Be careful if you think you stand. You just might be sinking.

[hamonatrix]

Who: Lisa Lisa hamonatrix, Abel 13sugars, monsters
Where: In a dark alley of the cliched Discedoan variety.
When: Sunday afternoon, 9/20
Rating: PG13, for violence and peril
Summary: Lisa gets Sunday schooled on the practical application of 1st Corinthians 10;12, Father Nightroad comes to the rescue, danger and drama ensues.
the log:

Comments

[13sugars]

Lovely indeed, Abel couldn't bear to stay inside on a day where he could actually see the street. No falling ash, no acid rain, no snow, no fog, no flesh eating butterflies, no zombie hoards. For the first time, in what felt like forever, he was going to have a normal, relaxing, cheerful stroll through the city. It would help to take his mind off of Esther, and perhaps he'd get a chance to see if the rest of the people here had gotten started on building the safe house.

Well, that had been the plan, at least. Up until a rather peculiar sight caught his eye. You know, normally, he'd hear a scream first...

But then again, when he caught sight of just who was twisting and dodging to avoid being stabbed to death, he frankly wasn't surprised that she hadn't uttered anything. What on earth was that thing?!

"Miss Lisa!" His gun was out in a second, shots suddenly fired at the obviously monstrous, dangerous attackers... Too bad they seemed to be expecting that.

Two of them simply dodged, while, the last deflected the shot with a well placed blade. Oh... Oh dear.

[hamonatrix]

Lisa was already spattered with blood, but it was Verdugo blood, as with every twist and turn of her seemingly youthful body, she was channeling the ripple energy through her scarves and actually slicing at the monsters' thick shells with her specially woven silk.

The first few slashes seemed to only make the monsters angry, but she was mostly concentrating on deflecting those claws as she tried to slip inside their reach, to try and cut something more vital--aiming for the tendons of their arms and legs.

"Father!" she called, catching one clawed appendage in a loop of wire-taut silk, expelling a deep breath as she sent a wave of searing heat into the creature's hide. Then she was tumbling across the alley, the breath knocked out of her for one frightening moment as she was first struck by a blow from one thick tail, and then struck the wall. She rolled back to her feet in a matter of seconds, pulling a pair of throwing knives from a thigh sheath and hurling them at the creature's eyes. "Be careful!"

[13sugars]

For a moment, panic flooded him at the sight of blood, but soon enough he managed to make the connection between her scarfs attacks and the spatters of blood upon her and the ground. She was cutting them with... her scarf? He'd seen strange things, what on earth was this?

It didn't seem to be doing much, other than infuriating the beasts. He was still trying to see exactly what she was doing, afraid of firing another bullet when she was so close.

Him be careful!?

"I'll be fine!" He shot back, darting into the alley. Well, if his bullets wouldn't work, he could always try distracting them. Maybe he could lure the beasts and lose them elsewhere? The beasts were certainly smart... and held a great deal of agility too. The knives that were speeding for ones eyes were dodged at the very last second, the blades nicking its face.

"You get out! Get somewhere safe, there's too many to fight one on one!"

[hamonatrix]

Lisa's scarf flicked out, sweeping the wayward blades back across the pavement, where she could collect them as she ducked and rolled. This was not working as well as she'd hoped.

"What, and leave them to go rampaging through the city?" she said, hair whipping around her as she continued fighting. "I'm sorry, Father, but I can't do that."

[13sugars]

Well, he wasn't going to let them do that either, but... He wasn't about to let her get hurt either. These things were smarter than he gave them credit for.

"I'll take care of it." There was an expected response. Oh if only he knew. He tried to grab at one of the creatures, hoping to sling it into another, but the beast neatly slipped out of the way. He couldn't use his acceleration here! She'd know!

"Please, just get to safety!"

[hamonatrix]

She drew a deep breath, leaping gracefully atop a nearby dumpster, narrowly missing a set of claws that tried to sweep her legs. It might have looked like she was scrambling to safety, until she launched into a running leap--using the brick wall to springboard herself into the air--aiming for one monster's shoulders. She would use her scarf as a garrote, if she had to, but she wasn't about to leave the scene.

The monsters, however, seemed to be one step ahead of her, and she gasped as one sharp claw caught her scarf midair, yanking her into the creatures' grasp. Blood blossomed in crimson ribbons on her fair skin, seeping through layers of silk as she was tossed from one creature to the other, and then flung aside like a rag-doll.

[13sugars]

He'd tried to tell her to run. He really did, and he tried to get to her as she launched herself at them. They had to get out! These things were too smart to deal with on this level, he was sure of it! If he could only get them away, maybe...

His eyes widened in shock and panic as bright crimson streaks of blood appeared across the silk as the womans body was thrown about and then tossed to the ground. Was she okay?! Was she alive?! He couldn't tell, she wasn't moving, her eyes were closed.

Concern and fear were already changing to rage as he turned his attention to the creatures. Well... at least now he wouldn't have to worry about being seen. "Krusnik 02, release of restrictions to 40%."

The glasses were slipped off, red suddenly engulfing the blue of his eyes as a stream of blood seemed to wind, snake like, out of his wrist, solidifying in his hand as the blade of a scythe took form. Though no others on the street, should they have the bad luck of passing, would see it, the monsters would for certain. The image of wings rising from the creatures back, black and massive, each father looking as if it held the sharpness of a blade.

"Confirmed."

[hamonatrix]

Pain and fear flashed through Lisa's mind as heard, felt, sensed her body smash against the hard ground--her head striking the pavement with a dull crack. Her chest constricted as the breath was driven from her lungs, darkness swallowing her vision for uncounted seconds.

In those clouded moments as her breath returned and she struggled for consciousness, she wasn't sure what she saw. She willed her eyes to focus, tried to find the priest, but someone--something--else was in the alley. Something beautiful and terrifying. An angel? A demon? But the darkness pulled her under before she could really get a look.

[13sugars]

All the better for him if she remained unconscious. As long as she couldn't tell what was going on... He could always say that someone else had come along.

For now...

The crusnik bared his teeth in an almost animal like display at the oncoming beasts. He wouldn't have to hold back now. It was like the blink of an eye, he'd just vanished. Vanished? No, it was speed, the priest having leaped up out of the way of the oncoming attack, to land behind them.

The only warning of an attack would the the horrifying battle cry the thing uttered, the blood scythe ripping into two of the creatures in one ferocious blow. But... where had the other gone?

... That would be answered with a sharp pain to the side, a scythe blade digging into his flesh from an stealthy attack from behind.

... The crusnik only glanced at it. With a roar, the his own blade sliced towards the last being, parried only at the last second by the creature.

Oh, what a sight it cut, two monsters fighting to murder the other.

[hamonatrix]

The woman broke the surface again, gasping as she struggled to breathe through the pain. She wouldn't be surprised if she had broken something, but it was the bleeding that concerned her, and even that was less of a concern than helping Father Nightroad. Had he left her? No! He wouldn't.

She moved slowly, trying not to attract the attention of the combating beings as she groped for her knives. She found one, slick with her own blood. That was okay, she could infuse liquid--blood, oil, water--with the ripple just as well as the scarab silk scarf that she was pressing tight against the worst of the bleeding with her other hand, but knowing what to aim at was a problem.

[13sugars]

It was like he didn't even know she was there anymore. The nanomachines perfect rage mixed with Abels own intelligence and logic made for a very focused, very dangerous opponent.

And the bladed creature in front of him was no different than an attacking vampire.

The beasts scythe ripped through cloth and flesh, tearing a jagged, vicious looking cut through his side. An attack like that would have felled a typical human.

Abel didn't even blink. Those phantom wings instead gave a tremendous flap, and while no wind at all was felt... the beast cried out in pain, chunks of flesh and blood ripped from it. The same effect would have been had if it had run into a wall made of blades.

With a gurgling, watery cry, the creature collapsed to its knees, as the crusnik raised the scythe, to bring it down in a decapitating blow.

[hamonatrix]

Those wings. Lisa trembled, partly with fear and concern bordering on panic, and partly from the blood loss. The pain. She could feel the monster's pain shredding through the ripple now, though it took her a moment to realize why she felt it now, when she was weak, when she hadn't sensed anything before.

She was vulnerable enough now that she wasn't able not to feel other ripples, other energies. Couldn't filter them out like she did every other day. And it wasn't so much the Verdugo she was sensing as...

"Father?!" Her voice was strained as she called out. If this...this dark angel...this death-god had hurt him...it was a futile notion, but she would fight him to the last.

[13sugars]

The wings had torn the beast to shreds, effectively destroying it. All the scythe had done was put it out of its misery. As for Abel, he was still bleeding... But... Not for long.

He turned his head slightly, the sound of a familiar voice further helping to cut through the already fading haze of anger. The wound was sealing, and rather efficiently. With a hiss, the skin almost seemed to zip itself up, the torn skin and muscle just knitting back together, as if it had never happened.

Wide eyes, as red as the blood that stained the ground, were already fading back to that intense turquoise, and the scythe had vanished, slipping back into him and returning to his blood.

"... M... Miss Lisa..." His voice was already returning to normal, the priests rage gone, replaced by genuine, fearful concern.

[hamonatrix]

Lisa gasped as the gaping hole in the being's side healed itself almost instantly. She'd only seen a few other beings who were capable of such things, and even she, whose power had been three times stronger than her son's when she had begun training him, was not one of them. So much power...usually came with equal parts corruption.

She blinked, watching the avenging angel, the wolf in priest's clothing, melted away, leaving only her friend in its wake. Or...the man she thought to be her friend.

"Father..." Struggling to her feet, she started to reached for him, but at the same time shrinking away--supporting herself against the brick wall rather than get too close. It took a lot of her strength to rise, to hold her own against such odds, but there was a lost little girl behind her eyes--a young woman who'd seen a great many things and lost far too many loved ones--and she was scared.

But almost as quickly as the Father's wounds had healed, the fear in Lisa's eyes hardened into anger, and she drew herself upright. She was fairly certain that she knew the answer before the accusing question ever passed her lips. "What are you?!"

[13sugars]

He hadn't meant to. He... hadn't meant to frighten her, or to show it to her. As soon as that beast had vanished, it left nothing but Abel, concerned, taking a cautious step forward as she forced herself onto her feet. She shouldn't be standing! Not so soon after that! ... Was she truly human herself? Was it that hamon thing she'd told him about?

Hearing her speak again put at least a little hope into him that, maybe, she had not been scarred by the image. Perhaps she'd seen something like it before... Though it was a false hope, he'd seen the fear.

So the accusing tone and the anger in her eyes was not met with surprise, or anger in return. ... Just... a now growing, soft, quiet look of sadness. Perfect resignation.

"That... That's quite a question... Miss Lisa." How was he to answer her? He wavered where he stood, before straightening, searching for his glasses in his pocket. "It... it would take a very long time to answer."

[hamonatrix]

She winced, but not from the pain of her wounds. There was suddenly enough adrenaline pumping through her system to take the edge off. It was the look in Abel's face when she accused him. It hurt him, she saw, and that cut her. Why did she always have to be so angry? She told herself she had every reason to hate vampires and anything that resembled them--she'd never once met even one that wasn't ultimately evil--but...

"Why? Why would you save me? Why act like my friend when you..." The words tumbled from her mouth, just as they had when she'd been sitting on the steps of her apartment building, after Caesar's disappearance. Something about this man--whatever he was--just made her want to trust him. "How do I know you're not just trying to lull me into a false sense of security?"

Her fingers twitched nervously as she tried to draw a steadying breath, the knife clutched in one hand, the other clamped to her bleeding side. "I need to get somewhere, to dress these," she said, willing herself calm. "Walk with me. Please? I...want to understand." There were so many painful memories, it was hard to keep the emotion from her voice.