III
III
At first, everyone outside the casino thought it was a Carnival firecracker. By the time they realized it wasn't, the windows of the magnificent mansion were reduced to scattered shards.
People along the walkways and in gondolas below looked up and began to chatter among themselves. But, thanks to the explosion, no one noticed two shadows jump into the darkness.
Asthe leapt like a lioness and ran along the sidewalls of the mansion's exterior, her movements too fast for the human eye.
Vampires could "hasten" their bodies for short periods of time. They stimulated their body's nervous system until it kicked into overdrive. By doing so, they increased their speed tenfold. For example, back in the office, Asthe had swung her sword down fast enough to break the sound barrier.
Her weapon, the Sword of Gae Bolg, had been a Kiev family heirloom. The sword was a plasma jet system with xenon gas ionized by a laser that streamed out from a vacuum core. The high-temperature—high-density plasma could slice through anything; it was the ultimate weapon. Out of the relics found from the Empire's lost technology, this was the strongest close-combat weapon recovered.
And now, the ionized xenon gas coming out of the sword's tip trailed a large red whip through the air. The plasma licked at the ancient childlike vampire, as if driven by Asthe's will.
Endre went into haste mode and left the room before the sword shattered his desk and all the glass on the floor. Even with his lead, Asthe kept close behind. He could hear the jet stream of xenon gas burning through the cold night air. She would catch him if he didn't do something drastic.
He jumped from a great height and made for a nearby canal, timing it perfectly to land on a gondola. Then he leapt away again. Unfortunately for the passengers, the gondola split in half and sank.
"You're not getting away that easily!" Asthe yelled.
She dove toward the canal, shooting a jet of plasma from the sword as she did. The water's surface vaporized under the extreme heat. Amid the instantly formed fog, Asthe kicked off the river bottom and jumped onto a nearby bridge.
"Damn you! Where are you?!" she bellowed.
Coming out of haste mode, it must have seemed to the Terran that Asthe had appeared from out of nowhere. Revelers stopped and stared.
Her dress had been torn to shreds during the intense explosion. What was left of her mask clung to her face, barely holding back her disheveled hair. Asthe wasn't concerned about her appearance, however.
She tried to catch her breath.
Dammit! Where is he?
She had only been in haste mode for about a minute, but she had used up too much energy. All the synapses in her nervous system were burning. Still, she had enough pain, hatred, and anger to continue on.
"I'm gonna kill him. I swear it. He's done for!" she yelled defiantly.
Oddly, she hadn't intended to harm Endre until she'd seen him a minute ago. Even then, she'd actually suppressed her urge to kill him. She wanted to arrest him and take him back to the Empire. That was her mission as an undercover agent.
But once she saw his face and heard his voice, something burst inside her.
Where did he go? She'd been right behind him.
"Are you looking for someone?" Endre asked.
Asthe was startled to see an evil shadow perched atop the stone bridge's high arch. To most people, he looked like a cherub. They would have been fooled by his innocent face, but his brass-colored eyes belied pure evil.
"Oh, this is so nostalgic. It was a pretty night like this last time," he said smugly.
Asthe glared at the boy. His mention of the past stung her.
Suddenly, Endre revealed a captive—a young girl, less than nine or ten years old. She had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time. Endre removed the terrified girl's Carnival mask and licked the tears off her face.
"What's wrong,Asthe?You're so calm all of a sudden. Weren't you going to kill me a moment ago?" He grinned.
Asthe clenched her jaw. Deja vu.
"Back then, Astharoshe, you were trembling in my arms, and young Countess LenYearnosh was in your position now. She was your partner for how long?" he prodded.
"Stop it," Asthe commanded.
"Isn't that what the countess said? She was quite protective of you."The ancient vampire snickered. "And I told the countess to lay down her weapon if she wanted to save your life, and she did."
"Stop!" she repeated.
"I don't think so," he replied.
Endre's claws tore into the girl's cheek. A red trickle ran down her white skin. Astharoshe had bled the same way.
"Then I split her head open, remember?" the count asked.
"No!" Asthe yelled.
Up on the vault, a red geyser spurted, and the young girl's head popped off.
Asthe didn't waste any time. She swung the sword and unleashed a blast of plasma. The vault of the bridge blew away. By then, though, the boyish vampire was gone.
"Damn it! "Asthe yelled.
She started to give chase when she heard Abel yelling, "Asthe! Don't go after him! He'll only kill more innocents! Did you forget your promise?"
"Promise?" she choked out. "I lied." She jumped into haste mode and chased after the small shadow. Her long strides quickly made up the distance.
"Endre!" she screamed, trying to break his concentration. "I'm coming for you!"
Asthe blasted the walls that held the canals in place. Liquefied stone and debris plunged into the water as she continued to chase Count Endre. She ignored everything but the small shadow that ran from her.
"You'll pay for that girl's life — for all the girls' lives!" she threatened.
It seemed like they ran for an eternity. Her body and brain screamed in agony, but finally Endre's speed slowed; he was reaching the limit of his haste mode. Ironically, they had returned to the bridge that she'd just blasted. ManyTerran milled about, but despite that, Asthe swung her sword without hesitation, heedless of casualties.
Endre, once again, disappeared.
The ionized xenon whip cracked in the night sky and the smell of burnt oxygen. hung thickly in the air.
Where did he got She looked around frantically.
"It's over, Astharoshe," Endre said.
Asthe turned to glimpse her own shadow in the river; next to her, she saw a smaller shadow.
He was above her.
She had no time to look up; she just instinctively flicked the sword. The ionized xenon gas found its target. A gigawatt of electricity would burn the elderly vampire to a crisp. But instead, he laughed.
"Too slow, Astharoshe Asran," Endre mocked.
She saw that her plasma blast had been fractured and bounced in streaks upon Rialto Bridge, rifling past the several hundred people who were crossing it.
"Aegis shield," she spat out.
Eight silver orbs surrounded the boy-vampire.
He had an Aegis shield—soft, glowing orbs that orbited Endre like planets in the solar system. The orbs' magnetic shield had dissipated the powerful energy of the sword.
One of the rebounding sparks came directly for Asthe. She silently apologized to her dead partner and promised to meet her in the afterlife. Before she was struck, Asthe fell out of haste mode and lost consciousness.
As she passed out, she heard the priest call her name.