by Brandon Chen
“Yuri!” a voice called out.
Yuri stood in the middle of a burning plaza, surrounded by hundreds of charred corpses. He glanced over his shoulder, his eyes flashing violet as he gazed at Malyssa and an army of her vampires. Licking his lips, he turned to face the woman responsible for Etaon’s destruction. “Finally, you show yourself,” Yuri growled and cackled wickedly, holding his hands outward as if he expected an embrace. “Do you like what I’ve done to your home, to the people that you cared about?”
“What’s happened to you?” Malyssa said, her eyes wide as she stared at the sinister being before her. Such corrupted magic swirled around this creature. The Ghost Wolf showed little resemblance to the old Yuri other than physical appearance and scent. The aura that he emitted was stronger than anything she’d ever seen before; it was comparable to that of a god. His personality, his strength, and everything else about him had been altered since the last time Malyssa saw him. It was as if he were a different person. “To sacrifice your soul to gain power,” she murmured, gripping the hilt of her rapier. She squeezed the weapon’s hilt and tore it from its sheath, whirling the weapon as she pointed its tip towards Yuri. “I was wrong about you. You’re pathetic.”
“Pathetic?” Yuri shouted, slashing his claws downward. Massive currents of black energy left his hands, smashing into the crowds of vampires on both sides of Malyssa. The vampire gaped in shock as dozens of her comrades were vaporized by the foul magic, their ashes drifting around her. Yuri grinned sadistically. “My power is far from pathetic.”
Malyssa retreated a step as dust swirled around her body. She could smell the potent scent of fear from her subordinates. None of them wanted to face the Ghost Wolf. She looked down at her hand and saw that it was trembling uncontrollably, her sword rattling. Was she afraid as well?
Yuri kicked off the ground, obliterating the earth beneath his feet, soaring towards the myriad of vampires. Both his claws slashed at Malyssa’s face, but the vampire quickly ducked, maneuvering beneath the Ghost Wolf’s attack. Yuri frowned. This was the first time that he’d missed a strike since he’d acquired the Oblivion Claws.
Malyssa thrust her rapier forward, jamming it into the werewolf’s stomach. A pulse of force erupted from the tip of her blade, sending Yuri rocketing backwards into a flaming building. Cheers erupted from her fellow vampires as Malyssa rose to her full height, swiping some of the werewolf’s blood across the ground. “Power is one thing, but skill is another,” she said, watching as Yuri rose from the wreckage. “Your ineptitude will be your downfall.”
Pieces of rubble rolled off Yuri’s shoulders and he snorted, glaring at Malyssa. He touched the bloody splotch of fur on his stomach, as if disbelieving that he’d been harmed. His irises coruscated like two purple suns about to detonate into supernovae, the magical aura around him intensifying until the air became thick and heavy. The perimeter of his body glowed with black energy and he gnarred, baring his sharp fangs angrily. “Now you’ve done it.”
Malyssa grunted as she rolled to the side out of pure instinct, barely dodging the Ghost Wolf’s pounce. The beast landed on a group of vampires, mauling the poor creatures. The vampiric leader stared with shock as her soldiers valiantly charged forth to strike the werewolf, but were swatted aside like flies. Yuri crushed them with powerful swings of his hands, shredding all of his nearby opponents to pieces. He’d completely forgotten about Malyssa, his mind focused on annihilating the vampires around him.
Fear gripped Malyssa for the first time in centuries, and her throat tightened as she watched as the monster effortlessly slaughtered her warriors. She gripped her bandaged arm and fled. There was only one way to stop this rampaging beast. She would need to take a hostage. Terias, the two of them were together at the glacier!
The vampire ran to the prison where the blood-bags were kept. The guards had already abandoned the area, fearful for their lives. Malyssa slammed the jail door open, staggering into a hallway filled with the pleading cries of the frightened captives. She stumbled past dozens of arms that stretched toward her, ignoring the inmates that begged for their freedom.
Malyssa halted before Terias’s cell and saw that he was now awake. The distressed knight whimpered when he saw her, fearful of the torture to come.
Malyssa turned and saw a guard at the far end of the hallway. He had broken into one of the cells and killed the blood-bags inside, having drunk their blood. “You!” she commanded, reaching out and prying the bars of Terias’s cell open. “Take these two and hold them hostage; otherwise I’ll personally have you punished for feasting upon our blood-bags.”
The guard vampire quickly wiped his bloody mouth and scrambled over to the cell, bowing his head in apology, not wanting to enrage Malyssa. He quickly lashed out and grabbed Terias in one arm and Lena in the other. The knight was too pale and weak to resist but the engineer thrashed about, screaming for the vampire to release her. “Stop squirming or I’ll rip off one of your limbs,” the soldier snarled, tightening his grip on Lena. His threat struck the woman like a hammer and she froze, weeping silently. “Will these hostages really stop the Ghost Wolf?” the vampire asked Malyssa.
“I don’t know,” Malyssa murmured. “Hopefully the sight of his friends will stop his onslaught. For now, just—” The wall of the prison exploded as a blurred creature smashed through the building, tackling Malyssa off her feet and sending her tumbling through the wall behind her. Rolling in the snow, she staggered back to her feet, snapping to attention.
Yuri moved towards her with such frightening speed that she could hardly see him, like a hazy fog gliding through the air. The werewolf appeared in front of Malyssa, tearing his claws at her throat, but she retreated just out of range of his attack. The beast roared in frustration, slashing once more at the woman with his other hand. Malyssa foresaw the movement, jamming her rapier into the werewolf’s wrist. Blood spurted from Yuri’s flesh and the Ghost Wolf clenched his jaw, pulling back his wounded arm.
Malyssa squeezed the hilt of her sword, stabbing outwards in quick succession at the beast’s massive body. Her blows were quick, striking like a needle, poking holes in the werewolf’s body with a barrage of jabs. Blood soaked into Yuri’s white fur and splattered onto the snow.
The monster let out a bellowing snarl that detonated in Malyssa’s eardrums, and the vampire stared in shock as the Ghost Wolf struck out, catching her with a hard strike to the chin.
Sharp pain exploded through her head as she flipped through the air, crashing into the top of a nearby building. Malyssa smashed through stone, rolling onto a flat roof. A stream of blood trickled down from a gash on her forehead and she leaned forward, her body aching. She gasped when she looked up and saw Yuri in the air above the building, descending upon her position.
Pressing the tips of her toes against the roof, Malyssa propelled herself forward, diving off the building. The vampire grunted as she struck the snow, rolling on impact. There was a deafening boom behind her as Yuri brought the entire structure crashing to the ground. “Bring them out!” Malyssa yelled to the guard, who hesitantly dragged Lena and Terias out of the destroyed prison.
Debris erupted upwards like a geyser as Yuri burst from the collapsed structure, glaring at the wounded vampire. About to spring at Malyssa, he suddenly turned, catching sight of Terias and Lena. His violet eyes reverted back to their original turquoise for a brief moment. “Terias,” he whispered, sounding like his old self.
“Y-Yuri?” Terias choked out weakly, staring at the Ghost Wolf. “What … what’s happened to you?”
Yuri was about to speak when an explosion of pain suddenly erupted in his chest. Malyssa had thrust her rapier straight through the werewolf’s body, the bloody blade protruding from his back. An arduous gasp escaped his lips as the warm, metallic taste of ichor seeped into his mouth. His vision became blurry and he felt himself descending into madness. Fight it … don’t lose control! He let out a barbaric yell as he slashed a claw across Malyssa’s chest.
Yuri’s gaze flickered to the other vampire and he launched himself at the guard. The soldier had turned his head, opening his mouth to sink his teeth into the Terias’s neck. No! Yuri tackled the vampire, sending the two of them rolling through the gaping hole in the prison wall.
Lena screamed as she was tossed aside with Terias, the two apprentices falling to the ground.
Yuri grunted, ignoring the stinging pain that cried out from all over his body. He was on the ground and staring at the bloody blade that was stuck in his body, his stomach churning. He grabbed the hilt of Malyssa’s rapier and began to pry the weapon from his chest. Blood splattered everywhere. He felt as if he were going to be sick, his head whirling at the gruesome sight of so much gore. When the blade finally came out, he exhaled painfully. Turning, he saw that the injured guard was crawling away, one of his legs twisted in an unnatural position.
Boiling rage forced Yuri to slowly stagger to his feet and limp over to the terrified vampire. He squeezed the hilt of the rapier until his hands trembled. The boy decapitated the defenseless guard with one fluent strike, watching as the lifeless creature’s skull rolled on the ground.
Reverting back to his human form, Yuri looked at his blackened hands, staring at the bloodstained Oblivion Claws. Images of the countless lives he’d taken flashed before him and he bent over, retching beside the vampire’s headless corpse. He gasped, willing the Sacred Treasure to remove itself. As if obeying his command, the claws reverted to their original form of ebony gloves.
The boy tore the cursed gloves off his hands, throwing them to the ground at his feet. His breath was shaky, and sweat poured down his face as if he’d just awoken from a feverish nightmare. Around him were dozens of frightened blood-bags that had retreated to the far corners of their cells, terrified of the Ghost Wolf.
Yuri swayed to his feet, feeling drained. Not only had he lost a lot of blood, most of his energy had been depleted from wielding the Oblivion Claws. He turned and saw that Lena was helping Terias to limp his way into the prison. The knight’s eyes were barely cracked open as he looked at his friend. “You have as many white hairs as my grandpa,” he jested wearily. “Are you decrepit already?”
The werewolf chuckled, holding his belly in pain. He wasn’t laughing at Terias’s terrible joke; he was laughing because by some miracle, he’d managed to save his friend and Etaon’s last engineer.
Yuri’s ears pricked up suddenly, and he looked past Terias and saw that Malyssa was slowly rising from the snow, blood dribbling down her chin. It seemed that they were not safe yet. “What’s your name?” he asked the young woman that supported Terias.
“Lena,” she replied.
“I need you to take Terias to the southern wing of this encampment. There won’t be any vampires there,” Yuri said, images from his rampage rushing through his mind. Gripping the wound in his chest, he groaned. “There should be a few mounts there that you can take back to Etaon. I’m sure you know the way. The two of you need to get out of here.”
“What about you?” Terias said, watching as the werewolf hobbled past him. “Do you plan to fight Malyssa alone?”
“This is what needs to be done,” Yuri said, his eyes on the vampire before him. His hands balled into cracking fists as he ignored the pain that screamed from his body. “Lena is the only known engineer left in all of Escalon. Without her, the werewolves of Horux can’t be cured. If I leave with both of you now … Malyssa would only catch up to us and kill us all.”
“Then we should all fight—”
“We’ll all die!” Yuri shouted, tears glinting in his eyes. He didn’t want to do this, to have to fight Malyssa in his weakened state. He knew that without the Oblivion Claws, he would die here. But Yuri had no intention of equipping that cursed treasure again. “This is the only way,” he said shakily, nodding to Lena. He watched as the woman pulled Terias away, practically dragging the injured knight.
“Yuri, damn it!” Terias yelled. “I’m not letting you do this. Please, stop! We can figure something out together!”
Yuri exhaled through his nose, blocking out his friend’s words as he faced Malyssa, who was now several meters in front of him. The two fighters had sustained a tremendous amount of damage, Yuri more so than Malyssa. His intention was to slow her down, so that she wouldn’t be able to catch up to Lena and Terias. Biting his lower lip, he wondered whether or not he would even be able to accomplish that goal.
“Well, aren’t you a selfless bastard?” Malyssa cackled, raising her bloodstained hand into the air. Her skin looked even paler than usual, and her chest heaved whenever she breathed. She was clearly in great pain. “A hero, that’s what you think you are? But look at what you did to an entire settlement of living beings!” she barked, her gaze filled with burning hatred. She waved her arm, pointing to the corpses buried in the crimson snow. “You’re a monster.”
Yuri said nothing. Under the Oblivion Claw’s influence, he’d murdered countless werewolves and vampires with no remorse. He’d felt nothing as he felled his enemies.
Reaching up, he plucked a white hair from his head and held it before his face. A monster? Maybe that’s what he’d become. In order to gain the power that he’d needed to save his friend, he’d became the uncontrollable beast that he’d sworn to oppose.
“Thousands of my vampires fell before your vicious rampage,” Malyssa roared, charging at the werewolf. She leapt off the ground, her body rotating in the air, driving a kick solidly into Yuri’s cheek. “Your death is the first step of my vengeance!”
It felt as if a bomb detonated inside Yuri’s head and he grunted, spinning around. Blood spewed from his lips and he nearly collapsed, his body heavy. Planting his feet on the ground, he maintained his balance. His vision was becoming blurry, but he didn’t care. Buy time! He turned around and slammed his fist into Malyssa’s stomach, sinking his knuckles deep into flesh.
The wind exploded from the vampire’s lungs as she lurched forward, gasping. Yuri smashed his knee upwards into her forehead, snapping her skull back abruptly. Malyssa swung her entire body into a back flip. The ends of her feet struck Yuri’s chin, sending him stumbling back.
Yuri felt as if life were leaving him with every breath he took. Excruciating pain cried out from his numerous wounds and he panted, tears gleaming in his eyes as he struggled to stay conscious. He raised his shaky fists as Malyssa came at him once again. You can do this.
The vampire clobbered Yuri across the face, breaking the bones in his nose. An image of Han appeared in his mind. The boy gritted his bloodied teeth as he received another blow to the stomach, knocking the breath from his lungs. He crumpled to his knees, clutching his diaphragm in agony. Bloody drool ran down his chin, dripping onto the snow. I promised … that I’d come back and save you. He raised his head and saw Malyssa swinging her leg at his face. But first, I need to save the people of Escalon.
Yuri absorbed Malyssa’s kick with his arm, cracking his bone. Ignoring the pain, he pressed one foot deep into the snow and propelled himself upward, smashing his fist into the vampire’s chin with a fierce uppercut. I won’t die here! Striking his opponent, Yuri hoped to at least unsheathe his sword to give himself an advantage. His quavering hand glided to his scabbard.
Malyssa winced at her dislocated jaw, but caught sight of Yuri’s hand reaching for his enchanted sword. She hissed and rotated her body in a fluid motion, driving a heavy kick into the side of Yuri’s head.
The boy groaned, pain striking through his skull as he fell to the snow. Sputtering blood, his hand quickly reaching for the hilt of his sheathed sword. But Malyssa was already upon him, sitting on his stomach as she
struck his face with a barrage of heavy blows. Yuri reached out with his palm, catching her punch in his hand. Wrapping his fingers around her fist, the boy’s body morphed its white werewolf form. He jammed his claws into the vampire’s chest, lifting her off the ground.
Malyssa’s eyes widened painfully as she was thrown against the wall of the blood-bag prison, her body smashing heavily into stone. Collapsing to the ground, she pressed her hand into the snow, spitting salty ichor from her mouth. Her vampiric regenerative powers had healed some of her wounds, but her body couldn’t keep up with the damage Yuri had inflicted upon her. The agony was excruciating, unlike anything that she’d felt before.
She bit her lower lip and gasped, feeling the gashes in her skin beginning to seal. Suddenly she turned, but Yuri was already upon her, his weapon flashing through the air. His sword ripped across her torso, the silver blade scorching her flesh. There was no healing from this.
Malyssa screamed shrilly in anguish, smoke rising from the wound in her torso. She bit back her agony as she stared at her triumphant opponent, shock registering on her visage. “Enjoy this petty victory, Ghost Wolf.” Her quiet whispers were hardly audible. “It must feel great … to finally succeed after being accustomed to the harsh taste of defeat.”
Yuri narrowed his eyes, listening to the dying vampire’s cackle. He raised his sword and delivered the final blow, mercilessly decapitating Malyssa, silencing the wicked vampiric leader.
As he hacked off his opponent’s head, a sickening feeling churned in his stomach and his sight become blurry. The corners of his vision blacked out, and his eyes rolled back as he struck the ground. He’d lost far too much blood, and feared there was no way that he would recover from such mortal wounds. Clenching his bloody teeth, he squeezed his chest. It felt as if all of his bones were shattered, his punctured flesh full of wounds from Malyssa’s rapier. On top of the excruciating pain, he was freezing, as if he had been dunked in the Lake of Eternity. A shiver ran through his body and he went still, his consciousness fading into an abyss of darkness.
