Submitted by Soulless Zombie on Wed, 03/20/2002 - 22:58
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Season One will run from Febuary 6th to June 6th.
Due to a upgrade gone wrong all data was lost an thus all post have had to be re-posted so here they are...
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Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Sorrow
Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2002 11:16 am
As Sorrow stood looking out of a floor to ceiling window in Jenn's apartment he pondered what he would do next. He had an appointment with a Project Manager. Current events meant he would be unable to spend time overseeing the rest of the work that the apartment would require. Instead he would need to research both the Cloch Cosan and the Brotherhood.
The Cloch Cosan was the immediate problem, he knew, but it was the Brotherhood he wished to research more. Regrettably he knew his resources in that area would be slim. He doubted any Hunter in the Society's five hundred year history had even got near a Vampire Elder and if they had he would be suprised if they had managed to do anything other than die a particularly painful death.
If an Elder died it was by the Slayer's hand or perhaps internal politics, no mere Hunter would even come close. *You are no mere Hunter, Sorrow. You are D'Nethk'Quan.* His hate would never override his sense of self preservation like this, after all if he died he couldn't kill vampires. But for Jade he would attempt the impossible.
Behind him his laptop beeped. The search he had been running was complete, but since the Cloch Cosan wasn't a creature to be hunted down and killed there was remarkably little actually in the database. There was an incident in Paris in the early 80's attributed to the objects and further back Tunguska was another possibility, but his data was third or fourth hand - barely more reliable than rumours. Even the number of stones varied in the accounts he had. *Well I can at least clear that up for them.*
A couple of e-mails he had sent to the more research-orientated individuals had turned up slightly more data, a couple of texts that held more meaningful info plus a description of the crystals and their powers, but really Sorrow was working as blind as he ever had. At least he knew the name of the crystal he held now and that explained Jade's reaction to it. As for their destruction that was supposedly impossible. The stones would violently resist any attempt, but Sorrow thought he saw a way around that. He just didn't quite trust it.
As for the brotherhood, he was right. There were three accounts of possible sightings of Elders. In two of them the hunters had never been heard of again. The third had been an actual attempt on The Master's unlife. It had resulted in two Hunters being turned and a bloodbath in the Society's ranks that took three decades to recover from. Sorrow had tripped a couple of flags with the query regarding The Brotherhood.
He was soon explaining to the council that there was potentially an Elder in the L.A. area and as a result he recommended the area off limits for the foreseeable future. He attributed the presence of an Elder in L.A. to a gathering of the Cloch Cosan since he had no desire to give them the real reason. He knew half a dozen vamp hunters who would consider Jade sufficiently tainted to destroy and he had no desire to have to protect her against an Elder and a group of Vamp Hunters simultaneously. *Of course it might not be Jade who needs protecting.* He would have to go to other sources to find anything on the Brotherhood. Unfortunately, he had cultivated few contacts outside of the Society. So he would be reduced to hunting for a few obscure volumes in the arcane book stores of L.A.
The buzz of the intercom interrupted his thoughts. The camera showed a smartly dressed woman in a business suit. Sorrow buzzed her in and went to wait by the lift. The meeting went well. If she was surprised at just how much Sorrow was willing to spend to meet his rather short timescale she didn't show it. But then this was L.A. - extravagance was the name of the game. He spent two hours with her going over the apartment, detailing his requirements. He explained he would have little time to spare to deal with any details so she would have almost total control. All he required were regular updates and completion to time and budget. After organising a second meeting in a week's time to go over the suppliers and to finalise his specifications, she left.
Sorrow returned to his laptop. He had one last set of searches to run. Jade was a complete cipher to the society for which he was grateful. As for Victor, again he had little to go on. He was a demon of some description and was usually protected by powerful glamours. His actions had been ambiguous when the society had noticed him, though he had survived at least three separate hunts against him. Sorrow decided to put him down as an ally and resolved to watch him carefully.
It was Tash that surprised him the most. She had quite a record, a vamp hunter of considerable skill. It was unusual for her not to have received an invitation to join. It was her long-time partner that had caused that, though. The Society had researched his background only to find he didn't exist. That led them to the truth. They were wary of the fae. The sidhe rarely acted except for their own amusement and loyalty was a quality they only occasionally displayed. Indeed, it was astonishing that Tash and Matthias had worked together for so long. What her file did not explain was the level of hostility she displayed towards Sorrow. The few times she had come across hunters from the Society she had been cold and somewhat untrusting but not to the degree Sorrow had received. He decided the D'Nethk'Quan had spooked her. The effects on his aura could be extreme, especially when his reserves were low.
Having found out as much as he could about his allies he decided to move his search to the list of bookstores. He would start with Bibliophile. It was close to XY which meant he could drop in on Jade aftewards...
A friend in need...
Victor
Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2002 1:29 pm
Post subject: A friend in need...
The young man who worked the counter at Bibliophile came over to Daye at the table. He quietly informed her that she had a phone call. * Who could be calling me? * she thought.
She walked back to the office and picked up the phone. "Hello?" she answered.
"Daye? Its Victor. I seem to have a bit of a problem. I need to contact one of my...our...allies and I need someone who can use a computer to do it. I find myself in the embarrassing position of not knowing how to use one."
Daye chuckled. She knew that supernatural creatures were often technically illiterate, but it never ceased to amaze her how silly it seemed. "What do you need done?" she asked.
"There is a...being...named Zayn. She left me an email address. I need to send her a message. Her address is vex@alliance.net and the message..." he paused.
There was a short silence, "Daye, we are working with you, not the Council. I hope you will respect that."
Daye was a little hurt. She was willing to trust this demon, and still it seemed that he would not fully trust her. Either he had been badly betrayed before, or this was some sort of test. "It's okay, Victor. You can trust me."
That seemed to satisfy him, "The message is: We need your magical knowedge and ability. We are in the penthouse of the Bultmann Towers. Please come as quickly as possible. "
Daye faithfully wrote down the email address and message. She wondered slightly about the urgency of the message. * Who is this Zayn, and what does she know that is so important? *
Daye shook her head. * Curiosity will get you in trouble. Victor asked that this message be confidential. You are very used to keeping secrets. But as long as you are doing him a favor, you can snoop a little. No harm in that. *
She went back to her place and quickly sent the message. While she was online, she located the Bultmann Towers, and determined that whoever was renting the penthouse had only been there for two days.
A few more minutes digging had her browsing www.alliance.net. It was an ISP in Michigan. She poked around a little, and couldn't find any information on 'VEX', so she dropped it. *For now * she mused.
Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Victor
Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2002 2:11 pm
Victor set down the phone after calling Daye. They had nothing to do but wait to see if something would come of the message to Zayn. Victor wasn't even sure if it would work.
Over the next hour, Victor and Matthias played with the laptop a few seconds each, frustrating themselves and accomplishing nothing. Tempest lay on the bed, and occasionally Matthias tended his wounds, using his special talents to minimize the damage. None of them really spoke to each other. A phone broke the silence making them all jump. Tempest nodded to Victor to pick it up.
The voice on the other end said, "Mr. Tempest has a visitor. She says her name is Zayn. Should I let her up?" Victor was quick to answer "Please do!" and as he hung up the phone, he informed the other two that she was on her way. "Looks like we might be able to get a few of your memories back right away"
"Sounds good... Just hope she knows what she's doing.” *My memories are screwed up enough as it is.* He thought.
Matthias was somber, "She is your best hope. Then we can make arrangements to get you and the other shards together and restore everything."
"If it works." Tempest stood, walked over to the door and opened it.
Zayn adjusted her dark sunglasses and walked through the open door, not bothering to knock. Upon entering she observed the three men, or what appeared to be men. She still thought that all Battle Fiends looked alike. "You rang?" She spoke as she entered.
Matthias answered, "It was my idea to contact you, Zayn. Tempest's memories are trapped in the shards. I think that a "Resonance" incantation can restore them. I believe you have the power to do it, but it takes two to do it properly."
Zayn looked at the man sitting in front of a lap top. "You presume much, Matthias. What makes you think that I am able to perform such an elevated task."
Matthias was taken aback, "You do know I have the sight of the Fae. I know what you have in you, even if I do not understand it. I would not have suggested it if I didn't think that you were used to handling such forces. But yes, I don't know for sure. I was...hoping that you could." Victor was not happy, "You had me contact her on a hunch! Are you crazy?"
“Someone close the damn door... and who is this Victor?" Tempest sat down on the couch and leaned back
"Tempest, allow me to introduce Zayn," he said, "She has power, she has answers, and she is on our side." * For the most part * he thought *She has her own agenda * * Don't we all * * Shut up! *
"She doesn't look all that powerful but whatever. Can you help or not Zayn?" *Or am I wasting my time again.*
On our side. Those three words resonated in Zayn's head. She had never considered herself on anyone's side but her own, before. On our side. If that 'side' is to ensure survival... then yeah, I guess I am on someone's side. This was an idea that would take some getting used to. Zayn turned back to Matthias. "Is he willing?"
Matthias answered, "He knows the danger."
"But if you fuck this up just hope you kill me..." *Or things might get messy.*
One side of Zayn's lips curled up in a crooked smile. Tempest was right. If this didn't work, death would be a relief. "Tempest, you say that you are willing, but words are not enough. You must want this completely. Be open to it completely. Mind, body and soul." She paused for a moment to let her words sink in. "I will ask you again. Are you willing?"
While they al waited for Tempest to answer, Matthias began pulling things out of his jacket pocket. When he pulled out the quart jar of silvery dust, Victor had to do a double take. *How does he get all that SHIT in his pockets? * He wondered.
"Of course im willing... what do you think I've been looking for the last twenty sever years of my life.” Tempest almost growled.
Matthias began placing candles around the room. He carefully measured the distances between them with a piece of string and adjusted them precisely. He handed the jar of powder to Zayn, and winked at her. He seemed to be enjoying himself. He was lively as he moved chairs from the center of the room and cleared a large area.
Zayn rolled her eyes at Matthias, but had trouble keeping a smile from cracking her face. What is it about fairies and their pixie dust? “Tempest, if you would, please remove your shirt and step into the middle of the cleared area."
Victor was intrigued, "What should I do?" Matthias pointed to a chair in a corner, "Sit down and be quiet"
"What that I need to do?"
Zayn sighed, she hated repeating herself. "You... shirt off... middle of clearing. Got it?" As he did so, Zayn began to sprinkle silver dust on the floor, completing a circle around the subject.
Tempest removed his shirt flinching as It pulled on the bandages and entered the circle or candles... *God I hate magic* he though as he sat down in the center.
Matthias sat on the edge of the circle. "Pyre!" he invoked, and the candles all leapt to life.
Zayn sat tangent from Matthias. The three formed a triangle intersecting the silver circle. She pulled her legs in, forming the Lotus position. The Yoga posture was not necessary for the "spell", but it was a comfortable position for Zayn, allowing her to concentrate on the flows around her. Five forces swirled around her. Air, Water, Fire, Earth and Spirit. It would take all five of these energies, woven together to reach Tempest's captive memories.
Matthias spoke to Tempest, "Place the Shard on the circle in the third position. You will know when it is in the right place. It will vibrate slightly." Matthias started to hum. It was a low resonant tone from deep within him.
Tempest reached brought forth the crystal slowly moving it about until he found the spot where it rumbled slightly. He placed the crystal there and it floated a few inches above the floor.
Concentrating more now, Zayn observed the energy swirling about that shard. To free the matrix of Tempest's memories, his energy pattern must match that of the shard. First air. Zayn pulled a thread of air from the universal energy. She added earth next, twining the two together. A thick thread of water and a trickle of fire completed the mix, save one element... Spirit. Of all the energies to control, Spirit was the most difficult and most crucial. Zayn glanced over at Matthias, who continued to hum, to see if he was ready for the next step. At this point, timing was everything.
Matthias had been holding a steady tone. He could feel the elements weaving around them, even if he could not directly see them. He gathered his energies together. He waited for the final element to be added, knowing that it was his energy that would bind the crystal and Tempest together. He was sure it wouldn't be pleasant. But if nothing else, it would free Tempest from the Shard's prison. That was worth doing.
Gently, Zayn wove a thread of spirit into the pattern. Tempests body stiffened. It was not enough. What seemed like a protective veil was draped over source of Tempest's memories. Zayn added more Spirit. Beads of sweat began to roll down her face. Directing this may flows at one time was taking its toll on her calm. Still more spirit was needed. Tempest began to quiver; a natural reaction to this kind of "spell."
Matthias sensed trouble. He should have begun vibrating with Tempest, but it had not happened yet. He knew the elements, and braced himself. * This will hurt * he thought as he released part of his spirit into the weave. His body to began to shake , and the crystal emitted a high tone. Tempest was gritting his teeth even as they chattered with the vibrations.
Suddenly, Zayn felt a rush of energy added to the weave. With Matthias' Spirit, the veil collapsed and the shard began to glow.
Tempest was growling with pain and finally broke into a shout as the circle blew away with the released energies. He collapsed, and the shard dropped to the floor. Matthias leaned forward and was making gagging sounds.
Zayn released the breath she didn't know she was holding and slumped forward. She could see the remnants of the weave she and Matthias had created as it began to dissolve. Tempest lay with is back on the floor, and eyes closed. The weave had left him in a deep sleep, on the brink of unconsciousness. He will need the rest.
Victor sat in the corner and observed. He heard Matthias hum, he watched Zayn gesture in the air. He heard the crystal sing, and then it was all over. Victor shook his head. * All that for magic. * It was times like this he was glad he couldn't use magic at all. He walked over to the group on the floor, "We done then? Did it work?"
Zayn looked over to Matthias who was still leaning forward on his hands and knees. He acknowledged her with a simple nod. "The procedure is complete. We will only know if it has worked when Tempest wakes up."
Matthias crawled across the floor and climbed into one of the plush chairs. His face was pale, and even Victor would see his glamour was not holding up. Victor picked up Tempest and carried him to the bed. * All that is left is the wait. I had better call and see if Tash is back. It's getting late * Victor went back and picked up the crystal. *It would be nothing to leave with it now* * Not nothing to him. Do you want to jeopardize what you have built here? * * No. And stop making sense, it confuses me * He laid the crystal on the bedside table, and went back out into the living room. Matthias was sipping a glass of water. "Are you two going to be okay?" asked Victor.
Matthias, smiled a weak smile. "Yes, I will be fine, given a bit of time. Using forces of that magnitude is very draining. Yes it is." Zayn added, wiping the sweat from her brow and rolling the tension out of her neck. "We should all rest now. There will be more to come. I presume that this process will be repeated for the rest of the shards."
"I am probably the worst person to answer this. But yes," said Victor, "but if we can do all of ours at once, it will minimize the risk of losing them to Kain if he decides to cause trouble."
"Do we have the talent at our disposal to do that, though?"
"Using more than one shard at a time is very risky. It will take more than energy than what Matthias an I can control alone.“ Zayn paused, rolling a word around in her head. "Help... will be needed." Help, why is that such a difficult word to swallow?
Matthias spoke, "There are others that can help. But the effort will leave us vulnerable. It will take you, Victor, and Tash, and Sorrow to defend us while we recover. Is that worth the risk?" Victor's mouth frowned. *No it isn't, * he thought. * It is worth it to him. * *Damn soul. * "Tempest needs his memories back. Without him, we may not have a chance against Kain. He and I both will have to face him...and soon."
It was true. Tempest had an integral roll to play in this production. His memories held a piece of the puzzle; a puzzle that would insure survival. So, was it worth the risk? "Yes."
Victor, Phone home....
Victor
Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2002 2:56 pm
Post subject: Victor, Phone home....
Victor listened to the ringing tone on the other end of the phone for the third time. Ten rings, and still no answer. * Tash, where are you? * he thought.
A glance at the clock told Victor it was very late, and he was beginning to worry. He looked around the elaborately decorated penthouse and marveled at how peaceful it seemed. Tempest resting quietly in his room, Zayn in the spare bedroom, Matthias lying in meditation on the couch. Victor felt like the "the guest that wouldn't leave."
He didn't need to sleep, and was vigilant in case someone tried to enter while everyone was so drained, but still... It was lonely and too quiet. Victor picked up the remote control and pointed it at the set. He punched a few buttons but nothing happened. * Shit, this is pointless. Is that all you can think of - television? *
He quietly opened Tempest's door and looked at the black Shard shining in the sliver of light from the crack in the door. *It would be so easy...*
Matthias' voice caught him by surprise, "Remember your promise. If not the one you made to yourself, then the one you made to Tash."
Victor pulled the door shut and cursed his evil nature. "Why do you have to be so damned aware, Matthias?"
Matthias sat up on the couch, "Because, Victor, I feel the same temptaion you do. Different reasons, perhaps, but it isn't important why I want to take it. I do."
Victor wandered over to the lounge and sat in the plush chair. "Matthias, I have been meaning to ask you about the Fae. What is their interest in the Cloch Cosan? Why do they oppose it and why haven't they managed to stop it in all these millennia?"
Matthias stared into the vacant apartment. His mind wandered far away to the dawn of time as he told the tale of the Cloch Cosan and the Lords of the Fae...
--------------
In the beginning there were the Sidhe. They roamed the land in numbers that would rival humans. They could wander in the dreamtime and lived beneath the barrows and in the woods like humans live in cities.
Then the humans came in greater numbers, and they envied us our magic. We could change ourselves at will, we could fly and move among the greens like wind. But they were not content to be our friends. For us to befriend a human is torture. They burn too brightly and so burn away too quickly.
So we taught a few of them magic. We thought that the humans with magic could live as we do, one with nature. Part of the dreamtime. But it didn't happen. Magic is natural to us like a limb or hand. We use it without thinking. To humans, it is something to be bent to their wil. It is tool like the cursed iron, to be forged into a weapon.
A wizard, ancient by human standards, but just reaching the age of maturity for us, crafted the Cloch Cosan. He made it from crystals he gathered trading with the underworld creatures...demons like you, and others. These crystals were not of the world, they are unnatural.
With them he created a portal to reach the dreamtime. He wanted to visit other worlds and be like us, unfettered and free. But in order to do that, he had to force those unnatural things to obey. He had to will them to cooperate. He made them aware.
He reached the dreamtime. He visited the planes and forgot the doorway for a long time. But the doorway did not forget. It called to the humans that found it. They entered and committed unspeakable evils among the innocent Sidhe. The humans nearly destroyed us all.
We closed the doorway. We retreated from the world, surrendered it to the humans. And now the few surviving Sidhe and even the rare new ones like myself have little reason to trust humans. The Cloch Cosan is a doorway to our realms...or it can be. And we are not going to leave our door unlocked ever again.
------------------
Victor listened to Matthias' tale and was reminded of the Transport rings from his home dimension. Each one guarded by the Monitors and armies of Battle Fiends. They could carry vast armies in the blink of an eye between the dimensions. Victor shuddered, to have humanity running about unchecked among the multiverse would be catastrophic.
If this was the only way out of this dimension (for Victor knew there were countless ways into it) then it was imperative that the Cloch Cosan be prevented. If not for this dimension's sake than for the countless others that would be endangered by the Nether Arch created.
Mathias could see the feelings playing across Victor's face. *For all the sophistication of his disguise, it hides nothing of importance, * he thought to himself.
"You know, of course that no matter who collects all the Shards, that there is no way I will allow them to be bound," said Matthias.
Victor answered in a slow deliberate voice, counting off his points on his fingers, "They cannot be sundered unless they are bound. They cannot be destroyed. They cannot be controlled. What choice do we have?"
Matthias shrugged in his annoying way, "There are always choices, Victor. They just aren't always obvious."
A stranger comes to town.
Daye
Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2002 5:34 pm
Post subject: A stranger comes to town.
Mrs. Wyldling glanced up when the bell above the door chimed. It was late and she had been about to lock that door. Now, however, it seemed she had a late customer. The man approaching the counter was young and attractive. He had golden skin and dark, wavy hair. His eyes were an unusual color that seemed to shift in the light from blue to silver and back. The man stopped just at the counter, leveling that odd gaze on her. It was then that Mrs. Wyldling noticed the scar. The man’s face was quite beautiful, with high cheekbones and a full mouth. It was marred, however, by the ugly, jagged scar that ran from the corner of his left eye down the side of his face to his neck and then disappeared under his collar.
“Can I help you sir?” Mrs. Wyldling asked.
The man stared at her intently for another moment. “Actually, you might be able to,” he said. “I was wondering about a young woman who was in your shop earlier.”
Mrs. Wyldling felt her eyes go wide when the man spoke. His voice was terrifying and enchanting at the same time, like wind through a dark forest. With sudden clarity, she realized that the man was not what he appeared to be. And who he was looking for.
“I don’t know where she is staying,” the woman lied. “She just comes in for information sometimes.”
Mrs. Wyldling felt herself begin to tremble when the man smiled, the look drawing her attention once again to the hideous scar on his face. “Mrs. Wyldling,” the man said in a deadly whisper, “I know about your connections to the council and I know that you are lying to me. No matter, though. You will do as I desire and help me find the little sunflower.”
Mrs. Wyldling felt the man stirring in her head, but was powerless to fight him. She was frozen in place as the being before her dissected her thoughts, picking out the whereabouts of Daye and her task in the town. He was privy to everything she knew and was soon chuckling malevolently as he withdrew from her mind.
“You will not be able to tell her I was here,” the man said. He was stroking the scar on his face, white hot anger burning in his odd eyes. “I will be coming back to check up on her too. Just wait for me, my pet. And remember, you cannot fight the Night Walker.”
The man turned from Mrs. Wyldling and walked out of the shop. For a few minutes she stared after him in a horrified stupor, but suddenly she shook her head as if to clear it.
“What was I doing?” the woman asked herself. She looked around the room for a minute, feeling a little strange, and finding nothing out of the ordinary, closed up the shop.
Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Stalker
Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2002 11:48 pm
Stalker spent a restless day inside his lair. The dog had turned out to be a good idea. It kept trying to attack him and he thought it funny to watch the dog go flying across the room and into the wall each time it attacked. The dog obviously wasn't very smart but learnt after about the tenth time that this was his new master and he'd better obey.
*Don't torture the damn dog. Kill it.*
*Hey don't tell me what to do, actually, I think I'm gonna keep him.*
*Oh come on, think about it. What are you gonna feed him?*
*Hey, there's plenty for him to eat. I kill people every day.*
Just then a rat ran across the floor. "Get him, Kerberos."
The dog looked up confused, then realising what he meant ran and caught the rat. The dog stood there with the rat under his paw looking back and forth from the rat to his master, unsure of what to do next. "KILL!" Stalker yelled. The dog knew this command and instantly tore into the rat.
*See, he's learning already.*
*Nice name by the way.*
*Shut up.*
*** Later that night ***
Stalker wandered the streets. *Maybe I should go to Bob's,* he thought.
He grabbed a man as he and his family passed Stalker. He snapped the man's neck for no apparent reason and let the man fall to the ground. It amused him how the children cried and their mother screamed loudly, trying to get her dead husband to respond. Stalker grabbed the woman by the blouse and lifted her up from her dead husband. He slapped her hard to make her stop screaming.
He spoke, "Don't worry I won't kill you yet. I have places to go. BUT I WILL find you and your children and kill you all slowly." He paused for dramatic effect. "Very slowly. You will watch your children suffer, you will see them beg for me to stop the pain.. and you will be able to do nothing," Stalker growled.
The woman started screaming again, her arms flailing about trying somehow to injure Stalker, to make him put her down. Stalker threw her like a rag doll against the wall, her two children rushing over to her aid.
*Humans are so pathetic.*
*Please stop.*
*Shut up, I'm finished now anyhow, but I think Kerberos may be hungry.*
*Don't do it, please.*
Stalker let out a sharp whistle. Kerberos came running around the corner out of an alleyway. Stalker pointed to the dead man. "Kerberos! EAT!" Kerberos looked confused. He bit the dead man and then looked up to his master to see if he'd done correctly.
"No, don't bite him. EAT him!" The woman and her children looked on, scared, stunned and shocked. Kerberos looked back to the dead man again and bit the man's arm and shook it a little. He again looked to his master.
"No! No! No!" Stalker impatiantly walked over and kicked the dog. He grabbed the dead man and tore his arm off. He threw it to the dog. "NOW EAT!"
The dog finally understood and sat down and started chewing on the arm, taking large chunks and swallowing. "Good dog! C'mon, we're leaving." Stalker and Kerberos walked of down the street, Stalker laughing to himself and Kerberos struggling with the arm he was carrying.
*Hmm, I think it's about time I went to the hospital. I'm thirsty.*
*The hospital?*
*Maternity ward, perhaps.*
*You bastard...*
Trapped
Zayn
Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2002 3:33 am
Post subject: Trapped
Zayn stood silently, staring out the window. All was still, except for her thoughts. While the guest room was quite large, she felt trapped. Trapped by this building and trapped in her own skin. She wanted nothing more than to release her three-dimensional form and float away, but she couldn’t. This penthouse was neither familiar to her nor a mystical hotspot.
*What am I doing here?* The question rolled around in her thoughts. Zayn’Jae Vex had not been a part of something since she was with the Powers That Be, and she was not sure that she wanted to be. *I need my space.* She tried rationalizing. It was true, Zayn did need her space, but logically she knew that this gathering of beings, witches, demons, and humans, must accomplish the task at hand. Survival depended on it, and death was not an option for Zayn, she still had much to do, and more than a life time to complete it. Since the time she was cast out, trust was not something that Zayn approached lightly. She could count the number of beings she trusted on one hand, none of which she trusted completely. She was quite aware of the battling emotions and motives within this group, and wondered. Could she trust them?
The walls of the room seemed to draw in on her. Zayn became antsy and needed to get out of this room, even if she couldn’t get out of her body. As she stepped out of the guest room, two pairs of eyes settled on her. One pair was calm and collected. Matthias. The other was wary and untrusting. Victor. Zayn adjusted her Ray Bans and the three stared at each other. The energy in the room was electric. A crooked grin decorated her face. She loved the feel of it. The energy crackling around her took her mind off of the congested space surrounding her. *Much better than feeling trapped in that room.*
“How is the patient?” She asked noncommittally.
Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Tempest
Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2002 3:52 pm
Tempest’s mind slipped away as his back hit the floor and his eyes closed. He seemed to drift into an endless sea of darkness. Then his body went numb, or so it felt. As he looked around into the darkness surrounding him two red dots slowly neared him, and it was as it always was with his dreams. The eyes sparked like flames and the voice came.
“What you seek is now within your grasp...” The voice seemed to mock him with its sterile laugh.
“My memories?” Tempest questioned.
“Yes, but is that which you truly seek contained within them?” The eyes flared and the voice boomed.
The eyes faded away, leaving only cold laughter in their wake. As they disappeared in the darkness a light flashed and Tempest was blinded. Then suddenly he was back in his family's home...
Tempest was kneeling at his grandfather's bed as he entered the last moments of his life. They both knew he would soon be dead. His grandfather motioned to him. He knelt forward and his grandfather whispered a few words to him. He then motioned to the sword laying on the chest at the end of the bed. Tempest stood and took it from the table and leaned it against the wall near the door. He then went back to the bed and as he took his grandfather's hand he felt his final breath pass out of his body. Tempest laid his hands across his chest and covered him in a think white sheet. The burial party would be there soon. He could not bear to watch the only family he had left be put into the earth.
Again a flash of light. He was kneeling in the woods behind his house. His sword was in front of him in the ground. He was crying, holding the hilt of the sword. He looked around at where he had practised his swordsmanship as a youth. Now it seemed darker, less of a haven. He knew it was time for him to leave... to learn more about the world in which he lived.
The light flashed yet again and Tempest was walking with a tall strange looking man, they were chatting quietly. They continued chatting as they approached a large estate, when they reached the doors they were opened at a word by the man walking by Tempest. A few minutes later they reached the top floor and entered a room guarded by two large twisted Demonic creatures. They approached a desk. The man opened a large case revealing two sparkling crystals, one Red one Black...
A few more memories returned and then the darkness faded... Tempest's eyes opened and he looked about. The crystal was there on the side table. Tempest stood up and dressed then entered the hallway.
Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Stalker
Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2002 11:17 pm
***Close to sunrise***
As Stalker entered the hospital an old man near the entrance stared and then started screaming, "Get out of here! Your type isn't allowed here! Get out you fiend, GET OUT!!!" Then the man passed out from exhaustion.
*Crazy old loon.*
*He isn't crazy, he's just perceptive. He's right, you should leave.*
*Shut up! I didn't ask your opinion.*
*Well I gave it anyway.*
*SHUT UP!*
*NO.*
*DAMN YOU.*
Stalker continued on down the hallway. He didn't need directions; he could smell the placenta. He neared the nursery. *This is gonna be fun!*
*You sick bastard.*
He entered a hallway with a glass window all the way up one side. Behind the glass was the nusery. Stalker put his fist through the glass. A nurse ran toward him, "What are you doing?"
Stalker grabbed her. "You'll do nicely," he said as he snapped her neck. He grabbed her by the legs and used her whole body to smash the glass properly. He tossed her away and climbed into the nursery. There were rows of babies, all crying. Stalker grabbed the nearest one.
*If you leave this body now and leave me forever, I won't snap this newborn's neck.*
*What?*
*Get out of my head!*
*I don't know how!*
*Well you'd better find out how within the next ten seconds, or it's bye bye baby.*
*You wouldn't!*
*Try me! TEN.. NINE.. EIGHT..*
Stalker tried mercilessly to try and get out of the body but every time he was nearly out it felt like a force somehow snapped him back into place.
*FIVE.. FOUR.. THREE..*
*I CAN'T! I CAN'T GET OUT!!*
*Keep trying. TWO.. ONE..*
*NO, DON'T DO IT! I CAN'T! I CAN'T GET OUT!*
*ZERO.. sorry you knew the deal, but here's a comprmise. I won't harm this baby if you promise to shut the hell up from now on.*
*I PROMISE! I PROMISE YOU WON'T HEAR A THING FROM NOW ON!*
Stalker carefully placed the baby back into its crib.
*You must feel proud! You just saved a life.* Stalker's face changed. *Pity you didn't have the sense to bargain for the rest.* Stalker grabbed a differnt baby and fed..
Tempest Penthouse. Early Morning Feb 15th
Victor
Posted: Thu Mar 14, 2002 3:29 am
Post subject: Tempest Penthouse. Early Morning Feb 15th
Victor looked at Zayn, and after a pause answered, "I have no idea, he's barely moved since I last looked in on him." *And if Matthias hadn't been watching me like a hawk, I'd have taken his crystal then too. *
Zayn shifted her weight from one hip to the other and crossed her arms. "Right, then..." She let her words drift off, not knowing what to say. From her end everything had gone according to plan.
Victor sarcasticly said, "What's the matter, Zayn? Are you off to be silent and mysterious again? OR would you care to share with us your peculiar insight?" * Feeling mean? * *Butt out!*
"Even in complete solitude, the world is never silent, Victor." Never one to put down a challenge, Zayn grinned, "A fact I am sure you are quite aware of."
A loud moan from Tempest's bedroom made them all look that way. Victor said, "Speaking of no silence..."
Tempest walked down the hall and entered the front room...The witch, the fairy and the demon were all there talking amongst themselves. He entered the room and leaned against the wall across from Matthias. "Everyone ok?"
Matthias stood up. He was still a little wobbly, but was no longer leaning on furniture. "I'll continue to live, but I am not looking forward to the next one."
Victor stood up as well. "Did it work? Do you have any of your memories back?"
Tempest answered distractedly, "Looks like I have a few new things in my head."
The first few rays of light entered the shaded windows. Matthias looked out the window, "Its morning again. A new day, full of new dangers."
Victor looked outside as well, "That is an understatement. But at least you,” he said facing Tempest, "are on the way to being restored. Now all we have to do is get you together with the other crystals."
Matthias was quick to interject, "When the time is right. It will take me a while to recover them. Tomorrow night would be the earliest."
Victor remembered his deadline with Kain, "Before 9 o'clock. I have an appointment to keep. As do you," he said indicating Tempest.
"I don’t think doing another crystal so soon would be good for anyone... Victor what appointment might that be?" Tempest put his hand on his side. The bullet wound was now nearly closed and there were still a few scratches and cuts about his face and hands, but nothing too serious.
Victor hated to dump all this at once, but it was as good a time as any. "I made a deal with Kain to find you. I told him I would deliver you or the information you were supposed to provide to him by 9pm tomorrow. I plan to deliver you, and myself, knowing that Kain will not be able to resist teaching me a lesson deep in his basement.
"I am gathering allies, and I think it is time we struck back at Kain. But we cannot risk a frontal assault. But we can catch him with his guard down. I am banking on him wanting to torture me personally. While he is ...distracted...you and the others may be able to get into his office and if not find the crystals themselves, at least find out where they are."
"The risk is high, but I think you are right. An informant," Zayn directed her gaze to Victor, positive the were on the same page, "has contacted me. An army is gathering."
There was a slight shift in the room, and everyone there was fully aware of the magnitude. "Stealth is your best bet," she said.
"An army? Of what?" Victor had visions from his home dimension of hundreds of battle fiends lined up at the transport rings ready for conquest.
"The components are not important. Prepare yourselves. The answer lies beyond Kain."
Tempest was resolute, "Well at least we'll be doing something instead of waiting." *Though I doubt this will turn out as expected, Victor.*
Late night Feb 14/ Morning Feb 15
Daye
Posted: Thu Mar 14, 2002 11:00 am
Post subject: Late night Feb 14/ Morning Feb 15
Daye tossed and turned in her bed for a few minutes before drifting into a fitful sleep.
****
Daye sat in the little cottage behind the main house in Ireland. She was watching as Ryan painstakingly carved the end of the stout oaken staff. He had etched the piece of wood with runes and now was carving the top, creating a natural setting for a gemstone. Daye held in her hand a large garnet that she wanted to mount on the end of the staff when it was finished. The stone was something she had been using to amplify her strengths since before she even came to the council. She had a natural affinity to the gem, which served as a conduit for her own spiritual energies. It had been Ryan’s idea to create the staff as sort of a power focus for Daye. She thought part of his reason for doing so had been to use it as an excuse to train her in the art of fighting with one. The staff was an outdated weapon by most standards, but Ryan preferred it because it enabled him to disable without destroying and like Daye, he had a natural inclination to do as little harm as necessary to other living things. Neither of them ate any meat whatsoever, and both tried to live in a state of beneficial coexistence with the world around them. These things that they had in common were continual sources of amazement to Daye. Ryan was like a part of her soul she had not realized she was missing. Being with him made her whole.
Watching Ryan concentrating so completely on the task at hand had Daye beginning to get hot and bothered. His intensity reminded her of the night they had first made love a few days before. He had had the same focus as he touched and held her, so seemingly entranced. It had made her feel so special that night, and watching him work with the same level of dedication on something for her did the same. Daye felt her heart flutter as he bent his head closer to the staff in his hand, carving an intricate design in the thick wood. She was starting to feel warm and playful. So she stood and removed her outer cloak, tossing it over the back of the chair she had been using. She then stretched languidly, with exaggerated slowness, hoping to distract her lover from his task.
Ryan noticed the minute that Daye stood and seeing the mischevious grin that lit her face, he knew precisely what she was planning. Since he had had little time to see the playful side of his love, Ryan decided to play along. He did not glance up, but continued to work on the staff, watching Daye from the corner of his eye.
Daye saw that Ryan had not responded, so she upped the ante. She toed off her boots and placed one leg up on the chair, running her fingers over her own calf in a gentle massage. For added effect, she moaned softly and tossed her head back as she did so. When Ryan still did not respond, she unlaced the top of her peasant style blouse and began to rub her fingers over the exposed flesh from just under her chin to the rise of her breasts. She sighed as she did so.
Ryan could not stop the grin that sprouted at the sight of Daye being so blatantly provocative. Without looking directly at her, he asked, “Something wrong, Sunflower?”
Daye felt a thrill at the sound of Ryan’s voice caressing the pet name he had for her. He often called her his Daye and said she was bright and shining like a sunflower. She never tired of hearing him speak so.
“I think it’s very warm in here, don’t you?” Daye continued rubbing around the back of her neck and sighing. She noticed that Ryan was trying to ignore her and continue working on the staff. She decided to up the stakes even further. Daye loosened the tail she had her hair up in and swung the long red strands down around her shoulders. She let her fingers run down her body even further, skimming over her own hips, thighs, and calves and starting back up. She heard Ryan’s sharp intake of breath and knew that it was finally working.
“Do you want me to finish this tonight, Daye?” Ryan asked, his voice grown rough. Daye opened her eyes and looked at her lover, noticing that there was now a flush to his skin and a tightness in his body. She grinned cheekily.
“Unless you have something else in mind,” Daye replied innocently, moving over to take the staff out of his hands. She dropped herself into his lap, straddling him on the chair. “So, can you think of anything else we could do today?”
Ryan growled low in his throat, gripping her hips and pulling her tightly against his body. “You will have to wait for this weapon to be ready,” Ryan whispered. “You’ve managed to make me lose my concentration and I will not be recovering it tonight.”
Ryan pulled Daye’s head down to his, slanting her mouth over his to engage her in a passionate kiss. She fell into his embrace fully, losing herself in the feel of Ryan’s arms around her, his mouth and body hers. Together they kissed, petted, and explored, at some point moving to the small bedroom in the back of the cottage. Before long, they were both completely lost to the world outside of that little room.
****
Daye woke in the wee hours of the morning, her mind and body still full of the feeling of Ryan and the love they had shared. For a few moments, she forgot when and where she was, the dream had been so real, so intense. Then as reality came crashing in, Daye felt as if she was losing her love all over again. The memory of her lover so fresh in her mind brought the pain back to her in full force, and before she knew it, Daye was sitting in the little apartment bedroom, weeping inconsolably.
Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Victor
Posted: Thu Mar 14, 2002 2:25 pm
Victor rode down the elevator alone. He was trying to decide what to tell Tash about last night. Before he reached the ground floor he had decided to keep most of it to himself. She would know when she needed to know. She did not need to worry, or overprepare for a plan that was still building in Victor's mind.
* What are you hoping to prove with this plan? Are you so sick of me that you would die to get rid of me? *
* Actually, yes. But that isn't going to happen. *
Victor had a feeling that his sacrifice, while painful and humiliating, wouldn't be fatal. He couldn't explain why, but he trusted his allies to keep it from going that far. Trust was something he wasn't lavish with, but he felt a connection with this group that was stronger than even the connection he had felt with Janus and Tempest.
* Oddly enough, I think they trust me too. * His soul was strangely silent.
Victor exited the high-rise and walked down the street a ways enjoying the chilly morning air. His thought turned to Tash, and suddenly he had an urge to get home. He hailed a cab, and was soon on his way.
Morning, 15 Feb.
Natasha Brookes
Posted: Thu Mar 14, 2002 9:19 pm
Post subject: Morning, 15 Feb.
Victor stopped by a hardware store and picked up a new lock and doorknob. *About time, * he thought. He had called Tash before he left and there was still no answer. * I'll check on her apartment when I get back, * he thought while riding in the cab up Poplar Avenue.
Tash watched Kate drive away and wondered what else she'd got herself embroiled in. *I don't really want to go fishing about in lost memories, but it seems that's what keeps happening to me.* She held her shoulder holster under her jacket. There was no way she was able to wear it at the moment. She just had to get inside quickly before anyone noticed her. She moved as quickly as she could up the stairs to the second floor.
Outside Victor's door she paused. Maybe she should clean up a bit first, but she felt a desperate need to be held right now. Tash knew she looked like Hell, bruised and covered in blood, but she also knew that wouldn't bother Victor. He didn't care how she looked. The thought both comforted and saddened her.
Tash tapped lightly on his door, and waited. No answer. She tried again, a little louder. *I know he can't be asleep...mustn't be home.* She frowned. She hoped he hadn't got into any trouble last night. *Heh, I should worry ... look at me!* Disappointed, she walked across to her own apartment and let herself in.
Moving to the mirror, Tash had her first look at the damage she'd received. The right side of her face was smeared with dark blood, and when she removed her jacket her shirt was torn and bloody down the left side. Sighing, Tash went to the bathroom to fetch a damp cloth. The mirror in the bathroom was too small, so Tash returned to the big mirror in the living room and removed her shirt. Her bra was also crusted with dried blood, so that went too.
She surveyed herself. Most of her left side was streaked with blood, so she wiped it with the cloth. Once all the blood was gone, Tash could see the large purple bruise around her ribs. They were tender to the touch, but not too bad. Her left shoulder looked like it would sport a new scar. The bullet had passed through the meat of the shoulder, leaving a depression. The skin was an angry red, but the hole had healed over. *Thanks Kate, thanks Luc.* Tash couldn't believe how much healing those two had managed on her. She felt as though these wounds were a couple of weeks old, not twelve hours.
Under the blood on her face, there was a smallish bruise only. The scratches had almost entirely healed already. There were three thin red weals that looked like they should fade soon, and a bruise around the cheekbone. Tash didn't often spend time in front of a mirror. Now that she was, she could see the old scars that dotted her body. The large mass of scar tissue in the crook of her left elbow, of course. That one had taken weeks for her to be able to use the arm again properly. There were two neat puncture marks just above her left breast. She couldn't see it in the mirror, but she knew there was an ugly scar on her right shoulder-blade. Her right arm was relatively unscathed. All it sported was a thin scar along the forearm where she'd been slashed by a knife.
Victor stopped by his apartment and dropped off the lock. He looked around for any sign that Tash might be there, and not finding any he walked across the hall. He tried the doorknob and it was locked. He felt he should knock, but he felt awkward. He wasn't used to asking permission to enter. There just hadn't been that many opportunities. He knocked timidly on the door. He waited, listening. He could hear hurried movement on the other side of the door.
Tash was startled from her reverie by a light knock on the door. Walking a couple of steps towards it, she asked, "Who is it?"
Victor relaxed when he heard Tash's voice. "Its me, " he said loud enough to be heard.
Tash breathed a sigh of relief. She unlocked the door and opened it for Victor. Something inside her wanted to throw herself in his arms, but she stood back and let him come inside.
Victor was taken aback. Tash stood there mostly nude and covered with injuries. It was obvious that she had gotten some healing magic (Matthias he could only assume) but there was still evidence that she would be feeling some pain for a while. Victor walked in, slowly inventorying her wounds. "Are you going to be okay? I was worried when I couldn't reach you last night."
Tash nodded slowly, trying to gauge how Victor was feeling. He seemed a bit startled. She looked down and realised she hadn't put a shirt back on before opening the door. "Yeah, I've had worse. I had a little run-in with some vampires last night, but Kate found me and healed me quite a bit. I'm not feeling too bad, just a bit stiff and sore." She smiled tentatively at Victor, "I don't like being taken by surprise, though. I was stupid last night."
“You are never stupid. Careless maybe, but not stupid.," Victor said. He stepped forward and pulled her in close to him. He kissed her and then hugged her tight. "I am glad I didn't lose you."
Tash let herself melt into Victor's embrace. This was what she needed. To forget for a minute. To just feel loved. Even though her intellect told her he was a demon, her autonomic system was completely fooled by the glamour. He felt real, he smelled real, and Tash could feel her hormones kick in as she rested her head against his shoulder and breathed in his scent.
Victor felt her rubbing gently against him. * You are not a man and you cannot satisfy her needs for one. * His soul was being brutal. The emotion for the day was inadequacy. But Victor had another idea. He would prove he was a man in all the ways that counted. He lifted her into his arms and carried her back to the bedroom.
Tash sighed as Victor carried her. The twinges from her ribs and shoulder didn't bother her any more. She let herself be swept away by the feelings he brought out in her.
Victor tried to feel her as a human would. Tried to get ...aroused by her. And somewhere deep within him a white-hot light flickered. He laid her on the bed, and took off his clothes trying to nurture that light. He stood before her, naked. Knowing that he was not a man, but longing to be one. He knew that if she chose she could shatter the illusion with a thought. But he hoped she would not. Victor had never dreamed. He did not know fantasy, but right then he was her dream. Her fantasy. And he could feel the desire that a man would feel.
Tash felt an emotion from Victor she didn't think he was capable of. Desire. She looked up at him, a little startled, and smiled at the fire she saw in his eyes. She drew him down to her and kissed him long and passionately, feeling the fire within both of them growing.
From a physical standpoint, Victor had only the most rudimentary understanding of what to do. But he let his instinct take over. The glamour would fill in the blanks, he hoped. His distracted thoughts made the light waver, but as he surrendered to the moment, he could feel it steady and strengthen. And soon he was embracing her, and passionately loving her.
Tash let her hands explore Victor's body. She was still wearing her gloves. Holding them up to show Victor, she said, "Last time without these it was pretty amazing. Dare to try again?"
Victor grabbed one of her fingertips in his mouth, and gently pinched the glove in his teeth. He felt silly, but something inside him made it seem perfectly natural.
Tash stifled a grin at Victor's enthusiasm to remove her glove. While he pulled off one with his teeth, she worked at the other. Soon, her bare hands trailed down the muscles of his chest, to circle lazily around his belly. As before, Tash's rising ardour blanked out any visions she might have received. Instead, a connection seemed to develop between them. Their emotions began to feed off each other.
Victor took her cue and gently massaged her. He was beginning to see why humans spent so much time doing this. He was soon watching her body with fascination as it responded to his touch. Nipples hardened, skin presented goose bumps, and her breath began to be deep and excited.
He could smell the pheromones spreading from her. And he smiled. This was wonderful. He was her man. That was more important than being a man in the first place. Victor stalled. He wasn't sure what to do next, and he felt an urge....he kissed her neck. Her response told him that was the right thing to do.
Tash soon reached the point where she couldn't wait any more, and she sensed Victor was ready, too. She surrendered to the passions they were both straining to keep in check. They abandoned themselves to the moment, and soon they cried out together with one voice, soprano and tenor meshing into one note.
While they lay together on the bed afterwards Victor traced his finger along the angry scars from her wounds. "What happened last night? I'm sorry I wasn't there to help."
Tash lay still, her heart still beating fast. Her ribs were aching, but she didn't care. It was well worth it. She turned her head to look at Victor, and leaned forward to kiss him softly. *Ahh, I could stay like this forever.* Then his words finally filtered through.
"I was foolish. Matthias and Jade encountered some vampires the other night. Called the Black Veins. I went to find out a bit about them, and discovered where they lair. I was staying to watch what they did and how many there were."
Tash rolled away for a moment to retrieve her gloves. She didn't want to get any more visions once her passion had cooled. Turning back to Victor, she continued. "I knew there wasn't adequate cover for me, but I stayed anyway." She shrugged, "They saw me."
Victor held her ungloved hand for a moment to feel the warmth of it. Her body, hard and muscular, was there before him, but he was fascinated by her smooth, unblemished hands. Protected by the gloves that protected her heart. He held her hand to his chest and let her feel the heartbeat that wasn't there. He looked her in the eye. “You came back to me. That is what is important."
Tash smiled, her eyes sparkling, "I've been in a lot of fights with vampires. God knows I've got the scars to prove it. And a vampire only has to be lucky once with me. I have to be lucky every time. This time I was lucky." She gazed into his eyes, "I think you help me to be lucky." There was more she wanted to say, much more, but she feared it would come out wrong. So she just lay there, nestled in his arms.
Victor held her and snuggled a little while. He liked to feel her warmth and her little movements. The feel of her breathing next to him. He spoke softly to her, "I got lucky last night as well. I found Tempest. Matthias, Zayn and I were able to restore his memories from one of the crystals."
Tash pulled her head back to focus on Victor. "And you only remembered to tell me now?" She paused, "Well, OK, I might have been a little ticked if you'd told me ten minutes ago... So what happened?"
"It’s hard to say. I didn't understand any of it. Magic," he said, as if that one word could explain everything. "But it really took a lot out of both Zayn and Matthias. I thought Matthias was going to throw up. Tempest slept for hours, but he seemed okay when I left. The others left before I did."
Tash worried, "How was Tempest? Was he still ... dangerous? What about the memories he got back?"
Victor was thoughtful, "I don't know. But he just wants his memories back. He isn't interested in the crystals except for that. I wasn't sure, but that is what I thought might be the case. So for the time being he isn't after us or our crystals as long as we help him. And he may be willing to help against Kain."
* And the bargain I had to make to get to Tempest will have to wait for another time. * * How many times will you have to sell your soul to Kain before you learn? * *Damn soul. *
"I feel a need to get out. Want to go out somewhere tonight?" Victor rapidly changed the subject.
Tash looked sideways at him. "What are you holding back, Victor? You know I can sense things. There was some guilt just then, associated with Tempest. You said the other day you wanted honesty from me. I expect if from you, too."
Victor loved her, but there were times when that meant protecting her as well. "I know you hate me keeping things from you. But this will have to wait for another, " he glanced at the clock, "another 36 hours. But I will tell you everything. Just not now."
Tash subsided a little. She trusted Victor. That made her pause. Yes, she trusted Victor. Completely. This was new. She'd never trusted anyone but Matthias before. She nodded, "OK, for now. Whatever it is, please be careful."
She kissed him, and said in a lighter tone, "So, where were you thinking of going tonight?"
"There is a new nightclub called Asylum. I was thinking of going there."
Tash had only been in town just over a week, so she'd not heard of it. "Sure, why not?" She grinned, "So long as they accept vampire hunters and their demon lovers."
Running out of time...
Catherine Wiccham
Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2002 1:04 am
Post subject: Running out of time...
"We are running out of time" Serapis addressed the collective that stood before him. They had moved location, from the Bryson, things would be more secluded here, out of the hustle of the city. The current location was a large hall in the middle of a greened area; some called it a retreat. But for Serapis it would be the perfect place to initiate his plans.
"We are running out of time; he repeated again once the assembly had quieted down. "And if we fail, we will have to wait another five thousand years. Now I don't know about you..." he smiled evilly "...but that is more time than I am willing to commit to this enterprise."
There were muffled sniggers from the collective.
"The Planetary Alignment is almost in place, Dante's Comet will soon be pulled off course and redirected closer to the Earth. But we have much to do in the short time before this. We need our 'sister' Catherine back. Now we know the locale of her residence, downtown L.A. But do not be complaisant, she may only be one woman, but she is powerful, unpredictable, I don't want anybody attempting a retrieval without my prior consent. For now we must observe her, increase our knowledge; knowledge is power my friends."
The crowd dispersed. Serapis signalled for two of them to stay behind.
"Bring Inanna over from the hotel. Make sure to blindfold her, she mustn't know the location of our new operation."
"Why do we need her anyway?" complained a warlock.
"She will be our bargaining chip, Catherine is powerful, her weakness is her unfailing devotion to her friends; that will be our most powerful weapon."
The two nodded and left immediately. Serapis grinned happily. *Everything was falling into place.* A young witch coughed slightly, trying to gain his attention.
"Hmm, Sir, a man called Anubis is here to see you."
Serapis nodded, and the witch ran off to fetch the visitor. *Yes things were falling into place nicely.*
He turned to face his guest. "Ah Anubis, glad you could make it!"
SPECIAL NEWS BULLETIN
Catherine Wiccham
Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2002 3:55 am
Post subject: SPECIAL NEWS BULLETIN
Inanna was ripped from her slumber; she was quickly blindfolded and was then carried away. She couldn’t tell much about where she was being taken. She realised she had been dumped in the back of a car when the engine roared to life. The driver fiddled around with the car radio, trying to tune it in. Suddenly the dry voice of a female newsreader rang clear through the crackling static.
RADIO NEWS REPORT
“…police officials are baffled at the recent spurt of violent deaths in the area of down town LA…over a dozen new-born babies have been found murdered in the maternity ward of CHMC, their blood drained from their bodies…”
Inanna shuddered, *vampires* she thought. The driver chuckled at the news, to him it signalled other things, *chaos, this city is in total chaos.*
“In world news tonight, NASA space scientists have revealed that Dante’s Comet has been driven off course by a temporary planetary alignment. Astrologers around the globe have been shocked by an occurrence that has been expressed as nothing short of a miracle.”
“The tail end of ‘Dante’s Comet’ is expected to pass closer to the Earth than any other astrological phenomena in recent history. Our fair city of Los Angeles is expected to have the best view of the phenomenon – attracting astrologers and scientists from around the world.”
“NASA officials released a statement assuring the public that there is nothing to be worried about, and affirm that there is no reason for people to evacuate the city. In other news…”
****
Someone snapped the radio off, obviously angry with the driver for making so much noise. The car sped round a corner and Inanna was thrown into the corner of the seat. She couldn’t stop thinking about the radio report she had just heard. *What if…* It was diabolical, but she kept remembering the fragments of various conversations she had heard back at The Bryson. ‘Resurrection’…’Pure Blood’…’we will all bow down before her greatness’… *Could it be?*
She had studied the phenomenon of Dante’s Comet when she was back at the Academy. It had been associated for centuries with great mystical forces. Its flight past the Earth was linked to several occult phenomena. And if the planets were in alignment…bringing the comet closer to the Earth than ever before…
*Would it have the power to bring someone back from the dead?*
She didn’t have long to ponder the question before the car halted and she was dragged out into the open. The air was fresh…she could smell pine in the air and hear running water. *Where was she now?* She felt a bitterness in her stomach. There was something much more evil at work than she had ever thought possible. Then the lightness of the outdoors was blocked out, she was led indoors, and then down a set of stairs – underground she guessed because it suddenly felt much colder and damp. Then thrown into another room. The door was slammed shut behind her.
Control..
Stalker
Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2002 9:23 pm
Post subject: Control..
Stalker had felt like he was in his own personal heaven.
The power was flowing through his body. The power of the new and innocent was strong. Each one held a lifetime's power and he had fed on more than a dozen.
Even more was the fun of killing the people that had come toward him. Some were grieving parents, others security guards, doctors and men in white coats who kept saying, 'I just want to talk' - all dying by his hand. He had the power, the adrenaline fueling his body. But even now after all the death that one baby was alive.
But something had gone wrong. Stalker felt the control of one of his arms go. It was then he noticed his arm was in the light coming through a high window.
It was daytime!
Slowly he had felt the effect of the light pass over his body. He had lost control. The real Stalker was taking over.
*ARGHH.* Although the demonic Stalker tried to stop it, he felt his own essence being torn back to a place which didn't exist.
He would have to wait blindly once more, not knowing what was going on until he felt the resurgence of power wash over him. Only then would he be able to regain control, only then would he be able to regain his true right to this damned body.
The true Stalker was in control once more. The surge of power hit him hard, and with it the evil desire to kill. He accepted the power but not the evil. Stalker was in full control. It was only then in all this power he realised what truly drove vampires. It wasn't the lust for blood that he had always believed, it was the power. The lust for raw energies. After two hundred years of being a vampire only now did he truly understand what it was to be a vampire. What drove a vampire to kill.
He looked around. What he saw disturbed him, even through all this power the reality of the amount of death it took to create it tore at Stalker's heart. That was why a true vampire required pure evil to survive.
Stalker then realised the position he was in. More than three dozen dead people, a dozen of them dead babies. In between all the dead, one single baby alive and unharmed, and police yelling through a closed door for him to come out with his hands up.
He had to make a decision. Would he give himself up to the police, fight them, or just run, just get out of the building and handle this his own way, somehow destroy this demon that inhabited his body in the dark?
His decision was already made, he had jumped and smashed through the outside window. He was running without thought. He had to get away, he had to run. He felt bullets tearing through his arms, legs and back. He kept running, buildings flashing past him. He heard sirens fading; he was faster than them. He had escaped the police.
He stopped.
Would anybody be able to stop him if the demon gained control again? When the sun went down would he ever have another chance to regain control? Did he have the strength to do the only thing he could think of stopping the demon? Could he kill himself? *No.*
Stalker smelt something familiar running up to him from behind. He spun around. "Kerberos!"
Bibliophile
Sorrow
Posted: Sat Mar 16, 2002 6:39 am
Post subject: Bibliophile
Sorrow finished his danish then sipped the last of his coffee. The scent in the shop brought back memories of long afternoons spent in libraries at Oxford. That particular mustiness that hinted at so much hidden knowledge waiting to be discovered. He got up and moved towards the shelves to one side of the store scanning the titles. He smiled, there was a little of everything here. He moved quickly towards the medieval mythology section.
Daye stood behind the counter at Bibliophile, idly wiping up a non-existent speck as she thought about her morning. It was unbelievable that her mind was drawn again and again to the events in Ireland so many years before and even more unbelievable how the memory of those events could still hurt so much. Daye tried to force herself to think of something else. She searched the store for a distraction, noting that one of her cafe customers had wandered into the book stacks and was browsing intently
*Hmmm, not much you haven't seen before." Sorrow wasn't too concerned though. He didn't expect the texts he wanted to be out here. They were too rare for that. As he moved slowly towards the counter he spotted something though. *Principia Magia, not many of those around, of course half of it's wrong but still it all depends which half.* Sorrow carefully took the book from the shelf and moved purposely towards the counter.
Daye noticed that the customer was approaching the counter with a book in his hand. The man was quite good looking, with dark hair and dark clothes. She could sense an air of some kind of magic about him as he came closer. *I wonder what that's all about?* Daye thought. She smiled congenially when he got over to her and said, "Good morning, Sir. Something I can do for you?"
"I'd like to purchase this please," he said as he gently placed the book on the counter. The woman behind the counter was a classic celtic witch. red hair, green eyes and a palpable aura of magic. The staff behind the counter carried a similar aura. *Quite a lot of strength there.* He smiled, "I notice you have a few books back there," he motioned past the woman's shoulder, "I take it those are the rarer volumes."
"Yes," Daye nodded. "And we have more in the back away from everything. Are you looking for something in particular?" Daye watched the man carefully, a bit apprehensive about having a man with some sort of magical connections coming into the shop and asking about rare and powerful volumes. She was especially concerned with the recent events occurring in the area.
He felt the flare of anxiety and spoke quickly to quell it. " I'm doing some research on the vampire myths. The texts I'm after are rather rare, pretty much just superstitious nonsense really, but they'd be a big help. Could you check if you have them?" He placed a small piece of paper with three titles on it atop the book.
Daye picked up the paper and read the titles. She was shocked. These books were not superstitious nonsense. They were three very prized volumes that only the Council should have copies of, as all three were written by members of the council and dealt with the true history of vampires. They were volumes that particularly dealt with the Master and the Elders, their origins and history. Daye knew that there were copies of the works in the back, but she had some trouble believing that this man was just a researcher when he knew the titles of these books. She debated how to answer him.
*Well that didn't work.* Sorrow watched shock play across the woman's features. She was very knowledgeable in vampire lore, until a few hours ago Sorrow had never heard of these books. He decided to gamble. His voice dropped low so he wouldn't be heard over the noise of the street, "There may be an elder in L.A."
Daye did not know how to respond to this revelation. This man was definitely not what he appeared to be. So, who was he? And what was he doing in L.A. and possibly most important, how did he know about the Elders, and why did he think one was here in L.A. "Uhm, can we talk somewhere more privately?" she asked him, gesturing for one of the other staff to come and cover the counter.
He frowned for a moment. He'd been told where the books had originated. If she knew what they were that meant only one thing, this woman was a Watcher. He could use the help he knew but he had responsibilities himself. *You walk or tell her at least who you are.* "Of course, lead the way..."
Daye led the man to the back of the shop and through a door marked "Employees Only". She gestured for him to take a seat at the table back there. "Ok, first off, let me introduce myself. My name is Amanda Blaise, and as you might have guessed I am affiliated with the Watcher's Council, as is this shop. Now, why don't you tell me who you are?"
"I'm Tristan Barrington, though you may have me on file as 'Sorrow'. I am a vampire hunter though I usually operate in London." He knew that would be enough to establish his credentials once she'd checked the files. He doubted he was notorious enough for her to know who he was straight away.
"I suspected something of the sort," Daye said. "So, why do you think there is an Elder in town?"
Sorrow took a breath. *Here's where it gets tricky.* "I can't reveal my source; let's just say I have every reason to think that an Elder will soon be in the city and may already be here." It was the best he could do he would not reveal Jade to The Watchers, they were far too bigoted.
"Fair enough," Daye allowed, sensing that the man was protecting someone. "If what you suspect is true, there could be serious ramifications, but right now, it's just one more in a long list of apocalyptic events going down in my life." *I don't know how to deal with an Elder on top of the Cloch* Daye thought. *I might need to put something on the back burner for a while.*
Sorrow's answering smile was ironic. "Tell me about it, this whole city could go up in smoke tomorrow." *They might be able to help with the Cloch.* "Have you heard of the Cloch Cosan?"
Daye laughed wryly. "Wow, what do you do for your next trick, levitating or sawing a woman in half?"
"I'll take that as a yes then. The stones are gathering in the city and although Paris was a fairly nondescript event I really don't feel like repeating Tunguska in downtown L.A." He sat forward a little. "From what I know, once the gathering has begun it cannot be stopped, though it may be possible to shape its final result."
"Yes," Daye was nodding as she stood and went to one of the locked bookcases. "I read about both Paris and Tunguska, as well as a few other gatherings. I would have to agree with your assessment, but I think this time may be different from any that has come before." Daye pulled three books from the locked cabinet, and laid them down on the table before Sorrow.
Sorrow glanced at the books then looked quizzically at Daye.
"Those are copies of your books," Daye explained. "As for the Cloch, I am aware of a unique gathering of forces involved here. I actually am going to be meeting with some other people involved tomorrow morning. I can tell you now, that there are other forces contributing to the events surrounding the crystals this time. I can also tell you that the list of people who want to stop the opening of the arch just keeps growing."
*That could be Victor or Tash, but it's not the time to reveal everything.* Sorrow realised he had been silent a little to long. "I don't doubt it. Events like this have a way of gathering people in." He placed his hand on the books. "Thank you for these, they will be helpful I'm sure." He looked around the room for a moment. "I'll offer what assistance I can..."
Daye realized that he felt the same way she did about the security of the shop. She moved towards the door, indicating he should follow. "Maybe we could discuss that later," Daye said. "I don't think this is the best time to talk about it." *Or, more importantly, the best place,* Daye thought. *I am going to have to do something about that soon.*
He followed her to the door. "Perhaps after your meeting?" She was as uncomfortable here as he was, he realised but he wasn't sure why. The Watchers had been remarkably monolithic whenever he had dealt with them previously. Sorrow stopped at the door and placed his hand lightly on it. As Daye turned towards him he looked down at the books he carried.
Daye looked down at the books thoughtfully. She turned back to the room and removed a few herbs from her pouch. She sprinkled them around the area they were sitting and spoke a couple of words. Satisfied, she turned back to Sorrow and smiled. "Well, there you go then, that should help you with your paper, Mr. Barrington," she said. "If you have any other questions, please come back and we will try to help. Bibliophile is always eager to further the cause of the academician."
"You've been most helpful, I'll let you know if I need anything else." They moved to the counter where Sorrow paid for his copy of Principia Magia.
Daye took Sorrow's money and rang up the sale. She handed him a receipt, scribbling her phone number and name on it. "I am very glad that you chose our little shop," she said. "Hang on to that receipt, in case anything comes up."
Sparks
Sorrow
Posted: Sat Mar 16, 2002 7:02 am
Post subject: Sparks
Sorrow opened the door to XY. The trip to Bibliophile had been much more useful than he had expected. He looked around the shop, he couldn't see Jade and he didn't recognise the woman behind the counter Sorrow gave himself a moment to just get the feel of her then moved towards the counter.
Kate observed the man as he entered the shop, he was very attractive, tall, with the most piercing green eyes she had ever seen. Again she saw a strange darkness clouding the man, she shrugged, she was gonna have to get used to this she supposed; at least it was better than serving a bunch of vampires and chaos demons blood all night. She smiled as he approached the counter. "Can I help you?"
As he reached the counter he reached out and touched the orchids, a faint smile on his lips. The woman had power, he was close enough to sense it now although it was well hidden. "Is Jade around?"
Just as Kate was about to reply, the store's phone rang shrilly. Smiling apologetically at Sorrow, she picked up the receiver. "Good afternoon, XY..."
"Hey Kate! I've just reached the damn air freight company and there's not a soul around! Sheesh, talk about a wasted trip!" Jade sounded mildly exasperated. Anyway, I'm going to grab some lunch and head back to XY. Just thought I'd call and ask if you wanted anything to eat?"
Kate smiled, looking back at the man, she guessed he must be Tristan, the person she had inadvertently caught Jade daydreaming about earlier. "Um, yeah, get me what ever is the vegetarian option." They talked for a minute longer before hanging up. Kate returned to Tristan. "Um, Jade is on her way back, if you want to wait, she shouldn't be too long"
"Thanks, have you just started?"
"Yes, actually this is my first day. My name's Kate, I'm guessing you..." she stifled a smile "...must be Tristan?"
He smiled a little more "Yes, Pleased to meet you Kate" he said offering his hand to her. He wasn't touch sensitive but in his weakened state a little contact would give him a better idea of how powerful she was...
Kate braced herself as she took his hand, knowing that he was no 'normal' mortal (if such a thing existed), all that black that floated around him was sure to have some kind of effect. *Oh boy I hate doing this*.
She was powerful, very powerful, either that or she was appalling at shielding herself and that didn't seem possible. His own shields were locked solid, so even with that level of power she would only get a read of his basic abilities but not his thoughts. He wondered if Jade knew just what she had employed, this was not an ordinary young woman working her way round the world.
Kate was surprised, as she took his hand she felt a small tingle like static, and that was all. She was intrigued; static was a telltale sign of someone with power, usually magical. But as she reached further into his conscious she hit against a strong barrier. It was like a firewall, insurmountable...but someone with the ability to create such a construct must be extremely powerful she surmised. In a way the barrier only aroused her curiosity further, this plus the darkness surrounding his character. *What was he?* She smiled again, hoping her own thoughts had not betrayed her feeling, and secretly wishing she had set her own psychic barriers in place. *Too late now* Removing her hand from him, she noticed he was carrying a bag 'Bibliophile' it read. "Oh I've been meaning to check that place out" she said, trying to break the overwhelming silence. She motioned toward the bag, "Is it any good?"
"Well you can always find something interesting in a place like that, though I'd imagine you'd have to work harder than some" He was concerned, Jade was more than capable of looking after herself but this woman was one of the strongest mages he'd ever come across. He looked around; the shop was empty except for the two of them. He motioned to the tarot corner. "Perhaps we could sit down." He'd noticed the brush against his shields too but since he'd invited it and it had been far more restrained than what he himself had done to Jade a few days earlier he would let it pass.
Kate allowed herself to be guided over to the tarot corner. She hoped this wouldn't be as confrontational as her last encounter...with the mysterious Talhu.
"You have a lot of power Kate, The sort that doesn't come without talent and training. To be blunt, why are you here?" Inwardly he winced at his tone but for some reason he didn't feel like being subtle, too much was happening at the moment and he wanted as much information as he could get. He concentrated a little and let his amplified senses come forward it would make things easier.
Kate sighed inwardly. *Yes, it was another damn inquisition* she wondered why everyone always expected her to be so open about her origins when they always seemed to be holding back from her. In this case, the only thing guiding her judgement was the fact that he was a 'friend' of Jade's. In the short time she had known Jade she had come to trust her opinion. Except for Natasha, Jade was the only other person who had seemed openly honest with her, Kate felt a sting of guilt because she knew she had been the one to hold back in that instance. She observed Tristan a while before answering. "I am not the one with the psychic block in place, anything you want to know about me is open for you to discover. It makes me wonder why you would bother asking."
"The implication that you would ream someone just to find out who they were isn't improving my opinion of you. I'm not asking for your life history just why you are here now. As for my blocks everyone should take safety precautions" There was a lot of repressed anger in her, she wasn't happy with his questioning her. *Well right now that's her problem*
Kate tried to control her anger at his last remark, *just what did this guy think she was?* Kate wanted to stand and walk around, she felt terribly constricted sitting down, but Tristan's eyes seemed to hold her down like a weight. "I would never do such a thing!" she cried. "What makes your good opinion so worth having anyway?" *If she had known this job would mean meeting such arrogant people she would have rather stayed working at Bob's. The worst thing you encountered there was the odd chaos demon trying to grope your ass.*
Sorrow looked at Kate for a moment. Her distress was evident, as was her anger. *Best ease off here, Jade will kill you if you provoke her into blowing up half the shop* "The value of my good opinion can only be decided by you." He watched he struggle with her anger and before she could reply he continued in a softer tone. "You have a great deal of power, enough that I guess you could lead a coven. So, the question becomes why are you here pretending to be a simple clairvoyant?" He saw the burst of emotion when he said 'coven'. "Who were they Kate? What did they do?" He could see it wasn't just his questions that had spooked her. *She's got to be hiding from something but what would scare someone with that much power?*
Kate managed to calm herself enough to appreciate his softer tone. She still felt her body tense at his questions; he was so close to the mark it wasn't funny. "My coven is trying to kill me" she said finally, "well, at least, a small faction is here in LA, but they are dissenters from the coven, I think." Speaking the words, Kate realised just how little she actually knew for certain. Yes she knew Serapis was here in LA - with other members of her coven, but she didn't know his actual plans whatsoever.
He could see the truth in her words and the fear that knowledge caused in her. "If they are dissenters, why can't you appeal to the rest of the coven?" *I know I'm going to get sucked into this if only because Jade is going to as well. I might as well get a head start.*
Kate shook her head, "The leader here in LA, he is a member of the Council of Elders, it would be my word against his." She sighed, "in the eyes of my coven I am the traitor, I am...a fugitive of their justice. My word would count for nothing."
He pondered her words for a few minutes. "They hunt you then, and this 'Elder' has convinced the others you are guilty for his own reasons, even though you believe you are innocent. What is it you are accused of?"
Kate felt uncomfortable; Janus was always in her thoughts, the memory of that night always alive in her mind. "I killed one of my 'sisters'...at least, that is what I am accused of. The night it all happened, there were strange forces at work and I...do not remember fully what happened." She looked away, the memories washing over her for the second time that day.
"But there are spells that can pull the truth not just from minds but places as well. Your Elder seems to have gone to an awful lot of trouble to destroy you. What did you do to him?"
She looked slightly disturbed at this, at her trial she had been reamed by one of her peers, at her own request because her memories had been so vague. But she realised now that Serapis had many allies in the coven; she had been set up by him well and truly. Serapis had destroyed her reputation, and she had been forced to flee for her life halfway across the world. *What had she ever done to him?* Finally she replied, "That is the one question I'm afraid I cannot answer."
As gently as he could he said "Then you need to find out." He smiled at her then, she hadn't lied to him yet.
"And just how do you suggest I find out, perhaps I should ask him?" she smiled but it was awkward and looked more like a grimace.
Sorrow laughed, "Well that is one possibility but I wouldn't expect you to survive long. He must have a goal though do you have anything he would want?"
"I told you, I have no idea what he wants from me, only...perhaps revenge, the woman I killed, she was a close friend of his...maybe..." her voice trailed off as she thought about this theory for a moment. "But that wouldn't make sense, he has invested too much in this for it to be over something so...trivial"
"Which coven are you a member of?" She was missing something but Sorrow had so little information to go on he couldn't really offer much guidance but somehow he knew Kate already had all the pieces she just needed to fit them together.
"The Coven of Sindell" she replied flatly.
Sorrow's shields slipped at that. *Oh they're all coming out of the woodwork, The Brotherhood, The Watchers, the Cloch Cosan and now one of the most powerful covens in the world*
Kate could tell that had shocked him a bit, she felt a short jolt of energy pass though her that she guessed must have been part of his barrier lowering because for a short moment she could hear his thoughts. *The Brotherhood, The Cloch Cosan, The Watchers* a hell of a lot of name dropping there. The Cloch, she shouldn't have been surprised to hear that name included in there. Everyone she met lately seemed to have a vested interest in the Cloch Cosan. But if Tristan was involved that must mean...Jade too? She frowned, "You're looking for the Cloch too?" she asked.
"The stones are in L.A. something I wish wasn't the case I really have no desire to see the city levelled by the mystical equivalent of a multi megaton nuclear bomb." Then her last word 'too' hit him. His voice became wary "You are seeking the stones?" *please don't tell me they have captured her, it could explain her memory loss, she might even believe she hadn't committed the crime she had been accused of because of it.*
The doorbell rang as a young girl stepped into the shop. Kate smiled in her direction then turned back to Tristan. "I wouldn't say I was seeking them, more like intrigued, if that's the right word. My coven has worked to dispose of the Shards whenever one came into our possession." She thought about the Shard she now possessed, remembering when Janus had given it to her all those years ago. She had been naive back then, although the crystal had never shown any trace of the kind of power it now emitted. She had taken Janus at her word when she had assured her it was safe for her to keep it in her possession. Then she had seemed to forget about its existence for years. All that time it had lain in her shipping trunk, and she had forgotten all about it until... until it had reached out to her...she shuddered...*Thank the gods for Matthias!*
Kate's open display of display of disgust with the stones was matched by more subtle cues. He relaxed a little " The stones are indestructible, so how did the coven dispose of them?"
Kate realised she had been the one revealing the most secrets in this conversation, she knew little more of Tristan than his name...and his 'relationship' with Jade. Still she had come so far; such things had a sort of cathartic effect so she felt. Besides the Rites of Dispossession were open to anyone to who would seek them. "Of course they cannot be destroyed, we only worked to disperse them again." Tristan seemed to take this in. Kate observed him for a moment longer then decided to reiterate her previous thought. "I think I have told you enough anyway" she smiled, "you listen well but I see you are not a great fan of talking. I have practically told you my life story and I know little more about you than your name."
"I'm a vampire hunter a member of the society of Ulle and an ex-adept of some very dark arts" She would know the latter the minute she saw him work magic since it never truly left you... "I had the recent misfortune to come into possession of the Shard of Lethe. So until I can deal with that fact safely I'm going to be in town a while."
Kate felt a little cheated, after her lengthy discourse she'd expected a little more in return. So, okay some people liked their privacy, but for her own curiosity she still had one question left. "So, how do you know Jade?"
Sorrow's smile became almost whimsical " I bought some stones to help in a ward...Things just sort of progressed from there" He was being deliberately vague he knew but...
Kate smiled, oh she knew things had progressed all right, Jade hadn't stopped thinking about this guy all morning, it had been a real effort for Kate to eventually block out her musings. Kate rose from her seat to serve the young girl whom, after browsing for the past three minutes had finally decided upon a purchase.
Meanwhile back at Poplar Avenue...
Victor
Posted: Sat Mar 16, 2002 6:59 pm
Post subject: Meanwhile back at Poplar Avenue...
Victor entered his apartment. He had to shower and change his clothes. Changing clothes he accepted because of the various disguises he had worn over the years. But showering was rare. He had not realized there were so many fluids involved in human lovemaking.
It did not take him long to clean up, and he put on some casual clothing for the day. He located a screwdriver in a drawer and replaced his lock. While he tested it, a flash of color attracted his eye. It was the colored orb that the Wisewoman, the Sorceress Elder had left for him.
His mind had been occupied for the past few days, and he had nearly forgotten it. He closed the door, and sat down on the sofa and picked it up. He could feel the colored lights playing a message, he had only to accept it. To really hear it he had to be quiet.
"Victor," the voice of the Wise woman filled his senses, "I have left this message for you alone. And you are truly alone or you would not be hearing this message. You have filled my thoughts since we met, and I feel I must give you this now or I will lose my resolve."
"My divinations tell me that the balance is strongly in your opposition. You are the key to bringing things into balance. You stand on the knife-edge of the two sides. And you are the weight that will tip the scales."
There are three things you need. The first are allies, and I have seen the forces gathering in this spot. You need only to trust them, and they will stand around you. You will be the center, but they will face the danger with you.
The second thing you need is knowledge. You know of the Shards and the Cloch Cosan. You know the terrible forces that go with it, but you do not know that there are separate forces at work. I have received a message, and I do not know what it means, hopefully it will help you: 'Dante is arriving'. I hope that message will become helpful as the time approaches.
The third thing you need are the Shards. You cannot gather them but you can watch them. They will provide you with the time and place where you must be. There is a place..."
Victors vision swirled, and he saw himself poised above LA. The city sparkled as if it were night, but there were no lights, just colors. He could hear the melodious voice of Wise Woman still, "This is how I see LA. As an Elder I monitor magic for the proper balance. But look at this place."
The view zoomed in on a modest house in Pasadena. It was like so many other houses in the neighborhood. Victor could see a greyish fog throughout the street with the occasional speckle of color. Each color would flare and disappear. * Magic, the little things that go unnoticed, * he assumed.
"Look at this place..." the voice repeated. Victor was looking but he didn't see anything. It looked like all the other houses except for...
Then he saw it. The grey fog swirled around the house. Like the eye of a storm, it flowed away from the house leaving a hole in the mists. Victor watched with facination as Wisewoman left her parting message. "Magic does not touch this place. I can see the crystals, but I cannot see here. And there are only five crystals I can see."
The vision zoomed out and away and Victor could again see his apartment. The voice faded leaving only Wise Woman's farewell, "I cannot stay because of the role this house will play in the insuing drama. But I will not be far away as I watch you and the others fulfil your destiny. Merry met, and merry part, questing demon. May you fulfil your role this time at last."
Victor sat on the couch a long time until the importance of what had been revealed to him sank in. He now knew where all nine crystals were. There was no need for him to sacrifice himself.
"Shit!" he stood up and dropped the crystal which shattered, its message delivered. "Shit shit shit!" he repeated over and over as he dashed for the door. He ran into the hall screaming "Tash!"
Estonia
Jadyn
Posted: Sun Mar 17, 2002 3:35 am
Post subject: Estonia
Jade breezed through the door of XY carrying two brown paper bags. "Lunch is served milady..." She grinned at Kate, who'd just finished serving a customer, before flinging her leather jacket behind the counter and throwing herself into a chair. "Damn air freight company was closed... What a waste of my time!"
"Yes, you already mentioned that on the phone..." Kate rolled her eyes. Grabbing the bag that contained the mushroom and cheese croissant, she surprised Jade by announcing that she was going to take her lunch with her to the park and that she'd be back in an hour.
*She certainly seems eager to leave.* Jade raised an eyebrow as Kate waggled her fingers as a sign of goodbye and disappeared out the front door. *Wonder if everything's alright...* Jade frowned slightly.
It wasn't until she turned to make her way behind the counter that she sensed the presence of another. *Someone else is in the shop.* Whirling around, she let out a gasp of surprised delight. "Tris!"
Sorrow rose and moved towards Jade, a soft smile on his lips. He nodded towards the departing Kate, "I think I frightened her off..." he said just before he drew Jade in for a long lingering kiss.
"Mmmmmm... What are you doing here? I thought we said we'd see each other later tonight, after we both got home?" She breathed in the smell she'd come to associate with him... Warm, spicy, male... "Oh... And what happened with your apartment?"
He looked at her for a moment. "Tonight is so far away and I was in the area..." He learned in again to briefly taste her lips. "As for the apartment, it's going to need remodelling so... a couple of weeks at least..."
Jade suppressed an impish grin but couldn't quite manage to rid herself of the gleam in her eye as she pretended to be dismayed. "Oh dear... Wherever are you going to stay then? Not another hotel, surely?"
"Well, I was going to stay at this place nearby, but I'm not sure they have the space..." His eyes showed a barely suppressed mirth.
"Oh..." She bit her lip, trying to appear downcast. "Well... In that case, I guess I don't need to ask if you'll want to stay with me... I mean, I was going to, but since you've already made other plans..." She trailed off and looked away from Sorrow so as to prevent him from seeing how much she was enjoying their little byplay.
"I could stay at yours, but I wouldn't want to disappoint the proprietor of this other place." Sorrow slipped his arm around her waist and started trailing his hand in slow circles.
Jade poked him in the ribs and wriggled out of his embrace. "Oh? So you'd rather risk disappointing me?" She skipped out of his reach as he made a grab for her to tickle her.
"Ok! You win! You win! Stay at my place, as long as you want... Don't!" Jade squeaked with laughter as Sorrow caught hold of her, his hands wandering threateningly close to her waist... She was extremely ticklish...
Sorrows hands continued for a moment, then his movements turned to gentle caresses, eliciting a soft sigh from the woman in his arms. "Since you've asked so nicely, I guess I'll grant your wish and stay at your place..."They stayed like that for a while, just touching each other. Then Sorrow spoke...
"Jade, what's your father's name?"
She froze at his sudden change in subject. The muscles in her shoulders tightened then eased, a spasm of fear that was mirrored on her face. When she replied, her voice was stiff.
"My father was a wonderful, kind, loving man called Simon. However, if you were referring to the monster that spawned me, his name is Valerian."
Sorrow cursed himself. *Excellent way to ruin the mood!* He spent some time just letting Jade relax."I was doing some research, so it'd help if I knew who I was looking for." He said it softly, mildly, while he let his hands reassure her as best they could.
Jade nodded her understanding but pulled herself away nonetheless. Talking about Valerian made her antsy, she needed to pace around XY as she collected her thoughts. "I can tell you what I know, which isn't much. Despite my extensive search, I haven't managed to find out much about Valerian or the Brotherhood. There's precious little that's been recorded..."
"I know, but I'm hoping I'll turn something up. I'd like something more than a prayer, when we finally meet..." He moved towards her, placed his finger on her lips. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up." He took her hands in his...
The door opened then as a customer came in...
Jade flashed a smile at the middle-aged man who asked to see her selection of incense burners. After directing him to the appropriate rack, she turned back to study Sorrow as she digested his latest words. *What does he mean when they finally meet?! Oh please God, don't tell me he actually intends to seek Valerian out? God, no... He'll get himself killed!*
Jade was distracted as the man came back. Sorrow gathered his thoughts while she dealt with the purchase. As the door closed behind him, he spoke, "I've no intention of seeking him out." He paused, unable to quite articulate how he felt. "Did he give you up willingly?... If not, if and when he comes for you again, I'll be right by your side and I'd like us to win."
"He never had to give me up... because he never had me in the first place." Jade laugh was short and bitter. "You should have seen how furious he was when I told him to take his damn vampire powers and go straight to hell, since that's where fiends like him belong! The last thing Valerian ever expected was for his only child to despise him for being what he is. His ego and pride were... are... so inflated, the thought never crossed his mind."
"I do though. Despise him I mean. But he was too powerful to fight. He still is. And since I couldn't run the risk of him finding me, I ran. And I've been running ever since..."
Anguish twisted her face as fear overtook her again. "Tris, promise me that you won't look for him. He must never find out about you. He'll kill you, just to spite me... I don't care if I die fighting him, but I couldn't bear it if anything happened to you and I was left alone, knowing that I'd caused your death the same way I caused the deaths of my parents and sister..."
He could see all the hurt, the guilt and pain welling up in her and he was struck by just how much she meant to him. He would do whatever it took to help her. "I won't try and find him, and if, when he finds you again, you say run then we run. If you say fight then we fight... Whatever you think is best..."
"But you've decided to stop running haven't you?" He said as he looked round the shop. He held her again. "I won't lose you Jade, not now..."
Jade rested her head against his chest, hiding the doubt she felt within her heart. *No, but I might lose you.*
Outwardly though, she nodded. "Yes... I've decided to stop running. 4 years of doing that is quite enough to drive anyone crazy." She hesistated. "I... I really want to say that I'll definitely be able to stand my ground and fight if Valerian does manage to find me. But I don't want to make promises I might not be able to keep. We don't even know how to kill him... He's not like other vampires. The Elders... They..." She struggled as she tried to find the right words to describe their powers.
"You won't lose me. I learnt enough about The Elders to know that running might be the best option." He sighed, tightened his embrace. "We'll find a way... and if not, I hear Estonia is nice..."
That startled a chuckle from her *I've yet to decide whether having a man who's able to read my mind is a blessing or a curse!* and she tiptoed to brush a kiss on his lips.
That small taste of him, however, only served to whet her appetite for more. Jade reached up again, sliding her hand behind the nape of Sorrow's neck and flicked her tongue across his full lower lip. His sharp intake of breath and the desire that leapt into his eyes had her molding herself against his body, arching against him as his mouth claimed hers in a possessive kiss that made her knees go weak.
A warm, liquid heat curled in the pit of Jade's stomach as Tristan's hand travelled down the length of her body to brush ever-so-slightly at her upper thigh. She couldn't feel or think beyond what he was doing to her. When he finally pulled away, her eyes fluttered back open. The look of need mixed with reproach she directed at him had him chuckling ruefully but he shook his head.
"Not here. Or I might not be able to stop myself from..." He left the rest of the sentence unfinished and bent down to nip at her pouting lower lip before regretfully stepping away. With a look of unabashed longing, he said, "I've got to go, I need some stuff on the Cloch Cosan too." His next words held a promise that made Jade shiver.
"I'll see you tonight..."
Tribute to the Flying Circus
Catherine Wiccham
Posted: Sun Mar 17, 2002 7:22 am
Post subject: Tribute to the Flying Circus
Kate couldn’t have been happier to leave XY than the moment Jade walked in. She left Tristan and Jade alone and stepped out into the sunlit street. She sighed deeply, releasing her tension and began to walk towards the local park when someone placed a hand on her shoulder startling her.
“Hey Miss Jumpy!” cried Luc in his defence as Kate whirled around.
Kate smiled; a friendly face was just what she needed to see right now. “What are you doing here?” she asked.
He wrapped an arm around her waist and they walked towards the park. “I thought you might want some company for lunch” he said smiling. “And…I was curious about meeting this Jade woman, do you really think she is part vampire?”
“It would account for the strange vibrations I keep receiving from her, if it wasn’t impossible I would say she was a cross-breed, part vampire, part human.”
“I wouldn’t say it was impossible, stranger things have happened. It would certainly be unusual, I have never heard of vampires and mortals siring children before.”
“Like you said, stranger things have happened.”
“So, how has your first morning been?” Asked Luc cheerfully, trying to lighten the mood.
“Not bad” she said flopping down on the grass under the shade of a tree. “If you don’t mind getting the Spanish Inquisition from every customer who walks in” she thought about Tristan and Talhu, *what was it with the guys in LA?*
Luc smiled, he knelt behind her, rubbing her shoulders, “Well you know what they say Honey, ‘ nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!”
Kate laughed, “Remind me again, what are your weapons oh Lord Ximinez?”
She giggled again as Luc kissed her neck, “Well…” he crawled around to face her, speaking in his best Michael Palin impersonation “…our chief weapon is surprise…surprise and fear…fear and surprise…and ruthless efficiency…and an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope…”
“Don’t forget the nice red uniforms,” she said as he grabbed her around the waist, pulling her down onto the grass.
Kate laughed gleefully as Luc covered her with playful kisses.
“Confess! Confess! Confess!” he laughed. A few people stared at them as they walked past, but the park was relatively empty for such a beautiful afternoon.
Kate continued to giggle, his kisses tickling against her skin. He pulled her up into his arms, her face all red and flushed from laughing. He looked into her eyes longingly; it was obvious that he was desperate to kiss her…for real this time. He harboured all the intensity of a passionate lover being deprived that which he most craved. Kate’s smile slowly melted as she recognised his distress. He closed his eyes in an attempt to block out his turbulent desire. Kate looked away guiltily, and tucked her hair behind her ears. She gently rested her head against his.
“I know, I know” she breathed softly, running her fingers through his hair. “I want you so much Luc. I…need you.”
Luc opened his eyes, then smiled resolutely. “I guess…things have a way of working themselves out in the end.”
There was a finality in his statement that they both understood. Something was about to happen…soon. But whether they would be prepared for it when that time arrived would be a different story…
Alcohol and Demons do not Mix
Talhu
Posted: Sun Mar 17, 2002 10:41 am
Post subject: Alcohol and Demons do not Mix
Talhu spent the rest of his day in a highly agitated state. Being hungry was one thing; being hungry and very angry was another. The first order of business was getting away from XY. He walked for about an hour in the bad part of town, then promptly found and drew the life energy from the owner of another small shop. Emptying the cash register had helped. *Murder.* That was the word Kate had used, and applied to his feeding. Only he didn't see how what he did differed from their feeding on animals.
Once night fell, Talhu found that he had been wandering for a very long time. He looked over to a nearby building. Club Asylum , the sign read. The place was busy when he entered and sat down at the bar stool, ordering a scotch on the rocks. *Why can't these humans just hurry up and destroy themselves already?* The demon began to drink. About a half hour and two drinks later, a brown haired woman in a red dress appeared next to him. "Hi," she said. "Is this seat taken?"
Talhu drank. *What the heck? I'm bored.* "No. Please, go ahead." She sat down, and he finished his third drink in one gulp. "What'll you take?" he asked her as the bartender approached.
"Surprise me," she said. He ordered more drinks - this time, a gin and lime for both of them. "By the way, my name is Rebecca."
"Nice name," he lied. Human names never sounded right to his ears. "I'm Pravus." As they continued to talk, Talhu realized that the reason for his sudden desire to drink was that the past two days had disturbed him greatly. Knocked unconscious twice, threatened by a witch, then had his help rejected by another witch. *Damned humans. Well, at least this one qualifies as good looking.*
The two of them talked for several hours. Talhu would probably have recalled more of what they talked about were it not for the fact that he was drinking like a fish. He vaguely recalled saying something about how everything went wrong recently, but remembered to couch everything in business terms so he sounded like an executive of some kind. Rebecca was starting to feel sorry for him.
After about three hours, Talhu tried to stand up and fell on the floor. "Are you okay?" Rebecca asked as nearby customers laughed.
"Yes," he said and tried to use the bar stool to stand up. Getting on both knees was easy. Up on one leg was slightly more difficult. Talhu began to pull himself up on both feet. He then promptly received an uppercut from the bar stool, and the floor rushed to his face a second time.
"Pravus! The drunk act was funny the first time, but not the second."
Rebecca's words registered, and he rolled over to find her kneeling beside him. Looking her straight in the eyes, he said only two words: "Who's acting?"
She was obviously concerned, and called out "Does anyone here know Pravus?" When no answer was forthcoming, he could feel (when had lost control of turning the telepathy on and off? He didn't know) that she felt partly responsible for this. "Look's like I'm stuck taking you home pal."
"Sobrietam delenda est!" Talhu suddenly yelled out as she put an arm around him and tossed one of his over her shoulder. As he was half-dragged, half-walking towards the door, he could feel his hold on his power slipping. Needing something to take his mind off of the power, he started to sing a song he heard back in the 70's. They stopped for a moment outside of the door because Rebecca was laughing. "What?"
She had calmed down as they walked in to the parking lot. "It's just the thought of you as a 'Sweet Transvestite.'"
Talhu stopped and stared blankly at her for a minute, then broke out in hysterical laughter. "Is that what I was singing?" For a moment, she lost her grip on him. He started to fall, and caught her arm. That was when he lost control of the power, and could feel her life energy begin to drain in to him. Half a minute later, they were both laying on the ground - the woman dead, and Talhu passed out.
Frustrations
Jadyn
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2002 5:13 am
Post subject: Frustrations
Luc walked with Kate back to XY. She hadn't exactly been out the full hour but after their 'moment', things had been rather awkward between them. "You'd think we would be used to it by now..." thought Kate.
Luc was still curious about meeting Jade... If their theory about her parentage was correct she was something of a phenomena.
Kate pushed the door to XY open and stepped inside. Jade was standing behind the counter serving an elderly woman. She looked up and smiled as Kate entered the shop. Kate was glad to see that Tristan had gone.
She held the door open for the elderly woman as she exited the shop. She smiled at Jade, "Hi, I hope you haven't been too busy."
Jade blushed a little as she recalled exactly how "busy" she'd been. *I've got to stop thinking about it... If Kate's half the clairvoyant she claims to be, my thoughts this morning must've provided quite a bit of "entertainment"... No wonder the poor girl ran out earlier as if the shop was on fire!*
"Not really. Mornings and early afternoons are usually pretty quiet..."
She returned Kate's smile before turning to look a little curiously at the man standing beside her, his arm possessively around Kate's waist. *Hmmm, seems like I wasn't the only one enjoying my lunch hour!*
"Hi, I'm Jade... But you probably already knew that." She grinned up at the tall stranger. *Wonder if he's another Wiccan. Gee... Witches, warlocks, vampire hunters, demons and fairies. I sure as hell won't be complaining about a lack of variety in my social circle!*
Luc smiled, holding out his hand towards her, "I'm Luc, pleased to finally make your acquaintance."
"Now that I know that Kate was meeting you for lunch, I can see why she was in such a hurry!" Feeling a little dwarfed next to his 6'5" frame, Jade placed her hand in his.
Luc smiled again, glancing at Kate who looked a little embarrassed. He shook Jade's hand firmly. He could see the swirling darkness Kate had mentioned. He glanced at her again, her face was slightly questioning. He shrugged. Such things were never completely clear.
Kate laughed a little as she dropped her things behind the counter. "Luc wanted to see the shop, he shares my passion... for the occult."
"Feel free to look around. Maybe you and Kate could give me a couple of pointers about how I could improve XY's magic section even further. I've studied about the craft in some detail, even dabbled some, but I guess I'm a jack of all trades and a master of none." Jade winked at Lucien before turning back to Kate.
"So you've met Tristan. I presume you guys had a nice little chat before I came back?"
Kate rolled her eyes, "Yeah, all very pleasant..." She couldn't shrug the bad feeling she still harboured from their meeting.
Jade couldn't help laughing at the droll expression on her face. "He managed to piss you off too, didn't he?" At Kate's surprised look, she elaborated. "The first time Tris came into XY, I almost threw him out the front door."
Luc was reading one of the books on Traditional Mythology but he couldn't help but look up at the two women as they talked. Kate looked up at him and he returned his attention to the book.
"Umm, let's just say, that between him and our mysterious visitor this morning, I've taken quite a grilling. I'm sure Tristan has hidden qualities that I have yet to see. There must be some reason why you're so obviously smitten with the guy."
Jade frowned as she debated which topic to broach first. Deciding to go with the one that was less personal, she said, "That Talhu guy was creepy! What did he want anyway? He didn't give you any trouble, did he?"
"Hmm it's a long story." She looked up at Luc again. He was watching her intently, obviously guessing where all this was leading. He closed the book and replaced it on the shelf, walking back up to the counter.
"Kate..." he said warily.
Kate held his gaze for a moment then turned back to Jade, "Umm, there is something that I really should tell you. I feel kind of awkward because I should have been upfront with you from the start. Perhaps we should sit down." Kate sighed. *Here we go again.*
Gradually Kate explained the real reason she was in LA for the second time that day. Luc had held her hand tightly throughout the entire discourse, adding his explanations where he thought appropriate.
*Some time later*
As she finished, Kate glanced up at Jade, now she had to wait and see how she would respond.
There was a long pause before Jade broke the silence. "I don't quite know how you're expecting me to react to all that info Kate, but relax, I'm not going to take an ad out in the papers and announce your presence to the Coven."
She leaned forward to place a hand on Kate's tense shoulder. "We all have our secrets, so I can't exactly fault you on withholding your past from me."
"I wasn't trying to protect myself. I was worried that I might be putting you at risk just by my being here." She glanced at Luc then continued. "Tristan caught me off guard and sensed things about me. Since I told him all this, I guessed you would find out anyway. But Jade, I really wanted to tell you, I hated lying to you about it."
Luc interjected at this point, "We have had to be discreet to avoid drawing attention to ourselves, but the time is rapidly drawing near when we..." His voice trailed off, he looked nervous and anxious. He stood from the table and walked around the shop for a moment.
Kate continued, "Time waits for no one, and my time is close, when I will have to face my destiny."
Glancing at Kate, whose face was white and drawn, then at Luc as he paced, Jade spoke softly, "I understand."
Although Jade spoke softly, the force behind those two little words of hers was unmistakable, for she truely did understand what it was like to face up to the past after running from it for years on end.
The hand she had on Kate's shoulder tightened slightly then fell away. "I'm assuming that Tris reached the same conclusion I'm reaching about this Serapis. He's connected to whatever's been happening recently, isn't he? This whole thing about the Cloch Cosan?"
Luc wondered back to the table at this point. Standing behind Kate, he rested a hand on her shoulder comfortingly.
"We know Serapis was involved in the last Gathering of the Shards in 1981. He and Janus... and this Talhu, I think he worked for Serapis in some way too. I think it is fair to assume that he is involved now. I think his presence here in L.A at this time is too coincidental for us to assume otherwise. But what his plans are... I couldn't say for sure."
Jade was about to say more but she noticed that Kate seemed exhausted. Deciding to leave her questions about Tristan and Kate to another time, she stood up and said, "You don't look so good. I know it's your first day and all, but it's been a rough morning. Why don't you take the rest of the day off and let Luc take you home to get some rest? Although I highly doubt you'll actually sleep!"
She started to grin impishly then looked bewilderedly from Kate to Lucien as twin looks of frustration and despair flickered across their faces.
A Sign
Catherine Wiccham
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2002 10:39 am
Post subject: A Sign
Kate drove back home. Driving helped her clear her thoughts, and she had a lot of things running through her head at the moment. When they arrived home she ran a hot bath. She lay in the bubbles, the steam rising from the water. Luc knocked on the door and entered.
“You feeling better now?”
“Much,” smiled Kate.
Luc sat at the side of the tub, gazing at her glittering skin; he picked up the sponge and began gently washing her back. Kate murmured softly to herself, Luc concentrated intensely on his task. She sighed again restlessly and Luc smiled.
“Katey Wiccham, you’ll be the end of me!”
She giggled playfully, climbing out of the bath. He watched her in reverence as she wrapped a towel around her naked body. He chased her out of the bathroom, she squealed in delight as he pinned her against the wall.
“Just what do you think you’re going to do?” she asked curiously.
“I know what I’d like to do.” He let a finger gently trace the curve of her shoulder. He sighed resolutely, “We have got to get rid of this curse.” He let her escape from his hold; she made her way to the bedroom and started getting dressed.
“Choose something pretty, I’ve got a surprise for you later.”
“Not like last night I hope,” she laughed.
“No, what I had planned involved just you and me, and a bottle of Côtes du Rhône 1990.”
“Hmm, really?” said Kate playfully, “I’m intrigued.” She held up a flimsy, black strappy dress. “Will this be suitable?”
Luc swallowed nervously, “Very.”
*LATER THAT EVENING**
Luc led Kate out of the car. He held her hands as she walked with her eyes closed. She wobbled slightly as she stepped onto the grass and giggled apprehensively.
“Are we nearly there?” she laughed.
“Almost,” said Luc as he positioned her, he stood behind her and whispered in her ear. “Okay, open your eyes.”
Kate opened her eyes and gasped in amazement. They stood on a cliff top far above the busy city of LA. Looking up the night-sky was filled with millions of stars.
“Oh Luc,” beamed Kate, “This is wonderful!”
Luc motioned for her to sit down. He had laid a woollen blanket on the cool grass. Kate sat down, cradled in Luc’s arms and looked up at the stars. The glorious wonders of the cosmos opened up above their heads.
They spent the next hour pointing out various constellations and groupings of stars. Just as they had done many years ago in England when they had first been dating. Luc had brought wine and fruit…it was all so perfect. They lay in each other’s arms…
He was so close. Kate could feel Luc’s warm, firm body as it brushed against hers. She couldn’t control herself anymore; she could feel her inner lustful urges burning deep within, screaming for release. She turned back to him and taking his face in her hands she kissed him, yearning and desperate. Luc was stunned, he held her tightly, and kissed her back longingly. He couldn’t resist her; inside he was full of painful passion –a passion that longed to feel her body next to his. Kate pushed him backwards and down onto the soft grass, climbing on top of him, she ripped his shirt open, kissing his smooth, toned chest. Luc sighed – swelling anticipation rising inside him.
slight shudder deep in the earth…
Kate didn’t stop. *I don’t care,* she thought. As she kissed him and touched him she felt all her pain and guilt slip away. She wrapped her bare legs around him tightly, pulling him closer.
road the streetlights began to flicker and then they systematically shattered one after the other, for about a mile down the lonely stretch that led to the cliff top.
Luc could hear the distant sound of cars beeping their horns as the ground tremors began to grow stronger. Kate didn’t seem to notice – either that or she didn’t care, because she carried on undressing him. He sighed heavily as he struggled to detach himself – physically and mentally, he knew he should stop this now…but…he couldn’t resist any longer. He gave in to his desire and rolled Kate over on to her back, kissing her in earnest, feeling her respond to his touches. He found a deep relief in letting go of all his anxieties and uneasiness. He held her close in his arms, feeling her warm body through the flimsy chiffon of her dress. Her firm flesh yielded to his touch and Kate moaned slightly in apprehension. He kissed her again, working from her lips, down her neck and along her shoulders. Kate opened her eyes, taking in the wonder of the view overhead.
“Oh my God!” she suddenly cried.
“Oh Kate…” moaned Luc as he continued to kiss her.
“No!” cried Kate, pointing with her finger over Luc’s shoulder.
“Huh?” said Luc confused; he roused himself from his distraction, looking in the direction Kate was pointing.
The moon. Bright and almost full, held an afterglow of red that seemed to bleed into the face of the moon.
“Blood on the moon,” he voiced nervously. *A portent of danger that was near at hand.* He looked back at Kate. She looked scared.
“T-there’s blood on the moon!” she stammered in disbelief.
It was then that Luc noticed the destruction that surrounded them. A nearby tree had been almost entirely uprooted by the earth tremors, which had since subsided upon Kate and Luc’s abrupt parting. There were also deep ruptures in the earth where the ground had split, risen or sank accordingly.
“Bloody hell,” he cried. He hadn’t realised just how bad the earth tremors had grown.
Kate looked around too as she pulled her dress back on. “Wow,” was all she could say.
Luc watched as the moonlight illuminated her pale skin, giving her an ethereal appearance. He turned away and began pulling his clothes back on. He started buttoning his shirt, then gave up, realising most of the buttons were missing.
Kate couldn’t take her eyes from the moon. In her mind she had willed for a sign and here it was. The time was near. She helped Luc pack up their things and moments later they were headed back home.
Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Victor
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2002 10:53 am
Tash lay still for a few minutes after Victor left, savouring the memory of his warm caress. They’d made love twice more since that first fevered session earlier today. Victor had wanted to shower and change, and Tash figured that wasn’t a bad idea for her, too. In the shower, she found herself singing again…
I see your true colours, shining through
I see your true colours, and that's why I love you
So don't be afraid, to let them show
Your true colours, true colours
Are beautiful, like a rainbow
As she was drying herself, she heard a frantic shout from the hallway outside. It sounded like Victor calling her name. Imagining the worst, she quickly wrapped the towel around her, sarong style, and ran to the front door, grabbing the HK on the way past.
Victor thought about breaking the lock and rushing in, but he restrained himself to pounding on the door "Tash! Open up!"
Tash unsnibbed the door and flung it open, staying to the side of the doorway and holding her gun at a 45-degree angle upwards, uncertain at this point where any targets might be. Her eyes flicked from side to side, scanning the hallway. Not seeing anyone there except a stunned Victor, she slowly lowered the gun in one hand while clutching at her slipping towel with the other. Her nerves sang with the tension of unexpended adrenaline as her eyes finally settled on Victor.
Victor rushed inside "Iknowwheretheothershardswisewomanintheorbthemessageshowsedthehousepasadenaweknowwhereallnine are..." Victor could not hold back the flood of thoughts.
Victor took a deep breath, and expelled it slowly. He was excited and nervous. And having Tash there nearly naked in front of him wasn't helping. "The shards. The Wisewoman left me a message in the orb. I know where the other four are."
Tash quietly closed the door behind Victor, relieved that there was no danger out there, but a little angry with him for scaring her. "That's better. Slowly. Kain's four?" She was still breathing heavily from her adrenaline surge.
Victor nodded vigorously. "Not only where they are, but why we have not been able to find them. They are in Pasadena, in a house surrounded by a ...I don't know the technical term for it...if there is any...but a non-magic zone."
Tash couldn't help grinning. She wasn't used to seeing Victor so animated. "OK, calm down. That's great. But why would the Wisewoman tell you?"
"The orb. I found it in the hall after the fight. It was a message from the Elder on the Third floor. She said that she had to leave and that I was the center of the forces here in this building. She said some other stuff that didn't make sense too. I will have to ask Daye about it.”
Tash put the gun away, still trying to hold the towel with one hand. *Though I'm not sure why I should feel modest now.* Turning to Victor, she asked, "Were you wanting to contact her now, or leave it until tomorrow?"
Victor's mouth moved uselessly. He had not thought this through. What should he do next? "I think I should tell you, " Victor grinned slightly, "coherently, what I saw in the orb."
Tash smiled, and put an arm around his waist as she led him to the couch, "That would probably help."
Victor continued, "Then we should get dressed and go out and talk about what to do next." He followed her to the couch and sat down, then pulled her into his lap. "But don't get dressed just yet."
Tash couldn't believe she could still feel new passion after all they'd done that afternoon, but as Victor's hands explored her body, she felt the heat rising within her. "Hmm," she murmured as she nuzzled the side of his neck, "How long before we need to go?"
Victor almost forgot why he had come over as one excitement replaced the other. “Whenever you are ready. I didn't make reservations or anything. Want to hear about the orb?"
Tash planted a long, passionate kiss on Victor's mouth, then sat back, letting the towel fall completely. "Depends, do you want to tell me about the orb right now ... or in a little while?" She grinned mischievously.
Victor had already broken one of Tash’s couches and no matter how he did it, if he broke another one she'd be mad. He kept it gentle and kissed her belly. "Now", he said to her navel, "but I have a feeling we will wait to get dressed for going out when I am done."
And so between tickles and touches and kisses and caresses he told her of the vision from the orb. Tash wanted to play and Victor wanted to get the vision off his mind so he could concentrate on his lover. And while it took the better part of an hour and at least two pieces of furniture he managed to do it.
Tash was finding it difficult to concentrate on what Victor was telling her, but between gasps and giggles she managed to listen. Finally, she felt sufficiently sated and in control once more to think about it seriously.
"So if we want to restore Tempest's memories, we need to get hold of those four crystals. Soon, I suppose."
Victor lay on the floor with his fly open. "I was thinking tomorrow night. 9pm," he said with all seriousness, "But it has to be a plan. An organized plan. If the crystals disappear then he will know it is us. If we take them by force, then he will take all nine back from us with force. If we go in and tell him we don't know where they all are, and he believes it, then we buy ourselves time. Not to mention that the crystals are dormant where they are... If we substitute ordinary crystals for the shards, he would never know until he took them out of the house...." Victor was lost in thought, and ideas flowed from his mind that was hardwired for war.
Tash mulled over what Victor had said, "Why particularly 9pm tomorrow? That's your 36 hours you were talking about earlier? What have you done?" Tash worried that Victor might have got himself into something too deep. She didn't want to see him hurt, and she was picking up feelings of danger from him. His danger. “You want to go see Kain, don't you? That's crazy. He'll kill you."
"He will try," said Victor, "But he won't succeed. He won't get the chance. But it is necessary to buy you time to get into the house in Pasadena. It’s a distraction." Victor shook his head as if to clear out the cobwebs. He kissed her. "I have made a deal with that devil Kain, but he will never collect. What Kain doesn't know is that I recruited Tempest, rather than hunted him."
Tash remembered the sense she'd had of the Beazor Complex, where she'd since learned was where this Kain did business. She shivered, and gently stroked Victor's cheek. "I can't let you go in there alone while I'm miles away. It won't take Kain long to work out you aren't going to hand over Tempest or the crystals." She kissed him, slowly and lovingly. "I couldn't bear the thought of you being hurt, or worse..."
"First he has to determine whether I am lying to him about knowing. And I have lied to Kain a long time. He won't expect me to tell the truth." Victor hugged her to reassure her, "It takes a bigger man than Kain to squash this bug."
Tash nodded as though mollified, but she still had her doubts. She couldn't believe the intensity of her feelings for Victor. She'd only known him a few days. *And when I first saw him, all I could see was the darkness...* She felt as though she'd found someone who filled in the gaps in her own soul. She smiled to herself at the thought. *I'm sounding like a crazy romantic now.* She kissed Victor one more time, then stood, "Well, time to get dressed then, I suppose."
Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Natasha Brookes
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2002 10:55 am
A short while later Tash and Victor strolled arm in arm towards the club. Tash had managed to dig out some suitable clothes for herself. She'd found a short red skirt that set off the colour of her skin perfectly, and a low-cut top that still managed to hide most of her scars.
Victor put his arm around her waist, and Tash leaned against him as they walked. *Now if we could only stay like this, and not have to worry about memories and crystals...*
Victor was enjoying the night, and loving Tash by his side as they strolled down the street laughing and pointing at the sights like two humans on a lovely evening date. And for a moment they were.
As they approached the Club Asylum they could see the crowd gathered around the front door. The place was packed. Victor slowed his brisk pace and Tash slowed hers as well. Would they be accepted in a place like this? Victor laughed. A little at first, then a loud and full laugh came from him. "What are we afraid of?"
Tash hugged Victor tightly, grinning at his laughter. "Well, lots of things, but none of them are here, I think."
Victor grabbed Tash's hand and bulled his way into the pack. As he reached the front of the group he could feel the pressure of Tash squeezing his hand. *Damn, I had not thought about how intense a crowd like this would be for her!*
Tash could feel the random thoughts of all the people around her pushing at her barriers. Proximity didn't help, and the crowd was so packed that she was constantly brushing up against several at once.
The doorman was being very selective. Only a few were being let in at a time. Victor gave Tash a look of concern, and looked back at the man at the gate. Victor pulled out a $100 bill. The man nodded in that secret language of doormen, and Victor went to lead Tash to the relative quiet of the inside. She released his hand.
Tash felt her hand slip from Victor's grip, from her anchor on reality. Lately, her barriers had been taking a battering, mostly from having to read crystals. Thoughts, feelings and emotions began to wash over her from the crowd. Her breathing became laboured. She felt as though she'd lost all control of her mind. There were no barriers. It had been years since she'd lost all control over what she received, years during which her ability had grown stronger. Now she found the pressure of all those minds pushing against her too much to take. She couldn't see Victor any more.
She called out in panic, "Victor!!"
Victor started shoving people out of the way to get to her. The mob collapsed as they fell onto the pavement. Victor grabbed Tash, and practically dragged her from the crowd into the parking lot. He held her until she began to relax, and then he felt her stiffen again. "What is it?"
"There's something ... evil nearby. Very dark." She clung to Victor a little longer, still trying to banish the feelings of suffocation from all those thoughts intruding on her. But this new presence felt weakened, somehow.
Talhu started to wake up again. He noticed that the woman was lying on the ground next to him, and stared at her for a moment. Was she alive or dead? It was then that he made a mistake; trying to use a car to stand up. Talhu caught sight for a moment of Victor. *With a human woman?* Victor was only a familiar blur at this point, and his being with a human struck him as being peculiar. That was when another song jumped in to his head: "Something familiar, Something peculiar, Something for everybody - a comedy tonight!" He stopped singing and broke out laughing again, promptly falling back to the ground.
Victor thought he heard someone singing. It was a voice that was somehow familiar. He had heard it before. Victor tried to recall the voice when he heard the distinct sound of a body hitting the side of a car. Hard. "Over here," he whispered coarsely to Tash as he began to sneak towards the sound.
Tash gathered the tattered shreds of her control and slowly built up her barriers again as she followed Victor. She circled out a little to one side, to cover more angles of escape for whoever - whatever - was there.
Victor rounded the corner of the SUV and found a man face down on top of a woman between the cars.
Talhu rolled over, and looked around. The blur had come closer to him, and it took a minute to focus. Immediately after seeing Victor he stumbled backwards. "Victor. You're the last thing I needed to try to focus to see."
"Pravus," Victor said, "or more like DE-Pravus. Gotten drunk I see. How bad is it this time, as bad as St. Patrick's Day in Dublin in 1972?"
To answer, Talhu jumped several verses ahead in the song he had been singing before. "Old situations, New complications, nothing portentous or polite. Tragedy tomorrow, comedy tonight!"
Victor laughed. "I think we are going to have more fun if we stay out of the club, Tash. Allow me to introduce the demon Talhu. Talhu, this is my lover, Tash. Sorry you won't remember her because she is going to make your life miserable. I'd ask about your date, but she looks dead."
Tash looked at Talhu. She'd heard about him, and his involvement with the Cloch Cosan. She also remembered his voice from the other morning. *So that's who Victor's mystery caller was.* She was picking up mixed signals from Victor. He seemed to radiate extreme distrust, but there was also a feeling almost of camaraderie. Tash guessed that was inevitable, when Victor had such a long history with some of these beings. After long enough, even enemies can seem like old friends.
Tash looked at the woman lying next to Talhu. She certainly was dead. Tash looked coldly at Talhu, "Your handiwork, I take it?"
"No, and let me prove it," Talhu said. He reached in to his jacket and tried to pull out his dagger. It promptly crashed to the ground between his legs. He eventually managed to grab the woman's wrist and slice into it, fumbling with the dagger in the process. Red powder began to tumble out of the wound. He looked at her in shock. "When did I eat her?"
"Talhu, old pal. This is embarrassing. Let’s go...come on..." Victor reached down and grabbed Pravus' leg and began to drag him away from the body. "Tash, there is a sort of polite agreement among the demon community. 'Don't kick a being when he's down.' If you come across another demon who's been beaten, don't finish him off, that is his attacker's job. In this case...it was attempted suicide."
Tash eyed the pathetic, drunken figure on the ground, and shrugged, "But I'm not a demon, Victor. This one's still after the crystals and surely won't help us with them." She looked Victor in the eye, "But I won't kill him now. For you."
"I promised you a good time, and I meant it. What say we dress him in a skirt and prop him outside the Beazor?"
Tash gaped at Victor for a second, then burst out laughing. Then a thought occurred to her. "Or maybe we could leave him at the Black Veins' crypt, suitably attired for vampire hunting?"
Something Victor had said earlier finally made sense to Talhu. He rolled over again, causing Victor to lose his grip. Talhu looked over at Tash. "You're sleeping with a human? Man, that's just...." he shuddered at the thought. Then he started singing once more. "Love and marriage, love and marriage, go together like a horse and carriage...."
Tash could take no more of this. She just hoped Talhu wasn't one of the stronger demons about. She delivered a kick to the side of his head that should knock him out if he was anything up to twice human toughness. She stepped back to survey the result. *Hey, if nothing else, this could be valuable research.*
"Ouch! That looked like it hurt! You still with us Talhu, old boy?" Victor couldn’t resist, and in his best Britney spears he sang, "Hit me baby one more time!"
Talhu's head was swimming as he fought to maintain consciousness. His last words before passing out again were "Look, mommy, I see stars."
Tash nodded once, satisfied. Turning to Victor, she said, "Well, at least I know what it takes to knock him out when he's drunk. Is he any tougher when he's sober?"
"Yeah, he is. But at least he'll be easier to carry this way." Victor slung him over his shoulder and turned to Tash, "Lead on, M'dear. I want to put this baby to bed before he wakes up."
Tash led the way to the cemetery where she'd encountered the Black Veins. She sent out all her feelers - she wasn't in any state to meet the vampire gang again yet. She looked back at Victor, carrying Talhu. It seemed a bit unsporting to dump the unconscious demon next to a vampire lair, but then in her game she'd learned not to feel squeamish about what she did to the monsters. Carefully picking her way through the headstones, she approached Jem's crypt. She nodded to it as Victor stopped beside her. "That one," she whispered. It felt empty, but you could never be too careful.
"None too soon, too." When he saw Tash's quizzical look, he elaborated, "Talhu is drooling down the back of my pants."
Victor picked his way forward quietly and found an exposed headstone facing the crypt. He dropped Talhu against it, wincing at the cracking noise that came when Talhu's head hit the grave marker. He slapped Talhu a few times to bring him around. "Come on, Buddy, wake up."
Regaining consciousness again was a slow task for the demon, but he somehow managed. There were now three familiar blurs in front of him, though one seemed to be a combination of the two. "Three become did you when?"
"It's okay, I brought some presents for you. Take this," he said, handing him a vial of Holy Water, "But DONT'T DRINK IT. And this," he placed the stake in his other hand. He started to leave, but had a wicked thought. He pulled a pen out and wrote something on Pravus' forehead. Hi. My name is Talhu. He sniggered all the way back to Tash's hiding place.
Tash watched Victor walking back to her, admiring the way he moved. As he reached her, she could hear him laughing quietly. She looked at the pen in his hand, "What did you do?"
"This demon has no power over you if you know his true name. I wrote his on his forehead." He kissed her because it felt good to. "Have I told you mine?"
Tash savoured the kiss, but wanted to get away from there quickly, before any of the Black Veins returned. She was in no fit state for a fight tonight, even with Victor to help. She smiled at him, "Well, the first time I touched you with my bare hands, I got three names, if you remember. Tempest, Janus, and Vrithetek ... and when you 'inhabited' me yesterday morning I got it again." She reached up and kissed him properly, "And I do love you, Vrithetek...."
*So you are finally being true with her now.* "We need to hurry away from here."
"I couldn't agree more," said Tash as they moved swiftly out of the graveyard. Out on the street, she stopped, pulling Victor to a halt beside her. “I'm sorry about earlier, at the club. I don't know what happened, it was just too many people I think. I couldn't seem to keep my barriers up, and they just all flooded in." She shook her head, "I haven't lost control like that for years." She looked up at Victor with a worried expression.
"It's okay. I didn't want to share you anyway. Lets walk back to Bibliophile where it is quiet and we can get something to eat."
Later at Bibliophile
Daye
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2002 2:02 pm
Post subject: Later at Bibliophile
Daye served a few customers after Tristan left, but he had piqued her curiosity. As soon as the shop quieted down, she left the counter to one of the young associates, and took a seat at the computer table in the back. She accessed the Watcher’s database and began to do some research. The first thing she looked up was the Brotherhood. There were tons of different reports on them in the Watcher’s archives. She began to peruse those, finding most of the same things she already knew. Then she came across two files that were a bit different.
The first file was a report from a watcher that had been based not far from L.A., in a small town called Sunnydale. This watcher, one Rupert Giles, had recorded the events which occurred when his slayer had fought and eventually defeated The Master. Although the information was fascinating, it did not make much reference to The Brotherhood or the Elders themselves.
The second file Daye found was a detailed history of The Brotherhood, however. The file was a collaborative effort, as it seemed that a Watcher had been assigned to keep tabs on the group for ages. Daye saved a copy of that one for later use.
Daye decided as long as she was at it, she might as well access any information the Watcher’s had on those she had met in the last few days. Being informed wouldn’t hurt. Daye spent a few hours going through files that mentioned Talhu and Victor, but found no mention of Tash or Tristan Barrington. She kept copies of everything she found.
Mrs. Wyldling called to say she couldn’t make it in, so Daye was stuck at the shop until closing, and towards the end of the day, she was dead on her feet.
Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Natasha Brookes
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2002 9:40 pm
They sat at the table, and Victor watched Tash eat. "You must have been pretty hungry, I never saw a human pack away that much food!" * And she was fun to watch while she did it, * he thought to himself. He sipped his coffee and stared at her moon eyes, enjoying the silent exchange of winks and smiles.
Tash couldn't believe how hungry she felt. It must have been all the exercise she'd been getting that afternoon. It was peaceful, sitting at the table watching Victor watch her eat. "So, do you know if Daye was meant to be working tonight, or are we just being hopeful here?"
Daye stepped out of the front door, to check and see if there were any customers left at the sidewalk tables. She had just sent April home for the evening, and was hoping to be able to close a little early. It had already been a very long day, and since Mrs. Wyldling didn't make it back, Daye had been stuck in the shop all day long. She wanted to get home to a bubble bath and a cup of tea. When she arrived outside, she was surprised to find Tash and Victor sitting at one of the tables just finishing up.
Victor waved to Daye to come join them. She looked tired, but wandered over that way. "Care to sit and get a quick update? Is it safe to do that here?" he asked.
"Out here should be ok," Daye replied, sitting down with them. "But just to be on the safe side..." Daye whispered a quick incantation, creating a safe area to talk. "There, now no one can eavesdrop," Daye said.
Victor was always impressed by those that could work magic with no preparation. He envied her the ability, but appreciated her caution nonetheless.
"I found out a few things, and I think some of them are important," Daye said. "Where do you want me to start?"
Tash thought about the information Victor had found out from the orb. "I think we probably want to start with the Cloch Cosan itself."
Daye proceeded to fill Tash and Victor in on the information she had found in the archives about the Cloch, the Nether Arch, and the Watchers' Council connection to it. When she finished, she waited for their reaction to it.
"Actually I sort of suspected that they had been dabbling in the Cloch Cosan," said Victor, "Did you find anything more on the Rituals?"
“Well, not much, actually," Daye said. She sighed in frustration. "There were references to how they work and why they are necessary, but nothing specific, and the Council does not have copies of them, I don't think. They might have them, but I can't access them, so for our purposes, let's assume they don't exist anywhere anymore."
"I did find out something else, that may be related, and then again may not," Daye added.
Tash raised an eyebrow, "And...?"
"We have some things too, Daye. Probably a lot more than you will want to know. How safe is this ...spell?" Victor asked.
"Pretty safe, unless someone tries to counteract it," Daye answered Victor. Then she turned to Tash. " I found something in prophecy that might relate to what's going on." Daye related the prophecy to them and the reasons that it might have something to do with the recent events.
"Dante is coming," muttered Victor.
Tash gave Victor a strange look, "I'm assuming you don't mean the author. Who, or what, is Dante?"
"In 1264 a comet appeared in the skies over Florence Italy. It heralded the birth of Dante Alighiero. It was never officially named, but it was probably the same comet. That would match the 'fire in the sky' prophecy."
“Wait," Daye jumped up and ran back into the shop. She came out a moment later, carrying a newspaper. "It's here somewhere," she muttered, flipping through the pages. "Ah, here we go."
"There it is! " Victor pointed to an article in the Science section "Reinen-Barr Comet discovered."
"It says here that the comet has inexplicably changed path and that it will be passing closer to the planet than ever before," Daye read. "That sort of event could herald some sort of big flux in the magical area."
"I hate comets. They always bring trouble," mumbled Victor, "And Prophecy is worse. It's always too vague until you get right onto the event it is referring too. And by then, it's too late to do anything about it. This is beginning to sound bad."
"I agree," Daye nodded her head, folding the paper back up. "But, since this gives the date it will be closest, we should probably be prepared for something serious coming down around then. I found out some stuff about the building at Poplar, too," Daye said. "Some real unexpected stuff, actually."
Tash pricked up her ears. She'd been getting strange feelings from the building. Victor had said he'd sensed warmth and welcoming from it. Tash had felt that a little, too. But also a faint hint of something underlying that.
Victor watched as Tash's radar focused in on the news about the building at Poplar. He decided to press for more. "I lived there back in the 1850's It was a fairly new structure back then. Built in 1813 I think...I remember there were some good folks living there at the time. "I don't remember anything that would be noteworthy to the Council of Watchers.”
Daye explained what she had found out about the building and Mrs. White. She stressed the idea that whatever was under the building had been there practically forever.
"I have always felt welcome there," Victor said after a long pause, "Never any sign of danger or malice. Even the Elder of the Council of Sorcerers has been on the 3rd floor for years! She would never stay if there was something wrong."
* But she didn't stay, she left. * *Shut up! I can only concentrate on one crisis at a time...it will have to wait. * *While you endanger your friends by ignoring this threat. * *Damn soul.*
"From what I can gather, the entity there has been sleeping for a very long time," Daye said. "For some reason, I think it may be rousing now."
"Well, I'm not surprised. All this stuff with the Shards happening right there. If that's not going to wake something up, I don't know what will." Tash finished the last of her meal, and pushed the plate away with a sigh.
"We can't afford to concentrate on that now," Victor said. He looked at Daye, "But we appreciate knowing...it will make it easier to defend ourselves if it comes to that. I needed to tell you. I know where all the crystals are now. I got a message from Wisewoman that has put me onto Kain's four crystals."
Tash looked at Victor sadly, "Yeah, and you have a crazy plan that'll get you killed, too."
"That’s why she needs to know. We all have to be in on the plan. The two of us cannot do it alone. I want to meet with Tempest tomorrow night around 6pm so we can plan this and attack by 9pm. That’s the deadline."
He turned to Daye, "Can you make it for that?"
Daye was shocked that he had managed to locate all the shards. "Sure, I can make it," she said. "I want to help any way I can. And I'd rather no one got themselves killed."
The Voice
Jadyn
Posted: Tue Mar 19, 2002 4:32 am
Post subject: The Voice
Jade sighed wearily as she made her way up the stairs. The sight of Tash's front door caused her to start as she realised that it'd been almost two days since she'd last spoken to her friend. Impulsively, she knocked, hoping to catch Tash at home. The two of them seriously needed to sit down and talk. Everything seemed to have come to standstill in the last 48 hours... *That's because you've been so caught up with Tristan, you haven't had the time to think about anything else! Talk about a lack of priorities!* Jade rolled her eyes and grinned a little sheepishly at herself.
She waited a moment then knocked again. When there was still no answer, Jade shrugged and crossed the hall to unlock the door to her own apartment. After kicking off her her boots and tossing her burgandy jacket into the hall closet, she threw herself onto the plush living room couch and burrowed into its soft cushions. It had been a long day and she was exhausted.
Kate's stunning revelations came back to her as Jade allowed herself to drift. *So XY's latest clairvoyant really is in the Coven of Sindell's Inner Circle. Who would have thought?* She hadn't believed Kate during the interview, had even gone as far as to accuse her of trying to fake her affiliations on her job application! A rueful smile played across Jade's face as she reprimanded herself. *Just goes to show again, Jadyn Lee, that you can be incredibly obtuse at times!*
Opening her eyes, Jade glanced at the clock and saw that it was already a quarter to seven. She'd stayed on at XY a little later than usual to finish up the last of her paperwork. *With a bit of luck, that's the last I'll see of it for the next month!*
She heaved herself off the sofa and headed towards the bathroom. Stripping off her trim-fitting jeans and a red knitted halterneck, she was about to step into the shower when she realised that she'd forgotten to grab fresh towels on her way in. Muttering to herself about becoming senile at the age of 24, Jade shrugged on her robe and went back into the lounge.
She was walking back to the bathroom when she spotted Sorrow's magic case through the doorway of the guest bedroom. Despite the ripple of unease she felt, Jade was drawn to it... or to be more precise, she was drawn to what was inside it. Trailing her fingers across the box's lid, she blinked in surprise as the lock sprang open, revealing the Sharde of Lethe nestled between a circle of five diamonds...
*Strange. The Shard's glowing... I thought Tris said that the ward would mute it's glow for at least a week.* Feeling like she was in a trance, Jade reached down and picked the crystal up. A surge of heat travelled up her arm, making her lightheaded so that she stumbled backwards and sat down rather ungracefully on the floor. There was a voice in her head... A whisper that chilled her blood when her head finally cleared enough to make out what it was saying...
*You are a childe of the darkness... There is no use denying your blood... Give in to your true nature... Embrace your heritage... Only then will you find true happiness with the one you seek...
Let me help you... I can give you power beyond your imagination... I can teach you to control that power... No one will ever be able to hurt you or the ones you love again... But first you need to accept what you are, what you always have been... Drink... Fulfill... Kill...*
"Nooo!" Jade flung the crystal into the room's far corner as if it had suddenly burned her. She backed up against the wall, trying to regain control of her trembling limbs. Backing out of the room, she fled into the shower, letting the scalding hot water sluice down her body, hoping that it might somehow wash away the bone-deep fear the voice had generated within her.
Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Sorrow
Posted: Tue Mar 19, 2002 7:38 am
Sorrow leant against the doorway of the third bookshop he had visited that afternoon and sighed. The day wasn't a complete loss but it was looking as if his visit to Bibliophile had used up his luck.
The owner of the first store had been over ninety if he'd been a day and though he assured Sorrow that he had at least one of the volumes Sorrow was looking for, it seemed advancing age had caught up with the man's memory and therefore he was unable to place exactly where it was. Though the hour he wasted looking for it brought back memories of similar searches during his university days Sorrow was well aware of the urgency this search required and somewhat regretfully he moved on.
The second shop was not much better. Its owner had very strong views on the nature of the texts Sorrow was looking for. Those views were less than complementary and as such Sorrow was tainted. The verbal assault that drove Sorrow from the shop made him wonder how the man made a living but unwilling to risk the tirade a second time he again moved on.
Which brought him here and for a moment gave him a little hope. The owner had had the first volume on his list but she had sold it about two weeks ago and unfortunately she had no idea where another copy could be found. So Sorrow had left that shop too and now he was wondering what to do next.
He had another couple of shops to check first but he knew that a search of this kind could take weeks, even months, instead of the hours or maybe days he had to complete. He shook himself and moved purposely forward. He had to do this, even though all he wanted to do was head back to his place and try and track down a weakness in Jade's father.
The fourth shop he turned away from almost immediately. The few books that were of passable quality were complete fakes, the remainder were closer to New Age babble. It was a shop for those pretending to do magic, not for true workers and he had to work hard to hold in his contempt.
The last shop was a dead loss. There had been a break in recently and the shop had been burnt down. Sorrow spent a little time looking at the remnants and wondered what treasures had been lost in this simple piece of vandalism.
Feeling despondent he hailed a cab and returned to his apartment. He reached the fourth floor and headed in, moving towards the room that with the addition of a couple of bookcases and a desk would become his study. For now though it lay empty. Sorrow sat in one corner and drew out the first of the books Daye had given him.
He lost himself in the story of The Master, a being who quite possibly was the first vampire to walk the earth. It spoke of atrocities committed, the unspeakable horrors visited on innocents, of The Master's first brood. In the end though the book held little of interest to Sorrow, Valerian was not even mentioned, so although useful in a somewhat academic way Sorrow picked up the second book.
As he did so he noticed the time. *Time you were somewhere else.* Sorrow put the books away and gathered his belongings. The clothes he had bought the previous day were already packed, the rest of it took only moments. Trying to relax, Sorrow rang for a cab and returned outside. As the cab drew up he looked into the night sky struck by some uncertain premonition.
Explorations
Jadyn
Posted: Tue Mar 19, 2002 4:12 pm
Post subject: Explorations
Sorrow slipped his key into the lock of Jade's door. As he pushed it open, he was met with a billow of steam and he could hear the sound of the shower running.
Sorrow smiled and slowly closed the door behind him. Taking care to make no noise, he placed his suitcase and laptop in the guest room, barely noticing his opened magic case...
Jade stepped out of the shower stall feeling a great deal calmer, although the incident with the Shard was still very much on her mind. She looked around for a towel, then smacked her forehead as she realised that in her haste to get away from the crystal, she'd left the ones she'd previously had on the floor of the bedroom.
*What was that I was saying about me suffering from Alzheimer’s in my early 20s?* She rolled her eyes as she walked out of the bathroom, nude, to where the discarded towels lay. The unexpected sight of the tall figure standing near the doorway had her starting in surprise.
Sorrow turned back towards the door of the bedroom to find Jade standing before him totally naked and dripping wet. "Jade..." He met her eyes squarely then slowly moistened his lips. Bending down to pick up the towels on the floor, he stepped slowly towards her, wrapped the towel around Jade and gently began to dry her still dripping body.
His hands skimmed over her flesh, like fire over ice, trailing down her slender frame... Jade stood frozen to the spot, her knees would have buckled under her had Sorrow's arms not been holding her up.
"Tris..." His name came out as a breathy moan. Jade made a desperate grasp for sanity as his touch continued to push all rational thoughts from her mind. Finally, realising she was fighting a futile battle, she surrendered herself to the passionate onslaught and touched her lips to his.
Sorrow pressed Jade against him as the kiss consumed his thoughts. Passion took over them and for a moment, he was lost in the scent of her body, the taste of her mouth. As they broke away from each other, the forgotten towel slithered to the floor...
A wicked smile flickered across Sorrow's features as, never taking his eyes from hers, he crouched down and drew the soft cotton towel up her slender calf. Jade shuddered and threw her head back, eyes squeezed tightly shut. Her hand found his shoulder and she clutched at it for support, shivering again when she felt the hard muscles under the fabric of his suit clench in response.
When Sorrow's fingers teased the sensitive area behind her knees, her legs finally lost their ability to support her... Jade wrapped her arms around Sorrow's neck as she slid to the floor, next to him. "Tris," she whispered, "I need you so much."
Her hands slipped under his jacket to ease it off, her mind marvelling all the while at the strength and the beauty of the male body that was his. "I need you," she repeated, "I've never felt this way about anyone before..."
He silenced her with a passionate kiss as his hands shed the protection of cotton to trail lines of fire along the soft curves of her body... The kiss was interrupted by Jade's breathy moan and Sorrow took the opportunity to free himself from his jacket.
Moving to Jade's throat, Sorrow placed soft kisses along it till his mouth hovered over the wildly beating pulse. His tongue darted out to feel that pulse more strongly and then his mouth claimed it - a moment of suction brought a gasp from Jade, which turned into another moan as his teeth gently nipped the tender flesh. The ache that had been building in her for the last two days grew almost unbearable, making her writhe with agonising desire as Sorrow continued his fevered caresses.
Suddenly possessed with the compulsion of wanting to pleasure him the same way he was her, Jade reached out and ran her hands across the length of Sorrow's chest. Fisting her hands in the material of his shirt, she drew him in and ran her tongue seductively along his lower lip before nibbling it gently. Her fingers made fast work of the buttons and she smiled at his sharp intake of breath when she pressed her body against his bared flesh.
"Jade..." Sorrow's voice was hoarse...
"Shhhhh..." She pressed a finger to his lips then leaned forward to draw her tongue down the tanned column of his neck. His shirt joined the jacket and towel on the floor as her hands stroked his satiny back, revelling in the heady power she felt at the way her touches were affecting him.
The feel of her against him, the lazy caresses that trailed down his back, the soft moist lips gliding over his neck, drove any further thought from Sorrow's mind. His hands teased her in turn, until they reached her waist.
Jade was forced to bring her arms around his neck again, as in one smooth motion, he scooped her into his embrace and stood up. The shocking sensation of teeth on flesh sent a wave of pleasure radiating from his neck to every portion of his body.
He moved to the bed and laid Jade down. His hands slid smoothly along her body as he stretched her arms out above her head, all the time looking deep into her eyes. Sorrow slowly began to kiss his way down Jade's body, never losing eye contact. His hands roamed gently across her silky skin, feeling the firm muscle beneath.
As Sorrow languorously returned his mouth to Jade's own, his hands gently moved across her with a touch so gentle, she could barely feel it. When he finally came to rest on top of her, the pleasure she felt at the weight of his body pressing so intimately against hers had her arching against him again. It felt as if every nerve in her body was wound to the point of breaking...
Unable to bear anymore of the sweet torment he was putting her through, Jade whispered brokenly, "Please Tris... Now..."
Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Sorrow
Posted: Tue Mar 19, 2002 9:35 pm
The sun had set a few hours earlier and Los Angeles was lit from within by the glow of her streetlamps. The roads below showed a steady stream of cars, their head and taillights snaking along the freeways in a seemingly endless meander.
*City of Angels...* the dark figure thought mockingly.
As the grey smog weaved its way around the occupants, a look of disdain washed over the stranger's handsome profile. *How could anyone choose to live in a wretched place like this?*
*Cursed colonies never had an ounce of culture or sophistication. It's been two hundred years since I've stepped foot on American soil and yet its inhabitants have yet to evolve any... they're still the most barbaric group of commoners I've had the misfortune to meet!* He brushed at his cashmere sweater and dark wool pants - both obviously European in cut - somewhat distractedly as his gazed roamed over the blanket of twinkling lights before him.
He savoured the sense of desperation that rose off the city and a slow smile crept across his features. *Still, this place does have its compensations...*
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Among the stench of decay and the brittle glamour the city used to mask it, was a faint scent... one that was musky, sweet and virtually undetectable to anyone other than himself. He had no problems recognising it - it was the fragrance borne of two lovers embarking on a trail of sensual discoveries... the slow, almost-torturous pleasure they offered each other under the cover of night...
The smiled returned, even more sardonic than before. *So... Blood has found blood. Flesh has found flesh. Heart has found heart. How sweet... How perfect... How brilliant!* He chuckled as he mentally gave himself a pat on the back.
He turned from his contemplation of the city. His plans were moving forward nicely, but there were other elements to put in place and they would need to be attended to...
Crystals, Diamonds & Faeries
Jadyn
Posted: Wed Mar 20, 2002 5:11 am
Post subject: Crystals, Diamonds & Faeries
Jade awoke to find herself nestled against Sorrow's shoulder, his arm wrapped possessively around her, his hand tracing the curve of her spine... Raising her head, she met his eyes shyly, a little unsure of how to act in the aftermath of such intense passion.
Then, seeing the glimmer of indulgent amusement in his eyes, her awkwardness was forgotten and she smiled as she kissed him. "I'm sorry. Must've dozed off."
"Hmmm..." Sorrow didn't feel like talking just then, he was still lost in the memory of what happened. He kissed her gently... The passion had faded a little, the overwhelming need sated somewhat by their intense lovemaking. His hand continued its exploration of her spine as he looked at her... His face showed a deep contentment.
Jade lapsed into silence, understanding Sorrow's reluctance for conversation. His hand came to rest on her waist and she snuggled comfortably against him, the rhythmic sound of his breathing lulling her back to sleep...
However, just as she was about to drop off, a raspy voice assailed her mind, causing her to jerk upright.
"You will never have his heart unless you accept what you are... He will always love her till you make him realise that it is you he needs... All you need to do is let your darkness reign... Only then will he be yours and yours alone... It's so easy... So easy..."
"No!" Jade shook her head vehemently. " No! "
Sorrow was shocked as Jade pulled out of his embrace... Her cry of "No" sent fear crashing through his heart for a moment... But then he saw where Jade's trembling gaze rested. His case of magic supplies lay open on the table and he calmed a little. His arms wrapped round her shaking body as he whispered slowly in her ear, "Shhh... Shhh... Jade, I'm here. What is it?"
"The Shard." Jade's voice shook slightly as she shifted her gaze to look at Sorrow. His eyes darted to the corner where the crystal lay, glowing softly.
"Is it calling to you?" Sorrow moved from the bed to the Shard, picking up one of the discarded towels on the way. He wrapped it around the crystal and took it back to the case. He looked at the diamonds and paused. Jade felt a brief surge of power as Sorrow's rich tenor filled the room.
"One of the diamonds has failed." He looked a little worried. "I can re-balance the other four but I think I'm going to need litlle help with it."
Jade barely heard him, she was having enough trouble as it was trying to quell the confusion she felt at what the crystal had said. *Who was it talking about? Jenn? Did Tristan still love Jenn then?* Deep in her heart, she knew that she wasn't being reasonable but knowing it didn't make her conflict any less real.
"Jade, distance seems to help. Why don't you go take another shower. I'll do a tempory patch on this then we can get hold of someone to give me a hand." Sorrow's voice was soft and insistant. He started pulling various crystals out of his case, muttering to himself. In his hurry to restrengthen the ward and prevent Jade further anguish, Sorrow almost upset the entire table it rested on.
The clatter temporarily distracted Jade from her brooding and she raised an eyebrow as Sorrow bent over to pick up a couple of stones that had fallen to the floor. She couldn't help grinning appreciatively at the view that stance offered.
At the sound of Sorrow clearing his throat, Jade reluctantly looked up to meet his eyes.
"I can do this now but you really don't want to distract me. If I get this wrong, there won't be much left of this room." Though Sorrow's tone was deadly serious, his gaze was anything but...
"Anything you say Tris... I'll go take a shower then..." Jade slipped off the bed and came to stand beside him. "Later on though, maybe we could..." Sorrow's eyes widened at the rest of her whispered suggestion then he groaned as she intentionally brushed against him while walking away.
***********************
Jade glanced at her watch as she walked the few steps from her front door to Tash's. *9:30... I hope she's home, in case Tris really needs help.* She paused to glance at the entrance to Victor's apartment and debated on whether to check there first. Grinning to herself, she concluded that even if Tash was in there with Victor, they'd probably not answer the door. *Of course Jadyn girl, you could just be assuming that's what Tash would do because it's the course of action you would take!*
Shaking her head in amusement, Jade knocked on the door of #205. "Tash?" She called out softly. "You home?"
Oillill was sitting calmly in the middle of Tash's living room floor when he heard the knock, and Jade's voice. Wincing slightly inside, he smoothly rose to his feet and re-established his glamour. Matthias opened the door, "I'm sorry, my dear, but Tash isn't yet home. Can I help?" His face was perfectly composed.
"Matthias..." Jade stook a step back in surprise and swallowed the lump of emotion that sprang to her throat. She hadn't thought about the possibility of bumping into him. Running her fingers self-consciously through her damp hair, Jade wondered frantically what she should say next...
In practicality, Matthias was the answer to their prayers, his abilities to dampen the Shards had undoubtedly been the best so far. On the other hand, Jade knew how he felt towards Sorrow... She wasn't too sure Matthias would want to help them, since he probably wanted to stay clear from her for a while...
Matthias could feel the turmoil within Jade, but knew that she'd made her choice. Very clearly had made her choice. He offered a small, practised smile, "Yes, Jade. Matthias." He surveyed her for a moment, taking in the marks on her neck. They could have been just a normal sign of a passionate encounter, but Matthias had seen Sorrow and worried at the significance of them here.
Part of him retreated to the calm place at his core, and found the detachment he'd always been able to hold before he'd found Natasha. Something tugged at him - a crystal. Lethe. He smiled tightly, "The stone is stronger, isn't it?"
Jade nodded tentatively.
"It spoke to me... For some reason, the Shard of Lethe seems to be the only one among the Cloch Cosan that affects me... Even with the ward Sorrow..." She hesistated slightly before continuing, "... I still hear it."
Matthias looked at Jade sadly. Would she accept his help? "Look, I can't leave you out in the hallway. Come inside, and I'll give you some options." He held the door open, and Jade hesitantly stepped into the room. Matthias stood back to give her space. "I can dampen the crystal itself, though that will take time. I can also impart some of my strength to you, to help you resist them, if you're willing. You've seen me do that with Tash." He looked at Jade, the worry showing in his eyes.
"You look tired." Jade's searching sweep of Matthias' features took in the exhaustion that showed through his glamour. "Anyway, I'm not too sure how much good it'll do to confer part of your power to me. This crystal seems a little different. I get the feeling that it's determined to break through any barriers I erect around myself..."
Her face was troubled as she glanced over his shoulder towards the direction of her apartment. "I just don't want you to risk wearing yourself out..."
Matthias' smile reached his eyes this time. "I have enough to spare for this, certainly. Please, I think it will help you." He gestured to one of the couches. "It won't take long, and it will make it easier for you when you walk back into the room with it."
"Ok..." She returned his smile with a small one of her own before sitting down. "Matthias?" Her face looked up trustingly at his. At his enquiring gaze, she simply said, "Thank you..."
"You're quite welcome, my dear. Now, have you ever done any meditation?" At Jade's apologetic shake of her head, Matthias shrugged. "That's all right. It makes it a little easier, but it's not essential. Simply try to relax and empty your mind of all thoughts. Find a calm spot within you and rest there...." Matthias' voice took on a rolling lilt, almost hypnotic. Jade found herself feeling more peaceful than she had for days. Matthias gently took one of her hands in his. Jade felt a warmth and peace suffuse her being, and the faint whisper of Lethe that she hadn't even realised she was still hearing, faded.
Jade closed her eyes, and after several long moments, Matthias placed Jade's hand back on her lap. He sat back, "How do you feel?"
"Better... More than that actually. Wonderful... Thank you..." She opened her eyes to find Matthias watching her with a look of amusement on his face. "If you found a way to bottle whatever that was, you'd make a fortune!" She teased softly, her face lighting up with an impish twinkle. She'd forgotten how easy it was to feel comfortable around Matthias. She felt a link with him that was almost as strong as the one she felt with...
"Tris!" Jade exclaimed as she bolted off the sofa.
Turning back to Matthias, she bit her lip for a moment before explaining. "I'm sorry... But I'd better head back. I don't like the idea of leaving Tristan alone with the Shard, not when its effect hasn't been dampened. I'm not too sure what sort of effect it has on him but I don't want to risk having to find out..."
Matthias looked up from his seat, "Would he prefer to dampen it himself, or would you welcome some assistance?"
"Would you?" Jade's eyes were hopeful as she remembered what Sorrow had said about D'Nethk'Quan and the terrible pain it caused him.
Matthias rose from the couch in a fluid movement that belied the human form he wore. "I would. It's imperative at this point that the crystal remain as hidden as possible. I'll explain more when we're with Sorrow."
Matthias held the door open for Jade, then closed it behind him. He paused, his hand over the lock for a moment, then turned to follow Jade to her apartment.
***********************
Sorrow sat slumped against the bed in the guestroom, his head cradled in his hands. The sound of Jade's approach down the corridor sent flashes of light across his vision. Though he wore silk, the weave still felt as if it had rubbed his skin raw. Around him lay the crushed remains of a half dozen crystals...
"Tris?" Jade's quiet footsteps seemed to thunder through his brain, making it throb unbearably. "Tris!!!" She rushed forward and laid a hand gently across his face. "Are you all right? Are you hurt?"
"Quietly, love." His voice was barely audible, even to Jade. "The Shard decided it didn't want to go back in the box. This will pass in about half an hour."
Jade grimaced in frustrated annoyance but held back the words on her tongue. Now was not the time to admonish him on using magic despite knowing the agony of its backlash.
"I'm fine... Thanks to Matthias." She sighed and stood back, rubbing her arms to warm herself against the sudden chill she felt in the air.
He looked up at the fae, "I won't be able to help you with the Shard but if you need energy, the diamonds are still pure. They're replaceable so if you need them..."
Matthias regarded Sorrow thoughtfully. The evidence of the magics he'd been using were fairly sophisticated for a human, but the effect on Sorrow seemed profound. Normally a spell of that type wouldn't be so debilitating. Matthias filed that away for future thought. Now he had a job to do.
He held on to the detachment he'd rediscovered, and ignored the faint twinges that couldn't possibly be jealousy as he sensed the affection between Jade and Sorrow.
He picked the shard carefully from the debris of shattered gemstones. "Before I start, I should let you know that we've found Tempest, and have managed to restore part of his memory. We need all the crystals to complete the task. There's also a matter in which we may ask for your help. I'm assuming Victor will have told Tash about it, but once I've finished here you two may want to meet with them. I'm sure they'll be home soon."
He looked from Jade to Sorrow and back again. "Maybe I'll let you take care of him, I can do this in Tash's apartment. I want to meet her when she gets home." Matthias had heard Sorrow's estimate of half an hour. "Perhaps if you come over in two hours or so, that will give you plenty of time."
Jade smiled in gratitude and walked with Matthias to the door. As he made to leave, she reached out to stop him. "Matthias... Once again, thank you," she said softly, "I won't forget this..." The look in her eyes conveyed all the other words she couldn't bring herself to say.
Matthias raised one hand, as if to brush a strand of hair from Jade's face. He caught himself with the arm half raised, and slowly lowered it again. His smooth voice betrayed no emotion as he said softly, "My pleasure, my dear." He glanced back into the room at Sorrow, still huddled on the floor. As he left the apartment he turned back to Jade with a mischievious twinkle in his eye and said, "Remember, two hours."
A Welcome Break
Catherine Wiccham
Posted: Wed Mar 20, 2002 7:04 am
Post subject: A Welcome Break
Kate and Luc went home in silence. It seemed anything they tried to do to forget their terrible past only resulted in a painful reminder of it. Luc drove, his eyes fixed solidly on the road. Kate gazed out at the streets. The moon was obscured now as a heavy cloud blew over the dark skies. They had left their trail of destruction far behind them, hoping that no one had been caught in the crossfire. The last thing Kate wanted was for someone to have been hurt by their reckless fumblings. Kate looked at Luc, his face was unchanging… tense she guessed, or perhaps angry. Maybe both. She sighed and closed her eyes, realising just how tired she was.
Minutes later they pulled up on Birch Street. Luc waited while Kate unlocked the door. Suddenly he grabbed her by the shoulder and pulled her into the shadows.
“What…??” Kate said confused.
Luc silenced her, “Shh, there’s something out there, don’t you feel it?”
Kate stood in silence, now that she was concentrating she did feel something…evil. She looked around, up and down the street, it appeared to be empty, but she could sense the direction, it was coming from across the street. Luc squeezed her shoulder tightly.
“It’s all right,” she whispered, “there are only three of them.”
He looked at her and she nodded. She stood forward and called out into the night, “You can come out now!”
The three vampires from Bob’s Bar stepped out into the light of a street lamp. Kate and Luc both walked towards them. The safety spell they had cast on the house began to screech as soon as the vamps got closer to the actual house. The vampires looked startled and took several steps backwards. The power around the two witches was strong, they were afraid to get too close.
Luc turned back to the house and waved his hand in front of it, “silentio” he said, and the alarm stopped.
“What do you want here?” Kate asked the vampires once the alarm had been silenced.
“S-S-Stalker, h-h-he s-s-so-o-ol-l-ld-d-d...” one vampire stuttered.
Kate rolled her eyes. Luc sighed. “ Is this a new method of attack? Are you attempting to bore us to death? You vampires will try anything!”
Another vampire pushed the other to the back and addressed Kate, “Your good pal Stalker sold us some dodgy merchandise!”
Luc looked at Kate with curiosity. Kate just frowned, “and…?”
“And now one of our friends is dead!”
Kate feigned sympathy, “Oh no! You mean some vampire died? How will we bear the deprivation?”
“Look!” the vampire was growing angry, “your pal ripped us off! We want compensation!”
“Just what did Stalker do?” asked Kate curiously.
“He sold us sunscreen.”
Kate nearly burst out laughing, “Sunscreen?”
“Yeah,” said the third vampire, “Magic sunscreen, so we could walk in the sun like him! Only it didn’t work, and our friend is now dust!”
It was too much for Kate and Luc, they doubled up in laughter. Kate held her sides in pain as she laughed. “Oh Lord! Oh God!” she cried, trying to speak, “You bought ‘magic sunscreen’? Don’t tell me, it was blessed by the fairies!”
“Don’t be stupid! A demon did it!”
Kate and Luc laughed again, “Oh stop, please, stop!” cried Luc.
Kate gasped for breath, trying to keep a straight face, “and you paid money for this magic sunscreen? Just like that? Just how stupid are you?”
“Look there were magic words!! It was a very convincing sale!” shouted the vampire above their laughter.
“Can I ask? What were these words?” said Kate.
The vampire looked away sheepishly, “Aliali ickyrectus dominus confusius kabodle sungod no fire, then we had to spin and d-do this jump…”
Kate and Luc started laughing again, harder than before.
“Oh this is wonderful!” she laughed, “This was just what I needed, I never thought I’d thank a vampire, but, thank you, thank-you!”
They continued to laugh, the three vampires looked around realising just how stupid they had been. Not wanting to make any bigger fools of themselves by incurring the wrath of two so obviously powerful witches, they slunk off into the darkness, leaving Kate and Luc to cope with their hysterics.
another mysterious visitor
Mrs. White was sitting down to a cup of tea and some fresh baked cookies, preparing to watch her favorite show, when she heard a firm knock on her door. She rose from the sofa, turned down the volume on her television and went to the door, peering out through the peephole. She saw a very handsome young man standing there, looking rather lost, but hopeful. Cautious since her last experience with seemingly innocuous young men, Mrs. White cracked the door open, leaving the chain on.
“Can I help you, young man?” she asked.
“I hope so, m’am,” the man replied. He had a very pleasant sounding voice and even though it was late, Mrs. White felt an overwhelming urge to let him in. She found herself undoing the latch on the chain even though she wasn’t sure why. In moments, the man was seated across from her on the couch and she was not sure how it had happened. The man did not speak at first, although Mrs. White felt sure he had been saying something when he followed her into the room. She just couldn’t quite remember what it was.
“I’m sorry,” she said, “what were we talking about?” She noticed that the man was very handsome. He had dark hair, golden skin, and lovely eyes. Unfortunately, a terribly scar marred his face, causing her to feel very sorry for the pain he must have suffered.
“You were telling me about Amanda,” the man’s voice was positively hypnotic. “She has been by to visit with you?”
Mrs. White felt her memory drifting back a few days of its own accord to when the lovely young witch had rescued her and they had talked of all the troubles in her life. Strange, it almost felt as if this nice young man could see those thoughts and understand them. “Yes, the dear girl did me a favor,” Mrs. White said. “She is going to help me. She promised.”
The young man chuckled softly. “Of course she did,” he said. “Amanda likes to help. She can’t get enough of it really. Do you expect her to come and see you again soon?”
Mrs. White thought about the last conversation she had had with the young witch. “Uhm,” she said, “I think she will come around, but I’m not sure when.”
“When she does come, you will let me know,” the man said. Mrs. White felt compelled to agree. She nodded. The man rose from the couch.
“And you will not recall my visit here until you need to contact me,” the man said. “But you will want to mention to Amanda that you met the Night Walker.”
“The Night Walker,” Mrs. White repeated.
“Very good, my dear,” the man said. He moved gracefully out of the room and in a moment, Mrs. White heard the front door close. She sat motionless for a few minutes and then shook her head. She glanced around the room a bit confused and reached for the remote to turn the volume on the television up. Funny, she had thought the show was just about to start, but it appeared to be ending. And the hot tea she had just poured was somehow already cool.
Love
After the door clicked shut behind Matthias, Jade hurried back to where Sorrow was sitting. The slight trembling in his powerful shoulders was the only remaining sign of the aftermath he suffered...
She slipped an arm around his waist and tried to help him up. "Upsy-daisy big man. Let's do the rest of your recovery thing in bed, shall we?" She winced as the words left her mouth. "I swear I didn't mean that the way it sounded..."
Sorrow groaned as the movement rubbed silk along skin. He gave Jade a ragged smile, "Not quite up to it at the moment," and with Jade's help managed to get back into bed. He motioned to his case, "Could you get my painkillers please?"
She scooted over to the overnight bag he gestured at and found a bottle of pills tucked into the front pocket. Her brows furrowed as she glanced at the label. "Imitrex. Major heavy-duty migraine drugs. Tris... How often do you take these damn things?"
"Not often, Once every couple months, though this'll be the third set this week." He shrugged - he was careful most of the time. The warding had been going well up until the shard decided to fight back.
He lapsed into silence, his jaw clenching against the pain "Please, love, I know you're worried but can we talk after I take the pills?"
Contrite, she didn't speak again until she'd gone to the bathroom to get him some water to wash the medication down. Sorrow threw a couple of pills back and gulped the water down as if his life depended on it. Shuddering violently as he swallowed, he lay back against the pillows, drawing Jade to lie across him as he did so.
Jade allowed the silence to continue for a while longer. When the drugs kicked in to take the edge off the pain, Sorrow's body finally started to relax... It was then she spoke again. "Tell me what exactly happened with the Shard. Did it speak? Could you hear it?"
"There was some sort of link to through the hole in the ward. When I tried to close the hole, it was fine but I couldn't close the part with the link." He waited a moment as the pain came back for a second. "So I tried to sever the link and the shard fought back. I couldn't go forward and if I'd tried to let it go, this room would look like a grenade had gone off in it... Then the link just faded away and I had no problems."
He stopped again and let the silence drag on. "I was fine till the damn thing started fighting..."
Understanding dawned as Jade pieced together the more coherent bits of Sorrow's narration. *So it's my fault that the backlash's so bad this time... I was its link.* Jade didn't realise that she'd voiced that thought out loud till she saw the quizzical look on her lover's face.
"The Shard spoke to me. Twice. The first was before you came home and we got," she grinned wryly, "distracted. Then it happened again just now as I was drifting to sleep."
"It was almost as if there was this... horrible voice in my head. It kept telling me to give in and switch to the path of darkness." She hesitated then forged on. "I think it mentioned you..."
"Not your fault... The crystal tried for you at the hotel, though I don't understand why it would think I would lead you to a darker path." As Jade felt Sorrow's hands caress her, she realised his pain was easing.
She clasped his hands between hers. "No. It was different this time. More direct. It... It threatened me Tris - with you. It said that if I didn't embrace my vampire side, I'd lose you because you'd never love me. That's why I cried out the way I did." Jade voice faltered, then trailed away...
"Well it's wrong then, isn't it, because I do love you." He smiled up at her "I love you Jade, with all my heart, my soul. I will..." He kissed her so gently it brought her heart to her mouth "... always love you."
"Oh..." Jade blinked back tears of joy as she drew back from Sorrow and was humbled from the intensity of the emotion she saw on his face. When she spoke, her voice was husky. "I love you too Tris. I will the day I die..."
No Choice
Kate and Luc finally managed to overcome their hysterics and carried themselves into the house after the vampire trio had skulked off into the night.
“So” said Kate, slumping onto the sofa, “What did you get up to this morning before I met you, I meant to ask earlier…”
Luc sat at her side, Kate curled into him and he held her warm body next to his. Kate kicked off her shoes and snuggled up close.
Luc frowned, “I went to look for Inanna.” Kate sat up sharply, looking into his face. His expression told her he had been less than successful. “The last time I saw her was at the Bryson. I went back there this morning, but everyone had gone.”
Kate looked uncomfortable, Serapis’ plans were obviously progressing. How much time did she have now before he made his move?
“Seems like I just missed them,” he continued. “I learnt that most of the coven departed last night, the doorman said the remainder checked out early this morning.” He paused, “Still, I managed to get into the hotel room and look around a bit. It actually looked like they left in quite a hurry. I searched the room top to bottom but I couldn’t find anything that might point to where they had gone…” His voice trailed off and he stared into space, lost in his thoughts.
Kate took his hand, lacing her fingers with his. “Inanna, she is still alive, I can feel it.” She looked down, “Inanna will be safe so long as Serapis is looking for me, he needs her, he needs her to bargain with.”
Luc snapped out of his malaise, he squeezed her hand, “I promise, I won’t let anything happen to you, or Inanna…”
Kate stopped him “…please…” she urged, “…don’t make promises you can’t possibly hope to keep…”
Luc looked unsettled, he sighed in frustration, “Kate I…”
“Luc...” said Kate firmly, fixing his gaze, “Serapis has only god knows how many followers gathered here in LA, plus he has Inanna. However he decides to play this one, he has the upper hand, and I am not willing to risk your life, or the life of Inanna to save my own skin.” She forced him to look at her. “Luc, we are but two people, whichever way you look at it, we have only a small chance of coming out of this alive.”
“Kate, you can’t think this way, you can’t give in to him now, I won’t let you!”
She shook her head resolutely. “That’s the point Luc, in the end…you won’t have a choice.”
Early Morning, 16 Feb 2005
It was early in the morning. Jem was sitting on top of a sarcophagus in the middle of her crypt when the door opened. Jem jumped to her feet and turned to face a large vampire who had just walked in. “Jem, I think you should know,” he paused “that there’s a vampire hunter outside.” Jem grabbed her gun that was lying by her side.
“He’s unconscious though,” the vampire finished off, but by the time he had Jem was nearing the door.
“Well then, we can have even more fun, can’t we?” she said with a smile on her face. She walked out of the crypt to see the person leaning against the front wall. He was wearing a black suit, blue shirt and tie and holding a stake and a bottle of holy water. On his head he had a message written. Jem read it out loud.
Talhu started to open his eyes again. His head was throbbing, and he let out a small groan. There was a bottle of something in his hand, along with something wooden next to him. When he looked in front of him, he saw a tall, dark haired woman in a short black skirt, black leggings with a purple stripe, and knee-high boots. She also had on a black tank top. He let go of the bottle and reached up to rub his head, noticing for the first time he was in a graveyard. "Who are you, and how did I get here?"
The man started to talk and began to move a little as he looked at his surroundings. “I’m Black Jem, and you’re history.” She told him. “What is it with you vampire hunters, coming here, looking for a fight? All ‘I’m gonna save the world from evil beasties’ and then getting beaten to a pulp and coming back for more after the long recovery?” she asked. Jem liked to make small talk before torturing and eventually killing her victims.
He shook his head slowly as her words sunk in. *Vampire hunter?* Looking around, he noticed several vampires ready to feed. While the woman who called herself Jem didn't have her 'game face' on, he figured she was probably the leader. "Vampire hunter? I'm no-" he groaned again with his head aching. "And as far as I'm concerned, you can kill all of the humans you want. Just don't you dare call me one."
Jem looked puzzled. He looked pretty much human, although she knew looks could be deceiving. “So what are you then?” she asked, “And what the hell are you doing unconscious outside my crypt?”
"A demon," he said, pulling himself to his feet, but still feeling his head throb. "They call me a demon. As for what I'm doing outside of your crypt, I'm having a very bad hangover." A few details from the night before suddenly came back. Victor and that human woman - what was her name? He found that he couldn't remember. Talhu continued to check out the way that Jem was dressed. "And what is it with you vampire women and the dominatrix look?"
"Right. I should take fashion advice from the guy with magic marker on his forehead." Jem said.
Talhu laughed. "Oh, not that I'm complaining. It just strikes me as odd that vampires are of a single mind on dress." The throbbing got worse in his head, and he had to steady himself before meeting Jem's gaze. "Magic marker?"
Jem laughed to herself for a short moment before she looked at the form in front of her again. “You know, demons never were very clever.” She sighed “On your forehead it says ‘My name is Talhu’."
Talhu looked at her blankly, then he remembered them. Victor and that human woman had found him. It would be so like Victor to do something like this to him. "I'm going to kill him," Talhu said to himself. "No, I'm going to kill them both. Slowly and painfully."
“Sounds fun. Who you talking about?” Jem asked, overhearing him.
"Just another demon I know, and some human lover of his." He almost appeared physically ill at the thought of a demon taking a human lover.
Jem had a look of disgust on her face when Talhu said this. “Killing’s good.”
He considered this carefully. "I gather you would prefer to kill two creatures that acually are a challenge to hunt, rather than one who has a throbbing headache?" *Why does my head hurt so much? My hangovers are never this bad.*
Jem put on a disappointed look. “But I was going to have some fun.” She smiled and pulled out her gun from behind her back where she had kept it hidden. “But,” she paused, “killing moving targets can be good too, especially vampire hunters. You know when your bullet rips through their skin and they let out the most beautiful screams.” She paused again “I’m not stupid, you're not getting out of this alive unless…”
He gulped. *Think. Remember your protection spells.* Talhu's head hurt too much to remember anything specific though. "Unless what?"
“Unless you help me,” Jem replied.
Talhu sat down again. If he couldn't talk his way out of this one, he was resolved to at least make Jem as bored as possible. It probably wasn't smart, but it was the best he could do. "You have my attention."
“Hunters. Three of them. I want them dead and none of these useless lackeys would stand a chance,” Jem told Talhu.
*Oh joy.* Letting out a sigh, he looked away from Jem. "And you want me to kill them?"
“God, do you people pay any attention?” She paused. “One is about this high,” she signalled with her hand how tall the third hunter was. “A black woman. There was another woman about twentyish, Asian - could work some magic.” She turned to face the tall minion, “What was her name?”
“Jade or something.”
“And a man, powerful warlock, by the sounds of it. I want them all dead.”
"More information would be very helpful," Talhu said, stalling for time. "Names. Places of residence. That sort of thing."
“Jade’s the only name I know. The black woman though, she spends some time at XY, the shop opposite Bob’s most days. I’m going to pay her a visit myself, I have something personal to sort out.”
Talhu considered for a moment. He collected both the stake and holy water, and put them in his jacket. The pain was beginning to grow. "All right. I agree. I just need the marching band to stop parading through my head first is all."
Jem laughed at the demon in front of her for a short while. She stopped laughing then started to turn to face her crypt once again. "Well, looks like I’ll be seeing ya, with the bodies of course." Jem paused, thinking. "18th here, sundown."
Talhu tried to answer through the throbbing in his head. He was fortunate to get to his feet once more, and only nodded before staggering back to his motel.
Jem grinned, *An easy job done.* She walked back into her crypt, her minions following, “Until next time,” she muttered under her breath, holding her gun in her hand.
Bloodshed!
Cian limped his way through the night, passing sporadically through the dim circles of illumination provided by aging streetlights. He found the building he sought, a large brick hulk that nestled tightly between its neighbours, a pair of equally large brick hulks that nestled tightly between their neighbours. A large neon neon sign clung tenaciously to the front of Cian's target. It formed the letters SLEDGE and a small 'the' above them, but only the first four letters and the fifth were illuminated.
*Quaint.*
Cian made his way to the door. A burly man wearing a leather jacket over an unnecessarily tight T-shirt moved to block his way.
"There's a cover. Besides, you're short enough I should probably check your ID." The man chuckled.
He stood a good 6'5". Cian grabbed him by the collar and jerked at it roughly, bringing the man's head to a level with his own. He drove his forehead into the bridge of the man's nose.
Cartilage slide out of place, collided with other cartilage, compressed, warped, forced the yet-intact cartilage out of shape. Blood sprayed from the man's nose onto Cian's shirt and onto the refuse-laden ground. Cian released his hold on the man's collar and let him fall.
"The cover, I didn't mind. Hell, what's money? It’s nothing."
The man lay in the fetal position he had fallen in, blood pouring from his nose and mouth. It pooled around his head.
"But the comment about my height, that I couldn't let go. What's respect? It’s everything.”
Cian stepped over the bleeding man and into the night club. A wave of sound hit him as he entered the building. What had been merely a dull audio throb on the street was a veritable torrent of sound inside. Cian felt the bass vibrating in his bones, resonating through his frame. It was reminiscent of the heartbeat he had not known for almost a hundred years.
Another place I find to escape the pain inside
You don't know the chances. What if I should die?!
*Blind.*
Cian smiled at his ability to name the song, for a brief second flashing white, even teeth at the collection of patrons who lined the dance floor and the live band that occupied the elevated platform immediately opposite the entrance.
Cian sensed someone approaching from the left. A vampire.
A place inside my brain, another kind of pain
"Mr.Macrae?"
"Yes." Cian turned to face the vampire.
He nodded in response. A clean-cut young man of average height and build.
"This way, Mr.Macrae."
You don't know the chances. I'm so blind!
Cian nodded and proceeded to follow the well-kept vampire through the patrons to the back of the club, and a heavy-looking door marked 'authorized personnel only'. The vampire opened the door for Cian, waited for him to pass through, slipped through the passage himself, and firmly closed the door behind Cian.
A non-descript vampire stood on either side of the door Cian had just entered. A black vampire stood in the center of the room. He wore a black leather jacket, worn white in places, over his massive frame. Dark, dreadlocked hair cascaded over his head and shoulders, obscuring his face from view. A fourth vampire with no notable qualities squatted beside the black giant, clutching at an arm that had been severed at the elbow. At the back of the room and off to the left, a sixth vampire leaned against the cinder block wall.
*Six, four grunts with maybe forty years each behind them, one grunt with at least a hundred years and a single arm, and one Vampire with what feels like two hundred years on him.*
The black vampire was the first to speak. He did so in a flat voice colored only by his unplaceable accent, "You come into town, an' you start mix'n it up with Kain. Then you eavesdrop on Jimmy here."
The black vampire slapped the maimed one next to him on the back.
"Corner him in an alley, push 'im around a little, tell 'im what you wanna know, he tells you all he know you already heard in the bar. So you start mix'n it up with him."
The black vampire rapped his knuckles against the bloody rag Jimmy held to his forearm-relieved elbow.
"You beat my name out 'ov 'im, decide I know what you wanna know. You tear off Jimmy's arm 'an take his jacket, 'an send 'im back to me to arrange a meeting."
Cian nodded. The vampire that had admitted him barred the door.
"You plan on talk'in to me like you 'talked' to Jimmy?"
"No, I'm here for a friendly conversation, not for a fight."
*The one on the back wall has a bulge under his jacket. Weapon?*
The black vampire smiled toothily, "Good, good, then we talk. What you need?"
*Darky knows what I need, the grunt beside him already told him.*
"I need to know about Kain, his operation, his allies, his nature. His strengths, his weaknesses, what he can do, what he can't."
"You want a lot, maybe it help if you narrow it down a bit?"
*He's stalling. Why? Vampire coming up behind me. Of course.*
Cian smiled and tapped his foot loudly, "You can barely hear the music out there, I wonder if the humans can hear anything that goes on in here."
*Right now. Act or die.*
Cian grabbed the gun in his right holster with his left hand. He pulled it free and spun on his left heel, driving the butt of the firearm into the left collarbone of the vampire behind him.
The collarbone gave way, bending and fracturing, the connecting shoulder popped out of place, dragging the adjoining arm with it. Several of the upper-left ribs fractured and popped from their sockets. A stake fell from the vampire's now useless left hand.
With the butt of the .45 still lodged in the vampire's upper chest, Cian fired it twice. The first bullet caught the right-side door-guard in the forehead, shattering his skull as it entered and splashing his blood and his brains against the wall behind him as it exited his head. The second shot caught the guard in the throat and tore off what was left of his head.
Even before the dust Cian’s first mark had become hit the ground, he freed his left-side gun with his right hand and discharged it at the remaining door guard. The bullet caught the guard immediately above the right kneecap. The lower part of the femur and the patella shattered on impact. With the leg no longer able to withstand its owner’s weight, it collapsed, bending the broken joint at an unnatural angle. The flesh and bone that still joined the upper and lower legs tore. The jagged stub of the femur struck the ground hard enough to dislocate the hip it connected to. The guard screamed in agony as his lower leg became dust.
The vampire leaning against the back wall drew back his jacket to reveal a sawed-off shot gun, which he brought to bear on Cian.
*Shit.*
Cian shifted his feet and executed a quick turn that left him facing the shotgun. He brought his left arm into his chest and with it the mutilated vampire he had first struck. Cian did this just as the vampire gunman discharged his weapon.
The force of the slug lifted both Cian and his shield off their feet and back several feet.
It ripped through the maimed vampire in front of Cian, tearing apart his remaining ribs and dragging viscera and blood with it through the exit wound, and forcing it up through his mouth and nose. The round struck Cian slightly higher in the chest and at an angle, ripping through his breastbone, his right lung, and the ribs behind it, narrowly missing his spine.
Both vampires landed in a bloody heap several feet back from were they had stood. Cian held his guns in a death grip.
*Don't give them a moment’s peace...*
Cian contracted his abdominal muscles and forced himself into a sitting position and, reaching around the body draped over him, brought his guns to bear and emptied his clips.
The first round caught Jimmy in the throat, decapitating him. His mouth formed a voiceless, breath-deprived scream as his body reduced to dust.
The next round caught the gunman in the left shoulder, all but removing it. The third round caught the right arm at its base, amputating it in a spray of dust and blood. The fourth, fifth, and sixth rounds shattered ribs and punctured lungs. The seventh round completed the severance of the left arm. The eight bullet struck the center of the breast bone and went on the ricochet off the spine. The ninth and tenth bullets connected with the base of the gunman’s neck. They ripped through his spine and the surrounding flesh, tearing his head from his shoulders.
The large black vampire had covered the distance between himself and Cian while his henchmen had been killed. He threw the mutilated vampire off Cian, ignoring his breaking bones and screams of protest, and punched Cian in the face.
Cian’s nose gave way, emitting an audible crack and a thin trail of blood. Unfazed, Cian brought the butt of the gun he clutched in his right hand to the black vampire’s temple with enough force to break flesh and brought his forehead to the bridge of his opponent’s nose.
The black vampire staggered back, blood streaming from his shattered nose and the damaged flesh of his temple.
Cian relinquished his hold on his guns and brought himself to his feet with a smooth, violent motion. He struck out at his reeling opponent and drove his right fist into his left cheek. The black vampire’s head snapped impossibly far to the right. His neck broke loudly.
Slowly and shakily, in the manner of one that has suffered violent trauma and is in shock, the black vampire brought his hands to his lolling and unsupported head. With horror, he felt the broken flesh, slick with blood, and the bone that poked through at the nose, cheek, and temple.
Cian watched this display for a brief instant and then hit his opponent again, this time squarely in his breastbone. The black vampire was knocked back by the force of Cian’s blow and fell to the ground, his head jerking loosely up against the inertia of the fall and then fell roughly, striking the ground shortly after its adjoining body.
His breastbone had fractured were Cian hit it. The broken bone caved into the chest cavity, dragging the ribs that had formerly anchored it down with it. A pool of black-red blood spread out from the vampire’s ruptured chest organs. Within the pool of red blood, a smaller pool or dark green bile leaked from the vampire’s punctured gallbladder.
Cian knelt down and picked up one of his guns. He removed the magazine and replaced it with a full one he produced from his jacket.
“You're still alive, and you can still talk.”
Unable to do anything else, the black vampire forced air up through his abused lungs and spoke.
“Y…yeah…”
“I will make the standard deal with you, tell me something worth knowing and I will let you live.”
“Kain… Kain overlord… has hand in… everything….owns…” The black vampire gurgled wetly for a moment. “everything… owns… everyone… worth owning.”
Cian placed the gun he held in its holster and retrieved its twin. He placed a fresh clip in this second gun.
“I have spent the last several days in the various haunts and havens of this city’s more unholy inhabitants. What you have told me I already know.”
Cian picked up the stake the first vampire he had attacked had dropped. He walked over to the one legged guard and stabbed him in the heart. Cian motioned for the black vampire to continue.
“Perhaps you know something that is a little less commonly known.”
“Kain… He gathering crystals… called the Nether Arch… very… very powerful.”
Cian’s mind flashed back to the crystals he had knocked off Kain’s desk days before. He walked over to the mutilated vampire he had used to shield himself and impaled him with the stake he held.
“Go on.”
“He… Kain… He do anything for crystals… pay any price…kill anyone…. He is obsessed with them.”
Cian knelt and produced a box of .45 rounds from one of his jacket pockets. He began to reload the magazines he had emptied earlier.
“Crystals… this Nether Arch… very powerful… Kain… Kain keeps covens… presumably to control them when…when he needs to use them.”
“Covens?”
“Covens… Witches… Groups of thirteen… Kain… He gives them more freedom… than his other employees…. They have their own havens… away from his complex…. He gives them whatever they need… whatever they want.”
“Where are these havens?”
“I… I only know where a few dozen are… there are more….”
Cian nodded.
“And where are these few dozen?”
The black vampire choked out a handful of addresses. Cian nodded at each statement and carefully committed the addresses to memory. When the black vampire had finished speaking he stood up and smiled evilly.
“My thanks, you’ve been most helpful, although a little difficult.” Cian waved his hand at the blood stained room. “The blood will be quite a shock to the human owners of this establishment.” Cian laughed coldly, “But I suppose you’ll consume most of it before they have a chance to see it. You’re over two hundred, aren’t you?”
“Y…Yeah…”
Cian rolled the black vampire over and removed his jacket. After checking to see if any bile had stained it, he donned it in favour of the jacket he had taken from Jimmy and transferred his magazines and box of rounds to it.
*Just a little bloodstained…*
Cian left the back room and walked through the main room to the door. The band had finished blind and had already played through most of clown.
Hit me because I'm not from your town, now hit me clown
Cian passed through the main door and walked past the doorman he had assaulted on the way in. A man knelt beside him and administered the minimal first aid he was able to. A nearby woman with panicked eyes screamed that the doorman wasn’t breathing.
Clown you ain't shit. Turn around and get your face split.
Cian smiled his malicious smile and disappeared into the night.
Late Night Encounters
Victor and Tash walked hand in hand from Bibliophile enjoying the night. A tremor made them break stride for a moment. "Did you feel that?" asked Victor.
Tash nodded, "What was it? It felt like a truck hit a wall nearby, or something."
"It’s California. Nothing to be concerned over." *I hope,* he thought. * Prophecies are tricky business. * "Where would you like to go from here?" he continued, "Back for another long night, or are you too tired to keep going?"
Tash grinned impishly at Victor, "I think it's time we went back home." She wrapped an arm around his waist and snuggled close as they walked.
Victor held her close and basked in her affection. With her he could be at peace. His soul didn't seem to bother him as much when she was around. And even when it did raise its voice it was tolerable. They walked in silence until they could see their building down the street.
They reached the second floor, and Tash looked at Jade's door. "We really should let Jade know what's going on." She approached the door and raised a hand to knock. Then a strong wave of warmth washed over Tash, to settle deep in her belly. She took a step backward and stumbled into Victor. "I don't think they want to be disturbed just now..."
She turned to face him. After the feelings she'd just received from within Jade's apartment, she was finding it hard to concentrate so close to him. "Let's go to my place, I've got decent coffee."
"There's such a thing as 'decent' coffee? I had no idea. But sure, I would love to go back to your place." They walked together, and Victor could hear the noises from Jade's apartment but tried to tune them out when he had satisfied himself that there was no foul play.
Tash was having a hard time remembering that only a few days ago she'd been resigned to never being loved, and now here she was with Victor. He felt so much a part of her that she couldn't believe she'd never noticed that part was missing. She twined her fingers with his, and pulled him to a stop outside her door. She reached up to give him a soft kiss.
Victor loved her taste. It had a spicy taste that he savored even after she had kissed him. He wondered idly about how he smelled and tasted to her. How much was the glamour and how much was him. He decided it didn't matter. And as she opened the door, he leaned in for another kiss, but her face turned away from his. He turned a second behind her...he had been so distracted he had not noticed that there was someone in her apartment.
Tash unlocked her door, eager to be inside and finish what she and Victor were just starting in the hallway. The first thing she noticed was a feeling of calm emanating from the apartment. The second thing she noticed was that the furniture they'd strewn about earlier that afternoon was restored to working condition. Then she saw Matthias sitting on her living room floor, a crystal cupped in his hands as he meditated.
She stopped in the doorway, feeling Victor's presence at her shoulder. As Matthias looked up at her, she asked the first thing that popped into her mind. "How did you get in?"
Matthias gradually pulled himself back from his meditations, and gently laid down the crystal. He looked up at them holding hands in the doorway with aggravated and shocked expressions, and smiled... "Cheap locks," he said simply. Then he illustrated what he meant by producing a lockpick. "Even the Lords of the Fae need to resort to mundane methods from time to time".
Victor shook his head. * Lies, damn lies, and half-truths are all the Fae are good for. If Tash didn't trust him, I'm not sure I would. * * It’s a wonder you trust anyone. * * I trust her and she trusts me, * was all the reply Victor could muster. "Have you seen Tempest since this morning?"
Tash pulled Victor into the room and closed the door. She looked at the new, expensive lock she'd bought a couple of days ago. She knew Matthias was good, but she could detect no signs of tampering. *Hmm, 'cheap lock' indeed.* She turned her attention to Matthias. Her barriers had been so tattered tonight that she could feel the crystal pushing at her even through the calm that Matthias had erected around it.
Matthias could feel the frayed edges of Tash's control, and mentally sighed in resignation. He'd need to do some more work tonight. He would have to rest again tomorrow to build up his strength. To Victor he said, "No, I was recovering from last night's efforts. I'm sure Zayn has been keeping an eye on him."
Victor walked to the couch, and smiled at Tash as she went straight for the kitchen to make coffee. He turned to Matthias and in a low voice said, "We need to plan for tomorrow night. The circumstances have changed for the attack on the Beazor. It is not going to be a spying or reconnaissance mission, it will be a distraction. I know where the other four crystals are."
Matthias concealed his surprise, and nodded as though this were entirely expected. "Excellent news. Do you know anything about how they're guarded?"
"Yes, and that’s all I am going to say for now. We need to gather as much force as we can for the Beazor, and lay out the plans for the attack, as well as a second group to recover the shards. Hopefully the effort will gain us all nine shards in our control. But it will still be dangerous."
Matthias looked at Victor gravely, "There is nothing involving the Cloch Cosan that is not dangerous. It's all a matter of degree."
In the kitchen, Tash was trying to concentrate on making some coffee. But the pressure inside her head kept building. She saw her brother's body and the dark-haired vampire that terrified her so. *You'd like to be rid of him, wouldn't you? Free me, I can rid the world of all such creatures...* Tash's hands shook, and she jumped as her coffee mug shattered on the floor, splashing its contents across the kitchen.
The sound behind him made Victor leap towards Tash, clearing nearly half the distance in a single bound. He moved up to her quickly and was hugging her before he could see that she was in no danger. As he held her, he opened his mouth to comfort her when a voice rang clear in his mind.
* She will have no defences for you. She would be an easy meal. You have tasted her, haven't you? Imagine how long she would last within you! *
Victor looked at her with a horrified expression, then he picked her up and carried her far from the kitchen and the shard. * It is never far enough. You know that voice after all, don't you? * *Not now, damn it!*
Matthias appeared behind them as Victor carried Tash down the passageway to the bedroom. He'd only had a short while to work on Lethe, and it seemed to be unnaturally strong right now. He could worry about that in a minute. For now, he needed to help Tash regain some control.
Victor tried to lay Tash on the bed, but she struggled to sit up. One hand she twined with Victor's, and the other clutched at Matthias' hand. Matthias saw the desperation in her eyes, and whispered, "Remember your training. Find the calm centre." As Tash gradually began to relax, Matthias placed his free hand to her forehead. After several moments, Tash felt her full control restored, and the shard’s thoughts receded.
Victor held Tash's hand tightly until he felt her relax somewhat. He continued to hold it as he spoke to Matthias, "You are fading in and out. You look exhausted, and should rest. Forget the damn shard for now. Put it my apartment or something. Just get it away from here. You can ward it after you have had a chance to recover. I will stay here with Tash."
Matthias sighed, "It's partially dampened, but it's very strong." He looked at Tash and Victor, "I took the liberty of inviting Jade and Sorrow here to discuss matters. They should be here in about an hour or so." He paused, "I'm not really that tired. I'll go to your apartment, get Lethe away from you a little while I work on it some more." Matthias couldn't quite repress the small smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth. It was high time Tash found some happiness. He looked at Victor. "I know you'll look after her well," he said as he left the room. A moment later they heard the front door closing gently.
"He's finally gone. I wanted to talk to you before he comes back, and" Victor smiled, "before we get distracted. I felt Lethe talk to me, and I can only imagine how much worse it was for you too. That is the fifth Shard that Matthias has handled. Can we still trust him?"
Tash pulled Victor down to sit beside her. She leaned against him and wrapped her arms around him, drawing comfort from him. "I always trusted Matthias, even though I could never read him very well. And now I know what he was hiding from me all those years...." She paused, and shook her head slightly. "I still trust him. He was my friend, my teacher, my father... He has a strength to him that I can't even begin to understand."
Victor lay beside her and wrapped his arms around her. He knew she could feel his turmoil and distrust but he kept it silent. Soon it subsided, but it didn't go away. Victor decided this was the time. They had had happiness for a time, they had had some time to enjoy life in as normal a way as it would ever get for them. "Tash, about tomorrow..." he started.
As Victor began to speak Tash idly traced the line of his chest muscles with one hand. But he could still sense her bracing herself. She knew this would not be pleasant. There had been too much turmoil for this to be a simple conversation.
"When I was tracking Tempest, I followed his trail to the Beazor. I cut a deal with Kain that I would deliver the nine crystals or Tempest since he had somewhat cheated Kain over the crystals that weren't here."
Tash looked at him, startled. This was a different slant on what he’d told her earlier. "Why on Earth would you make such a deal? Why talk to Kain at all?" She thought about it, if the deal was for Kain to stop attacking them here, what did Victor think would happen when he didn't deliver his end? Tash didn't even entertain the possibility that Victor may have intended the deal to be in good faith.
"Tash, I intend to fulfil the bargain. The deadline is tomorrow at 9pm. If I don't deliver, Kain will come looking. So I intend to give him what he wants.
Tash's heart fell as she heard his words. She pulled away from his embrace and looked at him in horror. "Why?" she whispered.
"We need Tempest to end this Cloch Cosan nonsense. His memories and his presence are essential to this gathering. So we needed him...and the other crystals. Kain and I go way back, we both know what the other is capable of. He won't get anything from me that I don't want to give him. But it will not be pleasant. I will not betray any of our allies, and I will not let you down. But it has to be done to throw Kain off our backs. He will continue to hound us until he knows what we know."
Tash couldn't believe what she was hearing. "So, what? You're going to march in there and tell him where the other five shards are? I thought you were talking about buying some time before, not selling out! Does Matthias know about this part of the plan? What about Kate? She's carrying one of the crystals. Kain will kill her to get it." Tash was feeling too angry to think. This sounded way too dangerous, giving Kain exactly what he wanted like this.
"I know it sounds dangerous, because it is. But I know the risks, and I am willing to take them. Kain knows the crystals are near, he attacked us to get them. This way he will have someone he believes will lead him to the others. But he will not get enough to trace the stones to Kate, Tristan, Matthias, or even Tempest. Instead he will lose his shards, and we will possess all nine.
But it will require a well-coordinated attack. I will go in, and get Kain and his goon squad focused on me. Tempest, Tristan, Jade, and Matthias will have to enter and 'rescue' me and the 'information' I will feed to Kain. Meanwhile you and Daye will recover Kain's shards and replace them with fakes. Believe me, in that non-magic zone they will never notice the difference until it is too late. There is nothing to connect me with Kate so she should be safe. He will have nothing but smoke and lies to follow for clues."
Tash felt a new anger replace the old. "Why start out making me think you were really going through with it?" Relief mingled with anger, as Tash realised that she'd feared it was the old Vrithetek coming forth for a minute. She was very glad to be proved wrong. "But you say Kain will believe you because he's known you a long time. I get the feeling he won't take your word for it." Tash felt a growing horror as she realised what 'risks' Victor was referring to. "He'll make sure you're telling the truth. You know what that means." Tash looked deep into his eyes, "Victor, he could kill you before the others get there...and you want me to get the crystals...I won't even be able to help you!"
"No, you won't be able to help me, that won't be your job in this mission. But there are others who will. In order for this to work it has to be believable. If you believed I was capable of it, then Kain will certainly believe that much. And you are right, he will either torture me or cast spells on me. But there are things about me he doesn't know. He has no idea how hard it is to kill a G'rnathan Battle fiend. Even beheading can be repaired. I trust you...and you alone to keep me from being lost forever.”
Tash gulped, "Beheading?" She buried her face in his shoulder and embraced him tightly. "There must be another way. Please. I don't want you to be tortured." But Tash knew Victor was right, this could work. It was just that he was putting himself in so much danger. "You know I'd do anything to keep you safe," she said as she gently kissed the side of his neck.
Victor spoke gently, "You know more about me and my kind than any human in nearly 2000 years. You know about my healing slime. That is both the secret to my healing and my destruction. If the slime is boiled away by fire or an oven, then I will die. That is a closely guarded secret that I have shared with you. And I have never shared it before. I am certain that even Kain does not know that bit. His crude methods will not kill me...they will just hurt for a long time."
Tash sighed, “I know you’re trying to be comforting, but… Look, imagine if it were the other way around. That it would be me going to see Kain, even if I were difficult to kill. And you couldn’t be there to help. How would you feel?”
Victor thought about what she said. He had never really considered his feelings before, much less the feelings of others. But as much as he tried he could not empathise with her feelings. This was too important. He looked at her impotently and said, "I'm trying, but I am new to this feeling thing."
Tash closed her eyes for a moment and whispered, "I know. But believe me, even though I'll go along with this, there's a large part of me that wishes I didn't have to." She kissed him gently, "Please, I just need to be held. I want to forget about it all for a few minutes."
Victor was all too happy to help with that, and as he held her in his arms, and nuzzled her neck, he could feel her worries melt away at least for the moment.
Tash blanked her mind of every thought and let the feeling of being held by Victor envelop her. They remained entwined in their embrace for some time, not moving, not thinking. Just feeling.
Raid Plans
Jade was giggling hysterically as she darted out of the bedroom, Sorrow in close pursuit. It was past 11 o'clock and she'd been trying to get dressed for the last 15 minutes so that they'd be able to get over to Tash's apartment. Sorrow, however, had other ideas...
He'd remembered how ticklish she was and had been trying to tickle her into a laughing fit...
He caught up with her as she grabbed a sweater from hall closet. "Tris!" She squealed, struggling to avoid his wriggling fingers. "Stop it! We're late!"
"Do we have to go? There are far more pleasant things we could be doing..." Sorrow's mouth travelled slowly across Jade's neck as his hands began to tease her in an altogether different manner...
He pulled back just as Jade began to move into him. "But you're right, we need to be going..." He walked back towards the bedroom. "I'll get dressed, shall I?"
Biting her lip in amused exasperation, Jade nodded and pulled the sweater over her head. The night was chilly and the singlet she wore offered little protection against the cold.
Shoving her keys into her jeans pocket, she collected her cigarettes and lighter and was just slipping on a pair of shoes when Sorrow came out of the room, dressed casually in a shirt and slacks.
"Come on! Tash is probably home... Matthias would have told her that we're coming over and she'll be wondering why we're taking so long!" Then, as she recalled her friend's psychic powers, she grinned. *Or maybe not...*
Sorrow smiled and slid a hand around Jade's waist as they let themselves out of the apartment and crossed the landing to #205.
*******************
The knock on the door broke the mood in Tash's apartment. Victor slipped out of the bed and walked to the door.
"Who is it?" he asked.
"Hi Victor... It's Jade... I'm with Tristan..."
Victor looked back into the bedroom to see how Tash was doing. She was running around in the bedroom looking for some clothes to wear. Victor smiled. "Give us a second," he said to the door.
"See! We could have had a while longer..." Sorrow's voice held a soft amusement.
Tash managed to find a skirt and a t-shirt to throw over the top, catching glimpses of Victor each time she passed the bedroom door. It took her a while to get dressed, because the sight of his naked back was too good not to linger over. Finally, she called softly to him, "Hadn't you better put something on, too?"
Victor had been reaching for the doorknob and stopped suddenly. He looked embarrassed and dashed into the bedroom, pausing only long enough to give Tash a quick kiss in the doorway. He pulled on his pants and t-shirt, figuring that Jade and Sorrow would not comment on his bare feet.
Tash kissed Victor in return on her way out to get the door, and unlocked it. She checked behind her, and saw that Victor had just finished pulling on a t-shirt, then opened the door wide. Tash beamed, "Hi, guys."
Jade's eyes were still dancing in amusement from Sorrow's remark as she hugged her friend. "Hi Tash!"
When Victor walked out of the bedroom, his face slightly flushed, she grinned cheekily at him. "Hi Victor... Thought you were going to be the one who opened the door... Where'd you go?"
Victor flushed, "I had... forgotten something."
Victor shook hands with Sorrow as he came in and gave Jade a chaste hug. "Good to see you again. We have a lot to discuss."
Tash returned Jade's hug, and nodded cordially to Sorrow. She couldn't help but notice they sported similar marks on their necks. Normally, this wouldn't concern Tash, but she knew Jade's heritage, and had her suspicions about Sorrow. As Victor greeted the two, Tash checked the marks carefully. *At least the skin's not broken.*
"Come in," she said, "and make yourselves comfy." She waved to the couches. "Who's for coffee?"
"Thanks Tash, coffee would be great." Sorrow moved to one of the couches, settled there and drew Jade close. He'd noticed the momentary scrutiny Tash had given them both. *Still, better than the last time we met.*
"Not for me, thanks. Caffeine keeps me up and I've got to wake up pretty early tomorrow." Jade too, had noticed the look Tash had directed at both their necks and had barely suppressed the urge to reach up and touch the mark Sorrow had left on her throat. Instead, she leaned back against him as Tash busied herself in the kitchen.
*******************
Matthias' eyes flicked open as he paused in his concentration over Lethe. He'd been able to mute it somewhat in the two hours he'd had, but it was far from quiet.
But the others had gathered in Tash's apartment, he could feel them all together. He carefully secreted Lethe in Victor's apartment. Given the reactions he'd seen to this particular stone, he didn't want to take it with him. He rose, re-established his glamour, and left the apartment. As he had done earlier, he placed his hand briefly over the lock before he turned to cross the hallway. Reaching Tash's apartment he knocked lightly upon the door.
*******************
Victor rose and approached the door. "Hello?"
Matthias answered, "It is a friend, Victor."
*I have my doubts about that,* Victor thought, but opened the door anyway.
Tash returned to the lounge room, carrying two cups of coffee. She placed one in front of Sorrow and sat on the couch that Victor had just vacated, cradling her coffee in her gloved hands.
Sorrow picked up the coffee, inhaled the rich aroma for a moment, then looked towards Victor. "Matthias spoke of plans?"
"Well, first things first. I know where Kain has stashed his four crystals."
Tash moved over on the couch to give Victor room to sit back down. She threw him a worried glance, having heard the details of this plan already and not liking them at all. But she kept her mouth shut and let Victor explain the rest.
Victor looked around at the grim faces. There was an expectant air in the room, as if they wanted to speak, but didn't know what to say. Even Matthias was leaning forward from the window sill where he had propped himself.
"The WiseWoman who lived on the third floor left me a message that contained a vision..." He continued to explain the magic "dead zone" in Pasadena where the crystals were cached. He then detailed his plans for infiltrating the Beazor, and the daring simultaneous raid on the house to substitute the crystals with fakes.
As Victor laid out the details he could see the assembled group looking more and more concerned.
Tash gripped Victor's hand tightly as he went through the details for Jade and Sorrow. The second time around didn't really improve it in her eyes.
Victor asked, "Any thoughts? Will you help?"
"I have a number of concerns, not least of which is your safety when you go to the complex, but more pressing than that what do you intend to do once we have the crystals? And for that matter how do you intend us to find the crystals within the dead zone?" The more Sorrow considered then plan the more worried he became... "Can you be sure that Kain will not have someone who will detect the crystals once they are removed from the protection… There are a lot more details needed, Victor, before we can move forward and you have committed us to a very short timescale."
Victor nodded at each of Sorrow's points, "I didn't set the time frame, Sorrow. And if I could have had more time I would have. But with the crystals all assembled, we can restore Tempest's memories. It is my belief that somewhere within those fragments is the key to removing the threat of the Cloch Cosan this time. As for finding the crystals, it is only one house. I don't know what kind of defences it might have, but how hard could it be?
Tash looked sideways at Victor, "Well, you never know. You say it's a magic dead-zone, but there's plenty of electronic security they may have installed."
“Very true, Tash. Getting them out is a concern as well and I don't have anything to offer there. But it is true that we need to plan this more."
"Ok, first things first then, getting you out of the complex. What do we know about it?"
Victor was relived he could answer his questions with authority, "While the building has been remodeled, the basic layout has not changed since I worked there 150 years ago. And I was just there a day or so ago, and I have seen the security that is in place. I am certain that even the torture rooms, and the gladiator areas beneath it are essentially the same as they were all those years ago. I can prepare you for that aspect of this mission. The hard part will be timing. I need to make sure that Kain gets the information before you 'rescue' me. It has to be believable."
Sorrow grimaced. "The timing must come from your read of Kain, Victor. How much pain will he inflict how quickly and at what point will he believe you will talk..." Sorrow really didn't like this part of the plan. Victor may have been a demon but no one should have to suffer what he was suggesting.
Up till now, Jade had been sitting without saying a word as she listened to Victor's plan. But at Sorrow's words, she spoke up. "If what I've heard about Kain since I've come to L.A isn't grossly exaggerated, his powers are almost legendary, not to mention extremely dark in nature. Even if we're lucky enough to get the timing for everything down pat, what makes you so sure we'll be able to defeat him and his minions and get out safely? Any one of us could get killed!" She looked around the room and shivered, imagining the worse.
"Believe me, friends, I have no desire to be tortured or worse. But I know Kain, and he knows me. I frankly don't see another way. If you can suggest another plan, I am willing to consider it."
Tash thought for a minute. "You know, there is something, Victor..." She looked at him, not sure if he was willing to share this information with the others. But it would at least mean that they would have an easier time of getting him out of the Beazor. At the expectant looks she was receiving, Tash continued, "Victor can ... disappear ... which would mean that there'd be no weight to carry out, at least." She bit her lip, "But it would mean that someone would have to host him, and if I'm not there, I can't do it...."
"Matthias, how effective is that cloaking thing of yours?" Sorrow had the glimmering of an idea...
Matthias cocked his head, "Effective enough." The idea of having someone host the demonic Victor intrigued him, and the suggestion that Tash had already done so piqued his curiosity.
"Still a distraction would be useful...Tash can I borrow your phone line" as Sorrow spoke he got up and moved towards the door. As Tash nodded her assent he got his laptop from Jade’s apartment and set it up on Tash’s table. "Normally I wouldn't go near these guys with the proverbial barge pole but some of us like to hunt big game..." Sorrow spent a few moments logging into the society network.
Jade glanced over at Sorrow as his fingers flew across the keyboard before looking across at Tash. Noting that her friend's face was drawn with worry Jade reached across to squeeze her hand and smiled reassuringly.
Tash returned Jade's smile with a weak one of her own. She had a knot in her stomach from worrying about Victor.
"It'll be all right. We'll make it work... Somehow... Take it easy for now, ok?" Jade said softly. She then got up and made her way to where Sorrow was seated, clicking away at the laptop. "What are you planning, specifically?" she asked.
"Well, like I said, some of us like to hunt big game...Big game usually requires something a little heavier than a 'popgun'." He worried at his lower lip as he continued to tap away at his keyboard. "Of course timescales might be tight so I doubt I can get anything really extreme but..."
Victor interjected, "It occurs to be that a frontal assault might be risky, but if you and the others had legitimate reasons to be in the Beazor, it might make it easier to surprise them. What if you went in posing as customers for arms?"
"That would work as well although I'd like to minimise everyone’s exposure inside the complex. A small explosion would probably be enough distraction for Matthias to get in and get you out..."
Jade raised her eyebrow at Sorrow's words. *A small explosion? Since when did the Society of Ulle recruit bomb experts? I thought I was in love with a vampire hunter, not a member of the SWAT team...*
Matthias smiled, "You know, there's no need to go to so much trouble. I'm fairly certain I could get in and find Victor without anyone seeing me." He turned his piercing gaze to Victor, "Then if Victor were to agree to me 'hosting' him, I could get him out, equally unseen."
Victor knew how vulnerable he would be if Matthias was hosting him. He would already be physically hurt and weak. And the hosting process would be draining as well. He wondered if he could trust Matthias. He already had deep concerns about Matthias. "I would prefer to keep that plan as a backup. I am not sure I could maintain the host for long."
The laptop beeped "Kain is tied into everything major in L.A. I'm not going to be able to get anything without going through him." He sat back for a moment. "I think a meeting between Kain and a couple of us would be best."
Tash looked from Sorrow, to Matthias, to Victor. "Well, it's usually a good idea to have a couple of plans up your sleeve, just in case. Maybe if you aren't strong enough to maintain yourself in Matthias the others could be on standby to mount an armed rescue?"
Victor commented, "That would be a good idea. Redundancy is good planning. I really wish Tempest were here. This is largely for his benefit, but he has been hard to reach lately."
Tash shivered. The last time she'd seen Tempest, he'd had a sword stuck through Victor. But it seemed that he was no longer quite so unstable. She also wanted to think about the crystal side of this venture. Apart from the danger to Victor, retrieving the crystals was of utmost importance. Her thoughts returned to the idea of security at the house. She still had contacts in St. Louis....
"Tempest..." Jade frowned. "Where exactly has he been? Matthias mentioned something about restoring his memory. Is he back to the way he was before? Or is he still acting crazy?" The furrows on her forehead deepened. "I haven't seen him since the time the first time we gathered here. It's so difficult to imagine him being evil... He saved my life after all..." At Sorrow's surprised expression, she shrugged and mouthed, "Later..."
Victor's expression sank, "Evil isn't what I would call it. He's not 'good' but he's not 'evil' either. He is broken. The memories in the crystals will restore his mind and bring him back to normal."
Tash grimaced, "We hope..."
a god damn long bloody post
"Kerberos.. good boy." Stalker leant down and gave the dog a pat. "Good
boy."
Kerberos lept around playfully happy to see his master. Stalker smiled. *I'm glad sombody is happy to see me. How can I get rid of this damn vampire?*
"c'mon boy!" Stalker called to Kerberos who was sniffing a lamp post. "Let's go to Bob's."
***later***
Stalker arrived out the front of Bob's. *Damn! Can't go in, the vamp will take over.* Stalker walked around to the back and called through the back door, "Bob? You there?"
Bob came out, saw who it was and turned back around to go back inside. Stalker grabbed him, spun him around, grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up against the wall.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! But it was either you or me and and it was your fault, YOU scammed ME remember.." Bob stammered. He closed his eyes and turned his face ready for the inevitable punch.
Stalker was confused, "What the hell are you on about?"
"What? You're not here about the vamps?" Bob asked, a look relief spreading over his face.
"What vamps? What's going on Bob?"
"Oh it's nothing. Don't worry about it," Bob lied.
"Don't lie! Tell me and perhaps I won't kill you!" Stalker growled, his grip on Bob's collar tightening a little.
"Okay! I'll tell you, just let me down," Bob choked.
Stalker put Bob down and crossed his arms waiting for Bob to start talking. Bob reajusted his collar and cleared his throat.
"Okay the thing is you really scammed me with that sunscreen thing, which I've forgiven you for by the way. Anyhow I sold some to some vamps and, well, they tried it and it didn't work, so they came back looking for me and I had to tell them someone's name to save myself and since you were the one that caused it I told them yours," Bob said. He turned his face and clenched his eyes shut, waiting once more for the inevitable punch.
Stalker did nothing, appearing to be thinking. Bob gingerly opened his eyes and took a shy glance toward Stalker to see if the punch was on its way.
"Okay, fair enough. You did what you had to do."
Bob looked up suprised "Really, you're not gonna hit me or anything?"
"Nope, I do need some info though," Stalker replied.
"Sure, what do you wanna know?" Bob said smiling, relieved he hadn't been hit.
"Met a guy about a month back named Shindo Makoto. He's an old Japanese guy - heard of him?" Stalker asked.
"Hmm, Shindo ... rings a bell. Yeah that's it, old guy named Shindo tried to open a Dojo a while back. It failed, don't know why, as far as I know he lives out the back of it still." Bob scratched his head, "Although I can't be sure, that's not the sort of info I'm usually asked for. Come inside and I'll see if I can find the address for you."
Stalker moved to go inside and then remembered. "Umm, I think I'd betyer stay out here, you can bring it out for me!"
"Ok, suit yourself. I'll go try and find it for you." Bob went inside.
Stalker waited restlessly remembering his meeting with Shindo a month ago..
*** 15 January ***
Stalker waited on the roof top. It was a cold night so no one was out and Stalker was hungry. "Better move to another alley. This one's too quiet. Not gonna find anyone here.*
Stalker leapt from building to building until he smelt humans. He moved to the rooftop of the building above the alleyway they were in and looked down into it.
There were three men - one old Japanese man and two men wearing the patches of what Stalker knew of as the local gang, The Playboy Gangster Crips. The two men had guns.
"Hey, just hand over your money and we won't have any problems old man," said the biggest of the two gang members. Stalker smelt steroids in this man but the other man was clean.
"I have no money on me," the old Japanese man said, speaking calmly.
The little gang member spoke up, "Well then, you see, that is what we class as a 'genuine' problem, see? If you have no money, that constitutes us having to blow your oriental head all over that wall over there, you see? So you is gonna have to give us something of some sort of value or the next place you'll be going is the morgue, see?"
"I see." The old Japanese man paused, "I have nothing to give you." He paused again, "But I must say, I admire your courage. It takes a big man to be able to kill an old unarmed man in an alleyway."
Stalker was bored with all the talking. *They'll do! I'm hungry!* he thought as he jumped down into the alleyway, landing quietly behind the two men.
Stalker spoke, "Yes I agree with you old man - these two must be very couragous men."
The two gang members spun around to point their guns at Stalker. "Where'd he come from?" the big one said.
The little one's eyes lit up. "Dunno, but he might have some money."
"You're right, I might have some money." Stalker snatched the guns out of their hands with one swift movement, "But you are not going to live to find out." Stalker threw the guns into the dumpster behind him and attacked..
He reached out and grabbed the big one by the arm and swung him around and into a wall. The little one fumbled in his pocket and brought out a flick knife. Stalker reached down and snapped the big one's neck. The little one quickly grabbed the old Japanese man and held the knife to his neck. Stalker turned around to face him and started to approach.
"N-now y-you just stay there or the Ching gets it," the little man said as he walked backwards down the alleyway holding the knife to the old Japanese man's neck.
Stalker kept walking toward him. "What makes you think I care what happens to him?"
Fear showed in the little man's eyes as he stumbled just a little. The old Japanese man quickly grabbed the little guy's arm and threw him forward over his shoulder toward Stalker.
Stalker grabbed the little man, "Suprise!" His face changed.
"Oh my god!" the little man screamed as Stalker sank his fangs into his bare neck. Stalker drained all the blood from the little man and let the dead body fall to the ground.
He was about to leave when he remembered the old Japanese man. He turned around, *He's still here! Thought he would have run off by now.*
The man spoke, "You are not normal."
"And you worked that out, how?" Stalker said sarcasticly, then more sincerely. "Of course I'm not normal. I'm a vampire."
"You are not a normal vampire. I have seen it, that is why I came here tonight. When you figure that out for yourself, you come, you find me, I will help you." The man paused, "When the time comes you find me, you ask for Shindo Makoto, then I will help you. You will know when the time comes. The power of the dark will leave and the light will sustain you."
Stalker looked down for just a second. When he looked up the old Japanese man was gone.
***
Stalker shook his head to clear his thoughts. *How the hell could have that old guy known all that?*
Bob interrupted his thoughts. "Okay, all I could find was a telephone number for Shindo. I couldn't find his address, but I'm pretty sure his place is down near Chinatown though," Bob said as he walked out the back door.
"Thanks," Stalker said as Bob handed him a piece of paper with the number. Stalker reached out and put some money in Bob's shirt pocket
"Seeya." With that Stalker left.
Bob took the money out of his pocket. "Son of a bitch," he said as he counted it. There was five thousand dollars there..
***
Stalker walked until he found a telephone box across the road from the park. He dialed the number. It barely rang before there was an answer. It was the old Japanese man's voice. "I will meet you in the park across the road from where you are." The phone went dead.
Stalker walked across the road and into the park and sat down on a park bench and waited..
***
It had been several hours and Stalker was getting restless. He got up and was about to leave when he heard a familiar voice. "The answer to your problem is simple."
Stalker turned to see the old Japanese man. "If it is so simple, why haven't I worked it out yet Shindo?"
"You are searching for the answer that you don't know! You need just for look to the answer you do know.." Shindo stated.
*What the hell is this old man on about?* Stalker thought. "I don't understand."
"Of course you don't. Your current problem is.."
"When the sun goes down I'll lose control again!"
"Why?" Shindo questioned.
"Because the vampire can only control me when I'm not breaking vampire laws?" Stalker answered questioningly.
"Yes, so that leads us to the answer.."
"That there are other vampire laws that will make him not able to regain control?" Stalker said, unsure of himself.
"Yes! But what is the answer?"
"Crosses? But they only repel, not kill like sunlight. So he will still be able to regain control!"
"What else is there? In particular a place he can't go like the sunlight."
"That's it! That is the answer! The law about entering human homes uninvited! But would that work?"
"Yes that would work! What else is there?"
"Holy water or stakes but they would kill the vampire altogether and it's power is the thing that is sustaining this body. I am not strong enough as a human to live without it so I would die as well wouldn't I?"
"No. You do not understand the true workings of a vampire. Sit down," Shindo said.
Stalker sat back down and Shindo sat beside him.
"Vampires are not from this dimension, they cannot enter this dimension unless a suitable body is designated to them and a portal to that body is opened for them. A suitable body for a vampire is a dead body that already has enough power in it to sustain the vampire. The power is provided by the blood knowingly provided by the 'Sire'. The portal is opened by the ritual of the embrace unknowingly provided by the 'Sire' also.
"Once a vampire is in conrol of a body, it feeds on blood to provide it with the power it needs to remain in control. Any extra power is given to the body to maintain it, also to give the body strength and change it to more suit the vampire's needs. The main area a vampire inhabits is not the whole body like a human soul, but the heart. That is where it controls the body from. If the heart is destroyed the vampire finds it hard to survive, having no central point to control the body from, but it can still control the body for a while before being driven back to its dimension.
"A vampire soul though cannot survive the touch of wood or blessed water. Thus a stake through the heart desroys it or intake of holy water into the blood system also destroys the vampire once reaching the heart.
Then once the body has nothing to control it, it dies. Any residual power left destroying any trace of the the vampire. The traces being the body itself, leaving the body as nothing but dust.
"But in your case if the vampire was destroyed the body will still have a controlling force, that being your soul. Thus giving you the control of the residual power and as the change has alredy been established for the vampire through time you will still remain in control of any extra strengths or powers the vampire has contributed to the body. Plus since you are alive you will be able to do any normal human thing without the restrictions a vampire has.
"You see at the moment the vampire is not in your body. It is in a place between dimensions - limbo. Thus anything you can do now, all the powers you have now, will be the same if the vampire never comes back at all."
Stalker sat, looking down at his feet, taking in all the new knowlege he had received from this strange old man, thinking, going through all the things he had just learned. He looked up.
"Who are you? How do you know all this? Why are you even helping me?" Stalker questioned, all the questions coming at once.
"Who am I? The answer to that is simple. I am Shindo. How do I know all this? That is something I cannot tell! Why am I helping you? I am helping you because your mother asked me to!"
Stalker felt shocked. "Did you just say my mother asked you to help me?"
He looked away in disbelief. When he looked back Shindo was gone.
*Damn, not again,* Stalker thought. *What am I going to do next? A stake through the heart would kill me, so I guess it means I should just drink holy water.*
Stalker stood up and whistled. Kerberos came running from the other side of the park. "C'mon boy, it's time we went and killed the part of me we don't want," Stalker said as he walked off to find a church, Kerberos not far behind him.
*** later ***
Stalker arrived out the front of a church. He knocked on the open door and waited. A priest came to the door. "The church is open my son, you can come in. These doors are always open to you my son," he said clamly.
"No, I think it best I didn't. I actually only came to talk to you," Stalker said.
"You came to talk to me? About what?" the priest said curiously.
"Well, actually I was wondering if you would bless this water for me," Stalker said, holding up a bottle of spring water he had brought with him.
"Of course I can bless the water for you my son, but why?" the priest asked.
"I just want to purge my body of a demon," Stalker said.
"The holy water will not purge your body of past sins. Only praying to God for forgivness will do that for you, my son," the priest said, misinterpreting Stalker.
"Oh I've already prayed but that didn't work. The demon still controls me when I'm in the dark," Stalker said impatiently.
"Sometimes it may feel that way, but to get God's forgivness you must first forgive yourself my son. You have to be patient, it will take time," the priest said.
"Oh, for Christ's sake, will ya just bless the goddamn water man? I haven't got all bloody day, and bloody hell I'm two hundred damn years older than you. There is no bloody way you could be my father so stop calling me your bloody son," Stalker yelled, his temper wearing thin. It was nearly sundown and he needed the water.
The priest was visibly shocked at Stalkers outburst.
"I'm sorry, will you just bless the water? It's really important to me, ok?" Stalker said softly, offering the bottle to the priest.
"I will bless the water," the priest said as he tooked the bottle. He blessed it and handed it back to Stalker. "But when you find the demons still haunt you, you come back to me and we'll talk," the priest said sternly as he handed Stalker back the now blessed holy water.
"Thank you, but I doubt we will even meet again," Stalker said as he turned and left.
Stalker sat down at the side of the road and drank the liquid just as the sun went down..
Alaric's Return
Talhu finally staggared back in to his motel as it was becoming light. Turning on the light, he was surprised to see the familiar form of Alaric sitting in the chair. The orange demon laughed when he came in. "Pravus, why do you have magic marker writting on your forehead?"
"I don't know," Talhu said, staggering to the bathroom. He started warm water going and began scrubbing it off. "I don't remember much of last night actually."
Alaric had followed him in to the bathroom and leaned over to smell his breath. "You've been drinking." Talhu didn't say anything but instead held the side of his head as the throbbing flared up again. "And now you have a hangover."
"A very bad one at that." With the magic marker off his forehead, Talhu looked through the cabinet for some aspirin. He took several of them dry. "It gets worse. Someone left me by a vampire hangout to sober up. I had to make a deal with some vampire who called herself Black Jem to off a couple of hunters to get out of there."
"That's not good." They walked out of the bathroom, and Talhu lay down on the bed. When he was about to get up again, realizing he had to pay the rent, Alaric broke in. "Don't worry. You're paid through the next two weeks. Tell me more about this deal." Talhu explained it in detail to him. "Let me handle Black Jem. What is your progress with the Cloch Cosan?"
"I know where five shards are. The demon collecting them has four, and is named Kain. Another human named Tempest has the fifth."
"Good. For right now, I have a more pressing task. You are familiar with the Coven of Sindell?" Talhu nodded. Alaric seemed to know everything. "There is a woman they are looking for named Catherine Wiccham-"
"We've met," Talhu said, and related the story of both the meeting and the threat from Serapis.
"This makes matters much more interesting. I want you to make an effort to befriend Catherine."
"And then what?"
"We do what we can to force a conflict between Catherine and the Coven, of course." Alaric stood and walked towards the door, then stopped. "It would be prudent for you to meet with her this evening, outside of XY."
Talhu sat up in bed. "Why's that?"
"Trust me," the other replied before letting himself out.
Pasadena
Tash leaned against the door with a sigh. Jade and Sorrow had returned to Jade’s apartment, and Matthias had explained he needed to spend some more time with Lethe. Tash looked across to Victor. His face was impassive. Resolute. He was expecting more argument from her, but she knew he would not be talked out of this.
"Now what?" he asked her, "Do we argue about this some more or is there something we can do to make this easier on everyone?"
“Well,” she said, “if I’m going to be breaking into this place in less than twenty-four hours, I’ll need to have an idea of what sort of physical security they have. And there’s only one way to do that.” She started toward the hallway leading to the bedrooms. “Wanna go for a ride?”
Victor smiled at her adaptability, "Let's go."
Minutes later Tash was riding down the streets leading to Pasadena with Victor on the back of the bike shouting directions. They turned into a street that ran parallel to the one containing the shards. Tash parked her bike next to a tree and started to walk around the quiet suburban block. Victor moved with quiet grace, but was not sure what he could do within the magical dead-zone.
Tash pulled out an amulet she’d borrowed from Jade as they left the building. Jade had blinked at Tash’s request for something simple, but magical, until Tash had explained she needed to test the boundaries of the dead zone.
The amulet Jade had given her glowed softly red in Tash’s hand. She had no idea what it was, exactly. Jade had just grinned at her when she’d asked. But Jade had assured her it was harmless.
Victor trailed behind Tash somewhat. He was nervous about losing his glamour in the dead zone. He wasn’t sure it would come back when he left the zone, and it was one of the best glamours he’d ever had. Tash turned to see him several feet back, and said, “We won’t look like a couple out for a walk if you’re back there. But then if you turn into a ten-foot tall demon you won’t exactly be inconspicuous, either. Maybe you’d better stay with the bike.”
"I am not comfortable leaving you to do this alone," he said.
Tash turned to face him and with hands on her hips gave him a what-the-hell-do-you-think-you-are-doing-at-the-Beazor look. Victor backed down and walked back to the bike.
Even on the far side of the street, the glow from the amulet faded as Tash passed the house. It began glowing again some distance on the other side. Tash continued walking, willing to risk only one pass directly outside the house at this time of night. *Hmm, assuming the dead zone originates in the middle of the house that would be a radius of about 100 feet or so. Pity I can’t be more accurate, but needs must….*
Her casual scrutiny as she passed the house revealed some overt signs of defences. The telltale boxes of outdoor sensors showed to her practised eye, and there seemed to be a couple more wires entering the house than the average for this street. *Ok, there’s enough here that I will need help with this.*
A narrow footway led between two houses and Tash carefully made her way down it until she found a suitable vantage point. She pulled a small pair of binoculars from her jacket pocket. She could see ramps for wheelchair access, automatic doors, and low counters through the windows. *I wonder who would guard something like the Shards with a cripple?* she thought. Judging from the number of speaker panels there was likely some pretty sophisticated motion and voice-activated systems. * Would have to be, I imagine, to accommodate a wheelchair-bound guardian.*
She could see cartoon characters on one of the windows. *Children. That complicates this because children are usually light sleepers. Not to mention parents are more on their guard for strange sounds.* She scanned for doghouses, chains or signs of animal digging. *I hope there’s just a house cat or no pet at all. I'd hate to have to hurt a dog.*
There didn’t seem to be any movement inside or out to indicate a guard present, whether human, demon or animal. But that didn’t mean there wasn’t something hiding. Completing her circuit of the block, Tash approached the bike and Victor. She shook her head at his unspoken enquiry. It wasn't enough, but it would have to do.
She was not satisfied with her survey, but Victor’s deadline didn't allow time for much more. *At least I have some idea now of what to expect. I know Ian will have a field day with the defences. I hate to call him because he is such a pain, but I can't do this without him.* She made her way back to the bike where Victor was waiting patiently. She wheeled the bike for several blocks, reaching a busier street before starting it up. Somehow she thought the neighbours might object to a motorbike engine revving after midnight on a Tuesday.
Victor was curious what she had found, but the rushing wind did not allow her to expound much. Victor began to signal to her as they were passing through a group of condominiums. She heard the word "Tempest" as they were slowing down. "What did you say?" she asked.
"Tempest lives in that building back there," he said pointing to a high rise behind them. "We should probably go there and tell him what we are up against."
Tash called over her shoulder, “OK, but I need to make a call first.” Tash parked her bike outside the building Victor had indicated, and pulled out her mobile phone to call Ian. *Thank God he owes me a huge favour.*
The Sound and the Fury
Victor walked to the intercom panel on the front of the building as Tash made her call. He looked at the list of buttons and picked the one that looked like the penthouse.
"Hello? Hello?" he spoke into the grill while holding the button down, "It's me Victor, and may Tash and I come up? We have some information."
As he released the button he heard Tempest's voice "...go of the button! Come on up."
A buzzer sounded and the door unlocked. The doorman held the door, and nodded to Victor, recognising him from the other night. Victor turned and waited for Tash.
Tash finished her call, feeling relieved that she'd have competent backup on this job. *I don't care how annoying he is, he's the best...* She noticed Victor holding the door for her and hurried over to him. "I've got someone who knows about security systems to fly in. He'll be here in a few hours."
Victor and Tash rode up in the slow elevator. Their furtive glances at each other punctuated their desires but the inappropriate timing of it restrained them. As the door opened at the top, Victor snuck a quick kiss. "It may be a while," he grinned.
They walked holding hands to the Penthouse door, where Victor knocked on the door once. Tempest called from inside, "Door's open, come in."
Tash gazed around the lavishly appointed suite. *Well, his 30 pieces of silver certainly got spent quickly.* Tempest was listening to music that played on an expensive sound system. She sensed a feeling of peace from him, but it was undercut by an edge of nervousness, like that of a caged animal.
Gently, my mind escapes into the relaxing
World of pleasure, a pleasure that'll take
My mind off the reality of my life,
My past life... life as I know it now.
Tash created a smile that she hoped hid her anxiety, "Hi, Tempest." The lyrics of the song he was playing struck a chord within her. *Yes, I know that feeling...* She stole a brief glance at Victor.
"Hello. So, what are we going to be discussing tonight?" Tempest leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes.
Victor soaked up the song and realized that the theme. Memories, pressures...could be about any of them. "We are talking about the plan to recover the Shards...and your memories."
Tempest didn't move, "Well, have a seat. You guys want anything?"
*Where to begin...* *Shut up.* "I'm fine," said Victor, "How are you doing with your restored memories? Anything there you think we need to know?"
Tempest was noncommittal, "I'm fine. Nothing special is back, just some stuff I'd rather not talk about."
And whatever may come, it slowly
disappears to somewhere in the back
of my mind. It will remain there,
until I wish to retrieve it.
*If only,* he thought.
Tash received a sudden flash of sadness, of endings. Regaining memories would be a painful process for Tempest, she knew. It was one thing to have them always in the background, but getting them back like this meant he was reliving them all over again. She smiled more genuinely, if sadly, at him as she moved into the room. "It's OK, you don't have to talk about it."
"I do have some good news though. I know where Kain is hiding his four shards," said Victor.
Tempest remained motionless, "Ok, well let's discuss the plan first. Then we can chat some more about the crystals."
Victor furrowed his brow, expecting more of a reaction from Tempest, but he shrugged it off. "It is a decoy attack."
He detailed his plan for Tempest and after he had finished he asked, "That's what I have. Tash has surveyed the place in Pasadena. She may have some details to share. Any thoughts?"
Tash cut in, "Well, I was able to learn a little." She described what she had seen at Pasadena. "I've reached a contact who's flying in this morning. He'll be able to help with the electronic stuff."
Tempest was now listening intently, but asked, "Sounds good. But about the Beazor - who is this 'Sorrow' person?"
Yes, I will stay here for a while,
for I need the break. A break from the
pressures of life, and everything
that lays in the palm of life's hands.
Victor explained, "He is an ally, and a D'Nethk'Quan. Ever hear of them?"
Tash pricked up her ears. She'd been curious about this ever since she heard Matthias mention the word. She wondered - hoped - that it would explain the black infused through Sorrow's aura. She didn't like to think of the alternative.
Tempest said, "Never heard of it or them."
This mode is incredible. It's out of
this world. Too bad I must always leave it...
... but that's life.
*Life is shit, but ain't it great...* the song faded out with Tempest's thoughts...
Victor continued, "D'Nethk'Quan is a ritual that gives the caster terrible power. But it burns them out. They don't last long. Sorrow has managed to outlast every one I ever heard of."
Tash's eyes narrowed and she looked at Victor, "What sort of power? Do you think it would affect their aura?"
"I had never met one in person before Sorrow," said Victor, "But it would have to, it is a trade-off of some kind. Power for sacrifice. But I have to admit, I don't know what the sacrifice is."
Tash sat quietly, thinking. She still wasn't sure about Sorrow. The only way to really know for sure would be to touch him barehanded, but she didn't think he'd agree to that. And she didn't like to steal visions if she could avoid it. Sighing, she returned her concentration to the task at hand. "Victor said it took a bit of effort to restore your first set of memories. Do either of you know how long we'll have to keep all of them safe before we'll be done?"
Victor had not thought of that. "It nearly wiped out Zayn and Matthias to perform the ritual. Not to mention Tempest. A couple of days each, I'd imagine."
Tempest removed the crystal from his pocket and rolled it around in his hand.
You seem to sever all my frequencies
I'm tethered to your energies
And everything turns inside out
I can't be killed but I'm not too proud
All this is making things a bit insane
And I don't care who stares or stays
The only thing that matters is
Will you reach out if you can't resist?
The lyrics came to him as the crystal glowed and seemingly soothed his frustrations, "Yeah, It's not exactly a fun experience for anyone."
Then Tempest recalled the last words of the song.
I'm ruined, I don't want anything from you
Cuz I've got nothing left to prove, c'mon
My time, everything feels fine,
Goodbye
"Soon..." he whispered to himself.
"After the attack on the Beazor, we should have some breathing room," said Victor. "There isn't anything he can really do about it, and it is my hope that he won't find out he's been robbed."
Tash frowned, "Once we've restored Tempest's memories, what are we going to do with the shards?" She was pretty sure about Victor, but she sent out mental feelers to see what Tempest's reaction would be.
"That's thinking ahead. At this point we might not even be able to get all of them so we should probably cross that bridge when we reach it." *Though some of us might be passing under that bridge.*
Victor was nodding, "I agree, we can handle this one step at a time.
There is no reason for us to assume that everything isn't going to go according to plan. We are being careful about who we are including in this."
*Men, why do they never want to think ahead to consequences?* Tash thought. "OK, then I guess we've covered just about everything here. Victor suggested we meet about 6pm, but where?"
Victor thought for a second, "I think meeting at Poplar with everyone might be a little conspicuous. What about XY?"
Tash nodded, "XY works for me. I'm sure Jade won't mind." She turned to Tempest, "Do you know the shop? It's right across from Bob's Bar."
"Sure. Six. I'll be there." But he could not shake the lyrics running through his mind….
What the hell am I doing?
Is there anyone left in my life?
What the fuck was I thinking?
Anybody want to tell me I'm fine?
Where the hell am I going?
Do I even need a reason to hide?
I am only betrayed
I am only conditioned to die.
Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Posted on behalf of Cian due to the fact that he's out of town today
Cian jumped and grabbed the contracted ladder of the fire escape above him. He pulled himself up until his waist was level with the steel floor of the fire escape and swung his right leg up over the railing, giving himself a position from which he easily lifted the rest of his body over the railing and onto the fire escape. He stood up and began to negotiate his way up the rusted and creaking stairs of the fire escape.
*Guns, loaded and loosened in their holsters. Knife, razor sharp and accessible. Big gaping hole in chest, still bleeding and sore as hell, shouldn’t be a problem.*
Cian reached the top level of the fire escape. He gripped the edge of the building’s roof and pulled himself up to the flat, tarred surface. The yellowed glass of a decidedly out of place skylight immediately caught his attention.
*Just like the nigger said it would be.*
Cian broke into a run and covered the distance between himself and the skylight in a matter of steps. Without breaking stride he drew his guns and jumped, landing in the center of the skylight feet first, with his guns pointed down.
The metal frame of the skylight bent and warped with the force of Cian’s kick and its glass shattered, raining jagged shards on those below.
*Thirteen humans in a circle, one standing at the north and south-most points. All chanting.*
Cian fired two rounds before he had cleared the skylight and proceeded to produce a veritable hail of lead. The first two bullets passed through the north-most witch’s throat and the south-most witch’s heart, killing them instantly and showering their sisters with their blood. Three more witches fell in torrents of blood and shattered bone as bullets ripped through their soft and yielding flesh. A fourth witch became separated from her left arm and screamed horribly. Shards of glass cut into the flesh of the witches, trails of blood shot into the air from their wounds and fell to the ground in graceful tracks.
Cian landed heavily, bending his legs to absorb the impact, and shot the witch nearest to him in the head. She fell, the back of her head now spread behind her in a sort of gory triangle.
*Three witches behind me, trying to cast a spell.*
Cian snapped his left-hand gun up and emptied its clip in the general direction of the spell casters. The trio died in a chaos of screams, viscera, and blood. Cian dropped the now useless gun.
A witch drenched with blood, her own and her sisters, panicked and slit her wrists with a shard of glass she plucked from her shoulder.
A dark haired witch, blood streaming from a glass cut on her temple, charged Cian with a curved dagger. He hit her in the throat hard enough to jolt her carotid arteries into inactivity and throw her backwards. The witch made a choking sound and died.
A young witch knelt on the bloody ground. She shuddered uncontrollably, her teeth chattering loudly.
“Scared?” Cian smiled at her in his cruel, mirthless way. He knelt in front of her.
The witch nodded jerkily.
“Good. You’re going to tell me were the rest of the covens are.” The one-armed witch continued to scream, although more hoarsely now, and the witch with the lacerated forearms drew in a ragged, shuddering breath. “You’re not going to play dumb, I know there are others. You're not going to lie to me, I will know if you do. Understood?”
The witch nodded.
“Go on.”
*She’s moving her hands.*
Cian struck the girl across the temple with the butt of the gun he still held. He shook his head.
“No spells.”
He took the girl by the shoulders and raised her again to her knees.
“Go on.”
Blood spider-webbed its way over the girl, except were it seeped from the marks the glass had left on her flesh, and from her temple. She tried to speak and failed, fear holding her mouth shut. She mustered what was left her strength and forced a series of shaky, wavering words. Blood sprayed from a cut on her lip.
Cian already knew most of the addresses the young witch recited for him. But some of them were new.
The witch finished speaking. She closed her eyes and looked at the bloody floor. Her head shook violently, spraying blood from her cuts.
“There is a sort of standard deal honoured among those such as myself, in situations such as these. If you tell me something I did not know before, that is of importance, I will allow you to live.”
Cian looked critically at the shaking girl before him.
“Do you know such a thing?”
Slowly, the witch nodded.
“I… I can tell you were the crystals are.”
“And what crystals are these?”
“The…The Nether Arch… The… The crystals…”
Cian nodded.
“There…There is a house in Pasadena….”
The witch stammered out another address.
Cian stood up and turned his back on the girl.
“Get out of here. Stay away from Kain and his witches, or this life I have given back to you will be worthless.”
*She’s moving her hands. Stupid.*
Cian spun around and again struck the witch in the temple with the butt of his gun. This time hard enough to fracture her skull. She fell roughly on the ground, blood splashing up were her fall disturbed it. She did not get up.
“I said no spells.”
Cian knelt beside the young witch and began to feed.
Season One: Feb 06, 2005 - Jul 06, 2005
Jade couldn't quite contain her yawn as she and Sorrow let themselves into her apartment. It was almost one in the morning the day had stretched on incessantly... *Especially certain moments.* She smiled to herself, recalling just how wonderful those moments were and reached out to take Sorrow's hand as she kicked off her shoes.
"Fancy a nightcap before we head to bed?" Jade glanced up. "I have a decent Chardonnay in the fridge..."
Sorrow rolled his head, trying to ease a stiff neck. "I would love a glass right now..."
After the wine had been poured and the both of them were snuggled cosily on the couch, Jade spoke, bringing up the matter weighing heavily on both their minds.
"What do you think is going to happen when we carry out Victor's plan to trick Kain?"
"Other than Victor getting tortured, I'm not sure. Depends on too many things, but I can't imagine it going off without a hitch." Sorrow sighed. "It could go really well or really badly and right now, I'm thinking the latter...but we have to try, I want rid of the stones." Sorrow sipped at his wine and looked at Jade, "You're right, this is rather good..."
She nodded, recalling when she had first begun to drink wine - during her University days in Australia. Then, the label had been a lot less costly and the taste a lot more vinegary, but the memory of how grown-up she'd felt brought a smile to her lips.
That flashback of her time downunder brought back another, this one a lot less pleasant. Jade shivered slightly. The memory of Tempest rescuing her from Valerian along that quiet stretch of Great Ocean Road never failed to chill her.
She set her glass on the table, troubled as she recalled Victor's and Tash's words about Tempest. It didn't seem right that the man who'd so selflessly saved her a few years before was such a different person from what she'd expected.
A warm hand on her shoulder startled Jade out of her reverie and she shrugged a little sheepishly at Sorrow's questioning look, not quite sure how to put into words what she was feeling...
He gave a reassuring smile and pulled her a little closer. He wondered what had caused that shiver of fear. Whatever it was, Jade would tell him when she was ready. He held her close and waited for her to speak.
"Tris... About Tempest..." The comfort of Sorrow's embrace relaxed her a little.
*Ah Tempest... So much was implied but so little said...* "You need to talk to me about Tempest?" He tried to keep the humour out of his voice and thankfully, Jade couldn't see his face.
"Mmmm..." She wriggled away from him and reached for a cigarette. "There's not much to talk about really... He saved my life once. About four years ago..."
The lighter Jade took out of her pocket made a soft *clink* sound as she lit it, watching Sorrow's face carefully to monitor his response to her next words. "If it wasn't for Tempest, Valerian would have succeeded in killing my human half and making me a true child of the night."
Sorrow watched Jade light her cigarette. Lecture on smoking? Not a good idea right now... She seems less than cut up about Tempest not being around...* "I take it you lost touch?"
"You could say that. Till three or four nights ago, I hadn't seen him since he left me at a church in Melbourne to recover from my wounds. I didn't even know his name or who he was..."
"In my mind, the man who rescued me took on the makings of a hero." She blushed a little. "Maybe it's because he's the only person I know of that's succeeded in getting one over Valerian... To find out that he's not quite as taintless or righteous as I thought, is somewhat crushing..."
Sorrow closed his eyes. When he opened them, he looked steadily at Jade. "So, you idolised a complete stranger for four years and then when you finally got to know him, he didn't live up to your expectations?"
She winced at his words but met his eyes. "Something like that." Jade bit her lip, whisked her wine glass off the table and downed the remainder of its contents. *Dutch courage my girl!*
She shifted uncomfortably and faced Sorrow again. *This is one of the times I'd give my teeth to be able to read minds. I can't even tell what he's feeling, if he'd mad, disappointed or amused?!*
"Are you angry?" Jade grimaced. *To hell with it. Direct questions will just have to do until I find myself a writer to pen a book called...*
"No, I'm not angry..." *She was worried I'd be angry?* He shook his head. "A little amused perhaps, but not angry..."
"I mean how long did you know the guy?" *Hmmm, actually that isn't a good point...* "Jade we both have pasts, you know mine and I don't recall you being angry. Why should yours worry me?"
*He's amused?! He sits there, with that deadpan expression and tells me he's AMUSED when he near half-scared me to death?!* Jade couldn't help herself... She grabbed a cushion and whacked Sorrow on the arm. "Because!" She burst into laughter at her needless worrying. "Because, you silly twerp, you're a man and who the hell knows what goes through those minds of yours!"
Relieved, she flung herself into his arms and hugged him hard. When she felt his chest rumble with what suspiciously sounded like a chuckle, she warned, "Don't you dare laugh!" Pulling back, she glared at him. His act of looking serious was very convincing, except for the tug of mirth at his mouth.
Utterly exasperated and not really understanding why, Jade poked Sorrow in the ribs. "Tris? Kiss me please... before I hit you again?"
"Well, with such an invitation..." Sorrow leant down and kissed her, forcefully, passionately. Sorrow put his whole soul into the kiss. Neither of them were quite sure how long it was before they broke away from each other, but it was only for a few brief gasps of air before Sorrow claimed Jade's lips again in a kiss just as passionate.
When he finally pulled away, Jade sighed. Whether the lightheaded feeling she was experiencing was due to the wine or the intoxicating effect of Sorrow's mouth on hers, she couldn't say.
"So..." Jade gave him slow, seductive smile...
Engagements...
The morning sun filtered through the thin voiles, casting a warm glow over the bodies of the two lovers. Kate had been sleeping soundly for once. Her body rested over Luc’s, her head against his bare chest. Luc’s arms were wrapped loosely around her sleeping body, his head lightly resting against hers.
The sun shone in Kate’s eyes. She murmured sleepily, the light rousing her from her slumber. She rubbed her eyes tiredly and looked at Luc who slept peacefully at her side. She smiled contentedly and laid a kiss upon his lips. Luc sighed and opened his eyes.
He sighed again. “Hmm, morning.” He wrapped his arms around Catherine, drawing her closer. The silk of her shift felt good as it brushed against his skin. They kissed lightly, and halted as the glass of the bedside lamp began to rattle slightly. Luc began to sit up but Kate held her arm against his chest to stop him.
“Could we just stay like this? Just for a little while?” she asked hopefully.
Luc gazed into her eyes and nodded. He lay back down and Kate resumed her position, curled into his chest. She snuggled into his arms and he held her tighter, letting his fingers casually comb through her hair.
“Hmm, this is nice…normal.” He spoke softly.
Kate was silent, absently running her fingers over his smooth, toned chest. She felt an inner peace, a calm she hadn’t known since Matthias had quelled the effects of the Shard. But she knew that as soon as she left the warm embrace of her lover this feeling would shatter and fall away, leaving all her apprehensions and fears intact. *Still, a little longer wouldn’t hurt,* she thought to herself.
“I love you Luc,” she said finally, breaking the silence.
Luc opened his eyes. He had felt so relaxed he had almost drifted back to sleep. Kate’s woeful admission brought him crashing back to reality. “Kate…?” he said questioningly.
“I, I love you.” She rolled on to her front so she could look into his eyes. “I know, you know this already, but…” she looked away for a moment. *Her fate was at hand, she didn’t want to go to her death with the thought that Luc had never known just how much she…* “I love you,” she said again.
Luc drew her closer again; he could feel the resigned fear in her heart. He wrapped his arms around her tightly, kissing her head. “Oh Katy Wiccham…” He brushed his cheek against her soft hair. *Oh no, he couldn’t bear to lose her, not now, not ever…* He sighed painfully, “I love you so much.”
They lay for another ten minutes, enjoying the close intimacy of their physical proximity. Then Kate stirred. She glanced at the clock on the bedside table; she had to start getting ready for work. She began to pull away from Luc. He playfully pulled her back down into his arms.
“No, no, stay here with me.”
Kate giggled, lying still for a minute, and then pulled away again. “You are a bad influence Lucien Aeterus.” He grabbed her hands, holding her back.
“Oh Catherine!!” he moaned playfully.
Kate laughed again, slipping out of his grasp. “Oh I know it is such a pain when reality begins to interfere with your lazing around time.” She kissed him briefly, “I have to go have a shower.”
She slipped off in the direction of the bathroom. Luc sank back into the bed with a deeply frustrated sigh. They hadn’t made love in over sixteen months, now that they were back together it was becoming unbearably difficult to keep at a distance when all he wanted to do was…
He sighed again, glancing back towards the bathroom, the water clicked on and he could hear Kate humming to herself happily. Luc rolled over to one side of the bed where his coat hung. Fumbling in his pocket he pulled out a small box. He opened it; inside rested a beautiful engagement ring. He held it in his fingers and sighed again. *Why was he finding it so hard to ask her such a simple question?* He sighed again, the diamond glittered in the sunlight. He replaced it in the box and returned the box to his jacket pocket. *Soon,* he thought. He would do it soon.
Night time driving
Tash loved the feel of the wind whipping over her as she sped along the boulevard. She and Victor had left Tempest’s place and were heading home. Victor’s arms were wrapped around her waist, and she felt incredibly secure in his strong grip.
One of his hands strayed up to cup a breast, and Tash felt a sudden jolt go through her as he gently squeezed it. She fought to keep her concentration on the road. She didn’t want to crash, but she could feel Victor’s body pressing against her back. The pitch of the engine rose a notch as Tash opened the throttle. She wanted to be home, and soon.
Victor buried his nose at the nape of her neck and kissed the bare patch of brown skin at her collar. He could feel the engine rev ever higher as he playfully distracted her. She finally shrugged him off when they reached an intersection and turned to face him while the light was red.
She reached up and cupped his face in her hands, kissing him lightly, but fully. "We're almost home." Her hands strayed down his chest and waist, then back up again. "Soon...."
Victor said affectionately, "I have waited a long time for you..."
Tash started to speak, and found her voice caught. She tried again, whispering, "I've also waited a lifetime." Her mouth quirked into a smile, "But it wasn't as long as yours." She kissed him again, then turned to drive. The light had been green for some time.
Victor sat impatiently on the rear of the bike as they travelled down Poplar Avenue towards the place he thought of as home. As they approached he could see the moon above the building with an ominous red stain on it. Victor did not hold much with superstitions, but could not shake a vague feeling of dread at the sight.
Tash stopped the bike, and let Victor get off before dismounting. He was staring up, with a look of apprehension on his face. She followed his gaze. "It's just Mars bleeding colour into the moon." She took his hand. "Maybe it does signify horrid events, but we already know there's nasty stuff going on." Her eyes sparkled as she said, "Besides, I've got other things planned for you right now."
Victor knew what caused 'blood moons' but he didn't have the heart to tell Tash that. But he could not seem to shake the feeling that the moon looked like a giant eye turning to look down on them from the sky. He shook his head to clear the vision, and trailed Tash into the apartment building. Once inside he grabbed her and pulled her close in the hallway. "I have waited long enough, what about here?"
Tash laughed, then desperately tried to dampen the noise as Victor pressed himself against her. She melted into his arms, not wanting to wait either, but then shook her head. She placed her mouth next to his ear and murmured, "It's only two flights of stairs. I'm sure you can hang on that long, if I can." She grinned impishly as she pulled away from his embrace and grabbed the bike, putting it between her and Victor. She darted up the stairs, not caring about the noise the bike's wheels made as they bounced on the steps.
Victor grabbed the frame of the bike and lifted it easily, then ran up the steps with it. Tash hung on, but her laugh of surprise showed she had not expected this show of enthusiasm.
Tash fumbled with her keys before she reached the top of the stairs, and had them ready by the time she reached her door. Victor was standing there with the bike, obviously trying to contain himself. Throwing the door open, Tash skipped backwards into the living room, her arms flung wide, "Come and get me!"
Victor set the bike in the living room, closed the door, and purposefully locked the door. *Won't stop you Matthias, but it might slow you down long enough.* Victor strode purposefully into the bedroom after Tash, and stood triumphantly in the doorway for her. "We who are about to die, salute you!" he said, grinning.
Tash eyed him up and down, lingering here and there. Her eyes shone. "They certainly do," she grinned. "You just going to stand there with that, or are you planning on doing anything with it?" She moved forward slowly, closing the distance between them. She'd never felt so alive as when she was with Victor. She moved until she was bare millimetres from him, but not touching. She waited to see what he would do next.
Victor had not felt so free in centuries. She had touched something deeply repressed inside of him. He felt as if he were truly living not just existing from age to age. He forgot about the dangers, doubts and evils of the world when she was with him. Her playful game was fun, but he ached for her. And when he could not contain himself any longer he lifted her from the floor, and carried her to the bed. He gently placed her there and climbed into the bed with her. He leaned over her and kissed her, feeling her hands on his shirt tugging at it.
She freed the shirt from his pants and ran her hands over his chest. His kisses had stirred a fire deep within her, and she guessed it would be safe now to remove the gloves. They dropped to the floor and Tash resumed her exploration of Victor's body. She pushed him back until he was lying on his back, then she straddled him. Her hands continued to roam as she began a second exploration with her lips, teeth and tongue. She covered his entire upper body with kisses and nibbles.
Victor pulled at her clothing, but was soon frustrated. He grabbed the fabric and tore it. Her gasp made him regret it, but he kissed her by way of apology. Her lovely brown skin bore the scars of her chosen path, and he traced them with his tongue. Wishing with his tenderness that the pain from them would disappear beneath his ministrations. Her noises changed subtly and her breath quickened, and Victor had learned that this was a sign of pleasure.
Tash closed her eyes as Victor's tongue roamed her body. Her head arched back and she gasped. She hoped Victor could feel pleasure the same way she could. It had seemed so the last time, but even with psychic abilities it was difficult sometimes to tell exactly what someone else was feeling. *Especially when they aren't even human.* She pulled her head back down to look at him. He certainly looked like he was enjoying himself.
She crawled up until her face was level with his and kissed him deeply, her hands drifting down his sides to his hips. The fabric of her bra brushed against his chest, and she longed to feel their flesh touching. Pulling back, she deftly removed the offending material and it sailed across the bedroom to hit the door before falling to the floor.
Victor struggled with his pants for a few seconds before removing them with force. Tash laughed at his awkward eagerness. Victor could barely believe it himself, he felt as if something inside him wanted passionate release. Once he was freed from the bonds of his clothing he knelt in front of Tash, sprawled in front of him alongside the bed. They smiled at each other before abandoning themselves to each other.
******
Elsewhere in the building something was feeling the passion as strongly as Tash and Victor. It resonated in time with them. It strained and relaxed with them as they strove to satisfy their instincts. But the instincts of the other were not satisfied, and were only beginning to surface...
******
Tash felt the crescendo rising. Her breaths came in quick gasps, timed with Victor's. Waves of ecstasy washed over her as she shuddered in release. She heard Victor's moans rising over her own cries. They collapsed back on the bed, still entwined. Tash felt her pulse slowing, her breath coming more easily. A warm glow infused her whole being as she and Victor held each other. She closed her eyes and breathed in his scent. This was true contentment.
Victor had a wish. He had had one more than a millennia ago and it had been granted, although he had seen it as a curse at the time. Now he wished quietly to himself again. He hoped that whatever gods ruled this dimension were listening to him when he formed the wish in his mind... * Please, don't let me fuck this up.*
Nightmares 3
Tash sighed in ecstasy as she felt the hand trace up and down her body. “Hmm, Victor…” she murmured. She opened her eyes and could see the stars. She was lying on soft, springy grass. The ghostly caresses had stopped and her left arm was hurting.
She turned her head to the side, and saw the dark-haired vampire. He lifted his face to her, his fangs dripping blood – her blood. His eyes were large black pools, and Tash felt herself being drawn into them again. She turned her head sharply as the panic rose in her, fluttering in her chest like a trapped bird. She couldn’t move her body, and she knew she was about to die here – or worse.
She felt the vampire tearing at her arm, ripping at it like a hungry dog. Then a soft, golden glow stole over the scene. Her panic calmed somewhat as she sensed a familiar presence….
******
Tash sat bolt upright in the bed. “Matthias!”
Victor was beside her, holding her, looking worried. The sheets were tangled around her, and she was soaked with sweat.
Victor knew she was having a nightmare from the sweating and her moans of panic. He held her close not knowing what the world of dreams was like for humans. Victor lived in a world of eternal wakefulness, and the "little death" of sleep was a complete mystery to him. Others in his past had tried to explain what it was like, but the concept eluded him. Seeing her in this state made him want to reach inside her to stop the terror he knew she was feeling. As she bolted awake, he heard her call Matthias' name. "What did you dream?" he asked, "Something about Matthias?"
Tash stared at Victor for a second, wide-eyed, still lost in the nightmare. She blinked and willed her heart to slow its panicked thumping. Pulling Victor closer, she wrapped her arms around him. For a few seconds she rested there, feeling the comfort of being held by Victor. Then she pulled back, "I've been having the same nightmare for the past few nights, now. It's an old memory... when I was about twenty. There was a vampire..." her voice trailed off and she looked down at the scar tissue in the crook of her elbow. She shuddered, "It was the only one that ever truly scared me. Others have come close to killing me, but with this one I wanted him to kill me... It was something in his eyes..." Tash gripped Victor tightly. "I'd put it out of my mind, but now I'm dreaming about it again, and I don't know why."
Victor held her tight and said it would be okay. But he knew that his words were empty consolation. She needed to let this out, to move past it. Much as he had needed to let everything out about his true nature for her. "How did you escape?" he asked.
"Each night, I seem to see a little more of what happened, and some of it is familiar, stuff I can remember if I think about it, but some of it is new. Matthias was new. I don't remember how I got away from the vampire, but in my dream tonight I saw – no, sensed is more like it - Matthias. He was there." She shrugged slightly, though it was difficult in such a tight embrace. "Maybe he saved me, or maybe it's just my dreams getting confused, since I searched for Matthias for so long, and now I've found him. I just don't know."
She shivered, still feeling the fear that the nightmare instilled in her.
"Matthias and you have shared a lot and hidden a lot from each other. There is always going to be that connection. I have to admit some small jealousy that he knows you as well as he does," Victor confessed. Then he smiled and kissed her. The long passionate kiss ended with his professing to her, "But I know you in other ways."
Tash returned the kiss, savouring Victor's taste. "Matthias is the only reason I didn't die at 14. It took me a long time to admit that to myself, but it's true. And now I'm thinking that he probably intervened other times, too. There have been times when I've been really badly hurt, but I always seemed to heal quickly. It must have been Matthias." She shifted, snuggling into a more comfortable position against Victor. "And though he kept such a big secret from me, we still shared a lot over the years. But with you I feel complete. I feel like a part of my soul was missing, and I didn't even know it. But you fit the space perfectly."
Victor felt she fit him perfectly as well, but enjoyed the moment. He squinted as the first rays of light came through the blinds dividing the room into bands of dark and light. "It’s a new day," he said.
Tash groaned, "Surely not?" She levered herself up from the bed and saw the light around the edge of the window. She fell back onto the bed with a sigh. "That means I have to go to the airport soon." She traced a finger down Victor's chest, and down past his belly. "Damn..." she sighed.
"I'll take you there, and you can get a cab back," said Victor. Tash gave him an evil look. She was not sure she could trust a being who could not even use a cell phone with her bike. Victor returned her funny look, "What? I can ride a motorbike! I was riding them back in the 20th century!”
"I might regret this, but all right. You can ride the bike. But only on the way back. I'll get us there." She could just about bring herself to let Victor loose on her bike, but not if she had to watch.