Blood & Carrots Ep. 22

"So we should look there?" I asked curiously.

Lorelai shook her head. "No... we should look... there." She thrust a finger out towards a large park with surrounding apartments in a fairly upscale area of the town. "There is a sense of dread hanging in that area, people have died there, frequently."

"The park itself, or the buildings?" I asked curiously.

"Hard to say until we get closer. It's time for your rooftop run lessons." Lorelai grinned and gripped my hand hard.

"W-wait, I'm not ready for this!" I spat out even as she started to trot towards the other side of the roof.

"You are, let us go!" Her trot became a sprint and I stumbled to keep up with her. "Five more strides and we jump on my command!" The sheep bound forward and I tried to keep track of the number in my head, then heard her call out to jump.

I bent at the knees but didn't so much jump as she just pulled me along for her own leap. I yelped out as she dragged me streaking through the night air and over an intersection of traffic. She landed upon the rooftop of a bank across the street. I didn't land so much as tumble and fall onto my butt.

The sheep offered me an apologetic smile and put her hand out to help me up. I took her hand and stood, grumbling as I rubbed my rear. "Shouldn't I be learning this under more controlled circumstances?"

"You want to learn it leaping over the gaping mouths of canyons, while a mob of villagers chase you? That's how I learned." Lorelai showed her teeth in a playful grin. "Or maybe leaping through the buildings of Rome while the church acolytes pursue you?"

"Okay okay... I get it..." I mumbled and flicked my ears. "I'm a spoiled modern kid that doesn't know hardships. Did you also walk barefoot to school, uphill in the snow?"

"Uphill both ways in fact, however, the return trip was usually in a heatwave!" Lorelai spoke the words playfully and snatched my wrist. She began to sprint once more and I quickly moved to keep up with her.

"Jump!" she snapped the words and I tried to not hesitate or hold my bend so long. I lept in a more uniform time with her and we leaped fully over one smaller building before landing on a small apartment complex.

My landing was still a mess but I didn't outright fall this time. I took a few staggering steps to catch my balance then blinked back at the sheep. She gave me a prideful smile. "Very good... let's do the next one separate."

"O-okay!" I clenched my fists and grinned, feeling invigorated to hear and see her praise of me.

So the rooftop run training went. We bound from one building to another in the rain of the night. Lorelai told me how she only would recommend this method of travel on very cloudy or rainy nights, clear nights offering more risk of being discovered.

She pointed at the park area like it was close by, but it was literally on the other side of the city. I got plenty of practice in and by the time we had hopped our way to that section of town, I was making fairly consistent jumps. I didn't land like a bird, but I didn't flop onto the roof in a heavy thump anymore either.

"Good work, Alice." Lorelai showed me her teeth in a proud grin.

"Thanks Lorelai, having your love and praise means the world to me." I slipped to her and embraced her.

The sheep returned my hug and pushed her forehead to my own. "Here is my advice to you, rabbit. So remember it keenly." I blinked into her eyes and nodded.

I felt her hand push to my cheek and she briefly kissed my lips before continuing. "The world is a big place and there are lots of unanswerable things that happen. Like rabbits and sheep jumping across roofs in the middle of the night." She gave me a smile then shook her head. "If you find yourself about to square off with something, never underestimate it. Treat every engagement you're in, like it's a fight for your life, because it may be that if you don't respect it."

I frowned and gave her a quick nod. "I understand..."

"Good girl..." The sheep showed her teeth and rubbed at my ears and wet hair.

We pulled apart and the elder vampire squatted and looked over the area, rubbing her chin in thought. I tried to focus my senses but all I saw was the surroundings, I could faintly feel the energy from a few of the passing mundanes below, but that was all.

"Do you think they're in the park?" I asked curiously.

"I do not... they may have gone missing there but..." She bit her lower lip and looked over the apartment buildings nearby. "Ha... there you are..."

"Really? Where?" I spoke out and looked upon the large building.

Lorelai pushed her finger out towards the third apartment building in the distance. "That one, fifth floor and on the left side. That energy though... hmm..."

"What is it?" I asked, feeling frustrated I could do nothing more than watch and ask questions.

"It's definitely demonic in nature..." Lorelai set her jaw and nodded. "Well... we will see... let's get to the roof of that building." Her gaze shifted to mine. "This is as much a hunt as training for you, Alice. Watch me, learn from it, and try to join in as we go. I will help guide you."

I gave her a nod and we bound our way to the roof of the building in question. I landed with a huff and looked to her. "So we just bust in on them or play it smooth?"

Lorelai walked over to the stairwell and grabbed at the door, feeling it was locked. She rolled her eyes and simply tore the whole handle and lock out of the door and tossed it onto the roof. "We will try to be smooth about it and talk with them. However, if they resist I will strike them down without hesitation." The sheep spoke the words in a matter of fact tone as she opened the door to the stairwell.

We descended down several flights of stairs before coming out to a well-lit hallway. I followed the sheep as she paced down the hall to a room with number five-one-two on the door. She folded her arms and rubbed her chin, staring at the door for a moment. "Yes... whatever it is, it's in there."

I felt the tension rise and moved a hand to my back to rest on my gun. Lorelai saw me and shook her head. "Relax... we come as emissaries first and foremost. You said it yourself, they may just be alone and confused."

I frowned and nodded, moving my hands to my hips. "Alright, but if they try anything to hurt you-"

"It will be fine," Lorelai spoke out gently, then gave the door three heavy knocks.

There was shuffling in the apartment then after several moments, silence. Lorelai pursed her lips and gave the door three more heavy knocks. Silence filled the void and I pursed my own lips. "You think they fled out the window?"

"No... I can feel their energy." The sheep showed her sharp canines and gave the door another three knocks, pushing her will forth as she spoke out. "It's in your best interest to come to the door, now!"

The door behind us opened and the neighbor looked upon us curiously. I quickly blurred to the older male and pushed my palm to his face, forcing my will and easily breaking his spirit. "Nothing to see here sweetie... close the door and forget you saw us." The old cat blinked a few times and gave a bored look as he shut the door.

Lorelai gave me a grin and nodded. We were met with more silence and she gave a frustrated sigh. "The next knock will be with my boot kicking the door open, imp!"

I lifted my ears at the words and moved back to her side. "Imp?"

"Yeah... I'm certain...You have to handle imp's a certain way. We're going to have to play bad cops here, I want you to follow my lead, okay?" She spoke the words and folded her arms before calling out to the door. "Five seconds..."

"Okay! Okay... what do you w-want?" A small voice quickly spat the words out from the inside of the apartment.

The sheep spoke in her council tone of voice. "I am Lorelai and this is Alice. We come here representing the council of bloodstone."

"T-thank you but I'm not religious, please go away!" The small voice chirped out from the other side of the door. I snorted out a laugh at the retort and then saw the sheep scowl.

"You will talk to us now, imp. Be it willingly or with a blade and gun to your head. Choose and choose now, my patience wears thin." Lorelai snarled the words as she reached to put her hand on her wakizashi and I showed a grin, drawing my revolver.

We were met with silence and I saw a look of fury cross my lover's face, her eyes turning red. "Stupid fucking imps, always the hard way..." She hissed the words and raised her booted foot to kick the door open.

"Wait! Okay! Fuck..." The voice hissed out from the other side of the door.

"Open the door... now!" Lorelai ground the words out through clenched teeth.

We heard the bolt throw and in a whirl of motion, my sheep had the door open with a shove. She had brought the imp down on her back in a flash, the maroon blade resting against the young female's throat, small wisps of smoke erupting from the divine blade.

"You speak a word, I take your throat here and now. Sit there and shut up." Lorelai looked at me with her teeth showing. "Get in and shut the door, lock it too."

I followed her orders and closed the door, throwing the deadbolt after stepping in.

"Get up and don't do anything stupid, you've already crossed my ire further than I should allow." The sheep stood and sheathed the blade.

The small female quickly sprang to her feet, she was thin of frame and had curly semi-long black hair with small folded grey ears drooping out of the locks.

Lorelai may have put her sword away but I still had my gun trained on her, aimed right at her chest. She had a large shirt with a band logo on it that looked three sizes too big for her and hung down to her knees. I could make out the peaks of her breasts though they were modest at best. Her legs were covered in tight leggings like the kind you would wear at the gym and her feet had plain white sneakers on.

"Are... you guys going to kill me?" The small woman whispered out, her dark brown eyes darting between the two of us, her back pushed to the nearby wall.

"Not unless you give us reasons to." Lorelai gave me a nod. "Put it away, Alice."

"Yes, lady Lorelai," I spoke out to her as if we were at council and slid the revolved back into my pants.

I glanced to see a long fluffy tail of black, brown, and white coil and flick behind the young imp. "What are you?" I asked curiously.

"She's a lemur," Lorelai spoke out pointedly to me.

"Oh! I-is that what I am? I had no idea... ha ha..." The young woman spoke out in an amused laugh.

The sheep showed her teeth and glared. "I do not take lightly to your mocking words, imp."

She threw her hands up and pushed up against the wall, as if she wished she could push through it. "No! I- I'm serious, I didn't know! I assumed I was a raccoon or something!"

Lorelai narrowed her eyes but eased her stance and put her hands to her hips. "Let's start from the beginning... what's your name and how did you get here?"

"O-okay... my name is... uhm- Kiley, and I'm not sure how I got here." She spoke the words rapidly and glanced over to me. "Uh... you're a sheep and rabbit, yeah?"

"Something like that, let us ask the questions for now. How do you not know how you got here?" I grumbled the words and folded my arms across my chest. I saw Lorelai give me a quick nod as if she approved of my question and stance.

"I really don't... uhm... can I show you?" Kiley asked us awkwardly, pushing her fingertips together and giving us a weak grin. Her complexion was of a dark tan and I could see small freckles spattering her cheeks. She had a thin frame but a somewhat round face, I couldn't help but find her cute.

"Alice," Lorelai called out to me.

"Yes, my lady?" I responded right away with respect in my voice.

"If she does anything stupid, shoot her in the lungs, I want her to suffer if she betrays us." The sheep spat the words out in a cold tone of voice.

I swallowed a lump in my throat and withdrew my gun once more. "As... you wish, my lady." I could hear the hesitation in my own voice, of course, the idea made me sick. Still, I decided best to keep pace with my sheep and hope it didn't come to that.

Kiley bit her lower lip and looked upon me as if I were the grim reaper. I frowned at her and gave a shrug. "You're good so long as you keep it straight, but if you do something stupid, I won't miss, I never do, crazy vampire reactions and all that," I spoke the words casually towards her and waved my right hand which wasn't holding the gun. "Off you go now, show us whatever it is."

The small black haired girl nodded and stood up straight from her slump on the wall. She was actually taller than me and Lorelai by almost a foot, go figure. I couldn't help but roll my eyes and Lorelai gave me an understanding smile.

Kiley walked us into her kitchen which had a nice pile of dishes in the sink. There was dirt and grime all over the counters, with a funk in the air to match it all. I wasn't surprised considering the glance I had of the living room. It looked like a teenager lived there, takeout containers and cans piled around in front of a TV with a gaming system hooked up to it.

The lemur frowned and took a sheet of paper off her refrigerator and handed it to Lorelai. "I woke up in this apartment several months ago, all I had was this."

The sheep snatched the paper out of her grip and held it up, reading it out loud. "Dearest Kiley, you've worked hard and you are now an adult. I've paid this apartment up for one year and the bank card with this letter will have a balance of fifty thousand. You're on your own from here, be a good imp. Love Dad." The sheep snorted at the paper and handed it back to the imp.

"Dad?" I asked curiously.

"Probably a high ranking pit lord or something," Lorelai spoke out and nodded at me. "This is how things work most times. Succubi, Incubi, and even Imps like her. They aren't born here, they are usually born in the netherworlds and then dropped off here as a sort of coming of age right."

"That's all I know. I wouldn't have even known my name had it not been on the paper." She drummed her fingertips together and frowned, her large tail flicking about nervously.

"So what happens now, my lady?" I asked her curiously, keeping my gun trained on the lemur.

"Now we get some more answers," Lorelai spoke the words and shifted her gaze to the imp once more. "How many people have you killed?"

"What? Woah woah... the only people I kill are in video games!" Kiley put her hands on her hips and showed her teeth in response to the question. I could see her canines looked razor-sharp but not elongated like mine or Lorelai's.

"Could she have not killed yet and something else is going on?" I cocked a brow and looked at how adamant the imp was refusing the accusations.

"No, she's a killer. She has the energy of one, Imps are flesh-eaters by their nature." Lorelai spoke the words in a matter of fact tone and folded her arms.

"Y-you can't be serious, I've never killed anyone!" Kiley whimpered the words, tears coming to her eyes.

"You've never woke up in odd places, or had mysterious bloodstains all over your clothes?" Lorelai prodded and raised a brow.

"I... oh gods... I never thought..." The lemur slumped to the floor of her kitchen and looked straight ahead, tears filling her eyes as she processed the information.

"So like the frenzy?" I asked Lorelai.

"Sort of... I'm no expert in demonology, that's a question for Val." Lorelai nodded at me.

"That makes no sense though, what about the bodies?" I cocked my head curiously. It felt cruel to just hold a conversation like this while the poor imp sobbed on the floor.

Lorelai shrugged. "Most new demons do come to the mortal realm on their own, but they usually have a caregiver that cleans up after them until they find their legs. A netherworld fairy godmother if you would."

I glanced around. "Would that fairy godmother pick a fight with us?"

The sheep shook her head, her curls bouncing about. "No, they are like a glorified janitor and nothing more. They keep them from getting discovered at first. We could take her head off here and now, there would be no repercussions."

"Really? But what about her Dad?" I unlocked the chamber of my revolver and spun it a few times before locking it back in place.

"That's not how it works. It's like species of ancient animals that would simply lay their eggs and leave. Once a demon leaves the nest, it's on it's own." Lorelai clicked her tongue and rested her hand on the hilt of her wakizashi.

The lemur had stopped her sobbing and looked between the two of us with fear in her eyes. I had my gun at the ready and the sheep had her hand on her sword. "S-so you're going to kill me anyway?"

Lorelai sighed and rubbed her temple with her left hand. "You have two choices girl. Both involve your current life as you know it ending."

The imp bit her lower lip and gave a shallow nod. "A-alright?"

Lorelai showed her teeth and drew her maroon sword, the blade glinting in the light. "Your first option is a simple one, you bare your throat and the lights go out. I will make it painless..."

Kiley widened her eyes and scooted back on her palms, her back pushing into the refrigerator. "Uh... D-do I get an option where I get to keep breathing?"

Lorelai looked to me and cocked an eyebrow. "Alice, tell her the other option..."

I swallowed at her putting me on the spot. "Of course my lov- lady." I cleared my throat and looked upon the lemur. "Your other option is you may join one of our families, you will learn more about what you are. You will get the training to control your powers and not be a menace to society or yourself."

Kiley blinked up at me and bit her lower lip. "I-is there an option where I can stay here in this life, playing my video games and eating pizza?"

I showed my teeth and grinned at the lemur. "Sure! I will toss you back into that gaming chair right now and we will walk out of your life forever."

"Really?" She asked me with a hopeful tone of voice.

"Absolutely!" I drew back the hammer on my revolver and gave her a wide hungry grin. "I will even only leave one hole in your skull before we go."

Kiley's face flushed pale and she looked down at her knees. I had meant the words to be a scare tactic but I felt kind of bad seeing her knees knocking together like they were.

"The dream life of a teenager is over, Kiley. You come with us and learn to be an adult and control yourself, or you die." Lorelai spoke the words in a bored tone of voice.

"T-this is bullshit!" The lemur snapped the words out and glared at both of us.

"And that's option one I suppose." Lorelai nodded at me. "You going to do it or should I?"

"Wait! Wait!" Kiley shouted out and shook her head. "I will go with you!" She spat the words out bitterly and hugged herself, her grey ears drooping.

"Even if we did leave you, would you be okay knowing you were murdering people?" I asked the lemur curiously.

"Do you know how many I've killed?" She asked weakly.

Lorelai spoke out sternly. "A minimum of twenty."

The lemur shivered and shook her head, pushing her head to her knees. "That can't be true..."

"You know it's true, Kiley. How many times a week do you wake up bloody or in a strange place? Every Time you did that, you ended someone's life." I spoke the words sternly but I could only feel bad for the poor girl.

She showed her teeth and shuddered. "I'm a monster..."

"We're all monsters, Kiley. All you can do now is to become a better one and make amends for their deaths in whatever way you feel is best." Lorelai clicked her tongue and sheathed her sword. "Or kill under our laws, we will not restrain you in that way."

"Really?" She asked curiously.

"This can all be explained more at a later date. Up with you now." The sheep held a hand out to the lemur. Kiley hesitated but gripped Lorelai's hand and slowly stood, her knees looking shaky.