[center][b]West Heights Apartments, Kenan.[/b] 

[u]Juan, evening[/u] [/center]

It didn’t take too long for Juan to reach his apartment. Personally, he would’ve been there sooner but his three escorts were being rather difficult and stuck a little too close to his ass. Now Juan never minded being the center of attention yet even he had limited, and having them practically molest his personal space was it. His shoes clicked against the concrete sidewalk in each step toward his living space, his head flickered to the side to glimpse behind him. Their shadowy figures kept creeping closer and closer seeming to believe he didn’t see them at all. What foolish things Darius’s minions were, he mused to himself with a playful smirk. He farther ignored them as he pushed up the small steps to the apartment complex’s main door and entered the lobby entrance. 

It was a shit hole really. 

Mostly a single hallway, the peeling paint, yellowed from its original white by years of smoking, stain, and grim collection was the first thing to greet him while he continued onto the stairs leading upwards. For once he was grateful for the seemingly endless flights because it bought him time to think about how to deal with the chasing men. Fortunately they hadn’t realized Juan knew their presence was there or hint he intended to do something about it. His steps were all that echoed among the many apartments which over looked the stairs, his eyes shifted in time to see an occupant’s soured look before she slammed the door shut, likely to ignore the impending trouble and just pretend it didn’t exist. Of course Juan knew why. It was a sound strategy to avoid a visit from Darius’s, unlike some demon enforcers, goons who didn’t merely just start a skirmish over something as simple as money matters. Even Darius knew it was bad business practice to just kill off someone who owed him money or witnesses but Juan seriously doubted the fox’s alternatives were pleasant. Luckily he hadn’t any aims to discover that out himself. 

Juan twisted off to one of the higher level apartments in moments. His hand reached out for the door handle, giving it quick turn then pushed it in. Most folks locked their door, even Emmet insisted he did, but little did the sweet thing know ol’ Juan had a few secrets up his sleeve which made their apartment safe. Without giving any clues he had seen them, Juan closed the door behind him casually. 

Once in, he spin on heel back to the door and began to remove the coats hooked there sloppily. Once thing he loved about Emmet was the fact the sweet thing was messy. Namely since it made hiding his little half-finished surprises easier. Not even Zi, who had visited their apartment several times, had even once caught a glimpse of the odd symbols scattered throughout the apartment’s interior. Or at least drew little attention to them if she had. 

 Juan’s lips twisted into a smirk while his finger flickered into a flame, the heat hissed at the air and ate at the wood when he placed it against the already mostly singed surface. Black emerged during his fingertip while he finished the branding. Each movement was carefully etched and so précised, it was amazing he didn’t take a day to complete the single missing component. The hardest part was finding the right mixture of movements and symbols which both met his purposes and didn’t explode when he left it half finished. It wasn’t a matter he wouldn’t have liked explaining to the renter’s insurance if half the apartment was in ruins. It was something he thanked the memory of Saerne for, without his aid in the researching it would’ve otherwise impossible. He finished the last of the [url=http://www.jonathanswoods.com/assets/images/Love_Rune_1-1.jpg]symbol[/url] then he stepped back to admire his work for a moment. It should buy him enough time to prepare. 

 His path took him straight to his own room, in a few quick and determined steps, as he paused just before he entered. In the handle was another set of designs which snaked and vined their way in a slight Celtic like manner throughout the frame work, making it look like an exquisite work carving that seemed to glow at Juan’s approach. Despite its jaded look the magic was still very much alive. He had begun to regret his several paranoia induced safety measures when he summoned his weapon, his dominate hand griped the blade and his other held splayed out with the palm facing it. This was going to sting just a little but it was unavoidable. Slowly he brought the blade edge across the blackened skin causing it to split and bleed, the thick red dripped heavily from the wound then onto the floor. Pit..pat, pit…pat. His ear tilted to the side when he heard the sounds of soft steps edge towards his door. Juan knew, with pity, his time was trickling down and he needed to get a move on it. He sighed halfhearted when he smeared his wounded hand across the markings marring the image. In moments a fire started to spark then consume the delicate lines like flames consuming gun powder until nothing remained, just a blank surface. 
 
Juan wasted little more time, instead just pushed his hand over the knob, turned then moved inside. He usually spent most his time here whenever Darius and Emmet didn’t occupy his attention, though it was clear he didn’t sleep. First clue was the fact the bedroom was mostly bare. No bed, dresser, and the windows, the only light source beside the old oil lanterns, were painted completely black as oppose to just curtains. Light particles were very tricky to seal out after all with just fabric.

Slowly, he began to close in on the only evidence of inhabitation: a long, wide center table.
 
At first glance it all looked like a chaotic, mad scientist’s mess. Several items which ranged from ancient chemistry burners bubbling liquids to stone grinders, scribbled notes on aged paper to various powder jars were clustered together into groups all over the surface. Glimpses of ink spills and charred marks, either symbols or results from badly executed experiments, were found here or there among the piled papers. So many papers down, an edge or side would’ve stuck out too far and ruin the prime stack’s image. It was Juan’s own personal system which made finding papers much easier then ruffling through it. He reached for the only two burners still on as the liquid settled back into a murky color once more. Juan felt a slight disappointment, they been so close to completion and now he would’ve had to start over again. Another ten years’ worth of work wasted.

The demon had little time to spare in mourning his loss. He bent down on one knee allowing his arms to reach for a large satchel and placed it near the table’s edge. It was the only empty space large enough to hold it. Working quickly, Juan began to gather up jars, a few burners, notes and more into the bag’s bottom. Everything he might need to speed up Emmet’s healing if it was needed as well as create some hell on Darius’s property. 

Once he was satisfied with the current contents, Juan’s attention shifted to a box underneath. He jerked up the lid and revealed a small series of vials; each had different spell ingredients and had a surface barely big enough for someone to scratch a design on it. There were five key colors: bright purple, white, black, light brown and green. Each one had different essences within them and held an important purpose, though what that was only Juan knew. In addition, next to the box was a sack. 

He didn’t have much time to deal with that right now, but he snatched it never the less. 

Finally finished Juan placed the vitals in his pocket. His mouth held the sack between his teeth and other hand tossed the satchel over his shoulder before he transferred the sack to it, his free hand slammed the lid shut from any prying eyes to what else was inside. Slightly loaded down he rose to his feet then returned to the main room, crossing it for the kitchen. Shortly he stood by the little fridge of horrors where Emmet and him kept their storages, a fortunate thing currently, as he reached into the nearest cabinet for a cheap, empty blue cooler big enough to hold a small stash of ice and several blood and plasma packs. He managed to fill it with all the blood bags, half a dozen at least, a few IV drips, and about six bags of plasma all neatly inside. Then buried those inches deep in ice where it would keep them nice and cold. There wasn’t any time for a symbol creation at the moment. Next was the emergency travel first aid kit. It had rested just beside the cooler, containing everything from bandages to needles, and other essentials for any EMP’s needs to patch badly conditioned victims. 

Juan only hoped it was going to be enough when he shoved into his satchel too. Or force stuffed it was more like it. 

Now he needed to brace himself for the upcoming battle. He pulled the sack around to face him and opened it, his eyes spotted its contents and a smile crossed his face. Inside was a pair of arm bracers and a pendant. Each had odd markings, both smith and carved in by burning, that again seemed to glow in excitement at Juan’s presence. Juan’s eyes brushed the blackened wooden circle and noted its [url=http://www.tru-lee.us/llium/images/Attraction_LM.jpg] marking[/url], almost Nordic in origins, which he held for a moment then placed around his neck. Next came the [url=http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/f4/22/9c/f4229c9381cd929fdfc0e12250e46f7a.jpg]first bracer[/url] that he easily strapped on, but paused when it came to the second. He needed additional protection just in case these damn things matched a Warden demon’s power, something he doubted, yet the risk wasn’t something he was willing to gamble on. At least yet. Juan moaned in frustration at his misfortune then sparked his finger into a hot brand once again. He gritted in pain, his body hunched over, while he traced yet another odd [url=http://data3.whicdn.com/images/24852958/large.jpg] marking[/url] and this time into his own flesh. 

How far he had come, Juan slightly mused through the pain, then without waiting for the stench of charred flesh to die placed the last bracer on and strapped it tightly there. Just in time he realized when the door sudden gave away. It shattered into pieces, chunks flew and clattered onto the floor in great force as three eye pairs stared at him through the door frame’s ruins. Lovely. Three men, each different but dressed identical had started to wordlessly file into the apartment, completely ignoring the fact they had just destroyed the door. Secretively, Juan reached for his brown vial then with a thumb started to scratch into the glass surface during his rise to his feet. 

“Well, didn’t know Darius was sending me entertainment. Else I would’ve offered you a coke.” Juan made a sharp quip, his arm hidden from their shaded eyes. It wasn’t hard to feel uncomfortable. He was expose and dangerously venerable, neither notion a comfort in this situation. 

One of the men broke from the others and reached out for Juan. The demon reacted impulsively and underestimated his strength, his arm whipped about at the man’s head. A bone sickening crack was heard on impact. Blood, white bone, and brain spilled out onto the floor in moments. Before Juan could register what happened, forgetting his strength, the man was a shuddering corpse who soon stilled in his death. In seconds the body twisted and seemed to burn away. Never there. Juan blinked in surprise, his head looked from where the man was once then to the others, their figures tensed and teeth bore in united aggression at him. Juan couldn’t help but feel he had just made the scene more interesting in his mistake. 

“Well, I’m impressed. So that’s what a Warden demon’s strength can do. I’ll need to watch how much force next time.” Juan smirked and then asked in a hopeful tone. “So boys, how about you just run back to Darius and apologize to him for me about his little minion. What say you?” 

Another loud hiss was his answer. 

“Suit yourselves, I did warn you, little ones.”

By this time, Juan’s thumb had etched the last bit of his [url= http://chaoswitch.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/47f72e44030311e28e7522000a1c881f_71.jpg]task[/url] into the vial’s small surface. He watched the men a moment longer, his arm jerked down when the two sprang forward. Inwardly knowing the effect, his hand snatched his cooler then headed to the nearest exit: Emmet’s bedroom window. He heard the vial bust on the floor in his wake, his body enlarging the window’s small hole as he curled on the plummet down, mainly to hasten his escape. Meanwhile the mixture of sand and water had landed directly between him and them, the floor shimmering in reaction to the magic intertwining with it. In moments the very surface changed, turning it into quicksand right under the mindless brutes’ feet. The two were instantly ensnared. Their feet buried on landing within the bottomless sand, rapidly sucking up to their knees thanks to the landing. Several yips were heard and Juan’s smirked though he knew Darius won’t give up that easily. Like over watered mud it sucked them into the watery grit, their bodies would slowly vanish underneath in minutes. Though it won’t hold them for very long. 

As if reading his mind, one of the minions rocketed through the wall and tore after him. The man’s body stiffened then crackled to rearrange the joints, though it was still ran down on the wall after Juan, flesh fell away revealing black fur underneath. Clothing ripped and were left in shreds to float away while it became a [url= https://sp.yimg.com/ib/th?id=HN.608049055979865032&pid=15.1&P=0]shadowy fox [/url], the true form of Darius’s minions. Little wonder Emmet was uncomfortable around them, Juan commented inside his head now seeing this little transformation for the first time. Wind whipped around Juan’s form, tugging and pulled his clothes, his arms wrapped about the cooler to prevent it from slipping out of his grasp. 

The thing came into quick. 

Juan felt pain ripple through his arm when the fox leapt. Its teeth sank into his cradling arm and tore into the ligaments just shy of the bracer. [i]Damn it![/i] mentally cursed Juan at the creature’s mindless attack. His eyes glinted with annoyance and anger while he bit back a scream bubbling into his throat. He knew there was only one way to get the blasted creature to let go. Painfully he inched his body to curl into a tighter ball, his foot pressed to the fox’s stomach. Then he plowed a kick with full force into it. Bones cracked. The fox yelped, its teeth released and crashed into the brick side of the building. Stone and metal crumbled in its landing, raining down to the earth while Juan continued to free fall. The only bad thing was Juan had been knocked from his directed fall. He had originally intended to reach out and take of the nearest metal guard on the fire escape, but now that was impossible for his reach alone. 

Not out of ideas yet, Juan’s hand summoned his blade back into his hand. He watched, mentally counted the seconds between each blurring platform. One…two…three. The ideal moment came and out flicker his chain. [i]Yes![/i] It clinked then wrapped about a rail in victory. Juan’s smile faded when he felt his arm nearly wretched out of his socket, his body came to a halt in its falling motion. 

“Fucking Hell!” He screamed when again he was racked with pain, his one arm instinctively released his cooler to ease his almost dislocated arm. It fell out of his reach in seconds to the ground. 

“Shit…” Juan cursed spotting his foolishness. Reflexively, his foot lifted bring his foot up. How he managed it was something which amazed him, the foot hooked about the handle as it swung there perilously close to being smashed on the street. It might’ve only a few feet below but still, Juan wasn’t fond about going back up to get more blood again. 

He breathed in relief. A second too soon, his pendant flickered a warning and Juan’s eyes shot upwards. Teeth and a tongue was all he had time to see causing him to release his grip. The chain vanished back into him just when his body swung to the side, closer to the building. His knees screamed in protest when he landed roughly on the fire escape once more, his body rolled back upright just in time to see the fox’s body reach his perch. It growled in fury, eyes a hot white like fire in its hottest form before it launched itself at Juan. It didn’t surprise him these things were slow to learn, his foot slide his cooler to the side along with his sidestepping of the attack. He countered with a fist smashing into the beast’s side. Again the result was rather satisfying like before. It yelped and pulled back, not realizing Juan wasn’t going to allow a round two. Already his chain was again materialized in his hands. Then it he lashed it around the kit’s pitiful throat, leashing it when the blade painfully hooked into the dark fur. It tried to pull away but it only shrank the noose he created. Tighter, tighter it became while Juan kept his senses out for the other fox minion, until finally it crumbled. Blood spilt over its neck and soaked the black with a red highlight, the fur clumped together, while Juan released his weapon. 

He edged closer to examine the corpse, and then raised his foot above its head. The sound of its skull being crashed was music to Juan’s ears as it disappeared like the other. A bark, sharp and close, told Juan it was time to leave. Scooping up his cooler and ensuring his supplies hadn’t broken in his little fight, he dropped to the street and disappeared in the night. 

He was off to see Damon and his aid to plan.