Tic Tock Goes the Clock (Doc-Invite)

[Dominique]

September 13, 2013

Dominique was sitting and staring at the steel cage that had been delivered as expected. She purchased it on the auction since her crafting skills were just below the level needed to put one together. Five thousand to satisfy her curiosity. A small amount to pay to find out if it would serve a greater use in the future. The trap was said to be strong enough to contain whatever stepped into it and imprison it for up to twenty-four hours. That was a lengthy amount of time to be confined in such an isolating device. More than enough to interrogate something otherwise reluctant to stay put and answer questions she had yet to be answered. She needed practice neglected to hear of anyone having possession of or attempting to use the shock cage for containing a vampire. Therefor it was a good idea to test it out on a deserving target that she knew and would be prepared for what could possibly happen if things didn’t work according to her current plan. All other reasoning aside it was really quite simple. The asshole had it coming. No other way to put it. He nearly asked for it after the gunshots and bite he delivered at the bank. She rubbed her neck without realizing it till it was too late. Quickly it dropped back down to her lap as if it never happened.

Where the paladin lived was hardly a secret to the man. Doc was over twice to leave her with painful reminders she was on his twisted and disturbed mind. The egotistical ******** acted like she was his punching bag and chew toy. Each time she healed reasonably fast and gave him something to bleed over in return. It was not a healthy exchange and each time became potentially lethal to her if she continued to jab back when he poked at her. It was impossible for her to leave his cheap shots without retaliation. He wouldn't stop and neither would she. She kept that fact to herself and while she went about her every day business.

Unbeknownst to others Dominique continued to plot how she would finally come up with a way to turn things around in her favor when they next crossed paths instead of it always being her crawling home in a bloody mess. She was done retreating or watching her back in her own home. The cage before her in the room symbolized advancement. She would gain ground and information towards acquiring a deeper understanding of what she was up against. The woman considered it a progressive step forward on her part…or a death wish.

Dominique’s thinking was it was the best way is to study her prey and that is what she was planning to do. Capture and observe. Surely any person dedicated to the field of science would appreciate her approach. Especially one who had no issue with shooting her in the back and threatening to make her maggot food. The last thought made her expression brighten even more while her fingers flicked gingerly at the steel cage to produce a clicking sound of her fingernail to one of the bars. It was time to get the party started. The party favor had arrived and now all she needed to do was send out the invite.

The business card was worn in its current condition pinched between her colorful fingers. The cardstock had lost its crisp stiff texture and even the ink had faded on its surface. The information she needed was still legible. Without giving the whole idea a second thought she had her cell phone in her hand and tapped out a quick text and hit send.

-Have something with your name on it. You know where to find me when the curiosity is finally about to kill you-

Dominique’s dark eyes flipped up to the small clock that illuminated in the darkening room as the sun was nearly down for the night. She wasn’t sure if the man would respond. If he didn’t then she would wait. He had all the time in the world and she had decided that cage had a purpose and eventually it would be served.

[Doc]

The evening commenced the way the previous evenings had commenced. Check on the girls, check in with Tytonidae, show up at Canidae and take out some scum. It was beginning to feel like routine. A rut. Doc was falling into a ‘rut’. It was distasteful. It was abhorrent to him, to realize he was becoming predictable. Hell even Cat could find him with ease, and she was still so young. What the **** was he turning into?

Being predictable was tantamount to being, ‘normal’. And normal was the same as ‘average’. Doc strove to be far more than average. To give the ‘appearance’ of normalcy was one thing. It was a tool, if you could appear normal, people aka enemies, tended to overlook you. Once you were overlooked you had the advantage. They would not expect anything ‘out’ of the norm from you.

But he wasn’t merely giving the impression of normal, he was acting normal, experiencing normal. Doc felt ill. It was an abysmal revelation to have dawned on him. It was clear he needed to rethink, and reorder his actions. It was time to make a change. And this was his mindset when the text arrived.

His cell phone pipped, alerting him to a text. He barely glanced at it, at first. Doc had already presumed it was from Cat or Jacq. But the text made no sense. He reread it.

• -Have something with your name on it. You know where to find me when the curiosity is finally about to kill you-

Doc canted his head to the side, the number was not recognized by him. But the tone of the text certainly was. A fiendish smile play upon his lips. What was Minx up to? Did their last run in not teach her a lesson? Hell he was surprised she was still alive. He had expected that she had bled out in some alleyway. But he was wrong. His smile grew. She was still alive.

Minx was no longer content to play the role of prey. She wanted to up the ante, that was clear from her attack on him in the bank. But he had shown her, quite effectively, that she was not up to the task she gave herself. But she still wanted to play. Doc would magnanimously grant her wish. He didn’t reply to her text. And he had no intention of heading straight there. No. That is what she wanted. But if he playing, they were going to play by his rules, not hers.

Doc took his time, and cleaned his weapons. They were the tools for the evening. And when you were going to be relying tools, they needed to be in the best shape possible. Not because he thought needed the an edge, no, it was simply how war was fought. And they were in a war. Minx had thrown the gauntlet down in the bank. And he had picked it up and beat her with it. Now she was throwing it down again. And he was going to beat her with it once more. He whistled as he oiled the 10mm, and sharpened his blade.

It was well into the night, when Doc showed up at Minx apartment. Her apartment building was silent, which was as it should be, since it had just gone 3:13am. Minx text inviting him around, had come just at sundown, and he had decided that he would make her wait. He ever pondered not coming until the next evening, but his anticipation for the fight had gotten the best of him. He hadn’t had true wanton violence in ages. Not since he killed Cat’s biological mother. The lust for violence called to him. And the invitation was too tempting to ignore.

Thus Doc entered Minx apartment, via his skill with uninvited guest. He had been there before, and knew she had the place trapped to hell and back, so he wasn’t surprised that there was traps all sorts there to welcome him. There was even a cage there. He passed by them with no problem, but the cage he hadn’t seen one of those before. What did she hope to prove with that?

He by passed another set of traps, when he mis-stepped and was hit by a poisoned dart, and then a bear trap. Doc let loose a muffled expletive, as he leaned back and hit the cage with a glancing blow, and was given a sharp electrical shock. What the ****?! She was trying to ******* electrocute him! That ******* ***** was going to die. Jaw clenched, and eyes narrowed as he disarmed the bear and poisoned dart trap.

Doc slid his blade free, as his gaze locked on to Minx, who was mere steps away. The sadist was free, and ready to play. He advanced on Minx, stepping past more traps, he lifted his blade and slashed at her side. He didn’t want it over too quickly. He wanted her to suffer.

[Dominique]

“You sure?” The voice that broke through was the one that came to invade Dominique’s thoughts the least. “You know this isn’t like that clubhouse we started and everyone chickened out and quit when it came to having to steal the wood out of Old Man Johnson’s shed. You remember what happened? Benny had to bail your *** out jail before your grandparents found out. You start stealing cars on the level this dude is asking you to…who is going to bail you out then? Janie…they lock you up for years for moving cars across state lines. Especially the ones he is asking you to steal. If you do this no matter how much I love you I won’t be able to clean it up and make things better. Benny can’t make the bail. His shop and life would be on the line. Is that fair?”

Mini could hear her best friend Steph talking but in reality the paladin was thousands of miles away and still breathing in a dark living room fifteen stories up staring at a steel cage. The voice was a reminder once something happened no matter how hard you try you can never go back and change it. Her jaw tightened at the thought. Steph was gone and so was any chances to change the series of events that were now in motion because she initiated them.

“I know what I am doing.” Her lips whispered out the reply to the empty apartment around her.

“No, Jane, you don’t. You don’t know what the **** you are doing because you have never done it on this level. This isn’t the local ring where you run things with back up. You are going into a whole other world with all new players who have more attitude than you do. They are at an advantage too. They know what they are doing, you don’t and we won’t be there. They will swallow you up and spit you out. You will be nothing to them but a wild card to toss down when things are folding and the game is over.”

Dominique’s fingers left the relaxed position over the single chair she sat in in the south corner of the room. Her brown eyes didn’t leave the cage long. If they did they looked to the door for signs of movement. How was she supposed to take on the fight she was about to if Steph was going to be in her brain bitching about the way she bit off more than she could chew in the past. Where was the voices cheering her on and reminding her she could do it? It was then she realized she never heard anyone say she could. Enough reminded her where she would fail but succeed…not that she could recall.

“I already started. What is done is done.” Dominique’s own voice echoed in her brain answering exactly the same as she did before when the conversation took place with Steph four years ago. “Relax. I will be fine.”

“Jesus, Jane.” Steph spun around and went to the garage door nearly passing where the 1959 Porsche was partially covered. She stopped in her tracks and looked at the car then back. “You are worth more than the **** you steal. I am sorry that you are the only one who doesn’t realize it.”

The sound of a door slamming nearly had the paladin jumping out of her seat to attention. Her heart rate picked up and she palmed her face with a deep inhale and exhale to calm her nerves. It was the last time she ever saw Steph. The woman was right. They pretty much tossed Dominique under the legal bus when everything came crashing down. Was there words of wisdom in the message returning to her? Likely so but it was far too late now. The energy in the room shifted and the party was beginning.

Dominique stepped up and hopped over the chair she was in. Her weapons were in hand and her mind free of the past. Her invited guest had arrived. Maybe she would prove them all wrong and make her final ammends to every failure that had been haunting her in her short twenty one years of breathing and walking. If not she would learn once again the hard way where she went wrong.

Doc moved like he always did through the space between them in the dark room. The man lacked no confidence and his expression was predictably cruel in its void of hints to what he was thinking or planning. She knew some of his moves and could hold her own but this time was betting everything on the pièce de résistance. She was as sold as the shock cage was a couple nights ago.

Mini gained safe distance as the traps snapped and did their intended minimal damage as Doc passed through them. The cage had to work. One step closer had him grumbling then a shock that did nothing but piss him off?

“Oh ****!” She was already on the move to get as far from his reach as possible. Her body slid across the floor and tried to reach her Master Gunsmith`s SMG but it was out of reach.

Dominique was full of confidence but when she neglected to get her fingers on the gun she felt it splinter away right there. He was on her quicker than she could get a reasonable distance. If it didn’t help encourage him she would have growled in her instant rage. What kind of hope was left? The golden trap to immobilize the vampire was ineffective? Or was it a shoddy example of half-*** craftsmanship? She had no time to debate her own presumptions. The man advancing on her was ready to kill her and she was as good as dead if she didn’t act fast and use the training and skills she had to keep him on the defensive.

The energy of the blade gliding into her side as the vampire made contact had Dominique in instant kill mode. ‘HOPE’ inked across the fingers that held her own blade tight sent the master weapon into his stomach and with a grunt of pain she yanked the hand up and twisted as she pulled it out. Her gut was on fire and the warmth of her own blood soaked the fabric of her cling tank top to her body like a second layer of skin. She couldn’t afford the risk of looking down at the damage. With a sweep of the blade between them in warning she flipped back and waited.

“How rude.” She snarled. “You don’t appreciate my gifts or return my messages and leave me waiting. Now you arrive and I am bleeding. Keep it up and you will be leaving in pieces.”

[Doc]

His blade sliced cleanly and effortlessly through her midriff. But he received a similar wound as her blade found it’s mark. She had no idea what she was ******* with. He flipped his blade around his hand, it was a show of dexterity, though subconsciously done. Doc stretched his shoulders and neck muscles, and locked his stare on Minx. His upper lip curled into a sneer of disdain for her and her traps.

He could see by the look on her face that she had realized she was out of her depth, even though her words were belied by the look in her eyes. Doc would not reply, he would not give her the pleasure of hearing his voice. He knew that silence could be a very effective weapon all on it’s own. People gave too much away when they spoke. Especially when they were under stress. He had no intention of giving her any hint of what he was thinking apart from the fact, that, he wanted her dead.

Moving quickly, his own blade snaked out and sliced easily through her upper right arm. The blade was slick with her blood, which he flicked insultingly into her face. He side stepped as she lashed out at him, noticing her gun in close proximity, he snagged it and flung it away from them. He wouldn’t allow her the comfort of a firearm. His sneer became more of a feral snarl. Her blade had found it’s mark, but it was insignificant. She wanted him here, now here he was, and she was going to feel him up close and personal. No impersonal firearms allowed for her.

Doc wanted to see every appendage awash with her blood. He wanted his blade to carve deep into the fleshy parts of her arms and legs. Not fatal wounds, no, but bloody and painful wounds. Wounds that would weep vital fluids to the floor beneath her. He wanted to watch the life flow out of her. He wanted to see when ‘realization’ dawned that she really was going to die. And he and only he was there to witness it. There would be no future for Dominique Doe. She would be nothing more than a rotting ink stain, that would be easily forgotten by the next day, if not sooner.

Rushing her once more, Doc lashed out with his blade and slicing her other arm. The feral snarl that was etched upon his face had a distinct look of cruel pleasure about it. But the pleasure was short lived, as he stepped back into one of her ******* traps. It was a bear trap that snapped closed on his leg. Bending to free himself of the trap, his head was suddenly on fire as pain shot down his neck and back. He roared in pain and anger, as he lunged at her.

[Dominique]

Dominique watched for the next weak and empty moment Doc left himself open to another strike. The length of her arm gash to her bicep was making a mess out of the grip of the same hand. She held the blade tighter and refrained from allowing her fingers to move and be compromised by the blood between skin and handle. The shock cage of questionable quality may have failed to serve its purpose but the weapon in her hand surely did its job so far and it was all she had for the moment to work with.

The paladin was in a world of hurt as her gut ached. He got her nice and deep and that would make it a bit more cumbersome to be quick while he was trying to get back at her. A throbbing, burning twist of severed muscle and flesh increased then decreased as she moved or flinched in response to his own movements. In the back of her mind she wondered how the hell she thought she would pull this off now that it had started. Because she brought it on herself and now she was going to learn a lesson or teach one.

The pompous *** who snarled in front of her may have had the degree, the nice suit and the mile long excuses to distract the average person but she was not fooled. Her own blood quickly came back to land on her face from his blade. That was the moment she went from being the one who was dodging and buying some time to the one who heard the bear trap snap its merciless well crafted jaws shut around his leg. He had it coming and now as he bent over to remove it from his leg she went for her open window of opportunity to strike and with all she had.

Dominique held tight with both hands and took one step forward. Drawing upon all the strength she had in dexterity and skill of some fine training she sent the tip of the blade downward droving it into the top of his skull. With a growl she yanked the tightly fitting blade back to free it from the black pool building at the top of his head. With the force of the tug back she unexpectedly stumbled back.

If Dominique wanted to make a point then she just did sinking it a couple inches deep into his thick head and brain. She wasn’t to be fucked with. Even the demented Doc had that to learn. She had no fear of whatever he had to bring at her. If she had a death wish it was starting to become apparent if she didn’t get the best of him in this face off. She felt the pain of wounds he inflicted and the uncertainty of what would come. She also felt the rush of taking something from the bloodsucker as well. Each time it was getting sweeter and leaving her wanting a little more. She believed she was breaking him down. The look of pain in his face brought on an exhilaration that his body growing weaker from her hits. For that alone it was worth every wound she received in return.

Doc was no super hero no matter how great he thought he was. He had a breaking point and she intended to find it. In the woman's mind she was doing what she was intended to do. That was until he turned into Houdini and made easy work of tearing the trap apart. Her eyes popped open as he was suddenly free of the trap and came at her roaring.

[Doc]

Doc wanted to reel from the indescribable pain in his head, but his anger at Minx overrode any sane thought. She dared to think she could trap in him in a ******* cage? And then tried to split his head open? He burst toward her, slamming aside all objects that were in his way. The objects, furniture and traps alike, splintered into shards, from the force with which they connected with the walls. He closed the distance to Minx with incredible speed. His right hand was still held the blade he had used earlier; bringing that hand high and to the left, he belted her in the face, with a vicious fisted backhand. Then with the arcing return of his hand, he deftly spun the blade through his fingers, so it was now aim at her. The blade sliced deeply into her belly, as his hand swung past.

That was the wound which made her life, to be counted in mere minutes, not years,. But Doc hadn’t wanted her death to be quick, he wanted it to be memorable, he wanted to watch her as she struggled to stay alive. He wanted to hear the rasping wheeze of her lungs as she struggled to feed oxygen to her dying body. He wanted to see her chest heave hard, as it labored to breathe. And with each hard heave, more precious life source would leave her.

Doc smiled coldly at her. It was a smile that slowly evolved, even as his own blood slid down the side of his face from the critical wound she had delivered. The cold diabolical smile grew as he savored the fact her life was flowing freely out of her. Her inked artwork stood out on stark contrast on her quickly paling flesh. Soon her lifeless body would face the indignities of having the Morgue community service workers ogling and photographing her nude body for their morbid little scrapbooks. He could imagine they would be sure to photograph every inked inch of her. And, since her face was mostly unmarred, she might ‘get lucky’ as well.

But the evisceration of her midsection, so disturbingly fast and deep, had been so fast, she had not even recognized that she was mortally wounded. She continued to fight. Minx used Doc’s momentary pause, to slam her fist into his unprotected side. The sound of breaking bones was clearly audible to the both of them. He lifted an eyebrow and the smile died, as though it had never been present. Raw determination to end her, took the forefront of all else.

[Dominique]

Fury. Rage. It was hot as hell and filling the room as the paladins brown eyes went wide locking on the man clearing the space of any barriers and all that was between them. The apartment was like a hot frying pan with oil poured in it far past the time it was safe to do so. The furniture sprang up as he moved like beads of oil springing up and snapping loudly with promise to blister anything when it landed. She dodged anything that splintered of at her. She stood ready. This was it. Her fingers locked down and set a death grip on her weapon. This time she was going to get him deep and show him she was done with his attacks and anyone else like him. A war was beginning on the fifteenth floor of West Tower and she was determined to win it. Her gut where her inner fight was centered went into her facing off with him. She would not break. Never. Break.

The words played over like a subliminal message. Jumbled but still making the message effective. She held her blade and pulled back her fist to send it back at him again. The weakness from her wounds must have dulled the pain or maybe it was the shock and her mind hid her from the sudden and dangerous decline of ability to hold him off. Her hand was sent back painfully fast by a teeth rattling backhand ineffective in its goal. Her eyes watered and her ears started ringing. Then it happened. The countdown started in her mind replacing the ‘not-gonna-break’ mantra.

At first the center of her stomach tickled. Like a single fingertip went across in a sharp contrast of sensation for all the violent contact that was taking place. Her blade was knocked from her own hand and she could hear it clink on the floor with the hiss of its weight sliding finally to be banked against the baseboard of the wall to the left of her. The warmth of her own blood flowing in disturbing amounts into the waistband of her clothing beneath was what had her empty shaking hand reach down to find her midsection filleted deeper than her own fingers had the energy to assess. ****. Her mind said it. Her lips were not moving. What was this? This is it? Her mind was working against her. Panic was breaking down the walls of her set mind.

“Fight goddamn it! You said you would!” The sound of the voice, her own, broke through the crumbling walls of the paladins shrinking sanity.

Dominique felt the unbearable pain she worked so hard to avoid return and it wasn’t that of the grave condition of her own body. It was watching the last light in her natural life fading beneath her as she looked on helpless while the monitors flat lined and the medical staff around her turned their masked faces away in respect to a young woman who was finding out battles weren’t always won.

“Don’t do this! You promised it would be okay!” She felt the coolness of the skin beneath her desperate and pleading hands fill her own body sending it shaking in finality just like the woman she loved more than her own life. The woman who immigrated from Italy for love finally let go of her own in the fight that was over long before the gloved hand reached to shut off the machines that sustained her. “Don’t ******* leave…please!”

Jane Dominique Doe’s fight against the world began that day when she slammed her body through the doors of the ICU. So did her endless running as her feet picked up and began carrying her as she made her way through the halls she could scarcely navigate through her grief stricken eyes. It hurt so bad she didn’t hear the voices calling out to her or the sounds of feet trailing behind her. She ran faster because the pain seemed to lessen if her heart pounded painfully hard from the exertion of her increased sprint through the streets back to Benny’s shop.

Dominique now was feeling the peace that must have filled her grandmother on that hospital bed. For the woman who taught her to fight she would take one last swing through all that was around her, all that she was supposed to be and leave her mark. Her right hand where she carried ‘HOPE’ permanently across the tops of the fingers curled up and went with all the strength she had left crashing into the side of the one who would break as she did. The sound of bones cracking was like a sweet lullaby in the mind bending madness that crawled into her mind and seated itself.

If it was to be all over right there then someone was not informed. Doc’s face was void of the brief smile. A large hand went around her neck and a breath clenching grip set in. She felt the body crushing impact against the wall from her scalp to her toenails as her hands clawed to try and break his hold. Deadly cold eyes were even with hers now as she dangled off the ground several inches flailing her legs to kick back to get free. Air rushed and she felt the gap of her stomach widen as she skated on her belly farther than she should have courtesy of her own blood. She crashed into the wall on the other side of the room and before she could part her lips her neck burned again as she was yanked up and the hand of the one holding her that didn’t contain her neck came to her face covered in her own blood. So much of it that she knew what it meant as it was smeared across her own face. Banging was rattling the door and distant voices echoing from behind it. She was shivering, muscles twitching . Her eyes lost their focus. It hurt to breathe. Hurt everywhere. A hiss of a voice was chilling in its delivery. It lulled her to the darkness that folded around her.

“How does it feel?”

[Doc]

The thrill of victory was in his grasp, he grinned a feral grin as he sank his teeth into her, to drain her. The little **** wouldn’t bother him any more. But just as the old saying goes, ‘never count your chickens before they hatch’, Karma came back to bite him in the ***.

The sound of people yelling and pounding on her apartment door, pushed its way into his subconscious victory dance. “****!” Doc hissed, he had been so damn close! He went from killer, to triage doctor. He had to show that he had been trying to save her. Lucky little *****. His hate for her, grew by leaps and bounds in that single second.

Yelling to the people outside, “Be careful!! Open the door ..but don’t come in! She’s rigged the place to blow!” He quickly took stock of her injuries and his, and started concocting the lie. Moving over the debris he went to the kitchen and ransacked the drawers until he found the plastic wrap.

As the front door was flung open, the sight that greeted the EMS staff and concerned neighbors was a room full of traps, both still active and those that had been set off along with the debris from the fall out of those sprung traps. They also had a view of a man desperately wrapping plastic wrap about the torso of their young female neighbor.

Doc glanced over his shoulder to see the EMS first responders, and then went back to the task at hand. He yelled back to them, “Enter to the left! Those traps have already been set off. I’m a Doctor.. Patient is female, early twenties, self-inflicted evisceration. Patient is in class IV shock. We are going to need Oxygen, plasma expanders, and notify the hospital trauma unit we’re coming in HOT… and we need a ******* bomb squad to clear this place..”

Ten minutes later the first crew of EMS first responders were on their way to the hospital with their patient. A police officer and the remaining EMS responders were working, or at least trying to work on Doc.

“Doc.. you’re hurt.. you need attention.” The EMS responder said in exasperation.

Doc knew if they took his blood pressure, and it failed to register, it would be a **** storm. He shook them off. “In time.. I know my condition. I need to speak to this officer first.. I will sign that I refused medical attention for **** sake.. it’s a head wound they bleed like a mother ******, you know that.”

He then summarily ignored the EMS’ attempts to give him aid, and turned his attention back to the Police Officer. “As I was saying.. Her family contacted me, saying she was showing signs of paranoia. I met the girl at her place of work, and gave her my card. There wasn’t much I could do until she asked for help herself. I got off on the wrong foot from the start. She said I was ‘one of them’. At the time, I didn’t know what ‘them’ was. But I kept dropping by checking on her, and would speak when I saw her.. She had this obsession that I was vampire.. stalking her.” He paused, “Mind if I Sit…?”

The officer hastily found him a chair, “Sorry Doc.. here.. have a seat. So how did you end up here.. ?”

Doc sat, using the time to work out the details in such a way that it was plausible, and yet if off, he could blame it on the head wound. “Oh.. yea that..” He pulled out his cell phone, “She texted me..” He showed the officer the text.

“Doc this text came hours ago..” the Officer looked at him waiting for an answer.

“Yes I know.. I don’t always see my texts on time.. Hell I am still trying to figure out that damn phone..” Doc paused, “So yea, I called she didn't answer..I was afraid of a suicide attempt, but I didn’t want to big deal if she was really ready for help.. So I came over.. I knocked, she told me to come in.. and I walked into this..” He drew a breath, “I triggered a bomb or something.. she came at me with a knife.. I got it away from her, I am pretty sure I got her in the arm in the struggle.

“Then I got caught in a ******* bear trap.. A bear trap!” he looked at the officer, like ‘who the hell has bear traps’ “That’s when she got me in the head, I think I blacked out.. for a bit.. came to, she had another knife, aimed at herself, when I tried to talk her down.. she ******* did it. Right there in front of me..” he looked at blood stained hands, “I did what I could to save her.” He let his voice off.

The officer nodded, “Yea the First Responders said you saved her life with that plastic wrap trick.”

Doc nodded, the got an intent look on his face, “Officer, I need to get to the hospital. She needs to be put on a psychiatric hold. Can I count on your report reflecting.. all this?” he gestured to the traps and bombs that littered the apartment. “You will document with photographs..” His tone intimating that it should be done.

The officer nodded firmly, like it was his plan all along. “Yes, Yes I will.”

Doc nodded, “Good.. I am Doctor Charles Nilson.. if you need to get in touch with me, I will be at the hospital.”

[Doc]

"--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--"

Pi d'Artois: [Text - from Pi] Hi Doc, can you let me know what traps you have on you for d'Artois. I've completely lost track of where things are.

Doc: [text] got a ******* headache.. can it wait.

Pi d'Artois: [text]It's waited this long. Just send it on when you have time. You okay? Since when do we have headaches?

Doc: [text] since i got a fuckting headwound

Pi d'Artois: [text]Was this something you asked to have happen to you?

Doc: [text] what the **** you mean

Pi d'Artois: [text]Lets face it, it's not always clear whether you wanted a head wound. I'm asking if you were just... playing.

Pi d'Artois: [text] Or is there someone out there we need to kill?

Pi d'Artois: [text] Or ask nicely if they meant to ... shoot you in the head

Doc: [text] oh shes in hospital..

Pi d'Artois: [text] Human?

Pi d'Artois: [text] A human shot you in the head?

Doc: [text] paladin

Pi d'Artois: [text] Anything you think I should know?

Doc: [text] tired, having a ******* headache from hell and the phone is pissin me off

Pi d'Artois: [text] Sounds like 'no - nothing you should know'. Just let me know if you need anything. Until then I'll leave you be. You need healing?

Doc: [text] yea. that w.. yea

Pi d'Artois: [text] I'll be up in the portal room in 2 minutes. Meet you there.

Pi d'Artois: It took a while to get used to this new place. It wasn't a comfortable fit at first. The underground passage felt a bit close and stifling. And despite the elevator spanning the distance between the two floors she always felt a bit twitchy in the early days of their new place. Now, not so much. Stepping off the elevator she saw Doc right away and her eyebrow arched high. "Well, that's quite a bit more damage than a head wound. What the hell have you done with yourself... where's your med kit?"

Doc: Current Wounds
Wound: Sliced gut
Affected: stamina (-3 pts)
Remaining: 6 days
Given by: Dominique

Wound: Broken ribs
Affected: stamina (-3 pts)
Remaining: 5 days
Given by: Dominique

Wound: Sliced arm
Affected: strength (-2 pts)
Remaining: 3 days
Given by: Dominique

Wound: Stab wound (head)
Affected: intelligence (-9 pts)
Remaining: 8 days
Given by: Dominique
--CRITICAL!--

Wound: Cut leg
Affected: dexterity (-4 pts)
Remaining: 2 days
Given by: Bear trap

Wound: Sliced arm
Affected: strength (-2 pts)
Remaining: 3 days
Given by: Dominique

Wound: Cut leg
Affected: dexterity (-4 pts)
Remaining: 2 days
Given by: Bear trap

Doc: He was tired. He just wanted the heals. "I take care of the others.. when I get clean clothes.. just the heals.. .." * sighed.. * please * his head was splitting, his clothes were ruined. "Don't worry anything else.. "

Pi d'Artois: It didn't surprise Pi at all that Doc was a reluctant patient, all the medical staff she'd ever known in her life tended to be that way. It seemed to her that working in the profession of giving care like that bred a certain apathy for use of such techniques on themselves. Without saying a word Pi laid a small hand on his shoulder, and pushed her power out. She'd become used to the skill, she'd used it often enough. Healing took a piece of her energy, a veritable ball of focused Pi-ness and it was this she used to replace the blood Doc had lost. She didn't know if she replaced it all, although, by the time she was done she'd exhausted her own reserves her powers tapping out. She lifted her palm off his shoulder and stood back. She watched him closely. "I'm here if you need something Doc... I know asking isn't your strong point when it comes to me... but I do want to do something if I can. This. Is a lot of damage ..."

Doc: "Yea I know. I gotta get to the hospital, make sure that ... the ambulance staff, waiting on me, statement. Um.. Don’t show, hold work.. need her on a psych hold." To Doc, he sounded lucid and completely sane. It made sense in his head, so should make sense to her as well. He had to get to the hospital to make sure they put the paladin on a 3 day psyche hold. Otherwise she could get out. He intended her stay to be very very in depth.

Pi d'Artois: "Well, you're not going to get to the hospital in that state. They'll take one look at that head wound and admit you." Pi had seen head wounds, and was marginally impressed he was standing at all, let alone making this much sense. She was impressed he'd managed to text as well as he did considering the wounds that chequered the man's body. "I'll go?"

Doc: "Yea.. gonna change " He motioned to his clothes, as his words drifted off. " at Eyrie... no worries.." He winced and pushed his hair back, then grimaced. "You're not practicing, I am .. my signature holds her." He paused, "With jacket or without?" Of she should understand. "'Sides I want to see the *****'s face when she’s locked up."

Pi d'Artois: "With jacket... you'll need all the cover you can get." Nodding she moved out of t he way so Doc could leave by way of the elevator, sliding out of his way so he could go where he wanted to go. It was interesting to hear he had a room at the Eyrie and she filed that piece of information away for use... whenever and nodded. "Be careful Doc." she finished. She wouldn't repeat the offer for him to call her. That had always been the case and she felt like a parrot saying it so much. Many didn't take her up on the offer.

Doc: "Right.. " He nodded slowly. His thoughts were foggy. So he had to focus on his next steps, Portal to Bullwood. Take the transit.. get to eyrie. Inject. Change clothes. Go to the hospital. He moved to the portal. Looked at Pi, "Tell Cat.. I'm .. fine." He made his way to Eyrie.

[Zodiac]

"--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--"

Zodiac: *Approaches with a first aid kit in hand* Can I be of help?

Doc: That would be .. agreeable.

Zodiac: *opens the box-looks him over* I would hope the other person got the worst of it?

Doc: He debates telling the whole truth. However ends up saying, "Barely.."

Zodiac: *starts with the small stuff* I know we heal rapidly, but walking down the street like this will draw unwanted attentions

Doc: Which is why I am ...inside.. *tried to smirk and winced instead* ******* head aches...

Zodiac: *eyes the spot as she finishes bandaging his arm* I can see why

Doc: "I'm rattled for damn sure.. " he pauses.. "What.. no.. How bad is it?

Zodiac: *gently inspects the edges* she managed to put a hole in your head. a blow like that would have killed a mortal. I can patch it. wear a hat to cover the banadages *looks closer*

Doc: "******* *****.." He frowns and ends up grimacing instead* "Sorry ,, not you"

Zodiac: *steadies him-pats his shoulder* “I know. I am used to it. I have done this dozens of times before”

Doc: "I fell for it.. She was taunting me.. she played me.. I feel for it.."

Zodiac: lesson learned *smiles a bit as she checks his gut wound* underestimate no one in this place.

Doc: "Yea.. even ******* paladins.." *He reaches up and grabs Zodiac's hand* This is not a Tytonidae issue.. alright?

Zodiac: of course. however you wish it to be *pulls her hand loose and continues*

Doc: Thanks. *it was taking more effort than he wanted to admit to her or even himself.*

Zodiac: As a rule, I do not underestimate anyone. I am probably guilty of over estimating people. but as the scriptures say 'even mere mortals are capable of miracles'

Doc: Yea.. if you say anything about ******* hindsight,.. just don't.

Zodiac: I already did *begins to wrap a bandage around the patchwork on his gut* lesson learned. nothing else to say on that point

Doc: Soon as I make it to the hospital.. I will feel much better.

Zodiac: do you wish me to path the wound in your head or would you prefer them to do it? *waits* They will ask questions like how are you even walking and talking *cautions him*

Doc: Got any.. topical anesthetic you can put on it?

Zodiac: always. *shows him several tubes in her kit* I am no expert, but I treat vampire wounds as I did human ones. keep them clean as possible. we may heal fast, but I wonder what would happen if a fly slipped into this crack and decided your brain was a nice bit of dead meat to lay its eggs on? thats why I wrap everything or at least put something between the wound and the outside world