TSlice5Life
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Much as it pains me to say, I don't think there's going to be very many tickling scenes throughout the rest of the story. I changed a few key elements within the original script to sort of get away from my original intent.
It would seem that the more involved with this I became, the more I wanted to make a serious story out of it. There's still going to be a few juicy chapters left, which still haven't been written; but I felt I couldn't put this proclamation off anymore. Maybe one day I'll be able to write a strictly tickling video game related story of sorts.
In any case, please enjoy; more to come soon. :redstar::feather:
- - - - - - -
Chapter XIII: Into The Catacombs
As the group made their way further down the stairs, the air began to change around them.
It felt... stagnant; perhaps even sickening, if you could call it that.
A large, wrought-iron gate stood in front of them; beyond it was a large room. It seemed as big as the library, perhaps even larger. An old lever was next to the gate; Henry pulled it down as the gate slowly opened. Years of dust fell from the large bars as it creaked up into the ceiling, coming to a rest with a loud clang.
Slowly, everyone ventured into the room. Large steel support beams jutted from the walls and connected across; as if at one point there were a bridge here. Along the walls were various cells; old rotten cots adorned the insides with iron bars preventing escape. A few of the cells were open, and a few bones littered the insides.
Outside of the cells however, were a few devices; stockades, torture tables, and even a few iron maidens decorated the walls. Alexandria shuddered as Leon grimaced. There were a few skeletons laying on the ground, some fully decomposed, while a few were only partially. Carrie looked at one of the dead men; his face wore a look of agony and pain from whatever horrible punishment was inflicted upon him before his death.
Reinhardt looked around the room one more time; “I don't see any passageway...” he muttered, as William put his hands on his hips. “You think the old man was lying?” Leon asked, as he slowly walked over one of the open cells, peering inside. “I don't think so...” Carrie replied, shifting around. “Why would he have spent all that time talking to us then?” she added.
Reinhardt turned and looked towards a large coffin at the end of a room. It was sitting on a raised platform. Silently, he started to venture towards it, as the others took notice. Carrie motioned for them to start looking around as she quickly strode over next to Reinhardt.
As the two hunters ventured near the coffin, they stopped a few yards away, looking on with suspicion. “You don't think that coffin is...” Carrie muttered, turning to the taller man. Reinhardt looked at her and grimaced, as he continued forward. The girl looked on as he put a hand on his whip; the other rested on the coffin lid.
He leaned back and gave the lid a solid kick, sending it crashing to the ground. The rest of the group looked on as he reeled back, coughing and choking. “Oh... *cough* God!” he cried out, covering his mouth with an arm.
Inside the coffin were a dead man, woman, and what appeared to be the couple's young son. Carrie put a hand over her mouth as she joined him in looking on at the grousome sight. The man and woman had various abrasions and gashes on their arms and faces. The woman was adorned in a shredded dress, and the man in a dress shirt and pants. Their young son had no visible markings of injuries. The man cradled his wife and son in his arms. He seemed to be the one mostly injured... still....
Carrie helped Reinhardt put the coffin lid back on as the two slid it shut. She took a few steps back, still in shock from what she'd seen. “Who would have done this to those people? It doesn't make--”
Something dripped onto the young woman's face.
She lifted a finger and wiped her cheek. As she looked at it, she saw it was...
“... Blood?” the girl thought, as another few droplets rained down upon her.
Reinhardt noticed what had happened, as the two looked up towards the ceiling.
High above them, partially obscured by the pillars were two vampires. Each one cradled a young woman in their arms as they stood upside down from the ceiling. Reinhardt slowly moved his hand to his whip as the vampires came away from the womens' necks. Blood dripped from their mouths as the womens' heads hung limply. As quickly as they were spotted, the two jumped down to the beam running across the room. Reinhardt and Carrie ran to the center of the room and looked up.
One of the vampires buried his head into his victim's neck as the other looked down to the group of hunters below. The girl's eyes shot open as she let out a feral cry; she reached her arms up and gripped the vampire's head, determined to shove him off. She couldn't find the strength, as her arms fell to her side. As the vampire came away, her neck was blossomed in red; the man threw her from the beam as William and Leon dashed out and caught her.
“From the looks of things... I'd say that you all are hunters... correct?” he spoke, wiping the blood from his mouth. The man had wing-like appendages sprouting from his forearms, and long pointed ears coming from the top of his head. He seemed more feral than his co-hort; who still looked to be mostly human in appearance.
“Very rude to interupt people who are enjoying their meals...” he added, as his eyes began glowing with a bright red hue. “Or should I think differently...? Like the main course has arrived?” he continued, beginning to laugh.
The other vampire flung the girl off the beam; Henry rushed over to catch her. He followed Leon over to the wall with Alexandria to see if they could help the two women. The vampires jumped down from the pillar, landing about ten feet from the trio still in front of them.
Carrie looked towards the duo in silence; her eyes drawn to the blood trickling down their chins. From somewhere within her, she felt a warm wave spreading throughout her body, in conjuction with the lingering pain from the bite's effects. She silently took a fighting stance as the vampires spoke again; her gaze slowly drifted over to the two women the other three were attending to. “So much...” she thought, looking at the blood splashes on the girls' necks and dresses.
“Come then, I will taste your blood. Afterwards... I shall kill you here!” the feral vampire shouted, as he transformed into mist. The second one charged off towards William and Reinhardt, as Carrie finally turned back to the fight.
Reinhardt lashed out with his whip as the vampire nimbly dodged the attack. He lashed out with his claws as the duo quickly jumped away. The vampire began charging a small orb, to which he fired off at Reinhardt. The attack connected with his left arm as he cried out from the energy shock. Carrie began charging her energy for an attack, but quickly realised something was amiss.
“I feel.. more powerful... Why?”
The girl felt a surge of power coursing throughout her body. She looked down to her hand and noticed the physical orb was no longer brightly colored, but was rather a dark yellow. She quickly fired the orb at the vampire, who was caught off guard by the attack; it slammed into his arm as he reeled back in pain.
He whipped his head towards the girl and snarled, as he quickly jumped away. The man landed on the pillar once more as he looked towards the group. His co-hort appeared next to him. “Seems they're going to be a bit harder to kill than I thought” the man mumbled, watching Carrie. The feral vampire turned his gaze towards the other three, who were attending to the two women from earlier.
The women could hear him speaking to them; “Rise now... help us dispose of these meddlers. I command you both!”
Slowly, the girls rose up from where the had been seated. Alexandria got up and put a hand on one girl's arm, “Wait, you need to sit down!”
The girl snapped her head up and locked gazes with Alexandria. She reached out and tore the girl's hand away from her arm, shoving her away. She put her hands to her head and began screaming. Leon and Henry backed away from the two as the other girl got up and began screaming as well. As quickly as it came, the screaming ended. The women then silently turned to face the two men.
Without warning, they lunged out and tackled the two to the ground and began struggling with them. The two could see the blank expressions in their eyes and their sharpened fangs as they struggled to bite into their necks. William pulled his pistol from it's holster; he fired a shot that caught one of them in the arm. The two vampires jumped back to the ground and began charging the group; Leon and Henry managed to throw the women off, as they quickly got back to their feet.
Alexandria watched as the men drew their swords and lunged after the women, attempting to slash at them.
“Their speed... they're so fast now!” she thought, watching as the two nimbly dodged the attacks.
Reinhardt ran towards the feral vampire and lashed out at him, catching him in the leg as he cried out in pain. He jumped backwards and snapped his fingers; a flurry of bats appeared out of thin air as they began flying towards Reinhardt. The youth began to swing his whip around in a circle above his head. The strike hit the bats as they fell to the ground in a flicker of flames.
Alexandria ran over to help William fend off the other man as he slashed out at the boy with his claws. William ducked down and threw a solid punch that connected with the man's jaw. The blow sent him reeling backwards as he fell to the ground.
The boy replaced his pistol for his dagger as Alexandria joined him. The two rushed the vampire as they slashed at his arms and torso. A few strikes connected as the man vanished into nothing.
“Shit... where'd he go?” William muttered, looking around.
“Right here!” the vampire cried out from above. Alexandria looked up as the vampire fired off a flurry of small magic bolts at the two. The volly hit them as the energy crackled and sparked. The two fell to their knees in pain as the vampire jumped down to the ground and rushed them again.
Alexandria gritted her teeth and lunged at the creature; she stabbed through his chest as the two crashed to the ground. The vampire slowly looked at her as blood began bubbling up from his throat; “D...Damn...Y-you..” he muttered, as she pulled her dagger out and got up. The creature's body erupted in a flash of purple fire that charred the ground before her.
As Alexandria killed one of the vampires, Leon and Henry were still struggling with the two newly turned nosferatu. One of the creature's managed to slash out at Leon, tearing the sleeve from his jacket as he felt her claws rake into his arm. He winced in pain as he drove his sword through her sternum; watching as her eyes went wide. Leon pulled the blade as she fell to her knees, letting out a low cry of pain. Her body limply fell to the ground with a thud before erupting in the demonic purple flames. The other girl took a few steps back in shock as she watched her vampiric “sister” fall.
Henry rushed the girl as she swiftly sidestepped him and ran towards Leon. The girl jumped out and tackled Leon to the ground. She gripped his arms as she plunged her teeth into his neck. “AAAH!!” Leon cried out, as he felt her begin to suck the blood from the wound.
Carrie heard his cry as she turned away from the feral creature; her eyes went wide as she watched what was happening. Henry threw his sword to the ground as he ran over and yanked the girl up by her hair. He took hold of her neck and threw her to the side. Leon rolled over and clutched at his neck, clenching his eyes shut from the pain.
Henry quickly pulled out his gun and fired two shots into the girls chest; watching as she arched her back and died a silent death. Leon's blood fell from her fangs as her body lay limply on the floor. “God, Leon, are you alright?!” he yelled, kneeling next to him. “I... I'm fine... Go help Carrie and Reinhardt..” he muttered.
Henry looked up to the other two, they had the feral vampire on his knees clutching his arm. Reinhardt wrapped the whip around his neck and pulled him forward. “Delay us no more! Where's the entrance to the catacombs!?” he barked, growing tired of these fights. “Ugh... *cough*... wall... over there...” he spoke, raising his arm and pointing behind the coffin. “Pressure... plate.. *cough*...”
He released the vampire, but not before Carrie sent a volly of orbs flying into the creature's chest and legs. He flew back and landed at the base of the small stairs. The vampire looked towards the ceiling and held his bleeding torso; “T-This c-cannot be!!” he cried, before slowly erupting in a hue of purple flames. With his dying breath he cried “I, a vampire, defeated by mere humans!!?”
As his body burned into nothingness, Carrie rushed over to Leon, who managed to get back on his feet. He pulled his hand away; the wound already beginning to clot. “Ha... guess that's it then..” he muttered, wincing from the pain. Carrie brought him to rest on one of the cell cots as the others gathered around. Henry wore a grim look on his young face. “Leon.. I should have--
The man raised a hand to him, silencing his words. “It's not... your fault; I should have known better than to have my back to a vampire. It's my own fault I was bitten...” his voice trailing off. Leon could feel a slight pain eminating from the wound as he pulled his jacket over the bite. He stood up and sighed. “Look, there's no point in being sad now; there's more important things on the line here than me.”
As he continued talking, the others nodded and began leaving away from the small cell.
Carrie felt the small crystal bounce against her leg as she started to walk away; her mind swirled with troubled thoughts.
"Remember lass... This crystal can cure vampirism." Renon's words rang out in her mind.
She could attempt to use the crystal on Leon... but could she trust Renon's word?
If she used it on him though... what would become of her?
“He did rescue you, after all... What would have happened to you if he hadn't shown up?”
The girl bit her lip as she watched Leon walk past her. She began reaching out for his arm, but stopped herself.
“... Don't forget why you're here.”
Carrie closed her eyes as she heard the sound of cogs turning. Behind the coffin, the wall slid down, revealing a long corridor. Torches were sporatically scattered about, but they weren't lit. William pulled one of the torches from the crypt wall and lit another inside the corridor; the light somewhat illuminating the tunnel. Leon took the second torch and led the group inside. “Stay on your guard everyone.” he muttered, as Reinhardt followed behind. Carrie and Alexandria followed behind them, and William and Henry brought up the rear.
As the group walked through the wall, Carrie felt something push into the ground below her left boot. She could hear a snick, as the door slowly began to close behind them all. William and Henry turned around to look, as it closed shut with a solid thud. William tightened his grip on the other torch. “Well... It could be worse, I guess.” he muttered, as the group slowly marched on.
- -
Down the long corridor they trekked.
Eventually it panned out into a large open area. From the large area were several different paths, each winding away to an unknown location. Reinhardt stopped and crossed his arms, looking at the choices before them. Above them, gray light trickled inside through an opening in the ceiling, providing a glimmer of extra visibility. “You think someone had this place excavated?” Henry asked aloud, “Hard to tell...” Leon replied, looking up at the stalactites hanging from the ceiling.
Reinhardt began walking down one of the paths towards what appeared to be a slowly flowing river. The others followed him, as they sat down amongst the rocks strewn about. William set one of the torches on the rock formation nearby, as Leon set his own down into a niche in the wall.
William looked down the corridor as the river flowed in and out of the winding path. He reached down to pick up a few rocks, skipping them across the water. “So which path should we take?” Carrie ask, crossing her legs as Alexandria stretched. Reinhardt put a hand to his chin; “We could split up... but there's no telling how far these catacombs go on for... Not to mention, who knows what's lurking in here.”
William paused a second before he skipped his next rock; “Even if there is something in here, it can't be any worse than what we left behind in the manor.” he replied, watching the ripples as his rock quickly skitted across.
Leon slowly rubbed at his neck; “William, we didn't leave everything behind, you know.” he noted, as he shot a look towards Alexandria. The boy turned around and looked to the girl, who smiled and waved to him, wiggling her fingers as she did so. William let out an exasperated sigh and grimaced; “Of course... I just couldn't be that lucky, now could I?”
Henry chuckled as he pulled out his pocketwatch; it was almost ten in the morning now. “I think we should get a move on before these two start at it again...” he added with a chuckle.
Alexandria looked at Henry and pouted, “Are you implying that I would do such a thing? I'm shocked, Henry.” she replied, matter-of-factly. The girl crossed her arms and closed her eyes. Henry looked at Carrie, who rolled her eyes. “I'm not implying it Lexi, I'm waiting for it.” the man spoke, watching the young woman's eyes suddenly open. From behind her, William walked past, trying to stiffle his laughter as the girl turned to glare at him. “Oooh... Just you wait William...” she thought, silently getting up.
Henry got up and put an arm around her as they followed behind William. “Oh, lighten up. It's not that bad.” he told her as they marched on. The others slowly rose and followed suit behind. Reinhardt lagged behind a little and walked over to retrieve the torch William had lit. From down the corridor, he noticed something moving out of the corner of his eyes. As he turned his head, the movement vanished.
Off in the distance, he heard a splash. He raised the torch towards the direction of the sound; aside from the slow moving water and few boulders, there was nothing to be seen. The young hunter cocked his ear up. He heard the echoes of bats, but not much else. Eventually, the sound faded into the recesses of the tunnels.
“Must have been my imagination...” he thought, turning to catch up to the others.
Behind him on the ceiling, two creatures watched the hunter disappear around the corner. Silently, they decended to the ground and looked to each other. They were human... half, at least.
From the waist up, they seemed to be normal women clad in scant armor; from the waist down however, they bore the body of a large arachnid. One female was armed with a spear while the other a decorated longsword and small shield. Slowly they scuttled towards the branching path as they looked around the corner; off in the distance were the small group of hunters.
“What do you think?” one spoke to the other.
The one with the sword shook her head slowly, “I don't know; they must have some skill if they managed to get down here intact. I sense something strange about two of them though...”
The first one cocked her head, “What do you mean?” she asked; her yellow eyes glowing in the dark lighting.
“They have the same air about them as the other two who came to talk to the Queen. Those... vampires.” she replied, scowling slightly. She motioned for the younger girl to come on. “You go alert the others that the hunters are here; I'll go talk to the Queen and see what she wants done with them.”
The other spider woman nodded her head silently and scuttled off, taking to the walls as she silently ventured down the river corridor.
The woman was all alone in the recesses of the cave. She stole one last look at the humans in the distance before she turned and scuttled away, taking the opposite path than the other arachnid. She sheathed her sword as her bristly legs climbed over the jagged wall with ease; “This should be interesting... It's been a few days since the Queen's had intruders in her lair...” she thought, watching as a few pebbles splashed into the river.
Off in the distance, she heard the squeaking of bats, as a few fluttered from their perches. “I still don't know why she's taking orders from those two fools though...” she muttered angrily, remembering the meeting between Acrtrise, Giles and her queen.
The arachnid ventured into a large opening in one of the walls; as she came out, she saw a few other of her sisters-in-arms moving about. Some were patrolling around, while a few were eating. She stopped one of the arachnids who was patrolling. The soldier stood at attention and gave her a salute. “You; do you know where Algenie is?”
“Yes Ramona, she just left her chamber; she should be checking in with the group down the way there.”
Ramona gave a nod to the young woman as she scuttled off. As she rounded the corner, she spotted the queen walking away from two of her soldiers. The creature stopped in front of her patriarch and bowed.
“Ah... Ramona.. to what do I owe this pleasure?” the larger arachnid spoke, as she gave a slight bow herself.
“I have important news, your higness. It seems the group of hunters Actrise and Giles spoke of have made it into the tunnels...”
Algenie crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow, “Oh really now... How fascinating...” she replied, giving the young woman a slight smile.
“Indeed, your highness. What would you have us do with them?” Ramona asked, placing a hand on the pommel of her sword.
The queen slowly walked away, turning her back to the warrior. She cupped her hands behind her back and closed her eyes, “Do what you do best, Ramona. Do try to capture some of them, if you can. I've been feeling a tad bored since I gave up our last prisoner to Giles.”
The woman gave a nod as the queen turned to face her once more. “As you command, your highness.” she replied, turning and traversing the corridor once more. Algenie watched as Ramona beginning to rally a few of the other warriors to aid her; the group scuttled away down the corridor back into the catacombs.
Slowly, the spider queen began to retreat into the darkness towards her pesonal chambers. “Yes... We'll see how competent those hunters are. This should make for quite the interesting afternoon...” she thought, as the darkness engulfed her spidery form.
It would seem that the more involved with this I became, the more I wanted to make a serious story out of it. There's still going to be a few juicy chapters left, which still haven't been written; but I felt I couldn't put this proclamation off anymore. Maybe one day I'll be able to write a strictly tickling video game related story of sorts.
In any case, please enjoy; more to come soon. :redstar::feather:
- - - - - - -
Chapter XIII: Into The Catacombs
As the group made their way further down the stairs, the air began to change around them.
It felt... stagnant; perhaps even sickening, if you could call it that.
A large, wrought-iron gate stood in front of them; beyond it was a large room. It seemed as big as the library, perhaps even larger. An old lever was next to the gate; Henry pulled it down as the gate slowly opened. Years of dust fell from the large bars as it creaked up into the ceiling, coming to a rest with a loud clang.
Slowly, everyone ventured into the room. Large steel support beams jutted from the walls and connected across; as if at one point there were a bridge here. Along the walls were various cells; old rotten cots adorned the insides with iron bars preventing escape. A few of the cells were open, and a few bones littered the insides.
Outside of the cells however, were a few devices; stockades, torture tables, and even a few iron maidens decorated the walls. Alexandria shuddered as Leon grimaced. There were a few skeletons laying on the ground, some fully decomposed, while a few were only partially. Carrie looked at one of the dead men; his face wore a look of agony and pain from whatever horrible punishment was inflicted upon him before his death.
Reinhardt looked around the room one more time; “I don't see any passageway...” he muttered, as William put his hands on his hips. “You think the old man was lying?” Leon asked, as he slowly walked over one of the open cells, peering inside. “I don't think so...” Carrie replied, shifting around. “Why would he have spent all that time talking to us then?” she added.
Reinhardt turned and looked towards a large coffin at the end of a room. It was sitting on a raised platform. Silently, he started to venture towards it, as the others took notice. Carrie motioned for them to start looking around as she quickly strode over next to Reinhardt.
As the two hunters ventured near the coffin, they stopped a few yards away, looking on with suspicion. “You don't think that coffin is...” Carrie muttered, turning to the taller man. Reinhardt looked at her and grimaced, as he continued forward. The girl looked on as he put a hand on his whip; the other rested on the coffin lid.
He leaned back and gave the lid a solid kick, sending it crashing to the ground. The rest of the group looked on as he reeled back, coughing and choking. “Oh... *cough* God!” he cried out, covering his mouth with an arm.
Inside the coffin were a dead man, woman, and what appeared to be the couple's young son. Carrie put a hand over her mouth as she joined him in looking on at the grousome sight. The man and woman had various abrasions and gashes on their arms and faces. The woman was adorned in a shredded dress, and the man in a dress shirt and pants. Their young son had no visible markings of injuries. The man cradled his wife and son in his arms. He seemed to be the one mostly injured... still....
Carrie helped Reinhardt put the coffin lid back on as the two slid it shut. She took a few steps back, still in shock from what she'd seen. “Who would have done this to those people? It doesn't make--”
Something dripped onto the young woman's face.
She lifted a finger and wiped her cheek. As she looked at it, she saw it was...
“... Blood?” the girl thought, as another few droplets rained down upon her.
Reinhardt noticed what had happened, as the two looked up towards the ceiling.
High above them, partially obscured by the pillars were two vampires. Each one cradled a young woman in their arms as they stood upside down from the ceiling. Reinhardt slowly moved his hand to his whip as the vampires came away from the womens' necks. Blood dripped from their mouths as the womens' heads hung limply. As quickly as they were spotted, the two jumped down to the beam running across the room. Reinhardt and Carrie ran to the center of the room and looked up.
One of the vampires buried his head into his victim's neck as the other looked down to the group of hunters below. The girl's eyes shot open as she let out a feral cry; she reached her arms up and gripped the vampire's head, determined to shove him off. She couldn't find the strength, as her arms fell to her side. As the vampire came away, her neck was blossomed in red; the man threw her from the beam as William and Leon dashed out and caught her.
“From the looks of things... I'd say that you all are hunters... correct?” he spoke, wiping the blood from his mouth. The man had wing-like appendages sprouting from his forearms, and long pointed ears coming from the top of his head. He seemed more feral than his co-hort; who still looked to be mostly human in appearance.
“Very rude to interupt people who are enjoying their meals...” he added, as his eyes began glowing with a bright red hue. “Or should I think differently...? Like the main course has arrived?” he continued, beginning to laugh.
The other vampire flung the girl off the beam; Henry rushed over to catch her. He followed Leon over to the wall with Alexandria to see if they could help the two women. The vampires jumped down from the pillar, landing about ten feet from the trio still in front of them.
Carrie looked towards the duo in silence; her eyes drawn to the blood trickling down their chins. From somewhere within her, she felt a warm wave spreading throughout her body, in conjuction with the lingering pain from the bite's effects. She silently took a fighting stance as the vampires spoke again; her gaze slowly drifted over to the two women the other three were attending to. “So much...” she thought, looking at the blood splashes on the girls' necks and dresses.
“Come then, I will taste your blood. Afterwards... I shall kill you here!” the feral vampire shouted, as he transformed into mist. The second one charged off towards William and Reinhardt, as Carrie finally turned back to the fight.
Reinhardt lashed out with his whip as the vampire nimbly dodged the attack. He lashed out with his claws as the duo quickly jumped away. The vampire began charging a small orb, to which he fired off at Reinhardt. The attack connected with his left arm as he cried out from the energy shock. Carrie began charging her energy for an attack, but quickly realised something was amiss.
“I feel.. more powerful... Why?”
The girl felt a surge of power coursing throughout her body. She looked down to her hand and noticed the physical orb was no longer brightly colored, but was rather a dark yellow. She quickly fired the orb at the vampire, who was caught off guard by the attack; it slammed into his arm as he reeled back in pain.
He whipped his head towards the girl and snarled, as he quickly jumped away. The man landed on the pillar once more as he looked towards the group. His co-hort appeared next to him. “Seems they're going to be a bit harder to kill than I thought” the man mumbled, watching Carrie. The feral vampire turned his gaze towards the other three, who were attending to the two women from earlier.
The women could hear him speaking to them; “Rise now... help us dispose of these meddlers. I command you both!”
Slowly, the girls rose up from where the had been seated. Alexandria got up and put a hand on one girl's arm, “Wait, you need to sit down!”
The girl snapped her head up and locked gazes with Alexandria. She reached out and tore the girl's hand away from her arm, shoving her away. She put her hands to her head and began screaming. Leon and Henry backed away from the two as the other girl got up and began screaming as well. As quickly as it came, the screaming ended. The women then silently turned to face the two men.
Without warning, they lunged out and tackled the two to the ground and began struggling with them. The two could see the blank expressions in their eyes and their sharpened fangs as they struggled to bite into their necks. William pulled his pistol from it's holster; he fired a shot that caught one of them in the arm. The two vampires jumped back to the ground and began charging the group; Leon and Henry managed to throw the women off, as they quickly got back to their feet.
Alexandria watched as the men drew their swords and lunged after the women, attempting to slash at them.
“Their speed... they're so fast now!” she thought, watching as the two nimbly dodged the attacks.
Reinhardt ran towards the feral vampire and lashed out at him, catching him in the leg as he cried out in pain. He jumped backwards and snapped his fingers; a flurry of bats appeared out of thin air as they began flying towards Reinhardt. The youth began to swing his whip around in a circle above his head. The strike hit the bats as they fell to the ground in a flicker of flames.
Alexandria ran over to help William fend off the other man as he slashed out at the boy with his claws. William ducked down and threw a solid punch that connected with the man's jaw. The blow sent him reeling backwards as he fell to the ground.
The boy replaced his pistol for his dagger as Alexandria joined him. The two rushed the vampire as they slashed at his arms and torso. A few strikes connected as the man vanished into nothing.
“Shit... where'd he go?” William muttered, looking around.
“Right here!” the vampire cried out from above. Alexandria looked up as the vampire fired off a flurry of small magic bolts at the two. The volly hit them as the energy crackled and sparked. The two fell to their knees in pain as the vampire jumped down to the ground and rushed them again.
Alexandria gritted her teeth and lunged at the creature; she stabbed through his chest as the two crashed to the ground. The vampire slowly looked at her as blood began bubbling up from his throat; “D...Damn...Y-you..” he muttered, as she pulled her dagger out and got up. The creature's body erupted in a flash of purple fire that charred the ground before her.
As Alexandria killed one of the vampires, Leon and Henry were still struggling with the two newly turned nosferatu. One of the creature's managed to slash out at Leon, tearing the sleeve from his jacket as he felt her claws rake into his arm. He winced in pain as he drove his sword through her sternum; watching as her eyes went wide. Leon pulled the blade as she fell to her knees, letting out a low cry of pain. Her body limply fell to the ground with a thud before erupting in the demonic purple flames. The other girl took a few steps back in shock as she watched her vampiric “sister” fall.
Henry rushed the girl as she swiftly sidestepped him and ran towards Leon. The girl jumped out and tackled Leon to the ground. She gripped his arms as she plunged her teeth into his neck. “AAAH!!” Leon cried out, as he felt her begin to suck the blood from the wound.
Carrie heard his cry as she turned away from the feral creature; her eyes went wide as she watched what was happening. Henry threw his sword to the ground as he ran over and yanked the girl up by her hair. He took hold of her neck and threw her to the side. Leon rolled over and clutched at his neck, clenching his eyes shut from the pain.
Henry quickly pulled out his gun and fired two shots into the girls chest; watching as she arched her back and died a silent death. Leon's blood fell from her fangs as her body lay limply on the floor. “God, Leon, are you alright?!” he yelled, kneeling next to him. “I... I'm fine... Go help Carrie and Reinhardt..” he muttered.
Henry looked up to the other two, they had the feral vampire on his knees clutching his arm. Reinhardt wrapped the whip around his neck and pulled him forward. “Delay us no more! Where's the entrance to the catacombs!?” he barked, growing tired of these fights. “Ugh... *cough*... wall... over there...” he spoke, raising his arm and pointing behind the coffin. “Pressure... plate.. *cough*...”
He released the vampire, but not before Carrie sent a volly of orbs flying into the creature's chest and legs. He flew back and landed at the base of the small stairs. The vampire looked towards the ceiling and held his bleeding torso; “T-This c-cannot be!!” he cried, before slowly erupting in a hue of purple flames. With his dying breath he cried “I, a vampire, defeated by mere humans!!?”
As his body burned into nothingness, Carrie rushed over to Leon, who managed to get back on his feet. He pulled his hand away; the wound already beginning to clot. “Ha... guess that's it then..” he muttered, wincing from the pain. Carrie brought him to rest on one of the cell cots as the others gathered around. Henry wore a grim look on his young face. “Leon.. I should have--
The man raised a hand to him, silencing his words. “It's not... your fault; I should have known better than to have my back to a vampire. It's my own fault I was bitten...” his voice trailing off. Leon could feel a slight pain eminating from the wound as he pulled his jacket over the bite. He stood up and sighed. “Look, there's no point in being sad now; there's more important things on the line here than me.”
As he continued talking, the others nodded and began leaving away from the small cell.
Carrie felt the small crystal bounce against her leg as she started to walk away; her mind swirled with troubled thoughts.
"Remember lass... This crystal can cure vampirism." Renon's words rang out in her mind.
She could attempt to use the crystal on Leon... but could she trust Renon's word?
If she used it on him though... what would become of her?
“He did rescue you, after all... What would have happened to you if he hadn't shown up?”
The girl bit her lip as she watched Leon walk past her. She began reaching out for his arm, but stopped herself.
“... Don't forget why you're here.”
Carrie closed her eyes as she heard the sound of cogs turning. Behind the coffin, the wall slid down, revealing a long corridor. Torches were sporatically scattered about, but they weren't lit. William pulled one of the torches from the crypt wall and lit another inside the corridor; the light somewhat illuminating the tunnel. Leon took the second torch and led the group inside. “Stay on your guard everyone.” he muttered, as Reinhardt followed behind. Carrie and Alexandria followed behind them, and William and Henry brought up the rear.
As the group walked through the wall, Carrie felt something push into the ground below her left boot. She could hear a snick, as the door slowly began to close behind them all. William and Henry turned around to look, as it closed shut with a solid thud. William tightened his grip on the other torch. “Well... It could be worse, I guess.” he muttered, as the group slowly marched on.
- -
Down the long corridor they trekked.
Eventually it panned out into a large open area. From the large area were several different paths, each winding away to an unknown location. Reinhardt stopped and crossed his arms, looking at the choices before them. Above them, gray light trickled inside through an opening in the ceiling, providing a glimmer of extra visibility. “You think someone had this place excavated?” Henry asked aloud, “Hard to tell...” Leon replied, looking up at the stalactites hanging from the ceiling.
Reinhardt began walking down one of the paths towards what appeared to be a slowly flowing river. The others followed him, as they sat down amongst the rocks strewn about. William set one of the torches on the rock formation nearby, as Leon set his own down into a niche in the wall.
William looked down the corridor as the river flowed in and out of the winding path. He reached down to pick up a few rocks, skipping them across the water. “So which path should we take?” Carrie ask, crossing her legs as Alexandria stretched. Reinhardt put a hand to his chin; “We could split up... but there's no telling how far these catacombs go on for... Not to mention, who knows what's lurking in here.”
William paused a second before he skipped his next rock; “Even if there is something in here, it can't be any worse than what we left behind in the manor.” he replied, watching the ripples as his rock quickly skitted across.
Leon slowly rubbed at his neck; “William, we didn't leave everything behind, you know.” he noted, as he shot a look towards Alexandria. The boy turned around and looked to the girl, who smiled and waved to him, wiggling her fingers as she did so. William let out an exasperated sigh and grimaced; “Of course... I just couldn't be that lucky, now could I?”
Henry chuckled as he pulled out his pocketwatch; it was almost ten in the morning now. “I think we should get a move on before these two start at it again...” he added with a chuckle.
Alexandria looked at Henry and pouted, “Are you implying that I would do such a thing? I'm shocked, Henry.” she replied, matter-of-factly. The girl crossed her arms and closed her eyes. Henry looked at Carrie, who rolled her eyes. “I'm not implying it Lexi, I'm waiting for it.” the man spoke, watching the young woman's eyes suddenly open. From behind her, William walked past, trying to stiffle his laughter as the girl turned to glare at him. “Oooh... Just you wait William...” she thought, silently getting up.
Henry got up and put an arm around her as they followed behind William. “Oh, lighten up. It's not that bad.” he told her as they marched on. The others slowly rose and followed suit behind. Reinhardt lagged behind a little and walked over to retrieve the torch William had lit. From down the corridor, he noticed something moving out of the corner of his eyes. As he turned his head, the movement vanished.
Off in the distance, he heard a splash. He raised the torch towards the direction of the sound; aside from the slow moving water and few boulders, there was nothing to be seen. The young hunter cocked his ear up. He heard the echoes of bats, but not much else. Eventually, the sound faded into the recesses of the tunnels.
“Must have been my imagination...” he thought, turning to catch up to the others.
Behind him on the ceiling, two creatures watched the hunter disappear around the corner. Silently, they decended to the ground and looked to each other. They were human... half, at least.
From the waist up, they seemed to be normal women clad in scant armor; from the waist down however, they bore the body of a large arachnid. One female was armed with a spear while the other a decorated longsword and small shield. Slowly they scuttled towards the branching path as they looked around the corner; off in the distance were the small group of hunters.
“What do you think?” one spoke to the other.
The one with the sword shook her head slowly, “I don't know; they must have some skill if they managed to get down here intact. I sense something strange about two of them though...”
The first one cocked her head, “What do you mean?” she asked; her yellow eyes glowing in the dark lighting.
“They have the same air about them as the other two who came to talk to the Queen. Those... vampires.” she replied, scowling slightly. She motioned for the younger girl to come on. “You go alert the others that the hunters are here; I'll go talk to the Queen and see what she wants done with them.”
The other spider woman nodded her head silently and scuttled off, taking to the walls as she silently ventured down the river corridor.
The woman was all alone in the recesses of the cave. She stole one last look at the humans in the distance before she turned and scuttled away, taking the opposite path than the other arachnid. She sheathed her sword as her bristly legs climbed over the jagged wall with ease; “This should be interesting... It's been a few days since the Queen's had intruders in her lair...” she thought, watching as a few pebbles splashed into the river.
Off in the distance, she heard the squeaking of bats, as a few fluttered from their perches. “I still don't know why she's taking orders from those two fools though...” she muttered angrily, remembering the meeting between Acrtrise, Giles and her queen.
The arachnid ventured into a large opening in one of the walls; as she came out, she saw a few other of her sisters-in-arms moving about. Some were patrolling around, while a few were eating. She stopped one of the arachnids who was patrolling. The soldier stood at attention and gave her a salute. “You; do you know where Algenie is?”
“Yes Ramona, she just left her chamber; she should be checking in with the group down the way there.”
Ramona gave a nod to the young woman as she scuttled off. As she rounded the corner, she spotted the queen walking away from two of her soldiers. The creature stopped in front of her patriarch and bowed.
“Ah... Ramona.. to what do I owe this pleasure?” the larger arachnid spoke, as she gave a slight bow herself.
“I have important news, your higness. It seems the group of hunters Actrise and Giles spoke of have made it into the tunnels...”
Algenie crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow, “Oh really now... How fascinating...” she replied, giving the young woman a slight smile.
“Indeed, your highness. What would you have us do with them?” Ramona asked, placing a hand on the pommel of her sword.
The queen slowly walked away, turning her back to the warrior. She cupped her hands behind her back and closed her eyes, “Do what you do best, Ramona. Do try to capture some of them, if you can. I've been feeling a tad bored since I gave up our last prisoner to Giles.”
The woman gave a nod as the queen turned to face her once more. “As you command, your highness.” she replied, turning and traversing the corridor once more. Algenie watched as Ramona beginning to rally a few of the other warriors to aid her; the group scuttled away down the corridor back into the catacombs.
Slowly, the spider queen began to retreat into the darkness towards her pesonal chambers. “Yes... We'll see how competent those hunters are. This should make for quite the interesting afternoon...” she thought, as the darkness engulfed her spidery form.
