Chapter 4: Rise 4
Jackson stood in the center of three collapsed vampires one less than last time the other vampire that had once been on the ground now being supported by Rodrick who was battered just as bas as the others cause he had provided the chance for the vampire he supported to make it this far.
[Combat Ended! 40 EXP, Mixed Martial Arts Lv. 3 (60/300) Beginner]
"Rodrick practice with the one your supporting until you arrive before me tomorrow night I expect marked improvement because trust me your life is on the line if you fail even if it costs my own."
Jackson had obviously taken a liking to Rodrick hence the warning that was meant to allow some chance of survival in the inevitable beating that they would face as he made the move to flee the castle. Watching the vampires leave Jackson took off the coarse shirt he wore revealing bruises and small cuts that had accumulated from facing the superior strength and reaction speed that naturally came with the change.
Yet even as they were exposed the bruises and cuts began to fade over the course of an hour showcasing what a high vitality would make possible. Hesitating for a moment Jackson opened his status placing the points he gotten from the level up into endurance.
Status: Jackson Macintosh Lv. 1 (70/200)
Bloodline: Corvinus Diluted (Activating), Hybrid
Str: 13 Agi: 12 Dex: 12 Vit: 13
Int: 15 End: 17 Wid: 11
SP 0, SKP 1, 100 EPP
That same strange energy that had increased his flexibility returned flowing through muscle, bones and organs causing an enormous alteration. Bruises faded while the cuts were forced together by the tightening and compacting of muscle healing quicker without the gaps between the edges.
Pulling the coarse shirt back on Jackson looked around making sure that no one had seen the sudden change or heard the faint sound of bones grinding together. Then in a burst of motion Jackson raced at the wall pushing up to the balcony in two steps before standing on the edge ignoring the guards that had pulled their swords.
For a brief instance he felt alone and at peace until the guards fired crossbows forcing Jackson to dance along the balcony nearly being hit twice before finally leaping back to the ground hands up as the elders that had been in the room near the balcony came out.
Viktor standing amongst them watching the commotion that was being caused by one of his latest projects only the slightest bit intrigued as to why the Lycan had leapt onto the balcony so blatantly.
"Halt! Leave him!"
Looking up at Viktor the hidden viciousness in Jackson's eyes surfaced before fading just as quickly leaving the two looked into a showdown until Viktor moved taking a whip from one of the guards that had emerged with the council striking before Jackson could react.
Blood splashed onto the stones as Jackson's head was forced down drops of blood fell onto the stones before he slowly raised his head that viciousness not at all hidden as a bone deep cut now graced his face. It ran through his right eyebrow barely having missed his eye while continuing down stopping just below his nose seeming gruesome.
"Your place Lycan is where I have seen fit to put you that does not mean that I will tolerate you running around as you please without so much as a single consequence. This is the result of you over stepping your limited status do so again and you will lose your right to do anything other than die."
Finished with his display Viktor guided away the council leaving a very angry Jackson alone the blood in his veins demanding action causing every well calculated plan and action to fall apart as he suddenly lunged grabbing the sword of one of the guards mowing them down.
The others barely managing to react before Jackson spun around beheading the second vampire swerving underneath the bolts of the final guard tackling him to the ground taking one of the bolts and shoving it through the vampires eye.
Clambering off of the body Jackson made a break for it racing off towards the hall way that would lead towards the front of the castle not stopping as he shoved aside the guards racing out into the open area before the gates vampires screaming for the gates to close.
Gnashing his teeth Jackson changed his course racing up the stairs along the wall still holding the bolt in his hand as he leapt forward knocking a guard over the side feet planted firmly on the guards chest before the impact with the ground sent him rolling off.
The bolt quivering in the vampires eye as Jackson ran through the open plain diving behind the stones that were scattered across the field ignoring the slight protest of muscle across his body. Finally reaching the woods Jackson scurried up a tree seeking cover in the dense foliage at the top breathing heavy for a while before the racing of his heart settled down an alert coming up.
[Combat Ended! 200 EXP, Lv. Up!]
With the alerts coming up Jackson knew that the vampires weren't going to engage in combat at least for now with the campaign against William approaching they would have their hands full.
Calm now Jackson began to listen for the signs of any of the brood that William had created nearby yet with the gap between the start of the movie and the actual moment that he resided in was a blessing at that moment as the werewolves had yet to breach this far. For the first time in a long while Jackson rested peacefully in the trees drifting off to sleep only waking when the sun rose past apex.
[22 Hours and 27 minutes to transformation]
The timer had appeared no longer opaque as it was the night before leaving Jackson with a stronger will to stay alive until the change could take place yet even now changes were happening allowing Jackson to drop from the tree landing without a noise.
Off in the distance Jackson could see the Lycans already set up along the walls a few seemingly watching as he stood amongst the shadows at the edge of the trees pushing against their chains for a few moments.
Retreating a bit further back the Lycans that had been pulling on their chains stopped almost seemingly puzzled for a moment as to why they had even been reacting. Even now Jackson could barely feel a burn in his veins caused by the two different immortal strands fusing together into one stronger type.
Knowing that once the sun fell the vampires would more than likely send out a small hunting party to return with Jacksons head on a platter for Viktor it left very little choices for Jackson himself other than to head deeper into the woods using spotty knowledge to navigate.
As time passed Jackson found himself slightly lost amongst the trees almost stepping into a hole and twisting his ankle as he turned to look back in the direction of the castle yet that single instance was all it took causing Jackson to step in another hole tumbling down a slope.
Bouncing against a few trees Jackson soon found himself rolling to a stop near a concealed slit in a out cropping of stone from the mud and dirt groaning as even with increased Endurance the trees were still a bit too tough. Heading into the stone Jackson found himself vanishing further back than he expected until finally it opened up into a small cave at least six meters by five meters.
Heading to the center of the cave Jackson's eyes rapidly adjusted to the dark allowing him to see every little stone and small bit of dirt that had drifted into the cave. Being in the cave seemed to relax Jackson allowing him to take a moment rapidly collecting his thoughts while sitting down ignoring the faint rumble of his stomach caused by hunger.
Each moment inside the cave caused the nerves across his body to relax yet as the muscles loosened Jacksons heart began to thunder the counter in the corner of his vision picking up speed as time rushed away without him even realizing for even an instance.
Then suddenly as if a trance was broken Jackson jerked the loosened muscles coiling in an instant a reflex causing him to roll springing back up only to find that no one else was in the cave the timer drawing his attention next as it had barely three hours left on it.
Almost like it had been waiting for Jackson to notice the time left a burning pain exploded building so gradually that it was a barely noticeable with each heartbeat. Bones creaked as the minutes ticked by slowly the muscle twitching while out in the woods vampires in armor crashed through the woods more graceful than the one that they were hunting down.
Neither party though was aware of how close yet far apart they were from each other as a vampire stood on top of the very hill that housed the cave further into it the night sounds covering the heartbeat underneath. Or at least the vampire on top heard nothing the same couldn't be said of Jackson who instantly knew that the vampire landed on the hill.
Every cell in Jacksons body was screaming to change and the Lycan aspects wanted to go out and drag down the vampire to eat on it yet sinking his own teeth into a forearm growling and snarling as blood spilled out.
Up above the vampire looked around for a few more moments longer before bounding off a few more shooting past after it using their superior speed to cover as much of the woods as possible while the night was still setting in under a deadline.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone