Vampire Hunter D: Pale Fallen Angel Parts Three and Four (17 page)

Not turning, Vince stared off in the direction from which the accelerator had come.

It's difficult to explain what happened next. Rows of houses in a three-hundred-foot radius vanished, and a huge hole was created in the ground. That's the only way to describe it. When and how the houses had been erased and the hole had been made remained a mystery. Perhaps the homes and soil had never existed in the first place.

“Boss, at this rate, the whole village—” the subordinate screamed, his voice ringing out even louder than Lagoon's, “no, the whole world could be finished!”

Vince began to advance. Far ahead of him towered Lagoon's place. The inhabitants of the village would've gone there when they were evacuated.

Then Vince turned around. The thunder of shod hooves was approaching from his rear.

At that point, moonlight spilled through a gap in the clouds to shine down on the figure who halted his cyborg horse at the rim of the great hole. Perhaps it was his good looks that made Vince stop. Though his face possessed the kind of beauty humans didn't even encounter in dreams, a fiercely eerie aura radiated from him as he glared at Vince. It was D! But could any Vampire Hunter, no matter how great, have the skill to stand against a fiend who could negate the very energy that'd created the universe?

Wrath filled Vince's face. Though his psyche had been ravaged, some final remaining fragment of his subconscious had recalled the connection between D and himself. And his eyes blazed with the pale and deadly light.

D didn't move.

In the airship in the sky, Lagoon was left breathless, and when May raced out of the warehouse, she paled at what was on the rim of the great hole. The instant that separated life and death required an appropriate ceremony.

WAIT!
boomed a voice that called to mind the god of some evil domain.

The eyes of both D and Vince whipped around and focused for a second on a point in the huge hole.

While it was unclear how long he'd been there or how he'd appeared in the first place, the figure who suddenly stood there with a golden scepter in hand was none other than Lord Vlad Balazs.

Staring intently at D, Vlad told him, “Leave this to me, Hunter.”

He seemed neither surprised nor angry that D remained alive. And there was no sign that he was afraid of Vince making an unexpected move against him. It seemed that this figure steeped in an overwhelming self-confidence and forcefulness left even Vince at a loss.

“Lowly worms though they may be, I have a duty as a Noble to protect the residents of my dominion. There's no point in you getting involved in this. What's more, at some point I shall have to do battle with you, so I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to kill some time while demonstrating my power to you.”

The wind snarled. The scepter he'd held pointed straight at Vince.

D didn't move.

“I don't know how great your power is or who's given it to you—no, I actually have a fairly good idea regarding the latter—but the Nobility were born of accursed earth where everything else died off. And now you will feel in your bones how different that is from some upstart Destroyer!”

“This is unbelievable!” Lagoon's subordinate exclaimed up in the airship as he balled his hands into fists.

“Interesting,” muttered a voice from the vicinity of D's left hand.

“Watch well, D. Witness the true power that we Nobility possess!”

Lord Vlad pulled back hard with his right arm. He held his scepter as if poised to hurl a javelin. Only three feet long, the scepter suddenly stretched—the part that extended was a golden spearhead. The whole scepter was probably some unknown form of coalesced energy. The lord's surroundings grew distorted, as if glimpsed through a heat shimmer.

Vince's right hand unleashed a blob of unholy light.

The scepter flew, too.

Changing direction, the point of light painted an arc as it zipped to the tip of the scepter. Even as it took on the pale hue, Vlad's scepter sped forward. The pale blue light fizzled like popping soap bubbles, leaving the golden tip exposed. Right in front of Vince.

Not only did it strike Vince squarely in the middle of the face, but it even came out through the back of his head. After a few seconds, he took a couple of steps backward, and then his body sank. He was at the brink of the pit.

“Get back!” Lord Vlad shouted as he leapt to the rear.

The explosion this time was terribly small.

As he felt a slight tremor pass through the airship three hundred feet in the air, Lagoon gazed at the scene that filled the windows of the observation deck. At the bottom of the opening yawned another hole, perhaps a third its size. And that was Vince's grave, plain and simple.

“Cut the searchlight. We're going home,” Lagoon ordered.

Though he questioned the wisdom of not checking out the bottom of the hole, the subordinate realized he had no choice but to follow his boss's command and grabbed hold of the wheel.

Looking up at the departing craft with its tail fins gleaming in the moonlight, Lord Vlad spat, “Ha! That incompetent Lagoon's run off with his tail between his legs.”

He then turned to D.

“How's that, Hunter? You can come at me if you like. If your nerve hasn't shrunk down to nothing, that is. See? I don't even have my scepter any longer!”

His challenge gave way to laughter, but then that stopped. Vlad was paralyzed by a ghastly aura that radiated from D.

“This . . . it's even more intense . . . than the Destroyer. You really are . . . the great one's—”

The lord was looking at D. Looking at the black horse and rider that'd raced forward sixty feet without giving any indication beforehand.

The lord's robe fluttered and a flash of white light shot from one sleeve to mow through the barrel of the horse.

Success! A feeling of relief the likes of which he'd never experienced with any foe in the past tempted the lord to drop his guard.

D was above his head. Coming straight down from above, his sword had incredible force behind it.

The lord held up his left arm to block it.

The second the Nobleman's armored limb was taken off at the elbow and blood spilled from his forehead like black ink, D reversed his sword so he could carve out his foe's heart, but the blade snapped off at the hilt and was lost in the darkness. As Lord Vlad leapt to a new location, D's coat spread like a supernatural bird and he flew back.

Now D had no sword, while Vlad had lost an arm and had a merciless torrent of black blood gushing from his brow. Given the situation, was D to be admired for the horrible force of his blow, or was the lord to be praised for his strength in stopping said blow?

“Well done,” Vlad said, tearing the hem of his robe with one hand and pressing it to his brow. “You're everything I expected, I should say. However, this is hardly the full extent of
my
abilities. We shall meet again.”

Although Vlad didn't appear to move his feet, he receded a good sixty feet in one fell swoop. D alone could see that beside him a horse and black-lacquered carriage waited. D didn't pursue him because he could see that even with his great speed, he'd never catch the Nobleman on foot.

As the black form of the driver cracked his whip and wheeled the horse around, a sharp line glittered through the moonlight. Though the needle of rough wood pierced the outer wall of the carriage and dropped the driver, the rattle of the vehicle's wheels rang out without respite as the carriage raced off into the darkness.

Walking over to where the driver had been left in the road, D pulled him up by his purple topcoat. Decaying bones rained noisily to the ground. Looking down at the figure that'd been reduced to dust as he'd fallen, D then turned his gaze to the darkness where the carriage had departed.

A small figure came out of the distance. May.

Just as she was about to call out to D, the girl became a statue. He was out in the moonlight. Though the tremendous aura that gushed from the young man in black was directed at the darkness before him, the girl was completely immobilized. What stood before her wasn't the handsome, unsociable and secretly kind man she looked up to like an older brother. It was a darkness-prowling killer who would sink his teeth into his prey and not let go through all its death throes. May saw only a Vampire Hunter.

-

I

-

Bringing the airship down at the airport to the north of his establishment, Lagoon had the contents of his bald head working ceaselessly as he headed for his bedroom. Losses to the village and his peacekeeping forces, compensation, plans for reconstruction—there were a million matters to consider. And yet another problem—one of the highest possible level—awaited his attention.

Luxurious was the only word to describe his bedroom, which was equipped with a gigantic circular bed. If the countless farmers who still slept on straw ever saw the beauty of that bed, riots would ensue. When Lagoon's troubled countenance turned toward it, a figure rose gracefully from its center. Lagoon froze in place, astonished.

“Surprised? For all your size, you're still only human,” said the shadowy voice that rolled toward him. It wasn't until the next day that it came to light that the iron bars over the windows, proof against even the monstrous strength of the Nobility, had been melted.

“You—what do you want with me?” Lagoon asked, frozen stupidly in the process of taking a step forward.

“I came to ask you for something,” the body in white replied.

-

A figure in a purplish-blue robe crossed the vast water-filled space without the use of a boat. From the elbow down, his left arm had been replaced with an electronic artificial limb.

As soon as Vlad halted, a woman's voice resounded in his ears like the rustling of a garment, saying, “Your arm and the wound on your brow—they're the work of the one as gorgeous as the very darkness, are they not?”

In spite of himself, Vlad put his hand to the deep gash that remained. Although the injury was obvious enough, she shouldn't have known about the arm, and yet she'd been entirely correct. And the wound on his brow—with his regenerative abilities, one ten times this deep should've long since healed over.

“You know about him? Just how did you and he come to—oh, never mind. It's a trivial matter, after all. I merely came here to tell you something: Byron has been destroyed.”

For as far as the eye could see, all movement vanished from the surface of the water. Although there hadn't really been much to begin with, what now settled over the depths was the calm of true death. On account of this, the next remark rang out with a horrible clarity.

“You did this—you murdered our son with your own two hands?”

“Who else could've done so? Who but I would be up to the task of slaying the son Vlad Balazs raised with such tender care? By now, he's food for the fish in the river.”

The water absorbed Vlad's words.

“You threw our child
into the water?
”

“Indeed I did.”

“Then this night and for every night that follows, you shall never be able to let your guard down. The water cannot destroy him.”

“What?”

“You have sealed your own wife away in the water. Trapped her in a world colder and harder than any hell for a Noble. But the streams that course through your domain, the lakes that dot it, yes, even the droplets of rain that cling to the leaves of the trees, all heed my will.”

Her tone wasn't at all wrathful, and that in and of itself was enough to make anyone's hair rise on end.

Vlad snorted, “Do you mean to tell me your hatred has saved him? I have no problem with that. No matter how often he might rise again and call on me, I shall dispose of him each and every time. But that is not what I came here to tell you. I'll be moving to the mountain stronghold.”

“Why?” the voice inquired. The surface of the water was calm.

The lord pointed to the wound on his forehead.

“You may remain in your hell if you so wish, but I must live in the world. In the days to come, backbreaking labor awaits. The man who did this to me—he
will
come again. If I'm to be ready to greet him, I shall need a suitable location.”

“So you say, but that is the home of the ‘mountain folk.' That is not good. Not good at all. If you make a foe of them, you'll be bringing death and destruction down on innocents.”

“And that is precisely why I have need of such a place now. Especially against this Hunter. He descends from the great one!”

The woman said nothing.

“Such looks, such power, such presence—truly a breathtaking man. I fought him off once, but that isn't to say that I triumphed. You see, he came to rescue a girl I'd taken, and accomplishing that, he left. Hear me when I say that even Greed tasted defeat at his hands.”

Once again, the woman said nothing. However, her lack of a response wasn't because she reveled in this information, but rather because Vlad's words instilled in her the same shock and awe.

“And knowing this, you can see the reason why I must relocate. To be ready for one of the great one's line, I must go to that fortress. Even then, there is fear in the depths of my heart. Not of the Hunter, but of the blood that flows through him. What's more, there have been disquieting movements within the village of Krauhausen. Someone has lent their strength to the Hunter—probably Lagoon.”

“Impossible!”

“We are talking about humans here, after all,” he chortled. “It wouldn't be at all surprising for them to do something we would never consider. I have already ordered de Carriole to do something about this, and I have taken measures myself. Yes, de Carriole himself has been acting strangely of late, but we shall see about that shortly. My wife—you are to remain here.”

Silence descended.

Presently, the woman's voice replied, “With pleasure.”

But who were the “mountain folk” waiting by the mountain stronghold? The woman's voice had sounded almost relieved.

-

Early the next morning, D and May were led by Lagoon as they headed for the isolation chamber beneath his establishment.

“Though ‘isolation chamber' has a nicer ring to it, it's actually a jail for holding enemy prisoners of war,” Lagoon laughed. “But seeing as this is a thousand feet underground with ten-foot-thick concrete walls, the Nobility can call to her all they want and there's no danger of her going anywhere. Naturally, getting themselves down here won't be easy either. Especially not with you around.”

Feeling the chill that radiated from the boundless material beyond the special concrete walls, the trio peered through an observation window in the iron door before them and saw Taki lying on a spacious bed.

“It was a rush job, but in moving Taki in here, we tried to make it as comfy as possible. But no matter how good of a job we do of keeping him away, if we can't put down the Noble who bit her, it won't mean anything. And that, D, is your job.”

Though Lagoon stole a glance at the exquisite Hunter's profile, he couldn't detect an iota of emotion in the gorgeous features turned toward the slumbering Taki. In fact, all it did was make him feel lightheaded.

“I'm heading out soon.”

On hearing D's words, he finally returned to his senses.

“You're going?”

His question was pointless.

Giving no reply, D quietly stepped away from the door. The sword on his back was one he'd purchased from Lagoon.

“Oh, look at Taki,” May said, pointing to the surveillance room. The girl was riding on one of D's shoulders.

Taki had risen from her bed, and it took no time at all for her to notice the group. Pressing her face to the window, she said, “You all look fine. You too, May.”

“Yeah, well, you'll be fine soon too, Taki. Mr. D's gonna fix that bastard.”

“I'm sure he will. I appreciate it. Until then, I guess I'll be out of commission, won't I?”

“I guess you will,” May laughed, and she was about to put her hand in through the window. But she never reached it. D had drawn back. For Taki was a “victim.”

“You're right, May. Take care,” Taki said with a sad smile.

“The next time this door opens, you'll be back to your old self. Definitely. I'll unlock it for you myself.”

While it was unclear how May's words sounded to anyone else, both D and Lagoon spun around at the same time. Entrusting the young woman to the subordinates Lagoon left down there, the three of them got into the elevator.

“I sure hope Taki gets back to normal soon,” May said, gnawing on her lip.

“I'll second that,” Lagoon responded. “That all rests squarely on the pretty boy here. Let's hope for his best effort out there.”

Though what he said could've been taken in jest, such a remark could also be a grave matter. D wasn't the sort of person to appreciate sarcasm.

“Then everything will be fine,” May said, looking up at the young man with eyes full of trust. She'd come down off his shoulder when they got in the elevator.

“But there's something I don't understand,” she continued, the gaze she directed at Lagoon filled with suspicion.

“Oh? And what would that be?”

“You were gonna let a dirty old man have his way with me. And D saved me from that. But the people who protected me while D was off at the castle rescuing Taki were hired by you, right? And on top of that, you're giving shelter to Taki and me. I don't think you have any more slave trading in mind, so why are you suddenly on our side?”

People often refer to hitting someone where it hurts, and that's exactly what May's words did. Lagoon's face made him look like a bald sea monster carved from stone, but something rolled across it like a wave before the veins rose at his temples. Surely he'd never thought an eleven-year-old girl would put such a question to him. His squinting eye was invested with an unusual power as he looked at May. His look would be enough to freeze anyone but a Noble, but May met it with an innocent stare.

Lagoon grinned and told her, “Well, it's kinda complicated.”

“Then uncomplicate it for us,” May insisted. “You were gonna let some weirdo get freaky with me, you know. I'll thank you to take some responsibility for that. I wanna hear a good explanation.”

“I bet you do,” a hoarse voice said.

Lagoon gave D's left hand a suspicious glance, then quickly shifted his gaze to May. “You're a spirited little girl, ain't you? You'll have to ask pretty boy there for the details. All I can do is keep you folks safe here in my place behind the lord's back. And even at that, I'm putting my life on the line.”

“Well, why can't you tell me yourself?” May asked, trying once more to get an answer from him.

Just then, the elevator halted. The floor indicator lamp told them quite clearly that they weren't at ground level.

“Sorry, but you're gonna have to leave by the underground passageway” Lagoon told the Hunter. “If it were to get out that you'd been here, it would be bad news. Just keep going straight and you'll come to the exit. The equipment you asked for will be waiting outside.”

Once they'd parted company with D, Lagoon took May back to her room at his establishment, and then went into his office. Upon seeing a sealed envelope on the table, his eyes shone like a beast's. The crest pressed into the melted wax that sealed it was that of the Balazs family. Breaking the seal and reading the message, Lagoon felt the color drain from his face.

-

Come to the mountain stronghold at midnight tomorrow.

—Vlad

-

“Damn it!”

Suddenly forgetting all about the letter crumpled in his fist, Lagoon looked up to the heavens.

“So that's where you've gone—to the mountain stronghold? D, there's still time for you to turn back.”

-

II

-

D was in the air, thanks to a device Lagoon had made available to him. Beneath the blue empyrean vault and the white clouds, he was like an ominous bird, riding and manipulating the wind as he flew along. The collapsible glider had a twenty-foot wingspan and was almost fifteen feet long—the scales from flying beasts that were attached to the wings made it simple to correct for the force and speed of the wind, so that even a child could easily enjoy an extended flight through the sky.

For his second time invading the castle, D planned to come in from the air.

The castle had come into view. Skillfully manipulating the wings, D started his descent. Of course, this was a Noble's fortress. It was sure to have anti-aircraft defenses. The enemy's approach would be caught on three-dimensional radar; and from hundreds of locations, lasers, particle beam cannons, and heavy artillery would be waiting to open fire. However, D landed at the base of a surveillance tower without the artillery even belching a single flame. The blue pendant on D's chest gave off a deep glow. All the electronic devices were rendered inoperable, and as D walked along, each and every door opened to let him pass.

A strange silence greeted D.

“There's no one here at all,” his left hand said.

D also realized as much.

“Gone into hiding?” D muttered. He didn't seem to be talking to his hand.

“He's not exactly stupid. He's thought ahead to what would happen if you hit him during the day. But I can't tell what comes next. Will he just keep on running, or—”

D turned around. He was in the large hall on the first floor. A band of white had flowed around his feet. Fog. The pale figure that stood in its depths was the same woman he'd glimpsed in a subterranean passageway the previous day. He couldn't make out the face. Every inch of her was soaking wet, as if she had just come out of the water this very moment.

“Go north three miles—to Mount Blade. The lord awaits you in a castle on its slopes.”

Without replying, D turned back in the direction he'd come.

“Wait,” the woman called out behind him. In the voice of the fog. “Take me with you. Out there.”

Her voice had a ring to it that was almost mournful.

Without ever halting, D went back up to the top of the castle by the same route. He'd hidden the collapsible glider in a recessed area below the surveillance tower.