Reign of Toads
by
Matt
"Mom, I'm going out." Lex calls. His mother shouts something like "be back sometime" and Lex sighs. His parents didn't care what he did so he'd decided to hunt down one of the Frog brothers. As far as he knew, Edgar had given up on hunting and was shaping boards so Lex figured Alan was his best bet.
He'd tried to find as much information as he could, which happened to be three semi-suspicious websites. One was about occult rituals and mentioned the Frogs on their "vampyr" entry. The second was an urban legend site that claimed Alan was fictional and the Edgar Frog who shaped boards had no relation to the fictional characters and doesn't believe in vampires. The third was a black screen. At first Lex thought it was a dead end, but upon accidentally highlighting the screen he found some text. He wrote down the displayed address and told his mom he'd be back sometime.
After scrounging up his money, Lex set out for the bus stop. The bus driver didn't say anything as he got on, and didn't say anything as he pulled the chord to get off. He simply stopped the bus and allowed the kid to get off at a sign that read "DEAD HERE." Lex had scribbled down the sparse directions from the sight and read them over, setting off for a nearby forest.
After what seems like an eternity of wandering Lex comes upon a trailer. He checks and rechecks the address and directions. It's definitely the place. He steels himself and steps up to the door. It's open before he can knock, an angry Alan Frog standing before him.
"What the fuck? Do you know what time it is?" he asks, glaring. Lex shrugs.
"It's like three. Look, I hauled ass out here to learn about vampire hunting. Are you gonna teach me or not?" Lex says, staring his hero down. The man sighs and runs a hand through his black hair. He shrugs and motions for Lex to come inside, shutting the door behind him.
"Did my brother send you?" he asks as soon as Lex is inside. The boy shakes his head.
"I figure he's stopped believing. He's shaping boards in California or something, I dunno." says Lex. Alan nods and sits down at a table, motioning for Lex to do the same.
"Look, kid, you don't want to learn from me. How old are you anyway?" Alan asks. Lex shrugs.
"Same age as you when you started. And yes, I do want to learn from you. I spent months scrounging for money to get here and five days trying to find information on your location other than occult sights, vampire-wannabe forums, and urban legend BS. I'm sticking around." he says. Alan looks at him, suddenly suspicious.
"How did you find me?" he asks. Lex huffs and buries his head in his hands.
"It was torture. Half the internet decided you don't exist and the other half basically worshipped you. I finally found a page with info. It was just solid black, but when you highlight it text appears with an address and instructions on where to go." says the boy with a laugh. Alan sighs and rolls his eyes.
"God forbid I turn you away after that. What do you want to know about hunting?" he asks. Lex thinks for a minute, then answers.
"Tools. What do you use and when do you use it?" he asks. Alan nods, thinking.
"Stakes are versatile and easy to carry. You can get big ones and small, concealable ones. Wood is a classic but metal works too, but vamps can break either kind. Holy water does wonders. Edgar used to fill up water balloons and bless them. He got ordained online, check it out if you have the time. Sharpened metal crosses are fantastic when weighted for throwing. Our friend Sam would use a bow and arrow, so that works. Decapitation also works, but it's messy and never a pretty sight." Alan explains. Lex nods, scribbling it all down in the notebook he brought with.
"Wait, Sam Emerson? The one who went insane?" Lex asks. Alan shrugs.
"I don't know, I haven't talked to him in ages." he answers. Lex nods.
"Alright. So, what about ideal hunting situations?" he asks. Alan laughs.
"That's obvious. Always go when the vamps are asleep and leave nothing alive." he says. Lex scribbles Alan's words in his notebook.
"How about partners? Should I work alone or with a friend or a whole team?" Lex asks. Alan smiles and shrugs.
"It all depends. If you can handle the target, go alone. If it's two vampires or a whole coven asleep then bring one friend to tag-team it. If the whole coven is awake and you're not sure how well you'll do then bring a team of five to ten hunters." he says. Lex nods when something catches his attention, a small rustling noise from outside.
"Oh shit. Get down!" he says as a rock flies through a window, allowing sunlight to follow the shattered glass. Alan curses and fumbles for his nearby sunglasses, shoving his them on. Lex stands to fight, pulling a stake from his bag as the door opens.
Standing in the doorway is a bleach-blond vampire in a black trench coat. He's laughing, enjoying Alan's dismay and the boy before him.
"I see you're holding up." he says to Alan. The Frog snorts and points at the door.
"Just close the damn door, David." he says with a sigh. David obliges and sits by Lex. The boy scoots away, clutching the stake in his hand.
"Put the stake down, kid." David says. Lex shakes his head and both Alan and David roll their eyes.
"Edgar still shaping boards?" asks the vampire. Alan shrugs.
"Apparently. Sam in a mental asylum?" he asks. David shrugs.
"Hell if I know, I don't associate with the Emersons. Why'd you call me?" David asks. Alan sighs and throws up his hands.
"I don't know, I was being stupid. It's not like I'm going to my brother." he says. David snorts and pats Alan's shoulder.
"He'd probably go all stake-on-sight if you came near him. Seriously though, you called." says the vamp. Alan sighs and shrugs.
"You think you could track down a Superman comic, number fourteen?" Alan asks. David shrugs.
"I can pull some strings. Have I let you down before?" he asks.
"Actually, remember that one time we tried to kill you?" Alan says with a malicious glint in his eyes. David growls.
"We don't talk about that, I'm still standing by my previous statement." he says. Alan rolls his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm trying to find your boyfriend, lay off." Alan says. Lex clears his throat and both turn to stare at him.
"Explain." says the boy. Alan laughs and shakes his head.
"I told you you didn't want to learn from me. You've clearly heard about our first hunt, right?" Alan asks. Lex nods.
"This is the same David, hell, he hasn't even changed his damn haircut. I turned half-bloodsucker during a hunt and I've been living off animals since. This douche-bag decided to visit me one day and we've struck up a rather...tense friendship." Alan explains. Lex shrugs.
"Well shit." he says. David laughs.
"He came to you to learn how to hunt? Last time I checked you either shit yourself and let a fucking DOG do the dirty work, or cheated and attacked in the day! Oh, that's classic!" he says. Alan rolls his eyes.
"Shut the fuck up, last I checked you needed an ex-slayer to find your boyfriend." he retorts. Lex snorts and David huffs.
"Shut up. I didn't mean to lose him, we thought he was dead! He had a fucking beam of wood through his stomach!" David shouts. Alan laughs.
"His STOMACH! Not his heart! For a vampire you're kind of an idiot." Alan says. David huffs and mutters whatever.
"Hey, for whatever it's worth, good luck. I should probably head out." Lex says. David mutters something unintelligible and Alan punches his arm.
"He means thank you. Any more questions?" he asks. Lex grins and shakes his head.
"Naw, thanks though. I had fun." he says. Alan laughs and shakes the kid's hand.
"Have a safe trip, kid." he says, waving. Lex waves back and heads to the "DEAD HERE" sign to wait for another bus. It would be a long trip home.