"You've come."

Axel the Dhampyre stood in a copse of trees, observing the airship that glided silently over him. It was small and long, only having one gas-bladder, and traded armor and arms for speed and maneuverability.

Axel recognised it too. The zeppelin Lambence, an escort ship of the Vampire Hunters of Estia. Being the second smallest class of airship, it was not primed for war, rather as a transport vehicle. Powered by a Geoffrey-Frederick flight core, it was one of the first new airship designs developed based on recovered blueprints. This made it a widely known ship all over Estia.

Axel felt rather honoured that they had decided to throw such a famous toy his way.

A mechanical clunk sounded, confusing Axel. Normally the sound of an airship's descent was a gaseous whoosh, could it be possible that something in it was broken. What a shame. Axel smiled sadly. He was really looking forward to a fair fight.

Blam!

Axel hissed and jumped aside, clearing the copse as the ship's guns pivoted downwards and fired, smashing into the ground and churning up clods of dirt. Pulling out a splinter from his bicep, the vampire stared up and scowled.

"Come down and fight, assholes!"

As if in response, five figures vaulted out of the side of the ship in one mighty leap, spreading out to impact below.

Dropping at this height? They must be mad.

Or really, really, really good.

The five Hunters thudded into the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. When the screen cleared, instead of blood and guts, were the men, unharmed, standing arm-deep craters. A circle of runes swirled ethereally around their feet.

"Impact absorption? Nice."

One of the men, this time unhooded, smiled. "Impressed, vampire?" Now we're going to kill you for doing Mistress Christine in." His face twitched.

"Mistress? Is she your senior?"

"Oh yes." The man spoke reverently. "She's a Circle. Number seven, to be exact." Suddenly his voice was charged with hate. "Until you killed her."

The Circles were a council of seven warriors that governed the Vampire Hunters. Trained in the arts of vampire hunting, they practised their craft to the highest degree, unleashing deadly powers to smite the undead. Axel felt dissapointed that they were all Estia had to offer, especially after he defeated one in about fifteen minutes.

They all attacked at once. Unsheathing their silver blades, the hunters charged him, cutting, stabbing and slashing. Axel waved from side to side, easily avoiding the blows. After fighting Christine, these men were amateurs at best, their blows sluggish and clumsy. Spinning like a dervish, he summoned two blades and slashed wildly.

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Within five seconds, the attackers lay in a gory circle around him. Staring up at the obnoxious hovering airships, Axel yelled, "Any more?"

"Just two, in fact."

Another person jumped out, trailing fluttering robes, followed by a larger, more compactly dressed one. Touching down lightly at almost the same time, the latter strode towards Axel, hand on the blade strapped to his waist.

"What? You're fighting me alone?"

"No, not really." The man spoke calmly and levelly, never taking his eyes of Axel. "The arcanist back there will help." The robed young man, almost a boy, stared at Axel, eyes smouldering with eldritch fire.

"...You're cocky for a weakling."

Swish

"Eh?"

Axel stared dumbly at the stump of his right arm. Turning around, he saw the swordsman standing behind him, facing away, sword hung loosely at his side.

"He moved so fast that there's no blood on his blade..."

True enough, the shining silver weapon was still spotless, having slashed so fast that blood simply flowed past it.

Axel collected himself, forming a thick lance of blood and charged the man. "Eat this!"

Quick as a snake, the hunter spun, slamming his blade into Axel's and holding it there. "If you're looking for a contest of strength..." Axel grinned.

"Then I'll definitely win!"

This was the wrong thing to say. The man quickly cut to the side with perfect form, severing his weapon.

Christine could only use one Perfect Alignment as a trump card, but this guy...

[Perfect Alignment] [Perfect Alignment] [Perfect Alignment]

The cuts came hard and fast, executed with deadly grace.

He's going for the heart... If he hits me once, I'm dead!

Axel desperately tried to dodge the attacks. "What are you? A Circle?"

"Yes. Circle Number Six, Jorge Benson."

Six? What the hell? One rank brings so much difference?

[Riptide]

The sword in Jorge's hand spun until it became a blur. Exploding forward, the Vampire Hunter created a cloud of circular slashes that Axel barely managed to dodge.

Once he goes past, I'll slash him!

Axel prepared his hand, calling his blood to form a blade.

But instead of carrying forward like how Axel predicted, the Circle planted his foot into the dirt beside Axel, stopping thousands of pounds of force, and spun round. Before Axel even started to try and do a cut, he sped forward and executed the same move. The unprepared Dhampyre was sliced dozens of times and crumpled.

This guy is on a totally new level!

Raising the blade, Jorge switched to a backhand grip and positioned for a thrust into Axel's heart.

This is how it ends, huh?

And then he remembered. Remembered the trek through the Greenmaw. Remembered the leer of the Man. Remembered the blood-stained day when the sky burned. And he knew.

I...have to live. And I will.

At any cost.

Axel spun upwards, kicking up into Jorge's chin. And met air.

The Hunter blurred backwards, squatting down and slicing the Dhampyre's legs off.

"How..."

"Wait!" The Circle turned, resting the silver blade on Axel's chin. As if he could even move, the pain from the silver-laced wounds incapacitating him totally.

The arcanist looked over Axel. "I think...I think we can leave him alive."

"Here?"

"Of course not! You can leave him with my master. He could be a source of information on Zorne."

As if I'd help you. I hate Zorne, but I hate you too.

The younger man looked down. "Of course, the decision is yours. Sir."

Jorge leaned over Axel, releasing the pressure on his chin. "Hmm. Interesting. You don't smell like a vampire. Too human. Yet you use the fell magics of the twiceborn."

"Strange half-thing. Maybe you can tell us something we don't know." Grabbing something from his belt, the Hunter jabbed it into Axel's neck. As the world spun and shifted out of proportion, Axel heard Jorge's elongating head say something.

"Take him. We make for Gertford immediately."