***]2[***
The nightclub was a haven of life, the walls throbbing from the volume of the music as hot, sweaty bodies pressed against each other in a haze induced by alcohol or whatever else had circulated through the sardinian confines. Though the place was filled to the rafters, one man in a dark suit easily navigated his way through the pulsing throng towards the bar.
Zhi Yue watched carefully as the man leant against the bar on his elbows and ordered a drink. His black hair was slicked back and spiked wildly, giving him an air of wild charm as he turned to smile at her suavely.
"Well hello there." He said, turning on his elbow and leaning against his side facing her. Allowing her jade green eyes to lock with his brilliant purple orbs.
"Hi." She said, shifting her gaze away and letting her ruby lips to draw from her martini. Which must've been the reason for the sudden burst of warmth she felt as he sidled closer.
"What's your name?" He asked, keeping his hands clasped as he kept his rightward elbow on the bar. Zhi Yue adjusted the skirt of her qipao, the heat growing warmer as she fidgeted with her dress. There was something about this man that just magnetic, was it the unusualness of his eyes? The heated timbre of his voice? Or maybe it was just how handsome he looked with his eyes glowing in the light with his slight tan and pearlescent teeth. She didn't know, but the sudden itch of her intimates made her restless and she was far to experienced in this game to go down that easy.
"Zhi Yue." She said coolly, setting down her semi full martini and running her finger around the rim. Refusing to look at him as a symbol of dominance, this wasn't her first rodeo and she would be damned if she chased him.
"Angelic reflection of the moon, I knew it was beautiful. Well Zhi Yue, can I buy you a drink?" The Chinese woman looked up at him, her eyes lidded and smiled before lifting her drink.
"I already have a drink." She said before bringing her the glass to her lips. However, before so much as a drop passed her pout, strong nimble fingers plucked the martini from her lips and violet eyes bore into jade as his handsome smile drained her glass, the mans eyes watching her with unsheathed desire and the confidence to match. Almost as if she where already sprawled naked upon his bed…Zhu Yuan's very core shivered.
So much for not going down easy.
***][***
His touched burned her skin, a pleasant feeling that had her melting into his arms as he led her to his apartment. Zhi Yue was unashamed to admit that her resistance barely lasted longer than it took for him to empty her martini, the look he had in his eyes when doing so destroyed every border and boundary she had. The dark-haired woman could barely manage to control herself during the short elevator ride to his floor, much less the thirty-minute cab ride over here!
But Iwao had insisted, all the while granting her soft caresses against her smooth skin that made her question the need for morality, and she nearly lost it when he had bent down and nipped the delicate skin of her neck with his teeth. The blissful hell came to and end when the doors opened with a soft ping, Zhi Yue practically dragged the man down the hall till he said they'd arrived at the door.
Once he finally unlocked the door Zhi Yue tackled him inside, blissfully unaware of the smirking woman leaning against the corner at the end of the hall as she kicked the door closed.
***][***
Iwao placed a large box wrapped in green foil and topped with a black bow smoothly on the glass table in front of a middle-aged man in a sweater vest. Sweat clung to the balding skin of his scalp as his eyes shifted from the box to Iwao.
"I-is that-." The American stuttered, gesturing to the box with a finger from his clasped hands, held together in his lap to stop the shaking.
"Indeed, it is Mr. Lincoln." Iwao affirmed calmly, leaning back with his legs crossed and hands folded. Mr. Lincoln swallowed lightly, gulped really, before leaning forward and nervously taking the box in his hands. Suddenly he looked up at Iwao with wide, questioning eyes.
"What about-."
"Safely aboard flight 422 inbound from Hong Kong, my assistant Ms. Scarlet tells me that the girl is currently binge-watching twilight while her little brother sleeps. Your children are safe." The man assured before handing over a slip of paper. "You may pick them up tomorrow from here."
"Thank you, God bless you sir." Mr. Lincoln cried as Iwao stood.
"One last thing Mr. Lincoln." Iwao said as he buttoned his blazer. "You may look inside the box, or not. It is up to you; however, it leaves with me. Do you understand?" The American nodded the affirmative, however he set the box down and looked up at Iwao with steel suddenly in his eyes.
"Did you sleep with her?" He demanded.
"No." Iwao said and the steel vanished, replaced by miserable melancholy.
"Was it quick?" He asked but received no answer. Looking at the box one more time he sighed. "Take it."
With a nod, Iwao moved to the table and lifted the unopened box, but not before he dropped something metallic upon the table. Something that was immediately seized by the older man as Iwao left the modest two-story house. The sound of soft weeping following him out.
With the gravel crunching beneath his feet, Iwao made his way to the sleek silver Mercedes parked twenty feet from the house. With the box in one hand he pressed a button on the keychain which opened the trunk, ducking his head inside he placed the box beneath the spare tire in a hidden compartment.
As he closed the trunk he was greeted by the sight of a woman leaning against his car.
"You know I can get rid of that for you right?" The woman said with a finger to the trunk.
"I prefer feeding it to the Jian shi." He said as he closed the trunk with a loud thunk before moving to enter the driver's seat.
"Man! I keep forgetting how hardcore you can be when it comes to these things." She said as he entered the vehicle.
"She shouldn't have done what she did Bedivere." He said to the wild red-haired woman next to him as he started the car and shifted to reverse.
"Seriously though, seducing her, torturing the woman for hours then feeding the evidence to the undead I can understand, but on Vacation! what's your fucking deal?" Bedivere questioned, turning in her seat as Iwao backed out of the driveway. Shifting to drive, Iwao set off down the road in silence for a moment.
"Let's just say I have problems with women that use a man's kids against him."
***][***
A set of sleek black vehicles pulled out behind the Luxury car. Shaded eyes witnessed them in the rearview as they formed up behind him with a car saying on his tail as the other two moved to box him in.
"Take the wheel." Iwao told his scarlet haired companion who jerked in surprise.
"What?" Her head flew back to look at the accelerating cars before she headed his command.
"As soon as I take the wheel I want you to teleport back to the plane and watch over the children." He said as he reached into his coat and removed a silenced colt .45. "But before that I want you to grab the black case out of the trunk and leave it open on the seat." He added as he removed the silencer to place back in his pocket.
"What about you?" Bedivere questioned but, receiving no answer, she vanished as soon as his hands returned to the wheel, leaving a thick black case open in her spot.
Slamming the pedal to the floor he zipped out of the box before it could close just as the first volley peppered the side of the Mercedes. Popping the clutch and shifting in to fifth gear he quickly gained distance on the pair of suburbans before the smaller sedan at his tail caught back up and the two weaved through traffic at breakneck speeds.
Jerking the wheel to the side, Iwao deftly avoided crashing into the tail end of an eighteen-wheeler before he popped the clutch again and slipped back into fourth gear before sliding beneath the rigs trailer. Tapping the brakes, he managed to surprise the other driver by appearing beside him before Iwao whipped up his pistol and unloaded into the driver's seat, busting out the passenger side glass and taking out the opposing driver.
Slamming back into fifth, he sped past the truck cab just as the now driverless vehicle plowed into the sidewall of a bridge and got T-boned by a mini-van.
Iwao ducked his head down just in time to avoid a hail of gunfire from the swifter of the two suburbans, all the while digging in the black case beside him. Ducking in front of a ford Taurus he avoided the rest of the bullets. Weaving back out, he wrenched up on the emergency brake and whipped the silver vehicle around as the other hand came out the black case beside him.
As the Mercedes whirled around the lead sedan to the right was besieged by a storm of bullets which caused the driver to lose control and be plowed into by the eighteen-wheeler that devoured the smaller vehicle, the storm never ceased as the Mercedes came around and Iwao fired into the front glass yet missed the driver who kept coming as the gunman behind him came up to kill.
Tapping the brakes and shoving the car into reverse Iwao gunned it and the chase continued for a moment as Iwao tossed aside the empty Uzi and reached back into the case while expertly weaving past various cars and trucks littering the highway.
Bringing his hand up again, a hollow explosion of air popped in his ear and the sedan exploded in flames, the explosion forcing them into the air in a twister of metal and fire. Flipping end over end until it slammed into the ground upside down.
Placing the hand-held grenadier back down, Iwao slammed back into first before making is way back to the flaming wreckage and slowed to a stop. Stepping out of the car he calmly walked up to the man crawling away from the wreckage, covered in blood and burns.
"St-stop pleas-." He tried to beg but Iwao had placed one between his eyes before he could fully form his cry for mercy. With a flick of the wrist the assassin emptied the clip into the blaze, the dancing flames danced in his sunglasses as Iwao eyed the burning suburban for a moment until he was satisfied that no one else survived before he walked away.
Reaching into his pocket he removed a sleek silver cellphone and typed in a number.
"I'm calling in a cleanup." He said before entering his car.
***][***
Sunflowers. Thousands upon thousands of the golden petaled beauties stretching as far as the eye could see cradled his weary flesh in their soft embrace. He was tired, so…so tired. Bleeding feet crunched in the snow, the hot burning flesh cooled by the its gentle caress as countless glimmering flakes drifted down from the sky to melt on his fevered flesh as he marched on. A warm breeze blew his hair back, brushing his oily hair from his face allowing his aching eyes to see the bright blue sky, a sky full of hope and love, for the first time.
"-une." Whispered the wind, bringing the scent of perfume to his blood tinged senses.
"Mr. Iwao." The stewardess called as he slowly opened his eyes, coldly shaking off the delightful dream. The dark-haired woman had placed her hand on his shoulder to shake him awake when she saw the slight gleam of his eyes watching her. "We've landed." She informed him before walking away to the front of the luxury liner.
Shaking off sleep and the remnants of his recurring dream, Iwao run a hand down his face while turning to look out the window and confirming that they were indeed in Hong-Kong. With a tired sigh he lifted himself from his seat and stretched, easing the tension in his muscles from the long flight before he reached into the inside of is jacket and removed a pair of gold rimmed shades with purple tinted glasses. Placing them on his face he then ran a hand over his suit to smooth out the wrinkles and straightened his tie before moving to exit the plane.
He was thankful for his forethought as he exited the plane as the cloudless sky allowed the sun to shine blindingly. Looking around he saw a few other planes on the tarmac along with a sleek limo waiting just directly before the set of stairs leading down from the exit. Before the car was a young woman dressed in a veil that protected her from the sun, along with several dozen other men in suits standing around her position next to separate cars.
"I trust your vacation was well spent." Said the deceptively younger woman with a knowing smile as he stepped of the steps leading from the plane.
"It was." Iwao nodded on his way to the woman. "I trust you managed just fine in my absence Lingling."
"Just barely." She joked before turning to enter the back of the limo, the door being held open by the driver who nodded to Iwao as he entered as well before closing the door. "You know how chaotic this place gets without the resident boogieman." She said as he sat down.
Now that she was out of the sun, Lingling removed her veil revealing an eternally youthful girl in her late teens though she was somewhat older than the man sitting opposite of her in the car. Lingling gave her enforcer a smile before signaling for the driver to leave.
"Long flight?" She said, noting how Iwao sat slumped into the seat with his legs stretched out and crossed at the ankles. It was a rare moment of weakness for the man who so often bathed in blood at her behest and she quite enjoyed the sight of his relaxed form.
"Oklahoma to Virginia then New York to London then finally Hong Kong. Nearly two days of flying, I kinda feel bad for the crew to be honest." He said calmly as he linked his hands together on his stomach before tipping his head back onto the seat.
"I'll have to have a word with them. Can't have you being inconvenienced because of some technicality, That's the whole reason I bought the plan in the first place." She said, flicking open her foldable fan and crafting a breeze with her wrist.
"Don't bother." Iwao mumbled sleepily as he dozed. "I'd rather live through the inconvenience then run out of fuel midair. Especially over the ocean."
"Yes, that would be bad." Lingling flicked her fan closed and Iwao slipped into slumber. As his breathing evened and his body stilled the elder watched, when she was sure he was deep asleep she stood from her seat. Hunched over from the low ceiling she crept over to his sleeping form and, with a clicking of her tongue reached for his shades.
"Can't even take his shades off." She said. Thinking how tired he must've to forget such a thing, they were expensive after all.
As the gold framed glasses left his face, the Chinese heiress came eye to eye with the violet gaze of the assassin.
"It has its advantages." He mused, watching her calmly down his nose.
***][***
Staring down her nose at a pitiful little executive wasn't exactly how Moka Aono wished to spend her anniversary. Ever since her husband had vanished three years ago she had taken on the tradition of visiting his family every year around this time but, the bills had to be paid so here she was. Working out yet another trade deal for her already immensely wealthy father in Russia.
It wasn't so bad, at least the pitiful little man folded easily beneath her gaze. He lacked a spine, a horrible ailment most men seemed to suffer from, at lest in her presence. There was only one man that ever had the balls to tell her no and, he was gone. Though she didn't appreciate the various rumors surrounding him, she wasn't afraid to use some to her advantage.
Such as now.
"I don't see the point in dragging this out any longer. Add the other fifty million and you've got a deal, otherwise we've got a problem." She flashed a toothy grin, promising lots of pain and destruction if he didn't comply. She did butcher the legendary Tsukune Aono, slayer of Alucard, after all.
"Yes, yes no problem Lady Akashiya." Said the fat little man, beads of sweat rolling down his fat little neck. A sharp tipped pen buried itself in the table next to his hand.
"Aono." Moka said dangerously, eyeing the man like a particularly annoying fly. The little man soon realized his mistake and quickly, fervently, apologized like a dog.
Ignoring the 'man' on the floor Moka stood from her chair and signaled her escort to stand as well before gathering her papers strewn about the table in a neat little brown briefcase. Though unnecessary, Kokoa's company was welcome as she kept the pink haired Mrs. Aono occupied today of all days, And that was something the silver haired woman could appreciate at least.
Suddenly the wooden door exploded inward to crash into the room, the pair of vampires reacting so fast they blurred but it still wasn't fast enough to stop the bullet that lodged itself into their client's forehead.
Two pairs of red eyes flicked over to the doorway to see a hallway full of bodies and the stoically cold assassin standing at the threshold, smoking gun in hand and small flecks of blood on his grey suit. Behind the purple tint of his glasses the piercing gaze of the vampires could see his eyes flick over to them and the set of his jaw tightened.
With a snarl Kokoa launched herself towards the newcomer her familiar Ko transforming into a lethal spiked bludgeon. Flowing like water, the red shirted man ducked beneath her swing and twisted behind her to press the barrel of his pistol to her skull and fired.
Fortunately for Kokoa, the round did nothing but stun her due to the muzzle flash and noise with the slug falling harmlessly to the floor, flattened from the collision with her skin.
Turning his attention to the elder, his expression changed as his lips drew thin. Raising the pistol between them the assassin fired.
Moka dodged, not for fear of her life but for fear of ruining the thirty thousand-dollar Armani pantsuit she was wearing. Sprinting forward she twisted to deliver a devastating roundhouse to his face. It was stopped dead, however as the assassin brought up an arm and silver streaks appeared in his hair. Or…were they always there? When her shin connected with his forearm, it felt like the equivalent of hitting a brick wall if she were a human. Thankfully she was a vampire, so the sudden impact hurt her pride and nothing less.
"Quite the nerve, killing one of my clients." Moka said haughtily as she brought her leg back to launch a blitz attack of several punches and kicks. Her six-inch heels dug into his suit, tearing apart the fabric to reveal a dark sheen gleaming in dark contrast to the red of his shirt and grey of his suit, as it protected his skin from puncture as he defended against her barrage.
Just as the vampiress' assault began pushing him back, his fist shot out and buried itself into her side just as she went for a backhand mule kick and she stumbled back to glare at the assassin. His blow packed a surprising amount of power, knocking the wind out of her. Then it hit her, the dark hair, purple glasses, and stoic demeanor set of small little bells in her memory that led her to one conclusion.
"You must be the famous Iwao, I've heard a lot about you." Moka said, a hint of exhaustion in her voice as she placed a hand on her hip. Kahlua could be so childish at times. "You've made quite an impression on my sister, unfortunately for you I'm not so easily impressed."
Despite her thinly veiled jab Iwao remained tightly lipped, wordlessly remaining in true professional form in the face of her ire. A good mark in her book.
Dipping to the side the assassin avoided a recovered Kokoa's wild swing, which splintered the conference table. Amidst a hail of wood slivers, with light bouncing of the silver streaks in his dark hair, Iwao sprinted forward towards Moka's forgotten briefcase that now soared through the air.
Realizing his intent, Moka snapped out with a kick that slammed into his side and sent him flying directly into the waiting swing of her sister, who lashed out with her mace. With the force of a speeding van, the transformed familiar plowed into the assassin and sent him crashing through the window and into the rush hour traffic of Moscow, thirty stories below.
***][***
Pain ripped into Iwao's already burning nerves as bone ground against bone accompanied by the sickening choir of pops and cracks as the fashionably dressed Bedivere delicately tried to reset his dislocated shoulder. With every crunch and pop the frightened girl jerked in horror until, after finally getting the man to scream in pain, she dropped the arm and hopped away.
"I'msorry.I'msorry. I'msorry.I'msorry." She apologized frantically, her words mushed together as they spewed out to the barely dressed man, having fallen down a skyscraper into traffic his clothes had been ripped and torn beyond recognition. His skin, blackened by the asphalt, writhed with each sick pop and crunch as his ribs reset themselves beneath the surface. It was a gross sight, and one that had a grown woman acting like a child.
With his arm still limp at his side, Iwao took several deep calming breaths after his neck snapped back into place, broken curtesy one Chevy Malibu, before looking over towards his squeamish assistant.
Unable to endure the sight, especially after the sudden jerk of his head being placed back where it belonged, she had squeezed her amber eyes tightly shut behind her glasses with her shaking hands blocking the rest of her face.
"Bedivere, its alright come here. We'll try one more time." He said gruffly, trying to sound as calm and understanding as possible while fighting off the urge to scream in general.
"No!" Came her terse reply, her arms flung down to her side with a heavy stomp of her foot, before she suddenly winking out of existence.
"Damn it." Iwao cursed, despite all her power Bedivere was still just a girl. Though, with a sudden snap of his collar bone reconnecting to his rib cage, he couldn't blame her.
Just as he was about to rise from the crate he was on to settle things with his shoulder the old-fashioned way, he suddenly wasn't alone anymore as Bedivere returned. This time someone the exact opposite of squeamish, in fact. Because she was already dead.
"I assume it went well." Lingling said as she stepped away from Bedivere, who whirled around away from them with her hands pressing down her hair as she bounced away.
"Depends on what you mean by well." Iwao replied bitterly as the Chinese woman waltzed over to him, she had apparently been sleeping when Bedivere yanked her out of space and time. Evidenced by the sheer laced nighty embroidered with various flowers swishing around her thighs.
"That Henry Bozick lie's dead of course." She said calmly as she inspected his arm. "You're not one for loose ends after all." She finished as her cold fingers wrapped around his arm. Iwao watched her in silence, keeping his mouth shut as he prepared for the sudden yank that finally, graciously, put his arm back in place.
As he basked in the alleviation of his burden, Lingling quietly went about gathering the small flakes of glass that lay trapped in his hair while his bodily tremors ceased.
"Happy anniversary by the way."