Spoilers: Through "Older and Far Away"
Disclaimer: Shockingly, the characters, etc. are not mine.
Doesn't Anyone Stay Dead Around Here?
Chapter 1
"H-h-hello? I-is anybody home?" a timid voice called out as the door to the crypt swung open, late afternoon sunlight filtering around the figure in the doorway.
Hearing no response, the man took a hesitant step inside and squinted into the interior of the structure, forcing his eyes to adjust to the change in light. Once he was sure there was no one or no thing laying in wait for him, he turned and gestured impatiently to his cameraman.
"Come on, Abe. I told you it was safe!" he said commandingly.
Abe Stromson refrained from rolling his eyes at his companion's sudden change in demeanor, and like the obedient cameraman that he was, followed Blair Locksley into the mausoleum. Blair was a quickly rising star in the world of television news magazines, at least according to Blair.
In truth, Blair was well known among his colleagues. However, this fame was due to Blair's persistence in seeking out and chasing stories about a variety of fantastical and downright unbelievable subjects. Last week, Blair had fixated on a new theory involving dinosaur spirits and crop circles. This week it was vampires, something Blair's latest girlfriend had convinced him existed and could be found here. In fact, if Abe remembered correctly (he had a tendency to tune out Blair's often excessive explanations) this crypt belonged to one of the biggest, baddest vampires of all time.
As he entered the dim room, Abe mentally shrugged his shoulders and stopped to allow his eyes to adjust. Blair strode further into the crypt with the certainty of one whose safety has been assured. Both men then began examining the rather unusual contents of the room.
Various, mismatched pieces of furniture, all of which had obviously seen better days, were arranged about the room. A worn chair and couch sat between a television and a stone coffin, facing the TV. There was various overflowing boxes and cloth, some clothing, some bedding lying around the edges of the room, while an old refrigerator stood to one side. Nearly every available surface contained well used candles.
It was obvious that someone spent a considerable amount of time here, for as cluttered and disorderly as the place was, it was still fairly clean. Perhaps someone even lived here. However, Abe was willing to bet a month's pay it was a homeless person rather than a vampire. Blair, on the other hand, was ecstatic.
"It's just how she said it would be!" he exclaimed, referring to his girlfriend. Suddenly he turned to glare at Abe. "Well, what are you waiting for, man? Start filming!"
With a sigh, Abe raised the camera to his shoulder and began to pan across the crypt's interior. Blair crossed to the fridge and opened it, his eyes widening at the contents. As he pulled out a quart jar of a thick, dark red liquid, he called, "Check this out, Abe!"
"What, Blair, does your vampire have blood in his fridge?" Abe continued filming, facing the other direction as he asked the question in the same placating manner he used when Blair excitedly called him up at three in the morning, drunk out of his mind, but hot on a new story.
Blair recognized the tone, and made no attempt to keep the sarcasm out of his voice. "Well, there's some beer and diet Coke, something that looks like chicken wings, ice-cream in the freezer, and yeah, some blood!"
Abe finally turned and looked at the jar Blair was examining. It did look like blood. Abe began to question his doubts about the validity of this particular story.
Blair pulled a small glass vial out of his pocket and slowly poured some of the liquid into it, making sure to securely close the vial.
"Let's go. We've got enough for today. While this is being tested, we can interview that Spring girl." Blair was already to the door by the time he finished talking.
"Summers," Abe correctly as he quickly followed, glad to be leaving.
As soon as the crypt door closed, the lid of the stone sarcophagus shifted to the side, revealing a bleached-blond man within. He gazed at the closed door for a second before climbing out of the coffin. One look outside reaffirmed that the sun was still too high and he quickly crossed the room to a small trap door in the floor. Pulling the trapdoor open, he climbed down, grabbed his trusty blanket, and took off through the sewer tunnels, determined to reach "that Spring girl" before the two men.
tbc
Disclaimer: Shockingly, the characters, etc. are not mine.
Doesn't Anyone Stay Dead Around Here?
Chapter 1
"H-h-hello? I-is anybody home?" a timid voice called out as the door to the crypt swung open, late afternoon sunlight filtering around the figure in the doorway.
Hearing no response, the man took a hesitant step inside and squinted into the interior of the structure, forcing his eyes to adjust to the change in light. Once he was sure there was no one or no thing laying in wait for him, he turned and gestured impatiently to his cameraman.
"Come on, Abe. I told you it was safe!" he said commandingly.
Abe Stromson refrained from rolling his eyes at his companion's sudden change in demeanor, and like the obedient cameraman that he was, followed Blair Locksley into the mausoleum. Blair was a quickly rising star in the world of television news magazines, at least according to Blair.
In truth, Blair was well known among his colleagues. However, this fame was due to Blair's persistence in seeking out and chasing stories about a variety of fantastical and downright unbelievable subjects. Last week, Blair had fixated on a new theory involving dinosaur spirits and crop circles. This week it was vampires, something Blair's latest girlfriend had convinced him existed and could be found here. In fact, if Abe remembered correctly (he had a tendency to tune out Blair's often excessive explanations) this crypt belonged to one of the biggest, baddest vampires of all time.
As he entered the dim room, Abe mentally shrugged his shoulders and stopped to allow his eyes to adjust. Blair strode further into the crypt with the certainty of one whose safety has been assured. Both men then began examining the rather unusual contents of the room.
Various, mismatched pieces of furniture, all of which had obviously seen better days, were arranged about the room. A worn chair and couch sat between a television and a stone coffin, facing the TV. There was various overflowing boxes and cloth, some clothing, some bedding lying around the edges of the room, while an old refrigerator stood to one side. Nearly every available surface contained well used candles.
It was obvious that someone spent a considerable amount of time here, for as cluttered and disorderly as the place was, it was still fairly clean. Perhaps someone even lived here. However, Abe was willing to bet a month's pay it was a homeless person rather than a vampire. Blair, on the other hand, was ecstatic.
"It's just how she said it would be!" he exclaimed, referring to his girlfriend. Suddenly he turned to glare at Abe. "Well, what are you waiting for, man? Start filming!"
With a sigh, Abe raised the camera to his shoulder and began to pan across the crypt's interior. Blair crossed to the fridge and opened it, his eyes widening at the contents. As he pulled out a quart jar of a thick, dark red liquid, he called, "Check this out, Abe!"
"What, Blair, does your vampire have blood in his fridge?" Abe continued filming, facing the other direction as he asked the question in the same placating manner he used when Blair excitedly called him up at three in the morning, drunk out of his mind, but hot on a new story.
Blair recognized the tone, and made no attempt to keep the sarcasm out of his voice. "Well, there's some beer and diet Coke, something that looks like chicken wings, ice-cream in the freezer, and yeah, some blood!"
Abe finally turned and looked at the jar Blair was examining. It did look like blood. Abe began to question his doubts about the validity of this particular story.
Blair pulled a small glass vial out of his pocket and slowly poured some of the liquid into it, making sure to securely close the vial.
"Let's go. We've got enough for today. While this is being tested, we can interview that Spring girl." Blair was already to the door by the time he finished talking.
"Summers," Abe correctly as he quickly followed, glad to be leaving.
As soon as the crypt door closed, the lid of the stone sarcophagus shifted to the side, revealing a bleached-blond man within. He gazed at the closed door for a second before climbing out of the coffin. One look outside reaffirmed that the sun was still too high and he quickly crossed the room to a small trap door in the floor. Pulling the trapdoor open, he climbed down, grabbed his trusty blanket, and took off through the sewer tunnels, determined to reach "that Spring girl" before the two men.
tbc