Hey, everyone! This might be on hold for quite some time, 'cause I'm going through some major stress right now. So, expect my updates to be on hold until I'm good enough to write again. So, here's the fifth chapter of Synchro Beast, Crimson Rose!
Chapter 5-Worlds Collide
The events unfolding at this very moment were way too sudden for her...
To be saved by the creatures that her own kind has hated for generations...
Now, that fateful meeting has brought together two different species, face to face in a standstill.
Although she was truly grateful that her friends were safe from the likes of the demonic wolves that have tried to hunt them down, now one of them was about to attack the vampire that saved her very own life. She didn't want any bloodshed between the two conflicting sides as she watched from behind her savior, seeing from the corner of her right eye his own clan ready to strike. As if like the war that became cold for many years since her birth reignited into a flame of hatred. She could understand her kind's reasons for hating the vampires, but why couldn't her? Was there something about the northern vampire lord that maybe her deceased mother knew about?
As Amy stood behind the Eternal Tree of Life with the northern lord, Aki drew out her twin silver daggers and stood in a fighting position, menacingly glaring at Yami's clan who had just appeared to greet their lord. It was her sworn duty to protect her client, considering her status in the village and explaining to the Legion about their encounter with the heartless monsters was not one story she was ready to tell.
"Amy! Step away from those monsters!" Aki bellowed. "They are not to be trusted at all!"
"My lord, what boundaries did you cross this time?" Crow asked.
"Laughter is not my forte, Crow." Yami said. "I have done nothing wrong but save the girl that sparks interest to me."
"Liar!" Aki shouted. "A cold-heartless beast like yourself would kill useless mortals and send their ashes to the bottomless depths of hell and beyond! I will never forgive such monsters that destroyed the very foundation of my life!"
'I knew Aki's hatred for vampires runs deep, but never this deep!' Amy thought.
What was she going to do? She may have heard the tales of the vampire history, but never have she gotten the chance to actually experience the true ferocity that people have against such creatures! Amy was sheltered throughout her entire life; there was not one thing she could do to defend her friend's accusations. Tenderly, she felt a hand caressing her face with cold, yet protective fingers as her chin was lifted up and eyes were cast upon the vampire lord himself. Her face flushed from the many events that sprung up so quickly; it was as if they planned this fateful meeting from the very beginning. Who was this very person, and why was he so interested in her?
"Courting again, Yami?" Yusei asked. "When will you ever learn?"
"Yusei, I have a wandering eye, mind you." Yami smirked. "Such natural beauty shouldn't go to waste, especially since this very girl owns me her life."
He turned to Amy, who he still had a gentle grip on her chin as his eyes wondered upon her body, noting every single detail: skin soft as pure silk, hair scented with the aroma of wild flowers with a touch of honey and lips that shone even in the darkest of nights. However, it made the situation a whole lot worse in Aki's eyes.
SWOOSH!
One of the daggers automatically lodged itself into the tree, attached to it a piece of the cloak bellowing from the vampire lord's garments. Amy suddenly snapped back into reality as she saw that Serenity was slowly backing away from the enraged hunter. The vampires that were already there became agitated with rage with such an attack against their lord. Yusei, taking note that the hunter meant business, conjured up a spell in hopes of getting his point across that no one would dare touch his cousin in such a manner.
"Porta a tenebris in inmortuis portas reserare sigillum Synchro opes!(1)" Yusei chanted, clouds forming into the sky as the sunlight became engulfed in the clouds as a white circle centered itself in his palms. "Unleash, Cosmic Blast!"
It was directed at both Aki and Serenity, and while Serenity was quite scared, Aki wasn't going to let a vampire get the best of her. She placed her other dagger back in the sheath and placed her hands in a winged position.
"In sigillis caelum et infernum, ego misit carmine sacra unitate; reserare sanguine venator!(2)" Aki chanted, and a dark pinkish glow enveloped in her grasp. "Activate, Black Rose Safeguard!"
The spell automatically blocked and cancelled Yusei's attack before it even reached them, shocking that of Yusei's group. There was actually a hunter who can use the power of Synchro?
With all the chaos spreading about, Amy couldn't take much more. It was endangering her friends and more importantly, herself. She didn't want any bloodshed from this battle emerging, and at the tip of her breaking point, she immediately unleashed her tears and yelled her inner anguish.
"Stop this battle, Aki! Right now! Please..." Amy shouted, trembling down to her knees and shaking from the scene as her tears became much more visible to those around her.
Aki stopped at her tracks the moment she heard Amy's commands, dropping down her guard and looking at the situation currently. She hasn't noticed that Serenity was also in the crosshairs of the battle and wasn't prepared properly to handle such conditions. Quickly realizing that she was placing her in danger, Aki mentally shut down; she didn't mean to endanger her client's helper in any way. Her hatred almost cost a villager her life, and the fact that Amy was still in the custody of the northern vampire lord completely rearranged her point of view.
"Yusei," Yami ordered. "Stand down. We do not want to shed any bloodshed during our timely encounter and besides, you're upsetting my guest. The rest of you do the same."
"But, my lord!" Jack barked. "That hunter bitch over there assaulted you! We do not tolerate such revulsion towards you!"
"Jack, my word is final." Yami said.
Serenity was quite glad that the battle didn't escalate further than it already has. If such a battle continued, the Legion would have first notice and sent out additional hunters to their location. As she looked at the rest of the vampires that have came to see their imprisoned lord, one...rather two have caught her eye. One was hooded, covering his face and was quite silent around the group. But, something about him was quite familiar to her; maybe his height, or was it that she knew him from somewhere back then? The other, was truly tall for someone of his age. Clean-cut brunette hair, deep sapphire eyes, and a cold demeanor that mysteriously made her attracted to him. But, the real question that she wanted to know: What did these vampires really came here for?
With his clan finally relaxed from the reacted attack, he turned to Amy, who was still on the ground, lifting her up using a portion of his power and grasping her in his arms.
"Now, now my dear." Yami whispered in her ear. "There shall be no more fighting amongst our groups, so shall my words speak."
"Hey, you wanted our report or not, Yami?" Yusei asked.
"So, anything on the counter-spell, as well as the status of the southern district?" Yami asked.
"Your brother departed three days ago and hasn't sent us a report on the current condition of the southern clan, along with the status of the sacred library if the forbidden books were stolen." Crow said. "And we still haven't found a counter-spell to the seal that you're bound to."
"What about the western clan?" Yami added. "Surely they must have something planning since I am not there to overlook their devious activities."
"Nothing; they blocked all fucking communications from us years ago." Seto said. "Not even the Legion has updated news about them since the disappearance of their village many years before the treaty."
Amy pondered about what those vampires were saying towards their lord. She knew about the attacks during her studies, but what counter-spell were they hinting at? Was it that for years this vampire...Yami was it? He was searching a spell to break the one that confined him to the Eternal Tree of Life for so long? And why haven't every single one of his clan was around to be with him during his time of need? Maybe...could it be that his clan abandoned him when he was imprisoned years ago?
"Um...excuse me?" Amy asked.
"What is it, my dear?" Yami said. "Do you not like my presence?"
"It's not that." Amy whispered. "It's just that sundown is almost here, and the hunters will get suspicious if I don't return to the village. I know our meeting was short and one that I did not expect to happen the way it did; but something about you is so familiar to me. I can't put my mind on it."
"Familiar how?" Yami wondered. "Tell you what; return here in secrecy a few days from now. One of my fellow colleagues will point to a trail far away from the gates entering to the forest and away from danger. I won't let anything harm such a princess like yourself."
"Err...I guess." Amy said.
"Until then, Amy...I bid farewell." Yami smirked.
As he released her from his grasp, Amy walked over to both Aki and Serenity to ensure the both of them that she was alright. But, now what? She deserted the herbs that were still out there, and picking up additional herbs would take more time than usual. But, as she looked into the sky, orange started replacing the blue skies and knew that she would have to return without the items that she needed to complete her potions in time for her monthly tests with her tutors. Once they started their way down the path that Aki showed them back to the main road, she felt a tap on her shoulder as she turned around to see the tall brunette holding a basket in his left hand. Amy noticed that this was the very same vampire that Serenity was looking deep in her eyes.
"My lord wants you to have this." Seto said. "He doesn't want any kind of small misinterpretations should the hunters come and find any flaws of the story you're about to tell them."
"Then pass him this message: Thank you, and I'll find a way to avoid the Legion's guards if I want to see him again." Amy smiled.
"So shall it be." Seto said. "Your auburn-haired friend seems interested in me. Tell her that I'll be watching her from afar, unless she has the courage to meet me in person."
"I'll take that into consideration." Amy said.
Once he departed, Amy looked into the basket to find all the herbs that were on her list, including ones that she never saw. But, how did Yami knew about all the items on her list?
Vampires were always interesting to Amy, but she didn't knew the answer as to why her curiosity about the vampire lord himself came into her mind. She was only a couple of weeks old when she lost her mother, and many of the people she spoke to only told her of everything that they know about her. But, what about the perspective of a vampire? Amy thought way back to the siege years ago, only remembering the silhouette of the person who carried her to Placido's family and yet the fangs in his mouth knew that he was a friendly vampire. If only she could remember his voice...
"Hey!" Aki shouted. "You want those damn bandits coming out? Hurry up already!"
"Oh, c-coming!" Amy called.
"You know; you could've removed your cloak from your head when she was still around." Jack said.
"And let my only baby sister know that I'm a fucking vampel(3) now?" Joey barked. "Fuck off my case, Jack!"
"Jack, let him keep his cloak on." Yusei argued. "His body's not atoned to the changes yet since he's still fresh off the transformation fifteen years ago."
"It takes ten whole years for a vampel to get accustomed to the sun!" Jack countered.
"Some people's bodies are slower than others." Malik assumed. "Remember, Valentine's the one that saved him before those rogues from the west killed him completely."
In the midst of their argument, Seto came back to find that his colleagues were arguing over the hooded vampel, now known as Joey Wheeler, the missing brother to that of Serenity fifteen years ago. He couldn't believe that his sister was now involved in this whole vampire mess that he never wanted her to be in. He wanted to wait until he was ready enough to explain to her what happened all those years ago, but his body was still adjusting to the vampire blood still coursing in his veins.
Yami, however, was thinking about the beauty that he was quite impressed about during their first encounter. But, the very question that she said was ringing through his mind. That very part of his mind that was still blocked was giving him quite a headache, realizing that this wasn't the only spell placed on him. But why was this spell so familiar to him? Knowing that his comrades might find the counter-spell, he turned his attention to the arguing crowd.
"Honestly, you idiotic morons bickering in front of our lord!" Seto growled. "How childish can our troubles be?"
"Hey, Jack started it if you want to know." Crow countered.
"Enough; I do not want any kind of doubt hanging around this group any further." Yami said. "I have a major headache as of now."
"My apologies, Yami." Yusei said. "But, what headache? You rarely get them, only if you went into a furious rage over many topics concerning your well-being."
"I fear that there was another spell placed upon me." Yami assumed. "Malik, can you check it out for me? Your powers is the only one that can pass through the seal, and I need some light on this particular spell on me."
"Are you sure, my lord?" Malik asked him. "I mean, I don't want to impose any damage to you."
"I'm positive." Yami agreed.
With a few words spoken in the modern tongue of his ancestors, a green mist entered into the seal and wrapped itself around Yami, entering his mind of all its' secret thoughts. Once the analysis was done, the mist disappeared and Malik became quite tired from casting such a powerful spell.
"Well, Malik?" Seto said.
"There's no doubt about it; another spell has befallen upon our lord." Malik said. "But, the spell is not a forbidden one, rather a special spell that only those whom study the ancient ways. Only a keyword will break the spell."
"No counter-spell?" Yami asked. "Only a keyword?"
"Did any of our clan cast this spell?" Yusei pondered.
"Nope; whoever cast this spell was a normal one, and the keyword is also embedded into that spell." Malik explained. "I would have gotten the keyword, but every time that I did, an electric shock shot me back. I guess the keyword must be said verbally in order to break the spell. I'm sorry about my failure, my lord. I wasn't strong enough to give what you need."
"It's alright." Yami said. "Since neither of us know about the keyword to regain that part of my memories, I will have to rely on my princess to find out."
"How would you know?" Jack asked.
"She told me that I was familiar to her." Yami smirked. "If she wants more answers, she'll have to see me and I might get the keyword during my visit."
"We should depart for now; the clan will get suspicious of our whereabouts." Seto said. "We'll be in contact about your brother's status in the southern district and report any activities in the western district if we're not caught."
"Agreed." Yami said. "Hopefully by next spring, I will be free from my confinement of this accursed spell."
Finally finished! I didn't know what I would do if I never finished this effing chapter! I decided to use Latin for this chapter and others when I need it. We're dealing in an age that the language wasn't dead! :D
1- From the dark portals of the undead, open the gates of power and unlock the seal of Synchro! (Translation from Latin)
2- Within the seals of Heaven and Hell, I cast a spell of sacred unity; unlock the blood of the hunter! (also translated from Latin)
3-Err...I'm pretty sure this was a term used in Vampire Hunter D. Someone tell me that it is! Please!
Next chapter: Amy meets Yami again once more and tries to understand the vampire himself. Meanwhile, Aki receives a visit from an unexpected person...
R&R, people! PLEASE! Q_Q