As for the purist vampires, I'm sure that by this point they were being gifted with the same reception Kali had given us at first. Heck I'm sure their own version would be a million times more brutal and painful than ours ,but as long as it teaches them a good lesson then I'm okay with that. I'm sure they also had the power and ability to get past her and even defeat her in her weakened form, after all they have a Dracula on their side. But never the less I'm sure they will pay a hefty price for it. This was taking petty revenge to a whole other level, but who's here to judge me, I never claimed to be perfect.
Just like the highway we just came from, the bridge also had abandoned vehicles in different state of disrepair and decay. But this was no longer nothing new so I walked forwards a bit and met up with Soren and the rest of my soldiers. Our experience with the weakened goddess had shaken us, a lot. It had completely changed our beliefs of power and how it could be wielded, or the kind of creatures that could wield it.
I remember my fight with the demigod Grimgar. Even though I was outmatched, I could still beat his ass if I used my head and my abilities wisely. Though he was a clone so I can't really tell how powerful he is. However should he face Kali in her monstrous form, she's going to kill him in one blow. Our survival could only he attributed to the shield I had weaved. Without it we would all be dead by now. My ability to weave, is just one massive cheat against nature and everything normal, but I was immensely grateful for it. It has saved my life and the lives of my people one too many times.
We kept to our path, ignoring the roars and screams behind us as Kali went to work on the purist vampires. I felt no pity, or maybe this was just the bloodthirsty side of me talking, but those guys had left us to fend for ourselves. I don't expect any sort of loyalty from them, but this was an obstacle in our path, and it would have been wise if we banded together to get rid of it. But they sat back, willing so watch us all die. Those kind of people don't deserve any kind of mercy, they should just face the same obstacle and see if they can get past it just as hard and painfully as we did.
Eventually the bridge came to an end, and I was at the front again, leading. There was an open gate, massive in proportions but hanging haphazardly of it's hinges. The gate was weird, it was old, really old, like made before technology even excited old. Which should explain the hinges, and the intricate carvings on its body. Anyway the gate was not the prize, it was the highway beyond it that led to a city in the distance, and above it all was dim red sky, devoid of sunlight.
Vampires once lived here, this was Transylvania, but because it was also a place that was visited by a lot of people, judging by the traffic behind us, it had to find a way to accommodate those who couldn't see in the dark or at night, hence the red sky.
This was Transylvania, the ancestral home of the vampires….it was disappointing to be honest. The earth was parched, birds flew above our heads, but judging by their extremely thin and boney frame, they we're starving just as the earth was. The highway within the cavern was well taken care off, but outside; cracks and potholes littered it's surface, and the vehicles here were all but destroyed with not a single one of them, whole enough for anyone to be able to tell the make and brand. This was the true definition of a post apocalyptic world.
"That's a terrible sight." I heard Malek's voice through my crest.
I couldn't help but silently agree with him. It's hard to believe that anything or anyone would have been able to survive in such a hell hole, but based on what Kali had told me, quite a lot of vampires had survived and have been living here since the war began and ended. The vampire that remained were probably responsible for the gates closing, it was their own choice that condemned the rest of their people to hundreds of thousands of years of suffering. But all for what, it doesn't look like they had anything good come of it either.
The city in the distance looked like it had seen better days. Most of the skyscrapers were mere skeletons of their former selves, though quite a few of them still stood. But based on what they looked like from here, I was sure whatever lived within them was not to worried about personal hygiene. Sometimes superior vision can be a disadvantage. The body of those buildings were smeared with blood, feces and both the dried and fresh guts of the unfortunate person or thing that was just killed. Massive metal spikes jutted out of the buildings, as the skulls of animals, monsters, even humanoid snapped skulls had a place there…..without a doubt those were vampires.
There were three such buildings within the city, and even from here, we could hear the screams and the sails, smell the blood and the urine that's released for the abject terror of fear. I could smell death, a lot of it, and nestled within deaths embrace was an evil I just had the pleasure of fighting and making a deal with. Kali's evil essence was spread all over the city, almost as if she had rubbed her skin on it or to be more crass; she came and took a dump in the city and now it reeked of her.
I had no idea what we would be facing in the city, and though I wanted to strike it out on my own, I felt that for now it was better to see what this place was like with my people. The threat level of Transylvania has not been evaluated, and it would be beyond stupid to just leave everyone to fend for themselves when we had no idea what sort of knife would come swinging for us in the dark. So because of that, I had to work with the thought of "there's safety in numbers." But in that regard we all can't go marching into the city as a whole. That would be asking for a lot of trouble, and I'm not in the business of looking for it.
So after a little arrangements, I sent the rest of the vampires to a hill that overlooked the city, it was a little ways east, and quite defensible too, so in case anything should go wrong we could all make a stand there. So for now, it would be just me and Soren going forward, at the very least one vampire and a metal Lion shouldn't draw too much attention to themselves. Besides as far as blending in with the locals could go, how hard could it possibly be.
I should have kept my mouth shut and not jinxed us. How hard could it be, how about very hard. There was no single normal looking person in this place. The ones that at least looked somewhat human had four arms and horns, others grey skin, some two tails and a few had reversed limbs like a cat. Demons, lot's and lots of them, however they all seemed different.
The atmosphere within the city was suffocating to say the least, it seems I was really sensitive to whatever Aura of evil of Kali that had changed every single person here into demons, and I could feel it everywhere and in everyone, plus it was not just Kali's evil that I could feel. There was something more familiar and I was able to pinpoint it the moment I realized most of the demons had fangs poking out of their lips the moment they saw me. These guys were not just demons, they we're demonic vampires.
"Rarrrrrggghhhh!"
I side stepped the sneak attack, and ducked under a claw swipe, and then stepped back as a forked tail stabbed into the air in front of me, just inches from entering my stomach. I was trying to avoid cashing any sort of trouble as it seems that these guys see me as food, and since I was in an unknown place, with unknown rules and unknown cultures, I felt it best to just evade until they calmed down enough to talk….I did not factor into my equation that I came along with bloodthirsty lion fiercely protective of its master.
With lightening coating it's body, Soren pounced at the demons attacking me, and began to tear them apart with sinister prejudice. Of course the moment one of their one died, the entire area of the city we entered, which seemed like it was some sort of market went wild in anger and they all attacked.
One of the demons grabbed a massive metal pole and slammed it into Soren's jaw, throwing the five foot tall golden lion into the air. But as if to mock the hit, Soren's body flashed with lightening and he appeared in front of the demon and sliced with just one claw extended. He had already turned around to rip out the throat of another when the head fell to the ground.
These demons had the strength and speed of vampires, but all of them seemed to have peaked at the Nosferatu rank. There was none as strong as a shadower, much less an elder. But with Soren retaliating to my being attacked, and demons still attacking, I had no choice but to join the fray and fight beside my companion. I could end this fight in seconds if I wanted to, but that would unnecessarily expose my abilities, and I had to keep my cards hidden, at least until I know how strong the big players were.
I threw punches and kicks, but all of my attacks were meant to incapacitate rather than kill. So in the end there was just a lot of broken bones and torn muscles. The only person who was not holding his punches was Soren, and I let him do so. I might not want anyone to know how strong I was, but at the very least Soren could show off in my stead and make a statement that we were not to be trifled with.
Soren grabbed a demon with his jaws on his face and slammed it shut, crushing it's skull as he teleported behind another demon approaching with a massive hammer. The demon did not even realize that Soren was behind it when Soren raised his right paw up, all of his claws out, gleaming and sparkling with golden lightening. And then Soren slashed down, splitting the demon into four pieces, like some sort of pasta making machine.
*Roooooaaaaaaarrrrrrrrr*
"What the fuck is that!" Malek screamed from within my mind.
I scrunched my face in annoyance, though I was happy that Malek was able to deal with his grief of loosing his son, and he was willing to lend a hand for this expedition while also helping Baeki and Ashes place the markers that would teleport Ethernalia Leonis to the realm of the dragon kings. However despite all that, he was beginning to get on my nerves with his annoying comments that always seem to come up when something significant happens. Besides what's gotten him so rattled this time.
"Oooff!" *Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!* *Crash!* "Oww"
I had turned around just in time to receive a club to the face I was thrown through stalls and a building before coming to a stop. Said club was now in pieces in the hands of a four armed red skinned brute, he was eight foot tall, beefy and in the next ten seconds very dead. I sped towards him, so fast that he could not even catch a hint of my shadow. I jumped and kneed him in the jaw, and his head and spine flew out of his body with a wet squelch and a very gory spray of blood.
I had every intention of keeping a low profile, but this dude pissed me off. Soren walked over towards me, growling at the demons that were still standing around. But much to both our surprise none of them were attacking us anymore, instead they were all bowing. I looked at Soren, and he looked back at me, trying to seem innocent and just as confused as I was. But with the blood and guts allover his body, I doubt if I would believe him to be innocent for one second. I pointed my finger at him and asked in the sternest voice possible.
"Soren! What the hell did you do?"