Chapter 75: Under the Crimson Air
A vampire and a vampire hunter stood in front of each other in the top floor of the Don Jon Tower, which is still under construction. The Red Moon shines brightly above them, illuminating the dreadful night and the battles occurring below.
No words are exchanged as both read each other's intentions from the slightest of movements and expression changes. Both are grinning like madmen, their hands trembling with excitement, waiting for the other to make their move. But as their "conversation" started to become too familiar, both of the stopped said "conversation" in favour of a verbal conversation in order to maintain the secrecy of each other's personas lest someone observant may notice their true identities. Currently they are not Shadow and Necromancer after all.
"I knew our paths will cross one day, Professor Van Helsing. It is good to finally meet you." Alucard said while bowing mockingly.
"Hmph. I am a hunter of the night. I will always appear where you flaunt your fangs, Count." Van Helsing replied.
"Is that so? You think you can get in my way tonight?"
"Indeed. I will not allow you to have her." Declared Van Helsing, referring to Epsilon.
"Ha ha ha! You fool. You've failed to stop me before. What makes you think you can stop me from claiming her?" Said Alucard, referring to the Blood Queen.
"The lives you've taken shall be avenged!" Said Van Helsing, referring to the Shadow Garden members that Alucard killed.
"Ha! You couldn't stop me from killing those pitiful wretches before as well. What makes you think you can stop me now?" Said Alucard, referring to everyone, including the Cultists and workers, that he killed in the temple.
"You are right here. Right in front of me. Within my blade's reach. Of course I can stop you." Van Helsing declared while brandishing her silver blade and steel sword, dual wielding them.
"During the Red Moon? You think your pitiful human strength can match my powers? Especially empowered by the moon? Most arrogant of you, Professor Van Helsing."
"Oh I think I can, Count. And I don't need borrowed powers to do it." Said Van Helsing while making a cross symbol with his blades like a certain regenerator priest from a vampire manga series did.
"What arrogance. I shall take great pleasure in destroying it! And then I shall see to it that the girl dies by night and be reborn as an undead! SHE SHALL BE MY BRIDE!" Declared Alucard as he makes an inverted cross symbol with his hands and claws the way a certain pistol wielding vampire from the same manga series did.
Yes! This guy is good! He totally gets it! Thought Van Helsing while grinning.
Heh. Hellsing reference, eh? Not bad! Thought Alucard while also grinning.
In an instant, both of them vanished from where they stood and reappeared in front of each other, Van Helsing's blades clashing against Alucard's claws.
Their clash generated a shockwave which created a crater on the floor, sending debris and dust flying around them. The shockwave also shook the whole building, a testament to how powerful both combatants are.
They eventually broke away from the clash of blades and claws and delivered more attacks to each other, every attack clashing with the other's, blades clashing against claws. More craters were created as a result of their clashes.
Eventually spikes emerging from Alucard's cape joined the clash but Van Helsing was still able to keep up with the unpredictable nature of the spikes, being capable of predicting where the spikes would emerge in order to avoid or block them with his blades.
Van Helsing then took some garlic bombs he crafted from his pocket and threw them towards Alucard, who was forced to shield himself with his cape and jumped backwards to avoid the gas that emerged from the garlic bombs.
"Bahhh… How prepared you are, Professor Van Helsing. For someone with such a short life, you are a wise man." Alucard complimented his adversary with a frown.
"A vampire hunter is always prepared, Count. Especially against a formidable enemy such as you." Replied Van Helsing with a grin.
"Let's see if you're prepared for this!" Alucard shouted as he jumped to the air and opened his cape, letting it stretch out like bat wings. Spikes emerged from the cape and Van Helsing can already guess what the spikes are for as he concentrated his magical energy towards his legs.
Alucard fired the spikes from his cape. A barrage of red arrows shoots towards Van Helsing with the speed of modern day bullets and Van Helsing dodged them almost effortlessly.
Just as Van Helsing was about to mock the vampire for how simple his attack is, the spikes which were embedded on the floor began twitching and eventually stretches out, aiming their pointy end towards Van Helsing like spears.
"Heh." Van Helsing merely chuckled as he sliced the spears off with his blades before they can harm him. Whist Van Helsing is distracted by the spikes, Alucard moved behind him and stretched his cape whilst also hardening and sharpening its end in order to use it as a blade, swinging it at Van Helsing.
Van Helsing, whose movements are limited due to being surrounded by spikes that he had to fend off, was still able to block Alucard's cape blade with his sword, but from the stretched cape emerged several spikes that stretches out towards him, forcing him to jump away from his adversary.
"Bad move." Alucard muttered as he sent the spears, which were embedded on the floor, towards Van Helsing, who is still up in the air. Van Helsing poured some magic to his feet and performed an air jump in order to avoid the spikes.
"Hoo…" Alucard merely smiled as he watched Van Helsing running in the air whilst being chased by his spears, which continued to follow him. Van Helsing eventually jumped towards Alucard at high speed, intending to slice him off. Alucard dodged the first strike, which came from his steel sword, but Van Helsing jumped again, lunging towards Alucard and managed to stab Alucard's stomach with his silver sword.
"Arghh….! So this is the enchantment… of your sword!" Alucard groaned in pain as he suffered great pain from Van Helsing's silver sword. Before Van Helsing could escape though, he used his own flesh to grip Van Helsing's blade, not letting it escape as he retaliated by piercing Van Helsing's body with his spikes from multiple directions.
"An eye for an eye, Professor Van Helsing." Alucard said as he finally let go of the silver blade which continued to harm him even as he gripped it with his body. Van Helsing jumped back, not showing any sign of weakening despite his many wounds even though Alucard is very much affected by the stab wound on his stomach, which heals slower than usual due to the blade's enchantment.
But despite that, Alucard merely grins as he has another card up his sleeve.
"Did you know, Professor Van Helsing… that the Blood is the Life." Alucard remarked as he snaps his fingers and blood began flowing out of Van Helsing's wounds towards Alucard.
"Like I'll let you." Said Van Helsing as he injected his own magic to his blood by replicating Aurora's technique, dispersing Alucard's spikes which are embedded in his body and Alucard's magic coating his blood, pulling his blood back to his body.
"Hoo… Not bad." Alucard remarked in admiration of his foe.
"If you're thirsty, I'll give you something better to drink." Van Helsing said as he took out a vial of holy (enchanted) water from his pocket, threw it in the air and sliced the bottle with his silver sword. Then he used his magic to control the water, spraying it towards Alucard.
Alucard took the water attack head on, not expecting the water to actually harm him.
"Arrghhh! Impossible! Holy water!? In this godless world!?" Shouted Alucard as he groaned in pain as the water melts his skin like acid.
Whilst he was distracted by the pain, Van Helsing brandished his holy water coated silver blade and rushed towards the panicking Alucard.
Not wanting to be harmed by the silver blade which is coated by holy water, Alucard turns into mist and flew away. Van Helsing stomps on the floor to generate shockwave, nearly dispersing the mist. The shockwave forced Alucard to revert back to his original form, whereupon Van Helsing immediately rushed towards him with his blade in hand.
Alucard called back his spikes from earlier to intercept Van Helsing's advance but Van Helsing dodged them all effortlessly, not slowing even for a second.
Just as Van Helsing was about to slice the vampire, Alucard smirks and caught the blade in his hand.
"You fool. You think you can match me with your feeble human strength?" Alucard said as he held Van Helsing's blade strongly in his grip, not letting go.
"Tch. So you feigned weakness in order to catch me off guard." Van Helsing remarked without losing his grin.
"Even if it is not on the night of the Red Moon I still have powers that far surpasses what a human like you can reach. I am immortal. I AM THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS!" Alucard shouted as he extends the claws on his free hand, preparing to stab Van Helsing with it.
"But even you can obtain such power. If only you swear to serve me in living death." Alucard offered.
"Not a chance, Count." Van Helsing refused.
"Hmph. Then you shall die a mortal's death. Like the rest of your kind." Alucard said before attempting to stab Van Helsing with his free hand, only for his claws to be deflected by Van Helsing's other blade. The blade that clashed with the claw is the silver blade coated with holy water and it destroyed Alucard's nails quickly.
"What!?" Alucard, realizing too late that the blade he caught is not the silver blade but the regular steel sword, was caught off guard as his torso was sliced by Van Helsing's silver blade.
"Tch!" That's what I get for multitasking! Though I can't help it because the battle in the Crimson Tower is getting interesting! Thought Alucard, who occasionally glanced towards the Crimson Tower whilst battling Van Helsing.
Alucard tried to retreat but Van Helsing threw his enchanted knives towards the vampire. Some knives were deflected by Alucard's cape, some managed to pierce him on his torso, giving him more excruciating pain and wounds that refuse to heal even with his high healing factor.
"Is that all you've got, Count? I'd be disappointed if it is." Van Helsing taunted triumphantly.
"Hmph. You overestimated your own abilities, vampire hunter." Alucard remarked as he sliced his wrist with his claw and sent the blood pouring from his wrist towards the wounds in his chest, healing them instantly.
"The Blood is the Life." Alucard said as he began to use blood magic, creating hundreds of blood spears and sending them towards Van Helsing.
"Hmph. How is this different from the spikes you sent earli-" Van Helsing's words were cut off when he realized that the blood spears were coated with something familiar, something he have only encountered from one enemy.
Hmph. So he has the negative energy attack too? Makes sense since he is an undead himself. And this time it's even a ranged attack! Even the Necromancer couldn't do that! Van Helsing thought as he dodged the spears sent his way, not even trying to block them because he doubted his blades could survive contact with the rot magic coated blood spears.
"Not so tough now, are you?" Alucard taunted while sending more blood spears towards his enemy. Van Helsing, even though he is forced to avoid all contact with the blood spears, is still familiar with this dance ever since his encounter with Aurora in Lindwurm as Shadow and thus was able to dodge effortlessly.
His movements… How familiar. Could it be that he… trained with Shadow or something? Alucard thought as he found the way Van Helsing dodges his spears to be familiar.
"But…" Alucard smirks as his blood spears joined together to form a spiky wall, which constantly shrinks in order to trap Van Helsing inside.
Totally didn't rip this move from the Blood Queen. Thought Alucard as he copied the Blood Queen's move which he saw when he glanced towards the Crimson Tower whilst fighting Van Helsing.
The spiky walls, the iron maiden made of blood, closed in. As it is coated in rot magic, Van Helsing would have to sacrifice his blade if he wanted to break through the trap. And he did just that.
"Ho? Sacrificing not your steel sword but your blessed silver blade?" Alucard remarked curiously as he saw Van Helsing sliced through the surrounding blood trap with his silver blade, breaking it in the process.
"But now you've lost your main weapon. Now you have no way of defeating me." Alucard taunted.
"Perhaps so. But you still will not win tonight." Van Helsing replied.
"Nothing but a bluff!" Alucard shouted as he sent several blood spears towards Van Helsing, who blocked the attack with his remaining sword but was knocked away from the building.
"Hmph." Alucard leisurely walked towards where Van Helsing fell and…
"Where are you looking at?" And heard a familiar voice behind him.
Author's Note:
Been a long time, huh? Well to me it's been ages because I had to travel abroad so a mere week felt almost like a month has passed. Updates will be slower now because I'll be starting a new work this year. Hopefully I won't be burnt out. This chapter's title is a reference towards something, as is the location of their battle. Can you guess?
Wholesome07: u getting busy? I'm kinda worried that u might stop creating more chaps like To be a Female Eminence in Shadow.
Answer: Hopefully I won't get burnt out. Also yeah it's a shame that the author of Female Eminence in Shadow has stopped updating that fic.
Bolvar57: Nagash (nigromante) se toma su tiempo en aparecer.
Answer: This is still the vampire arc after all.
dariuscrawford482: Do play Fire Emblem Awakening, Fire Emblem Fates, Fire Emblem 3 Houses and Fire Emblem Engage
Answer: I'm a fan of the Fire Emblem series but honestly never played those games, only played the GBA Fire Emblem games. Despite that, I used to be in the Fatesona (Fire Emblem Fates OC) community.
HundredMasks : I just genuinely want Alucard to be a Sympathetic villain, I mean, it's one of the main ways to make a villain, and it'd be a cool contrast with necromancer being stronger than him because "he still has humanity in him" or something, which would make his necromancer persona more menacing
Answer: Hmm… That sounds interesting. Let's see if I can come up with something based on this premise.
