Chương 40

"They killed your pet!" one of the vampires shouted.

"They even skinned the thing!" Light shown down in a beam from the torture chamber above them. The vampires who'd chased them into this pit had returned, likely intending to scrape up their remains for questioning. Deciding to leave before discovering who, exactly, owned the flesh amalgamation, Oliver snatched up Ben's metal box and shoved Kiki forward. The [Neon Samurai] stumbled, then fell down into the hole in the floor she'd just cut out.

Praying that he didn't land on her sword, Oliver leaped into the hole after her. He only fell a few yards. Unlike the disposal pit, he hit the ground hard. Kiki had already rolled into a crouch, her sword held in front of her, illuminating her black mask. While her suit was no longer sparking, thanks to Ben's work on it, it lacked the glowing pink trim it once emitted. Only her blade and eyes remained neon. Ben's lights lit up, giving them a good look at where they'd fallen.

It reminded Oliver of the inside of a concrete sewer pipe, though it lacked any water or muck. Over his shoulder, he spotted a grate on the ceiling with flesh bulging out. He figured that must have been the entrance mentioned in his book. There were shouts from above, but they were muffled. Oliver decided he'd rather put space between him and his foes than stick around to decipher their words.

"Let's go," he said. Shovel in one hand, Ben's communication device tucked under the other arm, he started forward. With the knowledge that the servers were deeper in the mountain, Oliver chose the direction that slanted downwards. It took only a few minutes of sprinting before they arrived at their next obstacle. A dead end with a metal door. Even through the door and concrete, Oliver could hear the whirl of electronics active within. It didn't take a genius to know they were at the server room's entrance.

"Cut down the door," he instructed Kiki. He took a few steps back the way they'd come and began his preparations. First, he laid down a line of salt on the ground. The most basic protection that would be hard pressed to stop a vampire, but should act as a slight deterrent to give them pause. He set Ben's communication device down on the ground next to the door. The lights on the metal box were his primary source of light and he'd rather keep it a safe distance behind himself.

With just a plain concrete tunnel in front of him, he lacked the shadows necessary to hide. If he still had time in his Summon Sanctuary, he would consider hiding out for a few hours in hopes of losing his foe. Sadly, that wasn't an option at the moment. Traps were difficult to set up as well, since he didn't have a means in which to hide them here. Something landed on the tunnel floor back the way they'd come. The sound of footsteps echoed down in their direction.

A single set, though Oliver wasn't about to let down his guard. While rare, some vampires had the ability to float and turn to mist. The thin woman came into view. The light shining from Ben's drone cast shadows across her sharp features. Upon seeing Oliver, her lips curled back, revealing her fangs.

"Hello there, pretty boy," she called to him. As the words washed over him, the voice soothed his aches and relaxed his muscles. Oliver immediately recognized the telltale sign of a vampire's glamor. He bit down on his tongue. Hard. She laughed, a gentle tinkling like a wind chime in a light breeze, as he spat a wad of blood and saliva to the side.

"So much spunk. I like that. Submit and I'll let you live as my pet. Or even… is that a shovel? Delightful. You can be my personal gardener. The idiot wolves tore apart my master's tree yesterday and we're in desperate need of some landscaping."

"Kiki," Oliver called over his shoulder, not taking his eyes off his crimson eyed opponent.

"I'm… working on it," Kiki said, her voice a huff as she gasped for air.

"I've never cut something this… dense." Oliver Appraised his opponent. Veronica Sanguine. Vampire Elite. [Blood Enslaver]. Level 68. A [Blood Enslaver] was extremely bad news for Oliver. He had no mental points in which to help him resist her. If he'd prepared properly, he would have wax to stuff in his ears. It wouldn't be a cure-all to counter her kit, but it would at least serve as an inconvenience for her. As it was, he was completely naked to her skills.

In a single fluid motion, Oliver quickly drew and shot his pistol. The vampire countered, her hand a blur. With a crack, Oliver saw his bullet embed itself in the wall between them, cracks spiderwebbing out across the concrete. A long, snake-like rope spread across the ground, leading up to where the crack in concrete. A black whip with the length twice Oliver's height rested in the [Blood Enslaver]'s hand.

The vampire raised the handle of the whip to her face and took a long whiff of the leather, then her shoulders slumped, as if in euphoric delight. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"Do you know how many different people's blood my weapon has tasted?" Veronica asked.

"No idea," Oliver replied, trying to buy himself precious time with words.

"Care to tell me?"

"Thousands… hmmm." She shuddered, smile never leaving her lips.

"You'll join all the others. A beautiful new addition." The whip responded to every jerk of her hand like an extension of her body. In fact, if the weapon had enough precision to knock a bullet out of the air, it very well might transcend what a normal appendage was capable of. Oliver didn't love his odds. She was over ten levels above him, with skills to enamor him and a weapon that extended her range considerably. Maybe if he had Kiki they might be able to overwhelm the vampire with their combined skills.

He risked a glance over his shoulder at the [Neon Samurai]. Kiki had only managed to slice her sword down two feet in a straight line. With one foot pressed against the door, she was currently attempting to yank her katana out of the metal door A hand gently caressed his cheek. Only his extremely high Dexterity kept his reaction time fast enough to avoid two claws aimed up under his chin. Oliver swung the shovel but was off-kilter and caught unaware.

The vampire stepped back with inhuman speed and snapped her weapon in his direction. The thong of the whip wrapped around the shaft of his shovel. She yanked it back. Oliver only barely managed to keep grip on his weapon as he stumbled forward. He used the momentum in her direction to the best of his ability. She side-stepped his attempt to spear her with the shovel, her feet gliding across the floor.

"Come now, we need not fight," she said, her voice light and soothing to his ears.

"Set that nasty tool down and we can instead embrace. Why should we be at odds? Love will always triumph over hate. Trust in me, little bird." Oliver's grip on the shovel loosened as her words washed over him, just enough for her to successfully yank it from his hands. It clattered to the concrete floor, several feet away. His eyes widened as Veronica swooped in his direction. Before he could comprehend her movements, she had both her arms and whip wrapped around his torso.

Reeling her head back, with the clear intention to bring her teeth down at the base of his neck. Oliver squirmed to the side and countered with a headbutt. The impact made his head ring and he felt blood trickle down his forehead from where Veronica's teeth scraped against his scalp's skin. The movement earned him only a couple seconds of reprieve. It was exactly enough time for Kiki to act. The [Neon Samurai] darted forward at a speed that matched the vampire's.

At the moment, Veronica's arms were wrapped around Oliver, giving Kiki a stationary target. Her sword plunged into the side of the bloodsucker. Veronica hissed in outrage as Kiki twisted the blade. She loosened her grasp on Oliver and swiped with Kiki with long black nails. While still tied up by the whip, Oliver now had enough wiggle room below the elbow to plunge a hand into his side satchel. He fumbled around, trying to grab a handful of silver dust to blow in the vampire's face.

Instead, his hand traced over a flat, wooden item. Not the lacquered box, but something else. It took him a second to process what the item was. The vampire's nails raked against Kiki's armor, sending out a spark and peeling the paint. Kiki abandoned her blade in her opponent as she danced back.

"My sword is stuck," the [Neon Samurai] said, now several feet away.

"Fool, of course it is," Vernonic spat.

"I simply tightened my body around the wound. Perhaps if you had more Strength you'd stand a chance against me. Alas, you are a mere mortal wielding a mortal weapon. Not half my equal. Bow before me. Offer your blood in pennance." Veronica stepped in Kiki's direction. That was bad. Oliver needed to lure her back over to him.

"I'm ready to subjugate myself!" he called out, falling to his knees. He tilted his head to the side, exposing his pale neck.

"Drink!" Veronica laughed once again.

"Is this you succumbing to my charm? Or an effort to save your girlfriend?" Kiki's katana remained lodged in the vampire's side as she turned back to him. If she cared about the metal piercing her insides, she showed no sign of pain.

"Regardless. I'll have you both soon enough. I am quite greedy." Her red tongue flicked across her lips.

"There is nowhere for either of you to run." Oliver bit the inside of his cheek, the pain keeping his mind sharp despite the vampire's alluring glamor. Kiki scrambled back, her back to the metal door. The [Neon Samurai] looked to be preparing another attack of some sort on the vampire. That was good. Because Oliver had absolutely no idea how well his own plan would play out. Veronica bent down, her jaw opening inhumanly wide. His skin prickled under her cold breath.

Relying on every bit of his 140 Dexterity, Oliver whipped out the Face of Carter mask from his bag and shoved it into place on Veronica's face. Her momentum carried her through and her mouth pressed against his neck, but now with the mundanity of human teeth.

"What did you—" Veronica cut herself off at the sound of her voice, now sickly and masculine. She stumbled back and grasped at her face. With a better angle to view her, Oliver saw the ugly, male face rippling as she gripped the edge of the mask. Veronica yanked on it, attempting to free herself from the transformation. Just as the mask peeled off her face, freeing her from Carter's shape, a beam of pure neon sliced through the vampire's neck. A head and hand both joined the mask, falling to the concrete floor.

The vampire's body twisted around and an arm shot out, catching Kiki's neck.

"But… your head," Kiki gasped, clawing at the hand on her throat. Oliver understood immediately. This was a Vampire Elite. Not the standard bloodsucker. Of course Kiki didn't know the difference. With his biceps still pinned to his side with the whip, he lacked mobility. He grabbed a stake from his belt and threw his body at the back of the beheaded undead. Veronica's body collapsed as he tackled her but, if anything, her grip on Kiki's throat tightened as the three of them fell in a heap.

After half a minute of struggling, wrestling, and five different failed attempts to stake her properly, Oliver finally managed to drive the wooden stake into the vampire's heart. In a final deathrow, Veronica ripped her whip free, the thong of it burning Oliver's skin as it passed over him. Oliver's chest heaved with breath as he lay on the concrete floor, staring up at the ceiling. A kill notification flashed in his eyes.