Realistic or Modern &nbsp; A Night Bleeds (Closed)

Thropian | Location: Houston, Texas

Devlin gave them both a grin when they were settled at the table. "Blut, that's right. Yes, I'm Devlin." He nearly choked on the drink he took when Edwin nudged Levi and called him son. More so when Levi snickered back with his reply.

"Sure thing, Pops." Levi grinned and gestured to the ones he knew anyway. "Bug. Shia. Devlin. And... the others..?"

Devlin helped out. "Yes, Maylee and Evelyn came with Shia." He made a polite gesture to the person when introducing them. "And Allison came with Bug." Tilly was making sure everyone was topped off with a fresh roll from the oven.

"We still have Chase and another who should arrive sometime tonight. And that would be the last of our merry band. Oh, Edwin, we'll be discussing things a little more in depth after we eat. Please, enjoy the food. Tilly always makes plenty, so don't worry about not leaving leftovers." He chuckled as Tilly tittered.

"Och, plenty for all. Plenty for all." She fussed over Levi, messing up his carefully combed hair and the twinkle in her eye said she knew it. "Dinna know how ye ken be so skinny still. Eat more. More!" And she left with another ruffle of his hair.

"Tilly!" Levi chuffed, but enjoyed the attention, even as he had to stop eating to finger comb his hair back in place again. "Nice to meet you." This was said toward those he hadn't known before.

coded by natasha.

Vinegar Bees · Jun 29, 2020

For a split second, she saw something move—the dark-haired woman had tentatively reached out a hand, as if preparing to pat her on the head.

(Again, that familiar yet unknown voice: You be careful, got it?)

It was a light gesture, not the winding-back she would expect from a blow, but Winnie found her insides tightening all the same—she knew well that touches sprinkled in sugar could be the worst of all.

Before the woman could make contact, though, a sharp screech pierced through the interior of the limo as the driver shocked the male passenger for no particular reason—at least, not one she could immediately identify. She tensed up as the woman furiously called out the driver for his callousness, only to be thrown back as a swift shock rewarded her, too.

Winnie shrank down further and further in her seat at the audible suffering of the two passengers, her hands clambering up to her ears in a reflexive attempt to shield herself from the cacophony of distress. It was a cruel, selfish gesture, she thought to herself; the young man and woman were being subject to pointless torture, and her first instinct was to block it out.

Tentatively, she lowered her hands from her ears, gazing at the woman as she attempted to reorient herself after the shock, and then Winnie shifted forward in her seat, hesitantly flexing her hand—

No. Absolutely not. Even with her gloves securely stretched over her skin, even with the suppression cuffs tight around her wrists, Winnie knew she couldn't risk laying her hands on someone. Truly, there could never be enough precautions in place to quell her intense physical reticence—touch itself was unnatural, corrosive even in its gentlest form. She retracted her hand to her lap like a feral cat retracting its claws.

"I'm sorry," she murmured quietly to the woman, her head low. "They usually don't do it like this—the, um, the shocking. I think this driver is just..." A mouse of a whisper, as quiet as she could possibly manage without going unheard by the woman: "...mean."

She gave a tentative, cautious glance at the male passenger who had addressed her. He had been tossed around by even more shocks than the woman, and it seemed the fight in him had begun to wear away beneath a painful fatigue. Her chest ached for him a little, even if his foul mouth had set her on edge.

"I'm nobody," she said in response to his question, "but my name is Winnie. I..." She frowned, furrowed her brow, squeezed her hands together. "Please don't worry about me. I've done... very bad things. I'm here because I deserve it." Timidly, she glanced up at the woman, taking care not to directly meet her intense eyes again. "You... you should spend all the energy you can taking care of yourself. Where we're going... no one else is going to do it."

( Tags:

Rhyme |

Out Of Words )

winnie sawyer.

psychic vampire

Out Of Words · Jun 29, 2020

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words

Foster Croft

Tags: Indy

Rhyme Winnie

Vinegar Bees | Location: Miami, FL

Foster was aching all over, but he moved to try and help Indy get back to her seat as the other introduced herself and said some unsettling things. Things that made the future seem even more bleak than he thought it was.

"Yeah, well.. Winnie, I'm Foster. This is Indiana Jones." He managed a small smirk through it all. "And if you're on the other side from this..." His voice did lower, really not wanting the driver to hear. "..poster child for birth control driver... then I'm on your side."

After helping Indy to the seat, Foster settled back and started to subtly examine one of the wrist cuffs. It didn't have any type of a visible lock, otherwise he'd likely have tried to pick it. Still, maybe he could slide it off, if he could dislocate the bones in one hand. Ick.

He'd still have the stupid shock collar though, and no way he could dislocate the bones in his head. But.. Winnie seemed to know about these things. He leaned forward, voice still low. "Hey, Winnie. What do you know about these cuffs and collars? Like do all three have to be on for the block on our abilities?"

coded by natasha.

Out Of Words · Jun 29, 2020

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words

Morgan Feigh

Tags: Gavid

Absurdisan Roje

Britt-21 Yeo-Jin

Maeteris ⬇
Location: Block C - Miami, FL

Morgan was too deep in his wallowing of self-pity to have heard Roje's offer of food. He toyed with his tail, forgetting about his idea of using anger dust. Toying with his tail was a self comforting habit, and helped him to think, or cope.

When he was handed a drink and food though, he took it. Almost on automatic pilot, In grabbing for the bottle, his hand did come in contact with Roje's hand without thinking about it. The white and deep blue specks mingled together as it glistened on her skin, but briefly before it was absorbed.

Morgan's eyes widened a moment, and he debated telling her, as her attention had shifted to Gavid. But.. it might prove enough of a distraction he could slip out the door. Not sure where he'd go from there, chances are he wouldn't get far at all.

But dammit, it was a chance. So he just remained quiet, opening up his bottled water and taking a long sip of the cold liquid. Mentally, he started a count down, usually took about a minute, maybe a couple of minutes to take effect. It depended on what Roje was, how susceptible they might be.

coded by natasha.

AsherMasher · Jun 29, 2020

Clementine Holt

Clementine felt a strange tug in her chest as she spotted the car in front of her home. It didn’t look familiar, but she felt a prickling of nerves as she passed it. Glancing towards the passenger door, she hurried up the steps and unlocked the door. Walking into her grandparents’ home had always made Clementine feel immediately at ease. This was her safe space.

As she walked into the living room her shoulders sagged in a second of relaxation, but tensed once again as she noticed someone else in the room. Is that a boy? Why does he look around my age? Her grandfather’s introduction only held more questions. Friend? I don’t even know who this is! I’ve never seen or heard of him at school. Why is he in my house?! Feeling herself get caught up, Clementine gave a confused nod towards Ash’s direction.

“H-Hi,” she murmured as she toyed with the ends of her sleeves. Clementine had to be careful, especially around her grandparents. She knew how worried they could get and she didn’t want to set off any false alarms if Clementine was being over dramatic. Maybe they met and with all the stress of midterms she had forgotten. All she knew now was that this situation needed answers, away from parental supervision.

“Y-you’re in my class, right?” Clementine said, feigning confidence. “Did you need some notes or something? I have some in my book bag. You can compare them to yours if you need.”
She quickly grabs for the notes in her book bag and begins shuffling them around in her arms.
“Sorry Grandpa, we’ll get out of your hair.”
Clementine locks eyes with Ash and gives him a suspicious look. She motions to them to leave the living room and begins walking towards the backyard, hoping he took the hint to follow. She tightens her grip on her book bag as a strange sense of nervousness hits her.

Out Of Words · Jun 30, 2020

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words

BUG

Tags:

Thropian | Location: Wright Wranch

Bug was chittering happily away as he looked over all the food on his plate. He started to taste a little of each item, taking turns going around his plate. This meant he would rotate his plate clockwise, take a bite, rotate, bite, rinse repeat.

He looked up when he heard his name mentioned and realized he had completely missed Levi and his guest arriving. "LEVIATHAN!" Luckily, Levi was next to him so he didn't have to get up to give the boy a hug and a hair ruffle.

"BUG!" Levi chuffed and had to go through finger coming his hair, again. Ptth ptth. Bug grinned, as if he knew Levi would have to fix his hair. Most of them did, it was a little affectionate thing, cause it amused them and Levi never actually complained about it.

He then leaned back so he could look at Edwin, "Hi! I'm Bug! Cypher-extraordinaire. Eat up!" To which he then broke into a spontaneous rendition of 'food, glorious food' from Oliver! the musical. At least he didn't sing at the top of his lungs.

It was a quiet little sing song, accompanied by the subtle chirping of insects underneath, providing the musical accompaniment. The insect sound didn't stop when he took a bite, and maybe his hair fluttered a little bit now and then like insect wings.

coded by natasha.

Out Of Words · Jun 30, 2020

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words

Shia D'Shire

Tags:

Thropian | Location: Wright Wranch

Shia couldn't help casting glances toward Bug, and his gaze would drift upward, as if following the tendrils he saw. A myriad of expressions kept crossing his face, attention divided between Bug and Devlin. Occasionally, he'd have to refocus Devlin, make sure he was eating and drinking, and a little nudge when Devlin appeared to be looking at something only he could see.

When his name was introduced, Shia gave a bow of his head, "Mister Blut, a pleasure. Leviathan, good to see you made it back." He finally started to eat his own food, but one could tell he was lost in inner thoughts.

He hadn't had a lot of time to do research, but nothing had come up before on the tethers really. It was more needing something to do to calm himself down from seeing Bug and how things had changed from the last time he saw Bug.

Shia had his own theories, and they were, perhaps, even more troubling. He did try though, try to pay attention when he heard someone talking.

coded by natasha.

KodakWolf · Jun 30, 2020

Maddox Ward (Leif Hjalkarssen)
Location: Steakhouse on the way to TX
Tags: Chase Moon (

Out Of Words )

Leif wouldn't deny having felt a sliver of jealousy at the idea of 'wolfing it out.' He'd always thought shifters were a lucky bunch, being able to simply shift forms and roam as an animal for a change. That'd be his definition of a new, nice, experience. Small smirk at the thought.

"Guess I'll pass on Tilly's cooking." a sly smile was shot back to the shifter. "I'm making another investment."
He'd be keeping Chase in mind alright, no doubt about that.

"We should make good time if we leave soon." he said, also shooting a glance at the clock on the wall. The quarter moon wouldn't make for an easy drive, but it definitely could've been worse, the effects of the special blood still bound to last long enough for them to make it to Houston.

Vinegar Bees · Jul 1, 2020

Indiana Jones...? Winnie had never been much of a moviegoer—she had never had much opportunity, and even then she far preferred the astral journeys of books to the sensory assault of films—but even she was cultured enough to know that that was the name of a popular action hero. She tried to imagine feeling so devoted to a character that it drove a parent to name a living, breathing child after them. Didn't they realize they were setting the poor child up for a lifetime of teasing...?

The young man introduced himself, then, as Foster—just Foster, nothing else, and again, a strange apparition of sound filled her mind—

Trust me, you're better off calling me by my first name.

She winced, and if Foster and Indiana's eyes weren't on her, Winnie would have feebly clapped her hands over her ears. What was this voice invading her thoughts? It rattled in her skull, tore painfully on her neurons, but it wasn't fear that made her shrink away.

Another flinch jolted through her system as Foster addressed her again, asking her quite bluntly and conspiratorially about the effects of the cuffs they were wearing. In a split second, she was awash with dread: if Foster still thought there was a chance of fighting against the coven's methods and winning, he clearly had no idea the sheer depths of what they were capable of—

"N-No, please," she said in a trembling voice, squishing herself as far back as she could into her seat, as if being near Foster might be enough to catch his inevitable punishment. "I... I don't know how they work, really..." Suffice it to say that she had never tested the boundaries of the coven's contraptions—in her mind, it was a foregone conclusion that any resistance would be futile. "But it—it doesn't really matter how they work. This... this is only scratching the surface. The collars... if you could see what else they might do to you, those collars would seem kind..."

Winnie was achingly, resentfully aware of the cowardice in her own voice. She could justify it to herself all she wanted, build a self-righteous rampart from the knowledge that Foster simply didn't know the coven the way she did, but at the same time, she envied Foster for that spark, that courage he still clung to despite the uncertain circumstances.

Privately, she hoped for that courage to survive where hers had buckled. She wanted to believe that someone could endure the trials of a callous world and emerge unbroken—even if that someone was someone else.

( Tags:

Rhyme |

Out Of Words )

winnie sawyer.

psychic vampire

Rhyme · Jul 1, 2020

Indy
Tags:

Out Of Words

Strong hands gripped Indy's elbow as her muscles gradually stopped spasming. One hand pressed to the floor, she heaved herself up, with Foster's help, onto the cool limo seat. She heard him tell Winnie their names before he mentioned the cuffs on their hands and necks.

Foster was examining his own with a thoughtful expression. Indy took a look of her own at the bright metallic rings. There was no discernable clasp, though... Her fingers reached up to tentatively trace the circle around her neck, the skin underneath raw and surely blossoming in red splotches. Foster's next question to Winnie made his line of thinking obvious; to say she wasn't wondering the same would be a lie.

Winnie had a look of soft confusion mixed with her foundational expression of tense fear and pain. Someone has this kid wound up tighter than a two dollar watch. That's, what, three flinches in five minutes? Four? Jesus.

It was obvious Winnie knew more than she was letting on, though what she had said so far wasn't exactly reassuring. "Hey, hey, it's-uh," Indy paused. She couldn't quite say 'it's okay,' could she? But this living renaissance portrait looked like she was about to have a medieval style breakdown.

"Winnie." Indy leaned forward, elbows resting on her knees and hands clasped together as she did her best to catch Winnie's gaze. "Don't listen to this halfwit," she nudged Foster's leg with her foot. "My name is Indy, not Indiana. These ass--uh," shit, when was the last time Indy had actually had to talk to a kid?

Take two. "In order to get away from these creeps, we need to know as much as possible--yeah? So, Winnie, I need to you trust me, please. I want to protect you, to help you, okay? But you have to help me too, you have to tell me if you do know anything, okay?" Her lips barely parted as she spoke in a low whisper, eyes shifting between Winnie's guarded face and the drivers up front.

Britt-21 · Jul 1, 2020

Interactions:

Out Of Words

Absurdisan

Maeteris | Location: Block C

After not getting a response from mr Freeze himself, she turned back around, looking at the kitten, barely noticing a few sparkles on her hand due to them disappearing quickly. Standing there, she looked at her hand and examined it. I swear if this son of a bitch touched me with his pixie dust... her hazel eyes looked at the cat, noticing more dust on his tail, as well as his ears "You mother fucker..." she mumbled to herself "Guys, if I recall, these cuffs were supposed to stop his fairy dust. Not fucking produce without issue!" if he indeed touched her with this damn dust, she wasnt sure what was going to happen. The colors on him right now, had her in confusion and she had no idea what was about to hit her. On top of it all, she had never been exposed to this substance before, so no doubt she was highly susceptible to it. Banks and Parks were back in the room and Coda had gone now instead.

The feelings that she put to bed ages ago, had began to rise back up and she clenched her jaw before moving to the wall and placing both hands against it, leaning forward a little bit and closing her eyes. W-Why am I feeling so fucking...Sad...Why is this all coming back now? she thought to herself, feeling the pain and the sadness come to the surface at an alarming rate. Was the dust he touched her with...Sadness? If so, then she could understand why he felt that way. He was trapped here without his brother and probably scared out of his mind. Stop fucking caring dammit! opening her eyes, she was looking at the ground as tears welled up in her eyes while her hands clenched into fists against the wall as her body trembled with sadness. The tears that fell down her face and off her chin. Feelings from the past beginning to surface, the panic, the sadness, the depression all rolled up into one when she frantically looked for the one person she loved most and turned up with nothing.

Sometimes she felt she didn't deserve anything nice. Losing the one thing that mattered to her most was gone forever and finding someone to take that spot was nearly impossible. Or at least that's what she thought. "Y-You damn kitten... Fuck you and your dust..." she said, trying so hard not to sob as she slowly sunk down onto her knees. It wont stop. It just keeps going. Fucking cat. I'm going to force lights out on him when I get the chance. he thinks he's free from this, but he was wrong. Roje was his bodyguard. She will roughen him up just to get him to stop being a literal pussy. If he didnt want to get killed or beaten up by Roje, he better learn fast.

Out Of Words · Jul 1, 2020

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words

Out Of Words

Block C | Current Timeline: May 14th

Tags: Coda

Vinegar Bees
Location: Miami, FL

Key would be sitting down behind a desk when Coda entered. "Close the door and have a seat." He'd wait for Coda to get settled before taking out a piece of paper and pushing it across the desk.

"Your charge, once we reach Headquarters, will require a higher level of clearance than you've had previously. This is the usual contact, abide by the Coven's edicts, rules, and so on. Only this one has more weight." A needle was passed over for the usual sign with your bloodied thumbprint routine.

Finally—his turn. Coda felt something like electricity in his veins as he followed Banks's directions and entered the briefing room. As much as he bristled at Key's mere presence, he was more than ready to talk if it meant finally doing something more than waiting around.

Coda frowned at the piece of paper Key passed him, giving it only a cursory glance. He had "signed" enough of these contracts to know the words themselves didn't say much—in the end, it all meant more or less the same thing. Do what we tell you or suffer.

If this one had more weight, as Key said, he could only imagine what sort of mind-rending tortures awaited him if he broke the covenant. The thought of it filled him more with a sense of curiosity—how much could he will himself to take?—than fear, which he supposed ought to be the other way around.

Whatever. Coda wasn't going to go breaking the contract just because—he wasn't that stupid. Forgoing the needle Key had provided, Coda bit into his thumb and pressed its print into the paper. A hissing sound issued from its surface, like salt being poured into boiling water, as his demonic blood tried to eat away at the promise before it could be cemented, but the coven used some kind of magic that kept his blood from desecrating the contract.

"I don't suppose I'm going to get any more information than that until we're at Headquarters," he said resentfully, pushing the now-bloodied contract back across the desk to Key.

Key carefully tucked it away, his face remained focused on Coda. "I can tell you she is very important to the Coven. In the top five, in the very least. However, you will have a temporary charge in transit."

Key tilted his head from one side to the other, cracking his neck, a small sign of the stress he was feeling. "Our small group has increased unexpectedly." There was a small sigh. "You, Roje, Park and Banks will each have a charge for the flight overseas. Roje has already been assigned hers, once the other three arrive, we'll ..." He waved a hand, like he really couldn't be bothered to spend energy making choices like who went with whom. "Draw straws or something."

Coda narrowed his eyes, his teeth gritting behind his lips. There was that superiority again—like his own affairs were beneath Key's notice or concern. Still, the thought of finally being dealt an important task was a bright glimmer amid all of the frustration. If he could just put up with the others long enough to get to headquarters...

"I will," Coda said fervidly, itching to prove himself a force to be reckoned with. Another thought occurred to him, though, and though he hated to stretch out an encounter with Key any longer than it needed to be—

"There's something else I need to know," Coda said firmly. "It's been almost a month." He trusted there was no need to elaborate further. Key was well aware that Coda needed to harvest a soul at least once a month to feed his demonic side—if he didn't, things got ugly fast.

(Not that feeding wasn't ugly, too. When it came to being part-demon, ugly was just part of the gig.)

The coven's policy for feeding Coda wasn't always the same. Sometimes they provided him with a meal outright, like keepers throwing raw meat to the lions at a zoo—at other times, if they needed someone eliminated, they had let him hunt for his prey out in the field.

"Any word on what the protocol is going to be this time?"

Key nodded, "Yes, someone is being prepared for when we arrive. It will be best if you feed before meeting your charge." Key grinned, an actual grin. "I hear they might allow the use of one of the underground tunnel labyrinths for your dinner entertainment."

Coda couldn't deny that his heart started to race at this development, the creature inside him slavering in anticipation. There had always been a lust within him, as far back as he could remember, farther back than he wanted to remember—

(His sister never asked why he never wanted to play hide and seek anymore, but he could tell she wondered. She hadn't heard the blood singing in his ears as he crept up on her, behind the bush she thought herself well-hidden within, his gaze almost deliriously fixed on her thin neck.

How easy it would be to just grab it and twist—)

—something that reveled in the primal pulse of the hunt. The opportunity to chase some wicked soul to their unfortunate fate was dizzyingly desirable.

(Even so, he couldn't shut off the part of him that felt sick.)

"I understand," Coda said, low and fierce and hungry. "No further questions."

Key gave a nod and stood up. "Let's get back then." He moved to open the door, but paused, giving Coda a small lifting of an eyebrow. "You want to know a tip? Best way to get someone else's goat, so to speak?" Key put his neutral face back on. "Don't let them know you're affected, by what they say, what they do. Pick your battles." Key then opened the door, and they headed back to the main room.

coded by natasha.

Out Of Words · Jul 1, 2020

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words

Out Of Words

Scanners - Block C Edition | Current Timeline: May 14th

Tags: Indy

Rhyme Winnie

Vinegar Bees
Location: Miami, FL

Key was about to go back to the room with Coda when his phone buzzed. For a moment, he just stood stock still, not even breathing. With a chilling sigh, he took his phone out to look. "Go on in. I have to attend to something else. I'll return shortly." The guard was opening up the door for Coda as Key was already heading down another hallway.

At the front desk, the limo driver with the shock device guided Foster and Indy inside, while the other driver directed Winnie a little way behind them. Each time Foster started to even talk, bzzt. If Indy did the same, bzzt. All through the verification, which was checking the IDs of the guards and being passed their luggage.

Key entered the front room from another door, where the drivers did not immediately see him. So he was there to observe the bzzt bzzt. When the check in was finished, that was when he made his presence known by a subtle clearing of his throat, and one word. "Duck."

Everyone who had worked there longer than three months, understood and suddenly ducked or moved out of the way. The driver with the shock device turned, confused, about to ask what was going on, but he didn't get very far.

Key did some hand motions, and there was a glowing behind the darkened shades. The temperature in the room dipped to the point where everyone could feel goosebumps and the beginning of shivers. His voice had the tone of ice, along with a haunting echo, like his words were repeated two seconds behind when he actually said them. "Praemium enim tibi stupor urget."

The limo driver might have gotten out part of a scream, it was difficult to tell as his body, very simply, exploded. Well, more like his head. The body from about the chest down was fine, just headless. The knees buckled before it toppled to the floor.

Key watched the shock device slide across the tile toward him, stopped when it came in contact with a shoe. Of course, those in the immediate vicinity that did not know to duck, or heed his words, were now covered in blood, skin, bone, brain matter, and so on.

"Please, you three, follow me. Oh, be mindful of your steps. The tile floor can be slippery." And he opened up the door he came through, gesturing for the three to follow after he picked up the shock device.

Key led them to the room he had brought Morgan, Park and Banks earlier. It was already cleaned of any residual glitter. He opened up the panel to show where they could shower off the bits. "I'll bring some new clothing for you." He glanced them over, as if gauging their sizes, then added, "Do not try to leave this room, hmm?"

Foster, Indy, and Winnie were left there, guard posted outside closed the door behind Key's departure.

coded by natasha.

Out Of Words · Jul 1, 2020

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words

Chase Moon

Tags: Maddox

KodakWolf | Houston, TX

Chase wuffled with a bit of what could only be described as a wolfish grin. "I'll take your portion." He loved Tilly's cooking, and this steakhouse was a nice stop to fill his belly. They still had a couple hours to go at least.

He finished the rest of his food, wolfed it down you might say. "Okay, let's get." Chase paid for the food and a generous tip on the way out. "Only a little bit further, but we'll hit it after the sun's gone down for certain."

Wuffle. Chase was wondering if the pain would come back then, or would stay away. He felt good right now, really good. Only an ache like he slept too long, and too hard in one position. Nothing that didn't fade a bit with some movement and stretching.

He settled into the passenger side, and wound up napping again, lulled to sleep by the motion of the car. Chase dozed until Leif needed some more directions. By then the moon had come up, and his legs ached, but he wasn't wincing in pain when he moved.

Wuffle. "Left here, right hand lane. It narrows down to one and just follow it. The ranch can't be missed, about a half hour more." He rubbed at his knees, more out of habit by now. Sad, easing pain had become a habit.

At least it was about a half hour later, the ranch would be seen, lights visible from the driveway as they made the turn and parked with the other vehicles. "Wow.. We made it." Chase grinned at Leif before opening the truck to get out.

This time, he lingered a little, making sure he had his land legs before standing and walking. Oh, but he could smell food. Wuffle, wuffle, rawr, wuffle. He could eat nearly all day and still be hungry, it's just how he was.

Chase waited for Leif, before he turned and headed up the front steps to ring the doorbell.

coded by natasha.

Vinegar Bees · Jul 2, 2020

He would never admit it aloud, but Key's sudden decision to give him advice—was that what it was?—didn't sit well. No matter what, Coda couldn't accept that Key would do anything for his benefit. There had to be an ulterior motive. Another test, perhaps...?

His ruminations were cut short when he re-entered the room, only to find a bewildering scene. Roje, the smart-mouthed, sassy vampire who had earlier been delighting in teasing him, had now sunk to her knees, tears streaming down her face. It was such an unexpected image that, for a moment, Coda's brain staggered in an attempt to make sense of it.

The next thought that filled him was a swift, hot anger, one whose source he couldn't exactly identify. Wheeling to face the others—Cold, the kid, Park and Banks—Coda growled:

"The hell? I thought we said we weren't jumping at each other's throats. I step out for one minute and we're making each other cry?"

He was dimly, uncomfortably aware that if it were anyone else in the room, he wouldn't have particularly cared. The thought of Cold crying was so bizarre it didn't seem to intersect with any reality; the kid had already proven himself a whiny brat; Banks and Park were co-workers and nothing more, and he knew it should be the same for Roje—but—

His gut lurched. When he had fucked up, slipped into a flashback during their fight, she hadn't taken advantage of the opportunity. Anyone else in this room, he was sure, would have. Not that he owed her for that. He didn't owe her anything.

Faintly, he heard Roje mutter something about dust, and his mind clicked in recognition—the goggles, the sudden, uncharacteristic emotions...

Puffing up his shoulders like an irate bird, Coda approached the kid and hissed: "So it was you—"

But before he could lash out, Key's unwelcome voice flashed through his mind: Pick your battles.

He hesitated, standing in front of the kid with his mouth half-open in a loaded rebuke, and then he snapped his jaw shut, grinding his teeth in irritation.

Yeah, yeah. Fuck you, too, Key.

Turning sharply, Coda moved to the kitchen and shoved a glass under the sink faucet, filling it with chilly, frothy water. Glass in hand, he approached Roje and tapped her shoulder with the glass, taking care not to touch her with his hand. Because of the dust, sure, but also because that was how he operated in general. Touch was too revealing.

"Hey," he said, low and sharp but not outright hostile, "drink this. Or pour it over your head. It takes a while to fuck off, but cold water can shock it out for a minute."

With any luck, she would be too distracted by the effects to ask why he seemed to be so familiar with the whole dust ordeal. There really wasn't a way to sober up from it faster, just like with alcohol—sometimes he got a bad batch of pills and had to deal with a gloomy fit for a few minutes—but that was negligible compared to the withdrawals. He wasn't anywhere close to sharing his dust problems with the class, so to speak, but when he came down from the unmercifully short high, the fleeting sense of peace rapidly devoured by the barbed, desolate thoughts that usually populated his psyche—he imagined Roje had probably been smacked with something similar, even if in reverse.

( Tags:

Out Of Words |

Britt-21 |

Absurdisan |

Maeteris )

coda.

half-demon

Vinegar Bees · Jul 2, 2020

Winnie trembled beneath the pressure that had so swiftly begun to press down on her shoulders. The woman—Indy, not Indiana Jones—was making what seemed to be an earnest promise of protection, but—how could she possibly trust it? Even if the woman were being sincere (and Winnie had a severely handicapped sense of recognizing true sincerity), there was no way she could deliver on such a promise—the capabilities of the coven were far beyond her or Foster or Winnie herself, even combined.

And yet—Indy was the first person who had offered to protect her in—in her whole life, maybe. The thought of disappointing her already, letting her see Winnie's sour true colors so soon...

Selfishly, she wanted to hold onto the hope of someone who wanted to help her.

Before she could make a decision amid her inner turmoil, however, the limo glided to a stop, and she and the other two passengers were guided into the portentous mouth of Block C. A few steps behind Indy and Foster, Winnie watched with tightly-coiled muscles as their driver gleefully drove shock after unnecessary shock through their system. Why did he have to do that—? Their backs faced her, and so Winnie didn't risk feeling their pain through eye contact, but she could see it all the same in the harsh, jerking movements of their bodies. They weren't doing anything to deserve such harsh treatment—

All at once, then, a voice like the curl of cold air around a skeletal branch in winter breathed: "Duck."

A shudder rippled through her, and though she had never properly interacted with the man before, she was almost certain she knew the owner of the voice. Word traveled fast among employees, and few were discussed in hushed tones more than Key, the magician of high rank and ill repute.

Furiously, Winnie battled the reflexive, morbid curiosity that beckoned her to turn around and sneak a glimpse of the lofty magician. Half-gratefully, she seized the distraction when the limo driver ahead of her turned around himself at the sound of the voice—

Duck...?

—only to watch as his head was obliterated in a sledgehammer smash of blood and brain and, oh God, oh God, she had made eye contact with him just before he was destroyed—

A shrill, truncated scream tore through the room, and in her manic daze, Winnie was unsure of its source—the driver? Indy or Foster? Herself? Oh, God, she hoped it wasn't her; she had long ago tried to train herself to be quiet, to never scream; screaming only drew attention—

For a moment, there was an unspeakable, mind-rending pain as Winnie felt the man's skull fold in on his brain, his eyeballs smashed to jelly in the shrapnel storm of bone-bits, and then it was abruptly cut off as all sense of awareness fled with the life in his body, leaving Winnie stranded in a ringing canyon of terror.

She mirrored the corpse as its knees buckled, dropping weakly to her knees, her jaw wrenched open in numb horror at the glistening pink viscera that now spattered her hands and hair and the flimsy cotton of her dress.

So that was death. How stupid she had been, mere hours earlier, ruminating on the plane about the somnolent, peaceful nature of death—

Winnie was only dimly aware as she was hauled to her feet (by the other driver? Another employee? The figure at her side had fractured into disembodied hands, her surroundings twisting and blurring in a dull unreality) and guided into another room, where Key's distant voice offered them a chance to clean themselves up. As soon as she felt herself released, Winnie again toppled to her knees, and the second she heard the door click shut behind her, she raced to the shower with all the feverish frenzy of a rabbit dashing to its warren, a hawk hot on its heels.

The water came warm and fast, and Winnie's skin burned more through the clothes still on her body as she raked her nails up and down her limbs, neck, cheeks, furiously trying to extricate the gore from her body, if not the skin itself that she knew would never again feel clean.

"You see now," she hiccuped through a dry, thin wheezing, her wild gaze probing through her blurry fog of vision for Indy and Foster. "You see—you see—if we try to fight—we're already dead."

( Tags:

Rhyme |

Out Of Words )

winnie sawyer.

psychic vampire

Out Of Words · Jul 2, 2020

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words

Malika

Tags: Luna

Thropian | Location: Miami, FL

Malika was found still flirting with some of the rental car staff. One hand toying with the tie the guy wore, while winking at his buddy next to him, a piece of paper in the other. When she spotted Luna approaching the area, she gave them each a little kiss on the cheek and bade them a goodbye.

She was smirking as she met Luna. "Well, how'd you do?" She began fanning herself with the piece of paper, her expression full of mirth. She enjoyed toying with the humans whenever possible. "I managed to get some information on the private airstrip and planes that flew in today."

Malika touched a corner of the paper to the side of her mouth, whispering, "And their numbers, should we need more information." A second's pause, "Or whatever." She definitely felt a superiority to normal humans. Weak minded fools, they were.

"Are you ready to go?" Assuming yes, they headed out to the rental car, and Malika slid into the back. "Do we need to get a hotel for the interim? I know of this lovely place, great view, and you can see a lot of the city. Good vantage point, hmm?" And she really liked the breakfast they served.

coded by natasha.

Rhyme · Jul 2, 2020

Indy
Tags:

Out Of Words

Vinegar Bees

Winne never responded to her. The limo came to a stop and before Indy could plan a last-ditch effort escape the doors opened and the three captives were unceremoniously hauled out. A hand gripped her arm and she ripped it back, spitting in the driver's face. His twisted expression swam before her eyes as she heard the sharp ringing of her collar, followed by the seizing in her muscles. Shit.

Her feet dragged under her, knees stiff and legs jerking as shock followed shock. The sound of her shoes scrapping across pavement disappeared as they entered what looked like the office space for some silicon valley tech startup. When the air wasn't alight with static from her own collar, it was filled with the same energy from Foster's. The hair on Indy's arms stuck straight up on end as she stumbled, just as she saw someone manhandling her bag. "Hey! Paws fucking off--" Shit.

The quiet creak of an opening door caught her attention. She turned her head just in time to see some dark guy step through, deadly silent and eyes covered by dark shades. His hair was sticking straight up on end, like he found the electric shock look aesthetic. What kind of Cure concert reject is this fucker supposed to be?

She was still watching him when he spoke, his voice an alarm that sent nearly everyone to the floor aside from the bewildered bystanders. She knew what that usually meant; she'd seen enough guys pull out guns to know what was coming. The question was, who was the shot fated for?

But the shot didn't come. Indy looked at Foster with wide, questioning eyes as angry Jim Morrison began chanting in... what is that, Latin? The room froze. The driver--his angry expression now one of terror--let out the first tones of a short screech before his head exploded with a hollow bang.

Despite herself, Indy gasped. "Jesus--" She could feel the warm spray of blood hit her face, thick chunks of skin and bone clinging to her cheeks. The headless body of the driver slumped, then fell to the floor with a wet thunk, followed by the sound of another, smaller body hitting the floor. Winnie, shit. Indy whipped her head aside, blood splattering from her hair as she saw Winnie on the floor. Still has a head. Thank god.

"Please, you three, follow me. Oh, be mindful of your steps. The tile floor can be slippery."

Did he just fucking blow a guy up with his mind?

Emperor Palpatine Jr. calmly led away from the body into another room, indicating where they could shower and promising new clothes. Indy could hear WInnie being half-dragged behind them as they were pushed inside, the door shut with a vague threat. Before Indy could speak, Winnie was racing to the showers and desperately washing herself, not even bothering to talk off her clothes. Indy glanced at Foster, stripping down to her bra and underwear as she followed Winnie's lead and entered a shower. Her hands were shaking as she raked her fingers through her hair. Is that a piece of ear?

"No, no Winnie..." Indy took a deep breath, carefully looking at Foster as she didn't trust her expression. "I just... Who is that. Who the fuck is that guy?"

She had never met someone who could blow up people with their mind, sure. But he kept them alive, and he killed the driver. He wanted them for something, alive and relatively unharmed. The question was, how indispensable were they, and for how long?

Indy watched the red streaks of water swirl down the drain between her toes, gathering in fat drops on the cuffs around her wrists. How far was she willing to go to test her hunch?

Out Of Words · Jul 2, 2020

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words

Out Of Words

Tags: Clementine

AsherMasher | Location: Paradise, Nevada (May 11th)

Ash gave her grandparents a nod and smile as he stood up and moved to follow behind Clementine. "Yes, I missed out and I know you take great notes. Sooo, was kinda hoping to copy your notes if you don't mind?"

He gave her a warm smile that didn't quite reach his dark eyes. "Uh, do you have a piece of paper and a pen or pencil I can borrow real quick? I'll jot it down and be out of your hair." Now the corners of his eyes crinkled, the smile reaching them. "I always thought you were the smartest in the class, really. This will help me out a lot."

Ash tilted his head, playing with his hat a moment more before slipping it on. "Uh.. maybe.. I can pay you back with.. lunch or .. dinner even?"

The pendant around Clementine's neck started to grow warm where it hung and came into contact with her skin. They were near the back door, but before Clementine could open it, Ash was leaning in close, getting into her space as he quickly whispered, "If you don't want me to kill your grandparents here and now, you'll come with me."

His eyes were now pitch black, and his fingernails were dark talons as he moved to close a hand around one of her wrists. "Say we have to do a project and forgot the stuff at school, and I'm going to give you a ride there and back again."

coded by natasha.

Out Of Words · Jul 2, 2020

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words

Out Of Words

Dust in the Wind | Current Timeline: May 14th

Tags: Yeo-Jin

Maeteris Coda

Vinegar Bees Roje

Britt-21 Gavid

Absurdisan
Location: Block C - Miami, FL

Morgan shrank into the couch when Roje started swearing, yeah, he was not going anywhere near her. And then he had to come back in all spitfire and protective piss. "I didn't mean to!" And it was the truth, he had forgotten about the dust on his hand. He wasn't usually around so many people, he didn't have to watch it when he was locked up in the basement.

When Coda approached, he hissed hard, ready to strike out in self defense, but the guy didn't make another move toward him. So he just stayed curled up on the couch, trying to not fidget with his tail.

Banks watched with a calculated gaze, it drifted between Roje, Coda and Morgan. He didn't say anything for a full minute or so, about the time it took for Coda to offer up the cold glass of water. He liked watching people, and how they handled themselves in a crisis.

However, he knew there was a time and a place for it, and now wasn't likely it. He spoke sideways to Park. "You still got that dose on you?" They had two antidote vials, he used his on Park, which meant Park still had one.

coded by natasha.

Out Of Words · Jul 2, 2020

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words

Devlin Wright

Tags: