4 4 F I G H T E R
ALUCARD NEVER THOUGHT HE'D JOIN such an uncanny and boisterous gild like the Silver Crows. They were an average gild from what he'd heard, a newly formed group of rookies who earned their three stars review just recently. It was one of the rare groups that never turned down a quest no matter how dirty or sordid the job was. Nevertheless, the thought of being in this gild---eating, drinking, hunting and fighting along side them made him curse in his head for the millionth time. He was obviously being punished by the gods by such retribution.
"It's been such a long journey but you have finally found your destination," Gatotkaca said, teary-eyed, "Welcome home son."
He saw everyone revolt along with him. Gatotkaca opened his arms for a hug but he shook his head vehemently, raising his sword in between them.
"Oh, come on, you know you want it," Harley cooed but immediately looked regretful after seeing Alucard's vengeful glare.
They were in a brawl a second later.
A loud shot resounded in the room halting Alucard from tackling Harley down. Lesley was furious and he didn't know who she was mad at more--him or Harley.
"Take another step towards each other and I will shoot you both at the knees. It will make you cripple for months, years or for good. You both had a taste of my bullets, don't make me waste it on you. Demon, move there. Harley, come here." She ordered like a general commanding to open fire.
The room was silent for a short moment until Harley made a run for it. He vanished, leaving his hat behind while Lesley went into stealth mode and reappeared a few seconds later. She caught the naughty Harley by the ear while saying something incoherent.
"She has fully grown into a fearsome woman, my darling daughter," Gatotkaca spoke in a sentimental tone, wiping his tears with a handkerchief. "Come to papa." He made his way to envelop her into a hug but Lesley stopped him by shooting at his feet.
"Don't even think about it, stupid old man," Lesley hissed, still holding Harley by the ear which Alucard thought was comical.
"Brawl! Brawl!" The doll-like girl, whom he presumed as Angela, waved her hands wildly as she slung on Gatotkaca's back.
He looked at the chaotic bunch of weirdos shouting at one another: Gatotkaca crying like a brokenhearted idiot, Harley yowling and reasoning for the foolish things he's done, Lesley chiding him like a mother, Angela cheering at Lesley into punishing Harley for being such a flirt.
"Why must you punish me like it was all my fault? Alucard was the one who almost killed me!" Harley whined.
He growled at the invitation to join the mad fest. He did so anyway.
וו••×•×
"Are we there yet?" Angela asked, fidgeting with her pink and lacy shoes, and yawned making Alucard mirror her yawning.
The small caravan they rented for the journey was slow-paced even for a turtle yet the cradling and occasional bumps of the road lulled him to sleep. When he awoke, the sun was setting on the horizon, peeking at the Land of Dawn at its last moments. Brilliant colors illumined the orange sky with pink, lavender, yellow and white which screamed a memory to him. And he did remember, how could he not? It was at a day like this when he lost absolutely everything and it was as if the universe had known and thus tried to comfort him by painting a spectacular view at the sky. He remembered staring at it for the longest time, as burning tears ran down his face, wondering if time would reverse if he'd prayed hard enough. It obviously had not worked.
He shook his head and glanced at Lesley. There was confusion in her eyes, the burning sparkle in them was gone. At that moment she appeared forlorn and lost just like the young girl he found in the middle of gunned corpses 10 years ago; tearstained and aloof but dangerous. Then there it was, the vengeance and loathing complacent on her face; she was remembering the gravity and depth of the scar. She clutched her rifle close to her and met his eyes.
Alucard winced away, a little embarrassed that he was caught staring at the demon slayer. You really have to stop doing that, he scolded himself.
The caravan stopped abruptly which alarmed him into thinking they were being ransacked until Gatotkaca opened the tapestry that covered the vehicle. He stood beside their driver and upon seeing his solemn demeanor, made him forget what the fuss had been about.
"Pace yourselves," he said grimly, "we're here."
וו••×•×
A red metallic car raced at full speed towards them and it was not slowing down. If it weren't for its scintillating glint, Alucard would not have noticed the racing car as it did not emanate any sound, not even the workings of its engine. The pack braced themselves for an impact except Gatotkaca, he stood in front of them, rigid and grinning.
Just as the flashy car was about to hit them into oblivion, it suddenly transformed into a robot--no, a human. Alucard could see enough details to make for a very muscular face.
"Johnson, don't scare my team like that." Gatotkaca gave the human car a short and quick brotherly hug.
"I love seeing the surprised look of newcomers," Johnson laughed, "It's always refreshing to watch."
Gatotkaca chuckled and began introducing us to him, summarizing our builds, weapons, and skills.
"Johnson is a very gallant and generous sponsor to gilds like us. He's an old friend of mine so I know this big gentleman's way of thinking---it's very umm, unpredictable," Gatotkaca said while scratching his beard.
"Very well said but mighty as you are, we still have to work on your introduction," Johnson chuckled with him then turned to us.
A mic appeared by his mouth making his voice bellow. "Ladies and gentlemen, this may be the biggest chase party ever made in history. To be just and fair, I've made this rule to abide by every year. It's a chase for the prize-- a year of sponsorship to your gild, your weapons, gears, needs, outfits and of course, me. Whoever catches me first, be it one or two of you in the same gild win the prize. This is not a contest of who's the fastest; it's a challenge of teamwork, brains and strength; of whoever's hungrier; of whoever's nastier; of whoever's crazier and I shall only be generous to whoever's most desperate. You can do whatever you want to the other teams to get ahead. The more creative you are, the better and I guarantee you, there will be big clashes, bigger than you ever had. I have great hopes for this batch. Now, give me a show. " He paused and grinned, his eyes were literally on fire.
"This battle of Chase begins in 3, 2, 1..." He transformed back into a bright, red sports car and careened away in a flash.
Alucard was too stunned to think of what to say but he didn't need to. The ground began to shake, a myriad of running steps thundered closer and closer, and then there were cries--booming, desperate, tumultuous, battle cries.
