Vampire Hunter D: Stolen Sunlight

Chapter 10

Leigh jumped when a smooth baritone broke the silence. She almost thought it was D speaking, but she realized the voice was a tad deeper as well as the words didn't make sense. "I came here to retrieve something that was supposed to be delivered to me but look what I have found instead."

She hadn't even seen D move to intercept the unknown man but suddenly the room was filled with a horrible aura as D's sword slashed through the space the man had just been occupying.

Leigh grabbed the door frame to keep from falling over. The aura was oppressive but more than that, her heart felt like it was beating out of her chest as she watched the blindingly fast movements of the two men in the room.

The tiny lamp she had in her hand barely served to light the room, but she might as well have been blind. She only caught sight of the two when they paused long enough to clash. The noise was enough to keep her teeth on edge.

She couldn't tell what kind of weapon the other person held but sparks flew every time the two connected. As scared as she was she knew she should probably run the other direction, but she couldn't bring herself to move at all. She barely managed to keep on her feet.

Whoever the man was, he was easily meeting D at every turn. If Leigh had not been so scared she would have marveled at the sheer beauty of their acrobatics. What terrified her even more was the fact that she still felt no fear from the stranger. Amusement and pleasure were the only things she felt from his direction.

Leigh had no idea how long the two had been going head to head, but the time seemed to stretch. At some point she finally collapsed to her knees, but it took her several minutes to notice.

It didn't seem possible but whoever the person was could not only keep up with D, but they seemed to be pushing him back. They weren't slowing any, but D was no longer on the offensive. For every move forward he managed to make, he was then pushed back further. Leigh watched as the two of them disappeared into the shadows near the far ceiling, only to drop down again on opposite sides of the room and then rush together with a deafening clash.

Leigh could feel herself shaking as her panic started to build. She had faith in D, but her instincts were screaming at her. Somehow, she managed to push her fear down and forced herself to think instead.

She kept an eye on the action, but she glanced around the room and behind her as well, trying to think of something she could do. She knew she couldn't fight but if there was anything she could do to help give D an edge, she would do it.

Nothing was jumping out at her, but she wasn't ready to give up yet. She finally remembered that she was armed. Given the fact that D's opponent was obviously a vampire, Leigh was certain that her little laser gun wouldn't do much good, but she eased it out anyway. If she had the opportunity to even slow the fiend down, she would take it.

She slowly managed to get to her feet and started to back away from the entrance. She had to find something, even if that meant backtracking. Unfortunately, her movement caught the attention of the stranger. To Leigh's utter horrification he managed to throw D back and lunge in her direction.

It felt like time stopped momentarily as she watched his glowing red eyes close in on her. She didn't even consciously remember raising her gun and pulling the trigger, but the bright flash seemed to break the spell on the room. The man stopped several feet in front of her and gave her a smile that caused her blood to run cold.

She could see where her shot had connected. The hole in his chest was already closing though. The thing that frightened her the most was his face. Now that she could see him clearly, she almost panicked that she had accidentally shot D until she realized the minor differences. The man's face was a little wider and slightly older looking, but there was no way they couldn't be related. They looked almost identical.