Kage: And we've already finished writing this one but have! You can't have it all yet!
Ran: Of course not, you greedy little birdies…
The blonde stood on the edge of the cliffs, looking out over the sea as he examined the two fangs in his hand. A small smirk spread across his lips as he slid them into his pocket. Tonight was a good night and now that their little problem was out of the way, well, the following nights were gonna be just as good, maybe even better. He tipped his head back and let out a whoop, his brothers sounded their reply and he laughed. Yes. He felt fucking incredible, and things could only go up from here.
He could still hear Max's final words before he made his move, did something he hadn't even imagined himself capable of.
"You boys are too wild, and I've had enough of it. I'm going to find you a sister...maybe even a little brother. Then we'll see about finding you a mother, too. We can be a proper family…" That crazed and distant look in Max's eyes at the time...the stupid fuck didn't even see it coming. He was a pitiful excuse for a head vampire, and living as a human for so long had driven him insane. Putting him down like a mad dog was the only sensible thing to do. David's one regret was that they hadn't done it sooner. About fifty years ago. Maybe even before that...but better late than never.
He was not going to make the same mistakes Max did. He'd do things the way they should be, none of this family bullshit. No more ridiculous little errands and chores to take care of in-between hunts. No more playing games. No more white picket fences, or pow-wows outside the house because Max didn't want them getting any mud on his precious carpets, or yelling at them for coming to the video store. While they would miss taunting him, dancing on the razor's edge of Max's patience, and parking their bikes on his flower beds, none of those little things could compare with the glee they'd felt seeing his face crumple when David offed him. It was picture perfect, too bad they couldn't take one to remember it with.
Max never expected David to go against him. Didn't know the power the younger vampire actually had and it cost him dearly. Max never saw it coming, never saw the stake that David had hidden up his sleeve until it was too late. It was rather pathetic really, wasn't much of a challenge, but what did David expect? After living as a human for so long and trying to get the boys to do it too he should have expected that weakness.
It was a fun concert. Mostly. Michael had been scanning the crowd half the time in-between joking with Sam and actually listening to the music. No chicks worth getting to know, though. Plenty of them pretty...none of them grabbed him. Packing everything into one car and moving had been rough. A girl would be a nice distraction.
He chilled out beside the dork shop Sam decided to pop into, preferring to just people-watch in favor of going inside and have his little brother yap his ear off about newsprint and men in tights or some shit. It was all Greek to him. But Sam probably felt the same about the games he'd occasionally play in or take him to. Tit for tat.
Crossing his arms, Michael watched a small group rough-housing beside the shop, clearly planning on pulling some stupid shit. Nicking a few comics, or whatever. Frankly, he didn't much care. If they weren't bugging him, they could do whatever the hell they wanted. Man...if he didn't find a job soon, or a pretty piece to mess around with, preferably both...he just knew he was going to go nuts hanging out at grandpa's slaughter-house inn.
He looked away from the group beside him, letting his eyes trail over other shops and people rushing about. Summer crowds. Would it be this busy later, when school started? Maybe there'd be more jobs. Another reason to bring it up with mom again...he really didn't see much point in going back. There was no way he had plans for college. He could just skip it altogether and go straight to work. Not like mom didn't need the help right now, anyway. Still, wouldn't hurt to try to have a little fun while the summer was still marching on ahead...he'd never really been to many beach towns before, anyway.
His eyes trailed across the crowds, until he noticed something that stood out. A group of guys hanging around some bikes. Good ones. Not like his. And they had a few girls hanging around them, too...not bad looking either. He quickly looked away when the shorter one nudged a spiky blonde, pointing him out. Ah, fuck it. Maybe he'd go to the beach tomorrow.
"Sam!" Michael poked his head into the store, right when one of the douchebags in the group nearby finally worked up the nerve to snatch the comic he'd had his eye on, and they dashed away, nearly knocking him on his ass.
"Mother fuckers!" Michael shouted after them, rubbing his arm and glaring back at his brother as the dudes he'd been chatting with took off after the thieves. "Hurry up and pick something. Let mom know I'm going for a ride. I'll be home later."
Sam gave him a sarcastic salute, snickering as he glanced down at something in his hands before rolling it up and tucking it into a shirt pocket. "Those guys are nuts," he shook his head.
"Can't be worse than gramps," Michael replied dryly, turning back to glance over at the bikers. Not really the kinda guys he'd hang out with...but their clothes were cool. Maybe he'd pick up that trash collecting job he'd heard about, after all.
David glanced down at Marko, "Would you stop poking me in the side?" He growled softly, eyes narrowed.
"Look at that guy over there. Think he's homeless? Haven't seen him before," Marko smirked, turning back towards the girls they'd been chatting up. Probably a meal for later. They already had plans for tonight, after all. Still didn't hurt to have an easy meal picked out, anyway.
David shook his head, looking up at him. His clothes were in too good of condition to be homeless, "Either tourist or just moved in." He raised an eyebrow, spotting the smaller blonde in the loud shirt, "Brothers." He stated, "I bet they just moved in." There was something about the brunette, something that nagged at him, "I want to test him." He stated calmly.
That got Dwayne and Paul's interest, and they both looked over at David curiously. Dwayne remained silent, but Paul couldn't help but break into one of his little snickers. That seemed to give the girls in front of them pause, not sure what to think now that the bikers had stopped paying much attention to them, apparently laughing at some private joke.
"Max dead for two days, and you're already testing someone? How long has it been, Davey? Ten years since the last one?" Paul shook his head, "splattered real nice under those rails, didn't he?"
"There's something about him." He paused, "Was Marko's fault the last one splattered, he picked him."
"Better than those twins Paul picked out…those chicks were fish bait for weeks…" Marko shrugged, glancing back over at the brunette, who looked like he was walking towards them.
"Gonna test him, tonight if it works out." He looked at the brunette again, who soon walked right by them and climbed onto a bike just at the edge of the boardwalk. Perfect, would make him so much easier to test, "Let's go." He smiled at the ladies, "We'll see you girls later, maybe we can meet up a little later tonight."
As Michael rode away from the boardwalk, he cursed himself for not just leaving it at home tonight and hitching a ride with mom. In this fog, he couldn't see shit. For all he knew, he wasn't even going in the right direction, and his light barely did much but illuminate the smoky wisps a few feet ahead. Maybe he'd turn back and figure out a place to leave it overnight...not smart, but better than breaking his neck if he did something stupid.
The sound of engines revving got his attention, echoing about him, a cacophonous scream. Michael frowned, daring to strain his eyes in the darkness and pick out the source, but he could barely see much in front of them, and from what he could tell...he was still alone. "The fuck…" He mumbled, pushing his bike a little further. Faster. Not as fast as she could go, but almost. There was a whoop around him, echoing in the fog, making it impossible to pinpoint. He could hear them, shouting, urging him on, but unable to tell exactly what they were saying.
A delirious part of him wondered if they were ghosts, phantoms of bikers who'd rode on nights like this into grisly deaths with trees or colliding into cars as they'd somehow drive into a busy road without realizing it. The rush of it, the adrenaline coursing through him, made those thoughts seem completely inconsequential, totally unimportant. For a moment, he almost began to enjoy it, if it was at least a distraction from his boredom and frustration. He was racing with his imagination, maybe winning.
Then reality pulled him back, and as he squinted into the darkness ahead, pushing his bike as far as it could go, Michael could swear that ahead of him, it looked like the small stretch of bright white and yellow sand was beginning to shrink. If he didn't do something soon, slow down…but there just wasn't enough time. With a shout, Michael turned as sharply as he could, bike skidding to it's side, digging the leg beneath it into the sand, scraping and ripping denim against metal as his wheels finally came to a stop on the very edge of a steep drop.
His heart hammered in his chest as he struggled to dislodge himself from his bike, climbing to his feet and scrambling to catch an eyeful of just exactly what he'd almost careened into...sharp rocks and crashing water, fingers of dark blackish-blue reaching out with foamy nails, beckoning him and his bike to what could have been a very nasty grave. With an angry shout, he spun about him, "show yourselves, mother fuckers!"
The night air filled with laughter before cutting off abruptly, leaving him in complete silence. Michael ran a shaking hand through his hair, straining to hear anything else. Another laugh. Engines. Something. But it was as if he'd been alone the entire time. His eyes drifted down to his bike, lying on it's side like a soldier slain in battle. He knelt down and hefted it up with a grunt.
And as he walked his bike back the way he'd come, working up the urge to ride it again, Michael wondered if he really had been imagining things. Or if maybe he'd come into contact with some of the many souls that probably saturated the soil around Santa Carla. Murder capitol of the world, right? Shit, now he was starting to act like his dorky brother. His mind was just playing tricks on him…
Paul sighed in disappointment, "no fish bait tonight…" he leaned over his bike handles and kicked his legs out to the side, brushing the tips of his shoes into the sand and sending it flying ahead of him.
David chuckled softly, "Passed the first test." He knew he would, "Gonna have to get him to come with us tomorrow night. See what else he can do." He grinned, wanted to savor this one.
There was something about him, something about this one that made him want to draw it out as long as possible. He didn't even know his name yet and he wanted to make it last. Maybe he could even manage to get him to drink from the vein. He hadn't filled up a bottle with his own blood yet.
Dwayne eyed their leader thoughtfully, looking out towards the edge of the bluff, "gonna follow the same rules we did? Max was pretty firm on that 'three day' bullshit. You want to change it up?"
"Yeah, I want to try this another way. Still gonna test him but I want to make him take it straight from the vein."
Marko cocked his head, biting at the thumb of his glove, "like you did? Didn't that fuck with your head for the first like...twenty years?"
"Totally worth it." He paused, "Was more like thirty years but who's keeping track…"
"Guess Max paid for it in spades, anyway, huh?" Paul snickered, glancing back the way the brunette had gone. "Think we'll even see him tomorrow? This might've shaken him up pretty bad…"
"It's a good sign if we do. Means it didn't fuck with him too badly." Dwayne stated, looking that way as well, "I got a good feeling about him actually, might work out."
"Be a fun ride, even if it doesn't," Marko agreed, lowering his hand to his bike handle.
David nodded, "We're gonna have a blast with this one." He grinned darkly, looking the way he went.
Sam chilled out on his inner tube, flipping through the freaky comic those guys at the shop had given him. Only because he didn't have the cash to buy anything new and the stuff he didn't want to get wet had already been flipped through so many times, he didn't even had to read the speech balloons. Then a bunch of douchebags ran by, splashing water all over him and his comic, nearly flipping him over in the process.
Michael was on the beach nearby, setting an empty trash sack aside on the ground as he sat down to chill out on the shore, smirking over at him. "You alright, Sammy?"
Sam glared at them, trying to get the water off his comic, "Yeah, assholes!" He shouted after them, "I'm fine, just pissed." He grumbled, scowling down at the comic.
Shielding his face from the sun, Michael leaned forward, "you get that from the shitty store you went to last night? Thought you only had like...ten bucks, and you're already blowing it?"
"They gave it to me for free, some shit about vampires, they were a little weird, saying stuff like that it would save my life, makes no sense but it's something to read."
Michael rolled his eyes as he propped himself up on his elbows and just basked in the glow of the sun. "Vampires? Read a bit of it for me. Might be worth a laugh."
Sam rolled his eyes, "You can't let them fool you! Those...things...you're harboring, they are no good. Evil creatures, they smell of death! Their breath reeks of the grave and their nails, they're long, too long. I have seen the way they look at you. They would devour your soul, my son."
"So…" Michael trailed off, glancing back over at him, "they're cheap hookers? Gosh, maybe that piece of crap's worth reading, after all.."
He laughed, grinning, "Yeah, if vampires were real."
"Sam…" Michael lay back on the sand, clasping his hands behind his neck. He didn't look too comfortable without a towel beneath him, but Mike wasn't much for complaining. Neither of them were. Mom didn't need to deal with that on top of all the stress and worries she'd been handling the last few weeks, moving to a different state without a penny to her name not the least of them.
"Yeah?" He questioned, looking over at him.
"They're coming back," Michael nodded towards the water as a large group came hurdling through the waves, this time managing to flip him over as they passed. A string of curse words escaped Sam's lips, things Michael didn't even think he knew, "Mom would soap your mouth out for that."
David leaned against his bike, waiting for the brunette from the night before. He was curious what he would do, if David would have to approach him or if the teen would come to them. Would he be a cat or a mouse? He couldn't wait to find out. He had let the boys wander, not too far, but they were close enough. The night was filled with anticipation and promise. So much could happen, so many possibilities. He kept his eyes peeled for any sign of the brunette while he waited, maybe they could find dinner while they were at it.
Something caught his attention, out of the corner of his eye. His target was slipping out of a small clothing shop, while an older blonde woman seemed to be very appreciative of his choice. He was wearing a leather jacket. David's eyes followed him curiously as he paused by a jewelry stand, fingering his earlobe, before shaking his head and pulling away to wander through the crowds towards his bike. But then he got distracted by a pretty face, and paused to chat with her.
David drummed his fingers on the seat of his bike, it wouldn't be long before he would have to take matters into his own hands. At least he seemed interested in getting his ear pierced and the jacket did look good on him.
The girl leaned in close to the brunette, digging her hand into his jacket pocket with a piece of paper and smirking before she pulled away and rushed back through the crowd. He watched her go with a private little smirk, finally turning back towards his bike, parked not too far from the boys.
David watched him, trying to catch his eye at least, if he passed them he would go after him. This was the most excitement he'd had in a long time. Then...the brunette paused to chat with yet another fucking girl. Damn it. David wondered if maybe it might not have been a bad idea to have one with them as bait. At least it would keep his attention long enough.
"Works fast," Paul whistled, sidling up beside David and snickering. "Alright, Davey, you got my vote."
It was several more minutes before the brunette pulled away from the second girl, tucking his hands into his pockets and passing the boys, giving them a curious glance as he passed before drawing up to his own bike and hopping on.
David shoved his hands in his pockets and headed toward him, "New in town?" He questioned.
The kid nodded, looking over at their bikes before back to David, meeting his eyes head-on, fearless. Yeah, he definitely wasn't a fucking local. "Nice bikes."
"Thanks." He held out his hand, "David." He held his gaze. And his hand was met with a firm shake.
"Michael." He was guarded. Wary. Probably had an idea they might have had something to do with the little race in the dark last night. After all, there weren't any other bikers nearby, were there?
"Good to meet you, care to join us for the night?" He questioned, "Show you around."
The kid looked at David, taking him in. Sizing him up. Then his eyes trailed towards the others, who remained at their own bikes, appearing only mildly interested. He could have no idea just how intent they were on his response. After all, the devil can't come in unless he's invited, can he? "Yeah, sure. Got nothing better to do," he shrugged. So very good at playing the bad boy, and at the same time so clearly naive. That much more appealing.
He grinned, "Good, we were gonna go for a ride." He mounted his own bike, "Let's go boys." His smile grew, "I'm sure you can keep up, won't be going too far, food and drinks sound good to you?"
Michael climbed off of his bike, glancing around curiously at the gates, "you guys live here?" He spotted a few precautionary markers as they passed. From what he could tell, they were heading towards some kind of cave. If he were more poetic, he might have likened it to the gates of hell itself.
David spread his arms wide, "Welcome to our sunken hotel."
He took in the sight as they stepped through the entrance, eyes roaming over the room, lingering here and there on a portrait of Jim Morrison, a fountain with an old chandelier poking out where streams of water should be. It was a disaster, maybe even a tragedy, frozen in time under layers of dust and dirt. Michael remained silent, as David continued to talk, training his eyes on the him curiously. This place had to have a story.
"When the big quake hit, this place took a header into the crack. We've been here for...quite awhile now. What do you think?" He settled into his usual place, the old wheelchair sitting like a throne for him. He glanced at Marko, "Go get us some food," He paused, "and something to drink."
Michael watched the small guy hop out, before glancing back over at David and the others, "nice place," he remarked softly, not really sure what else he should say. 'Smells like death'? 'How do you get mail out here?'
"How long have you guys been...staying here?" He asked, sitting down at the edge of the fountain and leaning back. Creepy...but he supposed there was a sort of comfortable air about it. If you were Dracula.
Paul grinned, "Seems like forever, doesn't it?" He pulled out a joint, "Want some?"
Michael gave a sardonic half-smirk, holding out his hand to take the joint. When in Rome, he supposed, remaining silent. So far, these guys were alright. Maybe a little creepy, if you read too much into it, but they had nice bikes. Couldn't be that bad. David grinned at him, watching as he took it.
"Ahh, Marko's back! Fastest run yet, little man." Paul grinned, "What'd you bring us?"
"Chinese."
David smirked, "Chinese, good choice." The smaller biker pulled out a few bottles of beer and shifted his jacket to reveal a large pocket beneath holding a half handle of jack.
"Something special for the occasion, huh?" Marko grinned, laying the platter of boxes out beside David and yanking out the liquor, ceremoniously holding it out to the blonde. Adding a flourishing wave of his hand for the final touch.
"Even better." He took it, unscrewing the top and taking a slow drink before offering it to their guest, "Michael."
Michael eyed the bottle, before slowly reaching over to take it. Hell, it was still summer. Might as well have a bit of fun, right? He unscrewed the bottle and took a gulp. Better with coke, but he'd make do. "Thanks," he said softly, lowering the bottle and handing it out for one of the others to take. Dwayne stood up from the couch and strode over to grab it, before pausing and pushing it back into Michael's grasp.
"Take what you want," he remarked, walking back over to the couch as he snatched up a take-out container beside David and flopped down into his seat.
"Uh...thanks…" Michael looked at the bottle of Jack still in his outstretched hand, and pulled it back, taking a few more gulps. Didn't taste great, but he'd be getting a buzz pretty soon. These guys were alright. He'd definitely been wrong, first impression. Could definitely see himself swinging by later. Not like there was anyone else to hang out with, anyway.
David leaned back, grabbing a carton of chinese. Opening it to see what it was, "Rice?" He picked up another one, "Or noodles?"
Michael looked at him thoughtfully, shrugging as he took another swig. Didn't much matter, did it? He wasn't even that hungry. Plus...as fast as that guy had come back with the food...he was almost convinced they were just fucking with him. Shit had probably been sitting out for like a week. "Rice, I guess." He reached his hand out to take the food from him.
David handed it over, taking a bite of noodles before motioning with his chopsticks to the bottle of jack, "Drink up, Michael."
"You guys are alright," Michael mused as he took another swig. Still tasted like shit, but he was already beginning to feel a pleasant buzz. He didn't drink too often, so it would hit hard and fast. But at least he had rice to soak up half of the hangover he'd probably have in the morning. "How long you been here, anyway?"
Paul cackled nearby, slapping his knee as he shoved a mouthful of rice into his face, shaking his head. Dwayne and Marko exchanged a smirk, eating their food a little slower while they looked back towards David.
David chuckled softly, "Long time, very long time, feels like forever sometimes, doesn't it boys? Had some relatives that actually lived in the hotel before it took a dive."
"That's...pretty long…" Michael replied, slowly taking another bite. It was bland, a meal of jack and rice...but not the worst meal he'd ever had. Better than an afternoon with mom back before the divorce, when the lights would go out and they'd panic about clearing out the fridge. Nothing worse than figuring out a way to combine milk with butter and bologna before they went bad.
"We haven't seen you around, take it you just moved in, haven't gotten a good lay of the land yet." David paused, "We can help you there, show you around."
Marko grinned, "We've got this great place we'll have to show you one night, it's awesome."He gnawed on the thumb of his glove.
"Would you stop that? You're gonna chew a hole in it like you did the last pair." Dwayne rolled his eyes.
Michael yawned, closing his eyes and beginning to bask in the glow of the liquor, "yeah? Sounds fun…" Maybe it was just the Jack talking, but he definitely had a good feeling about these guys, now. Yeah, they weren't the ones who'd fucked with him last night. No way in hell.
David glanced at the others, "So, what do you think?"
"He's pretty and dumb," Dwayne gave him his two cents, glancing over at Michael as the kid set the bottle of Jack down and took a bite of rice. Already a little woozy. Definitely a light-weight.
"Nah, not dumb, just a little dense, bet he's actually smart." Marko grinned, "Doesn't drink much though, so yeah, lightweight, we'll fix that though."
"I like him," Paul mused. "Agree with Dwayne, though. Pretty and dumb. Maybe even dumber than me." He paused. "Fuck...just called myself dumb, didn't I?" He took a hit of his joint, relaxing and letting the smoke rise before he scooped up a bite of rice.
"Well, you are an idiot." David stated, grinning as he watched Michael, "Definitely prettier than you."
"Did you really want your ear pierced? Saw you looking the other night, we can do it for you, avoid the stupid cash scam." This would be a nice easy way to mark him as theirs before he even got his blood in him. An insurance policy.
"Uh…" Michael squinted, "does it hurt?" He looked down at the bottle of jack thoughtfully, "eh...probably had enough now anyway. Yeah, sure."
David grinned, he had just the earring for it too, was saving it for a special occasion, "Tip your head." He said, holding the earring in place, once he did he shoved it through, made it quick and with the jack in his system he didn't feel much of anything, "All done."
Michael looked at the others, setting his half-empty container of rice aside, and reaching up to rub at his ear as he pulled back from David, "think I drank too much," he rubbed at his eyes with his free hand, "might need to sleep it off for a couple hours."
"I'll make sure you get home, how about that? Just tell me where you live and we'll get you and your bike home safe and sound." David stated, chuckling softly, loving this drunk, kind of docile, Michael. So much less defensive than he'd been when they officially met, or when he'd been racing towards his near-death on the bluff.
"Sounds good," Michael yawned, lazily reaching over to seal the lid on the bottle of Jack. He'd be the perfect meal right now. Complacent. Isolated in their little haven. But no, this one was special, it would be fun to groom him, to make him one of them.
"Finish that up and we'll head out." He paused, "Just relax." He chuckled softly, "We'll take care of everything from here on out."
"My mom is gonna be pretty pissed tomorrow," Michael remarked quietly as he undid the cap on the Jack again, a cascade of drunken thoughts rushing to the foreground in his mind, not the least of which a resolution to find a real job and avoid having any future nights like this, as fun as it was. But before long, he wouldn't have to worry about shit like that. Not with the plans David had in mind. Death or otherwise, it would only be a matter of time before his life changed forever.