With Enemies Like This, Who Needs Friends
        A Forever Knight / Poltergiest The Legacy Crossover
                     By Tammy J Morrison

DISCLAIMER:  All the characters within belong to the various Powers That
Be.  I have only borrowed them and I return them in better shape then they
were left in after Last Knight.  

This story is placed after everything BUT Ashes to Ashes and Last Knight.
I think I am still mostly in denial about these two stories!



LaCroix was sitting in the Raven just before dawn, counting out the
receipts from last night.  Some would think it far below him, but he liked
to keep his personal mark on everything he did.  Whether it was children,
enemies, business or pleasure it was all -his-. Mortals were beginning to
move in the streets above, signalling to the proud immortal, that is was
his time to rest.  He could sense them moving around outside the door of
his establishment, not the usual thing this early in the morning, but not
altogether unusual either as he had noted some street repair equipment
parked overnight.  He turned his back to the door, when he heard a it
swing open, and a mortal entered.  LaCroix whirled around to face down the
intruder and was hit with a small dart in the throat.  He roared his
displeasure and found his vocal track paralyzed.  He stepped forward to
attack the upstart prey, but found his legs numb beneath him and he
crumpled to the floor.  His mind was totally alert however as a group of
humans dressing in black tight spandex descended the stairs even as his
body refused his commands.

"Damn good thing the curare worked", one of the humans with a deep voice
muttered.

"Shut up", a female with harsh growl to her voice ordered, "Just tag him
and bag him, and let's get out of her.  Who knows how many of the creepy
crawlees bed down here.."

With that LaCroix was hefted into a body bag and hauled unceremoniously
out of the Raven.

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Natalie watched unbelieving as the humans hauled the body bag out of the
Raven.    

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Derek Rain sat cradling his head, tonight was not a good night.  A
renegade Legacy House had 'kidnapped' a vampire and now headquarters
wanted -his- legacy house to deal with the creature.  The legacy houses
and the vampires had had an uneasy peace up until now.  If they stayed out
of each other's way then neither would suffer.  Now these fools had broken
that peace, there would be war.  The members of the renegade house had
scattered and were being hunted down for tribunal.  The data they had
deduced from the creature had been sealed for their eyes only, and was
being transmitted to their computer as they spoke.  The only bright spot
was that the foundation had dug up a modern day 'vampire' expert to help
them prepare for the upcoming war.  Apparently she was some kind of
doctor, a forensic pathologist who had been researching the vampire
condition. 

The vampire lay sleeping in a titanium alloy cage at the back of the
computer room.  Derek wouldn't even know where he came from until the
download was complete and they had time to decrypt.  He shook his head and
looked at the screen, download was almost complete. Due to sending the
file in scrambled pieces over the internet, so that no overzealous hacker
or government lackey could get anything useful it had taken most of the
day.  Derek was brought back to reality by a smooth but irritated voice,
"You will all suffer for this indignity you have put me through." 

Derek turned to see the vampire standing watching him and flashes of
indiscriminate killing through the centuries assaulted the human
psychically.  "We have had a peace up until now, and though I detest what
you are, I wish it had stayed that way.  My house has enough trouble
without you."  Derek said as evenly as he could, as he tried to wipe the
horrible images from his mind. 

"The peace is over", the vampire stated matter-of-factly, "Soon a slow,
unseen war will be fought and your -Legacy Foundation- will loose."

"That remains to be seen", Derek rebuked.

Derek kept from looking at the vampire, knowing that they had at least in
legend the power to overwhelm a man's mind.  Alex entered the computer
room, and made eye contact with Derek, "She's here."

"Good", Derek said as he rose to follow the pretty black woman, "You will
excuse me."  The vampire nodded civilizedly and Derek followed Alex
downstairs.

A pretty woman, who appeared to be in her mid-thirties sat on the couch in
the main lobby.  She was short and slightly built, with a pretty heart
shaped face, full lips, huge blue eyes and long wavy reddish brown hair.
She was carrying a doctor's bag and a briefcase.  She was chatting amiably
with Rachel while Nick looked on.

"Derek", Alex started, "This is Dr. Natalie Lambert."

"Hello, Dr. Lambert", Derek held out his hand to shake hers then motioned
to the others, "I take it you have met, Dr. Corrigan, Alex and Nick?"

"Nick, huh?"  She smiled widely and looked at the young man who leaned in
a doorway.  "He hadn't introduced himself.  Please call me Natalie.  I
understand you have a speciman in hand."  Derek nodded. "May I see him?"

"She's been given full clearance for the computer room, Derek", Nick
filled the house leader in as he stepped down behind the young woman, "It
was just phoned in from headquarters."

"Very well", Derek gestured for Natalie to follow him up the stairs, "May
I ask how a scientific woman such as yourself got involved with the
occult."

"Vampirism isn't spirits and hocus pocus.  It's a medical condition."
Natalie stated, "If I can use your computers when we get upstairs I will
show you my research."

"Of course", Derek nodded, though he was somewhat skeptical of the idea
that vampirism was only a physical condition rather than a meta-physical
one.

They entered the computer room and the woman looked at the vampire, she
raised an eyebrow and commented, "Interesting."  The vampire snarled at
her.

Derek looked at the readout for the datafile, it had finished downloading
and now was decoding.  "We should have some new data for you when this is
done decoding including the identity of this vampire."

Natalie looked at Derek, "You mean you don't know who -he- is?"

"No, another legacy house aquired him and he was transferred to us", Derek
sighed, "All of that data is in that file."

"Good", Natalie commented and nodded, "It will at least be good anecdotal
material."

Derek nodded and Alex came rushing in, "Derek, we need you downstairs now.
Apparently they've found the members of that other legacy house either
dead or totally amnesiac.  Headquarters is on the phone."

"Do I have to come with you?" Natalie asked, "I'm quite anxious to get on
with this."

"I don't see why you shouldn't stay", Derek looked at Natalie, "Just make
sure you don't look directly at him."

"Of course", Natalie nodded.  The other two rushed out of the computer
room.  Natalie slipped her disk into the computer and typed something on
the keyboard.

"Nicholas will be quite disappointed Doctor.  Helping them to kill me.  I
should have known that you would turn on us in favour of your own kind."
LaCroix sneered, "When I get out I shall enjoy killing you, or perhaps
Nicholas will want to do it for me."

Natalie glared at LaCroix, "Shut up."

"Not afraid to stare at me Doctor.. I have ways around resistors." LaCroix
growled at her.

"I said shut up", Natalie hissed, "Or I won't let you out with these keys
I lifted from Derek's pocket."  She held up a shiny key ring and jingled
it briefly as she approached LaCroix's cage.  LaCroix's eyebrow lifted, as
she started trying keys in the lock.  "I was outside the Raven when they
came and -got- you. I wanted to have it out with you about what you said
to Nick the other night.  I went down to see who they had grabbed, luckily
Urs and Vachon were there.  They got me to see Aristotle, who planted my
name as a 'vampire expert' in the Legacy Foundation's computer banks, and
he found out you and the data were being transfered here.  Then the
enforcers came, scared the bejeezus out of me, but I made a deal with them
that I'd come and get you out, if they only killed the humans who were
resistors and wiped the memories of the rest.  They agreed, felt they owed
me something for the cure for the fever, called me an upstart little
fledge.  I almost got the feeling they thought I was cute. Aristotle gave
me a disk that had a virus to get rid of -any- data they have about
vampires. It's supposed to replace the files with the worst vampire movie
scripts of all time. There.."  Natalie turned the key and swung open the
door. "I guess you're important enough, even the enforcers will break
rules for you."  LaCroix walked out, still slightly weak from the curare
and lack of food.  Natalie walked back to the computer and opened her
medical bag and tossed LaCroix a couple of blood bags.  "As soon as you're
feeling up to it, I'd suggest you fly us out of here." 

LaCroix drained both the bags dry, then stood appraising the human woman
who stood in front of him.  Natalie pulled the disk from the drive and
said, "Done. Shall we?" as she picked up her briefcase and medical bag. 
She walked over to LaCroix and wrapped her arms around his neck. 

LaCroix nodded still not quite knowing what to think, but asked, "Where
to?"

"Santa Monica", Natalie replied, "I have a hotel room there."

They arrived at the hotel about a half hour later, and Natalie made a
phone call.  "Yes, he's here with me.  The other legacy house doesn't know
who he is, they never got a chance to look at the data file.  Good.  Thank
you, I think."

"That was the enforcer, it's all taken care of.  Because this house didn't
get to see the data, they're going to spare it in deferance to me.  They
warned me if I was lying, I was dead.  Emperical proof and all. 
Apparently the Legacy Foundation is happy to go back to the 'detante' and
so has forgotten everything about this incident too."  Natalie sighed and
sat down on the bed.  "I suppose we have to wait til tommorrow night to go
home since he mentioned that Aristotle was having supplies brought over
here for you."

"I am too weak at this point to fly us home before the sun rose there",
LaCroix admitted.  There was a knock at the door and LaCroix watched as
Natalie rose to answer it.  A young vampire dressed as a delivery man
handed Natalie a clipboard which she signed, he smiled as he saw her name
and nodded respectfully.  Then he handed her a small crate of bottles and
walked away. 

"Have I become some kind of legend amoungst you people or what", she asked
uncomfortably as she set the crate down in front of LaCroix.

"You could tell what he is", LaCroix was impressed.

"Hell, I've been around 'the community' for six years.  I can spot a
vampire at twenty paces."  Natalie shook her head and started to pace,
"I've been at this way too long."

"You are the only mortal in a very long time that has the complete trust
of the entire community." LaCroix admitted reluctantly, "I was quite
shocked when you walked into the Legacy House.  I couldn't quite believe
you'd betray Nicholas."

"I'd never betray Nick", Natalie agreed and watched a LaCroix drained a
bottle of blood.

"It doesn't revolt you anymore", LaCroix asked.

"I guess not", Natalie shrugged, "Yet more proof that I should get out
while the getting's good."  The silence stood thick between them, they
both knew this is what she should do, but wasn't what she woould do. 
LaCroix walked over to Natalie and gazed deeply into her eyes.  She tried
to pull away as he stroked her cheek and chin but his gaze held her frozen
like a deer in headlights. 

"I owe you much, Natalie", LaCroix spoke softly, soothingly, "You have
helped my son when he was gunshot, but this I would expect of you since
you love him.  However you have also helped the community as a whole from
the fever, and now you help me."

"Don't read too much into it, LaCroix", Natalie tried to pull herself from
his gaze but couldn't, "I did it all for Nick.  He had the fever too, and
he'd have never accepted the cure if I didn't offer it to everyone.  And
as much as I'd like you out of Nick's life, he'd angst himself to death
over you dying like this.  He'd swear there was something he should have
done.... I have to call Nick."  With that Natalie broke away from LaCroix
and went to pick up the phone. 

However as she lifted the reciever LaCroix's hand covered her's and he
lifted her chin to look into her eyes again.  "I still owe -you-." He said
distinctly.  LaCroix bent his head down and pressed his cool lips to her
hot ones as he wrapped her body in his embrace. Her body stiffened at
first and then relaxed in his grip.  She
dropped the phone reciever and one of her hands found it's way to his
head, running her fingers through the short, brush-like blonde hair.  Her
other hand found it's way to his rump
 where it rested lightly as if unsure of what to do next.  LaCroix's
tongue pressed against her lips and they reluctantly opened allowing it's
entrance.  Their tongues wrestled briefly in the moist cavern of her
mouth. Then LaCroix pulled away, tilting her head to one side and brushing
the hair off the length of her neck.  "I promise you I will not allow you
to die a mortal death, Natalie Lambert.  It is the greatest gift I can
give you."  He kissed the bare length of her neck, running his tongue over
her hot skin.  Natalie's breathing was shallow, there was no resistance as
her pulse raced beneath the surface of her skin.  LaCroix pulled back. 
Natalie braced herself for the sharp pierce of his fangs, whether welcome
or unwelcome there was nothing she could do to stop him, was there?  Then
unexpectedly, there was a featherlight kiss on her neck just above the
pulse point.  "But not tonight, my dear.  You'd ather have Nicholas do it
wouldn't you?  We'll see if he will or no, hmmm.  Either way you will have
eternity with him."  LaCroix held Natalie until she stiffened once again
in his grasp.  Then he smiled and walked back to the crate of blood,
opening another bottle and draining it all the while watching her. 
Natalie glared at him angrily, it was going to be a very uncomfortable
day. 

Finis.

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Well there you go gang hope you enjoy it!

Virtual ribena, roses or fangs ('specially Nunkie's) to:
amydrag@freenet.edmonton.ab.ca