Reinforcements arrive
May. 9th, 2014 05:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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birthright_rpgThe car trip to the alley Cian had told them about was a little longer than usual, a roadblock having been set up and the closed-off street full of vehicles with flashing lights and police. Melody strained to see what the commotion was and it looked like there were screens raised in the middle of the pavement outside a bar or club or something. As she settled back into her seat she saw Jazz sniffing at the open window of the car, the witch's face crinkled in concentration.
Her eyes narrowed and her foot pressed a little harder on the accelerator once they were clear of the traffic around the scene. "That must be the market he was talking about," Mel said, pointing at the E-Zmart's lights, "and there's the alley." She was almost out of the vehicle by the time Jazz parked, the older witch puzzled by the young woman's keenness to get to the alley.
Mel had the backpack on her shoulder as she stepped off the kerb and looked down into the dark alley, eyes taking a moment to adjust after the lights of the market.
"Daniel? Are you here?" she called out, one hand on the corner of the wall, head tilted to one side as she took a step past the phone box.
Her eyes narrowed and her foot pressed a little harder on the accelerator once they were clear of the traffic around the scene. "That must be the market he was talking about," Mel said, pointing at the E-Zmart's lights, "and there's the alley." She was almost out of the vehicle by the time Jazz parked, the older witch puzzled by the young woman's keenness to get to the alley.
Mel had the backpack on her shoulder as she stepped off the kerb and looked down into the dark alley, eyes taking a moment to adjust after the lights of the market.
"Daniel? Are you here?" she called out, one hand on the corner of the wall, head tilted to one side as she took a step past the phone box.
no subject
on 2014-05-09 10:00 pm (UTC)Daniel didn’t mean to give such a hesitant response, but he wasn’t sure how long the statement would hold true. Not long after he hung up with Melody, the portal had produced a visitor to their plane and Daniel had spent the intervening minutes in a precarious position… under the razor-sharp edge of a tusk pointed right at his neck.
The creature had bounded into the world with the eagerness of a linebacker rushing the field. It towered over Daniel at a good eight feet to his six, six-hundred pounds to his less than two-hundred. Its body was muscle and sinew and armored bone. It saw him and growled, then charged, and Daniel – armed with naught but fangs and a tire iron – fought back by raising his weapon and wailing on the beast. He hit it and hit it and hit it again, each impact echoing in the alley, a sickening thud. But even when he employed the full force of his vampire strength, he managed nothing more than to stun the thing. “This… is not working!” He dropped the iron and ran for the phone booth and his butcher knife. Daniel whirled around just in time to get bowled over by the demon. Fortunately, he had the wherewithal to brace the hilt of the knife against himself, blade outward. The demon impaled itself. Down they went with all that momentum, Daniel on his back and the beast on top.
Now he was trapped under all that weight with a strangely jagged exoskeletal bone poised to behead him.
Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-10 02:09 am (UTC)Before she even had time to think, Melody reacted, her arm stretched out, fingers splayed and palm directed to the carcass as she appeared to brace herself, her head lowering a little as she focused completely on the demon's body. It started to lift, slowly, and as the head rolled again, the tusk certain to have sliced through anything beneath it, the creature was levitated upwards, jerkily at first, but more rapidly as Melody came closer until it was clear of Daniel's body.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-10 02:20 am (UTC)The knife handle was still sticking out of the levitating beast. He reached up, pulled it out of the hide, and stabbed again, this time into the thickly veined neck. Hot blood streamed down his forearm and onto the ground, wetting the pavement like a slaughterhouse floor. “Sorry guy.”
Daniel stepped back and tried to shake the blood off his arm. He seriously contemplated licking it, but that would’ve been weird in mixed company and it didn’t smell like anything he wanted to ingest.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-10 02:31 am (UTC)The older witch's voice echoed around the alley and Mel jumped, her concentration broken and the body dropping instantly to the ground. She spun around and stammered a little.
"I.. he.. Daniel, he was trapped, the tusk was going to go through his throat," she finally managed to get out, straightening a little and lifting her chin as her eyes met the other witch's.
Jazz looked from Melody across to the vampire. She looked him up and down, eyes narrowing as she studied him for a moment. "Guess for you that might've been fatal," she commented, then looked back at Melody. "Clearly you've been practicing, and just as well," she stated, nodding once at her apprentice before looking down at the carcass now sprawled on the ground.
"Is this all that's come through?" she asked Daniel, proceeding to pull some of the small bags from the large one she had slung across her chest.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-10 03:10 am (UTC)He remembered manners.
“Daniel. I’d shake your hand but…” His fingers waggled, red and sticky from demon blood.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-10 03:47 am (UTC)The cloth dissolved, Jazz's frown deepening as she studied the results, sniffing at the wisps of vapourised cloth as they rose up.
"Hmm, not good, but not very conclusive," she muttered, loud enough for both to hear, but already digging around in her bag as she crossed over to where the body lay.
Melody looked at Daniel's hand and then up at his now-human face. "Are you alright?" she asked, knowing that Jazz would be absorbed with whatever she was on the trail of for a few minutes.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-10 03:59 am (UTC)He touched the minor cut on his throat. It stung like being cut shaving.
“I didn’t know you could do that. I thought you said it was mostly potions.” Now he was looking at Melody for information. The vampire had next to zero knowledge of magic outside of pop culture and vague historical references.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-10 04:09 am (UTC)"I've been practicing that, because I can use it to get things down off the top shelves and stuff, but I've never done anything like that before," she admitted, having surprised herself at what she'd been able to do, especially now she had had a chance to look. She looked at the cut on his throat. "Uh, do you need something for that? And do you bleed? Or heal?"
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-10 04:19 am (UTC)“Oh.” Daniel remembered the walky-talky and he went to collect it. Keying it up, he said, “This is Daniel. A giant demon with tusks came for a visit… Now dead thanks to some teamwork and the good people at Solomon’s Scrolls. We’re good.”
Rhiannon’s voice answered, “Tusks, huh? That’s new.”
Daniel made a noise in his cheek. “Yeahhhhh.”
Rhiannon said, “Thanks for checking in. Try not to bite anybody.”
Daniel snorted and clipped the walky to his belt.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-10 04:24 am (UTC)Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-10 04:27 am (UTC)Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-10 10:07 am (UTC)"Rhiannon, did you say?" the older witch said, eyeing Daniel for a long moment. "And this vampire slayer, she knows you're here?" There was no doubting the interest in Jazz's question, her face giving nothing away as to the reason for her interest.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-10 02:08 pm (UTC)Daniel looked over at the witch, as casually as he could manage and keeping his body loose, wondering if she was about to make a point about himself or the slayer. Thus far he wasn’t getting particularly friendly vibes off the woman. Did he need to watch his ass around her?
“Plus she knows I don’t bite,” he added.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-11 01:25 am (UTC)Melody recognised the look, something she'd seen her mentor use on some customers, and she always believed it was almost as if Jazz was checking for a person's aura, or some sign of dishonesty, because the sniff of acceptance was not always given, and some had been sent scowling from her store with a barely discernible motion of her hand instead.
"So how did you know about the portal?" Melody asked, watching Jazz straighten from where she'd been crouched and head toward the blacker than black opening in the wall down the alley.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-11 01:41 am (UTC)Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-11 03:05 am (UTC)"He's been in a few times. Once he bought some crystals, for someone he said, to help them. A beautiful piece of cats eye on a gold chain. And he had us make some make some other things for him." She stopped talking, realising that perhaps she shouldn't be telling anyone else these things about a customer.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-11 03:15 am (UTC)Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-11 03:30 am (UTC)“You know that guy’s a w—uhh…” He caught himself before outing the guy and rubbed his nose dismissively. “Wanker, right?”
Smooth.
Where the hell had that word come from, back episodes of Doctor Who?
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-11 03:54 am (UTC)"He's as much a wanker as you are breathing," she told him dismissively, rolling her eyes. "Was there anyone else there? From Searchlight?" she asked intently. There was no mistaking the mention of Searchlight had intensified her questions.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-11 04:04 am (UTC)Daniel looked between Melody and her mentor. He could be a decent guy when he chose the high road, but he was still a vampire and the witch’s bristly nature wasn’t sitting right with him. She had cajoled Melody for saving his neck, done magic on his hand, and begun interrogating him about a months-old incident. He couldn’t figure out who it reminded him more of: Mrs. Holcomb, a former private school teacher who’d given him a D in English, or his grandmother, who’d given him a D at life.
“Maybe we should focus on that.” He nodded at the portal. “In case it spews anything else while we’re standing here. You ever seen anything like it?”
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-11 04:14 am (UTC)Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-11 04:21 am (UTC)When she had started her apprenticeship Jazz used to have her read old articles, news stories about events that had the names of the place and people blacked out. Jazz had told her that was to stop her being distracted by things that didn't matter, and to just concentrate on the descriptions. "These are all signs of events that you must be on the lookout for," she'd heard every time she'd questioned the old woman. "Doesn't matter where they happened, just that they are signs."
And now the signs were starting to pop up again. Except this one wasn't amongst the ones she'd learnt about back then.
"So this, is it a sign? Or is it something different?"
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-11 11:23 am (UTC)"See the paint?" she pointed out, indicating the outer edge of the portal. "It's been opened from this side, by someone, and they've done it on purpose. I've never seen anything like this before. Portals I've seen have been... " She paused, as if searching for a way to describe the difference. ".. they've been like a tear, a slash in the fabric of our world, and forced from the other side." Still looking at the opening, eyes tracing the edges again she indicated it with a slight lift of her chin. "This has been opened from this side, by someone, or something, on purpose. The easiest way to close it will be to find whoever did this and have them close it!" she finished, her tone almost a little frustrated.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-12 05:08 pm (UTC)Still, his eyes honed in on a vein in her neck. He wasn’t even thinking of biting it; just slashing it with his knife and letting the spray hit his face.
Daniel turned away from the image and paced towards the pay phone.
Don’t… do not…
His fangs strained at his gums. He shut his eyes and began to internally hum a Ramones song.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-12 09:57 pm (UTC)Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-12 10:29 pm (UTC)Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-13 12:05 am (UTC)Just keep singing. He began to whistle the melody to Danny Says. The song was doing its job, so he felt safer chancing looks at them.
The chunk of mineral flew back into their world and struck the older woman near her ear. It was a small, stinging slap, not bad enough to bruise, but man, that had to smart. His laughter was a sharp bark, more surprise than real humor, the vampire’s eyes wide and glistening.
“Expect that?”
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-13 12:16 am (UTC)After retrieving the crystal she studied it, and shook her head. "There's something different about this portal," she said, sniffing at the air that rushed out for a moment, her forehead wrinkling with a frown. "Smell," she said, the single word almost sounding like an order, but Melody simply taking it as instruction, and doing as the old woman said.
"It's different now," Jazz murmured, "but with that same singular note."
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-13 12:31 am (UTC)"Same tune, different soloist," she heard the older witch add as she came across to where Mel stood and gestured for the backpack Mel was still carrying. Slipping it off her shoulder reminded Mel just how heavy it was, and the clunk as it landed on the ground confirmed there was at least a few weapons inside.
A few moments later and Jazz pushed two items, two carved stones into Mel's hands, instructing the young witch to place them at the opening of the alley, which Mel proceeded to do. She glanced over her shoulder and saw her mentor go further into the alley, past the portal, and place two more carved stones on the ground. Mel followed suit, giving Daniel a quick glance and smile, almost apologetic, as she did. "She's 'working'," she whispered, as if trying to explain her mentor's demeanour. "And this nexus thing? Down at Searchlight? If it's what she taught me about?" Mel hesitated, looking down at Jazz then back at Daniel. "It didn't go too well for a lot of people last time."
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-13 01:05 am (UTC)It struck Daniel as odd that these super-powered pieces of information kept landing in his lap, juicy tidbits other people would claw and scratch for, and he just shrugged and cracked open another beer. Went about his business.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-13 01:18 am (UTC)"I need those to go up there," she said, indicating the tops of the walls on either side of the alley. "Over the portal."
Mel was about to take them when Jazz indicated Daniel. "Would you mind?" she asked, eyes meeting the vampire's as she held the two stones in her hands.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-13 04:30 pm (UTC)Once on the roof, he walked along the edge until he was above the mystical doorway. “Right about here?”
He knelt and placed the spheres a meter apart. They were heavy. He didn’t think they’d roll away.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-14 12:30 am (UTC)Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-14 12:49 am (UTC)"Idle hands, and all, he can put them to good use," she said to her apprentice. "Plus you get to see what he's capable of." There was no indication whether Jazz thought this was a good or bad thing, her tone giving nothing away as to whether she approved or disapproved, so Melody took that as a good thing. If Jazz didn't trust him, or want him around, she would have made that abundantly clear.
She was again pulling things from the bag and handed Melody a jar carrying some sort of salt, instructing her to trail a line of it across each end of the alley between the carved stones. "If you need more there's another jar in the trunk."
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-14 10:03 pm (UTC)Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-15 01:47 am (UTC)She stared into it, allowing her mind to reach inside it, aware that at any second anything could appear in it, come through and require being dealt with in any number of fashions. "Why isn't it ever to another realm such as our own," she muttered under her breath. "Always has to be some realm of demonic nastiness or nutters. Just once it would be a nice change to have something come through that wasn't about to maim, dismember, gouge or destroy all in their reach." She let out a sigh and looked up the alley to where Melody was finishing the line of salt on the ground.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-15 08:15 pm (UTC)Didn’t sound like the kind of place he’d like to go. Boring as shit. But from a human point of view, he could see the appeal.
He scooted to the side and jumped off the roof, coming to rest a meter or so from Jazz.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-17 10:45 am (UTC)"Only in the innocent dreams of those who haven't lived, I'm guessing," she replied, giving him a wry smile. "Can't say I'd fancy a world like that, but I wouldn't mind one time having a portal to somewhere just as inadequately equipped to deal with realms of the less co-operative, and as blind-sided by it all as we are." She huffed a small laugh. "Or as most of the world is."
She'd said for years that the ability of people to ignore the bloody obvious and put it down to 'one of those things' still staggered her. "Do you ever think of how it would be not having to hide what you are?" Her question was asked with sincerity, clearly having been something she had sought the answer to herself on more than a few occasions.
Re: Reinforcements arrive
on 2014-05-17 05:35 pm (UTC)Case in point, he was standing there with two women he barely knew and both of them realized he was a vampire. He had accidentally shown Holly, just cruising along in vamp face on accident.
“I think you could get away within anything in Vegas. Maybe L.A., too. New York…” he trailed off. In other words, places where people were accustomed to absurdity. Los Angeles for its Hollywood blasé lifestyle, and New York for the characters riding on its subway system. But on principle she was right. Those people didn’t really believe in vampires; they had just learned to tune out the world.