Chapter 4

Things Change

"The war had all but ground to a halt in the blink of an eye. Lucian, the most feared and ruthless leader ever to rule the Lycan clan, had finally been killed. The Lycan horde scattered to the wind in a single evening of flame and retribution. Victory, it seemed, was in our grasp, the very birthright of the vampires. Nearly six centuries had passed since that night, yet the ancient feud proved unwilling to follow Lucian to the grave. Though Lycans were fewer in number, the war itself had become more perilous, for the moon no longer held her sway. Older, more powerful Lycans were now able to change at will. The weapons had evolved, but our orders remained the same: Hunt them down and kill them off, one by one. A most successful campaign, but perhaps too successful. For those like me, a Death Dealer, this signaled the end of an era. Like the weapons of the previous century, we, too, would become obsolete. Pity, because I lived for it."

2002 A.D.

Fourth Reign of Amelia

1 years from the intended Fifth reign of Marcus

"You have grown into a fine Demon Lord, my son." Naruto slowly looked up from his bow to his mother's ice blue eyes and smiled at her, showing off the fangs that terrified countless souls. It has been two millennia since I sent out the summoning scrolls and since then, you have gifted me with countless damned souls to feast upon… This pleases me greatly." The Night Mistress slowly stood from her throne of shadows and made her way to the kneeling form of Naruto. "Boethiah is quite pleased as well with how… savage you are in disposing those who stand in your way. Sheogorath applauds you for your… madness." She laughed as she crouched down to stroke his soft golden hair.

"When I first found you, you were nothing but a pitiful, human soul! So pure…" Her eyes shined red in the darkness which made the shadows dance to life. "So… innocent…" She stood up from her crouch andreturned to her throne, the shadows at her feet parting for her as she went. "Now, heh, now you are at the cusp of gaining the title of a Daedric Prince! Three of Oblivions masters have given you their favor and only one last obstacle stands in your way."

Naruto listened to his mother's, Nocturnal's, words before a vicious grin stretched across his face.

The vision of Castle Evergloam slowly melted away to reveal his private quarters within Viktor's mansion in Hungary.

Eight hundred years ago, today, he was summoned into the mortal realm by Marcus Corvinus; the first ever vampire to have walked the earth. He was called into service because of the crisis they had faced during the time. Their natural enemies, the werewolves were multiplying and infecting too many people and were quickly taking over the country in one brutal march. Marcus had asked the Demon Lord to help them cull the growing threat. Naruto agreed to the task on the condition they give him a blood offering. Amelia, the second human to be sired by Marcus, stepped up to offer some of her own.

Naruto took as much as he could from the woman without killing her and was infinitely happy to find that her immortality had rubbed off on him, granting free access to the mortal realm. He made quick work of the werewolves, not even breaking a sweat and not even tapping into five percent of his power. After the contract was finished the Demon Lord decided to explore the world for a few years before returning to the Vampire Coven that had summoned him.

From that point on he would come and go as he pleased. Sometimes helping, most of the times watching history unfold before him. He was never at a place for long only coming back to see what interesting things happened so far… or if Amelia was up and running would start a forbidden romance between a vampire and a demon. He probably did things for the latter though…

Everything changed one day when Viktor went into a blind rage after being ousted by Lucian from Castle Corvinus and killed off Selene's family. The innocence the demon saw that died in her electrified his dark soul.

So much like him

Naruto had trained her from that point on, overseeing her growth from the shadows. The Demon Lord wanted her to be like him for some reason. Wanted her to be his, own little demon. The Demon Lord had introduced her to the kind of training he went through in Oblivion, designed to reshape a person down to their core.

The first lesson was to indulge in what was the most forbidden; in this case feeding directly on humans. The covens created this rule since doing so could sire unwanted vampires and attract attention. Besides that, feeding from the source was highly addicting. The Demon Lord told Selene to indulge in this to make her stronger. He wanted her to be able to control her bloodlust so she could reap the benefits that the berserker state would grant her.

The second lesson was the longest to achieve. It was designed to enjoy the thrill of the hunt and the kill that followed. Naruto could remember in how he was thrown into battle when he was just a child. It always started with the purpose of killing to survive. At that point in time, he feared death for he did not understand his own immortality. Nocturnal had thrown him in Europe during the start of the Hundred Years War from the very first day to the last. What was worse about it was both sides saw him as an enemy and the demon couldn't trust anyone, could not show his back to anyone. The process with Selene was much easier since he could tie it in to the first lesson. If she wanted fresh blood, then she had to kill for it. To maximize the effect of this lesson, The Demon Lord would starve the female Vampire to the point where she would go in a frenzied state when she was presented with a love human.

The third lesson was designed to teach Selene of her immortality, of her limits and her breaking point. This was the most brutal lesson but one of the most rewarding. Going through with the lesson would rid you of your fears, especially the fear of death. It wouldn't make the person reckless, but since you knew where to stop then anything below that point the person shouldn't fear. Since Selene was a vampire, her limit was pretty high up.

As the lessons progressed, Selene would always hate him in the beginning, would curse his name to the deepest pits in hell –it only made him nostalgic and a bit homesick-. But as the lesson ended and she would learn why he made her go through such things, what the purpose was, she would begin to understand and admire the demon. All of these were to make her stronger to make her better. She would remember why Naruto was her hero.

The both of them travelled around the world since then, watching the history of the world right in front of them. They would stop by the main coven once in a while but usually didn't stay for long.

Fast forward to the present day, Selene and Naruto were known to all the covens that they were the best fighters and killers around. Naruto had even made some human clients along the way who paid good money to make people disappear. The humans thought they were a whole organization and that was what the Demon Lord wanted them to think so as not to give them ideas that they could be disposed of easily.

The great being stood up from his couch and made his way through the lavishly furnished manor, passing by the 'civilian' vampires along the way. They greeted him with respect or bowed heads as always, his reputation as a demon preceding him. He was making his way towards the mansion's basement where the training area, which consisted of a sparring ring, a shooting range and an armory, was. Naruto could usually find his little demon there.

"Lord Naruto!" Kraven came running from around the corner. The former Death Dealer commander had risen in prestige and reputation since his success in the Lycan-Vampire war a few centuries ago with his slaying of Lucian. Viktor was so pleased with him that the Vampire Elder had named him the caretaker of his household. Whenever the Elder was away on business, or abroad meeting the foreign vampire covens, Kraven was in charge of the 'Old World' Coven, the coven directly under the command of the active Vampire Elder. The vampire stopped in front of him and smiled congenially, "I was wondering if you would be present during the arrival of Lady Amelia and her entourage tomorrow night?"

"I will be present, yes." The demon stated as he looked at the former commander before dusting himself off. Naruto used a more human voice nowadays ever since his run-in with the Christian Church a few centuries ago. Their Exorcism Squads were of no threat to him, what with Naruto being the greatest Demon Lord known to man, but they were of the fanatical bunch and didn't stop after one attempt. "I am in charge of any Elder's security after all. So you don't need to place any doubt on me." He was about to turn to leave when Kraven spoke up again.

"Will Selene be present as well?" He asked in a quiet voice.

His infatuation with one of my chosen is so infuriating… and embarrassing! He gave a small pat on the vampire's shoulder before leaving him there without an answer.

XXXXXX

The training grounds were never empty. There was always one or two people using the shooting range or the gym equipment and right now in the middle of the night any active vampire was there. A group was using the sparring ring practicing their fighting styles. The range was full of shooters, the sounds of gunfire echoing in the underground chamber. But where was Selene? Where was… Oh, there she was! Beating on those four guys like it was nothing in the sparring ring.

Naruto got closer to the ring and joined the crowd who was watching Selene demolish four of the Death Dealers' best soldiers. She was faster than them, that much was obvious. She weaved around every punch and kick like they were underwater. Every time she threw a punch was enough to send the vampires flying into the gathered crowd. Her strength went beyond any other's all because of Naruto's training.

"She's just toying with them!" One of the bystanders said aloud as Selene swept one of the vampire's feet off the ground before kicking him into one of the other fighters. One last vampire stood in the ring conscious and able to fight. The man didn't seem nervous at the possibility of being beaten to an inch of his life. "This guy doesn't stand a chance…"

Selene rushed in, fist cocked back and ready to end the little warm up. Three feet away from her last victim Selene let loose the devastating attack.

The last victim only tilted his head sideways, avoiding the devastating punch. He smiled the most unnerving smile, showing off rows of fangs that were not a trait of any vampire. "You should really pay attention to your surroundings little Selene." There was a rush of movement and the next thing Selene knew was that she was on the floor, pinned down by Naruto himself. "A mistake like that would have caused you your life." He stood up, letting everyone see who the last fighter really was and the reactions were instantaneous.

"It's Lord Naruto!" The sound of his name automatically made everyone bow and drop to one knee in respect. The Demon Lord laughed at their actions and looked down to Selene who had recovered and was kneeling as well.

"And why are you kneeling, my little demon?" The demon asked as the gym clothes he wore transformed back into the suit he was wearing a few minutes ago; a black three piece suit with a dark purple undershirt and a black tie. His leather gloves, not anymore gauntlets since the turn of the century, also reappeared on his hands. The tips of his gloves were destroyed because of his claws. His hair lengthened and turned its regular blonde color and lastly his eyes turned from a dark brown to a terrifying red. "Look at me…" He said softly as he used a finger to lift her chin up so that their eyes could meet. "You know that you, Selene, don't need to bow to me. After all we've been through, right?"

"Yes… my master…" Selene whispered as she bowed her head trying to hide the small blush that crept across her cheeks. Naruto nodded to himself before standing from his position and made eye contact with everyone in the room. "To all active Death Dealers! We have been given a mission tonight. Our contacts from around the city have spotted Lycans moving around the commercial districts, especially near the subway stations! Gear up, we leave in an hour." He offered a hand to Selene, which she took without question, and hoisted her up. "You will come as well." Looking at Selene now, Naruto was glad that she had developed into a breath-taking lady. As the years went by, she had cut off her long hair in exchange for a shorter style, one that didn't reach past the nape of her neck. As with all vampires, her clothes mostly consisted of black themed outfits. Even the outfit she wore now; sweatpants, trainers and sports bra, were all colored black. He lightly ran a claw over her toned stomach before looking up into the girl's hazel brown eyes. "Helipad, one hour." He left without saying another word leaving Selene flustered.

Naruto arrived at the manor's armory which was located on the same floor of the training grounds but was sealed off by a meter thick metal door. It contained enough guns and ammunition to start another world war if desired. The armory also did not just hold guns and bullets but also weapons preserved from the time the covens were founded. Swords, spears, knives and bows occupied one side of the armory while the other held pistols, machine guns and sniper rifles. If one would walk further into the armory, they would find missile silos holding weapons of mass destruction. The last part was The Demon Lord's idea, wanting to have another 'trick' up his sleeves. Thankfully, not everyone had access to the missiles. Only the Vampire Elders and Naruto had the launch codes. Before the entrance to the armory was a freight elevator large enough to hold twenty people, forty altogether. These went up to the garage area that could only be accessed by the soldiers. The garage held all kinds of armored transportation or assault vehicles; ground and air.

All of the coven's weaponry was thanks to Naruto. They didn't exactly know where he got them from and they probably didn't want to.

The Demon Lord never really liked guns. The vampires needed them since they weren't as bulletproof as him, but the Demon Lord used his hands for a reason. Using a gun grants the user the safety of range. Using his hands grants Naruto the sight of his enemies' souls being sucked into Oblivion. Naruto looked around the room for a moment before approaching the sword racks, rifling through the different kinds, still well taken care of. He stopped looking when he saw a wooden case lying on a table, about six inches long and two inches wide. The container was well polished to the point of shining in the light. Opening the container, he pulled out…

A nail file

A silver file

"Weapon for the day" He said happily before skipping out of the room.

Sheogorath would be proud.

XXXXXX

"I use this because it is small enough to be carried easily around. As well as the speed it has in battle. So, yes I find your lack of faith… disturbing."

Selene sighed before hoisting up the greatest of all the demons –to the mortals' knowledge- in his child form. No one could really get a handle on Naruto's thinking pattern. One day he would be deadly serious, exuding an aura of dread around the whole manor. The next, he was laughing at nothing in particular and running around as a child! "Please stop quoting movies master." She said as they boarded the Black Hawk helicopter along with five other Death Dealers.

"Only good thing humanity created!" was his happy reply.

The mission for the evening was to confirm the presence of a Lycan den deep in the subway systems and scout out the district for any other mongrel activity. Their orders were to eliminate if they found any and use extreme prejudice. They were all outfitted in dark clothing to better blend in the night as well as black trench coats to carry their extra ammo in. Most of them carried M4a1 carbines as well as an M9 berretta sidearm. Selene carried with her dual Glock 18 machine pistols while Naruto carried with him only the silver nail file… and his sharper than anything claws. Their leather-like clothes were mostly bullet proof; stopping anything under a 50 cal. Naruto opted out of the armoring and instead wore his suit, his reasons being that he wanted to look good while out on the town. No one really bothered to question the Demon Lord since everyone in the coven got used to his strange ways. Selene took the chair nearest to the side with the child Naruto sitting comfortably in her lap.

"Alright Death Dealers, here's the master plan!" The Demon lord's transformed child like voice echoed throughout their headsets as the helicopters took to the night skies, "All four teams will be dropped off to the north, south, west, and east sides of the districts. Remember to stick to the rooftops and snipe any Lycan you find! Your weapons have been outfitted with scopes and sound suppressors; we don't want the humans finding out. Watch out for Hunter squads from the Church as well! Annoying little bugs…"

The forest the mansion was built in soon made way to the city, the skyline shining with a multitude of colors. The pouring rain masked their approach as the four hawks split up as soon as they reached the city borders. Naruto's Black hawk kept going straight through the city, to the farthest point of the commercial district. The chopper slowed down to hover over a night club and as soon as the pilot gave the go signal, they all rappelled down quietly. The Demon Lord looked to the edge of the building, finding the streets filled with humans.

"Weekend" Selene said beside him as she scanned the streets for any threats. Naruto looked down at the streets as well before activating his headset again.

"Change of orders. Make sure the targets are alone and out of any human's sight. We don't want them panicking because people start dropping dead- Lycan!" In a flash, the great being concentrated a ball of energy into the tip of his right pointer finger before firing it into the crowd filled streets. Even with the attack's small size, it was still able to take out more than a few dozen bystanders. "Oh wait… no, it was just a normal dog… Oopsies" He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly before turning to his team. The five other Death Dealers seemed shocked that he would just fire a high powered attack like that down on a sidewalk filled with civilians, while Selene tried to hold back her laughter. "What, it looked like a wolf!" Naruto defended himself before moving to the other side of the rooftop. "But we should move now, just in case the police show up or something…" the demon jumped high into the air, landing on the rooftop at the other side of the street.

XXXXXX

Lucian silenced his men as the ground above them rumbled violently, dust falling down on their heads. The group of a dozen Lycans held their guns tighter as it settled before looking at their leader for answers. The first Lycan looked to them before signaling to the tunnel exits. It would seem that the vampires were on to them.

XXXXXX

"Alright… Teams, progress report!"

"Bravo squad confirming three kills, over"

"Charlie squad confirming five kills, over"

"Delta squad confirming two kills, over"

Selene hummed in thought beside the Demon Lord before tallying how many Lycans they had taken down in their part of the city. "Alpha squad confirming four kills… Signal the choppers, it's almost dawn." She took off her headset before getting a reply. The top Death Dealer looked to her master who had his hands extended in front of him as if he were reaching for something. Curious about the action, Selene approached him.

"You know Selene, back in the day I could easily talk to this planet reach out and connect with her energy and everything… But now, now because of all this damned concrete, wires, glass! I can't even hear a whisper! Humans are killing her, you know." The Demon Lord said matter-of-factly before turning to look at his apprentice. "Is there something on your mind, precious? You look troubled."

Before she could say anything, a bullet tore clean through the great being's head. Brain matter and blood sprayed across her face.

"SNIPER!" One of the Death Dealers shouted before diving behind one of the large air conditioning units installed on the rooftops. Selene dragged the limp body of her master to the nearest cover before un-holstering one of her guns and blind firing from her position.

"Of all the rotten luck, eh Selene?" Naruto slowly sat back at their cover before prodding the gaping hole on his forehead. He snarled angrily at being ambushed before taking out his nail file. "I think they blew out the nineteenth century from my brain!" He disappeared in a flash of light, leaving the Death Dealers on the rooftop.

"All teams, be advised! Alpha team has come under fire by an unknown assailant. Keep alert and return to the manor once you are clear!" Selene pressed herself closer to the AC unit when a bullet came dangerously close to her face. "Do you see anything?" Selene screamed as they were pinned down. All of them did not want to risk finding out what was in those bullets and whether or not it could kill them.

"Foolish!" Naruto exclaimed as he finally found the shooter a few blocks away from their position. He descended on the attacker like lightning, landing on the rooftop and stabbing the man with the nail file through his right eye. The Demon Lord spun the file in-between his fingers before flicking it to the side, sending the eyeball and bits of brain matter to the floor. The body stood for a few more seconds before crashing to the floor. "Your stench gave you away, Lycan."

XXXXXX

"Your reign of terror on our home ends tonight Demon Lord!" The knight spat out the title like it was something vile. His opponent's only reaction was to smile at the foolish little bug. The man drew his sword, a shining masterpiece with shining runes over its surface. The blonde demon looked at the weapon and scoffed at it.

"Is that the dreaded Demon Slayer? Ha! Nothing but a sharp, shiny piece of metal! You actually think that I, the great Demon Lord Naruto, general of Hell's armies, son of the Night Mistress, inheritor of the Devourer's soul, will be slain by such a puny thing!" Naruto spat on the ground, "I can't decide whether I should be insulted or not."

The knight, clad in all white armor pointed the tip of the blade with one hand, voice echoing with courage and authority, "Laugh while you can demon! This shiny piece of metal has slain countless of your kind and has not failed yet! By the end of this fight, you will beg for mercy just like the others!" The man held it in both hands before charging the Demon Lord Head on, shouting a battle cry as he went.

"Don't compare me with such trash…" He moved so fast that it seemed like he just disappeared and was suddenly standing in front of the white knight, clawed hand pierced through his chest and shredding the man's heart. "Remember this when your soul finds Oblivion, mortal! I am Lord Naruto. None surpass me! No one even comes close!" He kicked the man's body off of his arm and turned to the vast human army that waited for him in the distance. With fire burning in his veins the Demon Lord shouted to the heavens, "Etch this into your skulls you worthless mortals! The likes of you are only fit to grovel at my feet or better still, to die in disgrace at the hands of your master!" He gathered an insane amount of energy into the tip of his right pointer finger, letting it build up until it was bigger than any castle found in Europe. The red ball of death hummed with energy before Naruto flicked his finger towards the charging mass of bodies. The ground shook and was torn to shreds as the death ball traveled faster as it approached the army.

"I am Lord Naruto, devourer of the god Dagon! Inheritor of his title and power! All shall bow before my might!" The death ball quickly plowed through the great army of men leaving nothing but ash and bones. It didn't stop travelling until it collided with the castle in the distance and exploded into a miniature sun. In just a few moments, the capital was destroyed and wiped off the face of the earth. "Be joyous mortals… Your souls shall fill the feasting halls of Oblivion."

It was simple times back then where one could throw full powered energy balls like there was no tomorrow. All the mortals were so distrustful of each other back then, not even trusting to turn their backs on one another. Now everyone watched each other's backs, everyone was friends now! No more high level attacks for Naruto! Everyone had to tiptoe around these fucking mortals like they owned the damned planet!

Naruto opened his eyes to look down on the passing city beneath them, thousands of humans oblivious to the dangers around them. How did they rise to take the planet from the vampires, from the Lycans? Were they not the superior species? Were they not ruling the lands a few centuries ago? What happened?

"Just one shot," Naruto said as he extended his pointer finger down to the city and built up enough energy at the point to create a small ball of red energy, "just enough for them to realize that they do not own this planet. I DO!" The demon laughed in glee at all the deaths he would cause, all the suffering and all the fear that this one simple attack would create, an attack that won't even take ten percent of his power to form! Red eyes flashed as the Demon Lord prepared to release the attack.

"Master…" A soft voice pierced through the madness that had suffocated his senses, bringing the great demon back to reality. The attack slowly receded back to nothingness as he looked behind him. Selene had stood from her seat and had encircled her arms around him in a hug. Her head rested on his shoulder letting her see into his cold, hellfire eyes. "What troubles you?"

"Everything"