The Fallen Vampire

"Are you ready, disciple?"

"I believe so… Though I confess that this state is embarrassing."

"It can't be helped, disciple. This is the only way to ensure you can keep your appetite in check."

Taira sighed underneath his face mask.

When dealing with the mysterious vial of blood that had been given to the family, Taira more than anyone else had been instructed to take extreme precautions.

He was even using gloves in order to handle this magical concoction.

"Alright, we've wasted enough time here. Let's begin." Velreth responded.

Taira and the girls glanced at each other one final time before deciding to take the plunge.

Taira reached out and uncorked the bottle that was keeping the essence sealed.

As soon as the bottle was opened, the fox-demon was egregiously grateful for the extra precautions Velreth recommended.

Even without smelling it, just the way that the air vibrated when exposed to the blood inside was enough to make him ravenous beyond belief.

But he refused to embarrass himself by drooling in front of his wives, so he was able to keep himself in check.

Inadu handed him a small needle no bigger than an inch and he brought it towards the glassware.

Ever so carefully, he dipped the very tip of the needle into the multicolored dragon blood.

The metal heated up instantly, but luckily it did not melt.

"Alright, disciple. Just like we talked about.." Velreth said shakily. "Be careful not to spill any."

Taira was too nervous to fire back any comments at the old spector.

Ever so carefully, he carried the needle over towards the edge of the shore.

He kneeled down and dipped the needle into the waters that surrounded their home.

The effect was almost immediate.

Taira was hit full force by a metaphysical wave of power and was thrown back several feet.

Aveena and Keran both caught him and helped him recover from the blow. Once he was on his feet, he quickly re-sealed the bottle with its cork and a layer of ice.

From there, the group got to watch a true spectacle unfold.

The water surrounding the entirety of their sect became restless; thrashing and shifting with torrential force.

It's restlessness was accompanied by a sort of 'purification'.

The water which was always a deep and beautiful blue, now resembled a shining body of liquid crystal.

It was incomparably, indescribably, extraordinary.

But the result that mattered the most aside from aesthetics was it's new functional utility.

How to describe the current feeling in the atmosphere..?

It was as if the group realized that they had been breathing in smoggy, polluted, fart-riddled air for their entire lives. Using only 20% of their lung capacity at that.

And they were now experiencing clean, enriching air that they could breathe in as deeply as their lungs would allow.

It was transformative. Jarring. Stunning. Mind-altering. And the entire cave was filling itself with that energy.

It was no wonder that the family had become frozen in their tracks; unable to take their eyes off the scene.

All except for Vermeil, who's mind was turning with a new possibility.

An impish smile formed on her face and she slipped over towards their family's youngest.

"Ina~"

"Y-Yes?"

"Can I have a hug?" Vermeil held out her arms.

Inadu was a sweetheart by nature. She wouldn't have turned down a hug if it was offered by a cactus.

She had barely wrapped her arms around Vermeil and immediately paid the price for her naivety.

"Upsy-daisy!"

"KYAAA!!"

Ina's small frame was tossed backwards into the water by Vermeil, who was immediately besieged by her family.

Keran: "V-Vemeil!"

Aveena: "How could you?!"

Enyo: "She might catch a cold in there!"

Lucia: "Don't be mean to our little Ina!"

Vermeil held up her hands in self defense. "H-Hey, take it easy guys! I just wanted to test my…"

Vermeil's words trailed off as her eyes became locked on something behind the group.

Her lovers followed her gaze towards the shallow end of the water.

Ina stood up slowly with her eyes hidden by her wet hair.

Just as Taira was about to check on her, he heard a cracking sound come from her body.

Almost on cue, eight blade-like appendages burst from her back.

Each one was glossy, sturdy, and as sharp as the finest blade.

Ina finally lifted her head and her family could see that she was crying.

As she weapt, laughter escaped her lips in a soft, melodic harmony.

Her laughter fully engulfed her, and she let herself fall backwards into the water again; fully engulfed by her happiness.

Only Vermeil and Enyo were aware of the reason why.

Velreth folded his arms across his chest in front of Taira while making a smug face.

"So, disciple. Are you ready to compliment my genius yet?"

For the first time, The Great God of Ice saw his disciple show him the slightest traces of a smile.

"No."

"Bastard."

- Four Days Later…

Raymond Harris was snoring happily in his quarters as if he was dead to the world.

He likely would have kept sleeping until late in the afternoon if it weren't for certain excitable individuals…

"Wake up, Big Poppa!!"

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"Today is the day we get SUPER POWERSS!!"

Corey and Jordan both punched the sleeping young man in either side of his large stomach and woke him up in a panic.

"Oh, you dirty sons of bitches… You couldn't just wake me up normally??" He groaned.

Jordan: "We've been trying for 45 minutes. You missed roll-call and breakfast."

Corey: "Vaal said if you do this shit again he's going to pull your lungs out through your asshole."

Ironically, one of those pieces of information was more upsetting to Raymond than the others.

And it wasn't the one that threatened bodily harm.

"Damn… I was up late last night trying to get this thing memorized." Raymond lifted up a manual that Shakti and Vaal had passed out to all disciples the day before.

Taira and Aveena had decreed that they were all expected to have it memorized before training began today.

It was a simple, yet effective practice that would provide a good foundation for the cultists.

The technique would pair well with any martial arts that the members decided to learn during their studies. Atleast until they discovered something more fitting.

"Well I hope you've got it all figured out, because we have to be in the hall in seven minutes." Jordan shrugged.

For a big guy, Raymond moved remarkably fast when he was motivated.

He washed up and got dressed in his training clothes very quickly; and was out the door with both of his friends in three minutes flat.

Along the way, the group ran smack into another cult member; Tiche.

"So you've gotten him awake after all. A pity, since I was coming to break one of his toes."

Raymond smiled bashfully, believing that the sexy asanbosam was joking. She wasn't.

"Sorry to dissapoint you, baby. I've risen like Christ on the seventh day." He smiled innocently.

Shakti lashed out and wrapped her hand around Raymond's throat.

"Are you daring to flirt with me, boy? Your boldness is astounding."

Corey panicked as he tried to save his friend. "H-He's not flirting!"

Jordan nodded her head furiously. "Y-Yea! He's just southern as hell! They call everyone baby! They speak in sweet tea and cornbread!"

Tiche seemed to lose her murderous demeanor as she released her grip on his neck. "I see… My mistake then. Just get to the training hall before my brother and Shakti lose their heads."

Tiche walked away quickly so that she wouldn't be late herself, leaving the three humans behind.

"You alright, buddy..?" Jordan asked worriedly.

Raymond was absentmindedly rubbing his neck; his eyes steadily stealing glances at Tiche's disappearing behind.

"… She's so goddamn fine it don't make no sense." He shook his head.

Jordan looked shocked, and Corey just snickered.

"I need her like Huey Lewis needs a new drug."

"Okay buddy, we get it." Corey snickered.

"The lord is my Shepard, he knows what I want…"

Jordan smacked him so hard over the head that he nearly knocked his waves off.

"Shut up and come on, lover boy, before I tell her to come back and break your toe."

But Raymond's problem was too big to be fixed with just one smack.

"Honey, you just don't understand. That ain't the half of things I would let that woman do to me."

"Stop being gross and let's go!"

The three of them had to run in order to make it to the training hall in time.

They pulled open the sliding door to the training hall and were greeted by the sight of all of their other fellow cultists already kneeling.

Shakti and Vaal shot the trio a death glare as they fell into place- signifying that some kind of scolding or punishment would definitely follow later.

But their heads whipped back around when the shoji doors at the front of the room opened and Taira and Aveena stepped inside.