Cutting and slashing his way through a seemingly endless horde of demons, Andrew heard this and swore. "Damn you, Raymond, let go of her! Take me!!"
Andrew was fighting the demons furiously and cussing out Raymond. Capri was agreeing silently in her own mind as she heard Andrew. However, when she heard Andrew's cry, Capri shouted through a link at him, _Like hell 'e will! Don't give the rotting carcass any ideas, just fight like grim death! I'm gonna do a number on 'is magic, like makin it disappear._
Raymond only raised his head to snarl in Andrew's direction for a moment. "I will soon enough old fool!" Then he resumed feeding from Sarah.
Sarah's mind reeled. ::oh god I don't want to die--I *don't*--not like this! How could Ray be doing this? How could he--but it was. That meant she had no one now...no one!::
Gabriel heard that mental scream. It reverberated through his very bones. He was still too far away to reach her, and the demons had massed themselves against him as if they knew how very much he wanted to throw himself across that wooden floor and into the pentagram. One of them in particular had taken on Giovanni's face and smile, and slashed at him with claws that seemed to touch the very wellsprings of his being... and to drain what little strength he had left. Gabriel fought on, however, throwing his soul into this conflict. Without knowing it, he began to pray. His voice grew stronger as he chanted the formal words that he'd kept sacred through so many years. A glow began to keep the demons at bay.
David didn't know where these monsters were coming from but they kept coming. Without magic nor un-natural strength, he could only slash at the creatures with his pocketknife. It was small, but enough to keep them wary of him. The hardest part was avoiding their claws and fangs.
The blood tears ran down Sarah's face as her struggles grew weaker and she sagged finally to the floor. The creature now began to appear like the Raymond she'd cherished in memory, kneeling beside her, its mouth sucking avidly at her blood, her life, her very being.
Andrew and David fought on and Capri continued working away the evil power. She had to be subtle enough to get it done before Giovanni suspected. He was totally absorbed with Sarah and Raymond now, and Capri used that to her advantage. Once the walls were clear, Capri turned her attention to the floor. There were evil signs and symbols all over it too. In a few moments, they were melted away, and the floor was now just an ordinary floor. Capri did this with anything about the room which had held any symbolic and magic purpose for Giovanni. It was a struggle to keep calm and get it all done. She worked furiously yet methodically, and it seemed as if time was dragging, yet everything was happening too fast. If something didn't give soon, Sarah's life would be over, and it seemed as if Giovanni and that thing called Raymond were gaining. Capri would not let it happen though. now it was time to drain Giovanni of his own personal magic.
David saw Sarah lying on the floor, the creature bending over her. "SARAH!" He screamed and lunged in that direction only to be cut off by yet another of the scaly misshapen things.
~Blast it!~ Capri shot a glare at the demon, which then started to come apart as it was sent out of the way.
Raymond ran his tongue over his fangs, as if testing how solid they were. Then, grinning broadly, he bent to her neck and bit deeply.
Just as Raymond began feeding from Sarah, Capri now stood in front of Giovanni with a murderous glare.
Giovanni felt his strength go out of him, and as he now looked around, he realized he could not get it back. All the sources of power he had drawn on to enhance his own were gone, and Capri was taking what he had left.
"Ya picked the wrong place ta fight and the wrong people ta cross, ya stinkin bag o' puss, and now you and the rest of us are gonna know that yer nothin! Yer less than nothin! yer gonna go out with a whimper, and don't expect anyone ta care!"
Giovanni stared coldly at her. "Woman! you will pay and pay dearly for this--soon I shall be even stronger, what you have taken will be as nothing compared to what I shall have then!"
"Shut up and listen, dammit!" The tall, dark stranger roared back. "Jus' look at yerself. Yer too stupid to recognize defeat when it's starin ya in the face!" Capri jeered, looking at him with profound contempt and hate. "Anyone's gonna be payin it's you, startin right now!"
Giovanni seemed to ignore this, and took a step forward towards where Raymond was crouched over Sarah. Raymond's body was even more human in appearance now, though his skin and hair still were gray: he looked somewhat like an animated stone statue of himself at this stage, but it would not be long now before his transition back to full unlife was complete and Sarah crumbled to dust.
Looking back at the tall, dark skinned woman, Giovanni said, "When he has finished her I shall be reborn!" Giovanni ranted.
"Like bloody 'ell!" Capri screamed at both Giovanni and the repulsive thing called Raymond. She would've said and done more if Raymond hadn't spoke up just then.
Addressing Giovanni, Raymond raised his head from Sarah's neck. His eyes glared red as the blood that dripped from his mouth. "Why should I waste my vitae on you, mortal fool?" Raymond snarled. "You had your purpose and it is done now! I live again--and I shall live forever! I need only finish this childe and that I shall!" with that he resumed sucking at Sarah's throat.
"I'll kill ya, damn bastard!" Capri roared and was just going to lunge at Raymond and to get him away from Sarah and beat the crap out oof him when Giovanni caught her full attention.
"NOOOO!!!" Giovanni flung himself forward. To be denied immortality now--when he had come so close--"You are the cause of this!" he shouted leaping at Capri, magics having failed he was reduced to striking at her physically.
That was it. Capri really lost her temper now and she responded by delivering an anger packed punch to Giovanni's nose. "Try that again and I'll bloody well tear ya ta pieces! I been waitin fer this a long time now!" The last sentence was ominous in its tone.
Giovanni took hold of Capri's shoulder, he was going to try holding her still and then subduing her. It didn't work. She wrenched herself free and came at him again and again as he tried to hit back and fend her off. All of Capri's pent up fury was now being released as she slammed into him with both fists. Seething with rage and knowing something about martial arts/combat moves, Capri was a formidable foe, and as the fight continued she shouted out her rage and revulsion,hate, insults and curses at Giovanni and Raymond, and all they stood for.
Andrew heard Giovanni's shout, but couldn't get to Sarah yet as there were still demons in his path...though it did seem as though there weren't as many now as there had been.
"Raymond! For pity's sake take me! She didn't take your head and leave you to become ashes in that house, I did!" Andrew shouted as he clawed yet another demon out of his way.
If he once got his hands on Raymond he'd rip him to pieces. It should be him, after all--he had created Raymond in the first place, it was only right that he destroy him, for good this time.
David, too, was still dealing with the monsters. He glanced towards where Sarah lay when he heard Giovanni's cry and felt sick when he saw how nearly human Raymond now appeared. While he didn't know anything about magic, he did know this was not a good sign..."Damn it!" he shouted, slashing at another scaly winged thing that lunged towards him, a thing that seemed to change shape at the last moment, its face altering to resemble Sarah's.
He wondered again if he was going to get out of this, and if he did how would he ever explain it to John, Mother, and the rest of the family. Sarah...their Sarah....a vampire? He couldn't reconcile it. He'd never been too interested in horror stories, his image of vampires (when he'd thought about them at all) was shambling misshapen things that scarcely looked human. Sarah looked just as she had fifty years ago, and the others--Gabriel, and Karen, and Rene and even Harrington, all could have easily passed for humans.
Rene gave a howl of rage when he saw Giovanni's fist connect with Capri's face. Though she returned his punch, Rene joined the fight, grabbing Giovanni from behind, his arm across Giovanni's neck in a stranglehold.
"You bastard, let's see how you like it when the tables are turned and you're the victim!" Rene snarled, pressing against Giovanni's windpipe.
Giovanni's hands came up, clawing ineffectively at Rene's arm.
"Son-of-a-gun, this will be a pleasure!" Capri took aim, and planted her foot firmly in his crotch.
Giovanni's air supply had already been cut to a dangerous low by Rene's arm, but what little air he did have came rushing out in one huge whooosh!
"Nice aim," Rene grinned, holding the red faced Giovanni up.
"Thanks, I enjoyed that," Capri acknowledged the compliment.
Rene threw the gasping Giovanni to the floor, then glanced over to where Sarah was. Somebody needed to get her away from that son of a whore, Raymond.
Seeing that Giovanni was quite winded, Capri looked at Rene and gestured toward Sarah. "She needs blood, pronto. Can you...?"
Andrew pushed aside one more demon-creature, clawing it deeply. It fell to the floor and crumbled into pieces. He was braced for another attack, it took him a moment or two to realize one wasn't coming.
There were only a few of the things left, with the magic gone Giovanni evidently couldn't call up more. Thank Caine for that much at least--but there was still Raymond to deal with.
He saw Raymond bending over Sarah, still feeding from her. "Damn it I said stop!" he shouted, grabbing Raymond and wrenching him backwards.
Raymond recovered quickly--too quickly--and simply laughed. "I take no orders from you, old fool!" he snarled. "Do you want to die so badly you cannot wait until I have finished her? Even now I am strong enough to do this!" and with that he swung at Andrew.
Andrew was ready for the blow and dodged, then threw himself at Raymond again; this pushed the both of them a few feet from where Sarah lay.
That few feet was enough for David, who seized his chance and flung himself over Sarah, determined to keep her safe if that was at all possible--and assuming he wasn't already too late.
He looked her over--the wound on her throat looked bad, and she didn't seem to be breathing. Everything he knew about first aid ran through his mind--but he hesitated. Did any of that apply to vampires? Did they breathe? He didn't know.
He'd just keep Raymond away from her if he could and hope one of the others would know what to do.
Behind him he could hear Raymond and Andrew still fighting each other.
Kenyon jumped back and shot the thing again. Damnit, the gun was really all he had, the dagger was nice, but it would only serve any real good if it were thrown and there were too many demons to toss it. "One of the perks of being human." He muttered. And he was running out of ammo. Wonderful.
He heard the hollow click when he put pressure on the trigger and realized he needed another clip, but he didn't have time, one of the demons was headed straight for him. He flipped the gun around and brought the handle down on the monster's head with as much force as he could manage, causing it to jump back and stall, long enough for Kenyon to load another clip and fire.
He really had no idea what was going on in the room, he knew Dejah was just to his left, but fighting her own battle. He felt himself tire and backed up against the wall. "Don't let your guard down Blondie." Dejah called to him.
"Easy for you to say." Kenyon returned, his vision started to blur and his mind began to swirl. He held his aching arm up to fire off another round.
He missed.
He felt a cold pressure on his left shoulder, then a dazzling pain run up his arm and down his torso. "Damnit!" With a new shot of adrenaline, he planted his foot square in the demon's - Well, it *looked* like the chest. He pushed, the demon fell back. He tried to lift his arm again to blow the thing's head off and was hit with a panic attack. His arm wouldn't move. He regained himself, swung his right arm around and grabbed the gun, lifted it, aimed it the best he could and fired.
Where one went down, two more popped up in it's place. Kenyon shook his head to clear it and took another aim, but his vision was going red. He managed to blow the upper half of the demon's body off and had enough of a peaceful moment to look down and see what damage had been done.
He threw his head back against the wall and groaned, he had not signed up for this when he showed up in Clearbrook. His shoulder was in shreds and blood was running into a substantial puddle on the floor. Not good when most of the things in here were hungry vampires.
"Kenyon..." Dejah turned her head to check on him and her eyes widened, "Oh Hell." She bolted off another demon and went to his side. Normally she wouldn't do this because it took too much magic, but... She looked out into the barren fields and called them to her. Gregory had taught this to her long, long ago.
_But only for you to use in self-defense._ he had said.
Protecting a partner and a good friend, as well as herself and many other people in a single room was what Dejah counted as self-defense. She closed her eyes and concentrated, drawing not only on the power out in the fields, but on the power in the room itself, on the strange glow that had appeared to balk the demons. When she opened her eyes again, they were no longer sparking or green, but a strange shade of glowing blue, as were her hands. She made a few strange gestures in the air with her fingers, thin lines of glow leaving runes in the once empty space. Under her breath, she muttered a few arcane phrases and let out a slow breath.
The demons, every last one, froze as if terrified, then shattered and melted into the floorboards. Dejah came out of her trance and nodded to herself, a little on the weakened side, but still able to function. She noticed Capri draw Rene's attention to Sarah and Raymond.
Capri then took a look in the agents' direction, her brow furrowed and she put her hands on her hips in exasperation.
"Don't!" Dejah called, "I can take care of him." She meant Kenyon, who had since slid down and had his good hand pressed against his aching head. Dejah ripped part of a near-by tablecloth down and held it to his shoulder, trying to slow the bleeding, damning herself for having never studied healing. She noticed the blood in the open wound start to bubble, what could that be? The demon had bit him, but... "Don't even think it chicka." She mumbled to herself, to Kenyon, she asked, "How do you feel?"
Kenyon opened his eyes, "Fine, just fine, babe. I've lost the use of my left arm, my left shoulder and the upper part of left chest - Which just happens to house my heart. I'm good. No pain, just numb."
"Sarcasm doesn't become you." The mage snapped. "Just hold still and we'll be outta here soon, okay?"
Brendan watched from the shadows as all Hell literally broke loose around him. He had heard stories from his father about the pain of waiting while loved ones were in trouble; yet he had never expected to be on that end of a fight. All throughout the carefully selected fights he had taken on, Brendan had been careful not to bring his family or loved ones into the ensuing melee. But here he was, his partner from the future barely able to stand, let alone hold his own amongst the evil assailing them. The first "outside" vampire to have shown him kindness had obviously been abused and was giving her all in an attempt to even the score And the strangers he had come to help were doing their best but it wasn't enough.
Somehow it wasn't enough.
No.
Not somehow.
Someone.
Raymond leaned over Andrew, grabbing him by the collar and drawing their faces together. "You're a weakling! You didn't have the courage to stop me then and you don't have the strength to do it now!" Travers hissed as he easily raised Harrington by the shirt before flinging him across the room, crashing the other vampire into a wall. Andrew ended up, stunned, next to Karen who instinctively reached out for him.
This whole episode of everyone's lives was centered upon one selfish, ego-maniacal individual.
It was definitely Someone.
The hunter felt the power begin to tingle in the center of his chest near to his heart, surging outwards and supplying mystical energy to tired limbs that argued against further movement. Even without that power, though, Brendan would have acted on the smug smile of Travers alone. He longed to wipe that smile right off the vampire's face and then wipe that face along the floor.
Raymond threw back his head and laughed. Sarah lay at his feet, her essence throbbing in his veins, giving him life even as her shell began to fade. "Pathetic human waste!" he hissed as he bent over David to lift him from his protective stance over Sarah.
"Parasite!" Raymond heard a voice whisper from over his head. He let go of David as the chill of the grave crept through his reforming body. He raised his head, drew back his lips and hissed. "You!"
Brendan stood still, arms behind his back. "At last."
The vampire straightened and took a single step back. "You're too late!" He laughed, the hollow echo of the grave sounding in his voice. "You failed! She is me and I am her!"
Brendan looked down and noticed a faint movement from Sarah's hand. When he raised his head, a strange smile played along his mouth. "Not yet she isn't, loser." He drew his hands from behind his back and raised the sword, adopting the stance he had learned from his father. "And I intend to make sure that she gets all of herself back!"
Raymond nodded his head in acceptance of the invisible gauntlet that Brendan had thrown down. "Do your best!" the prey taunted the hunter.
And all the turmoil and power in the air, in the very surrounding universe, focused down to the two men in the center of the room.
Andrew got to his feet, slowly, in time to see Raymond facing off with Brendan. "No!" he cried out. "Brendan--he's my childe. I should be the one to destroy him!"
"You did your best old fool and it wasn't good enough!" Raymond snarled as he turned a deadly smile towards Andrew. "I made it back!"
Karen gripped Andrew's hand tightly. "Don't," she whispered, remembering. "He's too dangerous!"
Brendan ignored the urge he felt to run to Karen and drag her away from this danger; there were others to be dealt with first. He moved the ancient sword he held ever so slightly allowing it to poke at Travers who directed his attention back to the hunter. "To get to them, you have to go through me," Brendan said simply.
The vampire looked down his reforming nose at this upstart hunter. "Around you. Through you. Over you. However you want!"
Gabriel spared a glance for all those in danger in the room. For the moment, Karen and Andrew seemed to be out of the midst of the turmoil and for that Gabriel sent up a silent prayer; Karen had been through quite enough. A sideways look showed the vampire that Giovanni seemed about to be confronted by Rene and Capri; Gabriel could guess at the reason why. The tormented vampire sent one brief thought towards the young man in the middle of the room but knew that there was nothing he could do for the moment; Brendan would call if he was needed and there were others in greater need.
Gabriel hobbled over to where Dejah sat, hand pressed tightly against Kenyon's shoulder, "How bad is it?" he asked as he turned, an angry snarl on his face to smack away a pesky demon.
Dejah glanced up, she couldn't remember this vampire's name, but she could plainly see the anguish he had been though. "Not too bad I hope." She said quietly, "I wish I could - " She shot a meaningful glance over to where Giovanni and Travers were facing down Capri, Rene, Brendan and David, the shook her head. "I can't leave him alone though."
Kenyon opened his eyes again and half-smiled, half-glared at his partner. Curious, he attempted to move the fingers on his left hand, to no avail. "It's not as bad as it looks." He said in a rusty voice.
Dejah sighed and held her hand tighter against the wounded shoulder, Kenyon mumbled a curse under his breath, and closed his eyes again. "I think the demons had poison in their fangs," The mage whispered, loud enough for Gabriel to hear, which also meant her partner could hear her as well. Kenyon looked at her gravely, but said nothing. Dejah glared back out at the fighters, "Silly mortal." She muttered in reference to David. "He's going to get himself killed. I hate - Well, here." She looked around quickly and found a mundane glass. She let go of Kenyon's shoulder long enough to hold the glass in both hands and concentrate. The glass filled with a thick scarlet liquid. "Jesus turned water into wine, I can turn air into blood." She said stoutly and handed the glass to Gabriel, "I studied matter, but not healing, ironic isn't it? Here, you'll need this, it's not much, but it will give you just a little more strength."
David knelt over Sarah's limp body, which seemed to have become thinner than it had been, even as Raymond grew more and more human in appearance. He didn't understand what was happening but this was his sister, of that much he was certain. "Damn it!" he cried out in a desperation borne of fifty long years, "Sarah, wake up! Don't let him win!"
He looked around at the others, all fighting their own battles, and softly pled... "What do I do? She won't wake up..." he was almost crying. To have found Sarah again, only to lose her? It was too much.
Raymond easily and ruthlessly swatted away the point of Brendan's sword, throwing the hunter off balance for an instant. He then bent forward, aiming for Sarah and the means to his end.
"Mortal fool!" he screamed, dragging David out of his way.
"Damn you to hell Travers!" David shouted, picking himself up. God but that fall hurt--but he wasn't going to let that stop him. "This is all your fault and--"
"So?" Raymond snarled. "You couldn't have prevented me fifty years ago, had you known what I was then. What makes you think you can stop me now, *mortal*?"
David threw himself against Raymond, pressing his hands against Raymond's neck. "This...is for...what you've done...to Sarah. Both then...and now."
"No!" Brendan cried as he found his footing. His cry echoed by others.
David ignored them, putting every ounce of strength and anger he had into his assault. But emotion does not allow for clear thinking, and David was old and human. Raymond was cold and calculating and vampire.
That made all the difference.
Raymond's hands clasped David's arms and began to squeeze. Slowly at first, building up the pressure until David had to fight not to scream, sure his bones would break in another instant. "I told you before, fool, and I'll tell you again -- Sarah wanted this. She BEGGED for it! She wanted anything to get away from you and that ostrich nest you call a town!" Travers laughed, coldly. "And that, at least, she did get."
"You're....lying...bastard..." David clung to his anger, but the pain was almost unbearable, Raymond was squeezing the very life out of him.
A flash of gold and silver passed through David's narrowing vision and he heard Raymond howl. A howl of pain and anger. As David fell to his knees, he saw Raymond clutching his arm, fire coming from his eyes as that strange young man held a sword that dripped blood, the golden flame in his eyes nearly a holy counterpoint to the Hellfire burning from pit of the vampire's soul.
"I. Said. Through. Me." Brendan repeated in a calm, even, deadly tone.
Raymond snarled. The pain of the wound in his arm only fueled his rage and determination. He was so nearly complete now, he wasn't going to let this stop him.
"That can be arranged, mortal." Raymond swung at Brendan, knocking the hunter backwards. "Perhaps I shall take you as a pet along with this one." he nodded to David. "instead of killing you. I shall make you worship me, even as that nest of children will!"
"Like...hell...." David gasped, still trying to get his breath back.
