My Little Ventrue Pt. 09 Ch. 06

Dead. His friends. Dead.

Garry does deserve to be punished, doesn't he?

Fuck yes he does. Kill him, and kill every Carthian who tries to avenge him. You think any of them can stop me? Us?

That was a pleasing thought. He didn't have to play ambassador, peace keeper, or any of that shit. He could just force the issue. Kill Garry, dismantle the Carthians, and bring peace that way.

Just get angry. Remember how good it felt to get angry? Remember when Angela first kidnapped you, and you let the anger out, so you could escape? Remember how mother fucking good that felt, all that power?

Settle down there, Palpatine.

I'm just being honest. You should try it sometime. You want to let the rage out, and to rip this fucker into bits. Him and his whole damn covenant.

You're lying.

Lie, me? Never. The truth is far too much fun.

Jack slowly grinned at Garry, glaring. Of course the Gangrel didn't hear the joke. He wouldn't hear anything in a moment.

"You killed my friends. I can't hear them anymore." He came closer, gently kicking aside some crates as he did. No need to rush this. "You killed... my friends."

Garry stood his ground, eyes locked on Jack as his hand regrew, skin shifting and tearing as it spread over new muscle and bone. His massive claws returned, and the Gangrel flexed his fingers to test them, like breaking in a new pair of shoes.

"Consider it a down payment for the things the Invictus have done to me."

"I haven't done anything to you!"

"You're Invictus, kid. You think I would have gone easy on your sire, just cause I liked him? Viktor was a fucking menace, and his two buddies aren't exactly innocent, but your sire kept working with them."

"Julias tried to change things."

"Your sire was as useful as a pacifist in a war."

"We're not at war!"

Garry let out a slow, deep growl from his demon mutt face. "Yes, we fucking are."

Jack lunged for the man, but Garry flapped both his wings hard, hitting Jack with a blast of air and a mess of debris. The moment his feet came in contact with the floor again, Garry charged, talons ripping up the floor as he smashed through the chaos. Jack braced for impact, but Garry ducked low at the last minute, body bending with flexibility Jack hadn't expected. And instead of going for a slice or stab, Garry's claws shortened at the last second, and he got his grip around Jack's wrists. Probably wanted to return the favor.

Jack twisted in the Gangrel's grip as the monster's huge weight fell on him, but Garry had grown stronger. No, not stronger, the fucker had just been pulling his punches before.

He was taunting you.

No, he wasn't. He was trying to figure out what to do.

Like that's any better. So he's just being smart about the fight, making sure he didn't show his hand and make a mistake.

I don't think that's it, either. He was...

He killed your friends!

Jack glared up at the vampire, and tried to get his feet under him so he could kick him off. But, even transformed into some sort of big gargoyle demon thing, Garry was a fighter through and through. He got between Jack's legs and held his hands down, doing some proper grappling.

Jack grit his teeth, and pushed his wrists up, slowly lifting them off the floor against Garry's efforts. Blood slipped in and out of the holes in Jack's body, flowing and coursing over his skin as he channeled his frustration. Garry's eyes widened, and the following thrill that coursed through Jack's body was euphoric. Garry was afraid.

The Gangrel roared, and his sides split open. Holy shit. Two more arms erupted from the man's sides, forming in a mess of blood and breaking bones like something out of The Thing. Jack's eyes went wide, and soon a shredding cry cut through his throat as Garry sank ten claws into Jack's sides.

"Get off me!" Jack forced his hands higher and higher, Garry's grip on his wrists unable to stop him. His hands grew closer to the man's throat, and no matter how hard Garry pushed against him or squeezed his wrists, he couldn't stop him. Jack's vitae refused to let his bones break, just as its coursing veins filled him with strength.

If he got his hands around the man's throat, he was going to rip his head off.

Garry let go of his wrists and jumped up, claws from his extra pair of hands ripping free of Jack's guts on the way out. But before Jack could get back up, the man snapped at him with his tail. Snapped, with teeth, cause the damn thing turned into some sort of snake head as it closed in on him.

Its giant fangs sank into Jack's body, but the pain was nothing at this point. If Jack could--no, Garry had other plans. He whipped his tail to the side hard, and Jack went flying, the huge, eyeless snake head letting him go. The world, once again, turned into a big, spinning mess, and Jack tucked into a ball as the inevitable pain of wooden crates catching him became intimately familiar.

When things stopped spinning, Jack got his hands on the floor and pushed up. But Garry's talons found his back, and squashed him into the floor as the huge monster pinned him.

"I said get off me!"

Garry's huge talons sank into Jack's back, but they didn't matter. Vampire blood rushed through the wounds, forcing his body to keep working, no matter how much Garry cut into him. And try as the brute might to pin Jack to the floor, physics were still a thing. Unless Garry had an anchor, all he had to work with was his own body weight, and at this point, Jack was confident he could throw a truck.

Sharp wood cut at Jack's skin, and he blinked down at the crate that'd been crushed under his chest. With a grin, he slammed his palm down against the wood, and sure enough, a long splint of it broke from the rest of the crate, trapped under his hand.

He forced himself back up onto his palms and knees, even as Garry tore at his back. But for all the Gangrel's insane might, he couldn't cause any real damage. His talons slowed as they cut through muscle, only for Jack to heal the muscle around them. The claws couldn't damage his bones at all.

Garry's weight shifted, and Jack twisted. Slicing air told Jack he'd just barely avoided getting Garry's claws to the side of his neck; fucker wasn't holding back anymore. Garry stepped to the side, unable to keep his balance as Jack rolled, and he had to step off his back or fall over. But he didn't go far, staying close and slicing at Jack with two of his four arms.

Jack let them hit him, pouring his vitae through his limbs. Hate, rage, burning heat that blocked out everything, it hardened his body as he fueled the Discipline. Garry's claws stuck in Jack's left arm, and right side, serrated claws tearing his suit and flesh alike. But his right arm was still free.

Snarling, a completely inhuman sound, Jack slammed his right hand upward. The splint of wood, shy of a foot long, had a nasty edge to it that ran from tip to side, and it cut up Jack's palm and underside of his fingers with impact. But it was worth it.

Garry tried to step back, but his claws were stuck in Jack again. He shrieked like a demon banshee as he twisted and turned his head, but Jack held onto the stick, making sure it remained lodged in the underside of the man's jaw, up through the soft flesh, up through his tongue, and into the top of his mouth. He could tell from how deep the makeshift stake went that it wasn't hard enough to punch through the bone of the roof of the Gangrel's mouth, not one as strong as Garry anyway, and its tip didn't penetrate into the man's skull. But the screams of pain from the creature as he tried to pull his head back from the wood skewering his jaw, tried and failed, were exquisite.

If Jack had tried to stab the man in the heart, Garry's body, hardened skin, ribs or muscle, would have broken the stake on contact. Hell, Garry would have probably somehow managed to twist or dodge, likely recognizing the stabbing motion. But an upward stab for the jaw? He hadn't seen that coming, the fucker.

Garry still had two more arms though, and as Jack twisted the piece of wood inside the man's flesh, the Gangrel shoved him away hard. Jack held on. Wood broke apart from the shift in angle and momentum, Jack's hand snapping up and away as Garry threw him back. Six inches of the jagged wood remained lodged in the Gangrel's jaw and tongue, and he shrieked all the more as he clawed at his throat with the smaller set of claws, trying to grab it.

Jack stood up from the floor again, grinning as the huge demon struggled with his wound. That had to hurt. But not enough. It didn't hurt him enough. Garry had to suffer, had to scream, had to--

Slowly, Jack turned his head, and looked down at his two birds. He recognized them instantly, surrounded by the corpses of rats and a few other birds. The shape of their feathers, their beaks, he knew them on sight, and he gulped on a dry throat as he stared at them.

The fuck are you doing? Get him! Look at him clawing at his throat like a bitch. Totally open! Sucker punch him, and rip out his guts!

Mulder... Scully...

They're dead! Come on, focus!

I... I can do something. I was too late for Mary, but they're... still alive!

He shook his head hard enough his brain smashed against his skull, and he fell to his knees beside his pets. They were still alive, but in shock. Only when he got onto his hands beside them, and nudged his fingertips against their heads did they respond.

Scully first. She flapped one of her wings, but it didn't bend right, and she shuddered. A tiny clicking sound in her throat told him she was in pain, a lot more than a broken wing would cause. Another click told him he should get away from the other two-leg who gave her pain. Mulder tried to touch Jack with his beak, but his neck was twisted too far, and he couldn't straighten it out. He managed a quiet caw, but it was cut with some weird coughing sounds. Jack had never heard a bird cough before. It sounded horrible.

The searing heat in his veins, gone. The boiling rage clouding his thoughts, gone. He almost scooped up his friends, but they struggled more the moment he touched them, both clicking and coughing some more noises. Too much pain.

"Jack," Garry said, stomping toward him, "I'm not fucking done with you." The wood was out of his throat, and the hole was healed over, blood splattered over his chest.

Garry was a deadly vampire, and the insane healing he showed off now was proof. The transformations, yeah they were impressive, something Jessy couldn't do, but the healing was what was extreme. Killing him wouldn't be easy, if Jack even could. And by the time he'd be done, it might be too late.

"Garry, stop. I have to save them."

"You fucking kidding me?" Snorting, Garry came at him faster, leaning forward, weird snake tail whipping around behind him. "You expect me to--"

"I killed Lucas! Ok!" Jack snapped his gaze to the man, and met his fucked up gargoyle eyes. "I killed Lucas, when he attacked the Prince. Not only him, I fucking killed Viktor and Tony, too. I started that fire. I killed them!" Oh fuck what was he doing? If this didn't work, if Garry didn't give him five minutes of peace for this info, this could be a problem. Would Michael or Garry care? Did Tony have any Kindred that still loved him, or maybe kine who did? How many Kindred would want Jack dead over this? How many wouldn't? He had no idea. It was why he and Antoinette decided to keep it a secret, because the repercussions were so unknowable.

Well, fuck it, another cross to bear. He was fine with that, if it meant he could help Mulder and Scully.

Garry froze, weight driving him forward in a skid, and he had to open his wings to keep from falling over. Eventually he came to a stop five feet from Jack, and he stared down at him, mouth hanging open.

"You're lying."

"Do I look like a fucking liar to you?" He ground his teeth as he stared at the man. But he was desperate. He needed to get Garry to back off now. "Viktor and me, we were in that old building, hunting Tony, and he said he wanted to kill the Prince. I... disagreed with that. I shouldn't have said it. He cut me open. I had to set the building on fire to survive, and to make sure he... would never hurt Antoinette. And Lucas, his suicide squad had nearly killed her, but I jumped out and surprised them."

"You expect me to believe you killed that squad?"

"The Prince had killed a lot of them already. The others, I... I killed by using Damien. I Dominated him, and killed them. And then I killed Lucas, with Damien."

"You--"

"Garry, just... just back off for a minute and let me help them, ok? I... fuck, I don't know what to do."

Idiot! You're letting your guard down! He's going to get you. Stab you in the back when you're not looking. Something! Get up and fucking defend yourself!

After a second, Garry sighed, and squatted, just like a gargoyle perching. Well, at least he wasn't charging at him, like he should have been.

"If you were so attached to them, you shouldn't have let them come to a fight, you fucking idiot kid."

"They wanted to help! They..." He shook his head again. "You're right, you're right. I... shouldn't have brought them."

"Christ, you really are just a fucking kid. You expect me to--"

He snapped his gaze at Garry hard enough the man leaned back.

"Look, I told you all that, because I know how much you wanted Viktor and Lucas dead. I did you massive favor. The least you can fucking do, is let me save my friends!"

Garry blinked several times, eyes shifting between Jack and the two dying birds. Deliberation written on his demon face, the Gangrel frowned as he looked down, tail slowly slithering on the floor behind him.

The whole situation was pathetic, Jack begging the man like he was, but during the whole fight, Jack had noticed Garry had been holding back. The Ripper was convinced Garry was just being smart and using tactics, and every Kindred instinct told Jack similar. No way Garry was holding back because he didn't want to fight Jack, maybe didn't want to hurt him. Everyone was convinced Garry was an asshole, an anarchist who just wanted to watch structures and organizations burn. Repercussions, those meant nothing to a Carthian.

But Jack knew better. The Ripper had been wrong about Maria. Hell, everyone had. And if she could surprise Jack with her leniency, maybe Garry could too.

"You know this fight isn't over," Garry said. "You know I'm still going to keep fighting until the Invictus are done."

"Yeah, I know."

Garry groaned, stood up, and gestured down at the birds with one of his arms. "You can embrace them, same as a vampire. You can't turn an animal into a Kindred, but you can turn them into undead pets."

"I know, but I don't know--"

"Just drink them until they're drained, and then feed them your blood with your will and vitae infused in it." He took a few more steps back, and folded his four arms across his chest. "You're lucky I believe you, kid."

Jack managed a weak smile for his enemy, before he reached down, and scooped up Scully. Immediately she twitched and squawked in pain. Things inside her were ruptured, and touching her anywhere ignited her body in agony.

"I know, I know, but... but it'll pass, ok? You'll be fine. You'll be fine." He brought her up to his lips, and sank his fangs into her body.

Birds were so incredibly light, and so much of their body was air, feather fluff, and delicateness. So fragile. Christ he'd been an idiot. After how much they'd helped against the hunters and then against the werewolves, he thought they'd be safe and out of the way. Stupid. Stupid stupid stupid.

Scully was empty of blood in only a few seconds, and dead. Trembling, Jack sliced his wrist and forced a drop of his blood into her tiny beak. Crows weren't small, but they weren't large birds either, and he had to focus to get his blood to land in her little, still mouth.

Mulder. He looked to his other friend, and froze. Mulder wasn't moving anymore, or breathing. Jack gently set Scully down, and snapped Mulder up into his grip. His head was still twisted way too far, and Jack shuddered as he looked his friend over. As delicate as he could manage, every muscle tense, he slowly turned Mulder's head back to face where it should have been. Tiny things went crunch inside his neck.

"Oh fuck." He lifted the crow to his lips, and sank his fangs past the feathers. Crow blood tasted horrible, but he didn't care. The moment he felt Mulder's corpse run dry of blood, he set the bird on his lap and performed the same procedure, opening his little beak, and dropping blood into it.

This wasn't like with Veronica, where all she needed was vampire blood in its natural state to fuel the Vinculum. This was properly infused blood, dark crimson he used his will to pour his vitae into, his energy, his essence, his everything. It was how Julias revived him from death, and how Antoinette saved his mom. A drop of blood, infused with a vampire's desire for the chosen one to live again.

Live? No, that wasn't right. To be infected with the curse of being Kindred. But animals couldn't become true vampires, so Julias had said. God, if the Ripper got his claws into them... No. No, this wasn't the same as embracing a vampire. The birds would be safe from the curse. They had to be. Had to be.

He set both birds down on a nearby table. Scully's right wing was bent and broken, with a tiny bone sticking out of it halfway, but only barely. Slowly, he slid the wing back to her side where it should have been. It stayed there, mostly, but it remained crooked. Mulder's head remained facing straight, but the neck was bent strangely at the middle, and Jack knew if he picked the bird up, his head would lull to the side.

"Please... please work... please work..." He leaned over the table and set his weight against his palms on it. "Please work, please work."

"Jack, we're not done."

Slowly, Jack turned to face the man. He wanted to be angry at him for attacking his birds, but he couldn't be. The fucker had just done what any smart vampire would have done, especially a master of Animalism like him who knew how useful animal friends could be.

"Don't fuck with me, Garry. You haven't been taking this fight seriously at all."

"And you? You haven't really let that curse thing out completely, except for the past two minutes, and even then. Avery told me what it's like when you do, told me every detail."

"I don't want to let him out!" He spun and stared at Garry as he kicked a crate aside. "I don't want it!"

"And yet here we are." Still transformed into his huge demon form, the Gangrel took another step toward him, and his snake-head tail raised until it hovered over his shoulder, ready to strike. "You use that curse thing when it suits you. You use it against the Carthians."

"Would you leave if I could somehow remove the curse, right now? Would you stop trying to trigger this stupid war?"

Garry snorted. "No. But like I said, the war never ended, kid."

Clenching his fists until his fingers threatened to snap, Jack stepped away from the table with his two friends, moving closer to the center of the room. When they started swinging again, he had to keep them out of the way.

"I don't want this war, Garry. Give me time and I can fix this."

"Like you fixed Viktor, Tony, and Lucas?"

"I didn't want to kill them, Garry! I had to."

"And what, you don't think you have to kill me?"

"I don't!" He took a step forward and stomped his foot. It didn't make much impact, light as he was, but still. "Those fuckers deserved to die. You don't, okay? I don't want to kill you. I want us to get along. I want us to--"

Garry roared, a straight up demon roar, and swung his body. The weird snake head on his tail morphed, spikes emerging from it again, and Jack ducked underneath it. It slammed into the table beside him, and Jack rolled away to put some distance between him and the Gangrel.