleyway. She compressed her stake with a pull of the appropriate lever.
"Lets dance, hmm?" She asked, giving him a side-glance. He returned it, and she saw one of his brows raise.
He chuckled, reaching out with a hand in a faux-offer. "If you'll have me, Kagura." She took his hand, and he gave her a light twirl before charging forward into the fray, her hand still held in his. As they came within striking distance of the hoard, made up of six villagers and one beast-man, he released her hand and dashed across in front of her, striking out with his saw cleaver and caving in the chest of one pitchfork wielding villager.
She moved behind and across him, slipping around the sloppy overhead chop of an axe with only the slight turn of her shoulder. She twisted her waist and brought her stake driver into the side of the villager, releasing the stake and turning his insides to mush. She pulled her blade out, spraying blood against her leathers, as another villager began thrusting a pitchfork at her.
Dashing backwards, she sliced with her blade twice and willed the air to respond in the same motion; two blades of wind shot out diagonally, cutting into the chest of the villager and causing him to drop his weapon. It didn't seem to kill him, but she blamed her familiarity with her new medium.
Rushing forward, she cut his throat as he was holding onto his new wounds in an attempt to lessen his pain; blood splattered across her lower chin and cheek. She ignored it, glancing to her left to see how Vasyl was fairing.
Three dead villagers surrounded him; the one he'd caved the chest in, one that's guts and intestines were spilling out onto the ground, and a third whose head seemed to have been crushed into mush. Judging by his position on the ground, she assumed Vasyl had stomped on it.
He was fighting the larger beast-man; a villager was assisting it, but it was clear his focus was on the beast. Kagura ran forward, slashing open the side of the distracted villager. He screamed in pain and gave a poor swipe of his axe at her; she dashed backward to avoid it, and was about to move forward before something slammed into her side and sent her sprawling on the streets.
"Kagura!" Vasyl screamed, and she heard him roar in anger. Her eyes looked at her side where she saw a traditional saw blade, meant more for cutting wood than fighting, was stuck halfway into her side. That was what the beast-man had been wielding, hadn't it? Kagura glanced back at Vasyl, watching him dash around the mad claws of the beast; he ducked below one, spinning and transforming his blade in the same motion. In the motion that it transformed, it cut into the side of the lone villager left, and a spray of blood accompanied the motion Vasyl pulled his blade loose.
The beast had turned around and was rushing at him again. Vasyl moved to swing his blade, but found that the villager he'd thought dead was hanging onto the handle of the blade with his dying breaths.
"Damnation," Vasyl called out, letting go of his blade and unholstering his pistol as quickly as Kagura had ever seen, bringing it forward and firing. It hit the beast in the face as it was trying to strike, causing it to stumble and fall off to the side. It was wide open; Vasyl pounced, crossing the distance in a moment.
Similar to the beast he was fighting, his hand went for the beast's neck. No, that wasn't right- his hand plunged itself inside its throat with strength unheard of, and then his hand squeezed. The sickening crack of bone that followed indicated that Vasyl's strength was inhuman. The beast ceased its struggling, but that didn't stop Vasyl from choking it for a few moments longer before slamming it back onto the ground. His other hand came forward in a fist and slammed into its skull, caving in its face slightly.
He was panting, but seemed to come to his senses as he scrambled away from the corpse and to her. She was breathing pretty heavy, but she should be fine. She had healing properties thanks to being created by Naraku. She pulled loose the blade stuck in her side, discarding it with a scowl.
This… this really hurt. She stared at her waist, waiting for the wound to begin closing. Her regenerative factor was nothing to be made light of.
"...-Ra? Kagura, answer me!" She blinked, looking away from the blade and at him.
"W-What?" she muttered. Why was he getting blurry? "D-Don't worry. I'll be fine," she said, with more faith than she actually had. She could usually feel her regenerative factors kicking in, but… nothing. Why? How was that even possible? A wound like this should hurt, yes, but she should be able to feel it fixing itself.
"Damn it! I didn't want to do this, but needs must." Vasyl muttered, reaching into his coat and removing a vial of blood. It was… different from the vial of blood he'd poured over her wound so long ago. She wasn't sure how so, but it just seemed a lighter shade of red than it ought to be. She also thought she could see some bubbles within it, but she must have been imagining things.
He unplugged the top of the vial and moved it to her throat, making her drink it quickly. It tasted… strange. Almost… good? Kagura blinked a few times in a struggle to focus, but it failed. Vasyl's face was blurring, and she… she saw something. His head lost its features, his eyes and noise and everything melting like wax, his face becoming a blank slate of pale skin like a canvas. On it, something had been drawn. She saw a single line, running vertical; two more lines came off about halfway down the bottom, shooting off diagonally to the left and right, before cutting back inside diagonally, almost like arms and someone clutching their head. There was a dot at the bottom, too, like a head.
'Her heart was beating out of her chest. She needed to run, to flee! That was what all her instincts were screaming, so she looked for a place to run. It only served to confuse her more; she was under water. She tried to breathe but couldn't. She raised her hands, wrapping them around her own throat in a desperate attempt to fix the problem, but nothing she did helped.
As she was struggling, something wrapped around her waist, a slimy feeling that made her want to squirm, yet all she could do was freeze in its grasp. Her eyes dared to trail down, wondering how she could even feel it through her clothes. Except she had no clothes; she was completely naked, and the hand wrapped around the entirety of her waist was as white as the moon. Its hand was huge, a smooth, hairless and slimy imitation of man that no one should ever look at in marvel, yet she couldn't help but stare in amazement. She had no doubt it could crush her if it wanted.
She followed the limb the hand was attached to, trying to figure out what had grabbed her. All she could see were fin-like appendages, and a wide bottom base like a stingray. There were… claws coming off from its side? No, spikes, She was being lifted up, now.
A black sprite floated in front of her, an inky silhouette of a body without arms, colored so darkly that she felt she could almost see stars within its outline. Its head was looking down, and she saw a boney face that resembled a man's. Its head slowly raised, and she couldn't stop from staring. She looked into its empty sockets, only to see an orange glow, dimmer than the sun but still so bright.
She felt something wet moving down her cheek, but didn't dare look away from the light. She couldn't. The symbol from earlier slowly appeared on the orange glow that rested inside the black sprite's empty sockets like eyes on the inside, and Kagura screamed in anguish, sorrow, but mostly fear. She felt like no more than prey when she saw that symbol. The symbol began to grow wider- no, it was getting closer! Kagura screamed as it seemed to rush at her with speed unheard of-
Kagura gasped, hunching forward. A hand cradled her shoulders, steadied her. She looked behind her, expecting to see that… that glow, but only saw the concerned face of Vasyl. He had lowered his mask. She glanced around, seeing that they were in that alley from earlier. It was completely dark now, however, unlike earlier that was only the onset of the night. Based on her position, she assumed she'd been resting her head in his lap.
She lowered herself back down, too disoriented to care that she was resting in his lap. "W-What happened?" She asked. Vasyl rubbed a finger across her forehead, a motion that might have irritated her if she wasn't so tired.
"I gave you some of my blood. I-It was the only way to help you, I promise," he defended himself, his voice picking up its pace as he spoke, "You must believe me. It- my blood has to be safer than the blood the others Yharnamites use. It's different. I know it to be so!"
"Geez, calm down. Don't get so worked up," she said before reaching down with her hand, grasping where her side should have been cut open. She could feel the tear in the leather. It certainly had helped, but it hadn't stopped the blow in its entirety. Still, dipping a finger inside the cut, she could feel her bare skin that had in fact healed itself. She could feel a small scar there, though. It wasn't as effective as her natural healing affect, then. Yet her healing affect didn't work here, did it?
Raising a hand to rest against her forehead, she sighed. "This place doesn't make any damn sense…"
Vasyl chuckled. "You're right on that, Kagura."
She looked up, into those grey eyes of his. A smile worked across her face for some reason. Just another thing to be confused about. Sighing again, though this one wasn't in annoyance, she spoke. "How long have I been out?"
He hummed in thought. "It's truthfully hard to say, but likely an hour or so if I were to hazard a guess." Her brows rose at that.
"Well, thanks for keeping me safe." Vasyl grinned at her words.
"It was my pleasure."
They stayed like that for a few moments longer. Kagura stayed staring up at the clouded sky, her mind drifting back to whatever the hell it was she had been dreaming about. It was hard to remember, too… she just remembered this strange symbol, and an intense feeling of fear. There was more, but trying to think about it just made the back of her head ache in pain.
"Guess we ought to get moving," she mumbled, which Vasyl gave a slow nod to.
"Yes. Suppose we must."
Vasyl assisted Kagura to her feet, keeping a steady eye on her as she stood on her own. There was dried blood on her face, but he didn't think it was much worth mentioning. He was too grateful to see her relatively well; when that saw blade had been dug into her side… he shook his head. It was best not to reflect on the past, much less his feelings in that moment.
Yes. That was it.
Kagura stretched, reaching her hands far above her head. She heard a small pop in her shoulder, which she acknowledged with a sigh of relief before lowering her arms, leaning forward and grabbing the stake driver from off the ground. She had taken to the weapon, it seemed, but… well, frankly, she was still an amateur. Her attacks were sloppy; most thrusts she overextended on, which was an inherent factor of thrust attacks, but the degree to which she overextended was concerning.
Any well-trained hunter would make quick work of her. But that was why he was here. He would not be made quick work of, not now, not ever, as long as his continued survival was necessary for her safety. She would pick up more tricks and tips, and he would find time for a training session eventually. Kagura would make a fine hunter. She was a fine hunter, and the control she held over wind made her future all the more bright.
They needed to continue forward to the Grand Cathedral, Vasyl mused. What would they encounter there? He hoped it was someone who could provide answers, but his instincts told him it wouldn't be that easy.
"Alright, let's get a move on. We've wasted enough time here thanks to me," Kagura said, and he held his tongue in regards to her last comment. She was right, after all, much as he didn't blame her for it. While he would have waited as long as Kagura needed to recover, the sooner they got to moving forward, the better. Moving to her side, the two followed the path that those villagers had come down, a stairway that led to the upper balcony. He recalled Kagura taking down a villager with a rifle on it during their fight.
A moment later and it was confirmed; they both stared at the dead corpse, his head only halfway hanging onto its neck like a broken tree branch. Vasyl gave Kagura a look, raising a brow. She only smirked before walking forward. He stared for a few moments. It had been a brutal kill, becoming of a hunter.
Kagura was a mystery. One he very much wanted to solve.
There was only really one way to go, Vasyl realized, as he followed Kagura for once. They entered a tower, a single ladder up against a wall. There were a few boxes around, housing what a sniff told him was blood cocktails. The people of Yharnam, as he had learned, often preferred blood cocktails to normal alcohol. A strange addiction.
Vasyl allowed Kagura to climb the ladder first, following up after her after a moment. It was a rather tall tower, admittedly, so it did take a bit of time to climb to the top. By the time he reached the top, he had to look around for Kagura. There was a small walkway towards the center of the tower, which was a more open area which had a small roof over it, held up by four pillars spaced apart. He found her, however, off to the left on an overlooking balcony.
She was standing by the railing, clutching it with her free hand. The bangs of her hair were blowing in the wind, the black strands darker than the moon-lit sky above. He really wished she would release those locks of her from their ponytail, but he wouldn't deny that such a thing had too many disadvantages. He approached slowly, careful not to disturb her, and instead settled beside her. He watched as her crimson eyes danced, going to and fro, gazing at sights he considered ordinary these days with what was only akin to child-like wonder.
They were overlooking where they'd come from; he could see the gate that had opened on the far side of the village square below. As for the square itself, he could see multiple of those church giants. They weren't patrolling, however. It seemed they'd fallen asleep as the moon finally reached the stars.
Perhaps that was for the best. Vasyl, for once, did find himself staring with Kagura at the city of Yharnam. It was hard to see beauty in this testament to humanity, yet he tried. There was something to be said about what had been achieved here. A city such as this was an ingenuity only the most marvelous of minds could ever hope to dream of, and yet here it was, a reality.
"...Why did you come here?" She asked, not tearing her gaze from the city. He hummed.
"It's rather hard to remember, but I suppose for the same reason any outsider would. Blood healing, said to be able to heal any sickness." Kagura nodded slowly, releasing the railing and standing straighter, closing her eyes. He felt the wind pick up around them.
"I can actually feel the wind up here," she said, relief palpable in her voice. Ah, that was true. The streets of Yharnam were often like the walls of a maze, only much taller. A breeze might come through here or there, but by and large, the wind was a rare feeling.
"It is pleasant," he said.
Kagura opened her eyes, finally, turning to look at him. "So, where do we go from here?"
Shifting his sights to his left, Vasyl allowed his eyes to follow the wide stairs below, the stairs that led to the Grand Cathedral. Where, perhaps, he might figure out what was going on in this city. Find out something about Paleblood, about beasts and this damn city.
"Up those stairs should be the Grand Cathedral, home of the healing church according to those I've talked to. We will fight our way there, as I'm sure we must, to get the answers as to what is going on in this city."
"Sounds good to me," she said, her lax attitude never failing to make him smile. Ah, if only he could be so carefree. Approaching a ledge, he glanced down, seeing the rooftops below. It would be a bit of a fall, but he was sure his legs would be fine.
Kagura pushed past him, stepping off the ledge and gesturing with her left hand; wind slowed her descent, landing softly on the rooftop tiles. Vasyl blinked, nearly smacking himself in the face at the fact he'd almost forgotten about Kagura's abilities after gushing over them minutes earlier. She gestured for him to jump, smart enough to not shout it at him.
Nodding, he stepped off the ledge, feeling the wind wrap around him like a river stream, pulling him down slowly. It…. well, it wasn't unpleasant. It was actually quite peaceful. He touched down on the roof just as softly as he was, giving her a smile beneath his mask and a thankful nod.
She shuffled closer to them, pointing a finger below. He could see two church guards marching together, their stakes tapping against the stone almost in sync. Ahead of them was another giant, this one awake; he could only guess it was thanks to the guards.
"Above, to the left," she whispered, and he followed her gaze. There was another church-guard, this one standing on a balcony overlooking them. He held a cane in one hand, and what looked like a repeating pistol in the other. Vasyl narrowed his brows, realizing how bad it would be if they had to fight two church guards, a giant, and have someone taking shots at them all the while.
Kagura, however, seemed to have a plan. She was holding out her left hand, and Vasyl felt his eyes widen when a visible force of wind slammed into the backside of the church guard on the balcony, slamming him off of it. His limbs flailed as he fell towards the ground, and his neck impacted the ground with a sickening crunch, heard even from here.
Something growled from below, and Vasyl took a peek over the rooftop edge to see a dog, its fur removed and skin bare and broken, moving over to the church guard who was now most definitely dead. It didn't take more than a few moments for the animal to start biting into him, tearing through the leather coat and eating at his flesh.
Gesturing Kagura with him, he leaned over the edge of the roof, giving one final glance around to see if anyone had heard or noticed this church guard missing. It seemed not, or they were perhaps too insane to truly care.
Tiptoeing to the edge, he allowed himself to fall forward off the roof, and readied his saw cleaver. He landed directly overtop the dog, his cleaver cutting directly through its neck and decapitating it; he used the body of the guard to soften his fall, and it was virtually noiseless. Kagura lowered herself down as well, using her wind.
The cover of night had arrived, and the time had come for hunters to hunt. Nodding to his partner, he moved forward over stone, keeping his steps soft. He saw the two church guards from earlier coming down the stairwell, seemingly oblivious and separated from the giant. Leaning back to Kagura, he whispered softly. "I will get the one on the right, you silence the other." She nodded, accepting her task.
It was only a dozen or so seconds for the guards to finish their descent down the stairs, turning to the left. One of them held a lantern, an eerie blue glow residing within it. It didn't matter. As they reached the bottom step and turned to the left, Vasyl stalked forward, Kagura by his side. He saw his shadow appear in the lantern's light, casting itself in front of the guards. With no other option, he immediately struck, extending his saw blade in a quick slash that caught the guard in the crook of his shoulder and neck. It ended his life a moment later.
Kagura had moved forward too, stabbing her blade into the back of the guard's neck, the steel peeking through his throat. They both crumpled to the ground, dead before they really even knew any better. Vasyl removed his blade, flicking a bit of blood off. Kagura retracted her stake, and the two left the bodies where they were, moving across the stairwell into another walkway.
Vasyl wasn't bold enough to move directly up the stairs when the giant was still patrolling. It would be a foolish move; if they made a mistake, they could find themselves stuck. Instead they found themselves in what looked like another residential area, and his eyes scanned for an alternative route. He found it quickly enough, a stairwell that seemed to lead up alongside the main one they were avoiding.
Keeping moving, the pair continued up the stairwell, only to pause as a church guard, this one wearing a scythe, entered the vision. There was nowhere to hide; they'd been halfway up it when he turned the corner.
The man growled, and gestured vaguely with his scythe. It began to glow blue, and Vasyl needed no more indication than that to attack. He drew his pistol and fired, causing the man to stagger, before rushing forward. Kagura shot a wind-stake over his shoulder, which impacted the man in the chest.
Given his staggered state, two quick slashes with his saw cleaver ended his life. Vasyl, however, was too focused on something to care. This was the first of the church guards that he'd seen that didn't have a mask. And his face… it wasn't human. Oh, sure, some might be able to convince themselves that it was. It did, after all, have all the features a normal human might have. Two eyes, ears, a nose and a mouth. It's head was even shaped like any normal person.
Yet… his skin was white. Pure white. Beyond that, his eyes were sunken and his pupils were black. His face seemed boney, malnourished. He couldn't' see much of the rest of his body, given that he was covered, but he had a suspicion now that beneath those clothes, he was just as malnourished as his face appeared. It was as if he'd lived in a cave his whole life, never seeing even the dimmest of the sun's rays.
Kagura was staring at his face too. "What… what is this thing?" She asked, and he could only narrow his eyes. He couldn't help but notice some similarities between these guards and the giants, now. Even the snatchers they'd encountered looked similar in a way… hmm.
"I can't say I know, but I intend to find out."
This thing was too strange to ignore. He was going to get the answers floating around in his head, by force if necessary.
Stepping around the body, he continued up the stairs. A glance to the left and right revealed them to be on the main stairway now, the one the giant had manueverd up. Yet he didn't see it anywhere.
Vasyl took a right, continuing up the stairs at a sedate pace. He only paused when he spotted the giant, crouching in a corner and… sleeping? Like the ones in the square. Hmm. Interesting. Careful not to make much noise, he moved past it, continuing upwards. He could see it at the top: the Grand Cathedral.
He could also see two more church guards, these ones dressed in black opposed to the normal white and grey apparel, and opposed to standard weapons, they had crucifixes. Vasyl turned to look at Kagura, only to see her eyes fixated on the crucifixes. He reached a hand out, slowly, and grabbed her shoulder. She blinked, turning to look at him.
"We ought to be swift in our attack," he whispered, and she nodded.
Without further ado, he took off, forgoing stealth entirely as he rushed up the stairs. The first guard looked at him and murmured something, hefting his crucifix up as a sort of make-shift bludgeoning device. Vasyl, as he got in range, dashed aside to avoid a swing of the crucifix. He saw Kagura moving past him to deal with the other guard.
The guard swung wildly another two times, each blow avoided with some effort by Vasyl. Eventually, though it was time to strike; he met the swing of the crucifix with his saw cleaver, and found himself skidding back from the sheer force of the blow. Yet he didn't waver, gritting his teeth as he forced the momentum of the crucifix to a dead-stop. Then he pulled his saw cleaver, ripping the crucifix from the guard's hands. It took a moment longer for him to remove his blade from the wood, and only a second after that to disembowel the guard.
A glance showed Kagura had finished her opponent. Out of curiosity, Vasyl moved forward, stomping on the man's mask. It broke apart to show the same white, pale face with the same sunken black eyes as the one before. He looked away, towards the two great doors that led to the Grand Cathedral.
Kagura waited for him to join her side before pushing open the door. And as the two stepped inside, he saw her eyes darting to the left and right, where strange statues sat spaced apart all the way up the stairway in front of them. "It's like the one before, but different," Kagura muttered.
Seeing him staring at her in confusion, she elaborated. "When we awoke in that place, then we saved the useless woman?" He nodded, knowing she was referring to Adella, "there was a statue by the lantern. It looked like a more… complete version of these."
He recalled the statue, now. He'd only given it a passing glance, too preoccupied with lighting the lantern and searching the dead hunter's body. The head had looked quite a bit like this one, a sort of caged rock. Though, looking at this one, it looked like there were… tentacles? Near its neck. No, rather, it seemed to almost flow from the cage that was its head, like cascading hair. Their bodies were malnourished looking, ribs visible. Almost like the giants...
All of them seemed to be holding the same weapon. It looked like a spear, and a closer look showed that it was a harpoon, specifically. The statues sat holding their weapons, each harpoon meeting the harpoon of the statue across from it and crossing, a sort of overhead walkway on this stairwell up to the Grand Cathedral.
Kagura was definitely unnerved by it; frankly, he was as well.
And, as if that wasn't enough, he spotted some lit candles and a piece of paper, placed ever so precisely. He furrowed a brow, beckoning Kagura over. It was, as he suspected, another hand-written note.
"Heir to the ritual of blood, purveyor of ministration. Place your hand on the altar's sacred covering, and inscribe Master Laurence's adage upon your flesh," He read aloud to himself and Kagura.
Purveyor of menstruation, heir to the ritual of blood? Vasyl took a step back, nearly stumbling.. Whoever was writing these notes, they knew about his blood administration, back in Iosfeka's clinic! Were… were all these notes addressed to him specifically? Even the ones on dead hunters? No, that didn't make sense- the ones describing Old Yharnam had clearly been different. And- And the handwriting on these notes never seemed exactly the same.
Taking a deep breath, he shook his head. No, purveyor… that was someone who preached an idea, correct? Then… perhaps this was a message towards potential priests and nuns. It would make sense, if this was the church's most sacred cathedral. Perhaps it wasn't even so… personal. A message to any and all. It certainly made more sense than all these notes being addressed to him specifically.
"Are you fine?" Kagura asked him, and he nodded after a moment of hesitation.
"I was… concerned about the context of this note for a moment. We'll talk more on it later, but for now, let us go. Just up these stairs and we'll have our answers."
Kagura opened her mouth to say more, but closed it instead and began walking beside him. As they moved up the stairs, they each heard the echo of a woman speaking. Vasyl strained his ears to make out the details, thankful for the otherwise complete silence.
"Remain wary of the frailty of men," the voice said. He identified it as a younger woman, now. "Their wills are weak, minds young." They reached the end of the stairs, and Vasyl narrowed his eyes. They were in a massive, open cathedral. Multiple windows off to their right allowed the moon to shine into this place. And he could see precisely one person, a woman in white, on her knees in front of some sort of altar, multiple statues atop it.
"Were it not for fear, death would go unlamented. Seek the old blood. Let us pray, let us wish... to partake in communion. Let us partake in communion... and feast upon the old blood." Vasyl and Kagura crept forward towards the woman, who it seemed was absorbed in prayer.
"Our thirst for blood satiates us, soothes our fears. Seek the old blood." She continued, unaware of their presence.
"But beware the frailty of men. Their wills are weak, minds young. The foul beasts will dangle nectar and lure the meek into the depths. Remain wary of the frailty of men..." She seemed to lean forward even further, clutching her hands together in prayer.
And then, she began to cry. Her shoulders shook, her breath hitched, and she kept repeating that last part over and over. "Remain wary of the frailty of men." Her voice cracked, then began to get raspier and raspier with every utterance of that phrase, and just as Vasyl was about to speak up, she leaned back and choked.
The startled noise slowly transformed into a growl, and Vasyl watched in numb fascination as she fell forward onto her hands and knees. Her spine began to expand; her whole body, really. She was growing rapidly, and he watched as skin turned to white fur and fingers into darkened claws. Clothes tore apart but clung to her nonetheless, like bandages. Her cries had changed into deranged growls and roars of anguish.
A huge surge of blood shot forward and out of her back as her spine's expansion cut through the thin layer of human skin left, painting the statue in front of her red. There were a few more moments of transformation, until finally, it stopped. The woman-turned beast breathed deeply, then sniffed. It slowly turned around. Vasyl saw a snout and yellow fangs where a woman's face might have been just moments earlier. He idly noticed that the beast was clutching something to its chest.
A blindfold was over her eyes, yet he couldn't help but feel as bare as a newborn before this horrific white wolf. She was massive, easily as large as the cleric beast, easily dwarfing the giant they'd fought on their way here.
"Well, shit," Kagura muttered.
"Quite."
And Chapter 4, complete. Thanks for everyone who's following, reading, regardless of if you review or not. I know the odds of this becoming as popular as Fortune's Disfavored did is low, as its a lot more niche and... well, a weird crossover, but every follow and review helps motivate me. Quality over quantity, eh? In other news, I'll be turning 21 here shortly, so that's nice. Once more, thanks for reading, leave a review if you like, but know I appreciate 'ya regardless.