Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ 'Do You Want to Live Forever?' ❯ The Immortal ( Chapter 19 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: Mangetsu 
Cel crosses fangs with his worst nightmare.
Anime/Manga: Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Hentai / Horror / Romance / Angst | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 03.15.2005 | Pages: 4 | Words: 5.0K | Visits: 608 | Status: Work In Progress
Cel crosses fangs with his worst nightmare.
Anime/Manga: Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Hentai / Horror / Romance / Angst | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 03.15.2005 | Pages: 4 | Words: 5.0K | Visits: 608 | Status: Work In Progress
A/N: Thank you to the few who stop and offer the review you do. I have no idea how many people are really reading this story… that is discouraging, but it is something I want to write, so that makes me continue. I don’t know how long it will be between updates. It is hard to get inspiration these days, and it is such a complex story. But I promise to see it to the end no matter how long it takes… even if I am the only one who reads it. God Bless to those who keep coming back. I have tried to fix the formatting problems. Forgive me if I have missed anything. It is such a tedious, time consuming process. Mangetsu
Review Responses at end of chapter.
Chapter Nineteen
The Immortal
New York City
Police Precinct
Kenshin and Sano’s Office
5:57 p.m.
Kenshin Himura
Kaoru Kamiya
Sanosuke Sagara
Crede Corban
The day passed quicker than Kaoru anticipated, and before she realized, it was going on six in the evening. She, Sano, and the prince had spent the entire day locked in one of the most intense conversations she could remember having. Kenshin sat behind his desk and worked on the reports for his superiors, listening to their discussion and adding his wisdom when it was necessary. Sometime during the middle of the day, he ordered out for Chinese food and the half empty boxes were scattered across Sano’s desk, the filing cabinets, and even the floor. The fragrance of green tea scented heavily with lemon mixed the odors of sweet and sour chicken, chow mien, soy sauce, and fried rice. Several yellow notepads were setting on the floor with writing and diagrams on their rumpled pages, and the trash can next to Sano’s desk was filled with wadded up rejects.
Kenshin had long since finished his last report and delivered the pile to Chief White. Now he sat at this desk going over a list of names, items, and places that the other three had collectively come up with. He looked tired but his eyes were still sharp and perused the list with his usual intensity.
“Why do you have the Mp5 listed under weapons?” he asked and looked directly at his partner. “Do you have any idea how much each one of those cost, not to mention the ammunition?”
“Yeah, I know, but Kaoru says one of your men has... ah... unique weapons connections.”
“Kaoru?” Kenshin’s eyes narrowed as he regarded his mates passive features. AWho are you referring to?”
“Okita. He can get pretty much anything you want. All you have to tell him is what you want, and he’ll find it.”
“But why THIS gun?”
“Because,” Sano rubbed the bridge of his nose and signed. “It’s hand held but still high fire power. The ammunition can also be modified to just about anything you want.”
“Meaning?“
“We can make the bullets specific to the body structure of the Made.”
Kenshin stood up and ran a hand through his hair, considering the last statement as he rounded the corner of his desk. The Made had the ability to regenerate at an alarming speed and regular bullets had no effect on them. Neither did knives. The only way to kill them was with silver, wooden stakes, decapitation, or drowning them in salt water.
“What sort of modifications do you have in mind?”
“It would be relatively simple, Kens-san.” Crede stood and faced his grandson. “If the tip of the bullet were hollowed and filled with a drop of nitroglycerin and then encased in a shield of plastic…”
“Nitro?” Kenshin gapped at his grandfather.
“Desigur. Exploding tip bullets are not a new thing, my boy.”
“I know this, but…” The idea was brilliant.
“Just listen, Ken-san.” Crede admonished the shocked detective. “Inside the plastic casing a layer of silver-nitrate can be stored…”
“Silver nitrate? What for?” Now he was honestly confused.
“The Made are susceptible to silver, nu?”
“Well, yes, but…”
“Explosive-disintegration on contact, Ken-san. No chance for regeneration at any level.” Crede looked back at his two co-conspirators and nodded. “Total annihilation with one shot. Granting it makes contact with center mass or the head.”
“Holy shi... how many shots in the clip?’
“Modified clip.” Sano spoke up. AMaybe sixteen shots each or thirty-two if we can manage it. We’ll have to see what your friend Okita can come up with.”
“The cost of making something like that will be…”
“Enormous. Yes, we know.” Crede threw his hair over his shoulders and rubbed the back of his neck. “But, we are talking about saving the human race as well as our own, ne?”
“Yes, Grandfather, but who is going to be willing to ‘give’ us hundreds of thousands of these weapons for nothing?”
“The Mob, simpatie.” Kaoru smiled at her astonished mate. “The Pure Blood Mafia.”
“There’s a Pure Blood Mafia? You are shitting me?”
“No, I’m really not. Okita has had links with the Mafia for years. One of his brothers infiltrated decades ago. Since then, more Pure Bloods migrated in and eventually worked their way up in the ranks until the majority of the Power Bosses are now Vampires. Okita’s brother is the Head Boss. He can pretty much do anything he wants.”
“Do the humans know who he is?”
“No, most of them have been recruited by him as the old ones died off. So, his human connections are quite far reaching. We just never really thought about it from an ‘advantage’ point of view.” She shrugged and looked down at her fingernails. “They were just the ‘people’ who worked for him... if you understand what I mean.”
“I understand.” Kenshin looked off into space for a moment, his emotions churning. “You never thought about them as anything valuable, just something to be used.”
‘Yes.” Kaoru’s voice was very small as she answered. “I’m sorry.”
“I know.”
Crede looked back and forth between the mates and frowned. He could feel the intense fluxuation of emotion passing from one to the other and it made him worry. There was a bond between them he could neither explain nor understand and he was not concerned about it being jeopardized, but he did not want to see them questioning one another’s morals either. That could create trust and judgment issues in the future.
“Ken-san,” Crede made to step closer to his stewing off-spring but was taken aback when he was met by the ferocious golden glare of eyes he had never looked into before.
“Do not interfere, Grandfather.”
The voice was altered as well. It was deeper, resonating through the ancient vampires bones until the tone hummed deep inside his soul. Crede stopped and stared at a face he was no longer certain he recognized. Although his grandson still stood before him, it was the eyes and voice of Cel that met him.
“Forgive me, My Lord Fang,” the prince bowed his head and took a step back. “It is not my place to council you on matters of your mate. I meant no disrespect.”
“This I know,” was the gentle reply as the semi-altered form of Kenshin-Cel moved away from the desk and approached the distraught woman. “It is time for us to leave. The sun has set sufficiently that there is no danger to either you or my lubit.” He leaned over and lifted the willing woman into his arms and held her snug against his chest. “We will meet you on the street, Grandfather. You must leave alone the same way you came in.”
“I understand.” The white-haired vampire moved silently to the door and passed through it without further comment.
“Come, Sanosuke. The three of us must leave now.” His tender hands smoothed the worry line from the lovely features of the woman in his arms. “You have been forgiven, lubit... a long time ago.” He whispered and kissed her forehead. “Forgive yourself now, please?” She nodded her head and burrowed against his chest.
“Ah, Cap... you can’t go out like that, you know?” Sano pointed at his eyes. “I don’t think we’d be able to explain that or the way you’re talking?”
“True enough,” he agreed and closed his eyes. A deep breath and a moment of concentration put him back into his full human form. “Is this better?”
“Much. By the way, I think you scared the shit out of your grandfather.”
AMaybe,” Kenshin grabbed his coat and the trench Kaoru wore than morning. “But some things have to be established early. He can’t interfere with mine and Kaoru’s relationship in any way...no matter how much he wants to. No one can.”
“Uh-huh. That’s gonna be hard for him, you know? He raised you. He’s gonna be like any parent would be. He’s gonna want to help when he’s sees something he thinks is going wrong and he thinks he can help.” Sano shrugged into his jacket and grabbed the box the food came in, putting the half full containers back in it.
“I know, but I can’t let him do it. Our relationship is beyond anyone’s interference. Even his and Kaoru’s father. That is just the way it is.”
“Good luck with that, fang boy. I wouldn’t want to be in your shoes.”
“They wouldn’t fit you anyway, Sasquatch.” Kenshin grinned when Sano threw him a dirty look. “You done yet, we need to go.”
“I’m done already. Geez, and I thought you were impatient before. Damn!”
OooooOooooOooooO
New York, Upper Eastside
Machavelia’s Garden Estate
Family Crypt, inner chamber
The Immortal
He missed the feel of the sun on his skin, that and the glory of a flaming sunrise were the only things he missed about his former existence. Everything else could be simulated in this new world of technology and creature comforts to the point he hardly noticed the absence of the sun anymore. It wasn’t even difficult to find fresh, available prey now. The streets were simply crawling with meat begging to be eaten. What more could be wanted?
Cruel laughter echoed against the walls of his marble crypt as he crawled over the edge of his chosen sleeping apparatus. Ever since seeing the original black and white version of ‘Dracula’ years earlier when ‘moving pictures’ first arrived on the scene in England, he became obsessed with the idea of sleeping in a coffin. It was macabre, it frightened his associates-human and vampire, and it suited his own sense of deviant thinking like a satin glove. He had kept one ever since.
The one he slipped free of now was pure white with gold-embossed handles. The satin lining and pillow were also white. It gave him the feeling of committing a delicious blasphemy that he should encase himself in the pure color when he was so tainted and disgusting. Often he wondered what he ‘beloved’ father would think if he could see him now?
“Would it be making you ill to see me like this, Great Pythagoras? Would you be wanting to tear your own flesh to shreds for mocking something so pure-so holy, hmmm?” Shishio threw back his head and shouted a foul sound. “Will it be breaking your heart when your ghost eyes watch me destroy The Mother’s earth, ne? Or are you believing little brother can stop me?” Suddenly the mirth faded from his voice and the fine features in his handsome face hardened and became stone. “Nothing will be stopping me from my revenges for what you and God wrought upon my head. My hands will be washed in the blood of The Mother’s children until there are no more, and then I will be finding your precious Cel. What fun he and I will be having after he kills Uriel and defeats these miserable creatures. Your Holy War is failing in my hands, Father, and then both Heaven and Earth will belong to me.” He whirled and vanished out the crypt door.
“The Fang may be a bloody daywalker and a nightstalker,” he hissed as the night wind sang in his ears. “But I am the Angel of Hell itself. A Pure Blood turned Made; there is not a weapon made in this world or the next that can kill me. I am invincible... indestructible... I am... The Immortal.“
OoooOoooOoooOoooO
They arrived at the compound just as full dark descended. The powerboat Crede provided brought them quietly up to the shore in a quarter of the time it would have taken to row out. Of course, Cel could have flown out in even less time than that, but then the others would have been left behind him. As it was, he sat quietly in the boat, holding Kaoru snug against his side while the prince guided the boat and Sano watched for problems.
“We are here,” Crede announced unnecessarily and Sano jumped out of the boat and dragged it onto land, securing the mooring rope to a nearby tree. “We must be careful to watch for traps. I doubt there has been time to turn off the security systems.”
“Don’t worry, your Highness,” Kaoru patted the older vampire=s shoulders. “I helped build the security systems. I know where all of them are.”
“Oh,” The jewel-like eyes regarded her with more respect. “Then I’ll follow you.” Kaoru laughed and led the way off the boat. Cel smiled and said nothing. Sano looked at the three of them and scratched the back of his head. The thought of booby traps was not his idea of a good time.
“This way.” Kaoru waved a hand and headed off up the beach toward the derelict building. “We can avoid most of the perimeter warnings if we stick to the beach for awhile.” Everyone nodded and fell into step behind her. Cel brought up the rear, forcing a grumbling Sano in front of him.
“Here, my friend, I watch your back.” He said in a tone that did not allow for any arguments, and Sano was still pretty uncomfortable with this ‘side’ of his friend, so he didn’t push the matter. This was only the second time he actually saw ‘Cel‘, and the full transformation at that. It was more than a little disturbing for him to see his long-time friend shift into something so... alien. His demeanor was not even the same now. Instead, he was coming across as this mega-superior super-human or something. He wasn’t acting all know-it-all-asshole or anything, but Sano almost felt like he was walking next to God or something. It was going to take some getting used to.
Suddenly Cel grabbed Sano by the shoulder and pulled him to a stop. “Kaoru!” He shouted over Sano and Crede’s heads. “Stop, lubit!”
“Why, what’s wrong?” She turned and leaned to the side, catching her mate’s worried look. “Kenshin? What’s the ma.…”
“We have company.” he said, throwing Sano to the ground and leaping over his body. “Get behind me, Grandfather.”
“Nu,” The white-haired vampire was catch a sense of what Cel already knew was out there. “I do not hide from a fight. I am not that old.” He growled.
“I was not asking you, old man.” Cel barked in fierce voice that made even Kaoru flinch. “Now do as I say before I breach your station in life and throw you beside Sanosuke.”
“You would not da…”
“NOW!” Cel’s fangs snapped dangerously close to Crede’s throat and the flare of power that erupted around him was staggering, and nearly pushed the elder vampire to the ground. Crede straightened to his full height, squared his shoulders, nodded, and moved behind a man he could not call his grandson.
“Kenshin?” Kaoru stared at him with wide, confused eyes. “What…”
“Not now, lubit.” He shook his head and then trained his gaze forward, searching for the out of place ki’s he felt. How many? He couldn’t tell, but there were definitely more than three or four and they were not Pure Bloods.
‘Can you feel them, lubit?’
‘I… yes, oh my God! Is that why…’
‘Yes… I can’t lose either of them in this kind of a battle. It is too soon to risk anyone.’
‘Except us.’
‘Forgive me, lubit.’
‘There is nothing to forgive, simpatie. We are the only ones who can be risked at this point. Nothing has been planned, nothing is in place. We are not ready.’
‘Then you understand why I did this.’
‘Yes. But will they?’
‘I hope so. Mother, help me. I hope so.’
‘Kenshin... call Aoshi. Alert the Slayers. They can help. They have surprise on their side... and the cameras.’
‘Excellent idea, lubit. The Major is exactly what we need.’
OoooOoooOoooO
“What did you say, Major?” Hiko spoke into his com-link as he strode across the deck of the security complex.
“We have proximity warnings going off on the south-east quadrant, Sir. I’m getting intruder alerts but so far, there isn’t anything coming up on the monitors.”
“Roger that, I’m almost there. I want you to start turning lights on up there. I want to know exactly what’s going on.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Dammit!” Cel had been gone for a few days and all hell was breaking loose. There was no word from Kaoru since she left the compound early that morning to make contact with him, and now Hiko was worried this might mean something had happened to her. If the Black Diamond was in town, like Okita said, then he wouldn’t be wasting any time getting things started. Hiko knew Saitou well enough he was certain the devil was making plans already and this might just be the beginning of him showing his hand to them. “And we aren’t even prepared. Sonofabitch! Time, we need more time…”
‘Time is a luxury, my friend.‘ The voice echoing inside of Hiko’s head brought him to a halt mid-stride. ‘It appears we are the ones who have been caught unawares, so we must make the best of what we have, nu?’
‘Lord Cel?’
‘Indeed.’
‘Are you…here?’
‘Desigur, General. I, Kaoru, my policeman partner, and... my grandfather.’
‘By the Mother! Prince Crede is here!?’
‘Desigur. Do not worry, I will protect him, but we require the assistance of the Major and his Slayers.’
‘Of course, tell me what you want and they are yours.’
OooooOooooOooooO
It was a long time since he hunted his ‘own kind’ and the rush he felt was almost as thrilling as the hunt for humans. The only difference was the fear component. His kind did not experience fear on the same emotional level as pitiful humans, but the satisfaction of devouring one of them would be sweet, nonetheless and the thought made his mouth water in anticipation.
Breaching the compound on Ellis Island was so simple it made him laugh. He was immune to all of the ‘traps’ and quickly dismantled them, making a safe pathway through the ‘gauntlet of death’ for the men that followed him. The cameras were also easily dispatched, unfortunately doing so initiated the proximity alarms. He didn’t care. It made no difference if they knew he was coming or not. This was just the first step in the plan he and Gustav Uriel had decided upon. Infiltrate the central compound, or at least make significant contact and gauge Gallion’s defenses.
As they closed in on the center of the island, he began to sense the inhabitants. They were below the surface of the ground. He could feel thousands of them and that was mildly surprising. Uriel believed there might be two thousand, but this felt more like five. Shishio grinned, and motioned for the men behind him to stop. His eyes closed and he zeroed in on the life forces, trying to gauge what he would be dealing with and if they were aware yet of the approaching danger. Strangely enough, he sensed an increase of concern and activity. Someone knew he and his men were afoot, but there was no fear to be found. A mild sense of distress, perhaps, but not one drop of fear.
‘I don=t understand,’ he looked back at the men, wondering why, if their presence was felt, was there no fear? ‘Could Uriel be mistaken about Gallion and his followers out here? Are they more than he is knowing?‘ As the thought of being led on a wild goose chase occurred to him, Shishio began to feel the flutterings of something strangely familiar, yet devastatingly foreign. He turned his head to the side and looked into the glowing darkness, trying to see beyond the barrier of the old, dilapidated building. There was something on the other side. Something that shouldn‘t... couldn‘t... he wouldn’t let it be real.
Apprehension slithered up his spine, and for the first time in a thousand centuries, he felt fear. He waved his hand in the air, motioning the men to stay put, and then he slipped along the overgrown path until he was hugging the side of the old brick building. The sensation was stronger, choking him and making him see tiny blue pinpoints in front of his eyes. It made him feel weak, small... insignificant. It could only be one thing... Cel!
Fury burned in his heart and his eyes began glowing deep, vermilion-red. He snarled, snapping his inch long fangs, and burst around the corner, blurring into the grays and blacks of the landscape as his speed propelled him toward the abomination of his own blood. Already his imagination was letting him feel the vertebrae crumbling in his hands, hearing the screams of pain when his fangs slashed the flesh of the vulnerable throat open, tasting the heavy, rich blood spurting over his tongue... He was The Immortal. Cel would die screaming in his arms and Uriel could burn in Hell for the rest of Eternity.
“I am here, Little Brother!” Shishio screeched as he launched his body through the air like a spear aimed at Cel’s heart. The gleaming blood-red of his maniacal eyes streaking through the darkness like a laser tracking beam.
“Kaoru! Get down!” Cel shouted, shoving his mate violently to the side as he caught the impact of the flying vampire full against his chest. “OOOF!” They hit the wet sand and rolled across the ground in a flurry of arms and legs, disappearing into the wake of the bay.
“Kenshin!“she screamed, bolting to her feet and rushing to the waters edge. “Kenshin? Oh God, Kenshin, where are you?” Her voice was frantic and panic stricken as she searched the waves for her beloved. “KENSHIN!”
Crede rushed forward and grabbed her by the shoulders, afraid she would plunge into the water in search of her mate. “Wait,” he shouted above the rush of the water. “Wait.”
“I can‘t,” she cried and began to struggle beneath his grasp. “I have to help him.”
“Nu, you must wait. We cannot risk you both. Wait, My Lady. Wait and let his strength prove itself.”
“I... oh God, Kenshin…”
“Have faith. He will not be so easily defeated.”
“But you don’t know,” she whispered, fear and uncertainty tightening her voice. “You don’t know who he fights.”
“Who? What do you mean, ‘who’?”
“Can’t you feel it, Prince Crede?” Kaoru turned and looked into the elders face with wide terrified eyes. “You share Cel’s blood...the blood of Pythagoras. Can’t you feel both of ‘them’?”
“Both?” Crede was confused. He had felt something before Cel demanded he get behind him, but he thought it was just the vampire that attacked him. He didn’t think anything else about it. “What is this, ‘them‘?” he asked, looking into her frightened face.
“He’s here, Highness. I don’t know what Kenshin told you in his message...maybe nothing, but the oldest vampire, the oldest pure blood; that is who just attacked Kenshin. He’s insane, he‘s... he’s more evil than any Made you can imagine, even Gustav Uriel. He’s the only pure blood who’s been turned.”
“Turned? That is impossible. No pure blood can be turned.”
“It’s not impossible. It’s true. He’s an abomination of horrendous proportions, your Highness. He is the cause for everything that is happening to our people, to the humans, everything. It’s because of him that the world is in danger.”
“I don’t understand…”
“There is no time to explain right now, you’ll just have to believe me.” Kaoru’s eyes turned back to the water. She was wondering how long Kenshin could hold his breath. “He was born during the dark ages... during the Holy Crusades, if I recall everything Kenshin and Father said at the time we first learned about him. It was he who first broke the law of not drinking to the point of death. He was the first to ‘make’ a vampire from an all but dead body, trying to make amends for his sin, but the stain was already upon his soul. He was tainted and had acquired a taste for it. Everything changed after that. Drinking the blood of the innocent and ‘making’ vampires became common place among our kind, and our true purpose in life was lost, the pact with The Mother destroyed, and out connection to The One severed. We were cast out of The Presence and left to wallow in our world of sin until the Revolution exploded and the sin came back to haunt our lives. This is the fruit of our labors, you Highness. Revolution with The Made. Genocide with those we created, battle for supremacy, and the struggle to control what fate will befall the humans.”
“I...I had no idea.” Crede stared across the waters, searching for the essence of the man he raised from a child. “I knew there would be war, but this…” He bowed his head and began to plead to the spirit of The Mother. “Who is this vampire that threatens Cel’s life beneath the waves?”
“Milos, son of Pythagoras and Lillith.”
“Mother have mercy on our souls.”
“Kenshin…”
TBC
Review Responses
Catti-dono: My updates are so few and far between, saiai… I am surprised you bother to come back at all. Arigato for remaining with me for so long.
Kaoru890: KagInu_4eva: It is good to see you again. Gomen nasai for the long wait between updates. Thank you for the review. Hope you enjoyed the new chapter.
Beysie: No worries, girly. I’m lazier than you. Just look how long it took me to update. Hope your still reading and I hope it was worth the wait. Gomen for being such a hit and miss author.
I still can’t believe you read the whole 18 in two days. I don’t think anyone has done that with this story. That is an enormous amount of content to digest. Yes, there is a tremendous amount of research in this story… hours and hours of time put into the plot, the characters, and the details. It is now going to start getting going with the confrontation issues… and yes, it is getting longer and turning into more of an epic than a story. It’s probably going to be 40 chapters at least.
Shierri: Around 40 to 50 chapters maybe… depending on what happens. And trust me, Kaoru will get into kick-butt action again. Perhaps sooner than you think. Thank you for taking time to drop me a review. I appreciate it more than you know. This is my most complex story, and the least reviewed one. Thank you for everything you said.
Converting /tmp/php7jISkS to /dev/stdout
Review Responses at end of chapter.
Chapter Nineteen
The Immortal
New York City
Police Precinct
Kenshin and Sano’s Office
5:57 p.m.
Kenshin Himura
Kaoru Kamiya
Sanosuke Sagara
Crede Corban
The day passed quicker than Kaoru anticipated, and before she realized, it was going on six in the evening. She, Sano, and the prince had spent the entire day locked in one of the most intense conversations she could remember having. Kenshin sat behind his desk and worked on the reports for his superiors, listening to their discussion and adding his wisdom when it was necessary. Sometime during the middle of the day, he ordered out for Chinese food and the half empty boxes were scattered across Sano’s desk, the filing cabinets, and even the floor. The fragrance of green tea scented heavily with lemon mixed the odors of sweet and sour chicken, chow mien, soy sauce, and fried rice. Several yellow notepads were setting on the floor with writing and diagrams on their rumpled pages, and the trash can next to Sano’s desk was filled with wadded up rejects.
Kenshin had long since finished his last report and delivered the pile to Chief White. Now he sat at this desk going over a list of names, items, and places that the other three had collectively come up with. He looked tired but his eyes were still sharp and perused the list with his usual intensity.
“Why do you have the Mp5 listed under weapons?” he asked and looked directly at his partner. “Do you have any idea how much each one of those cost, not to mention the ammunition?”
“Yeah, I know, but Kaoru says one of your men has... ah... unique weapons connections.”
“Kaoru?” Kenshin’s eyes narrowed as he regarded his mates passive features. AWho are you referring to?”
“Okita. He can get pretty much anything you want. All you have to tell him is what you want, and he’ll find it.”
“But why THIS gun?”
“Because,” Sano rubbed the bridge of his nose and signed. “It’s hand held but still high fire power. The ammunition can also be modified to just about anything you want.”
“Meaning?“
“We can make the bullets specific to the body structure of the Made.”
Kenshin stood up and ran a hand through his hair, considering the last statement as he rounded the corner of his desk. The Made had the ability to regenerate at an alarming speed and regular bullets had no effect on them. Neither did knives. The only way to kill them was with silver, wooden stakes, decapitation, or drowning them in salt water.
“What sort of modifications do you have in mind?”
“It would be relatively simple, Kens-san.” Crede stood and faced his grandson. “If the tip of the bullet were hollowed and filled with a drop of nitroglycerin and then encased in a shield of plastic…”
“Nitro?” Kenshin gapped at his grandfather.
“Desigur. Exploding tip bullets are not a new thing, my boy.”
“I know this, but…” The idea was brilliant.
“Just listen, Ken-san.” Crede admonished the shocked detective. “Inside the plastic casing a layer of silver-nitrate can be stored…”
“Silver nitrate? What for?” Now he was honestly confused.
“The Made are susceptible to silver, nu?”
“Well, yes, but…”
“Explosive-disintegration on contact, Ken-san. No chance for regeneration at any level.” Crede looked back at his two co-conspirators and nodded. “Total annihilation with one shot. Granting it makes contact with center mass or the head.”
“Holy shi... how many shots in the clip?’
“Modified clip.” Sano spoke up. AMaybe sixteen shots each or thirty-two if we can manage it. We’ll have to see what your friend Okita can come up with.”
“The cost of making something like that will be…”
“Enormous. Yes, we know.” Crede threw his hair over his shoulders and rubbed the back of his neck. “But, we are talking about saving the human race as well as our own, ne?”
“Yes, Grandfather, but who is going to be willing to ‘give’ us hundreds of thousands of these weapons for nothing?”
“The Mob, simpatie.” Kaoru smiled at her astonished mate. “The Pure Blood Mafia.”
“There’s a Pure Blood Mafia? You are shitting me?”
“No, I’m really not. Okita has had links with the Mafia for years. One of his brothers infiltrated decades ago. Since then, more Pure Bloods migrated in and eventually worked their way up in the ranks until the majority of the Power Bosses are now Vampires. Okita’s brother is the Head Boss. He can pretty much do anything he wants.”
“Do the humans know who he is?”
“No, most of them have been recruited by him as the old ones died off. So, his human connections are quite far reaching. We just never really thought about it from an ‘advantage’ point of view.” She shrugged and looked down at her fingernails. “They were just the ‘people’ who worked for him... if you understand what I mean.”
“I understand.” Kenshin looked off into space for a moment, his emotions churning. “You never thought about them as anything valuable, just something to be used.”
‘Yes.” Kaoru’s voice was very small as she answered. “I’m sorry.”
“I know.”
Crede looked back and forth between the mates and frowned. He could feel the intense fluxuation of emotion passing from one to the other and it made him worry. There was a bond between them he could neither explain nor understand and he was not concerned about it being jeopardized, but he did not want to see them questioning one another’s morals either. That could create trust and judgment issues in the future.
“Ken-san,” Crede made to step closer to his stewing off-spring but was taken aback when he was met by the ferocious golden glare of eyes he had never looked into before.
“Do not interfere, Grandfather.”
The voice was altered as well. It was deeper, resonating through the ancient vampires bones until the tone hummed deep inside his soul. Crede stopped and stared at a face he was no longer certain he recognized. Although his grandson still stood before him, it was the eyes and voice of Cel that met him.
“Forgive me, My Lord Fang,” the prince bowed his head and took a step back. “It is not my place to council you on matters of your mate. I meant no disrespect.”
“This I know,” was the gentle reply as the semi-altered form of Kenshin-Cel moved away from the desk and approached the distraught woman. “It is time for us to leave. The sun has set sufficiently that there is no danger to either you or my lubit.” He leaned over and lifted the willing woman into his arms and held her snug against his chest. “We will meet you on the street, Grandfather. You must leave alone the same way you came in.”
“I understand.” The white-haired vampire moved silently to the door and passed through it without further comment.
“Come, Sanosuke. The three of us must leave now.” His tender hands smoothed the worry line from the lovely features of the woman in his arms. “You have been forgiven, lubit... a long time ago.” He whispered and kissed her forehead. “Forgive yourself now, please?” She nodded her head and burrowed against his chest.
“Ah, Cap... you can’t go out like that, you know?” Sano pointed at his eyes. “I don’t think we’d be able to explain that or the way you’re talking?”
“True enough,” he agreed and closed his eyes. A deep breath and a moment of concentration put him back into his full human form. “Is this better?”
“Much. By the way, I think you scared the shit out of your grandfather.”
AMaybe,” Kenshin grabbed his coat and the trench Kaoru wore than morning. “But some things have to be established early. He can’t interfere with mine and Kaoru’s relationship in any way...no matter how much he wants to. No one can.”
“Uh-huh. That’s gonna be hard for him, you know? He raised you. He’s gonna be like any parent would be. He’s gonna want to help when he’s sees something he thinks is going wrong and he thinks he can help.” Sano shrugged into his jacket and grabbed the box the food came in, putting the half full containers back in it.
“I know, but I can’t let him do it. Our relationship is beyond anyone’s interference. Even his and Kaoru’s father. That is just the way it is.”
“Good luck with that, fang boy. I wouldn’t want to be in your shoes.”
“They wouldn’t fit you anyway, Sasquatch.” Kenshin grinned when Sano threw him a dirty look. “You done yet, we need to go.”
“I’m done already. Geez, and I thought you were impatient before. Damn!”
OooooOooooOooooO
New York, Upper Eastside
Machavelia’s Garden Estate
Family Crypt, inner chamber
The Immortal
He missed the feel of the sun on his skin, that and the glory of a flaming sunrise were the only things he missed about his former existence. Everything else could be simulated in this new world of technology and creature comforts to the point he hardly noticed the absence of the sun anymore. It wasn’t even difficult to find fresh, available prey now. The streets were simply crawling with meat begging to be eaten. What more could be wanted?
Cruel laughter echoed against the walls of his marble crypt as he crawled over the edge of his chosen sleeping apparatus. Ever since seeing the original black and white version of ‘Dracula’ years earlier when ‘moving pictures’ first arrived on the scene in England, he became obsessed with the idea of sleeping in a coffin. It was macabre, it frightened his associates-human and vampire, and it suited his own sense of deviant thinking like a satin glove. He had kept one ever since.
The one he slipped free of now was pure white with gold-embossed handles. The satin lining and pillow were also white. It gave him the feeling of committing a delicious blasphemy that he should encase himself in the pure color when he was so tainted and disgusting. Often he wondered what he ‘beloved’ father would think if he could see him now?
“Would it be making you ill to see me like this, Great Pythagoras? Would you be wanting to tear your own flesh to shreds for mocking something so pure-so holy, hmmm?” Shishio threw back his head and shouted a foul sound. “Will it be breaking your heart when your ghost eyes watch me destroy The Mother’s earth, ne? Or are you believing little brother can stop me?” Suddenly the mirth faded from his voice and the fine features in his handsome face hardened and became stone. “Nothing will be stopping me from my revenges for what you and God wrought upon my head. My hands will be washed in the blood of The Mother’s children until there are no more, and then I will be finding your precious Cel. What fun he and I will be having after he kills Uriel and defeats these miserable creatures. Your Holy War is failing in my hands, Father, and then both Heaven and Earth will belong to me.” He whirled and vanished out the crypt door.
“The Fang may be a bloody daywalker and a nightstalker,” he hissed as the night wind sang in his ears. “But I am the Angel of Hell itself. A Pure Blood turned Made; there is not a weapon made in this world or the next that can kill me. I am invincible... indestructible... I am... The Immortal.“
OoooOoooOoooOoooO
They arrived at the compound just as full dark descended. The powerboat Crede provided brought them quietly up to the shore in a quarter of the time it would have taken to row out. Of course, Cel could have flown out in even less time than that, but then the others would have been left behind him. As it was, he sat quietly in the boat, holding Kaoru snug against his side while the prince guided the boat and Sano watched for problems.
“We are here,” Crede announced unnecessarily and Sano jumped out of the boat and dragged it onto land, securing the mooring rope to a nearby tree. “We must be careful to watch for traps. I doubt there has been time to turn off the security systems.”
“Don’t worry, your Highness,” Kaoru patted the older vampire=s shoulders. “I helped build the security systems. I know where all of them are.”
“Oh,” The jewel-like eyes regarded her with more respect. “Then I’ll follow you.” Kaoru laughed and led the way off the boat. Cel smiled and said nothing. Sano looked at the three of them and scratched the back of his head. The thought of booby traps was not his idea of a good time.
“This way.” Kaoru waved a hand and headed off up the beach toward the derelict building. “We can avoid most of the perimeter warnings if we stick to the beach for awhile.” Everyone nodded and fell into step behind her. Cel brought up the rear, forcing a grumbling Sano in front of him.
“Here, my friend, I watch your back.” He said in a tone that did not allow for any arguments, and Sano was still pretty uncomfortable with this ‘side’ of his friend, so he didn’t push the matter. This was only the second time he actually saw ‘Cel‘, and the full transformation at that. It was more than a little disturbing for him to see his long-time friend shift into something so... alien. His demeanor was not even the same now. Instead, he was coming across as this mega-superior super-human or something. He wasn’t acting all know-it-all-asshole or anything, but Sano almost felt like he was walking next to God or something. It was going to take some getting used to.
Suddenly Cel grabbed Sano by the shoulder and pulled him to a stop. “Kaoru!” He shouted over Sano and Crede’s heads. “Stop, lubit!”
“Why, what’s wrong?” She turned and leaned to the side, catching her mate’s worried look. “Kenshin? What’s the ma.…”
“We have company.” he said, throwing Sano to the ground and leaping over his body. “Get behind me, Grandfather.”
“Nu,” The white-haired vampire was catch a sense of what Cel already knew was out there. “I do not hide from a fight. I am not that old.” He growled.
“I was not asking you, old man.” Cel barked in fierce voice that made even Kaoru flinch. “Now do as I say before I breach your station in life and throw you beside Sanosuke.”
“You would not da…”
“NOW!” Cel’s fangs snapped dangerously close to Crede’s throat and the flare of power that erupted around him was staggering, and nearly pushed the elder vampire to the ground. Crede straightened to his full height, squared his shoulders, nodded, and moved behind a man he could not call his grandson.
“Kenshin?” Kaoru stared at him with wide, confused eyes. “What…”
“Not now, lubit.” He shook his head and then trained his gaze forward, searching for the out of place ki’s he felt. How many? He couldn’t tell, but there were definitely more than three or four and they were not Pure Bloods.
‘Can you feel them, lubit?’
‘I… yes, oh my God! Is that why…’
‘Yes… I can’t lose either of them in this kind of a battle. It is too soon to risk anyone.’
‘Except us.’
‘Forgive me, lubit.’
‘There is nothing to forgive, simpatie. We are the only ones who can be risked at this point. Nothing has been planned, nothing is in place. We are not ready.’
‘Then you understand why I did this.’
‘Yes. But will they?’
‘I hope so. Mother, help me. I hope so.’
‘Kenshin... call Aoshi. Alert the Slayers. They can help. They have surprise on their side... and the cameras.’
‘Excellent idea, lubit. The Major is exactly what we need.’
OoooOoooOoooO
“What did you say, Major?” Hiko spoke into his com-link as he strode across the deck of the security complex.
“We have proximity warnings going off on the south-east quadrant, Sir. I’m getting intruder alerts but so far, there isn’t anything coming up on the monitors.”
“Roger that, I’m almost there. I want you to start turning lights on up there. I want to know exactly what’s going on.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Dammit!” Cel had been gone for a few days and all hell was breaking loose. There was no word from Kaoru since she left the compound early that morning to make contact with him, and now Hiko was worried this might mean something had happened to her. If the Black Diamond was in town, like Okita said, then he wouldn’t be wasting any time getting things started. Hiko knew Saitou well enough he was certain the devil was making plans already and this might just be the beginning of him showing his hand to them. “And we aren’t even prepared. Sonofabitch! Time, we need more time…”
‘Time is a luxury, my friend.‘ The voice echoing inside of Hiko’s head brought him to a halt mid-stride. ‘It appears we are the ones who have been caught unawares, so we must make the best of what we have, nu?’
‘Lord Cel?’
‘Indeed.’
‘Are you…here?’
‘Desigur, General. I, Kaoru, my policeman partner, and... my grandfather.’
‘By the Mother! Prince Crede is here!?’
‘Desigur. Do not worry, I will protect him, but we require the assistance of the Major and his Slayers.’
‘Of course, tell me what you want and they are yours.’
OooooOooooOooooO
It was a long time since he hunted his ‘own kind’ and the rush he felt was almost as thrilling as the hunt for humans. The only difference was the fear component. His kind did not experience fear on the same emotional level as pitiful humans, but the satisfaction of devouring one of them would be sweet, nonetheless and the thought made his mouth water in anticipation.
Breaching the compound on Ellis Island was so simple it made him laugh. He was immune to all of the ‘traps’ and quickly dismantled them, making a safe pathway through the ‘gauntlet of death’ for the men that followed him. The cameras were also easily dispatched, unfortunately doing so initiated the proximity alarms. He didn’t care. It made no difference if they knew he was coming or not. This was just the first step in the plan he and Gustav Uriel had decided upon. Infiltrate the central compound, or at least make significant contact and gauge Gallion’s defenses.
As they closed in on the center of the island, he began to sense the inhabitants. They were below the surface of the ground. He could feel thousands of them and that was mildly surprising. Uriel believed there might be two thousand, but this felt more like five. Shishio grinned, and motioned for the men behind him to stop. His eyes closed and he zeroed in on the life forces, trying to gauge what he would be dealing with and if they were aware yet of the approaching danger. Strangely enough, he sensed an increase of concern and activity. Someone knew he and his men were afoot, but there was no fear to be found. A mild sense of distress, perhaps, but not one drop of fear.
‘I don=t understand,’ he looked back at the men, wondering why, if their presence was felt, was there no fear? ‘Could Uriel be mistaken about Gallion and his followers out here? Are they more than he is knowing?‘ As the thought of being led on a wild goose chase occurred to him, Shishio began to feel the flutterings of something strangely familiar, yet devastatingly foreign. He turned his head to the side and looked into the glowing darkness, trying to see beyond the barrier of the old, dilapidated building. There was something on the other side. Something that shouldn‘t... couldn‘t... he wouldn’t let it be real.
Apprehension slithered up his spine, and for the first time in a thousand centuries, he felt fear. He waved his hand in the air, motioning the men to stay put, and then he slipped along the overgrown path until he was hugging the side of the old brick building. The sensation was stronger, choking him and making him see tiny blue pinpoints in front of his eyes. It made him feel weak, small... insignificant. It could only be one thing... Cel!
Fury burned in his heart and his eyes began glowing deep, vermilion-red. He snarled, snapping his inch long fangs, and burst around the corner, blurring into the grays and blacks of the landscape as his speed propelled him toward the abomination of his own blood. Already his imagination was letting him feel the vertebrae crumbling in his hands, hearing the screams of pain when his fangs slashed the flesh of the vulnerable throat open, tasting the heavy, rich blood spurting over his tongue... He was The Immortal. Cel would die screaming in his arms and Uriel could burn in Hell for the rest of Eternity.
“I am here, Little Brother!” Shishio screeched as he launched his body through the air like a spear aimed at Cel’s heart. The gleaming blood-red of his maniacal eyes streaking through the darkness like a laser tracking beam.
“Kaoru! Get down!” Cel shouted, shoving his mate violently to the side as he caught the impact of the flying vampire full against his chest. “OOOF!” They hit the wet sand and rolled across the ground in a flurry of arms and legs, disappearing into the wake of the bay.
“Kenshin!“she screamed, bolting to her feet and rushing to the waters edge. “Kenshin? Oh God, Kenshin, where are you?” Her voice was frantic and panic stricken as she searched the waves for her beloved. “KENSHIN!”
Crede rushed forward and grabbed her by the shoulders, afraid she would plunge into the water in search of her mate. “Wait,” he shouted above the rush of the water. “Wait.”
“I can‘t,” she cried and began to struggle beneath his grasp. “I have to help him.”
“Nu, you must wait. We cannot risk you both. Wait, My Lady. Wait and let his strength prove itself.”
“I... oh God, Kenshin…”
“Have faith. He will not be so easily defeated.”
“But you don’t know,” she whispered, fear and uncertainty tightening her voice. “You don’t know who he fights.”
“Who? What do you mean, ‘who’?”
“Can’t you feel it, Prince Crede?” Kaoru turned and looked into the elders face with wide terrified eyes. “You share Cel’s blood...the blood of Pythagoras. Can’t you feel both of ‘them’?”
“Both?” Crede was confused. He had felt something before Cel demanded he get behind him, but he thought it was just the vampire that attacked him. He didn’t think anything else about it. “What is this, ‘them‘?” he asked, looking into her frightened face.
“He’s here, Highness. I don’t know what Kenshin told you in his message...maybe nothing, but the oldest vampire, the oldest pure blood; that is who just attacked Kenshin. He’s insane, he‘s... he’s more evil than any Made you can imagine, even Gustav Uriel. He’s the only pure blood who’s been turned.”
“Turned? That is impossible. No pure blood can be turned.”
“It’s not impossible. It’s true. He’s an abomination of horrendous proportions, your Highness. He is the cause for everything that is happening to our people, to the humans, everything. It’s because of him that the world is in danger.”
“I don’t understand…”
“There is no time to explain right now, you’ll just have to believe me.” Kaoru’s eyes turned back to the water. She was wondering how long Kenshin could hold his breath. “He was born during the dark ages... during the Holy Crusades, if I recall everything Kenshin and Father said at the time we first learned about him. It was he who first broke the law of not drinking to the point of death. He was the first to ‘make’ a vampire from an all but dead body, trying to make amends for his sin, but the stain was already upon his soul. He was tainted and had acquired a taste for it. Everything changed after that. Drinking the blood of the innocent and ‘making’ vampires became common place among our kind, and our true purpose in life was lost, the pact with The Mother destroyed, and out connection to The One severed. We were cast out of The Presence and left to wallow in our world of sin until the Revolution exploded and the sin came back to haunt our lives. This is the fruit of our labors, you Highness. Revolution with The Made. Genocide with those we created, battle for supremacy, and the struggle to control what fate will befall the humans.”
“I...I had no idea.” Crede stared across the waters, searching for the essence of the man he raised from a child. “I knew there would be war, but this…” He bowed his head and began to plead to the spirit of The Mother. “Who is this vampire that threatens Cel’s life beneath the waves?”
“Milos, son of Pythagoras and Lillith.”
“Mother have mercy on our souls.”
“Kenshin…”
TBC
Review Responses
Catti-dono: My updates are so few and far between, saiai… I am surprised you bother to come back at all. Arigato for remaining with me for so long.
Kaoru890: KagInu_4eva: It is good to see you again. Gomen nasai for the long wait between updates. Thank you for the review. Hope you enjoyed the new chapter.
Beysie: No worries, girly. I’m lazier than you. Just look how long it took me to update. Hope your still reading and I hope it was worth the wait. Gomen for being such a hit and miss author.
I still can’t believe you read the whole 18 in two days. I don’t think anyone has done that with this story. That is an enormous amount of content to digest. Yes, there is a tremendous amount of research in this story… hours and hours of time put into the plot, the characters, and the details. It is now going to start getting going with the confrontation issues… and yes, it is getting longer and turning into more of an epic than a story. It’s probably going to be 40 chapters at least.
Shierri: Around 40 to 50 chapters maybe… depending on what happens. And trust me, Kaoru will get into kick-butt action again. Perhaps sooner than you think. Thank you for taking time to drop me a review. I appreciate it more than you know. This is my most complex story, and the least reviewed one. Thank you for everything you said.
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