Midnight Massacre

(A/N: This chapter will be quite different from other chapters due to its contents. I won't spoil anything here as you have to read the chapter yourself! However, please let me know if you liked the chapter or if there is any room for improvement! Nonetheless, grab some chips and enjoy!)

[Timeskip - 9 Days]

[Narrator's POV]

Within the edges of Vripolis, one of the Dragon Kingdom's fallen cities, a small squadron of beastmen could be seen holding a party, celebrating what was to come tomorrow night. Their gruff laughs echoed into the night as the fire they had hung around for lighting lit the area, warding off the cold.

"Hey, Anorak!" A rough and husky voice called out to a beastman watching over the party. "First of all, it's Commander Anorak around here. Second of all, whatcha need, soldier?!" Anorak, now identified as the leader of this squadron of soldiers, asked in a similar gruff voice.

"Chuck me that human arm to me, will ya! I'm getting hungry over here! Hahahaha!" The soldier laughed as Anorak heeded the request of one of his soldiers, tossing the human arm in the air before the soldier caught it in his mouth.

Typically, asking your superior something like the soldier did in such an informal manner would result in the soldier having to do extra training as punishment. However, Commander Anorak didn't mind right now as everyone was having a blast dancing, drinking, and eating.

Anorak was your run-of-the-mill lion beastman. Except due to his status as a commander, he was equipped with fancier and stronger armour compared to the soldiers. Silver armour that covered his shins and knees, a strap that went around his toned body, and a gorgeous lion's mane to top it all off.

The lion beastman hummed under his breath, reaching for some more human meat as he chucked it into the air before it landed in his powerful jaws. As he feasted on the delicious and fresh human flesh, another soldier called out to him a few metres away from where he was stationed.

"Commander Anorak!" A deep voice called out, which made the commander turn around and find the origin of the voice. It only took a couple of seconds for Anorak to figure out who called out to him as he responded to the soldier. "What do you want, Zorb?!" He shouted over the loud talking and music as he walked over to Zorb.

"Jasser wants to fight you again, can you believe it? Hahahahaha!" Zorb rhetorically asked before bursting into a fit of laughter, putting his hand on Anorak's shoulder. The commander could only sigh and roll his eyes at the information. "He really is a stubborn idiot, isn't he?" He started.

"I thought he learned his lesson by now. Well, it's not my fault if he's sore for tomorrow night's attack! I'll beat him into submission once more and put him in his place again!" Thrilled to teach Jasser a lesson, Anorak walked towards the brawling area of the party, with Zorb tailing behind him.

The duo passed and weaved through soldiers partying and generally having a good time before soon arriving at the brawling/wrestling area where soldiers gathered around in a circle to watch fights.

"Oh, shit! The Commander is gonna beat Jasser's ass!" One of the voices shouted out as everyone near the vicinity turned their heads towards the impending brawl. "Fight, fight, fight, fight, fight!" Everyone chanted as Anorak walked into the fighting circle, looking directly at Jasser.

Jasser was a rhinoceros-type beastman that slightly hunched forward due to the muscles on his body. Furthermore, the main horn on his face was slightly damaged and chipped away from constant battling from either practice or in the field.

"Right, same rules, as usual, guys!" One of the voices said to both beastmen who was in the wrestling ring. "No weapons, no skills, no bullshit! To win, you either have to push your enemy out the white line or they tap out! Ready, set, start!" Everyone cheered as both beastmen got into fighting stances.

"Oh, so you're approaching me, commander?" Jasser taunted in a cocky voice as the crowd of beastmen around the white ring grew more hype. "I can't beat the shit out of you without getting closer, dumbass." The hype in the crowd ramped up again. "Oh ho! Then come as close as you like!"

The crowd cheered and roared like teenagers as Anorak threw his right fist toward the rhinoceros beastman's skull. Jasser swiftly blocked the punch aimed for his face. However, what he didn't expect was a strong kick to the side of his left leg right after. "Ahh, fuck!" He shouted in pain.

Despite the amount of muscle on his lower half, Jasser's left leg still throbbed with pain as he resisted the urge to fall down. Grunting, the soldier then tried to grasp Anorak's hand which was still in his palm from blocking the punch.

To his dismay, the commander instantly pulled back before using that same hand and upper cutting while simultaneously pushing Jasser backwards, knocking him out of the ring.

While some beastmen would've wanted a long fight for their entertainment, most of the surrounding beastmen cheered at the fact that Jasser was so swiftly beaten. "Tch," One of the beastmen in the crowd snickered as he gave his friend some human meat.

"There's my food, as per the bet…" He said with reluctance. His friend put a hand on his shoulder and laughed. "You stupid idiot. Who bets when the commander fights, huh? He's the commander for a reason! But hey, I ain't complaining! I get some extra food from your dumbass, hahaha!"

"Hmhmgmhg…" Jasser grunted, rubbing his head and leg from the pain as he tried to get up. Anorak walked by, offering a hand which the soldier accepted. "That should teach ya not to try and fight me in the ring, again! Or do you need another beating, huh?"

Jasser sighed, shaking his head as all the other beastmen laughed before a few others jumped into the circle. By this point, the two of them were a couple of metres away from the circle, giving the two more privacy to talk one on one.

"But hey, don't let defeat slow you down. You're a good soldier to have, pal!" The commander gave two hard slaps to Jasser's back, which would have killed the regular human due to the slap's strength. "Yeah, yeah. But I can't do that when this leg is killing me. I'm gonna have to ask Lok to heal me up before our fight tomorrow night." He said as the commander retracted his hand back.

"Well, you go do that and enjoy yourself now. If you can't tell by those cheers behind us, the others are fighting and I wanna watch!" Jasser nodded as he then saluted to Anorak, doing his best to hold in the pain. "See you on the battlefield soon, commander." Anorak gave a small, but warm smile.

"You too, soldier."

[Timeskip - 1 Day]

[Scene Change]

Trul, a village that was southwest of Clebus. While the place did share similarities to Carca, due to being so close to the occupied lands of the Beastmen Nation after they seized control over Kleset, Voit, and Vripolis from the Dragon Kingdom, Trul was arguably more dangerous to live in.

Despite this fact, the common folk still had to live there. Not that they were forced to stay in Trul. In fact, any of them could leave at any point. But, if they moved to a major city like Clebus or Igale, just like in Re-Estize, they'd have to start at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder. This was all due to the shitty nobles that ruled the lands of these regions.

Therefore, the people leaving Trul in favour of safety away from the Beastmen Nation's border would make less money than if they were to stay in the small village and work. This would also mean those that left would also not be able to provide for their families.

However, Anorak couldn't give two shits about those facts right now. Not that he even knew them in the first place. What he did know was that he was supposed to take over this village for two reasons. Firstly, so the main army can use it as a stepping stone to take over Clebus and secondly so it can serve as a base of operations during the invasion.

"Hmph," The commander huffed as he crossed his arms. "Those humans don't know what's coming." He started. And for the most part, that was true. It was currently the witching hour with the night sky ever so black. If you've ever been awake at night during such a time, you could feel that the atmosphere of everything was different.

While that was the case here, it was also different for another reason. That was because Commander Anorak's squadron, which, numbered just over 60 beastmen, was soon to flip Trul upside down. And flip meaning to kill all the unsuspecting guards in the village and… have fun with the village girls.

"The confines of their walls give them the illusion of safety. I can't wait to break that." He continued, muttering under his breath in a husky and spite-filled voice, gazing upon the walls that kept Trul safe from within a nearby forest he and his soldiers hid in.

It was then when one of the 60 random soldiers walked up to the commander and spoke to him, making him put his thoughts temporarily aside. "Commander Anorak," Started the soldier in a gravelly voice. "Our squadron has finished all their preparations and is battle ready. All that's left is to cause chaos for the villages sleeping, inhabitants. We await your orders, Sir."

Once more, Anorak huffed. "Well, enough waiting. I was getting bored anyways. It's time we get to work and seize that small village for the main army to use." The commander turned around, having his back face the village in the distance as he gazed at his squadron.

"Soldiers, listen close." He started to speak, catching everyone's attention. While he would usually roar these words with fiery rage, he just spoke in his regular voice. This was because he didn't want to alert the unsuspecting humans in the village not far from where his squadron was. At least not yet.

"It's time to catch those… insignificant humans by surprise and cause some needed chaos. Prepare your weapons as there's going to be carnage." Anorak's soldiers formed a maniacal grin, clutching their weapons and fists.

"Jasser," The commander called out to the rhinoceros beastman. "Lead the charge and break down those walls, understood?" Jasser puffed his chest. "You don't need to tell ME twice, Commander!" He said with frightening enthusiasm, taking a stance before darting out of the forest and towards Trul.

All the other beastmen soldiers followed in pursuit, their weapons held high, begging to be bathed in the blood and guts of fallen enemies. Jasser covered the distance very quickly and loudly, with soldiers behind him, loudly screaming and shouting. Each step of his created stomps as loud as dropping furniture on concrete before his horn finally made contact with the wooden walls, shattering and splintering the cheap defence into fragments.

"ALRIGHT, HAHAHA!!!" Jasser roared at the top of his lungs, clearing past the dust cloud he temporarily formed from breaking down the wall for his comrades to enter through. "IT'S T- huh?" Jasser's triumphant tone promptly switched to one of confusion as he was met with a peculiar sight.

Seeing his soldier suddenly halt, Anorak went into a fit of rage. "JASSER! WHAT ARE YOU DO- what the…" It was then that the commander also saw what made his soldier stand still in confusion, not throwing Trul into mayhem. The other soldiers acted the same, entering the broken gates before seeing the strange view.

Standing in the centre of an empty path, roughly 15 metres away from the beastman squadron, was a female with long blonde hair all by lonesome. The female was dressed in a gothic princess outfit consisting of black and light grey with metal detailings attached to the dress.

The unknown females also held an umbrella that had the same aesthetic as the dress. In addition, she also wore a black top hat and a red mask that only covered her eyes. Of course, this unknown person was none other than Shalltear Bloodfallen, currently disguised as Báthory.

"Commander," Zorb said in a slightly hushed voice. "This has to be a joke, right?" He finished, putting some emphasis on 'has' before letting out a slight chuckle that he quickly retracted.

"Well, no shit." Anorak bluntly stated. "A female human, out in the open like that in this hour? It must be a stupid ploy by those humans. Speaking of, I don't sense them here…" The commander slowly trailed off from having confidence in his voice to unease and slight worry as he continued to speak.

Despite that, Anorak couldn't help but ponder something. 'This unknown person's dress seems… familiar. I can't quite put my tongue on it. One of my superiors was talking about something relating to this, but I can't recall anything right now.' He concluded before Shalltear started to speak.

"Are you sub-humans going to fight, or stand there and do nothing, huh?"

Her taunting not only pissed off Anorak but every other soldier. "Tch," The commander clicked his tongue with displeasure. "Oh, don't you worry, little girl!" Anorak shouted. "Seeing as you're the cause for no humans being here, most likely evacuating them somewhere else, we'll just have our way with YOU!!!" The beastmen soldiers let out a maniacal smile, some licking their lips and grovelling at the idea of doing heinous things to the mysterious lady in front of them.

"Oh? To have the entire squadron confront me? I'm quite flattered. However, Commander, are you not confident in your own strength to deal with someone like myself?" Shalltear's elitist voice only served to fan the flames of anger in the beastmen squadron.

"Quite the contrary," Anorak spoke harshly. "My soldier, Jasser," He gestured to the violence-hungry rhinoceros to his side. "Is more than enough to deal with some weakling like you. We'll just watch and cheer from here as he breaks you down before we join, hahaha!!!" He laughed as Jasser smashed his fists together, showing his eagerness to fight.

"Hmm?" Shalltear hummed, twirling the open umbrella in a circular motion. "You mean the feeble rhinoceros is going to fight me? What a bore. At least send in someone that's more of a challenge for me." She did an exaggerated yawn, covering her mouth with her spare hand. Jasser and his beastman pride could put up with the vampires taunting no longer as he beelined straight for her skull.

"YOU SHUT YOU'RE FUCKING MOUTH, BITCH!!! I'LL MAKE YOU FEEL NOTHING BUT AGONY AND SUFF-" Sadly for Jasser, he couldn't even cover half of the distance between himself and Shalltear as with the wave of her hand, she cast a simple spell, rendering his charge useless.

"[Force Explosion]."

Just like that, a powerful yet invisible shockwave smashed its target with extreme force. For a split moment, Jasser's eyes widened as his life flashed before his eyes before the shockwave made contact with his body, resulting in his death.

Sadly for the soldier, his demise while quick, was excruciatingly painful. At the moment of impact, just like jumping into a pool of water to avoid the shrapnel of a live grenade, all his organs ruptured. This was then followed by all his bones shattering to fine dust and having his muscles turn to mush.

In the end, all that was left of Jasser was a red mist which floated around the air and small bits of flesh that covered the walls of the surrounding buildings and ground.

To say that everyone was left speechless would've been an understatement. Well, that actually was the truth as nobody spoke for what seemed like an eternity. It would be more accurate to say that a mix of fear and anger would oversimplify what every beastman soldier was feeling.

"Can you wild beasts please make this more challenging and worth my time? I don't have all day." The gothic vampire's abrupt talking snapped most soldiers out of their daze, tightening their grip on their weapons as they grit their teeth.

Anorak followed, unsheathing his heavy sword which was strapped onto his back before pointing it towards Shalltear with one hand. "You…" He trailed off in a deep voice. "WILL PAY FOR THAT!!!"

The commander's voice was louder than ever, his fury untamed like wildfire. "SOLDIERS," He started, keeping that level of rage in his voice. "ATTACK!!! FIGHT WITH EVERYTHING YOU'VE GOT!!! MAKE HER PAY FOR WHAT SHE'S DONE!!!"

Rejuvenated with energy as every soldier felt like their fears had been alleviated by the hollers of their commander, each one of them dashed towards the still vampire, who closed her umbrella and took a proper fighting stance.

Some went head-on with confronting Shalltear, such as Zorb. Others chose to attack her from her sides and behind. A few beastmen soldiers even tried to surprise attack Shalltear by jumping from the roofs of the surrounding buildings.

The first beastman soldier which sought Shalltear's head had goat-like features. He was in the middle of swinging his mighty axe while shouting an ear-piercing warcry. Alas, he failed in his attempts as Shalltear, with a swift swing of her umbrella, turned his head into a fountain that spewed out blood.

This was followed up by another beastman that had the qualities of an ox, who took the small window of opportunity to attack Shalltear from behind. However, just like his comrade, his fate was sealed as the vampire thrust her umbrella through his heart and left him to bleed out on the floor.

'No… NO!!!' The commander internally shouted as he watched the gothic lolita decimate his soldiers systematically. 1, 4, 8, 12, 16, 21, 27, 34. The corpses of his men started to pile up around Shalltear at an unbelievable speed that Anorak just couldn't fathom. 'What is happening?! This is impossible!!!'

It was right for the commander to think such things. It was one thing to assume one person could take on one beastmen. However, to consider that some unknown female could take on an entire squadron of beastmen, thirsting for her blood? That was simply foolish. Yet, that's exactly what happened.

"How?" He asked himself rhetorically, his sword slightly shaking from his quivering hand. Even if one of his soldiers, of which there were now few left, gave some sort of answer, the loud squelching of breaking bones and cries of agony would make his question fall on deaf ears

It all happened so fast. But in the end, all that was left was the commander, Anorak.

"What a nuisance. None of your soldiers provided me with a challenge." The commander was snapped out of his thoughts when Shalltear spoke once more. "You…" He growled, tightening his grip on his sword. "I'LL KILL YOU!!!" Wasting no time, Anorak covered the distance between his enemy and swung his sword, striving for killing blows in the hopes of ending the vampire's life.

To his dismay, she kept blocking his precise strikes with her closed umbrella, not taking his efforts seriously and toying with him. No matter where he struck his sword, no matter how many skills he used, Shalltear was still miraculously unharmed.

"Enough of me defending. Now, it's your turn." The commander's eyes widened as in a split second, the vampire punched his stomach, knocking all the wind out of his lungs. "GAHH!!!" Anorak coughed out saliva and blood as he was sent flying in the opposite direction towards the broken wall Jasser had destroyed moments prior.

Parts of the commander's skin formed friction burns from tumbling across the dirt ground at a fast pace. This, alongside the major bruise which was created after Shalltear punched him in the stomach, made his entire body ache in intolerable pain.

Even though he knew fighting was futile, like his beastmen soldiers, his pride wouldn't allow him to do that. So, not wanting to give up the fight just yet, Anorak used all his strength and slowly pushed himself off the ground. Even with his arms telling him not to, which were strained from swinging his sword like a maniac at the vampire, he still gave his best efforts.

Predictably, yet sadly for him, things didn't go as planned. Shalltear covered the distance between Anorak and herself instantaneously by using [Teleportation]. Right afterwards, using minimal effort, she shattered both of the commander's shins, rendering him immobile and unable to fight.

His bones snapped as easily as a bodybuilder snapping chicken bones in half with blood pouring out the devastating wounds."GUAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" Anorak bellowed in pain with an ear-piercing roar that could deafen any regular human for minutes. But, Shalltear wasn't affected by this as she kicked him once more, flipping his body to have his face meet the beautiful night sky.

By this point, there was no hope in the lion beastman left. His gorgeous mane was covered in dirt and grime, his armour was shattered, and his pride was reduced to atoms. His legs were useless, bending in ways biology wouldn't allow. For the finishing touch, his body was littered with bruises and blood.

"J… Just… who are… you?" Anorak said in a defeated voice in between heavy breaths and painful groans from how badly his body was hurt. "At…" The commander coughed up blood, taking a moment to catch his breath. "At least… tell me your… name… before you… k-kill me…"

"Hmmm?" Shalltear hummed, cleaning the blood on her umbrella while meeting the eyes of the bloodied commander, laying on the floor in a pathetic state. "You didn't recognise me by my attire, hmmm?" She continued, keeping an elitist tone. She paused for a couple of seconds before answering.

"Fine, I'll tell you. My name is Báthory." Anorak didn't immediately respond. Instead, taking a moment to realize who he and his dead soldiers fought. "Báthory, huh?" He muttered under his breath, his voice weak and fragile. The lion beastman let out the faintest of smiles.

"I… I truly fucked up, d-didn't I? Hehehe…" He rhetorically asked, chuckling at the end before coughing up more blood and saliva. Shalltear only said one thing. "That you did." Raising her umbrella in the air once more, Anorak closed his eyes, reflecting on life for one last time.

'My ancestors… my soldiers. I'm sorry that I've let you all down…'

The umbrella was quickly brought downwards.

And soon enough, the light in Anorak's eyes faded, growing forever dark and dull.

"Hmph," Shalltear huffed as she brought her umbrella back up, opening and twirling it to rid the blood away. "Now that's done, I can go back and cuddle with Citrinitas before I have to go back to Clebus in the morning. Once the war is over, we'll bond while torturing that piece of shit, kufufufu…"

Next Chapter: A Soldiers POV

----------

(A/N: This was just the first out of many future battles with the Beastmen Nation and the Dragon Kingdom. While no human life was lost due to the villagers being evacuated days earlier, that won't mean every human will be so lucky. After all, this is a war where lives are lost on both sides. You might see some of that in the next chapter (which will be gruesome) whenever that releases. But for now, you'll just have to wait and see...

Nonetheless, how was this chapter? Was it good? Bad? Do you feel there could be any areas I could work on such as fight scenes? Please, let me know with a comment and/or a review as your support is always what motivates me to write more!)