Posted: June 2004
Title: The Dark Heart
Author: Estella Greenleaf
Type: RPS
Characters: Karl, Dave, Viggo, Orlando
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Don't own or know anything. All of these are false
Warning: AU, dark themes

Inspiration: The story of the weeping red devil (Tokyo Godfather) and Vampire Hunter D

Author's note: This is the bunny I put out for adoption. To make a long story short, I am really in a vampire mood and I am dying to read some K/D that I haven't read so much that I know by heart =P Hence, this story...

Author's note 2: Each chapter of the series are written in a slightly different style. Each will also have it's own rating. It's sort of like a bunch of snapshots that makes the whole story. That's why i didn't put a pairing on top of this book. Anyway, the story will eventually feature K/D, K/O and V/O. I hope this isn't too distracting. Please let me know what you think.

*****

Prologue:

People say time can heal all wounds. They are wrong. The earth has never truly recovered from the nuclear war that devastated it millenia ago. A perpetual haze covers the skies; under the pale moonlight, tinting the world in the color of blood. It is a fitting hue, for creatures of the night roam the land, reaping terror upon humankind. To counter this evil, the Hunter class is born. The greatest of them all is a Vampire Hunter cursed with half vampire blood. Immortal, powerful, able to withstand the scorching sun, he strikes fear into the hearts of all monsterkind. This is his story.

*****

Rustle...rustle...rustle... a shovel dug into the hard earth... rustle...rustle...rustle... the crooning of an owl reverberated in the eerie stillness of the night.

"This place gives me the creeps," commented a hush voice, as if fearing the words would wake the dead.

"Shut up and keep digging. The sooner we get the gold, the sooner we can leave" was the urgent reply. The chills down their spine told the grave robbers to fear for their lives.

The shrill cries of bats echoed in the small cemetry. The winged beasts converged; a dark silouhuette of a vampire took shape before the grave robbers' eyes.

"It can't be." A terriffed whisper of disbelief that soon grew into a full blown scream. The grave robbers turned and fled; but the shadows offered them no place to hide from the creature that hunted them.

The predator closed in for the kill. Before the hunt came to its natural end, an intruder interfered. The impact of steel upon flesh; a cry of pain torn from the vampire's mouth as he cradled his wounded arm; the predator had now become the hunted.

The vampire turned to face his assailant. A muscular figure in black armor and a flowing black cape; his pale skin luminescent under the moonlight; his hazel eyes cold as ice; the legendary Vampire Hunter stood in the flesh.

"Karl..."

The venom in the vampire's hiss could chill the blood of a lesser man; but the Hunter remained undaunted as he regarded his quarry with deadly calm eyes. "Prepare yourself, Mobius."

Eyes on the Hunter's drawn sword, the vampire let out a cry to the moon. Dark magic pulsed in the air; winds assaulted the half-human at full force. The undead would not give up without a fight.

The Hunter was ready. He raised his sword, creating a brilliant shield of light. The blade sliced through the vortex of winds and found its mark. A stab through the heart, and the vampire was no more.

The Hunter eyed the grave robbers he had saved. Fear, that was the first thing he sensed, not of the destroyed vampire, but of him. Oh, what he would give for the men's trust, to hear a muttered 'thank you' from the ones he had saved. Perhaps, it was foolish to hope that good deeds could compensate for the cursed blood flowing in his veins. For as long as he lived, he had fought for acceptance in the world of men; all he had earned were countless faded battle scars.

With a sigh, the Hunter vanished into the darkness again, as silently as he arrived. Tonight, like so many others before, Karl would spend with shadows as his sole companion.

*****

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