Chapter 31: Vampire's Fangs

Garuga and Raia rushed towards the warehouse. Behind them, Erodon gave chase, slowing down considerably in an odd manner, as if allowing them to continue ahead.

Groups of men spilled out, totaling around fifty in number.

Glancing at one another, the pair nodded before splitting up. Raia leapt above the men and through the window on the second floor. Garuga forced his way through the center.

They roared, almost inhumanly, converging on the Shadow Dragon. He wasted no time in beginning his defense. Man after man of the reformed Los Dragones poured at Garuga, old fashioned swords, spears and such in their grasp. It was odd at first, but he pushed it from his mind as his body began to move flawlessly.

Garuga caught one of the swords by the tip, spinning around and placing a firm kick on his attackers behind him. As a small group fell, he picked up one by his sword tip, snapping it and jamming his fingers into the man's chest, eyes emitting a black mist. Muttering a silent spell, he tossed the man back into the group. The men who caught him, stared at the darkness on his chest, before a light began to erupt and the men were blown into bloody pieces from the explosion.

"Nana," Raia said, sliding towards her and untying her wrists.

The girl fell to the floor, her mind still shut. Nana's eyes were blank, yet red as if she had been crying. While her hair had a bit of dried blood in it, she didn't look too bad. Just exhausted.

"Come on, you gotta get up!"

The sound of a gun clicking filled Raia's ears. She looked up to the second floor, spotting Ryan aiming down at her with a small SMG. "Leave. Now. That girl is under my watch."

"What is that little thing going to do?" Raia laughed. She picked up Nana and slung her arm over her shoulders as Ryan pulled the trigger and began firing.

A couple bullets ripped through Raia's stomach, but she ignored the pain and leapt behind an open crate, placing Nana on her back and growling. "Great. Now these guys are packing heat."

"Blood bullets. Specially enhanced by Erodon's own blood cells." He emptied the cartridge and placed another inside the gun, the barrel smoking from his previous shots. "He's drunk a lot of blood over his long life. Who knows what's in his system now?"

"Shit. I didn't think they'd have that kind of weaponry. Nana, you can get up any time now, because I'm pretty sure those bullets have my weakness in them somewhere." Nana didn't even flinch. It was like she was dead, but Raia crushed that idea at the simple fact that her breaths were still coming into her lungs, although very, very slowly.

"No good." Ryan descended down the staircase, his arm locked on the crate Raia was hiding behind. Dim lights swung slowly overhead, creaking metal echoing through the inside, while constant explosions and cries of pain filled the warehouse from the outside. "Kairas said her mind is shot. She had a special connection to his brother, right? Now that he's dead, she lost her purpose." He swallowed the lump in his throat, the sweat on his hands freezing at the cold metal in his grasp.

Why was he there? He was a simple human. This was a fight between forces beyond his understanding, yet he had something pinned behind a crate trying to protect her angel friend while another monster was making short work on his gang outside.

"Hate to burst your bubble sweetie, but Takabi WAS dead. He's on his way right now, and he's going to ruin whatever you got planned here." She spoke, yet wasn't sure. As far as she knew, it was all a trap, and they were only allowing them to get this far for the….

"..... Oh fuck me."

"Gladly," Erodon's voice chimed.

Raia looked up as the Vampire gripped her by her throat, raising her in the air. He glanced back at Nana's body and kicked her away, the Angel tumbling towards the doors of the warehouse. "Did you actually think you could make it this far on your own? Truly?" His eyes glanced back. "I will admit I'm lucky. If your Dragon friend out there came with you, there would be a good chance this whole thing would screw up. Amazing, how fate is." He released his grip on her, allowing her to drop for a few seconds before he used his vampire speed to jam his fist into her ribs, twisting and snapping them under the weight of his knuckles.

Raia spun around uncontrollably, flying back and slammed into the wooden wall behind Ryan, coughing up blood as she fell flat on her face. Erodon strolled over to her casually, smiling to himself. "Ryan, kill the other girl. No need for her if she's just a brain dead corpse."

"But.." He hesitated, Erodon glaring at him as he stomped on Raia's head, forcing her face into the concrete and shattering her nose, blood spewing along the cold floor. "I got it." He said, slowly walking over to Nana.

"Keep… Away from her you… Bitch!"

"Foul mouth, aren't you? Well, I expected as much from a Succubus." He blinked a moment, touching his chin. "Ah, right. You're the one that the other kid told me about."

"What other… K… Riki… What happened to Riki! What did you do to him!"

"Well, the kid ran in here, guns blazing. It's actually pretty funny, because he talked a lot of hot shit because he THOUGHT he could take me." He tapped a finger against his throat. "Now, I don't take challenges lightly, and the guy wouldn't leave so I had to knock some sense into his head. Only I hit a little too hard and took it clean off!" He laughed loudly then, as if he told the funniest joke in the world. "Even took his eyes out as a trophy before his body hit the floor. That was a bitch to clean up."

"You… You can't be…"

"Serious?" He reached into his pocket, pulling out a loose eyeball, the white orb full of lint and red veins. "You tell me. I'm sure you can SEE where I'm coming from." His cheeks puffed, and he started laughing again.

Raia lowered her gaze, biting her lip hard. A tear dropped, causing Erodon to grip her by her hair and pull her up towards his face.

"Hm.. You're cuter than the other one. Maybe I have some actual use for you."

She spat blood in his face, and he licked his lips, fangs shooting out of his gums and eyes glowing a strong red. "Tasty."

Ryan cried out in pain.

Erodon turned, raising his free hand and knocking the human male aside into the wall. His eyes locked with violet orbs, and a smile stretched across his face. "You actually beat him?"

"Yeah," Takabi said, Nana in his grasp. Garuga walked in behind him, the men outside scattered about in a massive pool of dark blood. "You alright, Raia?"

"About as okay as a girl can be with a broken nose," She replied.

Erodon dropped her, keeping his eyes locked on Takabi as the boy handed Nana to Garuga. The Angel suddenly stirred, her eyes regaining their conscious color as she gazed at his back.

"T… Ta…."

He looked back at her and simply gave her a smile. He was alive. Truly alive, and he seemed to be better than before. "So… You really weren't dead."

"No, I was." He said bluntly, rubbing his chest through the hole in his shirt. "I met my mother in limbo and everything before I came back. No idea how I did, but I'm here now, and I'm ready to put an end to this."

"Be careful, please." She said, and he nodded, facing Erodon.

The Vampire shrugged smugly, tapping his finger against his hip. "Are you done yet? I've been waiting to fight one of your kind for eons."

A sudden shockwave blew Takabi back hard, Nana calling his name as Erodon gave chase. His body smashed through a couple buildings, people screaming as he passed by. The final wall he broke through, he flipped and began sliding back, looking around and noting he was in the public park. Dozens of people looked at him strangely, some already filled with fear.

Erodon came down from the air fast, his body whizzing in the breeze. Takabi dodged as he landed, rushing around and striking with a flaming punch. The impact shattered the soil, pieces of earth ripping up slightly from its place. Erodon held Takabi's knuckles firmly, smiling down at him. "Is that all you got?"

Takabi felt his heart burn and skip a beat. When he looked up, he smiled proudly as flames ignited around his body completely. The two began to dash through and around the park at invisible speeds, the only evidence of their battle being the sudden shockwaves that ripped the ground apart. Takabi flipped, coming into view and landing a hard kick, before running forward and throwing rapid punches. Erodon ducked, dodged and weaved, all the while smiling before he began to counter.

Takabi spun and brought his arm back in a chop, missing narrowly and parrying one of Erodon's fists, taking a sudden strike from his knee. Sucking in air, he began to roll his fists over one another, before blocking a second knee strike and raising his leg, connecting his foot to Erodon's underarm. Takabi jabbed, missing narrowly but bringing his left fist around in a heavy hook, then landing another kick and sending the Vampire flying back. The ancient being flipped, a staff of magic suddenly appearing in his grasp as Takabi raced towards him.

"Come! Excite me more!" He yelled.

Violet electricity began to surge around Takabi, the boy's eyes glowing as he got close. He began to evade Erodon's following attacks, sliding between his legs before jumping to his feet and spinning around, blocking the staff and knocking it above his head. Erodon twirled and spun the staff on his back, spinning and swiping it down, catching Takabi's forehead and drawing a bit of blood. The wound healed immediately, Takabi knocking Erodon's staff out of his grasp, flames surging around him before a large fire fist struck the vampire and sent him flying in the air.

The people in the park had already rushed away from the center of the battle, watching in awe, many on their phones recording or dialing for the police. This wasn't a fight the cops should get involved in.

Erodon propelled himself downward, slamming his forehead into Takabi's. The pressure began to rise, Erodon's fists and kicks coming in much faster than previously. Even with his eyes' ability, it was difficult to dodge and block all of the attacks. Erodon pulled his arm back and slammed his palm against Takabi's ribs, knocking the air from his lungs and stunning him momentarily. The vampire took the chance to jam his fingers into Takabi's heart, wiggling them around as the boy dropped to a knee.

"Come on, where is it? Where is that damn Gem?!"

Despite coughing up blood, Takabi gave him a cocky smile and flipped him off. "Eat shit." His body began to erupt in a thick flame, fading away. "When did he make a fake?!"

The ground under Erodon cracked, Takabi's fist rushing out and striking the Vampire's chin dead on, once again forcing him into the air. Taking a deep breath, Takabi let his flames rush from his throat, not noticing the gathering helicopters in the air until one shined a spotlight down on him, the flames rushing into the clouds before fading. Erodon hit the ground, but laughed maniacally. Not a single burn mark, but steam was rising from his pores. "Yes, Yes, that's it! Show me the power of that God Gem, Takabi Yamishito!"

The skin by his eyes began to crack, thick silver hair beginning to pour out from under his muscle. His shirt ripped first, before his pants and shoes, webbed wings ripping out of his back and bones cracking. He hunched over, glowing eyes now red filled orbs, his feet digging up dirt. Erodon gave one loud screech, shattering glass for miles, even on the helicopters.

"Oh." Takabi paused. "So that's a thing then."