“Yes.”
“There may be those among my enemies who can hear ultrasonic waves. No more playing around.”
“I wasn’t playing. I want to speak with you.”
“With me?”
“You’re not like any Noble I’ve ever heard of. Mr. D is a dhampir. However, you’re pure Nobility. And yet, you try to defend the weak and the small, almost like you were human. I find that very puzzling.”
“Wouldn’t your fellow humans do the same?”
“No. I mean, you’re trying to save a human child. We don’t go around defending bugs.”
“In that case, I suppose it would mean the Nobility truly created a higher civilization.”
“What they needed wasn’t ships capable of interstellar travel, element-converting contraptions, or buildings with half a million floors. It was something much simpler—a heart,” Taki asserted, and then she wet her lips with her tongue. She was horribly thirsty. “The Nobility face an inevitable decline. If they’d had, say, thirty thousand more people like you, it might’ve been avoided.”
The baron remained silent and motionless. From the window, the melody of the water harp could be heard.
“What’ll you do next? After you’ve killed your father, I mean. Or perhaps you’ll be the one who’s destroyed,” Taki said in a feverish tone while staring into the baron’s eyes, as if both he and herself were melting in them.
The baron was just about to say something when the young woman’s warm body was thrown against his chest with unexpected speed.
“I don’t want you to die. Don’t die, for my sake!”
“For your sake?”
The baron stared at the pale nape of Taki’s neck, then raised one hand and touched his fingertips to the left side of her throat.
“Ah . . .” Taki gasped, her body trembling slightly.
“Though I may defend human children, I am still a Noble. I am no different from the other bloodsuckers your kind abhors. Do you know what kind of temptation I battle now just having you here before me?”
The Noble’s fingertip was as cold as ice against her skin, and it made Taki fearful for the first time.
“The thought has crossed my mind before. Perhaps it would’ve been easier had I been an ordinary Noble. Why did I have to be this way?”
Taki said nothing. Her body had suddenly constricted—the baron’s breath had fallen on her. And it was every bit as frigid as his finger.
“Your throat is so warm,” said the baron.
When the Noble’s lips pressed to her flesh, Taki fainted. Easily supporting the woman’s form with one hand as all the strength drained from her, the baron took his lips away. Taki’s throat didn’t have a single mark on it.
There was a doleful cast to the baron’s expression as he said softly, “I’m not to drink human blood. And on account of that, my father banished my mother and myself. If possible, I would’ve liked to have been an ordinary Noble.”
Scooping Taki up in his arms and putting her back down on her bed on the floor, the baron then heard a knock at the front door.
Travelers? he thought. My foes wouldn’t have made a sound.
It wouldn’t have been unusual for travelers to take refuge in this house of worship until the downpour had stopped. But they posed a serious problem nonetheless.
A heavy bolt was across the door. In two or three minutes’ time, they’d probably give up and leave.
The Nobleman’s expectations proved correct. The shades were drawn on the windows. There was no need to worry about any light leaking out.
Checking to see that Taki was still sleeping, the baron was just about to leave the room when his ears caught another sound coming from a different direction. From above.
The house of worship was a three-story building. On the first and second floors, the windows were covered by iron bars to keep out the Nobility. But the uppermost floor had none. After all, no Noble would go to all the trouble of flying into the air to get to the aged priest who would’ve been the building’s sole caretaker by night.
For upstanding travelers, this would also be an odd method of getting inside.
Partway up the staircase to the third floor, the baron halted. A man’s voice echoed across the hallway above.
“Everyone’s supposed to have fled this village. There shouldn’t be anyone to bar the door from inside. So there’s definitely gotta be someone in here.”
“It sure would be nice if it was dancing girls out on tour or something like that. They could give us a topless show tonight,” another man replied with a vulgar laugh, but it was suddenly cut short. The baron had shown himself, and no human could fail to recognize a Noble.
“No—Noble!” one of them shouted. The man’s face and body were both quite angular.
The other was the exact opposite, flabby and round.
Both were covered from head to toe by vinyl rain gear, and they had knapsacklike devices strapped to their backs. They were individual flight packs—a means of transport even humans who lived in the Capital didn’t see every day. Various types were available, such as jet engines, rockets, or ion-powered fliers, but from the look of things, the ones these two wore worked on magnetic force.
“Where did you come from?” the baron asked, and as soon as he did, the men both reached for their hips.
Once you came face to face with a Noble, no amount of running would help you get away. The only way for humans to defend their dignity was to fight and slay their opponent or to take their own lives. This rule of the Frontier lived in the hearts of the two men.
Looking at the fear-stricken faces and the sizable muzzles pointed in his direction, the baron said to them gently, “I’m not going to do anything.”
His field of view was stained a burning-hot crimson. The two men had simultaneously discharged the contents of those muzzles—homemade firebombs. Right in the baron’s face.
With one hand shielding his eyes, the Nobleman was instantly transformed into a man-shaped inferno. Based on kerosene and petroleum jelly supplemented by a number of chemical fuels, the firebombs sent seamless sheets of flames across the corridor and the wall.
The baron took a step forward. His blue cape spread like the wings of some demonic bird and struck a window. There was a loud explosion, and then the majority of the flames vanished without a trace.
Not surprisingly, the baron still had black smoke and little flames rising from various spots on him as he closed in on the two men, seized them by their throats, and hoisted them off the floor.
“Good Lo—”
“S-S-Save me!”
Lacquered with a mixture of despair, fear and cold sweat, their faces were only inches from the baron’s when his charred visage swiftly reclaimed its beauty and the luster of the night.
“I believe I said I wasn’t going to do anything. Those flight packs—where did you get them?”
In an instant, the life returned to the men’s utterly hopeless expressions—they’d been reminded of the power of the mechanisms they wore on their backs. The remote-control switch was set in the right side of the harness.
It was as if the bodies of all three had lost all weight as they floated up to the ceiling.
“Split up!” the man on the right shouted.
By doing so, they’d leave the baron no choice but to let go of them. If he didn’t, his arms would be ripped from his shoulders.
Thin smiles rose on the men’s lips.
Who would’ve suspected the Noble would jerk both men back as they were about to go in different directions?
Fire seemed to shoot from the Noble’s eyes. Slamming the backs of the men’s heads together with terrific force to render them unconscious in midair, the baron then quickly snatched their remote controls and made a graceful landing.
On more intense questioning, the two explained that they’d come from the air terminal to the north of the village. The taking of the departure and arrival terminal had been the decisive blow in getting the Lesser Nobili
ty that’d overseen the area to flee, and because of this, leaders at the revolutionary army’s headquarters had ordered that nearby villages make an inspection and maintenance call on the facility once a year. This year, it was their village’s turn, and after a month out on the job, today they were finally on their way home.
Constructed by the Nobility, the terminal continued to be automatically inspected and maintained, so their job consisted of merely checking to make sure the systems were still operating. There were even aircraft still stored in the hangars, and according to the machines that checked them, they were in perfect shape. If the group were to take to the skies, they could reach their destination far faster than by traveling overland.
With rain blowing in through the window as he gazed out at the darkness, the baron had a faraway look in his eye as he muttered, “Hurry back, D.”
THOSE THAT SOAR THE HEAVENS
CHAPTER 4
I
__
Miska halted.
“What is it?” May inquired in spite of herself.
Less than ten minutes had passed since the Noblewoman had taken the girl under her arm and started to move. In lieu of a reply, Miska dropped May on the stairs. Truly a professional acrobat, the girl managed an effortless landing before a cry of despair slipped from her.
Roughly thirty feet ahead, the staircase broke off. As her eyes slid further up, they found that the stairs continued on again about sixty feet beyond that. Even for Miska the distance was probably too great. As an expert in the field of leaps and bounds, May understood that much at least.
“What should we do?” the girl said as she looked around. At this point, it was astounding that she didn’t ask, “What are you gonna do?” But she wouldn’t simply rely on Miska—this was how the girl had always lived.
Though they still had a bit of a lead on the liquefying staircase, it would only last a minute or two. While it wouldn’t have been unusual to collapse into madness at this point, the girl said, “Look!”
Her cheery tone made Miska turn. There were ropes or vines hanging down from the ceiling in the direction May was pointing. And the girl had noticed that one of them was some distance from the main cluster, hanging down by the stairway.
“I’m gonna jump over onto that. I’m sure that on your own you’ll be able to reach the other side. That’s the plan!”
“What foolishness!” Miska spat. “Indeed, I shall be able to make it. However, I have to wonder if your legs will carry you as far as the vine. It must be thirty feet.”
“I can just barely make it,” May said with a nod after eyeing the distance.
“What’s more, that vine appears rather old and decrepit. Even supposing you were to reach it, it couldn’t possibly support your full weight.”
“Is that a fact? I’ll have you know I’m an acrobat! And if I don’t make it, at least you won’t have to look at me anymore—isn’t that right?” the girl said, feeling much better after getting that last dig in at the end.
May dropped all the way back to the wall. Even with a running start, she’d be cutting it close, but it didn’t seem like she had enough room. If she were to really reach out her hands, she might barely get the vine. But if it were to snap right off at that point, there’d be no saving herself.
“Well, see you.”
It was unclear whether the girl’s remark was directed at Miska or at the gorgeous Hunter who hadn’t made it there in time.
After the girl had dashed with all her might, her body was caught in midair, and a grunt escaped May from the tight grip around her waist as she whistled off in a different direction.
“Why?” she asked, her question unveiled in midair.
The reply came in midair, too.
“Be silent!”
While it was common knowledge that the power of a Noble by night far outstripped that of a human, there was of course some difference between Noblemen and Noblewomen. Sixty feet—such a distance would be tricky for a man, but Miska flew across it like a great white blossom. Her right hand caught hold of the handrail, and her feet came down on the edge of the stair—which collapsed completely!
May let out a shriek that was swallowed by the pit—but in mid-scream it stopped out of shock. The right hand that’d latched onto the railing was supporting the two of them. There was relief—and then May’s ears caught the sound of the handrail cracking.
“Let go of me! We’ll both fall!” the girl shouted, although even she didn’t know why she’d said it. “Let go of me! Let go!”
“Be quiet for a moment,” Miska said, her tone horribly calm.
Strength surged into her hand.
“Oof!” Miska groaned from the effort, though no one would’ve ever imagined the prim and proper Noblewoman was capable of making such a sound.
Every ounce of her strength was concentrated in her right hand.
The two bodies swung gracefully into the air, this time landing in a safe spot on the stairs.
“Oh my!” May exclaimed, collapsing in exhaustion on the spot.
Miska had released her.
What should the girl say? Was she surprised by all this? Or was she filled with admiration?
Training a fierce look of scorn on the girl, Miska sneered, “Do you now see the difference between human beings and the Nobility? Well, on your feet, then! Be quick about—”
The change in the Noblewoman’s tone made May look up. And it came as little surprise that a gasp escaped her.
From the distant reaches of the spiral staircase, a creature that beggared description had descended. A spider. A tremendous arachnid more than fifteen feet long. Its ash-gray bristles stood out like needles, and its eight legs seemed to grow more animated as it spied the two of them. Perhaps it was the master of this colossal tree, as it had a number of broken spears and longsword blades stuck in its back and sides.
A rasping sound reached the two women’s ears—the sound of breathing.
Out of the frying pan and into the fire—although it seemed they’d leapt into something a hundred times worse than any conflagration.
Miska stepped to the fore.
“What are you gonna do?”
May didn’t ask what they would do this time. Not even the acrobat could think of anything she might do against this monstrosity.
Miska stared without a trace of fear into the unsettling eyes of the spider as it closed on the most delectable of prey, and when the creature had come to within fifteen feet of the women, the Noble raised her right hand high.
“Back!” she said in a high-spirited tone.
May watched dazedly as the spider’s movements halted.
The Nobility could command wild beasts. Not that such creatures understood their words, but rather the communication came from a kind of telepathy.
“Stay just as you are,” the Noblewoman commanded it, and then she told May, “Come with me.”
She didn’t even turn to look at the girl as she said it and then climbed the next step. Her pace was understandably swift, but she stood straight and tall, as one would expect of a Noblewoman. It was as if she didn’t fear the massive arachnid at all. However, in her heart of hearts, Miska was actually terrified.
Although it was said the Nobility could command the lower beasts, that didn’t necessary apply to every creature in creation. Upon sensing the slightest disruption in the will of a Noble, in many cases a vicious beast might suddenly break free of their control and bare its fangs. The woman’s haughty demeanor now was purely a product of her Noble pride and nothing more.
They came before the spider. Its high arching legs were nearly thirty feet long, and they covered the staircase from side to side.
“You mustn’t step on them,” Miska said as she came to the side of the spider’s head. Its reddish-brown eyes were focused intently on her. Though she had confidence that the spider’s mind was under her control, Miska realized that her heart was racing wildly. Right in front of her, a shaggy leg arched high into the air. Merely to
uching even a single hair on it might bring the spider back to its senses.
The problem would be the space between the body and the legs. The spider’s legs were bent in three or four places to form easy arcs, so the width wasn’t a problem, but the height was low. Getting through them would necessitate bending down far, and if the women lost their balance, that would be the end of them. There were four legs on each side. Two-thirds of the staircase was covered by the spider’s body.
Every nerve in the Noblewoman’s body was focused on the tips of her toes. The tension made her movements stiff. She didn’t want May behind her to see her moving so clumsily.
Miska’s foot sank unexpectedly—part of the dilapidated staircase had given way under her weight. Her body was so tense, her nerves had never relayed the signs of danger.
Without thinking, Miska reached out for something to support her and found one of the spider’s legs. But just as her fingers were about to touch it, Miska was bodily pulled back.
“Of all the—” May said, her plump face full of anger when the Noblewoman turned and looked at her. “Pull yourself together! Can’t you even manage to climb a flight of stairs? This time, I’ll go first.”
Miska was speechless.
“I may not look it, but I’m an acrobat. I’ve done backflips on a wire strung over a nest of man-eating ants before. And the wire was covered with grease.”
Crouching down low, the girl got in front of Miska, and true to her word, proceeded to slip right through the spider’s legs.
Miska moved ahead at the same pace. She was desperate. No human being could surpass the Nobility. Slipping past the last leg, it took her no time at all to reach the tail end of the spider.
“Hey, not bad for a Noble!” May said, folding her arms as she gave an appreciative nod.
Miska looked down at her with utter loathing and said, “That’s the last smart remark I shall take from you. Climb!”
“Yes, ma’am!” the girl said, doing a somersault. But that was where she got sloppy. When both her feet hit the floor, it gave way once more. Letting out a shriek as she twisted her body, she instinctively sought a safer spot on the opposite side of the staircase—and landed on the spider’s back. It was a moment to chill her blood. May froze, forgetting that she should get off the creature as fast as possible.
Vampire Hunter D: Pale Fallen Angel Parts One and Two Page 21