Zenosyne

Chapter 23

"Is anyone else getting a bad feeling?" Pulling your hand away from holding open the small curtain you looked towards Zeppeli and Speedwagon who sat across from you before trailing your gaze towards Jonathan.

"We've made it with some daylight to spare but if you're feeling off then we should stay on our toes." coming to the conclusion that if anything were to be waiting in the tunnel that you'd know, Zeppeli pursed his lips into a firm line. You may not have been able to use hamon properly but that didn't mean you lacked other skills.

The carriage gradually became darker the farther into the tunnel you'd gotten before inevitably coming to a halt.

"Cabman! Why did you stop?!" Calling that out and getting up from his seat Speedwagon swung open the carriage's door much to yours and Jonathan's warnings. "Oi, cabman!-" A shocked yell left the blond as he rounded the front of the carriage seeing that its horses were deceased, having been punctured by various blades while the other two were missing their heads.

Hopping out instantly right after the man yelled your eyes trailed across the scene before you, that anxious feeling you felt was still very much present leading you to place yourself closer to where Speedwagon stood. "Do you think Dio did this?"

"Step back from that horse." Ignoring your question Zeppeli spoke up, eyes fixated on one of the headless corpses still standing on its feet as the neck began to move, a head soon popped out and a man's grinning expression stared at the group.

"What the fuck is that." Being tugged back from where you stood the head turned once more before the full form of a man emerged from the horse's body, knife in hand.

"Jonathan! This guy's dangerous! He's cruel! He's crazier than Dio!" Keeping a hand on your shoulder while proclaiming that Speedwagon turned his attention briefly towards the navy haired man.

"Dio's already making terrible allies!"

Assessing the situation in his head Zeppeli cracked open the bottle of wine he held pouring it into the glass his other handheld, "Stand back, you three. I'll fight him." tucking the bottle beneath his arm he turned continuing to speak, "This must be a zombie. A man granted power and eternal life as long as he eats human flesh...But he's completely controlled by Dio. Nothing but a meat puppet."

Raising the blade in hand the man who'd been proclaimed a zombie began speaking, that large grin still ever present across his expression. "I'll drain the blood from your faces with sheer terror, then suck it from your bodies while it's still warm!" His knife was shoved through his face as if to emphasize what he'd been saying. "Taste despair, you vermin!"

Focusing on the enemy at hand your ears faintly picked up the conversation between Jonathan and Zeppeli, the latter of the two turning the fight into a learning lesson as mentioned before. "First: Always imagine where you would want to be if you were a foe!"

Pondering over the question yourself, you couldn't help but chime in. "The tunnel's exit. If I were a being sensitive to sunlight I wouldn't want my enemies to escape into it."

"Very good (Y/N)!" Pointing towards where you stood the man gave a nod in praise. "Precisely that." As soon as the words left his mouth the carriage was hauled up into the air and thrown towards the top curve of the tunnel's exit causing the bricks to fall apart sealing the four of you inside.

"Just as we predicted." Crossing his arms Zeppeli pursed his lips together waiting for the dust to settle, the enemy before you all seemed to have begun sprouting different bumps before each eventually broke open revealing blades similar to the one he jammed through his face.

"Blades are coming out of his body!" Pointing out the obvious Jonathan wore a look of surprise.

"That must be how he skewered the cabman and butchered four horses in the blink of an eye!" Standing behind Jonathan while coming to that conclusion Speedwagon's attention moved back towards Zeppeli watching the older man use his ability to cut up the thrown blades and begin fighting the zombie man.

"Speedwagon, are you feeling as useless as I am currently?" Tugging at the blond in question's coat he peered back towards where you stood, a look of agreement could easily be seen stretched out across his face.

"I wasn't going to say anything, but I agree with you there." Stepping back to stand beside you his eyes trailed from Jonathan to Zeppeli watching the two talk before coming to the realization of something. "Wait! He didn't spill a single drop!"

"JoJo. Finish him off. Obliterate his brain. It's the only way to kill a vampire." Addressing the navy haired man, the group's attention trailed towards where the enemy hung from the ceiling, one hand gripping the end of a lever.

"I'll kill you for this! I'll chop you up fine and eat you!" Dropping down from the ceiling he hopped up through a new opening in the wall, disappearing out of sight.

"He just opened a new door- that has to be a trap." Pointing that out you seemed to have stolen what Speedwagon was about to say, keeping your eyes focused among the hole.

"A trap or not we certainly can't turn down an invitation like that, can we? But JoJo will go alone." Filling the wine glass still in hand some more, it was passed off to the navy haired man. "Defeat him without spilling a drop of that wine and a third thing to remember in battle. There's a saying in Norway, far to the north. Boreas fathered the valorous Vikings. Spill a drop of that wine, and we're finished, even if you win!"

Right away Speedwagon went to argue with the man on what he was saying, accusing the dark haired man of losing his mind.

Seeing Jonathan staring into the glass you trailed over raising a hand to faintly pat his shoulder, "You can do it JoJo."

Those words were enough for him to gain a new sense of confidence, "Thank you (Y/N)." Pulling his gaze away from the glass they focused back on the bickering two. "I understand. Boreas fathered the Vikings..."No more was said from the navy haired man and instead he'd begun walking farther into the tunnel disappearing not too far in.

"It looks like it goes on forever." Trailing towards where the enemy and Jonathan had disappeared into, your eyes stared into the tunnel being met with nothing but a vast emptiness, hands resting along the side as if to see if there was anything along the edges.

"Like a labyrinth." Adding onto what you'd said Speedwagon peered into the long tunnel as well, his eyes failed much like your own to see the end. "We shouldn't stand too close to the entrance, there's no telling what could pop out." Adding that in the blond stepped back returning to where he stood beside Zeppeli.

"If you are worried about JoJo I can assure you that that man is a lot more capable than even I initially assumed." Speaking up from where he stood Zeppeli kept his arms crossed, his expression remained calm and lacked any sort of worry.

Pulling away from the opening you let out a hum, eyes still lingering on the tunnel before tugging away. Jonathan was a capable man- maybe not when it came to fashion- but definitely when it came to fighting for others.

◥✥◤

There's only like 5 more chapters for part 1 0-0