Fantasy The Dark Country

[MittyMittens]

Gypsy looks over at Reuben as he entered the room, watching for a moment as he organized his things. She turns her attention away from him before her staring would be considered rude. She puts her brush back in her bag to look up just in time to see John standing in the doorway. She looks back at her own items, setting the bag off the bed and onto the floor before pulling out her sleeping mat that she had rolled up and tied to the side of the saddle bag. She glances over from the corner of her eyes to see John exit the room again. She gets up from the bed to lay the mat down ontop of the bed and sits back down on it. She turns her gaze back to Reuben, figuring she may as well at the very least know the people who she was working with names.


"I'm Gypsy" She states simply, waiting for Reuben to return the conversation with his name. She was late to the whole meet and greet earlier and therefore hadn't caught anyone's names from earlier. She had no intention of making small talk, thinking about roaming around and at minimum get a drink from the bar since she had no intention of falling to asleep in the near future. But knowing who she was working with was probably a bit more important than that and she figured she'd start with Reuben since he was right there and maybe see the other's while she went roaming around town.

 

[X3 Infernal Infinity]

Revanin sighed laying on the stall floor holding what was for all intensive purposes an intense staring contest...with her horse. Shadows head was lowered, his nose just inches above her own as he stared into her eye evenly. She stared back intent on not losing, when the horse snorted and lowered his head to bump her in the face. She blinked, cursing softly, as the horse let out a whinny that could only be interpretted as a laugh. Sitting up she crossed her arms to glare at the horse who simply pressed his nose affectionately into her cheek. She chuckled, reaching up to stroke the horses nose with one hand. After a moment she stood, petting the horse a few more times before exiting the stall. She would be back to check on Shadow later that night since the chance of her going to sleep anytime soon was almost zero. She could feel the faint pain flaring up in her side again and gritting her teeth decided that spending her night drinking herself into oblivion at the bar seemed like the wisest course of action. Heading back into the building she sat at the bar, resting her arms against the counter.


"Strongest drink you've got..."

 

[BarkWolfBacon]

Delson explained to Elizabeth that they had found Agent Michaels in an alley not far from the brothel, and had assumed it to be a message of some sort. Elizabeth seemed honestly perturbed at this, and shook her head slowly.


"Strength enough to rip apart and devour a man is not within my demonic capabilities, Delson. I know not of how much your agents know of the demonic, but assume that it is limited to conjecture and folklore."


Delson nodded, a bit ashamed to admit that she had hit the nail on the head. The majority of the time, they were flying blind.


Does this mean you aren't gonna kill her? Could you at least fuck her then? Something? Anything? What am I even good for if all you do is sit around and brood, old man? His mark spoke to him. Delson ignored it and continued on with his conversation.


"You are correct in assuming that a demon cannot destroy the mark itself. I know not what would happen if it were to try to ingest that part of a human, but I imagine it would kill them from the inside out." She took a sip of her wine, eyes glazing over as she thought.


"Delson, as far as I know, and I do try to stay in the know, I am the only demon in this part of the city, and I haven't received any notification that someone else had come to visit."


"Do demons normally send a letter before they visit or something?" Delson asked, half joking.


"Demons are granted areas of influence called Principalities. As their strength and influence grows, so does their principality. That is what makes the frontier such a hot bed of supernatural activity- all of that lies unclaimed. The only reason a demon would ignore the rule of principality is if it was either a stronger being, or so consumed by darkness it did not care. Like a feral animal. You see that sometimes with Oppressors you know? The Fallen have spent so long in Hell they lose all reasoning...crawl to the surface and cause all kinds of trouble."


"Well, shit." Delson said.


"I propose a deal, Mr. Cull." Elizabeth said, leaning forward and looking very intently at him, her beautiful curled hair framing her face. "I harm no one here, I provide a service that has nearly eliminated rape, and probably saved more than one marriage. I do not wish to see this city destroyed, my clients killed, or this earth ravaged.


Maybe it is the half human part of me, but not all of us seek destruction. I will recede the affects of my presence, reduce the power of my aura to just this block. I will also feed you information I know on demons, possible leads, and let agents get our services for free. In return...you let me live."


Delson thought it over for a moment...could she really be telling the truth? He had met demons before whom he knew did not seek destruction. Hell, he had even fought next to a demon against an army of zombies in Dakota once. That demon wanted to stop Death as well, wanted to stem the Apocalypse...had even said he would be Shadowguard if he could...


"Fine." Delson said, finishing his wine and standing. "But one slip up, Elizabeth, and I will bring the entire force I have here on your head. Now, do we have any leads on what this thing is, and where it could be?"


Elizabeth stood up, walking over to Delson and placing a hand on his chest, her breasts close enough to just barely touch his shirt.


"Yes, but let us...consummate...our new agreement here. It has been so very long for you, Delson. Your thoughts are haunted by much. Let me ease them if only for a few. You came to hunt, to battle. It is clear you did not kill your prey- but you do not have to leave without conquest."


She let the robe slip from her naked body and pressed her lips to his passionately, kissing him the exact way she saw him imagine it in his mind.


Finally, something interesting. The Mark said, shutting up to enjoy the show.

 

[Esoteric Truth]

Reuben tiredly looked over at the girl who addressed him. It was the girl whom had arrived late, the one that had been in Delson's office when he had asked where the stables were. She was pretty, with slightly tanned skin and dark hair. Her eyes were a warm brown, almost slightly orange, and they stared at him in a way that made him uncomfortable. Not uncomfortable because she was looking at him strangely, but because he was attracted to her. Here he was, on a mission to destroy those that had in turn destroyed his family, and he was sitting here thinking that this girl was rather fine looking and how horrible would it be to satisfy those needs which had not been tended to for so long? He shook his head at himself and sighed, hands sliding underneath his head and his tired eyes looking up at the ceiling.


"Reuben. Good t' meetcha," he responded, his brows tense above his eyes. "How'd you get'n this mess?" Reuben slid his eyes back over to the girl, his mouth barely moving as he formed the words. He felt sick inside. How much he would give to be talking to his wife at his home right now. To be able to touch her cheek again, even if that was all he'd ever be able to touch. But here he was instead, in some alien place, talking to some girl he didn't know, day dreaming about what once was and what could have been.

 

[Vudukudu]

John had wandered farther than he had intended. The noise and lighting were distracting and he had floundered and lost his sense of direction. He was pretty sure he had entered a less savory part of town, however, judging from the occasional bare-chested woman and drunken men.


This was all uncomfortable and new to him. There hadn't been anything like it back home as far as he knew, and he'd never actually seen a naked breast before. He found it hard not to stare as he meandered down the street, and he was on the receiving end of more than one flirty attempt at getting his business.


"Hey there." A honey-sweet voice said. John wasn't watching where he was going at that moment, and he blundered right into the origin of the voice. The girl was maybe his age, a pretty redhead wearing a blue dress that left little to the imagination. He tripped and fell into her, both John and the girl falling to the ground in a heap of entangled limbs.


The girl grunted a little and then giggled softly. "Well aren't you a bit direct." She teased, then slipped out from under John and grabbed his hand. Before he knew it, he was on his feet and standing just inside the doorway of a bedroom with the girl.


Well hey, you might be dead tomorrow. Might as well.. Y'know, try this out before you do.

 

[MittyMittens]

Gypsy was a bit taken back by his willingness to talk to her. At the very least she figured he'd mumble out a name and that would be the end of it. Though he seemed pained when he spoke to her but she made no acknowledgement that she noticed. She leans back against her bed frame as she lazily looks over at him. She examines his features for a moment, he was definitely a hardened man, probably had his share of life's troubles. But who didn't in this line of work. But he had a sort of ruggedness to him that gave him character and a small smile crept at the corner of her lips. She didn't like men who looked like they'd never worked a hard day in their life, not that she liked the man in front of her but she had no reason to dislike him for the time being.


"Likewise. And my previous occupation wasn't much different than this one. I'm a hired assassin, bounty hunter, whatever you want to call it. So instead of killing men I suppose now I'm killing demons and such. So same thing, different day." Her accent could clearly be heard in her words but it wasn't overpowering or thick, just enough to notice. She had done her best to "americanize" her accent to no avail. She lifts her head up from the bed frame her gaze rounding the room before she lets it fall back on him. "And you? How'd you find yourself here?"

 

[X3 Infernal Infinity]

Twelve glasses in a sporting a worthy buzz Revanin could still feel the annoying throb of pain that was now radiating it's way fully up her side. The bartender refilled her glass for the thirteenth time that night and she gratefully took it, rolling it between both of her palms simply so she would have something to do other than clutch her side as instinct would have her do. As she lifted the glass to her lips to take a drink she was aware of someone staring at her. Glancing out of the corner of her eye she spotted a group of men at a near by table, glancing at her and muttering among them selves. Ever sharp of hearing she could pick up the jist of the conversation. The other two seemed to be goading the bigger man in to coming over to talk with her. She clucked her tongue, it never ended well when men hit on her in saloons. Turning her attention back to her drink she emptied the glass, setting it down on the counter with a thud. She heard the sound of a chair scraping across the floor and soon enough a large male form took up her entire periphery. She glanced up smiling as sweetly as she could at the male.


He was rather large and muscular, probably a ranch worker or some wanna be cowboy, with black hair that looked like it hadn't seen a wash in years. She was well aware of his gaze as it roamed slowly down her body. In his coal black eyes she could see the same leer that she had seen on the face of many men when looking at women. She stiffened as his hand rose to brush at a lock of her hair, grazing briefly against the side of her neck. She tried to hold back a shudder of disgust and reached up to swat his hand away in a pseudo playful manner, forgetting for a moment that it was the hand bearing her mark. The man caught her hand in one of his and she tensed.


"What this here girly? Some tribal design of yers?"


The gruff rumble of his voice and the condescension in his tone fell on death ears. Revanin was staring into space her eyes hazy and unfocused as a sound filled her ears. Not a sound exactly but a quite sense of something. She could feel a tingle from the mark on her hand as the words floated lazily into her mind.


She's a fine one that's fer sure. I hear them Indians are wild in the sack. Guess I'll find out tonight one way or another.





The sound of shattering glass and a faint pain in her other hand brought her back to reality. Her hand had squeezed shut on the glass instinctively shattering it into pieces on the bar. She glanced at it, only faintly recognizing that she had broken it, before the cold rage swept over her. Standing slowly from the stool she yanked her hand free, turning to face the man who was easily twice her size. She smirked a cool look in her eyes as she grabbed the front of his shirt with her unmarked hand, smearing blood on the already dirty white fabric. She rose on her tiptoes, her lips coming to level with his ear as her marked hand curved around his wrist.


"Let me show you a wild time..."


Her voice was a soft purr and she could sense more than see the smile on his face. It wouldn't be there for long. Letting go of his collar she slammed her fist into his gut enjoying the satisfying sound of the air rushing from his lungs. As she doubled over she tightened her grip on his wrist twisting his arm behind his back and slamming her right foot into the side of his knee. He staggered and she slipped behind him placing another kick in the very back of his knee joint causing his leg to give out and him to fall to the ground. His wrist still in hand she twisted it further behind his back. As he called out in pain Revanin was aware of his two friends approaching her from behind. Placing her foot on his back just at his shoulder blade she turned her head to face them.


"I suggest you run away... Unless of course you want me to break your partners arm..."


The two men stopped seeming to consider it and to prove her point she gave a hard tug of his arm, summoning another pained cry from the man. She briefly had an amused thought about just how pathetic he sounded for a man his size. It almost made her laugh. His friends backed of, moving towards the entrance. Her grip loosened slightly but only for a moment. With a sudden yank she pulled her arm to the side, her pressure on the shoulder blade locking it so that the bones snapped with a satisfying crunch. She let go of the now limp limb and kicked the man down on to the floor. Running a hand through her hair she shook her bleeding hand a few time. Sighing she headed off to find the room she'd be in for the next little while. She stopped to glance at the bartender on her way out.


"Those guys will pay for the drinks and the glass..."


As she headed off to find the room one last thought came to her mind. This stupid thing lets me read minds... You have got to be kidding... She ran her marked hand through her hair, studying the small cuts and scrapes that covered the other one. For a moment she swore she heard the sound of light yet amused laughter.

 

[BarkWolfBacon]

Elizabeth was next to Delson, her body pressed against his and her head on his chest. His Mark was quiet for now, which he was grateful for. It had been a long time since he had been with a woman like this (A demon, she is a demon, he reminded himself) and he was enjoying the aftermath, the quiet glow. She looked up at him, hair still perfect, and touched his face.


"You do know that this will kill you." She said, tracing her fingers over his Mark. A look of concern was on her face, and it was beautiful; how sad Mr. Baston must have been to lose such a lovely creature.


"Yes, but what else am I supposed to do?" He sighed heavily, the wrinkles around his eyes creasing as he did so, "We got the end of the world knocking at our door, and have no idea what to do about except shoot into the dark."


"I will help in any way I can, Delson. Not all demon kind wish to see this world burn. It is beautiful, and much, much better than the pit. Do you know where the first demons came from?" She asked, sitting up and not bothering to pull the sheets up around her. Had he been younger, Delson was sure the sight would have prepared him for another go; but he wasn't a younger man.


"The Fallen." He said, running a hand along the smooth skin of her torso.


"Yes, the Grigori, the Watchers. God had sent angels to men in order to show them how to build a society. Lucifer and his host had already been banished to the pit, where the absence of God was beginning to distort them...the first demons. But that process was not complete yet. But back on Earth, the Grigori were aiding the efforts of mankind. Centuries of contact with humans and the distance from Heaven began to have an effect on the angels. They fell in love, they took human wives, and in doing so created the most powerful beings that ever walked the earth."


"Nephilim," Delson nodded, "They are one of the reasons God flooded the earth."


Elizabeth nodded, "But it was more than that. You see, God cast out all of the Grigori- whether they were guilty or not. He considered the lot of them tainted, and took their wings. Then he flooded the earth, hoping to wipe out the Grigori, the Nephilim, and the now tainted and violent mankind all at once. But Lucifer knew this was coming, and opened up a gateway to Hell, along with a message. Join me and live.





"and so they did, an entire host of angels willingly threw themselves into the pit, and they lived. Lucifer had his army...and then he went about perverting them. I cannot describe to you what an angel feels in the absence of God, but they became demons, the process expedited by Lucifer's machinations and ancient knowledge...Not all of them by will." she said, a tear coming down her face.


"You were a Grigori, weren't you?" Delson asked, pity welling up in him for whatever must have happened to her.


"Our old memories fade the longer we are away from God. My demonic spirit is ancient, my angelic one even more so. But not all of us picked this, you will do well to remember that. Some of us loved mankind more than anything."


"Thank you." Delson said, embracing her.


"I know what took your man, Delson..." She suddenly said. "An Oppressor who has taken up residence in the abandoned Mormon church on the edge of town."


"How big? How old?" He asked.


She shook her head, "Big enough to defy my rule here, old enough to know not to ingest the Mark. He is one of the Fallen, one of the First. He will probably be able to take the form of a man. That unfortunately, is all I know."


"It is enough." Delson said.

 

[Vudukudu]

Her name was Sarah Black. She was an orphan, raised by a Mormon family in Salt Lake. They had tried to raise her as a proper Mormon lady, but she had always chafed against the doctrines and rules. When she turned 16, she ran from home and took whatever work she could find.


John and her hadn't actually done the deed, even after forty minutes alone together. They had tumbled onto the bed together, a heap of entwined limbs, and then it had all come to a halt. They lay still, pressed together as if by glue, and talked.


He knew her full story, and she knew his, excluding the Mark and Shadowguard aspects. When she examined the Mark on his hand and asked what it was, he gave a semi-convincing lie. "I traveled with some Indians on my way west, and they wanted to give me a symbol of their eternal friendship."


The look on her face called him out on his lie, but she didn't pester him about it. Perhaps another ten minutes passed in silence before she asked him about the War, a simple "What was it like?"


"Most days, it was nothing. We marched and camped and marched and camped. But.. The battles. They could go on for days. They were horrible, horrible nightmares that I was lucky to live through. I still think abou--"


She cut him off abruptly, pressing her lips to his, as if she were trying to pull the pain out of him by way of her mouth. Soon enough, it progressed and the two reached their original intention.

 

[BarkWolfBacon]

Delson arrived back at Shadowguard HQ in a hurry, his duster trailing behind him. He assumed the majority of the new recruits were probably asleep, but didn't care; business had just come knocking. He returned to his office and put his Mark to his forehead, channeling an ability he had picked up from a hive mind demon he had killed who was turning people into zombies. He'd have to tell that story to them sometime, it was funny.


Shadowguard, my office, now. The message would invade their sleep, their dreams, their thoughts, they would know.


It was hunting time.


@xx0mittens0xx @Major Cinnamon Bun

 

[Vudukudu]

Shadowguard, my office, now.


The voice was familiar, but John couldn't figure out where it was coming from. It took him almost a minute to process that it was Delson's voice, and that it was inside his head. With a sigh and much eye-rubbing, he sat up and got out of bed. He glanced down at Sarah, frowned, and left a quick note on the nightstand; "I'll see you again."


He left the room quietly, almost ghost-like. The street outside was dark, unwelcoming, and strange, but he knew he had to get back to Delson's office as soon as possible. He ran down the streets at a light jog, humming an Army tune as he went. He could have sworn he was being watched, but everywhere he looked was empty. The feeling only urged him to run faster, and he broke into a dead sprint the rest of the way. When he got back to the Inn, he slowed to a walk and entered Delson's office, his legs sore and his breathing labored.

 

[X3 Infernal Infinity]

Shadowgaurd, my office, now.





Revanin groaned, great she was hearing more voices in her head. However this one she recognized as Delson's and since she wasn't touching him she assumed it was a power of his instead of her own. She headed out of the small room she had been standing in cleaning her hand and headed down the hall to his office, still wrapping a bandage of sorts around her injured hand. Entering his office she raised her eyebrows at the hard breathing form of the boy she believed was named John. He looked like he had been running for his life. For now she shoved her current thoughts of quizzing Delson on just how she indeed up with such a shitty power. She clucked her tongue slightly leaning against the wall to wait for the others to arrive.

 

[MittyMittens]

Shadowgaurd, my office, now...... Gypsy looks around the room at hearing the voice in her head, quickly coming to terms in was in her head. She turns her gaze on Reuben and seeing that he seemed to have heard the voice too slips her shoes back on, figuring out it was Delson's voice. She glances down at her mark momentarily and makes her way out of the room, down the hall, and towards Delson's office. She looks over at the two that were already there, a man who seemed to be struggling to catch his breath and the woman who owned that ornate katana. At least she wasn't late again. She enters the room rather than standing in the doorway and stands over to one side of the room as she waits for the others to arrive as well.

 

[Esoteric Truth]

Reuben paused as she asked him to divulge his own tale, the reason why he was here. His gaunt cheeks puffed outward, rounding out his otherwise angular face in a deep sigh of humid air. He couldn't tell this woman, especially not as pretty as she was. He couldn't get attached, and couldn't let another woman in. It would be unfaithful. He was tied to his wife for life and for death, or so he hoped he was in the eyes of God. How would she look upon him if after this short of time he just turned his back on her and moved on? Any emotions he had at all could only be shared with a man. He had to stay separate from females for what little honor he might still have left in him, if there was any at all.


Shadowguard, my office, now. The thought projected into his mind startled Reuben, and he visibly shot up, his tan bros arching in his creased forehead. It was Delson, no doubt. The man kept getting stranger and more gifted as time went on, and Reuben supposed that was why he was the leader. He had gifts, intelligence and the tattoos to prove he had a pretty good record of slaughtering demons. Hopefully he had integrity as well.


Reuben stood up and walked back towards the office, a slight smile. Perhaps he'd finally get to see some action. Get to see something other than the wooden paneling of this place and the dusty terrain outside. After all of this, he wanted to be able to kill something. He wanted to be able to preform the actions that he was here to do. But the urgency that seemed to be behind the thought made him cautious as well. Delson seemed like a man whom had seen a lot, the kind that wouldn't be spooked by just anything. Reuben had a feeling that if Delson was worried, he better be worried too.


The wiry man opened the door to Delson's office with thin bony fingers and surveyed those already inside. Gypsy, the pretty girl. The Indian, whom didn't like him. John, the boy who was currently very out of breath. And last, but certainly not least, Delson himself.


"Glad t' see that message wasn't jist in my head an' mine alone."

 

[BarkWolfBacon]

"Glad you all got the message, its been a while since I used that power and I hoped I wasn't rusty." Delson walked over to the bookshelf and pulled out a large leather tome, on its cover was a strange letter in gold leaf. He opened it on his desk, facing the agents, and pointed to a picture of a creature. It had the torso of a man, but the bottom half was as scorpion, and its head was that of a lion.


"This is big first game, but we can't let this fester. An informant has told me that an ancient and powerful demon moved in to town recently. Its gonna take all of us to get it. Its one of Asmodeus' lords. Asmodeus is a prince of Hell, and this demon will be imbued with great power under his command.


"Its an Oppresor, which means it has its own fucked beyond all doubt true physical form, but will more than likely be able to take the form of a normal man as well. We're pretty sure the demon is hiding out somewhere in the old abandoned Mormon church outside of town. The biggest problem is that we don't know its name. That means I can't do any research besides its appearance, and we don't have time for that.


"Other demonic forces are drawn to these Lords of Hell like a fly to honey, and the longer he is here...the more forces he can acquire. That being said, Lazarus won't finish your weapons until just before dawn, and most demons draw power from the moon anyway...It'll be best for us to attack at first light- so get your gear ready, in about 4 hours- you fight your first true demon.