DISCLAIMER: I own absolutely none of the properties you will see here. All rights go to their respective owners.
Infinity Verse Team-Ups
Grell Sutcliff and Valerie Grey: Blood on the Dance Floor
The siren lights cut through the shadows on the buildings as an array of red and blue danced across the walls. The police had set up a crime scene on 7th street after a body had been discovered. Norrisville had been going under a major change in recent months. Ever since the Ninja had been seen less protecting the city and more with the Infinity League as one of its seven leaders, there had been a shift of sorts in the Ninja's hometown. While the city had been seeing fewer and fewer monsters, regular crime had been on the rise as of late. Without the Ninja around, common thugs and thieves creeped out to commit crime as they saw fit.
But this string of recent crimes had reached a new level of disturbing. The body the police had found was one of now seven victims they had discovered that been seemingly dumped out on the streets like trash. Each victim was of a variety of races and genders, but like all serial killings, they all had a running theme to them. Each of the victims had been completely drained of their blood, their throat silt open from ear to ear. The current victim was a 25-year-old woman who had been reported missing only three days ago. Though the police had no suspects yet, there were those among the force who had a theory as to who was behind these brutal killings.
"I'm telling you, detective, it's gotta be him!" the beat cop stated. "It's gotta be the Red Reaper!"
The Red Reaper. That was the name the media had given Norrisville's newest vigilante that stalked the city streets at night. After appearing in the city only a few months ago, the unknown madman unleashed a reign of terror on the criminal underworld the likes of which made even the bravest of men quiver in fear. Although the mysterious vigilante hadn't killed anyone yet, he left those who crossed his path wishing they did. From missing limbs to being put into a coma, no criminal was safe from the Red Reaper's harsh punishment. While the police appreciated the metahuman aide now that the Ninja had become busier with his role in the Infinity League, even they had to admit that the Red Reaper's methods were brutal.
"Oh, yeah? And what makes you say that?" the detective questioned harshly. "You ever see the Reaper, officer?"
"Well, no, sir, but-" the officer stammered out.
"Then shut it!" the detective ordered. "The last thing we need is a witch hunt, or worse, have the Reaper come after us!"
Although the Red Reaper's handiwork was always easy to find, the vigilante had mostly remained out of sight to the public, save for a few out of focus pictures that showed the unknown meta dressed in red and black while carrying his main weapon, a chainsaw, in his hand. What little was known about the meta was that he had superhuman strength, speed, and agility, as well as resistance to gunfire. In other words, he was someone that the police had no power to stop should he turn his anger on them instead of the criminals that he preyed upon.
As the police went about investing the crime scene, a lone figure crouched down on the rooftops, watching everything play out below them before slipping away into the darkness. There was work to be done.
Howard let out a groan as he pulled himself up from his bed. He looked at the alarm clock sitting on the desk next to him that had '11:36' on it. Thankfully, it was a Saturday, so there was no need to panic. Then again, if he did see the time on a school day, he would've skipped the school day entirely. Seniors could skip days, right? He was pretty sure that was a senior perk. As he climbed out of bed, the heavyset teen felt groggy and exhausted, which was once caused by pulling all-night gaming but was now a side effect of sharing his body with a transsexual grim reaper with a lust for violence. [1]
Ever since he had bounded his soul to Grell, the now two intertwined partners had come to an understanding of sorts. Ever since Randy had left protecting Norrisville to Howard and Grell, the unlikely duo took a more...direct approach in guarding the city. During the day, Howard would live out his life as he normally would, but the night would be Grell's time to guard the city how he saw fit, provided that he didn't take a life. Randy didn't exactly condone the reaper's actions, but he couldn't leave his hometown unguarded from McFist or others who may want to harm its citizens. So, as long Grell didn't kill anyone, Randy allowed him to continue to operate, though he made it clear that if the red-clad killer crossed the line, he would be there to take him down.
Randy had hoped that Howard would act as a voice of reason in Grell's mind, but he greatly underestimated his best friend's laziness. Whenever the sun went down, Howard would hand the mental keys over to Grell and let him take control without much oversight until the sun rose once more. However, there were times where he would step in and speak with his partner, such as the time SheZap kidnapped his sister. [2] The reaper wasn't all in on the whole 'hero thing,' but as long as he could inflict pain on something, he could live with it. The ginger had also wanted to join in on fighting whatever it was that was barreling towards Earth, but Randy told him that should the League fail, Grell would the only one left to protect Norrisville. It was also troubling that Heidi, who now worked for the League, had been moved to an unknown location as the Tower prepared for battle. [3] As Howard went over to the bathroom mirror to brush his teeth, he didn't see his reflection, but that of Grell looking back at him.
"So, how was last night's patrol?" he asked the reaper in the mirror.
"I put two carjackers through a windshield, paralyzed a rapist, and sent a group of bank robbers to the ICU," his other half answered. "All and all, not a bad night, darling."
"Got any leads on those murders?" the heavyset teen inquired. "Those have been going on for a while."
The string of murders did not go unnoticed by the duo, but so far, they had come up with nothing. It was mostly due to the fact that Grell was by no means someone who followed clues and instead tore through whoever and whatever stood against him.
"Don't rush me!" Grell answered defensively. "I'm not a bloody detective!"
"Well, it's kinda important that you figure it out," Howard chastised him. "I've been hearing whispers at school lately, and some people think you're the killer. Which, need I remind you, means they think I'M the killer!"
"Well, what the hell do you want me to do about it?!" Grell snapped.
"Oh, I don't know, look for clues, interrogate suspects, stuff like that," Howard pointed out. "Just a thought."
Grell glowered at his other half as he was berated by the ginger. The reaper and the heavyset young man had a rather offbeat relationship, to say the least. Howard and Grell weren't exactly friends, even though they were bound to one another. The two each knew what one another was thinking, and because of this, Howard couldn't get visions of gore-filled orgies out of his head. In turn, the reaper couldn't stop his mind from thinking about Grave Puncher and that Kang girl Howard had a crush on.
"I'll find them, and then I'll bend them into a meat pretzel," the reaper finally answered. "There, does that make you feel better, fatty?"
"I could do without the body shaming, but yeah, that works," his other half agreed. "And now I want meat pretzels to be a real thing."
"Howard!" his mother's voice called up to him. "There's someone here to see you!"
Surprised by this news, Howard got dressed and went downstairs, all the while wondering who had come to see him. He knew that it wasn't Randy since he was in the midst of helping to oversee a crisis up in space with the Infinity League. Aside from his wayward best friend, he really didn't have anyone else who would come to see him. It was no secret that Howard didn't have many friends outside of Randy, so who could it be? After coming downstairs, the ginger found the last person he expected to visit him at his own home, mostly because he didn't want him here: Julian.
Ever since being freed from the Land of Shadows after being thrown there by his evil self, the goth had been even more of an annoyance for Howard. One would think that being trapped in a dimension of waking nightmares would drive him from being some wannabe dark worshipping prick, but that wasn't the case. Instead, Julian delved deeper into his goth lifestyle. Spurred on by what he had seen in the Land of Shadows, he now took on a more edgy form. And by edgier, it really meant him switching out his purple Victorian-style attire for an all-black version of it. He now went on entire rants about being at 'the other side' and coming back a stronger, and stranger, person. It made no sense to Howard why Julian's friends, Der Monster Klub, stuck with him. However, it was clear by the goth's face that something was wrong.
"Uh, hey Julian," Howard greeted, curious about all this. "What's up?"
"Howard, I need your help!" Julian began as he quickly approached him. "Is Theresa here?"
"Uh, no, why?" the redhead replied, now as concerned as he was confused.
"Wait, you don't know?" the goth questioned. "Haven't you noticed she hasn't been to school in two days?"
In Howard was being honest, he didn't pay much attention to anyone that wasn't him or those who weren't friends or family. Theresa was once someone he once had on his radar, but after she had broken up with Randy, he had dropped off of paying attention to whatever happened to her, mostly because she had broken his best friend's heart. However, hearing that she had gone missing did spark a level of concern within his person.
"I thought you might know something, or at the very least, she'd be over here talking things out with Randy," Julian continued. "He's over at your house more than he is at his own."
"And you didn't check at her own house because...?" Howard pointed out. "She might just be sick for all you know."
"I tried that already, but her parents thought that she was staying at one of our houses for a bit," the head of the Klub explained.
Both Howard and Grell, who was listening in on the conversation, had a feeling that whatever had happened to Theresa may have tied into the murders, though Howard was hoping that Theresa wasn't the next victim.
"When did you last see her?" he asked.
"The last time I saw her, she was applying for a job at that new nightclub in town," Julian answered.
The nightclub that Julian was referring to was known as The Red Room. A new dance club that wasn't under the ownership of McFist. It wasn't some emo scene nightclub that would've appealed to the likes of Julian and his gothic cohorts, but more of a hip, trendy scene for the wealthy youth of Norrisville. In other words, a place that would've made Howard instantly gag from how gaudy it was if he set foot in that place.
"Theresa's parents have gone to the police, but they're too busy with these murders to do anything about it," the goth furthered. "If the Ninja was here, maybe things would be different."
"Ain't that the truth..." Howard muttered in agreement.
'Well, the Ninja might not be here, but WE are,' Grell mentally noted to his human half.
'Oh, so NOW you want to do something about it? How nice,' Howard scolded the reaper in his mind before speaking aloud "Don't worry Julian, we'll find her."
Howard didn't say anything out loud, but it was time to get to work. And if Theresa was dead, then all hell was going to be unleashed on those who spilled innocent blood.
Carl quickly drew the blinds to the battle van as the sun began to leak into the vehicle. The former monster hunter had to get used to not seeing a lot of light these days due to his partner's condition. Condition may not be the right word, but then again, what could someone call vampirism other than a disease? After she had been turned into one of the undead, his partner's crusade against the realm of the supernatural had changed but had not been deterred in any way. However, where once she used the daytime to plan out a mission, it was now a time where she would rest until the night came once more. [4]
"You're cutting it way too close, Val," the former Nightstalker said in a firm tone. "You are aware that you'll turn to dust if the sun hits you, right?"
His protégé, Valerie Grey, didn't answer right away. She was famished from last night's patrol and needed to feed as soon as possible. Of course, being a vampire, the only food she could consume was blood. Thankfully, the monster hunter did not prey on humans as others of her brood did. Instead, Carl would go to blood banks and, with a little bribery, get a supply of the sustenance his student needed to survive. It felt strange for Kolchak to be now working alongside one of the very creatures that he had once hunted, but he knew that Valerie could control her thirst. Or rather, he hoped that she could control her hunger, for he prayed that he would never have to stake his protégé.
As for Valerie herself, her transition from being human to being one of the undead was not an easy one. She had only been a vampire for a few months, and, despite what the movies would say, being a bloodsucker wasn't as glamorous as Twilight said it was. For starters, the smallest touch of sunlight on her skin caused her excruciating pain, forcing her to hide in the shadows like Sam Manson. The thirst for blood was constant and needed to be quenched quickly, lest she become ravenous with hunger and harm an innocent soul. She wasn't much of a fan of garlic before, but now the very whiff of it made her ill. And though she was not as religious as her father was, it still saddened her that she could no longer set foot inside a church ever again. Not to mention, she and Carl had to steal a coffin from a graveyard from Amity Park since she now could only sleep in a casket from her home soil, something she wasn't a fan of. Thankfully, the myth that vampires could only be invited in mattered solely to certain species of the undead, a line she was not a part of.
On the other hand, Valerie did have to begrudgingly admit that there were a few perks to being a vampire. The superhuman strength, speed, stamina, agility, and durability were a major plus in her war against the creatures of the night, and mixed with her training, she was five times more lethal than she was before. Her newly enhanced senses allowed her to track any who had managed to slip away from her. More advanced vampiric abilities, such as illusions hypnotism, transformation, and weather & animal control, were skills that Valerie was still trying to master. But for now, she could make do with what she had.
"Relax, Carl, my nano-armor protected me long enough to make it back here," his student assured as she finished her blood pack.
Her mentor rolled his eyes. Some things never changed. Ignoring the disregard his student had for his well being, Carl instead focused on the task at hand.
"So, you find anything new?" he inquired.
"Another body was found last night," Valerie answered. "There's no doubt about it. It's HIM."
The 'him' in question was a vampire that the monster hunters had been chasing from California to here in Norrisville, and was someone Valerie had a personal vendetta with. The vamp in question was named David Powers. The very same vampire who had turned Valerie into what she was now. Shortly after becoming one of the undead, the Nightstalker and her teacher chased after the vampire across the country to put a stake through his heart. Their pursuit had lead them to Norrisville, and though they hadn't found David yet, they had seen his handiwork in the form of the blood-drained bodies that had been discovered as of late.
"I'm going to the city's morgue tonight. I need to examine the bodies to see if I can find any clues that could lead me to David," she continued. "The police are looking for a serial killer, not a monster. So I might be able to pick up where that bastard slithers off to when the sun comes up."
"In the meantime, I'll try to get the scoop on what's been going on around here," the former journalist stated. "But in the meantime, you need to get some sleep. You've got a big night ahead of you."
Valerie nodded in understanding. She needed the rest in order to carry out her work, even if she did dislike sleeping in the coffin. It was then that Carl brought up a certain matter that needed to be addressed if they were to carry out their work successfully.
"There's still something we need to be prepared for," he began. "We need to ready in case we run into the Red Reaper."
When Valerie and Carl arrived in Norrisville, they first assumed that they would have to encounter the Ninja. With him, there was a chance they could convince him to help them end what could be the start of a vampiric outbreak in his city before it could even begin. However, it was clear that the city's lethal protector was someone who may be just as dangerous as David, perhaps more so. Valerie had no idea what exactly the Red Reaper was, but the monster hunter had a feeling that the vigilante's origin was supernatural to some extent. In any case, Valerie had no desire to ally herself with such a monster.
"If he gets in the way, I'll deal with him," she finally said. "Simple as that."
With that simple, yet firm statement, Valerie climbed into her coffin before closing herself within it, waiting for night to come once more.
'So, find any clues?'
"No."
'Any leads?'
"No."
'Interrogate anyone?'
"No."
"Investigate the crime sce-"
"Oh my God, will you shut your bloody gob, YOU FAT, FUCKING TWAT!" Grell exclaimed out loud at Howard's voice in his mind, clutching his head as he did.
Grell had only been out on patrol no less than an hour after the sun went down, and he was already regretting letting Howard mentally tag along for tonight's search for his missing friend. Normally, Howard would let him work in peace, but that wasn't going to be the case tonight. In all honesty, the reaper had no idea where to start in his search for the killer. He was always better at murdering people rather than finding murderers themselves. And it went without saying that his other half's constant nagging wasn't helping him. So, here they were. Leaping from rooftop to rooftop with no plan whatsoever, which was par the course for the forced partners.
'Alright, alright, alright!' Howard conceded. 'You do have a plan, right?'
"I'm going to find your friend and kill whoever took her," Grell answered.
'And if she's dead?' the ginger inquired.
"Well, at least I can still do the second thing," the reaper stated.
Howard let out a defeated sigh in Grell's mindscape. He was putting a lot of faith in the psychopath, and he feared that his other half wouldn't be up to the task of saving Theresa. Grell was never big on containing collateral damage, though neither was Howard. But this time, things were different. This time, a friend's life was on the line. It was then that both Howard and Grell's attention was drawn to a sight that neither of them were expecting. It was a woman dressed in a suit of black and red armor flying on a hoverboard of all things.
'Now there's something you don't see every day,' Howard noted. 'Got any ideas?'
"Well, it's safe to say that she's not from around here," Grell answered. "And she's not human."
'How can you tell?' his other half inquired.
"I can sense what's alive and what isn't, and that woman is most certainly undead," the reaper explained. "We reapers despise creatures such as vampires, zombies, shikabane, and ghouls. For they're an offense to our work as those who take life."
'So your racist against the undead. Good to know,' the heavyset teen sarcastically noted before asking 'So, you think that's our killer?'
"Oh, most definitely, darling," Grell concluded. "The victims were drained of blood, were they not?"
'Well, yeah, but-'
"Then I rest my case;" the red-clad reaper cut him off.
Howard was never the one to think things through, but neither he nor his reaper side knew what they were getting into. And with Theresa's life on the line, they had to play this smart. But Grell did have a point. If this woman was a vampire, then there was no doubt that this armored creature was the killer and may know the whereabouts of his missing friend. So, without having that many options, he let Grell take the lead.
'Okay, so let's say your right,' Howard said. 'How do you want to handle this?'
"Simple," Grell answered. "Like this."
With that, Grell leaped off the roof and into the night air.
As Valerie sailed through the air aboard her hoverboard, her mind was still trying to piece together where David could be hiding, and more importantly, what his scheme was this time. She was hoping that, by examining the cadavers, she could piece together where David and his brood could be hiding. Thankfully, she hadn't run into anything that would impede her journey to the city's morgue. But just as she thought that she wasn't going to run into any delays, she saw, at the last second, out of the corner of her eye, a tall figure leaping at her.
"Coming through!" the figure greeted mid-leap.
Before the monster hunter had time to react, her assailant had tackled her in mid-air, causing them both to fall downward and onto the rooftop of a nearby building. Thanks to both her armor and enhanced durability, the vampire was unharmed from the harsh impact onto the building. Upon making impact with the rooftop, Valerie immediately kicked her unknown attacker off her person, but her opponent corrected themselves in mid-air and landed gracefully onto a nearby pole. The Nightstalker didn't need her opponent to tell her their name to know who exactly they were.
"So, I'm guessing you're the Red Reaper," she surmised. "You look like a reject from Rocky Horror Picture Show."
"You watch your mouth, you filthy bloodsucker!" the vigilante shot back. "You're speaking to a professional reaper!"
Now that took Valerie by surprise. Never, in her career as a monster hunter, had she encountered a reaper before, but she had learned about them through her teachings from Carl. And from what she learned about them, there was nothing good that was going to come from this. Reapers were far faster and stronger than Valerie and outclassed her vampiric powers by a mile. And if this vigilante wanted her dead, then there was little chance of stopping him. But rather than try to flee, the monster hunter stood her ground.
"I'm not here for you, drag show," she stated. "I got other plans tonight other than smack you around."
"Tough talk, honey," the reaper brushed off. "But you're not going anywhere but into a dust bin after I turn you to ash!"
It was getting pretty obvious that, no matter what Valerie could say, this creature wasn't going to listen. So, there was only one way that she was going to get back to the task at hand: By going through the reaper.
"Oh, fuck it," she finally sighed in annoyance.
No sooner had she said that did she activate her wrist lasers and unleashed a volley of beams at the reaper, who jumped into the air to evade the oncoming beams. Both Grell and Howard were not expecting to be fighting a vampire who had access to energy-based weaponry, but that wasn't going to stop them from taking this monster down. While still in midair, Grell summoned his death-scythe chainsaw before coming down chainsaw first toward the vampire. Valerie quickly switched on her energy buckler shield and managed to block the oncoming chainsaw, sending sparks out from the clashing weapons. Using her free hand, Valerie delivered an uppercut that, while managing to knock the reaper back, felt like she was punching solid steel. If she was still human, she might have broken her hand on impact.
Grell quickly recoiled from the hit and let out a sneer at that before lunging again, swinging his chainsaw directly at his opponent. Thanks to her superhuman speed, Valerie was able to dodge the blade of augmented death-scythe. The second she saw her shot, she fired a laser directly into Grell's chest, sending him flying backward before he stopped himself from going over the edge of the building. Valerie may be outclassed by the reaper in terms of power, but it was slowly becoming clear that the collector of the dead depended more on his power rather than skill. So if she was going to beat this monster, then she had to fight smart. Meanwhile, Howard had a few notes on how well the fight was going.
'So, was getting your ass kicked apart of your plan?' he mentally inquired.
"You're not helping," Grell gritted through his teeth as he prepared himself for another round.
"Uh, why would I be trying to help you?" Valerie mentioned, confused by the statement.
"I wasn't talking to you!" Grell snapped.
'You know, maybe we should pull back for a sec,' Howard advised 'Something tells me she's not behind all this.'
"And when did you become such a good judge of character?" Grell argued.
'Dude, I got a gut feeling about this,' the ginger answered. 'And I always trust my gut.'
"The only thing you trust your gut on is if you'll have fourths or not," the reaper sniped back.
'Look, just stop fighting and talk to her!' Howard ordered.
As Grell and Howard continued to argue amongst themselves, Valerie was still confused by her opponent's sudden stop of the fight. But rather than try to run, she instead chose to end this fight now rather than have the Red Reaper come after her later. Not only that but the more time she wasted with this fight, the more time David had to spread his evil. So, with that in mind, the monster hunter reactivated her board before shooting toward her enemy at full speed with the intention of cutting him in half. But just before she was able to reach him, she heard the last thing she expected the reaper to say.
"Time out!" he called out, making the hand signal as he did.
The monster hunter's board came to a screeching halt, perplexed by her opponent's plea to stop.
"You're not the killer, are you?" Grell surmised.
"No," Valerie confirmed. "And YOU'RE keeping me from stopping the ones who are!"
"Well, how about this," the reaper began. "I'm looking for someone who's gone missing and avenge those who've died as well. So, how about a truce? You help find my friend, and I'll help you kill whoever you're after."
"...Are you serious right now?" the Nightstalker questioned. "We just tried to kill each other, and now you want to team-up? Do you know how comic book cliche that is?!"
"Ugh, don't remind me," Grell agreed with an eye roll. "But if we want these killers dead, then this is our best option. Unless you want to waste more time beating the hell out of one another, that is."
"Not much of a choice then," Valerie relented with a sigh.
She then held out her hand to her new partner.
"I'm Valerie," she introduced.
"Grell," the vigilante replied as he returned the handshake. "So, got any idea where to start our little joint investigation, darling?"
"I've got a pretty good idea," his new ally answered.
After forming their alliance, the duo made their way to the city morgue, hoping to get the answers they needed. After breaking in via the back door, the united monster hunters made their way to the storage room where the bodies were being kept. After looking over the recently deceased, they managed to find the killer's latest victim. To keep their presence a secret, Valerie used her armor's tech to reprogram the security cameras and have them on be on a loop. However, as the vampire looked over the cadaver, she saw that David was covering his tracks well.
"Damn," she swore under her breath. "There's not a not a single clue on her."
"I thought you were some expert on vamps," Grell mocked. "Don't you know how your own kind works?"
"I do, but usually, when vampires leave bodies behind like this, they don't clean it this thoroughly," Valerie explained in an annoyed voice. "David's covering his tracks this time."
"David?" the reaper repeated. "Is that who we're after?"
"It is," his new partner confirmed. "He's the vamp who turned me."
Valerie's fists tightened as she felt a surge of anger well up inside. It was like David was mocking her with the corpse before her. He was so close yet so far at the same time. It was then that Grell stepped forward.
"Let me try something," he offered.
Grell then went over to the body before taking out his chainsaw. With a single swipe across the cadaver body with the death-scythe, a flurry of what looked like film strips shot out from the body. This, of course, took the monster hunter aback.
"What is this?" she asked, stunned by what she was seeing.
"You know that old saying you humans have about 'your life flashing before your eyes?' Well, here it is," Grell explained. "This could show us a clue as to what the poor girl's final moments were. Though I don't know how much this'll help us considering she's been dead for a while."
Valerie, still shocked by the sights that were all around her, had to remind herself that she still had a job to do. But as she looked over the film strips of the woman's life, she couldn't help but wonder if she still had these moments within her even now that she was one of the undead. It was then that the vampire noticed a series of images on one of the film strips. It was the face of the monster she had been chasing all this time. From the angle from where David's face was, she surmised that her foe was coming for her throat to drain it before slitting her neck to keep her from turning. The trouble was, however, that she couldn't tell where this murder took place.
"I found something," she informed her new partner as she directed his attention to the film strip. "That's him, but the problem is that I don't know where this happened."
"Ooooh, he looks positively delicious!" Grell noted. "I wouldn't mind him taking a bite out of me!"
'Can you not have sexual fantasies about the guy who kidnapped my friend?' Howard told him sharply.
"Sorry, couldn't help myself," Grell replied before saying "I think I might know where your boy toy is hiding. There's a club that recently opened up in the city, and I bet that it's where he's been roosting during the day. It's also the last place where someone I'm looking for was seen."
Suddenly, the sound of a door closing caught the duo off guard. Grell and Valerie spun around to see that one of the forensics lab members had stepped into the room. Obviously caught, neither hero knew what to do. Thankfully, the film reels had stopped just before the woman had entered the room, so they didn't have to worry about explaining that. However, there was still the matter of trying to explain why they were here. Without much choice, Valerie stepped forward to try to calm the confused woman.
"Uh, hello, ma'am, we're-" she attempted to explain.
"Ah, so you finally came," the woman said. "We were starting to wonder if you'd come at all, Ms. Grey."
"Wait, how do you know who I am?" the monster hunter questioned suspiciously.
"Why we're the welcoming party, of course," the woman said with a dark grin, showing her fangs.
The second that she saw the fangs, Valerie whipped out her wrist laser and blasted a hole through the woman's head, killing the vampire instantly. No sooner had the Nightstalker had done that did the bodies in the storage slots begin to explode out and launch themselves out toward the duo. Grell and Valerie quickly armed themselves as the squad of vampires encircled them.
"Friends of yours?" the reaper asked his partner in a mocking tone.
"Oh, just shut up and kill them!" the monster hunter shot back.
Not a second passed after Valerie gave that order before their undead attackers launched themselves at them. The Nightstalker blasted holes through two of the oncoming vampires before a third tackled her from the side. Her armor unleashed a painful shock that stunned the bloodsucker long enough for Valerie to decapitate him with a swipe of her claws. As for Grell, his chainsaw was currently lodged deep into the torso of a vampire, who snarled and swiped in defiance at the reaper as he began to bring the death-scythe upwards, splitting the abomination in half, all the while spraying blood onto him like a broken fire hydrant. After he had finished that creature, another vampire lunged toward the reaper, who grabbed him by the face and crushed him like an egg.
Back with Valerie, she was firing another laser through the chest of her attackers before another managed to jump onto her back. She quickly grabbed him and threw the vamp over herself and onto the ground before caving his chest in with a strong stomp of her foot, crushing his un-beating heart in the process. As the fight went on, the vampire hunter could feel something rising within her. It was a lust for bloodshed. And she wanted more. Her claws began to stretch, her nano-tech armor stretching out along with them, as they became sharper than her fellow vamps' claws. Now filled with a hunger for combat, Valerie leaped at the nearest vampire and sank her fangs into his throat before tearing out a chuck of undead flesh in doing so, causing the other vampire to die gagging for life.
As for Grell, he had been shoved against the wall by a pair of vamps as they tried to get at his neck. Grell, who was holding them both back with his bare hands, slammed the two monsters' heads together with the force of two trucks wrecking into one another, making their heads explode in a mass of blood and brain matter. Immediately afterward, another leaped toward him with its claws at the ready. Grell quickly grabbed his chainsaw and split the undead monster straight down the middle. Grell was having the time of his life. He missed this. The violence, the death, all of it. It was nice to finally kill someone rather than just wounding them, though he was certain that he was traumatizing Howard judging by his other half's utter silence.
He looked over to see that his partner was currently ripping her way through the remains of another vampire, snarling and shrieking like a wild animal as she did. Grell clutched his scythe and began to rev it up, thinking that the monster side had finally taken over. Thankfully, however, Valerie managed to calm down.
"Alright there, darling?" he asked cautiously.
"I'm fine..." Valerie managed to breathe out. "Now, show me to that club you were talking about."
The Red Room was full as always with the sounds of loud music and the voices of people trying to order drinks, trying to hook-up for the night, or just taking over the crowd. However, they knew not that underneath the club's sheik and trendy design was a layer of darkness that none of them suspected, for this club was a nest for evil. An evil that had long preyed on humanity. However, the cacophony of voices and music was interrupted when one of the club's walls was blown out to allow a pair of monsters to step inside.
"If you have a heartbeat get the fuck out," Valerie ordered.
The people within the club could only stare in stunned silence at the duo, unable to so much as flinch. Valerie let out an annoyed sigh at the sight before shooting at the ceiling, making the crowd of humans shriek in fright.
"Now!" she shouted.
She didn't need to speak any further. Every human within the Red Room began to head for the exit in a panic. Neither of the monster hunters were fazed about scaring those they were trying to protect. For so long as they were safe, it didn't matter to them if they were afraid of their protectors or not. Once the last of the club-goers had fled the scene, those who remained were the staff, or rather, the vamps. Just then, Grell and Valerie heard the sound of slow clapping from the club's upper level. It was then that none other than David Powers stepped out of the shadows, a fang-filled grin on his face.
"David..." the monster hunter sneered with cold contempt in her voice.
"It's so nice to see you again, Nightstalker," the head vampire greeted. "And I see you brought a friend."
"Hello, sexy," Grell answered with a wave.
'Uh, could you not?' Howard asked.
"So, still doing the same old 'run a club and harvest people' gig, huh?" Valerie gathered coldly. "you need a new M.O., dude."
"Hey, what can I say? I'm a creature of habit," David coyly answered. "Besides, it's not like you can stop me."
Hearing those words set a fire in the monster hunter's very being. With an enraged cry, Valerie leaped up to the second level and tackled her adversary into the wall behind him. As for Grell, he revved his death-scythe as David's minions began to advance toward him. As the reaper was beginning to be encircled, Valerie began her battle with David. Valerie fired a pair of dual beams from her armor's shoulder cannons at her enemy, who managed to duck and run under the oncoming beams until he was close enough to deliver an uppercut that knocked her into the air. While still in the air, David grabbed his enemy by the leg and knocked her into the wall, and followed it up by slamming her into the floor. Valerie retaliated by kicking the other vampire in the jaw to knock him back and give her a chance to jump back to her feet.
No sooner had she done that did David try to swipe at her with his claws, to which she managed to block at the last second and punched the other vampire in the stomach. She followed up the attack by taking him by the throat and hurling him across the second floor and straight into his office, causing him to cash into his desk. David hissed in both anger and pain as he forced himself to stand back up while his enemy advanced toward him.
"Ya know, I gotta say, I'm impressed, Nightstalker," David noted. "I wasn't expecting you to acclimate to your powers so quickly."
"Yeah, I'm just full of surprises," the Nightstalker retorted.
"Not as many as me," David countered slyly.
Just then, David's eyes flashed red, causing the room around Valerie to turn pitch black. Even with her night vision, she couldn't see through the darkness that now surrounded her. The monster hunter let out an animalistic hiss as she began to carefully move around the darkness with her weapons drawn. Suddenly, a sharp pain coursed through her back as she felt David's claws slash her from behind. In a fit of rage, the monster hunter spun around and fired her shoulder cannons into the darkness, though she already knew that she had hit nothing. She was then slashed across the side, followed up by another strike to her leg, knocking her down to the ground, to which she quickly recovered.
Valerie had to calm down. She wasn't getting anywhere with her anger overtaking her thoughts. That was exactly what David wanted her to. So, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and instead of looking for her enemy, she listened. The mix of her enhanced hearing and her suit's audio detection allowed her to hear the faint sound of air shifting, a faint sign that someone was moving through the darkness. With pinpoint precision, Valerie threw a punch that managed to hit David across the face. Upon striking the wicked vampire, the darkness faded away, allowing Valerie to see her enemy as he reeled from the blow.
"You know, something's been bothering me since we first met," Valerie mentioned as she advanced toward her enemy. "See, you don't strike me as the mastermind type."
David hissed as he lunged at Valerie with his claws at the ready, only for the Nightstalker to counter the attack and knee him in the gut. She then grabbed him by the back of the head and slammed him into the wall face first. David broke free of her grasp and tried to kick her back, only to have her catch his leg and fling him across his office.
"So tell me, David..." she furthered. "Who are you working for?"
"Sorry, but I'm not saying shit," her rival hissed was managed to push her off his person. "They scare me more than you ever will!"
"If I'm not scaring you, then I'm not working hard enough," the monster hunter retorted before charging at him again.
As the two vampires continued their battle, Grell was back on the ground floor, surrounded by David's underlings. The vigilante had already torn his way through several bloodsuckers tonight, but he was getting exhausted at this point, and more importantly, he was alone. As the reaper revved his death-scythe, he stood his ground and waited for the undead that now encircled him to make the first move.
'I don't suppose that you have a plan, right?' Howard inquired.
"You mean aside from staying alive?" his other self answered. "Not really, no."
'Remember, we need to keep at least one of them around so they can lead to Theresa,' the ginger reminded him.
"Duly noted," Grell answered simply.
No sooner had he said that did the vampires lunge at him in unison. But before they could get a single claw on him, the reaper leaped in the air at the last second. He then made a fist before coming down at the center of the mass of vampires, sending them flying all across the room upon impact with the ground. As the vampire horde tried to pick themselves up off the ground, Grell pinned one of them under his high-heeled shoes, caving in his chest and killing him instantly when the reaper's heel pierced the vamp's heart. Just as Grell had finished off the first vampire, two more sprung forward to try to attack him from behind, only for the reaper to swing around chainsaw first and decapitate them both with one swift motion. As Grell kicked one of the vampire's head aside like he was punting a football, another bloodsucker had managed to tackle the reaper, swatting the chainsaw out of his hands.
"Get off me, you oversized leech!" Grell ordered as he tried to keep the vampire from biting his neck.
Normally, a reaper wouldn't be concerned about a vampire's bite since they were not among the living, but since Grell had merged with Howard, he was unsure what would happen to him should be bitten and he had no intention of finding out now. Grell reached up and took the undead bloodsucker by the jaws and began to pull them apart until the red-dressed reaper split his head in half, killing it instantly. After throwing the undead beast off his person, he reached for his death-scythe, only to have it kicked across the floor by one of his attackers.
The vampire then took Grell by the leg and began to repeatedly slam him into the floor before flinging him into a wall. Grell stumbled back to his feet, only to be ganged up on by another pair of vampires, who, along with the one who had been slinging him, began to slash and punch him, all the while Grell tried to guard himself against the onslaught. The pain and exhaustion that the reaper was feeling was starting to eat away at him, making him unable to fight back.
'Get up!' Howard shouted in Grell's head. 'Grell, get up! Grell!'
Valerie blocked another oncoming punch before countering with a laser blast that David narrowly managed to dodge before following up with a punch to the monster hunter's stomach, making her stumble back a bit. David rushed toward the Nightstalker once he thought that he had another opening, only to be kicked to the ground. Valerie fired several shots from her wrist lasers, only to have David run on all fours across the floor before scurrying up a nearby wall. Once he was high enough, the vampire dropped atop the monster hunter, his elbow making an impact with her shoulder. Fighting through the pain, Valerie quickly corrected her stance and uppercut her foe. She then activated a pair of energy wrist blades before rushing toward her enemy, unleashing a flurry of wild swipes and slashes at David, who, even with his speed, was trying his best to keep pace with the attackers.
"You know, I think I got you all figured out, David," the monster slayer said as she kept up her attacks. "You act all big and tough to scare your underlings, but the second you run into someone who can take the fight to you, you try every dirty trick in the book to get the upper hand."
As if to prove her point, David attempted to use another of his illusions on Valerie, but before his power could set in, Valerie slashed him across the face, making him drop to the ground in pain. As the punk rock vampire was left reeling on the ground, his opponent reactivated her wrist laser and pointed it directly at his face, ready to put an end to this monster once and for all.
"Really? You don't wanna know about my boss?" David inquired as he crawled backward on the ground. "Some hunter you are."
"I figure if I kill you, then they'll have to poke their heads out so I can cut them off the moment they do," the Nightstalker retorted. "Now, I'd ask if you had any last words, but honestly, I don't give a fuck."
"You might want to hear them, though," her enemy advised. "Because your friend needs some help."
Valerie glanced through a window in David's office to see Grell being mauled by a trio of vampires. Taking her eyes off of David even for a second was more than enough time for him to turn into a shroud of mist and escape into a nearby vent. Valerie managed to turn back in time to see the mist cloud seep into the vent. What was she to do now? She couldn't afford to let David escape again, but if she did, then there was a good chance Grell would die. And from what she knew about Reapers, they didn't go to an afterlife in the event of their death. But why should she care? She hardly knew the madman, and what little she did know of him, she didn't like. But as she watched Grell continue to be beaten down, Valerie felt the nagging sense to do what's right gnaw away at her mind.
So, with an annoyed sigh, the monster hunter smashed through the window and descended down to aid her ally, letting her nemesis escape yet again. As she came down to the ground, she unleashed a volley of laser fire that killed two of the bloodsuckers instantly while blowing the third legs off. With the threat neutralized, Valerie went to Grell's side to see if he was still alive.
"Still breathing, drag show?" she asked.
"Ugh, you bitch," Grell grunted as he got back to his feet.
"Your welcome, by the way," the Nightstalker chided. "I left one alive. Here's hoping he knows where the girls are being held."
"For his sake, he better," Grell growled as he picked his chainsaw and advanced toward the wounded vampire.
"Wait! Wait! Wait!" the vampire begged as he attempted to crawl away. "I'll talk! I'll talk!"
The vampire then pointed to a door in the far back of the club.
"They're down there! All of them! I swear it!" the vampire told them in a panic.
"Thanks, darling," was all Grell said before punching him so hard that the vamp's head exploded.
With the last vampire dead, the unlikely duo headed down to the door, ready to face whatever was down there. After going through the door, they descended down several flights of stairs. As they did, Valerie couldn't stop the flood of memories from entering her mind. She remembered waking up in a similar place and being unable to save all those David and his brood had enslaved or feasted upon. It was a failure that she would soon be redeemed of once she saved these poor souls. Both Grell and Valerie expected to run into resistance upon entering the holding cells for the vampire food source, but instead, they only found a strange sight before them.
Throughout the hallway were vampires, only they had been reduced to ash like that of those caught within the destructive power of Mount Vesuvius ages ago. And like them, these vampires were forever trapped in a look of pure horror. Grell even gently touched one of the ashen bodies, causing it to collapse to a pile of ash. Neither warrior knew who, or what, had the power to do this, but they understood that they needed to keep their guard up if it was still here. As they moved further through the hallways, they saw that more of the vampires had been killed in more horrendous ways, not that they cared. One vampire had been melted into a soupy mass of blood and flesh while another had been fused into the wall, all the while looking like he was screaming as he did. Another pair of bloodsuckers were discovered, only they had been turned to solid stone, both with a look of agony and horror on their visages.
It was then that the two antiheroes noticed a series of flashing lights of various colors further into the corridor, prompting the duo to rush forward to face whatever was behind this massacre head-on. Thanks to their inhuman speed, they managed to arrive at the source of the lights. There, standing over the charred skeleton of a vampire was a tall, Arabic man with white hair, dressed in bright robes and an elaborately colored cape. Around his neck was a large golden key, and a strange rod was strapped to his belt. But neither vigilante cared about what the stranger was wearing. What they cared more about was the unconscious young girl he had in his arms.
"Theresa!" Grell shouted. "Let her go before I-"
"She's alive and hasn't been turned, I promise you," the man assured the reaper. "But she has lost a lot of blood, and I have to send her somewhere where she can get help."
"Oh, yeah? And we should trust you why, exactly?" Valerie asked suspiciously, now with her weapons trained on the man.
"My name is Marik Ishtar," the stranger introduced. "I am the Sorcerer Supreme." [5]
"Bullshit!" Grell refuted. "The Sorcerer Supreme died centuries ago!"
"I've taken Madame Leota's mantle," Marik explained. "I mean you, and this girl, no harm."
Grell and Valerie both looked at each other, unsure as to what to do. Silently, they decided to stand down, not wanting to be on the receiving end of whatever magic Marik wielded. Once they did so, Marik suddenly teleported Theresa out of his hands, shocking the duo.
"What did you do?!" Valerie demanded.
"I sent her to the local hospital, just as I had done to the others who were imprisoned here as well," the Master of the Mystic Arts assured. "She'll be alright now."
"You know, for a guy so powerful, you could've given us a hand back there," Valerie chastised.
"I'm sorry, but I had to make sure that the girls were safe first and foremost," the spellcaster answered. "I was actually in the club, undercover, and was about to make my move when you two burst in. Your attack made for the perfect distraction for me to get down here and save these women. Besides, I figured that the Red Reaper and the Nightstalker could hold their own."
"Wait a bloody minute. You know who we are?" Grell questioned.
"I've been keeping an eye on you two for a while now," Marik admitted. "I had to know if I could trust you or not."
"You mean if you had to take us down or not," Valerie corrected. "Am I right?"
Marik didn't answer. Instead, he opened up a portal to what was no doubt his home. As he was halfway through the portal, he turned to speak to the duo one last time.
"I hope to meet you both again someday," he said.
With that, he went through the portal, which closed behind him as he did, leaving the partners alone once more. Normally, a new bond of friendship would be made after such a team-up. But this, however, wasn't a comic book.
"I still hate you."
"Fuck you too."
[1] - As seen in Howard's Spotlight
[2] - As seen in SheZow's Spotlight
[3] - As seen in The Dark Phoenix
[4] - As seen in Valerie's Spotlight
[5] - As seen in Mystic Wars
