"Talk?" Waverly asked incredulously, face contorted in anger, and a slightly manic gleam in his eyes. "What in the world is there to talk about, Dr. Reid?" The man all but spat with venom. His face slowly reddened the longer he stared at the mockery of logic that was Jonathan Emmet Reid. "What fantasy will you spin to fill the ears of the gullible staff now?"
Eyeing the man like one might watch an aggressive animal, 'and oh, wasn't that a bit of irony', Jonathan thought briefly to himself as he folded his forelegs over his chest. He took a deep breath, blowing it out slowly through his nose as he gathered himself before addressing the other doctor. "Dr. Ackroyd," the equine started, voice soft, yet stern. "I wanted to see if you were alright." Reid rubbed at the back of his neck with one hoof, a slightly guilty look on his face. "I understand what you have been told tonight is…" He trailed off, wings fluttering and ears flicking as he searched for the best way to phrase what he wanted to say. "Is in complete and utter disregard for science as we know it, but," he gave Waverly his full attention, "I thought I could at least try and answer any questions you might have to the best of my ability."
A scoff left the human doctor, before he turned the full brunt of his ire at the one he was still convinced was parading around the hospital in a costume. "And what questions could I possibly have for a liar like yourself?!" Ackroyd sneered at Reid, "Other than what you hope to achieve with this farce?"
He rubbed his face in frustration at the man's obstinence. The ekon's lips curled back as an angry inhuman growl started to build in his chest, only to die out as he noticed Ackroyd still had his stethoscope around his neck. An idea struck Jonathan, and his lips twitched into a smile briefly before he quickly schooled his expression. He tipped his head at the man as he proposed a question to Waverly. "Here's a question for you," he said, the slit pupils of his eyes pinning the man in place. "How can I possibly still be moving despite the fact my heart has long since stopped beating?"
"What?" He breathed out, the barest thread of fear leaving a tremor in his voice. Ackroyd shook his head at the question Jonathan had suggested. "If that was meant to be funny, Reid, it is far from it." He started when he noticed that the other doctor was in the process of unbuttoning his vest. "What do you think you're doing!?" Waverly sputtered at him, confusion plain on his face.
A hum left the ekon as he continued to wrestle with his hooves and the buttons on his vest and shirt. "You have your stethoscope on you Dr. Ackroyd," he stated, motioning with a hoof to the item loose around his neck. "You can listen for yourself and hear if I'm lying or not." A few short moments later of fumbling with the buttons, Jonathan pulled the left side of his clothing away, head tilted as he looked at Waverly. "Well, are you willing to find out?"
Ackroyd stood there, gaping at Jonathan for the other's calm demeanor and blase attitude, before closing his jaw with a click and a huff. "Very well," he grit out, "once we deal with these delusions of yours, you will remove that ridiculous costume, Reid." Waverly kept a scowl on his face as he pulled the stethoscope from around his neck, put the eartips in his ears, and placed the diaphragm against the chest of the other doctor, startling at the fur and inhuman shape of it for a moment. He shook himself, placing the stethoscope back against Reid's chest, and listened intently. Ackroyd's brow furrowed as he listened, not hearing anything as time ticked by. Not the sound of the other's heart beating, nor the sound of breathing, no matter where he moved the drum. Until Reid took a breath to ask him a question, startling him.
"Problems, Dr. Ackroyd?" He asked, ears twitching and inhuman eyes watched him as he fumbled with the stethoscope after the unexpected query. Jonathan merely arched an eyebrow at the mortal doctor's scowl, and held still once more as the man approached him again.
He flipped the drum to the bell side, repeating the process. Waverly paled when this also failed to produce any sounds, muttering to himself as he backed away from the creature before him. "Impossible…" left him in a whisper, "This is scientifically impossible." He stared in horror at the thing in front of him. Ackroyd's back hit the wall as he stumbled away from whatever it was that had been hired on as Pembroke's head surgeon. "What are you?" He asked in a hushed whisper.
He bit back a sigh as he shook his head, slowly buttoning his shirt and vest. "I believe I've already stated what I am, Dr. Ackroyd," Reid gave him a curious look. "A vampire, and I have been so for roughly a year now." He finished buttoning up his shirt and fell to all fours with a quiet click of hooves. "The equine form is a more recent development, unrelated to my vampirism." Jonathan looked up at Waverly, head tilted, ears flicking to and fro as they tracked the sounds within the hospital. "If you would like to ask any questions, we can discuss things further in my office."
The ekon pulled his pocket watch out to double check the time. "Dawn will be here sooner than I would like, and I would rather be away from any uncovered windows before then." He turned around, moving near silently back towards his space in the hospital. An ear rotated back on his head as he noticed the mortal doctor's heart was still hammering away in his chest. Jonathan looked over his shoulder, seeing the man was still frozen in place. "Dr. Ackroyd?"
"You expect me to go anywhere with the likes of you?!" He spat, white-faced and shaking, staring down the monster that had been parading around the hospital for the past year. Seething, he glared at Reid, "You must be mad!" A distant part of his mind thought hurling vitriol at something as potentially dangerous as an actual vampire could be a fantastically bad idea, but that was drowned out by the indignation, rage, and fear. "And what are you even doing here, working in a hospital?! Hoping for an easy meal?!"
Jonathan's muzzle threatened to pull back in a snarl as his ears twisted around, he did his best to tamp down the beastial growl that wanted to bubble out of his chest. He turned around to face Waverly fully. "I do not expect you to go anywhere with me if you do not wish to, Ackroyd," he bit out, tone clipped as he tried to reign in his temper. He pinned the man with a stare, eyes narrowed slightly, and couldn't quite keep the growl from mixing in with his next words. "As for what I'm doing working in the hospital? The same as every other doctor here." His fangs flashed as he spoke. "Trying to help people and save lives." His fur was bristling visibly where it was not covered by his clothes. "That you would suggest I would betray my oaths as a doctor and stoop so low as to attack those we are meant to care for is abhorrent!"
Fists braced against the wall behind him, his own anger rising, he scoffed in disbelief at that statement. "You really expect me to believe that?!" Ackroyd spat, glaring back at the creature standing there, a mockery of everything the hospital stood for. "That an aberration such as yourself cares a wit about the people here?" He banged one fist back, volume rising further, "How did you even get hired here? Did you bewitch Dr. Swansea?" Whatever he was going to say next was cut off with a yelp as Reid was obscured by a swirl of shadows moments before a pair of dark hooves slammed into the stonework on either side of his head, cracking it. Waverly shrank back at the hellish red on black eyes that burrowed into his own, and snarling, snapping fangs inches from his face.
"ENOUGH!" Jonathan bellowed, temper finally frayed. "I don't care what you believe or think you know about me, Ackroyd!" He didn't even bother to try fighting the growl that rattled out of his chest. "Because apparently, you don't know a thing about me aside from my reputation from before the war!" His muzzle wrinkled as he backed away from the mortal doctor, doing his best to reign his anger in. He closed his eyes as he took a moment to just breathe in and out slowly, eyes back to pale blue-grey once he reopened them. "And no, I did not bewitch Edgar, as you so crudely put it." He huffed as he crossed his forelegs over his chest. "I met the man the second night after I woke up with these fangs in my head and this abominable thirst." A scoff left the ekon as he waved a hoof in the direction of the director's office. "He knows far more about vampires than I do, and could tell what I was the moment we met!" Reid threw his hooves in the air in exasperation, "And he still offered me a position here!"
Seeing that Waverly was still frozen in place against the wall, Jonathan slumped, exhausted and drained from his outburst and the shame of his behaviour. A sigh left him as he shook his head. "I did not come out here to start an argument with you, Dr. Ackroyd, and for that I am sorry." He rubbed at his face with a hoof, weary beyond even the sun's approaching pull. "Nor did I mean to lose my temper like that." Reid looked out the window as black began to give way to grey. "I truly did wish to see if you were alright, Waverly." He turned his attention back to the man. "Perhaps, we both need a bit of time." The equine let himself fall back onto all fours, slowly retreating back to his office. "Tonight, if you wish to talk, I'll be here for an hour before returning home." Jonathan looked back over his shoulder one last time, offering a quiet "Good morning, Dr. Ackroyd," before vanishing down the hallway to his quarters.
Ackroyd slid down the wall after Reid left, head tilted up to look at the hoof-prints pressed deep into the stone, cracks radiating outwards. He went nearly as pale as his doctor's coat, as it started to sink in what a truly foolish risk he had taken. A hushed "Why?" left his lips, eyes locked in the direction Reid had departed in. "Why is something as dangerous as a vampire allowed to roam free in the hospital?"
By the time Ackroyd managed to pick himself up from the floor, sunrise had long passed. Steps shaky, he trudged to his office. He cast a quick, fearful glance at the corridor leading to Reid's room. What was he doing right now? Sleeping? Plotting? He didn't know, and that only fueled the anxious feeling burning away in his chest. He quickened his pace. Waverly needed to change out of his work attire, the sooner the better. The hospital was under threat, and he'd need more information before confronting the beast lurking in plain sight.
His mind churned as he shrugged out of his lab coat, where does one even start researching factual information about vampires? His brow furrowed, hadn't the men who'd dragged Swansea, bruised and bloodied from the hospital mentioned something about him and leeches? And from the tone they were using, Waverly was willing to bet they weren't talking about the animal. He pulled on his warmer day-to-day coat, what had they called themselves? Perwin? Priwen? Something to that effect. Ackroyd recalled they had spat something about him being a Stole bastard? Hm, another avenue to investigate. Better to start with the group who had abducted Edgar last year. As much as he was loath to seek out a group of thugs, they may have been onto something considering the man had hired a vampire to work in the hospital!
Ackroyd stormed out of the hospital, a scowl set deep on his face. He would make sure the Pembroke and its patients were safe, even if he was the only one not charmed by the beast hiding behind smooth words and feigned care. No matter what.
Night had fallen once more, and it was now past the hour's wait Reid said he would stay in the hospital should Ackroyd wish to speak with him. A sigh left his lips as he gathered up what tools and weapons he kept on his person for crossing a potentially supernaturally hostile London that evening. Apparently, the man had left after dawn and not been seen since. "I do hope he hasn't gotten himself into trouble," he murmured low to himself. While before Waverly had made plain his dislike for Jonathan and his methods in the past, they had at least been able to maintain a professional level of politeness and calm detachment while working. However, the rumors, and then reveal that Reid was in fact a vampire seems to have been a tipping point. Now that it was known, Ackroyd seemed to be convinced the ekon was incapable of actually caring. That he had lost his temper with the man didn't help matters either.
The fact that his actions seemed to mean nothing caused his ears and wings to wilt. He sat on the cot in his office, staring at his hooves, all too easily imagining his normal hands in their place, and the razor sharp claws they hid. Jonathan was painfully aware of just how much harm he was now capable of inflicting, even on accident. Mary's death twice over at his hands was more than proof enough for him. And every day, he worked hard to make up for that, to be better than his newer instincts and nature. He ran a hoof through his mane, noticing the tremble it had as he held it in front of himself. He brought it to his chest, and curled in on himself, eyes reddening with unshed tears. "I'm trying Mary, I promise."
He took a moment to gather himself, before he pushed himself off the cot with another shuddering sigh, and moved to gather his coat. He'd spent enough time moping and wool-gathering. Jonathan wanted to return home, and check on how everyone was holding up at the Manor. He was worried Ascalon might try something, being as close to his home as it was. Reid pulled his coat on, carefully slotting his wings through the slits in the back, and gave them an experimental flap. "I really do need to practice with these things, and figure out just what they can do…" He trailed off, and shook his head, stepping out onto his makeshift balcony. He looked around, noting it was another calm, quiet night, and dropped to the ground in a blur of shadows. He walked swiftly back towards the West End, sticking to the lesser used back alleys, but taking less effort to hide. With how the staff, and Londoners in general liked to gossip, Jonathan had little doubt that news about both his current form, and his nature would spread around the city before too long. Best he could do was continue on as normal.
He slowed as his hooves took him closer to home. Reid stopped as his ears flicked back and forth, and his nostrils flared. He picked up the scent of stale blood, and heard soft murmuring. Slipping into his blood-sight, he looked around carefully. He quickly caught the dull red glow of an ekon's circulatory system hiding back in an alleyway ahead of him. Gaze picking across the area, he found a second one up on an abandoned balcony. An ambush then. A thorough examination of the area showed it was just the pair of ekons, and given the area, it was a safe bet they were from Ascalon.
Searching for a route to get to the one perched up on the balcony, Jonathan tried to parse out a way to get there without being noticed. The ekon-turned-pony bit back a sigh, the only way he could think to get up there would require him to go through the main street. Which would more likely than not get his current form spotted. Try and shadow-step up to the ekon on the balcony, very possibly get spotted and get caught in the ambush anyway, or risk getting spotted by the general populace on the main road? He worried his lip for a moment before spinning around and began a quiet gallop for the shortest route to the main street.
Reid shifted his weight nervously on his hooves as he stood, hidden in the mouth of an alley leading off the back streets. He could see the building that would lead him to the balcony one of the ekons had been perched on. However, to get to it, he'd have to cross the brightly lit street, which had more than a few people on it. He looked up, hoping to spot a bit of scaffolding or a slightly damaged balcony for him to shadow-step up to, in hopes of avoiding the people out. Unfortunately, he could not find any. He worried his lip with one fang, resigned to having to brave the road and being seen, or using some of his limited blood stores on hiding himself. Even if he went at a full gallop across on all fours, there was a high chance he'd be spotted, but he was also worried about using some of his blood should he need to fight.
He hesitated, he knew word would spread soon enough, but that did not mean he wanted to accelerate it. Jonathan took a deep breath as he stepped back, dropping onto all fours as he watched for a lull in the handful of people wandering around at this hour. Reid muttered a quiet prayer, then galloped across at full speed, rate he moved at blurring his form as he charged, drawing startled exclamations. He ducked around the corner of a building, launching himself up onto a balcony in a rush of shadows. The ekon crouched down low as he listened to a few people milling about below him, trying to figure out what had just rushed across one of the busier roads of the West End.
Ears pricked up, twitching and twisting as they tracked the sound of people leaving. Reid slipped into his blood-sight, checking if anyone had stayed behind in hopes the anomaly would come back. He breathed a sigh of relief as he saw no-one remaining nearby, and turned his head, checking to see if the ekons had moved or noticed the commotion. The position of the veins in their heads seemed to indicate they were looking at each other at the very least. He sucked in an unneeded breath when their heads began to turn in his direction, and Jonathan quickly curled his body into the best approximation of the pose of a sleeping dog, hoping to trick them.
Reid managed to pick up the faint sounds of their conversation, ears straining, despite being even sharper like this. "What's that over there?" He heard one ask, and had to remind himself to breathe slowly, to mimic sleep. There were a few moments of silence, before the other one returned "Just a mutt of some sort, nothing to worry about." He continued the ruse until he was sure they had both turned their attention back the other way, still looking for the ekon doctor. The equine unfolded himself, getting to his hooves as quietly as possible, before vaulting through the open window of the abandoned house one of the ekons was perched in.
He pulled on the shadows to muffle the slight click his hooves made on the wooden boards. Jonathan stalked forward, and slowly rose to his hind hooves, pulling his hacksawn and a stake out as quietly as he could while he did so. Once he was close enough, he bolted forward, he pressed the blade of the saw to the ekon's neck, and the wooden point of the stake into his back in-line with his heart. Reid placed his muzzle near his ear, and in a low, warning tone said "Don't move, don't make a sound, if you do, it will be one of the last things you do, I promise you that." His lips curled in a snarl as he asked "Do you understand?"
He could see as the ekon he'd snuck up on tensed up; watched the slight tip of his head in as shallow a nod as he could without the saw's teeth digging into his throat. Satisfied, Jonathan pulled the saw away minutely, but pressed the stake further against the other ekon in warning. "Now," he started, "what do you think you're doing here, you and your partner?" He hissed a warning, "Also, do not lie to me."
The barest thread of a whimper left the ekon Reid had captured, and with a nervous, shaky breath he started."You're- You're Dr. Jonathan Reid, yes?" At the noise of affirmation from behind him, he gulped, sure that if he could still sweat, he would be drenched right now. "We- we were told to ambush you, Dr. Reid, on orders from Ascalon's higher-ups." The man in his hold shuddered. "Don't- don't know much, I don't attend the club very often." A faint "Eep!" left him as he felt the stake press harder against his back, and the low warning growl rumbling behind him. "It's true!" The ekon pleaded in a whisper.
"With everything that happened last year, Lord Redgrave has been forcing lower ranking members more and more into working for the 'Greater Good' of the club." The ekon rattled off in a hurried jumble. "I've not even been turned that long!" When the saw was tilted up to angle under his chin, he couldn't stop the fearful whine that left him. "I swear to you, Dr. Reid!" He tried to appeal to the doctor's sense of morals, "None of the recently turned have been allowed to hunt." He added hastily. "Lord Redgrave forbade it, didn't want to tip off you or the Guard of Priwen that Ascalon was trying to replenish it's numbers."
A thoughtful hum left Jonathan as he took in the ekon's tone, the rapid, shallow breaths, and acrid scent. He was well and truly afraid of him, and as far as Reid could tell, far too scared of him to even consider lying to the older ekon. He ran through a few ideas, settling on one, and leaned closer to the man's ear again. "Here's what's going to happen," Reid started softly, "I'm going to take the stake and saw away from you, and we are going to continue this talk."
He pressed the hacksaw closer for a moment as he exchanged the wooden stake for the pistol loaded with some of his specialty ammunition, letting the click of the hammer echo in the stillness. He growled a warning to the ekon, "Make no mistake," Jonathan said, voice low. "No matter what I may look like, I am still very capable of ending you." A soft snort left him as he backed away, "and these rounds will hurt, regardless of the healing ekons possess."
The fledgling ekon rubbed at his throat after the Doctor pulled the hacksaw away, gasping and gulping down unneeded lungfuls of air, shuddering as he felt a bit of tacky blood under his fingers. He turned around and balked at the sight he was met with. A small equine facing him, standing on its hind legs. It had a pistol somehow held against its left hoof, claws of shadows and blood curling around the grip with one hovering near the trigger. Against its right hoof was a medical saw, claws likewise curled around its handle. The horse, pony, whatever it was was dressed in West End finery, and had more than a passing resemblance to the ekon he was supposed to attack at the club's orders. He blinked once, twice, and asked in a quiet voice, "Dr. Reid?"
The equine nodded, never letting the pistol drop from the ekon's center of mass, or take his eyes off him. "That would in fact be me," he said, and rolled his shoulders, wings rustling and drawing the other's attention. Jonathan tilted his head, one eyebrow raised, "And who might you be?" He'd need more information to see what was actually going on before heading back to the Guard to hammer out a plan.
He gulped, and thought over both how easily the doctor had managed to sneak up on him despite his strange form. And if he was even half as dangerous like this as he was when he tore apart the older members of the club to just talk with Lord Redgrave, he had no doubt he could back up his threat. He held his hands up, palms facing the wall behind him, to exclude the possible threat of a blood spear. He fought to temp down the quaver in his voice as he introduced himself. "My name is Anton Samuel Edevane." The now named Anton introduced himself. "I only recently inherited my position in the club after the plague died down." He shuddered as he mentioned the next part, memories threatening to overwhelm him. "And that was only a scant few months before Lord Redgrave started his forced recruitment."
Reid's brow furrowed, eyes narrowed as he picked apart the information he had gained. "Mr. Edevane…" He began slowly, eyes tracking him, "You mentioned that Lord Redgrave is both trying to replenish the number of Ekons in the club, and implied that he is forcefully recruiting individuals as such." Jonathan arched an eyebrow at the man, lips pursed for a moment. He did not like the implications of that. He took a closer look at the man, taking in features he had considered unimportant at the time for catching him unaware. Young, early to mid twenties, likely bought his way out of the war. The softness his form held spoke of a life without hard labor. A young man unaccustomed to struggle and fighting. Possibly someone intrigued by the idea of immortality, but also enamored with life's delicacies. Not someone who was likely to try very hard to become a vampire at his age. "Elaborate on that," Reid said, gesturing with the hacksaw. An ear flicked as he added, "Please."
A shudder passed over Anton at the doctor's politely phrased demand, not at the tone he asked it in, but for the memories it brought back. The ekon slowly brought his arms down, and clasped his hands in front of himself, his knuckles a stark white from how tightly he was holding them. "Lord Redgrave gave those members he considered to be of worthy pedigree and status an ultimatum…" His breath left him in a shaky exhale. Edevane looked up at the altered form of the most fearsome ekon in London, Dr. Jonathan Reid, and also the kindest, if stories of the care and generosity he showed to the poorer members of London were to be believed. He was banking on that kindness, and the fact that the good doctor had been known to show mercy in the past. "We could be turned, or be a meal for those that did accept."
Tremors wracked his frame as the memories pulled him further down, "You must understand Dr. Reid!" The fledgling pleaded, "had I any other choice, I would have taken it!" Anton's claws bit into the palms of his hands now, blood sluggishly oozing up. "But this was sprung upon us with no warning, and after we had been herded into a locked room!" A thin whine left him, "I didn't want to die." He shook his head from side to side roughly, desperately trying to push the horror away. "No one in the group did." His hands crept up, fingers curling into his hair, "Some of the group was missing when we woke up…" Edevane looked at the older ekon, eyes glistening. "I don't know-" His words cut off in a shaky exhale.
His lips twisted into a snarl the more he listened to the young man tell what had been occurring within the Ascalon Club. Redgrave had long since gone too far. Forcing vampirism on people, and working on rebuilding the club's fighting force… Jonathan was sure whatever the Lord was plotting, it would end poorly for the rest of London. A growl, low and dangerous rolled from the equine. It was time to make them answer for what they'd done. He cut off the growl when he noticed the fledgling cowering and backing away. Reid sighed as he put the saw away, holding one hoof up. "Mr. Edevane," he spoke softly, not wanting to startle him further. "Am I correct that you've not fed from anyone since your turning?" At the tentative, fearful nod, he gave a nod of his own. "Alright. Should you prove to be able to continue abstaining from feeding on people, I am willing to negotiate with the Guard of Priwen on your behalf as a victim of circumstance."
"But-" Anton started, confused and surprised, "but we're Ekons, we need blood to survive." At the harsh look he received he held his hands up. Fighting the stutter that wanted to mangle his words with his nerves shot, he quickly added, "I do not wish to harm anyone Dr. Reid, but neither do I wish to starve."
Another breathy sigh left the ekon-turned-equine before he addressed the young man. "Animal blood eases the thirst, it need not be human blood you subsist on." At the stunned look on Edevane's face, Reid quirked an eyebrow at him, "I imagine Redgrave failed to mention this?" He snorted, scowling once more, as he all but spat out "Probably so he had an excuse to keep picking off people less likely to be noticed should they go missing to feed his thirst." Jonathan finally pocketed his sidearm, waving the other fore-hoof as if to clear the air. "Regardless, yes, you can feed on animal blood, simple enough to set traps or buy it from a butcher." He folded his forelegs over each other, regarding the fledgling, "Now, what of the other Ekon?" He motioned with a nod to where they were hidden on the road below.
Flinching, he bit the corner of his lip, hissing when a fang punctured it. "No, he's old blood to Ascalon." Anton pressed the pad of his finger to the puncture, even though it was already healed. He worried it for a moment before he shook his head. "He was out of London on business during the time of your… inquiry of the Club." Guessing what was most likely to be the equine's next question, he hastily added, "He's been vocal and unrepentant in his displeasure on having to cut back his feeding since his return."
Jonathan didn't fight the snarl that drew back his muzzle this time, "I see." He pointed a hoof at the young man, "Stay here." The pony made sure his tools and weapons were ready to be drawn. "I'm going to go have a chat with him."
Edevane couldn't help the fearful gulp at Reid's expression as he exited the room in a whirl of shadows and simmering wrath. Even as a tiny horse, he was terrifying when he wanted to be.