Hunting the Rogues

[xanderlucard]

A good hunter must always be prepared. I spent the day exercising followed by a relaxing bath and a short nap before sunset. I felt fully prepared for the evening, and dressed appropriately for the occassion. Black trousers, black boots, white shirt, black vest and of course my cape, black, lined in red. Not a hair out of place, I leap gracefully

Comments

[klaus_helsing]

The wolves are restless. They're howling almost frantically and I follow them. They're louder than Alex's voice and while I run, I undo my jacket buttons. Best not to get the trenchcoat messy. Red doesn't show up well on white.

Alex...Alex...where are you?

The woods. Where the wolves gather. Where they congregate to heal their own. They'd know. He'd be there.

It doesn't take me long to find him and when I do, I stare. He's hurt. Badly so it seems. There's blood on him, his own by the smell, and he's covered in marks.

Marks that weren't made by me. Blood that was drawn from invading teeth. My master...

The whole picture seems so very absurd. Surreal. Insane! No one has the right! No one would dare!

I lay my trenchcoat over his body, keeping out the impurities of the air.

"Gather your strength. Stop me after all of this." I can feel the rage within rising, spreading out like a plague and I want to help Alexander.

More than that, I want to hurt!

The vampires are swarming in and they're slowly converging on us.

The devil gave me this power that grows within and until now, I didn't want to use it because I don't know what will happen. I don't know what will occur. I don't know the damage I'm capable of doing.

And now, I embrace it for what it's worth. So long as I can keep Alexander safe until he heals, then it'll be alright.

Just keep telling yourself that, Helsing.

The rage drives me. It kills. It burns! And then...I get angry.

Claws hit solid flesh and render and tear. Don't spare them. Don't spare any mercy. Just kill and kill and kill and kill...lose focus, lose aim, just kill all who come in the way.

Like the zombies. Remember the zombies? The pain? Father...father..Alexander...they won't take them away again! NEVER AGAIN!

[not_your_victim]

Don't follow him, Carolyn.

Don't follow him.

He doesn't need help.

He doesn't need ANYTHING.

He's running to the bidding of his MAHSTER. Leave it ALONE, Carolyn. Leave it....

Fuck.

I don't know why I'm running after him; maybe just after spending practically the entire morning trying to connect with Klaus, I felt the sharpness of his panic and just... responded accordingly. Like a damned puppet with string.

This is ridiculous, anyway, me trying to run after a damned WOLF. It's not like I can keep up with him. Of course I can't; he's out of sight, heading toward the woods near the castle, quite quickly. And I'm even wearing sensible, run-safe shoes.

Eh. What the hell. You only live once. I keep going.

Turning it into an easy jog, I head in the direction Klaus was last seen - it did seem to be a pretty straight line - and as I jog, I pull further and further away from the city.

It gets quieter. Way quiet.

And then, it gets loud.

...what. The. FUCK??

SCREECHES. Shouts, roars, growls, snarls, animal-human-monster noises like I haven't heard since I was in fucking MEXICO because there are so MANY of them and -

- Klaus was running right INTO that and it's coming from that warehouse and there are vampires stremaing right out, right through the doors and he's gone fucking CRAZY, cutting through them wildly like a scythe through butter -

- and Lucard. Is on the ground. Dead.

No, not dead. He'd be dusted. He's not dead. I could make him dead. But then Klaus would kill me. No way to make him dead safely now. And you know what? He's not my threat now anyway.

Those things streaming around Klaus are.

Okay. Too many seconds thinking. Time to act. Whatever the hell is going on, THESE guys should NOT be running loose around Luxembourg.

Jacket off - folded quickly, under Lucard's head because DAMN he's fucked up - then stake and cross out of my bag, the shoulder strap with ampules of holy water over my shoulder, and I'm running toward the warehouse, crouching down low like I'm pretending to be the animals they really are, staying AWAY from Klaus because he'd kill me as easily as any of the rest of them if they got close.

That's more than okay. I've got my own bunch to deal with.

Strike. Stake. Splash. Kill.

You bitches picked the WRONG fight today.

[klaus_helsing]

They're hot. All of them are hot. Feverish, burning, bristling with his blood..his blood that wasn't given willingly! Had they lost all respect? Yesss, they were Sophie's after all.

Hers, hers, hers, die, die, die! All of them must die!

Rot in hell. Go down and see my new father now. Go down, tell him I sent you and that I loved all of you. Loved the way your bones broke underneath me, loved the way your blood spilled upon the ground, loved the sound of bones popping, skulls smashing, and the gray bits of matter all over the forest floor, arranged in some crazy geometrical pattern...

So much love.

Father, father, father...you're still not better? You should see what I'm making for you! The patterns...the bloodwork. It's all for you. Every bit of it.

You must see. You must! And someone's trying to sneak over to you now, being a naughty vampire. Oh, there went his head. Look! Look, I brought the head back to you and we can drink from the stump, father. Share a fountain drink with me?

If you squint, it will taste like soda pop.

You're looking pale. You need blood. One of the bad guys got me. Right there. On the cheek. Silly stupid thing. You can lick it if you like. It'll heal faster that way. You'll heal too! Much, much faster.

Taste of our father?

My teeth enter my own wrist and I savagely wrench my head to the side, ignoring the carnage behind me. They can wait. This will be their graveyard.

My skin is torn neatly, hanging in a ragged strip of flesh and my blood, my life, bleeds and drips down into father's own. Master's own. See it, feel it, touch it, breathe it, drink it...

Just enough. Just enough for right now. I need the rest because there are many people who need some killing.

Through it all, I laugh. I laugh because this is just so damn funny! So much blood from all of these leeches! Fools, fools, miserable fools! They didn't see their own tombstones in this forest, did they?

Now, they'll know. They'll remember this night. This bloodied night where the moon is red, the stars fall from grace, and with a mighty gust of wind, I launch several vampires high up overhead to bring them crashing upon the branches of the trees, impaling several through their mouths, their entrails, they're wretched, inferior bodies!

Impale! IMPALE THEM ALL!

"Take your children, Vlad! Take them here and now!" And be damned to the devil's own, you ugly freaks of nature! I'll destroy you all! Tear you to rags!

[not_your_victim]

This is just like old times, baby.

Too many of them, not enough of me. STUPID them - smart me. Strength vs. smarts; the numbers make a difference, but when surprises is on my side, smarts always win.

Almost always. Close enough, anyway.

Cross, holy water, stake. Cross, stake, holy water, cross. Holy water. Stake, stake, stake.

A dozen of them dusted, maybe, I don't know. I'm not paying attention. Enough that they don't know what to do now; between Klaus' bizarro shriek-method and my own, we've cut them down by half. At least.

More. More. More. Stake, cross, save the holy water because it's almost gone, stake, kick, destroy the kneecap THEN stake -

Klaus, on his knees. Ripping his wrist open, pouring himself into Lucard's mouth. Lucard - not moving.

No, Carolyn, don't care. Don't. Care. You're doing ENOUGH here. Ignore Klaus' panic, ignore all the pain, Lucard DESERVES what he's getting -

...but. BUT. My blood; my blood, with my particular qualities - things Klaus doesn't know, I'm sure. My blood, added to his, would very likely bring Lucard back.

Dare I?

He would owe me.

And that thought, right there, fills me with a sense of such power that there's no fucking WAY I'd pass it up.

Lucard. Owing me. I start laughing as I slam, stab and kick my way back toward Lucard, toward his ragged, ruined body in his fine pretty ruined clothes.

Stake; kick. Two more gone.

"Open up, Vlad. You're about to owe me. Last I checked, virgin blood is good for your tummy." And pulling out my knife, I cut into my left arm, since I don't use it as much - careful, no tendon or serious damage - deep enough and wide enough that he's going to get more than a little blood.

Much more than a little. Tear my shirt; funneling blood into his mouth, letting it run down my arm, feeling dizzy. Dizzy.

Three. Two. One. Ready to tie it off. Just a few more seconds.

[klaus_helsing]

Movements. They were just globs of fat, of beating hearts and blood spurts.

They were lying, scattered, all over the forest floor. What a mess I've made. What a mess they've made.

There's just one left. Kneeling in front of father...daring to get close to him.

I smile. Just one left. Just one. I'll take off its head.

Feed from it. Destroy it.

Walking on over, I can observe its movements. It's already bleeding. Precious blood. Too rich to waste to the ground. But it's daring to get close to the master.

Smiling, I lick at the bloody, gaping wound upon my torn wrist, tasting my own veins with my tongue. Soft, spongy, long...

As soon as the moon came out from behind the clouds, I lunged to attack. This one will die. It will join its brothers in a dustbin or upon a treetop! I'll hear it scream, cry, beg for mercy as it slowly impales itself!

"AAHHHHHHHHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHHAHA!"

[not_your_victim]

Tying it off. Dizzy. Maybe gave him a little more blood than I meant to -

"AAHHHHHHHHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHHAHA!"

What the HELL?

Klaus. RUNNING at me, arms out like he's some sort of deranged football tackler, clearly with NO concept of who I am or who anybody is or -

Well, what do you know. They're all dead. But me.

"KLAUS!" Fuck, he's not listening to me. I'm going to die. Have to act -

Sorry, Klaus.

I heft my wooden cross - it's not tiny - and swing like Babe Ruth.

Right.

For.

His face.

...PLEASE don't break into a thousand pieces...

[klaus_helsing]

Crazy...but not stupid.

Master, guide me.

The wooden cross is coming right at me and I smile...as I vanish...only to appear behind the enemy. My fist connects with the small of the enemy's back. It will die! It will die tonight! It will die for trying to touch HIM!

Fist in hair, wrench back the head, the blood will be mine, mine, mine! And the body? Will be skinned! Yes, skinned! Skinned and worn as a winter coat for HIM!

[not_your_victim]

...I always knew kindness was going to get me killed. HA. Ha ha ha. Ooow...

He yanks my hair back hard enough that I'm sure I have whiplash, not that THAT'S the biggest of my problems right now.

Dropped my cross. Pain radiating up my spine, so bad, so HARD - at least it's not broken or I wouldn't feel anything at all.

Klaus is going to tear out my throat.

Forget it. He won't hear me. I have one chance.

"LUCARD DAMN YOU WAKE UP ALREADY!!!"

[klaus_helsing]

WAKE UP

Startled, I let go of her hair and shift back.

Wake up? Who's sleeping?

You are.

Get up. Up. Get his control out of you, get it out!

And that's when I feel the true burn. It's nowhere on my body but in my very soul that I thought was long since dead or given away to another. It's painful, bone-crushing reality...painful and hurtful and dear god, what've I done?

Ignore it. Go on. Kill!

I asked for this...I needed this...

No...not this. Not like this...

You've woken up. I've woken up at long last. The power rushes through me, as sharp as knives cutting through my skin, tying me to him. To my true master...

I'll kill them all!

Stop!

STOP NOW!

...Never. Never, ever stop. Must keep going. Will drown if I don't swim. Will die if I stop...stop...stop...

A stake catches my eye and it's a struggle to dive for that sharp wooden weapon. A struggle because I so badly want her blood, want her everything, want to kill, kill, kill, drown in the blood, in the beautiful blood, hear her gurgle...

Stop!

"STOP IT!" With that, I plunge the stake down into my right hand, feeling the wood cut through tendons and bone, drive it into the ground, keeping me pinned until...until I'm better.

But I'll never be better, will I?

White hot sparks of pain course through me as my own blood flows upon the ground and I just want to watch it. Just for a bit. You'll allow me that, right?

[not_your_victim]

He drops me, suddenly. I land right on Lucard, hearing the grunt from him and the grunt from me, getting his blood on me and more to spill from MY arm -

OH GODS. My back. Augh. I think he popped my kidney like a fucking balloon...

And... what? What just happened?

Klaus screams. "STOP IT!" he says, like somebody's doing something to him, in him, through him - and plunges my stake through his OWN hand.

AUGH. Okay, that one goes into my memory banks as one of the FREAKIEST THINGS I HAVE EVER SEEN. But it seems to have worked. He's calmer; he's not... crazy looking. No more Cujo.

So much pain. All of us.

"Klaus..." I don't know if he even hears me. "Hang on. I'll... help you." Why? Because I've gone fucking batshit LOCO, of course, why do you ask?

I groan as I roll over, off Lucard - well, off his chest and onto his knees, anyway, and manage to get on all fours. My back... gods, Klaus, why do you have to hit like a boy?

Deep breathes. Throwing up now would be SO undignified.

[klaus_helsing]

Help?

There is no help for what I've got. Maybe that's for the best...

The pain is vanishing to be replaced by a cold numbness. Prying the stake out, I toss it far away from me. The hole in my hand will heal with time. Perhaps after a night or so without blood. Sooner with blood. But I'm in no mood to attain that blood right now.

"He needs it more," I nod at Alex who still looks like hell. My vision is starting to come back into focus. I can see her clearly now. She's not an enemy. Not one of them. Carolyn. I was going to kill...and now I've hurt her.

...

Standing up, I make my way over to Alexander and Carolyn, praying that she won't flinch from me. "You need the help, it would seem. Hold onto me. We need to get out of this area." No doubt other people have heard the noise and it wouldn't surprise me if the police were to come. While they're on our side, their presence would still be a hinderance, particularly with Carolyn and Alexander looking the way they do.

I wrap an arm around her waist and my other arm goes around Alexander. Both of my appendages were injured, one tear at the wrist, the other a hole in the hand. But I needed to be touching them both in order to teleport with them back to the castle. It's the one place I know we'll be safe. No vampires would dare get into our territory.

Gently, I put Carolyn down first since I don't know if she would want me touching her longer than need be. Alexander is placed down upon the couch, a few of his injuries starting to mend themselves, but he'll need more blood for the larger gashes. They drank from him...no wonder he's so bad.

"None of them bit you, did they?" I ask of Carolyn, trying to keep my voice calm, trying not to focus on what I did.

[not_your_victim]

I never thought I'd say this, but thank you GOD for bringing the old Klaus back.

"Thanks," I say as he puts me down. Mmm, careful; no bending of the back, no no no. Betcha I'll have a full world map in blacks and blues there tomorrow.

"He does need more blood. I can give him more of my own." I eye Klaus. This is dangerous; but he's being especially careful right now, so maybe... just maybe, I'll get away with my harebrained little scheme.

I am sooooo crazy.

"I'm a virgin. I gave him some blood - he needs more. I can do that. But only if no biting is involved. NO. Biting. And no, they didn't bite me. I was careful." I can't help the raw little wince/smile. "None of them were nearly as proficient as you."

[klaus_helsing]

She's a virgin?

Bad time for mental images. Very bad time.

"If I was more proficient, you'd be dead." And if I was in more control, this wouldn't have happened. But I chose to do that. I chose to release that thing within me along with the enhanced powers of the devil. I chose to do so. So I have to live with the consequences.

"He'll need a steady supply of blood for a few days, but you wouldn't have to provide him with that much." If only we had more powerful blood...wait!

"A bit more should rouse him. Wait here, though. I think I know where to get some blood." Without another word, I bat out and fly straight through the castle to Alex's office. Where would he put it?

Somewhere close. Somewhere personal. Ah! Cigar box! Where he keeps trying to hide whatever jewelry he wishes to give to me!

And there they are. The two vials of blood. One should be enough. Strange, but the blood looks almost purple in this light. Picking one vial up with my talons, I fly back to Alexander and Carolyn and transform back, easily catching the vial before it hits the floor.

"Pure Dark Lord blood," I exclaim proudly. "Cures what ails you or your money back."

[not_your_victim]

"Dark Lord?" Eh? "What, that's the devil's blood or something?" And fuck me, it's PURPLE.

Wince. Ow. No moving. Maybe I should sit... ow. No. Noooo moving.

[klaus_helsing]

"No. Not the devil. Could be something worse or something better, depending on whether or not you're on his bad side." But getting into that story would waste precious time that we just don't have.

Taking out the cork with my teeth, I pour the blood from the vial down Alexander's throat, massaging it gently so that he swallows it on reflex.

"Give him a few minutes to work his magic," I mutter, corking the vial and tossing it away.

Carolyn looks to be in pain, my fault, so she's my next little patient. There's little I can do for her save to grab several pillows and place them behind her back. "Recline a bit. Relax the muscles." I bruised them. Bruised, but I don't think they're broken...

If they were broken, I'm sure she'd be in more pain.

"Do you want me to call a regular doctor? He can make a house call if I pay him enough."

[not_your_victim]

I laugh a little - which hurts, stupid diaphragm - and give him a genuine smile.

"I don't know how the hell I'd explain this to a doctor, Klaus," I say. "I don't think your boss here would thank me for rumors of kinky, abusive sex in the castle."

I look at Lucard. Am I crazy? Did that purpley blood actually give him more color in his face?

"You'll have to tell me about this Dark Lord Who's Not The Devil sometime. Thanks for the pillows."