Author's Note: Enjoy this new chapter of Protection!
Chapter two: Deals and Crooks
Ten miles outside of London was an ancient temple which belongs to a group, known as the Maroons. They were a group of vampires who were very territorial and stubborn.
They've existed for almost three thousand years and mostly, people thought the Maroons were myths. The people who knew they existed were vampire-hunters, other immortals, or comic freaks. The Maroons protected thousands of ancient and rare artifacts. Their greatest prize is the Gauntlet of Immortality. It can make any human an immortal and any immortal more powerful than the other.
The gauntlet contained five gems; Gem of Speed, Gem of Strength, Gem of Insanity, Gem of Reality, and Gem of Invisibility. With all the five of them together, the gauntlet becomes a dangerous weapon; too dangerous for any immortal to handle. Millions have tried to steal it but none have ever succeeded. People who ever entered the property were never heard from again. They were either executed or sealed underground. The Maroons have vowed to protect the gauntlet at all cost. Ever since then, no one has tried to steal the gauntlet or the gems. Until now, that is.
The temple was a square-shaped circle. In the center was the courtyard, where the fountain was located. Two Maroon enforcers were guarding two double-doors. They wore blood-red leather suits with maroon hooded-capes and black army boots. They both had long black hair that went pass their shoulders and had silver eyes. They each had a scythe strapped to their back.
In the room was a single glass case. It contained a gray gauntlet with five holes in it. One had a blue gemstone but the rest of them were bare. The gem gave the power of strength. It can make anyone the strongest being on Earth.
It was midnight and the air was crisp. The moon hung low in the sky and the stars shone bright in the dark. The Maroons were usually out feeding but they decided to stay in. They all had a feeling that someone would steal the gauntlet. Everyone knew it was impossible for anyone to steal from the temple but the Elder insisted they kept watch at all times.
Suddenly, a loud boom filled the air; shaking the ground. The two enforcers took their scythes from their backs. Their fangs grew as they walked around the courtyard. There was no one around. But they couldn't take any chances.
"Who's out there?!" they ordered; growling. "Show yourself!"
Suddenly, a black vapor surrounded them. The air quickly grew cold and it seemed that the moon disappeared. As the strange vapor finally vanished, in front of the two Maroons was a tall figure. He wore a black army suit with heavy army boots. His face was covered up by his hood but you could make out his shiny blue eyes. A jagged knife and 9mm gun was strapped to his belt. Strapped to his back was a jagged machete blade.
"Who the hell are you?" one enforcer asked suspiciously. The figure smiled menacingly.
"Your worst nightmare." He suddenly flipped into the air and his body began to morph. His suit melted into his skin and eyes flashed yellow. Wings sprouted from his back; black, slick feathers glistened in the night. A beak grew from his face and red scars appeared over his eyes. The beast landed on his feet and let out a shrill screech. There were visible metal plates in his head and beak. He looked down hungrily at the two vampires.
The two Maroons backed up a few steps. They held their weapons high and growled. Finally, the monster jumped into the air again and landed behind the vampires. It took its right wing and whacked them aside. The Maroons fell to the ground. They both got to their feet and charged at the creature.
One swung his weapon at the creature; slicing its arm. It let out a cry and went after him. It knocked him down to the ground and grabbed his leg with his beak. The Maroon screamed in pain and began to punch the creature's head with his fist. He kept punching it but its jaws were locked around his ankle. The beast picked up the Maroon and threw him into the air.
He landed head-first into the fountain. The water began to turn red. The other Maroon leaped into the air and drove the blade of his scythe deep into its back. The beast suddenly slammed the enforcer off its back. It began to repeatedly punch him in the face. The Maroon's face was red with blood and scratches. Finally, the beast grabbed the vampire by the neck, lifted him, and slammed him into ground; knocking him unconscious.
The monster howled and ran to the two double doors that the enforcers were guarding. It busted through both doors and began to morph back to its usual form. The figure walked up to the glass case.
Those fools, he thought as he smiled. He smashed through the glass; shards flying everywhere. He slowly grabbed the gauntlet from its stand. The blue gemstone glistened in the moonlight. The figure slipped the gauntlet on with ease. The gem began to glow and he could suddenly feel the power going through his veins.
"With its power, I can bring this bloody town to its knees!" he laughed evilly.
Cut me down
But it's you who'll have further to fall
Ghost town and haunted love
Raise your voice, sticks and stones may break my bones
I'm talking loud, not saying much
"You both are wasting your time," Scapegrace sneered. Valkyrie Cain and Skulduggery Pleasant were chasing the zombie across Dublin City. He tried to kill an unidentified woman and her child but luckily, they got there just in time. Skulduggery and Valkyrie chased him onto the roof of Church of Saints Augustine and John.
When they had him cornered, Skulduggery answered, "Since we are wasting our time, why won't you surrender now? It would make things easier."
Scapegrace laughed that nasty laugh of his. "I will never surrender, you pathetic fool! Know why? Because I am the Killer Supreme! I turn murder into an art form. I make it into a painting by using blood and guts and … and messiness. Now that I'm much stronger than before, I can kill you both!"
Skulduggery tilted his head a little. "Very well then." As he snapped his fingers, a flame grew from the center of his palm. He threw it at Scapegrace but he missed. Scapegrace charged at him and punched the skeleton detective in the face. He sent three more jabs before grabbing Skulduggery and throwing him across the roof. The detective crashed into the ground. Guess he wasn't joking about being stronger, he thought as the zombie walked toward him.
Scapegrace raised his fist but before he could throw a punch, Valkyrie jumped on top of him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him away from Skulduggery. She was pulling so hard that she thought his head would come off. Scapegrace grabbed her arms, turned around to face her, and punched Valkyrie.
He grabbed her from behind and began to strangle her. As she gasped for air, Valkyrie reared her elbow and jammed it into his nose. He yelped in pain and instantly let her go. She snapped her fingers and a flame appeared in her palm. Scapegrace looked at her; nose squished and bloody.
"Bitch!" he yelled. "This is last time you'll ever do that!" Valkyrie threw the flame at him but when the ball of fire landed on his clothes, it went out instantly. The zombie growled and started toward her.
Suddenly, a strong gust of wind pushed against him; sending him flying across the roof. He crashed into the ground. He got up just in time to see Skulduggery running toward him. The detective smashed into him and the two began to roll across the ground; punching each other. Scapegrace finally kicked the detective off him. He jumped up and ran toward him. He punched him but Skulduggery blocked it than hit the zombie in the face; smashing his nose even more. Scapegrace yelled in pain and began to hit him harder.
Valkyrie ran toward them. Scapegrace grabbed Skulduggery's right arm, twisted it, and then jammed his knee into it. There was a loud sickening crack and a scream. He grabbed the detective by the neck and pushed him toward the edge. Skulduggery caught a glimpse below. Oh hell, this is going to hurt.
Before he could throw the skeleton over the edge, something kicked Scapegrace's legs out from under him. He fell to the ground. Skulduggery felt himself tipping over. Before he fell over the edge, Valkyrie grabbed his black tie and pulled him back on the surface.
"Thank you." He said; rubbing his neck.
"No problem." They turned around just in time to see Scapegrace fleeing toward the door. Cradling his broken arm to his chest, Skulduggery opened his left palm and then a huge ball of fire – size of a bowling ball – appeared. He reared his arm back and threw it at the zombie.
It hit him in the back; sending Scapegrace crashing into the ground. Before he could get up off the ground, Skulduggery kicked him hard in the stomach. He continued kicking him until a loud crack filled the air. He had broken the zombie's ribs. Scapegrace just stayed there; weeping in pain and defeat.
"That's for my arm."
Valkyrie and Skulduggery drove toward the Wax Museum. Scapegrace was in the backseat; complaining about his broken ribs and how the handcuffs were too tight. When they arrived, Skulduggery parked the Bentley in front of the building. The two got out and then he pulled the zombie out of the car. Skulduggery was able to snap his arm back in place but he still had to wrap it in a bandage.
Valkyrie walked ahead of them. They entered the museum and walked through the corridor. They made it to a wall and Valkyrie felt around. Struggling, Scapegrace tried to break free from the detective's grip. Skulduggery had bent him over and kneed him in the stomach. Scapegrace gasped for air and stopped trying to escape.
Valkyrie finally found what she was looking for and pushed it in. The wall opened and the three went inside. As they made it down the stairs, they walked through a dark hallway; lit by torches. They arrived to a door. Two Cleavers were guarding it. Skulduggery gestured to the zombie and the Cleavers nodded. The three continued through the door. They walked through a long corridor before entering a room. There were several mages in the room; discussing business. The three stopped in their tracks.
"Sapphire," Skulduggery called out. A female came toward them. They call her Sapphire because she had the bluest eyes anyone had ever seen. She had red skin and small horns in her head. Her hair was pitch-black with a hint of red. She wore a black leather suit and spiked combat boots. She was the new Elder of the Sanctuary and she made sure everything was taken care of. Sapphire was also a gargoyle and a tough one, too.
She walked up to them and examined the damaged criminal. "So," she answered. "I see you two handled this sorry excuse for a killer quite well."
"Screw you, troll bitch!" Scapegrace sneered. Suddenly, Sapphire kicked him in the mouth – hard. Dark infested blood flew everywhere. Valkyrie stared in disgust as Scapegrace's jaw disconnected from his mouth. It hung by veins, decayed skin, and muscle tissue. He was screaming in pain. Sapphire whistled and two Cleavers approached them.
"Take this son of a buck to the cells." She ordered. The two nodded and then dragged the weeping zombie away. Valkyrie turned to Skulduggery.
"You have something on your shirt." She said. Skulduggery looked down and found two dark spots of blood on his white shirt. Valkyrie couldn't really tell but she was certain that he was ticked off. Sapphire sighed.
"Sorry about that," she answered. "That name just gets to me." Valkyrie and Skulduggery nodded. Anyone who worked with Sapphire knew that no one should ever call her a troll.
Skulduggery cleared his throat. "Is there anything else you need us to do before we head out?"
"Nope, you two are free to go," Sapphire began to walk off. "Job well done. Now if you excuse me, I have a zombie king to fry." As she left, the duo turned and headed for the door. When they made it outside, Valkyrie could see the sky changing color. Morning had come.
She turned to Skulduggery. He seemed to be deep in thought. "What are you thinking about?" she asked.
"I'm not sure, a lot of things," he responded. "Crime, life, how sad it is to have only few hours of sleep left."
"But you don't sleep." Valkyrie pointed out.
"Exactly, and I was talking about you." He said. She rolled her eyes. This is what she liked most about Skulduggery. He can be funny in the weirdest ways. As they neared the car, she suddenly frowned. Then she gasped.
"Skulduggery!"
He turned to where she was looking. Sitting on top of the Bentley was a tall hooded figure. Skulduggery got Valkyrie behind him and took out his gun. Sapphire suggested that he replace his revolver with a new gun. It was a black 9milimeter.
The figure raised his hands. "Easy, I am not here to harm you."
"Who are you?" Skulduggery demanded; raising his gun. Then he caught a glimpse of his cape. It was maroon. "Claudius?"
The figure took off his hood. It revealed a young man with black hair and silver eyes. His hair went passed his muscular shoulders. He reminded Valkyrie of a character from an action/romance novel. He walked toward them.
Skulduggery put away his gun and went greet him. The two shook hands.
"It has been awhile."
"Yes, it has." At that moment, Valkyrie saw his fangs. He was a vampire! She thought the Sanctuary didn't associate with them because they were supposed to be evil. But Skulduggery was different. He had a habit of breaking the rules. She began to walk up to them.
"Claudius," Skulduggery said. "This is Miss Valkyrie Cain, my new partner. Valkyrie, this is Claudius. He is part of the Maroons; a secret society run by vampires."
"Hello."
"Pleasure to meet a fine young woman, such as yourself," Claudius took her hand in his and kissed it; his fangs lightly grazing the skin in the process. Valkyrie began to blush as she slowly took her hand back. There were so many question swarming in her head right then. Who is this man? Why is he here? How does Skulduggery know him? She decided to ask the one that puzzled her most.
"How can you walk out here?"
"I am sorry?"
"I mean, the sun is nearly out. Don't vampires get burned by the sun?"
Claudius chuckled. "Well, my dear, that's just an old folk's tale. The sun doesn't kill us but it can make us ill. It's the main reason why we do most of our hunting at night."
Skulduggery suddenly cleared his throat. "Well then, Claudius, what brings you to Dublin?"
"I am here on business," he replied. "The Elder has sent me to retrieve you and Madam Cain."
"Is there a reason?"
"Can't say. But he says to retrieve you immediately. We need to get to London quickly." He walked toward the car.
Skulduggery turned to Valkyrie. "Shall we?"
She smiled. "We shall." Then they started toward the car.
I'm bulletproof, nothing to lose
Fire away, fire away
Ricochet, you take your aim
Fire away, fire away
You shoot me down but I won't fall
I am titanium
You shout me down but I won't fall
I am titanium
I am titanium
In Downtown London, there were a lot of abandon warehouses. Each one discarded and smeared with graffiti. But there was one in particular. It was an old club building. It was boarded up and rats scurried through the halls.
A gang sat inside it; looking frustrated. A man was on the floor; bleeding and beaten. He was shivering in fear. Standing over him was a tall muscular wolf. He had red symbols over his black body and glistening yellow eyes. He wore leather pants and black work boots. Attached to his brown belt were two silver guns, a sharp knife, and a winded-up whip. He also had on a black and white leather jacket that went down to his ankles. It was open to reveal his strong, muscular chest. His tail swayed threateningly.
"Where did you say our money was?" he growled. The man was sweating blood.
He gulped. "I t-told you, I'm getting it. I-I'll get your money, Lukas. I j-just need more t-." It was then that the wolf called Lukas grabbed him by the throat. He was lifted off the ground; feet dangling.
Lukas snarled. "Your time is up, Dan. My friends and I have been waiting far too long for our money to come in. And our patience has run out. So your time is officially up."
Dan's eyes grew wide in fear. He started to cry. "No, please don't. Please have mercy on-." Before he could say anything else, Lukas snapped his neck. His life leaked out of him. With a scoff, Lukas tossed the body aside.
When will they learn? He thought angrily. Another wolf walked up beside him. His name was Remus. The two wolves wore similar clothing except his jacket wasn't as long as Lukas' and his fur was tan.
"Piece of shit," he huffed. "I hate it when they don't pay on time." He kicked a chair; sending it flying across the room.
Someone came up behind Lukas and put their arms around him. She was a pinkish-white bunny with purple hair and blue eyes. She wore leather boy shorts and a grey rib top. She had two swords strapped to her back. They call her Jewels.
"Why are you so upset, Luke?" she asked. "We taught him a lesson and we showed them how to respect us."
"It's not that, babe." Unwrapping her arms, Lukas sat on top of a table. "It's not just Dan, it's all of them. They're beginning to underestimate us. We are losing our sharp edge. We been controlling this bloody city for four years and I refuse to hand it over to some weak son of a buck who thought he could screw us over."
Both Jewels and Remus nodded in agreement. Together, they were known as the Punishers. They were the best gang in the city of London. The only people who knew about them were other mutants, immortals, and addicts. If anyone wanted something from them, they have to understand that the gang expected something in return. But now it seemed that people have been denying their power.
Lukas sighed. "There has to be a way to show people that we mean business. To show them who's in charge again. But how, exactly?"
"I think I can help," a voice from above answered.
Lukas suddenly jumped off the table. The trio withdrew their guns and looked up. Standing on the catwalk was a hooded figure with piercing blue eyes. He was holding a duffel bag in one hand and a machete in the other.
"Who the hell are you?"
"Funny you should ask. I'm the man who is about to change your lives." The figure began to pace back and forth. Remus snorted.
"What are you, some sort of product salesman?" he asked.
The man laughed suddenly. "No, I'm just here to offer you a chance to become stronger than you are today." Lukas began to slowly lower his gun. Can he really help us? He signaled for the others to put away their weapons.
"Yeah. How are you going to do that?"
"Well," the man said. "I'll do it with this." He pulled up his sleeve; revealing an ancient gauntlet. The trio gasped in shock.
Remus pointed with a shaking finger. "How did you get the Gauntlet of Immortality? No has ever had the guts to steal from those bloodsuckers."
The figure looked at the gauntlet proudly. "Yes, well, let's just say I overpowered them." Lukas smiled. He started to like this guy. "But unfortunately, I only have one of its Gems of Power. This is where you three come in. With your help, I'll be able to unlock the other four to bring this vermin-infested city to its knees. Can I guarantee your assistance?"
Jewels and Remus eyed Lukas curiously. He was shaking his head slowly. Then he questioned, "Why should we help you? We are capable to look out for our own."
They couldn't tell but the man grinned. "So glad you ask." Suddenly, he tossed the duffel bag onto the table below. As it hit the surface, dust filled the air. Lukas waved the mist away and stared at the bag. It looked like an ordinary duffel bag.
Jewels was the first to walk up to it. She pulled the zipper across the opening and a foul smell filled the room. When she looked inside, she backed away with a startled gasp and covered her mouth with her hand. Lukas went over to her. As he looked inside, his yellow eyes widen.
"Oh, shit," Remus whispered.
Inside the bag were seven unfamiliar heads. Their faces showed shock and their mouths was a frozen scream. The blood was started to leak from the bottom. Lukas looked up at the figure who was staring at his machete; the weapon glistening in the light. He realized this was not the person to be messing with. Remus suddenly vomited.
"It took me two hours to collect those," the figure explained. "Think of what I could do in one night. If you help me, you won't only be rewarded with cash. I'll reward you with respect from the people who denied your power. Together, we can rule this city. Now what will it be?" He put the machete by his side; letting the three see its sharp edges. It showed dry blood stains.
Lukas held the quivering bunny closely. He had a choice: work with this lunatic or risk his team being slaughtered. He knew he wanted respect and power so the decision was semi-easy. He looked up.
"Let me gather more of my friends," he answered. "Then we'll talk." Suddenly, the figure jumped off the catwalk and landed on the table; squishing the heads. Jewels screamed as blood flew everywhere. She was used to seeing a lot of blood and corpses. But there was something about this man that scared her. The man straighten up and took his hood off. He smiled.
"Excellent."
Feel it coming in the air
Hear the screams from everywhere
I'm addicted to the thrill
It's a dangerous love affair
Can't be scared when it goes down
Got a problem, tell me now
Only thing that's on my mind
Is who's gonna run this town tonight…
Is who's gonna run this town tonight…
We gonna run this town tonight
Author's after note: I just wanted to say that this fanfic was written before I read the Skulduggery Pleasant series. So the vampires in this story are very different than the ones in the books. I just wanted to get that out in the open, my fellow authors. Lyrics are Titanium and Run this Town by Jay-Z ft. Rihanna and Kanye West. The mystery villain will be revealed soon!