AN: Before I start, I should let you know that whilst this story won't follow any labelled AU, it is kind of AU. While writing this I'm acting as if everything post season five hasn't happened. So, don't go correcting me on anyone who should be dead, but isn't in my story :P Thank you! Hope you enjoy.
Out of Town
"Just take a deep breath, sweetness. Everything's going to be just fine."
The voice resonated through her, sending vibrations up and down her aching body. She didn't know who it was—she didn't recognise the person who was speaking. It was an accent she didn't recognise, though it sounded vaguely familiar. Like a stronger dialect of British. She didn't even know where she was, just that she was sitting bolt upright on an uncomfortable, straight-backed chair, with her hands and feet bound, and her vision obscured.
"Where am I?!" she screamed. Her voice bounced around the room she was in, and the sound of cruel laughter followed. "Who are you?" she felt a lump forming in the back of her throat. She couldn't cry. She wouldn't cry.
"Oh, honey. Surely you've seen the news? Now that your kind has had quite the effect on the world, we've had to take it back. You. Don't. Belong. Here." The person had advanced upon her, resting his hands on her arms and breathing hotly in her face. He smelt like a doctor—like clinical soap and disinfectant. Surely she wasn't in a hospital? Why would anyone take her to a hospital?
"Are you ready?" Another voice, a female one, called through some kind of overhead speaker. She could tell from the static and volume of the voice. "Three...two...one. Charge."
She screamed in agony as a sudden jolt of electricity charged through her body. Every single hair on her body seemed to stand on end; every goosebump was brought to the surface of her skin. The electric seemed to head straight for her brain, where it bounced around her head erratically. Her muscles clenched, she balled her fists and scrunched up her toes.
And then, almost as soon as it happened, it was over. Her head lolled forwards, and she drifted out of consciousness.
The Quarter wasn't always the first place that Klaus wanted to be—especially not when so much went on. Sometimes, all he wanted was a little peace and quiet. Somewhere that didn't involve the boredom that Elijah brought with him, or the drama that seemed to follow Rebekah around.
So, it was about once a month that he decided to take a trip out of New Orleans. Sometimes he just visited another part of Louisiana, but on this occasion, he had decided to leave the state altogether. With the current anti-vampire revolt that was happening across the USA, it was a risky move. The only reason that New Orleans was still standing as a vampire capital was because of the sheer amount of them that lived there—not to mention, it being the home of several original vampires.
It had appeared that the human race wasn't as dull and dim as half the supernatural population believed. Vampires might have believed that only a select few humans knew of their existence, but it was the vampires who were acting dim. For each tiny, one-trick-pony town across the United States, there would be at least one vampire. And there was generally at least one human who knew about this—especially within the close-knit communities similar to Mystic Falls.
There were humans who had no ill feeling towards vampires, but their ratio to the humans detested vampires was nothing in comparison.
It had taken about a year for all of these humans to come together, to form an allegiance which supernatural creatures never even saw coming. They started researching, learning, adapting. They told more humans of the dark creatures that were spread across the nation, and slowly, more and more people became aware, became fearful.
Small armies sprung up, though they all descended from one group in particular. It had gone unnoticed for a while, and even when vampires like Klaus became aware of it, they hadn't taken it seriously. They called themselves the Temple of the Rising Sun, a group dedicated to the culling of vampires. In secret, they refined ways of getting rid of the undead, and discovered means of protection that no one saw coming.
Their biggest movement was the creation of contact lenses that protected against the power of compulsion. They were infused with Vervain, and were something that went unnoticed for a very long time. Vervain was usually either contained in an object that a human would hold or keep on their person, or it was ingested. Vampires could fend off either of these methods, either by removing the Vervain-infused object, or bleeding out a human until it was all gone. But they never imagined that Vervain would be placed directly in the eyeball—so simple, yet so unexpected.
There were hundreds of other ways that the humans managed to find leverage above the vampires. Ultraviolet light, wooden bullets, and Vervain. All of these things were used in their advantage, with the promise of fending off vampires for good.
But, like many others, Klaus Mikaelson had no fear of the Temple of the Rising Sun. Even though their presence graced TV sets many a night, he felt no reason to be afraid of them. He was the hybrid, after all. Their Vervain contacts and wooden bullets didn't worry him.
However, he did make sure that the place he visited had a distinct lack of supernatural creatures; at least as far as he knew. He ventured east to Georgia, avoiding Atlanta and other major cities. He drove and drove across the state, until he found a tiny little town, self-proclaiming to only have around two-hundred residents. It was called Garfield, and it was the perfect escape from the rush and excitement of New Orleans.
Most of the buildings were brick-white, giving everything a clean, summery feel, and every resident that Klaus passed looked smiley and lazy. The houses all had large plots of land and were spaced apart, and their seemed to be minimal shops and social areas. However, he did discover one tiny, run down little bar, which was perfect for him at that moment in time.
Once entering the little bar, he was greeted with looks of confusion from the sole person - the barkeep. He was a big guy, wearing a chequered shirt and a cap, and rubbing a glass with a grubby rag. "Who are you?" he demanded to know in his thick, Georgian accent. "I've not seen you 'round these parts."
"Oh, just passing through," Klaus replied with a grin. He took a seat at the bar, and ordered a glass of scotch. "Keep them coming. Oh—and I suppose I'll also be needing a room. Know where I can find one of those?"
The barkeep gave Klaus a suspicious look, but didn't seem too perturbed. "We have a couple of rooms upstairs. Fifty bucks for the night, and an extra ten if you want the continental breakfast."
"I'll pass on the breakfast, mate," Klaus responded, and downed his scotch in one go, signalling for another.
The drinks kept on coming as the day wore on, and the barkeep eventually warmed up to Klaus. The hybrid was barely interested in the tales he waffled on about his small town life in Garfield, but as no one else entered the bar to take his mind off it, Klaus allowed him to keep talking.
It was gone ten in the evening when the door to the bar opened, and someone entered, taking a seat swiftly beside Klaus. He resisted the urge to loudly groan—a whole empty bar, and the villager decided to come and sit right next to him. He crooked his finger for the barkeep to pour him another drink, and rolled his eyes.
"Make that two of those," a smooth voice beside him spoke. The barkeep looked between Klaus and the newcomer oddly.
"Not had two new folk around here in one day before," he commented quietly as he poured two drinks. Klaus furrowed his brow and turned to face his new bar mate.
He was met with the strong-jawed face and piercing blue eyes of none other than Damon Salvatore. Klaus stared at him for a while, observing the dark look in his eye and the frown on his face. He didn't seem to be his usual sarcastic self. "What are you doing here?" he questioned the Salvatore brother, before downing his drink.
"Looking for you," Damon replied instantly. "I've been tracking you from Louisiana."
"And why would you do something like that?"
Damon paused to finish off his own drink. "I need your help."
Klaus almost laughed. "I haven't heard hide nor hair of you or anyone from Mystic Falls for around two years. I put plenty of states between us so that I didn't have to deal with you and your doppleganger drama. What could you possibly need my help for? Surely there's your brother, and the transformed Elena. Not to mention the lovely Caroline—"
"They're all gone," interrupted Damon, and Klaus didn't miss the way his voice cracked. Damon was clearly worried about something.
"Leave us," Klaus ordered the barkeep, staring directly into his eye. The barkeep nodded quickly, and vanished through the door at the back of the bar.
"What do you mean, gone?"
"They took them. About three weeks ago. There was a rampage on Mystic Falls. It came out of nowhere; no one expected it. They gassed the whole town out with Vervain and took every vampire out. The only reason I avoided it was because I was out of town during the attack. I returned early after no one answered their Goddamned calls." He paused, and reached into his pocket for something. "There was no werewolf, witch, or vampire left in town when I got back. Just ordinary folk and these posters, plastered everywhere." He unfolded the large piece of paper, spreading it out on the bar.
It was a minimalist poster, containing nothing but a pastel yellow background and the image of a basic temple on a green hill, with a large, bright orange sun above it. The words 'Temple of the Rising Sun' were scripted in block capitals on the greenery of the hill.
"The stupid anti-vampire marching band?" Klaus scoffed, and screwed up the poster, throwing it over the bar. "Tell me your not scared of those twits, Damon."
"I wasn't," Damon continued. "And neither was anyone else. Until they came, that is, and gassed everyone with Vervain juice."
"Tell me why I should help you."
Damon sighed loudly, and leaned back on his stool. "Do you think they are going to stop at Mystic Falls? Do you think they won't head straight for New Orleans next—where the biggest community of vampires and hybrids exist?"
"We'll be ready for them, mate." Klaus smirked. "And where have these Temple folk taken them, anyway? Sounds like a summer camp for vampires to me."
"From what I've heard, it's a research facility," Damon looked mildly uncomfortable. "Which means they will be conducting freaky experiments on them, no doubt. If it's anything like what I went through with the Augustine projects. Torture. Pain."
"I still don't know why I need to care!"
"Because they have Caroline!" Damon snapped suddenly. "Do you think I've forgotten about your infatuation with everyone's favourite blonde bimbo vamp? Do you think you've forgotten?"
Klaus turned his gaze to his empty glass, clenching his jaw as Caroline's face swam into his mental view. "So where do we find this sunshine temple, mate?"
Please leave your thoughts!