London, 1889.
A young boy ran down the dark London streets chasing something. He had barely even caught the slightest glimpse of the creature before it raced off, but because of its speed he was not able to see what he was pursuing. The creature was rather fast, and there was no way that he could keep chasing it.
"Sebastian!" he yelled, coming to an abrupt stop.
"Yes, my lord?" the butler appeared by his master's side as if by magic.
"What is that thing, Sebastian?" Ciel demanded, somewhat out of breath.
"It is certainly not human, nor any kind of animal… by normal definition. It is nearly as fast as I am."
Ciel frowned at the statement. Nothing could challenge Sebastian's speed.
"That is… quite a nuisance…" He paused and looked at the butler before him questioning. "I suppose… it couldn't be one of your kind?"
"No. Of that I am certain. It is a being that is completely unfamiliar to me, my lord."
Ciel scrutinised his demon butler for any hints to what might be going through his mind, but he simply stood there. Sebastian's hand pressed to his chest respectfully, yet with the faintest hints of a mocking smile gracing his lips.
"Shall we leave it for tonight, young master? It must be on the other side of London by now." The demon smiled, and added, with mocking concern "And you look like you could use some sleep, my lord."
Ciel glared at Sebastian, and thought about refusing the offer on the basis that it hurt his pride. But if the creature could run that fast it would have little trouble evading them until dawn. What was needed was a plan - some idea for a trap, which could wait until morning. And his butler was right, he was exhausted.
"Alright, Sebastian. But we will try again tomorrow night. 'The casualties must be kept to a minimum', those were the Queen's orders. Take me home."
"Yes, my lord."
The butler picked up the boy bridal style, to grumbling protests, and swiftly carried him home.
Ciel was sitting at his desk the next morning, going through the information again that Sebastian had collected.
"Is there anything I've missed?" he asked himself, "Hmmm… 'Screams were heard late at night'… then… 'When witnesses went to see what was happening all that was found is a pool of blood on the street'… and… 'No bodies have been discovered, nor any trace of remnants of the supposed murder, apart from the blood'. And this was the case for each and every one of the victims. However, they cannot be sure exactly who the victims are, seeing as there has been no trace found."
He glanced up briefly as he heard a distant crash, followed by the wailed apologies of Maylene. He rolled his eyes at the incompetence of his maid, and went back to work, quietly hoping it wasn't his favourite tea set.
It was early afternoon before he was interrupted again. It was a welcome break from his train of thought, especially as it was Sebastian bringing his lunch.
"I have prepared a selection of savoury breads for your lunch young master, accompanied by Earl Grey tea. There is also a strawberry and white chocolate cheesecake for your dessert." The butler put down the tray on an empty spot on the desk, which Ciel could have sworn was not empty moments ago. The tea was offered to the boy, who was silently relieved to see was held in his favourite cup. So that clumsy maid managed to spare it this time, he thought.
"I shall take the croissant and the scone, Sebastian." Ciel said as he savoured the taste of his tea.
"As you wish, young master." Sebastian daintily selected the desired bread products and placed them on a small plate matching his cup and saucer. "Has much progress been made on the case?"
"Not a lot." Ciel admitted, grudgingly. "The creature doesn't seem to have a preference in race, gender, age, occupation or social rank of its victims. The only obvious common factor in each of the incidents is that they were alone, outside, after dark. The creature apparently didn't care if the victims were heard, since many attacks took place in residential areas, where loud noises were bound to be investigated."
Ciel frowned. He knew he was going to make a trap for the creature, and he just knew who was going to be the bait. Why is it always me? He thought, and sighed.
"I should try to lure it out. Walk around the streets alone tonight, like the victims did. You will obviously be somewhere close by, out of sight, to make sure I'm not another victim, and that is an order, Sebastian."
"Yes, my lord." the demon said, bowing deeply.
Let's just hope he doesn't see any cats while I'm being chased… the boy thought as Sebastian exited the room.
(Evening, 11pm)
Ciel walked the streets, trying to avoid any places where people were likely to still be, such as brothels, pubs and the like. There was neither sight nor sound of anything that even vaguely related to the case. He sighed; he'd already been walking around for more than half an hour. This was going to be a long night.
Sebastian watched from a distant rooftop as his master wound his way through the empty streets. He was trying to make sure he was close enough to be of assistance when the creature showed up, but far enough away to ensure that it did. A second night's failure would not do well for the young master's mood.
Ciel heard a shrill scream. He whipped around to the source of the noise, pulling out his gun as he did so. What he saw was nothing like what he expected.
There was a shape, only a few feet high, but certainly much longer than that. It had a body similar to one of a centipede, long with segmented armour plating. Several small legs were along its length, stubby and out of proportion to the rest of its body. The creatures face was somewhat canine-like, but it contained more teeth than any dog would ever have. The creature's eyes were large and bulbous, and protruding above the top of its head on what seemed to be stalks.
All of this reached Ciel's mind in less than a second. The creature charged towards the boy, shrieking again. He fired his gun at it and the bullet ricocheted off the creature's tough hide. Bullets have no effect, Ciel thought. As the monster pounced, the boy was dragged out of harms way. Sebastian had one arm wrapped protectively around his master, while the other was already throwing kitchen knives at the beast.
They hit into its side with a rather satisfying dull 'thunk' sound, causing the creature to holler in pain. Sebastian took that opportunity to twist the cutlery embedded in the monster sadistically, causing another scream of pain. Ciel winced and put his hands over his ears in an attempt to reduce the shrillness of the shriek. The beast writhed blindly, one leg lashing out hitting the butler square in the chest, sending him and Ciel flying backwards. Sebastian was surprised to find the creature had incredible strength along with its speed.
It took this spare moment as an opportunity to escape, knives still buried in its side, it raced away and around a corner.
Sebastian watched it go, staring in disbelief, Ciel still under one arm.
"Put me down, Sebastian." Ciel said haughtily.
"Of course, young master."
There was a long pause.
"What in the world was that thing?"
A/N: Okay, so this is my first time writing a fanfiction. I hope people like it.
In case you don't know, it's going to be a Doctor Who - Kuroshitsuji crossover, based in London 1889. This chapter just touches on the Kuro bits. =)