24 Vampire

POV ??? :

An older black woman folds one leg over another as a 'door' splits reality open next to her, a short woman wearing a black suit and matching fedora stepping through. Once inside, the Doctor turns her laptop around to display a video, one of a young boy berating a well-known PRT hero.

"Does the path say anything about this...?" she queries, not too fazed by the minor disaster for PRT public relations, merely interested in her colleague's response.

"No, this event is inconsequential. The steps remain same." the woman robotically reports, not even looking at the video.

"What about the fact he is one of ours?" the Doctor slides out a report from one Lana Pecker. Along with another file, listing recent experiments. "Subject 0004953, showed no visible mutations from their vial and was processed by Subject 0000041, along with sleeper protocols, before being deposited in Brockton Bay..." she taps the case file, "Nothing?"

The black-suited woman nods shortly, "Nothing. Our plans are unchanged."

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POV Kieu :

So this is the dojo... Not at 'Kung-fu-ey' as I'd thought.

Okay, keep your temper, don't kill anyone... And it'll probably work out...

The place was in a building a couple blocks from my apartment and looked like a regular, decommissioned warehouse. On the inside it was considerably different however, with imitation paper walls and freshly installed wood floor panelling.

Some people were already sparring hand to hand on one side of the room, while on another a group went through some weapon katas, swords, knives, and even one guy twirling a spear.

"Kaibyō, remove the hood, you're with friends here." an older gentleman wearing a ceremonial-looking gi says as he notices my brooding presence.

It takes a moment of thought to do as I'm told, knowing my original identity was safe enough as I looked nothing like 'Kieu' anymore. From my facial structure, body type, hair and eye colour, I doubted anyone would realize it even with a DNA test...

Unfortunately, as soon as I reveal myself a dozen faces turned to me, some shocked by my unnatural appearance while some outliers, a woman and two men had visible flushes on their faces... I knew I was attractive, but for them to react that way to a kid was disturbing, and probably spoke to a bigger problem with their minds.

Ignoring my 'fans' for now, I focus on the older man with a stereotypical Fu Manchu beard, "Nishihara told me to come."

He nods, "After viewing your fight yesterday, he decided you would be more effective if formally trained." he straightens his gi and nods, "I am Akiba Lee, and I will be teaching you for as long as I am able."

"Teaching me what?" I question. Currently I had an interest in swords but this was not due to any preference of mine... Well, not technically. My new Origin and Element were 'Sword' meaning I would have the same talent with them as Emiya. I was preternaturally suited to the weapon, and to be honest, I saw my advantages in using one than just my claws.

"To fight. You may have the strength and speed covered, but there are more things to battle than just brutalizing your enemy, especially if fighting with allies. Nishihara-sama does not wish to see you attacking our people in a rage."

"Why bother? Just give me a gun and all of my fights will be cakewalks."

"Guns? You are aware of the unwritten rules, yes?"

"How is shooting someone any worse than Oni Lee throwing grenades?" I quickly retort.

Akiba rubs his jaw, "It's a factor of escalation, bringing a gun signals to everyone you're there to kill."

"Are we not going to kill any Empire cape we find? And didn't I murder a dozen people last night? Are you seriously telling the rules are different for capes than for regulars?" I ask, having thought that was just a myth people on the internet spouted like Chinese whispers.

He shakes his head, "It's different... Besides, it is difficult to acquire firearms, even more so to hold onto them..." he eyes me suspiciously, "We tried to accumulate firearms once, during the early days of the organization Large caches in three separate locations, with only a few knowing of them... One night, they all went up in flames and everyone near them was slaughtered... I believe it to be a curse, or an extremely powerful Thinker, but Lung refuses to speak on it... Our arms dealer refuses to sell weaponry over a certain amount, and trying to buy anything more powerful than a weak rifle is out of the question."

"Aren't some heroes running around with huge guns...?"

"That's Tinkertech, which is allowed for some reason... And any power that creates weapons is ignored too, Miss Militia for example." he states as if it was only obvious. Why people accepted this weird logic was beyond me. Maybe they'd just been conditioned enough to accept it?

...

"Show me how to use a sword and we can work something out."

"I was planning on it. The way you wielded that machete yesterday spoke of talent... But first, you have another appointment waiting in the back. Come." he says, ushering me to follow.

I'm taken aback by the sketchy tattoo parlour hidden here, and the feeling only gets worse when I'm told to sit in the chair. "How about, no?"

"Sorry, but Nishihara-sama said to take no argument." Akiba reluctantly says, "That it won't be you who is punished if you disobey."

...

I drop into the seat and am forced to bite the inside of my cheek at the fat tattoo artist rolls up my left sleeve, revealing my Case 53 tattoo. "This isn't an 'I Heart Mom' tat, is it?" I grouse sarcastically.

"Not quite." he reveals a big sketch of a full sleeve tattoo, one with stylistic tigers and subtle ABB marks intermeshed with it. Not a full branding but they wanted people to know who I belonged to.

Fuckers. This arm's coming off as soon as I ditch this place. If I can regrow a tail an arm isn't out of the question.

"You want the T.V on? This is gonna take a while..." the artist says almost apologetically.

"I guess, I'd rather not get branded in the first place though..." I quietly grumble.

"Sorry kid but it's tradition. Lung's tatted up all over, Lee's got an Oni sleeve, now you'll follow. Just know I'm not happy about inking you either, I'll try compensate so it'll not get too warped when you grow."

"Thanks for your consideration then..." I reply, not like either of us had a choice in this. How'd doing some martial arts training turn into this...?

"I'll leave you two, Nishihara-sama said you heal quickly, so meet me in the hall afterwards so we can get started."

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I idly rub my arm which'd already completely healed as I make my way into the dojo hall. I had to admit the tattoo was nicely done, but the glaring ABB marks and labels left a bad taste in my mouth. The only good thing about it was the fact it completely covered up my Case 53 tattoo, though, my current monstrous form made it obvious enough already.

"Kaibyō! I see you're done. Come, spar with Harui here-, oh, and try not to kill him." Akiba says, gesturing at a thin twenty-year-old standing on the central mats, already in some martial stance.

"Can someone at least tell me what 'Kaibyo' means?" I mutter more to myself than anything.

"Means cat yokai, or cat spirit. Makes sense, all I can see right now is a kitten." Harui cockily remarks. "Everyone keeps telling me you're hot shit, but I think they're blowing smoke for Lung. You're just a child! Wet behind his ears!"

I glance at Akiba, "You serious...?" I ask, surprised by how dismissive this guy was of a mutated cat monster that'd already slaughtered a dozen or so men.

"Don't look at him, look at me. I've trained all my life, fought against Capes, you don't scare me, child." he gives me the Bruce Lee 'come get some'.

I shrug and step onto the map, already planning to dismantle this douchebag like Ikea furniture.

"Claws in, Kaibyō." Akiba warns, drawing a groan from me as I retract my natural weaponry. At that moment Harui charged me, jumping into a flying kick which barrelled towards my chest... This all looked in slow motion to me of course, allowing me to just sidestep it and hold my arm out.

*Pwack!*

Harui's back hits the floor and he scrambles to get back up, hand gripping the side of his face, "D-did you just slap me!?"

"No... You hit my hand with your face." I shrug, causing him to charge me once more.

He's much more focused this time, uncaring that he was facing a Brute, Mover, Striker class cape, someone you most definitely did not want to get into melee range with. He darts out a jab, which misses, tries for a calf kick, which misses, before finally turning into a full rear-spinning heel kick to complete the combo.

*CRACK!*

"AGGH! M-MY FOOT!" he wails as he hits the floor for a second time.

Apparently punching the heel approaching my face was the wrong thing to do? The back half of his foot was flopping around like his bones were jello, so if he weren't a wannabe yakuza I might've felt bad...

He said he'd fought capes but that likely only included those without Brute ratings, sad, I wouldn't be able to watch him get torn apart by the E88.

"Can we get to the swords yet? I've already had to spend half the day getting an unwanted tattoo."

Akiba looks between the now sobbing Harui and me, "I suppose that would be for the best..."

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In the end I was handed a short katana that was apparently one of Oni Lee's spares and taught some Iaido katas... Which were fun to do if not all that effective? With my powers I could draw cut faster than anyone else here, but in a world with stupid powerful abilities and simple guns, unless I learned Vergil's style and magic I'd be out of luck with this avenue.

I was hoping Yamato was in the cards for me.

But... It would do for now.

After training most of the day I headed back to my apartment, I didn't rest and enter my dreamscape however, as I'd gathered no BP for the day. Instead, I snuck out, minding the CCTV cameras I'd mapped out during my stay, and clambered up some nearby rooftops.

I needed to figure out ABB's operations before I could move against them, I'd spent enough time listening to them though that I was aware of some of the less popular hang-out spots.

My powers made scaling and traversing rooftops easier perhaps than simply walking down the street. It wasn't wrong to call me 'cat-like' in my movement and precision, even my claws acting as mini hooks with which to launch myself up large vertical distances.

I'd decided not to cut my tail off a second time, mostly because the 'cat' was outta the bag, plus the fact it allowed me to manoeuvre while in mid-air. Akiba's comment that I looked off balance in my fight yesterday was accurate. Now with the appendage back I realise my new body instinctually used it to shift my centre of gravity, something it hadn't naturally compensated for after I'd cut it off.

I drop a short distance onto a two-story corner shop and look over the edge at a closed-in cul-de-sac where some ABB goons were drinking on a grimy patio. In the twilight of night none of them saw me, so I observed them for ten or so minutes...

Finally, one of them needed to take a piss, and being too lazy to go back into the building to use the toilet, he entered a nearby alley. Just as he pulls down his pants I drop behind him like a shadow, making not a single sound as I ram my knife through his neck, taking care to cover his mouth to suppress the gurgled scream.

He struggles and grasps at me, but I overpower him and tilt him over, placing my lips over the gushing wound... I probably wouldn't be able to kill large swathes of these people without getting caught, a person with my unique characteristics would be too easy to recognise... So, I was forced to lower myself to some shitty vampire.

I needed BP, and this was the only way I'd be getting it.

Taking one last gulp I let the body fall to the ground, wiping my mouth with my sleeve before climbing back the way I came... The sounds of panicked shouting at my rear alerted me to the fact that my victim had been discovered, but by then I was already long gone.

I could feel the profit of tonight in my abdomen, completely draining someone was equivalent to regularly killing five people then... Good to know.