Ep11: Broken Tables and Bonds

"So, what book are we reading today?" Issia asked, popping out of the pond. She had spotted him on his walk towards his class, reading something in his hands. "Book two in the saga," he responds, holding out his hands for the first book.

"Oh come on, I have only finished this one once…"

"That is alright, but I'm not giving you this one until you give me that one." He cups his hand a few times for emphasis. Issia disappeared under the water, popping back up with the first book protected by a bubble. "You're so mean," she jokingly said, tossing the bubble and its cargo to him. Lao tucked the wet book into his blue coat, pulling down his hoodie and going to the water edge to sit with her. "Is this the face of my dealer?" she asked. "Or another mask like those really smart bounty hunters?"

"Real face. Let's hurry through this one, I have something to attend to…"

____________________________________________________________________________

Lao squeezed out the ends of his clothing on his way. I had gotten too close to the edge, he thought to himself, getting the last drops he could twist out before giving up and letting the day take care of the rest. He was the first one to get to the group's established clearing; not even Valhalla was diligent enough to be here yet (not that he had told her the time he comes). He dug around the bushes before finding an ax that he had stashed here, using the time to himself to chop down a few trees. To him, there was nothing like watching the morning dew shakedown while he buried a blade into a trunk. It was fine for stress, and

"A lovely way to make more space for exercises. Superior to even the coffee in the castle," a sultry voice said in front of him. "That is what you're thinking right?"

His hand on his gun, he peeked around the tree bark, seeing a dark blue being dotted with flecks of light. Her skin literally twinkled like the night sky, and her hair and dress flowed gracefully and as slow as molasses. "Next you will ask, what are you?"

"Actually the word 'Jojo' comes to mind, but you are a lilim aren't you?"

"Oh….just getting to the point are we?" She stepped out from behind the tree, sitting on nothing but thin air. "Maybe I should end this season early since you want to be so smart, just take you to Virto and-"

"Wait, Virto!?"

"Woops, I triggered your memories." She tapped his head, a brief flash showing up on his head. He blinked twice then shakes head, suddenly getting a headache. "Wait...why is a Lilim in front of me? You took my memory didn't you?"

"Yes, yes I did." Under her alluring exterior, she blew a loud sigh glad she had saved the story. "I have a pet see? One that I love to the ends of the universe...it seems she has taken a toy of her own. One of the students if I recall her words...but more importantly, she told me about you, dear."

Lao put his hand on his revolver, getting a weird case of deja vu. "No need to shoot me yet Lao, I haven't even gotten to the juuuuicy part~" The strange-looking lilim started circling him like a lion that had cornered a zebra. "I know someone that knows you, and I know that you could be looking for him. Doesn't a silhouette come to mind occasionally? Perhaps, in your sleep?"

"No, why would…" He thought back to the first time it had happened, back when he was just an orderite fighting off a dark elf.

"You trailed off. I hit a nail, didn't I? Aren't you curious to see what you are thinking about?"

"No, not from you." The last thing he wanted to do was to make a deal with her, as mysterious as she was being. "I can't trust you at all."

"Oh, but you can. Anyone trusts me after a while. Besides, my terms are very….simple. You let me toy with you for a bit, and I will let you see your mystery person. No word spin, no hidden terms. Everything I say, even the last sentence will be binding." She holds her hand out, a blue flame surrounding it.

"I said no. Back off," he stated, more firmly this time.

"Oh dear, what will it take to convince you? Money? Power? Money and Power? I can give you anything you wish right now." Unwilling to take her seriously, Lao thought of the most bizarre thing he could think of in the moment. "Fine then, I want my weapons to be able to choose between harming in the normal way and demon realm way...and a lifetime supply of coffee."

"That is it?" She said, snapping her fingers. "Check your pockets." Lao complied, finding a small container of coffee grounds tucked neatly away. "It refills infinitely and changes to whatever flavor you wish. I do use 'you' in the sense of your heart, however, but that is how it usually is with deals this obscure." Next Lao checked his weapons. His guns were now a mix of white red and yellow, with his ammo being divided accordingly. His sword had been given a button on the handle in the same scheme. "Just as you asked, with an additional setting an orderite might love."

"I…." he pressed the button on the sword, seeing it glow white. Pressing it again made it glow red, and once more turned it yellow, before cycling back to white.

"Is it not to your liking? I can no longer retract the wish, but you are always free to ask for an adjustment."

"Wait, what do you mean you can no longer retract the wish? I was-"

"Joking? For someone that correctly out my species that was your lapse? I guess nobody is perfect." She slid up the sleeve on her dress, the skin turning opaque long enough to show a blue symbol imprinted on her wrist. "Now then, the deal has been done."

"We never shook hands you bastard!" Lao took out his gun, taking what looked to be a yellow outlined yellow and loading it into the gun. He quickly put the round in her neck. Watching it sizzle as it burned wherever it touched. Despite it, she seemed unfazed, even more, animated while she laughed in his face. "I never said it had to be the hand that was shaken for the deal to be made," she retorted back with a bit of a demonic tone added to her voice. "You're mine Lao, and I am yours. If you wish to free from this deal, then by blade or by fang, her voice shall ring nevermore!" With that, she disappeared, leaving behind tiny stars that floated down and disappeared onto the ground.

"God-" Lao pulled up his own sleeve, seeing the same symbol form on his wrist as well. Hopelessly, he tried scratching and washing it off, but nothing could get it from his skin. "Damnit."

"Captain!" Valhalla went as she landed in front of him. "I am here to be taught once again!"

"...Class is canceled"

"What?" Val said. "But it is only the second day!"

"Tell the others, you three self-train! I need to tend to a matter!" Lao hurried off, leaving Valhalla behind.

"Captain!" She yelled after, but Lao had already run off. "Damnit...who's the leader of us then?"

____________________________________________________________________________

Lao knocked on Melisa's cabin frantically, not stopping onto the door was yanked open. "Melisa!" He yelled, noticing how she had a cloth covering her mouth. "I need your help." She didn't talk back to him. Her eyes were too busy trying to bore holes through his body. "Melisa, you're staring at me weird, quit that." She slammed the door back without a word, but Lao stuck his foot between it and the doorway. "This is important!"

"So is this. Leave."

"No I will not." Lao pulled up his sleeve, showing the blue symbol.

"So what, you got cursed."

"By a lilim!"

"You got severely cursed. Then deal with it." She closed the door again, making sure to kick his foot out so it will close. "Wait...ok. I guess I can ask Sir what the line meant. What was it again...by blade by fang her voice doesn't ring…" The door opened again while he was trying to remember. Melisa looked down at him on the steps, removing the cloth from her mouth. Strings of blood came off with it, her teeth absolutely soaked in the red substance. "Where did you hear that? Not that I care or anything."

"The lilim that cursed me told me," he said. "Right before she disappeared." She growled, slamming the door again. He was left to wait through an awkward few minutes before she came out holding her cape and rapier in her arms. "Right when I was preparing a meal for father...I fucking hate Lilims."

"Do you know something?" He asked.

"Do I know? My mother would repeat that stupid line every day at least once, twice if my father was feeling less...subby. 'The Aristocracy lives on, beyond me, beyond you, and beyond our kin…'"

…

"You should remember this well, little sapling," her mother said to her. Melisa was tuning her out, carving a drawing into the table until her finger was caked with blood and sphincters. "Melisa! Pay attention when I tell you things!" her mother walked behind her, yanking her daughter's hands up from the table. "Why do you restrict yourself to this table? Now I have to pick all these out for you again!"

"I don't care," Melisa said. That table was one of the few things in the house that her father made, strong crafted with deep screws and birch soft enough to dig a fingernail through. It was her favorite place to stay, despite all the paper that she could get in the town. Her mother peered over what she had done to this time, seeing a crude vine wrapped around a funny-looking shape. "What terrible thing have you done this time?"

"It's a heart," she answered quietly. "Well, it's a terrible heart. It would look much better on anything other than this dumb table. Why don't we get a new table for y-"

"NO! This is the only table I like!"

"It is rough and disgusting. Your father's mistake was choosing the wrong wood, just like I chose the wrong wood to use…"

…

"Melisa, you didn't finish the line." Melisa looked back at Lao, then her finger. She tried to shake the memory, but now that it was here, it was clinging on like a toddler who had found his mom. "Melisa?" he asked again.

"...I know where we need to go, but Geo need's to come with us." She tied the rapier to her waist, taking out the meat and throwing it in the back of the cabin. "The Lilim might want you to go into Vampire territory."

"Why Geo?" he asked. "He seems unnecessary for a trip."

"He is very necessary. Both of you, actually."

"What of Sir?"

"What of him? Are you insinuating I am his lover? You think just because his blood is rare and a delicacy I have wed him?" Lao shook his head, not meaning anything like that at all. "Good, because I would have to skewer you if you did."

With that settled, the two went to get Geo, meeting him outside of his usual spot upstairs. He was in the garden instead, watching the aluranes dance around in their pitches of nectar. "Oh, have you come for the show as well?" he asked. Melisa undrew her rapier and held it against Geo's neck. The tip flexed as it prodded his skin. "Melisa if you wanted me for something you could just ask."

"We are going to my mother's house. I will get killed if I step foot near that place, which is why you are going to escort me." Geo shrugged, standing up and stretching himself. "Are you going to kill me if I don't?"

"No, because you are going to go," Melisa repeated, looking around to think if she forgot a word. "Please."

"There it is love. Lead the way!" Now with omnibus in tow, the Dhampir led them on a perilous journey through the lands, encountering side quests and fighting nature. The trail they blazed will be remembered for centuries to come, but more importantly, they made enough goodwill to be able to eat for free along the way. Three bosses and several loaves of bread later, they reached the vampiric realm that Melisa had hailed from. It was not the worst realm to deal with, but it was nothing to be scoffed at. "It seems nothing had changed," Melisa commented while they found a walking trail to the city. The changes between locations could be physically seen, with animals that they found becoming more and more demonic until most were mamono. "Ah, so you brought me along to keep Lao human?" Geo asked.

"No, I brought you along because of that." Once they were in view, she pointed at two guards at the gate. "This place is part of the aristocracy, which means there is guaranteed to be a vampire around that will notice new blood." Geo thought to himself, before snapping his fingers. A lightbulb went off in his head. "I see, so diplomacy!"

"Yes. Also Lao, don't fuck any of them."

"Why would I-"

"No excuses! Now then, let's go." Melisa walked ahead, being in clear view of the gate instead of trying to sneak by. The two people on guard watched her walk closer, then crossed their spears to block her math. "Halt."

"Yes, yes I know, you need to sniff my neck." She turned and pulled down her collar, the guard leaning forward. "Weird, you smell...oh my- YOU SHOULD BE DEAD!" She jumped back, getting poised to attack with her spear out in front of her." The other guard, confused, started coming closer to get context on the smell.

"Don't do it! She might have come back for revenge!" The first guard said. Melisa rolled her eyes, piercing herself with her rapier until her blood had gathered on the tip. "Now you don't have to approach."

"Alright, but if you thrust that blade…" the second guard took her gander, sniffing the blood then covering her nose. "I-it's your mum's blood.."

"Yes, I am the Dhampir that killed her mom. But!" She pointed towards Geo and Lao. "I have been punished by them since I decided to take refuge in their realm."

"What makes you think we would believe your murderous hind?" The 2nd guard question, lining up beside her partner. Melisa held up her cape, showcasing the New Order emblem etched into the fabric. "It is legitimate."

"I still should kill you!" Went the first guard. The second guard put her hand over the first guard's spear. "Wait, we can't kill diplomats we will get in trouble."

"No we won't, she isn't a diplomat! She is a previously wanted and late felon!"

"Actually," Geo piped up. "She is a diplomat. Isn't that right Lao?" Lao nodded in agreement.

"Tsk…" The first guard looked visibly frustrated, held back by the laws of inter-faction relations from driving her blade through Melisa's chest. "Fine, but good luck getting through the rest of the town. I expect the Dhampir to come out in a bag, this lord to be wedded by a vampire…and you, hooded 'Lao'. I see you being stuck under a mamono's semen covered pantyhosed foot."

"He won't, I told him not to fuck vampires, right Lao?" Lao nodded again, still lacking any other information as to why she kept telling him that. The two guards begrudgingly stepped aside, leaving the trio to enter the walls of the city. "That was easy," Geo said. "So I just need to tag along with you and Lao and things should go smoothly?"

"Not exactly..." Melisa said. "Lao, you need to go to my mother's house. We are going to split up here."

"What?" Lao was confused. "First you tell me to not get in bed with anyone, twice, then you ask for me to find your mother's house?"

"I'll put the instructions in your blood. Don't argue." She lifted Lao's arm and rolled up his sleeve, slowly sinking her teeth in to inject a bit of venom. It made him shudder as if a breeze had gone through, but just like the wind, it passed in a moment. "I want you to retrieve a table for me. Feel free to take anything else you see as well."

"Fine, fine." Lao turned around, getting the feeling he should take the side road here and following it. "Oh, and Lao?" he turned back around, seeing Melisa still staring at him. "What?"

"Thanks." She turned and went away with Geo towards some other destination, leaving Lao to continue onto his. He was getting the feeling that something was off about her, but his mind was being too occupied with directions to think about it. A left here, continuing down until seeing a shop, going over the stream bridge, it all made no sense to him, yet he kept going. Soon he had no idea how to get out of town, leaving him to only continue on following his subconscious.

The venom had taken him to a house that looked abandoned. There were signs over it warning of trespassing, but according to the venom, he should be fine. He lingered around to wait for an opening, then casually walked in like he was coming back from work. The door creaked as he opened it shut it behind him, and it took him a while to find light since the windows had wood nailed over it. I found a pack of candles and lit on, finding that he was in the kitchen of the house. "So that's where the table is," he said, seeing a wooden table immediately. It looked big enough for only for people, and a yard tall. There were scratches and marks all over it, overshadowing all the other wear and tear. How he was going to get it out conspicuously could be dealt with later.

Now to look for clues he thought, first poking around the kitchen for anything that might trigger her voice or the symbol. No luck in the kitchen; every cupboard appeared to have been cleared out a while ago if the dust was anything to go off of. Inspecting the chairs and the countertops didn't yield anything abnormal as well. The next room to check was the living room. He couldn't help but wonder what it would have appeared as if there were still families living here, seeing the curvy lines sculpted into the corners of the walls and ceiling.

A fireplace was the centerpiece of it all, with all the chairs and objects placed in a semi-circle around it. He poked his candle as he looked under the objects, catching spots of carpet left decolored by blood. He found more in the fireplace, kicking away some small logs to find a brown-red cloth stashed behind it all. "I guess being undead means you can stick your hand through fire."

The next room to hit was one he did not know what it was called. It was a room full of mirrors, clawed at and also stained with spots of blood. Random wavy lines of a slight portion of the mirrors showed that someone had tried to clean it before just leaving it as it is. Imagining how the blood probably smelled just made him want to leave. He thought he finally felt something from his wrist, drawing back his sleeve to check on his symbol, but it turned out just to be an itch. It was getting frustrating, and he only had one room left.

If the blood on the mirror was unsettling, the bedroom was hell for anyone with a blood phobia. There was so much of it. It pretty much painted itself over the bed, looked splattered from there onto the ground. Fingerprints all over the walls showed a struggle, and there was one silhouette on the bed, free of blood that was ambiguous but looked just big enough to fit one certain dhampir's father. How in the bloody hell did a murder get this messy?

The only thing stronger than the foul assault on his nose was how pointless it felt searching the room. Nothing popped up as he searched object after object. He even wasted his strength moving the bed, hoping for a secret passage or hidden object. Nothing. It made him want to swear hard, but he had saved the most mysterious place for last, the closed closet to the side.

Taking a deep breath, he opened the door, seeing a casket laid flat inside. It was the only thing without dust, still gleaming like a gold nugget among clumps of dirt. On top of it were a cotton cape and a suit of blue armor. It seemed like a trap to him, but wouldn't you know; the only thing he didn't want to poke around turned out to be the one he should, as his wrist vibrated. The vibrations got more intense the closer he held his hands to the objects until his arms were shaking around as if they were left out in winter.

"I guess all I have to do is take these objects then." He picked up armor and cape, holding them away from his body just in case. The signal started glowing, vibrating a cheerful rhythm before settling back down. "Wonderful, you figured it out!" went the lilim's voice from his wrist. "Did the vibrations feel nice? I know I enjoyed them, it means my show is starting~"

"This was terrible, I had to dig around in blood." He raised the two objects. "Is this all you needed from me?"

"Admittedly yes, but the real show is about to begin." Not caring for it, he started to leave the room but felt a blade pierce straight through his left leg. "Naniii!?"

"Yes, you really think I wouldn't know you won't fall for the 'free armor' trick? No, they were gifts of goodwill. But I did a bit more my plaything. I brought you a nice friend~" His eyes quickly tracked the blade, following to a pale blue arm from a tiny opening in the casket. A red eye poked through the casket with glee. "Blood~"

"That is right Lao! You've seen the daughter, you have seen the father, and now coming into the ring blue as a yuki-onna, and as busty as a foreign exchange student..." she announces, Lao drawing his blade to catch a jab towards his neck. The rapier retreats, back into the casket as the lid opens, showing an undead and fanged woman in a torn raggedy nightgown. She licked her lips while she stared at him, smelling the lively carrier of nutrients flowing through him. "Daughter….I need to kill...that pest..."

"You need to calm down and going back to being dead. Your daughter is long gone," Lao responded, the pain from the hole in his leg setting in. He decided to test out the new feature on the sword, pressing the button twice so that the blade lit up yellow. "

"She isn't, she killed me….and I'll kill you!" The mother declared as she charged him, going straight for his heart. Luckily, her style felt similar to Melisa's dash, meaning all he had to do was time his dodge so that she couldn't slow down. Waiting for the perfect moment felt like an eternity, when it was in fact two quick steps before her rapier went up at him. "Die!"

"Crash," he said, purposely falling down so that she tumbled over him into the wall. Just like her daughter, her head violently collides with the wall, making a sound that Lao couldn't help but compare to an apple donking a table. She crumbled down into an awkward position on the ground, snoozing away. Lao got up and started loading his gun, leaning on his good leg as blood continued to slowly soak out onto his shoes. "Now to finish the job," he quietly muttered, finding a 6th yellow bullet to load into the chamber. As he aimed down the sight, he saw her stand up, bleeding from the top of her head. "Don't you underestimate me! It will take more than a lucky fall to defeat me!"

"I didn't." One by one, six shots whizzed out of the muzzle, burying themselves into the revived vampire. She shrieked, saying that they were burning her repeatedly as she crumpled back down into the ground, hugging herself as she was purified back to death. "How, how dare you!?"

"I will be leaving now." He picked up his sword and newfound armor and started walking out, sure that the bullets would do the rest of the work for him. "Now, how to take this table out…" he placed his things down on the table, deciding how he would get it out of the house when he heard footsteps speeding out of the room. He turned just in time to be tackled to the ground, her rapier immediately driving through his chest into his lung. "Ack! Y-you should be dead!"

"I'm not dying without taking you with me!" She cackled, standing up a putting her foot on top of Lao's head. "Stupid orderite bullets, although I must admit, they do sting alot, but to think that anything from the order could incapacitate me. Foolish!"

"I'm stuck under a foot...this is bitter...ah-" he groaned as she twisted the blade further around. "Are you a virgin? I need some blood anyway, so I wouldn't mind granting you one last chance at reaching manhood before I kill you. What do you say, it's not like you have not much time left to decide~" Her smug monologue was interrupted by chuckling. A slow laugh that built up despite the pain, until Lao couldn't hold it down and laughed right in his murder's face.

"What? Have you gone mad?" She questioned. Lao calmed himself, still smiling as his white aura surrounded him. "Maybe, to be laughing with a hole in my lung and leg...but it is funny.."

"What is funny? Please enlighten me doormat."

"That...even revived by a lilim...you're are still slower than your daughter." In a flash he had buried his sword into her, sending her staggering back as she clawed at the blade. "H-how did you..."

"You almost had me, Melisa's mother," Lao said, the energy he was releasing helping him to stand up. "If it hadn't been for my spirit energy, I would have perished. But more importantly…" he started how loading in another bullet. "...Melisa was the one who taught me how to parry."

"No….impossible, she's just a dhampir…" stuck in disbelief. She gasped when seeing the revolver pressed against her temple, Lao's finger ready to press down on the trigger. "It's my turn to ask...any last words?"

"If you're asking if I forgive Melisa, I could never forgiver her. You would have better luck reviving me then beating me a third time." She pressed her head into the gun, a stream of blue liquid leaking out of the corner of her mouth. "Do it."

"I have heard Vampires don't particularly like Dhampir's…" Lao pressed on.

"They are a disgrace, and I should have never have had her, nor should I have left her father alive out of pity. Why haven't you killed me yet?"

"Not even when you're daughter has surpassed you?"

"The least she could do for bringing her shame onto my name."

"Not even, when she has become a vampire?"

"What?" the dying mother looked up at Lao, confused. "But she's…"

"She called herself the 'Queen of Vampires', and has become one herself," he explained, talking about everything he knew about her. "Really? Strange, I feel this emotion welling up inside me…"

"That is pride, in your daughter."

"I see...well, can you tell her...that she's no longer a disgrace to the family surname?" She asked. Lao nodded, seeing her smile before she finally faded down to the ground.

____________________________________________________________________________

It took him a while, but after long, he had managed to slide the table out through the back, pretending to be a mover that was handling furniture. With enough distance, he no longer had to worry about suspicion, only finding Melisa and Geo. Once in the center of the expansive place, he spotted them waiting in front of a bread shop, the dhampir in handcuffs while Geo fed her pieces of bread. "Hey!" Lao said, half-limping and dragging a table with him. "Oh my gosh, I thought you were just going to get a table!" Geo exclaimed, pushing the bread in Melisa's mouth while he quickly tended to Lao with some magic. "Was your house ever booby-trapped Mel?"

"Mmm mmm mmmf."

"No, it wasn't a booby trap. I just...fought a zombie. Melisa, your mother wanted me to tell you…"

"Mmmph? Mm-" Melisa took a moment to drop the bread before talking. "That what? I'm a low-rate whore? Perhaps a note she left for the last laugh?"

"That you are no longer a disgrace to your family."

"Oh…" Melisa froze up, not expecting anything shy of an insult to her. "I see...whatever, I didn't care about that hag anyways."

"Melisa she's your mother!" Geo said.

"She was more of a whore than she ever thought I am, but I do appreciate the sentiment." She refocused herself towards the table. "Ah, so it was untouched...wonderful."

"I also found some other things," Lao said, showing the cape and armor. "You can keep it, I just needed the table," she said, trailing her hand along the wooden surface. "It feels just as soft as it did before...Geo, are you done with your diplomacy?"

"I haven't started, but it does take a while. Why?"

"I have nothing else I need to do here, and Lao has only fucked one vampire." Lao turned his head in concern. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me, baka! Why do you smell like my mom's foot?"

"I didn't fuck your mother."

"Yes you did you cheat. I told you not to fuck Vampires!"

"I didn't!"

____________________________________________________________________________

(Later on, back at the castle…)

"So you're trying on the armor you got after fucking my mother?" Melisa asked as she watched Lao unfold the cape. "Are you still on that?"

"I am only saying, my trust has wavered. Now put the armor on, I want to test what it's like to wield two rapiers." Lao rolled his eyes and slipped it on, while Melisa picked up hers and her mother's blade. The cape and armor shuddered, suddenly tightening around Lao's waist. "Urk!"

"Oh dear, is it a trap?"

"No...it's...conforming…" Lao felt cramped for a minute as the armor grew and shrank, breathing a sigh of relief when everything finally reached his proper size and dimensions. The cape flapped around him, taking the shape of a human while a ghost-like apparition appeared through the vents and openings of the armor. "Mei, someone new has inhabited us, and look. It is the daughter," went the armor. "Hello, Melisa."

"Hi Mei, and hello Ka." The humanoid cloth waved at her. "Call us 'Meika' when we are together remember? Much simpler."

"I don't have to listen to the rules established by my mother." They both sighed and nodded, turning back to Lao. "What do you wish?" said Mei. "Usually, we would either stranger or corrupt the new user, but as you have a familiar friend, we shall treat you as such."

"Nothing for now, Melisa just wished to see if the armor broke before her rapiers."

"As cruel as her mother," Ka disappointingly stated. "Well then, get it over with. Then we can get acquainted with our new sir."