Chapter 4 - Trust Nobody
Streets of South Town
"Keep running! Don't stop!" - Ralf
"GRROOOAR!" - Screams the horde of Vampires coming behind Kyo and the rest
"Keep running to the sewers, we will lose them there!" - Ralf
As Kyo and the rest are chased by the vampires, they are surprised as a electric barrier is seen stopping their way connected from one lightpost to another
"What?" - Shun'ei
"Fufufu... You guys forgot about me?" - Says a female voice coming approaching
"Oh great." - Angel
"Is her.." - Krohnen
Everyone sees not other than Sylvie who now looks like the rest of the vampires
"So, who is ready to help Sylvie with her thirst?" - Ask Sylvie as the sound of the vampires approaching is heared in the distance
Meanwhile
Iori Yagami enters back to the hotel where he was staying, not noticing a strange shadow following him.
Yagami arrives to his room, he tries to call someone but is useless. There's no answer
"..." - Iori holds his phone in anger.
Yagami breaths as he decides to go towards the fridge, he opens it unaware that a strange shadow is watching him and managed to enter in the room with him
As Yagami opens the fridge to take a drink, he doesn't realize that the strange shadow looks at him with eyes of desire and murder
*GROAAR* - The creepy shadow jumps towards Yagami opening its mouth
"Hmph!" Yagami quickly turns around and using his technique Ura 108 Shiki: Ya Sakazuki hits the shadow freezing it in place
"ARGH! Yagami, why you-" - Screams Chizuru trying to free from the effects of Yagami's move
"I noticed your presence the moment I put a foot back in this place. What do you want, Kagura?" - Iori
"What?" - Chizuru realizes the effect of the attack has vanished as she is free, she sees Yagami walking back to the couch.
"You're not going to kill me?" - Asked Chizuru confused
"You're already dead, aren't you? Like the many creatures that are now out there in the streets." - Iori
Yagami sits as Chizuru slowly approaches.
"So?" - Iori
"How does it feels to be dead?" - Iori
"It is wonderful." - Chizuru
"I bet." - Iori
"Wanna felt it? Just think about it, Iori? We would be like gods! Not even the Hakkesshu or anyone else would be a threat to us." - Chizuru
"Us?" - Iori
"Why do you act so hard to catch? Is fate, Iori! We are tied by fate to end up like kings in this world. You wouldn't even have to worry about the curse of Orochi anymore." - Chizuru
"We would be inmortal. You wouldn't have to chase after Kyo anymore. You and me, together... Eternal life and youth, the time of humanity is over! Is time for the next dominant especies to rise up." - Chizuru
"Heheheheheh... HAHAHAHAHAHA! Tell me you're joking? You can't be so delusional. You really think I want to spend a eternity with you? Hahahahaha! I can barely torelate you for more than 15 minutes. An eternity with you sounds like a fate worse than death!" - Iori grabs his forehead
"..." - Chizuru is seem visible angry hearing this
"Listen, Kagura. I don't need your damn vampire powers to kill Kyo. And I don't care about your offer! Your appearence might had changed but you're still the same annoying meddling woman you always were." - Iori
"I have better things to do than spend the rest of the night talking with such delusional creature like you." - Yagami gets up ignoring the anger in Chizuru's face
"I guess I will have to show it to you myself. Just a small bite is all I need to open those eyes, it is clear that you don't get it. But soon!" - Chizuru runs towards Yagami
Yagami is prepared to counter attack Chizuru creating a flame in his hand as she jumps
"Haven't you realized, fool! I didn't came here to get a no for answer, you have no idea how much I'm going to enjoy tasting your blood, Yagami! You're the main dish here!" - Says Chizuru approaching Iori
*Carck* - But for Chizuru's surprise, she feels another hand grabing her leg, she turns to see not other than a serious Elisabeth Blanctorche stopping her by the leg
Quickly Elisabeth tosses Kagura back grabing her leg
"ARGH!" - Chizuru is sended to crash against the fridge of the room
"That woman!" - Iori recognizes the woman of blue hair
"It seems like you really don't know how to handle being rejected, Chizuru." - Elisabeth
"Ah... What?" - Chizuru gets up
"You!" - Chizuru stares at Elisabeth, quickly something comes to her mind
"(You're supposed to be a member of the Team Sacred Treasures. You shame them and your ancestors with how you fight!)" - The words of Elisabeth appear full of echo inside Kagura's mind
"You're that blue haired bitch from the tournament!" - Exclaims Chizuru with a hateful tone
"Blanctorche!" - Chizuru gets up with a look full of anger
"Glad to see you remember me, Chizuru Yata. Truth to be told, I was expecting our next reunion to be less chaotic." - Elisabeth
"Shut up! You stupid, arrogant woman. You dared to get in my way but now I'm going to enjoy tearing you apart and drink your blood from that little neck of yours." - Chizuru
"Unbelievable! Just unbelievable! You have been corrupted by the fake promises of whoever is behind this. I heared it all, you really think giving your soul for this power is worth it, isn't it? How weak minded you ended up being." - Elisabeth sighs in disappointment
"Grr.. As if I cared what a piece of trash like you has to say!" - Chizuru
"True, who I am to judge you? But I wonder, what your ancestors would say about it? They must be rolling in their graves seeing the last descendant of the Yata giving up to the temptation of power, being the slave of this king of the vampires." - Elisabeth
"Hmph! Nice attempt at provoking me, but isn't gonna work! You might had been more powerful than me back in the tournament, but right now. I can destroy you with a finger!" - Chizuru
"*Sigh* Are you sure about that? Your chi certainly has increased alot, but I can tell you are still the same insecure woman from the last time, vampire powers or not! In fact, I would recommend you to not try anything funny." - Elisabeth
Both women stare at each other's eyes with serious looks.
"..." - Yagami
"DIE!" - In a blink Chizuru launches to attack Elisabeth, she creates five copies of herself with the intention of killing Elisabeth
"Same strategy as before." - Whispers Elisabeth as she dodges the four copies,
"Enough!" - Elisabeth does a quick slash of light with her hand, she ends up hitting the real Kagura cutting her legs
"ARGH!" - Chizuru crashes next to a wall
Yagami opens his eyes surprised as he sees Chizuru's legs fall to the ground
"YOU DAMN BITCH! ARGH! MY LEGS! WHAT DID YOU DID TO ME?" - Kagura gets up using her hands noticing she doesn't have half of her legs anymore, she stares in the ground at Elisabeth with a look full of anger wanting to tear her apart with every fiber of her being
"IORI! Don't just stare there watching, help me!" - Chizuru
Yagami stares silently at the creature that Kagura has been turned in now, he decides to ignore her pleads
"I respect the legacy of the Yata Clan, they were just caught in the mess between the Kusanagi and Yasakani. They probably saw potencial in the three clans doing more for humanity together than by themselves... Just like the three gods who blessed them with the three sacred treasures. And I think everyone deserves a second chance to amend their mistakes." - Elisabeth
"Killing you would be disrespecting the legacy of the Yata and their story. Which I suppose is something you didn't took into account when becoming a vampire. If you even had a choice." - Elisabeth
"That should stop you from going anywhere now." - Elisabeth
"Grrr..." - Chizuru
"Stop talking as if you know me!" - Chizuru
"Isn't too late for you, Chizuru." - Elisabeth
"We can find a cure for this, you could be a human again. Don't toss the legacy and everything your ancestors fought for to the trash for this loyalty to whoever did this to you." - Elisabeth
"Grr... No! Shut up! I know what are you trying to do." - Chizuru
"Listen, I don't care how but I'm willing to drag you back to Heidern's hideout. We will find a cure for this, I know we will do it. You will be a human again and you will told us who is behind this. After all... You saw the face of your master, isn't it?" - Elisabeth
Chizuru opens her eyes in shock, Iori realizes what Elisabeth had said was truth. Kagura had seen the face of whoever was behind this
"You must be dreaming if you think I will betray my lord!" - Chizuru
"Chizuru, don't you realize whoever this person is. Is only using you as a mere pawn? Your story doesn't have to end here. Allow me to help you!" - Elisabeth
"Shut up! Shut up! There's nothing you can offer me that will make me speak! I'll never do it!" - Chizuru
"Not even for your sister?" - Elisabeth
"What?" - Chizuru
"What if I told you that Maki came back to live again? That she was brought back from the death by the same phenomenon that brought the hakkesshu back?" - Elisabeth
Kagura opens her eyes widely, the image of her sister appears in her mind. Provoking a tear to roll out of her undead right eye
"(Kagura's sister is back?)" - Even Yagami is surprised to hear this
"Lies! That can't be truth! If she was alive I should had found her first with the mirror." - Chizuru
"Perhaps you're so incompetent with the treasure of your clan that you haven't realize it or found her yet, if you even tried that?" - Elisabeth
"Canada, Calgary city, Catalina Place Northeast street. Taken by a young wealthy couple after being found on a park unconscious. A fourteen year old girl, black hair, the only thing she told to the couple was her name... Maki." - Elisabeth
"AH AH!" - Chizuru looks down breathing as shadows cover her eyes
"I can take you to her, but the only thing I need you to do for me is two things. Come with me, Heidern's scientists and medics will benefit from samples of your blood to find a cure. And second... I need you to tell us who is this King of Vampires?" - Elisabeth
Chizuru starts sweating hearing this as she rises her head looking at Elisabeth and Yagami as her eye twitches.
"No! I can't tell you!" - Chizuru
"I sweared my loyalty to my lord!" - Chizuru
In the moment, using her hands Chizuru impulses herself to jump against Elisabeth
"And my mission is to spread the gospel!" - Chizuru rises her hand now more close to Elisabeth
"Bad choice!" - Whispers Elisabeth with a disappointed tone
"Yagami, cover your eyes!" - Elisabeth uses her technique Noble Blanc hitting Chizuru with a intense sphere of light created by her hand
"ARGHG! Damn you Blanctorche... ARGHG! DAMN YOU TO HELL!" - Are the last words of Chizuru as her body is turned to ashes
*Clang* - Opening his eyes, Iori sees the Mirror of Yata and Chizuru's headband falling to the ground
Elisabeth stares at what was left of Chizuru with a disappointed look, she grabs the Mirror of Yata from the ashes
"And at the end, you took this secret to the grave, Chizuru." - Elisabeth grabs the mirror cleaning it
"*Sigh* We have to move out, this part of the city isn't safe anymore. More of them are coming here. I know, I can feel it." - Elisabeth
"Listen, Iori. I'm so sorry that this happened to her. I tried to persuade her into speak but it didn't worked. This shouldn't had happened." - Elisabeth stares at Yagami with a sad look
"I know she was your friend and-" - Elisabeth
"Friend? Tch, don't assume stuff!" - Says Iori interrupting Elisabeth as he crouches to grab Kagura's headband
"Kagura picked her path and payed the consequences for it. For someone so preachy as her, she let the words of this king of vampires twist her world. For what I know she was dead the moment she was biten by them." - Iori looks at the headband for some seconds before tossing it away.
"So what you said about her sister, was it truth?" - Iori
"No, I really don't know if her sister was brought back to live or not. But it was the only way I thought I could convince her to reveal the name of her lord." - Elisabeth
"Hmph! It almost worked." - Iori
"Where do you think you're going? You're coming with me. The streets aren't safe anymore!" - Elisabeth
"Of that I am well aware, but there's something I need to do before leaving this cesspool and I don't expect you to understand it!" - Says Iori walking out of the room
Elisabeth decides to follow Yagami taking the Mirror of Yata with her
Meanwhile
"Give up!" - Sylvie attacks Krohnen, Kyo, Athena, Isla and Shun'ei as the group is surrounded by vampires
"Keep repelling them. Don't let them get close to you!" - Says Kyo attacking Choi, Alice and Robert
As the fighters keep fighting with the horde. More vampires arrive
"Oh no, this is a nightmare!" - Says Kim seeing B. Jenet, Kevin Ryan, Freeman, Xanadu and Jenet's Lillien knights arriving turned into vampires joining the attack
"There's too many of them!" - Says Athena defending herself from Xiangfei, Yuri and King
"ARGG!" - Kensou is biten by Kasumi
"NOO, Kensou!" - Athena
"Damn it, there's too many!" - Kyo hits Freeman and Kevin as they try to grab him
Shun'ei sees how Dolores and Kukri are biten by Robert and Mary
"ARGH!" - Angel is biten by Sylvie
"NO!" - Krohnen burns Sylvie taking her away from Angel
"Argh! Leave without me, I can feel my blood boiling like crazy! Urgh!" - Says Angel looking down grabing her neck as Krohnen tries to help her get up
"No way! I can't leave you behind, we need to keep moving. Maybe isn't too late for you!" - Krohnen
*Swossh* - A sound is heared as the fighters see Najd approaching them using her shadow powers to make her way to them pushing the other vampires away
"Move out! They are mine!" - Najd lands in the middle of the street
"Hello, Kyo. Hello Athena. Did you guys missed me?" - Najd
"You know, before entering in my first tournament two years ago. I always dreamed on meeting you two and Terry Bogard. You were my idols and I wanted to one day be able to meet you in person, but those are just memories of the past. Right now, nothing would make me more happy than drink your blood!" - Najd uses her powers to grab Athena and Kyo with covering her arms with her shadows
"ARGH!" - Both Kyo and Athena struggle as Najd tries to crush their bones
"Hahahaha... I can't wait to taste your sweet blood. I'm gonna make a drink with all your blood mixed! The psychic powered idol and the scion of flame killed by me. What an honor!" - Najd
"I don't think so, freak!" - Isla hits Najd with Amanda sending her to crash against a nearby car
"Shun'ei! This isn't going to end well for us, we need to destroy the electric barrier and I think I know how." - Isla sees Sylvie attacking Benimaru covering herself with a electric shield
"Come here, handsome! Where do you think you're going? I thought you were a ladies man." - Sylvie
"You're not my type." - Benimaru repels Sylvie's attack
"Huh?" - Sylvie is surprised as she is grabed by four large hands one blue, another red and two purple ones.
The four hands start compressing Sylvie inside her forcefield, making her scream before she is crushed by the force of Shun'ei and Isla's powers
"ARGH!" - Sylvie is crushed as the barrier of electricity covering the street disappears.
"Quick, we have to get out of here!" - Isla tosses a car at the vampires to slow them with Amanda. The rest of the survivors continue their way to the sewers following Leona, Ralf and Maxima
Athena, Kim, Benimaru and Kyo look behind seeing the number of Vampires having increased from this encounter
The fighters finally enter in the sewers through the subway station
Meanwhile
"Argh!" - Lee Pai Long is sended to ground rolling as his mask breaks, revealing him having recovering his youth and now looking like another vampire
"Is over Lee. Tell me everything you know!" - Says Andy approaching alongside Mai towards Lee
"Damn Bogard brat! You dared to ruin my night! AH AH. I told you already that I don't know anything." - Lee
"Why is that I don't believe you? I know you're hidding something. Speak! Unless you want to turned into ashes?" Andy
"I would never betray my lord!" - Lee quickly gets up trying to attack Mai.
With a serious look on her face, Mai uses her technique Explosive Mai burning Lee to ashes
"This is useless, none of them want to talk!" - Andy
Turning to see the Mai, Andy wonders what is she thinking about
"(She is probably still thinking about King and Chizuru. I know she has faith that the two are still alive, but at this point South Town has been claimed by those beasts. What assures me that King and Chizuru aren't part of their group now, assuming they even survived. Being caught by them only leads to two paths, death and becoming one of them.)" - Andy
For the surprise of Andy and Mai, a woman sporting a rifle passes carefully through the area, she turns to see them reacting shocked
"Freeze! Identify yourselves!" - Says the woman pointing her rifle at the two
"We aren't part of their group, we are still humans! You must be one of Heidern's mercenaries." - Andy
"Yes but I need to comprobate something!" - Using a UV light, the woman covers Andy and Mai with the light, she is surprised to see them blocking the light with their arms moving backwards but not burning
"What a relief, you're not vampires." - Says the woman removing her helmet and turning off the lights
"Come with me, I'll take you two to the hideout!" - Says the woman as the two follow her
Ralf, Leona and the rest finally escape arriving close to the street where the hideout is.
"The area is safe, move out!" - Leona
"You heared her. Move it!" - Ralf
Entering in the building, Kyo and co are surprised to see the elevator to the bottom of the building leading to the underground hideout
"So this is where you guys have been operating?" - Benimaru
"Yes, like we told you. Heidern got this letter and sample from Geese. But we didn't thought the situation was worse than just a couple of vampires." - Ralf
"An entire army. Filled with civilians, martial artists and criminals from South Town." - Leona
"The scientist have tried to work on a cure with the few vampire corpses our group have been bringing. With enough luck we may develop a cure soon." - Says Ralf as Kyo and the rest see Heidern's scientists working with some bodies that look familiar like Alfred Airhawk, JinFu-Ha and Ryuhaku Todoh
"Move it, move it!" - The group sees a group of medics moving a body covered in a sheet
"So nothing can be done?" - Heidern appears alongside a medic
"No, Commander. His body was impaled, by the time we arrived it had been already two hours after his death." - Says the medic as Kyo and the rest follow them
"Did you found anything close to him? Any clue?" - Heidern
"No, Commander. Nothing at all." - Medic
"*Sigh* Take him to the morgue." - Heidern
Coming along with a mercenary, the group sees Ryo entering through the elevator
"Ryo! You're fine?" - Kyo
"Kyo, Athena, Benimaru. Is good to see you're fine! I heared about what happened in the stadium. I can't believe the city has been overtaken by them." - Ryo
"Ryo, I'm sorry about what happened to Yuri, Robert and King." - Athena
"I know. They tried to attack me some hours before the incident in the stadium. I can't believe this is happening!" - Ryo
"Commander. So nothing can be done for Terry Bogard?" - Approaches Whip writing a note
"What?" - Kyo and the rest are surprised hearing the name of the victim that the Doctors were taking to the morgue
"No. We arrived late, whoever did this to him probably tried to turn him into a vampire. Part of his blood was sucked out, but it probably happened after he died. Hence why he didn't turned into a vampire." - Heidern
"What? Terry? He is-" - Kyo approaches both Heidern and Whip
"Dead. I'm truly sorry, but his body was left on the beach of South town. By the time we arrived, he had been dead for two hours." - Whip
Kyo and the rest look down hearing the confirmation that Terry Bogard had died
"Terry..." - Athena and the rest see Terry's body being covered with the sheet from the entrance of the morgue
"I don't understand, who could had done this to him?" - Ryo
"One of those blood sucking bastards!" - Shun'ei
"We will find whoever did this, Ryo. I promise!" - Say Athena cleaning her tears
One hour later
Athena is seen resting cleaning her face in one of the restrooms.
"*Sigh*" - Athena
The door opens with Ryo entering in the room noticing Athena alone looking at the mirror in front of her
"Hello, Ryo!" - Athena
"Athena is everything ok?" - Ryo
"That's a strange question, our friend died at the hands of these monsters. Alot of our friends are part of the group of this vampire lord. Nothing is ok." - Says Athena thinking about Kensou and the rest of people now turned into part of the horde
"Maybe it was one of Geese's men. Nobody has seen him ever since this started." - Ryo
"Is that who you think did this?" - Athena
"I don't know. But even crossing anyone he had a story from the list of suspects would help." - Ryo
"Terry isn't like Iori. I doubt this was done for vengeance." - Athena
"You got used to it very quickly." - Athena looks at Ryo
"What?" - Ryo
"Refering to Terry in past tense. I keep speaking of him as if he were to come back. You don't." - Athena
"You know, Terry always said you were cute." - Ryo
"I don't think that's true." - Athena
"You're a wonderful person, Athena. You're able to connect with others and understand them. Is part of your charm and charisma, your smile makes one feel calm. Just asks Kensou, Kyo, Terry and even... Yagami." - Ryo smiles
"*Sigh* You're emotional right now, Ryo. You're not thinking clearly." - Says Athena looking down
"I promise I am. Losing my friends and family, losing Terry. It made me realize sometimes the thing we've been looking for has been right in front of us the whole time." - Ryo
"I was just thinking the same!" - Athena pushes Ryo with all her forces towards the wall of the room, using her psycho powers she creates a barrier holding Ryo in place
"..." - Ryo stares silently at Athena
"Speak, Ryo Sakazaki!" - Athena uses her psycho powers on Ryo but she is unable to read his mind.
"You want to know the truth, Athena? I have no reason to lie to you. I am a vampire. Its wonderful!" - Says Ryo whispering to Athena's ear
Athena opens her eyes widely
"I take my energy from the lifeblood of others. There is nothing wrong with that. Is just natural selection doing its work." - Ryo
"I can't believe it, you killed Terry! He was our friend." - Athena
"I didn't wanted to kill him, I wanted him to join us! It was an accident." - Ryo
"I couldn't believe I lost alot of friends today, but now I see that even you. You're one of them, I can't let you get away with whatever you plan to do here, Ryo." - Athena
"I don't want to hurt you, Athena." - Says Ryo as Athena stares at his eyes, suddenly she sees two spirals taking the place of his pupils.
"Argh!" - Athena feels a headache starting to become dizzy as she tries to not look at his eyes
"Keep staring at me! You're feeling tired, isn't it?" - Ryo
"Ryo. NO! I wont let you-Ah!" - Athena moans becoming fully hypnotized by Ryo
Staring at the hypnotized Athena, Ryo smiles
"Free me." - Whispers Ryo as Athena removes the psycho shield around his body
"Tell me, Athena. Has anyone ever tell you how tasty your neck looks?" - Ryo approaches his sharp fangs at Athena's neck
"Let me share some of my happiness with you. Welcome to the new world order, Asamiya Athena." - Ryo
"NO, this can't be! This can't be!" - Andy is seeing reacting angry at the morgue after seeing the body of Terry.
"Andy... Stop. This outburst isn't going to fix anything!" - Mai
"Grr... You're right, Mai. This won't fix anything. What I need to do is find whoever did this to my brother and make him pay! Is what I need to do." - Andy
"Andy, we will find whoever did this to Terry. This won't stay this way, trust us." - Kyo
"On that you're right, Kyo! I finally know who is the vampire lord... The same person who killed Terry!" - Athena enters in the morgue alongside Ryo
"What? Athena, you know who is the responsable?" - Kyo
"The same person who is behind this?" - Isla
"Yes, Iori Yagami killed Terry! He is the vampire king. He is hiding right now... Two kilometers away from here." - Athena
"Yagami is in South Town?" - Says Benimaru as he and the rest are shocked
To Be Continued...
"You're supposed to be a member of the Team Sacred Treasures. You shame them with how you fight!"
"Still the best quote in the entire game. The fact that even the people at SNK think Chizuru is a jobber is just funny, but then again, they are the same ones who ended up "putting her in a fridge" during the Ash saga. And I mean, they aren't wrong, Elisabeth is a better Chizuru than Chizuru at the end of the day. But that does lead to another thing.
The concept of a rivalry between our Jobber of the Yata clan and the Blanctorche actually sounds like an interesting idea, they are the same archetype of character and literally share alot of similarities, you would think they could be best friends. But the idea of Elisabeth instead finding the heiress of the Yata clan to be a total disappointment is something more fascinating IMO. Is a shame that just like the quote, the idea comes out of nowhere, there's no context beyond Blanctorche's win quote. Like yeah, she thinks Chizuru is trash. Alright I get that. But what lead to that conclusion? Where's the context? Where's the building?
I'm not even asking for a story mode ala NRS games going into detail, I know SNK is allergic to those. Even something like an intro between the two would had been good to stablish the relation they have. XV could really use a few more special intros certainly." - Mortos