A/N: I finally got to post something for this story. Yay! Sorry about the lateness guys and thanks for the favourites and alerts. It's a little different from my usually style (I wrote in the present tense instead of the past tense), so I hope you like it.
Friend or Foe?
Except for the rain, not a sound can be heard.
Drip. Drop. Drip. Drop.
Serenity.
Tranquility.
Placidity.
And then, footsteps.
Filled with distress, they run as fast as their legs can take them, running away from a creature that is neither man nor animal. It's hopeless, but they're left with no other choice. It's either run or die.
Fatigue quickly catches up to them, but they can't afford to stop. Instead, they hope for a miracle and pray to a god they don't believe in. To their dismay, their prayers go unanswered and they fall to the ground, scrapping their skin against the asphalt, attracting more of those monsters.
Battered and bruised, the older sibling concentrates more on getting her little sister to safety because she means the world to her. Without her bright smiles and motherly charm, the world as she knows it is a living hell. But no matter what she does, the little one doesn't move because she's so scared that all she manages to do is fixate her gaze upon their blood as it mingles with the dirt and the rain.
By the time she snaps out of it, it's already too late. Three shadowed figures can be seen not too far from where they stand. With death right around the corner, it's useless to do anything now. And so they give in, closing their eyes as they accept their fate, waiting for the creatures to devour them like the piece of meat they are perceived to be.
Blood splatters everywhere as sharp claws penetrate their flesh. Their bodies lay limp on the ground, painting the pavement before it's washed away by the heavy rainfall.
"Everything will be alright," a kind voice reassures them.
To this the sisters snap their eyes open and see two new shadowed individuals fighting off what is left of the creatures. One dons metal claws, while the other, throwing knives.
"W-who are you people?" the elder one asks in a trembling voice. Although she knows they're here to save them, she can't trust them just yet. For all she knows, their saviours might turn out to be far worst then those creatures.
"Don't worry about who we are, sweetie," the same voice replies. "Just know that we're only here to help."
More knives are thrown before the other decides to speak. "Yuzu, get them out of here," she orders. "I'll take care of the leftovers."
"But Karin-chan, they're Fakes Bloods. Even if they were once human, they have been experimented on and are thus dangerous. I can't let you handle them alone." Yuzu knows how careless her sister can be, especially when she's left alone in a fight. It's only out of love that she worries. "It'd be better if I stayed with you. The thought of you getting hurt… I don't think I'd be able to handle that again."
Karin shakes her head. "Right now, your first priority is to get them out of here." She knows how much her sister hates to fight, so she doesn't make her fight anymore than necessary.
"And you?"
"I'll keep them busy. It's the only way to assure your safety as well as theirs."
"But—"
"No buts, Yuzu," Karin quickly interrupts. "You know how I get whenever I fight them. With you here, I can't fight with all my might."
"Alright," she answers after what seems like an eternity. "Just don't get carried away."
"I will," she grins, showing her sharp fangs. "And be vigilant. Deimos are bound to show up when their masters die."
Yuzu nods and quickly leads the frightened children to their headquarters. It's the only sanctuary that'll keep them safe until the threat is gone.
"Now let's get this party started."
She cracks her knuckles and patiently waits for the rest of them to show up. One of them doesn't make her wait and swiftly lunges at her. Being quick on her feet, Karin sidesteps away and throws a few knives behind her attacker. A low thump is heard seconds later followed by the sound of exploding flesh.
"Shiki!" the she-devil yells. "You bitch! You're going to pay for laying your filthy hands on my lover!"
The Fake Blood lunges at her again, this time fuelled with rage. But as much as her strength had increased, her anger restricts her from thinking clearly; and just as quick as the battle had started, the woman finds herself pinned to the wall by daggers.
"I'm looking for an Old Blood with brown hair and black squared glasses. Where can I find him?" Karin demands. "Depending on your answer, I might give you a painless death."
"Bite me," she retorts.
Unsatisfied by her answer, Karin throws a knife at her hand and the beast growls in pain. "That was just a practice shot. Now tell me what you know or suffer the consequences."
"I'd rather die by your hands, mongrel, then die by his. No matter what you come up with, nothing can compare to what he does to traitors."
"Have it your way," she replies without a care and tosses some more daggers. "I guess you won't mind if you lose a hand then."
Karin grabs the dagger embedded in her hand and digs it deeper until the sword literally disappears into her victim's flesh. She then snaps her fingers and watches as the woman's hand begins to boil from the inside-out. Seconds later, the hand explodes right to the joint and the woman shrieks as a river of blood drips to the ground.
"You fucking bitch!" she venomously spits. "I'm going to kill you!" She struggles to get out of her hold, but the knives have dug too deep into her tissue. Whether she likes it or not, she's pinned like a photo on a wall.
"Strong words for a mere servant like yourself." She smiles an almost sadistic smile and licks her lips. "Now unless you want to lose your arm next, I suggest you start talking."
"Go to hell, half-breed!"
Karin frowns at her answer but decides that her victim has had enough. Even if she appears to be a sadist, Karin isn't that type of person. She only acts that way to scare her victim into giving her the information needs. After that, she spares them the pain and immediately kills them.
"Have fun in hell."
Just as she snaps her fingers, instantly killing her victim, a deimos appears out of nowhere and scratches her from behind.
"Damn it," she curses and jumps away, throwing a dagger in the process. It strikes the deimos head on and it disappears.
When one appears, Karin knows that dozens more are bound to show up. So unless she wants to die, she must make her escape before it's too late. To her dismay, however, she doesn't and is suddenly surrounded by an abnormally large group of deimos. She knows that at this point, she can't avoid fighting and thus materializes more knives.
One by one, they vanish as her weapons make contact. But their numbers are so great that no matter how many she kills more take their place.
It's hopeless. She's tired, breathless and to make matters worse, the wound on her back is killing her. Her only hope now is for her brother to show up and mercilessly kill these demons. But she knows that that's not possible because her brother is on a mission of his own. It might take hours before he comes back.
She sighs and prepares to fight them again. Although she's at the point of collapsing, she won't give in to her demise. She'd rather go down fighting.
Before long, she's brought their numbers down to a little over a dozen. But after such a ruthless battle, she's completely drained. Even if she's done her best, she supposes that her best just isn't enough. She has no more hope and finally accepts death; only death doesn't want her.
Without warning, the temperature suddenly drops and her opponents are in-cased in thick spikes of ice. Confused, she looks left and right, trying to find the source of this odd phenomenon, and finds a white-haired boy about her age looking her way. It's weird but she feels as if she's already met him in the past.
"Thanks for getting me out of there. I thought I was going to die."
The boy ignores her thanks and says, "You shouldn't act so friendly with someone who's about to kill you." In an instant, he disappears from her sight and reappears behind her, reaching for an abnormally long sword perched on his back. "This'll be quick."
Before he can even unsheathe his blade, the boy senses danger and grabs Karin bridal-style, jumping out of harm's way. She unintentionally blushes from the proximity and struggles to leave his grasp only this merely prompts him to hold tighter.
"Release my sister!" a man yells from behind them and prepares his weapons for a one-on-one fight. "Unless you want to die, Old Blood."
As soon as his feet touch the ground, he complies with his wishes and unceremoniously drops the girl on the ground. "Are you sure you're looking for a fight? You can't possibly believe that you have a chance against me."
"Not alone, I don't. But I have something that will." He knows he probably blew his secret weapon by telling his enemy about the gadget the Bloody Rose manufactured, but he doesn't care. Whether he tells him or not, it takes perfect timing to use it. Without that, the item would be useless anyway.
He thinks up a quick strategy and in one swift motion throws a few daggers before charging full speed at his opponent. The boy effortlessly dodges his blades and quickly parries his opponent's blows. It's hard for him to understand how a mere Black Blood can have this much strength but then reminds himself of their bloodline. Their blood is said to be one of the strongest bloodlines on earth due to being one of the descendants of Luca, the leader of the Seven Sinful Demons. Even if they are limited, they're still incredibly strong.
"Had enough?" Karin's brother asks.
In spite of not being able to hit his adversary, the Old Blood doesn't look fazed. "You haven't even seen the extent of my powers yet." The temperature begins to drop and ice suddenly surrounds the Kurosaki siblings. "Looks like this is my win."
"Ichi-nii, I don't have any strength left," his sister says weakly. "Just get out of here while you still can."
"No can do, kiddo. Just hang in there." He knows that if he doesn't make a move soon, both he and his sister are done for. He only has one chance left and he has to time this right. He breathes deeply and concentrates on his target, reciting a 'please make it' mantra as he readies his daggers.
The white-haired boy sees through his attack and dodges his blades with ease once again. Nevertheless, he fails to notice a bracelet-like chain heading his way until it's already too late. It wraps around his arm and glows a fierce red. The temperature suddenly reverts back to normal and the ice begins to melt.
"What have you done?" hisses the Old Blood.
"It's a power limiter and is especially made for Old Bloods like you. No matter what you do, it can't be removed unless one of us chooses to remove it. Now prepare to die."
The Old Blood scowls and jumps away. "Do you think it's wise to go after me when your sister is badly hurt?"
He takes a quick glance at his sister and notices that in addition to how pale she is, she's also breathing very heavily. "You win this round, Old Blood, but I'll be back." He bends down, grabs his sister, and walks towards the Bloody Rose Headquarters while the Old Blood heads in the other direction. "C'mon, Karin. Let's get you home."
"But Ichi-nii, you can't let him get away. He could lead us to mom's—"
"There'll always be other fights, Karin. Besides, you're well-being is more important than those bastards."
"Fine…" she answers begrudgingly.
Several minutes later, they're standing in front of an old rundown shop.
"Hang in there, Karin," he says to her and then opens the door. When he sees no one, he hastily calls for assistance. A group of men instantly appear and take her from his hands.
Hours later, she feels much better but refuses to head home right away. She needs some clarification as to why the Old Blood saved her earlier that night. If he wanted to kill her, why didn't he let those deimos do it? Or better yet, why did he grab her when he could have left her there to die by the hands of her own brother? It just made no sense.
She continuously searches the shop until she finds one of her teachers sipping tea with her brother. Even if they're in deep conversation, Karin doesn't care and thus interrupts them.
"Urahara-sensei," she says to a blond man clad in green, "we need to talk."
"About what, Kurosaki-chan?" he asks innocently. "I hope my men were easier on you this time."
"Don't act dumb with me. I'm sure you sensed that demonic energy. Why the hell was I attacked by an Old Blood?" she yells. "I thought you said they weren't going to do anything to me. That they were the good guys."
"I never said they were on our side, Kurosaki-chan," he corrects. "I said they wouldn't bother us for the time being. I guess Gotei Thirteen finally decided to take action."
"Gotei Thirteen? You mean that council made up of the thirteen Old Blood leaders of Seireitei? Why the hell would they be after me?"
"I'm afraid I can't answer that just yet. I have my suspicions but nothing concrete. For now, just stay away from them."
She knows the man is lying but instead opts for a different approach. Getting information from this guy is definitely easier said than done. Let's face it, she'd be better off getting hit by lightning a thousand times before he'd open his mouth.
"Stay away from them?" she questions. "How can I when that very boy who threatened to kill me saved me three times already?"
"Oh?" This is news to him. Since when have the Gotei Thirteen ever saved their targets? If they really wanted to get rid of someone, they would use any means necessary.
"I can sort of understand why he could have saved me from the first attack. If he really wanted to kill me by his own hands, then it explains a lot. But when Ichigo came to save me, he threw blessed daggers at him. If that Old Blood wanted me dead, then he could have just jumped out of the way and let the daggers hit me. But instead, he grabbed me and held on tight until we reached the ground. Then, when Ichigo was going to go after him he made a remark of my health. Yes, it saved him as well, but I'm sure he could have survived long enough until I died even if he had to go against my brother with that limiter on. It just doesn't make sense!"
He briefly looks at Karin then at Ichigo before speaking. "Interesting indeed. This boy you speak of always follows the rules. Why he disobeyed them is strange and I will have to look into it. For the time being, Kurosaki-chan, I implore you to lay low for while. Now that they've found you, you'll be in even more danger."
"I understand," she replies and leaves the shop. "I understand that if you need something done right, you have to do it yourself."
Even though she knows she's being pursued, Karin refuses to stay ignorant until they give her the go. She has better things to do and one of them includes finding the truth herself. And if the hunters aren't willing to help her out, then she would have to seek that Old Blood's help. His freedom for information. Granted, it could get her killed, but Karin knows better. If there's anything a vampire would trade anything for, it would be for power. She knows that she would have him in the palm of her hands.