"You might want to stop singing that damn song!", Keith leaped a few meters off the ground and smashed a body in front of them. He grabbed the head of what looked like a young lady with a distorted features and smashed it on the ground. So harsh that blood sprayed in the air.
Hubert halted his enemy with a crystal dome and rushed into the young lady's body. He flipped the hair on the back of her head and saw a pattern of markings.
"Parasitic!", He gasped as he casted a spell pulverised the body before it can even move.
"What is that?", Darwin asked in confusion.
"Ancient cult of lurers. Looks like they've been working for a ritual", Hubert replied.
"What made you say that midget?", Keith asked with a little hint of boredom in his voice.
"They used to be just.normal girls. Until they were sacrificed and and ripped out of their souls to be a vessel for the ancient sirens to resurrect. When time comes that the circle of their cult is completed they can actually take control of the dominion of their will. Be it be this land, or even the whole city", Hubert explained.
"Still, that doesn't explain why these doubles appeared", Keith rolled his eyes at him.
"Darwin is right, they use their voices to penetrate deep into our minds to embody our fears. They use the absolute power of the dark waters of these lands as a mirror to give life to that fear", Hubert concluded.
"Come to think of it, Darwin and I fought them almost endlessly but still they keep coming back for more. That's because we've shown an incredible amount of fear when we first saw them", Stephen added.
"They embody our fear so they can indulge it. They lure our fears out so they can feast on them", Darwin sounded more like his absolute vampire self.
"Well...", Lisa added.
"I don't know if this thing would work but...we can actually show them how scary we are", Darwin proposed.
Hubert and the rest of them exchanged looks with confusion and then back to Darwin.
"They can't even feel an inch of intimidation after we've shown almost our full potential", Keith looked at Darwin with a wary look.
"I may be partially human now but my mind works faster than light", Darwin flickered behind Stephen.
"Steph", Darwin whispered.
Stephen's eyes widened at his chilling voice behind him.
"These doubles originated from us, don't they? I don't think you've notice it but you are the only person who possessed the ability to compel the absolute vampire which happened to be me", Darwin sounded almost like a whisper in the wind.
"What's that supposed to mean?", Stephen turned to his back and looked straight into Darwin.
"The link...it's the only key", Darwin proposed.
"Hubert! Can you take a hold of their necks and have them pulled just inches from the face of the water?", he added with a commanding tone.
Hubert nodded and he leaped into the air stretching his arms apart. Green magic circles appeared below the versions and vines started pulling them to their knees. Lisa and Keith roamed the forest to kill all the luring sirens around.
"I'm sorry but I have to do this once again!", Darwin grabbed Stephen's arms to face him and dug his claw right into his chest. Stephen screamed at the familiar sensation of his claws trying to breach his heart. His eyes burning bluish white as he looked up and grabbed Darwin's hands. He grabbed Stephen's nape and leaned him down to his knees facing the water.
"We have to link them somehow to the core of the origin!", Darwin screamed at the burning sensation of the glowing mark on his chest.
Hubert pulled the double's heads just a few inches facing the water and blue lights started illuminating their eyes.
"You'll fear what I have been through!", Darwin pulled Stephen up and covered his eyes. He grabbed Stephen's right hand to cover his and in an instant. A n eerie sensation lingered in the air that Hubert almost dropped the spell in absolute fear.
Darwin used the link that Stephen connected to their enemies to extend an extreme and overwhelming amount of pain, sorrow and guilt which made him fear to live a life once. The only way to drive away the fear is to endure it. Their doubles originated with them and with fear they were shall fear they will vanish.
The double's disintegrated into the air as Darwin delivered the final wave. Both of them fell down to their knees at the exhaustion of their strength. Stephen embraced Darwin in a tight hug which surprised him. Hubert on the other side cleared his throat as he shifted back into his base form.
"Save the romance. I guess we have an uninvited guest", Hubert looked at the rumbling skies above them.
Twin flickering light blinked from the other side of the clouds before two figures descended from the skies and landed a few meters away from them. Bruce with his taunting expression clapped his hands in awe, next to him was Justine who was looking sharply at Darwin.
"What a beautiful show. I'm impressed", Bruce walked slowly towards them still clapping his hands slowly.
"Stop there or there will be bloodshed!", Hubert's pitchy voice sent humour to Bruce.
"I could easily rob you out of that body in a snap of a finger and erase your existence in the face of earth", Bruce tilted his head looking at Hubert with such pity.
"Where're the others? On vacation?", Darwin managed to speak.
"Where's your power? On hold?", Bruce laughed at him.
Darwin hissed at him but before he could even move. Stephen grabbed him stopped him from launching an attack. He knew exactly what will happen if Darwin do so.
"What do you want Bruce?", Stephen asked him with a stern look.
"I'm taking you back", Bruce answered without hesitation.
Darwin looked at Stephen with both confusion and a little worry. His eyes falling soft as he looked at him.
But Stephen tapped his shoulder and mouthed the word 'no'
Stephen stood up and pulled Darwin behind him. Hubert stood next to him with glowing eyes. Keith and Lisa landed next to each other with blood stains in their hands.
"That if you can take me down", Stephen blurted out before dashing straight to him with a pair glowing azure eyes.
"Finally...", Bruce whispered as he dodged Stephen's attacks. Their fists and collided with each other as they clashed into the dark misty air.
Justin flickered behind Darwin and grabbed him by his neck. He pulled a pair of magically imbued dagger and stabbed Darwin from the back.
"You're mine", Justin whispered.
"Nice one!", Hubert snapped his finger and Darwin's figure disintegrated into fireflies.
Justin looked around and saw Darwin clapped his hands from the corner. But before Justin can even catch up to him, Keith blocked his way.
"You're mine", Keith gave him a wink before smacking his face with the back of his hand. He leaped into the air and transformed into his beast form. He lunged Justin with brute strength and they exchanged attacks.
Lisa looked around with a narrow look. She held her hands in a fist as she tried sensing the area. Someone is sneaking around.
"What a beautiful face to scar!", A strong female voice roared above her in a second. Kristina launched a vigorous assault at Lisa but she dodged it.
"Thank you, I hope you're beautiful too", Lisa gave her an insulting look before dashing straight to her.
Hubert and Darwin was about to join the fray when a pair of spear struck Hubert's small body. Darwin looked behind and saw Erickson with his hand forward. Magic circles behind him appeared as sharp objects started sprouting from it. He snapped his fingers and chains started tangling Darwin down. With such grip that he can't even withhold.
"Hubby!", Darwin screamed as he saw Hubert with his small body impaled by the spears. His head lying backwards facing the sky as drip of blood streaming down from his mouth. Lifeless and decapitated.
Stephen's eyes widened in horror at the sight of Hubert pinned lifelessly in a with a spear. He tried pulling himself from the harsh grip of Bruce but his strength is not something he could easily break.
"Hubert! Hey!", Stephen's voice almost cracked as tears slowly clouding in his eyes.
"One down. Four more to go", Erickson snickered mischievously as he clasp his left hand and squishing Darwin to death.
"Halt. We'll only take this one", Bruce snapped his fingers and a covered Stephen's eyes with his hand.
Stephen screamed in agony as fried his mind. He took his hand and Stephen fell unconscious to the ground. Bruce pulled him up and carried him through his shoulders.
"Retreat", He commanded and the rest of the black pentagram flickered alongside him. They threw nasty looks at the Darwin and the rest.
Lisa and Keith ran towards Darwin who was spitting blood because of the chains. He looked back at them then to Hubert with such misery and pain,
"Your reckoning has come, Darwin Frost", Bruce said with his chin up looking down at him.
"I wish you can stand the feeling of a great loss as a human. This is just a part of the consequences of your very existence", Bruce added as he turned his back on them.
"You should have known better not to mess with the lion of angels", Erickson looked at Darwin then to Bruce with pride but he just ignored him.
In a blink of an eye, the black pentagram left the scene. A wink of light snapped them out from the area with the lifeless Stephen with them.
Darwin rushed towards Hubert and pulled him gently out from the sharp spear piercing right through his body. He held him into his arms and opened his mouth. He bit his own lips so hard until blood started clouding inside his mouth. He leaned forward and locked his lips into Hubert's lips, hoping his blood will somehow cure his wounds. He pulled back and waited for a few seconds but still his wounds weren't healing at all. He locked his lips with him once again and weeped in frustration because he was about to lose someone he loved and cared so much.
"Some type of venom...", Keith whispered as he took a part of Hubert's blood with his fingers.
"Can you reverse it? Like an antidote?", Lisa proposed but Keith shook his head.
Darwin looked up and screamed in pain as he felt the last sign of life left Hubert's body. He held him tight in his arms and send him off to sleep with a kiss on the forehead.