[tCotR] - Juan Vasquez

[Micah]

Micah was aware of the shouts, of the mad scrambling of the hunters as they attempted to for some kind of organization against the unseen assault that was him. Rage fueled his action and before the female paladin hit the floor lifeless he was firing again, another silent shot that caught one of the hunters unaware. He watched in morbid fascination as the hunters chest exploded but the fascination didn’t last for long as his attention was drawn to the others in the room. A few had managed to take cover but they were firing blindly and the shots didn’t even come close to hitting him. “Every,” he spoke quietly. “Take cover and watch my back. Any stranglers kill them. Don’t show any of them a single ounce of mercy.” He knew she would obey him without question. Besides, the last thing that any of these lowlifes deserved was sympathy. Just being there was enough to sign their death warrant.

A stray bullet fired in his direction caught him in the shoulder but he didn’t let that slow him down. It was like he was seeing through a tunnel and the only thing on his mind was getting to Vel. Juan, the reason they were in this mess to begin with, was a distant memory. Micah moved further into the room firing round after round. The majority of them hit their intended target, but there were a few that missed completely.

By this time the hunters had managed to band together in some semblance of organization. If he had been alone Micah probably would have tried to take them all out on his own but it wasn’t just him. There were others to think about. Now wasn’t the time to try and be a hero. Reaching into his pocket Micah extracted a smoke bomb and launched it towards the cluster of hunters. It hit the floor and exploded, flooding the warehouse with a cloud of smoke. This apparently had been unexpected as it caused them to scatter once more. Two of the headed in the direction where he’d left his childe and the remaining three headed in the direction where his wife was. Three shots later they were dead and before the last body hit the floor he was kneeling at Vel’s side.

“****,” came the quiet whisper as he took in the damage. She was on her side, curled up almost around the blade that remained lodged in her stomach. He made a face as he smelled something that wasn’t normal. Had there been something on the blade that would harm her further? If that was the case the longer it remained it could cause yet more damage and he couldn’t allow that to happen. “I’m sorry baby,” he murmured as he maneuvered her body so the handle of the blade was exposed. Curling his hand around the hilt he got a good grip and pulled hard and fast removing the blade from her body.

[Every]

She watched Velveteen silently, her lips pressed into a thin line while listening to the chaos around them before she pulled on her bottom lip with her teeth, reminding her that it’d be alright. That Vel would be alright. Every forced her hazel gaze from her faction leader and step-siress to her sire as she heard her name, her shadows remaining put as she then gave a soft nod of her head before reminding herself that he couldn’t exactly see her. “Understood, Micah.” Even though she would do it without any argument, verbal confirmation didn’t hurt and quietly, the brunette removed ‘Princess’ from her sleeve and waited. The metal was familiar and comforting in hand as she scooted off the crate, crouching down instead.

Every waited, crinkling her nose at the smell of her sire’s blood as she made a mental note to replace the stocks of bandages later before peeking around the corner. One of the bullets ricocheted off the ground, a hiss escaping past her lips as it cut through her thigh before sinking into the crate. “*****.” It didn’t matter if the hunter was a man or a woman at that moment, they were just a *****. She saw the cloud of smoke and waited, a small smirk gracing her lips as she waited and adjusted her blade carefully in hand. Two. At least it presented a challenge.

Counting to herself, she waited for the first man to come within reach before she flicked the blade against his left heel, watching him drop as she heard the scream a moment later while her shadows pulled back. To shut him up as the second arrived, she lashed out with her foot and kicked him in the throat. The second man was taller and a bit larger, but the gun he swung in her direction made her lift her eyebrows and slip back into shadows before getting up fast while he fired. She watched her blood splash onto and hang in the air while she bit back a string of profanity before stepping forward as he looked around, driving her foot down onto his before slamming the hilt of her blade into his jaw.

Dropping her custom, she collected the man’s gun and pulled the trigger. Two in the chest, one a bit lower and then she turned, finishing off the first once her shadows pulled away once more. “Everything okay over there, Micah?” She called while collecting her blade and hesitantly made her way to him, pausing as she watched the blade become visible and she couldn’t hide the concern that flashed across her features at the sight up close. “Is… she okay?” Every turned her head, not sure if the man heard her and closed her eyes to avoid seeing the blade extraction. She could handle a lot, but that? It would be something that kept her up if she saw it directly.

[Velveteen]

The sound of gunfire filtered through as if travelling through mud before it reached it her ears and as she opened her eyes it seemed everything was in slow motion. Something was happening but she couldn’t quite figure out what. She could barely think at all, the combination of confusion and pain caused a disconnection between body and mind. It was like she was no longer there, no longer a part of what was going on but merely an observer watching through a thick frosted pane of glass. She had never been to the shadow realm before except when fadewalking, maybe this is what it was like. It seemed like hours before silence descended on her once again. Sleep. That was what she needed, that would help. Maybe she could ignore the pain long enough to do that. Where was she again?

His voice, hushed but clear broke through her haze filled mind. ”Micah.” She couldn’t tell if she thought it or said it and as her insides felt like they were ran through and then pulled back the other way she may have even screamed it; Though almost immediately it somehow felt better. She blinked, slowly at first and she was able to turn her head just enough to see him as her focus slowly returned. He looked worried, she was probably going to be in trouble for that. The haze began to lift and she felt as if she were being pulled upwards. A similar feeling to waking from a deep sleep though she didn’t think she had managed sleep. Maybe she had. Maybe she was dreaming. Maybe she wouldn’t be in trouble.

The vampire could feel her strength returning as as well and she flexed her fingers, her healing abilities already at work pushing the poison from her body. The frayed and raw nerve endings already knitting together. It would take a little while for her to completely heal but the process had begun. A hoarse groan scratched its way along her dry throat and she tried to pull herself up, the gaping wound in her stomach protesting vehemently against the movement. She could feel his hands on her, helping as she became upright and she smiled her appreciation though it looked more like a grimace of pain. It was not one of her finer moments, that was for certain. Her mind was once again her own and she thoughts more coherent as she looked around only noticing Eve for the first time. “What happened? Are they all dead? Where’s my gun?” Her voice sounded foreign even to herself and she couldn’t help but wonder how long she had been here.

She was still weak but with each minute that passed she was becoming stronger and was soon able to hold herself up. Her head turned on her neck as she looked for the one who had taken her gun. It didn’t take too long to find him, face down in a pool of his own blood and she lurched forward, half crawling, half dragging herself towards him to retrieve her prized possession. The effort required was more than usual and once she had what she was looking for she took a moment to rest. Her silver orb fell on her husband. The worry still evident in his eyes. “I’ll be ok” she offered as reassuringly as possible. Sure, she would heal just fine. A few more hours and she would be able to use her powers to do so, it would be like nothing happened but she was certain she was not going to get off that easy.

A groan from somewhere behind her husband drew her attention and she stretched her neck to see past him. It seemed Juan was still alive, even if barely. Later she would wonder what the paladin wanted with him. Wonder why he was still alive when they found him. Probably decide that she was a little hasty in not asking these questions before putting that bullet between his eyes. Hindsight always had 20/20 vision but that would be something to think on and possibly regret later. Her hand was a little shakey as she lifted the weight of the gun and she set it on her knee for support. One shot was all it took . The humans had done a real number on him and he was likely grateful at this point for the release, though probably not. Velveteen’s hand fell to her side as the rogue vampires head fell forward on his chest. “Better hide the body. I need sleep now.” With that the woman fell backwards smacking her head against the concrete though she didn’t feel a thing.