Heinkel put his hand on Yumies shoulder and led her over to Red whom was helping the wounded.
Red looked up and said happily "Hi!" raising her hand which was holding a pair of pliers next to Simon Peter's ribs. (The same Iscariot who had helped Heinkel.) He screamed as she roughly tore out a piece of shrapnel from his side.
Yumi sounding both concerned and somewhat like she was trying to conceal laughter responded. "Um. How are you?"
"Oh I'm fine." Red said completely oblivious to the screams of the person behind her.
Heinkel laughing then led her to Father Lighterman who was moving the large boulder in their yard out towards the street.
He pleased to see them both and especially Heinkel whom he had worried about the night before.
He and Yumi shook hands and then lastly Heinkel introduced her to the much wounded Father Remington.
She looked at him once and noticed his bandaged back, shot arm, weak leg, and scratched/ bruised features everywhere.
Yet despite this he still placed his cane in his other hand and shook her hand with a smile. "Two regenerators in the same place!" He raised his eyebrow and asked "I wonder how much of New York will be left after this?"
Yumi glanced at Heinkel as if to suggest Poland and he as if to suggest anything she had ever fought.
Remington laughed. "No matter. I'm sure this will be fun either way."
Yumi introduced Heinkel to all those she had come with and even telling him about those who had died in their fight against the vampire menace.
The last person she introduced him to was Simon Peter. He had bandaged his wound and shook Heinkel's hand.
"I'm glad to meet you in person Heinkel. I've heard a lot about you from Rikard."
Heinkel remembered Rikard. He was one of the only priests to have survived the ninth crusade and was in charge of training in new Iscariot members in Briton.
"That old dog is still kicking eh?" Heinkel asked smiling.
"Aye that he is. And just as crazy as ever too." Responded Simon. Remembering a specific instance when a vampire had tried to kill him and his group of students in the dead of night when they were sleeping. It had not gone well for the vampire.
Heinkel laughed as he too remembered one of Father Rikard's berserk moments. It had been during the ninth crusade when he had been attacked by a vampire with a jagged piece of metal. This vampire had suffered a similar demise as the one Simon was remembering.
When everyone had been introduced to one another they picked up the streets as best they could and honorable burnt their dead. Then not knowing what to do with the left over bodies of the ghouls and vampires for a moment they simply performed a blessing that destroyed all of their putrid and unholy flesh.
Now after only about two hours since Heinkel woke up the house was starting look normal and in no way suspicious. For they knew it was only a matter of time before someone came along this street.
After everything that could be done to conceal their whereabouts had been done The Iscariot rebuilt the barriers that had fallen during the attacks.
When Heinkel came into the house he noticed a major change in it. There were Silver weapons everywhere along its tables and counters. And even enough to restock Heinkel of all that he had lost three times over.
Heinkel smiled as he picked up his gun that one of the Iscariots had recovered last night. He eagerly put a clip of his standard blessed silver bullets into it and pulled back its top so as to make it completely ready for use.
He reloaded in fact all three of his guns and completely replaced all of his missing ammo. Then turning the corner into the living room he noticed a very thin blue book with a cross on it that was curved so much that only its two edges touched the table it stood one.
He came over to it and shoved it up his sleeve. The book had two elastic sort of bands on the front of it which wrapped around Heinkel's arm and kept it in place.
Heinkel glancing back to the table saw seven more of these and picked up another one to go onto his left arm. He also looking inside of a box found twelve of the fragmentation grenades which had been imbued with silver and a multitude of blessings.
He took four of these and finally after putting two vials of holy water into his pocket was satisfied with his weaponry.
He breathed deeply for a few moments and savored this moment of being surrounded by weapons of holy power that would eventually be used to cast the unholy abominations into the flames of hell.
Hell. Hmmm. Something…wasn't quite right about that. Why does the word sound so funny now? Oh well said Heinkel shrugging off his questions.
"Just so you know Heinkel is having a terrible time remembering what happened under the witches spell. It's kind of like you having to remember a dream that happened a week ago. And only just recently did you remember you had it all."
Stepping out of the living room he wandered into the kitchen where he saw four Iscariots eating a meal. Looking over to the clock on the stove he saw that it was nearing three thirty. Hmm. Time was certainly moving fast. Or did I not get up until one? Heinkel asked himself.
Then shaking his head he tried to focus on something. He was 60 even though he didn't look it. And he was beginning to believe that he was getting old. Of course he wasn't. But he still wondered how long the human could maintain his sanity as a living being with a beating heart. Watching all you know and love die and you remain unchanged. All the worse for a human who still had love to lose! If a vampire thought there life was tough they had no idea.
What did they have to lose? Family? Bah they would kill a family member to feed their own bloodlust. Friends? Again if they had any notion of friendship it was only with other vampires.
However Heinkel on the other hand. He still loved and did other things that were human. He slept he ate his laugh was not always spurring from homicidal mania, his heart still beat and he even breathed! He felt change and was not immune to the to the flow of time. Although truth be told. His closest friend Yumi was also a regenerator and as such he knew that he was the luckiest of any regenerators. Perhaps together they could stand the tests of time Heinkel thought to himself.
Heinkel walked outside to see what was happening with his allies and was not surprised to see that the building was looking as spotless and in suspicious as ever.
Now the final question was. What to do next? They had plenty of ammo. Plenty of food and even enough vampires to keep them entertained for at least a week. But when dealing with sorcerers one never knows what's going to happen and since no one had fought sorcerers for a while. There was no one left to give them any advice.
Heinkel decided to consult Yumi on this matter.
He looked to his left and saw her discussing matters with Father Remington. He walked forward a couple steps and heard what they were saying.
Father Remington: Hmm. Perhaps that would work but we have no idea where they are and remember we are supposed to remain secret somewhat.
Yumi: I agree with you Father. But you have to admit it is every Iscariots dream.
"And what might that be?" Heinkel asked the group as he approached them.
Remington looked at Heinkel and responded. "Oh Yumi just wants us to march down a random streets and call the sorcerers out in the open so the world can see what happens to blasphemous heathens such as them."
Heinkel's eyebrow lifted in thought for a moment. Surely the idea was tempting. But again sadly for them all the Iscariots had to remain a secret organization.
Heinkel sighed and then said in a disappointed voice. "As much as I believe we would all like that I'm afraid we're going to have to try something else."
Yumi looking disappointed but not entirely surprised responded. "Well then. I suppose we will just have to find their hiding spot. But where do we start?"
At this Remington using his other hand to hold his cane pulled out a wooden box from his pocket that had been carved full of Latin words. Heinkel recognized them as the same rituals used to block out unholy magic.
He looking at it with so much hate as he handed it to Heinkel. "I believe you've read my report." Clenching his fist and practically snarling in anger he continued. "This thing. Exactly is what I was talking about."
Heinkel looked at it with a strange curiosity filled with hatred. "And why exactly didn't you destroy this abomination?" He asked.
"Remington shrugged his good shoulder and responded. "To be honest. I didn't feel like ever looking at the thing much less touching it again. On top of that I had no idea how to do so. It was rather a horrible dilemma. For I could not leave it around just waiting for something to come along and use it. And of course I most certainly didn't want to take it with me. "
"Hmmm…. And what you purpose we do with this?" Heinkel asked him after a moment of thought.
"Well. Since its obviously an object of sorcerous power. Perhaps they want it back?"
"Ah. I see." Said Heinkel as his eyes widened in understanding. "But we're not going to just give it to them are we?" He asked.
Father Remington breaking into a smile responded. "No. No we will not."
The witch smiled to herself in the room which although lit still felt dark. She twirled the chip between her fingers and took joy in feeling it's unholy power's seep into her own. How easy it had been. She mused to take this from the Iscariot. She knew that they not be able to kill the regenerators but imprisoning them had been nearly as fun.
She looked down the hallway and into the room with a closed door. She muttered a few words in a strange harsh language. Which although sounded like whispering could be easily heard from a twenty foot distance.
She felt her sight blocked by a blinding light. She shrieked and covered her eyes with her arms. She growled and her face slipped into a scowl. Curse these fools! Setting up barriers which they know we will eventually break! And what then? What then but the inevitable torture which most occur. Didn't they know that the more they fought the more painful it would be for them. Smirking she bent down and picked up the purple chip. Her smile came back with the rush of power.
Father Lighterman was strolling through the streets at night looking for all the world to see like the average priest.
He looked over into a dark alley. He laughed. How cliché he thought as strolled down the alley. You'd think that they would try something new every once and a while.
Strolling down the alley he speed up his pace when he saw three men sitting around a small fire roasting some type of rotten flesh. Probably human guessed Father Lighterman with a fierce expression on his face.
They looked up and instantly reacted. One of them pulled out a pistol from his sleeve and pointed it at the priest. The other two lunged for his arms. They grabbed his arms and held them in arm bars. The man with the pistol stepped forward. He reversed it's grip and pistol whipped father Remington in the face. His friends smiled cruelly. "My my! Aren't you a big one." He said to Lighterman as he pounded the but of the pistol against the palm of his hand.
Father Remington smiled for a moment and spit blood into the face of the man with the pistols. As he was distracted Father Lighterman twisted his arms so that two silver blades shot out of his wrists and into the chests of the two men. They slumped down to the floor dead with barely a gasp of surprise. Father Lighterman stabbing forward with his two hidden blades. (Yes these are the same hidden blades from assassin's creed.) He impaled the surprised man.
He slumped down to the floor dead. Father Lighterman twisting his wrists once again hid the blades into his sleeves. He spit once more this time on the man's corpse. He wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his under shirt.
Licking his bruised and cut lip he studied the brick work of the building he was trying to get into. "now let's see here. Heinkel said it would somewhere around….Here!" He exclaimed as his blessed vision found the glowing sign of a cross on the wall. It wasn't very large. And it had been placed rather swiftly and didn't quite pop out like the normal sign.
He tapped once on the stone where he saw it and then spoke in Latin. "One whom is faithful seeks to enter he lair of the serpent."
Just then the wall began to glow and open. He stepped into the blackness smiling and willingly. This truly would be fun.
Heinkel smoked what was now his last cigarette. He studied his work with a curious gaze. On the floor was a large cross and Latin inscriptions which spoke words for repelling unwanted lookers.
Sighing to himself he said. "They always forget to take the cigarettes."
Yumi as well studying the floor responded. "Yes they do and a good thing for us. We can't exactly right it in blood can we."
Heinkel laughed. "No I suppose we can't."
"How long again until Father Lighterman arrives?" Asked Yumi.
"About…..Now."
A blade quickly thrust through the chest of a vampire. The other blade caught its neck as the body fell to the floor. The head rolled away with a trail of blood following it.
Father Lighterman putting a bloodstained hand on the door. Whipped away the unholy symbols from it which kept this door a piece of stone.
Reverting back to its natural metal state Father Lighterman stepped back and looked down the hallway at the group of warlock's and witches gathering. He stepped backward a step as the door opened and ducked as it was blown backwards. He was hit by only shrapnel as the door flew by him.
Heinkel and Yumi stepped out of the darkness.
And into more darkness. They heard laughter and then a strange wretched chanting. Heinkel ran forward about twenty feet looking with his hands in the darkness for something. Perhaps a piece of metal or stone. Something to use as a weapon. He found nothing but after a few moments it didn't matter.
The floors themselves erupted in flames and sent the dust pebbles and everything else on the floor flying high into the air. "Hellfire!" Screamed Yumi who was protecting her face with her fore arms.
And indeed it was as if for a moment a portal to hell opened and allowed in some of it's flames.
However it lasted but a moment. Heinkel and Yumi and Yumi were kneeling on the floor grasping the crosses around their necks.
There skin was only slightly red and healing fast.
Father Lighterman however was standing in a circle of holy water and chanting the words. "Christus est Rex. Christus est mihi sancti ignus!"(Christ is king! Christ is my holy fire.) The Floor inside of the circle was the only part left unscathed.
The six people gathered started another chant and pulled out various pieces of unholy material that was designed to improve the power of their spells.
Heinkel seeing this looked back towards Father Lighterman and saw that a gun stuck out from a holster on his belt. Summoning his strength he brought the gun speeding towards him. He snatched the weapon out of the air and aimed it at the group of sorcerers gathered in front of him.
Which were not there.
Looking around he noticed that all of the sudden there was literally no motion walls, ceiling, floor or anything other than blackness.
"GAAAH!" He screamed in rage. This deceivers and dirt eating serpents would soon pay for their unholy acts against God!
He fired off randomly into the area where he thought the sorcerers had been. He heard a scream that sounded like Father Lighterman but the darkness seemed to slightly fade so he kept firing into that area. After three shots he found that two of the blasphemous fiends were lying dead on the floor large puncture wounds obviously visible on their corpses which leaked blood and organs.
He nodded in the direction of Yumi and she nodded back. She went down the hallway towards father Lighterman and said to him "Are the others coming or not?"
He responded. "Of course. But it takes time to break curses and slay sorcerers."
She scoffed at him but smiled none the less at the thoughts of what was coming next. She was to remain here and lead in their main force while Heinkel got to have all of the fun. Again. She thought to herself.
Heinkel continued down the dark hallway ignoring whatever foul vision invaded his mind and every unspeakable terror that presented itself as a threat against him. By the end of the journey down the hallway he was using the wall to support himself. Curse breaker. Ha! More like Human bullet shield. The goal was for him to take the brunt of every trap and curse the sorcerers set up so that everyone else didn't have to and would be at maximum fighting potential. He being a regenerator would regain his energy quickest so thus he was the one who was chosen to do this task.
He had always thought it odd that the Iscariot spent so much time training their agents to recognize and destroy/escape from black magic's. Now he knew why. If he had not known to convince his mind that that mind trap spell was indeed a spell he would still be in that witches grasps.
Breathing slightly less heavy he decided to unlogically smoke a cigarette to recuperate faster. He was just about to bring the flame to the tobacco when he saw the door in front of him which had previously been covered in satanic pentagrams now vanish completely from site.
As the dark and satanic being slowly advanced on Heinkel the shadows of the room lengthened and deepened. The air took on a reddish quality and became heavier. It gave off the disturbing feeling of sucking in blood.
She finally stopped her slow and deliberate march and raised her hand which was disgustingly carved with ever changing satanic and vulgar images. Her voice was that which at one time stalked the first men foolish enough to wander away from the rest. The one that is always on the outskirts of the shadows. That which can only truly be described as essence of fear itself.
She spoke or rather did what was like speaking. It could more accurately be described as tearing the air from where it was and forcing it into a black sound which while not being words could be understood.
"You know that you will not be able to succeed. Am I right?"
Finishing lighting his cigarette after what seemed like a strangely long while he breathed deeply for a moment and then responded with a smirk.
"You sure do like a dramatic entrance. Am I right?" Heinkel responded.
She smiled. And once again I feel compelled to describe how this differs from a human smile. Her decrepit yet unnaturally young faced disrupted the air around so much that it literally quivered as the shadow parted to make way to sure her blood red teeth.
"Right you are." She said.
