"Finally, I've got you, Son of Yahweh."
The words hung in the Prague air like a death knell as Dracula's pale fingers tightened around Lucien's limp wrist.
The unconscious boy - having used up all his power to alter reality and fate itself, in the further reaches of time - dangled from the vampire's grip, his head lolled forward, oblivious to the danger surrounding him.
Elijah, still kneeling beside where Lucien had collapsed, reacted with the fast. His body became a blur as he lunged for Lucien's other wrist, fingers outstretched to claim what was under his family's protection.
Too slow.
Dracula yanked Lucien backward with casual strength, creating distance between them. The movement was fluid, almost graceful - the practiced motion of a warrior who had once led God's armies.
He held Lucien aloft with one hand, the boy's feet hovering above the cobblestones.
"Careful now," Dracula cautioned, his voice carrying the weight of centuries. "Last time your family and I crossed paths, Klaus had to step in because none of you could truly fight against me and win."
His lips curved into a smile that held no warmth. "And I have grown far stronger since then."
Elijah rose to his full height, adjusting his suit cuffs with precise movements that belied the tension coiled within him. His eyes never left Lucien's suspended form.
"It has been near on three centuries," Elijah countered, his tone measured despite the urgency of the situation. "You've been ash for quite a long time before your... revival. And as one should know, vampires as time passes become stronger than ever."
His gaze met Dracula's unflinchingly. "And us Original Vampires... more than anyone. Even the fabled First Son."
For a long moment there was only silence.
A chuckle escaped Dracula's lips, the sound like gravel sliding over velvet. His grip tightened on Lucien's wrist until the unconscious boy grunted in pain.
"Truly, you are ignorant," Dracula said, amusement dancing in his eyes. "There are so many ways to gain strength besides age... so many ways."
He lifted Lucien higher, dangling the boy as if he weighed nothing. Lucien's head rolled back, exposing his throat, vulnerable and young.
Behind Elijah, Rebekah's eyes began to glow electric blue, lightning crackling at her fingertips. The shadows around Elijah darkened, responding to his rising anger. The air grew heavy with power.
"I wouldn't," Dracula warned, his gaze shifting to Rebekah. "Mother of Storms, be careful. If you transform fully now, you would destroy the entire continent with your very presence."
His attention turned to Elijah. "And you, though you are the fastest of the Originals, the most slippery and deadly one, you can't possibly think you can reach me when the boy is already in my grip."
He squeezed Lucien's wrist harder, causing another grunt of pain. "The boy may... come to an unfortunate death if you act too hastily."
"You're bluffing," Elijah called out, his voice steady despite the rage building within him. "Clearly you want Lucien for something. You won't risk his life."
Dracula's lips stretched into a grin. "You don't know that. You don't know my intentions for the boy. Perhaps being dead isn't as detrimental to my cause as you might think."
Katherine stood frozen beside Nadia, her reunion with her daughter forgotten in the face of this new threat.
Her eyes darted between Lucien and Dracula, calculating possibilities, escape routes, anything that might save the boy she had come to love.
For a long moment, silence reigned. Elijah and Rebekah remained poised to attack, but controlled themselves, unwilling to gamble with Lucien's life.
"What do you want with the boy?" Elijah finally asked, his diplomatic nature asserting itself. "Perhaps we can negotiate."
Dracula stared at Elijah for a moment, genuinely speechless, before a powerful laugh erupted from his chest. The sound echoed off the buildings, causing nearby pigeons to take flight in panic.
"You really don't know what the boy is, do you?" he asked when his laughter subsided. "If you did, never would you be foolish enough to even suggest you have something of greater value. For there is none in Creation."
Elijah's eyes narrowed. "You called him 'Son of Yahweh' when you arrived. Does it have to do with that?"
Dracula's laugh finally tapered into chuckles. "Since I am in such a generous and good mood, after finally having what I have been waiting for, for near on two millennia, I'll answer."
He glanced at Lucien's unconscious face. "The boy here is the literal Son of God - as in Creator of the Heavens and Earth. The boy is THE Son, Messiah, great Savior. You should know the drill."
Katherine's composure broke at this. "Are you saying Lucien is... Jesus?!" she blurted out, her voice rising with incredulity.
Dracula turned to her, silent for a moment as he assessed her. "Not exactly, but close enough, woman. The boy here is the only creation capable of surpassing the very archangels, the mightiest beings second to God alone."
His eyes gleamed. "Within the... right conditions, that is."
Understanding dawned in Elijah's eyes. "You want to use him, to gain your own weapon."
A slow smile spread across Dracula's face. "Wouldn't you?" he asked softly. "In all of Creation, the four archangels stand at the top. It is their will that drives forth fate. There are so many strings... None of you just see it."
Elijah was silent for a moment, taking in the information, reasoning with it, trying to still buy time, to truly understand.
"If... If you are right about the boy," Elijah said, "then it is delusional levels of arrogance from you to even think you can control him for your purposes."
"Is that so?" Dracula tilted his head. "I recall there being another being able to tame the cosmic. Hmm...? Ever heard of the end of days? Where Lucifer will bind Death itself to his whims?"
"That's Lucifer," Elijah replied, as if Dracula had said the most ridiculous thing imaginable.
"A spell's a spell," Dracula countered with chilling simplicity.
Another silence fell over the street, heavy.
Elijah's mind raced.
Finally, he had what he wanted.
Confirmation.
In a burst of vampire speed that distorted the air around him, Elijah charged forward, aiming to grab Lucien from Dracula's grasp - knowing for certain now, that the vampire lord needs Lucien alive.
Dracula, anticipating the move, suddenly threw Lucien backward through the air. The boy's unconscious body flew like a ragdoll toward a brick wall at fatal levels of speed.
For a heartbeat, both Elijah and Rebekah froze in shock and horror. If Lucien hit the wall at that spe-
Elijah changed direction mid-stride, pushing off a lamppost to redirect his momentum toward Lucien's trajectory. Dracula seized the opportunity, lunging at Elijah with extended claws. Elijah twisted his body in midair, the claws missing his throat by millimeters.
Simultaneously, Rebekah transformed into crackling lightning, her human form dissolving as she attempted to intercept Lucien before he hit the wall.
Dracula's eyes shifted from their normal crimson to a sickly yellow. He extended his hand toward Rebekah, and a beam of yellow energy shot forth, disrupting her lightning form.
The energy crackled against her electrical essence, forcing her partially back into solidity.
A mirror materialized in Lucien's path, suspended impossibly in midair.
From its reflective surface, a dark-skinned man - Isaac - extended his torso and arms, reaching out to catch Lucien. His hands closed around the boy's shoulders, using his own magic to slow the boy down, catching him, stopping his momentum with a pained grunt.
Elijah broke free from his engagement with Dracula, pushing off from the ground with such force that the cobblestones cracked beneath his feet. He lunged toward Isaac and Lucien, fingers outstretched to grasp the boy's clothing.
Too late.
Isaac withdrew into the mirror, pulling Lucien with him. The mirror vanished an instant before Elijah's fingers would have made contact, leaving him grasping at empty air.
For a long moment there was only silence, and unmistakeable... rage.
Elijah's normally composed face contorted.
"HAAAAAAAAAGGGGHHH!" A roar tore from his throat, primal and furious, as his neck turned, his wrathful gaze focused on the smirking, Dracula, who had his arms crossed, satisfied.
Elijah's body instantly dissolved into powerful winds.
No longer a man but a tempest, Elijah attacked Dracula from all directions, the air itself becoming razor-sharp.
The winds sliced at Dracula's clothing and skin, drawing blood that steamed when it hit the cobblestones.
Dracula raised his arms to defend himself, grunting as the wind-blades cut into his flesh. Despite his power, he could not completely shield himself from Elijah's fury.
Above them, Rebekah recovered from Dracula's attack and transformed fully into a fire storm.
Her human form vanished entirely as she rose into the sky, expanding until she covered the visible firmament with flame.
The temperature in Prague rose dramatically, the air becoming difficult to breathe as oxygen fed her rage.
Katherine instinctively activated her new abilities, creating a transparent dome that protected both her and Nadia from the heat and chaotic winds.
Nadia stared in wide-eyed terror at the power being unleashed - in five centuries, she had never witnessed such a display.
Around them, Prague descended into chaos.
Civilians screamed and ran in panic, some swept off their feet by Elijah's violent winds. Cars slid across the street as if pushed by invisible hands. Windows shattered in nearby buildings, glass raining down on the fleeing crowds.
Rebekah descended from the sky as a pillar of concentrated flame, engulfing Dracula entirely.
The fire roared with her fury, the sound like a thousand voices screaming in unison.
Within the inferno, Dracula's silhouette became visible, his body burning even as it tried to regenerate.
Elijah's winds spiraled around Rebekah's fire, feeding it oxygen and intensifying the heat.
The combined attack created a towering inferno visible throughout the city, melting the cobblestones beneath Dracula's feet into bubbling stone.
"AAAAHHHHH!"
Dracula's agonized roar echoed across Prague, the sound inhuman in its pain and rage. Yet within the flames, his form remained standing, refusing to fall.
Inside the inferno, Dracula clenched his fist as his skin charred and regenerated in an endless cycle of destruction and renewal.
His yellow eyes glowed brighter, drawing upon the power he had gained from Azazel's blood.
"GRAAAAAGGGH!" With a final, defiant roar enhanced by fallen grace, he released a shockwave of energy that distorted reality itself.
The flames and winds dispersed instantly, blown outward like candles in a hurricane.
Elijah and Rebekah were forced back into their human forms by the raw power of Dracula's counterattack.
They crashed through buildings on opposite sides of the street, debris raining down as walls crumbled from the impact of their bodies.
Dracula fell to his knees, his clothing in tatters, skin still regenerating from the elemental assault.
His nails clawed at the ground in pain and tiredness as he struggled to recover. Blood trickled from his mouth, sizzling where it touched the heated cobblestones.
'I'm not even at seventy percent of my power yet,' he thought, gritting his teeth. 'After my revival, I should be stronger than Klaus now - especially with the abilities I gained from the Prince of Hell's blood. Yet these Originals...'
He looked around at the destruction. Katherine's protective barrier remained intact, 'How curious? Is she... like me?' Dracula thought to himself for a moment, before his attention returned to the two Originals.
Elijah and Rebekah were already emerging from the rubble, their clothes torn but bodies already healing from the impact.
Their expressions showed shock at being overpowered so completely, but they were far from defeated.
Despite his weakened state, Dracula grinned. "I'll deal with your little tantrum later," he called out, his voice ragged but still commanding. "For now, I have places to be."
Before anyone could react, Dracula placed his palms flat against the street.
The cobblestones beneath his hands transformed into a reflective surface that expanded rapidly outward.
The mirror grew to encompass his kneeling form.
Elijah sprinted forward, but he was too late. Dracula sank into the mirror portal, his grin the last thing visible before he vanished completely.
The mirrored surface reverted to normal cobblestones the moment he disappeared.
Katherine lowered her barrier and rushed to help Rebekah to her feet. "Are you alright?" she asked, genuine concern in her voice.
Rebekah nodded, brushing debris from her hair. "I'll heal," she said grimly. "But Lucien..."
Elijah stood alone where Dracula had disappeared, his fists clenched at his sides.
For the first time in centuries, he had failed to protect someone under his family's care. The realization burned worse than any fire Rebekah could conjure.
Nadia remained frozen several paces back.
What should have been a joyous reunion with her mother had turned into a nightmare, something she could barely understand.
The four survivors stood amid the devastation of Prague's historic street, the sound of approaching sirens wailing in the distance.
The battle was over.
They had lost.
---------------------------
(Author note: Hello everyone! I hope you all enjoyed the chapter!
Do tell me how you found it.
Did you like it.
So... How exactly is Dracula planning to make Lucien surpass Michael and Lucifer, and become his weapon? What does he even want such a weapon for?
I'm interested in your thoughts.
I hope to see you all later,
Bye!)