Kekkai Sensen/Blood Blockade Battlefront

Story and Characters belong to Yasuhiro Nightow

Merciful Red

Hellsalem's Lot was once New York and is now known as the city of miracles due to a great supernatural catastrophe called the Great Collapse. Where the impossible is possible. But what is a miracle? According to the dictionary, a miracle is an effect or extraordinary event in the physical world that surpasses all known human or natural powers and is ascribed to a supernatural cause.

Leona Watch and her young brother, Michel came to Hellsalem's Lot with their parents. The Watch Family had hoped to experience a miracle for Michel to walk again. What they experienced wasn't the miracle that was desired. The Watch Siblings encountered an ancient deity. The deity made the siblings choose who would pay the price for the "Eyes of the All-Seeing Gods". While Leona was paralyzed with fear, Michel had spoken up willing to pay the price. Michel's sight was taken and the magical artifact replaced Leona's eyes. As quickly as the deity arrived, it disappeared, and time resumed. However, Michel was not only crippled but blind.

Leona was devastated by her failure as a sister. She couldn't bear the grief and disappointment of their parents. Weeks later Leona gave up everything to make it up to Michel. She gives up her current life to move to Hellsalem's Lot. She had two goals: one, to support her brother financially and her main goal to find a way to reverse the damage she should have prevented.

Leona arrived in Hellsalem's Lot during a cold Late February. All she had was the coat on her back and a rolling suitcase. She was taking her first trip through the subways standing on a platform nose deep into a brochure map. It was Friday the thirteenth and Leona would forever remember this day and the number thirteen for all eternity. For when she lowered the map and looked down the platform, her magical eyes caught sight of a beautiful crimson aura. It wrapped around a woman that was just as beautiful with short lavender-pink hair and pale skin. The woman glances at her with wide red eyes. They stare at each other until the woman slowly smiles. A multitude of squeaking and flapping of leather wings surrounded Leona. The eerie creak of a door opened behind her. Over her shoulder, she saw a doorway within the dark cape of a creepy man in a hat. Suddenly, the woman leaped across the platform and pushed Leona through the door. They fell into the doorway and they and the door disappeared with no one the wiser. Leona gazed up in horror at the woman wicked grin with bright-eyed excitement. She forced open one of Leona's eyes and the gleaming azure orbs decorated with ancient runes glowed on her the woman's face.

"Ah, the Eyes of the All-Seeing Gods! Must be my lucky day!"

Leona was taken by the Elder Blood Breed Valsh Rozzo Valctovoel Girika to the depths of the Alterworld. Girika was a very powerful Blood Breed but Girika wanted to elevate her status further. She was delighted with her discovery of Leona and intended to have her as her servant. Leona became a Blood Breed after her thirteenth bite. The mark of turning appeared over her chest, beneath her collarbone in the form of a pair of black raven wings with the roman numeral 13 between the wings. But she was far from loyal to her mistress. Girika discovered that Leona's eyes resisted her power to control her mind. Every so often, Girika would bring a fresh living human and try to entice her to feed. To give in to the bloodthirsty savagery that may perhaps weaken her resolve. Once Girika brought her a baby to cruelly tease her. When Leona adamantly refused, Girika fed on the poor infant right in front of Leona, draining him of every precious drop. In horror and in despair, Leona activates her eyes and took over Girika's sight by accident. Girika was thrown off balanced for a moment before she ends Leona's control by slamming Leona's skull against the floor! With this discovery of an ability, Leona's courage renews. Thus, began the six-month struggle between the two Blood Breeds.

By the sixth month, Leona was terribly weak and thin. She had never partaken in the blood freely. At times, Girika, much to her disgust and frustration, had to force Leona to drink. It was a fight every time and Leona violently resisted, spitting and chocking to prevent ingesting the blood. Girika lost her temper and started beating Leona. She was merciless as going so far as ripping her skin, breaking her bones and even tearing her limbs away! Leona would be tortured this way for hours and hours until Girika's anger abated.

Leona was lying in the corner of the room missing her arms and legs in a large pool of her blood. She gasped raggedly, her body throbs in pain with every breath. Tears and snot mix with the blood on her face. There was the sound of a pop and a tiny hoot. Leona opened her eyes and saw a little white monkey staring at her.

"What….what are you doing here?" she asked. "You better leave…before she…comes back…she'll kill you…"

Leona had never seen a mach monkey before. Mach monkeys were a hybrid creature between a Beyondian and surface world animal. Mach monkeys are incredibly fast creatures that can break the sound barrier, hence the popping sound. The naked human eye can never track the movements of the elusive creatures. Another important note was their level of intelligence. These monkeys are so smart that they have been known to steal small electronics such as phones and cameras to pawn for money which they spend for food.

The monkey sitting before Leona's limbless body happened to be passing between the two worlds of the Alterworld and the surface world. He had heard Leona's cries as she was tortured. Usually, mach monkeys tend to flee from dangerous scenes, but it had sympathized with the poor girl's screams. He had watched in horror as each limb was ripped off and nearly fled when Girika devoured them. When the horrible woman was gone, the monkey slipped in through a small barred window and checked on her. The girl had the same scent of a Blood Breed as the woman that had left, but her soft voice and her concerns for his welfare made him feel safe to approach Leona. He licked her tears and blood off her face. It was the first time in months that Leona felt such sweet gentleness even if it was from an animal. It moved her so deeply, her tears returned, and the monkey licked those up too. Leona shivered at the sound of the tiny animal's beating heart. She could hear the fresh living blood that rushed through his veins. She had felt her fangs unsheathe and she hissed. The monkey leaps back alarmed.

"….I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Leona wept.

With a pop, he was gone. Leona cried harder and apologized repeatedly to herself. She screamed and cursed. With the little strength she had at the time, she lifted her head with her neck and banged her head against the dirty floor soaked with her blood. She stilled at the sound of a pop. When her head lifted she was stunned to see the monkey again with a two-headed rat, each head that eight-eyes like a spider. It was dead and the monkey pushed it towards her. He had offered the blood of another animal. Would it be okay, Leona asked to herself. It was already dead and it was an animal. She opened her mouth and the rat was set between her fangs. Leona's eye's had been a flickering blue, but when she had finally taken blood, they became a bright as a red moon. She body went from cold to lukewarm and then it had gone back to cold when the rat was drained. Leona shook and whined. Her body was roaring for more.

"Go away!" she whimpers. "Go away before I hurt you…"

There was a pop and he was gone. After he was gone, Girika appeared and Leona felt her fury.

"You…" she glances at the rat. "…are a disgusting disgrace!" she shrieks.

Leona screams in fear and agony.

Strangely, the monkey came back the next time and took notice of a larger pool of blood and deep gashes and flesh bitten off her body. Leona lies on her stomach, still limbless. The monkey whimpers and pats Leona's cheek.

"….mon…key…" her voice was hoarse and cracking.

The monkey whines.

"Help…me…please…"

Leona lifts and turns her head. She places the monkey's paw on one side of her canines. Gently, she closes her mouth and pricks the monkey's paw. The monkey squeaks but the pinch was gone in seconds. It reached behind his back and scratched it vigorously. Under the white fur the roman numeral one is tattooed on the dark skin of his back.

Every day, for thirteen days, the monkey would visit to comfort Leona and each time, he received a pinch.

After he received the thirteenth bite, the monkey felt a strong connection to Leona. He felt a powerful need to return to her and he went. Leona was alone. He popped right in front of her. Leona smiles weakly.

"You came," her eyes were glowing red instead of blue. The monkey's own eyes were glowing red.

Leona flinches, "She's coming!"

The monkey felt Girika's approach. His short fur stood on end and he arched his back. His instincts were telling him to flee. The bond that was cemented through Leona's fangs kept him there. He faced the door and growls with his eyes glowing brighter and redder. Girika enters and raises an eyebrow.

"Hmmm? What's this filthy beast doing here?"

Leona could see the monkey's crimson aura grow larger and larger, wrapping around the monkey. Leona grits her teeth and her eyes flash. The monkey shrieks and crimson wings hide his tiny form…

There was an explosion of power and a great ape leaps out of an Alterworld building. The beast soars through the air over 200-feet! It lands on the roof of an apartment building. In the crook of one of his hard biceps, Leona was being cradled. The beast looks around snuffling his nose in the air. He groans and looks down on Leona. Leona gazes up to the sky. Around them were floating buildings on slabs of land. Some of the buildings were from the human side as debris. There were flying monsters of varying sizes flying alone or in flocks. Further above was the dense fog flowing out of the Alterworld and out into the human world.

"I…want to go home…."

The beast grunts, crouching low to the floor he leaps into the air with a great sonic boom! It was like an explosion and it created a crater on the roof. The beast takes great leaps launching off floating plots of land and debris until it disappears into the fog and blasts out of it to fly over twinkling, colorful lights of the nightscape of Hellsalem's Lot. A mid-air sonic boom goes off and the beast makes a great and powerful landing on the roof of a five-star hotel. Its guests on the uppermost levels felt the impact with the shuddering walls and flickering lights. The beast moves Leona into his paw and he whines. Leona gazes onto his face and smiles before opening her eyes wide. The blue artifacts shine brighter than before piercing through the night fog and gazes on the stars and planets in the far heavens.

"Thank you so much!"

The beast grins, baring his sabretooth fangs. With a deep hoot and sonic boom, he disappears with his mistress.

At a seedy bar somewhere in the rougher than normal part of the city, two men were having heavy drink in tall, wide mugs. Like the fog outside, there was a fog of hazy smoke gathering at the ceiling, spiraling out of cigarettes in hands and ashtrays. The smoke imitated a hot pink aurora borealis in the pink and gold neon lightning. Tending the bar was an eyeless Beyondian with a bulbous, mushroom-like head. He was thin and wore a nicely tailored suit. He looks towards the young lady sitting at the far end of the bar. She had her own little glass filled with the galaxy blue alcohol. Sitting before her was a little mach monkey, with his own glass. The young lady had thick fluffy hair that trailed down her back. Her eyes were so squinty that you couldn't tell the color of her eyes. But, she had a charming and pretty face. The girl smiles down at the monkey and raises her glass. The monkey hoots and they clink their glasses together. The two men were eyeing her, taking the swell of her breasts under her white tank top. The naked bit of thigh peaked between her short, blue jean shorts and thigh-high navy blue leggings. The two men grinned at each other as they stood up and make their approach. They sit on each side of the girl.

"How you doin'?" the man on the left slurs.

"Don't think I see a pretty young thing like yer'self here before," the man on her right grins.

"Mmm, I just moved here. Sonic and I are just celebrating our freedom."

Sonic hoots and sips his whiskey. The girl giggles and sips her drink slowly savoring the sparkling brew, tilting her head back lengthening her neck. One of the men whistles and waggles his eyebrows. The other man was drooling over the lovely expanse of skin on her chest. He blinks several times when he finally notices the tattoo.

"Whoa, that's some sweet ink! Wings and…what number is that?"

Setting her glass down, the girl replies, "It means 13. It's an unlucky number for me."

In their drunken daze, they frown at that, "Unlucky number? Then why put it on you?"

"As a reminder of an unfortunate day…when I first arrived here. To always be careful in Hellsalem's Lot."

"Awww, I'm sorry to hear that, baby."

"Why don't you tell us what happen?"

The young woman smiles sweetly, "Sure! Though it's a very personal story…can we go somewhere private?"

The men's eyes widen with glee. They finish their mugs and slam them down on the bar. One of them pays for theirs and the girl's drinks while the other helps the girl off the stool. The monkey had disappeared, his shot of whiskey empty.

The girl is followed from behind, leading them deeper and deeper through the maze of alleyways and backstreets. They arrive at a small church hidden between two buildings. The Great Collapse had completely altered the streets and landmarks of former New York City. Small abandoned buildings such as this small steeple of a church are hidden. Inside the church were simply just dusty and cracked pews, at the back of the church the altar with a podium and toppled over chairs. The girl gazes on the stained glass of a cross, the city lights are seen through.

"Heh, pretty kinky…getting naughty in the church," the man licks his lips.

"We're not here to get kinky," sighs the young woman. "We're here to feed."

A great white beast drops down from the rafters. Whipping around the men found the beast completely blocking the exit. It's large red eyes flash over them. It lunges it long arms out and grabs a man into each of his paws. He growls and gradually squeezes them. They yell out in pain until they passed out. Leona joins Sonic and they gaze over the unconscious men. Leona crouches over them with an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, but…we got to eat."

Sonic returns to his original size he joins Leona as she hovers over one of the men. She lifts the man off the ground and brings her lips to his neck. Sonic takes the man's hand and sinks his tiny yet long fangs in. Their eyes glowed bright and red.

Two finely dressed men stood in a hospital room looking over the two other men from the bar who were unconscious and handcuffed to their beds. On the side of their necks were taped white gauze. Their hands each had a simple band-aid. A tall man wore a full charcoal suit, with a blue shirt and yellow tie. He had dark, wavy short hair and soft maroon eyes. His most outstanding feature was a pale scar that ran close to the corner of left lip up his cheek and reaching underneath his hair. He was reading one of the men's charts. The other man was of greater stature, standing a foot and taller than his companion. He wore a waistcoat vest with a red back and gray front over a white, long-sleeved dress shirt. His slacks were a dark gray and his dress shoes were brown. Short red hair curtained his bright green eyes and glasses. His two remarkable features were his thick red sideburns and his most unusual fanged underbite. The red-haired man crosses an arm and rests his hand in his chin as he goes into his thoughts.

The man in the suit sighs and returns the chart.

"This has been happening for the last two months." The man looks out the window, "and on a full moon too. It's definitely a Blood Breed…but…"

"This is entirely different from any ordinary Blood Breed."

"It's so strange, Klaus."

The tall, red-haired man, Klaus, doesn't reply.

"It's unheard of. A Blood Breed that takes a nibble from their victims and…throws them back? No, not just throw them away…they had the…." Steven throws his hand and gestures out between the two men. "They had the…decency to deliver them to a hospital for treatment. It's obvious that they have been bitten…but the doctors had checked over them several times every hour for three days searching for any numeral tattoos. But nothing had appeared! They haven't been turned. It doesn't make any sense! Why?!"

"These two are the first pair of the night. By midnight, there will be another pair and a final pair before sunrise," mentions Klaus.

Steven sighs exasperatedly. The door slams open and a man in a tan trench coat, a flip of dark hair over his eye and possibly a little shorter than both men stomps into the room.

"Godammit, Starphase! What the hell are you doing here?!" he roars.

"Ah, Lieutenant Law," Steven smiles.

"Good evening, Lt. Law." Klaus nods his head.

Daniel Law growls in frustration and decides to focus on the other two men.

"I'm assuming you've come to collect these men?" asks Klaus.

"Yeah," Daniel sighs, "…again, this Blood Breed or vampire-whatever victims have warrants like the other victims. Henry McGinnis wanted for several counts of assault. Jack Benning…this bastard is wanted for a hit-and-run…the kid was only 7-years old."

Steven narrows his eyes and Klaus' mouth is strained.

"This vampire is picking her victims well. We and the hospital are learning to keep a hold on them recently. When this first started, the victims didn't stick around to talk to police because they had warrants."

"But the ones that are able to give an account had very little information. They don't remember anything. They know that it was a girl but when they are asked to give a description they all said that a blue light flashes in their minds when they tried to remember a face," shakes Steven's head.

Daniel clicks his tongue in frustration as he continues, "What really throws me off, is the tinier bite marks on the hands!"

Steven nods, "Yeah, I can't fathom what made that."

Klaus looks to Steven, "We're going to have to call in a specialist."

Steven chuckles, "I'm sure 'Lucky' is already on his way. Brand new vampire behavior! He wouldn't miss this for the world."

"The media and the public are buzzing," Daniel adds. "This mystery woman is becoming a newborn urban legend…they've given her dozen of names."

"Red Mercy…" Klaus begins to list, "Vampire Angel…the Merciful Vampire….Mercy Vamp…Merciful Red."

"Damn," Daniel scratches his head, "This city has to surpass itself in the realm of the weird every day."