Vampire Hunter D Fan Fiction ❯ Every Rose Has Its Thorn ❯ A Couple of Unusual Surprises ( Chapter 2 )

The bare sun's heat beat down on the town of Falancer where men and women strolled about with the children racing around, kicking up the scorching sand and dust that had laid in perfect stillness.

Horses stomped through the town, pulling wagons and carts of goods. Shopkeepers dusted their welcome mats, or porches and steps, the 'OPEN' signs placed in the windows for all to see.

In the distance, a black figure made its way to town, the heat that was rising from the ground made it wavy and distorted. As it drew closer, the dark figure began to take form into a man and a massive, well-built, jet-black horse that he calmly rode.

As he made his way into the town, the people outside stopped what they were doing and watched the man silently ride past them. The women backed their children far away from the road as the men stood defensively in front of them.

He was dressed in all black; a massive black hat that hid his unusually pale features from view; a black cape with a light orange coloring on the inside; skin tight black top that was slightly thick with armor plates; tight black pants; and black narrow boots.

His long, wavy brown hair bounced gently at waist length and cover a little of the skinny, long sheath that was strapped to his back; the sword's grip jutting out into the air and past his shoulder.

Steel gray eyes with a touch of purple gazed steadily ahead. His slightly pointed ears took in every footstep, rustle, and whisper that came from the surrounding townspeople.

"It's that dhampire hunter," a man said.

"Bloody monster," another hissed

"What the hell is that bloodthirsty beast doing in our peaceful town?!" a woman cried to the woman next to her. But the man ignored them, used to the usual 'greetings' wherever he went.

He steered his horse up to a large white house. He swung himself from his saddle and landed with a soft thump, sand stirring up from the ground and around his feet like thin ribbons of smoke. He left his horse where it stood and walked up to the few steps onto the porch.

The door was already open, as if the owner knew he was coming. Instead of calling out to the owner or doing something that would give acknowledgement of his presence, the man simply stepped inside.

"Ah, you made it, hunter."

The darkly dressed man paused outside the doorway of a large, well-kept office. Sitting behind a lengthy wooden desk was a fairly round man with a thick graying beard and short graying hair. He motioned for the man to enter. The hunter walked up to the desk, but didn't sit down in one of the two chairs on either side of him.

"How was your ride here? Fine, I hope," the round man said, making an effort to start a friendly conversation. But the hunter remained silent, his gaze piercing and chilling.

"Ah, well," he said, clearing his throat roughly. "I figure I'll just get to the point." He leaned back in his chair and knitted his hands together over his wide chest. "I urgently called you here to rid my town of a demon."

The dark hunter opened his mouth to finally say something, but was hushed when the man lifted a halting hand.

"Now, I do know you only kill vampires, but I'm quite desperate!" He jumped up, dug around in his jacket pocket, then tossed down a bulging pouch onto the desk, the sound of coins rubbing against each other.

He braced his hands on the desk and leaned forward. "I couldn't get in contact with any of the real demon exterminators, but you were my next best option! Please, help my town. That's fifty thousand." He nodded to the pouch.

"My town has been raided and attacked by this ruthless monster! It strikes when no one suspects it and everyone is left in distress and fear. You must help us, you must!"

A tense silence fell over the two men. After a few passing agonizing moments, the dark man made his decision known by grabbing the pouch of money and leaving the room with a rustle of his cape.

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The vampire hunter walked into the dim-lighted, noisy saloon. He gazed around the room from the doorway. Round tables were set up all over the place, the drunkards and poker players occupying most.

"Careful, D." He hunter glanced down at his left pale hand, then continued forward to the back of the room where a vacant table sat. He took a seat and began watching and listening, waiting for the demon or clues about where it might be staying.

Minutes turned into hours and day slowly turned into night.

More men and women began shuffling into the saloon, taking up more of what had been left of the space and making the place rowdier than ever.

So far, no one had seen him and that was good news for him. He could take on ten men if he had to, but he preferred to keep as low a profile as possible. The last thing he needed was human blood spilled by his hands. If that ever happened, chaos was sure to come for him.

"'ey, boyz! Look who we've here!" D tensed. A tall man with unkempt, greasy black hair stumbled toward the table, followed by three other men. The first one stood right in front of him, the smell of alcohol and the stink of his unwashed body assaulting his nose.

The drunk suddenly whipped out a dagger and began to wave it dangerously close and haphazardly to his nose, a sickly smile gracing the man's dirty features.

"Hello, hello, Mr. Hunter! We are honored to have a being like you to grace our town so." D remained quiet, but he slowly leaned away into the shadows.

"Hey! Where's ya goin'?" the drunk said, laughing his head off when he thrust his hand out and grabbed the large, almost glowing Caribbean-blue medallion hanging at his chest, then jerked him back into the light.

The man smiled cruelly along with his large thugs. Everyone in the saloon gradually quieted, watching the scene unfold.

"So, Mr. Hunter, what's your business here, uh? Come to steal some helpless child away? Make us slaves and force us to do your bidding? Or maybe you just want to simply suck our blood!" He and the men behind him started laughing, but no one else found it funny.

The man turned his head away, baring his neck to the hunter. He tapped the dagger against his neck, beckoning him to take a bite. "C'mon, bite me! Drink my blood!" The thugs laughed harder. Some people nearby slowly left their tables and put distance between them.

D narrowed his eyes and clenched his jaw, trying his best to ignore the man's taunting. No matter how vile or stupid the drunk was, the blood coursing through his veins caused the hunter's bloodlust that had lain dormant for decades to suddenly burst free from its tight bonds and exploded through his body, rushing upwards toward his head to war with his self-control.

He yanked away, but the man's grip on the pendent prevented him from going far. The man was grinning evilly at him, and he deliberately pressed the point of the blade into his flesh, then pulled it away. A thin ribbon of blood slowly dribbled down his neck from the small cut.

The background instantly fell away and only the drunk stood there. The man's face faded out, became transparent as red seeped in and all the hundreds of veins became visible to D's vampire eyes.

Steady heartbeats pounded a delicious rhythm into his ears, and every man and woman in the pub became visible again, their veins running in all directions over their red transparent bodies.

- Just a taste . . . - whispered a dark, silky voice. It echoed throughout his head, the sound of flowing blood through veins tempting him like a siren's song.

- Don't. - whispered another voice, this one much fainter but firmer, his self-control struggling to win the battle against his vampire urges.

- Do it! - the dark voice said again, pushing him closer to the edge. Just a small taste wouldn't hurt . . .

- NO! - shouted the rational voice. A high-pitched scream pierced through the hazy red fog that clouded his mind and suddenly color, sound, and smell came rushing back to him.

The man who had been teasing him had let go of his necklace and was looking at the entrance along with everyone else, his brow creased in confusion.

Cries and screams and gunfire came from outside. D, who was still trying to get himself under control again, jumped from his heat and ran for the door.

The cool night air washed over his face when he burst outside. Men and women were running past him. He could still hear guns going off in the opposite direction.

Turning to his robotic horse, he hurriedly untied the reigns from the nearby tree and stepped into the saddle. With a snap of the thin leather ropes, the hunter rode off into the night.

The further he rode, the quieter and more isolated the night became. The gunfire had long since stopped. Slowing his horse down to walk, D concentrated on any noises such as rustling of cloth, footsteps, heavy breathing, or even talking if the demon wasn't very bright. But nothing hinted the presence of an abnormal being.

As he continued on, the dark hulking figure of a barn house peeked over the almost treeless horizon. Then the familiar scent of thick, freshly spilled blood attacked his nose, and it instantly triggered his demonic side.

"Calm yourself, D. You'd almost lost yourself back there at that pub, but you didn't, so you don't need to give in now," whispered his hand.

"It's getting harder to control," he replied in a deep voice that was devoid of all emotion. The talking parasite made no comeback.

D spotted two, maybe three men lying on the ground, motionless. The metallic smell of the blood grew stronger as he neared them. He peered down at the bodies and saw huge gunshot wounds in vital areas, all leaking with large amounts of ruby-red blood.

"Maybe it was just some lunatic," voiced the parasite in his left hand.

"Perhaps," he replied, urging his horse closer to the barn. He wanted to make sure he wasn't mistaken though.

He halted the cyborg near the enormous door, then swung himself from the saddle and made his way cautiously up to the door.

It was slightly open, enough of a gap to allow a very petite person through. With some effort, D pushed open the heavy door a little wider, then slipped inside.

Needless to say, with the exception of the light from the full moon creeping in through the gap of his entrance, it was pitch black inside the gigantic barn.

And unfortunately, of all the powers D inherited from being a half-vampire, night vision wasn't one of them, unless, of course, he let his darker side free. So, instead he kept his ears on full alert for any movement.

The air was thick and warm and musty. As he walked around, his human eyes adjusting to the dark as best they could, he could feel dry straw and hay flatten beneath his feet.

He could hear mice squeaking and scurrying about, and hisses from an occasional cat. Other than that, the place seemed deserted.

As he made his way under the second floor, a creak followed by footsteps came from above him, straw floating to the floor. Calmly unsheathing his sword, he felt around until he found the ladder that led to the second floor, and began to climb.

Once on the second floor, D crouched down low and listened closely. The distinct cocking of an automatic weapon came from his left, and he quickly leapt out of the way just as it went off with a deafening BOOM, the bright spark from the shot flashing like a flame.

Recovering quickly, the hunter followed the sound of the crunching hay and soft curses. He stopped when the footsteps did, which was right at the edge of the platform before a good fifteen foot drop to ground level.

He caught movement in the corner of his eye and there was another cocking of the gun. But this time the person or possibly the demon was ready for him. It pulled the trigger when he leapt away and the bullet whizzed just past his ear just before he landed on his side.

He heard the armed person run a few paces, then heard a soft thump below, indicating that the he or she had actually jumped off the platform. He crawled over to the edge and could just make out the form of the figure as it ran toward the barn door.

"Hurry, D! Before they get away!" hissed his hand. Standing up and taking a step back, he then charged forward and leapt off the platform, landing with a thump on the hard floor below.

He looked up just in time to see the person slip out into the night, and he slipped out after them, his long sword ready for any further attacks.

Now, with the moonlight as an advantage, he could make out the small, slender form of what looked like a young woman as he raced after her. In her right hand she held onto a large object of what he guessed was the gun she kept shooting at him with.

With luck and his speed, D was able to catch up to the surprisingly fast woman and tackle her to the sandy ground. Just when he thought he had her pinned though, he was suddenly thrown off when she rolled over.

He quickly got to his hands and knees, and began groping and searching for his sword. He saw it near some bushes and reached out to grab it when small, but strong hands gripped his shoulders and tossed him back onto his back.

He looked up at her through his hair, his hat somewhere around after being thrown off during their little battle. She pounced him and straddled his chest, an alarmingly huge shotgun in her hands, its double barrels pressed roughly against his neck, forcing him to turn his head away, but he never diverted his eyes from her.

Piercing yellow eyes glared icily down at him. They stayed in that position for the longest time. Neither made a move or a sound. The chirping of crickets started around them, and finally the woman slowly moved her weapon away so she could look at him more closely.

"You must be the hunter that the mayor hired to kill me," she stated quietly. He tried his best to hide his immense surprise. She was the demon? This tiny woman?

She suddenly threw back her head and started laughing, startling him and making him wary. When she calmed down enough to talk, she said, "Oh, dear god, you're such a dumbass!"

D narrowed his eyes and finally said, "Explain."

She smiled and leaned in close and whispered, "Well, you see, while you were searching for me, the mayor has been gathering his townsmen and leading them here to kill not just me, but you too, dhampire."

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Woo, I updated! I personally LOVED this chpt. I think I put D well IC. ^^ Also, because I couldn't choose between the two, I decided to combine a pump-action shotgun and double-barrel shotgun together to make my original weapon, the pump-action double-barrel shotgun. lol, what a mouthful.

Well, be looking for the next update! Laterz! ^^