Cole watched as the creatures assumed fighting positions, their bodies morphing before his eyes. Knees bent in unnatural directions. Wings tore through skin and clothes. Black hair sprouted seemingly from nowhere, altering their pale features to those of a monster. Their eyes turned red and bulged, noses flattened against their faces, and teeth transformed into large fangs.
Sun Tie didn’t hesitate for even a second. Showing no signs of shock at the monsters' transformations, the young master lunged towards Valthor, his blade swinging rapidly in a horizontal movement.
The creature dodged to the side with supernatural speed, almost hitting a wall. Sun Tie pressed the attack, swinging the blade repeatedly, taking advantage of the fact that the monster had its back to the wall.
The vampire shrieked as it tried again to duck, but Sun Tie’s sword opened a massive gash in the vampire’s chest. The blue and orange flames bit into the monster’s skin, and Cole could see a blue mist widening the wounds further.
Sun Tie was in a position to deliver a killing blow, but Syl intervened. She crashed her body into the young master, sending him sprawling. The youth held his grip on his sword as he fell to the ground.
“Another animal. This one from another planet, I imagine.” Syl spat the words with a smooth voice. The archer continued his efforts to free himself, knowing Sun Tie would need help.
“The only animals I see here are you two, hellish-winged rats!” Sun Tie quipped, rising with a broad smile on his face. He pointed his sword at Cole, “And that old donkey over there! What a stubborn old fool.”
The two vampires didn’t appreciate Sun Tie’s words. They shrieked into the air and prepared to pounce. Two against one in a coordinated attack would be difficult to manage, even for Sun Tie. Cole rubbed the rope against the wall as fast as he could, but freedom didn’t feel close at hand.
“Come, foolish creatures! I could use a little fun!” Sun Tie shouted, and they lunged at the youth. Sun Tie’s hand made an inhumanly fast movement, and his sword cut through the air. Cole could have sworn he saw the air forming a blade alongside the sword.
He didn’t strike the monsters directly, but they were thrown onto their backs, bleeding from their chests. Sun Tie seemed to have a specific target in mind, and he moved decisively towards it.
Is that a skill? Cole asked himself as a shiver ran through his body.
The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
Cole used [Identify] and observed that their health was precarious, with Valthor in a particularly dire situation. However, the system was healing them, much like it healed Cole. They spaced themselves out, assuming fighting positions, while Sun Tie waited.
A smile adorned the young master’s face, his back close to a wall, his sword casting light throughout the room. He seemed to control the situation, and as the monsters lunged again, he sliced through the air once more, this time striking only Syl, the blue mist widening her wounds even further.
He’s using a sword skill… Could it be?
Valthor did not stop, forcing Sun Tie to evade his attack before swinging the blade upward. The monster blocked the young master’s hand with one arm and lunged for a bite, but Sun Tie was quicker, forcefully headbutting the creature. Next, Sun Tie struck the monster’s chest with a punch that sent him flying.
Sun Tie dashed towards the male vampire, but Syl rose just in time to save Valthor again, the vampire now teetering on the brink of death.
“Is it fear I’m seeing in your eyes?” Sun Tie asked, maneuvering the sword in his hand with the expertise of a professional, light dancing in the cave. Cole realized he had long since stopped rubbing his hands against the wall.
“Fear of a human? What a joke!” The female vampire retorted. “Prepare to die in pain.” She lunged, catching Sun Tie by surprise. The young master tried to evade her but failed. They rolled to the ground, Sun Tie with his flaming sword in hand but unable to strike her.
The vampire held one knee in the sword's arm, and Sun Tie kept hitting her with his punch, but this time, the strike was not strong enough to make her hurl away.
“Oh, I’ll actually enjoy drinking your filthy blood,” Syl muttered, and Cole saw drool dripping from her mouth in Sun Tie’s direction. “It’s probably not wrong, assuming you’re from another planet.”
The young master continued to resist her, but she seemed poised to overcome him eventually. The blue mist around his body nearly dissipated.
“Is it fear I’m seeing in your eyes?” Syl asked, her words full of lust. She inclined her mouth towards Sun Tie’s neck and licked it. “What a delicious meal I’ll have now.” She said, lunging back his head, preparing to descend and consume Sun Tie’s blood.
Just as Cole was resigning himself to despair, he heard a loud, defiant yell emanating from the same corridor from which Sun Tie had emerged. Soon after, a large, black, bald man appeared, gripping a sword with both hands.
“Die!” He screamed, swinging it toward Syl. She glanced over her shoulder, and Cole glimpsed fear in her eyes.
But her fear lasted only a heartbeat.
Valthor leaped at James, hurling him against a wall with staggering force. The priest collided headfirst and crumpled to the ground, unconscious.
A deadly quiet fell.
Cole's hope, once a vibrant flame, flickered and died in his chest as Syl’s jaws opened wide. Time seemed to stand still, his silent scream suspended in the air, just as her teeth sank into Sun Tie’s neck.