Title: Shades of Blood and Gray
Genre: Adventure/Drama
Character Focus: Dorian Gray and Henry Jekyll/Edward Hyde, pure hatred
Rating: T for coarse language and violence
Summary: Dorian returns from the dead and he wants revenge. He kidnaps Mina's son to exchange for his portrait. With nothing to lose and no outside connections, Jekyll takes on the mission, even if it means sacrificing himself.
Disclaimer: LXG is copyright to 20th Century Fox, based on the graphic novel by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neil. All characters of literature are copyright to their own creators. Only some characters are made from my imagination.
Author's Note: Forgive me for the late update, I've had my hands tied the last few weeks. The previous chapter was a bit fast paced and short, but I hope this one will be more satisfying.
Chapter 12: Catching a Crow
Henry Jekyll worked in the dark lab downstairs of Emil Crowe's house. The only light provided were the bunsen burners and a small lamp in one corner of the lab. With his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, often when he worked in a lab or with patients, Henry assembled the chemicals, Skinner's skin sample and Quincey's blood sample on the work table. Even though Henry had his eyes on the table, he could feel Emil Crowe watching him.
"If you create the elixir," growled Hyde, "you can let me out and I'll crush him!"
"I cannot take that risk," replied Henry, "he's watching my every move. If I take any elixir now, he'd kill us during our transformation." Recalling that his transformations were long and painful, they would certainly leave Henry vulnerable to attack.
"Kill us? The man limps, he's no threat to us!"
"You forget that he has poisons at his use and those other men who helped him and Dorian take the children."
"If you are thinking of using that elixir to escape," cut in Crowe's voice, "keep in mind that I still have the vial that was taken from you and I will see to it that you won't access the batch you'll help me to create." In the dim light, Emil stared down Jekyll with eyes that burned sinisterly.
"I un-understand," said Jekyll nervously.
"Good," said Crowe, "just remember that if you don't cooperate with me, I'd have to send Mr. Parker to Mr. Utterson."
Jekyll bit his lip and continued working. He might have helped the League and the children, but cooperating with Crowe was the only way to protect Utterson.
Rodney Skinner had reported Crowe's location with Tom Sawyer the previous night. After they had gone over a plan to help Jekyll and capture Crowe, the League arrived to Crowe's house in the middle of the night. Carrying out the first step of the plan, Rodney walked completely naked and invisible to the front door.
Skinner tried the door, it was unlocked. Quietly, he pushed the door open and slipped inside. The halls were dark and there was no one in site, no Jekyll, no Crowe, and none of those goons Crowe and Dorian hired.
As he searched through the ground floors, Skinner heard someone approaching. Coming from the downstairs were two of those men working for Crowe. Not wanting to bump into them, Skinner flattened himelf against the wall. Trying not to breathe too hard, he listened to the two men.
"Do you think that the scrawny doctor might try to break for it?" asked the large man.
"I highly doubt it," said the shorter man, "since we know the whereabouts of his former friend, he won't even think of running. Besides, without that monster elixir of his, Crowe can handle him in the lab."
After the men spoke, the large one went upstairs and the short one went into the other rooms. Skinner crept downstairs to where the men came from, as he reached the bottom of the stairs, he heard the limping footsteps of Crowe. Approaching the nearest door, Skinner could hear the voice speaking in a low tone. Peeking through the narrow crack, Skinner could see in the dim light Henry Jekyll working at the lab table as Emil Crowe watch on.
He couldn't barge into the lab so suddenly, Crowe would still hurt Jekyll and summon those two men. The next part of the plan was to signal the League, waiting outside on the street to enter.
Creeping back upstairs, Skinner looked for something that he could signal the League with. Avoiding the man who was stationed on the first floor, Skinner searched the cupboards and shelves in the kitchen. After finding an oil lamp and some matches in the dark room, Skinner brought his materials to the nearest window that was facing the street. Checking over his shoulders to make sure that no one could see the floating lamp and matches, Skinner struck a match and lit the lamp in the window. Now he just had to wait for Tom, Mina and Nemo to respond.
Mina and the others waited out in the shadows of the buildings across the street. With her excellent night vision, she could see Skinner's signal. She gestured for Nemo and Tom to approach the house. With her long black coat of her combat outfit flapping behind her like wings, Mina made long and swift strides to the front garden. Nemo and Tom headed for the door, their weapons at the ready.
Mina saw the window on the second floor, it was open by a crack. Like a spider, she climbed the brick wall to get to her destination.
Tom and Nemo had entered, ready to fight anyone who would try to stop them. They heard footsteps approaching. Tom raised his pistols and readied to fire, but he saw no one.
"It's only me," whispered Skinner. "There's one man upstairs and another on this floor."
"He just found you," said a new voice with a cockney accent similar to Skinner's. The man was short but stocky in build, his head was shaven, and he drew a knife from his belt. "I guess it's time for me to play."
"Don't you know that you shouldn't play with knives?" asked Tom as he aimed to fire.
"Guns?" The man laughed. "Boys' toys! A man fights with his fists or a knife!"
"Then let's put it to the test," said Nemo as he prepared to fight. The blue uniformed captain and the man clashed their blades.
"Tom," said Skinner over the clanging of metal blades, "Henry is in the lab downstairs. That creep is with him, go to the lab, I'll help Nemo deal with this bloke."
Tom Sawyer nodded his blonde head and dashed to the stairs leading down into the lab. Hoping that Skinner and Nemo could handle that goon, Tom ran down the creaky wooden steps and to the door where he could see a faint light.
Henry Jekyll heard the sounds upstairs and was about to go to the door, but he stopped when he saw the snake on the floor. The snake had to be three to four feet long and it was white. When the snake reared up its head, spread out its neck and hissed, Henry took a step back.
"You thought that I wouldn't be expecting your friends or you to attempt running?" asked Crowe, his face twisted into a cruel smile. "I already set my little friend loose to keep you from getting out. An albino cobra, one of the most poisonous snakes I've collected."
"He thinks that a little snake can keep me here?" roared Hyde.
"Keep in mind, Doctor," said Crowe, "that one bite from the cobra and you'll be dead."
Henry looked back at Crowe and back at the snake. He could try using the elixir he created to transform and escape, but Henry realized that Crowe had more than just a venomous snake at use.
The door to the lab was flung open and there stood Tom, ready to help. The blonde American was about to step over the threshold, but Henry held up his hands in warning.
"Tom, no!" Henry cried. "There's a snake!"
"Whoa!" cried Tom as the snake nearly bit at his shoe. "Nasty thing!" Tom was ready to shoot the snake.
"Stop what you are doing!" sneered Crowed. He dropped his cane as he lunged at Henry, grabbing the nervous doctor by the copper hair. With his free hand, Crowe took a syringe from his coat pocket and held it at Henry's neck. "You shoot that cobra, then I'll inject this poison into him. He'll be just as dead as if he was bitten by a snake!"
"Tom, don't worry about me! Ahh!" Henry struggled, but Crowe was stronger than he had let on. Every time he tried to pull away Crowe's hands, Henry could feel the painful tug on his hair, and they syringe come closer to his neck.
"Oh God," uttered Tom. The American could not decide what he should do, Crowe would kill Jekyll if Tom killed the snake. If Tom tried stepping over the snake, he would be bitten and both he and Jekyll would be dead. Could he try to shoot Crowe? He could try, but he could accidently hit Jekyll.
"I don't have to shoot the snake," said Tom, aiming his pistols at Crowe, "but I can shoot you. Let him go or I'll shoot!"
"You don't want to do that," said Crowe, positioning himself so that he was behind Henry. "Shoot me and you shoot him."
"Don't listen to him!" cried Henry.
Mina gracefully opened the window and climbed through. She peered around the room, it was just a desk, a few chairs, and shelves of books, probably a study. There were footsteps approaching the study door, which was open and spilling in the dim light from the hall. In the door frame, Mina saw the figure of the man who had been handling Quincey.
"Well look what we've got here," the man said when he saw her.
"You touched my son," Mina said venomously, "you will pay!"
"So the squirming bugger was yours? I wonder if you'll squirm like him, I like a woman who's feisty." The man ran at her, attempting to grab her. Big mistake.
Mina leapt at the man with full force, her fangs bared, eyes red, and her hair flailing wildly. The man let out a grunt as she took him to the floor. Even as her hair was pulled, she didn't stop tearing into the man's throat to feed.
Skinner watched as Crowe's man fought Nemo in the hallway. The exchange of slashes and jabs, but every strike was countered by a block. Crowe's man, had his back to Skinner, never even noticing the invisible thief. While Nemo and Crowe's man were fighting, Skinner picked up the nearest object he could find, a vase.
As Crowe's man was too occupied in his fight, Skinner raised the vase high above his head. Then the vase went crashing onto the man's head and he collapsed to the floor.
"Well done, Mr. Skinner," said Nemo as he kicked the knife away from the fallen man's hand.
"It wasn't much," said Skinner. "I wonder what that other chap is doing."
"Dead," said Mina as she gracefully glided down the stairs. "Where is Agent Sawyer?"
"He went searching for Jekyll," said Skinner. "They're probably still in the lab."
Tom was in a difficult situation, he could not decide weather he should shoot Crowe and risk hitting Jekyll or risk getting bitten by the snake and Jekyll getting killed. The American felt sweat drip down his temples as he thought of what he should do.
"Sawyer," said Mina's voice as she approached the door, "let me handle this." Tom stepped aside as Mina drew out both knives. In a quick flash, one knife went through Crowe's hand and the other severing the head of the snake.
Crowe dropped his syringe and released Henry to grasp his wounded hand. Mina made a leap into the room, her red eyes glaring at Crowe. Standing next to Mina was Jekyll, alive, unharmed, but shaken.
"Crowe," said Mina coldly, "it's over."
"Over for me," said Crowe, still cringing at the pain in his hand, "but not for you."
To be continued...