'Y'know, I would have never imagined that in all the nights of working late shifts, this would be the one I died on.'
Perhaps that was a drastic thought to have in this fairly uncopiable situation, and maybe her thoughts should have shut down from adrenaline by now, but Yi Iseul felt her reaction was fairly reasonable.
'Consider my point of view,' she argued silently with the situation while jumping over bits of concrete and rubble, 'I'm down to one silver bullet, my partners are dead, and now vampires are after me. And the only reason I'm here is because the Chief enjoys taking advantage of my insomnia. Tell me Universe, does this sound fair to you?'
Apparently the Universe deigned her too insignificant to answer politely, instead spurning on more wretched beasts to seek her out as the ghostly laughter that bounced around the underground space multiplied and grew louder. Taking this to be a cosmic way for the Universe to flip her off, inaudible curses in her native tongue were hurled toward the creatures and her boss for her steadily approaching death.
'What's so special about a tomb anyways? Not only that, but with all the experts either dead and gone or transitioning as vampires, I don't even need or have a reason to be here! It's not like I can protect the experts when they're pushing daisies!'
A snarl and a shadow was all the indication she got before aiming and firing her last silver bullet. Despite the darkness, her aiming was absurdly accurate, piercing the vampire right through the heart, killing it instantly.
Iseul started cursing under her breath more as she blindly raced down catacombs, her gun all but useless now that she had burned through her stock of silver bullets. Even so, instead of ridding herself of the gun she holstered it, drawing her ordinary one and loading it with regular bullets.
Naturally, normal bullets would hardly be useful in killing vampires, but a shot through the heart or the head still hurts as much as any bullet would. It was also a very good way of venting her anger at the situation.
A brief hint of moonlight caught her eye, and judging that a place with better lighting and a that was possibly closer to aboveground was a plus, Yi Iseul made a beeline for the lighting.
As soon as she passed the moonlight, the air seemed less suffocating, less cramped, as if she was in a larger space. Peering through the dim light provided, she noticed that her moonlight was coming from a crack in a rather substantial ceiling. But perhaps what was strangest of all was the sole object in the room, a large, coffin shaped shadow that was dimly illuminated by the crack of outside above.
"What the..." she muttered before flinching as she realized she had spoken too loud.
The gunshot had been bad enough, but at least it had been a signal of danger to them—a careless murmur could only come when a human believes themselves to be safe, or they were startled by something. As if on cue, she heard distant snarls that were fast approaching, and throwing her gaze about the room, Iseul looked for a way to barricade the entrance.
A large rolling stone lay perched next to the entranced, hidden by the initial shadows, and if she could kiss the Universe she would. Though it would by no means stop them, it could at least slow them long enough for her to inspect the strange object.
Rushing to the stone and fueled by adrenaline infused strength and madness, Yi Iseul pushed against the round stone with all her might, a wave of relief and giddiness hitting her as it rolled into place with a damningly satisfying rumble and thunk.
'Considering how I'm already screwed, a few more noises don't really matter in the long run, which is really just the short run because I'm probably gonna die!' Iseul thought, borderline hysterical. Her years of experience with vampires were barely restraining her exhausted mind from allowing her to laugh aloud like a mad woman.
Taking a deep breath in and out, she attempted to slow her heartbeat and to clear the warning sirens on overdrive in her mind.
'Calm down. Inspect the thing. Aside from vampires liking coffins and tombs like they do in legend, they had a reason for killing the research team and not just turning all of them. This is a tomb and I found a very convenient coffin shaped object. Coincidence? I think not.'
Regaining her calm mind and pushing away her exhaustion that was beginning to overcome the adrenaline, Yi Iseul crept towards the coffin, gaze never leaving the stone door.
She wasn't stupid enough to leave her back to vampires.
With fleeting squints and glances she discerned it was indeed a coffin—an ornate one at that. A large cross lay embedded within the smooth wood of the coffin, and it was only her familiarity with the metal that allowed her to identify it, even in dim light.
Silver.
'Why...'
Suddenly, the prickle of her neck hair and the sudden hush from the snarls had her immediately aiming her gun at the makeshift stone.
"Give up, little hunter. I know you don't have any silver left."
The smooth voice wrapped around around the space, a soft chuckle resounding within the darkness.
Disengaged the safety on her gun was the only reply she gave.
Another chuckle emerged from behind the rock, "I wonder, why are you so keen to die? If you were to surrender, I would be happy to turn someone like you..."
"How about we double check the amount of silver I've got? I'm certain I got a few more bullets somewhere up my pants," she snarled, slipping into the British English she was taught as she ran her free hand along the edges of the coffin, trying to find a groove in which she could open it. Whatever was inside it hardly mattered at this point—the silver ingrained in the wood, however...
"Hm... it appears you aren't particularly ready to accept my offer... such a shame," the voice sighed, and the tension rose in the air. "While it would be nice to turn you with your beautiful face intact, I suppose a half dead you also works..."
The moment her free hand found the groove, the stone blocking the door was obliterated and the vampires emerged. Thankfully, vampires hated crosses as much as they did silver. Flipping the lid up to cacophony of hisses and growls, Yi Iseul immediately climbed into the casket before closing it.
Her heightened senses told her she was not alone in the casket, and according to her sense of touch, there was something laying down beneath her. Something that had a heart beat, but was not breathing. The icy cold object that was very person shaped did not move, and she felt almost relieved to see that the strange being was asleep.
'Well, at least I'm stuck with a sleeping beast, a limited air supply and some protection instead of surrounded by vampires with a slightly less limited air supply.'
Was this a stupid idea?
Probably.
Would she still die?
Most likely.
Could it extend her life long enough to send a signal for back up, and allow her to fulfill the retrieval portion of her last mission?
Hopefully.
"Truly," the voice came through the wood, muffled to the point of barely being distinguishable, "your tenacity is most attractive. Are you certain you don't wish to become one of us? As a Hunter, I'm positive you know all the benefits associated with becoming a vampire."
"Yes," she replied coldly, knowing he could hear her through the wood. She pat herself for her communicator, finding and pressing the distress signal while finishing her thought.
"As well as all the deficits associated. So no thanks, bat boy."
His response was a a low rumble that was almost a purr, and suddenly a hand broke through the wood. Nails sharpened by the vampire mutation broke through her shoulder, piercing into the junction between her sternum and her arm.
Iseul grunted and gave a hiss from the injury before she forced the hand out, thrusting the muzzle of her gun out just enough to shoot the offending vampire point blank in eye.
Screams from the vampire indicated her success, a faint grin crossing her face in knowing she had more or less completed her mission, before she groaned from registering her injury properly.
Several curses for the vampires came to mind as she recognized the cloying scent of blood coming from her injury. A hush fell over the vampires as they smelt it as well, and Yi Iseul knew it was only a matter of time before they descended into a feeding frenzy.
Slow, deliberate footsteps approaching the space next to the casket was all she could hear, a swish of movement and a groan the only indication that the lead vampire was doing something to the injured one. It was so silent outside of the casket, save for her slow, measured breath, that she could have sworn that she heard a lick and a hmm of contemplation.
Her blood ran cold.
"It appears..." the voice remarked in a slow, measured tone that restrained a certain hunger Iseul knew all too well, "that your blood... tastes as good as you look. Change of plan."
Through the hole in the casket, she could see a raised arm and the gleaming pairs of multiple red, yellow and green eyes, a singular pair of purple eyes leering down at her hiding place.
"On account of your blood, we'll arrange you to become an exquisite meal for our Lord. Don't worry, I'll arrange your turning before you're bled too dry."
The hand she had zeroed in on fell; she tightened her grip on her gun, ready to fight to her last and kept her mental tally of her ammo.
'Last bullet, I'm blowing my brains out.'
The assault began, hand and claws tearing at the coffin almost desperately, reaching and clawing for her blood, for a taste—
As soon as hands entered, she blasted away at them, holes forming rapidly as screams and roars emerged after each bullet and reload she offered. Isuel did not know how much time passed, nor did she count the amount of injuries she incurred. There was only the countdown of the bullets, and when her bullets finally reached one, the lid to the casket was thrust open.
Hands grabbed and pulled at her, tearing at hair and clothes and again, she only grit her jaw at the pain. Grunting with effort, she pulled the muzzle of the gun closer to her head, glaring spitefully towards the purple eyed leader.
Handsome devil only smiled contemptuously, clearly doubting she could kill herself, probably self assured by the many humans who failed to take their own lives before him.
Then, amidst all of the hands and monsters, she smiled brightly, black hair matted, pale skin red and raw, lips pale and bleeding. But beautifully, triumphantly, as if she had been waiting for this moment all her life.
Only then did his smile falter as he realized one crucial fact: this woman was a Hunter.
Hunters are insane.
"Stop! Don't let her shoot that gun-"
"Farewell, nightmares."
She closed her eyes and pulled the trigger.
"There are other methods of ridding your nightmares aside from suicide. I can recommend a few if you would like, little witch," a new, low baritone voice remarked, and she felt something impossibly fast brush against her face.
The hands restraining her fell away, and a new arm that was so warm it burned immediately held her up, keeping her balanced. Yi Iseul's eyes flew open, ebony irises locking onto the unexpected assist.
A surprisingly tall and muscled man held her up, golden irises gazing down at her bedraggled form, as if the vampires surrounding them were of no concern to him. Iseul glanced over to the vampires, noted their sudden wariness, especially the purple eyed vampire's reaction, and turned to look behind her.
The coffin was empty, vampire corpses fallen around it with heat emanating from within their chests. A chill went down her spine as she realized that their insides were burning.
Composure came quickly to her, and she returned her gaze to the man, her eyes analytical and composed.
He raised a brow.
She lifted her chin.
"You're that thing in the casket. What do you want?"
A soft chuckle resounded in the silence as he observed, "Quite fiery, aren't you? And insane, just like the rest of your ancestors. At this point, I'm positive it's in your DNA to act as dangerously and freely as possible—no matter the century, you dive towards death with a smile on your face."
"Centuries?" repeated the purple eyed vampire, eyes wide and gray hair disheveled. The sight before him should have been impossible under normal circumstances, but there was only one possible existence that could explain the situation.
'So she's a witch? No wonder her blood tasted so sweet! And that man... if she's of that bloodline, then that man is...!'
"Now, little witch; as payment for allowing you refuge," his other arm which was steaming rose to cup her cheek, his thumbnail slicing her cheek slightly, just enough to draw blood, "I'll take this."
Raising his thumb to his shadowed face, he licked it, before stating, "The contract is fulfilled, and the bond now established."
Grasping her cheek, she pulled away from the man with fury clouding her irises.
"Contract??"
"I'll have to explain in a more secure situation; in the meantime, rest assured—children such as them will impose no difficulty for me, little witch."
The vampires backed away, instinctive fear coming to their minds in a frenzy of signals and sirens, every fiber screaming to escape.
"Y-you," the purple eyed vampire stuttered, backing away behind his subordinates, "you're that vampire, aren't you? The strange one that crops up on and off over the centuries, that damned Guardian of those witches... the one said to be capable walking beneath the sun!"
"Hm?" the man popped his neck, stretching a little before casually remarking, "So I am known. Amity was wrong, that wretched devil. Last time hardly anyone knew me... I suppose I did a fine job reminding the children, then."
Yi Iseul was a little fuzzy on what happened after the man's—no, vampire's—words; the blood loss got to her as her adrenaline ran thin. But, from her view laying against the coffin, brilliant flames burst from the vampires who the strange vampire hit, hair that was illuminated to appear as a red and gold flame dancing in the air as a symphony of screams and smoke emerged from the carnage.
A massacre.
It was no 'battle', no 'beating', no 'lesson'; oblivion was the only offer extended and enforced, and none escaped from the monster before her. How strange it was for the cries to fall silent.
How even stranger it was for the vampire t0 scoop her up, as if she were some damsel and not a psycho prepared to kill herself to avoid vampirism.
Strangest of all was how calm and accepting she was of the whole situation; a vampire that hunted vampires was carrying her who-knows-where and she was completely cool with it.
'That's how I know I'm getting old... damned vampire... why is he so warm... freak... I'll definitely kill you and Chief when I get better...'
Bits and pieces of conversation came in and out of focus, snatches of odd, half-assurances reaching her through her wavering consciousness.
"....hospital.... treatment.... n't worry, you'll be safe.... sleep...'
And to her utterly eternal embarrassment, she slept, and for the first time in 13 years, no nightmares invaded her rest.
And so began the long, complicated, and comedically horrendous relationship of world changing proportions, between the Vampire and the Witchling.