Path of the Vampire forum

* Jaxon finished stuffing scarves into his bag just outside Whit's shop, and looked up, left and right. It was definitely about to start raining, but he had a plan tonight. He was going to get a piece of zombie brain, one way or another.


* Yasu sighed faintly to himself as he trekked, studying the thick clouds fat with rain above, tugging the black scarf tighter around his neck. The dark and slick trenchcoat would do well to keep him dry, but it would do nothing for the neck up. Fresh from a last minute shower and lacking an umbrella, both regrets on his part, his ink black hair clung to his light features in starker contrast than usual. That same spirit as always clung to him, digging its claw like hands into his shoulders and wrapping its lower half around him like a possesive serpant, piggybacking like a boatload of troubles might weigh on ones shoulders. Yet Yasu gave it no more mind than usual, though its unusual silence did wager a glance back out of curiousity. Sighting Jaxon, he strode closer and clasped a dark gloved hand around the strap of his shoulder bag, adjusting it. "You're here early," he greeted in his usual manner, straight faced with only the smallest tinge to his lips suggesting any sort of friendship held for the other male. "Then again, that makes two of us." Outfit


* Jameson Dade found himself on the street. He had been in the process of making his way through a building, following a lead, in search of a Plutocrat's band. He'd found one before, given it as a gift to his sire, and every time he got to the sixth floor - something weird happened. He got randomly teleported to another part of the city. But he was determined. Or had been until he'd found some meth on the ground. On. The. Ground. Of all the places. So it was hours later, and he was on the street with a tattered umbrella he'd lifted from a homeless man, and he was looking for something to do. Noted, he looked more than a little distracted when he bumped into a couple of men.


* Jana pulled her hair tight up into a bun as she walked through the sewer, thick boots making muffled sounds against the hard surface as she carefully avoided the water. It didn't help that she so rarely showered now, but she didn't want to smell like sewer water. Ever. Especially not in this gear. Her training gear. As she passed one of the jacket-clad paladins in the sewer, she gave a slight nod, out of simple politeness, even as he bared his teeth at her. She could almost hear the word in his mind. Abomination in training. She doubted he would ever believe she hadn't become this by choice. It had been forced on her. But, still. She had her broker, now. She had to deal in filthy back alleys like some drug addict for a fix of ruby liquid at least once per week, if not more often. But still she trained, three times weekly, though usually more. Her sword, which she had nicknamed Red Fang for its ruby colored hilt and long, curved blade, lay sheathed across her back, and Dark Avenger, the gun she'd bought from the online auction house, was strapped to her right shoulder, where she felt most comfortable with it. But, of course, she was having problems finding her way in the sewer. And the paladin was unlikely to assist her. {Jacket + Beneath The Jacket (Hairstyle not withstanding)}


* Jaxon pulled the hood of his blue hoodie over his head as he scowled at the darkening sky suspiciously. He flashed a grin as he spotted a familiar form approaching and stepped up closer to greet Yasu in return. "Was just double-checking my stash." He admitted with a chuckle. "Do you have a... knife or something? Anything to defend yourself?" He winced. Where they were going - the QZ - things could be a little scary. He hefted the messenger bag on a shoulder, adjusting the weight of a camcorder, weapons, and plastic bags for keeping things inside, before stepping to the street to lead the way.


* Yasu raised a brow, moving to answer and follow when another figure bumped into him. He grunted softly at the physical contact, stepping back and staring wordlessly at the new face to enter the gathering. The tattered umbrella and distant stare puzzled him briefly. Drunk, perhaps? He didn't smell strongly of that, but there was a scent of something he couldn't place. Keeping a wary bit of space between himself and the stranger out of habit, he murmured a quick "Excuse me," to the man, stepping closer to Jaxons direction. The spirit tightened its grip on his Anima, causing him to grit his teeth out of reflex and turn his head away.


<Jameson Dade> His umbrella dropped to the ground, still clasped in his hand as it was, the pointed end scraped against concrete, the little prongs like bat-wings holding non-permeable fabric between their metal fingers. When he took a step and another towards the pair (they seemed to know where they were going), it caught and further tore and then eventually fell out of his hand altogether. Why did he even need it to begin with? The sun was out and shining bright. It was spring, and flowers were growing, vibrant blooming life that popped up through cracks in the sidewalk; jutting up from sewer grates. "Where are we going tonight?" He asked, as he kept in stride with the duo.


<Jaxon> "To the secret government place." Jax replied to the stranger without missing a beat. He flashed a grin to Yasu and winked. "If Jack's up for it, that is." He nudged his shoulder against his friend's good-naturedly.


* Yasu glanced between Jameson and Jaxon, eventually shrugging to himself as he simply went with the flow. In answer to Jaxons original question he reached back, sliding something out hidden against his back beneath the trench coat. The sheath seemed battered, navy in color, but the long katana blade was likely still usable in the right hands. "Always," he murmured simply, sliding the weapon into the loop of hisblack jeans and resting a palm on the hilt.


<Jameson Dade> Secret government place. Very Bond-y. There had to be something there worth swiping. Jameson had found that the seemingly most innocuous of things, like crystal paper weights, for example could go for a lot of money. Money that he didn't strictly need, mind - but he'd grown up poor. He liked to put it in stacks in his linen closet. "Hello Jack and Jill, I'm Jameson." He said, his voice soft, distant as he followed along after.


* Jana had a bit of a saunter to her hips as she made her way to the sewer grate leading up into the quarantine. The smell of death and decay no longer deterred her. If anything, it actually got her adrenaline running. It was to the point that she actually had to stop, turn, face away from the grate, and close her eyes to take a drink from her metal water bottle, strapped as it was to her right thigh by a retractable strap. She tucked it back into her jeans pocket, just as her grandmother spoke. "You shouldn't have come alone, Deborah." "Oh, really, Nana? I have you!" "An insubstantial spirit cannot protect you from the dead, my child." If she cared more, she would pay better attention to how her voice echoed through the sewer tunnels, and her grandmother's did not.


* Jaxon snorted at the strangers reply, shoving his hands into the pockets of his hoodie. "My name's Jaxon." He replied with an easy shrug. "And he's Yasu. But I call him Jack." He smiled crookedly as he continued his easy pace down the street. "There's a place I found... weird stuff is going on there. Horror movie stuff."


* Yasu faltered for all of a half second before continuing to follow, a flicker of unease crossing his face. "Horror movie stuff, huh?" The faint touch of accent thickened briefly, betraying his otherwise stoic expression. "Like what, exactly?" He turned his head. scowling over his shouder with a faint mutter. "Yes, I'm aware, now shut up. I'm trying to focus without your cheek."


<Jameson Dade> Horror movie. Horrorshow. "And we're to play the part of malchicks for the evening?" he asked as the trio made their way towards the sewer entrance. The street itself was, for the most part, abandoned. At least until there was the rhythmic stomp of feet approaching. Heavy boots. Jameson ducked behind Jaxon when he saw the flash of a blade. Of course it wasn't really there. It never was. But the power of suggestion... "We're going to see the dead things, of course." He added in a hushed tone.


* Jaxon cast a surprised look toward the stranger and then nodded. "The dead things. Yeah." He shook his head and winced. "You have to see it to believe it, Jack. Just trust me on that." He paused over a sewer grate and let out a sigh. "This way." He mumbled, crouching to shove the cover out of the way and then scramble down the slick ladder.


* Yasu froze completely, the sharp tug of his brows shattering his collected disposition. "Dead??" he hissed down the sewer entrance, gripping the blade tighter. "As in...spiritual dead or...zombie dead?" A shift of weight, followed by a glance Jamesons way, then down again with accusation in his eyes. Zombies? He could deal with. But the risk of walking into a certain migraine of attention grabbing spirits wasn't so easy a pill to swallow. Eventually, with a muttered string of oaths very much unlike his usual self, he dropped in after, sliding down the ladder and landing in a slight crouch.


<Jameson Dade> The droogs were coming, but they were no friends of his, with their knives and guns, and ultra-violence. When the other two cleared the sewer ladder, he dropped through the manhole, tugging the cover after him so that he hung briefly from it, before falling to his feet. It was dark in the sewers with only maintenance lights running periodically through the tunnels. He rarely went there, and the smell reminded him of a crack den. All body functions and depression. "There are bad things the other way, we should hurry."


* Jana continued the seemingly-one-sided disagreement with her grandmother farther down the corridor of sewer tunnels. The elderly woman had now insulted her tight-fitted choice of practice garment, which Jana was responding to in heated tones, voice rising quite shrilly, as she listed off other choices from her tiny wardrobe. "Corsets?! Stilettos?! ******* evening gowns that swirl across the floor?!?! Can you imagine how easily I'd become zombie bait?!" The yelling continued...


* Jaxon aimed an uncertain look at the stranger who had yet to name himself. "Who's coming?" He asked, turning a slow circle where he stood. It wouldn't be the first time he'd been snuck up on. But he didn't spot anyone or anything, save for a rat scurrying by. "This way." He flashed a grin to Yasu and ducked down a familiar path, boots splashing in the bit of water they were walking in.


* Yasu exhaled slowly through his nose and ran a thumb over the necklace he wore. The dragon shaped silver came with a mutter, too quiet to make out. He followed again, keeping a firm hand on his blade. The echoed shouts of something distant and approaching made him stiffen, glancing around in order to seek out the source. "We aren't alone..." he noted.


<Jameson Dade> "Bad things." He said. Not helpful really. Jameson had learned not to take to the sewers often because they housed a myriad of paladins and hunters, all of whom seemed to want to take a hunk out of him. He wasn't really a fighter, more a thief than anything else. Of course the shouting that approached distracted from that, and it seemed that moments later, there was a red head who made her way onto the scene. "I don't think that one's dead." Though something about her did not seem totally alive either.


* Jana growled as she spun on the spot, walking past the spirit of her grandma Rose, climbing easily up the ladder to the sewer grate, trying - and failing - to lift it one-handed. "They always make it look easy in the movies," she muttered. "Well, you're not in a movie, Deborah!" her grandmother replied, still right behind her, as always. "Oh, my god, can you just leave me ALONE for five ******* minutes, Grandma!?" The spirit seemed to step back from the ladder, but didn't leave. "I said I wouldn't, Deborah Rose Vaughn. Don't use that language at me." Jana tensed, her shoulders clenching up. "You're hovering. You never hovered when you were alive." "You need me more now, Deborah." "I need you ALIVE, Grandma! Not a ghost! Just come back to life, damn it! Please!" She'd asked before. And like before, the answer was the same. Silent. Her grandma remained present, but said no more. But now she was distracted, eyes drawn to the company of males approaching. "Hi." Her right hand settled on the grip of Dark Avenger, just in case. She wondered what they'd heard.


* Jaxon stared a beat at the psychotic female, giving a slow-blink, before awkwardly adjusting the strap of his messenger bag on his shoulder. "Okay." He said simply, a frown tugging at his lips. Jaxon had a plan. "Nothing's so bad you can't defeat it, Jamie." He replied to the twitching man. "Or run away. Monty Python style." He waggled his fingers in the air for effect. "Right, Jack?" He glanced sideways at the man.


* Yasu came up short, first staring at the girl who'd joined them... and then at her unseeable companion. He gave the elderly ghost a long hard stare, then shifted his gaze back to Jana. This time his expression was a rare one. Empathetic pity. He didn't comment verbally on her vocal outburst, but it was obvious by his facial shift that he understood it in a way very few could. Drawn from his thoughts by Jaxon, he glanced back. "Hm? Oh uh...right." His tone somewhat distracted as he glanced back, studying the spirit curiously. She seemed far friendlier then his own, by first glance, and he almost envied that fact. As if on cue, the dark figure that clung to him flashed a wicked shadow grin the other spirits way, muttering to its host. Yasu deepened his scowl in silent reply.

* Jameson Dade swayed where he stood. There seemed to be a lot going on. Screaming. That wasn't uncommon for a man who spent a decent amount of time in run-down or abandoned buildings used by people to enjoy a high or descend into the depravity of a really bad trip. He honestly could have just been in his own head then, and appeared to be watching something blankly in front of him. "Okay maybe not so much bad as a little woogy." He said and then he continued in the direction of the Quarantine Zone, snagging up what appeared to be a piece of fungus from the narrow sewer wall, stuffing it into his jacket.


* Jana smoothed her jacket with her left hand as she glanced up at the sewer grate. "Mind if I join you? Need to get some target practice in." With a glance of blue eyes, she made sure the safety was, in fact, still on. She'd turned it off by accident once, while down here in the sewer. There was a spray of bullet holes in the wall somewhere to show that off. "Swear I won't be a bother." Her grandmother, giving the wraith-being a matronly glare, turned her gaze to the man called Jack after a moment with a faint smile of pity of her own. She could feel the cruelty emanating from the beast in waves...


* Jaxon smoothed a hand over his own face uncertainly, glancing between the trio of people before bouncing a little nod. "More the merrier..." He hesitated. Everyone seemed to know about the place, already. Ah well. "This way." He said again, striding through familiar pathways determinedly.


* Yasu was a little taken aback by the sympathy of the other spirit, offering only an appreciative nod that could be easily mistaken of an agreeing nod to Jana. The wraith haunter looked quite stunned, only to flash a cheesy grin and wink. Whatever it muttered to Yasu was enough for him to snort loudly, clasping a gloved hand over his face. "Gone in the head you are..."


<Jameson Dade> He followed along after Jaxon, who seemed to take the lead, at least until they reached the manhole covering that separated them from the QZ. He jumped to catch a ladder rung, and then swung himself, curling his back, knees dragged towards his chest so that when momentum drew him almost upside down - he was able to kick the sewer covering up and off. Another swing had him up and topside. There were a few buildings scattered around. Zombies wandering about in the night that he essentially ignored in hopes that they wouldn't bother him too terribly much. The vibrant nature of his vision was beginning to dim, which urged a displeased grunt from him.


* Jana could blissfully not see the wraith creature, walking along behind the group so that she could mutter with her grandmother, who informed her of Jack's...situation. Awareness dawned in Jana's eyes, but she wouldn't mention it to him. She would wait, until later. Still, she spoke to him before mounting the ladder behind Jameson, letting Dark Avenger hang. "So, uh. I'm Jana. Pleased to meet you.”


* Jaxon watched Jamie's motions curiously. The man was definitely agile - nothing too surprising, he was pretty sure Yasu was very agile as well. He hung back, letting the other three go up first and fiddling with the camera in his bag on the sly. "Jax." He replied. He'd introduced himself to lots of folks lately.


* Yasu blinked slowly, giving Jana a polite stare. After a moment, he replied with only a light accent. "Yasu. Pleased to meet you too." Gripping the bars of the ladder, he hoisted himself up and followed smoothly, his actions nowhere near as flashy as Jamesons as he stepped out, but certainly done with grace. Kneeling down, he'd offer Jaxon a hand up politely.


* Jameson Dade began towards the abandoned asylum, though the truth of the matter was that he was coming down from his high, and he would need to fix that sooner rather than later. He got the impression that Jack and Jill were human, but drugging both of them seemed unlikely. Robin was addicted to being fed from, and Grey was just plain an addict. Both of them were his regular choices to feed from because he trusted their motives. He wasn't a killer. At least he couldn't rationalize being one, which made feeding very tricky for him. "I think I hear something coming from this way. Geppeto's army maybe."


* Jaxon climbed the slick ladder with a grimace, and then grasped Yasu's hand when it was offered to haul himself up and out of the sewers. He stood, tilting his head back to suck in the fresh air with a bright smile. "Thanks." He said quietly, then turned a slow circle to eye the place. Still creepy. The new man was already ambling one direction, and Jax hadn't been that way before, so he trailed after. "Have you seen a zombie before, Jack? Like.. a real one?" He asked quietly.


* Yasu dipped his head, straightening with Jaxon and turnng to take in the surroundings. Following after the pair, he knit his brows with internal debate. "No.." he admitted with a slight click of his tongue. "But I have seen things that should be dead, but aren't not." His admission came with a very careful choice of wording, lowering his voice a touch and tightening his grip on his blade.


<Jameson Dade> He pulled the door to the asylum open, and no sooner did that happen then a snarling creature immediately seemed to leap through it. It was like a zombie, but not. A creature that had ingested vampire blood, faster and stronger than a zombie. Feral. Jameson would have been tackled to the ground if he had actually been there. He stepped to one side deftly, watching as it barreled then for the humans.


* Jaxon pursed his lips as he considered what to say to Yasu when the man didn't quite admit to knowing of zombies. "Well. I told you I'd show you the weird stuff." He replied, maybe a touch defensively. His head jerked up as he saw Jamie move out of the way, and he let out a shout of surprise, fumbling as he reached for the gun in it's holster under his hoodie.


* Yasu snapped his gaze up to the barreling pile of decayed flesh stampeding their way. In a quick motion he clasped his left hand against the hilt of his blade and drew it from its sheath, right hand yanking Jaxon to the side roughly as he stepped after. The katana was twirled and pressed back against his arm, leaving a ten degree angle between blade and flesh. Lowering the weapon to his side, he continued his smooth steps, bringing his hand up at an angle. Right food slid around, bringing him behind the zombie as his blade sliced along its side, just under the arm. Continuing the motion, Yasu shoved an open palm into the creatures back with abit of focused force, knocking it forward and likely on its face before stepping back a few inches. "You weren't kidding..”


<Jameson Dade> The whole thing was one great big show and so he leaned back against the wall of the asylum so that he could watch, his arms folding over his chest - his flesh bare save for his dapper jacket. His head tilted slowly to one side, hair like gold and sunlight. When he'd been alive, it had ironically been flat, dull. But his appearance had changed a great deal since dying. The feral vampire was seemingly far from perturbed by the attack and was readying to get up when Jameson tossed a smokebomb with a little pink and black smiley face on it. It exploded to fill the area with a black cloud. "This way!" He called.


* Jaxon pulled the neck of his t-shirt up over his face as the smoke exploded around them. He coughed, swinging a look toward Yasu with a small impressed smile. "I wasn't kidding." He replied with a chuckle, dodging around the fallen creature and into the building after Jamie. "What the hell was that." He hissed. Even he was shocked.


* Yasu coughed into his sleeve, squinting Jaxons way, then back at the creature before hurrying after them. Dragging the blade lightly from hilt to tip against the sheaths entrance, he dropped the weapon back in but kept his hand hovering near it. "I'd imagine it was the living dead, or was that one special?"


<Jameson Dade> The asylum was vast and destroyed, like the mental diseases that had once been treated there had soaked into the walls and caused the architecture itself to become sick. One could have gotten lost in there, with the shattered lights, the endless halls where once there had been patients. Jameson picked a direction and went with it, aimless really despite his previous guidance. "It was a dead thing." Not terribly clear, but an answer all the same. "You came here to see them?" He asked.


* Jaxon still had his hand on the grip of his gun, and swallowed the saliva that had pooled in the back of his throat. His pulse was hammering, the reaction of any sane human when presented with that sort of thing. "Yeah. It seemed...dead." He admitted with some confusion. It wasn't shambling like the zombies he was used to. He kept close to Yasu but followed after Jameson. "Came here to show Jack, Jamie." He replied a little louder.


* Yasu glanced at the yawning halls with a stiffness to his form, a definite unease. The whole place screamed of lost souls to him, yet likewise felt far too silent. He kept close to the other two, drinking in his surroundings with a sharp eye, peeling back the years from the aged walls and searching for something. He offered no verbal addition, only nodded.


* Jameson Dade came to stand in front of a wall, and he stared at it for a long moment, his gaze trained there as he wobbled for a moment on his feet. "I got attacked by one once when I went to help someone. It broke my arm." He said as he lifted his limb a second later, letting his fingers wiggle towards the pair. "Why did you come to show?" He asked then a second later before stepping away from the wall to amble off in the direction of a hall.


* Jaxon was feeling more and more nervous now that they were finally here, had already been attacked. He withdrew his gun if only to be on guard and ready for the next attack. "Because he deserved to know." He replied, chin jutting a little defensively. "I don't know what this place is... how those things came to be... but it's a cover-up. And people should know." He finished, gulping in a breath.


* Yasu kept a wary eye on the other male, Jamie as Jaxon had called him. Unsteady, likely drunk or drugged, certainly an untrustworthy lead. Yet he continued to follow with a loose but ready posture. He couldn't resist commenting, though. "Aren't those generally the words of the character who becomes a quick target for trouble?" He seemed in contrast to Jaxon to be pretty calm, despite meeting a zombie face to face for the first time.


<Jameson Dade> "Dangerous words to live by indeed." He said, not that he was really much better. Jameson had been known to do some very strange things when the mood suited him. Like the time he had convinced someone to loan him their kilt - which he had then worn (ill fittingly) around for the rest of the day. There were other things, less quirky and more dangerous, but they didn't come to mind. "Well you're here now either way, down the rabbit hole or whatever." He commented, waving a hand. He still seemed to be totally unarmed. He flashed them an easy smile. "So we're here now. What do we do?"


* Jaxon seemed stumped for a moment at the question, and he stilled himself and looked around. "I might be a magnet for some trouble. Some." He replied with a half-smile, shrugging unrepentantly. "Haven't got you in trouble yet, Jack." He winked and then took a breath, letting it out. "I didn't have much plan for after this." He paused, then grinned and fished the camcorder out of his bag. "I need to video the next one, actually."


* Yasu sighed softly. "Yet," he pointed out, but a brief, faint tug of a smile followed the reply. "I doubt you'll get much attention to the fact, even with video evidence. Hoaxes these days are far too elaborate. Very few will believe you."


<Jameson Dade> It was true. There seemed to be a ton of 'evidence' out there. The stuff that was actually worthwhile was usually removed from the internet almost immediately by his kind. Not that either of the two humans knew that, or needed to know that. "I was hoping to find something nice here." He admitted a moment later, frowning. The walls had lost their pretty scrawling rainbow painting. The glow had gone away and he felt a gnawing at his gut.


<Jaxon> He kicked a bit of debris away from himself and flipped open the camcorder, pressing the button to turn the thing on. "There are nice things here?" He asked as he raised the camera to look around, recording the ugliness of the place. "Maybe if I get enough proof, the government will have to answer for it." He replied with a shrug.


* Yasu shrugged offhandedly. "Perhaps there is," he murmured, but his expression was doubtful. "I still think you are going to get yourself in deep trouble with something like that..." As if on cue he stiffened, peeking into one of the cracked open rooms. A split second later he kicked the door shut, turning to follow the group again with a scowl. "Knew I should have brought asprin.."


* Jameson Dade chose not to comment on the nature of evidence when it came to the government. If not outright mocked as a hoax, the human government seemed just as intent on keeping proof of the supernatural buried as some vampires did. "I guess I should do something to help." Since he wasn't really a fighter. Jaxon seemed to be the one holding the recording device, which meant Yasu would have to tackle whatever it was alone. So he turned to the man with the ill-fitting accent and peered into his eyes directly. "Feel strength surging through you." The air had this feeling of growing heavier, and then not. Yasu would feel stronger, faster, amongst other things.


* Jaxon was oblivious to whatever Jamie had just done to improve Yasu's skills, but he zoomed in idly on a light-fixture hanging from the ceiling. "I don't have any aspirin... but I've got a first-aid kit." He admitted with a flashed grin. "I've needed it a lot, lately." He admitted with a bashful duck of his head.

* Yasu stiffened, taking a long look at Jameson. Then, a flicker of a smile, and nothing. Whatever had taken place, he had the sense of magic feel to it, and as his only experience revolved around his own with magic, he followed a simple assumption. Sorcerer. He returned his gaze to Jaxon and ahead again, his shadowed smile remaining for a moment, then vanishing as something shambled in front of him. His sense of smell registered the odor of death as quickly as his eyes settled on he obvious corpse. With no hesitation he centered himself, adjusted his stance quickly with one foot forward and the other back. The katan was ripped from it sheath, both hands clasping the hilt as he thrust it through the throat of the creature, stopping it short. Planting a foot on its chest, he used the weight to rip the blade outwards, severing the spinal cord from its attatcment to the head. The corpse hit the ground with a wet thud, and Yasu used its shirt to cleanse the blood from his blade, dropping to one knee to do so. "Let's hope you don't need it again tonight."


<Jameson Dade> He watched it all play out like it was on a television screen and then, when the zombie was down, he took a step closer so that he could reach down, and wind his slender digits around some sort of necklace about the zombie's neck. He yanked, and the clasp broke before he carefully pushed whatever it was into his pocket, giving a little pat to make sure that it was safe. "Was that all you needed for your proof?" He asked Jaxon a moment later before leaning against a wall, seemingly unbothered by the decay of it.


* Jaxon had nearly jumped - okay he'd definitely jumped a little - when the zombie had shown itself. But he kept the camera trained on Yasu's quick take-down of the creature, and even yelled out in encouragement once the fight was over. "Nice!" He zoomed in on the fallen body, making sure to get a good look at how corpsified the thing really was. "Yeah... that'll do. For now." He sighed and shut the recorder, tucking it safely into his bag. "You get any guts on you, Jack?"


* Yasu glanced down at himself, smudging a bit of blood on the front of his coat with his thumb. Actually, the spray had been quite large, but aside from a few dots on his cheek it had mostly missed his face. "Mostly blood..." he muttered, making a face at the thought.


<Jameson Dade> Chunky, mostly coagulated blood was gross, even for a vampire's tastebuds. Jameson's nostrils scrunched briefly at the sight before he took a step back towards the front door. "I think maybe we should get going then. Not that I mind the decor, but the place is a bit depressing for me." He murmured, his hands stuffing into his pockets, a nod given towards the direction they had come from. "Should probably wipe that blood off though before you hit the streets."


* Jaxon cast a curious look toward Jameson, the man really was twitchy as hell, but stepped closer to Yasu. "Here." He shook one of those scarves from within his sleeve and used it to dab the blood splatter from the mans face. "There. All better." He winked and stuffed the scarf into a pocket, before adjusting his messenger bag and turning. "Lead the way, Jamie."


* Yasu muttered a soft agreement with Jamesons initial comment, adding "and noisy," as he glanced at one of the doors farther off. The touch of fabric to his face caused him to stiffen, blinking slowly as he stared at Jaxon. Another blink, the cloth with drawing.


"...Thanks.." he muttered quietly. Sheathing the blade again, he shrugged off his coat and draped it over an arm. Beneath this, a simple pale blue button up shirt was worn, and he took a minute to fix his necklace with care, then removed his scarf too. Nodding in agreement with Jaxon, he followed the pair.


* Jameson Dade let himself be led, as if by some sort of spectral force. That was common for him, to just walk, and look for something, and find what he was looking for even if he didn't know he was really trying. He was about to step out into the night when a shadowed figure cut off his path. The man had brownish grey hair, not seemingly old despite this, with blue eyes that rivaled the intensity of Jameson's. "Where the **** have you been?" He asked, and Jameson stopped in his tracks.


<Jameson Dade> "I got lost, Ozzy." The vampire retorted, voice soft as he brushed right past the man, shoving his human thrall into the doorframe, motioning for Jaxon and Yasu to follow along.


* Jaxon stumbled to a stop when Jamie suddenly haulted, and nearly ran into the mans back. He tilted his head, peering over the males shoulder at the new stranger curiously. "Friend of yours?" He asked after the confrontation, carefully stepping around the unknown person and all but staring at him at the same time.


<Jameson Dade> [ Ozymandias ]


* Yasu gave the thrall an uncertain glance, tinged with wariness, as they passed and shifting his form to give as much space between him and 'Ozzy' as possible.


<Jameson Dade> "Something like that." The allurist said as he continued towards the sewer, leaving Ozymandias steaming by the door. The human was actually his therapist. Or had been. He'd enthralled him a while back, but it hadn't gone entirely to plan. Ozzy, you see, was insanely protective of Jameson. A nice thought, except that he had been growing more and more erratic. Maybe it was time to cut him loose. The human under his command snarled and marched right along after Jameson, a severe expression detailing his disgust evident. He stopped short of looking like he was about to hit Jameson though, instead moving to pull the manhole cover out of the way.


* Jaxon slanted a suspicious glance at the pissed off stranger, then shrugged and stepped forward to climb down the ladder with ease. "Wanna get a malt?" He called up to Yasu as he waited. He paused and then tilted his head. "There's a sweet little restaurant we go to, Jamie. Maybe you've seen it around?"


* Yasu shifted, narrowing his eyes as well, keeping a careful eye on the one named Ozzy. His left hand lay slack against the hilt of his blade, but there was a certain note of prepared caution in his posture. He followed after the stranger, offering the next one up a hand out of habit. "Sure," he answered Jaxon, expression softening just a small bit..


<Jameson Dade> He dropped into the sewers, and Ozymandias followed almost immediately after, which would have been really cool looking if the thrall had not, in fact, been human. He stumbled on the ladder and Jameson had to catch him. Which looked almost twice as silly as the concept sounded. When Ozzy moved to stand again, the man surged on ahead, seemingly wanting to clear the path for them. "I think so, maybe. I'd like to go there. I need a bite to eat." He murmured and then a second later. "Ozzy isn't dangerous. He just doesn't like me wandering off on my own."


* Jaxon flashed a relieved smile. He ate alone a lot - too much, really. Whit never liked to go, always said he preferred eating alone. Well, being alone really from what it seemed like. Jaxon was the sort of person who needed companions, so being the new guy in town was beginning to get to him. "Great. You'll love it. They have shakes and malts." He rattled off, following along with the group without a seeming care in the world. He was even bouncing a little with his steps.


* Yasu eased off a bit at Jamesons words, but only a bit. Keeping a wary disposition, he offered a hand to Ozzy instead after his little stumble. Jaxon's eager antics actually made him smile fully, though it didn't last long. 'Like a puppy,' he thought, snorting quietly at the mental image of Jaxon with floppy ears and a wagging tail. Here came that headache.


<Jameson Dade> Jameson continued in the direction they had originated their little journey from, his footsteps becoming gradually more and more sure as his high began to wear off. It was an unpleasant sensation, like being plunked at the bottom of a pit, and being forced to look up out of it. A bite to eat indeed. "I love shakes, Especially browies and caramel flavored." Which. Wasn't really a flavor, but he liked to have it made that way. Or had when he was alive. "Almost the-" And then gunfire rang out, a bullet grazing across James's shoulder, knocking him back against a wall.


* Jaxon was looking around as they walked - there was always something to find in the sewers, money or trinkets, and he'd already snatched up a bracelet he saw in a relatively clean bit of floor. The shot echoed around them and he winced, jumping back. He'd already holstered his weapon so he plastered himself against the wall to avoid any ricocheting shots. "What the hell!" He shouted.


* Yasu slammed back into the wall with the others, his eyes widening with a flicker of fear. "Are you okay?" he hissed to Jameson, accent thickening with concern and unease. "What the feck was that?'


* Jameson Dade was an emotional creature; that was the curse of the allurist. They lacked the ability to be aloof truly, and his measure of 'pleasant' was running dry. Another figure streaked into view a moment later, a woman whose body was covered in tattoos. She was nude and she drew a sword, lifting it. "I am fine." He said to Yasu. "Ozzy. Kill!" He hissed out into the sewers. How had his thrall missed something like that?


<Jaxon> His eyes bugged out - that looked like a naked lady running around with a sword. He rubbed fists into his eye-sockets as though to dispel a vision. "Uh.." He stammered, mostly trying to stay out of the way as the chaos erupted. He shot a look toward Yasu. "Make note that this trouble isn't me!" He hissed.


* Yasu drew his own blade smoothly, stepping in beside Jameson with a calm expression, not even batting an eye at the womans lack of clothing. Not outwardly at least. "Judging by the shot, she's aimless or after Jamie," he replied in a somewhat consoling manner, lowering the tip of the blade by his left side, clad in his left hand. He kept the tip aimed a little away from his body in a comfortable grip, feet parted shoulder width with his left foot an inch back.


<Jameson Dade> The woman did not have a chance to talk. No sooner did Yasu step up to fight than the woman went flying forward, face first into the damp stonework of the sewers. Over her stood Ozymandias, whose lip was bloodied and arm was limp. She had some move in her though and she was on her feet, whirling on the human thrall. "My fight is not with you, but your Mas-" Jameson reacted immediately and without thought. There was a loose brick wiggling out of the wall, and he grabbed it, chucked it right at her head. It missed, but it was enough to distract her while Ozymandias rushed her to try and grab her sword.


* Jana felt something of a snarl take over her expression as she caught sight of the naked woman, taking aim at the woman's as the newcomer - Ozzy? - rushed her. Ah, the lovely sound of gunfire. And to finally be unleashing that rage that she kept pent up inside her whenever she passed through the sewers to train...


* Jaxon had a hold on the hilt of his gun but he didn't think shooting in the enclosed space would be a good idea for anyone. Hell, he was only getting the hang of firearms himself these days. He kept himself against the wall, shaking his head at the others rushing to the fore. "What's she want?" He tried to shout over the sudden noise, and now his ears were all but buzzing.


* Yasu faltered, blinking sharply. What just happened? Ozzy had taken her down so quickly, and now Jana was taking shots. Discomfort crossed his features and he stepped back. This woman was no zombie, so why were they going for the kill like that? Had he and Jaxon unknowingly dropped into the company of murderers? The grip of the spirit on him tightened, clawed fingers wrapping around his throat and practically burning his anima. Another step back, his own hand tightening on the blade and his usually calm expression faltering as he backed closer to Jaxon, stepping warily between him and the others. He hated gunfire, loud noises in general really, but gunfire was one of the worse. Gritting his teeth, he cast a glance at Jaxon as if looking for abit of guidance in the chaos.


<Jameson Dade> So be it. Or at least, that was what the Paladin thought when the thrall attacked her. Before Jana could fire at her, she swung her blade, and it sunk into Ozzy's head. The move was sudden, and where there had once been eyes filled with rage, there was nothing. They rolled back in his head and his weight abruptly collapsed. The woman kicked his face to shove a corpse away and then took gunfire to the shoulder from Jana's gun. Jameson watched as his therapist was killed. And he just stood there, and he stared.


* Jana let the gun fall, shaking her head angrily, jaws clenched in a growling snarl even as her grandmother, the voice of constant reason, tried to soothe her. But this was beyond her grandmother's reasonings. Jana was not the sort to sit idle, even if Jamie did. She drew the blade from her back, stalking forward, eyes blazing azure fire even though she knew just how horrible she was with the sword. Maybe she'd get lucky.


* Jaxon inched a little closer to Yasu at the same time the man was inching closer to him. His own eyes were wide and shocked. Sure, he was taking out zombies - putting the dead out of their misery! - but this was definitely not that. He let go of his gun to instead grip at the pendant hanging on a chain around his neck, squeezing it through the fabric of his t-shirt.


* Yasu stood transfixed, eyes sharp and features pale, locked on the man as he fell. This was the third time. The third time he'd watched someone die. Another death, and he'd done nothing. Nothing...'Nothing...' The thought echoed, the voice of the creature that shadowed him mimicking his thoughts in a repeated whisper. He'd stood by, and watched someone die. Again. Something in Yasu shattered at that thought. His grip on the blade tightened, expression hardening. A foot step forward, then another, carrying him shoulder to shoulder with Jana. Though he didn't gaze her way, the dip of his head and the resolved brace of his shoulders suggested he was intending to back her up, do his best to make up for any falters in the womans own skill.

<Jameson Dade> The entire world seemed to melt away. The paladin was fighting Jana and Yasu, but that didn't really matter. Much as Jameson might have not always appreciated the man's attention; Ozymandias had been one of the very few people in his life who seemed to legitimately care about his well being. He walked through the sewers, across the stone and water so that he could fall to his knees beside a corpse and tug Ozzy close, inspecting the wound very carefully. Maybe there was...


* Jaxon frowned as Yasu stepped up to join the fight, hesitating and ultimately staying back. For everyone’s safety. And also because the whole situation was making him sick to his stomach. He bit his bottom lip and shook his had, tossing a confused look towards Jameson - the only one who appeared to have a clue what was happening. The man was cradling a corpse. Jax flinched and looked away again. Found a spot on the wall and stared.


* Jana growled viciously as she slashed and hacked at the woman. Of course she would pick now to start practicing the tactics on a moving target, and one that moved almost faster than her! Her grandmother would reprimand her worse come morning - if she survived. But, for now, she would have to do something. But she couldn't get an opening, and the both found one, right into her abdomen. "****!"


* Yasu flicked his blade across, trying to go for a slash at the womans side, but she was fast. Alert. No sooner had she landed an attack on Jana then she was spinning around, parrying Yasu's own attack. One blade slid against the other and down to the hilt, laying a fair sized gash with the tip against the inside of Yasu's left forearm. With a hiss of pain, the man stepped back a few steps, taking a breath. The blade swapped hands, and his stance shifted, beckoning for the paladin to try her luck on his grounds.


<Jameson Dade> He hugged Ozzy's head close and felt blood dripping onto him. Not gushing, or pouring. The man's heart had stopped and there was no pump to launch it, but where it gathered, it was able to build into little balls of moisture before plipping onto him or smearing across his clothes. He kissed a forehead lightly. There was nothing he could do. So he pulled the gun from Ozzy's chest holster and stood. He watched as Yasu and Jana fought the paladin, his own arm going level before he fired a single shot. She was dead before she hit the ground, just as much meat as Ozzy had been. A life for a life seemed fair, even if it wasn't normally Jameson's style. Maybe some part of him distantly wanted to protect the human friends he had made. Whatever the case, he dropped the firearm and began towards the sewer exit.


* Jaxon gulped in a gasp of breath at the sudden loud bang of a gun going off. It was so final and sudden that Jax felt himself sway in shock. He shook himself, refusing to lose it - refusing throw up. At least not now. Soon. He shoved a hand into his bag to fish out the first-aid kit he'd just been speaking about. "Who needs bandaids?" He said it in that loud way people did when they couldn't hardly hear their own voice. His ears were ringing so loud they hurt.


* Jana laughed quietly as the ***** fell, like a sack of potatoes cut from a string. Did she need Band-Aids? ****, no. Technically, she should go to the hospital. But after last time, she had developed a serious distrust of nurses. So she pulled her phone from her back pocket, flipping it open and typing out a text to him, her contact, her dealer. "Bandaids, no," she told Jax. "Alcohol, yes. ****, yes”


* Yasu lowered his blade, the tip scraping against the ground. His eyes dropped, numb for the moment. Had he done right? Wrong? This situation so complex he couldn't possibly pick it out like a scene from his favorite novels, too involved, leaving his mind a whirling mess. 'Six..' the spirit hissed in his ear. All too right. This would be the sixth person he'd watched die. Would more await him in this place, this city he'd moved to escape those very same memories that hung in his head now? Distantly he heard Jaxon. If this were a book he were reading, or a different situation, he might have laughed. Smiled certainly. Right now, he simply stared at the paladins corpse at his feet, unblinking as he watched the blood pool underneath her. He should have felt remorse. Fear. Something. No.. he felt numb. Only numb.


* Jaxon was quickly moving away from the pair of dead bodies. Dead bodies that hadn't been dead before - they'd been alive, he was certain of that. Thinking, high-brained, speaking people. Now they were dead. Not undead, not zombies. He swallowed bile and a nervous laugh. "I have bandaids!" He called out as he walked quickly back the way they'd come. He wanted to go home now, and sit in a bathtub and scrub himself clean. And throw up.


* Jana made her way down the sewer corridor, grinning at Jack slightly. This hadn't been the worst turn of events ever. "If, uh... you have somewhere I could stay? I've been homeless for a bit, you see. Couch surfing... and sleeping under bridges. I'm not a...not a fighter, really. I'm a singer." This wasn't the best way to ask for a place to stay. Not at all.


* Yasu shook himself from his thoughts, back to reality. Jaxon sounded on the verge of hysteria to his ears. The situation didn't call for another person falling. Sheathing his blade after giving it a quick clean, he put on a mask of impassiveness and followed the pair, sheathing it. "I have a spare room, if you don't mind all the books. I'm still unpacking," he offered, studying the elderly spirit that followed Jana, then staring straight ahead again. He seemed stable, calm, at first glance. As if all that had happened hadn't. However a light press of his hand to Jaxons shoulder, reassuringly, tried to soften the truth that was inescapable.


* Jaxon was rushing right along the corridors, nearing the entrance they'd come down here from. He nearly jumped out of his skin at the contact to his shoulder, but flashed a fake smile behind himself to the man. "You okay?" He asked, because it was polite, and finally made it to the right ladder. He set up it immediately and shoved the manhole cover hard enough it clattered to the street a foot away. Jax scrambled out into the fresh air.


* Jana followed behind, moving slower, the fingers of one hand slick with her own blood. She needed to meet with him, soon. It was early, he'd tell her. Too soon. Was she finally cracking? he would ask. But then she would show him a gauze covered, cleaned wound in her belly. And he would figure that she had been in a fight and thought the strength would be of help. Heal her. It would probably speed the process, at the very least. "Where do you live, anyway?" she asked.


<Yasu> "I'm-" he faltered, the sting of his injury and the steady drip of his own blood reminding him of his own injury. "I'm fine," he answered, wrapping a hand around it tightly. "I have a small bookstore on the edge of the city in Honeymead. The upper level has two rooms, one of which I can let you use, if you wish." Releasing his injury, he'd clamber out as well, offering his left hand to Jana to help her out when she followed.


* Jaxon finally felt his heartbeat slowing, though he was left a little dizzy for it. He licked dry lips and turned to face the pair - the man he considered a friend, the woman who was a stranger to him. "You should clean that wound. Wrap it." He said matter of factly. He was familiar with wounds.


* Jana nodded slowly, clean hand tugging the band from her long red hair, letting it spill down her shoulders like liquid fire. "Plan to. My grandma was a nurse for seventeen years, nagged me all the time about the possibility of infection." This was more serious than a simple scrape, but at least she wasn't dead. Her grandmother was seething behind her, where she could feel the tension like Play-Dough. Thick and gooey.


* Yasu only nodded but made no move to tend to his own injury, simply shoving the cover back over the sewers, letting out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. Yet he just paused, staring at the sealed entrance.


* Jaxon hesitated, swaying a little where he stood. "Well..." He swallowed and frowned. Neither seemed to be interested in their wounds. Maybe they'd take care of it themselves. "Let’s not do that again."


* Jana nodded in response to Jax's words. "Agreed. Especially not with that Jamie character." She couldn't put her fingers on it, but something about him had her mouth watering. "Deborah, you should seek medical care. That wound needs tending." "Shush, Gramma, I'll be fine." But her protest, however quiet, would draw further attention. Any questions now, she would be unable to dodge.


* Yasu straightened and turned back, nodding in agreement. "Your Grandmother is right, you know." As if deciding that his little... ability couldn't be kept back for much longer, he spoke up. Jana was one thing, she suffered similarily to him, enough to understand. As for Jaxon... well there was simply an element of trust in the other man at this point, the only one who'd be considerable as a close friend to the book-seller.


* Jaxon fingered a hole in the wrist of his hoodie, lips pressing firmly together in his effort to keep himself together. The girl was talking to herself again, and now it looked like Jack was in on it. They were more rattled than they were letting on. He grimaced. "Do you need me to walk you home?" He asked, voice a little strained.


* Jana rolled her eyes, grinning at Jack. "You can see her, too?" But Rose, kind, sweet Grandma Rose, laid a light hand on Jana's arm, not that she could really feel it, but she could see it. "Deborah, my dear, he can. And he needs us, too." Jana sighed, watching Jack as Rose watched Jack's...attached spirit. "Think I'll take you up on that offer."


* Yasu couldn't help the puzzled furrow of his brows at the elderly spirits comment, but Jaxon’s expression quickly caught his attention. An apologetic look slid into his eyes. The man was already shaken from today’s events. Adding on the admission that he could see the dead and Jaxon was currently in the presence of two people haunted by a spirit each would probably send the poor guy over the edge. Out of sympathy, he let the moment slide. "Sure," he agreed, gesturing towards the direction of the station. "Maybe we should save those shakes for another time then?" A rough attempt at a smile.


* Jaxon had completely forgotten his favorite cold beverage, and at the reminder his shoulders slumped in disappointment. "Definitely." He was already thinking hot cocoa was a better option for tonight. He walked the direction pointed, more than a little twitchy, and shoved both hands into the pockets of his hoodie.


* Jana checked the sheath on her back, ensuring that Red Fang was still there, while her hand curled around the grip of Dark Avenger. She had to be positive that nothing else would slip out of the shadows and attack. It would just make her night, to have that happen. Oh, she hated ambushes. A moment later, she winced, dropping her hand to the injury in her abdomen from her sword.


* Yasu felt a pang of sympathy. Yasu had seen death. Death and the dead, come back. Yet it was obvious Jaxon wasn't taking the night nearly as calmly as Yasu for that very same reason. He followed, lifting a hand awkwardly as if to offer some form of comfort, only to falter and lower it again. Comforting another was in no way Yasu's strong suit, and the hand quickly dropped back to the hilt of his blade. he left his coat and scarf draped over his left arm, hiding the injury. "Would you like to stay over tonight?" he offered Jaxon out of the blue, keeping his eyes straight ahead. "Might be better than the long walk back."


* Jaxon was already wrapped up in reliving things he'd rather forget, focusing on things he maybe could've done differently. Like take a different route or hey - not even drag people into his crazy schemes to begin with. He was kicking himself. Two people were dead now. He felt like hell. So Yasu's words startled him, and he looked over like a deer caught in head lights. "Wha? Oh. Uh, yeah. I guess that'd be alright." He replied with an awkward shrug. "You have cocoa?" He asked a moment later.


* Jana shook her head, even as her grandma whispered into her ear lightly. It was a short, private, whispered exchange, but she had to say something to Jax. "You have to know that some people in this city are not like us. They are the very definition of wild card. I can't explain it fully, myself, but it's true. They are." She couldn't - wouldn't - tell him what she really meant by that.


* Yasu glanced back over out of the corner of his eye, trying for a smile that would seem warm and welcoming. "Yeah...I do actually." He lapsed into a moment of puzzled silence, thinking over Jana’s words as they continued along. When they finally reached the aformentioned bookshop, he pulled out his key and mutter a soft "watch your step" as he unlocked it, guiding them in.


* Jaxon listened to Jana and then gave a shrug. "I know that. Zombies. Mooncalfs." The second was still weird to say, but that's what Whit had called them. "This town is weird. I know. But people shouldn't just... kill eachother. It's not right." He said quietly, rubbing his own arm against the chills as he stepped into the shop.


* Jana pressed her clean hand to Jax's chest as she stepped back, blue eyes searching. "She attacked us first. It was self-defense. And if you think that was the worst you'll see - you've got another thing coming, Jax. Wonder why we left the bodies behind? Just two more in the count." Shaking her head, Jana turned, facing Jack with a weary expression. "Where's the restroom?"


* Yasu flicked the light on, illuminating the place in a dull glow. The windows were faded and dusty, scratched bits of paint remaining from the old words once written on them. A desk sat to the right upon entering. The room was rather tight fitting, floors crowded with half filled shelves and unsorted piles, opened boxes and so on. A set of stairs near the back sat with its side facing the entrance, hidden partially behind some more shelves. He sighed at Janas comment. "Let's not talk about that tonight... The bathrooms upstairs and straight ahead. There a bedroom to the left you can take. Jax, you can take my room on the right for tonight. The kitchens just back here." He shut the door behind them locking it and heading to the left, where a small doorway sat tucked between more shelves. Flicking on another light, he illuminated a tiny kitchen with the basic essentials, paint chipping from the walls and a tiny table holding four chairs, one on each side. It was crowded, but the whole place hand a cozy sort of feel.


* Jaxon hesitated just inside the place, awkwardly adjusting his bag hanging from his shoulder. "I wouldn't want to put you out, Jack..." He replied quietly. And now that they were inside - safe! - he felt his exhaustion kicking in.


* Jana started towards the bathroom, glad to finally, finally be freed of the street. It was horrible, not knowing where your next meal would come from, let alone your next shower. So the next words out of her mouth were easily said. "He can have the spare room tonight. I don't mind a patch of floor. If you have a pillow and blanket I can curl up in."


* Yasu sighed faintly, fixing three cups of cocoa quickly. "That won't be necessary. The old chair behind the desk is very comfortable, I assure you. I'll be fine. You two be comfortable tonight," he insisted as he pressed a mug into Janas hands on her way up, and another into Jaxons. "Get clean and comfortable. If you need anything I'll be down here." With that, he moved back into the main room, fixing the blinds on the windows and settling back into the mentioned chair with a book.


* Jaxon frowned as he took the cup, lips parting to reply, but Yasu - Jack - had seemingly made up his mind. He shook his head, making a note to make it up to the man soon, and nodded. "Alright. Goodnight then, Jack. Jana." He nodded and shuffled to the room, closing the door silently behind himself.