Vices and Maces

Chapter 25: Roman Is a Softie

CW: blood, burns, drugging?? (tranquilizer)

Footsteps echoed down the hallway, the only other sound an occasional groan of pain. Roman wiped his hands as he left behind a pile of guards, all knocked out or too injured to get up.

He made a disgusted face as he tried to wipe away blood from his knuckles, absolutely hating that it made some part of him hungry. He'll have to feed later tonight, it wasn't like it was illegal. As a vampire, he's able to get some blood from a blood bank once a month, since that's all he needed.

Roman sighed, pushing those thoughts aside. He's on a mission right now, he can't lose focus. This can't be everyone. Actually, someone is missing, that weredragon. He was there at both attacks, was he relocated?

His question was answered when he heard movement inside one of the vents. He smiled, holding back a laugh as he followed it. Oh it was too easy...

The fae noticed that at the end of the hall, there was an open vent. He got ready to grab the dragon and stop the attack right then and there. The moment something fell from the ceiling, he jumped and caught it.

But "it" wasn't a little dragon. It was a robot with four legs, each ending with poorly made claws. The body of it, however, had a timer on it that had 2 seconds left. Roman quickly dropped it and tried to jump back as it counted down, but it went off.

He expected to be blown back, but instead he felt something cover him. Roman opened his eyes and saw he was covered in pink dust, the rest of it floating around him in a dust cloud. He coughed and tried to wave it away, growling in anger as he tried to rub it off of his clothes. While trying to clean himself, he didn't see the shadow moving behind him.

Virgil was in his dragon form, holding his staff in claw. He shifted in the air, right behind the vampire, and raised his staff. He brought it down on the fae who looked back at him in time.

Roman raised his arm to protect himself, and the staff cracked down on him. He tried to bite back a pained noise, but luckily his arm didn't seem to break. Either the dragon was too weak to do that, or he was holding back.

The vampire tried to grab Virgil's staff, but Virgil twisted the end away from him, turning the staff so it hit Roman in the side.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, it's silver," the weredragon warned.

"Well aren't you confident tonight," Roman replied.

Virgil simply smiled before shifting and taking off. So of course the vampire followed after him. Roman didn't use his full speed, wanting to be the distraction. He didn't need to beat the dragon in a fight, just had to keep him from finding out about Sal. Plus he wanted to have a bit of fun...

However he felt his foot get caught on something, snapping the thin string. He ducked down on instinct, and it was the right call since darts shot out at him from two crossbows hung on the ceiling. Okay, so that was less fun. But the crossbows were a nice touch.

The dragon took advantage of the small distraction to shift and swing the staff at him again. Roman ducked again, and tried to grab him, but Virgil shifted back into a small dragon and used the fae's head as a springboard as he jumped behind him. And now this was getting annoying.

Roman saw the dragon dash into a room, and he ran after him. The room seemed to be a lab of some kind, half made weapons on the table, tools scattered about, shelves full of supplies next to cabinets.

The dragon seemed to have disappeared into thin air, but the windows were shut. He couldn't have made it through...

There was the sound of flapping wings behind him, and he turned around. The dragon shifted once again, and slammed his staff against the ground. There was the sound of something shattering, and half a second after ice shot out at Roman.