[Day Of Broken Glass] Bad Girls Club

[Caligrace]

Face from heaven, bet she don’t know. Pretty girls don’t know the things that I know...

Caligrace couldn’t remember a time when she had been more exhausted. The night had seemed to go on forever, leaving her more than certain she would have to replace her bartenders for the next event - or be hit with a lawsuit. Pressing her fingers to the bridge of her nose, she shook her head as her mind raced with everything that had gone wrong. I should have prepared better. I should have hired more people. God, where was the security? Had she messed up somewhere? Was she not prepared for this? The familiar demon had latched itself into her thoughts, and her fingers dropped to press to her chest, where she was used to feeling her heart race. When she felt nothing, her brows drew together before she sighed. “Right. I’m dead,” she reminded herself, even as her vibrant gaze swept across Myth. The dance floor was finally deserted, the warm, thriving bodies replaced with debris that would take her days to clean up without help. Glass glittered on the floor as the strobe lights continued to pulse, giving the entire club an eerie retro feeling. Plastic cups and lipstick stained napkins were strewn haphazardly throughout the building, and some substances she didn’t want to identify stuck to parts of the tile in the darker corners.

Before she had a chance to really delve into the mayhem that had been the result of her Holiday Event, she turned towards her best friend - and thrall - as she teetered on expensive heels towards her. Graceful was something that could never be used to describe the brunette, and yet she hadn’t had a choice when Caligrace had decided it was time to brighten up her usual jeans and ratty t-shirts that she called a ‘wardrobe.’ “Girl, that party was the ******* bomb. Who knew you could get down like that?” Elin finally managed to make it to her side as she curled her slender fingers over her shoulder, sending waves of warmth through her otherwise cold system. When she went quiet, as if she couldn’t figure out what else she wanted to say, Cali inspected her a tad closer. Her chocolate curls stuck to her face, and the satisfied, dazed gleam in her eyes spoke volumes. She had partied harder than the rest of them, and her heart rate had yet to slow. She could hear the blood pumping through her veins, the familiar thrum causing her stomach to twist.

There’s no time. I have so much to do.
The floor needs cleaned.
What if someone left something in the bathroom?
Oh god, what if someone is IN the bathroom?

“I’m glad you think so,” she replied dryly, that sparkle dimming in her eyes. She could feel the sun threatening to rise, and the warmth brought on that familiar lethargy. No, I need to finish... Shaking her head, she grabbed the nearest glass and moved for the bin, her steps slowing. She was still trying to fight her nature, but she knew it would be a losing battle. The sun always won, despite her attempts. She could handle the craving for blood - hell, she could even handle the fact that she had to train herself by fighting rotten, flesh eating zombies. The loss of daylight, however, depressed her in more ways than one. Well, there’s nothing I can do about it now. “Go ahead and sweep up the floor. I need to go check the…” The room tilted and darkness took over her vision before she could finish her sentence. The glass slipped from her hand and cracked against the counter, and she knew that her time was up. Gripping the edge of the marble surface before she hit the ground, she leaned back into Elin as she wrapped her arms around her. “****, you pushed it too far.” The words echoed in her mind as she felt the woman lower her to the floor.

“Just get some re--”

CRASH.

The loud, intrusive sound was followed by glass as it sprayed from the shattered windows, bringing the sounds of deep barking from the shadows outside with it. No, not barking. It sounded as if the Beasts of Hell had been released - and they were headed straight for them. The sound of claws against linoleum echoed in her mind, and through the haze, she saw a flash of fang in a mass of golden and cinnamon fur. No, no. This can’t happen. Not now. Oh, god. Elin! She knew she had to protect her - that she had to do something. She couldn’t lose her best friend, not after everything they had been through. Fight! Struggling through the fog, she tried to form a single, simple plea - but the word died on her tongue as she succumbed to the Sun’s will.

There was nothing she could do.

[Freyja]

Ⓢ Ⓒ Ⓗ Ⓡ Ⓔ Ⓘ Ⓑ Ⓔ Ⓡ • Ⓣ Ⓦ Ⓘ Ⓝ Ⓢ

Victarian, Olena, and Grigoire bolted from the leash in a flash of black and sandy blonde, dark noses pressed firm to the polished floor to seek the scent of their prey. It was a trail that they knew far too well for Alessa’s taste. The whole city was immersed in the stink of death. It seeped into everything, her clothes, her hair, everything. Andrei, her brother, stepped through the glass that littered the front of the club, the floor crunching beneath his boots as he brushed the glimmering dust from the sleeve of his coat.

“Was the grand entrance so vital to your plan?” he chuckled in a cheery, uplifted tone. His face was bright with excitement, the thrill of finally closing the chapter on this dark blotch in their life, finally shedding some blood of the monsters that took their mother. He brandished a pistol, the .45 still a strange sight in the man’s hand. He looked every bit of the doctor, like something as primitive as a pistol would never belong in his grasp. The heavy, black rim of his glasses framed his bright, grey eyes.

Where her brother was excitement and positive energy, Alessa was focused, determined. She gave a sharp whistle and the dogs ceased their sniffling against the floor, ears pricked high as they waited for a command. “We aren’t here for subtlety. We’re here to send a message.” Her eyes swept over the trio of German Shepherds standing at attention, waiting. She pulled a knife from her pocket and ran her tongue slowly over her lip. “Vorstoßen!“


All three dogs surged forward, claws clicking against the hard floor as they sprinted further into the club with a snarl.

[Caligrace]

+ ELIN +

“****.”

It was an inadequate word for the situation at hand, but it was the only thing her drug filled mind could come up with. The room was moving in slow motion, and she wasn’t entirely sure that the people coming for her were real or a drug induced vision. “****, ****, ****.” She saw the flare of light as the attackers swept the room, but she heard nothing over the snarling pants coming from the beasts held on three simple chains. The silver shone in the club’s light, and she watched with her breath held as a slender, manicured hand reached down to unclip the hook. The second the hounds were free, they took off in a flurry, noses to the ground.

Think, Elin. Think!

Dipping her hand into Cali’s jean pocket, she pulled her phone free, her eyes never leaving the beasts. In fact, she figured she should be watching the black haired woman in the center of the room, but something about the dogs warned her to never let them out of her sight. The woman hadn’t moved since unclasping their chains, nor had the man behind her. They weren’t the immediate threat - she hoped. With a quick flick of her thumb, she brought up the message app and found both Freyja and Bambi’s names, her body bent forward to block the glow from the screen.

[Text] 911

She only hoped that would be enough.

[Freyja]

Ⓑ Ⓐ Ⓜ Ⓑ Ⓘ

Freyja had finally slipped into the bed, her night finally over. It had been the usual night of drunken stupor leading into a foggy haze of debauchery and wanton excess. A swathe of blue glitter mingled with the faint freckles across the blonde’s face as Bambi leaned over her to tuck the comforter neatly about the wisp of a woman, a faint groan her only thanks. She smiled, and pushed a lock of blonde from her face as she shut the door on the woman she called her dearest friend, letting her rest in the darkness.

As soon as the door had clicked shut, her phone buzzed in her pocket. She frowned at the message, worry instantly flashing across her face. She bit her lip, eyes moving to the door she had shut on her friend. It was her childe that was in trouble. Surely she would want to know…

Do not, under any circumstances, attempt to wake me up after I’ve gone to sleep for the day, Bambi. Do you understand? Say you understand me.

That conversation had been entirely clear. She didn’t dare. Not on her life.

She tucked her phone neatly into the back pocket of her tight denim jeans and pulled her keys free, Laughing Man logo keychain dangling from between her fingers as she tapped the key on her fob. The bright, pink Bug in the parking lot flashed its lights once, the doors unlocking. Cali wasn’t far. Whatever was going on, she was sure it wasn’t something she couldn’t handle. How hard would the sleepy little flower child be to take care of during the daylight hours? Likely, it was Elin using her phone, needing help to drag the snoozing woman into bed again.

She slipped into the little Volkswagen, checking her makeup in the mirror with a quick glance before she pushed the key into the ignition, the engine thrumming to life with a gentle purr. Reaching up, she flicked her sunglasses down over her eyes and pulled from the lot, driving into the morning sun toward Caligrace’s newest club, Myth, twisting the dial on her radio to drown out the shadow of worry in the back of her head with the heavy thrum of her music.

Loudly, she sang along to Don’tcha, putting severe effort into keeping herself in a cheery mood to see her friend Elin again.

[Caligrace]

+ Elin +

Between the snarling and the soft spoken words, she couldn’t focus. She had thought that the beasts would have been the more dangerous of the group - yet there was something in the woman’s eyes that left her cold. In a flash of a second, it all became clear. They weren’t there to rob the place - they were there for vengeance. Death. Caligrace. Instantly, the fog seemed to lift from her mind, the mixture of drugs and alcohol fleeing her system as determination took hold. If there was one thing in the world she cared about, it was the redhead slumbering fitfully on the floor. No one is going to hurt you, pretty thing. Not while I’m still breathing. With her newfound courage - possibly still fueled by the remnants of X and Cognac - she slid towards the end of the counter and curled her trembling fingers around a long shard of glass.

The dogs were heading further away from them, but that didn’t mean that they would stay that way. She knew for a fact that the appetizing scent of fear and adrenaline could lure the strongest of demons to their death, and it appeared that the hell hounds were the worse of the bunch. She didn’t see the fur or the eyes. She simply saw fire, death and blood as they maneuvered carefully across the dance floor, avoiding anything that could cut into their paws. Sinking her teeth into her lower lip, she turned her gaze to her palm and shook her head. I can’t believe I’m going to do this. This better work, Cali. I’m betting both of our lives here. Without another moment of hesitation, she brought the glass across the creamy white of her skin and hissed in a breath. The pain shot up her arm and burned through her nerve endings, but the second the blood oozed to the surface, she knew it was worth it. It only took a moment for one of the beasts to swing its head towards them, and she watched as his nose entered the air.

“Forgive me.”

Those two words were all that she uttered as she smeared the blood across the slumbering vampire’s arm before she backed herself into a dark corner. No sooner has she concealed her form than the beast came barreling around the corner, his lips pulled back into feral snarl to show massive, dangerous fangs. When he skidded to a stop, she heard the sharp whistle of the dark haired woman a second before the beast snapped his jaws around Caligrace’s shoulder and began to shake her like she was nothing more than his favorite toy. Oh ****. Please, please let this work…

[Freyja]

Ⓐ Ⓛ Ⓔ Ⓢ Ⓢ Ⓐ • Ⓢ Ⓒ Ⓗ Ⓡ Ⓔ Ⓘ Ⓑ Ⓔ Ⓡ

Victarion’s savage snarl sounded his attack, the hard snap of his teeth as they sank to the bone was a silvery note of her masterpiece. She gave a sharp, shrill whistle to snap the others to attention. Olena and Grigoire rushed to her side as she pursed her lips, ruby red against pale flesh as she inhaled, preparing to sound the attack when Victarion flew from behind the bar to slam against the tiled wall with a crunch of broken ceramic and bone. The creature’s yelp was sharp and painful, and in that instant she felt her heart shatter anew.

Fingers tightened around her knife as she rushed to the downed animal, a whimpering pile of fur and flesh. “Victarion!” she shouted to the largest of her pack, the other two moving to either side of her, iron discipline sharply overriding the concern for their elder brother. She caught the glimpse of their prey as she vaulted the bar, sliding through the room like a liquid shadow, a dangerous and powerful predator. She watched as Andrei stepped into the vampire’s line of vision, blocking her from the brunt of the fiery haired demon’s attack. She saw him lifted from the floor by a sharp grip on his throat, a choke leaving him as he lifted his pistol and fired wildly, the reports like the crack of thunder filling the club. The sound of his neck shattering drowned the bullets, the pistol flying from his grasp to clatter against the floor.

She didn’t remember drawing the weapon. She didn’t remember pulling the trigger, or the sting of the recoil against her palm, but the woman’s side was a ruin, three huge holes puncturing her side from breast to hip as she tossed her brother’s body aside like a sack of meat. Her features twisted into an uncontrolled pain and rage as she snapped her teeth once before she hissed the command.

“Vorstoßen!“

Olena and Grigoire shot forward, twin streaks of black and beige lightning, claws scraping into the floor as they advanced with snarls of black fury. Lips twisting in determination, she lifted her pistol again and fired into the monster, pulling the trigger until the action popped back and did not advance again, the chamber clicking empty. Immediately, she thumbed the release, magazine sliding from the pistol as she slapped another into the weapon and primed the chamber, taking her aim and firing again. She would continue until she was out of bullets. She wouldn’t ever forgive this ginger ***** for what she had taken from her.

[Caligrace]

CALIGRACE

Pain.

It was something most people shied from. It sent fire through the nervous system and caused the strongest of warriors to fall to their knees. It was dangerous, deadly - and it was feared. Be it a papercut or a severed limb, it was something that everyone was subjected to at least once in their lives, and at higher degrees, it could kill a man. Yet, pain also made people come to life. It could wake the simmering fire in someone and burn away the cold. In this instance, it could even wake the dead.

She didn’t know what she noticed first. The agony of teeth tearing through flesh and muscle, or the putrid scent of rotten meat and death on the breath of the creature causing it. Whatever it was, she knew that she wanted it to stop. Now. Before she knew what was happening, she had her hand around the dog’s neck, the bones crunching beneath her fingers as she pulled it from her skin. Her blood splattered it’s maw as he snarled and lunged, only to let out a shrill yelp as she tossed him against the wall. Her eyes narrowed as he slumped to the floor, his soft whimpers the only thing that told her he was still alive. With quick movements, she leaped to her feet and took one step towards the beast - only to be stopped at the sound of another voice.

“Victarian!”

Whipping her head towards the man, she gripped the edge of the counter and leaped over it, her heels crunching against the glass on the floor as she landed. “What the hell do you think you’re doing to my club?” Her voice was harsher than she was used to, but she couldn’t seem to control the rage that had twisted into her mind. She could only think of her hunger. Making sure to keep to the shadows of her destroyed club, she studied the man that stood in the middle of the room, his eyes narrowed. He was putting on a brave face, one that was countered by his rapid pulse. “You’re not supposed to be awake, monster,” he snapped as he took two steps to the left, blocking the woman behind him as she made her way for the unconscious mutt.

As she made her way towards Elin.

A twitch in her eye was her only warning as her body began to morph, the rage in her seeming to fuel the very power she fought day and night to suppress. Her features twisted into something more grotesque than the soft, youthful appearance that made her human, leaving her looking like the very monster he seemed to think she was. In a flash of a second, she saw the fear enter his eyes and she gave a broken, twisted smile full of fang. When he took a step back, she shot forward and gripped him by the throat, his windpipe crushing beneath her palm. At once, the woman pivoted on her heel, the dog forgotten as she fired three shots into her side. The pain had the opposite effect of what she wished, and before she could pull the trigger a fourth time, Caligrace snapped the man’s neck like a twig and dropped him to the floor.

Rage and grief twisted across the woman’s face, and with a hoarse, sharp command - she sent the remaining beasts towards Caligrace.

[Freyja]

Ⓑ Ⓐ Ⓜ Ⓑ Ⓘ

Myth wasn’t far from the apartment. Her mistress had a habit of never straying far from her little spitfire of a progeny. Freyja kept Cali as close as she could manage, without cutting into either of their lives. It was, once she thought about it, rather sweet. She was as protective over Caligrace as any mother might have been of a daughter. She envied their bond, but cherished it as well. She was just happy to be close to them.

The Beetle stood out in the mostly empty lot, parking close beside the monstrosity of a truck that had claimed the spot closest to the club. As the engine’s hum died, Bambi’s brows knit as she glanced along the front of the building. Windows had been broken, and the presence of the strange truck made an ominous combination. Worry instantly began to gnaw at her again and she shifted in her seat, leaning across the narrow console to reach into her glove compartment. Her mistress had given her a gun the night she had inducted her into service. She had hoped beyond hope that she would never have a need to use it in defense, but it looked like her hope was going to be dashed against the broken glass windows of Myth.

The pistol was a terrible, heavy thing. She didn’t understand, even now, why Freyja had insisted on the monster, but she could do little to deny the woman. She pulled the revolver from her glove box, checking to see that it was still loaded. Satisfied, she took a steady breath and tucked it neatly into the waist of her jeans. Sliding from the car and locking the door with a quick succession of beeps from the horn, she made her way inside the club. It took only an instant for her to draw the weapon again. Gunshots rang out across the parking lot and she ducked her head as a habit. She frowned, and wanted to shout to her friends, to see if they were okay… but that would have been stupid.

At least, more stupid than what she would usually do anyway.

Instead, she pushed into the club and saw the dogs charging at Caligrace. She lifted the weapon and fired. She flinched away from firing at the dogs and missed, the massive .500 roaring in her hand as the bullet slammed into the floor with a crash, splinters of tile flying through the air. Both dogs turned to the new threat.

Bambi’s blue pools grew wide, fear ripping through her entire body as she turned and ran. She pushed her way over stools and chairs, vaulted tables as the dogs came at her tirelessly. The gunshots in the front room continued to ring out as she led the hellish hounds into the bathroom. One charged in after her, teeth snapping at her heels. She ran into a stall and hopped the seat of the toilet to clamber across the tops of the stalls to the door. She ran through and slammed it shut, the heavy dog impacting the door with a snarl. The wicked scrape of claws against the wooden door was relentless, even as she pushed the lock and took a slow, ragged breath, her chest heaving as she rearmed the revolver.

Her hands trembled as she shifted to rise, moving to her knees just as a low, dangerous growl rumbled in the darkness of the hall. The last of the beasts stood between her and the dance floor. The German Shepherd was huge, its teeth looked like massive steak knives from where she stood, saliva dripping from its mouth as it slowly advanced a step.

“Good girl… good dog. Look. I won’t hurt you, see? I’m not going to hurt you.” She laid the pistol against her hip, sliding it easily into her jeans as she held up her hands. Her sneakers squeaked against the floor as she lowered a hand. “You don’t want to hurt me either. I can see it. Shh, come here.” The dog lunged at her, but the attempt was only half-hearted. Bambi moved when the dog leaped, and gripped her by the scruff of her neck, throwing her heftily into the men’s room across the hall. The darkness swallowed the Shepherd as she slammed the door shut, the second door sounding with scratches and sharp whines rather than the rabid barking and snarling of the first.

Finally, she exhaled in a sigh of relief. Both dogs were contained for now. She had to get to Elin and get her out. She moved back into the dance floor as bullets flew through the room, one lodging into the doorway just inches from her face. She ducked again and scrambled behind the bar where she found her friend bleeding and another of the dogs in terrible shape. “****, ****… did she do all of this?” she asked Elin in a hush as she nudged the woman’s injured arm and pointed to the dog. “We should move someplace safe to regroup. Can you move?”

[Caligrace]

+ ELIN +

She couldn't remember when the music had stopped. The steady beat had disappeared beneath the shouts and gunfire, and for a strange reason - that was the only thing that bothered her. It wasn't the pain in her palm or the fact that her best friend had just murdered a man without so much as a blink. It was a different side to the girl she had grown up with, the girl that she had spent her summer nights with. She had once been sweet, caring - loyal. She never would have thought of harming another, and once again, she was filled with guilt. I shouldn't have left you alone that night, she thought to herself as she bent to unsnap the strap of her heels. When the black fell from her pale skin, she slipped her feet from them quietly and slid them beneath the counter. Wiggling her toes to return the feeling to them, she moved unsteadily to her knees as the redhead diverted attention to herself.

It was then she saw something that made her heart stutter.

Bambi, with her wide eyes and innocent features, firing a weapon that was all too heavy for her hand. It looked as unreal in her grasp as the cold rage in Caligrace's eyes. Both women were too kind, too dedicated to be in a position such as this. Sorrow gripped her throat as she twisted her fingers through her hair, her attention torn between the two. It wasn't until Bambi took off in a run and slid into her side that she could take a breath. Almost instantly, she curled her fingers into her hair and yanked her forward, pressing a friendly - and relief filled kiss - to her lips. "You always taste like apples. I'm starting to think you have a fetish, she laughed weakly, before shaking her head as she heard the woman on the other side curse. She could feel the fear thicken the air, and she shook her head as she pulled Bambi to her feet. "Cali? No, I cut myself to wake her. She told me it was the only way to protect us if something like this ever happened. I can't... I never thought I would have to use it." Her voice broke as she stared at her lifelong friend, blood soaked and savage. Her features had frightened her before, but it was nothing compared to the demonic gleam in her eyes now. Somehow, it seemed worse than the transformation when she had killed the man.

Shaking her head as if to clear it, she quickly grabbed the other's hand and glanced around. There wasn't many places they could go without drawing attention, but she knew she couldn't remain there. She could fight, but she didn't have the faith in herself to be able to pull the trigger. She would only be a liability. Taking a deep breath, she carefully walked around the redhead and bent down to lift the German Shepard. The dead weight caused her to stumble, but she simply adjusted her hold and nodded towards the backrooms. A few steps into the shadows, and she lead the woman down the darkened halls with a slight grunt as the dog kicked his back paw.

[Freyja]

Ⓑ Ⓐ Ⓜ Ⓑ Ⓘ

Bambi almost lost herself in her smile, forgetting for just an instant that the situation around them was mortally dire, until the pistol's report snapped her back to task. She waved off her friend's words as she took her hand. Her skin was so soft, so warm - she could feel her pulse rushing through that tender touch and the perfect cocktail of horror and adrenaline. She lifted her pistol and shrugged her shoulder. "You always taste like cognac, but I don't happen to have any cause to complain."

A bullet slammed into the wall, just shy of their position and sent splinters of tile flying, causing the blonde cheerleader to duck her head, firing her huge pistol blindly in the woman's direction with little to no effect but a monstrous roar and a belch of flame from the revolver. She moved with Elin to where the dog lay in the floor, mortified that the woman would be so brave as to lift the beast that had tried to tear out her throat just minutes ago into her own arms. She shook her head and pressed her glossy lips into a thin line before she fired the massive weapon again, this time hitting the floor just shy of the woman's heel. That made her jump.

A proud smile crept onto Bambi's lips just before the woman turned and fired at her again, causing her to duck and send another huge round flying in her direction without looking, both Elin and the injured canine safely evacuated within the short exchange.

"Go **** yourself with this, you dumb ****!"

She emptied her revolver in the woman's direction, pulling the trigger until the hammer clicked uselessly, shoving against the door with a shoulder to follow after Elin. "*****, are you insane? You about got us killed." She stepped closer to the woman and took a slow breath as she caught up. She took one look at the dog and knew. She just... she knew. She would've done the same. The poor guy was only following orders. Those deep, brown eyes were full of pain and pleas for mercy. She couldn't let anything happen to him. She huffed, the sound loud and annoyed, with the both of them, as she let the heavy revolver clatter to a table, rubbing her bruised hand. "Do you thin Cali will be okay out there on her own?"