Vidare 01: The Cabal

Jason nodded. The house had been dampened by a quick ritual and a few rounds of ammo. "No sound should have gotten out."

"Good man. Don't beat yourself up okay?" He patted the ground and waited for Jason to sit next to him. Jason wandered over with his eyes glued to the floor, while Derrick just folded his arms and glared at the vampire.

"I know he's not alive, but I hate the idea of inflicting pain." Jason rubbed his arm.

"How many assignments have we completed as a team?" Miles asked as he pulled his pack of cigs from his pocket and put one in his mouth.

"Seventy four." Jason answered.

"Seventy four man." He lit his cig and took a breath of it. "How many times did you actually have to inflict pain to get the job done?"

"Three times." Jason muttered.

"That's a pretty good rate. You dont have to fuck people up to help us out. Every team needs support magic." He took another drag. "Truth be told...I don't really like what I do."

"But you do it with such enthusiasm." Jason chimed in and looked at him with pleading eyes.

"Sure I do. It's what I believe in. That doesn't always make it easier or better. I do what I'm ordered to do, just like you follow every rule The Order of Hermes has ever created because you feel like it's the right thing to do. Haven't you ever been frustrated with the things David hands down to you?"

"All the time." Jason nodded. "Thanks." He smiled. After a second he looked at Miles again. "How long should I avoid Ariana?"

"You'll be lucky if she doesn't shoot you tonight." Pausing he broke into laughter with Jason. "Just tell her what happened. She knows a lot more than you might think about facing your fear."

Descending the stairs, Kai quickly walked over to Miles and held his hand out for his gun. Turning, he fired another shot into the vampire's leg who only twitched from the impact.

"Think I could try?" Derrick held out his hand nervously.

Kai looked at Miles who shrugged. "Sure man go ahead." Passing the 9mm to Derrick he stood behind him. "Alright, grip this part here, adjust your footing like this." Kai slowly helped push Derrick into position. "Make sure you aim and breathe okay? When you're ready, give it a squeeze. It's gonna kick a little." Derrick smiled as he aimed at the wounded vampire. Squeezing the trigger he jumped at the loud bang that echoed in the small basement.

Looking over at the vampire, Jason smiled as he checked the bullet holes. "Good shot!" He said as he thumbed the wound in the belly of the beast.

"Take him to the range sometime." Miles stepped forward to the vampire who whimpered in pain. "You and I get to have a little talk, leech."

"C'mon Derrick, you did good." Kai took back the gun and holstered it, motioning for Jason to come back upstairs with him. Together the three of them climbed the stairs with a sad look on her face at Derricks smile. "I know what you're gonna say."

"Get your ass outside!" She lowered her voice as she stepped forward with a finger to his chest. "I'm not doing this in front of him."

Kai gave Jason and Derrick a resigned look as he stepped out the front door with Ariana, and the two started to walk down the block so they could fight in private. "Miles is gonna clean up and handle all the casings, and I'm gonna stick with him okay? When Kai and Ariana are done, you can head home with them."

"Okay." Derrick rubbed the back of his head where the vampire had struck him.

After ten minutes, Kai and Ariana stepped back in and she held her hand out for Derrick. "Let's get you home."

"I'll be home late with Miles. It's my turn for cleanup." Kai sighed.

Walking up the stairs, Miles held his hands out leisurely. "Actually, I'm hanging with Jason tonight."

Kai and Ariana looked to Jason who wrung his hands. "I figure it's the least I can do to apologize."

"Alright, whatever you want." Kai threw his hands up and reached for the door.

"Hey do me a favor?" Jason asked as he looked at Derrick. "Can you give the kid a bedtime story?"

All of them sat confused at his request. "He's uh... he's a little old." Kai mumbled. Leaving with Ariana and Kai, Derrick gave a little wave as he left, and Jason was left with his eyes fixed to the door.

"Grab a bucket." Miles said with cheer.