By the time I reached the level I'd heard Vela's scream come from, I was panting hard. The climb had been worse than the descent.
I quickly checked my body and found my heart was trembling. Like it wanted to beat but couldn't. I guessed this was why I felt so heavy.
As I panted, I thought of the little stunted growth in my throat. I remembered it had been inhaling air, too. Checking it, I saw it had grown a little, but not by much. I wondered what I would need to do to force its growth. My veins had been strengthened by pushing more blood through my Bloodline.
Perhaps if I pushed more air through the growth, it would increase its capacity.
And would that increase my stamina?
It was worth experimentation.
But not right now.
I slipped into the hall from the stairwell and found a line of bodies. I counted seven. Puddles of blood had pooled under them, and the walls looked like they'd been painted red. The smell of gunfire lingered, almost masking the coppery scent of blood which teased but didn't tempt.
Living blood was always better.
Bullet holes were everywhere.
Doors were smashed.
And I could hear the soft murmur of voices up ahead.
Picking my way through the dead, I approached an apartment whose door had been reduced to splinters. Two more bodies were crumpled just inside.
Tentatively, I peered around the corner into the gloom.
"-can't kill her. The bounty's up to fifteen thousand a head. Fifty if she's alive."
"That ain't gonna help the dead, Dale."
"It'll help their families."
Pause. Sound of a gun being reloaded. "Alright. I'll give you that. But I say we have some fun with her first."
A heavy sigh. "Don't be a dickhead, Jordan."
"We deserve something for all the trouble!"
"All you deserve is a bullet in the head if you even think about touching her like that. You've got a wife, asshole."
"So?"
"So, I'll tell her exactly what you just said if you push it."
"Fuck you." Another pause. "You wouldn't. Would you?"
"Try me."
I let out a low grunt.
While it wasn't rare that a thug had a moral code, it was uncommon for them to enforce it on others.
If I'd been able to access my shadow powers, I could have dived into the dark and appeared behind them without warning. But with my Meridians tattered and my heart not yet beating, I didn't have any other choice except to stride into the apartment like a mortal.
As I entered, I ducked down to snatch one of the corpses by its leg and dragged it along behind me. Entering, the two men swiveled towards me.
Blinked.
Then brought up their guns.
I flung the corpse at the one on the right and leapt on the other.
"Dale! Look out!" My fingers snatched him by the throat, choking off anything else he might have wanted to say.
His blood was precious to me. I wanted to drain him dry.
But Dale hadn't fallen under the corpse. He'd dodged the body and was already spinning on his heel. Gun at the ready. Finger on the trigger.
And I was sick of being shot today.
With a contemptuous twist of my wrist, I ripped a chunk of flesh from Jordan's throat and tossed it over my shoulder as his blood hissed out like a fountain.
I took a step towards the man, but he hadn't slowed his turn.
Pausing, I frowned.
He wasn't aiming at me.
He was aiming at Vela.
The blonde Renfield was slumped against the wall. Blood streaming down from her forehead. Someone had hit her hard.
Another hole in her shoulder showed where a bullet had drilled into her. The blood on the wall told a story of her being hit and then sliding down the wall into her current position. A pool of blood was spreading slowly and her face was pale as she lifted her head.
She was tired.
In pain.
Suffering.
But I could see her concern was not for herself.
"Master," she croaked. "Run, Master!"
"Master?" Dale kept the gun on her, his eyes shining bright. "So, the Renfields adopted a vamp, eh? You don't look too fresh, though. Look a bit starved, to be honest. I guess the Clan War's kept you from feeding."
"Please," she whined. "Run!"
"Move and I kill her," he growled.
"Kill her and I'll teach you how I use stakes," I told him calmly.
"Huh?" He frowned.
"My name is Dracula. Count Dracula. I was once called the Imapler." I let him see my fangs as I smiled. "My record is two days."
"Two days?"
"That's how long it took them to die. If we try, I think you and I could make it to three."
"Bullshit," he said, squinting at me. "Dracula's dead."
"I believe the word you're looking for is undead." I glanced at Vela. "It appears I will have to make another ghoul."
"Another?" Vela's pain retreated for a moment as confusion took hold. Then her eyes widened. "Hina! You did something to her!"
I nodded. "I'll do the same for you," I told her. "And I suppose we'll need to offer it to Molly. She'll feel left out otherwise. And at least I wouldn't have to worry about you getting shot in future."
Vela looked from me to Dale.
The Hellsing hadn't moved his aim from her.
"It doesn't matter who you are," Dale snarled, using one hand to pull out a small vial. He put it to his lips and used his teeth to rip out the cork. "You vamps all die the same!"
He tossed the contents at me.
Vela let out a sharp gasp as the clear liquid splashed across my chest.
I looked down at my shirt. It had already been shredded by countless bullets. The bloodstains were gone, though, having been pulled back into my body.
It had been a good shirt. Black silk. Very soft.
Now it was wet.
Raising an eyebrow, I looked up at him. "Water?"
"Holy water," Vela rasped, looking almost as confused as the Hellsing. "It burns vampires."
"Ah," I said, brushing some off. "The other fellow claimed it would heal me. I guess he was lying after all. I did think it was strange…"
"Impossible," Dale stuttered, mouth gaping wide. The gun trembled in his grip as he shook his head in denial. "That was blessed by a bishop!"
"Do you have any blessed by a pope? Perhaps that will work."
He took a step backwards, reeling in disbelief.
"But you're a vamp!"
"I see why you're confused," I told him. "But I am nothing like what you're used to fighting. Those creatures you squabble with are not vampires."
He licked his lip, nervously. "I gotta…"
He looked from me to the doorway behind me.
Calculating his chances.
I shook my head.
"I'm afraid not."
He jabbed the gun towards Vela. "Then I'll kill her!"
The conversation was boring. And it was about to go in circles.
I'd hoped to lure him into pointing his weapon at me, but it seemed he wasn't stupid enough for that.
There was nothing more to do than take yet another chance.
I was about to fling myself at him when I felt a dull thump go through my body. As though a heavy explosive had gone off in the distance and its shockwave had passed through me.
Then another.
And another.
Confused, I put a hand to my chest.
My heart! It was beating again! I felt a surge as blood finally flowed into my Bloodline, spreading warmth through my body as it rushed through my veins.
A gasp coughed across my lips and I staggered on my feet, trying to keep my balance as the world seemed to tip and turn beneath me.
"Freeze!" Dale shouted. "Don't move, or I kill her! I swear, I'll kill her!"
Forcing myself to stillness, I endured a wave of nausea before my vision blurred.
What was happening?
"Master!"
I fell to my knees, rocked as everything went dark.
Horror swept all other emotions away.
I was blind!
And then my ears started ringing. Dale was shouting at me, but I couldn't hear him clearly. Even the building's alarm, which hadn't stopped, was lost in background noise as the ringing got louder and more high-pitched.
I put my hands to my head, roaring as I felt the pressure building again.
Last time my heart had exploded.
Was this time going to be my head?
Just as I thought I was about to burst, there was a sharp pop.
And everything stopped.
I could feel my heart pulsing fast. My blood still rushing in my veins, a river of frothing red.
And my vision cleared.
Looking up, my mouth opened in awe.
Everything looked different. The shadows were sharper. The lights brighter. Looking around, I could see colours I never noticed before.
"Master?" Vela sobbed, clutching her shoulder. "Master! Are you okay?"
I nodded weakly.
I was okay, I wanted to say. But I was out of breath.
And drowning in new sensations. My fingers, touching the carpet, could feel the fibres of cotton underneath. I could feel the sharpness of them. Shockingly, I could hear Dale's heartbeat racing in his chest.
And Vela's as it staggered along. She was weak from blood loss. Struggling through her pain.
My nostrils could smell blood. Sweat. Fear.
Food rotting in the cupboards.
Traces of perfume from the Renfield who had lived her.
The scent of her was deeply ingrained into everything.
It was floral and pretty.
And, as I slowly lifted my head to stare at the Hellsing still painting his gun at Vela, that scent ignited a deep and senseless rage within me.
"Die," I whispered.
Dale tensed. "What?"
I leapt.
Faster than a cat. Faster than I think I'd ever been before. Air whipped through my fingers as my arm shot for his neck.
He didn't even have time to squeeze the trigger.
I drove him to the ground with a wild hiss, slamming his skull hard against the floor.
No chance to fight.
No chance to scream.
My fangs carved into the flesh of his throat, slicing the artery and tearing flesh open with a savage chomp.
His blood flowed rapidly, and I pulled it out of him with grim determination.
I needed his blood.
I needed the vitality it would give me.
Turning to Vela as he gave one final twitch before he died, I felt the rage still burning inside my soul.
I shuffled over to her, pulling her into my arms.
Without hesitation, I bit into my wrist and held it over her mouth.
"Drink," I commanded, already pulling a splinter of darkness from my heart. "Drink and be reborn!"
***
If you want to read what Hina was up to during these chapters, I have an exclusive chapter from her POV on Patreon.com/LucasThorn