Last Request
Raiden
Time
Day 3 ~ Evening (around 8pm)
Location
Lower District within the Slums, Ominar
After a few hours of investigating, all Raiden’s leads had brought him to Apollo’s Spear. If the name didn’t subtly suggest that it was an alternative club, then the line of eligible bachelors and not a single woman in sight might’ve. It was one of the few clubs outside the entertainment district and still considered independent from the the ‘Fox’s’ claws. They also suffered a heavy price for it. Being on the slum’s outer edge and without protection, rash break ins and vandalism happened on nearly a daily basis. Now the owner’s insurance skyrocketed and rumors flew about that he going to sell it before he moved on.
Mr. Nabriales. Victorious Secret’s shop owner, would’ve certainly thrived here, thought Raiden. He was unique enough to.
When his peripheral vision caught a young ‘chicken’ briefly pause to size him up, his attention shifted from his internal thoughts to his surroundings with a trained ease. His eyes tightened as his aura flared, giving off an intense aggression to his appearance. Seeing no opportunity for a one night stand, the young man moved onto better prospects and stepped into the lengthy line.
Relieved it worked, his hand reached up to adjust the toothpick in his mouth. He had given up smoking around Emmett’s birth, but old habits and twitches died hard. Having something in his mouth soothed his nerves right now.
The young man wasn’t the only one that seemed interested. After surveying the scene, Raiden found himself becoming the unwanted target of several other men glancing into his direction. This made him extremely aware of his fashion sense as he looked himself over once more. A simple black tee-shirt, jeans, belted leather jacket and boots were all he decided to wear. Personally, he considered it plain and inconspicuous, but with the string of sudden attention now, he began to have lingering doubts.
To distract himself, he casually pulled his phone from his pocket and stared at it. The screen saver illuminated his features in the darkness outside the club.
A small smirk broke his sober expression while he recalled the exact memory in his head. It was fresh as the day it was taken. Emmett leaned in between Olivia and Alice, both sitting at the kitchen table. The boy’s arm raised high enough to place two extended fingers on top of Olivia’s head and gave her ‘bunny ears’ for the picture perfect moment. Olivia, oblivious to her brother’s antics, had merely shifted over and posed for her father. Her smile was purely genuine since she was the people pleaser of the family. Of course, Alice, being the ever vigilant mother, had already spied the mischief. She moved to slap his hand down and started to scold Emmett when the phone clicked. Despite her appearance, Raiden could easily see the warmth in her eyes over her adopted son’s actions.
Raiden’s emotions of joy and pride quickly faded into the depression. These precious times were fleeting and brief, too short for his liking, as he recalled how rough a hunter’s life was. Long hours and the ever present risk he might never return one night stood in the shadows of their lives. It could be overlooked, but as long as he was a hunter, it would never be gone.
A familiar paranoia resurfaced once more. It had been growing stronger over the last few days, coupled with Alice showing signs of odd worry and stress, to the point it was difficult to leave the apartment at all. A month since it started and not a single incident had happened. It was both a good and bad sign in his opinion.
One individual came to mind that he could count on: Mairyell Kasio, the Sanguine. A fellow hunter that might at least understand his concern about Alice and humor his request to check on her. Almost instinctively, his thumb was clicking over the contacts page then scrolled down list of names to rest upon Mairyell’s number. He clicked it causing the message screen to pop up. Raiden frowned at the small space for his message. He might’ve not been an dinosaur when it came to technology, but he was a bit old fashion. He prefered to ask an individual in person because he took things like this seriously and intended to pay it back when he could.
Seeing no other way to lower his paranoia, Raiden’s fingers quickly flew over the touch screen. He would have to keep the message as short as possible since this was the only way.
Hey, could you check on Alice and the kids? I’m worried and please do me a favor, if you see Emmett try to make it sound like more of a casual visit. Else he’ll never let me forget it. I’ll pay back the favor later. He read the message at least three times. With each round, he debated over the casualness and seriousness in the word choice he went with. No matter how much he tried, it all sounded rather childish to him. The man exhaled. They really needed to sit down over a whiskey shot or something soon else this stress was going to kill him on day.
Not enjoying where his headspace was, Raiden sent it and placed his phone back into his jacket. Now he just had to wait for a few hours. With any luck, his target should hopefully show up.
~~| 10:30 pm|~~
Scouting out a club for hours wasn’t much fun as Raiden’s fingers toyed with the toothpick in his teeth, passing the time while he observed the crowd. He knew what he was looking for. After several chats with locals, a few of the reports stated to have reoccurring details on the suspect. He was a young man, about mid twenties, with long silver hair and golden eyes. Every night he was seen leaving with often an older man before the victim wound up dead in some dumpster blocks from the club.
IHO suspected it was a banshee as proven by the reports they received. The victims all had a restful but depressed expressions, like they had given up on living. The coroner’s notes confirmed that each man’s body had seemed to mysteriously stopped functioning. The pigment in their skin, hair, eyes and numerous other features seemed to be bleached pure white. It was unsettling over all.
Raiden’s vision shifted to the nightclub’s exit and managed to catch a glimpse of two patrons discreetly drifting out through the back. His eyes narrowed as his figure pushed off the wall, lightly doused by the recent rain. Careful not to draw attention to himself, the hunter turned about and walked casually down the alley after them.
He noticed the place seemed to become more and more isolated the farther they walked. Not a soul was in sight and the flickering lamp posts lined the area, indicating they were heading into one of the worst parts of the city. When they took a right into another alley, Raiden knew he had to act fast.
Immediately he reached for his hidden gun in his back pocket. His thumb flicked off the safety and increased his pace into bolting speed. When he entered the alley, he expected to spot the two individuals still walking, but it seemed they had vanished into thin air. Raiden blinked in confusion. His gun was still readied as his right foot lead his way deeper in. His attention shifted from side to side until something caught his attention. A body, slumped up against the right wall, covered at the waist by a blanket.
He recognized the man from the before by the red hair, thick built and casual dress. However, something wasn’t right. The buzzing of flies grew louder, increasing the sensation something was dead wrong. The man didn’t react to the insects crawling upon him as they continued to hover and fly off in a natural pattern. Cautiously, Raiden lowered himself just in front of what he suspected was nothing more than a corpse. His suspicions were proven right. White filmed the man’s pupils, his expression relaxed and lifeless.
A sick, guilty sensation knotted Raiden’s stomach. This man had been dead for at least several hours. He seemed planted here for someone to find, but why? The question rattled around his head before the sound of clapping broke the silence.
Raiden quickly jerked about. Looking to the way he just came was the very man he was originally tracking. Unfazed, the ‘banshee’ smirked upon being noted and his clapping ceased. He folded his arms behind him once more, a glint of malice mingled with sadistic intentions in the expression. Raiden’s heart sank a bit in noticing this.
“Congratulations,” the man began, seeming to praise the hunter, “You’ve gotten my attention and now, I think it’s time to say good bye.”
Raiden raised his gun directly at the man. Meanwhile his other hand moved to his pouch, his words aimed to distract rather than threaten, “I think you’ll have to try a lot harder than some pretty words to prevent me from either killing or taking you in.”
“It’s not me you should be
concerned with…” The man’s eyes looked past Raiden to something lurking on the opposite side.
The hairs on Raiden’s neck rose up and his head glanced over his shoulder to locate the source. His eyes widened upon finally sensing something there. Something...huge. Underneath his breath, the hunter had enough time to utter a single curse, “Fuck…”
It appeared to be at about nine foot high in comparison to him. His mind failed to answer how he missed such a large creature sneaking upon him and without a single sound. Had it just materialized? Unable to dwell on the question, the piranha like face pulled its already too short lips and made a rattling hissed. The red, beady eyes danced with hunger creating a fresh shiver down the hunter’s spine. As it stepped into the dimly lit alley, Raiden noticed the numerous stitching, fresh scars, along its joints and various appendages despite the blue coloring and scales that tried to hide it. Long fin like hair trailed from its squat head shaped like a tank dome on its board shoulders.
It hissed then charged forward on all fours. Its thick, ape like arms took most the weight. They slapped the pavement with its palms, each finger held a dagger long claws sharp enough to slice, with each lunge forward. Raiden’s figure wheeled around and took quick aim. He pulled the trigger, firing one, two and three precise shots into the head. Each bullet flattened upon impact before it fell upon the ground with a clink.
Unfazed by the beast bolting toward his direction, Raiden’s original target merely exhaled and turned on heel to walk out. His hand waved across his torso and his disguise promptly dropped as pain rippled along his figure. The sound of cracking bones were heard echoing in his wake while he seemed unfazed by it on the outside.
Spotting the man’s departure, Raiden’s other hand-now charged up with magic- jerked at the man’s back. There was a sudden release of magical energy in the form of a lightning and it rapidly shot after the target. It seemed about to hit, but suddenly clashed into some invisible shielding. The magical barrier shimmered, seemed to absorb the attack, and then faded once more.
Not turning to face his attacker, the man spoke back to Raiden, “I came prepared. I wish you luck surviving my little project.”
More shots were fired in reply before Raiden screamed and everything fell into silence once more. Only the sound of crunching bones and a dragging body was heard.
Uninvited Visitor
✠ Emmett Matthews ✠ & ❤ Olivia Matthews ❤
Time
Day 3 ~ Evening (around 10:30pm)
Location
Lower District within the Slums, Ominar
Emmett had become covered in sweat. His body twisted and turned, the soaked sheets intertwined tightly about his legs. He struggled to purge himself from the nightmare that latched onto his young dreams. His mother, corpse like and decaying, reached bony fingers out to him. She asked him to stay with her forever causing the young boy to recoil in disgust. Fear pounded through his veins and seemed to echo within his head, the beat relentlessly chasing him through the darkness like a hell hound on the hunt. His foot slipped then his body fell to the side. He tumbled into an abyss as it swallowed him up.
Abruptly the boy jerked upright in his bed, wet with perspiration. It took a moment for him to realize where he was: home. Gradually his heart, still painfully beating, began to slow and relax. The anxiety refused to leave him however. His head turned to spy Olivia still sound asleep. His expression softened before he began to work on untangling the bed sheets and then tossed it onto the floor.
Carefully placing his feet, one then the other, upon the wooden floor, he took a second to steady himself. He navigated the room’s series of squeaky boards so not to wake Olivia. He noticed she had tussled the covers to one side in her slumber and she now started to shiver from the room’s chill. His eyes narrowed in confusion. Usually Alice, who had came into check on them, readjusted Olivia’s cover and went to bed herself. Swallowing the sensation something was off budding in his chest, Emmett reached for the thick covers. He flipped them over his younger sister and after tucking the edges underneath her, he carefully tiptoed toward the cracked door.
A mistake he would come to regret.
A dark, wispy figure was floating toward the bedroom. His eyes widened in terror and mouth dropped, his mind quickly becoming numb by the terror filling him. It seemed to prick him like thousands of little needles. They fixed him into place. Unable to think, the shade drifted into the room through the door. The feminine head turned and spotted him near her.
“Y-You…” It was only word Emmett could managed to get through his lips.
This brought amusement to the vaporous form, her shadow seemed to crack upon the lower part of her head and form into a crooked smile. It seemed pleased he remembered it causing more ice to dart across his veins. His shadow convulsed underneath him then ripped upward. It seized his throat and lifted him from his feet in one single motion. Impulsively, his hands wrapped about the shadowy tendril and pulled up to ease his choking. It didn’t help much.
His eyes were fixed, best they could, to the creature that murdered his mother. Its shape finally reached his personal space and seemed to look him over. He got an unsettled sensation from its gesture. It was confirmed the moment it spoke, things were about to get much worse. Briefly, her attention swayed over to Olivia’s form causing Emmett’s hands to try to pry away the shadows despite the terror that rippled within him. His sudden but pitiful movement caught its attention once more. Its head snapped back and seemed to get pleasure at his failing attempts.
Another tendril rose out of the floor and seemed to extend its tip to the Shade. It placed something into the tendril’s grasp, something lighter in color, and then gestured at him. The dark snake like shadow shot forward. It pressed its cold, strange appendage against his mouth, forcing something about the size of a marble down it. His struggles increased.
“Do it, or you’ll watch your sister die…” Came the raspy voice against his mind, like sandpaper, causing Emmett to flinch in obedience.
It then replied with a slight mockery in its tone, “Very good boy.”
A sound caught its attention and became tense, its attention aware of its surroundings and waiting for something to happen.
