Possession 17: Vampire

                 The dark figure beneath them slowly stood, keeping his eerie, glowing red eyes focused on Tenshi and Rei. There was little question as to whether or not he could see the priestess. For her part, she seemed to regain her composure fairly quickly after the shock of seeing him, though her face was still pale. Tenshi, on the other hand, was trembling. His hands shook so hard that the bokuto seemed to want to jump free.

                Rei swallowed hard as she broke free of the creature’s gaze. “Um… Tenshi… I think we should pull back…”

                “What was your fist hint,” the boy murmured, still staring down at the man.

                “I think we might need those talismans…”

                “And a cross… and holy water… and a wooden stake…”

                “Tenshi, those things don’t work.”

                “And garlic… lots… and lots… of garlic…”

                Rei bit her lip and turned. Tenshi managed to do the same.

                The man with red eyes stood in their way, taller than both, with black hair that fell about his shoulders. The stranger wore a black tank top with black jeans, a choker around his neck that was also the color of darkness. This close, Tenshi noticed that his skin was pale enough to be considered white, a strong contrast against his dark outfit. He also noticed the long fangs that could be seen through half-parted lips.

                Tenshi’s nervous system was shot. His brown eyes stared blankly at the apparition, unable to focus properly. His whole body felt cold and numb. The uneasiness he had felt earlier seemed to fill his very being. Something was wrong… and he felt powerless to resist.

                Rei’s eyes widened in alarm as she stared at the silent stranger. I didn’t even see him move!  “We need to—” She stopped herself in mid-sentence we she saw Tenshi’s frozen form. No! He’s succumbed to the vampire’s spell!

                The stranger simply stood there, as still as a stature. His eyes seemed to bore into the teenage boy, capturing him within their dark depths. When he spoke, his voice was a soft whisper; a sound easily mistakable for the sound of leaves dancing on the wind. “…Who are you…?”

                Tenshi was about to answer but Rei suddenly severed the visual contact between him and the creature by placing herself between them. As soon as his line of sight was broken, the numbness Tenshi felt began to fade. “Don’t look him in the eyes,” Rei warned, “and don’t give him your name. A vampire gains power over the one who freely gives them their name. What the… where’d he go?”

                The stranger had completely vanished. Tenshi shook his head to try to clear it. “What… what the Hell happened to me?”

                “Vampires have a variety of special abilities,” the priestess muttered as she scanned their surroundings. “One of which is a very strong aura of darkness. Hell Hounds can cause fear… Vampires can cause terror. They use this power to convince their victims into giving up their names. Like I said… once you freely give your name to a vampire, they gain complete control over you.”

                The teenage boy began to turn and sweep his gaze over the cemetery. “What do you mean by control? Like mind control, or something?”

                “Pretty much. That’s how they’re able to kill so easily. Their victims allow them to. Blast! If only I had studied them more!”

                Tenshi paused. A tremor swept through his spine. He didn’t have to turn around to know that the creature stood behind him. He could feel the vampire’s dark presence. A strong hand gripped his shoulder, forcefully spinning him around as another hand clamped around the teenage boy’s throat. The ground dropped away beneath him as Tenshi suddenly found himself staring down in surprise at the vampire’s crimson eyes. The action was done so quick that it took a moment for him to realize that he couldn’t breathe.

                “Who are you,” the stranger asked again, his emotionless whisper never changing. When Tenshi didn’t answer, he tightened his grip around his throat.

                “Leave him alone!” Rei yelled, diving at the creature, fists swinging. Of course, being a spirit, she couldn’t harm him. She slipped through his body, spinning quickly as she emerged. She could not hide her surprise when the stranger lashed out with his free hand, clasping it around her neck. It took a moment for that action to register. I forgot! Vampires can affect the spirit world without being affected by it! With a seemingly effortless motion, he swept his hand around and sent Rei through the air, spinning violently.

                “Guh! Rei!” Tenshi clutched at the hand around his throat with one hand, refusing to release his hold on the wooden sword in his other. “Leave… Leave her alone!”

                The vampire tilted his head as he regarded the struggling boy, his face blank.

                Tenshi squirmed, familiar thoughts of death and mourning running through his mind. Augh! This time… This time I’m really gonna die! Dad! I’m…I’m sorry!

…You came into this world without crying…

                A sudden voice. Tenshi’s eyes widened. Oh God…I’m hallucinating….

                The vampire’s grip tightened.

                Rei recovered from her flight and sped back as fast as she could.

…I always knew you were destined for great things, my little angel, my darling Tenshi…

                What… what is this… Tenshi began to slow his struggle. He felt something in the back of his mind, trying to break free.

                Crimson eyes narrowed.

                “Tenshi!” Rei screamed out of desperation.

…Wherever you decide to go, whatever you decide to do with the time the great God has given you, know that I will always watch over you…

                Tenshi could feel a shifting glow around him, smothered by the darkness of the vampire. He was aware at how it tried to push back the darkness, to fight against it, and how it began to change. It began to concentrate along his right arm, around the wooden sword he still clutched. Tenshi gritted his teeth.

                The vampire’s eyes suddenly widened, but other than that, he showed no expression.

                “Fight him, Tenshi!”

                A chime.

… I will always love you…

                The bokuto began to glow with a blue-white light. Tenshi narrowed his eyes as his vision swam. Pulling as much strength out of himself as he could, he tightened his hold on the blade and swung it at the vampire’s exposed mid-section. He could almost see that shifting glow plunge into the darkness.

                Dropping the boy, the vampire leapt backwards out of the blade’s range. He landed ten feet away, cat-like, and focused his gaze on the one he had released.

                After being dropped, Tenshi fell to his knees, coughing between gasps. Refusing to release his weapon, he massaged his throat with his one free hand. I’m… I’m alive!

                Rei knelt by the teenage boy, one arm placed on his back. He couldn’t feel the gesture, but sometimes the priestess forgot that she was a mere spirit now. “Tenshi… are you okay?” Rei asked with a frown of concern.

                “I’m okay,” Tenshi rasped. He swallowed a hard lump and pulled himself to his feet, swaying unsteadily. The world seemed to spin around him. “Ugh… I thought I was a goner… That guy has a hell of a grip…”

                “Speaking of whom… he’s getting up…”

                Both glanced at the vampire as he rose to his feet, as fluid as water. Or a shadow. His eyes seemed to glow from beneath his dark bangs. With silent, swift movements, he began to stalk back towards the duo.

                All three figures froze. At the base of the hill where the body of the dead girl lay, two dark figures were searching the ground with flashlights. “Are you sure it came from this direction?” One asked. “Yeah,” the other responded, “I know I heard a scream. Somewhere over… Holy son of…! Call for backup, we got another dead one!”

                “The police! We need to stop that monster before he kills those guys!” Tenshi growled.

                “And how do you plan on stopping that thing?” Rei hissed.

                The vampire stared down at the two figures but didn’t seem interested in them. In fact, he actually took a step back, finally turning away. He began to walk away from the police as well as from Tenshi and Rei. Both of whom exchanged surprised looks.

                “Why is he leaving? He could easily deal with a couple of normal police officers,” Rei murmured in confusion.

                “I don’t know… but I’m not letting him get away!” Tenshi dashed after the creature’s retreating form.

                “Hey! Wait! We need to go back home and regroup! There’s no way we can stop this thing!” Rei leapt into the air and raced after the teenage boy.

                I know… He could have killed me… But he almost brought out the Spirit Resonance… If I can use that on him, maybe I can win! Tenshi clenched his hand into a fist. He had almost caught up to the walking monster. If I can take him by surprise…NO! The figure before him suddenly vanished. Before Tenshi could react, a blow to the back of the knee sent him tumbling.

                Tenshi hit the ground hard and was roughly flipped onto his back. The vampire buried his knee into the teenager’s stomach and gripped his throat once more while the other hand held down the bokuto. His eyes were completely red this time, glowing dully in the moonlight. He opened his mouth, hissing as his fangs began to grow longer.

                “Get off of him you wretched beast!” Rei tried in vain to distract the vampire by swinging her fists through his back.

                The vampire ignored her and leaned close to Tenshi’s face. Whoever you are, said a sinister voice in Tenshi’s head, you’ll regret ever coming here!

                “Ryoga! Get off of him!”

                Rei blinked and looked up from her pummeling to a girl that stood in the shadow of a large gravestone. The priestess couldn’t make out her features very well, but she seemed to be about the same age as Tenshi. Ryoga?

                The vampire hissed one last time but released Tenshi’s throat. He slowly stood up and moved away, his fangs shrinking down enough for him to close his mouth. As his eyes returned to normal, he spoke in his hushed voice. “…They saw me…”

                “But you are not their target… I believe we are hunting the same beast…” The girl also had a quiet voice, level and plain.

                Tenshi rubbed his stomach and sat up. “Wait… I’m confused… who are you?”

                The girl moved gracefully into the moonlight. She wore a black skirt over thigh-length leggings that were striped by black and dark blue bands. Her shirt was a sleeveless black midriff. An arm warmer that matched her leggings was on her right forearm, spiked black bracelets around both wrists. In addition to all this, she also wore black combat boots, a black choker and a black hair band. She regarded Tenshi with eyes that seemed black in the pale light from beneath hair that likewise appeared black. She then turned her gaze to Rei.

                “My name is Yuna.... You may call him Ryoga. You have nothing to fear… we are friends.”