Alexander looked up at Ivanovich’s vile yellow eyes and his sickening sadistic grin and wondered how it was possible for him to win this battle. His body was heavy and stiff, pain shot through every inch of him. There was a quiet voice nagging in the back of his mind, telling him to give up. This was all pointless. He couldn’t win. He was just a flimsy obstacle in front of an unstoppable force.

Ivanovich spoke up, “Look at what you’ve done,” he gestured to the wounds covering his body from the lightning. “I have to repay you for these, World Guardian.”

Alexander winced in terror, wondering what physical and psychological torture the vampire had in store for him next. Then out of the corner of his eye, he saw a crowd of civilians looking on. Some of them were injured themselves. Others helped each other out of the nearby rubble. They looked on at him, fear etched on their faces. Fear of what was to come next. Fear of what would happen if he lost. One of the civilians, with tears in her eyes, screamed out, “Don’t give up!”

Another echoed the sentiment, “You can do it!”

Slowly, they all began to chime in, encouraging him not to give up.

Ivanovich laughed maniacally, enjoying every bit of this. “The vermin are crawling out of their holes to watch you be defeated!”

But Alexander felt a new fire begin to burn within him. “You’re wrong,” he told Ivanovich, laboring to his feet.

He looked on in astonishment. “H-how are you standing?!”

“I am the World Guardian,” Alexander fired back, confidence filling his voice, “and these are my people. I will do whatever it takes to protect them!”

Ivanovich retorted, “We’ll see about that!”

He formed a crimson casting circle in front of his hand that traveled down his forearm. He called out the incantation, “Sanguine Siphon.” Blood erupted from the circle and stuck to his arm. It created a long, crude-looking needle, which he thrust at Alexander.

Alexander dodged as fast as his body would allow, his injuries slowing him. The needle clipped his side, and he grunted in pain as he formed a yellow casting circle with his hands.

Ivanovich laughed as the needle of blood hummed with magic—Alexander’s magic. Ivanovich’s body dimly glowed as some of the wounds on his body closed. “Your vitality is intoxicating,” he said delightfully. “I want more!”

Alexander, his spell now complete, yelled back, “Come and get it then!” A small ball of light took shape in his hand as he yelled the incantation, “Flash Bomb!” He threw the ball to the ground, causing a massive flash of light and kicking up a shroud of dust. Ivanovich recoiled, covering his eyes as he was temporarily blinded.

Alexander knew he only had a moment before Ivanovich would be able to see him again. He conjured a crimson casting circle of his own, directing it down his forearm as he ran off to the side of where he had been standing.

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The flash of light faded, and the dust from his Flash Bomb settled. Ivanovich rushed forward, hoping to strike Alexander again before he could react, but he found the World Guardian missing. He turned as Alexander jumped forward, yelling the incantation, “Sanguine Siphon!” With blinding speed, Alexander thrust his own needle of blood into the vampire’s torso, piercing straight through him.

Ivanovich screeched in pain, his yellow eyes going wide. Blood spewed from his mouth, and he wheezed, “W-what…?”

Alexander didn’t answer. Instead, he focused on draining as much magic as he could. As he began to siphon the vampire’s power, he came to a shocking realization. For the first time, he could feel the true depths of Ivanovich’s magical power. It was much greater than he could have imagined. Was he just toying with him this whole time? He pushed the thought to the back of his mind, stealing away as much power as he could. It felt good. His own wounds began to close, and the pain that had wracked his body subsided.

Ivanovich remarked, “I-I’m surprised…that you know blood magic....”

Alexander fired back, “I’m full of surprises.” He was nearly back to full power. He hoped that it would be enough to defeat Ivanovich.

The vampire grinned. “So am I.”

Alexander flinched in surprise as Ivanovich pulled him closer. He smashed his forearm into Alexander’s face, sending him reeling as the needle of blood dissipated. Another crimson magical circle formed on his hands, and he manipulated his own blood. He coated his new wound in it, making it harden as a temporary bandage.

“We need to have a little talk, World Guardian.”

He launched himself at Alexander, launching him up into the air. Ivanovich took flight and dragged Alexander up the side of a nearby skyscraper; the glass of the windows shattering as Alexander was smashed against them.

They reached the top of the building, and he threw Alexander into the side, slamming him against the structure and holding him in place, high above the ground. Blood poured down Alexander’s face, and his breaths became heavy and labored again. Ivanovich looked on in pride at his work.

“It’s been fun, World Guardian, but it’s about time we wrap things up,” Ivanovich said. He pointed to the top of another skyscraper where the device they had seen previously was now located. “Do you know what that’s for?”

Alexander struggled to speak. Through painful breathes he finally said, “I…I have no idea…”

Ivanovich said, “That device is imbued with my essence. It will forcefully transform everyone in this city into vampires! My new subjects! With them added to my ranks, I will finally have the army I need to seize control of this world!”

Alexander struggled against Ivanovich’s grip and yelled, “I-I won’t allow that to happen…!”

Ivanovich laughed in his face. “It’s amusing that you think you can save everyone.” He yelled at him to look down at the people below, but Alexander was struggling to stay conscious and could barely see through the blood in his eyes.

Ivanovich yelled louder, “Look!” He slipped behind Alexander and put him in a chokehold, forcing his head to face the ground towards the people. “You can’t save them, World Guardian. They will all die, and it will be your fault.”

Alexander gritted his teeth and struggled harder. Ivanovich flipped him around and slammed him into the building again, holding him back in place. “I said that I would break you, body and spirit.”

His eyes lit up as an idea came to him. He looked at a group of people on the ground and, smiling, said, “I can spare a few bodies.” He called an incantation, “Sanguine Slicer,” as a casting circle formed in front of his free hand.

A crimson disk of blood shot forward toward another building. It passed effortlessly through a chunk of the structure, slicing it off, and it began to crumble towards the ground, the group of people in its path.

They screamed and tried to run as the rubble hurtled towards them. Alexander screamed out as Ivanovich laughed. He summoned as much power as he could and blasted Ivanovich with a powerful stream of flames, sending him recoiling through the sky. He quickly cast a wind spell angled away from the ground. The spell propelled him toward the crowd of people. He threw his hands out and shouted, desperately hoping to make it in time…