NOVPUBLucius snorted at the creature, who now looked unlike the rest of its species and more like a fallen angel. A voice escaped its lips that felt far deeper and stronger than even its new form would suggest. "Lucius Kane. Come. Face this trial. Face more. Fight more. Feed on the power of those you defeat. Feast upon death and power. Consume all. Consume. Consume. Consume."
The vampire's neck jerked to the side as if someone had broken it. The words continued from its lips, despite the stillness of its lips and tongue. Each strike pressed harder, pushing him back a few inches when he blocked. Even still, the words continued. "Consume. Consume. Consume."
Something itched in the back of his mind. Pulling him. Urging him to grasp at its power. Worried that it was Grimm, he dashed the thought away and rushed to meet the vampire's blade once more.
Shadow tendrils wrapped around his body and reinforced his arms, adding their strength to his strikes. Everything he had was being thrown at this beast. Not everything. The thought lingered in his brain, distracting him enough for a wave of [Blood Needles] to form before his eyes. The vampire flicked its wrist, sending each of the deadly weapons at him.
That itch pestered him once more. Without intending, he 'scratched' it. The vampire's attack halted in the air, held by some unknown force. Lucius grimaced under an increased pressure on his Mana. Following the pressure, it led him to the wall of [Blood Needles].
"Blood Arts? Truly?" Lucius flexed his control over the Mana and the attack reversed direction, piercing into the body of the vampire.
It lunged for him again, ignoring the holes in its body. The creature was certainly dead, but something else lingered within. The words stopped for a moment, only the sounds of their weapons clashing reached Lucius's ears. Even the battle at the camp had gone silent.
"Will this place be a grindstone to sharpen your blade, Lucius Kane? Or will it simply add to the flavor of yet another morsel for my stomach? Which will it be, Lucius? Who will be consumed. Consume. Consume. Consume." The strange chanting resumed.
"What the fuck is this? Berk if you don't have an explanation for this, I'm going to kick your ass!" Lucius roared over the din of battle. Reaching through his Blood Arts, he pulled at the vampire's wings. Instead of taking control of the spell, he chose to unravel it. His sword locked against the creature's as he focused his control over the blood at the monster's back, attacking the wings at their base. He didn't need to control the entire structure. Just the base. The rest would crumble.
Blood splashed onto the ground. It worked. The resistance against his own weapon vanished and his body fell towards the vampire, slashing deeply into its chest. Like a puppet without strings, it crumpled to the ground, lifeless and still.
Lucius panted for a moment, releasing his hold on his powers. The vampire's lips twitched for a moment, sending him back to the ready.
"Consume!" The words shattered the ground and air, throwing Lucius back. The clouds in the sky vanished in an instant, bathing the world in a pale, blue glow. Dust settled as the vampire was absorbed into the dungeon once more.
"Lucius!" Natali's words cut through searing pain. The impact of the force having broken a rib or two. "Lucius! Gods, are you okay?" She held a potion in her hands, thrusting the mouth of it nearly down his throat. Bitter liquid coated the inside of his mouth and the itchy feeling of his bones being sewn back together by the tonic began.
"Thank you, Natali." He sputtered after she finally removed the potion bottle. "Are you all okay?"
Mar'Eeyen smirked. "I would hope so. It was three of us against one vampire. We killed it rather quickly."
"Then why didn't you come help me?" He growled angrily counting the four he faced alone.
Natali shuffled her feet. "Something wouldn't let us. We tried. But the more we ran for you, the further away you seemed to get. Something powerful was interfering."
Helena looked at him with a strange glint in her eye. "The dungeon itself seems to be testing you, Lucius." She whispered. "Amazing really."
Berk cleared his throat. "Well, what'd you get?"
"Hm?"
"From the vampires, dammit! What did you get? After a fight like that, I'd say its fair to call that a boss battle. Those always gift rewards."
Lucus spread his open, empty hands. "Nothing."
Berk's mouth dropped. "Nothing! Are you kidding me right now? Well, we only fought one, its you who struggled… guess that sucks for you."
Helena whispered, her eyes still moving up and down his body in an almost uncomfortable way. "That's not true. You got something, kid. Didn't you?"
"I didn't get anything. But it helped me discover something." Lucius waved his hand, siphoning the blood out of Natali's clothes. She had been hurt, but the wound was healed. A ball of crimson liquid hovered in the air, changing into various shapes before forming a needle and shooting off into the darkness. 𝑛𝘰𝘷𝑝𝘶𝑏.𝑐𝘰𝘮
"Blood Arts." Berk spat. "Disgusting."
Mar'Eeyen looked at him humorously, "Really. All of you on this continent are so strange. Strength is strength. With this, Lucius has another tool in his arsenal to get us deeper into the dungeon. This is a good thing. Congratulations on awakening another portion of your talent."
"I'm sure there's much more." Helena panted.
"What's going on with you?" Lucius finally asked. Natali glanced at the elf with something that he couldn't see. Whatever it was scared Helena into stopping though. She squeaked and pulled the hood of her cloak back over her face.
"Nothing! I'm going to scout the surroundings. We should rest before descending to the next floor."
Lucius moved to get up, but found himself yanked back down. His head resting in Natali's lap. It wasn't as comfortable as it would have been, if she was wearing something other than armor, but it was nicer than the ground itself.
"Stay. Rest." She commanded. Her quiet voice was soothing. "Replenish your strength, Lucius. If this is how the dungeon wants to test you on the twentieth floor, I shudder to think what moving on unprepared would do to you."
