[IC] MONSTORY

[Dead Cruiser]

Cerasus shrugged at Izzy's question. "Who's to say? It happens because it is expected to happen. I think of it as a tell. No matter how hard we hide ourselves, it's one thing that we can't disguise."

That had been about all Cerasus was able to offer her, in the end. He had muttered a bit more about Episode's peculiar hatred for vampires, and what might have been a slur regarding "halfies," but seemed generally uninterested in conversation after that. Just as he had been uninterested in Izzy's suspicions about Riley, essentially ignoring them out of hand. It seemed almost like an ennui that possessed him whenever Izzy had genuine concerns about something. Something like thinking that he was already immortal, what did he have to worry about?

Later...

Izzy stood in the middle of the athletic field, still waiting. A breeze blew by, giving her a slight chill, and on the wind she smelled the many human lives in her town. The smell of living things carried for miles, she found, but they were never smells that she was interested in. Riley, for instance, she could never detect unless he wanted her to. In fact, he was probably watching her at that moment, and she had no idea where he was. The vampire hunters made a bit more sense, as they did such things as turn into mist and other mysterious powers, which could more readily hide their scent, but Riley demonstrated nothing like those abilities.

Thinking of Riley, he had been very warmly approving of Trevor's intervention in their scenario. He had seemingly made it a point to never cross paths with him, but was aware of his presence all the same. He instructed Izzy to no longer leave the school, unless for a battle, and to let Trevor take care of her errands and whatnot. He didn't totally expect any of the hunters to attack her outside of the duels that had been negotiated, but Riley had said that a trick to negotiation was to never give up an opportunity for free.

Then, in a cloud of mist, Psychotic Episode appeared. Blond hair, sharp eyes, a white suit. He was thin, almost frail, with a somewhat juvenile appearance, but the massive cross over his shoulder shattered that impression. He had a slight, sort of uneasy smile, but he glared quite sharply at Izzy from his place across the field.

"Heh, gotta love it. Old Theurge, the sap, got taken to school by a brat like you. How careless. Y'know I really don't care much for bloodsuckers, even the ones that go out and kill other bloodsuckers, but I had a soft spot for the old guy." His words dripped with hatred and malice. What's more, he was making light of Izzy while he was at it. "So, kiddo, what exactly do you expect me to do here? Have a match, right? What kind of match you thinkin' of? I'm pretty sure I could beat you at anything."

[Riven Wight]

Back in the Athletic Field

Izzy sighed in the darkness of the night, wondering whether she had been earlier than she thought, or if Psychotic Episode was running late. Either way, she took a deep breath as an uncharacteristically chilled summer wind blew through the field, taking in the many smells that rode its invisible waves, searching for any that smelt familiar. Perhaps one of Riley, though she doubted she would sense him in any way unless he wanted her to, even though she was sure he was there, somewhere, cloaked by whatever abilities he possessed.
She glanced around the field, absentmindedly searching for him as she ran his warning to not leave the school unnecessarily through her head. She sighed darkly. Bound by the sun, and now ordered to remain within the rotting building’s property save for her impending fights.
If the hunters didn’t kill her, she thought, she may just go raving mad.
Movement in the corner of her eye made Izzy turn around as Episode appeared in a cloud of mist. So, he could use transformation. To what extent, though, was the true question.
Izzy returned his glare, her mouth a straight line. She snarled at his words and tone, then snorted. She clasped her hands behind her back and leaned forward slightly. “Says the guy who’s half-bloodsucker,” she said, trying to keep her tone even despite the bite in her gaze, to feign a standoffish air equal to Cerasus’. The desire to annoy him as much as he did her was overwhelming.
“Nah,” she began with a dismissive wave of her hand as he finished speaking, her voice soaked with sarcasm. “I was thinking we could have a friendly chat over tea and crumpets. There’s this lovely place between Childs Road and Eisenhower.”
She glanced warily to the mammoth cross he held, then to the track that circled around them. How she had hated running that thing in school. But now, she could not help but wonder for a quick second how quickly she could run a lap.
He has half the strengths, she reminded herself. But passion was one of the strongest motivators. Trying to remember exactly how fast he had moved the night they first encountered, and debating on whether she would regret the suggestion, she stood as straight as she could, her tone dark as she spoke aloud.
“What do you say to an old-fashioned race? No weapons.” She cast another glance to his cross, then spread her arms to her side, showing her lack of armaments. “No transformations. Just physical prowess. Going outside the track,” after all, she did not exactly have a patch kit for a running track on hand, “the first one to pass the finish line,” she gestured to the white stripe painted on the polyurethane, “say, thirty times, declaring each pass, claims the victory.”

[Dead Cruiser]

Hearing Izzy's conditions, Episode laughed heartily, even doubling over slightly as he continued to laugh at her. He stood back straight as his laughter ceased, tossing his long hair back over his shoulder with his free hand. "You really aren't very bright, are ya? Y'know, sometimes you former-human vampires get real cocky, think they're gonna rule the world with the powers of a mosquito. I've never met one so dumb before, though. But don't worry, today I have a special treat." He held out the cross with a single arm, pointing it at Izzy as if it were no heavier than a tree branch. "I'll kill ya without doing any permanent damage."

After his words settled in for a second, he laughed at Izzy again, restoring the cross to its place over his shoulder. "Nahh, you know as well as I do that we can't kill each other. This really is a hell of a farce that bastard Riley set up; I've never had to fight so fair and square before. It's the one way that you could possibly beat us. Of course, if I knew where Damocles was, I'd kill you where you stand, and then go over and kill him. Don't think I'll go easy on you. I hate picking on the weak, but I love picking on the evil."

[Riven Wight]

Izzy’s fists clenched at her side and her nose pulled up angrily as Episode had his laughing fit. Her nails dug slightly into her palms as he continued to insult her. She took a slight step back when he easily extended the cross toward her, and forced her fingers to uncurl. She took a deep breath trying to calm herself.
“Ha ha,” she said irritably. “Funny.”
She crossed her arms loosely over her chest as he continued to talk. “Oh, poor little you,” she growled when he complained about having to fight fair. But he still admitted that, one-on-one, she had a chance.
“Such a shame I’m neither of those, then, isn’t it?” She uncrossed her arms and tried to relax her muscles. “Since you’re afraid of a little honest competition,” she returned her arms to her sides, her gaze wary as she watched him, “I’ll let you decide the answer to your question. Unless you’d rather just stand around talking all night.”

[Dead Cruiser]

Episode didn't seem to be listening very intently to what Izzy was saying. Probably out of a lack of interest in what a "bloodsucker" had to say. He very clearly made no effort to hide his hatred toward vampires. One had to wonder how this came to be, perhaps from being rejected by vampires due to his nature as a half-breed? Did he hate humans as well? Many questions that he would most likely never answer.

He did answer something, though. "Huh? Of course you're evil. You're a monster."

With that, leaving no room for rebuttal, he mounted his massive cross on his arm. Winding up and digging in his heels, he then chucked the huge hunk of metal at Izzy at an alarming speed. It seemed unnatural how quickly and cleanly it sped through the air, like some kind of missile. As fast as it was, Izzy was only just able to get out of the way in time, but it still grazed her arm. A distinct burning sensation manifested where it touched her, accompanied by a smell resembling sulfur. Her skin was ripped, but it was also bubbling and festering, as though she had suffered some kind of chemical burn. As well, it seemed that her regeneration was not healing the wound.

Actually, upon closer inspection, the wound was indeed healing. Just extremely slowly, by her current immortal standards. It made sense now, though. Crosses were a bane of vampires. It's possible that the cross was also made of silver, as well. And Episode was able to haul that thing around and throw it at ridiculous speeds, without any harm coming to himself. Looking back to him, it seemed that he had disappeared from where he was standing. Whipping around, Izzy found that he was materializing again where the cross had dug into the ground, sort of resembling a gravestone. He had turned to mist to retrieve his weapon, and it seemed he was preparing to throw it again. Half of the powers of a vampire, and none of the weaknesses. Clearly he knew how to fully take advantage of such an arrangement.

[Riven Wight]

Out of all the questions running through Izzy’s head, Episode answered only one she had not posed.
Her fists clenched and she opened her mouth to protest, but he made the first move of their fight, sealing her retort on her tongue. Izzy jumped out of the path of the cross as it sliced through the air with deadly accuracy. She let out a low, pained hiss as, despite her agility, part of it still nicked her arm, leaving a burning sting in its wake. When the sharp, sulfuric smell rose to her nostrils, and, unlike with her injuries from her match with Theurge, the sensation did not immediately fade, she looked to it. She inhaled, horrified, at the gruesome sight. Her other hand moved to hover just above the wound, but did not dare to touch it.
One more vampiric piece of lore proven correct, she thought, swallowing as she quickly returned her attention to where Episode had stood, to keep him in her sight. But she found him missing. Panic filling her chest, she spun in a circle to find him. Her gaze settled on him as his body reformed near his weapon.
Wishing she had figured out how to use transformation herself, when Episode turned back toward her, appearing to be readying to throw the cross again, Izzy darted toward him, watching him cautiously and doing her best to gauge the distance between them verses the speed of the projectile based on his first throw. Trying to not overthink it, her body prepared to bound over the cross as it flew at her, a hand clenching and drawing back mid-leap to immediately land a blow aimed at the shoulder of the arm Episode had wielded the cross with.

[Dead Cruiser]

Izzy was successfully able to leap over Episode's attack, but by the time she had reached the man himself, he had returned to his mist form. Yet again he floated over to where his cross was sticking out of the ground, resumed a human shape, and wrenched it out of the dirt. Izzy didn't have much of a hand to play here, unfortunately. She couldn't even try and throw it back at him, or she'd lose the limb she picked it up with. Exploiting a vampire's weaknesses while being protected by his own powers. Now Izzy understood why Cerasus had stressed not to underestimate him. The comic books had really not prepared her for this.

"Heh, don't worry, just keep dodging. I'll whittle you down. Just hope you don't screw up and take one to the heart. Can't have you- hanh! -dying on me!" Episode taunted her, chucking his cross again mid-sentence, and immediately turning to mist to run over and retrieve it. "Of course, you could always just surrender." His voice echoed from his incorporeal form, "I'll kill you and Damocles exactly this same way, though. Can't take any chances on you bastards."

Damn, he was going to keep this up all night if he had to. He was just able to move too fast as a mist. Izzy couldn't chase him or hurt him in that form. She had even discussed this possibility with Trevor; if an opponent used the same tactic on her that she had used on Dramatic Theurge. They hadn't really come up with a solution. And Psychotic Episode was in no danger of running out of ammo, as Izzy had. As it was, all she could do was watch him carefully and dodge when she could, but she wouldn't be able to do that forever.

"Izzy!" An unmistakable voice sounded from the gates. One that was unmistakably real, and no trick or hallucination. Trevor had just climbed over the fence, and was calling to her, his hands cupped around his mouth like a megaphone. Had he been hiding there, just like the first fight? "Don't give up! Your opponent turns to mist, so that means-"

"What a joke." Episode quietly and bitterly said, and threw his cross again.

Only this time, it was not at Izzy. He unmistakably threw it at Trevor.

[Riven Wight]

Izzy growled and stumbled slightly when her fist met only emptiness as his misty form rode the air to his weapon once more. She spun back around toward where his cross had landed as he returned to his physical form. Which, it seemed, he took on only long enough to retrieve the cross and hurl it at her again.
So much for the brilliance of the comic books.
Her teeth ground together as Episode spoke, her eyes never wavering from his weapon. She inhaled and dodged aside, doing a quick roll on the ground and springing back to her feet as the hunter finished his sentence.
She took a breath and held it as he finished speaking, trying to push aside the thought of what losing would mean. She could not--would not--let that happen. Not willingly, at least. She would not give him the satisfaction of her surrender.
“Well, don’t you think you’re Mr. High-and-Mighty!” Izzy eyed him, her body tense and retaining a slight crouch. The next time he threw it, she decided, she would try to beat him to where it landed. Even if she could not wield it, it provided her a short window before he transformed. If she could make it before he picked it up. “And you thought I was the pompous one?”
When Izzy’s name sounded in the night, it made her cringe and inhale. Confusion replaced the surprise at hearing her name as reorganization hit.
Trevor? Izzy spun toward the gates, trying to keep an eye on both her friend and Episode. “You shouldn’t be here!” Izzy snapped, her eyes widening slightly, unsure whether her voice had carried over to him. The last thing she wanted was for him to get caught in the crossfire.
When Trevor shouted to her again, trying to help her, Episode’s soft voice drew her full attention as she noticed the short movements that preceded a throw. She readied to dodge once more, to race after the weapon to try beating him too it, but the angle was wrong.
“NO!” she shouted the moment the weapon flew from his hands toward her only friend in the world, and raced after it, her voice ringing in her ears and echoing through the field. Her terror-filled eyes on Trevor, she pushed herself harder than she ever had. She jumped into the air, to hop over the cross. For a fraction of a second, the sole of a shoe brushed the metal and she kicked down in an attempt to push it off course before she lunged to try pushing Trevor out of its path.

[Dead Cruiser]

Trevor was a fairly physically fit individual, from what Izzy could tell. He had a well-defined physique, and part of his persona included his great results on the Presidential Fitness Exam. However, his abilities were within the bounds of human comprehension. Needless to say, he was no match, even for a half-vampire. He was not blessed with any extraordinary speed or vision to avoid the cross; he managed perhaps only half a step to get out of its way. Izzy's strike to the top of the cross, which obliterated her shoe and scalded her foot, only tipped it slightly off course. And so, the corner of the cross struck him, gouging his flank. While he didn't burst into flames, or evaporate from coming into contact with it, the crucifix was still a massive hunk of metal. What was a soft, human abdomen to what was at least a ton of silver, sent hurtling at them?

"...ghh!"

With all of Izzy's speed, she was only able to make it to him in time to catch him and keep him from hitting the ground. It was too late by then, of course. His shirt was torn open, his skin was torn open, his muscle was torn open, his ribs were torn open, his organs were torn open. Crimson blood gushed incessantly and would not stop, the wound was simply too large. Neither the blood nor the pieces of flesh that had been ripped from him evaporated; they just scattered into the field and stained the ground a deep red.

"Ah... ha ha..." Trevor laughed bashfully. As though it were embarrassing that Izzy could see his insides. "Your phone... Forgot your phone, I came," He gasped for breath, distress showing on his face for just an instant, "To give it to you."

[Riven Wight]

“Trevor!” Izzy shouted when, despite her desperate efforts, the cross still met its mark. Izzy caught him as Trevor fell. The pungent smell of his blood filled her nostrils with more potency than the stench of burnt rubber and flesh as the thick liquid pumped from the gaping wound the cross had made in his side. With shaking arms, she gently lowered him, keeping one hand behind his neck as she sunk to the ground with him, the burning in her foot drowned out by the sight of him.
For the second time in her life, she had not been fast enough when it truly mattered. It was Amber all over again. Only this time, there was no there one second there, then simply vanished the next. Even if she could get him to a hospital, she knew it would be too late. The damage was done. He had lost far too much blood in just those short couple seconds. Her vision swam and she let out a quivering exhale as she placed a hand over his wound, as if that alone would staunch it, would stave off Death’s cold, cruel hand.
“My... my phone,” she breathed as she tore her gaze from the thick liquid pooling over her fingers, and looked into his eyes. She shook her head and bit her lower lip before her fangs gave her a sharp reminder of their presence, of the world she had pulled Trevor into. “Trevor. I’m... I’m so sorry!” she sobbed out softly, then swallowed hard against the tears swimming in her eyes. “This is all my fault. I-I shouldn’t have brought you in on this.” She shook her head again, then hung it heavily. “I should have known better.”

[Dead Cruiser]

"Izzy... shut up..." Trevor looked up at Izzy's tearful face with an expression that was wanting to be stern, but couldn't quite get there. The damage had only just been done, and he we was obviously fighting to hang onto the few seconds of consciousness he had left. "Listen... he turns to mist. Mist is water." His voice was steady and firm, but he closed his eyes as he continued speaking. "How's your long jump? Got a... good record?"

With that, he sunk into her hands. As if on a cue. Did humans really grow so heavy from losing consciousness? What happened when they lost their lives?

"You gonna keep me waiting much longer, little mosquito?" Episode sounded, not far from the two of them. By the time Izzy saw him, he had already retrieved his weapon, and was readying it to use it on her. "If you keep hanging around that kid, he's just gonna get more hurt."

[Riven Wight]

Izzy returned Trevor’s stare, wishing she could do something, anything for him without risking Episode killing them both in the process. Izzy nodded stiffly as he closed his eyes. He was wounded, on the brink of unconsciousness, yet still, he was trying to help her. She opened her mouth to tell him to save his breath, but he continued. She inhaled through her nose when he went limp in her arms the moment he finished.
A snarl settled over Izzy’s face at Episode’s voice, and her hands balled into fists. She gently laid Trevor down, her bloodstained hand resting lightly on his chest for a short second. At least his heart still beat.
With a feral hatred and anger burning in her eyes, Izzy slowly stood and turned toward Episode. This time, she could fight back against the thing that hurt her friend. It would be Episode’s blood she would see soak the field next for what he did, if she had her way.
She moved away from Trevor, not wanting to risk his further injury. The quicker she dealt with the hunter, the sooner she could get her friend help.
Trying to figure out what a long jump had to do with mist being water while resisting the urge to lunge at Episode, she readied to dodge away from another of his attacks. Then, she noticed the sand pit designated for long jumps.
Sand. Earth was a weakness of water. If she could use that to turn him into sludge...
She waited for him to throw his cross again, then, when he went to retrieve it, she angled herself this time with her back to the sand pit, leaving enough room between her and it for the cross’ momentum to carry it where she wanted.
“Monkeys with guns have better aim than you!” she taunted, malice in her voice, when he solidified again by his weapon. “Poor little half-breed. Hated by vampires. An outcast in human society.” She made a sarcastic tisking sound. “You know, you oughta learn some manners. Maybe then you’ll get invited to more than hunting parties out of more than just pity for your sorry state.”
She waited for the last possible second when he threw his cross again. Once it whizzed by her, without missing a beat, she rushed after it, trying to keep close to Episode. She jumped the last few yards and landed in the sand just behind the hunter's mist form, and kicked up as much of the granular earth as she could.

[Dead Cruiser]

As Izzy tried to taunt out an attack from Episode, the half-vampire taunted her right back without missing a beat. "You broke our promise, Thrall of Damocles. This was supposed to be a fair one-on-one fight. You bloodsuckers are all the same. Just as soon as you're cornered, you turn into a rat, trying to survive no matter who has to get snuffed out. I guess I can call it even though, since I ended up doing the snuffing myself."

Izzy's jump into the sand pit was tremendous. She flung herself a good sixty feet into the air, higher even than she had managed when testing out her power nearly a week ago. She landed solidly in the middle of the sand pit, just about emptying the entire pit from the force of her landing.

"Nice leg work, there, but do you think I'm dumb enough to reveal myself when you're so close by?" Episode's disemobdied voice sounded, obviously unaware of Izzy's- or rather Trevor's -plan.

Quickly, though, as the sand filtered back to the ground like coarse rain, a humanoid shape took form nearby. At first just the suggestion of a man's form in wet earth, but eventually Episode's true form was forced to manifest from having been turned solid. Once she had sight of him, Izzy's whole world turned red. In the fraction of a second it took her to close the distance between them, she was on him. He had his tricks, but in a true battle between a vampire and a half-vampire, he was simply no match. However, Izzy was not thinking about that. She was not thinking about Cerasus' limbs, or their one-on-one duel, or much of anything really. It was just the sight of Trevor's blood and insides that would not leave her head. Her body moved on its own, seemingly without her command. She almost felt like an outsider, watching herself take action without any will over her limbs.

Izzy quickly beat Episode into the ground, allowing no chance for him to assume a mist form and escape. He had no hope of retaliating; Izzy was simply too strong and too fast for him to even attempt to defend himself. As soon as he was on the floor, she seized him by the throat, seeking to throttle the life out of him. However, after just a few seconds of Izzy commencing her vicious attack, she felt a hand land softly on her shoulder, and heard a voice that brought her back to her senses.

"Okay, that's enough now." It was Riley, the man in the hawaiian shirt. "Keep going like that and you won't be a human anymore." Just like with Dramatic Theurge, he had to have been watching from afar the entire time.

[Riven Wight]

The moment Episode was forced to take form, her rage at what he had done to Trevor became an all-consuming desire for revenge. Before she knew what she was doing, or the hunter could even register her, she barreled toward him, feeling her body move at the dictations of a force, of a frenzy she had never felt before. Her fangs bore in a vicious snarl, she easily brought him to the ground, her weight on top of his and hand around his throat pinning him beneath her as she assaulted him.
With only the desire to see him bleed, for him to be the one laying, dead, in the field, the fingers of her free hand moved to press into his chest, when she felt a hand rest on her shoulder and Riley’s voice broke through her haze.
It took her a moment to register who it was, her breathing coming in quick, angry spurts, red blooming on Episode’s white suit around her fingers.
Exhaling through her teeth, Izzy hung her head as his words hit their mark. If she kept going, she would cross the line between human and monster. With a snort, she raised her head to look into Episode’s eyes, a lingering sadistic glimmer still in the depths of her gaze. She leaned into him so her mouth rested near his ear.
“If you ever,” she growled through her teeth, tightening her grip on him so her nails dug slightly into his throat, “hurt someone I care about again, I swear I’ll end you.” With that, she pulled from him and got to her feet, leaving a streak of Trevor’s blood on Episode’s chin.
Trevor. Leaving Riley to deal with Psychotic Episode, she spun toward where she had left her friend, then hurried to him, a lump in her throat. She knelt down beside him, fearing how she would find him. Did she have time to get him help? Would it do any good?
“It's done,” she choked out, searching for any sign of life, her hands shaking as she once more placed a gentle palm to his chest, hoping beyond hope that the heart beneath still beat. “Thanks to you.”

[Dead Cruiser]

Izzy's threat unfortunately fell on deaf ears. As soon as she released Episode, he slumped to the ground, utterly limp. His eyes were rolled back in his head, and as Izzy pulled her hands away, she could already see distinct, black bruises on his throat where her hands had been. Riley looked down at the vampire hunter quite pitifully, but turned away without a second glance, clicking his tongue.

Riley followed Izzy along to where Trevor laid. It had only been a couple of minutes since he had been struck, but he was obviously on death's door. His flesh was cold and clammy, and when Izzy felt for his heartbeat, it seemed that his heart had either stopped, or its beating was too faint for her to feel directly. Again, all Riley had for this sorry scene was another pitiful look, and another condescending click of his tongue.

"That's a shame."

[Riven Wight]

When no heartbeat greeted her, Izzy gave a sorrowful exhale. “No,” she breathed, her shoulders drooping. “Please, no!” She placed her other hand over his wrist. A cold spread through her, and she felt like she was going to be sick.
She flinched when Riley clicked his tongue from where he stood near her.
“A shame?” she spat heavily at his callous response. She shut her eyes for a moment, and a tear streaked down her cheek. She removed her hand from his wrist and formed a fist. “You were watching this entire time,” she growled out, opening her eyes, but not looking to Riley. “Why didn’t you stop him? Or block him from getting hurt? I know you’re fast enough. Or does being ‘neutral’ mean you don’t give a crap about what happens to innocent people in the process?” Her nose pulled up angrily and she turned her head so Riley was just in her field of vision.

[Dead Cruiser]

Riley didn't seem to have much reaction to Izzy's heartbroken state, nor the mortal wound that Trevor had been struck with. He looked down at Izzy with the same sleazy, cocksure grin that he always had. It was... obnoxious, in a word. He always seemed as though either nothing in the world mattered, or that he knew far more than he was letting on. At this time he was just that way, and as ever, it was impossible to determine which it was.

"Well, it's not included in your bill. You're paying me to negotiate with three vampire hunters. Anything else would be a separate fee. I can't go around getting mixed up with normal people."

[Riven Wight]

Fury drowned out all the anguish on Izzy’s face save for that lying within her eyes at Riley’s response.
She stood on unsteady legs and faced Riley, her hands clenched at her sides and gaze boring into him.
“Not in your bill?” she hissed through her teeth, turning her internal anger toward him. “You let him die,” the word came out in a choked rasp as she stepped slightly closer to him, the very sound of the word making her cringe and painfully tightening the knot in her stomach, “because I didn’t promise you enough money?” She bore her fangs at him. “You wretched, greedy cad!” Not caring what consequences it would have, she swung a fist toward his face, all the rage and hurt stewing inside her trying to find a release and choosing the most convenient outlet.

[Dead Cruiser]

Izzy's fist struck air as Riley leaned just far enough to avoid her blow. He moved so casually, so effortlessly, it was as though he had just happened to lean in that direction, and dodged Izzy's tearful attack by pure accident. His smug grin didn't waver, though a certain sharp look took hold in his eyes.

"Easy now, young miss. You're so energetic. Did something good happen?" He took a step back, hands stuck in his pockets with a lazy posture. "Our arrangement is open to further negotiation. I could be persuaded to take this young man's life in my hands. Just another fifteen- oh, better make it twenty-thousand." He cocked his head, looking past Izzy and down at Trevor's prone form. "I'd decide quick. The human brain dies after five minutes without oxygen. How long has it been now?"

[Riven Wight]

When Izzy’s blow missed, she willed herself to try again, ignoring the look he gave her and wanting nothing more than to wipe the grin from his face, but instead, she could only sink back to her knees, her shoulders shaking in silent sobs. She snarled when Riley voiced one of his unfortunately familiar mantras, which almost gave her the extra boost she needed try landing another hit. But before she could return to her feet, he continued.
She looked up at him, her body stiff. Her glare darkened as he placed a price on Trevor’s life, as if it were nothing more than a trinket to be bought from a street market. She closed her eyes with a snort in disbelief, and looked away from him to her fallen friend. “Whatever you want,” she said without hesitation when he finished, “if you can do it, just save him. Please,” she added nearly inaudibly.