LuvDragon
Wild Mystic
LuvDragon
Wild Mystic
It was a fall night like any other. A cool autumn breeze flew through the air as the neon streetlights fluttered. Almost beating out a fatalistic warning as her heels clapped against the pavement. Her sister was once again out on the hunt and Astrid was asked to go walk her dog after a long day’s work. Granted she sold women’s apparel in a little novelty boutique store. That didn’t mean she was lazy or didn’t put in an honest day’s work. It just meant she didn’t run around like a nut job hunting something that didn’t exist. It wasn’t long before she got to Amanda’s apartment. Like always, as a gag, she had across and a string of garlic up around her door. Astrid rolled her eyes as she pushed back a few pink strands of hair and tucked them behind her ear. “Honestly…” She sighed, pulling the props down.
From the other side of the door a little yappy dog was barking wildly, letting everyone know it desperately had to go. “Hold on… I’m coming, I’m coming…” she muttered, pulling out her keys. For once she was thankful the moon was full with hardly a cloud in the sky. The lamp that normally illuminated the area was burnt out. And without the moonlight, she would never have gotten the keys out. Just as Astrid started to put the key in the whole, the dog stopped barking and the door flew open. She hardly had time to let out a squeak as she was suck into the black void of the apartment.
Sometime later, her eyes fluttered open. From the rank smell of rot and mold, Astrid knew she wasn’t at her sister’s apartment. But what happened. She tried to recall but it was all a blur. Her head throbbed and her body ached. As she tried to stand, she found herself pulled back to the floor. Her arm was attached to something. Since the room was pitch black with no windows, she couldn’t see. Slowly Astrid got on her knees and started to feel around.
“Ok.. “ her voice was shaking as she spoke to herself. “Handcuffs… I think…” her free hand traveled along the smooth surface of the metal and followed the links. She gasped when her fingers trailed over another hand. She stumbled backwards and landed hard on the floor, letting out a soft pain filled whimper as she hit her head again. With a trembling hand she reached out to touch the other hand once more. Slowly her fingers trailed the hand to the arm, then shoulder, and up to a face. It was a man. But was he dead? He didn’t seem to be moving or breathing for that matter. Her heart skipped a beat as terror coursed through her veins. “Mister..” She called softly at first, moving her hand down to his chest to feel for a heartbeat. “Mister, are you alive?” Her voice held a faint southern draw since she hailed from New Orleans. But it quivered with uncertainty. She didn’t know what was going on, or why she was handcuffed to a dead man.
Suddenly a voice rang out in the cement room. “Hello Ms. Hunter. I’m sure you know that… man. Or you will when I turn on the lights.” The voice was raspy and chuckled as he paused with sadistic delight. “You have 24 hours to dispose of him or bloodlust will consume him and drive him mad and he will eat you.” The strange voice laughed once more. This time it was loud and deep, from the gut. “24 hours.” Blinding lights flashed on and flooded the room. A small hole in the wall opened up and rats were pushed through. Astrid let out a cry as one bit her, causing her to bleed. The starving rats saw her as a feast and wasn’t about to let it go to waste. The sweet metallic smell mingled with that of rot and mold. "Mister.. please... get up." For once she found herself longing for her sister. she always said something like this could happen. She just never believed her.
The Eternal Chronicler
Devoted Friend
LuvDragon
Kalrael stirred awake at the sudden scent of blood mixed with a heightened heartbeat. Opening his eyes, the first sight was in itself unpleasant - his first few seconds of consciousness already brought him into a foul state of mind, but even through the vague percussion of the heart immediately behind him and the cruelly alluring smell of blood, he recognized trouble when he saw it, just as he recognized justified panic when he heard it. The icy metallic binding on his wrist filled him in on the rest, and for a moment he rolled his eyes.
Captured. Bound to someone whose state of injury was far from a good sign, and who seemed very much to be relying on him - of all people - to solve the issue. He furrowed his brow, still fairly certain he could pose as dead until the worst, but there was no point in that. He had nothing held against whoever this was - but his captors, he would have a number of problems with. Unfortunately for circumstance, his attention had to be brought to the former for the time being. "Calm yourself." He finally said, his voice low but equal parts menacing and commanding all the same. It was hard enough to think coherently in such a state as it was; the incessant pounding of a fevered human heart was only going to worsen the matter.
"Can you stand?" He asked, casting a glance about the room - which to his dismay was impressively closed-in... yet his captors had brought them in somehow; there had to be a way out, so long as they weren't actively watching...
LuvDragon
Wild Mystic
Astrid gasped when the man spoke. She had honestly thought he was dead. She froze, looking at him with azure eyes when he said to calm. She had started to panic. In a strange place, a strange person asking her to kill a stranger. It seemed like something her sister would be into. Or something out of a bad Scooby-Doo rerun. "Yes, I can stand." Astrid replied simply. This time when she spoke, there wasn't so much dread in her voice. As least now she knew the man wasn't a corpse.
Slowly she rose to her feet. this time she adjusted the way she stood to allow for the fact that she was handcuffed to the man. It also helped that she was short, only standing 5'2. The lights being on helped as well. Being able to see made a huge difference.
The sound of stone scraping along the ground rang out from one wall. A sliver of neon light intruded in, making it's persons know. Astrid looked to the man then to the opening. She was most likely a trap. "Tiny rat hole or force the wall open?" From the other side came the sounds of a busy high way, some construction, and people chattering. It was hard to tell where they were or even what time of day.
((Feel free to add your own flare or twists. Also use what ever lore you want. I'm off to bed. Night))
The Eternal Chronicler
Devoted Friend
LuvDragon
Kalrael paused at that, having no particular measure of what he was dealing with other than such an intricate setup - though he did slowly get to his feet and afford a look around. There was the rat-hole, of course, but he had doubts either of them would fit through. And, with the alarms going - though much to his relief, without the ear-piercing shriek of audible alarms - he was far short of able to conceal himself.
The thought occurred to him to force open the wall at the hole anyway, but it was immediately followed by the realization that it was also the most likely place he would have started, were he alone... or with his blade, for that matter. Turning in the direction of what he perceived to be the highway, he settled on tearing through the wall, but the resulting sound of the people's chatter tore at that idea right away - at least for the time being.
Idle chatter by the outdoors was not something to be done during the evening hours; if Kalrael were to burst through the wall, his escape would be remarkably short-lived, and he had no intention of letting the sun burn him away that day. "The hole, or a very long wait." He mused, shaking his head. "And I doubt the hole will bring friendly company." He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to think when again the temptation that came with the scent of blood tore at him.
"And given too long, I doubt I will be friendly company, either." He admitted dourly, his eyes narrowing on the hole.
LuvDragon
Wild Mystic
“Well, seeing as how we are stuck with each other for a bit, how about names? An introduction of some sort at least.” She reached out her free hand with a thin forced smile. “I’m Astrid. I don’t know why I’m here or what’s going on but I am greatly relieved that you are not dead.” She couldn’t help but to laugh nervously at her comment. Now that she said it, it seemed like a stupid thing to say but she couldn’t take it back now.
“Anyways… There is a crack or a hole. Which do you want to take?” As she spoke she looked around for speakers or some way for them to be watched. But nothing was blaringly obvious to her. Then her glassy blue eyes turned back onto the man. Astrid took a moment to study him as well. “What do you mean you won’t be pleasant company?” She asked. It was a rather odd thing for him to say.
From the other side of the wall came slightly muffled gruff male voices saying something about a bar and the almost finished construction job. They laughed before the voiced faded away into silence. And just as the voices faded the others noises stopped as well. Soon it was just the two of them standing in a well lit room with only the sound of a cricket chirping out. "Why is it I suddenly feel like I'm in a very poorly written Nancy Drew book?"
The Eternal Chronicler
Devoted Friend
LuvDragon
Kalrael paused for a moment before rolling his eyes slightly and awkwardly meeting Astrid's hand with his own - his grip nothing less than iced. "You may want to rethink your position on me being alive." He remarked, looking back to the lights through the crack in the wall. "Nevertheless, we can worry about that later. Right now, we need to leave." He narrowed his eyes at the hole.
"The hole would seem the safer route." He surmised, though his guess was entirely speculation and furious paranoia at work. "But as soon as we can, I... at least I - need to find a way to undo these." He gestured to the cuffs binding the two to each other.
The last bit caught him by mild surprise however, as he had never been one for books that weren't purely historical, and as such he raised an eyebrow as he started to make his way to further examine the hole. "And what is a Nancy Drew book?" He queried, for a moment not entirely sure he even cared to know.
LuvDragon
Wild Mystic
Astrid couldn't help but to smile sheepishly as he asked what the books were. It was laughable really. Of all the books in her collections, those were the only young adult or teen books she owned. She didn't even remember why she had them or kept them for that matter. "It's about a young female detective who solves mysteries."
She turned her attention back to the hole as she sized hit up. It was going to be a really tight fit. Then here eyes dropped to the cuffs. "How would we go through? One of us crawl backwards?" She tried to picture it in her mind. One crawling backwards while the other going forwards. There arms always staying close, tugging against each other due to the cuffs.
"Yeah... that's going to be hard. But if you think it's our best bet." Astrid looked to the sliver cracked into the wall as the sounds of foot steps stomped by. Someone wasn't happy they were on guard duty. Lucky for them, the person wasn't doing a good job.
Finally she looked back Kalrael. "What makes you so important? Some big shot CEO? I have a life too you know. This isn't my idea of a pleasure cruse." She replied as he commented on the importance of him getting out. Something told her even if she did what the man wanted, she wouldn't be allowed to leave alive. Astrid let out a sigh. Normally she was more even tempered but this, waking up handcuffed, had her all thrown out of whack."Anyways, who is going first?"
The Eternal Chronicler
Devoted Friend
LuvDragon
A brief flashback of the Blood War tore through Kalrael's mind at the last string of questions, and for all the sting it gave, he simply shook his head. Reluctantly, he sighed and turned a stare on Astrid. "If I had to guess, the people who put us here are a full drove of vampires looking to take my head for betrayal." He stated, seeming - for one who could not so easily express it - somewhat flustered by the unrelated questions. "I suppose they expected you to be off with it."
With that however, he checked the depth of the hole and reluctantly put himself in feet-first. "Just focus on getting out now, I can explain later." He offered, starting to shuffle his way back to make room at arm's length.
LuvDragon
Wild Mystic
LuvDragon
She sighed. Was he really trying to tell her that vampires wanted him dead? "Sounds like something my sister would be into." She muttered as she followed in after him. She kept her cuffed arm stretched out before her as they started to craw. The air in the tiny passage way was somewhat fresher. At least the smell of rot wasn't so heavy. But the floor was damp and mold clung thick to the walls.
The passage only lasted for a few feet before emptying out into a room full of squeaking cages. There were more hungry rats waiting to be let loose onto someone, maybe them. In one corner was a pile of well chewed bones and dried blood coated the floor. "What lovely décor." Astrid said with sarcasm oozing from her voice. On the far wall was a door with about an inch crack along the bottom. Dimming orange light from the setting sun flooding in with no signs of anyone outside.
As soon as she was able, Astrid stood up and dusted herself off to the best of her ability. She didn't like the idea of being coated in unidentifiable gunk. Looking around it seemed like the two would make it out a lot easier than she originally thought. At least she hoped they would. Then they could work on removing the handcuffs. But who could she go to? She didn't know anything about this kind of stuff. Normally at this point she would have inserted some witty pun or smart mouthed crack, but nothing was coming to mind. So instead she simply looked to Kalrael, hoping he would have a plan. Cause this girl had nothing.
The Eternal Chronicler
Devoted Friend
LuvDragon
"Your sister is a strange woman, then." Kalrael remarked, helping Astrid to her feet as she pulled herself out of the hole. It wasn't the first time he had made such a remark about a woman's interest in his kin, and he had no doubt it wouldn't be the last - assuming he survived the trek. Of course, the scent became all the more unbearable - not only blood, but death itself hung in the air, slowly strangling his conscience. Had it not been for the sliver of sunlight visible below the door opposite them, he'd have made for it immediately.
Almost as if on cue by the thought of his conscience being strangled, he did allow himself a moment of optimism in the midst of all the grim reality; their captors had clearly not anticipated their move. Of course, that wouldn't stop them from being just beyond the door once dusk settled in.... After a moment, he regarded the shackles between himself and Astrid, then to the layout about him. After a pregnant silence, he regarded the woman with a curious stare. "The rat that bit you..." He paused for a moment, realizing the ramifications of using blood as a provocative catalyst in his own escape plan. "How sharp was its bite?"
LuvDragon
Wild Mystic
Astrid blinked when he asked about the rat that bit her. She looked down at the bite on her arm and the few on her legs. It hurt like hellfire when they where trying get to eat her. "I would say very sharp. It still stings were they bit. Just didn't want to say anything and sound like a baby." At least the bites were shallow and no longer bled. But it left her wondering why he would be asking.
She looked at the door and then back to Kalrael. "Can't we just leave?" After all it seemed the obvious choice. Astrid started for the door only to come to a quick stop. She looked back at him with a confused and angry look. "Look, clearly the sun is setting. I don't want to be here when it goes down." Her glassy eyes pleading with him to just get moving. She didn't understand his distain for the like was. "What are you planning for the rats?" She asked, closing the gap she created between them.
The Eternal Chronicler
Devoted Friend
LuvDragon
Kalrael admitted to himself that he should have seen the complaint coming, but his ghostly complexion remained stoic as he regarded the rats for a moment but then to Astrid. "Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return." He recited, looking again to the door. "In the light of the sun, a vampire is returned to dust over the course of mere seconds. I have no intention of getting out only to die seconds out the door, and so I must remain behind."
With a raise of his hand and a sigh, he indicated the bones about the room before putting his finger to the blood that had seeped from the woman's bite wound - and promptly covered one of the links of the chain between them in it. "These rats are trained to hunt." He explained, picking up one bone and setting it behind the link before bracing himself and putting the link - and a short section of chain - into one of the occupied cages, angling the bone behind it such that it could not be immediately drawn out. "If they can be fooled into eating through the chain, you can leave and neither of us will be harmed. If I recall, that was your intention, was it not?"
LuvDragon
Wild Mystic
Quietly she watched for a moment. Her face visibly paled as he spoke. ok, so she wasn't always the sharpest pencil in the box, but she always got it eventually. As his hand moved over the blood on her arm, she wanted to squeak out in fear. But why? He had done nothing to her. He didn't put her here. Her eyes quickly turned to the cage to watch and see if the rats really could eat through the chain. Was it even possible?
"If you're a... then..." She couldn't bring herself to say it. It wasn't true, non of this could be real. It was her sister, a self proclaimed vampire hunter, that they wanted. "I do want to leave. But I'm not so foolish to think they won't try to come after my sister again. She says she is a hunter." Astrid said as if it made any difference. Worse is what if they came after her? Was it ok that she knew now? Or at least believed.
The chains jerked as they rats chewed on the chain and bone. Lapped up every drop of blood. It turned her stomach. Astrid turned her so she was only looking at the man, no, vampire she was changed with. "Don't vampires turn into bats or rats or mist? Just please don't tell me you sparkle." She paused for second. "I guess if your not willing to try it then we would never know." Not that sparkling vampires appealed to her. The thought was rather disturbing in fact, causing a shiver to run down her spine.
The Eternal Chronicler
Devoted Friend
LuvDragon
Kalrael turned a quizzical eye on Astrid at the mention of her sister being a vampire huntress. Though he himself was not entirely frightened, the shift in his eye betrayed he had been shocked to hear it. A strange woman indeed... but it left much less to coincidence than he initially supposed. Almost immediately, the thoughts of his captor's intent to see him killed by an innocent for their amusement turned into the more realistic expectations; they'd have finished off the survivor, if he had been bound to a huntress. And at the same time, he was assisting the escape of a huntress' relative. His feelings on the matter became immediately mixed, where only seconds ago none had been there to begin with.
Needless complications, he insisted internally as he regarded the work from the rats. It was a slow process, but they were thorough enough to cause considerable damage to the chain link. "Some do change, yes." He affirmed, unfazed as he began twisting his arm to put more tension on the chain. "Most of those were turned and buried, forced to return to their burial place in the presence of the divine. I was born already dead; I as well as most I know would simply burn." He paused for a moment at the mention of a sparkling vampire. The thought sounded absurd to him, and the only image he could conjure up of anything remotely similar was the half-angel girl he had cared for over the course of a few years - and she usually burnt in the presence of her own expulsions of her half-holy nature, shimmering though those might be.
Focusing back on the situation at hand, he found himself at an odd crossroads. Hunters were not bad people; they were just far more likely to perceive him as a bad person by his nature alone. Steeling his gaze, he contemplated Astrid's inevitable situation and realized if he wasn't wrong in the first place - that his captors had forced his part on account of his status as a renegade, he would meet this huntress after all. He would much rather meet her as the one who assisted Astrid's escape than as a predetermined enemy. "I will need my blade." He decided. "Once I have that, I can assure your safety and return you to your sister... though I doubt she will be pleased to meet me, if she is the hunter she claims to be." On the reverse side of it, again - he would be prepared.