What Lurks Beneath the Sky

Andar considered it a moment. "Move along. Private, get back in the vehicle. You get him home safe." He turned and nodded to the driver again. The convoy began to move toward the location: some pub, The Husk, he thought it was called? Reports of weird activity in there have been reported, and he had a good reason to go there personally: Asura might be there, and if not, he could get a good drink. He hadnt had one in weeks.
 
Pausing her steps for a moment, Maggie watched as a car stopped and questioned figures that she couldn't quite see since they were hidden in the shadow of an alley. As events unfolded and she realized that there was no way to keep walking and not encounter either the car or the people walking, she stopped and turned to glance back. The bar was too far away to just walk to casually, and running would attract too much attention. She considered her options, well aware that whoever was ahead might be perfectly friendly and not a risk to her at all. Keeping her deep crimson eyes focused downward slightly to avoid the streetlight, she tightened her hold on her cloak around her and quickly crossed the street, moving down the sidewalk and praying inwardly to not be noticed.
 
"CRUISEN DOWN THE HIGHWAY!" Victor decided to continues his drunk impression until he was certain the Mage Hunters couldn't hear his. "Lookn for avenshore and whatver, umm what, umm COMES MY WAY! Thash the one." Now sure that everying thing would be okay, he continued down the street wiht one arm around Andrea for the extra support after his coughing fit. "Don't ever expect me to speak like that again" he sighed, thinking of where they could go after that incident. "We can't go back to the bar now and I suppose you don't have anywhere to rest your head."

Looking up, he noticed a figure moving towards the two vampires and tried to straighten himself up. An old man being seen with his arm around a young girl would not be a good look. As the person came closer, he recognized the timid body language of the silhouette and came quickly to a conclusion, maybe too quickly. "Maggie?"
 
Asura had been sleeping quite well when he heard the secret knock that Pete gave him whenever Hunters were in the nieghbourhood. He woke suddenly and felt Vee stir in his arms. He placed his hand across her mouth and hushed her extremely quietly as the lights faded out. Meanwhile downstairs, Pete answered a knock at the door. He smiled at the Hunters that were standing in the doorway. They showed him a poster and he picked it up and concentrated on it for a while. Inside, his stomach sank as he noticed the face on the poster all to well. It was Asura. He kept his concentrated face perfectly and handed back the poster and shrugged. The Hunters thanked him and let themselves in for a drink. Due to Pete's extensive slight of hand, he could lace thier drinks with heavy alcohol and they would be none the wiser. He handed them a beer each, extremely laced, all the while smiling a nice bright smile. Upstairs, Asura heard the merriment of the Magehunters and it made him feel sick. All he had to do was wait untill they were gone... "Every time they come here", whispered Asura "Pete drugs them and they get super drunk super quick and it only takes a little bit for them to leave. Keep your voice under you're breath and we should eb alright, sweetheart..." he whispered to Vee under his breath.
 
Grant turned as the heard the hunters walk in. Naturally his hand went to the blade at his side but a quick glance from Pete told him to wait. Grant watched as Pete led them to the bar, he also noticed the poster in their hands, a picture of that damned lightning mage. I guess i walked into a shit storm Grant thought. How fun. He smirked to himself, how long would it take for the hunters to wise up to who was in the bar. Clearly Pete had a plan but there were more voices outside, how long would it take them to work out some of their own men were missing. Grant slowly unbuckled his sword ready to draw it at the slightest sign of a chance to draw blood. He chuckled to himself.What exactly did you do Asura to piss this lot off?
 
Veela nodded her head at Asura. "Wouldn't it be better if we climbed out the window to the roof and got out of here?" She whispered to Asura. "There's a window right there."

Veela began to get up, but decided against it, at least for a few minutes. Her head was still sleeping, and her stomach still had butterflies from being there with Asura, all alone. She wondered how Pete was dealing with the Void Summoner and the Magehunters downstairs. "What do you think? Will we be alright up here?"
 
What is taking them so long? Andar thought. They had been in there for at least five minutes. Were they dead? Or just getting a drink? "I'll be back." Andar got out of the car and gestured for two Hunters to accompany him. He opened the door and, not to his surprise, he found his men drunk as hell and on the floor. Behind the counter was the bartender, smiling like his men were not even there. "What is the meaning of this?!"
 
Once she reached the other side of the street, her near-silent footsteps halted. She turned curiously at the sound of her own name and realized that she recognized the voice. Her brain began spinning through possibilities and in seconds she smiled. The bar. He was a regular. She relaxed with an inward sigh of relief and recrossed the street after glancing both ways, making her way over to him and pushing her hood from her head. "Victor," she said quietly once the name matched the face in her mind. "Strange, I didn't think you were quite drunk enough to burst into song earlier," she added, struggling to hold in a laugh. She turned and glanced back toward the bar, a bit uneasy that she could still faintly see it from here. "Are you two alright?"
 
"Hey, don't worry about me, I don't need sleep. You're the one who should find a place to sleep, or at least chill for a while," Andy replied. She noticed the barmaid a little while before Victor, but said nothing, not knowing her name. She heard Victor say a name, and assumed that was the barmaid.

"Maggie, mind taking Victor with you?" she asked. She looked at the elder vampire, "I'm going to go back to the bar, in case things get rough." Without waiting for a response, she put Victor's arm around the young woman. "Go quickly, don't draw attention." Andrea took her hoodie off and handed it to the barmaid, "Put this on, so if they see you they think it's me."

With that, Andy took off in the direction of the bar. Once there, she hid, watching as the Magehunters entered the bar. All she had to do was wait for any sign of trouble.
 
Pete gave a smile to the Hunter Warden and went around to assist the hunters lift thier men up off the floor. He helped them up and helped them out of the bar where the stumbled out into the night and towards the car. He was shown another poster by the the sober Hunters and gave the same reaction. As the drunken hunters stumbled about and fell in the gutters he gave a slight laugh and waved them goodbye. He went back behind the bar and wiped the sweat from his brow before downing a shot of his own. He nodded at Grant as if to say thanks for playing along.

He grabbed the broom and banged the signal to Asura that they were gone. "Oh my gods... That was close... Are you ok?" Asura asked Vee, giving her a kiss on the forehead and sighing with relief.
 
"I'll be alright, though I'm still here with you, so I'll be perfectly fine." Veela gave one of her cute little smiles to Asura. "We've both got our powers still, and we're rather experienced with them." Veela had gotten up to go to the nearest window. "We won't have to worry, because if we combine our powers, we can overcome almost anything, I'm sure of it."

Veela felt safe there for once. She never felt safe at one of the sanctuaries, nor did she feel like she belonged. Looking at Asura, and knowing Pete was just downstairs making sure they weren't bothered gave her the security she needed. She figured, if possible, she'd stay there forever, but she knew they would have to move on and travel at some point. "You won't leave me....will you Asura?" Veela had spoken in a soft, worried voice, turning from the window and walking to Asura to hug him, hoping she'd get the answer she was hoping for.
 
Asura took Vee in his arms. "How could I leave you? Especially when Pete likes you this much too. No. I won't leave you." he said as Vee pressed her face into his chest and squeezed him tightly. He knew that they couldn't possibly stay at the sanctuary forever. It would put the place in too much danger of being discovered for what it really is. They could always come back, after all and they wouldn't have to be gone for long for the heat to die off. "You're safe with me... No-one can hurt us here..." he reassured Vee. The Hunters were after him for some reason or another and they must have wanted him pretty bad. This was the first time in months that the bar had been checked. What had he done to draw so much attention to himself?
 
Victor sighed as he walked through the dark streets, his arm still draped around Maggie for the extra support he needed. He looked down at her and stared into her crimson eyes, watching them change color as they passed under the bright lamps. "You're eyes" he said, trying to grab her attention, "You have amazing eyes." He loved crimson, it reminded him of the rugs and curtains that draped his mansion so many decades ago.
His thoughts were interrupted by the car that had stopped Andrea and himself before passing by. 'Thank goodness everything went okay at the bar' he thought, they hadn't been there long enough and there were no extra bodies in the vehicle. "I'm sorry to be a burden on such a beautiful night" he said, looking up into the moon as it began its decent, slowly sinking back into the horizon. "So shall i spend what little time there is left of this fine night with you or will you send this old vampire back to his bar?"
Just as he finished, the dark flicks of pink came across the sky behind them.
 
Maggie nodded in agreement and quickly slipped out of her cloak, tossing it to Andy as she pulled the hoodie on over her head. It was still kind of obvious that they weren't the same person, but maybe it would work for now. "Be careful," she said softly, wrapping her arm around Victor to keep him steady as Andy hooked them together. She nodded once and watched the girl take off, then looked up at Victor with a smile. "Well, it looks like you're stuck with me for a little while," she said with a smile, turning and beginning to walk away from the bar.


She looked up at him absently and blushed as he commented on her eyes, smiling a bit. "Thank you. I don't usually dare to show them outside of work. People get a bit anxious," she said with a shrug, falling silent as the car passed. She laughed a bit at his apology and looked up at him. "Such a charmer is hardly a burden," she said, nudging his side gently and considering his question. "I think the night is nearly over.." she said, glancing up at the sky, but then she smiled at him. "I can take you anywhere you wish to go. I have no plans and nothing waiting at home except a cold bed and an old book," she finished, laughing softly even though it was sadly true.
 
Andy sighed with relief as the cars pulled away, everything was safe for now. She clutched Maggie's cloak in her cold hands and walked into the bar. She walked over to Pete. "Hey, glad the hunters are gone," she greeted. She lifted the cloak and put it on the counter. "Mind giving this back to Maggie? I don't think I'll be back tomorrow."

Without another word, Andrea left the bar. She looked up at the sky, it seemed to be getting lighter. She'd have to find a place to stay now. She didn't belong in places like Sanctuaries. They were too... They just had too many people. She wasn't used to having to socialize. Andy glanced at the bar momentarily, vowing to be back in a day or so.

She turned away and began walking. She wasn't sure where exactly she was going, but she knew that if she kept walking she'd find an abandoned warehouse. Andy had stayed there plenty of times. She just hoped it wasn't being watched now by Magehunters, that would ruin things for her.

She arrived at the warehouse and snuck in through a window. Andrea dropped to the dusty floor below. With a smile, she noticed that her make-shift bed was still there. It was just a blanket and a pillow resting on top of some boxes, but it was the closest thing to a bed than anything she'd ever had.

Andy climbed onto it, wrapping the blanket around herself, and lay on her back. She stared at the ceiling for a while, until dim light began coming in through the windows. She pulled the blanket above her head and slowly began falling asleep.
 
Asura led Vee over to the window and opened it to get a little fresh air into the room. Asura breathed a sigh as he took in the cool air just before dawn. He looked at Vee and then looked out the window and across the city. He saw a small figure in the distance vault up into one of the windows of an abandoned warehouse. Andy, no doubt. He then saw a routine Hunter patrol start closing in on the warehouse. At first, Asura thought that the Hunters would simply pass by the warehouse... right up untill the Hunters turned their torches on that were hooked up to the end of thier rifles and began to assume search and destroy formation. "Oh gods..." said Asura as his stomach sank. "It's Andy... Hunter's have found her... We need to get going! C'mon!" He said to Veela as he readorned his cloak and pulled the hood over his face. Taking her by the hand, they both slid out of the window and onto the city rooftops towards Andy's warehouse...
 
Andy was startled awake by sounds outside of the warehouse. She barely managed to duck behind some boxes when Magehunters bursted in. "Great," she hissed under her breath.

She was still sleepy and developing a hangover-headache. She shook her head to clear it and looked around. Andrea could try to escape, but there was no way to get out without being seen. She shrugged and decided she'd have to fight her way out. It was no big deal, she'd gotten into brawls with hunters before.

Andy stood up. "Hey you!" a hunter called, "Stop right there!"

Andy grinned. "No thanks," she said playfully.

"Don't make us shoot you," the man threatened.

She continued grinning and, just as gun shots exploded, she jumped out of the way. Andy landed on the top of a tall shelf, smiling down at the Magehunters. "Weren't you going to shoot me?" she taunted.
 
Asura heard a short burst of gunfire. "Nonononononononononononono..." he wished under his breath as himself and Veela neared the warehouse. He wished to himself that Andy had dodged the gunfire. He wished to himself that he wouldn't enter the warehouse to see the Hunters dragging her corpse away for... 'Research'... "Please don't be dead..." he whispered as he led Vee leaping across the rooftops ever closer towards the warehouse.
 
Andy was playing with the hunters when Asura and Veela arrived. She would taunt them and then jump away just as they would shoot. Andrea finally decided to give up, not to be killed, but to kill them.

She jumped, landing behind one of them. In one simple motion, the Magehunter's neck cracked and he fell limp. Andy did the same for a couple more hunters.
 
Asura and Veela jumped through the window and landed gracefully. He looked up and saw one of the Hunters that Andrea had neglected to kill aim straight for her. He dashed over to the Hunter. He ducked under the rifle and slammed it up and out of the way. He grabbed the hunter by the throat and slammed him up against the wall of the warehouse. Asura pressed his fingers against the Hunter's eyes and passed electricity through thier brain. He dropped the Hunter, leaving it a dried up husk that had been cooked from the inside out. He turned to the rest of them "Who the fuck wants some of this?!?!" he roared at the rest of the Hunters.