Sun's Blood (History: Leo & Azrael)

[Lepa]

Work never ended for Leo.

To surpass his father and ascend to full ownership of their company - that was Leo's purpose in life. To say it was a daunting task was... a massive understatement. His father, Alexander Aurelius, was a stern man who hated weakness and demanded nothing less than perfection. Leo was expected to deliver no less than that. If he didn't, well... That was impossible. Leo always delivered perfection.

But even perfection was never good enough.

You must always be ahead of the competition.

Your power and wealth will always make you enemies.

Never for a second let your guard down.

Those were just a few of the things that his father drilled into his head.

Leo sighed. He glanced at the time. It was time to stretch. After a quick sip of water, he stood up from his seat, pushing away the roller chair with a bit more force than he meant to. Things were frustrating. People were stupid, incompetent. It was a curse of the high standards placed upon him, he supposed. When you were expected to be the best, to pick apart all of your weaknesses and failures, all you could see was the shortcomings of others.

Ceiling high windows lined most of his office. He approached one, peering outside. He hoped to clear his mind a bit, reset his mood maybe, but the sharp angle of the light only highlighted his reflection. He squinted, trying to see pass his visage, then frowned. A small beeping alert chirped from his watch. So much for a moment of peace, he thought.

He glanced down at the alert. It was from Devitt, the Magitech Department head. Of course it was. Alerts from that department were a frequent, but expected occurrence. Even if there was a science to magic, some things were simply unpredictable or unaccountable for. Annoying, sure, but they had to follow safety protocol. It was just a consequence of the company's specialization in Magitech. Even Leo's father knew this, having started up the department himself.

This particular alert, however... It was a special one reserved for one of their employees in the department. He was said to become "hostile." From what Leo understood, this particular person was... afflicted by some sort of magic from time to time. Blood magic, if he recalled correctly. Leo had actually met the man before, brief as it was; Azrael was his name. He was very mild mannered and diplomatic - almost annoyingly so - but Devitt insisted Azrael was good at what he did, condition aside. Leo couldn't imagine the man posing much of a threat, but even his father regarded him with caution. And if his own father did, then, well... Leo supposed he should at least do the same.

He just hadn't expected to experience it first hand.

[Lepa]

Footsteps thrashed down the hallway. Perhaps it was a new hire unfamiliar with protocol who fled in panic, but a moment longer and Leo realized that wasn't the case. The cadence was different from a person on the run. It was almost... animalistic in nature. The commotion grew louder and closer, until a man burst through the doors of Leo's office.

Leo himself had been taught to defend himself at a moment's notice, but even he found himself hesitating a second too long at the sight before him.

The man barely looked like the Azrael he'd met. Instead of the mild and meticulous engineer Leo remembered, this man was hunched over like a feral beast ready to strike. His fingers curled like claws, the tips bloodied from the dripping wound he'd raked open on his chest. His body heaved and bristled with each shaky breath - it looked as if he could barely contain the bloodlust that coursed through his veins. Leo could even see the trails of crimson he'd left on the floor behind him - and for a moment, he found himself very concerned with just how much of that blood might not have been his own.

Their eyes then met, and Azrael's manic expression intensified. He convulsed, snarling as he drew more blood from his body, then roared. The liquid pulsed around his fingers. He slashed at the air, flinging the blood towards Leo. They expanded and hardened into sharp red blades.

Leo clenched his fist in response, summoning his own Magitech armor. He snatched his sword's grip that hung at his waist. The blade manifested from the hilt. Leo then braced himself into a defensive stance, steeling himself as he blocked against Azrael's attack.

"Tch...!" Leo grit his teeth. The impact pushed him back an inch as the blood blades shattered against his sword. Small flecks of red speckled his weapon and armor. He lowered his sword, carefully eying the other man.

"...So that's what they meant by blood magic."

[Lepa]

Leo lifted his wrist, maintaining the grip on his blade. "...Devitt." He spoke into his watch. His tone was no different from him working at his desk. "...He's in my office. I'll keep him distracted." He paused. "Collect him when you can- Hmph!"

Leo barely finished relaying his message when he was forced to shift his stance. Azrael had no patience to stand around - he simply rushed at him. His fingers curled again. This time, claws of blood sprouted forth, and he raked through the air. Again, Leo braced himself. His sword caught the hooked blades. He whipped his sword in an arc, dislodging the claws. He then kicked Azrael squarely in the chest. The man rocketed backwards, landing hard on the floor.

"Azrael!" Leo barked, advancing on him. "Stop this!" It seemed pointless to reason with him in this state, but damn if Leo wouldn't at least try.

Defying him, Azrael's body slowly rose upright. His gaze snapped back to Leo, hungry for more. No, hungry for blood. He snarled in response, stalking towards Leo. This time, Leo moved first: he swung his blade twice and his blade struck twice. Azrael staggered backwards, grunting. Gaining confidence, Leo continued to attack. He swung, he struck, and he swung again - there was little time for Azrael to counter. In fact, it seemed like he had begun to slow down. Perhaps he wasn't much of a threat after all.

Or so Leo thought. His eyes widened when Azrael jumped over his low swing - then he ducked under the high strike, when Leo's arms were in the air: when he was most vulnerable. Contrary to what Leo thought, Azrael wasn't just a mindless beast in this state - he'd just been observing the other man's movements. He'd been looking for the perfect opening to strike Leo directly, and now he found it. This time, he formed a single blade, and sliced it across Leo's abdomen.

"Shit!" Leo hissed, stepping backwards. He wanted to clutch his wound, but instead he gripped his sword more tightly. He had to bear it. Azrael was already following up; it was now his turn to go on the offensive. He had grown more ferocious, more frenzied in his attacks, and it took Leo every ounce of his body to defend against them. His cut burned all the while, and as he moved, he began to feel his shirt stick to the wound.

It had grown wet with blood.

[Lepa]

This wasn't good.

Azrael had taken a keen interest in the growing bloodstain. It was easy to tell - all of his attacks were now concentrated on it. It left Leo with little chance to counterattack when he was so focused on defending himself. That only made Azrael more determined, and his onslaught became relentless. With each strike rattling Leo's blade and armor, his muscles tensed, and he soon noticed the beginnings of fatigue prickling at his body. For a moment, Leo considered retreating - even if only to catch his breath.

But where would that leave Azrael? He couldn't just be left unchecked - this was a frenzied man who desired blood. If he didn't get it from Leo, he'd find it from someone else, and there was an entire department of office workers surrounding them... None of them would stand a chance. Hell, if it had been anyone else in Leo's place, if Azrael had chosen anyone else here to engage, they'd be dead.

Leo knew he had to keep him busy.

"Enough!" Leo growled. "Entzünd!" He commanded, and a halo of flames erupted from his sword. He swung the burning metal, clashing against Azrael's latest blood weapon. Chunks of red splattered into liquid on impact. Leo had been saving the trick, hoping to catch Azrael off guard with it. It seemed to work, and he swung his sword again. This time, Leo aimed low and swept Azrael off his feet.

With a moment to rest, Leo backed off and glanced down at his wound. The stain had only gotten worse. He imagined all of the movement didn't help matters - especially with how Azrael's offense had grown more intense. Leo figured he wasn't just targeting his wound, but his blood. And if this Azrael could so freely manipulate it, well... Leo wasn't exactly interested in finding out what would happen if he got to his own supply.

Unfortunately, that made his wound a weak point... and Leo wasn't allowed to have weak points.

Gritting his teeth, Leo ripped the stained cloth from his shirt. He sucked in as much air as he could, then pressed his burning blade against the wound. He hissed, exhaling in sharp bursts as he cauterized it. It was incredibly painful, but if it was closed, then Azrael couldn't get to it. He just had to make sure he didn't bleed again. Easier said than done, of course.

Leo shook his head, planting his feet in a ready stance. Oh, that stung. Again, he grit his teeth, steeling himself through the pain. Azrael had witnessed his little self inflicted medical procedure, but he didn't seem too fazed by it. In fact, there almost seemed to be a glint of respect in his expression. That quickly faded into an unsettling glee, however.

He knew Leo was slowing down.

[Lepa]

What the hell was taking Devitt so long?!

Leo had been holding his own, but growing fatigue and a cauterized wound put him at a disadvantage that only increased as the seconds passed. He took refuge in the fact that his fire blade seemed to create distance between him and Azrael, but that didn't mean he was about to let his guard down. Azrael was much more of a perceptive fighter than he thought - if he could learn Leo's patterns before, then it would only be a matter of time until he'd figured out how to work around the flames. So, Leo struck where he could and fought with caution. He couldn't risk gaining another wound...

But Azrael was gaining momentum. He raked and he cut and he sliced. Each time, his blades would snap against Leo's sword, and each time he'd simply manifest more. He kept trying to pierce the man's skin, to draw any kind of blood, but Leo's defenses were still tight. So, he changed tactics. Leo took another swing, and this time Azrael held his arm up. The blade sank into his skin. Leo paused; he would've believed it to be a clean hit if it wasn't so clear that the other man deliberately moved into it. Azrael then clenched his fist, and suddenly Leo's face burned with a spatter of hot blood.

With a hiss, Leo staggered backwards, desperately scrubbing his eyes. Azrael had used his own wound to blind him. He'd heated his blood through the flames of the sword, then splashed it at Leo's face. In no way was it really an attack, but it was the distraction that Azrael needed. He lifted a hand, then lunged forward. His grip caught Leo's throat.

"Hrk...!"

The sword flew from his grasp; it clattered to the ground, and Leo's hands shot to the fingers curled around his neck. He clawed at Azrael's iron grip. Even if it was futile, he struggled to prove he could still fight back, to prove he wasn't vulnerable - but that didn't stop Azrael. He snarled, rushed forward and slammed Leo into a window. Cracks in the glass fanned out on impact. Leo himself yelled in pain; a pain that only increased the longer Azrael kept him pinned there. In fact, he pressed harder. More cracks formed, and this time something trickled down his head.

Blood.

It was exactly what Azrael was looking for.

He released the man's neck, only for that same hand to shoot to Leo's face. His eyes widened, though only one could see between fingers. Azrael stared back at him, and for the first time, he spoke.

"I like you." He paused. "...You will die slow."

[Lepa]

Leo felt a tingling in his brain - then he screamed.

Every nerve, every pain receptor in his body burned in unison. It wasn't just the worst pain he ever felt in his life - it was every pain he could ever feel in his life. His vision went white, and suddenly his senses went blank. For a moment, he thought he'd died.

"AZRAEL!"

There was a searing heat, then an angry roar.

Then, silence.

Leo wasn't sure how much time passed, but it wasn't long. The worst of the pain had gone, but every part of Leo's body still ached with the lingering echo of... whatever terrifying thing Azrael had inflicted on him. His head pounded. His returning sight was blurry. Leo was almost afraid to move; afraid that he would invoke the wrathful sensation again, but he had to try. He curled his fingers experimentally. They tapped against the floor.

His sword. He needed his sword.

Leo brushed his hand against the floor, searching for his weapon. Then, he realized he was sitting, slumped against the window.

"Shit!" It was Devitt's voice. He rushed over to him. "Leo...! Don't move!" He hissed.

"Az...rael..." He muttered.

"He's taken care of. Unconscious," Devitt answered hastily. "But you, you need medical help. Now."

"I'm... fine," Leo hoarsely insisted, though it was very clear he was not. He'd since found his sword, and began to use it as a crutch to return to his feet. Of course, his body easily betrayed his words, and Leo stumbled. Devitt swore, and held an arm out to catch him.

"No you're fucking not," The older man growled. He lead Leo back to his desk, where he collapsed backwards into his chair. "Stay here," Devitt ordered - as if Leo could even defy the command. "I'll contact medical."

As Devitt stepped aside to make the arrangements, Leo just sat in a daze. Then, slowly, he reached out to his keyboard. There was still time to get some work done before help arrived. Any other man might have been too shaken to even think about continuing work, but Leo was built differently: he'd never let that affect him. ...Or so he'd like to believe. Unsurprisingly, he couldn't focus on work. Nevermind the burn, the bleeding gash on his head, the lingering pain prickling at his body... or the fact that he almost died.

What he hated most was how he was weak enough to let it happen.

[Lepa]

It had been almost a day since the incident, and Xander was furious.

"It only escaped because you were careless!" He shouted. The broad man towered over his desk, bristling with anger. His intense gaze was enough to make most men falter, but to Xander.... Blake Devitt wasn't most men.

"I was busy," Blake explained as a matter of factly. "There was another emergency I had to take care of-"

"THIS WAS AN EMERGENCY!" Xander thundered. He slammed his fists onto his desk. "THAT THING ALMOST KILLED MY SON!"

"I KNOW THAT!" Blake barked in return. "I know! I'm not trying to give excuses, I'm telling you I had to make sure the department didn't blow up first!" He shook his head. "...I moved as fast as I could. I'm sorry-"

"ARE YOU?"" Xander erupted in rage. "ARE YOU REALLY?"

"XANDER!" Blake shot to his feet. "I can say it as many times as you want, but we both know it won't change what happened!" He stood firm, clenching his fists as he stared down the other man. Others would flinch at Xander's fury, but Blake knew him better than anyone. That's why Xander grit his teeth - he knew Blake was right. It wasn't his fault he wasn't babysitting Leo, but it didn't make Xander any less angry. Even if his reasoning was legitimate - even if the Magitech department was Blake's responsibility... so was Azrael.

"...If it won't change what happened," Xander began. "Then prevent it from happening again." He had stopped shouting, but his words were measured and firm.

Blake sat in thought. "We could enhance security," He ventured. He knew it wasn't the answer Xander was looking for, but it was the best he could think of. "Set up some magical wards to keep him in. I'd have to shift the department's research efforts, but it'd be helpful against... future threats." Xander nodded, but his questions remained pointed.

"And if it escapes again?" Xander paused, then rephrased. "When it escapes again?"

Blake pressed his lips together. He didn't have another answer.

He knew Xander was notoriously tough on his son, but it was clear to Blake that he just wanted to ensure that Leo could protect himself. The kid had gone through years of hellish training, and Azrael's attack was a huge wake-up call: It made it clear that Leo simply couldn't account for all threats. The fact that it came from their very own department was probably all the more alarming for Xander... especially since he still hadn't quite recovered from losing his wife.

"...Then what would you have us do?" Blake asked directly.

"Lock him up." Xander furrowed his brow. "I don't care how you do it. I don't care how much it costs. Azrael is no longer permitted to exit his workspace."

Blake breathed a tired sigh. He didn't agree, but he didn't disagree, either. All he knew was that it would be a hefty task.

"Unless you can promise me that thing won't hurt anyone else," Xander continued. "He is to be contained at all times. Understand?"

"...Yeah." Blake answered after a few moments of thought. "I'll... need your help to do it, but yeah."

Xander nodded.

"I will do whatever it takes."