The giant dark creature relentlessly chased after Caden and Reina. The mother and son both ran in opposite directions, but the creature, understanding its threats, decided to pursue Caden, knowing he possessed the power to truly harm it. The giant struck its left hand into the ground and ripped out a massive piece of rock.
The monster was having a hard time tracking Caden's movements with its one functional eye. The creature grunted, and its damaged right eye began to show strange, wiggly movements as its regeneration accelerated. In a few agonizing seconds, the sword that was stuck in the giant dark creature's eye socket fell out, and the eye began to swiftly regenerate.
The vampire party took a huge blow now that the senior vampire Paul was out of the battle. They could feel a massive amount of pressure pushing down on them. The two remaining vampire knights were disciplined; they did not lose their nerve, knowing this was an important moment they had constantly trained for.
The two vampires ran in opposite directions, each of them attacking the giant's foot. They knew their attacks were useless against the creature, but this was not their plan. They hoped to distract the giant so the heavy hitters could capitalize, but their plan failed as the creature never lost focus on Caden.
The giant's shadow, long and oppressive, fell over Reina. She was quick, impossibly quick—a blur against the twilight—but the sheer scale of the creature was disorienting. It moved with a lumbering grace that belied its size, his gaze fixed on her. There was no finesse in his approach, just an overwhelming, primal intent.
Then, the giant unleashed a horizontal chop strike with an open hand. Reina tensed, her ancient instincts screaming for escape, but the sheer scale of the attack left her almost no room. The shadow of his hand swallowed her whole, the sound of tearing air filling her ears like the roar of a monstrous beast.
Just as the devastating blow was mere inches from obliterating her, a blur of motion, impossibly fast even for a vampire, flashed across her vision. A strong hand, cold as grave dust but imbued with immense power, seized her around the waist. Before she could even register the touch, she was yanked violently sideways, propelled by an unseen force.
"No, Caden!" Reina cried.
The world spun, a dizzying mix of sky, ground, and the monumental form of the dark giant creature. The chop that had been meant for Reina now slammed with devastating force into Caden, who had just pushed his mother clear. The impact shook the mountain, tearing a gaping trench in the ground and sending a shockwave that ripped through the landscape like a physical tremor, burying Caden deep below the surface.
Helen managed to catch Reina and brought her to safety. The female vampire quickly came to her senses and looked toward the crater where the giant had struck. She looked to Helen. "Where is my son?" she said anxiously.
"Sister, we are going to try to get the creature's attention while you go find out if your son is alive." Helen stood up and ordered the two vampire knights to attack the creature from the rear. While she charged her fist with spirit force.
The vampire knights got the dark giant's attention. It roared with fury while punching at one of them, causing a huge crater in the ground. It slowly lifted its fist to see if the vampire survived. It was not long before the giant was distracted that Helen came soaring through the air, hitting the giant with a charged-up blood punch to the cheek. The punch was so powerful that it sent visible ripples through the giant's left side of the face. The giant was sent tumbling to the ground in a loud thud.
Reina was amazed by Helen's raw power. "She is amazing!"
It was not long before Reina snapped out of her amazement that she quickly ran to the crater where the giant had attacked her son.
"Caden!" she shouted while furiously digging up the large and medium-sized rocks. The crater was deep, and the constant rain was making the debris heavy.
"Caden!" The female vampire continued to dig until she saw a white, pale hand that was covered in debris and rock fragments. She hurriedly grabbed the hand and pulled out Caden with one tremendous pull.
The vampire was still unconscious as he lay on the ground, his hair disheveled, and his clothes in tatters. Reina grabbed Caden's clothes and shook him roughly. "Stand up, Caden, we are not done yet!"
In a hoarse, exhausted tone Caden replied, "Why can't you let me rest for a bit? I'm so tired."
Caden's reply almost made Reina burst a vein on her forehead. She hauled back and punched him hard in the stomach. "You good for nothing!"
*Pow*
"Ouch!" Caden grabbed his stomach. "Why did you hit me?"
"Because without you, we are dead!" Reina shouted.
"But our weapons are useless, and my Hellflame is only damaging it by a little, not enough to put it down. We need something bigger."
A familiar voice then cut through the air. "Did someone say something bigger?"
A huge, broad sword landed next to Caden. Its tip entered the ground as it stood tall and majestic. Caden looked at the sword with amazement. "Now this is what I'm talking about!"
"Caden, I brought you Blazescale. You probably already heard of this sword, am I right?"
"Yeah, it needs no introduction. It's just that I have never wielded it."
"You can only use its full power when you awaken the spirit beast inside of it. Do you think you can do it?"
"Do I have a choice?"
"No, not really."
"There you have it."
"Sisters, thank you for coming," Reina said, greeting Cassandra and Emma who came along with two new vampire knights.
"Don't worry, sister. The moment we heard that you are in a fight against a giant, we knew that we had to come lend a hand," Cassandra said as she and Emma looked at the dark giant creature.
"It looks like some kind of demon," Emma commented.
"You should taste the monster's attacks; it's like getting hit by the tail of a dragon."
"Sister, we not only brought Caden a gift but also to you all." Cassandra took one of the swords from the accompanying vampire knight and handed it to Reina. "Let us show this giant what the Crimsons can really do."
"You two, quit standing there and go help them. Don't forget to give them the new swords; looks like their current ones aren't doing anything to this giant," Emma quickly commanded the other two vampire knights.
"Yes, my lady." The two vampire knights immediately sprang into action.
Caden got back to his feet. He wiped the dust casually from his clothes. He looked at the three formidable female vampires. "Can I kindly ask you three ladies to help keep the giant busy while I try to cook something up with this bad boy?"
"Geez, Reina, your son has no respect for his elders," Emma said while removing the bow from her shoulders.
"Forgive the boy, he is still young," Reina said, rubbing her index finger on the tip of the sword.
"All the power has probably shot to his head. But we will show you a thing or two," Cassandra said as she removed the magic rope from her shoulder.
"Attack!" Cassandra shouted. All three female vampires dashed from where they were standing and headed full speed towards the giant.
Emma jumped high into the air. She grabbed an arrow from the quill and aimed it towards the giant. While Emma was still in the air, the giant turned his head and stared directly at the female vampire who seemed to be hovering. The dark giant creature, with eyes as black as coal, noticed how Emma was holding the bow's grip with her left hand and using her right hand to pull the bowstring back. The bowstring began to give off a light bluish shine while the giant released a low growl. "I am going to eat you!"
"Eat this!" she retorted and released the arrow. It streaked through the air, a silver blur tipped with glowing runes, and slammed directly into the giant's face. Upon impact, the runic inscriptions flared, and the arrowhead detonated in a burst of light and force. The giant staggered, a guttural roar escaping him, only a shallow, smoking flesh wound marred his colossal features.
The giant dark creature's left hand quickly cut through the smoke, trying to grab the female vampire while she was still descending. The hand was coming at her too fast; there was no way for her to escape. Emma, however, was not concerned. As the giant hand shot through the rain like a net and slowly closed in on her, the giant shut its hands but felt nothing. It knew something was not right.
It scanned the ground below and saw Cassandra using a magic rope to pull Emma down and out of the line of fire. The giant's anger flared. Its eyes shifted, and the giant swung its hands, punching Reina and two other vampire knights to the ground. They immediately got to their feet and started running. "How far are you, Caden?"
Caden, who stood outside the battleground, was still pouring the Crimsons' Hellflame into the sword. His eyes were closed; it was as if all the fighting around the castle did not exist. The vampire's consciousness then seeped within the sword. It was dark and quiet. He looked around, but there was nothing until something large and heavy fell behind him in a loud thud.
"Your Hellfire has awakened me, vampire. But you are not Zeno Crimson."
Caden turned around and saw a huge lizard creature. It was scaled in dark, earthy tones with hints of blue, but dramatically illuminated by intense, glowing orange and red flames erupting from its back, neck, and the tip of its long, spiky tail. Its head was prominent, with a wide-open mouth revealing sharp teeth, and its eyes glowed with an inner fire, conveying a sense of immense power and ferocity. The creature appeared to be massive, with thick, muscular limbs and a textured hide, suggesting both strength and an ancient, primal nature.
"Oh yes, you look stunning. I am the son of Zeno Crimson and the grandson of Leonidas Crimson. My name is Caden Crimson." Caden took a light bow before continuing. "What might your name be, my friend?"
"Blazescale."
"Excellent name. Blazescale, let me not beat around the bush. I have a problem, and I need your help in defeating a giant creature whose skin is hard to cut. Do you think you can help me, Blazescale?"
The giant lizard's forked tongue darted out, and it blew dark smoke out from its mouth. "Interesting problem, vampire. I have never come across an enemy I can't cut. Fine, use me, vampire, because there is no armor I cannot breach, no bone I cannot shatter. Unleash me!"
Caden's eyes snapped open, and a huge amount of flame energy seeped out of the sword Blazescale. The broadsword pulsed violently. From its gleaming edges, a thick, molten torrent of Hellflame began to weep and spill, cascading down the blade in rivulets of incandescent orange and crimson. The intense heat of the infernal energy met the frigid rain with a furious hiss, sending up clouds of scalding steam that momentarily shrouded the vampire, smelling of ozone and brimstone. The ground around the blade sizzled and blackened, the rainwater instantly evaporating as the raw, unbridled power saturated the air. Simultaneously, Caden's eyes, previously just fierce, now blazed with an infernal, internal fire, their glow cutting through the rain-dimmed light and reflecting the sword's newfound power.
With a roar of exertion that was almost swallowed by the storm, he wrenched the colossal blade from the sodden ground, the mud protesting with a deep, sucking groan. He hefted it with surprising ease, letting its immense weight settle against his shoulder. The leaking Hellflame was licking harmlessly around him, defying the relentless rain. His face contorted with a primal fury, his gaze, now twin points of burning vengeance amidst the storm, locked onto the towering form of the giant, ready to unleash the monstrous power of his newly animated weapon.
"If John managed to take down a troll, I, as the older cousin, have to at least take down a giant," Caden thought as he stood and gathered a little bit more energy. "Are you ready, Blazescale?"
"Use me and watch him crumble."
"Hehe. Time to go crazy."