-J.R. Ward

"Fine," John said with a shrug, trying to maintain some level of control over the conversation as his hand dipped ever closer to his pocket, "let's talk. Let's start with how you're here - my house is supposed to be protected."

"By a few paltry Order guards," Himiko said, her brown eyes never wavering. "They did not stall me long."

"What… what did you-"

"I killed them, as I will kill anyone who stands between us. Considering the current state of your allies in the Order and the fact that even their former Warden is but a flickering ember of his former state, I would suggest you relay to them that I be allowed to pass in the event that I return again during my brief stay in this location. They sacrifice their lives for nothing."

Her tone was flat, level, and showed no signs of any remorse or contemplation of her own actions. John blinked a few times at the sheer callousness.

"Am I worth that much? Or are they just worth so little? How can you so coldly-"

-68 HP!

John's mouth fell open and his words - somewhat literally - froze in his throat as a wave of pain shot through his arm and into his entire torso. His hand, only inches above the top of his pocket, was now solidly locked to his shirt and abdomen by a thick and immovable layer of ice that wrapped around most of his torso.

"Because I have waited far too long for this to let anyone stand in my way. And although your allies are of little consequence… I do not wish for there to be any interruptions to this conversation of ours. So please refrain from any further attempts to communicate with them. I would hate to kill you by accident."

"So what's the plan, then? You want me alive, so what are you hoping to make me? ****, warrior, or some sick fucking trophy?"

"I only wish to claim the rewards of my investment," Himiko explained, striding forward until she was within reaching distance of John. "I have waited a very long time for someone like you, John Newman. I have given you much. I think that it's time you returned some of it."

"Don't you fookin' touch 'im, you cold-'earted bitch!"

Seras slid forward from behind John in one smooth motion, her open palm slamming into John's trapped arm. The ice shattered, a few shards pricking John's skin and cutting him open, but the damage immediately repaired as he retrieved his borderline-frostbitten arm and jumped back from Himiko. Seras gained some distance, but not much - just enough to raise up the barrel of her new rifle. At point blank distance there was little aiming required; Seras fired even as she raised the weapon, placing three rapid shots from Himiko's waist all the way up to her head, aided by the recoil of her own gun.

Flowers of ice blossomed across Himiko's body. Everywhere that a bullet struck her, in the instant before her flesh could be pierced, a rose crafted in ice formed that caught the bullet. This ice must have been far stronger, because where Seras had easily shattered John's bindings, these roses did not even fracture as the .308 bullets impacted. They came to a gentle stop, the **** of the high-velocity projectiles causing the roses to bloom but not harming any part of them.

"You care deeply for him, to risk your life so. So unusual for a creature crafted from the Abyss to exist for so long outside of a Barrier… your power is weak, but your abilities are incredible."

"Like that's gonna 'appen," Seras growled, pulling back the action of her rifle for another round. John lifted an arm, cursing his weakness even as his mouth opened.

"Seras, stop now!"

The buxom blonde froze, though her muscles quivered with the suppressed desire to continue the motion. She eyed him warily, rapidly flickering her gaze between her master and the woman threatening the both of them.

"We can't fight her… not as we are now. I'm sorry."

"Wisdom, at last - but why stop a mere creature? What does she mean to you, John Newman, and what songs will your heart sing if she dies?"

"Don't you fucking dare!"

John's words were as useless as his actions, for Himiko struck forward with a speed that must have surprised even Seras, for the vampiress did not even shift her eyes as the spear of ice suddenly formed in her chest. Seras' right side burst open with a spray of blood that coated most of the wall behind her, bloodied ice shooting out her backside for several inches.

Seras' mouth fell open in a cry of pain, but she never dropped the weapon. Instead she continued the motion she had begun only seconds ago and brought another round to bear in the chamber of her gun. Before she could pull the trigger, ice coated the barrel, reaching down to freeze Seras in place all the way to her fingertips. Another spear shot forward, this one piercing her throat. Seras' voice was lost in a gurgle of blood and pain, her crimson eyes glimmering in a mixture of pain and rage.

"No… no, I can't lose her!" John shouted in his mind, his paralyzed body reacting to the fear of seeing one of the few people he could truly trust being butchered before his eyes. "I'd rather… I'd rather die than let this bitch take her from me!"

Status Effect Gained: Shard of Bishamonten: Activated [10%]
Strength, Agility, Endurance, and Libido increased by 10!
Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma decreased by 15!

John roared in untamed passion, forgetting even to draw his blade from his inventory as he launched forward, limbs flying in powerful if reckless strikes. Himiko made no immediate move to stop him, but the ice formed all the same. John's fists met walls of ice every time he struck at her lithe body, jagged roses of ice forming and slicing his fists. He did not relent, continuing his **** even as his remaining health steadily drained from the self-inflicted wounds. It wasn't until his health reached single digits that he angrily snarled and changed tactics, striking at Himiko's face. He turned his hips as he struck, putting his entire weight behind the blow.

3 DMG!

His fist connected with her cheek, surprising even the rage-blinded John. A series of events unfolded in the following moments, all evoking similar emotions in him. The easiest to notice was the fact that his blow, dealing as little damage as it had, barely moved Himiko's head. Her frail figure resisted John's **** as if even her petite form’s bones and muscles were constructed of titanium, showing no signs of pain or discomfort from the fist still slightly compressing one of her cheeks. What surprised John more - and terrified him to his core - was when Himiko did something John had yet to witness her do; she smiled. A soft one, almost caring, one that despite being so gentle reached all the way to Himiko's eyes and filled those brown irises with a mixture of ecstasy and pure affection.

John noticed something else about her, something that took several moments before it registered in his mind. Where in their last encounter Himiko’s very body had seemed to be as chilled as the ice she commanded, John could feel something beyond that now. Her skin flexed under his knuckles, and deep within there, a warmth now existed. Something like the feeling of snow melting in one’s palm on the first day of spring.

"Finally. Thank you, my darling. I knew that not even **** could keep us apart."

John's rage-addled mind struggled to process what Himko was saying. The best that he could muster was a brief, muffled grunt of uncertainty - before he could compose himself further, Himiko's extended fingers twitched, and another spear of ice manifested. This one traveled through the bridge of Seras' nose, mounting her head in place with a look of agony and shock.

"You… you fucking courtesan whore !" John screamed, pulling his fist back only to open his hand so that he could properly throttle Himiko. Adrenaline surged as his fingers clutched her windpipe, knuckles whitening as he bore down with all the **** his body could bring to bear.

Status Effect Gained: Shard of Bishamonten: Activated [25%]
Damage Inflicted to Enemies with Negative Alignment: +50%
Damage Received from Enemies with Negative Alignment: -50%
HP and Mana Regen halved!
World Shift, Create Barrier deactivated!

"Phenomenal," Himiko whispered, taking only a half-step backward as John did his best to press both thumbs into her windpipe with every fiber of his being. Her cheeks blushed slightly, that sickeningly affectionate smile never vanishing. Himiko's eyes watered as John pressed her against the wall of his room, and after a few moments a single tear formed. "You hold so much passion. If it were for me, if only for a moment, I could…"

Himiko sighed, reluctantly recalling her outstretched palm and gingerly ensnaring one of John's palms with it. The touch of her flawless skin sent an icy vein all the way from where she touched to John's eternal soul, cooling his rage and bringing a sharp - almost painful - clarity to his thoughts. His buffs never disappeared, but for a moment that overwhelming desire to throw every ounce of his being into destroying her relented.

"Incredible as always, my love… but you are not yet ready for what I must ask," Himiko sighed, running her fingers along John's forearm. Everywhere she touched felt as if it died, ice coating his veins and freezing his muscles in place.

"I was wrong to think I could remain so close to you without daring to approach. I should have known better - your presence has always been such a draw. I intended to finish my errands here and return home before I was tempted, but time runs short. I wish that I could take you with me, that I might have accomplished at least one thing on this journey. I dare not pluck your roots before you have even had the chance to blossom, though… for both our sakes, I must leave this place. Forgive me, my dear. We will be together again soon, that I promise."

"What the fuck are you going on ab-"

John's eyes drooped and his body slumped as Himiko touched upon his forehead with two fingers. The world fell away from John, first the room, then Seras, then even Himiko herself. John was left alone in an infinite blackness that swallowed him entirely as he felt his body begin to tumble into the void.