Ball of Nothing

Frightened was an understatement. The scrawny vampire was terrified when the three extremely powerful figures got closer to his location. Vampires didn't have beating hearts but if they did, his would have popped out of its ribcage and rolled in the floor in spasms.

He could hear their voices now. One belonged to an old man, one to a young man and one to a child. The vampire didn't know who was who, he only knew that his best option was to pretend to still be asleep. Whatever they had planned for him was definitely bad news. Slave owners were sometimes worse than slave traders, he didn't want to find out the truth.

Zero entered the room followed by Baal at his side and Lucifer behind. The vampire child was still asleep so the teen decided to perform a physical check-up before he awoke. Needless to say, Baal stuck close by, ready to restrain the vampire should he suddenly attack his friend. Lucifer hung around in the room, making himself comfortable on the chair. Zero did a marvellous job treating his blindness but the stabbing pain when he first regained his sight made the old demon curse the existence of light.

Under the strict orders of his doctor, Lucifer had to close his eyes for at least a day before he could try to use them again. The old demon wasn't too happy when Zero wrapped a loose bandage around his eyes for precaution. As the proud demon and ruler of Hell, Lucifer didn't appreciate being treated like a child. However, under Zero's insistence, he relented reluctantly. It would do well, for now, to get into the brunet's good books so that he could squeeze a favour or two at a later date. Unlike Baal, Lucifer didn't play the friendship game. Zero was just someone who came along that he found useful. Nobody would suspect a weak human as the spy. It was easier to lure the pack of wolves out of their den with a lone stray sheep than with a wounded dragon.

"Bell, could you get me a glass of water? He would need it when he wakes up."

The Demon Lord didn't seem to willing to move from Zero's side so he summoned his rat familiar to get it. "Is there anything else you might require?"

Zero inspected the 'sleeping' vampire and hummed. "Do you think you can ask Coux to find if there is some blood lying around somewhere? I bought a lot of things earlier, I'm sure we have some vials of blood from the auction house... They should have delivered the goods by now."

Baal sighed. "Zero, your vampire can drink normal blood. It could be blood from an animal or person. He doesn't need to drink the blood of a hydra or dragon or whatever you bought from the auction house. It's a waste."

The doctor-in-training scowled hard. "We don't have blood around and I'm not going to ask anyone to cut themselves to feed him! That's just rude."

Lucifer grinned. "Why don't you drain the sheep? I'm sure we will be more than willing to pardon his crimes if he donates... let's say about a barrel of blood."

Zero shot the ancient demon a withering glare. "He doesn't have a barrel to donate."

Lucifer shrugged. "I'm just throwing suggestions. Who knows... he might be able to produce a barrel of blood if you continuously heal and cut him open again."

Zero shuddered at the image. That sounded like it would hurt a lot. In fact, Zero was quite sure that fell under the torture category.

"Don't listen to him," Baal whispered and Lucifer frowned. It had been a very long time since his student went against him. While Baal wasn't the most obedient student he knew, the Demon Lord was smart enough to not outrightly oppose him. Mammon and Lilith would try to cover for Baal's misdeeds while they were still in the Academy but Lucifer was well aware of who the culprit was. After all, nobody else would nail flimsy planks together to create a makeshift bridge just to walk across the field of snapping lilies. Those who could fly would do so and the others would make a detour in order to get to their respective lecture halls. Baal would be the only person who would go through all the hassle to save ten minutes of his time every day. He wasn't tardy but Lucifer knew Baal had the tendency to procrastinate until the very last possible moment to get things done including waking up and getting to class. Since magic was prohibited on the campus, it didn't take a genius to figure out which audacious brat did it.

There were two things Lucifer couldn't tolerate. The first was disrespect and the second was being ignored. Baal had gone ahead to do both these things at once. Lucifer's killing intent caused the temperature in the room to plummet and Baal was on high alert at once. Killing intent radiated wave after wave and the castle shook. Baal was ready to pull everything he had to defend Zero from Lucifer's wrath. On the bed, the child of Roth shivered. He might not have the opportunity to meet a Demon Lord before but he knew better than to doubt the rumours. Once a Demon Lord loses his rationality and gives in to his emotions, there will be carnage. Nobody would live to tell the tale after tonight and the vampire child sobbed silently. He couldn't avenge his family, he couldn't escape his fate. There was absolutely nothing he could do and he hated the fact that he was born to this cruel life.

Before Lucifer and Baal could begin, Zero stepped up and pointed a finger at the ancient demon.

"Bad Luci! Stop scaring the poor child and take your fights somewhere else. My patient needs his rest!"

With that, Zero shoved both his friend and troublemaking patient out of the room before slamming the door shut in their faces.

"Did he just..." Baal asked in disbelief. Lucifer's rage had dissipated with Zero's outburst and was stunned. Never in his life had he been scolded with such a tone.

"Does he do this very often?" Lucifer asked dryly. It was hard to believe that despite his best efforts to remain neutral, the young doctor was worming his way into his non-existent heart. Ordinarily, he should be angry. No, scratch that. Ordinarily, he would be furious and the only thing to do was to chew off the heads of people who disrespected him then paint the town red so the whole world knew about it. Unfortunately, logic failed him whenever the teenager was involved.

Baal confirmed his suspicions with a nod. "Zero sometimes has the mother-hen tendency whenever his patients are involved. There isn't a way to tell him that he was meddling in other people's affairs. His concerns can be rather stifling at times and the term 'personal space' doesn't exist in his dictionary. The brat is constantly making others worry for him as he's known to save others at the expense of his safety and happiness. Zero's just one of a kind."

Lucifer agreed whole-heartedly with that last statement. One of a kind indeed. While the concern was endearing, Zero can sometimes drive people crazy and rub them the wrong way... Or so he liked to believe.

"I'm surprised I don't have the urge to tear him limb from limb after he blatantly yelled at me, scolded me, used a degrading nickname and threw me out. The world must be ending..."

Baal sighed. "It very well might be. I have no idea why I continue to put up with him..."

Lucifer chuckled. "Good luck, you'll need it. I'm not going to involve myself in the childish game of friendship. Enjoy your youth while you still can and tell him that I'm leaving for today. I'll be back after the trial to discuss his enrollment in my academy for a job."

Baal scowled as his ex-teacher ruffled his hair and patted his head. If there was one thing more annoying about Lucifer than his narcissism, it would be how the ancient demon constantly treated Baal like a child. It didn't matter how powerful Baal had grown or how many centuries had gone by, the ancient demon would still treat him like one. Well, it wasn't as if Baal could blame him. He was in a child's body after all. Perhaps it was time to upgrade like Zero... Nah, who was he kidding? That was way too much work.

With a yawn, the Demon Lord turned and snuck back to his room careful not to get caught by his secretary. He was going to take a well-deserved nap after spending the whole day cooped in the study room with documents.

***

"You can stop pretending to be asleep now. Drink this glass of water, we can talk later. I'm sure you have a lot of questions but do not worry, I will treat everything you tell me with doctor-patient confidentiality."

The vampire allowed his eyes to open with a heavy sigh. He'd hoped to fool the young self-proclaimed doctor for a little longer but it was useless. With the two Demon Lords out of the room, it became slightly easier to breathe. Unlike them, this teenager had the aura of someone who wouldn't hurt a fly despite being stronger than both Demon Lords in terms of mana capacity. It was very comforting and for some reason and the vampire briefly entertained the thought about trusting him.

He sniffed at the drink before downing the contents in one gulp. Zero didn't rush him or speak until he deemed the vampire ready. Lucifer's words over dinner and the subtle warning remained at the back of Zero's mind. He observed carefully for signs that he might be too hasty in approaching the vampire. He didn't want to frighten the already shaken vampire so he waited until the vampire calmed down.

For the first few minutes after accepting the drink, the child of Roth glared at Zero. His body was wound tightly like a coil, ready to strike if Zero got too close or tried anything funny. Zero didn't move from his spot and met his glare with an accepting gaze. As time dragged on, the vampire found himself relaxing a little but was still on guard. There were many questions in his mind but the predominant one was still about the teen's motive.

"Who are you and why did you buy me?" he growled lowly.

Zero smiled warmly. If the vampire was willing to talk to him, it must be a sign that he was gaining his trust.

"I'm Zero! I'm not a doctor yet but I will soon be. Currently, my teacher is out so you'll have to put up with me. I might not have learnt about acupuncture or surgery but I can make medicine and heal simpler things with healing magic."

The vampire deadpanned. Whatever acupuncture was, he didn't want to know. However, hearing Zero's confident claims didn't make him feel any better. The teen wasn't a real doctor and that was all he needed to know.

"Why did you buy me? You haven't answered my question."

Judging from the boy's airheaded response, the vampire couldn't say that he was very optimistic. While Zero didn't look like the kind of doctor who would buy slaves and experiment on them, he was sure he would end up as one of Zero's trials for something. The worst road to Hell was always paved with good intentions.

Zero blinked at the question and tilted his head to the side. The vampire wondered how someone who looked so much older than him can still look so adorable. That logic was faulty and the vampire wanted to return to sleep. All this thinking was making his head hurt.

Zero chuckled as if reading his thoughts. "Did you think that I was going to abandon you in that awful place? I saw how they treated you and I didn't like it. Everybody deserves to be treated with care and given second chances to learn. Count Carrabas aside because that man has enough chances but choose not to learn."

The vampire didn't comment about it but the raised eyebrow told Zero that he didn't buy it. Zero shrugged it away. Instead, he asked if the vampire wanted another glass of water.

The vampire child didn't respond immediately. He didn't know if he should trust his instincts and let the teenage doctor-in-training take care of him or try to find a way to escape. Based on experience, it was better for him to run away. Therein lies the next problem. Behind the teenage doctor was two Demon Lords who could rip his spine out without effort. His hopes deflated at the thought of it instantly.

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Zero went to get it and the vampire took this opportunity to look around for an object that he could hide under the pillow. He needed a weapon for who knows what reason. Truth be told, it was more for assurance. As a warrior vampire, he didn't really need a weapon to fight. In fact, he excelled at close-quarter combat.

Zero was glad to see Amaraline at the door. She was carrying a tray and Zero wondered what the dish was beside the extra large glass of water. It looked very red and smelled raw. Zero was almost certain he saw that thing move when he heard a noise behind him.

The vampire child lunged forward at the smell of blood and Zero barely had time to push Amaraline away before the starved warrior grabbed at the chunk of meat and devoured it in two bites. His eyes glowed red and his fangs elongated, dripping with what Zero knew to be blood. Zero couldn't help but wonder if there was any other food the vampire could eat. The glass of water was now shattered on the ground and Zero told the startled fortune-teller to get another glass and some other food for the vampire.

It took a long time before Zero could approach the child. Initially, the starving warrior looked at Zero calculatingly as if trying to determine if Zero was food or not. Eventually, his instincts dismissed the thought and he returned to normal.

"Are you alright? Is there anything that you can't eat? I'll ask Coux to whip something up really quickly."

The vampire blinked. "I can't eat cooked food."

Zero blinked. "Raw vegetables and meat are fine?"

The vampire made a face. "Only animals that walk or fly and the barks of trees."

Zero didn't question the strange diet and contacted Coux via telepathy. The secretary got to work at once and Zero smiled. Now that food has been settled, there was one more thing he wanted to know before treating the wounds.

"What is your name?"

At the question, the vampire snorted. "We do not tell our names to outsiders."

"Why not? What should I call you then?"

The vampire rolled his eyes. "You can decide that for yourself. I'm not foolish enough to give you my name. I won't let you use that to control me."

Zero was stunned. "I wasn't going to do that!"

"You will. It's not a choice. In my tribe, only our parents and lovers get to know our true name. Nobody else can know it. Names are powerful in my clan. If you give someone your name, you give them your life."

After hearing the vampire's explanation, Zero backed off the topic. "I understand. In that case, can I call you Ruth?"

The child of Roth blinked. "Why Ruth?"

Zero only smiled. "Because I hope that we could be friends one day. Let's get some food in you before I start the treatment. Those are some really horrible wounds. If we do not treat them soon, it might get infected."

Ruth stared at Zero as if the teen had grown a second head. Only the weak died from wounds. Vampires were undead, they do not fall ill.

"There is no need for that. The wounds will heal themselves once I regain my power. I'm a vampire, not a human."

Zero frowned. "Don't be stubborn and let me help..."

Ruth felt irritated. Although genuinely nice, the brunet was getting on his nerves. "I said I don't need help."

The words were so cold that Zero flinched at the rejection. Dejected, he left the room but not without casting looks of concern.

Ruth heaved a sigh of relief the moment Zero shut the door. He pulled out the candleholder he was hiding under the pillow and wondered if he should wait a little longer before planning his escape. If what Zero said was true, he could use this opportunity to recover his strength before escaping. As it is right now, the vampire didn't stand a chance. With two Demon Lords and one overly powered weird doctor in the house, Ruth would be killed the moment he attempted anything. Luckily, Zero was quite the airhead.

The vampire smirked. It would be easy to gain the brunet's trust before making his escape. Yes, that was what he would do.