A Mutant Collector Quest

"Oh, Eric, Eric, Eric," Deacon's voice rings out mockingly as the dark mist swirls and reforms into his body a short distance away. His crimson eyes gleam with amusement as he adjusts his coat. "My child, don't you know it's rude to interrupt someone's private conversation?" He grins maliciously. "Looks like, as your father, I will have to teach you some manners!"

"Die, you bitch!" Blade roars, charging forward with unrelenting fury, his silver sword aimed for Deacon's neck once more.

"Missed me—oh, missed me again—nearly got me there!" Deacon taunts, effortlessly dodging each strike. His body dissolves into dark mist at the moment of impact and reforms a few steps away, entirely unharmed. "You know, I didn't even realize I could do this," he adds with a smirk. "Turning my body into mist? It comes so naturally now!"

"You will die by my blade today!" Blade growls, undeterred, his attacks becoming even more ferocious despite every miss.

"Alright, enough of this!" Deacon snaps, halting his evasive manoeuvres. He suddenly grabs Blade's sword arm mid-swing with inhuman speed and strength, forcing it still. A wicked grin spreads across his face. "Let's see how strong I really am, shall we?"

Before Blade can react, Deacon drives his fist into Blade's stomach with devastating force.

CRACK!

"UGH!" Blade lets out a pained grunt as his body crumples under the impact. He is sent flying backward, slamming into the wall with a thunderous crash. The sound of cracking bones echoes through the hall.

"Hahaha, this is so unscientific!" Deacon exclaims, his laughter echoing throughout the hall. "I, who have never even learned how to fight, can punch the legendary Daywalker to the brink of death with a single strike! This is beyond anything I imagined! The ritual promised power, but this? This is leagues above even the Super Soldier Serum!" He grins broadly, clearly revelling in his newfound strength.

"I am not… d-dead yet," Blade rasps, struggling to push himself up from the ground, blood dripping from his mouth.

"Ah, yes, the ever-tenacious Blade, the fearsome Daywalker." Deacon chuckles, suddenly appearing in front of him with unnerving speed. "Of course, you wouldn't admit defeat so easily."

Blade grits his teeth, hatred burning in his eyes, but Deacon doesn't give him a chance to recover. "Tell you what, Eric," Deacon continues, his tone almost jovial, "I am in a very good mood right now. My mission, my life's work—it has finally reached completion. I have been reborn, transformed! So, why keep fighting? Let's just leave our little feud in the past and start anew, shall we?"

"I will… kill you," Blade growls, his voice hoarse but resolute. Despite his injuries, he thrusts his sword forward with all the strength he can muster.

"Eric, sweetie, you are not listening," Deacon says smoothly, effortlessly catching Blade's arm mid-strike. His grin widens as he pulls Blade closer, forcing him to lock eyes. "This is a new management, and I am offering you a job, my boy. Imagine this—you get in on the ground floor of something truly historic. Together, we will build an Empire to surpass even Dracula's mightiest clan. We will rule the world from the shadows, for eternity as father and son!"

Blade glares at him, his body trembling from pain and fury, but Deacon presses on.

"And it's not just power I am offering. Don't you want to reunite with your mother?" Deacon's voice softens, almost fatherly, as he leans closer. "I can give her back to you, Eric. We can be a family again—a big, happy family. You, me, and her, together forever."

Blade's bloodied face twists with rage, but Deacon merely smirks, unbothered by the fiery hatred burning in his eyes.

"Your happy family dream is over, Deacon," I interrupt his monologue, my voice cutting through the tension. "Vanessa is already free from your clutches."

Deacon's smirk falters for a moment as he glances back at me. I briefly consider adding more spicy remarks but decide against it—Blade is present, and it might come across as friendly fire.

In the next instant, Deacon vanishes in a blur of motion. Before I can react, he reappears inches from me, standing upright and menacing. U barely have a split second to counterattack, but I decide to stay my hand.

"Ugh," I grunt as his pale, lifeless face looms before me, his cold hand clamping tightly around my neck. The grip is ironclad, and I feel the dark mist curl around me, binding my movements.

"Ah, you must be the one Racquel mentioned," Deacon says, a faint grin playing across his lips as he studies me like a predator inspecting its prey.

Instantly, both Sable and Elsa raise their guns, aiming squarely at Deacon.

"Release him at once, or I will blow your damned brains out, you bloodsucker!" Elsa snaps, her voice sharp and commanding, her finger already resting on the trigger.

"Apex, right?… Such a ridiculous name," Deacon sneers, ignoring the guns pointed at him. "You are nothing more than cattle for the true Apex species." His clawed fingers trail down my neck, leaving a faint scratch as a trickle of blood escapes. "Ah, forgive me. Humans are so fragile—a little twist of the neck, and snap, you are gone. I have to be careful with you. This new body of mine…" He pauses, sniffing the blood, his grin widening. "It is a masterpiece, but I am still getting used to it. Every moment, I discover something new I can do. Call it a lack of practice."

The tension in the room spikes as Elsa and Sable hold their guns steady, their eyes locked on him. Deacon chuckles, entirely unbothered, his crimson gaze flicking briefly toward them.

"I should just kill you," he muses, his grip tightening slightly. "After all, you nearly derailed my plans at the nightclub last night. And today, I have heard reports of you uprooting several of my bases. Quite the nuisance, aren't you?" His smile sharpens, his voice dripping with mock courtesy. "But as I told Eric, tonight is a happy night—a night of celebration! My Rebirth! So, I will let you live."

His eyes shift toward Elsa and Sable, a predatory gleam igniting as he licks his lips. "But these two? These delicious girls you have so graciously brought here—they will be mine."

I try to speak, but his iron grip on my neck stifles the words. "Oh? What was that?" he taunts, leaning in closer and bringing my face near his ear. "Something you want to say?"

Unbeknownst to him, a strand of my hair, concealed by my Invisibility powers, shifts and sharpens into a silver blade.

STAB!

The silver blade extends, and the weapon pierces straight into his eye, driving deep.

Simultaneously, my hands ignite with twin orbs of Holy Fire, and I press them against his chest with all my might.

SIZZLE!

"AGHHH!" The smell of burning flesh fills the air as Deacon howls, his body dissolving into dark mist. In seconds, he vanishes, retreating in a cloud of shadowy vapour.

I smirk. "What I wanted to say," I call out into the dissipating mist, "Is that you are a real idiot, you discount Dracula.". I had just used Hair Weaponry and Holy Fire Magic for the attack.

My neck wound also rapidly closes, the effects of my Healing Chi and Regenerative Healing working in tandem. My hair retracts, returning back to its normal state.

"Sword… Strike!" Sable yells. Just as Deacon's mist begins to reform, a silver-colored sword beam slashes through the air, striking him head-on. Half-blind and his clothes scorched from my earlier attack, he takes the brunt of the blow before dissolving back into mist with a pained snarl.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The instant he starts to reform, silver bullets whistle through the air, slamming into his head.

"Bullseye!" Elsa declares with a smirk as the bullets lodge deep into Deacon's skull, momentarily disorienting him.

This flawless combo attack was no accident. The girls and I had spent precious moments analyzing his mist's reforming patterns while Blade had kept him occupied. My deductions—enhanced by the precision of NZT—proved invaluable, allowing our team to strike with impeccable timing.

But I hadn't stopped there. While Deacon had been preoccupied giving his monologue to Blade, I had taken the opportunity to utilize Data Warping to create small vials. Using the medical kit in my utility belt, I had swiftly drawn and stored my blood, all without Deacon noticing.

And when he had gripped me earlier, I had floated those five invisible vials of blood towards Blade using Psychokinesis, aware that his condition was worsening. He was healing on an empty tank, having not fed recently, so my blood would be of enormous help.

In fact, from what I remember, Blade doesn't feed on human blood at all—only animal blood. So my blood, which is far more potent than that of a normal human, should have a rather interesting effect on him.

The vials smash against Blade's bloodied face, drenching him in crimson.

"DEACON!!" Blade bellows as he abruptly rises, the fresh infusion coursing through him. His wounds knit together almost instantly, his lips reflexively licking away the lingering blood.

Remarkably more agile than before, Blade moves like a force of nature, appearing directly in front of a reforming Deacon. I was going to strike next but I step back, deciding to let Blade have his moment of reckoning.

"You are dead!" Blade roars, his silver sword swinging with terrifying speed toward Deacon's neck.