*** Aug 6, 2005 ***
There is darkness. There is pain. There is evil. These things I recognize because I am these things. I feel the movements of the trulls above me. It has been a long time and the trulls have built many things above me. It is a marvel that they have built.
I can feel the sprawl of their village...it reaches into the landscape like a hard scab that holds the flesh of the countryside together. I can feel the trulls of all kinds. The gentle innocents. The hard violent ones. Even the ancient ones like myself but younger...much younger. They are all trying to make a life in the scab.
Scabs heal. They slough off and become one more bit of dust in the earth. I am the dust. I am where all scabs end up. And I am awake again. I look farther into the land and see a closed hellmouth. I see madness, chaos and disbelief.
I am going to have fun here. The trulls do not remember, otherwise they would have kept the ancient places clean. They cannot imagine what will happen or they would still have champions and guardians in place. They will remember soon enough. I am awake and they are the ones who are sleeping.
***
Mrs. White's apartment had been converted weeks ago into an office. The phone lines and DSL connections were in place and the knick-knacks had been thinned down to a point where most people assumed the small apartment was a reception area.
Victor scratched his head at the tangle of wires behind the desk and the arcane symbols that Ian was typing on the screen. "Are you sure it will work okay? I don't know anything about how to fix these things...much less use them," said Victor.
Ian chuckled, "Come on, Victor, it's time for you to get wired! There's no shame in not knowing but I find it hard to believe that a guy as young as you hasn't had to use these since he was a kid in school."
Victor smiled uneasily. "I grew up in Europe, they aren't as advanced as the States," he lied. Ian had expressed this same sort of curiosity at Victor's discomfort before. Truth was, the technology scared Victor, and it was more obscure than black magic to him.
There was a quiet knock on the door. A young woman stood there in a white tee shirt that showed her midriff. Her tight black slacks accentuated her shapely legs, and the tiny nose stud drew attention to her very attractive face.
"Is this the place looking for the receptionist?" she asked.
Ian gracelessly stood up and tripped on the office chair rushing to greet her, but Victor deftly cut him off and extended a hand. "Pleased to meet you," he said, "My name is Victor. What's your name?"
"Henna," she said, "I am here about the job."
Ian was behind Victor making an ass of himself by waggling his eyebrows and winking at her, and she looked down in embarrassment. Victor stepped back and deliberately applied most of his 450 lbs to Ian's toes. He escorted her in and invited her to sit on the sofa where Ian hopped quickly to sit beside her.
The interview was short, and Henna was quick to assure Victor she knew about stocks, property management, computers, messages, and everything he was looking for. She had been working in the billing and customer service industry for her mother's online stocks business since she was 13. Even at 23, she was a veteran of managing volatile companies.
She left with a job, and Victor was quick to talk to Ian (who was trying to follow her out the door). "When are you going home?" asked Victor.
Ian opened his mouth and decided that he didn't want to push it. "Tonight," he replied.
***
That night there was a noise in the basement. A young figure of a girl walked slowly up the stairs. She looked around the corner from the basement stair and seeing the coast was clear, strolled out into the hallway. Her tight tee shirt was clean and white, and her dark slacks and tiny nose stud accentuated her best features.
She looked into the office and patted the electronic box. Its secrets were open to her, and she held her hand there for just a moment longer as information about the trulls of this new age flowed through her.
She smiled and closed her eyes. One bit of information interested her. Henna. A name, a phone number, a residence.
****
Henna walked around the small efficiency apartment in her workout bra and bicycle shorts. She had already slid the compact folding stair machine under the bed. She sat on the corner of the bed, drinking her spring water with one hand and clicked on the television with the other.
She was glad she had this great job. Now she could really get something accomplished. They had a sweet setup there, and she didn't think they would mind if she ran a small web business on their computer while she was doing work for them. It was only bandwidth and they had more than they needed.
She stopped flipping channels, and flipped back a couple of clicks. She had seen something that caught her eye. The channel looked like a cheesy horror flick from the 70's with huge crowds of cave people fleeing across the savannah from some unseen evil.
There were a few that stood their ground and huge misshapen horrors came and engulfed them. Henna wasn't sure why she was watching this particular program...it wasn't her usual fare of E! or VH1.
She thought it must have been the special effects. They were better than anything Lucasfilm ever produced. She didn't have a HDTV (she was saving up for it) but it was sharp and crisp.
Real. It seemed real. That was it totally. She set down the water and the remote. She approached the set and extended a hand. *This is crazy!* she thought. *This is like some sort of weird movie.*
As her fingers touched the screen and felt only hard glass, her skin stopped prickling. She breathed again (not realizing until just then she had been holding her breath). She stood up.
As she turned around, she saw the young girl sitting on the corner of the bed with the 3lb free weight in one hand and the bottle of water in the other. She smiled at her and dentist-white teeth flashed an evil smile.
Henna barely registered that she was seeing herself before the 3lb weight smacked her in the face, and she didn't get to see the end of the movie. Ever again.
The doppelganger stood over Henna's slim form, thankful that it would not have to clean up blood. Not that it minded cleaning up blood, it's just that lots of blood led to embarassing questions. She dragged the fit body into the bathroom and proceded to insert the real jewelry where only the appearance had been before. Over the next few hours the colorful tattoos faded from the tan skin and appeared on the skin of the clone.
She was a good one. The markings that made her unique had power. She especially liked the "sensual" rune on her lower back. It felt warm and sexy. The rings and baubles each held memories and skills. The ring in her belly button gave her knowledge of movements and combat. The stud in her nose told her stories of places and the thrulls that inhabited them.
The shamans had worn such things. Earplugs and tattoos of power made them unique and guarded their selves against the evil. But they were applied with care, with prayer and with protection. These little things were carelessly applied. They did not protect anything. That was a change it liked.
Tomorrow it would work. It would do menial things while it scouted around. The markings and decorations would disguise it as one of the thrulls. Even the sensitive ones would not know.
When it was time the others would come. Whole armies of them would come forth from the dust and swallow this scab.
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Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Date: unknown
Place: Egypt.
His back to the cold wall, he craned his neck to look at them once again. The guards were far away now. Taking his chance and being as furtive he could, he crept inside the large structure. In the doorway he looked towards the guards again, checking, and then went in deeper, to the heart of the monument.
He had reached the doorway of the Kh’-kum’s resting-place. This would be the tricky part. The priests had put on all sorts of enchantments and protective spells, but he wasn’t the great wizard for no reason. He took a small bag out of his pocket and opened it to reveal some herbs and powders wrapped up in leaves. He put the ingredients down and went to work.
After about an hour of spell reading and herb burning a bright light illuminated the doorway for some time and disappeared. *The spells have been broken.* With that he gathered up the rest of his ingredients. Even though the intangible barrier had been broken there still remained the great door to open. He used all his strength but the door wouldn’t budge open. Then noticing a few wooden bars left there, probably for any further construction, he took a bar and wedged it in the door and tried to lever it open. His first few trys were useless, and then at his third try the door finally gave way and opened slightly. He was then blasted as some air was sucked into the formerly vacuumed chamber.
With further force from him the door moved further apart, enough to let him in.
The chamber inside was dark, and suddenly all around him lights started to be lit. *Fire spells,* he thought. *Their knowledge of magic continues to enlighten me.* Wandering around the chamber, which was filled with various sorts of treasure, he finally came across what he was looking for. The statue of Kh’-kum. It was made from the purest gold and the most dazzling gems that could be found.
The stranger looked pleased with himself and took from his pocket the same batch of herbs he had used just moments before. This time he also took out the artifact, the same artifact that he had used some time ago in a “special” ceremony.
He chuckled to himself, *How easy the Kumacs were to fool, having no knowledge of the power that they had given me.* The man knew that the artifact had the entire power and for this power to be unleashed and given to him, he would have to perform yet another ritual, this one more dangerous than the one before.
He started to mix the herbs together to form a new potion. When the powdery potion was ready, he took it in his hands and licked the powder and swallowed it. Then lighting some sandalwood with fire, he continued with the ritual.
Sitting crossed legged in front of the statue with the artifact in his lap, he started to meditate. After a while when he knew that he was fully in a trance, he opened his eyes and said the words of magic.
“Algham di alf gogum die hing la bosh.” He took a breath before continuing, “Kha Kum, die hing gogum, die hing!!!”
Continuing to eye the statue he went totally still. Now was the time he had been waiting for his entire lifetime. Then suddenly the statue of Kh'-kum came to life and spoke to him.
“Ingum wie hesh nucture?”
“Why have you disturbed me, you ignorant human?”
“Jezam, bakh die Kh'-kum, teek ni teek tum ‘la haash’.”
“Forgive me great lord of the mighty, Kh'-Kum, I am here to beg of you to induce to me the ‘power’.” With that he took a dagger out from his pocket and cut both his wrists. The blood dripped on the sand, coloring maroon.
”Gee fa ra dit hoon bakh die Kh'-kum, bee hard me dat to dat geen.”
“To show you my loyalty towards the great lord of the mighty, Kh'-Kum, I sacrifice myself, and give you my soul.” With that he held his wrists towards the spirit of Kh'-kum.
“Ah, die forym diskh dak ge had.”
“Ah, you enlighten me with words and your blood.” Saying that, the spirit slowly glided towards him and started sniffing the air around the stranger. The spirit then seemed to recoil.
“EE DIE OORP!!! DIE HASH MEE DIE OORP!!!"
“YOUR VERY SOUL IS IMPURE!!! IMPURE WITH GREED!!!"
The stranger looked a little taken back, and started to panic.
“TUK MUN BIE DIE OORP HASH, KIK BIE HUM.”
“HOW DARE YOU PRESENT ME WITH AN IMPURE SOUL, NOW YOU SHALL PAY.”
With that the spirit quickly faded away and the stranger came out of his trance. He started shaking tremendously, because he knew that the Kh'-kum's words of threat were not to be taken lightly. He hadn’t even gathered his herbs, when all the lights around his started to die. Then the stone door slowly turned to close the stranger in the chamber. He quickly grabbed the artifact and ran towards the door, which was now half closed.
He had almost reached the door, when he was held back by a force. He tried to wriggle, kick and even punch his way forward but his effort was in vain. He stood helpless, looking as the door completely closed.
***
Hafum, a guard outside the monument, on his regular night’s duty was waiting for the sun to rise. The night had been tiring for him and the dawn would end his duty so that he could head home for a nice breakfast and sleep in his bed. He was about to make another round of the monument when he heard the most horrendous scream ever. It was as if someone was being tortured by internal torment. The scream grew louder and louder, surrounding all the air around the guard. He looked scared, dropped his weapon and crouched on the floor and started praying for the Gods for any forgiveness.
Suddenly the scream stopped and the silence seemed even more deafening.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
“School House Rockabilly”
Previously on La By Night :
· Mother Mariah begins to teach Sam the magic he needs to bring her into the real world.
· Sam proves himself to be efficaciously musical on the roof of his apartment building.
· Sam believes himself to be Lenny from Of Mice and Men.
· Lenny believes himself to be a pleasant fellow named Harv Dowd.
· Bob swears that Sam’s is the worst Jimmy Stewart impression he’s ever heard.
Sunday August 28, 2005. 4:39 AM.
Every night was a beautiful night. Every night was fine. And tonight Harv met three of the most pleasant children, elementary age, sitting on the center platform of one of those roundabout intersections he’d heard of but never seen. It was a cement circle at which, instead of stop-and-go, cars were meant to yield-at-entry. He’d found the boys loitering on the dais. Their faces were so long, their eyes so sad and so cute, that Harv simply could not walk on by. Narcosis could wait.
“We’re a rockabilly band,” said Billy, who was stout. “But we’ve got nothing to sing, nothing to rock about.”
“We’re a musical group for hire,” Tim said. “But we’ve got no songs, no instruments, no rhymes or costumes or embellishments.”
Indeed, they were drab, young gents.
“We’re lost,” Pip cried, “we can’t find our mama. Our dreams have all died.”
Wonderful, wonderful. Harv could help these kids.
He would help them.
Now.
Lickety-split.
“Well now, how clever,” he said. “You're a band, but none of you has any instruments to play whatsoever."
“None,” Billy said.
“None,” Tim said.
“One,” said Pip. “I’ve got this harmonica. I stole it from our sister Veronica.”
“That’ll do fine,” Harv said. “Pip, you get us started with a poppy tune, will you? There’s a little something my Mother Mariah taught me that I’m going to show you. It’s a little bit of magic to make all your dreams come true. It’s related to the very same knowledge that I’m going to use… to bring darling Mother back into this world. When the time is right, you’ll see my girl."
“We can’t do magic,” Billy said as Pip began to play. “It’s too much work. We’d rather play.”
“Ah,” Harv said, “but you can, you will. Magic is not something you do. I’ll show you, sit still.”
The cadence was disrupted. He faced the boys. Pip began to play his blessed heart out. And, to his seven-beat tune, Harv said, “Kebah Togah Honey Ma.”
The kids seemed confused, so he figured he’d better explain:
“Yes, ‘Kebah Togah Honey Ma.’ Four simple words that, when sung correctly, can bring such marvelous things into your life.”
“You lie-ie-ie,” sang Billy.
“Not I,” said Harv. “Go ahead, think of your favorite instrument. We’ll give it a try.”
Surprise crossed Billy’s face as, after chanting those words — Kebah Togah Honey Ma — he gradually found his hands playing a "sweet-ass" bass! And Tim tried too, but not as grand. He chanted himself a kazoo, and joined the band. And soon they were playing, all as one, but Harv had to interrupt, hold up the fun....
The music stopped. The streetlamp flickered overhead. “Allow me to explain,” Harv said. “We may meditate upon something called the Tree of Life to bring about these grand changes. We invoke its sephiroht, ten marvelous, spherical emanations of God. You can think of them as shiny ornaments on your Christmas tree. Each sephira in each grouping of three sephiroht governs a part of our wishing process. Can you say ‘sephira’?”
“Seh…fur…ah,” the boys said.
“That’s right, good. As my dear, departed Mother once explained it to me, the Hebrews had something known as Notarikon. That’s a system for taking names and making them acronyms — AK-ro-nim, a word formed by taking only the first letter of other words — thereby compressing words of power into smaller chunks of information.”
“Gosh,” Pip said, “that sure sounds neat, Mr. Dowd.”
“It sure does, Pip. For example, you can take three words such as aleph, mem, and nun (meaning ‘God,’ ‘king,’ and ‘faithful’) and get the acronym...? Anyone?”
“A.M.N.?” Tim said suddenly.
“Correct. ‘Amen.’ We stick the ‘e’ in there to make it pronounceable. And ‘AMeN’ means ‘God is a faithful king.’”
Billy began strumming his bass guitar, backing up Harv’s crash-course in magic with a super-hip tune. It encouraged Harv to speak rhythmically:
“So when we are inspired by something we desire — say a guitar, or a brand new car, or a girl on Poplar — we are drawing fire from the World of Atziloot and its three sephroht: Keter, Binah, and Hochma—”
“Make a wish-ma,” Billy said, grinning and strumming the wires.
“Very good. Can you make an Notarikon acronym out of Keter, Binah, and Hochma, Billy?”
“K...B...H.... K.B.H. 'Kebah'!”
“Kids say the darndest things. Exactly. 'Kebah.'” Harv felt the vibrations in his knees, and he joined the boys on their cement hub as cars intermittently circled them. “And once you’ve wished upon a star for your brand new car, or your guitar, or your girl on Poplar, you must then invoke the World of Breeyah, or the creative world of the conscious mind. See-ya? Ready? Set? Go, because this world also has three sephiroht: Giburah, Hesed, and Tiferet—”
Tim blew on his kazoo and said, “Just wait 'n' see what you get.”
“Right, ‘see what you get.’ Visualize the object of your desire. You must always picture it in your mind, whether it’s getting an ‘A’ on your history test or getting a zebra for Christmas.”
Tim laughed.
“Let’s test this theory,” Harv said. “Let’s all visualize a tavern. Pip, can you visualize a bar on Poplar Avenue?”
“Yes, Mr. Dowd.”
“Can you see it just like it was there already? Had always been there?”
“Yes, Mr. Dowd.”
“Who owns this bar?”
“Uh… Mr. Zeus. That’s a good name.”
“That is a good name, thank you, Pip. So then, Zeus’s bar must sell drinks. What kind of drinks will Zeus sell? Martinis?”
“No,” Tim said with definition. "They sell Sprite. They sell it by the canteen, and it costs twenty dollars, after tip. Mr. Zeus is greedy.”
Harv could see these boys were going to be strong assets to Mariah’s army when he returned her to the world. “See? The more you visualize it, the realer it becomes. And — Kebah Togah Honey Ma! — and there, it’s in existence... more so every second. I'm quite serious. Zeus’ bar is now there on Poplar Avenue. In fact, it always has been. Just ask anybody.”
All three boys said, “Wow, Mr. Dowd.”
“Wow indeed. So from the World of Breeyah we take Tiferet, Giburah, and Hesed — mixed around we get ‘G.H.T.’ — and we add some vowels to get ‘Togah.’”
“Neato.”
“Next, after we visualize our dreams, we must work toward them. For instance, I’m working toward finding a girl, Reanna Kossington. Let’s just say, since we’re redefining reality, that I’m going to find her after we’re done here. We’ll just say that, just for fun. I'll cut down on all that walking I was going to have to do to find her. And to help accomplish this, I will call upon the sephiroht of Hode, Yesode, and Netzak—”
“Do somethin’ about that!” Billy said, happily rhyming.
“I am. Our meeting here in the intersection is part of my magic. When I met you boys, I was tracking her. I was — and am — operating in the World of Yetzirah, the realm of formation, the astral plane. And our three sephiroht, H.Y.N., can be arranged to spell ‘honey.’”
Pip blew on his harmonica. Then he got a puzzled look. He said, “I want Tim to be playing drums, not a kazoo. Kebah Togah Honey Ma.”
“Excellent,” Harv said. “Now Tim will be playing the drums. (Wasn’t he always playing the drums?) Now we’re bringing your dream of his playing the drums into the World of Assiah. We’ll put it into action, just watch as the cymbals appear. Now then, unlike the other three worlds, the fourth world of action has only one sephira — making ten in all — and it is known as Malkhoot.”
“Malkhoot, Malkhoot, put it to use,” the boys sang.
“Yes. The last step we must make to make our dreams come true is to put them to use here on the material plane, Malkhoot, M., Ma, our world, Mother Earth. And look…”
Quite wonderfully surprised, Tim found himself tapping his sticks lightly on a set of drums that had always been there, just like in a dream. But they were not dreamy; they were quite real. He was beating them, making a racket, making them useful. And finally the boys had formed themselves into a real band.
“You can then see,” Harv said, “by meditating on the entirety of the Tree of Life, any one of us can generate wonder and success. Just sing your heart’s desire. Sing it to God. God is the most faithful audience you will ever have, amen."
“Kebah Togah Honey Ma,” Billy sang, playing both lead guitar and bass simultaneously. And with Tim on his drums and Pip huffing his lungs, they got along famously. Righteously. Harv rolled his hat down along his left arm and caught it in his hand, whereupon he replaced it on his perfectly combed hair — and sang!
Kebah Togah Honey Ma
Magic is all that we are
Kebah Togah Honey Ma
It’s time we speak our minds
Billy:
Thank you, Mr. Dowd, it’s great
Lazy words will guide our fate
I won’t work, I’ll only play
And teleport around
Tim:
Kebah Togah Honey Ma
Think I’ve reached my final straw
Kebah Togah Honey Ma
It’s time we killed this freak
Pip:
Yes it’s true, we’re not three boys
We’re three vampires, yo! ahoy!
Mr. Dowd, it’s been a ploy
We want to suck your blood
Billy:
Kebah Togah Honey MO
We’re lost kids, cuz I sing so
Mr. Dowd will never know
We’re really six feet tall
The instruments continued playing…
As the children gave up their baying…
And fangs, they were displaying…
And Mr. Dowd thought, “Fine.”
Mr. Dowd:
Kebah Togah Honey Ma
Wish I had my stake Thump-ah!
Here it is, hooray, hoor-ah!
Now let’s us play some games
Kebah Togah Honey ME
Let’s say I’m done with training
Tash showed me all that I need
To stake you lovely boys
Kebah Togah Honey Ma
Lord, inform our dear ma-ma
Tell her that we loved her lots
Tell her down in Hell
Harv sighed as the small figures surrounding him exploded in human-shaped clouds of dust and dropped to the cement. A Honda Civic honked at him as it rounded the intersection. A bottle flew by. A teenaged boy, his head outside of the car, hollered something at him. The car exited onto a side street. The bottle rolled for a long time before hitting the curb.
Harv held Thumper, his best friend, his stake. The silver inscriptions sang softly, slowly, to him:
Now it’s time
We moved along
Glad you thought
To sing this song
You made right
Out of three wrongs
Now let's go find our friend
Harv smiled pleasantly. That had been exhilarating. He placed Thumper in the pocket of his jacket. The butt of the stake bobbed conspicuously as he continued walking the short distance to Narcosis. Maybe he shouldn’t have prayed for Reah to be quite so locatable, so close. It was such a lovely night for a stroll. Why get it over with?
Fin.
[Synopsis: On the way to the Narcosis, Sam (Mr. Dowd) gets caught up in circular logic and engages in magical, musical combat with three vampires.]
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
August 28, 2005
L.A. PD Office - Evening
Derek Park had come back to the office from home. He looked extremely tired. He slapped his case file to his desk and sat down with a comfortable sigh. Derek saw his partner Kendrick coming his way.
“When was my last case?” Derek said uncomfortably.
“Your last case was yesterday.” Kendrick replied shouting from back of Derek’s office.
“Oh my gosh,” Derek sighed, “It feels like my case was fourteen days ago.”
Kendrick came his way, clearing his throat. “Anyways, here’s a new case. I won’t be available for this one. I have someone else’s case. He’s apparently sick right now.”
Derek replied, “Good luck. Don’t act like you are smart.”
Kendrick left his office. “Good luck to you too.”
Derek put his hands behind his forehead and leant onto his chair comfortably, his eyes closed.
Abandoned L.A. PD Office – Evening
Derek woke up noticing there was no one there. He moved his head right and left to see what was going on. He saw nothing. Suddenly, two mysterious hands popped quickly and choked on Derek’s throat. Derek struggled to breathe. He was about to pass out. He barely put his right hand pointing at an unknown body and shot a fireball.
Derek woke up.
L.A. PD Office – Evening
“Whoa!” Derek suddenly woke from a dream. He stood up numbly, and grabbed his jacket from back of his chair. He left his office.
Alley – Evening, Night
The sun was about to set. He was passing by an alley. “So, this case doesn’t seem to be impossible,” he thought, looking around the alley. “Hmm, don’t I know this place?” He stopped, thinking there should be something. He searched around the place. He saw a zombie, who was in the age of thirty, coming toward his way.
“Whoa! Whoa!” Derek backed off. “Are you trying to scare me here? Wearing some kind of scary costume?” Derek said nervously.
The zombie ignored him, and kept coming toward him. “Whatever you are, I am gonna shoot you with my,” he stared at his hand, “Uh, fireball.” Derek put his right hand forward thinking that something would come out.
Nothing happened.
Suddenly, the zombie laughed. It scared the hell out of Derek. “Don’t you want to know who the killer is?” the zombie spoke. “I know you do, I know that you want to end this quick, so you can get a nap the whole night.” Derek looked at him suspiciously. “I’ve been watching you. You couldn’t even see the dead back then. I’ve showed up here to help you.”
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Tarix had been seated and Thule had gone to make some tea. She looked around the tastefully decorated study. She felt a little awkward coming here, and not doing the job at the greasy fast food store she worked at. Come to think of it, the change seemed better for her.
Thule had been observing Tarix ever since she had come in. She looked nervous and slightly panicky. Just a few days ago he had had a little talk with Alaric, that he couldn’t put out of his mind.
“So you have finally located the girl,” Alaric said. Thule looked at him. Alaric had been his mentor and he was the one who had taken him under his wing, he had been his patron. Alaric trusted Thule as Thule did Alaric, but what had happened just a few years ago had disappointed Thule.
“Yes, Alaric I have,” Thule stiffly said.
Alaric looked at him. “Oh, come on Andrew. What happened, happened. You can’t blame yourself for it.”
“You know I always will.”
“And taking this girl in will help you repent?” Alaric asked.
“No, it won’t, but it will help to reduce my guilt. Anyway, this girl may even help us with our few ‘problems’.”
“Hmmm, maybe, maybe. Time will tell.” With that Alaric left.
Now, Thule wondered how much he should tell the girl; how much could she handle? He decided he’d tell her a little about her demon self, to begin with.
Thule walked in the study to find Tarix looking at a statue of a horse on one of the shelves. He put the tray carrying the tea and biscuits down, and walked towards her.
“That is a wooden horse, an antique, carved by the Red Indians some time ago,” he said.
“Well, it’s beautiful,” she replied, her eyes fixed on the statue.
“Yes, that it is. Won’t you sit down so we can talk?”
She turned and followed Thule to the table and sat back down in her chair, while Thule poured some tea into the saucer.
“Umm, you called me over here to tell me something?”
“Yes,” Thule said, handing her a cup. “How many spoons of sugar?”
“None, thank you.”
He himself took a cup and sat down across from her. “Now, where do I start? Ah, yes, I have already told you that you are a Koolang demon, right?”
“Yes, you did. I got really curious and went and looked it up.”
*Maybe I should tell her all that I have found out about the Koolangs.* “I don’t think you found much.” When she nodded a ‘no’, he continued.
“Tarix, a pretty long time ago there was a race of demons. During this time demons didn’t live among humans as most of them do now. At that time they mostly lived in their own clans. There was a clan of demons called the ‘Kumacs’.”
“The ‘Kumacs’,” Tarix repeated. *What does that have to do with the Koolangs?*
“Now the Kumacs were a peaceful civilization of demons and knew nothing about magic. However they were still a little different. Their appearance was that they had maroon-ish scaly skin, with large eyes and small mouths. Each of the Kumacs had a special power. There were five powers overall among them all and an individual Kumac had all five of them.”
“Isn’t that like the Koolangs, only they had five powers but individually.”
Thule looked at her understandingly. “Yes, that’s correct. But that was not all. The Kumacs were, what people would now call them, the nation of ‘skitzos’. In one body there were two souls.”
Tarix looked puzzled. “Two souls in one body? How?”
“Well, that nobody knows. That’s how they were born, I guess. That’s how they were more special. And they lived like that, two souls in one body for centuries on end. Until one day a stranger appeared. The Kumac didn’t know who he was or what he was. By the sources I have consulted, I believe he was human, a wizard of some sort. He started to talk to the Kumacs about themselves, about how good it would be for them if they could be in separate bodies. About how they could never be free remaining in one body. Slowly and steadily the Kumacs weren’t so peaceful anymore.
"They were having a sort of internal fight. A fight within themselves, between their souls. Before somehow both the souls would control one body together. But now both souls would fight one another to entirely control the body. The result was chaos. The body started to suffer and disease spread among them.
"This stranger then presented them with a new idea. He told them that he could separate the souls, give each of them different bodies, one soul in one body. They all seemed to be happy and agreed for the stranger to perform this ‘miracle’ for them.”
Tarix intently listened to all this.
“The ‘stranger’ took a piece of artifact, and performed the spell with its help, so they say. The ritual was that of the separation. Seth, an Egyptian God of separation, was called to break the whole nation of Kumacs apart and bless them each a separate body. The ritual was a success and now the numbers of the race doubled. Straight after the ceremony the stranger disappeared and was never seen again.”
Tarix stared at Thule. “But who was this stranger, and what was this ‘artifact’, and what happened to the race of the Kumacs?”
Thule smiled. “Let’s answer the questions one at a time. The stranger was... well, nobody knew who he was. All people knew was that he was some sort of wizard who worshipped another Egyptian God called Kh-kum. Kh-kum was actually not a God but a demon. It was so feared among the Egyptians that even after its death they made it a monument, the very first pyramid.
"The story goes that this wizard didn’t only separate the Kumacs but also took for them a source of energy, power, and had it embedded in this artifact. This artifact was called the ‘Codex’ and was made for the God Kh-kum. The wizard probably stole the Codex and used it in the ceremony to grant the object ‘power’.
"After the ceremony the Codex had a lot of power. What this wizard wanted was to have this power all for himself. He went back to the pyramid of Kh-kum and asked the spirit of the demon release the power from the Codex into him. Kh-kum was a demon to hate greed, and when he felt that all this wizard had was greed, he took the very soul of the wizard. It is said that the soul of the wizard is in the demon dimension suffering torment.”
“But what about the Codex?” Tarix asked again.
“The Codex was lost in the tomb of Kh-kum. But after an excavation the artifact was found. I myself had been searching for it for some time. A good friend of mine had it, passed to him by his father, and he gave it to me. I then gave it to your father. What he did with it I don’t know.”
It then suddenly occurred to Tarix what this artifact might be. She reached in her shirt and took out the metallic disc that she had found with her and that she hung around her neck.
“Thule, is this it?” she asked, taking it off her neck and handing it to Thule. Thule took it and put on his glasses to examine it.
“Yes, it indeed is. Where did you find it?”
“It was in my pocket after I lost my memory two years ago.”
“Hmmm, perhaps Alfred gave it to you, before he…” Thule trailed off. “Why don’t you hang on to this for the time being?” With this he gave the Codex back to Tarix, who put it back around her neck.
“Thule, tell me about the feud between the Macabres and the Koolangs?” Tarix asked, her curiosity rising.
Thule looked at the watch. “It seems quite late, Tarix. We have talked a long time. How about you come next week and I’ll give you the keys to your new home and brief you about your job.”
She seemed reluctant to leave, but got up. “Ok, well, then next week.”
Thule also got up to show Tarix to the door. “Yes, I do hope you will be punctual this time.”
Tarix smiled as she walked out the door. “Don’t worry, I will be.” And with that she left.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Saturday 27th August 2005 – 9pm
Victor surveyed the mess in his office. Packing material and open crates littered the now cramped space. He sat at his desk and looked at the ancient scrolls. They had survived the transit and were just as enigmatic as they had been when he first stole them 1200... no, 1600 years ago. He could not remember why he had stolen them. At the time he thought it was because the cult had ticked him off. Like rival scams working in the same neighborhood.
He set the delicate papyrus down and inspected the urns and wooden carvings that had accompanied the scrolls from Egypt. Each of them priceless, each of them stolen. Victor was sure that 1200 years would be enough for any statutes to have expired on that crime.
His mind began to wander. He needed this time away from Tash, even if it was only a few hours. They had been inseparable for days and had still not taken much time to get used to being individuals again. He wondered what she was doing...
Tash surveyed the mess in her apartment. She had a vague memory in those first few minutes as Vicasha of noticing the clothing strewn everywhere, but she/they had been occupied with other concerns at the time. She mechanically folded and stacked and hung, getting used to being back in her own skin. This afternoon, when they'd left Galen's apartment, she and Victor had wandered the streets of LA for some time just reacquainting themselves with themselves. And those photos... Tash shuddered. She'd only glanced at one or two. Victor had said she might want to look at more later on, but she wasn't sure if she could take it.
Once the bedroom was back in order, Tash moved out to the lounge. The Stone of Ghortab sat propped against the wall where Victor had left it all those lifetimes ago. Or so it seemed. She didn't fancy disturbing Victor to get him to move it. And the damn thing had been there for so long now, another night wouldn't kill her. She sat cross-legged in front of it and leant her chin on her clasped hands. The markings on it were unreadable to her, but Victor had told her what they said.
'Only one thing can free the impure soul from its torture.'
*Is your torture over now, my love?* A heavy sigh escaped Tash's lips. Somehow she doubted it.
It was hard to see inside the flat now and Tash frowned. Where had the hours gone since she and Victor returned? And it was high time she pulled herself together and faced Jade and Sorrow. Hopefully they might know where Kate had gone after Galen dropped her off here yesterday. Picking herself off the floor in the gathering darkness, Tash mentally steeled herself and crossed the hallway, casting only one glance down to Victor's office door. It was still shut, a line of light glowing under the door. Ignoring it, Tash knocked firmly on Jade's door.
Kate was startled awake by the knock at the door. Somehow she had finally managed to force herself to get dressed and clean herself up a bit. Glancing at the clock on the VCR as she headed towards the door she idly wondered where Jade was. She'd left over five hours ago and it was just after nine o'clock now. Surely, if she were still at XY it would be time for her to head back now? Sighing heavily to herself Kate turned the lock and opened the door.
Relief washed over Tash as she saw Kate's face at the door. Part of her mind had been throwing up outlandish scenarios based on Galen's fears for Kate's safety. It was good to see her unharmed, un-kidnapped, un-tortured... Her smile of relief turned to one of worry, though. *And careless.*
"Hi, Kate," Tash greeted the sleepy-eyed woman. "I hope you knew it was me out here before you unlocked that door." She let her eyes crinkle to take some of the sting out of the admonition.
Kate paused for a moment taking in Tash's slight reprimand then stood to one side to allow Tash to enter the apartment. She always knew Tash to be one of her more paranoid friends, ever more conscious about safety than anyone else she knew; hell, she probably slept with her stake under the pillow. Still, there was something in Tash's voice which seemed to be more directed at being concerned about Kate's own safety. She felt a cold shiver run through her body as she re-locked the door and joined Tash in the living room.
"It's... really good to see you again Tash," sighed Kate tiredly, flopping down in the armchair.
Tash stood, looking down at Kate splayed in the chair, arms akimbo. "It's good to see you, too, Kate. I... oh, God, it's a long story. Uh, I don't know if Jade's said anything. Hell, I don't know if Jade believed the note we left." Tash paused and watched Kate's face. "We're in trouble again. There's something big out there somewhere. We told Galen about it. Oh, Kate. I'm so sorry. You and Galen..."
There was too much whirling in Tash's brain and it was all coming out her mouth, unedited. She knelt by Kate's chair and held her limp hand loosely in her own gloved one. "Is there anything I can do?"
Kate frowned in confusion at Tash's seemingly in-depth knowledge of her relationship with Galen. She sat upright, staring at Tash as she knelt by her side. "Do you.... do you know about Galen? I mean do you know why we broke up?"
Kate sighed again, rising to her feet and pacing slightly. "No, no, don't answer, there are more... there are more important... things..." Kate cleared her throat uncomfortably and then sat down again.
"Jade showed me the note that you left her. She didn't find it until yesterday when I... She showed it to me, it said something about doubles, or copies?"
Tash closed her eyes. Kate was much more adept at shielding herself than Galen was. But the pain was almost palpable. "No, I'll answer your first question first," she said.
"The other night I ran into Galen. He was dropped off by a black, unmarked helicopter. You know he's totally unshielded from telepaths, and has a tendency to broadcast. I got an inkling then of what it was he was involved in. That's why Victor and I went to see him about the doubles. He's a wreck, Kate. I don't know exactly why you broke up, but I'm guessing it's to do with his work. He was so worried you were in danger."
"Tash I'm so afraid, and, and I'm never afraid. I-I can fight the unknown forces of darkness and not even skip a heartbeat. But this..." She looked away for a moment and quickly wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand. "Galen said he'd done some terrible things for this organisation that he works for. I-I'm afraid of what he's involved in and I'm angry that he kept it from me for so long! I can't help wondering if I hadn't found out he might never have told me!"
Kate was silent for a long time, immersed in her own thoughts. “If you know so much, you could be in danger too.”
Tash shrugged, "More than likely. But Galen didn't seem nearly so concerned over our safety as yours." She stood and moved to the couch, but instead of sitting she hitched one hip on the arm. "And yes," she said softly, "I'm sure he has done some terrible things." She regarded Kate frankly, "And if he stays with them, I'm sure he'll do more of them. What you have to ask yourself is, does that affect how you feel about him?"
“Oh, I don’t know, I don’t know!” said Kate desperately, holding her head in her hands. “I love him, Tash. I can’t help that. I love him so much it hurts! And it’s killing me to think that, to know that he’s in pain. It’s the lies, more than anything. How am I supposed to trust him again after all this Tash? I just don’t know what to do!”
Kate covered her eyes again and when she looked up it was obvious she was trying hard not to cry. “I-I can’t even go home because we… we found out the agency had bugged the place. I mean they were listening to everything, everything that we ever said or did!” Kate sighed and wiped her eyes again.
“Everything is such a mess! Jade has been great but, but I can’t stay here, not with… I don’t know what to do any more.”
Tash stroked Kate's hair, letting the silence between them stretch on as Kate stifled her tears, refusing to let any more flow. "I know about the bugs. And I know how awkward it must be for you, staying here with Jade and Sorrow." Tash sighed. She had her own issues there to deal with. *Worry about that later, woman,* she admonished herself.
”Kate, there's so much going on here that I have to tell you about. But I wanted you to know that I'm here if you need me. I remember how I felt when I thought Victor had gone..." Tash swallowed. "But you were right. There are more important things happening around us right now."
She began to relate the story of everything that had happened since she'd first seen her doppelganger in the hallway. She glossed over some of Galen's reactions, mentioning only that he'd agreed to use what resources he could muster to help with tracking down the doubles. While she spoke, she stayed close by Kate's side offering what comfort she could.
"It never stops, does it? I suppose I should be used to it by now," said Kate as Tash drew to a close. "Do we know what the purpose of these 'doppelgangers' is?" she asked, trying to take her mind off Galen.
Tash shrugged, "Well, all we could feel when we were connected to the doubles was that they were feeding their experiences off to some other 'thing'. When we got Vrithetek out of the second one, we could feel the link being deliberately severed by whatever was on the other end. All we could tell of its purpose was that it wanted to replace all life on this world."
Tash's voice took on a dreamy quality as she cast her mind back to her memories of being Vicasha. "We had a sense of formlessness. Of existence without substance. It's powerful, Kate. I think only a small part of its awareness is here - but it's enough."
Kate shuddered at Tash's words. There seemed to be no other way to end what was happening apart from hunting down and killing all the clones - and from the sounds of it that could take a long time.
Tash stood and held out a hand to Kate. "It's a lot to take in all at once. And you've got other worries on your mind." Kate took Tash's hand and rose gracefully to her feet. Tash continued, "Victor and I have spent a few hours apart - getting used to being ourselves again. He's in his office with a bunch of deliveries. He spotted them when we got in, and said you might like to look over some of the stuff." Tash shrugged. "Old texts and artefacts. Dusty and boring, probably, but it might help keep your mind from going around in circles."
“You could be right,” agreed Kate as Tash led her out of the apartment and down the hall. “I must admit I’ve felt kind of idle since getting back to L.A. without any work to do. Right now dusty and boring sounds pretty good.”
Tash grinned, "Yeah, I'd have to agree with you, but for different reasons." She knocked gently on the office door. "It's me," she called softly, "I've got Kate."
The door opened and Tash smiled shyly at her lover. She wasn't sure why she suddenly felt bashful around him. Maybe because they'd been so much more intimate than couples ever were. She pecked him lightly on the cheek and ushered Kate in before withdrawing to the hallway.
Victor savored the light kiss for a moment before giving Tash a warm squeeze and letting her retreat into the hallway before focusing on his visitor. He smiled at Kate, "How are you doing?" he asked with a note of concern in his voice.
"I've been better," replied Kate, offering Victor a weak smile of reassurance before sitting down. She hesitated for a while, not wanting to get bogged down in her personal problems again; besides she was sure Tash would fill Victor in on everything they had talked about once they were alone. "Tash said you had something of the dusty and boring to show me?”
Victor chuckled, "She would say that. But if you need someone to talk to, Tash and I know the same things about Galen and it would be safe."
He looked at her with a stern and serious expression, "And he asked us to protect you. That is something I want you to be aware of. He loves you Kate. I intend to keep my promise to him in that regard."
He sat down in his office chair, his demeanor becoming more relaxed and scholarly, "Come here and I will show you what I have."
He spread out a series of scrolls. Some of them were cracked and they were all very ancient. The symbols on them were unrecognisable, almost alien. There was one symbol on them however, larger than the others: a pentagram with a runic circle around it.
“Wow, these are amazing…” said Kate appreciatively while carefully examining the scrolls as they were spread out. “They must be over a thousand years old at least. Where on Earth did you get them?”
Victor looked somewhat sheepish, "I stole them from a cult nearly 1600 years ago. I hid them in Turkey for about 400 years them moved them to Egypt with some other artefacts I had... um... liberated. I needed to get some cash so I am digging up some of my caches of treasures gathered over the millennia."
He pointed to the symbol on the page. "I think I might have seen this somewhere but I can't seem to figure out where I've seen it. It may be something Tash or Vicasha saw and I have only the shadow of a memory about it."
"There are a lot of mystic runes here. I can't quite make them out. It looks like some kind of ritualistic pattern..." Kate squinted at the ancient symbols and then sighed, "I can't be certain without research. You're selling these?" she asked, sounding slightly reluctant.
Victor looked shocked, "These? Oh no. Assuming that cult is long gone, these scrolls still have a lot of power in them. But I don't know magic and this is no language I've ever seen. I figured you could research them and tell me whether to just destroy them or to trade them to someone like the Watchers or Sindell."
He waved his arm over to the wooden, gilded and pottery pieces around the office. "This is what I am selling. These," he pointed to the scrolls, "couldn't be left behind."
Kate’s eyes returned to the scrolls. Tash was right, this was just the sort of thing she needed right now, something to focus her mind upon. Something to stop her going over everything that had happened in the last 48 hours.
“Well of course I’d love to get a closer look at some of these. And I think you’re right about the amount of power they contain. Plus it’s always a good idea to know what you’re in possession of before entering a negotiation.” She smiled slightly and nodded, “Sindell would sure love to get their hands on something like this.”
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
***Sunday 28th August, 2005…2:19am***
The engine purred as Reah sat like a stone on the bike's seat with her eyes pinned on the slummy warehouse a little way further down on the opposite side of the road.
Narcosis.
The growl that rolled in her throat nearly matched that of her bike.
There was a guard posted outside the only entrance she could see. Most likely some demon. She’d figured as much after considering all her encounters that related to Paul either directly or indirectly.
Reah came to the decision to hide her bike once again. She wasn’t going to have much of a chance of just slipping in quietly and easily with its burden of a presence.
Her engine cut out as she swung her leg back to get off. She stayed in the shadows as she checked all her weaponry, unsheathing her katana to inspect it and running a finger down its edge effortlessly, slicing a shallow cut and drawing blood.
She sucked on her finger and applied pressure with her tongue to stop the bleeding. Any vampires in the building would find it easier to pick up on her presence if she had an open, bleeding cut to attract them.
She re-sheathed Sharier.
Reah stood back on the edge of the shadows to eye the building again. Light cast from a lone street light created odd angled shapes across her face making her appear more threatening.
About a minute later she heard the faint sounds of a car engine approaching from back down the road and Reah sank back into the darkness to wait for it to pass. Instead she heard the engine lift and cut out entirely. *Who parks in this area?* She figured whoever it was would have parked directly outside a particular building they wanted to enter; no smart person would park further than required around here.
Reah counted to ten.
Her heart pounded, her head throbbed with fury and rage boiling over the edge feeding the fire that burned inside her. Consequences weren’t a part of her plans. If Paul did end up getting killed by her hand, or any other human who got in her path, she didn’t think it would occur to her to worry. Paul killed people. People should kill Paul. Paul shot Reah in the arm and ordered her assasination! Reah should shoot his arm and assasinate him.
She finished counting and stepped forward out of the shadows and headed balefully towards Narcosis.
With her focus set so fixedly she didn’t hear the two girls approaching.
Something niggled at the back of her mind telling her she didn’t want to go inside, but she shook it off and continued on.
***
Meh all but leapt out of the car before Sea-Doc even had a chance to put it in park. *The girl's going to get herself killed!* "Fucken hurry up Elis!" She was practically bouncing from foot to foot as she watched her friend calmly pull herself out of the car.
Sea-Doc didn’t say anything or even pay Meh any mind whatsoever. Instead she kept a continuous steady gaze on the girl, not even pausing for a moment to blink.
She calmly walked in the direction of the girl, Meh at her side. "Fuck me, you are the most irritating person in the world, I swear." Meh tried to encourage Sea-Doc to walk faster; there was no way they were going to catch the girl when you compared their varied rates of speed.
***
*I want to go home,* Reah thought, exhausted, then suddenly frowned and shook her head. *No I bloody don’t! Why the hell did I even think that?* She stormed on, even more determined than before.
***
Meh had had it with Sea-Doc and gave up on trying to get her moving. The stupid woman seemed to be slowing down more than speeding up!
*Stuff her. If we’re going to have any chance of stopping this girl it’s going to be by me!* She spirited away from Sea-Doc and was suddenly walking backwards in front of Reah quicker than you could blink.
"Hey. Hello? Excuse me?" The girl pressed on without even paying Meh any heed. This never impressed Meh. She thrust her hand forward. "STOP!"
That got her.
"You're in my way," the girl said monotonously.
"Good observation. Now…"
"Move."
Meh stared at the girl who had just interrupted her. *Nice try Miss Priss!* Not that she was at all prissy, Meh just figured it rhymed with Miss better than ‘suicidal maniac.’ "Don’t think so. Sorry."
She heard the girl heave a breath from her nose as she glared eye to eye with Meh. The girl then cocked her head. "You asked for blood at Bob’s. You’d have to be a vampire."
"Firstly, I would never drink fro…Shit!" Meh dived to the side as the girl's katana suddenly whipped out from her coat and slashed at Meh, catching her by a hair's breadth across the back of her thigh.
Meh pulled herself up defiantly, lightly touching the shallow gash on the back of her leg to view the blood that came away on her fingers. It wouldn’t bleed any more than that now.
Meh glared at the girl. "You're lucky Sea-Doc confiscated my sword, or you’d be sliced spam on the ground quicker than a flick!"
The girl transferred weight onto her foot closer to Meh, about to take a step, then hesitated… shook her head and turned on her heel to head back to Narcosis.
Then halted mid-stride.
She was shaking her head to the side as though she was having an argument with herself.
Meh watched curiously. *Skitz?* she thought. *Possessed?* She knew a thing or two about that, and the girl did have a katana. *Bob? Perhaps the spirit exists right now even and had taken over the girl through her sword as well.*
Sea-Doc suddenly appeared at Meh’s side, surprising her while she was in deep train of thought.
Meh groaned, "Gees, take your fucken time next time. You're lucky I stopped her!" She then noticed the perspiration on Sea-Doc’s forehead and her shallow breaths. *She didn’t run, did she?* Meh glanced behind her. *If so she the sissiest runner I’ve ever seen!*
She still didn’t show any interest in Meh, frustrating her further. No one seemed to be paying any attention to her.
Meh started waving her hand to the side of Sea-Doc’s face. "Hello?"
Still no response. Just the same concentrated gaze locked onto the girl.
Meh frowned. Between the two of them they’d paid less attention to her than an attention deficient sloth!
She thrust her fists on her hips. *They may as well be in their own fucken world!* Meh shook her head and turned to look back at the side of Sea-Doc’s head. Her eyes bulged and she tore them away almost immediately from the blood that was slowly pooling in Sea-Doc’s slightly revealed ears.
"O.K!" She kept her open eyes on the girl.
Meh had caught on to what her friend was doing. She couldn’t do anything to stop Sea-Doc bleeding, only Sea-Doc herself could do that in this case…and even once she’d stopped, it wasn’t a good idea for Meh to clean up anything that involved blood.
Meh didn’t know how long all three of them stood there. She had been keeping an eye out up and down the street in intervals that Sea-Doc and the girl didn’t share. She listened now to Sea-Doc’s breath that had started to come in scarce moments that were even more shallow than before. The girl's face was set in grim determination, now more of a strained determination that was being broken by infrequent singular sobs that gasped for air she bit back on savagely.
It was probably only ten minutes, but it seemed like two hours. If Meh needed to breathe she had a bet that she’d be suffocating with all the tension that hung in the air! But the final release when the girl's legs seemed to collapse in on themselves and she hit hard on the ground was one of the most blissful moments in Meh’s entire existence beside death.
She caught Sea-Doc as she slowly fell backwards.
"Slap patch?"
"Fuck… no!" Elis said amongst shallow breaths.
Meh averted her eyes from the red tears before they fell and had avoided looking at her ears altogether. It was bad enough just knowing. She could hear the blood pumping in Sea-Doc’s body and that was disturbing enough. She could feel Sea-Doc’s shared unease.
Instead Meh kept her eyes planted on the still form of the girl. She knew she was alive, but anyone else would think Sea-Doc had killed her.
Slowly Sea-Doc pulled herself out of Meh’s cradling arms and walked steadily over to the girl. Meh straightened and followed in behind; obviously she’d managed to recover herself some… *But not fully,* she thought by the slight edge to her walk. *At least she’s not bleeding now. And I’m not going to look harder to find out if she is.*
Together they helped the girl up and led her back. Meh went with the girl to her bike back in the alley while Sea-Doc headed back to the car.
"Can I use your keys?" Meh held out her hand.
The girl sighed and complied, pulling the keys out of her pocket and dropping them in Meh’s hand. The only reason they landed in her hand though was because she had quickly darted further around to catch them.
The girl held loosely onto Meh’s back as they sat in her bike. Meh drooled over the classic vehicle before working out its configurations and started it up, sucking it dry of petrol before letting loose and ripping out into the street.
"So what’s your name?" she yelled over her shoulder.
The girl sighed into her back. "Reah."
Meh frowned. Sea-Doc really had it going tonight.
She hoped she’d be able to get Reah’s address out of her.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Apartment #106, 1318 Poplar Avenue
Sunday, 28th August, 2005
10:00am
Kate set down a cup of coffee on the table and resumed her study. She had been awake for the past two hours and had been completely absorbed in deciphering the scrolls ever since Victor had entrusted her with them last night. She was feeling much better after a proper night's sleep and despite throwing up several times that morning already she was full of enthusiasm for her new task.
As Kate sipped her coffee her eyes wandered around the unfamiliar surroundings of apartment #106. Victor had insisted that she stay at Poplar Avenue until she was able to return home, rather than finding a motel. Apartment #106 had been vacant ever since the refurbishment so it made sense (to Victor at least) that she move in there. Kate had to admit that she had been reluctant at first, not least because she felt that she was taking advantage of her friends. But like Victor said, “What are friends for?” and, “You have helped us when we needed it. It’s about time we repaid the favour.”
And apartment #106 was very comfortable, one of the few apartments that had actually been decorated and furnished after the refit. Kate couldn’t have asked for a nicer place to stay and of course, here she was, back in the centre of things. Poplar Avenue…
Kate returned her gaze to the scrolls as they were spread out upon the table. There were quite a few to get through, not to mention that at least half of them were in a state of rapid deterioration. Which wasn’t surprising considering how incredibly old they were. She still wasn’t sure what language they were written in - it looked like a cross between Ancient Greek and Hebrew. She wouldn’t be able to be certain of anything until she had checked the database.
She quickly sketched two runes down on a note pad. She was familiar with these. One signalled an awakening, while the next was the symbol for rebirth. Kate frowned in confusion. There were several markings that she was familiar with but the most part was an absolute mystery. Together they seemed to tell a sort of story, or give an instruction. Each scroll had a tiny marking in the top right-hand corner, like they were numbered in sequence.
Kate sighed and dropped her pencil on the pad. If she wanted to make any sort of progress she would need to get out of the apartment and go to the library.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
“Revelations”
Previously on LA By Night:
· Anthony Constillias reveals the existence of Project Lazarus to Galen
· Galen recovers a set of documents, tying Dr. Sara Anderson to the Project
· Kate has to bail Galen out of jail
· Kate and Galen break up after stealing files on Lazarus from a free clinic
Galen’s Apartment
Sunday, 28 August 2005
7:30pm
Galen slept until well past noon that day, having been exhausted from the combination of depression and drink. Sometime during the sleep he must have woken up and found enough energy to move to the bedroom and collapse there. Unfortunately, this energy did not include enough to remember moving to the bedroom.
He was immediately put in mind of the emptiness of the bed again, missing the feel of waking up next to Kate. Those thoughts had to be banished from his mind, however. There was still stuff to do.
The first thing was too unavoidable. The counter-measures had run out of power; so Galen spent an hour examining his apartment, debugging it. Light bulbs were smashed, smoke detectors opened, even the TV examined. In the end, a pile of electronic equipment was placed inside a box which was then put on the fire escape. So much for their ability to listen to him… until next time. Even then, there was no way to be sure he'd got them all.
Still, it would help for what he had to do.
Galen never got hungry that day, instead taking a few aspirin to deal with the latest hangover, and eventually settled on Pepsi to keep him awake. He got the first package from where he left it before, and then reached under the couch for the second – the one he went back to Kate’s house to recover, with the documents lifted from the free clinic and the formula currently sitting in his fridge.
As he began to flip through several documents, it quickly became apparent there was much more going on than suspected. By the end of the evening, his eyes went wide. The documents were enough. Enough to expose Colonel Laura Wilson of Majestic Command as continuing to protect the black project.
He considered calling Anthony. There was the evidence they needed to make a move. Only something stopped him – a line, an implication. They had supporters in LA. Galen hadn’t survived this long by not being paranoid.
If only he could find someone he could trust, they would be able to move.
[Editor’s Synopsis: Galen spends the searching through Lazarus files lifted from the break-in, uncovering the depth of the conspiracy]
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
1318 Poplar Avenue, Alhambra, Los Angeles
Sunday, August 28th 2005
4:15pm
Kate clutched a pile of books firmly against her chest. It felt strange, being back in ‘research mode’. She hadn’t stepped foot inside a library since she had been studying back at Sindell. The musty smell of books, of aged parchment and cracked leather, had felt welcoming and soothing.
Now Kate was returning home - well, to Poplar Avenue in any case, stack of books at hand. She was still amazed at the vast stock of occult texts available at the East LA Public Library, probably unused for decades judging by the state they were in, but they were comprehensive nonetheless.
She pushed open the outer door and was struggling to fish her key out of her trouser pocket while still balancing the stack of books when she was jolted from the side. That was enough to cause Kate to lose her balance and for the books to come crashing to the floor.
“OH! I’m so sorry, I wasn’t paying attention, I didn’t see…” apologised Henna, stooping to help Kate collect the books.
Kate smiled in acceptance as the young brunette handed her a book. Henna straightened up and frowned as she read the title. “’Ragnarok: The Age of Fire’?”
Kate blushed, taking the book from the woman. “Research,” she said by way of an explanation, “Thanks”. She was about to unlock the door to her apartment when the woman cleared her throat.
“I don’t want to sound rude but, I haven’t seen you before. I work for Mr Tek you see? I know everyone who lives here and I don’t know you.”
“I’m a friend of Victor and Natasha’s,” replied Kate as the woman eyed her with suspicion. “I needed a place to stay for a short while, they offered, end of. My name is Catherine Wiccham by the way, and you are?”
“Henna, Henna Moore.”
The two women stood in silence for what seemed to be ten minutes before Kate finally broke the silence. “Why should I want to go down there?” she asked, frowning in confusion.
“What? What are you talking about?” replied Henna, sounding equally if not more confused.
Kate frowned again and looked around as though she had just imagined something. “You just said you wanted to show me something in the basement…"
“I don’t think so,” said Henna sharply, “Maybe you should get your ears tested, I never said a word!” With that Henna scowled and walked into the front office, muttering something under her breath.
Kate watched her leave, still frowning in bewilderment. She had clearly heard the woman asking her to follow her towards the basement, so why did she deny it just then? Kate turned her head to look towards the door that led down to the building’s basement and frowned again. She momentarily contemplated going down there, just to see whatever it was Ms. Moore had been so insistent that she see.
She took two hesitant steps towards the basement door and then stopped. The shrill sound of a telephone ringing brought her back down to earth. Kate hastily unlocked her apartment door and dropped her books on the kitchen counter. She picked up the telephone…
*Damn telemarketers!* she thought as she sharply replaced the handset on the receiver. She returned to the stack of books and then suddenly stopped. She was sure there was something she was about to do, before the telephone rang, but for the life of her she couldn’t remember what it was.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
South Hollywood Sunday Aug 28th 2005 7:25pm
A black car pulled up alongside the featureless black van. The van rocked with the violent motions of its occupant. Two men stood outside the van in black suits and white shirts. An identically dressed man stepped out of the sedan and approached them. “Manticore here. You have a problem?”
The other two men looked a little embarrassed. The older of the two started to talk, "Well sometimes it is necessary to make things happen in ways you don't expect..." Manticore wasn't interested in a bedtime story and said so.
Finally they confessed, "Magnets."
The answer elicited a raised eyebrow. They showed him a massive electromagnet in the front seat pointed at the rear of the van. It hummed softly with power coursing through it. The face of a vampire was pressed uncomfortably against the Plexiglas divider between the front and back of the van. That didn’t stop the captive from rocking the van from side to side.
A steel plate in the vampire’s chest was pressed against the plexi as well and Manticore pointed to it, “He has a chest plate?”
The other two agents nodded and showed broken crossbow bolts and a blunted stake, “Very resourceful,” he said.
Holy water? Useless, they said. Staking from behind? Unable to get close enough.
Manticore pulled out a small notepad and scribbled an address, “This is a disposal facility. Drive the van there and give them this. Then forget about that place and your careers might be more secure.”
He walked slowly back to his black sedan. *Griffin can’t see the larger picture here. These ‘doppelgangers’ could be a powerful weapon. Just a little test or two should tell us more.*
He pulled away from the van as the other agents were firing up the black van. *Yes, it should be interesting to find out more about these creatures and how they were created.*
Valerian in Hongkong
Sunday, 28th August 2005 - 10.30pm, Hongkong
Row upon row of marble slabs stood glistening in the silvery light, shadowed here and there by trees with branches twisting in gnarls towards the moon. The air was warm and damp, with a faint odour clinging to it; faint, stale and sweet... a smell of death...
Hongkong's St Michael Cemetery
Valerian stood alone amongst those rows; stood alone before a simple, white tombstone. Surrounded by a multitude of cherub statues and ornate shrines, it looked almost absurdly out of place. The only thing setting it apart from the others was the huge wreath of red roses lying atop it.
Valerian’s eyes, black chips of coal, were focused intently on the stone’s small, faded photograph. He could have been a statue himself, the way he was standing so absolutely still. *Rose...*
******************
(In the distance...)
Samantha sighed inwardly when she saw the solitary figure standing in the cemetery. *Not again! He’s been here almost every single night for the last six months!*
Knowing how annoyed Valerian got when these little 'sessions' of his were interrupted, Sam leaned back against the body of the car she'd 'obtained' - a luxurious Mercedes convertible - and studied her sire from where she was.
*He barely even feeds any more!* She shook her head in bewilderment, hardly able to comprehend why any vampire - even one that has been around as long as Valerian - would bypass a chance to experience the heady gush of power and fulfillment that came with the drinking of blood. A smug glance and an indulgent pat on the Merc's boot gave away how she'd come across her latest set of wheels and where its previous owner was.
Samantha turned her attention back to Valerian and gave a little start when she realised that he was no longer standing at Rose's grave. The prickling sensation on the base of her neck had her whirling around to glare at her sire as he stepped out from the shadows.
"I wish you would stop sneaking up on me like that!"
The vampire raised an eyebrow and smirked. "My dear girl. Had you not let yourself get distracted by wallowing in your evening's little adventures, you would have noticed my arrival."
"Yeah... Well... Whatever." Unable to think of any other retort to Valerian's reprimand, Samantha reached through the driver's window, flicked a switch and opened the boot.
"I brought you a little snack... Thought you might be hungry?" She grinned impishly, seemingly oblivious to the muffled whimpers and whines coming from the middle-aged woman gagged and bound in the compartment. The glassy eyes of her husband stared up at her from a face totally devoid of colour, with his neck tilted at a weird angle.
Valerian's upper lip curled in distaste. "Samantha," his voice was low and angry, "you know very well that I do not approve of your little 'adventures'..." His gaze flicked over the couple and he took a deliberate step away from the car. "I do not ask that you stop having what you term as 'fun', but one should always practice a little discretion and perhaps... class... in whatever one does."
Slamming the boot shut and ignoring the sickening crunch that came from metal meeting bone and flesh, Samantha rolled her eyes. "Oh please. Discretion and class," she mimicked Valerian's lofty tone, "is boring, restrictive and a pain in the ass. Why would I even want to bother?"
Sam slid over the car hood and twirled her arms seductively around Valerian's rigid form. "Come on Daddy," she cooed in his ear, "forget your rules for tonight. Let's go bring this little pearl of the orient to it's knees."
"No! With nothing more than a mere thought, Valerian flung Samantha aside. "Your sick games hold no interest for me. Do what you will. Mutilate and play with your food but do not expect me to participate in this farce!" His eyes narrowed, focused on something in the distance then swiveled back to Sam. "I have other matters to deal with at the moment."
"Like mope here every night, you mean?" Samantha spat out, then yelped as Valerian backhanded her and sent her tumbling several metres to her right. Nursing her cheek and split lip, she wobbled to her feet, her eyes mutinous.
"What? Isn't it true?" she challenged her sire. "You've been in this funk of a mood since we left L.A. back in February... Coming down to stand in front of her grave every night, talking to her and doing who-the-hell knows what else!"
When Valerian didn't respond, Sam continued. *In for a penny, in for a pound!* "Look, I know you're upset because your precious little Jade didn't fall into line and come back to you. I know you're pissed because ol' Tristy managed to rid himself of whatever you gave him. Not only have they flung your offer back in your face, they did it with a "fuck-you" note attached."
Waving her arms around in frustration, Samantha said, "But so what? Plan A failed. You didn't get your darling daughter back. Therefore you come running to Hongkong to whine about it to your ex-lover? Who, mind you, was the instigator behind your seperation with Jade in the first place! What the fuck happened to Plan B?"
Any further admonitions she had were suddenly cut off by the vise of a pale hand around her throat. Valerian's eyes were gleaming with an insane fury as he hissed, "Have a care poppet. I have massacred many others for a lot less and I will tolerate no further disrespect from the likes of you." He shoved Sam back, slamming her against the Merc and stared at her arrogantly as she massaged her throat and glared at him. Knowing that the threat was not an empty one, Sam kept silent.
*Perhaps...* Valerian's eyes turned pensive as he turned away to face the cemetery again. *Perhaps Samantha is right in saying that we've been here too long. Being in Hong Kong has always affected me more than I cared to admit. It's been over twenty years since I met Rose here. The city has changed so much... Yet, at the core of it, so much is exactly the same as it was back in the 70's.*
Valerian's gaze lingered over the red roses he had placed on his beloved's grave earlier that evening. *Ah Rose... Sometimes I turn around and half expect to see you standing next to me, the way you did those blissful months we spent together.* His eyes closed and his fists clenched in his pockets. *Damn you. Why did you run? How could you have deprived me of your love, of our daughter's future?*
Like he usually did, Valerian found himself vacillating between wistful memories and helpless anger as he spoke to his lost love. Much as he missed Rose, resentment had woven its way through his feelings, turning them into a twisted mess of bitterness.
Yet, when his plans for converting Jade to the dark path had failed, Valerian's first instinct had been to return to where it had all begun. To share his disappointment and bewilderment with Rose, as if she could provide him with an insight to his daughter's mind from beyond. When nothing like that had happened, Valerian found himself returning to her grave, night after night, standing there till dawn was mere minutes away.
Turning his attention back to Samantha, who was still rubbing at her neck, Valerian nodded curtly - the nearest he would come to a peace offering - and said, "Your idea isn't without merit. Prepare yourself my dear. We leave for Los Angeles as soon as time permits."
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Tarix made her way home, unlocked the door, and stepped in.
“Ah, home sweet -” Just then she spotted a cockroach crawling in front of her foot, on which she violently stompted on. “- home”.
She locked the door behind her and slumped on the couch. She didn’t know why, but she felt as if all her energy had been drained. *All the excitement of finally knowing about myself. Come to think of it, he still hasn’t told me anything about me. What’s he hiding? And why?*
***
“You want to come back,” the girls said in unison. “Why come back when you have something new?”
Tarix looked at them, and finally spoke, “No, that’s not true. I don’t want to come here. This is all creeping me out. Who are you?”
The girl on the left got up from the ground and walked towards Tarix. “Return not here,” she said, then pointed to Tarix’s head, “but return back there.”
“Well, I would like to know who I am. Meet my family. My dad, my mom. Brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts or uncles… if I have any.”
Both the girls, now standing, looked at her and seemed to have a grins on their faces. Then they turned to each other and said at the same time, “She does not know.”
Tarix looked at them, puzzled. “Does not know what?”
“Knows, she does,” said the twin on the right, “Remember she not.”
“Show her we shall,” spoke the one on the left, and both of them each took Tarix’s hand and walked her deeper into the darkness.
It seemed that they had been walking forever, with no destination or stop or anything around them to even tell them that they had been moving at all. All around Tarix noticed that there was nothing but darkness and the two twins in front of her.
Finally the twins stopped and pointed to something in front of them. “There you shall see, there you shall remember.”
Tarix squinted in front of her and made out a door. She looked around questioningly to the girls, but they were nowhere to be seen. She sighed, opened the door and stepped into what seemed another step of darkness.
She moved around trying to make some sense of the place, but there was nothing there except the blackness of nothing. Suddenly she saw two bodies on the floor and it seemed a small fog lifting from her mind. One body was of a man with blond hair lying face first on the floor. The other was of a blonde woman lying face up, looking up, with both eyes and mouth wide open. Both of the bodies were surrounded by blood.
The more Tarix looked at the blood on the floor, around the bodies, the more the blood started to spread until all the darkness was now the bright colour of red, and the air as thick as blood.
“No…” Tarix cried, putting her hands to her face, tears streaming down her face.
With a flash, she remembered something she hadn’t noticed before.
Thule’s face came into her memory. “Hmmm, perhaps Alfred gave it to you, before he…”
Thule’s face seemed sympathetic and pained.
“NO!” she cried.
***
With a scream Tarix sat up in bed, perspiring and tears actually streaming down her face. She put her knees to her chest and buried her head in her hands, still sobbing.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Hearing the bells ringing, he suddenly sat up in bed. Squirting in the dark he looked at his bedside table clock. 03:47. Groaning he got up and grabbed his night robe and put it on. He looked out his window to see it was raining quite a lot, and once in a while a thunder would sound. Thule put on his slippers, grabbed his stick and made his way downstairs to the entrance door.
*Who the hell comes at 3 o’clock in the night/morning, in a thunderstorm?*
He reached the door and opened it to find a very soggy and depressed looking Tarix standing out there. The rain seemed to pour down at her with all its might, but still not bother her. She was in her PJ’s and staring hard at Thule.
“W, w, why, T, th, th, Thule? Why, d,d,did you not t,t,tell me?” she said, sobbing on the last word.
Thule looked at her, sympathy in his eyes. “Oh, dear lord.”
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
“How did you find out?” Thule asked.
Tarix was sitting in Thule’s den, covered in a blanket and sipping on hot tea, supplied by Thule.
She still hadn’t stopped crying. It seemed like a tap of tears had just been opened behind her eyes. “I, I,” she stammered. “A dream. I don’t know. I saw it in a dream and it was like a great heavy curtain lifting from my mind, showing me just a little memory of my past.”
“Hmmm. Do you remember anything else apart from spotting their bodies?”
“No, I, I, I don’t think so. I tried to remember, Thule, but every time I do, I seem to end up getting a head ache,” sob, “I don’t know what to do!”
“Look, it’s ok. Don’t worry about it too much. What happened, happened, and it happened some time ago,” Thule consoled Tarix.
Tarix looked at Thule, with tears in her eyes. “It’s just that, my parents - I didn’t even know them. I mean, I probably did know them, but I don’t remember. NOT AT ALL!!!” she sniffed, and took a tissue that Thule offered her. After blowing her nose, she continued, “I mean, why? Why were they murdered? Tell me Thule, TELL ME!”
Thule looked at the ground, and then at the ruby ring that carried so many memories. Alfred had done so much for him, and he had taken him under his wing, just to one day find him slaughtered… Thule shut his eyes and looked at the floor again.
“Because he was working for the Order, we brought a whole sweep to their home. A few psychic detectors and aura analyzers.” He looked up at Tarix. “The best they could come up with was that a group of demons crashed through the door. They had to be pretty powerful because there was always a strong intrusion spell on the house. They came, found your mother and she was the first to die. Alfred quickly came from the basement and he was second, and…” Thule broke off and glanced at the floor again.
She let out a slight sob. “That’s it, they came, killed, and left. They were Macabres, weren’t they?”
“Yes Tarix, but that’s not all.”
“Oh?”
“Umm, the sweep also found that there was also a human with them. They don’t know whether the human was a hostage or whether he or she came of their own free will. It's just that they didn’t even know the human's gender let alone who it was. That person was quick to cover their steps, and not too quick to cover the Macabre’s.”
“Doesn’t that mean that rules out hostage situation?”
“I believe it does, but we are still not sure, the Macabres could have summoned a good spell.”
Tarix looked into Thule’s eyes. “That’s not all is it?”
“No, Tarix. The, umm, ‘murder’ itself is unknown. They couldn’t find out who killed your parents. The human or the Macabres.”
“But it had to be the Macabres, it just has to be!”
“Perhaps. The Order tried to investigate it but the demons had moved on, and fast. And the case was dropped.”
“Dropped.” Tarix stood up, her voice rising, “What do you mean DROPPED?! Someone dies, and its just, ‘oops can’t find no one, guess we are as ignorant as everyone thinks, lets JUST DROP THE CASE!!!”
Thule got up to calm her down, “Tarix please,” and guided her back to her chair.
“Thule, you tell me right now about myself, everything! You hear. No more hidin….ah!” Tarix suddenly grabbed her head in pain, while Thule quickly went to fetch some aspirins.
After he fed her the pills he said, “You ok, headache gone worse?”
She nodded and slumped back in her chair.
“That’s the reason I haven’t told you much. You won’t be able to take it. You need your rest from all this memory business and let it come to you. Or else this might really hurt you,” he warned.
“Oh, how can it hurt me more?” Tarix got up. “Thanks for the tea and the blanket.” She put the blanket down. “I think I’ll go home now.” And she started to move towards the door.
“No you don’t. You think I’ll let you go when there is a storm and still dark out? You can stay here,” he said, indicating up to his room. “I’ll stay here.”
She started to protest but he stopped her with a wave of his hand.
“Here, I’ll show you up.” With that he guided her up to his room.
When Tarix was in bed and he was about to leave her, she asked, “Thule, right now, tell me about the feud between the Koolangs and the Macabres. Please?”
Thule looked at the clock on the wall. “Tarix, it’s 5 in the morning, you need rest.”
“NO! I insist. No more excuses. I would like to know now please!” When he seemed reluctant, she added “It will help me sleep better.”
“Oh, all right.” He took a seat near the bed and sat down. “When the Kumac race was separated into Koolangs and the Macabres at first they both lived once again in peace. Then the Macabres started to notice differences. It seemed that all the scaly looks of the Kumacs were inherited by the Macabres, giving them a cold black and red scaly hide. While the Koolangs surprisingly looked very much human. After a while both the races got used to it but discrimination was still there. Mostly the Macabres discriminating the Koolangs for not being demonic any more. The Koolangs didn’t feel that way, and wanted to live at peace but the Macabres kept making it hard for them.
“This was all harmless discrimination, a couple of hard stares whenever the two races would meet. A few grunts, sometime even abuses, but that’s all. Up until one day it was discovered that the Macabres had not inherited not one shred of the power that the whole Kumac race had had. As I said before, there were five overall powers, and all those powers had gone into the Koolangs, not the Macabres.
“This made the Macabres very angry indeed and that’s when the blood feud started. They first started by throwing stones at any Koolang that would ever pass them and then gradually it turned more violent until the day when the Macabres would storm into a house of a fellow Koolang. If they had, for instance, the power of telekinesis, their brain would be slashed out of their skulls and put on a stick for all to see.”
Tarix flinched and wrapped the blanket more tightly around herself.
Thule continued, "At first this was only so that the Macabres could pluck the Koolang power for themselves by a spell, but then it just turned into some hunt for them, in which they found pleasure. Even when this got so out of hand, the Koolangs refused to fight, but rather one day just ran away from it all. Of course the Macabres followed and killed every last one, or tried to for many years.”
She looked at him. “That’s it, we took their power and they killed us. Is that fair?”
“No, no one said it was. But life is not fair, it never is and never was. But we all have to try and make the best of it. Now I have done my part, you now go to sleep. Ok?”
Tarix weakly nodded.
“Good, now sleep tight.” And with that left her in the darkened room.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Sunday 28 August – 5pm
The pictures flickered on the large widescreen TV from one image to the next. “This is so tacky! Does anyone know anything about vampires?!! He has a bloody reflection!” Ellie sat on the sofa watching the film while Jess was hovering about in the kitchen. Realising her language choice Ellie hit her head against her knees. “You’re turning me English!”
“Hmmm?” Jess asked poking her head around the kitchen door. She hadn’t been paying much attention to Ellie’s ramblings throughout the whole of her watching Queen of the Damned. “Oh, it’s Anne Rice, honey, it’s not going to be realistic.”
She flicked the television off, ignoring what Jess had just said and got up. "Are we gonna paint my room or what?”
“May help if it was tidy, you know.”
“I’m going...” she replied reluctantly before suggesting that maybe Jess could box up the things in her wardrobe to make it quicker.
“I suppose. You owe me though.” Jess smiled and followed Ellie into the dull magnolia coloured room.
***
“You know, I really think you need some new clothes,” Jess shouted over the load music as she sifted through the depths of the black and denim wardrobe, only finding the odd splash of colour.
“Yahuh….don’t have any money tho-“
“Ellie?” Jess cut her off and turned to face her but was greeted with a puzzled stare. Next came the shocked and annoyed expression.
“Ooh shit…”
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Skye ran into the kitchen, lapped up a small amount of water from the bowl that lay on the floor and ran off again, her feet making a quiet padding noise on the floor. Ellie was sitting on the sofa, her forehead resting against her tucked up knees.
“It only magic! White magic! It’s not exactly gonna do anything!” she said, lifting her head up to glare at Jess who sat opposite her on an armchair. Skye came and rested her head against Ellie’s baggy white and red tartan trousers leaving fur all over them.
“Ellie, I don’t want you messing with it. You could hurt someone if something goes wrong… you could hurt yourself.”
“So? That doesn’t stop you!” Ellie shouted, a huge scowl covering her face.
“Protection, Ellie. I do magic for protection. It’s different. I also know about magic, I’ve trained for years, read hundreds of books. I’ve been trained to use it when I need to, when I’m in danger.”
“You’re so unfair! I’m not gonna hurt anyone! Why would I? *Except I’m considering it now,* she thought to herself as she shifted positions on the settee.
"I just don’t know Jessica, I don’t like it. You’re only 15 and just dabbling, you shouldn’t be doing that. Magic is a serious thing!” Quentin sat down as Jess shuffled positions and stared blankly at her father.
“This isn’t fair, it’s stupid, you’re stupid… this whole life’s stupid! I don’t like people to lie to me, but maybe if this one time you did, my life wouldn’t be so fucked up! Fucked up like yours!”
“Don’t say that to me Jessica!”
“What? You don’t care and I don’t care! You’re not my father… you don’t act like it!”
“I don’t have parents!” Ellie shouted back, a tear forming in the corner of her eye. “They died Jessica, they died. They’re gone! I have no parents!”
“Ellie, please. We have to make this work. I am your parent now.”
“Well we can’t! You’re never here! I hardly see you! I’m stuck in this building with a load of old people who want to teach me to slay dead things!”
“Jessica, please!” Quentin said as calmly as he could in the situation. “Stop shouting at me.”
“For fuck's sake!” Ellie shouted and stood up and began to walk to her room.
“Don’t swear at me, Eleanor.” Jess stood up and followed her but by now the bedroom door was slammed in her face. Ellie stood the other side of the door, leaning as hard as she could against it, trying to stop Jess from entering.
Jess' eyes darted around the room before she pulled the bolt across the door. Band posters lined the dark purple walls and candles were everywhere. An ash tray lay by the window with a couple of cigarette butts laying in it. She shuffled a thick and dusty old magic book under the bed. “I’ll be two secs,” she whispered to Scott, her current 19 year old boyfriend who was sitting on a chair taking a puff of a cigarette. “My dad’s just killing me.” She smiled then opened the door again and went out.
“Ellie, just open up, we need to talk,” Jess pleaded whilst pacing up and down the hall.
“No! You’re just gonna shout at me,” came Ellie’s reply from the other side of the door.
“I won’t if you just open the door and listen to me.” At that moment the front door opened and Will walked in holding a few shopping bags which started Skye barking. The bedroom door opened and Ellie came running out.
“Oookay… I’m just gonna er... go outside… ‘kay?” Will muttered as he entered the room to hear the screaming and shouting from his father and sister. He quickly backed out of the room and slammed the door.
“Huh?” he exclaimed as he saw Ellie run out the door.
“Ellie, stop!” Jess shouted but the front door was already closed and Ellie was making her way down the stairwell. Jess cupped her face in her hands for a moment then looked up at Will. “This isn’t working. How many times has she run out of that door!”
“At lea-“
“Rhetorical, Will.” She sighed then just flopped on the settee.
Library Musings
East Los Angeles Public Library
Monday, 29th August, 2005
7:15pm
Kate’s fingers artfully skimmed the shelves and came to rest on an old red leather bound volume. She ran her hand across the worn spine and easily slipped it from between the shelf and into her arms. She brushed the dust from the cover, revealing aged golden lettering.
The Secret Doctrine
Kate smiled and returned to her book-covered table. She had been at the library since early that morning but had still to make much progress with deciphering the scrolls. So far she’d only managed to scan the scrolls into the data bank and e-mail them over to one of her contacts back in England who dealt with ancient antiquities. She was still waiting for a reply.
In the meantime Kate continued to try and decipher the runic symbols on the pentagram. It looked like some kind of ritual but it was taking a while to puzzle out just what it was intended for. Kate rubbed her eyes tiredly and leaned back in her chair. The library was mostly empty now, not that it ever really got busy in the occult section, and she’d had more than one sideways glance from the librarians who seemed to question ‘why such a normal looking girl should be interested in all that gothic nonsense’.
Kate pushed the heavy book aside and began absently tapping the end of her pencil against the carved binding and sighed. In truth her mind wasn’t really focused on myths and legends and runic symbols, it was still very much fixated on Galen. Despite her resolve on Saturday that they could probably work things out she had still avoided actually making contact with him…
Suddenly Kate looked up as an elderly man cleared his throat and tapped her on the shoulder.
“Excuse me Miss, but could you refrain…” his voice faded out but his eyes fixed on the pencil that Kate was still tapping against the book.
“Oh,” said Kate in realisation, dropping the pencil on the table. Remembering she was in a library she lowered her voice. “Sorry, I didn’t realise.”
The old man smiled and pulled his moth-eaten cardigan tighter around his shrunken frame. He pushed his glasses back up his nose and began to walk away when Kate rose to her feet. “Um, I… I don’t suppose you have a pay phone around here do you?”
Leave Your Name & Your Number & I'll Get Back to You
East Los Angeles Public Library
Monday, 29th August, 2005
7:30pm
Kate picked up the handset, inserted a few coins into the slot and began to dial. The phone rang quite a long time; Kate was about to hang up when the answer machine clicked on.
*Damn,* she thought silently to herself. As if this wasn’t going to be hard enough already, now she had to leave a message… she hated these things.
“Galen?”
*No response, so he definitely isn’t home, unless he's screening his calls…*
“This is Kate.”
*Unless he doesn't want to speak to me…*
SIGH
*Maybe I should hang up now…*
“Oh God, maybe I shouldn’t be calling you here…”
*What if his phone was tapped too?*
“But that’s the problem, I don’t know what I should be doing, how I should be acting.”
*What am I doing? He’ll think I’m crazy…*
“I want to stay angry at you… but I can’t, I…”
*…I love you…*
“I need to see you. We need to work this out. There... there has to be a way to work this out.”
*Oh please let there be a way to work this out!*
“I-I don’t want to talk about this over the telephone. Could... could you please call me? We really need to talk.”
Reluctantly Kate hung up, replacing the handset back on the receiver. She stood silently by the telephone for a moment before returning to her books.
Facing the music.
Sunday, 28th August 2005 - 10am
Tash stared at her reflection. She wasn’t sure she’d ever get used to this new smooth-skinned look. It was somewhat unnerving. She shivered. Worse than having that creature parade around doing obscene things with a replica of her body, was the feeling of violation. She stared at the crook of her left elbow. That hideous reminder of how close she’d come to being turned into the very thing she hunted was gone. But the memory of Valerian’s penetrating gaze was still very much with her.
Dammit, she didn’t need the scar to remind her.
She turned abruptly away from the mirror and finished dressing for the warm summer day. Time to start repairing the damage the doppelganger had done. *Let’s start with the easy ones. I have no idea where Sam is, but hopefully Jade is home now.*
Moments later Tash stood outside Jade's door, waiting for Jade or Kate to answer her knock. Silence. *Damn. Ok. Let's try XY.* Part of her wanted to put this off. At the very best it would be awkward and unpleasant. But it had to be done. She walked briskly down the street, trying not to think too hard about how Jade might react to her.
The shop front sparkled gaily at her. Ornaments and knick-knacks crowded in the display windows. It looked ready for business, but for the Closed sign hung on its door. Screwing up her courage, Tash knocked. And waited.
**********
Jade re-read the classified ad she had drafted again before rolling her eyes and switching off her laptop. *Give it up... You haven't been concentrating since you received Tris' phone call 15 minutes ago.* Jade gave herself a mental shake but even that couldn't quite quell the small fluttering in her stomach when she thought about seeing Tristan again. She had not seen him since he left her apartment on Friday morning to conduct his research on whatever plan he had come up with to deal with Xavier, and Jade had missed him sorely.
She knew that part of the reason why he had not returned home was because Kate was staying in the guest bedroom. Being as close to Sorrow as she was, Jade could almost feel the guilt suffocating him at the mere mention of Kate's name and had not pressed the issue.
Lighting a cigarette, Jade paced around the back of XY, wondering what exactly Sorrow had found out. He'd been evasive during their phone conversations and Jade, not wanting another fight like the one they'd had, had not pushed him. *He's promised that he'll tell me when he has something concrete and I've got to trust that Tris'll do just that.*
A knock on the front door had Jade's head snapping up. *He's here!* She caught herself smoothing down her hair and huffed out a breath. *For god sakes girl, the way you're acting, you'd think you just started dating him! Stop fussing!* Stubbing out her cigarette, she walked briskly to the front of the store.
**********
Sorrow closed the door to his safe and spun the tumblers. *Well that didn't help much. Still, there's more ground to cover yet.* Unconsciously rubbing his right forearm Sorrow walked through his apartment gathering up books and replacing them on shelves. *You're avoiding this.* Sorrow sighed. He'd come to terms with how he felt over this Xavier business but at times it didn't help. He picked up the printout of the materials he'd need for creating the praentath and on a whim printed the response he got from his contacts on Majestic. It wasn't much but they were digging deeper for him.
The papers went into the pocket of his coat. He slipped Hizashi over his shoulder and headed outside. His taxi should be here any minute.
Xavier watched Sorrow step out of the building just as a cab rolled up to the door. Xavier squinted hard at Sorrow and could just make out the sword hilt sticking up over Sorrow's shoulder. *That's still a really neat trick.* As the cab moved away from the kerb Xavier started his van and followed.
**********
Tash held her breath as the door to XY opened. The smiling face of Jade appeared, a slight flush in her cheeks. The corners of her mouth twitched when she saw who was standing outside. Tash smiled wanly, "Hi, Jade. It's me. The real me." She inhaled deeply, watching the doubt and disbelief and disgust cross her friend's features. "Please, will you let me in?" Tash asked softly.
Jade wasn't sure why she stepped back to allow Tash into the store; shock perhaps. She was totally unprepared for this and the mixed emotions she felt were all bubbling very close to the surface. Jade's hands were clenched and her whole body was tense as she closed the door behind her with a smart snap. Turning back to Tash, she found that she couldn't quite trust herself to speak just yet. So instead, eyes glinting with anger, Jade glared at the woman she'd once thought of as her closest friend in LA and waited for her to start the ball rolling.
The awkward silence ticked on for several seconds before Tash could bear no more of it. Just as she opened her mouth to say something, the store's door rattled again, making both of them jump. "Jade? Are you the-" Sorrow's deep voice trailed off as he walked into XY and saw who stood beside his lover.
***********
"Yes!" Xavier snapped into the phone, "Xerox, Yellow. X.Y... That's what I said you imbecile!" His hand slammed down on the dashboard in frustration. "Find out everything you can about the owner and the shop! And remember, I need that information, like, yesterday!"
Xavier stared hard at XY from his parking space across the street. The sun's reflection on the store window made it impossible for him to see who was within, but he'd noticed the familiarity of which Sorrow had let himself into a store that was evidently not yet open for business and was convinced that XY was a place to which Sorrow was no stranger.
***********
Tash blanched. Facing Jade was one thing. But Sorrow as well... Well, she had to do this sooner or later. And she had a feeling this encounter would be far easier than trying to explain everything to Sam. Sorrow seemed calm enough at seeing her. Calmer than Jade, certainly. But Tash knew what could bubble just under the surface with Sorrow, and it wasn't always readily apparent. *Feet first, woman. It's the only way you know how.*
"Sorrow, Jade. I hope you got our note. It was short, I know, but really we didn't have much time. Oh, God. It's a long story." Tash moved further into the shop, unable to stand still any longer. She turned back to face the couple by the door.
"Short version - I was attacked coming home Monday morning. Tied up. Something replaced me. Had my knowledge, everything. Victor found me Tuesday night and we hunted the thing down."
"I need to get some things," Sorrow whispered to Jade. Raising his voice he spoke again. "OK, that explains some things but not others." Sorrow moved around XY gathering up various materials.
"Actually, that explains very little!" Jade spat as her suspicious gaze raked Tash from top to toe. "How do we know what you're saying is the truth? And if it is... What's to say that you're the real Tash and not the damn shapeshifter that you're claiming exists?"
Tash shook her head sadly. "There is no way to prove it, not by words. Look, I'll tell you the whole thing, and you can cast any spell or whatever on me if you like to see if what I'm saying is true. When we fought it I touched it. So I know what it did. And I know it had all my memories, everything. It was me, except that it wasn't." She shrugged her shoulders. “Let me know when you're ready for me to start talking.”
"Jade, before this happened do you think Tash would have hit on me?" Sorrow turned to Tash. "It wasn't you in that room. Oh, I know it had your memories; your theme was there as well, but the actions were off. The situation was wrong despite the fact that the mannerisms were probably correct. So if this shapeshifter exists then fine... If it doesn't then all you really need to know is that if it reoccurs a vision of the D'Nethk'Quan will be the least of your worries." The last was delivered with brutal simplicity.
Tash's mouth quirked in a half-smile. "Well, I'll start at the start, and you can decide for yourself if this is the sort of story I'd make up to account for what that thing did to you."
She began with coming home from the hunt and catching a glimpse of her twin, and related the events of the days following that. The merging, the hunt. Finding first the Tash double then catching Vrithetek on the docks. The reluctance to reabsorb him into the equation. Then the separation back into Tash and Victor, and finally convincing Galen to act. Tash's mouth was dry by the time she eventually finished. She ran her parched tongue over her lips and leaned back against the counter, feeling exhausted.
Jade's head was whirling as she tried to absorb everything Tash had said in the last hour or so. No longer was there any doubt in Jade's mind about whether her friend was telling the truth and she felt a little ashamed at her earlier rage, especially in the face of all the harrowing experiences Tash had gone through in the last week.
Reaching behind the counter, Jade uncapped a bottle of water and passed it to Tash. Speaking in a soft, apologetic tone, she said, "I'm sorry my friend, I shouldn't have doubted you. Some part of me, deep down, refused to believe it that you'd do anything to betray me but there's the other part of me... that nagging little voice... that tells me that anything is possible. In this case, I should have known better."
Upending the bottle gratefully, Tash swallowed several gulps of water before replying. “Well, at the time the evidence would have been overwhelming that it was me. And I’m not denying,” she grinned, “he’s a fine-looking man. But no, that’s definitely not my style.”
Sorrow watched as Jade's anger slowly dissipated during Tash's tale. It was, after all, Jade who needed convincing. Having been in the room with the other Tash he knew it wasn't the real Tash, though he had no evidence for it beyond her actions. As for Tash's story, there was little that was verifiable. Sorrow let his shields drop a little as he built power. "Could I check the Ohenewaa stuff?"
Tash nodded. "I trust you. You'll find she's in there. But no longer beating on my subconscious the way she was. See for yourself." Tash let her own barriers relax as much as she could without overwhelming herself with outside noise.
Sorrow let the power flow out slowly; he had permission to do this and he wanted to be thorough. A few minutes passed as Sorrow checked every aspect of Tash's theme. Ohenewaa was practically separated from Tash, having settled without pressure into the gaps within her theme. It added to the complexity greatly but it was still Tash. There were a couple of passages that seemed more Victor than Tash but they too fitted into the overall scheme. When he was satisfied that everything was as it should be Sorrow withdrew his probe.
"Well I'm happy enough. Ohenewaa's no longer sitting like a spider web distorting everything around it and I guess the stuff from Victor you picked up in the merge?" As he was speaking Sorrow pulled out a bottle of pills and tipped a couple out.
"It's a little like I had a dream once where I was Victor. I can't remember anything but the flavour of it. And it's all sort of mixed up in the feeling of being Vicasha. It's been a weird few days, to say the least." Tash rolled up the sleeve of her shirt. "And this has to be the weirdest thing. It took my scars." She held out her perfectly unblemished left arm.
Jade shuddered as she touched the smooth skin lightly with her finger. It didn't seem natural, especially since she'd seen Tash's arm before, with its knots and marks. "I've never heard of a shapeshifter doing that before but then again, my knowledge of such stuff is pretty limited. Have you?" She directed her question at both Sorrow and Tash.
"No," Tash shook her head. She stared at her flawless arm. "In some ways, it's the worst part. It's taken something of mine that I can never get back." She gazed at Jade, and let her eyes flick over Sorrow. He had slumped in a chair, his head held in his hands. Spikes of red pain showed in his aura. Letting her eyes settle back on Jade she said, "But I guess that's not really the worst. Having my friends think I've betrayed them is the worst."
"Well, in our case, you've got two less people to worry about," Jade told Tash reassuringly, then crossed over to Sorrow, sat on the chair beside his and laid a cool hand on his cheek. When he raised pain-filled eyes to meet her gaze, she gently cradled his head against her shoulder and smoothed back his hair.
"Shhhhhh... We'll talk about it later, after we get home." Jade shook her head to silence any arguments Sorrow might have. "Please Tris. You need a quiet place where you can rest and wait for the backlash to subside. Whatever you want to tell me about, Xavier can wait."
At his nod, Jade looked up at Tash. "Since it's about the bastard that's trying to kill Victor, I'm sure you'll want to sit in on this. Could you please call us a cab back to Poplar?" She looked down at the handsome man leaning against her and smiled. "I've kinda got my hands full."
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Sunday, 28th August 2005 - 4pm
The view from Jade’s lounge room window wasn’t terribly inspiring. Tash gazed out over an assortment of dirty roofs and sooty walls. Cracked paint peeled from window frames which held smeared panes of aged glass. Further afield, the smoggy air of LA hung heavy, casting its yellowish-grey pall over the city. There were times she found this city depressing, and wondered why she stayed. She’d only come to find Matthias. Victor was used to travelling. Maybe they could go somewhere else.
But she had friends here. Something she’d not had for most of her life. She’d discovered that friends could be very precious. One of them had just left this apartment to get supplies for dinner. Leaving Tash alone with her man. Tash pondered. If Jade had come onto Victor, then later claimed it was some double and told a tale of kidnapping and scar-stealing and merging beings, would Tash believe her?
Yes.
Tash sighed. Yes, she would believe her. She and Jade shared more than a bond of friendship. They shared the knowledge that such things were indeed possible. A wry smile crept onto her face as she turned from the window. Hell, more than possible. It seemed in their cases it was almost mandatory. The smile was still on her face as Sorrow emerged, looking a little careworn and tousled, into the lounge.
Sorrow hunched a little as he settled onto the sofa. He'd managed to hide his bruised ribs so far but it was only a matter of time before he slipped. The ribs were courtesy of trying to deal with more vamps than he could handle and his expected assistance not arriving when it should. Thankfully once he'd dealt with the leader the rest of them had seemed to go to pieces and he managed to get away with a few bruised bones instead of a fatal exsanguination.
Reading Tash had been pushing things; he hadn't recovered from creating his illusions yet and considering he had a pretty major ritual to do some time in the next couple of days he really ought not to have spent so much time on checking Tash out. "These doppelgangers - what do you think our next move is?"
Shaking her head, Tash shrugged, "To be honest, I don't know. We've got Galen involved - hopefully his resources can track down the doubles. But how can we find them? I don't know. I can maybe sense them now that I know what to look for, but I'd have to be face to face with one. LA's a big city."
She paced the length of the room before continuing, "And each one we get will weaken this thing, I think. But I don't know how - or if - we can get rid of it. Vicasha only got a hint of it."
She stared frankly at Sorrow. "This thing is huge, Sorrow. And old. Really old. Older than the Earth, maybe. And it wants all of us gone. I'm just a lowly vampire hunter. I'm not designed for apocalypses. That's what Slayers are for, right?"
"Well we've managed one and survived too." Sorrow frowned, "I presume we now trust Galen and 'Majestic'."
Tash's eyes widened. "Oh. Majestic." Her hand flew to her mouth.
"Oh, God. With everything that's been going on... Sorrow, don't investigate them. Please."
"Ah," Sorrow got up and walked to his coat, "So we trust them enough to help with this problem but not enough to..." He slipped his hands into a pocket and drew out a couple of folded pieces of paper. "They're an interesting organisation. Not much is actually known though you'd be amazed at all the speculation." Sorrow walked towards Tash and the window "What have you got me involved in Tash?"
Tash flinched slightly as Sorrow approached her. "I'm sorry. I had no idea." She closed her eyes and shook her head again. Opening them to meet Sorrow's unblinking gaze, she explained. "Galen told us that there'd been bugs set by Majestic. In Kate's place as well as his. When we got Victor's glamour remade it was at Kate's. We spoke about Xavier and you and the Society... They'll know I'm a telepath."
Tash paused and shuddered. "Galen said he'd found out about some black op that was supposed to be finished. That's why they bugged him. His own organisation doesn't trust him. And he made it clear they're a group that don't take kindly to exposure. Of any kind. By anyone.
"But yes, right now they're our best hope for finding these doppelgangers. They have the resources to do it. And from what Galen said, they were already aware there was some sort of problem with this."
She gripped the windowsill behind her to stop from wringing her hands nervously. "I just hope you didn't trigger anything. Anything more, that is. Gods, what a mess. Galen was worried about Kate being in danger, too."
Sorrow turned to his laptop and spoke to Tash while his hands danced over the keys. "I have two people working to find what they can for me on Majestic and while I'm sure they'll be careful I had no idea that Majestic was that paranoid." He made one final keystroke then glanced back towards Tash. "Hopefully they can just drop it and lay low for a while."
Sorrow suddenly stilled, the muscles in his back seem to spasm in sequence and it was all he could do not to howl in agony.
Virulent red spikes shot through Sorrow's aura. Tash leapt upright from her post on the windowsill, ready to catch him if he fell. But he stayed on his feet. Tash couldn't see how - the pain through his aura was vicious and sudden. And somehow familiar.
There were tinges of black through the pain. It was a little like the second-hand image she'd picked up as Vicasha from the coffee mug in her flat, and from the memories of her clone. The spasm in his hand... and the vision Sorrow had pushed onto the doppelganger... it all merged into the one feeling. Tash almost gasped with the overspill from Sorrow's agony. His face looked bloodless and clammy with the effort and Tash stood next to him, uncertain what to do. Would moving him help or hurt?
She laid a hand on his shoulder and nodded to the couch, gently pushing him in that direction. "Where does it hurt most?" she asked softly.
Tash was saying something but Sorrow really wasn't in a position to understand what. He focused as best he could trying to move the pain outside himself, and on the verge of tears he finally realised Tash was trying to move him to the couch. Practically unable to walk without setting off fresh surges of pain he somehow made it to the sofa without screaming the walls down. Sorrow finally managed to unclench his jaw and speak. "Back mainly."
Tash stood over Sorrow helplessly, unsure how to ease his pain. Casting her mind back, she had a feeling that massage had helped the hand. But there were unfortunate associations with that memory - it belonged to the clone. And it had been using the massage as an excuse to get closer to Sorrow. But dammit, she couldn't just stand by and watch him suffer, either.
She rolled him onto his side facing the back of the couch and crouched beside him, using her knuckles to knead the tight muscles down his back. She ignored his gasps of pain and watched his aura for signs of improvement. After a while it seemed that the spikes were slowly growing less intense.
The spasms faded slowly, Sorrow's breathing eased back to something more normal and his eyes started to focus back on the room instead of some distant point. "I'm...Ok Tash." He rolled onto his back then sat up.
"I'll need to borrow the training room later...” *Dammit, I thought I had this nailed down this morning. A session should hold longer than this.*
Tash scooted back from the couch, sitting cross-legged on the floor and giving Sorrow some room. Concern and suspicion filled her eyes, "What the hell was all that? And don't try to fob me off. I can tell you're worried." She frowned, "Matthias said the D'Nethk'Quan was dangerous. I could feel undertones of that..." The frown deepened, her concern turning to worry. "Oh, God. Is it unravelling, Sorrow?"
The pain was manageable now and Sorrow slowly rebuilt his shields. Once safe within the fortress of his mind Sorrow fixed Tash with a stern look. "I'll explain later but Jade learns nothing. There is nothing she can do to help and I won't have her worrying needlessly. Are we clear?"
Tash gave Sorrow a look that spoke volumes. "Do you remember what happened the last time I agreed not to tell Jade anything?"
Sorrow grimaced, "True, but what could she do? The ritual has been damaged, half the binding is loose and until I find a way to repair everything there is nothing she can do. There is only one reliable source of information and I already have that. She faces enough pain and worry already - I'll not add this to her burden."
Tash shook her head. *Bloody machismo. Bloody magic. Bloody men.*
She sighed and spoke aloud. "Isn't it better that you have help with this, rather than try to deal with it alone? Jade said something about Xavier when we were in XY. So you've got him to deal with. I've just laid this whole doppelganger thing on you, and you're busy falling apart at the seams. Please, don't be afraid to ask for help when you need it. You never have to do this stuff alone."
"I can't deal with this alone. Whatever the solution, it will involve more power than I can safely raise but who do I go to for help, Tash? I am the only human in centuries who knows the details of the ritual. There is no one who can help me at this point." Sorrow shook his head. "So what will you do with this knowledge? Worry? Xavier is causing enough difficulties."
Sadness filled Tash's eyes and her voice was resigned. "You just don't get it, do you? Maybe there isn't anything Jade or I could do to help. But maybe there is. Maybe we know someone who could help. And just maybe," Tash's expression turned more fierce than sad, "even if we can't do anything we'd still like to feel you care enough about your friends to let them share your pain. Especially Jade. She loves you. Do you think she'll thank you for keeping this from her?"
"I seem to recall giving a similar lecture not too long ago… And tell her what? That I may be dead in weeks?"
Tash swallowed. Softly she said, "Would you rather she lived in ignorance until the end, then spend the rest of her life wondering if she might have been able to find the solution for you? Do you want her to live with that guilt? Do you recall the lengths she went to with you to free you of the vampire? That woman would go through Hell for you - but she'll put herself there if she isn't given a chance to share this now."
*And I will kill for her…* "I know, but I can't tell her. Not yet. I'm sorry, I spoke to shock. There are other things, other reasons. Let this be," Sorrow pleaded.
Tash watched his face for a time, seeing the remains of the hurt and worry in his eyes. “All right. But you need to tell her. Soon. And trust me, if there’s a way to stop this thing from killing you, I’ll do whatever I can to find it.”
Will The Real Xavier Please Step Forward?
Sunday, 28th August 2005 – 5pm
It was still baking hot as Jade left the supermarket and made her way back to Poplar. *Next August, I’m convincing Tris that we should head to Australia to do some skiing!* Even though it was only a ten minute walk, she was perspiring and out of breath by the time the apartment building was in sight.
Laden with numerous paper bags of groceries and trying to concentrate on both balancing them and what to cook for dinner at the same time, Jade didn’t notice the tall, dark-skinned man coming out from the building till he squeezed past her with a muttered, “Excuse me.” Looking up, she only managed to catch a brief glimpse of his side profile before he walked off toward the street. Something about him seemed vaguely familiar though...
It wasn’t until she was halfway up the stairs that it hit her. “Oh God! Xavier!” The words burst from her in a gasp of horror. Jade had never seen him face to face but his picture was in the file Sorrow had shown her several days back and she could hardly believe she hadn’t recognized him on sight. *Tris! No...* The bags crashed to the floor as Jade ran up the remaining stairs to Apartment 208, her hands trembling in terror at the thought of what Xavier might have done.
The loud crash of the door slamming open caused both Tash and Sorrow to snap their heads around. Jade appeared in the doorway, wild-eyed and breathless, her eyes searching for and settling on Sorrow. Her expression shifted from terrified to relieved to puzzled all within a second.
Tash took two long steps to grasp Jade's trembling arm. "What is it? What's happened?" she asked urgently.
Jade’s hand vised around Tash’s. “Xavier. He was here! I saw him downstairs!” Her gaze darted from Tash to Sorrow and back again. “You didn’t see him? Oh God... I thought he’d killed you!” Biting back tears, Jade let go off her friend’s hand to wrap her arms around Sorrow’s neck.
Sorrow kissed Jade gently while his hands stroked soothingly down her back. "Well he hasn't, I'm still here." As Jade settled against him Sorrow looked at Tash for a second before returning his attention to Jade. "Didn't you go out for groceries?"
“Forget the damn groceries! We’ll call out for pizza! He was here! He just left!” Now that her fear for Sorrow's safety had proved unfounded, the last thing on Jade’s mind was dinner. “We could probably still catch up with him!”
She spun around to face Tash. “Find out what the hell he was doing here in the first place! He could have been listening to you guys through the door?” Jade looked as though she was ready to sprint out the door.
Tash felt her stomach perform somersaults. "Victor," she rasped. "That bastard's still after Victor." She pushed past Jade and pelted down the stairs, hitting the ground floor in record time. She burst out of the front door of the building and scanned frantically for a large black man. She had a fuzzy mental picture of his features from Victor's memories and little else, but logic wasn't operating too strongly for Tash at that moment.
She heard the door open behind her and Jade's footstep sounded on the stone, followed by Sorrow's heavier tread. Then movement on the far side of the street caught Tash's eye. A van was rocking violently from a struggle within. A struggle between two men.
Two large black men.
Two identical large black men.
Understanding dawned on Tash and she held out an arm to stop Sorrow and Jade from advancing. "Hold on. Just wait," she said.
Sorrow watched calmly as the two burst out of the van and one of the Xaviers quickly gained the upper hand. A knife emerged and now cuts and slashes appeared on the weaker of the two's body. Those cuts didn't seem to bleed. *Looks like our mysterious big bad picked the wrong person to copy,* Sorrow thought.
A feral grin spread over Xavier’s face as he slowly circled his clone. A sudden rush and Xavier knocked the double to the ground, and a few swift kicks seemed to disorientate the thing for a second and Xavier fell upon it like a lion on its prey. The knife rose up and stabbed into the creature, opening gash after gash in the thing’s ectoplasmic flesh until finally Xavier thrust the blade into its neck and began to saw. The clone struggled - its fist struck out at Xavier's head and arms but finally its struggle ceased and it dissolved into a pile of clear goo.
Xavier stood, the remains of the doppelganger dripping from his clothing, and he glared at Sorrow. "You'll have to try harder next time 'Huntmaster'."
Tash felt her fists unclenching from her sides. Her eyes rested briefly on the pile of spreading ooze at Xavier's feet, looking so like the pile that the Tash clone had become. She shuddered.
Her head swivelled from Sorrow to Xavier where he stood beside the open door of his van. "I don't get it," she hissed at Sorrow. "Was he here for Victor, or you?"
"Does it matter? If it was Victor would you shoot him now? If it was me would you kill another human?" Sorrow sighed, then raised his voice. "Xavier, be careful. There may be more of these things around."
Sorrow turned back towards the building. "Let's go. There is nothing for us here."
Tash stared a moment longer at the defiant man across the street, who was glaring belligerently at Sorrow's retreating back. Tash grabbed Jade's arm and drew the spluttering woman back into the shelter of the apartment building.
Thoughts whirled through Tash's head. What was Xavier doing hanging about outside? Looking for a way to get Victor once more? She didn't get that feeling. The only thing she'd felt washing across that expanse of bitumen was a seething hatred of Sorrow.
And the double? Was that what Jade had seen leaving Poplar? Xavier had looked like he was set up for a long stay in that van, watching, no doubt.
Tash propelled Jade up the stairs after Sorrow and put her own foot on the bottom step when she heard the faint 'snick' of a door. Henna's worried face peered out from the office and withdrew again almost instantly. Tash's reassuring smile faded before it had a chance to form. *Well, it was a noisy dust-up. No wonder she’s scared,* Tash thought.
"When the monsters are afraid that is generally a bad s
Sunday, 28th August 2005 - 5pm
Victor was checking the invoice for the third time. It wasn't there. There was a missing package. Some sort of ritualistic weapon was his guess. He could remember there being a weapon of some sort. A kris, maybe. He was surprised that Henna would have signed for an incomplete shipment. Maybe there was some sort of special package or perhaps she locked it away. He walked over to the intercom. *Press, talk, release,* he mentally recited the instructions. "Henna, are you there? Can you come up here, I have a question for you."
There was no answer. He walked down the hall and downstairs to the office. Henna had told him a dozen times, "Don't come into my office," but he did it anyway. Just because he had a gadget to do the work didn't mean that the old ways were wrong.
He glanced around and saw the calendar on the desk. It was Sunday.
Victor felt very stupid for a second. * Where does the time go?* he thought. Sometimes he had a hard time remembering one day to the next. Probably the not sleeping that did it. It seemed easier to remember centuries than specific days of the week.
His hearing picked up sounds coming from the utility room under the staircase. Sam had been missing as well and that concerned Victor too. He called, "Sam?" but didn't get an answer. *Who else could be in the basement?* He walked down the hall, a strange sense of dread coming over him as he reached for the knob to the utility room that lead to the basement stairs. It was unlocked. *Curiouser and curiouser.*
A voice came up from below, "Mr. Tek? Is that you?" It was Henna.
Victor walked down the stairs. The light was on down there and he was surprised to find Henna exiting the storage cage in the basement. Her blouse was open and he could see the glint of metal coming from behind the thin fabric. She was barefoot and had a slight sheen of sweat... and a faint scent of blood.
"Henna, what’s going on?" asked Victor. He was more concerned than angry, but it was hard to avoid the tone of suspicion that crept into his voice.
She brushed back her hair from her face and the rows of shafts through her skin that laddered down from her neck to her breasts was exposed. Victor had seen worse, much worse, but they weren't usually voluntary. The faint drops of blood that leaked from the fresh piercings ran down her belly.
“Oh Henna, I know you like this stuff but this isn’t a sanitary place to do this. You should do it a home in a clean bathroom." Victor felt like a bad parent. He felt like she was hiding it from him, "I don't care what you do in the name of self expression, but show some discretion."
A sucking sound from the storage cage made them both look deeper into the basement shadows.
"What was that?"
"It’s nothing." She moved to keep Victor from approaching.
"Mr. Tek, please. I promise it won't be a problem." Henna looked down at her feet. Victor could see that there were straight pins inserted between her toes. He frowned at her.
Victor reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring of keys that opened all of the locks in the building. "Go upstairs, Henna, and clean up in the shower in my office. I am going to lock this place up and make sure everything is gone. Then we are going to talk about what sort of an obsession you are getting into."
The cage door clanged behind him as he was speaking to her. He whirled to see a muscular black man running up the stairs. "Who?" Then that feeling of dread crawled up Victor's spine. Doppelgangers.
*****
Tash pushed past Jade as they climbed the stairs back to the second floor. The Asian woman stopped to collect her scattered groceries on the way, but Tash needed to get to Victor's office. She had to know if the real Xavier out there had done anything. Reaching apartment 202 she tried the door. It swung open easily, and Tash started to breathe a sigh of relief until she realised the office was empty. Crates and papers and strange artefacts were scattered about. But no Victor.
Spinning, she grabbed Sorrow's arm on her way back down the stairs. "Victor's missing," she said urgently.
Sorrow shook off Tash's hand. "Don't move I'll get Hizashi..." Sorrow entered Jade's apartment and moments later returned sword in hand. Tash had reached the bottom of the stairs by the time Sorrow returned. He stalked down the remaining steps and fixed Tash with a glare. "You should know better."
Jade chucked whatever groceries had survived her panicked dash up the stairs back into the paper bags and stacked them hurriedly against the side of the corridor before following Sorrow down to the first floor.
Tash was at Henna's door, trying to get the frightened girl to open up. She barely heard Sorrow behind her as she pounded on the first floor office door.
"Henna, let me in! I just need to know what you saw. Victor's missing," Tash pleaded through the locked door. She'd thought Henna's frightened look earlier was just from the fight outside, but now she wondered if the girl had seen something else.
Frustrated at the lack of response from within, she lined up a kick on the lock and delivered a series of powerful blows that splintered the wood. The door banged against the wall and almost bounced back in Tash's face with the force. Shouldering aside the ruined door, Tash spotted Henna cowering in the corner of the room. Speaking with a calm she didn't feel, Tash began again. "Henna, did you see Victor? Was there a big, black man with him? Please tell me."
Henna sniffed and shook her head, "Didn't see nothin', Tash. Just you and him," she nodded towards the doorway where Sorrow stood, "sounding like homicidal maniacs."
The words jarred on Tash's psyche. Something wasn't right. Henna's aura didn't leap out at her as it would in a lie, but there was something... a memory... Henna's fear was not just from Tash beating down her door, she was sure of that.
A dread feeling grew in the pit of Tash's gut. Vicasha drawing in the memories of the fake Tash, feeling the link it had to the ancient... thing. *Dammit,* Tash thought as she ripped off a glove and advanced on Henna. The girl scrunched even further back in her corner as she saw the fierce look that came into Tash's eye.
"Help me," Henna cried out to Sorrow. "She's gone crazy!"
*Yeah, turn to the handsome man with lovely green eyes, even if he’s carrying a lethal looking two-foot sword.* Jade inwardly rolled her own eyes but said soothingly, “Don’t be afraid Henna, we’re not going to hurt you.”
Henna looked at the couple in the doorway watching her emotionlessly. Tash's hand was bearing down on her. She began to shake and tears rolled down her cheeks. "Please," her voice quavered, "Don't do this to me."
Tash grasped Henna's face with her bare hand, fending off the girl's frantic blows with her other.
Feeling fully real as she gazed down on the corpse of the girl, all her tattoos and piercings gone as if they'd never been.
Ushering an endless array of mindless copies out of the basement at Poplar Avenue.
Orgies of sex that degenerated into sessions of mutual piercings. The blood dripping off the knife as she carved patterns into her own belly...
Tash held on, willing the visions to take her closer to the present. *Victor,* she pushed, *Show me Victor.*
Henna silently pointing upstairs as the Vrithetek clone emerged fresh from the source of energy in the basement.
Distracting Mr. Tek in the basement while the latest clone emerged from the cage, then a sudden panic as some horrifying tentacled thing grabbed Mr. Tek and dragged him away...
Probing, searching, sensing... Something was looking for her as she peered into Henna's mind. The link to the source was strong with this doppelganger. It was close... so close...
Tash let go of Henna and fell back with a wordless cry. Shaking with dread on the floor, she could barely gasp to Sorrow and Jade, "She's one. A clone."
Henna jumped up and ran towards window. Panic stricken she fumbled to raise the sash. "You are crazy, you are all crazy. Skin changing, swords, chanting in the night! Maniacs! All of you!"
While Henna continued to scrabble at the lock of the window Sorrow glided across the room. Hearing his approach she half turned then fell back against the frame and began to scream. A single clinical stroke of Sorrow's blade separated her head from her shoulders sending a spray of clear goo across the wall.
Sorrow turned to Tash to see Jade was already there. Laying his sword aside he went to help.
Through the shaking and darkness, Tash managed to grasp Jade's hand. It was only by pure luck that it was her gloved one that made contact. "Jade, he's in trouble," she rasped. "In the basement. Help me up. Must go to him."
“Tash, you can barely stand!” Jade wrapped an arm around her friend’s waist and dragged her into a sitting position. “Stay here. Tris and I will go.” She looked over at Sorrow, who nodded his head.
Propped against the wall, Tash groped for her discarded glove and dragged it back on. "No, it's down there. I have to help." She found herself speaking to their retreating backs and forced herself to an upright position, following doggedly behind Jade and Sorrow as they strode to the basement.
"Tash, stay up here or I'll use magic on you and damn the backlash. If he's in trouble we don't need to have to look after you too." Sorrow knew it was probably futile but Tash was usually fairly sensible; maybe this time she'd see sense.
Tash glared at Sorrow for a moment, meeting his unflinching gaze. The trembling in her legs threatened to dump her arse on the floor again and she waved in resignation. "Go then, but be careful. It's down there. And it's not what has Victor. That's something else. Henna was afraid of it." She leant heavily against the wall.
"We'll get him out, Tash." Sorrow turned back to the basement steps, gave Jade a quick glance then opened the door and moved down the stairs.
Victor stood straddling a toothy maw in the floor. His feet spread across its jaws which seemed impossibly wide. The shelves and cabinets were now elongated into ropey tentacles wrapped around Victor's arms and legs. Victor held one thick pseudopod in his two hands wrestling with it to keep it from stuffing him into the hole beneath him.
Spikes and suckers along the length of the tentacles pushed in and out as whatever it was futilely tried to force Victor down its gullet. But Victor was unwilling to go easily and he was obviously the biggest meal this creature had tried to eat.
Victor could barely gasp as the cords around his throat constricted, "About time. Can you give me a hand?"
*What the...?* Sorrow moved. He slashed his blade at one of the tentacles then desperately dodged the thing’s counterstroke as two tentacles lashed through where he had stood only moments before. Jade grabbed at the tip of one of the pseudopods and yanked hard. Sorrow spun and with a focused cry drove his blade through the muscular mass. The limb recoiled and sprayed black ichor around the room.
Dodging the various protrusions Sorrow moved closer to the maw while Jade continued to batter those tentacles that strayed too close to her.
A tendril snaked around Jade's leg as she was reacting to the other extrusions. It tugged hard and her shocked yelp got Sorrow's attention. Victor had managed to step away from the maw as the number of sinews holding him lessened.
Suddenly the feelers stopped pushing Victor and pulled. He stumbled and the thickest of the pseudopods whipped him across the floor trying to sweep Jade and Sorrow from their feet. Victor's head and torso slammed solidly into walls and snatched the corner of a cast iron furnace that lay cold an unused in the corner. He wrapped his arms around it and hung on to stop the motion.
Sorrow leaped over the rag-doll thrashing of Victor and had severed the tentacle from Jade's leg. It crawled like a caterpillar inching back into the creature’s mouth. Sorrow prepared to hurtle over the creature’s snapping tooth-filled maw to cut the arm holding Victor's waist when he heard a noise at the top of the stairway.
Tash crawled resolutely to the basement entrance. Despite the truth of Sorrow's words, she was damned if she was going to sit idly by while Victor was attacked by God knows what.
The stairs loomed before her as a vertiginous drop into the gloom and her stomach clenched involuntarily. Dropping to her belly, she could see in the basement below her the battle being waged by Sorrow, Jade and - thankfully - Victor on a huge tentacled beast. She drew out her gun, hoping to at least get one or two clear shots at the thing. The effort of holding her arms out straight, however, overwhelmed her already tenuous grasp on balance and she found herself sliding forward, teetering over that precipitous staircase.
After a seemingly endless series of bumps and thumps she landed gracelessly in a heap at the bottom of the stairs, staring up at an unimpressed-looking Sorrow. "Oops," she said.
Victor reached into the furnace and grabbed a twisted hunk of cast iron and with one arm beat the thick flesh holding him. The muscular tentacle jerked at him making him grunt with the effort. Victor looked over at Tash rolling down the stairs and Sorrow slashing with blurred motion to cut of Tentacles coming at him and Jade.
"Tash," Victor shouted, "Shoot into the mouth!"
Fumbling to reorient herself, Tash muttered, "Well, that's what I was planning to do. But stair-surfing was so much more fun, you know."
She managed to sit upright and aimed at the slobbering maw while Sorrow, Jade and Victor occupied its flailing tentacles. Hizashi whirred in the dim light, creating a bright blur as it hacked limbs. Tash found a clear shot and squeezed, the noisy blast from the gun almost deafening in the enclosed basement.
Black ichor coated the walls and bright red flesh in the thing’s toothsome jaws turned white. Flailing limbs and pseudopods retracted into a knotted mass of muscle n the center of the floor.
*Oh good girl!* thought Victor, *You hit something sensitive.*
"Another?" queried Tash mischievously.
Victor rolled to his feet and sprinted past the slowly relaxing knot in the floor. He watched as the floor returned to the color and consistency of concrete. "No, that was enough, better back up," he gasped.
The black blood dehydrated and turned into greasy dust. The cabinets and shelves returned to their former shape... though perhaps a bit more battered and worn. In moments the basement was once again undisturbed and innocent looking.
Tash sagged where she sat at the bottom of the steps, grateful that Victor seemed relatively unscathed. She looked up at him as he gazed across at her. "It was Henna," they said simultaneously.
Tash nodded to the innocuous looking piece of floor. "She was scared of that. The 'being' was scared of that."
"I am scared of that," Victor said. "I've seen similar monsters in caves and caverns but never that big, or that strong."
"Ok. Somebody help me out here... Is that what's been producing all the shapeshifters?! What the hell was it?" Jade linked her arm with Sorrow's as they walked on trembling legs back to where Tash was seated on the foot of the stairs and sank down to sit. "I've never seen anything like it!"
Sorrow rolled his shoulders. "No I don't think it's creating doppelgangers, not if Henna was afraid of it." Sorrow raised his sword and looked down the edge towards Tash. "Not that we aren't all grateful but I distinctly remember asking you to stay put."
"Yeah, I do too," Tash replied. "But I also seem to recall I just told you to go. I didn't say I wouldn't follow." Despite the black dread that still hung over her from her brush with the entity through Henna, Tash's eye still sparkled cheekily.
She looked around at the basement and shivered. Now that she knew where this evil thing lay, she fancied she could almost feel it, still reaching out to her...
Her eyes snapped open when she heard Victor saying her name, loudly. She got the impression he'd been calling to her for some time. She grimaced. "I think it's time we got out of this basement," she said.
Victor lifted Tash into his arms. "Yes, you obviously need to get out of here. But I am coming back." Victor looked over at Sorrow and was relieved to see his curt nod.
"Jade," explained Victor, "That monster isn't where the doubles come from at all, but it’s near there. Very near there. I didn't even see where the double that got away came from. Did you see him? A black man, muscular."
"Xavier." Jade nodded at Victor, her hands clenching into fists again. "Yes, we had a run-in with the both of them - the real and the copy - just before we went searching for you." Jade rushed on to reassure him. "The real Xavier killed the shapeshifter then left. We're still not too sure if he was here to spy on you or Tris..." She cast a worried glance at Sorrow. "But he didn't give us any trouble. Not yet anyway."
"Well that’s one less double for Galen's boys to handle." Victor reached to top of the stairs, "I assume you dealt with Henna?" Victor saw nods all around.
"Good," he droned, "She has been letting them out of the basement. If we make sure that more don't get out there may be a chance." Victor fished out his ring of keys and locked the basement door. He handed the ring to Sorrow. "Check the outside door to the basement too, and barricade it if necessary. Same for this one. I think there is some lumber out by the dumpster. Make sure they do not get out. I am going to see to Tash and I'll be out to help you in a few minutes." Victor began to climb the stairs to the second floor.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
***Sunday 28th August, 2005…14:34pm***
The room was still and dark, despite the time. The blinds were drawn closed tight as was the door - one of Meh’s special requirements. Sea-Doc shifted uneasily in the strange smelling bed and watched her friend snoring on the floor in the far corner.
Out of habit she made yet another check of Meh's aura. It had become something of a necessity added to her daily routine whenever she had to spend time with Meh. *Still hasn’t made any unwanted turns…. Good. I really should get a grip of myself. She’s still the same irritating, unstable…oh wait, that’s right! That’s why I keep checking her.* She sniffed.
Holding her breath, Sea-Doc quietly lifted the sheets off her and slipped out of the bed. That Reah girl had said her room mate had gone on some holiday and she just wasn’t sure when he’d be back. Although Sea-Doc got the impression that that wasn’t the whole truth by the way the girl's sentences were interrupted by deep, earth shuddering sobs.
Quietly, Sea-Doc sneaked across the distance to the door. She was still in her clothes from last night, aside from her coat, shoes and socks to make sleeping a bit more comfortable, but convenient for when she got up.
The door creaked slightly as she opened it. Meh stirred, kicking absently with one of her legs and… hold on,*Did she just ‘meow’?* Sea-Doc choked back a laugh and bit her lower lip.
“Elis?” Meh mumbled around her pillow. The light emitted from the cracked door just missed her by inches.
Sea-Doc sighed with relief. She hadn’t thought about the light that would come.
“Yeah Meh?”
She groaned some more and rolled to get a better view of Sea-Doc, hesitating for a moment to stare at the line of light that just missed her. She sighed in relief when she realised it wasn’t touching her and shuffled back instinctively. “Where you goin’?”
“I… ah, thought I’d take a look around.”
Meh propped herself up on her elbows behind her. “You’re not going to the hospital are you?”
“Of course not,” she quickly replied. *Oops… maybe a bit too quick.* “I’m not stupid!” she added defensively.
Meh eyed her suspiciously, then sniffed. “Whatever.” And thudded back to her pillow.
Sea-Doc quickly shuffled out the door and closed it behind her.
It was brighter than she’d imagined, and everything was so… old! The polished wood floors were nice, and when she bent down to inspect them she realised that they really were real wood! “Wow.” She wondered about the apartment in a daze, lifting this, touching that. The picture frame on the wall detailing hippos playing pool was quite bizarre, and the couch she’d guessed as near primitive… yet surprisingly comfy.
The girl, Reah, came strolling out of the bathroom rubbing her eyes tiredly and looking rather melancholy. She paused mid stride with the butt of her hand frozen in the motion of smothering her left eye when she noticed Sea-Doc bouncing up and down on the couch with a look of wonderment plastered on her face like she’d never seen a couch before in her life.
Sea-Doc immediately stopped when she became aware of Reah watching her.
Reah shook her head and continued to the kitchen.
“Out of towners!” she muttered.
Composed, Sea-Doc pulled herself off the couch, slapping it purposefully with a proud smile as she gave it one last look over before facing the long faced Reah.
“Morning,” she greeted Reah cheerfully.
Reah made a small weighted movement of her head and sniffed. Sea-Doc took it for a returned greet.
She looked concernedly upon the moping girl trudging pathetically around in her night wear that consisted of her underwear and baggy shirt. *Did we make a good choice?*
Sea-Doc thought back to the night before. The girl had nearly managed single handedly to drain her completely. There was no doubt about it. For once Meh’s spontaneity had been a good choice (and that on its own was a near miracle not to be taken lightly). It was just a matter of firing the girl up again when they needed her.
“Just get up?” Sea-Doc said. She cocked her head in thought, *Hopefully it shouldn’t be too hard.*
Reah moaned and shrugged. “Mmyeah… 'bout four hours ago.”
Sea-Doc winced. *Hopefully!*
Reah reached the fridge, feet splashing in the small puddle at its base. If she noticed, she made no sign of it. Opening up the dripping freezer she pulled out a large tub of triple choc icecream and removed the lid, friz-beeing it to the side. “Fuck!” She slammed it back into the freezer and savagely reached around the back of the fridge to flick on a switch.
Sea-Doc watched the desperate display with pity for the girl who was now smothering her face in her hands, back heaving silently. Either she was laughing or crying… *Million bucks for who can guess what!* she sighed.
*I had to calm her last night, she would have gotten herself killed! Not to mention screw us royally.* She still couldn’t help the guilt that rose in her gut at the lack of energy she had ultimately caused from her actions.
She needed to console her… but later!
No matter how much her desire to help people was, her feet were violently itchin’ to drag her back to that ‘house of torture’ and deal with a much more insistent desire.
She paused at the door, hand shaking on the handle. *The poor girl's on the verge of a complete breakdown…. Eehhhhhrrr…. Must help. House of torture. Must help….* She snapped and gave in to her conscience.
Gliding over to Reah she crouched down beside her and place a comforting hand on her back. Reah’s head stayed buried and she continued to shudder silently.
Sea-Doc whispered gently in her ear. She supported Reah and guided her into lifting herself up. Reah conceded without any struggle, much the opposite to the strain she had put Sea-Doc through the night before.
Sea-Doc eased her down onto the couch and told her to rest.
Surprisingly she did.
Sea-Doc frowned. That wasn’t good, the fact that she did so without even the slightest inch of a backbone. She may as well have been a drone taking orders!
*At least she’s resting now. I can go care for other things.*
With that she slipped out the door and headed swiftly out into the street.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Sunday, 28 August 2005 - 11pm
With a huge yawn, Jade switched off her laptop and got up from the dining table. She'd just managed to email her classified ad off in time to meet the deadline for tomorrow's paper (And would probably owe her contact at the newspaper lunch for the next ten years!) and all she wanted to do now was slip into bed with Sorrow and... *Cuddle,* she thought, grinning cheekily to herself.
Jade paused in front of the hall mirror and gave herself a critical onceover. *Hmmm... I could use a trim...* She ran her fingers through her hair. *But all in all, I don't look too bad.* She turned sideways to inspect how she looked. The khaki linen shorts emphasized her summer tan, as did the white tanktop which hugged her slim figure. *Not bad at all. Now to go distract my man from those damn books he's been reading the whole night.*
Sorrow looked up at her as she entered at the bedroom. He was wearing a thin, black silk robe and nothing else, sitting on the bed, propped against several pillows. Jade thought he looked good enough to eat. Her voice was husky as she sat herself down next to him and ran a finger down the tanned flesh exposed by the V of his robe. "Your first night home in three days and you spend it with musty old volumes instead of me. I'm hurt..."
Sorrow smiled and set his book aside. "Oh, where are you hurt?" He leant forward and softly kissed her lips. "Here?" He moved lower, kissed her neck briefly, "Here?" His lips trailed lower to kiss her collarbone, "Or here?"
"Mmmm, I'm not sure Doctor. You might have to continue your inspection till you reach a correct diagnosis." Jade made a humming noise in her throat as Sorrow's teeth nipped down the neckline of her top, allowing his mouth to continue its exploration.
She shifted slightly and was moving the book Sorrow had been reading to the floor when something in the text caught her eye. Her hand stopped in mid-caress and she pushed back slightly. "What's that you were reading darling?"
"Research..." Sorrow's mouth moved lower. Taking her breast into his mouth he pressed his tongue briefly to the thin material separating her flesh from him before silently retracing his path to her mouth.
"Talk about heavy reading," Jade chuckled breathlessly. "Can't you be like other men and have stacks of FHM magazines beside the bed?" Anything else she had to say was cut off as Sorrow continued to ravish her mouth and Jade's hands fisted in Sorrow's hair as she arched provocatively against him; teasing him, pushing his self control to the edge.
Why would I need FHM by the bed? I have you." Sorrow's hands dropped to the hem of Jade's top and gently drew it over her head, leaving her bare to his heated gaze. Devouring her with his eyes, Sorrow skimmed her silken skin with his hands.
His mouth dropped to her neck. He sucked briefly at her throat before nipping the flesh with his teeth. Biting, kissing and sucking, Sorrow worked his way down Jade's heated body pausing only to swirl his tongue into her navel. He undid the button of Jade's shorts and gazed upward at her eyes heavy with need and desire.
*************
Monday, 29 August 2005 - 8am
The sounding of the alarm clock had Sorrow's eyes snapping open. He looked down to where Jade was nestled against him and smiled at her ability to sleep through the annoying ringing before reaching over and switching the alarm off.
Brushing some stray hairs off Jade's face, Sorrow said softly, "Wake up sleepyhead..." Jade made a small snuffling sound and burrowed deeper under the covers. Finally, after some cajoling, she opened one eye and smiled. "Is it morning already? Didn't we just go to bed?"
Sorrow chuckled. "Actually, we went to bed quite early... Sleep, however, didn't come till about 2am." He winced when Jade jabbed him in the ribs and made to change the subject. "So... XY's big day... Nervous?"
"Not really. I think we're good to go. Finally!" Jade snuggled closer to Sorrow. "Will you be coming by later?"
"Of course. Probably around lunch time." Jade probably wouldn't want to close up, it being the first day of the reopening, so he thought he'd pick up something nice and bring it over. Sorrow wrapped his arms around Jade and pulled her a little closer. "What time do you have to be there?"
"Lunch sounds perfect." Jade kissed the base of Sorrow's neck. "I want to be at XY by around 9.30... We don't open till 10 but I just want to go over everything again to make sure that it's perfect... Mmmmm... What are you going to do till lunch?"
"Some more research, plus some T'ai Chi. " Sorrow glanced at the clock then lightly slapped Jade's bottom. "Time you were in the shower..."
XY Classifieds Ad
* On the Monday edition of the L.A Times *
Simonase-what?
Monday, August 29th 2005 - 11am
They were so undermanned it was now getting to reach the point of being a sick joke, Galen thought. That must be why they couldn’t get more resources. It was Command’s big gag, to see just how close they could bring the world to ruin. Which was why he found himself in the position of going to pick up magic supplies - a task which would usually be given to a junior agent, but they were all busy hunting clones or trying to get in touch with the people they would need to do the containment ritual that evening.
He thought it was fortunate that he’d found the small ad for the reopening of XY in the paper that day. Although he didn’t know much about the shop, he did remember meeting the owner of it once.
She could be trusted to have the supplies they would need, and also not to talk about the ‘odd purchase’ of herbs and crystals. He hoped. As he went into the shop, he noticed everything did look nice and orderly. Heading towards the back of the shop he found the magical supplies there, and noticed Jade finishing up with someone else at the counter.
"Pardon me," Galen said, pretending not to know her and reaching into his jacket for the lengthy list of stuff, "I need to find some supplies. Do you think you could help me?"
"Hi... What can...?" Turning towards Galen, Jade's smile faded but her voice remained steady, even friendly. "What are you looking for?" Her eyes were alert and focused intently on Galen as she debated the reason for his being here. *Is he really here for supplies? For the doppelgangers?* Jade shuddered at the memory of the previous day's incidents with Xavier, Henna and whatever that creature in the basement of Poplar was. *Or has this to do with Kate?* She had not spoken to her friend since the day before yesterday, when Kate had informed her that she was moving to a spare apartment on the lower floor, and had no idea if Galen and Kate had been in touch.
The tinkle of the front door signalled her previous customer leaving and Jade dropped all pretences. "Agent Eldridge." Dropping his list onto the counter she walked around it, stood before him and nodded her head stiffly. "What is it you want with me?"'
“Assistant Director,” he corrected gently, memories of the promotion coming back. Memories of Kate’s return from England came back to him too; that he wouldn’t be traipsing all over the country, and get to be with her. *No. Focus on your job.* He wanted to be with her, to make it up to her so bad it hurt.
“I told you,” Galen said, fighting to keep his voice even. “I’m here for supplies. I just don’t usually do this, so need some help.”
Jade stared at Galen for a couple of seconds before glancing down at the paper on the countertop. She frowned at the ingredients listed. *Looks like he's trying to do a containment spell. Make that a LOT of containment spells.* That fit what Tash had told her about Galen getting involved in the whole shapeshifter situation but Jade decided not to jump to any conclusions till she'd heard it straight from the horse's mouth.
"That's a lot of potential power you're purchasing. May I ask what you're buying all this for?"
“For a ritual, obviously,” Galen said, wondering if he could get away with smoking in the store. Probably not. Then he started lying furiously, even though that was exactly what got him in trouble with Kate to begin with.
And didn’t Kate at least used to work here? Maybe coming to XY was a bad idea. “Look, all I know is a friend gave me this list and said, ‘Can I ask you to do me a big favour and pick this stuff up?’”
*And it’s classified so intensely, I can’t even tell you it’s classified.*
It was evident to Jade from the way the man refused to meet her eyes that he was lying to her. Trying to control the flare of temper, Jade walked to the front of the store, hung up a sign that said {OUT FOR LUNCH} and locked the front door. *Easy does it girlie, no point getting nasty and scaring him off now. We'll just see if we can find out what's going on here first.*
Turning back to Galen, Jade smiled and explained. "For an order such as this, I'd prefer it if we had a little privacy. I'm sure you would too." She withdrew an ashtray from a drawer behind the counter and placed it between them. "Smoke?"
Galen raised an eyebrow in suspicion. It was certainly possible she was yet another telepath, but more likely she was just observant. And if she knew Kate, she would also probably know that he smoked.
“Thank you,” he said, reaching for the Salems and lighting one while offering the pack to Jade. “Of course, I can’t imagine what we’d have to discuss in private.”
"Nothing, really." Jade answered airily as she waved away his offer of a cigarette and withdrew her own. "Just that collating your order would draw a substantial amount of attention and I thought you'd prefer it if we did it without half a dozen other shoppers peering over your shoulder."
She lit a Marlboro and took a deep drag before continuing. "Hmmm... A dozen clear quartz crystals, incense... Your friend must be quite the spellcaster. What's his or her name? I know almost all of practicing Wiccans in the area." She laughed lightly. "I'll breathe a lot easier if I know I'm not selling anything to some crazed voodoo person."
The truth of the matter was, Galen had no idea exactly who they would find on the short notice they needed. What he did know was the person would be reliable… or they would be dead. Of course, he also knew the practicing Wiccan he wanted to be there, but she no longer wanted anything to do with him. “Oh, you don’t have to worry about penchants for the dark arts. That’s my job.”
"Living in this part of L.A., it's a little hard for me not to concern myself with such matters. Especially since XY's just re-opened." She turned around and met Galen's gaze directly. "The last thing I want is the sort of publicity we got earlier this year about it being a 'weird wiccan warzone'."
Jade rolled her eyes as she stubbed out what was left of her cigarette then went about picking up the items Galen needed. "I never found out what happened to that damned reporter, Anderson, but if any more like him are skulking around, I don't want XY implicated in any way. I hope you understand where I'm coming from, Assistant Director Eldridge." She placed several items on the counter. "Unless you tell me what you require all this for, I'm afraid I can't sell anything to you."
For a moment, Galen considered going ahead and breaking procedure. Then he remembered that early remark which had been made to him, so long ago when he first became an agent and asked for more detail: we tell you only what you need to know. As far as he could tell, she had no real need to know. He stubbed out one cigarette and immediately lit another one.
He hated himself for doing it to someone who was probably a friend of Kate’s. “I’m afraid I can’t tell you that,” he said. “But I can assure you that a few editors owe me favours. This allows me to influence the content of certain articles to be published. So I can promise you that no bad press will come your way.”
*Damn. Ok, he called my bluff there.* Jade decided to try another, more direct tack. "Look, it's obvious that you and your 'friend', if he or she even exists, are trying to do a containment spell. Which wouldn't be all that uncommon but for the quality and quantity of the items you're buying. With that amount of harnessed magic, you could bind an entire cult! And their extended families!"
Or a rather large demon, he thought ruefully. Really, some large targets could be surprisingly agile, and it helped to hold them still before the machine guns went off. “Nothing so crude as that,” Galen replied. “Just trust me, you don’t want to know. He’d said that to Kate on numerous occasions. There had to be some way to work this all out, something he could do to earn her forgiveness, even though he didn’t deserve it. All he had to do was figure out what. From Jade’s look, he could tell he had spoken out loud at some point, and he just stood there with an embarrassed look on his face.
"Galen?" Jade spoke gently. She knew that he was feeling awkward about having unconsciously voiced his feelings; the misery on his face was so obvious, it was almost painful to see. "Kate told me a bit about what happened. She stayed with me for a while after you dropped her off at Poplar..." She trailed off, not really knowing what else to say but wanting desperately to help her friend and the man that Kate loved. She just hoped that Galen realised that.
Galen hoped she hadn’t revealed much. He didn’t dare to try to say anything else, for fear of either learning she'd said too much, or of saying something she hadn’t said. The cigarette hung limp in his mouth before falling to the floor. He never noticed. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything….”
"Maybe not. But you did... And look? Lightning didn't strike us, we haven't been gunned down and no major catastrophes have taken place." Jade smiled to take the sting out of her words as she bent down to pick the butt off the floor and drop it into the ashtray.
"I don't know what exactly happened to make Kate walk out on you Galen; she wouldn't tell me much. Just that you kept too many secrets from her and they finally all caught up with you."
“I would rather not talk about it,” Galen said, shaking his head. He rested his back against the wall, and tried to fight off as well as possible the depression that he had been in and out of over the past few days.
“Why did I even come here?” he muttered. “Look, can we just finish with this order? Please?”
Jade couldn't help but feel sorry for Galen; he looked totally, wretchedly exhausted. At the same time, however, the memory of how terrible Kate had looked on Friday morning when she'd found her sitting outside Tash's front door made her persist.
"Kate loves you, Galen. Despite everything that's happened."
Galen felt his legs go weak as his body slumped against the wall. She still loved him? But no, that wasn’t possible. Not after what he had done. It was what he always did, conspiring to obfuscate, inveigle, deceive.
But that was certainly possible if only he could see her, get to talk to her. Maybe he would call her after everything with the demon was over. Which reminded him - focus on the work. “Work,” he said. “I have to work. Ever hear the name Simonaseveticor Terrenisquareinthikalicus?”
Jade blinked, then her eyes narrowed. *Not exactly the response I was hoping for. I tell him Kate still loves him and he gives me a whole lot of gobblydook.* "Is it always work with you Assistant Director Eldridge?" The shift in tone was not lost on Galen. "Is work even more important than the woman you profess to love?"
Galen felt a desire to get up and smack Jade. The work wasn’t more important to him than Kate. Hell, she was the only thing that mattered to him if he was honest. Here she was, telling him that Kate still loved him, and what was he supposed to do? Galen knew what he wanted to do - drop everything and go to her. But duty demanded he deal with about half a dozen different crises at once.
“You don’t know,” he said. “I want nothing more than to be with her right now… but I have to take care of this first.”
She knew that she was probably being too harsh on him but the spark of temper was just what Jade was hoping for. *Better that then his dodging around the problem and wallowing in delusional self-pity.* And his words hinted strongly that he had no intention of giving up on his relationship with Kate yet, so Jade decided to leave that matter alone for now.
"Take care of what, exactly? Or is that 'classified' as well?" Jade gave Galen a pointed look.
“Oh, nothing much,” Galen said, standing up and focusing on the work at hand. If he could focus on his job, it would let him get through the day. He could call her later. “Simonaseveticor Terrenisquareinthikalicus. It’s the codename for a demon, and what the supplies are for.”
"A demon? You're buying all this to contain one demon? How big is it? The size of Texas?" Jade pushed her hair back and huffed out a breath of frustration. This conversation was leading nowhere. Galen was being as deliberately obtuse about his work as he was about Kate.
Deciding that she'd had enough of dancing around in circles, Jade said, "Tash told me yesterday that you're working with her and Victor. The shapeshifters... Is that what this is all about?"
"Not at all," Galen replied, rolling his eyes. Could these people keep a secret if their lives depended on it? Finally, he'd had enough. First the inquisitiveness, then pushing him about Kate.
"Look, if you're not going to sell, just say so. I'll leave and go somewhere else. I also won't be held responsible for what the editors don't cut if you try to pry into things best left unexplored."
"Your threats don't frighten me Assistant Director Eldridge." Jade was beginning to get angry and her tone was icy and sharp. "You'll have a hell of a lot of trouble finding another place as well stocked as XY for the supplies you need. And I can almost guarantee that any other shopowner won't be as discreet as I will about your purchases. News about your 'little' containment spell will hit the streets even before you make payment! Why can't you see that I'm trying to help you?" Jade cried, flinging her hands up in exasperation.
“Just why did I come here?” Galen said aloud for the second time. “I had hoped I could count on your discretion. That you would be the kind of owner to not talk about your customers’ business. You’ve gotten all of the information I can give you.”
"I don't usually make it a point in questioning my customers this way but..." Jade sighed. The stubborn set of Galen's jaw and the glint in his eye told her that it was useless to say anything more. He wasn't going to budge and tell her anything else.
"Just give me a few minutes. I'll pack and wrap everything, then ring you up." He seemed a little surprised at that and Jade paused as she walked towards the back of the store. "Galen?" She gave him a little sheepish smile. "I'm sorry for giving you the third degree - I don't mean to add salt to your wounds. But sometimes, you've got to learn to spread the burden out among people who think of you as a friend. Shouldering everything on your own could break you totally." With that, she disappeared into XY's store room.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
***Sunday 28th August, 2005...15:34pm***
“Could Doctor Glinshim please report to the ICU? Thankyou.”
Sea-Doc hunched further back into the collar of her white coat as the announcement finished and carefully peered around the corner at the ward she was preparing to enter.
‘ICU.’
Two security guards came strolling out through the double doors that swung back and forth till they closed fully behind them.
Sea-Doc quickly pulled herself back before she was noticed by the guards that were approaching her little corner.
“…It's no use Len. I might as well just give up now and live whatever life I have left.”
“Hey, don’t talk like that man. You’ll get through it!”
“Sure. And pigs fly.”
“Look, I’ll even come around tonight and help you. Level four’s a bitch for people who don’t usually play Wonder Boy.…”
Sea-Doc listened to the voices as they faded into the distance before deeming it safe to continue round the corner and into the ward.
She needed to be quick.
Pushing through the doors she kept a watch over her shoulder and silently slipped into the ward then turned to the first enclosure to her left.
The contempt for which she held the place was not hidden from her face as she looked upon a bruised, battered and bloodied woman before her resting unconsciously, completely dead to the world.
She couldn’t bear the sight of these people's suffering and the ‘care’ they were receiving. Sea-Doc had paused only a moment on entry before she was at the woman’s side with her hand resting lightly on her arm, closing her eyes with a steady concentration as she journeyed through the woman‘s body and polished up her wounds, mending what those ‘doctors‘ had left.
Sea-Doc returned to herself a second after entering the woman’s body, shaking the off the minor effects that hit her as a result of her actions. *So far so good.*
She didn’t wait before exiting the woman’s enclosure and entering the next to repeat the same process.
*Hm, false heart!* Limited technology though. She shook her head and moved onto the next.
She was surprised at the little backlash she was receiving and counted herself lucky. These people had been helped somewhat, though she felt she could have done the exact same thing with a knife and fork if she didn’t have the care to do her job properly. *Funny practice of healing, that partly involves butchering!*
She moved on.
Her hand mechanically flew to her nose to cover it from the stench the emanated from the poor man before her. He had been completely isolated from the rest of the patients and unlike the others, had been detached from any technical support.
The mere sight had Sea-Doc dry-retching. *This is completely inhumane! Who could just leave a man like this?
She darted immediately to his side and took a firm hold of his hand and didn’t pause for a moment before diving straight into his body with a great urgency to heal him.
“Oh god!” She perspired with the effort to stay within him to banish the persisting poisons that had hold of him. And there was a blood clot forming… re-forming it seemed, pressing within his brain and cutting off the sparse oxygen that somehow had been getting drawn into the man in order for him to be surviving.
She couldn’t work it out, but currently only one thing mattered to her before she could be bothered with trying to figure what was off about him.
She barely had the time to rebuild the man's immune system, but was spared no time at all to counterbalance her own self to draw steadily out of his domain and was instead blasted out with a painful force that had her shakily lifting herself out of the untimely ruins of the medical backup machinery.
“Hey!”
Sea-Doc’s head darted up.
Doctor Glinshim had apparently arrived, recognition spreading across both of the women’s faces at the sight of each other.
“You again! Call security!” the doctor yelled across her shoulder.
Sea-Doc shot up from the demolished machinery and pushed forcefully past the stunned woman accidently sending her crashing back into the opposing wall and knocking her out.
She didn’t slow down at all as she fled the scene. *Damn woman does more harm to people anyway. They call that healing?*
“There!”
Sea-Doc’s head darted to the security guard who was pointing in her direction and had two others backing him up.
Sea-Doc wavered but forced her legs to press on and they carried her. She flew down the long and winding corridors, past the stunned patients, visitors and doctors. Away from the security guards as they popped up randomly and put on chase at sight of her.
Her head spun and pounded, swaying from side to side. Forks in the path appeared when there were none. She wanted to rest, but her legs pressed on without letting up and her feet pounded hard against the floor till she was clear, outside and as far away from the hell building as she could get.
It was still broad daylight, but she found a comfortable pile of something hidden by a dumpster down some alley that she collapsed and took cover in from any patrols she had expected to follow while she recovered from the massive drain she’d undergone.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Sunday 28th August – 11:30pm
The darkness in the room was almost complete, but to vampire eyes there was more than enough light to see by. Deon twisted on the bed and flicked out his long tongue to catch one last rivulet of blood that ran down the prostitute’s breast. It was amazing how so many of them didn’t care about a customer’s apparent age, so long as he could produce money. He sighed in contentment. Life didn’t get much better than this.
Except…
He lay back in the dark next to the rapidly cooling corpse and considered his position.
His first recruit, Stuart, had naturally met an abrupt end at the male vampire hunter’s hand. Deon had fully expected this and didn’t sweat the loss. He’d now built up a bevy of followers ready to jump at his every command. The thing that bothered him about Stuart’s mission was that it had proved to be unnecessary. He’d been sent to test the emotional mettle of Tash’s friend. Perhaps, if he was lucky, the seed Deon planted might take root if the hunter didn’t dismiss the idea out of hand.
But then his darling sister – good, pure Tash – had confounded him by doing the very thing he’d had Stuart suggest to the sword-wielding hunter. Deon shook his head, recalling the visceral thrill he’d felt as he watched his sister fuck that vampire until its eyes crossed before she calmly staked it.
He’d never realised she had it in her. But it would make his job that much harder. Playing with her mind could be difficult if it already contained such corruption.
This week had been strange, though. He’d not followed her every night – and, in fact, had encountered some difficulty in picking up her trail for several days. But now she seemed to be back in the building on Poplar Avenue. A minion was watching discreetly on his behalf. But Tash’s recent behaviour puzzled Deon. It didn’t seem to follow the pattern he’d heard about before his arrival, and what he’d seen since. Well, up to the night she’d bonked that vamp, anyway.
Rolling off the bed, Deon retrieved his jeans from the floor and pulled them over his bony, boyish hips. Licking his lips to gather the final lingering taste, he gazed at the ephemeral beauty of the young prostitute as she lay in the twisted attitude of death. Her pale skin seemed to glow in the shadowy room.
Deon’s eyes narrowed and he leant over the corpse as he bit his own lip, then kissed her cool mouth. He could almost sense the trickle of blood running down her throat, felt that moment when instinct caused the girl to swallow. That instant when the demon realm opened just enough for a new entity to take up residence in this perfect body. Deon almost laughed with the heady delight of it all. Wonderful.
She’d make a most entertaining consort.
Wavering...
***Sunday 28th August, 2005...15:34pm***
There he lay. He had given up trying. He was waiting but it would not let him leave.
He had tried to gain control but he could not; the damage was too bad.
He had given up. In a way, he did not exist.
He could not remember why he was supposed to be in control.
*Why try when it hurts so much?*
The force that held him did not waver. It was he that wavered. After all, it could not hold him there if he ceased to exist.
*Would it not be easier that way?*
So he waited.
In the beginning he had memories to comfort him, but now almost all of them were gone. He did not know where, for where they had gone he could not follow. A consolation - as the memories left so did the pain.
So he waited.
Now he remembered little, a few pictures only. *Faces. They look scared.*
The look on their faces scared him. *What are those faces so scared of? Are they scared of me?*
Then there was a presence.
*It's here all around me. What is it doing? The pain, it is coming back! No, get out! I don't want you here! I need more time! I need to know why the faces are so scared! I want to find that out then leave here!*
The presence continued. He felt stronger and felt more pain, he felt more 'connected'.
*GET OUT! I can feel it. I am more here than before. It hurts... I don't want to be here! GET OUT! LEAVE ME! LET ME BE ALONE!!!!*
And the presence was gone.
And he was alone.
With the pain.
And the faces.
He did not waver.
Lost You in the Canyon
***Sunday, August 28, 2005 – 2:30 a.m.***
“Dog, she’s playin’ you.”
“Yes, David, but the tune is so damn sweet.”
“She asked about the Cadre, din’t she?"
“Of course. Really, David, you can be dull as a spoon.”
“Spoon? I don’t get it.”
London sighed at his pet demon on the other end of the cell phone. “Nothing sharp about a spoon, David.” London could practically see the Xs in David’s eyes. “She’s supposed to ask about the Cadre. That’s the whole point of this exercise.”
“I was just asking, dog. Where you at?”
“Behind that preposition.”
“Huh?”
“Where I’m ‘at’ is driving down Melrose.”
“You think she knows where the Cadre is?”
“Do you still have it?”
“Yeah.”
“Then she doesn’t know where it is.”
“Bitch told you she didn’t like me, didn’t she?”
“David, her like or dislike of you is of no consequence.” London had one nerve left and David was getting on it.
“But you sent me away,” the demon whined.
“With the Cadre, David!” David was just about as useless as chicken-shit on a pump handle. “Remember, she can’t get her hands on it.”
“But don’t you need it close by to keep up the mojo on her?”
The cell phone crackled radio waves as London drove west on Melrose.
“The ‘mojo’ as you call it, is in her for the rest of her existence. She belongs to me. The rest is coming.”
“If that’s what you want, bruthuh.”
“Who wouldn’t?”
“Too saddity for my taste. Bet she was one of them house niggahs; all uppity high yalla.”
“Don’t use that word.”
“Well -- she is saddity.”
“Not that wor… Nevermind.” *My people just ain’t never gonna be free.* “It’s important that she not obtain the Cadre. She’d work her own mojo and I wouldn’t be able to get and keep all that I want.”
“I gotcha back, Homes. It’s safely locked away with the…”
“Imbecile! I don’t want to know. That’s why I told you to take the Cadre somewhere I wouldn’t guess. Parasol’s a very cunning woman. I can’t tell her what I don’t know.”
“You wouldn’t tell her, dog.”
“She can be very persuasive. Check in tomorrow and don’t be late.”
London drove south on LaCienega and smiled at what act he imagined she might employ to persuade him to tell.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
* * Monday, Aug 29, 2005 * *
Manticore sat on the cold plastic chair in the hallway with his Styrofoam cup full of black coffee. They told him couldn't smoke in here but he was tempted to do it anyway. He outranked them after all. He looked up and down the hall and noted cameras, sprinkler systems, hidden security ports that could dispense anything from gas to bullets. Typical.
These secret lab were all alike. They were built from plans that dated back to the late 50's and had barely been updated since then. Didn't matter where you were, three labs on the left, two hallways with offices on the right, records in the basement. All of them. Idiots never changed anything. If you broke into one base you could break into any of them.
Anthony Constillias, also known as Manticore, did not like to be kept waiting. He pulled out a cigarette and had just cupped a lighter to the tip when a voice said, "You can't smoke in here."
He didn't light the cigarette. He pulled it from his lips and turned to the white-coated man. His very demeanor screamed "Secret government Scientist" and Manticore wondered how he managed to keep his job a secret. He probably didn't.
Manticore could see him standing around a barbecue in his back yard bragging about all of the aliens he'd dissected or the latest scientific discovery he'd covered up. Manticore smiled at him. It was a smile calculated to make him nervous. It worked.
"Doctor...," Tony checked his name tag, "Wojohovitz. Do we have some answers today?"
The good doctor adjusted his glasses and straightened his jacket. Tony immediately knew he had no answers even before he opened his mouth. "Well we have not found out much," the doctor said, “It has only been a few hours since we received the specimen."
Manticore’s condescension was palpable, “Well then, what do we know?”
The scientist waved for Manticore to follow and then stepped into one of the three labs. Inside there was a wide assortment of equipment, all of it blinking and whirring. The scientist pointed at a monitor. And looked at Manticore for a glimmer of comprehension. Not seeing it he regained his superior air and began to explain.
“The specimen isn’t human. Nor is it derived from human as most of the sub-terrestrial race known as vampires are. This is a chemical breakdown of the creature’s blood. It contains no DNA, no iron, no anything; it's not even protoplasm as far as we can determine. The closest thing we’ve been able to determine is that it very closely resembles ectoplasmic discharge like you might find in a strong poltergeist or psychic phenomenon.”
Manticore looked blankly at the doctor, “So you know it isn’t human and it isn’t alive. Now what?”
The doctor was warming up to his subject, “Well almost all of the sub-terrestrials and all of the non-terrestrials we’ve been able to study are alive. They are made of protoplasm and have cells and many of them have DNA that is compatible with human DNA. The few non-protoplasmic species we have information on are ghosts, mechanical life forms and... um... magical creatures.”
“So it's magic.”
“No, not exactly. I think it may be vulnerable to magic, but I am not sure how it will react. It many not be alive like us but it is mimicking us. It looks as human as can be until you start to break it down chemically. Ectoplasmic cells, ectoplasmic atoms even, the only part of it that isn’t ectoplasm is the plate that was affixed to its chest.”
“What happens if you remove the plate?”
“The creature loses atomic definition. It starts to melt. The process begins immediately and we estimate it takes about 10 minutes from the time of separation for discohesion to occur.”
“Discohesion?”
“It becomes a puddle of goo.”
“So what is the significance of the plate?”
“We don’t know. As you can imagine the specimen has been uncooperative. It is not as subject to electricity as a normal vampire might be nor do the typical deterrents - crosses, holy water and stakes - seem to have any effect. Although we do think that if we were to administer a sufficiently traumatic injury it might disrupt its delicate cohesion act.”
“So it can be killed.”
“Oh yes, without too much more effort than killing you or me.”
“Hmm. Thank you doctor, carry on. This study has been most useful.”
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
***Sunday 28th August, 2005...21:45pm***
Meh sat cross legged on the floor staring up at Reah with her head tilted. *She’s soooo boring! Trust Sea-Doc to suck the life and any possible fun out of anything she passes.*
She sighed and rocked her head to the other side.
"Huh? What did you say?"
Reah’s head raised dazedly. "Huh? Nuthin'." And drooped back down again.
Meh sighed. Man was she bored. Bored, bored, bored. *And where the fuck is Sea-Doc, the bitch? I swear I‘ll just go out and kill something. It‘ll be her fault for leaving me here on my own with Reah…. Whom she drained of too much energy to hold a minute's conversation!* Reah might have been fun if she wasn’t so mopey.
The door suddenly clicked and grabbed Meh’s attention instantaneously as Sea-Doc admitted herself back into the apartment looking exhausted.
"And just where have you been?" Meh said much like an annoyed parent.
"Out."
Meh scratched her fingernails down the floorboards in front of her causing Sea-Doc to curl. "Fine. But I don’t see how healing people would be any different to my killing of them here."
"Hey! I didn’t..."
"Yeah you did. I’m actually not as stupid as you think I am, Sea-Doc. And something as blatantly obvious as this is quite insulting for you to think you can play me to believe otherwise."
Sea-Doc’s mouth worked silently which gave Meh enough satisfaction to lean off the subject. There was something about silencing people that gave her pleasure.
Sea-Doc finally managed a sniff as if Meh was the one being childish. *Me!*
"How’s she going?"
Meh sighed, "She’s boring, I’ll hand you that."
"It’s not my fault!"
"And I’m a minotaur!"
"May as well be half the time," Sea-Doc muttered.
"Excuse me?"
"Nothing! But I had to. She would have gotten herself killed otherwise."
"I’m right here."
Sea-Doc and Meh both turned their heads simultaneously to stare at Reah who had suddenly spoken up. Meh blushed; she’d forgotten Reah was still here.
"What do you two want?"
*She’s alive, SHE’S ALIVE! …Granted she’s still a little moody. But alive!* Meh grinned.
Sea-Doc exchanged a glance with Meh before turning back to Reah who was lying on her side with her head resting on the arm of the couch, but still waiting expectantly for an explanation.
Sea-Doc sighed. "Truth is we want... need your help."
Reah continued to wait.
"Why were you at the Beazor last night?"
Reah glanced at the window before sighing and returning back to Sea-Doc. "It wasn’t the Beazor. It was Narcosis."
Meh frowned. *What!* She exchanged another worried glance with Sea-Doc then returned her attention to Reah. "But I thought you were looking for the Beazor Complex last night."
"I was, well, I… no…" Reah gritted her teeth in aggravation. "Yes and no. I was actually after Paul who happens to own both the places. I hate the Beazor Complex and Narcosis because I hate Paul."
"Nesmith?"
Reah nodded.
Meh sighed in relief. They hadn’t wasted their time by sticking to this girl.
Curiosity took her. "Can I ask why you hate him?"
"Just a lot of little things really."
Meh sighed in disappointment.
Reah inhaled deeply. "Like trashing the Armoury, shooting me in the arm, trying to kill me twice, having me kidnapped in the back of a boot, blowing up the Armoury." She glared through Meh and past the walls in which she was contained.
Meh’s eyes widened, *Oooh!* "What’s the Armoury?" *Sounds like my wonderland.* She smiled, eyes fluttering with ecstasy as she fantasised.
"It used to be where I worked, then I was given the deeds to the place when the owner ran off." She sighed, a hint of sadness in her voice. Meh couldn’t pick why.
Sea-Doc yawned then rubbed her temples.
"So why do you need my help? And why mine?" Reah continued.
Sea-Doc took up at this point while Meh was busy. "For now we’ll leave it at vengeance on Beazor, namely Paul Nesmith. You…"
"You were chosen because of your pointed rage that just came out in waves from you." Meh casually broke in on Sea-Doc’s parade. Meh sniffed and smiled up at the ceiling, eyes closed. "Mmm, I could practically taste it."
"We would have chosen anyone who was a viable candidate for the job, but…"
"But we happened to come across you first and… mmm, yes. Once we saw you there was no denying your adequateness for the job."
Sea-Doc shook her head. "There’s no such word, Meh."
"Huh?" Meh snapped out of her fantasy and stared at Sea-Doc.
"Adequateness. There’s no such word."
"There is now."
Reah watched the two as the bickered over the right word before she’d finally had... "Enough!"
They both turned to stare at her.
"Urgh, you’re giving me a headache. I want to sleep. Just one question. Why, if you want me to help you get rid of Paul, didn’t you join with me instead of stopping me?" Reah eyed the two carefully.
Meh stared. "Good question…" She looked questioningly to her partner.
"That," Sea-Doc continued on. "Will be a question answered at another time."
Reah snorted and kicked her legs off the couch to head to her bedroom.
Meh’s head darted about wildly. "Wait, wait! You’re not going out?"
"No."
"But…! Sea-Doc! Are you…?"
"Going to bed."
"Can I…?"
"No."
"FUCK!" *So fucking bored!*
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Cemetery Road, Alhambra, Los Angeles
Monday, 29th August, 2005
10:45pm
Kate hurried along the streets towards Poplar Avenue. She hadn't meant to be this late but her research had taken a more interesting turn when she uncovered a myth about a species of demon that could infect a person's dreams. Now it was dark and Kate still had to make the worst part of the twenty-minute walk back to the apartment block from the bus drop-off point, past Cemetery Road.
She quickened her pace, clutching the stack of notes and books tightly to her chest. She really hated that the bus services purposefully avoided this part of town. Hearing a noise far off in the distance Kate picked up the speed a bit more. She really wasn't in the mood for a demonic confrontation tonight, in fact all she wanted to do was get home and see if Galen had received her message. Her heartbeat raced as her 'walk' turned into a run. Hearing the same noise again, only louder this time, Kate glanced over her shoulder. She stopped in the middle of the street, taking a good look around. A stray newspaper blew down the alleyway, but apart from that the street was empty.
Kate released a sigh of relief and laughed at how she had let her imagination run away with her. She turned back in the direction of Poplar Avenue and let out a startled cry as she came face to face with Ryan.
****
Reah pushed casually along on her latest investment, which she had actually brought on Friday, but what are you going to do? It really was a nice skateboard - ‘World Industries’. She’d always loved that brand. She chuckled cynically to herself as she glided down the street. *This is probably the worst idea I’ve had yet. Hunting on my skateboard!*
It would have been interesting to have Meh join her. She was eager enough to go out, but both Meh and Sea-Doc insisted that she go out on her own to get back on her feet. They apparently had something to do and didn’t want her around for it. And neither of them would tell her more than they already had, so Reah just persisted with grunting at their secrecy and went about her business.
Part of Reah wasn’t comfortable with have those two alone in her apartment doing god knows what, but was something they didn’t want her around for. The other part couldn’t care less if they were having some strange ritual dance of death… or whatever. Reah wasn’t very down with names of rituals. If they wanted her help, fine. Who cares! She had nothing else going for her at the moment.
She sighed. She really missed the fluid motions involved in pushing herself along on a skateboard and cut from side to side, re-establishing and losing herself to its nature. And right now, she needed all the distractions she could muster, although she couldn’t help but feel that although she’d been encouraged to go hunt by Meh and Sea-Doc, that this was actually a mask on an ulterior motive of hers to find Sam. *Fat chance of that happening though. He probably ran off. He is smart after all. No one wants to hang around me for too long.*
Her katana was concealed behind her coat, but every so often it would flap back revealing a hint of its presence. Stakes, holy water and whatnot were also strapped into their usual positions.
She was about to attempt an ollie as she crouched slightly, preparing herself, when about 200 metres up the street she spotted a tall dark figure in the shadows moving along. She straightened slowly, studying him. Deciding to play it safe, she swiftly kicked up the board, jumped off silently and sneaked off behind a nearby car.
She moved around it stealthily as she watched him seemingly watching for something else.
Just then, a fiery red headed girl came running into view just ahead of the man from further down the road and stopped in the middle of the street darting her gaze warily about. "Right! A stalker! Not really my area of expertise, but…" She sighed heavily and slipped out silently from behind the car as the man suddenly appeared before the girl.
****
Kate staggered backwards in shock, dropping her books and files to the floor.
"What's wrong Kate? You've been spending all this time looking for me and now I'm here," said Ryan with a sneer. "You should learn to keep your nose out of other people's business!" he spat venomously grabbing hold of her arm tightly.
"I'm on to you," said Kate firmly, trying not to let her fear show through. "I'm going to find out what you're up to. Whatever game you are playing is over. Daye won't give you the time of day once I tell her..."
"You're really not very smart are you?" said Ryan through gritted teeth, almost lifting Kate off of the floor. "Pretty girl like you, walking home all alone in the dark, anything could happen... things you don't even want to think about."
Kate gasped out loud as Ryan released her and she fell hard on the ground in a heap amongst her books.
"You should leave Daye alone, she doesn't need to be friends with the likes of you any more," threatened Ryan.
Kate raised her arm to propel Ryan away but he grabbed it with lightning speed in mid-air. He squeezed it tightly and dragged Kate off the ground.
"I should have known you wouldn't just take a friendly warning," he growled, "people like you need to be shown who's in control. Who has the real power. It certainly isn't a stupid little girl like you."
Ryan dragged Kate away from the well-lit street and into the shadows of a nearby alleyway. Surrounded by darkness Ryan pushed Kate against the wall and held her struggling limbs tightly. He leaned in closer, his lips hovering only inches from her own. "It's been a while since I had a good feed," he growled hungrily.
"Hey!" Reah swung her skateboard around hard, tracks first, cracking him hard in the head and knocking him off balance to the side at the unexpected blow. "Your mum apparently didn’t teach you it so I will. BE NICE TO LADIES!" she yelled and slammed him again before grabbing the girl by the wrist and pulling her into a run out of the alley and back to the lit up street heading for the apartments. *Where the hell else am I going to go?*
"Are you all right?" Reah managed between breaths while running, still holding the girl’s arm and clutching her board.
By the time Ryan had regained his balance the two women were almost at the end of the street. He rubbed the back of his head where that blonde bitch had struck him. He wasn't really hurt - it would take more than a scrawny runt like that to hurt him. More than anything he was annoyed. He couldn't allow this damn witch to ruin what he had planned for Daye. One way or another, she would have to be taken care of... Ryan glared into the darkness and then stalked away.
Kate could hardly keep pace with the girl beside her. Finally they slowed down to a stop only a few blocks from Poplar Avenue. Kate leaned back against the wall and regained her breath. "I'm fine, thanks to you," she smiled.
Reah smiled back, her eyes not sharing the same emotion, and let the girl catch her breath. "That’s all right," she sighed. She looked at the tracks on her board and winced. "Friend of yours?" she joked sarcastically.
"Heh, not exactly," laughed Kate, taking a moment to observe her rescuer. "My name's Kate by the way."
"Reah," she replied looking up from her board. "Well, I have to hand it to him… he certainly has a hard head," She fingered the wonky tracks on her board and spun a wheel. It didn’t take long before it scuffed to a halt. "I need new tracks. I don’t think I even really seemed to hurt him that much! Usually a blow like the two I gave him would knock ‘em to the ground!" She thought curiously. "The first blow should have done that alone!" She looked at Kate quizzically. "Was he even human?" she said simply, not expecting Kate to take it seriously. He didn’t seem like a vampire.
Kate looked at Reah fussing over her board and suddenly realised she had left all her books and notes in the middle of the street. She half contemplated going to retrieve them, then realised Ryan might be waiting for her to do just that.
"Um, yes, he's strong," said Kate distractedly, still thinking about all her lost research. She rubbed her shoulder, and then winced at how painful it felt. She hadn't realised just how strong Ryan actually was. She looked up at Reah and noticed the row of stakes and holy water fixed on to her belt. She raised an eyebrow in speculation, "I suppose you're going to tell me that you were just out for a midnight stroll?" she asked quizzically.
Reah noticed Kate eying the stakes and holy water on her belt and moved to cover them with her coat out of habit, but thought otherwise. *No use now.* She grinned. "Nope. I’m going to be a smart ass and tell you I was out for a midnight ‘skate’." She sniffed. "So who was that guy?"
Kate smiled at Reah's joke and then looked back into the darkness. "His name's Ryan, and as you saw, he's very dangerous," said Kate bluntly. *Now why can't Daye see what kind of sadistic, murdering bastard Ryan really is?* "So, what are you? A vampire hunter I'm guessing..."
Reah quirked an eyebrow. "Am I that transparent?" she joked with her cynical smile. "You?"
Kate pulled out a crumpled packet of cigarettes and placed one between her lips before offering one to Reah. The girl wrinkled up her tanned nose and shook her head in refusal.
Kate took a moment to light her cigarette and then inhaled deeply. They began walking again, in the direction of Poplar Avenue. "Not transparent, but I've had a lot of experience working with people in the same line of work as yourself," she explained. Kate exhaled slowly and sighed in contentment. "I'm a witch."
Reah moved upwind of Kate muttering, "Sorry." Usually she didn’t like to be blatantly obvious and rude, but they were her lungs. "Cool. Can’t say I’ve known many witches." She paused, thinking. "None actually!" She mused, "I figured they’d most likely exist considering the other things that do." Her face twisted in disgust. "Here’s a really lame question, but is it like spells and chanting or… ahem… Sabrina?"
"Oh sorry," said Kate apologetically, noticing Reah's discomfort at her smoking habits. "I keep forgetting this is California, 'death to all smokers' and all that." She smiled and continued to talk. They weren't far from Popular now. "No, not like Sabrina. Wicca is my religion, witchcraft is just one small part of my faith. Not that you would know that around here." Kate sighed, dropping the cigarette butt onto the floor and stubbing it out with the heel of her boot. "It's all wind chimes and dreamcatchers over here."
Reah rolled her eyes, "I noticed." She strolled along and rubbed her temples as they began to throb. "And it’s all right, about the smoking and all. I figure people have their own lives to do what they wish with it. I’m not exactly a local here anyway, so I’m not so bad as ‘death to all smokers’."
"Glad to hear it," grinned Kate. She slowed to a stop as they reached the outer vestibule of 1318 Poplar Avenue. "Well this is me," said Kate with a smile. "Thanks again for everything."
Reah looked from Kate to the apartments, to Kate… then back to the apartments again, slightly confused. "You're here?" She pointed with her free hand across her torso to the building. Kate nodded. "Are you sure?" she asked again.
"Pretty sure," smiled Kate, taking her keys out of her jacket pocket. She suddenly stopped for a moment and frowned at Reah. "You too?" At Reah's puzzled nod Kate laughed and opened the door. "Don't worry, I only moved in a few days ago. I'm friends with Tash and Victor. I had..." Kate quickly looked away, walking into the foyer. "I had some bug problems at my place and needed a place to stay for a short while."
Reah shivered at the mention of bugs. "Ah!" She tapped her nose. "I live with my friend, Sam. Best friend actually." She shook her head with a soft smile, but it slowly faded. "I’d met butterflies more threatening than him when I first met him," she thought aloud solemnly. How could she let her guard down and let him disappear like that? He was probably in some dumpster, cold… dead.
She choked back on her emotions and composed herself. *She knows Tash. So do you. Use that!* Sighing, she pushed on, "But yeah. I’ve met Tash. Nice chick. Mean to go hunting with her sometime." She tried to look positive.
"Good luck keeping up with her," said Kate with a smile, "I've seen her in action a few times. Lets just say it's the only time I’ve ever really felt sorry for vampires." Kate walked a little way in through the door and then stopped outside apartment number 106. "Well, this is me." She touched her shoulder again; it was still pretty tender. "Thanks again for all your help." Kate smiled slightly again, although she was just going through the motions of politeness. Reah seemed nice enough, but right now the only thing Kate could think of was whether Galen had called. That and what to do about Ryan.
"Most likely," Reah agreed. That Ryan guy was no gentle yentle! "I’ll probably drop in some time to see how you’re going. For now though I think I’ll return to my nightly hunting." She looked at her skateboard and winced again. "On my bike." She finished, rolling her eyes. *Maybe Meh’s ready to come out now.*
"Take care," called Kate as Reah jogged upstairs. Kate turned and unlocked her door and stepped inside the unlit apartment.
Kate dropped her keys on the kitchen counter as she pushed the door close, removing the last rays of light from the hallway and plunging the room back into darkness. Just as she was about to turn and switch the lights on she felt a searing pain slam into the back of her head. Kate slid to the ground, knocking a bunch of papers to the floor in an effort to find something to defend herself with. Seconds later Kate’s head exploded into a million blinding, flashing lights as her unknown assailant brought their weapon crashing down against her head again.
Kate’s cries were short and subdued as she slumped to the floor motionless.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
***Monday 29th August, 2005...23:14pm***
Reah trudged along the silent avenue with Meh at her side. Sea-Doc was following a few steps behind, grumbling something the whole time about killing and wrongness from what Reah could make out. She was surprised Sea-Doc had come at all. If she hadn’t come Reah would have been able to take her bike like she’d planned, but nooo, apparently she had to.
The contradiction of her mutterings with her insisting that she had to join them was really beginning to eat at Reah. To try and focus she’d begun chiselling at a stake with her thumbnail in effort to keep from wringing Sea-Doc’s neck.
“You know, you really didn’t have to come.”
Sea-Doc sighed with exasperation. “Yes I did.”
“No, you didn’t. Plus I don’t see what you find so immoral about killing vampires.”
For some strange reason Sea-Doc smiled ruefully while Meh stiffened slightly.
“They’re bad. They’re evil. They kill people, their lovers… and their families. No vampire deserves to live.”
“Funny you should say that.” Sea-Doc’s knowing grin stayed plastered on her face as she casually watched Meh.
“What?” Reah’s glance darted from Sea-Doc to Meh and back again.
“Nothing.”
“Are you suggesting Meh’s a vampire? You’re not a vampire are you?” Reah stared down Meh.
“Ahhh… no. Look!” She grasped for Reah’s cross and pressed it to her face. “See. No smokey burney.”
Meh was acting awfully strange. Reah decided to watch her carefully. Strange could be good, but not always. *She is awfully pale and I have only seen her up at night…. But I haven’t seen her try to drain anyone, and the cross didn’t effect her, but she wears a lot of black…. Goth?* She had to be.
Reah was about to reach out and take Meh’s wrist when it suddenly flew straight up pointing to a figure in the distance.
“Vampire!” Meh exclaimed.
Reah’s head snapped up and her mind completely switched modes. Forgetting about Meh entirely she ran towards the figure with her two companions in close pursuit.
Her motions were mechanical as she went through her usual process of dusting. Meh, for some strange reason, would always stand there at her side whenever Reah finished and just watch the dust settle. “That creeps me out,” or, “Fuck that cannot be natural!” being the usual comments, or something along those lines. Either way, it didn’t ease Reah’s mind.
Occasionally Meh had jumped in to help when Reah needed it, unsheathing a sword like Reah had never seen or heard of that seemed to hum as though it was vibrating!
Although it was only when Reah really needed the help that Meh seemed to jump in, she had a feeling that Meh wanted to start all the fights and be involved in every bloodshed. If Sea-Doc wasn’t there she guessed she most likely would.
***
They’d been stalking the night streets for about two hours now. Still early by Reah’s standards, but for some reason Meh and Sea-Doc seemed to be getting a little on edge about something, Sea-Doc especially. Meh was fine so long as she had something to sever. But Sea-Doc had been continuously checking her watch for the past hour. *That woman really knows how to bug me.*
They were currently walking through the middle of a park. Everything was silent aside from Sea-Doc’s constant mutterings about something Reah could not make out for the life of her this time, and Meh’s stomping around crunching dry fallen leaves under some tree.
*Why me? I must have some iron will or something to have been able to avoid turning to suicide as an answer to my problems after all these years. Is it possible? How many people want me dead? How many people have I let down?* She turned to regard her current companions. *And how much bloody longer do I have to stand these two buggers! Perhaps I should just go kill Paul tonight then I’ll either be finally rid of these two, or dead and I won't have to worry about anything ever again.* Something in the back of her mind brought up the issue of reincarnation.
Reah soon shut it up.
*The tracks on my new skateboard are completely fucked! But hey, at least I made a friend out of it… and yet another enemy who wants me dead too. The world balances and makes sense once again.
*The apartment's a mess. Some TB wants to bring Hanson closer to my life to make it even more miserable, but the star they’re seeking is missing and I can’t find him anywhere.* Tears welled in her eyes. *Anyone I knew well in this city has gone missing without a trace. No notes, no phone calls. Not even a body to bring at least some form of closure.
*I can’t fall back on family, I can’t fall back on anyone. Not even the Armoury anymore. Things’d probably be better if I could just join their ashes.
*No. Not true. You’ve met other nice people in LA. Great people who share the same reality as you, know where you’re coming from, like Tash, Jess, Ellie… um, not sure about Jade, turning up on my doorstep with that TB really tarnished her credibility… although she did interrogate the TB which scores points.
*There’s Kate, must check up on her tomorrow and see how she’s holding up. And some guy… Grant… Glenn… Galdren… something. I think it’s… Galden?* She shook her head and continued to try and remember anyone else she’d met.
*Of course, there’s Hayden, Simon, Nat and aw… what’s his face? This is going to bug me. Either way, I’m pretty sure they don’t know about the creatures in my reality.
*Any one else… oh, Sorrow. He was nice an… oh SHIT!* Reah slapped her hands to her face covering up and mumbling through her fingers. “Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck! Oowwww,” she screamed through gritted teeth and pulled at her hair in clumps by the roots.
She kicked savagely at the air but found no satisfaction in it, and grasped for her dagger hooking it forcefully around with every inch of her strength propelling its piercing blade with a flash through the night air into a far tree, missing Meh by mere inches.
Meh was staring wide eyed at the blade the was driven into the trunk of the tree three quarters of the way up its eight inch blade that was quivering a finger's length before her nose. “O…kay. A little too close for even my comfort.” She glanced momentarily at Reah before continuing till she rested on Sea-Doc who was surreptitiously tapping her wrist while she kept her wondrous eyes on Reah and her unexpected outburst.
“Rrrrrrrrgg!” Reah had her teeth gritted still with her hands fisted in her hair. *Calm down Reah, get a hold of yourself.* She lowered her arms and forced herself to take deep breaths. Strangely she found herself thinking what a shit state her hair must be in.
A cool hand quickly grasped her own. It was soft. It felt weird. It had been ages since someone held her hand!
She opened her eyes confusedly and stared at the hand and followed it up the length of the arm to stare quizzically at Meh.
“What the…?” She shrugged her shoulders and stared incredulously at Meh who seemed to have herself braced for something.
Nothing was happening.
Meh slowly peeled open one eye… then the other… lifted her arm, which was also the same one that held Reah’s hand, to check her watch then peered up at Reah’s questioning stare from lowered eyes. “Umm… I like you?” she tried, smiling meekly.
From behind her Reah could hear a slapping sound. She imagined it was Sea-Doc slapping her forehead.
Reah frowned. “Ok. What the hell do you mea…” She trailed off as she caught a glimpse of some strange light out of the corner of her eye.
She turned her head to face it. It was the strangest, most mesmerising thing she’d ever witnessed. It was some kind of bluish white light that pierced her retina and suddenly seemed to be coming from everywhere, but she couldn’t pick its source.
Like a sudden gust of wind, something crashed into her...
Send in the Clones
Previously on LABN
* Kate finds out the truth about Galen and Majestic
* Tash and Victor offer Kate a place to stay at Poplar Avenue
* Kate calls Galen, leaving a message on his answer phone
* Vampire Hunter Reanna Kossinton rescues Kate from Ryan
* Kate is attacked by an unknown intruder
Kate’s Apartment, 1318 Poplar Avenue
Tuesday, 30th August, 2005
6:27am
The early morning sunlight shone straight into Kate’s eyes through the open curtains. She moaned slightly, feeling an aching pain in the back of her head and the warm trickle of her own blood running through her hair. When she tried to touch her head she found her arms were tied firmly behind her back. Forcing her eyes open Kate realised that she was sitting upright in a chair facing the window, and while her arms were tied, her legs seemed to be free.
Kate blinked in an effort to clear her vision. Everything looked slightly blurred and hazy but she could just make out the shape of a person standing by the window. Kate blinked again, recalling slightly the events of last night. She had met a girl, … Reah… no she had saved her from Ryan… Ryan had attacked her, so…
“Ryan?” she called out weakly. *No, don’t be stupid, how could it be Ryan?* No, now she remembered. She had unlocked the door then… someone had struck her from behind, definitely not Ryan’s style. “Hello?” she called again as her vision slowly began to focus.
The figure turned around to face Kate, but the light from the window was so blinding she could barely make out more than an outline. It was obviously a woman, her long hair and delicate features were clearly visible in profile. As the woman moved closer to Kate she could make out more of her. Kate’s eyes grew wide in confusion and fear. The woman… her long red hair, her pale skin and dark blue eyes, the lithesome curves and willowy build were all too familiar. Kate gasped in fear and the intruder instinctively mimicked her actions.
“Who… what are you?” asked Kate again.
“Who… what are you?” repeated the doppelganger, copying Kate’s accent and intonations perfectly. As she moved from the window she seemed to walk with the same sure-footed confidence Kate had known all her life. “Hello? Who… what are you?”
The doppelganger continued to advance slowly towards Kate, mirroring perfectly her slight movements and facial expressions. “I see what they have done, locking that door, like it would make a difference! Like a locked door could stop us from coming forth into this world!”
Kate’s mind was racing as her exact double continued to close the distance between them. “What are you talking about? Who are you?”
“I’m… I…am-you…. I am you,” stammered the doppelganger, correcting her mistakes impeccably.
“You, are me?” asked Kate slowly. Her mind was racing, remembering everything that Tash and Victor had told her about the ‘doubles’. Still knowing all that it was hard to accept what she was seeing before her eyes. “What do you want?” she asked again.
“I want you.” The doppelganger smiled wickedly, running a finger across Kate’s pale arm. “I want your life, your memories, your past… and I will take it.” She lingered over a faint scar on Kate’s arm, a remnant of Anubis’s torture methods all those months ago.
“If you want that memory you can take it, I won’t miss it,” said Kate soberly.
“Not that easy,” explained the doppelganger. “I need it all. Everything that is you, will be mine.”
“How? How do you do it?” asked Kate, stalling for time. She was trying desperately to untie her hands. Whatever it was that bound them together it was tough; it felt like wire. Glancing over towards the side table confirmed her suspicions. The clone had ripped the telephone cable out of the wall and used it to tie her up. Kate wriggled her hands around, pushing against the knots, gaining a little slack every time.
“I… take your markings, I take what makes you you. Things that time has done to your body, wrinkles, laughter lines… they all tell a story, they all have meaning. Scars too, and also other… marks. But not birth, I cannot steal your mark of birth… I have never been born.” The doppelganger seemed to look sad for a moment, then suddenly she straightened up and smiled. “This dress tells a story, doesn’t it?” The doppelganger stepped back so that Kate could get a better look at what she was wearing. The doppelganger pressed her hands against her flesh and ran them down the lines of the dress. “Oh, that first night, we were so excited weren’t we? Excited, apprehensive, perhaps a little nervous?” She wriggled around a little and the silky black fabric of the dress rode up her legs slightly. “Can you still feel it? The way he pushed his hands up our thighs a little higher every time, the way he held us close, his nervous touch as his hands…”
“Shut up! Shut up! None of that happened to you!” cried Kate in anguish loosening her bonds a fraction. “You aren’t real, you’re a clone. You don’t feel, you just are. Like you said, I’m the one with all the memories, all the life experiences. You, you’re just nothing, a copy, a mime, a clone! You don’t know how to feel!” Kate could feel the cord yield; she quickly freed her hands while still keeping them behind her back.
“I will! I have already begun to… I know… so much…” cried the doppelganger, fury blazing in her blue eyes. “Once I’m finished, when you’re dead! I will be you, all that is left of you anyway. It will be as though I always were and none of this will matter.”
The double was so close Kate could hardly tell where she ended and the doppelganger began. The doppelganger’s eyes stared into Kate’s and she watched as she saw a flicker of menace and evil float to the surface. Suddenly, Kate leaped out of the chair and launched herself at the clone, knocking her to the ground. The doppelganger struggled back as Kate slammed her hard against the floorboards a second time. She laughed maniacally while Kate struggled to restrain her.
“There’s no point in fighting, we’re the same! We think the same, we act the same…”
“You are not the same as me,” said Kate firmly, holding the doppelganger’s arms tightly. She caught sight of the telephone wire and thought it would do good to tie the clone up until she had figured out what to do.
While Kate tried to edge closer to the wire the doppelganger was also looking for a way to escape…
“You know…” said Kate as her fingers sought to grasp the end of the wire. “I thought I’d be a lot tougher to overpower than this…”
As Kate’s fingers grabbed the edge of the wire her grip on the clone loosened. The doppelganger saw her chance; freeing her hand she reached across and grabbed Kate by the wrist. In an instant she had flipped Kate over on her back, dealing her a sharp punch across the face. Kate lay stunned for a moment.
“I thought I’d be a lot tougher to overpower than this…” mimicked the doppelganger with a grin. Giving Kate a quick kick in the ribs she smiled, adding, “You really are,” before running out of the door.
Kate cried out as the clone escaped out of the apartment. “No…” she moaned anxiously, she couldn’t let her escape, not if she was capable… if she had the same powers as herself. There was no telling what damage she could do.
Wincing against the pain in her ribs Kate pulled herself to her feet and set off in pursuit of her double.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Galen’s Apartment
6:45am
The containment ritual was a success.
What could have possessed that demon to pick yesterday of all nights to rise? It didn’t make any sense. In all the files he looked through, he could tell there was no special significance to this aside from the demon rising. Nights like these were the ones that reminded you the universe was not as ordered as one liked to think. And apt to wear you out - he'd napped in the car for a few hours before coming home.
Tiredly shutting his door, Galen looked at the answering machine and saw several messages. He hit the ‘play’ button while tossing his suit jacket casually on the couch.
“Hi, I’m calling from Franklin’s Siding and Door company. We’re going to be in the area….”
It was just like them, Galen though while filing a glass with whiskey, to call an apartment about siding. Probably using one of those auto dialers.
“Hey, boss, this is Henry. Look, if you get this, some of the guys are going out for drinks tonight. You want to tag along again, give me a call.”
“No thanks,” he muttered, walking back out to the living room. “I can drink my sorrows away at home.” He collapsed in the chair and just continued to sit, when he heard a familiar voice.
“Galen?”
The drink was on his back to his mouth when he stopped midswallow.
“This is Kate.”
Even though her voice was coming from the machine, he was on his feet and looking around. But no, she wasn’t there; just her voice.
Then they both sighed together.
“Oh God, maybe I shouldn’t be calling you here...”
He stopped again, just listening, and collapsed back down in the chair.
“But that’s the problem, I don’t know what I should be doing, how I should be acting.”
Galen reached again for the glass of whiskey, having set it down on the table.
“I want to stay angry at you... but I can’t, I...”
He brought the glass up to his lips, slowly, as he listened….
“I need to see you, we need to work this out. There... there has to a way to work this out.”
Galen lost his grip and dropped the whiskey on the floor, the glass breaking and the carpet becoming stained. He also didn’t care.
“ I-I don’t want to talk about this over the telephone. Could... could you please call me?”
Galen bolted out of his chair and over to the phone, dropping the handset as he fumbled with it.
“ We really need to talk.”
The message ended there, and he was already furiously dialling her number. First it was her home number, before he remembered she was at Poplar now. When he dialled, all he got was the steady boop, boop, boop of a busy signal. Fearing something was wrong, he picked up the jacket and went downstairs towards his car.
There was no to time to lose if the worst had happened.
Attack of the Clones - Part One
Oakland Street, Alhambra, Los Angeles
Tuesday, 30th August, 2005
7:00am
Kate hastily made her way through the early morning crowds of Oakland Street. She couldn’t see her double anywhere and she was beginning to grow anxious. Kate continued to push her way through the throng of bodies and once or twice she thought she caught a glimpse of red hair only to find the person vanish as soon as she got near.
Suddenly Kate felt herself being lifted through the air by an invisible force. She slammed hard into the side of a building and slumped to the ground. As she looked up the clone came into view.
“Nice little powers we have huh?” the doppelganger smiled slightly as she dragged Kate up from the pavement.
Kate managed to free herself from the doppelganger’s grip. She took a swing and punched her straight in the face, following up with a roundhouse kick, which landed the double on the pavement. Kate reached out her hand, aiming it at the doppelganger and… nothing. She felt the magic pass through her and fizzle out like water on a fire. She stared at her hand in puzzlement.
The doppelganger laughed and climbed to her feet. “What’s the matter Kate? Not feeling ourselves are we?”
Kate concentrated hard, channelling all her energy into her powers. Again, she aimed it at the double; a bright white light shot forth from her hand towards the doppelganger. The double’s hand raised in response, and returned a jet of light from her own hands. They stood facing each other off in the street while the passers-by stopped in stunned shock at the sight. The two channels of light hit each other creating a glaring flash that illuminated the streets.
“Give it up Kate,” mocked the doppelganger as Kate’s light beam contracted, forcing her to take a step backwards. “I’m stronger than you.”
“You said we were the same,” replied Kate, trying not to let her concentration falter.
“Almost the same, almost the same,” laughed the doppelganger. “I haven’t yet finished assimilating myself. I guess there are a few things I know about you that you don’t know yet. Shame you won’t live long enough to find out.”
The double cried out and sent another burst of energy into her light beam. This time Kate’s light was totally swallowed by the doppelganger’s. She fell, defeated and completely drained.
The doppelganger closed the gap between them and pulled Kate from the ground again. “What puzzles me is why we’re eking out an existence working in a shabby magic shop, scraping together a living from those bastards at Sindell when we could just rob a jewellery store or a bank. Hell, with these powers we could probably rule this goddamn city, and why stop there? Hook up with some bad-ass demon, we could rule the world!”
“You’re insane,” choked Kate weakly as the double slammed her back against the wall and pinned her arms down. “No one will ever believe that you’re me… you’re fucking crazy!”
“Your problem is you don’t know how to have fun! You’re so afraid of realising the true extent of our power that you try and pretend it’s not there. You hide it, suppress it. It ain’t good Catherine!” The doppelganger smiled again evilly, grabbing hold of Kate’s shirt and dragged her across the sidewalk, pushing the crowd aside and held her precariously at the edge of the kerb.
Kate cried out as a cross-town bus missed her by mere inches. The passing traffic blared their horns as they passed. The double held Kate tighter and lowered her further into the road. “The thing is, this world just isn’t big enough for the both of us Kate. One of has to go and I’d much rather it were you.”
With those final words the doppelganger released Kate from her hold. Kate cried out as she fell backwards into the path of an on-coming car.
Attack of the Clones - Part Two
The sound of a car horn blared, ringing as loudly as the squeal of rubber against asphalt.
Kate’s body hit the front of the car hard and the force of the vehicle spun her body up onto the hood and smashed it into the windshield. As the car screeched to a halt her body rolled forward off the car and landed on the road.
Kate moaned slightly, staring up into the crowd of people that had already circled her motionless body. The doppelganger stood watching her as she lay on the ground. Kate cried out in pain and reached out towards the double.
Suddenly a young man pushed his way through the crowds. “Get back, get back. Give the girl some room. I’m a doctor.”
“No, someone… help… you have to… stop…” Kate moaned incoherently, trying to climb to her feet while the young doctor held her back.
“Wait Miss, you can’t move, you could be hurt… I’m a doctor, it’s okay. Everything is going to be okay. The ambulance is on its way.”
Kate moaned again, her vision growing dark. She felt a heaviness in her limbs that was as overwhelming as the desire to sleep.
The doctor took off his jacket and rolled it up and placed it under her head. He seemed to be checking her pulse and attending to her wounds while continuing to talk. “My name’s Jack, Jack Conrad. What’s yours? Miss? Can you hear me? What’s your name?”
“…Kate…” she mumbled tiredly looking up into a sea of blurry faces.
“Kate? Kate, that’s a really pretty name. Nice accent too, are you from England?”
Kate coughed painfully and then winced against the aching in her head. “Yes… England…”
“So what are you doing in Los Angeles, Kate? Vacation? Visiting family? Friends?” Jack continued to talk while attending to her wounds. *Man she’s a pretty girl, damn pretty…* he thought frantically *All that red hair and those amazing blue eyes and… where was that damned ambulance!?* He continued to attend to her wounds as he talked. She didn’t seem too badly injured, considering, though she’d taken a pretty bad blow to the side of her head. If only he could keep her conscious...
Kate closed her eyes tiredly.
“Kate? Kate! Stay with me, the ambulance is on its way.” Jack held onto Kate’s hand tightly, the sound of a siren could already be heard in the near-distance.
As the ambulance pulled through the stationary traffic the doppelganger smiled and quietly slipped from the crowd. Jack hurried around, talking to the paramedics and helping them as they brought Kate into the back of the ambulance.
The doppelganger watched the entire scene from afar. So Kate wasn’t dead… yet. There was still time.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Near Popular Avenue, Alhambra, Los Angeles
Tuesday, 30th August, 2005
8:10am
The black ford sped down the street, just barely managing to remain at the speed limit. Galen checked his watch again, as he swerved to avoid yet another car. The only thing preventing him from reaching for the cell phone was the need to focus on his driving. As soon as he'd got her message he tried to call her back; the busy signal sent him into panic mode. He just had to hope that Majestic didn’t have his line bugged. Part of him wished he had given her a cautionary note about calling, part of him wanted desperately to work everything out, but he had to be careful, had to keep her safe….
His car skidded to a stop as the brakes moaned. The sounds of the driver in front of him yelling some colourful profanity drifted out as he gunned the car around. “If you don’t like the way I drive, stay off the sidewalk,” about covered the level of aggressiveness he was driving with. It was something of a small miracle nobody pulled him over as he continued to race towards the building on Poplar Avenue.
******
The doppelganger ran across the streets in a state of frantic confusion. It wasn't fully formed; it needed the girl - the target - to finish the assimilation process. Instinctively it knew Kate was being moved across the city, it could feel her, sense her presence no matter where they took her. It was just a matter of time before it found her again, but time was not on the doppelganger’s side.
She crossed the road towards the source, this Poplar Avenue - the centre, the power - IT was here and she could feel it calling her, telling her where to find the target. She brushed her long red hair aside and admired the few scars she had managed to steal already, and the target had more and lots of power too. The doppelganger could feel the power and knowledge flowing through her partially human body already. She wanted to start her life now. The power uncensored by a moral conscience would be delicious. She would find out just what it was capable of.
******
Galen continued to accelerate down the road, checking his watch for what seemed like the hundredth time. He just knew that something was wrong, he could feel it. Kate’s phone line wasn’t working... that was the type of thing they did – cut the phone line so the victim couldn’t get help. He’d known for a long time Kate was in danger but he’d never felt it so strongly as now. He had to get to her in time before it was too late. When his car finally pulled up to a stop and he jumped out, he breathed a sigh of relief. There she was, heading across the street, towards Poplar, safe. Galen’s heart soared at the sight of her, and maybe, just maybe, they could work everything out.
“Hi, Kate,” he said carefully as she finished crossing the street. “I would have been here sooner but I just got your message. I tried calling but the phone was dead.”
The doppelganger turned instinctively, and for a moment it wasn't exactly sure who the man approaching her was. Suddenly realisation hit her; of course, this was the man she was in love with. Lucien? No, that couldn't be right... "Galen?" she called warily.
“Yes, it’s me,” Galen replied, trying to be as non-threatening as possible. He hoped it was just tiredness, or just surprise that he had actually come. His heart ached to be back with her finally, to finally make things right for everything he had done to her. “Is, is something wrong?”
The doppelganger smiled, although it appeared much more sinister than she had intended. She raised her head and tilted it to one side in appreciation of this fine specimen of a man, handsome and lean, not too muscular, firm. She wet her lips slightly in contemplation. "Not at all," she answered in reply. "I was hoping to bump into you today." She closed the gap between them, draping one arm around his shoulder and letting the other rub up against his chest.
*You don't have time for this,* the voice told her. *You have to find the target, complete the assimilation process!*
*But this is so much more fun! I feel so... alive!* thought the doppelganger.
*How 'alive' will you be when you're a puddle of ectoplasm? Find the target!!*
Something struck Galen as being a bit… off. Kate’s smile seemed… wrong, yet somehow right. His paranoia was trying to claw its way to the surface once again. If he wasn’t careful, he would go ahead and blow what could be the one chance to make it up to her. Slowly, an arm found its way around her waist by instinct. “Kate, we have to talk. I’m sorry about before, but… we have to talk…” All he could think about was the risk that his phone was tapped, that she might not be safe. “They could have heard your call,” he added.
"My call?" echoed the doppelganger in confusion. *You don't know, do you? You don't know anything, you're going to ruin everything because you can't wait to start living.* "Of course, my call, yes... that was a risk I was willing to take, to see you."
The doppelganger tried another smile again and thought it must have got it about right that time because Galen seemed to relax a little. "Yes, you're right, we should... talk, let's do that. Come with me." The doppelganger took Galen's hand and tried to pull him in the direction of Poplar Avenue but he seemed to resist.
“It might not be safe there,” Galen said, holding her back some. He wanted desperately to get this out of the way, to make things right, but her safety had to come first. *Be careful, Galen. Watch that paranoia of yours.* “I only want to protect you. Are you sure you want to talk here??”
"I'm a powerful witch remember? I'll protect you." The doppelganger smiled again and this time Galen walked with her towards 1318 Poplar Avenue. The doppelganger could hardly contain her excitement, it was all she could manage not to drag him into the alleyway and do him right there.
Something was still striking Galen as excessively odd about all of this. Kate had said keeping her safe meant as far away from him as possible, that her friends would keep her safe… and yet, here she was.
“It’s not me I’m worried about, it’s you,” he said, as they continued into the building and towards the apartment. He was suddenly put in mind of their first night together, when they went to his place… Why did this seem so much the same, yet so different?
His mind drifted as they went towards the apartment, and was completely lost in thought by the time they began to enter. He had to keep her safe and make it up to her. This mantra kept repeating in his head, wondering how both were possible always… One question plagued his mind: was it possible she still loved him, despite everything?
The doppelganger kept a firm hold of Galen's hand as she led him into the apartment. But before he had crossed the threshold she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a close embrace. “Is this a little more of what you had in mind?” she asked breathlessly, teasingly drawing her lips across his. “Isn’t this much better than just talking?” Before Galen had a chance to object she pulled him inside the apartment and pushed him towards the sofa, straddling his body firmly and grinding her body into his.
The feel of Kate’s body pressing into his brought back fond memories, very fond memories. He was reminded of what it was like before she learned the truth, and wanted to make love to her again. His body reacted before his mind did, holding her close as she moved back and forth. Her mouth came down to his, and soon they were passionately kissing.
“Wait, wait,” Galen said breathlessly, pushing her back some. That odd feeling refused to go away. “We really need to talk about this, before things get out of control. I’m so sorry about before, and want everything to be right, to make it up to you.”
Kate leaned in to kiss him again, continuing to press against his body. “Show me,” she said. “Prove it to me, make love to me….”
Galen stared at Kate, looking deep into her eyes. “You look… different, somehow, is something wrong?”
The doppelganger sighed in annoyance and climbed off Galen. She stood at a distance so that he could get a good look at her. “Does anything look wrong here?” she asked seductively, running her hands up her thighs, across her stomach and trailing her fingertips across her breasts.
Galen let a small laugh escape his lips as Kate did a little dance for him. “No, not at all, everything looks… just perfect.”
The doppelganger smiled and was just about to return to him on the couch when she grabbed her chest and fell to the ground. Galen jumped to his feet and looked around. The front window had cracked, spraying a shower of glass on the floor where a gun shot had entered the apartment.
“NO! Kate!” Galen cried as Kate moaned painfully and writhed on the ground. Galen rushed to her side and held Kate in his arms while she struggled to breathe. “Oh God, Kate, speak to me, say something, anything, please don’t die, you can’t die….”
“Galen?” choked out the doppelganger as Galen continued to hold her body. She felt her body struggle to control the violent convulsions within.
Galen looked up for a moment, through the broken window and was momentarily blinded by something. He left Kate for a moment and walked over to the window and looked out. Suddenly another bullet went sailing into the room missing Galen by mere inches. Galen ducked back behind the wall. After a moment he risked looking out the window again, and this time he saw a figure entirely dressed in black climbing down a fire escape on the building across the street.
Grief turned to rage and in a split second Galen was running out of 1318 Poplar Avenue in pursuit of the gunman. He paused for a moment, aiming his gun at the retreating figure. He fired, but only managed to slightly wound the hitman in the arm.
The gunman looked back, holding his arm in pain. Across the street their eyes locked for a moment before the chase began.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
Galen ran till he thought his lungs would burst or he would collapse first. He caught sight of the target as they made a sharp right down a darkened alleyway. Galen brought his gun up to his shoulder and paused for a moment, then he turned, pointing it into the darkness and cautiously entered the alley.
Galen’s gun flew out of his hands as he was dealt a sharp kick. He heard a whistling sound as something flew through the air. He quickly threw himself into the alley wall, narrowly avoiding the fist aimed at his head. He reached out and grabbed the arm and heaved the weight hard against the wall.
There was a startled cry that was distinctly feminine as the body hit the wall. Galen reached around in the darkness and quickly found his gun. He roughly dragged the body up from the floor into a small shaft of sunlight that had managed to permeate the relative darkness of the alleyway. He recoiled slightly, recognising the woman as Jennifer Lawson, an intern at the FBI office - he hadn’t even been informed of her cover status. Galen shoved her against the wall, “So they’ve got their spies at the FBI working for them too have they?”
Jen was silent, looking around the alley fore a way out, a weapon, an advantage. Galen slammed her against the wall again. “Look, all I want to know is who gave the order?”
Jen’s silence only aggravated him more. “Tell me!” he bellowed, losing what little control he had. “Who gave it?”
“I don’t know!” cried Jen in pain as Galen slammed her head against the hard brick wall. “I was just told to take care of things, I don’t know who gave the order!” Jen’s mind was racing, looking for a way out, a weapon, an advantage.
“Think harder Jenny,” screamed Galen, pressing his fingers into the bullet wound on her shoulder. Jen screamed in agony as Galen’s fingers probed the bloody flesh. “Who told you to take care of things?” he cried in painful rage, his face contorting into a hard, immutable mask of anger.
“If I tell you I’m as good as dead!” she cried in her defence, trying to shut out the pain.
"Well, then, you have a decision to make," Galen replied. He raised his gun until it pointed at her head. He pressed the barrel hard against her forehead until it left an imprint. “Now you can take your chances with this other guy, but I can tell you right now, if you don’t tell me what I want to know you definitely will die.” Galen rolled his finger across the trigger, “and that’s a promise.”
Jen paused. If she told Galen, Anthony would kill her for sure. She stared back at Galen, determination written across her face.
“Don’t fucking screw around with me Jen!” he cried out painfully. He lowered his arm, dropping Jen to the ground. She moaned and clutched her wounded arm. Galen paced the alleyway before returning to Jen. “She was everything to me!” he screamed, dragging Jen from the floor again and slamming her hard against the wall. “She was my world, and you ended that… you ENDED IT! Just say his name! Just tell me who gave the order or I swear to god I will kill you!”
Jen’s silence only caused Galen to become more infuriated. He raised his gun again aiming at Jen’s head. In the last moment he moved his hand and fired a shot, severing most of Jen’s ear off. She screamed in unbearable agony and dropped to the floor clutching the bloody mess of cartilage and gristle in her hand.
“Anthony, it was Anthony Constillias.” Jen moaned pitifully. “He, he found out. Someone was trying to gain access to the Majestic files, he assumed… she was the leak,” explained Jen breathlessly. “It was the only way to ensure the secrecy of the agency. You should never have told her the truth.”
Galen raised his gun again in rage, pointing it at Jen. “She was innocent! Innocent! She… she didn’t deserve…” Galen felt a pain in his heart again, he slumped against the wall for support, barely managing to keep his gun trained on Jen. “She was… everything…”
Galen slid to the floor, finally overwhelmed with grief. He dropped his gun to the floor and buried his head in his hands as the tears flowed freely from his eyes. “What have I done? What…? I did this to her…”
When he next raised his head Jen was gone.
Meanwhile back at 1318 Poplar Avenue…
The doppelganger slowly opened her eyes. The room was empty but she was still left with this fierce pain in her chest. Slowly she began pulling herself across the polished floorboards out of the apartment, along the corridor towards the basement…
She pushed at the door. It wouldn't budge, she pushed again, forgetting that she had used the outside door to escape the basement. The utility door inside the apartment still remained firmly locked. In one final motion the doppleganger's head slumped on the floor and her breathing finally stopped.
When Galen returned to the apartment, bloody and exhausted, he didn’t even notice the pool of goo that was steadily running under the basement door.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
“Mistakes”
Previously on LA By Night:
· Galen finds Kate’s message on his machine
· Galen warns Anthony that if he does anything to hurt Kate, he’s dead
· A doppleganger attacks Kate
· DG Kate and Galen meet, the DG is killed
· Galen learns Anthony ordered the hit
Constillias Publications
1pm
Galen’s thoughts had moved around a number of different thoughts for several hours. Finding Kate’s body had gone filled him with rage, and the hope he had hallucinated the entire thing – a hope dispelled by the bits of broken glass, a few bullet holes, even noticing for the first time signs of a struggle in the apartment. All things he should have noted before, but didn’t.
For a moment, he’d looked at the gun still in his hands. It seemed a simple, elegant solution. He’d even pressed it against his forehead as he fought to hold in tears, then placed it in his mouth as he remembered that would give him the best chance of actually dying and not becoming a vegetable. A finger flipped off the safety….
…and then he’d lost it, dropping the pistol on the ground. Sobbing for several hours, unable to move. It was about noon when he remembered the one name he had been given. The name of the man who gave the order. In one moment, he knew it was time to pay his ‘friend’ a visit.
The security guards jumped at the sight of Galen striding into the main building with a sense of purpose. He gave off the appearance of a man who would brook no nonsense, who had authority, and if you didn’t do exactly what he said when he said it, you would be out of a job the next day. More than that, he looked pissed. “Morning, Bill,” he said to the man behind the desk at the entrance. “Know where Tony is?”
“Not yet, but I can,” Bill replied, dialling upstairs. He knew Galen well, knew that he would often arrive to see Mr. Constillias, and was expected to be given every courtesy. “Hello, Janice. Is Mr. Constillias in? I have someone here to see him…. Okay, I’ll tell him.” He hung up the phone. “I’m sorry, but Mr. Constillias is in a board meeting right now.”
“That’s okay,” Galen said nodding, and heading off towards the elevator. Board meeting be damned, he was going to find out just what happened. It was time to pay his old ‘friend’ a visit. Getting in, he pressed the button for the appropriate floor. As the doors shut, he could see Bill getting off the phone again. Probably warning that he was on the way up.
Anthony was in the middle of hearing about the latest earned income projections when the door to the board room was almost unhinged, it was opened so fiercely. Despite the call warning him Galen knew, he hadn’t expected to see him so soon, or to move in so public a fashion. “You bastard!” Galen yelled.
Anthony pushed the intercom button. “Security. Board room. NOW!” Galen started to move around one side of the table, the various executives too petrified to do anything. “Now Mr. Eldridge, be reasonable, this is a public place.“
“Reasonable!” Galen snapped, judging the distance between them. “She wasn’t a threat, and you killed her anyway! Despite my explicit orders, you killed her anyway!”
“Now, I haven’t got a clue what you’re talking about,” Anthony said, continuing to back away. Where were the people from security?
“You lying son of a bitch, you gave the order!” he yelled. The grief and the rage finally took control. Galen was prepared to climb over the table, when the vice president of marketing reached to hold him back. As a reward for his efforts, he received a punch in the mouth. That was when security arrived, and Galen was soon being dragged from the room struggling.
“Please escort Mr. Eldridge from the building,” Anthony called to the guards, adjusting his tie. The man was clearly out of control. Something had to be done to remove the Director of Operations. It would only be a matter of time before he did something.
As if to confirm this, Galen screamed on the way out of the building, “Just you wait, just you wait. If you thought I was a loose cannon before, just you wait until I’m finished!”
“What was that all about?” asked one of the executives.
The lie was second nature to Anthony. “I haven’t a clue.” Something would have to be done about Galen.
Soon.
On the Evening News….
“In other news,” the news anchor said, “FBI Assistant Director Galen Eldridge was today gunned down outside of his apartment building. For that story, here’s senior correspondent Jay Malvo.”
The shots were of the various stripe – outside the building, police at work. “It was approximately 4:00pm when Assistant Director Eldridge was returning home, and the first shots rang out. All of the residents have different versions of the story, some reporting three shooters, others reporting two. Nobody knows exactly what happened, except that Eldridge apparently was trying to flee the building when shot several times in the back.”
The face of the owner of the building, and Galen’s landlord, Benjamin Shempski, appeared on the screen. “I don’t know what happened. I saw him getting ready to go in his apartment, we talked for a minute – nothing seemed odd. I had to go upstairs, get ready for a meeting, and the next thing I know, there’s gunfire. Gunfire! In my building, gunfire! Oy vey, what is the world coming to?”
Malvo appeared on the screen now, with the crime scene in the background. “Police sources will not comment on the possible motivation for the shooting. Detective Rachel Grey, who is in charge of the investigation, is refusing to release any details except to say that the shooters will be found. We’ve been told that Eldridge was taken to Los Angeles County General hospital. Sources say his condition is listed as critical, but they expect to be able to downgrade the condition later this evening. Jay Malvo, Channel Four News, Los Angeles.”
Expecting
Los Angeles County Hospital
Wednesday, 31st August 2005
10:30am
Kate slowly opened her eyes then winced as the bright sunlight shone directly into her face. She coughed painfully, raising a scratched and bruised hand up to her mouth. Suddenly a face came into view; a young girl quickly removed the oxygen mask covering Kate’s nose and mouth and helped her to sit up.
“It’s okay Miss, you’re in hospital,” said the nurse handing Kate a glass of water.
Kate slowly sipped the water as her eyes adjusted to the light of the room; the nurse instinctively turned and pulled the window blinds down, forcing the room into a shaded dullness. Kate replaced the glass on the side table and sat up a little more.
“What happened?” she asked in puzzlement, holding her aching head.
“You got hit by a car. The doctors suspected all sorts of injuries when you were brought in, but apart from a few minor contusions and one or two mild lesions you’re relatively unharmed. Do you remember the accident?”
Kate frowned for a moment, “Yes… yes I think I do. I was unconscious?”
“That’s right, you came to last night, but you were still on the heavy duty painkillers, I doubt you’d remember. Are you in any pain now?”
Kate thought for a moment. “Not really.”
“That’s good. I just need to take a few tests,” replied the nurse sticking a thermometer into Kate’s mouth, “just under the tongue, there, that’s good. Like I was saying, it’s good you don’t need any more painkillers, you can never be too careful where a pregnancy is concerned. You’ve been lucky, extremely lucky. Normally a pregnancy in the early stages like this is just prone to abort after such a trauma…”
“Excuse me…?” said Kate incredulously, pulling the thermometer out of her mouth. “Did you say pregnant?”
The nurse frowned and took the thermometer out of Kate’s hand and replaced it in her mouth, “Yes, but you’re both fine, don’t worry and you need to keep that in your mouth until I say…”
Kate sighed in annoyance and removed the thermometer again, sitting up straight. “No, no, no, I’m not pregnant, there must be some mistake. I’m not pregnant.”
“Oh don’t be silly of course you…. Oh, oh!” the nurse suddenly turned pale and sat on the edge of the bed. “Oh you didn’t know, oh I am gonna be in so much trouble for…”
“Excuse me? Hello?” said Kate in distress, trying to regain the nurse’s attention. “Can we get back to me please?”
“Of course, yes, I’m sorry… pregnant yes… by about two weeks… maybe three… it’s hard to tell in the early stages but I guess that if you didn’t know then you must not have missed your last… I mean, have you been feeling tired at all, nauseous?”
“Yes, both, but that’s not uncommon. I’ve been going through some... things… lately. Personal things… I’ve been pretty depressed. I kind of broke up with my boyfriend.”
“I’m sorry, was he the father…?”
Kate felt her heart leap up into her throat, she hadn’t even thought about how she would tell Galen all this. “Yes, he is.” Kate answered finally.
The nurse placed a reassuring hand on Kate’s shoulder. “Try not to worry just yet, it’s still early days. Thing will work themselves out, and right now you need to concentrate on getting better. Would you like to talk to someone?”
Kate looked up into the nurse’s compassionate face. “No, no, I’m okay, this is… it’s just, I’m a little shocked.”
“That’s understandable.” The nurse just sat for a moment, rubbing Kate’s back comfortingly. “I’ll tell you what, I’ll go see if I can find the doctor and leave you to think things through for a short while, okay?” The nurse smiled apathetically, not waiting for an answer, and then left the room, leaving Kate to her thoughts.
Awake again
Special Guest Star:
Christopher Plummer as Algernon Farefax
Previously on LA By Night:
· Kate is taken to the hospital after escaping from a DG clone
· The clone is killed while attempting to “make up” with Galen
· Galen confronts Anthony Constillias about the order to kill Kate
Los Angeles Hospital
Wednesday, 4:52pm
When Galen began to open his eyes at last, the first thing he noticed was the bright light. It was so bright it hurt, which wasn’t supposed to happen when you died. The light was supposed to be warm, and comforting, and you saw the people who were waiting for you on the other side.
Of course, it was also supposed to be a tunnel.
And not a fixture in the ceiling.
Galen might not be dead, but he wished for a moment the shots had been fatal. Kate was gone, nothing could bring her back. At least if the assassins had gone and killed him, they might be able to move on, patch things up in the next world. Assuming, of course, there was any next world. Kate probably went on to Heaven, but not him, no, they would send his soul off to hell.
“Ah, you’re finally awake,” came a familiar voice. Male. Older. “How are you feeling, Galen?”
As his eyes focused at last, the blur above him came into focus. Galen could tell from glancing around the room he was in a hospital, though he didn’t know where or how long he was out of it. Just that his back hurt like hell, and he must be on some fairly decent pain killers. The Gentleman was there again. Hadn’t this already happened?
“Go away,” he muttered. Someone from Majestic 12 was the last person he wanted to see at the moment.
“You know me,” replied Farefax, shaking his head. “I cannot leave one of my friends in need. I want to help you.”
“I think you’ve done enough of that already,” Galen said, the grief welling back up inside of him, threatening to overcome him. He could feel the tears forming. “You and the rest of our associates. This is twice, twice, I’ve lost someone close because of you.”
“What happened?” he asked curiously, figuring he could probably guess the answer. “You were much closer to Ms. Wiccham than you lead us to believe, weren’t you?”
“Yes!” Galen saw no point to lying anymore, to trying to protect himself. She had become the one thing that mattered to him, his reason for living. Now she was gone. And it was all his fault, because he couldn’t protect her, no matter what he had tried to do. It was all useless.
“I’m tired,” Galen finally said. “Tired of everything. Tired of the lies, the deception. Most of all, I’m tired of being alone – and now it’ll happen again. All. Because. Of. You.”
Algernon sighed and considered his friend’s words. He had a right to be angry, and he could also tell that the “you” was aimed more at the organisation as a whole than him in specific. From the report, Galen had to know that it was Constillias who gave the order.
“Our enemies are finally making their move,” he said quietly. “Galen, I know you are in pain. If you had come to me, I could have helped you. Instead, for whatever reason, you decided you had to protect Ms. Wiccham alone. I am terribly sorry for your loss, and wish I could have done more..."
“Bull shit,” Galen cried out. “You know as well as I do what would have happened. ‘It’s too great a security risk,’ you all would have said. ‘We can’t risk the truth coming out, you have to end it.’”
“That’s enough!” Algernon finally snapped. He couldn’t stand to see Galen sitting there wallowing in his own self pity like that. “For five years, you and I have been friends. You know me better than that. I have bent procedures and rules to keep you safe, when it would have been far easier for me to just allow them to terminate you on the spot.”
Galen did not respond to do anything other than to close his eyes. The pain – not the physical pain, but the loss of Kate forever, of never getting to make things right – became too much for him. It was easier to just lay there silently, thinking about how he bad he felt, than try to respond.
“I know for a fact Mr. Constillias was using you,” Algernon broke the silence after several minutes. “It was I who left you the note about the free clinic.”
The look on Galen’s face betrayed his confused state of mind. Of course Anthony had been using him. All Anthony was interested in was uncovering the conspiracy within the conspiracy… wasn’t he? Or was there something he was missing? Noticing the confusion, Algernon clarified. “Anthony Constillias is a close personal friend of Dr. Sara Anderson. My sources indicate they have been attempting to use you to get to me.”
“Why tell me this now?” Galen asked. First Kate was killed, now this? Algernon only wanted to use him as well, it seemed, despite the friendship between them. If it could be called that. Galen thought he was friends with Anthony as well. An unspoken question lay under what was asked: why tell him at all?
“I need your help.” Algernon glanced outside the room to make sure nobody was there to overhear. “You do not know how precarious the situation in Command is. Ever since Maggie Walsh first proposed Project Lazarus, there has been the possibility of a power struggle. Because of certain events, we cannot delay any longer. Those of us who oppose the Project must move now.”
Galen thought for a moment carefully. Was Algernon lying or not? He couldn’t tell. For that matter, he didn’t care. All he could think about was the simple fact that she was gone. Kate was gone.
Forever.
Then there were the documents. He had a sample of the formula. He could prove the connection between at least two members of Command and the project. She would want him to end it, wouldn’t she? That was when Galen gave the one answer he could muster as the grief came up again.
He went back to sleep.
Season Two: Aug 6 2005 - Jan 6 2006
***Tuesday 30th August, 2005...01:56am***
Tearing back, her flesh was on fire as she screamed, faster—and—faster—and—faster. Speeding back as fast as the light, she could hear her own screams reverberating inside her head off an unseen mental and physical force that made her feel like her body was thread through a needle being sewn into a thick sheet of rubber, always feeling the pressure that tried to crush her as she tore through the never-ending blur of light only never feeling the release of emerging on the other side.
Tears boiled in her eyes and scalded her face. Her body's struggle against the unknown force surrounding her finally gave in. Her limbs went slack leaving them with as much control as a wooden puppet joined together by strings. She felt them stretching like melted plastic... wearing thin.
Suddenly something snapped! Her body solidified itself again, her mind returned and a sense of being thrown through an open space held her, whipped her hair from her face that felt the sweet cool kiss of a breeze, soaring for a whole blissful second of release before smashing to a complete halt.
Stillness.
Reah stirred, eyelids flickering at a light that held her in its sight. Her head twitched to the side trying to shake it off. It had to be Bear, he had a flashlight.
“Mrmm…Bear?” she groaned as she came to.
“Uh…no miss,” said a voice sounding a little worried. “There’s no bears here. Are you all right? You look a little beat. Rough night?”
Reah frowned, “Huh?” She opened her eyes, squinting at the light that pinned her. She lifted her arm shielding her eyes from it and tried to make out the figure. Too tall for Bear… way too tall!
The figure must have noticed her discomfort at the light because they moved it slightly so it wasn’t directly in her face. “Here.” They held out a silhouette of a hand.
She glanced briefly at the hand, ignored it, then tried to make out some of the figure's features. She’d registered it was a man by the tone of his voice and his build. He seemed to be wearing some form of uniform, but none she could place straight away, then there was a glimmer of a badge that shone in the light catching Reah’s attention and she placed him as some sort of security. *Oh shit!* “What have you done to everyone else? Are you holding me?” she demanded.
She heard the man wince. “Gees, you must have hit your head hard!” he said, completely ignoring what she’d said and knelt down beside her. Reah pulled back and went to strike at him, but he held up his hands quickly and made soothing noises. Cautiously she relaxed her guard and let him check the back of her head, watching him fixedly as he gently tilted her head forward and parted her hair.
Reah winced at the sting at the same instant as he did as he spotted the damage. “We should get you to a hospital.”
“What?” Reah shot up to her feet in an instant. “No, no, I’m fine!” She started to back up. “Really! It’s just a bump.” She felt the crunch of something beneath her footing. She stared down to the grass and leaves on the ground then looked around for the first time noticing the trees. “When did I go into the woods?” she asked, confused.
The man stifled a bit of laughter. “I think you're a little delirious. You have hit your head pretty hard… against that tree by the look of the damage done to it!” He winced. “Ooh! In fact I think it got off second best!” He chuckled and Reah stared at him, still dazed.
“Look miss, you're not in the woods, you’re in LA,” he assured her.
Reah mouthed ‘LA’ slowly, *That can’t be right,* she thought dazedly.
“I’m Officer Cameron Laiko,” he continued, “and if you insist on not going to the hospital, then I’m insisting on escorting you home and making sure you get a good icepack on your head and treat that cut. It’s quite nasty!”
Reah continued to watch him steadily. *Why isn’t he asking for my sin?* “Aren’t I in Seattle?” she queried, still not following what she was hearing.
He sighed a light chuckle, “Sure, just travel two days that way and you‘ll be in the town's centre.” He paused, checking over her in concern from the distance she’d set. “Sorry. LA is where you are. So, you didn’t know at all?”
“I do now. You just told me I’m in LA.” She eyed him suspiciously, “Unless you don’t know where you are.”
He laughed. “Well, you still have a sense of humour. That’s always good.” He smiled genuinely, then looked back in her eyes encouragingly, “Do you know who you are?” Slowly Reah nodded to his comforting tone. “What’s your name?” he asked gently.
Reah stood there for a moment before carefully answering. “Reah.”
He tilted his head lower still holding her gaze and keeping his distance. “Just…Reah?” he probed carefully.
Reah watched him a bit longer, it had been a long time since someone had asked for her full name. *Well, they don’t have your full name on file, so what difference would it make? And if it does, just kill him!* She sighed. “Reanna Kossinton.”
Something sparked in his eyes, alarming Reah and she jumped back ready to attack.
“Hey, hey! Whoa, easy!” he suddenly burst out. “I’m not going to hurt you, you haven’t done anything wrong!” He tried to smile reassuringly. “At least not on any files I’ve seen,” he smirked. “I just recognised your name is all. Don’t you work at the Armoury? I’ve heard of you.”
Reah froze in her stance. “The Armoury?” she questioned in complete bewilderment. She looked around herself again to take in her surroundings. “Blown up!” she murmured distractedly as she recalled events.
“You mean it‘s true? Shit.” He looked closely at her again concerned as she stared wildly around. “You have to be her…. Are you all right?” His concern showing plainly. Reah controlled herself at shifted uneasily. He sighed. “I don’t know of many Australians called Reanna Kossinton who live in LA.” He continued and smiled at her. “I didn’t see you myself, but my partner went in once to check the place out. You served him. You might remember him… short, a little chubby, dark hair? He ordered a set of throwing knives that he had weighted…. Well, guess he won't be getting them now, anyway.”
Reah stared at him silently.
“Of course you wouldn’t,” he sighed. “Then again he’s a pretty average person, not many people remember his features, although I thought you might remember his order. He was in three days ago when you served him?” He watched her for a sign of recognition.
Reah began shaking her head in a muddle of disbelief. *Three days ago?*
He took it as a ‘no’, she didn’t remember. Her continuous confused looks and shifting moods only had him thinking she had to have amnesia.
He continued informatively, watching her closely. “Today is Tuesday the 30th of August. You are in a park in LA where you hit your head on that poor tree over there,” he smiled, “and you work… worked at the Armoury.” He watched her expression the whole time he relayed the information to her. *She must have been dreaming while she was out.* He recalled her calling ‘Bear’ when he first found her, perhaps it was someone she’d dreamt up, and she thought she was in Seattle…? That was a good two day drive away. “To tell you the truth, when I first saw your body lying back there I thought you were a drunk who’d picked a place to pass out for the night. You're lucky I came over!”
Reah processed the information he’d given her, then suddenly her legs gave way beneath her and she thudded to the ground where she stayed seated and began to lean back.
He quickly ran over to her and squatted down beside her and supported her with his right hand on her back, thankful that she hadn’t lashed out and cursed himself for doing so without thinking first. “I think I better drive you to a safe house or something to stay for a while. Just until you remember who and where you are.” He sighed, “Though I still strongly suggest you visit a hospital.”
Reah shook her head slowly, “No,” she muttered barely loud enough to be heard.
“Pardon?” he asked with care, gently rubbing her back.
She turned her head to him, composed, but inside thoughts tumbled and crashed like waves in a thunderstorm. “It’s all right officer. I think I remember my way home.” She started to pull herself up, brushing the grass off, then spotted the hilt of her sword jutting out and quickly hid it back underneath her cloak, counting herself extremely lucky that he hadn’t noticed earlier. She petted her holster under her cloak and checked to make sure her Ares Predators hadn’t fallen out. She sighed with relief to find them still there. What else did she have on her? *It can wait till later… no one brushes grass off themselves that compulsively!*
He stood up with her. “I’ll give you a lift. I don’t want to read the newspaper tomorrow morning and find you in the obituaries because I didn’t do my job and escort you home safely.”
Reah was about to open her mouth to protest then thought otherwise. It’d be a lot easier to just let him take her.
Newspaper Revelations
Los Angeles County Hospital
Wednesday, 31st August 2005
10:30pm
Kate replaced the telephone on the handset, having left a message on Galen’s machine. It seemed like she was always leaving messages. She had also called both Tash and Jade and had received no answer. She was worried now that maybe this situation with the doppelgangers had escalated out of control.
Kate shuddered. She hated to think that there was someone, something out there that looked just like her, that moved and sounded just like her. Not only that but it knew, it knew things about her past. Kate picked up the telephone and dialled Galen’s number again. Still no answer.
Kate sighed and returned to her seat in the deserted waiting room. The doctor had already deemed her fit enough to return home and Kate had called for a taxi twenty minutes ago but it had still not arrived. She idly pushed a pile of magazines and newspapers that lay scattered across a small coffee table to one side and glanced at her reflection in the dark glass surface.
Despite being only marginally injured she still looked awful. Her eyes were dark and she had several small scratches on the side of her face where she’d hit the road. An ugly looking gash across her forehead was held together with paper stitches. Her clothes were ruined too, her shirt was stiff with dried blood and her coat was torn in several places from the accident but it was all that she had to wear since she hadn’t been able to contact any of her friends. She sighed and continued to flick through the magazines with little interest in their content.
Kate had always hated hospitals for the simple reason that they were filled with sick people. It weighed heavy on her telepathic abilities to block out that level of pain and suffering. She couldn’t wait to leave. She heard another ambulance pass on the way to the Emergency Room. Hospitals, always filled with disease and death…
*And life,* she thought to herself, resting her hand over her waist. She still couldn’t get her head around all this, it was too much. She was pregnant. How was she supposed to bring a child into this world knowing all the evils that it contained? And yet… it had always been the one thing she wanted most in the world, a child, a family, something to belong to, be a part of. Then there was Galen, a wonderful man, who had given her this sacred gift of life. A man she had never expected to love, a man who she did love more than anything else in this world – and she had pushed him away.
As Kate leafed through the pile of newspapers one fell on the floor. She frowned and bent to pick it up. It had been abandoned, folded in the middle and then again in half to allow the reader to focus on the smaller stories at the bottom of the page. She picked up the newspaper and looked at it more carefully.
Assistant Director of FBI in Public Shooting
Kate frowned as she read more and more of the story.
At approximately 4:00pm Assistant Director Galen Eldridge was shot outside of his East Los Angeles apartment. All residents have been questioned about the incident but there are no indications as to who might be responsible for the attack. The FBI responded with…”
Kate had to stop reading as her eyes filled up with tears, her knees gave way and she sank back into the chair, still gripping the newspaper tightly in her hands. Kate looked down and two stray tears rolled off her cheeks and hit the paper creating little inky pools that rapidly soaked into the porous paper. She continued to read…
…The Assistant Director was taken to Los Angeles County General Hospital where his condition is said to be stable…
Kate sighed in relief and wiped at her eyes. She rose to her feet, clutching the newspaper tightly to her breast and headed off towards the intensive care unit to begin her search for Galen.
Hospital Reunion - Part One
Los Angeles County Hospital
Wednesday, 31st August 2005
11:10pm
The scorching hot coffee from the vending machine spilled over the flimsy Styrofoam cup and burnt Algernon’s fingers. He swore inwardly but not out loud, never out loud, it wasn’t appropriate behaviour for a man known as ‘The Gentleman’.
He picked up a paper napkin and began to dry his hands as he returned to his post outside of Galen’s hospital room. As the room came into view he saw an attractive young redhead woman standing outside. He observed her appearance from a distance, noting her ruined and bloody clothing.
“Pardon me,” he said, slowly walking in her direction. “Are you here to see the Assistant Director? I believe he is asleep at the moment. Can I help you?”
Kate looked up, slightly startled from her thoughts, and turned to face the man who had addressed her. “Um… yes, I am,” she answered quietly, sounding a bit lost. “Do you work with him?” she asked, a fragile glimmer of apprehension appearing in her eyes. “H-how is he? What happened?”
Algernon was slightly taken aback when he noticed how badly injured the woman appeared to be. He gently ushered her towards a small waiting room and sat her down. “You don’t look well, maybe I should call one of the nurses to take a look at you, Miss…?”
“Wiccham,” replied Kate tiredly. “Catherine… Wiccham. And no please, I’m fine, really,” she gestured to her injuries, “I look worse than I am.”
Algernon relented although was unable to remove the look of confusion from his face. He knew from Galen and the reports from Command that Catherine Wiccham was supposed to be dead, yet here she was in front of him, very much alive. “My name is Algernon Farefax. You say your name is… Wiccham? And you’re here to see Mr. Eldridge?”
"That's right," said Kate absently, glancing down the corridor in the direction of Galen's room. "Please, I-I really have to see him. I know you probably have no idea who I am but, but I'm... I'm his girlfriend."
“Yes I know who you are Ms. Wiccham,” he said calmly. Obviously Lawson had made a mistake in her assassination attempt, but Galen too? Could Galen really have been mistaken about a woman he professed to love so much? “I know you are desperate to see your lover Miss, but there are certain things you should be aware of.” Algernon glanced around the room, making sure nobody else was around before leaning towards Kate and speaking in a low voice.
“Certain things have come to light which lead me to believe you know much more about Galen’s work than would normally be the case. If this is correct then both of your lives may be in danger. I fear I cannot protect Mr. Eldridge,” he added with a grave voice. “My apologies, I wish it were otherwise.”
"I know the reason why Galen is in here is because someone tried to kill him. I also know he would not be in this situation if he were not so devoted to your organisation!” Kate stood up; her anger was evident as she paced the small waiting area.
"Please Ms. Wiccham... try to keep calm," instructed Algernon, glancing around nervously.
"Oh, don't tell me what to do, you don't get that privilege! I don't know exactly what's going on here but I do know this; Galen has sacrificed a lot for Majestic, for you to turn around and say that you can't help him when he needs your help most of all... That's just not acceptable!"
“There are limits, even to my power,” Algernon replied, keeping his voice calmer than he felt. She was right, Galen had sacrificed a lot and he did owe him more. “You know as well as I do how foolhardy and reckless Galen is! Why you only have to look at the lengths he has gone to, to protect you!”
“What are you talking about?” asked Kate confusedly.
“You don’t know? Then let me enlighten you. Majestic holds a record of all known telepaths for reasons that are best not known. Needless to say it’s forbidden for an agent to actually incite a relationship with one! You understand of course that secrecy is of utmost importance in our line of work.”
“Don’t I know it Mr Farefax!” said Kate tightly.
“Well I have it on authority that Mr. Eldridge forged an entry in the Majestic files to conceal any knowledge of your telepathic abilities. Not only that but he has given false testimony about his relationship with you when we recalled him. Then on Tuesday, he confronted his intelligence advisor in public about ordering your death, having already threatened to kill him beforehand if any moves were made against you.”
"My death?!" cried Kate in shock, "W-what are you talking about?"
“My apologies,” said Algernon in a reassuring voice motioning for Kate to sit back down. “Let me explain. Despite Mr Eldridge’s best attempts it is assumed that a few people in command are aware of his true relationship with you. These people are wary by nature and having one of their most privy agents having… well, I suppose you can imagine what their fears are.”
“They think I’d ream my boyfriend’s mind to uncover state secrets?”
“Quite. You seem to have an accurate grasp of the situation at hand,” said Algernon intently.
Kate sighed, “Yes, well I’ve had quite a bit of time to think this all over."
“Indeed. Ms. Wiccham, I am familiar with your situation. Please don’t become disillusioned about our organisation. For the most we are honest, dedicated citizens just trying to ensure the safety of the public. However there are those that would seek to serve their own interests. For many years now we have been investigating a small group of dissenters who have re-opened an old project known as 314 or Lazarus.” Algernon paused as Kate looked away uncomfortably. “I see you are already aware of this; Galen told you, did he?"
“He mentioned it,” admitted Kate.
“Then our fears were not entirely unfounded,” said Algernon, a hint of disapproval in his voice.
“I am not concerned with your little internal power struggles Mr Farefax!” exclaimed Kate in annoyance. “All I care about is Galen.”
“Then listen to what I’m telling you. For the last few months Galen has been investigating this rival faction but lately… he’s drawn himself to the attention of certain members of Majestic Command, members of this faction, dangerous people. I believe a man named Anthony Constillias has been using Galen in order to seek me out. Also someone recently tried to access Majestic’s secret files. Anthony believed that to be you and so he took a contract out on your life. When Galen confronted Constillias he deemed Galen to be too… ‘unstable’ and decided to have him killed also.” Algernon cleared his throat uncomfortably and continued. “Now I’m not sure exactly sure what’s happened over the past two days, though I can hazard a guess. What I do know is that Galen and everyone else in Majestic still believe you to be dead.”
Kate was silent for a moment, trying to make sense of everything she was hearing. “So he was telling the truth,” she mumbled to herself quietly, “and he thinks I’m dead.” Suddenly she stood up, “Then, then I have to go to him, he has to know…”
Algernon nodded in agreement and walked with Kate back to the room. Before she went in to see him he placed a hand on her shoulder. “I will wait out here,” he told her, “and make sure the two of you are not disturbed.”
Hospital Reunion - Part Two
Los Angeles County Hospital
Wednesday, 31st August 2005
11:30pm
Kate sighed deeply, pushed the door open and entered the room. Everything was a dull grey inside; the thin hospital curtains were still pulled tightly across the window. A small nightlight above the bed cast a weak glow across the sleeping form of Galen.
He looked so peaceful just lying there wrapped up in the heavily starched hospital sheets. Kate slowly removed her coat and pulled a chair up close to the side of the bed. She was quiet for a long time, not knowing exactly what to say, or how to say it. Eventually she took Galen’s hand in her own and just sat in silence.
Galen moaned quietly in his sleep and squeezed her hand slightly in reflex. Kate looked up and watched as he re-settled himself and continued to sleep. With her free hand she softly stroked his cheek and ran her fingers through his hair. “You don’t know how afraid I was when I heard you were here. I thought…” she paused and squeezed his hand tighter. “I thought I’d lost you.”
Galen stirred quietly again and Kate watched anxiously as he grimaced slightly in pain. “Galen?” she said softly, stroking his hair again soothingly. “I missed you so much.” She paused again and then straightened Galen’s sheets out attentively. “I know you’re asleep so you can’t hear me… I don’t really know why I’m talking to you like this because I know it doesn’t change anything. Maybe, maybe just being able to say the words out loud instead of in my head might help.”
Kate stopped straightening out the sheets and looked up at Galen as he slept; tenderly she stroked his forehead. “I love you.”
She was silent again for a long time before she could continue. “Mr Farefax told me what happened… what you’ve done for me, how you’ve risked your life. Galen, I’ve been so stupid, I-I haven’t been fair on you. We should have talked, you should have told me… it might never have come to this if you had only explained… if, if I had let you explain.” She sighed again in frustration. “I love you, everything that has happened, what I now know… it hasn’t changed that, it couldn’t and, and I need you. Not just for me but for…”
Galen moaned again slightly as he began to wake. He tried to fight it, the force that was urging him to awaken… no, he didn’t want to wake, he wanted to stay asleep like this forever. In his dreams Kate was still alive, they could still be together. Even as he began to wake he could still hear her soft, melodic voice, speaking words of love and forgiveness. He could still feel his hand being held in hers, comfortingly, he could still smell her perfume… The dream had been so vivid, so perfect and he didn’t want to leave it…
Slowly Galen opened his eyes and blinked as he tried to draw the world into focus. “Kate?” he croaked painfully, “Kate, is that… is that really you?”
Kate smiled softly and continued to gently caress his cheek. "It's really me," she smiled happily. Galen tried to move but Kate held him back. "You should try to keep still," she said, a hint of sadness in her voice. "Are you in a lot of pain?"
Galen shakily reached out his hand to touch her face. Kate closed her eyes as Galen ran his fingers across her cheeks and lips and then gently ran them through her hair. He smiled peacefully, touching the tears that escaped Kate’s eyes as she opened them. “Is this heaven?” he asked solemnly.
“What? No… no…” she said soothingly holding Galen’s hand tightly. “I can only imagine what you’ve been going through, but, it wasn’t me… it wasn’t me who died.”
“I don’t understand,” he mumbled in confusion. As Kate leaned in closer Galen saw the cut across her forehead. He reached out again and carefully traced the line of the cut on and frowned when Kate winced in pain. As she took his hand in her own again he noticed the scratches and bruises on her flesh. “You’re hurt,” he said sadly.
Kate nodded silently. “You remember what Tash and Victor told you? About the doppelgangers? I don’t know how much they told you but Tash explained the situation to me a few days ago. I'm so sorry Galen, that... that you had to go through all this. I-I'm not even sure what happened myself. I got home late Monday night and there she was. I managed to overpower her but she escaped and when I went after her we got into a fight and that's the last I remember. I woke up in hospital this morning. The doctors said..." she looked away for a moment, then smiled half-heartedly gesturing towards her head injury. "I had a mild concussion."
Galen was silent for a while, lost in thought, “I thought you were dead… she looked so much like you… I should have known, I knew something wasn’t right, I-I should have realised…”
“Shhh, it’s all right, I know.” Kate brushed her fingers through his hair again, comforting him into silence. “I saw her; I know how much she looked, sounded and acted like me. It would have fooled anyone.”
“I grieved for you, I mean her, the doppelganger, I mean, I thought it was you.”
Kate nodded, “I know.”
Galen continued, “When, when I thought you were dead, when I was convinced that I had lost you forever - in those moments my life wasn’t worth living. I realised that - that I had nothing to carry on for…”
“But you’re wrong,” said Kate softly. “You have everything to carry on for. Firstly you have me. Galen I…” Kate’s voice broke slightly, almost becoming overwhelmed by emotion. “I need you, I… I want us to try again. I know things can’t be the same, but we can make them better because we can be honest with one another. I can be there for you Galen, in everything… and, and that’s good, because I need you now, more than before. Galen, our child needs you too.” Galen frowned and looked confused. Kate took his hand gently and placed it against her womb. “Galen…”
Galen frowned again, stroking his hand against Kate’s abdomen. “You’re telling me… you’re pregnant?” Kate smiled hesitantly in affirmation and nodded her head. Galen looked stunned, “Wow, I… I can’t believe it, a baby.” Galen continued to stroke his hand against Kate’s womb. He looked up, smiling slightly. “How long?”
“Not long,” said Kate smiling softly and holding Galen’s hand tighter. “I know there are things we need to talk about, but I also know now that we can get through this because it’s worth it. What we have, it’s worth it.” Kate leaned over and kissed him gently on the lips. “I just want you to concentrate on getting better, okay? Everything else can wait until afterwards.”
Hospital Reunion - Part Three
Los Angeles County Hospital
Thursday, 1st September 2005
1:45am
The early morning silence hung over the hospital like a pall. Not a sound could be heard except the rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor in the corner. Outside in the corridor Algernon still waited, keeping guard over Galen and Kate from anyone that might seek to harm them. He slumped back into his uncomfortable plastic chair and drained the last remains of coffee from a Styrofoam cup. Glancing up at the clock on the wall he figured the two lovers would be safe while he went for a refill. Silently he rose from the chair in search of the vending machine.
Inside the room Kate still sat at Galen’s side but she also half lay next to him on the bed. They were silent, not having spoken a word since earlier that night. Galen was in so much pain that he could hardly think straight anyway as the effects of his painkillers had gradually worn off. Kate’s arms gently caressed Galen’s body as she concentrated on carefully healing his wounds while enjoying just being so close to him again.
While Kate concentrated on her healing Galen was completely lost in his thoughts, unable to think of anything apart from the fact that Kate was alive, and more than that she was pregnant with their child. He smiled to himself, thinking about that; a baby, a little baby was growing inside Kate right now. He held her closer and grinned.
“We’re going to have a baby,” he finally said, joy clear in his voice.
Kate smiled at how happy Galen seemed and slowly removed her hands from their employment, feeling slightly drained from all the energy she had expended on healing Galen’s wounds. As Kate sat up Galen took her hand in his.
“Kate,” he said earnestly, looking deeply into her eyes. “Kate, I love you. I just wanted you to know, no matter what, I will always love you. Both of you,” he said, adding the last with a grin.
Kate smiled warmly and then rested her head back down on the bed next to Galen while he gently stroked his fingers through her hair contentedly. “I can hardly believe it myself,” she said softly, “it’s so unexpected…” Kate smiled slightly though Galen couldn't see. After a moment her expression turned serious again. "It's going to be okay isn't it? I mean... you and I, things are good?"
"Things are good. We will work things out, I know it. Everything, will work out just fine."
Kate smiled again before speaking. “I think you’re right and because of that, I think we should take our relationship to the next logical step.”
Galen looked down at Kate, just resting in his arms. “You do?”
“Yes, well you love me and I love you and now that I’m pregnant it just makes sense. Don’t you think so?”
“I suppose so,” agreed Galen feeling slightly bewildered.
“I think we should do it right away, as soon as you get out of hospital.” Kate smiled again, biting her lip in amusement.
“Straight away? Don’t you think that’s a, a bit fast? I mean there’s a lot of planning that has to go into a wedding.”
“A wedding? Galen I was talking about moving in together. We practically live at my place anyway and… with other things… and I miss you when you’re gone. Marriage, wow, no wonder you looked afraid!” Kate grinned again as Galen playfully pulled her hair.
“Hey, don’t think that just because I’ve been shot that I can’t kick your ass Miss Wiccham.”
Kate giggled again and wrapped her arms closer around Galen’s body, feeling him relax more under her touch. “There is one thing though…”
Galen sighed, “Majestic?”
“What are we going to do? I won’t feel safe until something’s been done. They tried to kill you Galen, they thought they’d succeeded in killing me…”
“There is one possibility,” Galen said carefully. “But it’s risky.”
“How risky?” Kate asked, concerned.
“Do you remember when I told you about that project, Lazarus?”
“How can I forget? Something that horrible…” Kate lowered her head as bad memories returned.
“Majestic has had a faction fight brewing for a long time,” Galen said, lowering his voice. “There’s a member of Command here, an old friend of mine, named-“
“Mr Farefax?”
“Yes. How did you know that?” The confusion on his face was evident.
“I met him on the way to see you… he’s your boss?”
“After a fashion. Some of the information we got will let him make a grab for power. But if it backfires, we could still be dead.” Galen sighed heavily. “Kate, I’m still thinking of resigning as well. I just don’t know what to do.”
“Death isn’t an option Galen, I won’t let it be. If we can destroy ancient portals and fight an army of Wiccan insurrectionists, not to mention a race of clones bent on destroying the world then we can fight the government. And whatever you decide to do, I’ll be there, right by your side.”
"I know, and thank you. You really are an amazing woman,” he said, smiling as her continued to stroke his fingers through her hair. “That’s just one of the many reasons why I love you. And I do love you," he said again, amazed at her courage despite not knowing what they were capable of. "The tough choice is whether to stay in service afterwards. I'll have to do terrible things if I do, but with some of the things I have done... how can I just walk away? Working for the government is a lot like working for the Mafia that way."
“If there’s one thing I’ve learnt it’s that you can’t change what has been done. It’s what you do now in the present that matters. You are a good person Galen, I know that. I couldn’t love you so much if it were otherwise. But you have to make a decision about the kind of person you want to continue being, the kind of person you want to become; but I can’t make that decision for you. It has to come from here, from your heart.”
Galen sighed. "You're right," he said, knowing the decision was already made when he first forged entries in the Majestic files. "I'm going to resign even if I have to call in every favour I’m owed. You deserve a better lover than the person I would be if I continued, and it'll be nice to finally have a 'regular' job."
“It doesn’t matter what I deserve,” said Kate frowning, “It’s what you want. You can’t do this for me, it has to be for yourself, or you might hate me for it.”
"I already hate myself for not doing it long ago.... the sins that have been committed in the name of 'national security'. I can't go on like that."
Kate sat up and looked into Galen’s eyes for a moment. Then she gently leaned in close and pressed her lips against his in a tender kiss.
As she pulled away Galen held her close and stroked her cheek softly. “Kate honey, scoot up here next to me will you?”
Kate smiled happily and squeezed onto the edge of the bed next to Galen, moulding her slender body against his, wrapping her arms carefully around his body so as not to hurt him. Galen continued to hold her close, lost in the familiar feel of her body next to his.
As Kate settled herself she turned so that she could look up at Galen. “Comfortable?”
“Very much so,” he smiled, kissing her hair.
Kate wrapped a hand around Galen’s back to cover his wound. “I’m going to work on this some more so you can sleep…”
Galen gently stroked Kate’s cheek again, brushing his fingers through her long hair, “Not too much Kate, you have to look after yourself now.”
Kate nodded silently in agreement and closed her eyes. Galen did the same and very soon they both fell deeply asleep.
Outside the room Algernon peered through the glass panel in the door, seeing Galen and Kate both asleep, wrapped up in each other’s arms. He sighed and returned to his chair again. He would have to wake them both before the medical staff returned; it wouldn’t do for them to find Kate there asleep in Galen’s bed. But for now he would let them be.
This is the last one for a while. We promise.
Los Angeles County Hospital
Thursday, 1 September 2005
7:30am
Algernon Farefax reached into his pocket and withdrew a small pocket watch. Checking the time, he noticed it was close to 7:30 in the morning. More hospital staff would be arriving, and about to start the morning rounds as well. Quietly opening the door to Galen’s room and slipping in, he noted the pair of lovers lying peacefully on the bed, each with an arm around the other. He hated having to do it, but it was necessary.
“Ms. Wiccham,” he said, shaking the woman gently. She let out a small grunt and shifted her arm around Galen to hold him just a little closer. “Ms. Wiccham, please, you must slip out now. The staff will be around soon.” Kate started to wake up now and managed to mumble something rather indecipherable, probably something about wanting to sleep.
Naturally Galen started to wake up as well. Algernon repeated the warning that she had to leave, and Kate looked from him to Galen. “I don’t want to leave you,” she said concerned. He could tell she was trying to hide it, but she must still be concerned over everything that had happened.
“Trust me, everything will be fine,” Galen said, stroking her hair. She thought for a moment, then nodded once before kissing his forehead, slipping on her shoes, and heading out the door. He watched her leave, a look which showed a combination of regret and contentment.
Algernon sat down in the chair Kate had just vacated and pondered the couple. Galen was his friend, yes. But what would he do now? He had just got back the woman he loved, discovering she was not dead, but what if MJ12 learned she was still alive? What if they tried again? For that matter, could he even protect Galen? He owed something to his long-time friend. “You care for her a great deal, don’t you?” he asked, stating the obvious.
“More than anything,” Galen replied, a rather large smile on his face. One did not have to be an empath to read the fact that he was ecstatic. All it took was a single glace. “We’re going to have a baby,” he said, his head falling back down on the pillow.
“Congratulations.” Algernon moved a bit closer, so that he could speak softer and still be heard. “I sincerely wish you the best, and hope you may remain safe. All three of you.”
That made Galen’s smile vanish as he was apparently recalled to the possible threat. “Yes, I wanted to talk to you about that,” he said. “You were right when you speculated I had found something. Evidence tying various members of Command to Lazarus.”
Years of friendship told Algernon that Galen was telling the truth in this regard, though it might not be what he had been shot for. Further experience also told him that he would not get the information for nothing, as did the silence which lingered between them. In that moment, he knew Galen would probably want nothing more to do with anyone in the agency. “What’s your price?”
“I know this will let you take control of Majestic 12,” Galen said, keeping his voice low. “I want out, old friend. The secrets I know go with me to the grave, but I want out. Plus guarantees for the safety of Kate, myself, our child. All surveillance on us stopped immediately, not started again.”
Algernon raised an eyebrow, unsurprised at what he was asking. He remembered what it was like to feel the way they did, once, and expected no less. In a similar situation, he was very likely to ask for the same things. Still, it would be nice to have someone running things in Los Angeles he knew he could trust. “Are you sure?”
“Absolutely. That’s not the kind of person I want to be any more. I’m tired of lying to the woman I love all the time to keep your secrets.”
The emphasis placed on the word 'your' told him everything he needed. Galen, if he continued, would no longer be reliable. He no longer thought of the organization as a place where he belonged. It would be a disaster waiting to happen. “Very well. However, I will need you to stay on just until this crisis with the doubles is complete. I doubt you will want to reveal whatever sources of information you have on them.”
“You’re right, I don’t care to reveal those sources.” As Galen said those words, his face remained impassive. More and more, it became clear he was through. “And you won’t make any attempts to find out those sources, either. Those are my terms.”
Algernon thought for a moment, considering everything he heard. “All right, we have a deal.”
“Good. Under my bed sits a box containing a number of documents; in the fridge are vials of the formula. Those should be all you need.”
“Thank you, old friend,” Algernon said, reaching to shake Galen’s hand. He hesitantly took it, and then he knew something else: Galen no longer cared to consider him a friend. Anthony had finally driven him one step too far. As he left the hospital room and went to the parking lot, he couldn’t help but wonder what exactly had happened.
As he reached the garage, he waited. The headlights of a Mercedes flared on as the engine came to life, and moved over next to him. Opening the backdoor, he got in behind Jen Lawson. “Galen’s apartment building,” he said. “You picked the right side after Anthony gave you that order, Ms. Lawson.”
“Thank you,” she said, focusing on driving. There was just a hint of scepticism in her voice, which was to be expected. Her arm was bandaged now, and medical packing sat where her damaged ear was. She had deliberately botched the assassination on Galen, wanting him to suffer in revenge for what he did to her. That was when rumours arrived that someone from Command was arriving to take care of things. While she did not know much, she did think Galen knew people outside the chain of command and would probably try to arrange to have both her and Anthony killed.
When she went to Algernon, she provided the proof Anthony was behind the attempted killing. In return for the information, she got her life – which was provided by becoming Algernon’s new aide, and her current assignment. They rode in silence to Galen’s apartment, and Algernon returned after several minutes with a few packages before going back to his hotel.
When they got there, Algernon led her up to the hotel room where he was staying. One of the packages went in the fridge, the other on the table. “Call Manticore,” he said, opening up the package on the table and examining a ream of documents within. “Tell him to come here in six hours. Use a public pay phone. Now, listen carefully to the rest of my instructions.” He spoke for a few minutes before she left. After looking through the papers, he went to retrieve a laptop and printer, then began to work.
Algernon's Hotel
2:30pm
Algernon replaced his cup of tea on the saucer when the knock came at the hotel door. He placed a number of printed papers into an envelope, then got up to answer the door. Checking the time, he knew the agent codenamed Manticore would be there on schedule. “Who is it?” he called through the door.
The voice of Anthony Constillias answered, “It’s me.”
“Ah, good,” he replied, opening the door. “Please, come in. We have much to discuss. I was just sitting down for tea. Care for some?” Anthony thanked him for the offer, politely accepting while he entered the hotel room. Algernon motioned to a chair for Anthony to sit in while getting another another cup.
“You received the most recent reports on the situation?” Manticore asked as he was handed a cup and Algernon sat across from him. “We’re doing the best we can to quietly eliminate those doppelgangers we are aware of, and I have a proposal for Command. I believe it’s possible to turn them into a weapon.”
“Did you even read the memo Griffin sent out?” he asked. “That is not an option. We must eliminate all of these clones as soon as possible, and neutralize the source. Otherwise, we risk our slow and complete destruction.”
“It shall be done,” said Anthony, Algernon being led to suspect that no such thing of the sort would happen. From the documents he already saw, he could see the value of learning how these were produced to Lazarus. Their soldiers could easily become very disposable.
“We have a more important matter to discuss,” Algernon said, reaching under the table for the documents. “This is a statement you will sign, confessing your involvement in the Lazarus cover-up, detailing what is known of those in charge of it.”
Anthony looked at the documents sceptically and began to glance over them. “I haven’t the slightest idea what you’re talking about.” As he began to read, his look turned to one of worry quickly. It would become apparent that he knew a great deal about the project, might not even need it. All at once, it became clear who the mysterious opponent in Command was who had been working so carefully to expose them. “Chimera was working for you?”
Algernon nodded. “You are quite fortunate Griffin never learned your people were the ones who arranged for them to be attacked. I imagine his response would have been rather forceful. Maybe even more successful than his response to your killing Ms. Wiccham.”
“What if I don’t sign this?” asked Anthony.
“I would like an authentic signature,” said Algernon, wishing that he did not have to do this. Desperate times called for desperate measures, and the paradox of being a just man in an agency such as this was that you sometimes had to use the most ignoble methods to achieve the most noble goals. The true test was not being willing to enter into evil; it was being able to exit.
Anthony raised an eyebrow at that remark. “Very well.” He accepted a pen, turned to the last page, and signed where indicated. It would make his statement complete. “Is that all?”
“Yes, that is all,” replied Algernon. The two men rose at once, and he motioned as though to lead Anthony to the door. “It’s time you got going, now.”
Anthony opened his mouth to say something when his hand came up to his neck. Pulling something from the back, he pulled it around to see what it was. A small dart. Turning, he noted Lawson had been hiding there the entire time with a blowgun. There was a constricting feeling in his chest. “You double-dealing…” he began.
Algernon walked over to the phone casually as Anthony clutched his chest and fell to the floor. This formula was one of the ones nobody knew about, absorbed quickly by the body in a little dose and triggering a heart attack. You would never find it unless you knew what you were looking for. He waited until Anthony was convulsing on the floor before picking up the phone. “Room service,” he said in a voice controlled but panicky. “Quickly, call an ambulance. There is a man having a heart attack or something in my room.”
After hanging up, he noted Lawson was turning away. She didn’t like having to do it, either. That, he felt, was a good sign. With Anthony’s death and forced confession, the grab for power by Algernon Farefax had finally begun. “It will be over soon,” he told Lawson.
“I know,” she said, opening a bottle of aspirin and taking two more.
“A chopper will be refuelled and ready to leave shortly. The flight to Area 51 will take about three hours. These documents must be delivered to Director Jones personally. Trust nobody else with them.”
“What about you?”
“I will return as soon as the present crisis here is over.” With that, Lawson nodded, and retrieved the documents she knew she would need. These were placed in a briefcase, and she began to leave through the fire escape as the paramedics rushed up. Algernon put on a very convincing performance for them of being an old man concerned for a friend come to visit him.
That evening, the news reported only that Anthony Constillias, CEO of Constillias Publications, suffered heart failure while visiting a friend. No mention was ever made of a small dart wound on the neck, or of any foreign substance in the body.
Julian
Monday, August 29th 2005 - 6pm
With a triumphant grin, Jade stabbed a button on the cash register to total up the day's earnings just as the last customer left XY. As the receipts printed, she flipped the {CLOSED} sign on the door and settled back for a celebratory cigarette. XY's first day had been a rousing success and even though Jade knew that it was unrealistic to expect such sales figures every day, the fact that they'd gotten off to a good start was highly reassuring and immensely satisfying.
A substantial amount of the profits had come from Assistant Director Eldridge's purchase and Jade let out a small sigh as she recalled the unpleasantness of her encounter with Galen earlier that morning. The futilily of the confrontation and her lack to really help Kate and Galen had been the only dark spot in a very bright day. She'd been a little moody after Galen had left but the constant flow of customers into XY meant that she had had very little time to brood. Sorrow's visit with lunch had helped chase any lingering unhappiness; the large bunch of cheerful looking sunflowers he'd brought her bringing a small smile to Jade's face as she admired them in their vase on the counter.
Stubbing out her cigarette, Jade stretched to ease the kinks in her back, not quite managing to stifle a groan as the muscles in her arms and legs bunched up in protest. She was aching all over... And although it was a good sort of ache, Jade hoped that she'd get some decent help to ease the burden of running XY soon. She'd initially hoped that Kate would be able to come back to work but looking at the way things were, she doubted her friend would be available any time soon.
The cordless phone sounded with an electronic bleep and Jade picked it up. "XY Magic, can I help you?" The loud hiss of static and an odd buzzing sound had her rolling her eyes and slamming the phone back on the cradle in exasperation. *Damn it... That's the fourth call like that today!* She huffed out a breath and had just started sorting out the till's starting cash, making notes in a small log book when a loud rap on the door had her head jerking up in shock.
A tall, dark haired man stood at the door. "I'm sorry, we're closed! Come back tomorrow, we open at 10am!" Jade called across the store.
"I'm here about the job, I'm looking for a Ms Jadyn Lee?" The stranger pushed back his baseball cap and impatiently shoved at the shaggy hair covering his forehead. He had a strange accent; not quite American. *Sounds a little Australian...* Jade got up and walked nearer to the door to take a closer look. *There's something vaguely familiar...* Upon closer inspection, she realised the guy was Asian but with his hair obscuring part of his face and the sun coming in from behind him, Jade couldn't tell much else.
Jade debated about whether she should let him in. You could never be too careful in L.A. and she was alone in the shop. The terrible episode where she'd been attacked by that reporter was still fresh in her mind. She slid the door's chain into place, opened the door a crack and was about to tell him to come back tomorrow when the man spoke again. "J, is it really you?" She couldn't see his face but he definitely seemed amused. "Don't you recognise me?"
*J? Only one person has ever...* Jade's eyes widened at his words then she was unlatching the door and flinging it wide open. "JC? JC?" She cried in surprise, "Oh my god, is it really you?"
"In the flesh." Julian Chen stepped into XY and engulfed Jade in a bear hug. "How've you been beautiful?"
"What are you doing in L.A? God, it's been years! I could barely recognise you! You've changed so much!" Jade's words tumbled out in her excitement at seeing her old friend again. "Filled out some, haven't you?" She grinned, giving JC a friendly tap on the shoulder when he finally set her back down.
"Woah, one question at a time J. Let's see. It's been about five years since you disappeared on me... Kev and I almost killed ourselves looking for you by the way." JC's words held no malice, only an intense curiousity and he couldn't help but notice the shadow that fell over Jade's face when he mentioned it. Choosing to ignore it for the time being, he continued. "But there's time for that... To answer the rest of your questions - I'm in L.A. because I'm finished backpacking through Australia and Asia and have decided to continue in the U.S. of A. L.A.'s my first stop."
"As for me filling out," JC grinned a little bashfully, "I dated a fitness instructor for a bit... She got me working out."
"Looks like you have a lot to thank her for," Jade chuckled. "When I look at you now and remember the skinny beanpole you were back in Melbourne..." She winked and dodged Julian's attempted headlock. "C'mon JC, none of that now. We're way past the age limit for wrestling. Are you seriously here for the job, by the way? Or was that just a ruse to get me to open the door?"
"Both. I just arrived in L.A. yesterday. It was pure luck that I decided to buy today's papers. Needed to find a place to stay and a job that'll keep me for the next few months. When I saw your ad, I couldn't believe my eyes! I mean, Jadyn Lee isn't exactly a name you see every day so I reckoned it was probably you. I wanted to call first but couldn't figure out what to say over the phone."
"Look, why don't we grab some dinner and you can fill me in on the job? Like an informal interview? If you think I can do it, give me a shot. If not, no hard feelings. There's a bar down the street that looks like it's employing. Bill's... or Bob's..."
*Bob's? Good grief...* Jade gripped Julian's arm. "Don't... Listen to me JC, do not even step anywhere near Bob's. That place is a dump of the worst sort! There are plenty of other jobs in L.A., you don't want to work there."
"Ok, ok... I just thought, since it was near XY..." JC shrugged good-naturedly. "So, shall we go? I'm dying for some good Chinese food."
Jade laughed and nodded. "Still the same ol' JC... Ruled by his stomach. Ok, just give me a minute to finish up here, then I'll take you to one of my favourite restaurants."
Introducing Actor / Singer Jerry Yan As Julian Chen / JC