Bleeding Hearts Breed Beasts (Round Two)

OoC: Whoo! I finally got it finished, Rob! ^^;; Sorry it took me so long. Oh, and just as a note, when you come to the name Silvian Boyet, his last name is pronounced the French way, with a silent "t". So, something like (boy-yay). Anyways, on with the fight! And good luck to you!

IC:

Clouds brushed discreetly across the moon’s gentle countenance. Flickering intermittently over the city streets below, shadows enveloped the form of a winged vampire sitting disconsolately on the edge of an otherwise vacant rooftop. Her usually shimmering midnight and silver hair hung dull and lifeless in a natural cloak around her petite body, offering the only comfort she had in this world any longer. Exhaling a sigh, she ran one of her fangs over her bottom lip in tormented contemplation.

I don’t know what I’m doing anymore…

Even her own thoughts sounded hollow to her, as though they were merely a recording she was playing back to herself while removed from her body. Perhaps they’d have a little more significance if…

Max…

Every ounce of feeling—whether negative or positive—she possessed swelled within that single, unspoken word. Hate was chased swiftly by longing. Despair melted into fragile strings of hope that wove their way through the deepest recesses of her soul. Tears brimming suddenly in her violet eyes, she wished fervently to know what it was she had done, or if she had just simply not given enough of herself. She thought she had offered everything she possibly could to him…

A nearly inaudible sound nearby caused her to abruptly look up, a faint hope stirring within her. Perhaps he had come. Perhaps, as in the past, her silent calling had been sufficient to summon him. But there was no one there, not even something for her to feed her voracious appetite. Sighing once more, she ran her fingers through her curtain of hair, attempting to straighten it and sink deeper within its concealing embrace. Without him, life—or existence, rather—held little meaning for her.

“Mariana.”

Closing her eyes for a moment, the vampire-angel gathered the scattered pieces of her thoughts before softly replying, keeping her back to the newcomer. “What is it, Silvian…?”

There was no noise betraying his movements; she merely felt him approach. “I thought you could use some company.” He placed a pale hand on her shoulder, squeezing softly before sitting down next to her.

From out of the corner of her eye, Mariana observed the leader of the group of vampires to which she now loosely attached herself. She had stumbled upon them quite by accident, and Silvian Boyet had taken a shine to her, despite the obvious distaste of his subordinate vampires. Apparently, they weren’t keen on the idea of association with a half-breed, especially one who’d been a pure angel in her life before.

Turning her head and fixing her gaze fully on him, Mariana took in his thick, dark locks and his strangely compassionate, icy-blue eyes, and she found herself questioning his motives, which surprised her. She’d changed tremendously, grown up, and matured through everything. Maybe there was a positive—if perhaps, miniscule—side of the coin.

With a bland expression on her face, the vampire-angel absent-mindedly pushed a strand of her hair out of her eyes. “I’m fine, really. Just famished.”

“Mm...I see.” He leaned close to her, softly kissing her cheek and running a finger through her hair. “I’m just concerned about you, darling. I know you haven’t told me everything about your past, but…I recognize the hurt you feel.” Pressing another kiss to her forehead this time, he gently caressed the side of her neck with the same finger he’d slid through her hair. “I want to do anything and everything I can to help you.”

Mariana tried her hardest to hide her slight grimace. She entertained Silvian’s obvious romantic advances but felt nothing resembling love for him. Not now, at least. It was a bit difficult to focus on cultivating a relationship with someone new when her true love still haunted her every waking and sleeping moment. “Right now, I just need sustenance before I shrivel into nothing.”

The male vampire held her gaze for a moment longer, still lightly stroking her neck. “Do you want me with you on the hunt, dear?”

She gently shook her head. “No. I need to be alone.”

A barely detectable sigh of resignation escaped Silvian’s lips. “I understand, love. If you ever need anything from me…”

“I know. I’ll make you aware of anything you could do for me. Now, please…let me be.”

Closing his eyes for a moment, Silvian sighed again before softly kissing Mariana’s lips. To her astonishment, she returned the gesture, though she briefly wondered if that was merely out of reflex. But her small enjoyment of it surprised her even more. She’d almost forgotten how a kiss felt. Leaning back, Silvian smiled at her and thumbed her cheek. “You know I care about you a great deal, Mariana.”

She stared incredulously at him, amazed at the raw amount of boldness he possessed. “I… I need to go…”

Without giving him a chance to say or do anything else, Mariana vanished before his eyes, reappearing a good distance away from him and hovering in the air. She fixed him with a sad expression for a moment or two before flying in the direction opposite him.

Immersed in her own world of solitude once more, thoughts of Silvian were quickly replaced by thoughts of Max. It had been his kiss she’d felt—tasted—there on the rooftop, his touch that had graced her skin. Max’s presence practically rolled off Silvian in waves. Perhaps she was slowly going insane now. The more she thought about that possibility, the more she welcomed it.

A slight spell of dizziness hit her momentarily, and she wavered in mid-air. Ugh…I need…blood…

Only half aware, Mariana descended into the street below her, landing shakily. She blinked slowly several times and shook her head in an attempt to clear it. Once the world around her stopped spinning mercilessly, she was able to focus partially better than before.

“If it isn’t the angelic abomination…”

Whirling around, Mariana’s nose nearly collided with the muscled chest of one of the vampires in Silvian’s group. He sneered at her, obviously amused by her diminutive stature. If he wanted to, he would have no problems snapping her spine in half. And from the glint in his yellowed eyes, he seemed to be entertaining that very thought.

“I don’t have any quarrel with you. I just need to hunt. Please leave me alone.”

Snickering echoed off the walls of the buildings nearby, as four other belligerent vampires emerged from the shadows around her. They wore malicious grins on their faces and advanced toward her in tandem, forming a circle of death—or would it be undeath?—with her in the middle.

Mariana glanced warily about her, but found it impossible to watch every vampire at once. Those grinning countenances whirled together in her eyes, aided by the dizziness that threatened to overwhelm her. Fighting down the urge to submit completely to the blackness creeping in at the edges of her vision, she tried calming them all down. “Please…I haven’t done anything to harm you... I try to stay out of your way… What more do you want from me…?”

One of the vampires to her left—or was it her right? She couldn’t tell. If only everything would stop spinning…—spat violently upon the ground. “We hate your kind.”

“But I…I’m a vampire, too…” Confusion blended with the struggle to maintain consciousness in her eyes.

Raucous laughter erupted from her assailants, and the ground became slightly moister than it originally had been. She’d never known anyone to spit in mockery so much before. “You’re no vampire. You’re a washed-out, weak, worthless angel who only thinks she’s a bloodchild. Whatever vampire is responsible for turning you is a disgrace to his kind and deserves to be staked.”

Any vestige of sanity left to Mariana vanished with a vengeance.

In a flash, she was upon the last vampire who’d spoken, her fangs ravenously seeking his throat and ripping ruthlessly into his jugular vein and vocal cords, silencing him forever. His warm blood spewed into her mouth, and she gulped it thirstily, feeling her strength returning to her. After drinking her fill from his throat, she raised her lips to his face and tore into his bottom lip, licking at the resulting blood flow eagerly. Finishing her meal, she kissed him deeply and tossed his now-limp body aside as though he was nothing more than a rag doll.

Rage consumed her. The insanity—the Beast—she’d staved off for so long had finally captured her again and refused to let go until it was satisfied. Obediently, Mariana flew into another of the vampires, tearing into any patch of skin she could reach with her fangs and sharpened nails. Blood coated her entire body, but that only made the Beast desire more. She imbibed the crimson fluid until she thought she’d burst, when she finally realized the vampire she clenched was unconscious.

Upon discarding him, she glanced about, eyes still burning, but found the scene deserted by the rest of her oppressors. Logic told her the Beast’s craving should be satisfied by now, but if anything, the urge to feed—and even kill—was more intense than ever before. With a wrathful snarl, she took to the air, wheeling in the sky and scanning for any signs of movement, anything she could rip apart and feel resulting lifeblood splash over her.

Darkness draped omnipresent over the city streets below. The dim luminance of the moon barely shone through the ostensible clouds in the ebony sky above. The metropolis seemed virtually void of any signs of life, save one man. He stood, cocked up against the facade of an apartment building on the intersection of two cobblestone alleyways, apparently resting from something. His hand discreetly slipped into the pocket of his lividly colored overcoat. The man's head slowly tipped down and his chin rested lethargically on his bosom. An exasperated sigh released itself from his lips, and his pale eyelids fell over lifeless eyes. His onyx-colored hair disheveled and his clothes tattered and torn; he was covered in blood from head to toe.

"I'm done..."

The fight to find sanctuary in his psychopathic mind was ad nauseam at this point. He had failed himself once more. One after another, he had watched his children fall, victim to the amaranthine darkness. It was sincere existence to him at this point.

"Korou... and now Zein."

Agony gripped at his heart as he uttered the names of his two endeared children. The Devil's fangs rent him asunder as his soul faded to black. It could not be described in physical words... and especially not by a man who had nearly asphyxiated his own child. A demonic claw pulled the choker inflexibly on his heart and the man let out a scantily aural whimper. What a paradox it was, this man. Smothered in the cataclysms brought on remorselessly by the netherworld called 'life', he struggled only to better the lives of others.

It's your fault, a voice from inside boomed. It's your fault, Vane Dayrose! You could have stopped it if you had listened to me, but you don't even pay me any heed.

"Shut up! I will never listen to you! How long do you think you can stay in my head and tell me that you're my only salvation?"

As long as I want.

The numerous globules of blood beating down on the ground shattered the eerie silence, and the voice suddenly dispersed. Vane cringed. This was not the first time that his conscience had pinned the blame of something disastrous on him... but it was by far the most outrageous incident. He abruptly turned and faced the street to his left. He could not think of anything he could do to console himself. His limp arms remained at his sides, and his legs began to give way. The stones beneath him came up and met him directly in his face; more gore spilled from his now broken nose. Tears streamed down his face in small rivulets, harmonizing together with the cascading blood and creating numerous streams of diluted blood.

"I'm all alone..."

His vision blurred from the tears, but he was able to see the sky light up as lightning struck in the far off distance. The sound of a thunderclap soon followed, resonating throughout the stone jungle like an electrical charge in a circuit board. It seemed to the Savior that the sky itself was angry with him. Paranoia gripped him, as his thoughts began to warp his mind and cause a string of dark emotions to bind him to the ground he lay upon. His insanity perturbed him greatly. He had the power to bend the environs of reality, yet he himself was coerced by the limitations of his own sanity. Paranoia; the empyrean hated him, and that is why it roared; the ground hated him, and that is why it made him bleed; life hated him, and that is why it made him suffer.

You still choose to demur at me. Do you not understand that I am you? Nobody loves you but me, and nobody cares but me. I am your life, and you cannot trust anything else.

"My life?" Vane chuckled maniacally at the thought of trusting himself, "I am my life, and you are simply a part of me that I neither desire nor require. Do you think that you can tell me you are my truth when all you do is lie?"

Whether you realize it or not, I am winning. You have lost your mind, and I have recovered it. You are fodder, and I could crush you at any moment. I am merely giving you the chance to confide in yourself.

"You don't get it. My life is expendable and meaningless. You know that I don't care what happens to me, and you are afraid that I may do something that may kill you. Face it, you have lost. My vision has permeated your veil of deceit!" He was oblivious to the fact that he was now announcing his victory phrase at the top of his lungs, but he wouldn't have cared even if he had noticed, for in his mind, it was but a faint mutter.

Wisps of fierce, frigid wind danced around Vane's head as he forced himself off of the dusty walkway. A grunt escaped his spastic lips, and he leaned backwards, wrapping his arms around himself to keep warm. The icy gale around him threatened to bite his exposed skin, but his coat kept the beast back. He indolently pushed himself upward until he stood erect. Not even the pain from the preceding battle was enough to keep the Savior of Silronia at wit's end.

His feet moved forward hesitantly, erratically. His hands trembling and his breathing deep and heavy, he made his way out of the alleyway and into an open road. The silence of the streets sent a chill down his spine, but the resplendent moonlight vanquished the foreboding feelings that stirred within Vane's tight chest. As sedative as the brilliant effulgence from above was, he remained uneasy and walked with evident caution. His eyes constantly found themselves staring up at the ethereal moon. His pitiful stare entreated only a tear to be shed. The Savior felt selfish for this, for he had never wanted anyone to cry for him before. He had cried for himself so much that he could no longer rely on his own eyes to give up their tears.

Don't you ignore me. You cannot ignore yourself; I am you and you cannot change that fact!

Vane ignored himself. He was through with schizophrenia; he would not allow his conscience to subjugate him.

The Silronian continued his wearying traipse. The pain was far from terse, but it was the same old thing. He tightened his grip on himself until it looked as though he were embracing an invisible person directly in front of him. He knew more than anything that emotions were the most powerful governing factors in existence, and he could not allow himself to feel alone. His lips formed a simper and he finally acknowledged the fact that he was insane. It did not help him an iota to repudiate his flaws, only to approbate them and work to better himself. The simper faded as he discerned a hostile presence in the far off distance. His eyelids shut securely and his energy senses became potently aware.

"Demon? No..." he paused, "...a vampire?" Whether it was in Porphyre or not, Vane had always loathed vampires.

The Savior slowly reached his left hand into the inside pocket of his coat and pulled Black Cell from its holster. His right hand extended out in front of him, and began to radiate a dark red aura. The vivid light from above reflected off of an invisible surface that extended about two feet to Vane's left. The floating crimson particles around his outstretched hand began to move along the edge of the now slightly visible form of a blade. He felt the leather handle form in his palm, and observed with a smirk as the form of his katana began to fill with the vermilion energy. He quickly rotated his body and stood, facing the direction of his visitor. Red Cell, now fully formed, was pointed straight up at the celestial sky, and Black Cell was directed straight ahead of the Silronian. Tonight was not the night to pick a fight with Vane Dayrose of Silronia.

Through the mental haze dementia inflicted upon her mind, Mariana sensed movement beneath her. With a shake of her head, she attempted to clear her vision enough to discern the source of lifeblood she could practically taste already. The moonlight glinted off some form of metal in both of the human’s hands. Her prey possessed its own set of teeth. However, strategic calculation was limited in her mind, being enthralled with insanity as it was. She cared only for the sensations of her fangs sinking into the human’s flesh and feasting on his blood, preferably draining it away until she’d claimed every last drop and extinguished his life. Indeed, the mere thought of slaughter consumed her, plunged its tendrils into her brain. Whispering promises of untold ecstasy should she satiate its bloodlust, the Beast beckoned her to yearn for more than just the murderous thoughts now whirling wildly inside her head.

Running her tongue over her fangs greedily, Mariana allowed herself to be persuaded.

With a sibilant hiss, she dove downward like lightning, bowling the human over even as she sought his throat in the same motion. Before she could pierce his skin, though, pain exploded along her side as the man’s blade sliced into her pale flesh. Screeching, the vampire-angel melted into thin air within seconds. She reappeared several yards away from her would-be victim, her fingers at her lips and drenched with her own sapphire blood which she licked thirstily. The open wound in her side had already sealed itself, leaving no visible traces.

For a few moments that seemed to stretch for an eternity, the human and the vampire stared each other down, gauging the other’s strength. The sky darkened overhead as the cloud-cover increased in density, blotting out the pearlescent moon to intensify the shadows shrouding the city. Mariana did not fear the darkness. She embraced it, allowed it to feed her ever-growing desire to rend the body away from the man’s soul. There was nothing that could restrain the Beast now. Her mind was completely enslaved to it. Briefly, she recalled a time when this state of mind would have frightened her to no end. Back then, Max had been there to comfort her and calm her raging emotions. Now, even if he were to appear this very moment, she doubted he would be able to subdue her.

She didn’t want to be subdued. She found herself thoroughly enjoying the insanity.

Cunning gleamed in her violet eyes, and she vanished abruptly once more. The shadows deepened further, and she planned to take full advantage of the ample concealment they provided. From within a nearby alley, Mariana observed her prey, ready to fully commence her game of cat-and-mouse. Slipping her tongue out to trace her lips and fangs, she relished the taste of blood she imagined flowing into her mouth once the game was finished. It wouldn’t be too much longer.

Thunder roared. The heavens began to weep.

Heaven’s tears fell down to the Earth in a myriad of small torrents that seemed to fall everywhere except the spot where Vane stood. His face, now impassive, showed how swiftly his emotion swings passed by. Despite his lunacy, the Silronian remained stoic and perfectly composed. Red Cell and Black Cell were both in the same position as before, only now he faced the opposite direction. He knew not where his vampiric adversary hid, but he was certainly not going to allow her to get in another preemptive attack. The ecstasy of being hunted always intrigued Vane, but he had never before had such a compulsion to struggle.

“Come on, you filthy monster!” Vane shouted, his words carrying through the colossal structures of the metropolis.

Mariana took up his offer with a demented simper. She shot forth from the gloom, with her nimble reflexes, and latched her fangs directly into her prey’s throat. The Savior roared in pain as he flung his assailant off of his back. The vampiric angel vanished into the shadows once more. Vane’s wound was worse than he should have allowed, and his blood was literally projecting out of his throat. Carefully, he placed his hand three-inches above the wound and shut his eyes tightly. A blue aura radiated from his palm and the skin cells began to slowly lace together once more. His right eye peeped open with a wince. His blade was now laced with his own crimson gore.

His vision became obscured and he stumbled slightly to his right, but he faltered no more. After dealing with that vampire, Eruguh, he figured he should be able to handle this little situation. Being almost a vagabond, Vane had dealt with many vampires in the past, but he lacked the knowledge that Mariana was also part angel.

The Savior now felt he should take his opponent seriously; he had no reason to feel like he was too powerful to care just because of who he was. His legs lifted from the ground, almost discreetly, and he levitated himself high up into the storming empyrean. His vigilant eyes stared down into the bleak streets, searching for the fiend below. He almost thought about summoning a demon aura, but that wouldn’t aid him very much if he couldn’t even pinpoint his adversary. He shifted his weight forward and carried himself forward on a stream of streaming obsidian energy; the dark color of the atramentous solspherous was cloaked by the shade of the night sky, and his black coat masked him. Mariana could not see him.

The elegy of the rainfall striking the earth below was almost soothing to Vane. He nearly forgot about the embers of conflict cooking him alive. Dementia all but faded into the back of his mind as sanity once again purged him from the aviary of his own head. With great discretion, the Silronian lowered himself down to the roof of a candy shop. He knew that if he had the high ground he would have an advantage, but he had no wisdom of his opponent’s abilities. He knew that if she could fly, then this battle would be far more troublesome than he had hoped.

“Let the celestials adjudicate this conflict. I will destroy this fiend before the ethereal heavens, and I will be recognized!”

Rain slid over Mariana’s still-bloodied curves and soaked into the thin, but resilient, fabric of her dark clothing. The small, aquatic ovules caught the faint streams of moonlight that managed to filter through the slight breaks in the clouds blanketing the night sky and shimmered faintly, resonating in response to the lunar energy already residing within the vampire-angel. Tucking her soaking hair behind her ears, she grimaced as the sharp pangs of hunger lanced through her once more. The Beast… It was perpetually ravenous, eager for the ripping of flesh by fangs, the warm flow of life over her tongue. If she failed to quench its thirst, she wasn’t sure what would become of her.

Lighting forked across the ebony sky, breaking into particles of light that danced playfully across the heavens, as though callous to the corresponding dance of death ensuing below. Thunder swiftly chased it, signaling the storm’s extremely close proximity to the scene. It was nearly on top of them. Another spear of lightning shot down from above and pitilessly tore into the roof of a building perhaps twenty yards away from Mariana. Yet, she remained unfazed and merely blinked coolly in the now-sizzling building’s direction.

Though the very wrath of God Himself raged around her, Mariana beat her wet, sapphire feathers to shake the rainwater off them and lifted into the air with only a slight amount of awkwardness. Her violet irises radiated murderous intent as she gained altitude, slowly at first before settling into a steady rhythm. Sensing blood nearby, the vampire-angel blindly dove down to the left completely on a whim but was greeted once more by the burning sensation of a blade biting through the skin of her right shoulder. Screaming in outrage, she retaliated by latching onto the human’s back and sinking her nails into his throat. The second she felt warm wetness roll over her fingers, she leaned around him and licked hungrily at his bleeding wounds. Her fangs inevitably sank deeply into his flesh as she sucked ever more greedily at the man’s life-fluid. In the back of her mind, the Beast urged her to drink until her victim’s pulse died.

Brilliance and agony consumed her, followed closely by darkness.

* * * * *

Mariana… Mariana, wake up…

Moaning softly, Mariana stirred and opened her eyes. Once focus returned to her vision, she glanced warily about, taking in her surroundings. She rested upon something warm—sand—and the gentle sounds of ocean waves teased her ears. This place…she knew it. A look toward the heavens confirmed her memories. Instead of seeing a pale-blue sky, her eyes met with a deep crimson hue.

Ryiel…

She spoke the word in her mind slowly, as though testing it out after such a long period of disuse. There were so many scattered thoughts attached to that word—fond, as well as loathed. How she had come to be here again, Mariana could not comprehend. Tentatively, she sat up, careful to prevent any spell of dizziness from claiming her temporarily. It seemed she was alone.

Footsteps behind her made her tense, but she did not turn around to see who approached her. Fear held her in its paralytic grip. The sound drew nearer before ceasing entirely. Still reluctant to move, Mariana sat in silence, trembling involuntarily.

“Mariana.”

The voice fell upon her ears like soft velvet, relaxing her anxious body. She knew it just as she knew this place. Better, even. Frozen now, not by fear, but rather by confusion, the vampire-angel remained obstinately facing away from the presence. A single, black-nailed finger glided underneath her chin, slowly guiding her head around to settle her eyes upon the familiar form of her lost lover. For what seemed like ages, Mariana gazed up at him, feeling her pulse pounding raucously inside nearly every inch of her body. Her mouth suddenly felt dry, and she only managed to whisper a single word in incredulity.

“Max…?”

His ruby eyes never parting from hers, Maximilian bid her stand with the same finger still under her chin. “Yes. I am.”

This confirmation removed any and all inhibitions Mariana had previously held, and she placed a hand to his cheek, softly caressing it. “I… What…happened…?”

Pulling her closer, Max bent down and pressed a kiss to her lips, lingering for a moment in gentle bliss before mouthing her lips passionately for several long minutes. Mariana melted in his kiss and his touch, old feelings rebirthing completely within her chest again. In reflex, one hand slipped into his hair while the other traced its way down his back, tenderly kneading his toned flesh as it went. She never wanted this moment to end. Ever.

With great reluctance, the vampire parted from her lips, still hovering close enough that she could feel his breathing. “I love you…”

Tears brimmed in Mariana’s eyes, and she kissed him softly once more. Hearing those words from him—simple though they might be—renewed her will to survive. “I love you, too.”

His pale hand caressed her shoulder blades. “Love…my angel… You must fight to maintain control of yourself. Don’t allow the Beast to have its way with you.”

Wincing, Mariana looked down. “I… I was weak… I’ve disappointed you… But…those vampires…they insulted you more deeply than I could bear.”

Max smiled adoringly and lifted her chin back up. “Vengeance for an insult to my name is not worth you losing your sanity. Don’t allow yourself to become a puppet to the Beast’s whims again. Please, love.”

Mariana slowly nodded her acquiescence. “I won’t. I promise.”

Still smiling, Max took her fully in his arms and kissed her lovingly once more. “Don’t live in fear, my angel. Be at peace… I love you deeply…”

Before she could say anything, the crimson of Max’s eyes melded with the sky above, swirling into a fierce whirlpool of color which then abruptly burst into blackness.

* * * * *

Mariana was awakened rudely by the sloshing of rainwater against her face. She had collapsed after the lightning had struck her body and had landed in a crumpled heap next to a dumpster in the alley she had occupied minutes ago, though it felt more like years to her. Amazement at her survival briefly skittered across her mind before she remembered what she was. Perhaps there were pros to being partially vampiric.

With her sanity returned to her, Mariana blinked rain out of her eyes and shot a glance upward. She knew that man was probably still upon the rooftop. Either that, or he figured any threat she might have posed to him had been eliminated when the forked electricity struck her.

Confusion still gripped her about what she had just experienced. It couldn’t have been a dream. The taste of Max’s kiss still lingered upon her lips, though it was greatly tempered by the torrential deluge. Now, however, was not the time for such thoughts. Removing the Argentsigna from around her neck, Mariana draped one of her wings over her shoulder and watched it bleed blue onto the silver crystal. Within moments, Ashriel resided in her hands, and she lifted into the sky once more, the rooftop her intended destination.