The next morning, Elizabeth wakes up to a yell of frustration. She opens
her eyes to see Jesse removing the glass from the window and then replacing
it with a single word of magical power.
"What's wrong?"
"Just that one of those under the power of the Power of Black was watching us last night and I didn't even realize it," Jesse replies sourly as he examines the symbol etched into the glass.
"What's that?" Elizabeth asks.
"The symbol of one of the mightiest evils to ever live," Jesse replies, "he's a master assassin. He's like nothing I've come up against before or since I met him. He holds limitless potential."
Now that puzzled Elizabeth. "Limitless potential? So what? Everyone has limitless potential."
"No, he can actually achieve his limitless potential," Jesse explains, "he is nothing more than a soul. He goes around, finding powerful warriors and evicting their souls and taking up residence. But from each possession, he carries over the power he had from all of the previous possessions. His power can grow from that of a normal mortal human to equaling us when we died in a matter of days. He destroyed his entire village. He almost got me, but the Power of Silver took steps, I think. But every so often, I meet him again."
"What is his name?" Elizabeth asks.
"Shidoshi Hidosi," Jesse replies darkly, "he is from a small village in Japan. He's been kicking around for the last three thousand years. He can still match us in every known skill except possibly magic. He knows how to manipulate his life energy, his ki, to grow more powerful. Add that to already fathomless natural strength that he carries over from each possession, and you've got a very powerful enemy. I've been tracking him down for the last three millennia to destroy him."
"How can you destroy a spirit?" Elizabeth asks.
"I'll banish him somewhere," Jesse replies, "or force him to move on to the afterlife. Whichever one he follows, that is. Personally, I may just try and send him to Hell since there's a basic concept of it in most religions, so it might pull in victims from all religions."
"Evil is evil," Elizabeth agrees.
"It's not an evil place," Jesse replies, "just its inhabitants are evil. It is more a place of good than anything else. It holds the souls of unworthy people who cannot get into Heaven or Nirvana or whatever you believe in. It punishes them for their wickedness and when the Second Judgment comes, they have a chance to make it. If they don't make it, then I guess they're screwed."
"Where do you think we'll end up?" Elizabeth asks.
"I've never thought about it," Jesse admits, "whatever happens, happens."
"So, Shidoshi is in the area then?" Elizabeth says, pointing at the symbol in the glass pane in Jesse's hands.
"He was last night," Jesse replies, "luckily, there are plenty of powerful spells that keep evil out of the House. I've lowered them within Pierre's Bar and the kitchen, and strengthened them everywhere else. Except for the Bar, nothing can get in or out without my knowledge."
"Jesse, how many Immortals are in this city?" Elizabeth asks.
"Hmm, probably less than ten," Jesse says thoughtfully, "why?"
"I sensed three different Immortals on my way here inside the city," Elizabeth replies, "one was a female who felt like she knew some magic. I think she was physically seventeen."
"And how old was she actually?" Jesse asks, "you've always been better at scanning women than me, Alex, or Adam. You and Laci are just plain good at it."
"But you, Alex, and Adam could scan the guys better than we can," Elizabeth points out, "the skill is likely gender oriented, since you would know those of your own gender better than someone of the opposing gender."
"Too true, too true," Jesse agrees, "so, wanna get cleaned up and go down to the Bar for breakfast? My treat."
"Of course," Elizabeth says, "I haven't had a decent shower in days."
"Mind if I join you?" Jesse asks with an impish grin as he ducks Elizabeth swat.
"Aren't we taking this relationship a little fast?" Elizabeth inquires, "I only found out that I was your girlfriend last night."
"I only did that for Pierre's sake," Jesse replies, "I like throwing him off balance. So far, its been incredibly hard to do. You probably threw him off balance eating red Moblin meat and teaching him how to prepare it properly when you can't properly cook it."
"That was fun to see," Elizabeth agrees, "sorry for saying you were my boyfriend to get those guys to leave me alone. If I had appeared available, those idiots would never have left me alone until you showed up."
"Actually, I'd like to talk to you about that," Jesse says, "I really didn't mind. But perhaps next time you get in a situation like that, perhaps you don't need to lie when you say you have a boyfriend."
"Oh, why is that?" Elizabeth asks. She knew exactly where this was going. After knowing Jesse practically since she was born, she could read him like a book.
"Well, I was wondering," Jesse begins, but then gets flustered, "there's this event at the local skating rink, and I was wondering if you'd like to, ah, well."
"Jesse Plunk, are you asking me out on a date?" Elizabeth demands, a sparkle of mischief in her eyes. Jesse blushes crimson on the spot.
"I'll take that as a yes, as usual," Elizabeth giggles, "of course I'll go with you."
Jesse's shoulders sag as he sighs in relief. "You know, I haven't been that nervous since the Salem Witch Trials."
Elizabeth chuckles. "That time period was worse for me than it was for you, you know. I am female, after all. Not only that, but many is the time that I got burned at the stake because I was accused of being a witch because of my beauty."
"Jealousy has ruined many an empire," Jesse says, "it's a blasted shame. You know, they were right about us being witches, sort of. We did and do know powerful magic. We probably could raise demons. But we'd only raise them to destroy them."
"Yep," Elizabeth agrees, "say, how long until this event at the skating rink?"
"5 pm," Jesse replies.
"Think you could give me a guided tour of either the city or the House?" Elizabeth asks.
"Sure," Jesse grins, "which would you rather have first?"
"We can save the tour of the city till tomorrow, since we're on a time schedule today," Elizabeth says, "so you can give me a tour of the House since it would take less time."
"You sure about that?" Jesse grins, "there's more under the House than there is around it."
Elizabeth arches and eyebrow. "Very intriguing. Then show me around the town."
"As thee wish, milady," Jesse says with a flourish bow, "but first, lets get cleaned up."
"Yes, I really need a shower," Elizabeth says, wrinkling her nose at the smell of days on the road.
"So do I," Jesse says wryly, "I spent a good deal of yesterday working on various spells, strengthening the magical defenses of the city and the House. I'm still tweaking the positions of the ley lines."
"That's hard work," Elizabeth says, "isn't AMC City on a major ground star?"
"The whole freaking planet is a literal ground star," Jesse grumbles, "but there is a higher concentration in this immediate area. The House is connected to every major ley line on the planet, as well as most of the minor lines. With the sheer power the lines carry, it's a wonder the very air doesn't crackle."
"Its almost overloading my senses," Elizabeth says as she admires the work Jesse had done with the lines of natural magic that criss-crossed the planet. They intersected in a powerful amplification pattern. She winces as she sees a familiar pattern.
"One misplaced spell could erupt all of the ley lines and destroy the planet, you know," Elizabeth comments, "and I see a few minor flaws in the intricate patterns."
"Those are intentional," Jesse says, "and they are not flaws. If you look more closely, you'll see that they do not directly connect with the other patterns. If you look at the larger scale, you'll find that they form the finer details of some very powerful patterns."
Elizabeth takes another look and her eyes widen. The amount of power that these patterns would give were near-infinite! How could Jesse have possibly put them together on his own?!
Elizabeth finally realizes that she is trembling. Finally, she gains her voice. "H-how did you do this? Even the me, you, Alex, Adam, and Laci would be hard pressed to do this."
"I told you, I now possess a connection to the Power of Silver," Jesse replies, "even the faintest trickle can increase a persons abilities to an unbelievable lack of limit."
"So you're omnipotent?" Elizabeth asks.
"Nope," Jesse replies, "far from it. But my potential is limitless. Actually, its always been limitless, but with the Power of Silver I've been greatly furthered along in my abilities."
"So now it's no longer me just barely trailing behind you," Elizabeth remarks, "now you're above and beyond what the rest of us are capable of."
"I'm sorry," Jesse says softly, "but it is necessary."
"Bah," Elizabeth snorts, "we all knew it would happen someday. Its just that its still a shock."
"Well, my increased power only manifests itself when directly facing the forces of evil," Jesse says, "or only when it is absolutely needed. Other than that, my abilities are unchanged, though I may have a bit more energy to pour into my spells. It takes me longer to fatigue, though that may be from my body having gotten used to the stress I put on it setting up these spells."
"I'm surprised you messed with the ley lines in the first place," Elizabeth comments, "one wrong move and you'd have obliterated the planet, and maybe all of existence."
"But I didn't, and I had explicit instructions from various books," Jesse replies, "if I hadn't, then the way things were set up, evil would have had the upper hand. The ley lines had been slowly shifted over the millennia since the fall of the Atlantis to give evil the upper hand. Every six thousand years, they will be in perfect harmony to give either good or evil harmony. Six thousand years ago on our birthday, they were almost completely against us. If the Power of Silver had not intervened and made me an Immortal, good would be hard pressed to win now with the balance in its favor. And because of the link that had been established between you, me, Alex, and my siblings to give me the strength to stand up against the Black Doom, the four of you became Immortals as well."
"So we have lived these past six thousand years because you were needed?" Elizabeth demands indignantly.
"Partially, yes," Jesse replies evenly, "but you all were needed as well. I'd have lost my mind long ago due to the slow drone of the centuries passing by."
"Who's to say you didn't lose your mind?" Elizabeth teases.
Jesse grins wryly. "True, but I haven't completely lost it."
Elizabeth wrinkles her nose. "Well, you can tell me more while you're giving me a tour of the city. Now go bathe. You stink."
Elizabeth shuffles Jesse out of her apartments and closes the door. Jesse wisely keeps it to himself that she smelled far worse than he did at the moment. But since he didn't want to be turned into a frog, he let it slide. He heads up to his rooms and bathes and then hunts up some good clothes.
When Jesse gets back to Elizabeth door, he finds her waiting for him in a bright blue and red tee shirt and jeans. Her long golden blonde hair was tied back in a pony tail. But what caught Jesse eye was her expression. She was not happy.
"How did you know my measurements?" Elizabeth demands.
"Simple," Jesse replies, "remember that dress I had made for you so you could accompany me to King Louis the XI's ball? I remembered your measurements from then. By the way, that dress is in the back of the closet, if you ever have need for it again."
Elizabeth purses her lips. "Well, I can't call you a pervert then. But you could have just cast spells on them to make them fit me."
"You'd have spotted those instantly," Jesse replies, "and then gutted me for being insensitive. Did you notice the spells shifted the clothes in the closet to show what you wanted?"
"I did," Elizabeth says, "nice work on those. But am I mistaken, or was there one garment that didn't change, no matter what?"
"Did you take a look at it?" Jesse asks apprehensively.
"It was the same style of battle garment that we wore in our fight against the Black Doom," Elizabeth says.
"It would be the exact same garment, but those outfits have long since been battered beyond repair even by us, or rusted away," Jesse replies, "so I just made new ones. These have the best protective spells even I can come up with without Alex's help, or the combined efforts of the five of us."
"Are they as good as the old stuff?" Elizabeth asks.
"Better," Jesse replies, "they have all of the same protectiveness of the old stuff, but with many new spells to fortify its defensive properties. But each one is specialized to protect against what we cannot protect well against. Such as for you, its built around warding off the cold. You could walk into a room chilled with liquid nitrogen and not even flinch."
"And yours has perfect climate control, doesn't it?" Elizabeth teases.
"Yep," Jesse grins.
"You never did like the changes in temperature," Elizabeth giggles, "six thousand years and you don't like winter or the dead heat of summer."
"I probably wouldn't mind too terribly if I didn't get caught in a blizzard or stuck in the midst of a jungle with mortals every century or two," Jesse huffs.
"Come one, I'm just teasing you," Elizabeth says, "come one, show me around town. Show me the hot spots."
"I just hope we don't attract too much attention," Jesse says.
"What, don't frequent the hot spots very often?" Elizabeth asks.
"That, and it'll be a surprised showing up anywhere that has people who know me with a woman," Jesse replies evenly, "and there'll be looks of envy from the guys at having such a beautiful woman at my side. Of course, a lot of the women will be giving you dirty looks."
"Like I care," Elizabeth huffs, "if I got you, I don't care what they say."
"You really mean that?" Jesse asks.
"Of course, ya big lug," Elizabeth says, rolling her eyes, "we've been friends for almost our entire lives. I know you better than anyone, even Alex. You know me better than anyone. I know that I got myself a good catch."
Jesse frowns. "You just made me sound like something you went fishing for."
Elizabeth laughs. "Well, this has to be a record for the most patience in fishing, ever. How long has it taken me to reel you in? 6,011 years, isn't it?"
"Since we were children," Jesse smiles, "let's go. There's a lot to show you, and there is that event at the skating rink tonight."
Despite being a practiced anti-socialite, Jesse knew where every major hot spot in all of AMC City teens to hang out, as well as every place that is ideal for a battle between good and evil, or between Immortals. They didn't encounter any of the other resident Immortals within the city, but they knew they were there.
The two were dressed for comfort, Jesse in denim jeans and t-shirt with a forty inch walking stick in his right hand. Elizabeth was also dressed in jeans and t-shirt, but she had a floor-length coat on as well.
"That's the skating rink?" Elizabeth asks in dismay.
The building in question was four stories tall, though it looked more like five. It also had three basement levels. The uppermost floor contained one of the world's foremost arcade's, while the floor just below it had a ice skating rink. The second floor held a rink for the special hoverskates that had recently been developed by one of Microsoft's subsidiaries. The three basement floors alternated between being used for paintball and laser tag. Tonight was the grand opening of the lowest floor as well as the addition of the newest laser tag supplies by another of Microsoft's subsidiaries.
"You wouldn't happen to have anything invested in this place, would you?" Elizabeth asks Jesse.
"Who, me?" Jesse replies, trying to feign innocence. Elizabeth whaps him in the back of the head as a response.
"Okay, so I still can't get you to believe one of my lies," Jesse replies sourly, rubbing what he was sure would develop into a bruise before his Immortality healing and regenerative spells took care of it.
"You know Jesse, I'm fairly sure I've been here before," Elizabeth remarks as she looks up in the sky, seeing familiar exact positions of stars.
Jesse just smiles mysteriously and leads Elizabeth to the skating rink.
"Hey Jesse!" a teenage girl calls out. She had reddish-brown hair that reached her shoulders and a small peppering of freckles here and there around her nose. She wore a bright green t-shirt and jeans, close to form fitting but not quite.
"Ah, Carrot, how are you?" Jesse asks as he shakes the hand of the girl identified as "Carrot".
"I'm doing fine," Carrot replies, "but what are you doing here? You hardly ever leave the House."
"I'm showing my girlfriend around the city," Jesse replies, "and this is a hot spot for teenagers."
Carrot turns to look at Elizabeth, surprise clearly evident on her face. "Jesse actually has a girlfriend? We thought he just wasn't interested, since he's denied it enough to where we can believe that he's not gay."
Elizabeth laughs. "He was like that when we were growing up. Does he still blister the ears of any girl foolish enough to flirt with him?"
"And how!" Carrot chuckles, "so, what's your name?"
"My name is Elizabeth," Elizabeth replies.
"So, you've known Jesse since he was a child, eh?" Carrot asks, a slightly mischievous glint in her eyes, "what was he like?"
"Well, he used to be afraid of girls instead of blistering their ears with insults," Elizabeth jokes, "if any girl besides me even talked to him, even his own cousins, he'd run off as fast as he could. I was the exception because me and Jesse are only a few seconds apart in age."
"Really, wow," Carrot says, "which of you is older?"
"Me," Jesse says, "by eighteen seconds."
"Incredible," Carrot gasps, "so, you're here for the festivities?"
"I'm here for the grand opening of the new laser tag and paintball floor as well as the official donation of the new laser tag supplies," Jesse replies, "and since I like messing with the press, I brought Elizabeth along. I can't wait to see the headlines: Professed Batchelor Seen With Date!"
Carrot laughs while Elizabeth frowns. She glares at Jesse. "Did you bring me here just for your games with the media?"
"Actually, no," Jesse replies, "I didn't think of the media until just now."
Elizabeth sighs and shakes her head. "I should have figured that. Just don't do it again or you'll regret it."
Jesse gulps. "Yes dear."
Carrot chuckles. "Well, I gotta be going. See ya later boss."
With that, Carrot runs off inside the Skating Rink.
"Boss?" Elizabeth asks.
"I own the store that she works at," Jesse replies, "I've invested in a lot of other businesses in the area as well. I've put a lot of work into this part of the world, investing a lot of time and money as well as blood and sweat to make this area perfect for the battles to come."
"So you've done nothing but been a Warrior and prophecy fulfiller these last six millennia?" Elizabeth asks sadly.
"Not completely," Jesse grins, "a few mental suggestions inlaid to the brain and you can leave people to go about these business with only a small amount of persuasion afterwards. Besides, I enjoyed myself many a time. The 1960s come to mind."
Elizabeth bursts out laughing. "Yes, those were the years, weren't they? You enjoyed being a flower child, didn't you?"
"No, I took that decade to rest and relax in Japan," Jesse replies.
Elizabeth snorts. "The Japanese are so uptight that you can't possibly rest or relax there."
"I wanted the peace and quiet," Jesse replies, "cleaning up a lot of World War II's aftermath was a pain. Between that and my slow upkeep of turning this town into AMC City, the city mentioned in the Prophecy, I was getting as short-tempered as Adam."
"And so you retreated to the Land of the Rising Sun to revel in the silence," Elizabeth sighs, "why not just find some deserted island and stay there?"
"Because I'm a busybody," Jesse replied evenly, "I took that break to go abroad and learn new things. I wanted to be among people, too, and the Japanese are so old fashioned that they rarely change culturally."
"They have in the last few decades," Elizabeth points out.
"Western influence," Jesse waves off, "but enough of that. Let's go on in and enjoy ourselves. I'll set you up with a pass so you won't have to pay every time you come here to have fun."
"That sounds like fun," Elizabeth says, hanging onto Jesse's arm, "I've always loved skating of every kind."
"Didn't you once try out for the Olympics?" Jesse asks.
"That was back in ancient Greece, and it was you who signed up," Elizabeth retorts, "though you did look cute doing those tryouts in the buff."
Jesse blushes beet red. The problem with Elizabeth knowing him for so long that she knew every single on of his faults, and every one of his embarrassing moments. She knew every awkward moment he had growing up, knew almost every secret he had, and knew exactly how to cheer him up when his spirits were down. Of course, that usually consisted of beating the living daylights out of him until she literally beat him to death or he started to fight back.
As the two of them walk into the Skating Rink after paying for Elizabeth's pass, the sense of a nearby Immortal comes to them.
"You are blocking the ability for other Immortals to sense you, right?" Jesse whispers.
"I am," Elizabeth replies softly, "any idea who it is?"
"Unless its someone new, which I doubt it, its probably Heather," Jesse replies, "she's roughly sixty years old. She's physically sixteen and a lot of trouble. Good with a sword though. She was taught by Connor Macleod."
"The elder Highlander?" Elizabeth asks in surprise, "I didn't know he took students."
"He rarely took students," Jesse replies, "and now he's dead. Duncan took his head so that their combined might could stop Jacob Kell, an Immortal slightly younger than Connor who has been dogging his steps ever since an incident a year or so after Connor became Immortal."
"Oh," Elizabeth sighs sadly, "I'll miss him. He had the attitude to outlast us all, but I guess it finally wore away at him."
"He was a great man when he was younger," Jesse says, "and one of the best swordsmen I have ever seen."
"I've only seen a few other Immortals besides us who are as good with a blade as he was," Elizabeth says, "Duncan Macleod, Methos, Kronos, Caspian, Bryan, Ramirez, and the Kurgan. Silas was just as good, but he used an axe."
"And all of them but Duncan and Methos are dead," Jesse says, "Kurgan took Ramirez's head, Connor took Kurgan's head, Methos took Silas' and Duncan took everyone else's."
"Duncan defeated Caspian and Kronos?" Elizabeth asks, surprised.
"He did," Jesse replied, "Duncan may very well become the last of us. He has the skill, and the heart. He's undergone a Dark Quickening and was returned the good after it with the help of Methos and the Holy Spring."
"Methos knows the location of the Holy Spring?" Elizabeth asks, stunned.
"He did," Jesse replies, "in another lifetime, I showed it to him."
"You know, he does know about the five of us," Elizabeth says, "and Cassandra knows of us as well."
"Methos thinks we died millennia ago," Jesse replies, "and Alex blocked Cassandra a couple centuries ago."
"Not bad," Elizabeth muses, "but you know that even Alex can't block someone as powerful as Cassandra forever."
"Not without help, he can't," Jesse grins, "I reopened our sub-psychic link and linked us all into the spells casting. It'll last another millennia, and then we'll just need to reopen the link and reaffirm the spell."
"Jesse, lets quit talking shop and enjoy our time here," Elizabeth says, "this is a date, isn't it?"
"That it is, milady, that it is," Jesse chuckles as he leads Elizabeth around. They switch their shoes for hoverskates and head for the second floor. There weren't many people there, since the use of the hoverskates was expensive and not many could afford them yet. Jesse was planning to wait a while before lowering the price of the hoverskates, but there wasn't much use being gotten out of them. Hoverskates had the advantage over normal skates and in-line skates in that if you could skate with normal or in-line skates, you could instantly be able to use hoverskates.
"Hey Jesse!" a feminine voice calls out. Jesse and Elizabeth turn to see a pretty teen with auburn hair skating in their direction.
"Hey Heather, whats up?" Jesse asks.
"Same old same old," Heather replies, "who is this?"
"This is my girlfriend, Elizabeth," Jesse replies with a smug grin.
"You have a girlfriend?" Heather asks, somewhat stunned. She laughs. "This'll definitely stop those rumors that your gay."
"It had better," Jesse says sourly, "I'm getting tired of those rumors."
"So, you're here for the opening of the new floors?" Heather asks.
"Yep," Jesse replies, "I have the unfortunate pleasure of serving in instead of a member of the Board of Directors."
"You're always the one who stands in for the Board," Heather says thoughtfully, "in fact, whenever a member of the Board is supposed to be somewhere, they send you instead."
"I'm their general lapdog, flunky, and go-getter," Jesse replies a bit evasively.
"One would think that the Board is just a fabrication and you're the one running everything," Heather laughs. Jesse laughs with her, though Elizabeth can tell that it was a forced laugh.
"Well, I'll be seeing you later," Heather says as she takes off, expertly sliding along the floor in the hoverskates.
"She hit the nail on the head, didn't she?" Elizabeth asks once Heather was out of earshot.
"Not quite," Jesse replies, "I'm merely the one really running the show. I coached Bill Gates into the founding of his companies and just run things behind the scenes. Stock market investments make me extremely rich and of course there are all those treasures that I have stockpiled all over the world. There have been a few tomb robbings of some of the stuff I shoved into some tombs of pharaohs like Ramses and the seven or eight pharaohs that followed him."
"And yet the rest of us are doing just as well," Elizabeth smirks, "minus the stock market. So tell me, have any parts of the Prophecy come to pass?"
"Just Master Gerim teaching us the ways of the Immortal," Jesse replies, "he was known as The Ancient, and was nearly as old as we are now when he died."
"Master Gerim was a part of the Prophecy?" Elizabeth gasps.
"As it turns out, he was one of my predecessors as Chosen One," Jesse replies, "a few other parts have come to pass. The annual re-banishment of Ahriman. He got his ass kicked by Duncan, though Duncan's latest protégé Richie Ryan lost his head when Ahriman was re-released."
"Same old technique?" Elizabeth inquires.
"Same old technique," Jesse nods, "ghosts of old enemies and the like. And Duncan has more dead archenemies than any other Immortal, even us."
"Its amazing that he has lived this long," Elizabeth remarks.
"He's only four hundred years old, including his years as a mortal," Jesse replies, "still, it is amazing that he has lived this long."
"How much longer until you need to go and start getting ready for that opening of the new level to this place?" Elizabeth asks.
Jesse checks his watch. "Um, about five minutes ago."
Elizabeth just stares at Jesse. He grins sheepishly. "Well, I've been having such a good time that I lost track of time."
Elizabeth sighs. "Same old Jesse. Come on."
"I still can't believe you lost track of time!" Elizabeth scolds as she and Jesse head home.
"But I was having a great time," Jesse replies with a hint of a whine.
"You lost track of time," Elizabeth repeats.
"But I had a very lovely lady distracting me!" Jesse protests, "I couldn't help but lose track of time!"
"Flattery will get you nowhere with me, Jesse," Elizabeth replies evenly, "you damn near made a complete fool of yourself, you know that?"
"I always do," Jesse replies, "a highly competent, yet socially inept gofer is my cover."
"Not amusing, Atalantari," Elizabeth replies acidly. Jesse gulps. When Elizabeth calls a person by their surname, or Clan name, then you might wanna check out the local cemetery for a nice place to be buried.
"What's gotten you so mad?" Jesse asks carefully. He knew Elizabeth well enough that this little stunt couldn't have gotten Elizabeth so riled up.
Elizabeth just growls softly and walks on. Jesse just sighs. He hoped it wasn't 'that time of the month', as most modern teenage males cursed it. Despite being Immortal, they were still human beings, with all that entailed save that they did not lead normal lives, or have normal lifespans.
A group of punks come out from an alley as Jesse and Elizabeth are a block from the House. An immediate sense of danger comes to the two Immortals.
"Hey, good lookin', wanna have some fun?" the leader of the group asks Elizabeth.
"Get lost," Elizabeth replies as she loops her arm around Jesse's.
"I think you misunderstand," the leader says as the rest of the punks surround Jesse and Elizabeth, "I didn't say you had a real choice."
The leader of the punks laughs, opening his mouth in a predatory grin to reveal fangs. Vampire fangs. The other punks grin open-mouthed, revealing that they too were vampires. Jesse and Elizabeth were not impressed.
"Got any wood on ya?" Elizabeth asks Jesse.
"Just this," Jesse replies with a grin, indicating his walking stick, "but we don't have to rely on that, now do we?"
Jesse twists part of his walking stick and draws out a thirty-two inch sword. He grins as he crouches into a defensive position.
"Nice blade, not your usual standard," Elizabeth says as she eyes Jesse's blade. She unhooks her arm from Jesse's and reaches into her coat, drawing out a beautiful rapier with a gilded hilt and a thirty-nine inch blade.
"Can't conceal a broadsword in a walking stick, and I don't want to make certain people suspicious by wearing a coat like yours," Jesse replies, "we'd better make this quick before your Watcher comes along."
"Agreed," Elizabeth says as she and Jesse move into defensive positions. Going on the attack against vampires when you're outnumbered ten to two is insane, even for a pair of Immortals as old and powerful as Jesse and Elizabeth were.
Three of the vampires charge Elizabeth, who idly sidesteps and knees one of them in the groin before leaping over another charging vampire, slicing off the third vampire's head mid-air. The decapitated vampire turns to dust.
Five more vampires charge Jesse, who flips over the vampire directly in front of him and dropkicks one of the other charging vampires. He then spins around and decapitates one of the other charging vampires, the vampire turning to dust upon decapitation. He then thrusts the rest of his walking stick, in reality his sword's sheath, through the rib cage and heart of another vampire.
The seven remaining vampires regroup, now knowing that they are were not dealing with ordinary people. Vampire hunters, perhaps? Or something even more dangerous. Whoever they were, it will be difficult taking them down. But they were outnumbered seven to two. The vampires each pull out a weapon of some sort, ranging from machete's and switchblades to the leader drawing a wazikashi, a Japanese short sword. Three of the remaining vampires surround Elizabeth and attack her systematically while the other four, including the leader, gang up on Jesse.
Jesse's sword darts around, parrying knives, punches, and the wazikashi with relative ease while Elizabeth easily takes on the three vampires after her. Just over six thousand years of near-constant combat has honed their fighting skills to an instinctive level, perhaps even beyond that. The two Immortals fight flawlessly, taking on their attackers with complete and utter ease. A small burst of light erupts from Jesse's left hand, blinding three vampires attacking him and enabling him to decapitate two more in the blink of an eye. He then forms a small ball of fire and lobs it at the vampire attacking him that was not wielding the wazikashi. The fireball explodes, taking the vampire with it, turning him to dust.
Jesse turns to face the lead vampire, something almost akin to pity in his eyes as he faces his opponent. The lead vampire blinks away the last bit of blindness, and is surprised to see three more piles of dust where his fellow vampires had been.
"You bastard," the vampire snarls, "you'll pay for that."
The lead vampire leaps at Jesse, hacking and slashing, trying his hardest to kill the seemingly invincible human.
Meanwhile, Elizabeth just blocks any edged weapon the three vampires attacking her try on her and follows up with vicious punches from her left hand and brutal kicks from both legs. Fairly soon, all three of her opponents are nursing injuries ranging from bruises to cuts to one disembowelment. The disemboweled vampire just stuffs his innards back into his gut and takes off. However, Elizabeth will have none of that. She summons up some of her magical energy and throws it at the fleeing vamp. The energy rips the vampires head off, turning it to dust instantly.
Elizabeth turns to face the other two vampires and smiles viciously at their stunned faces. They had not expected this. These two were worse than vampire hunters! They knew how to use magic! The two vampires try to run, but Elizabeth's right hand darts out, her sword almost snaking around the neck of one of the two vampires and its own running momentum decapitates it, turning it to dust. The moment that vampire begins to turn to dust, Elizabeth flicks her wrist and her sword sinks into the neck of the other fleeing vampire, decapitating it as well. As it turns to dust, Elizabeth sheathes he sword.
The leader of the vampire's was old, somewhat. He was the oldest of the gang of vampire's and was nearly a century old. However, a century had not been enough to give strength to his blood. And his sire had not given him much of his own strength. His sire had not been a strong or old vampire either. But the last of the gang of ten vampires was the strongest of the ten. But he was now facing a swordsman who could use magic and dusted nearly half of his gang on his own.
He lasted less than a minute.
As Jesse sheathes his sword once again and secures it in place, he grins at Elizabeth.
"Not bad for a first date, ne?"
Elizabeth just stares at Jesse before bursting into a fit of giggles.
~later, at the House~
"That was entertaining," Elizabeth says as she plops down into one of the chairs in her section of the House.
"Very invigorating," Jesse agrees, "one thing I've always loved about fighting vampires. They're stronger than most Immortals, even when they're young. They can take a beating like an Immortal and they can die like an Immortal. And above all, they don't make a mess when you kill them."
"Not only that, but we generally end up fighting other Immortals at night and fighting vampires makes for excellent practice," Elizabeth says, " have you ever incapacitated a vampire and then looted him before dusting one?"
"I would have done that tonight if not for the risk of being found by a Watcher," Jesse replies, "I still managed to loot them of their cash though. They never even noticed me picking their pockets."
Jesse produces a roll of bills as thick as two fingers, all of the bills apparently of high value as well. Jesse tosses it to Elizabeth.
"Spending money for you," Jesse replies.
"What about a birthday present?" Elizabeth asks.
"That will come later," Jesse replies, "besides, you've gone for centuries without getting a birthday present from me."
"And you always have a spectacular gift for me when we next meet," Elizabeth replies.
"It's a surprise for later," Jesse replies mysteriously, "I also notice that you're in a much better mood."
"That fight allowed me to vent some stress," Elizabeth giggles, "but I'm still mad at you?"
"Whatever for?!" Jesse demands, exasperated.
"If you can't figure it out for yourself, then I'm not telling you," Elizabeth replies acidly. Jesse just sighs. Elizabeth appeared to just be in one of her moods.
"How long before the others get here?" Elizabeth asks.
"Where'd you come from?" Jesse asks.
"None of your business," Elizabeth retorts.
"Oh well," Jesse says, "it's time for the five of us to get together anyway. The 6,000th anniversary of our becoming Immortals has already passed. But I can't help but feel that it is somehow connected to the Prophecy."
"Got a copy handy?" Elizabeth asks, "we can pore over it until midnight."
"No thank you," Jesse grunts, "I've looked it over enough from our birthday to you got here to last me for a while. I was looking at it yesterday before I went down to the Bar."
"Well then, why don't we go down to the bar and have some fun?" Elizabeth suggests.
"I know an excellent way to spook everyone there," Jesse says, grinning, "lets order Red Moblin Meat and plenty of it, secretly telling Pierre to prepare the final part himself in the kitchen."
Elizabeth groans. "Why must you always want to mess with peoples' minds?"
"Because its fun?" Jesse asks impishly. Elizabeth giggles in spite of herself.
"Come on, you," Elizabeth admonishes, "let's go get something to eat down at the Bar, and NOT mess with peoples' minds."
"Do we have to?" Jesse mock whines, earning a whap in the back of the head for his impudence.
"Yes, we do," Elizabeth scolds, rolling her eyes. This guy was the oldest and most powerful human to ever live? They were in big trouble when the final battle came.
~~
Note for you Highlander fans: I know that Connor Macleod took Kurgan's head at the end of the first Highlander movie, and that that ended the Game, but this is my own blend of the movie and the TV show. The animated cartoon doesn't take place yet, nor will it. Connor took Kurgan's head in New York in the mid eighties, and then he moved around the world for the next decade until the events of Highlander: Endgame. The Game won't play a large part in this story, but there will be many references to the past. There are other forms of Immortality here, but the Highlander style is the coolest in my opinion. Also, several Immortals may appear, ranging from Duncan Macleod to Methos to Amanda and Cassandra. Richie, of course, is dead. There may be a flashback or two with him in it, as well as some other now-dead Highlander characters, such as Hugh Fitzcairn and the three deceased members of the Four Horsemen.
The vampires here aren't from any singular place, like Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel, Vampire the Masquerade, or Marvel Comics (i.e., Blade). They are just sort of a compilation of various sources. Decapitation, sunlight, fire, and wood through the heart are common things to kill them, I ignore garlic, and I'm currently undecided on holy water and crosses, but sanctified ground they cannot enter. They have superhuman strength, agility, speed, and reflexes. They have an excellent sense of smell, sense of hearing, and night vision.
Also, this chapter turned out to be a LOT longer than I had anticipated. 20 pages long with the 12 pt font of Time New Roman. And believe it or not, this isn't even the longest chapter I have ever written.
Well, please review. I'd greatly appreciate it.
"What's wrong?"
"Just that one of those under the power of the Power of Black was watching us last night and I didn't even realize it," Jesse replies sourly as he examines the symbol etched into the glass.
"What's that?" Elizabeth asks.
"The symbol of one of the mightiest evils to ever live," Jesse replies, "he's a master assassin. He's like nothing I've come up against before or since I met him. He holds limitless potential."
Now that puzzled Elizabeth. "Limitless potential? So what? Everyone has limitless potential."
"No, he can actually achieve his limitless potential," Jesse explains, "he is nothing more than a soul. He goes around, finding powerful warriors and evicting their souls and taking up residence. But from each possession, he carries over the power he had from all of the previous possessions. His power can grow from that of a normal mortal human to equaling us when we died in a matter of days. He destroyed his entire village. He almost got me, but the Power of Silver took steps, I think. But every so often, I meet him again."
"What is his name?" Elizabeth asks.
"Shidoshi Hidosi," Jesse replies darkly, "he is from a small village in Japan. He's been kicking around for the last three thousand years. He can still match us in every known skill except possibly magic. He knows how to manipulate his life energy, his ki, to grow more powerful. Add that to already fathomless natural strength that he carries over from each possession, and you've got a very powerful enemy. I've been tracking him down for the last three millennia to destroy him."
"How can you destroy a spirit?" Elizabeth asks.
"I'll banish him somewhere," Jesse replies, "or force him to move on to the afterlife. Whichever one he follows, that is. Personally, I may just try and send him to Hell since there's a basic concept of it in most religions, so it might pull in victims from all religions."
"Evil is evil," Elizabeth agrees.
"It's not an evil place," Jesse replies, "just its inhabitants are evil. It is more a place of good than anything else. It holds the souls of unworthy people who cannot get into Heaven or Nirvana or whatever you believe in. It punishes them for their wickedness and when the Second Judgment comes, they have a chance to make it. If they don't make it, then I guess they're screwed."
"Where do you think we'll end up?" Elizabeth asks.
"I've never thought about it," Jesse admits, "whatever happens, happens."
"So, Shidoshi is in the area then?" Elizabeth says, pointing at the symbol in the glass pane in Jesse's hands.
"He was last night," Jesse replies, "luckily, there are plenty of powerful spells that keep evil out of the House. I've lowered them within Pierre's Bar and the kitchen, and strengthened them everywhere else. Except for the Bar, nothing can get in or out without my knowledge."
"Jesse, how many Immortals are in this city?" Elizabeth asks.
"Hmm, probably less than ten," Jesse says thoughtfully, "why?"
"I sensed three different Immortals on my way here inside the city," Elizabeth replies, "one was a female who felt like she knew some magic. I think she was physically seventeen."
"And how old was she actually?" Jesse asks, "you've always been better at scanning women than me, Alex, or Adam. You and Laci are just plain good at it."
"But you, Alex, and Adam could scan the guys better than we can," Elizabeth points out, "the skill is likely gender oriented, since you would know those of your own gender better than someone of the opposing gender."
"Too true, too true," Jesse agrees, "so, wanna get cleaned up and go down to the Bar for breakfast? My treat."
"Of course," Elizabeth says, "I haven't had a decent shower in days."
"Mind if I join you?" Jesse asks with an impish grin as he ducks Elizabeth swat.
"Aren't we taking this relationship a little fast?" Elizabeth inquires, "I only found out that I was your girlfriend last night."
"I only did that for Pierre's sake," Jesse replies, "I like throwing him off balance. So far, its been incredibly hard to do. You probably threw him off balance eating red Moblin meat and teaching him how to prepare it properly when you can't properly cook it."
"That was fun to see," Elizabeth agrees, "sorry for saying you were my boyfriend to get those guys to leave me alone. If I had appeared available, those idiots would never have left me alone until you showed up."
"Actually, I'd like to talk to you about that," Jesse says, "I really didn't mind. But perhaps next time you get in a situation like that, perhaps you don't need to lie when you say you have a boyfriend."
"Oh, why is that?" Elizabeth asks. She knew exactly where this was going. After knowing Jesse practically since she was born, she could read him like a book.
"Well, I was wondering," Jesse begins, but then gets flustered, "there's this event at the local skating rink, and I was wondering if you'd like to, ah, well."
"Jesse Plunk, are you asking me out on a date?" Elizabeth demands, a sparkle of mischief in her eyes. Jesse blushes crimson on the spot.
"I'll take that as a yes, as usual," Elizabeth giggles, "of course I'll go with you."
Jesse's shoulders sag as he sighs in relief. "You know, I haven't been that nervous since the Salem Witch Trials."
Elizabeth chuckles. "That time period was worse for me than it was for you, you know. I am female, after all. Not only that, but many is the time that I got burned at the stake because I was accused of being a witch because of my beauty."
"Jealousy has ruined many an empire," Jesse says, "it's a blasted shame. You know, they were right about us being witches, sort of. We did and do know powerful magic. We probably could raise demons. But we'd only raise them to destroy them."
"Yep," Elizabeth agrees, "say, how long until this event at the skating rink?"
"5 pm," Jesse replies.
"Think you could give me a guided tour of either the city or the House?" Elizabeth asks.
"Sure," Jesse grins, "which would you rather have first?"
"We can save the tour of the city till tomorrow, since we're on a time schedule today," Elizabeth says, "so you can give me a tour of the House since it would take less time."
"You sure about that?" Jesse grins, "there's more under the House than there is around it."
Elizabeth arches and eyebrow. "Very intriguing. Then show me around the town."
"As thee wish, milady," Jesse says with a flourish bow, "but first, lets get cleaned up."
"Yes, I really need a shower," Elizabeth says, wrinkling her nose at the smell of days on the road.
"So do I," Jesse says wryly, "I spent a good deal of yesterday working on various spells, strengthening the magical defenses of the city and the House. I'm still tweaking the positions of the ley lines."
"That's hard work," Elizabeth says, "isn't AMC City on a major ground star?"
"The whole freaking planet is a literal ground star," Jesse grumbles, "but there is a higher concentration in this immediate area. The House is connected to every major ley line on the planet, as well as most of the minor lines. With the sheer power the lines carry, it's a wonder the very air doesn't crackle."
"Its almost overloading my senses," Elizabeth says as she admires the work Jesse had done with the lines of natural magic that criss-crossed the planet. They intersected in a powerful amplification pattern. She winces as she sees a familiar pattern.
"One misplaced spell could erupt all of the ley lines and destroy the planet, you know," Elizabeth comments, "and I see a few minor flaws in the intricate patterns."
"Those are intentional," Jesse says, "and they are not flaws. If you look more closely, you'll see that they do not directly connect with the other patterns. If you look at the larger scale, you'll find that they form the finer details of some very powerful patterns."
Elizabeth takes another look and her eyes widen. The amount of power that these patterns would give were near-infinite! How could Jesse have possibly put them together on his own?!
Elizabeth finally realizes that she is trembling. Finally, she gains her voice. "H-how did you do this? Even the me, you, Alex, Adam, and Laci would be hard pressed to do this."
"I told you, I now possess a connection to the Power of Silver," Jesse replies, "even the faintest trickle can increase a persons abilities to an unbelievable lack of limit."
"So you're omnipotent?" Elizabeth asks.
"Nope," Jesse replies, "far from it. But my potential is limitless. Actually, its always been limitless, but with the Power of Silver I've been greatly furthered along in my abilities."
"So now it's no longer me just barely trailing behind you," Elizabeth remarks, "now you're above and beyond what the rest of us are capable of."
"I'm sorry," Jesse says softly, "but it is necessary."
"Bah," Elizabeth snorts, "we all knew it would happen someday. Its just that its still a shock."
"Well, my increased power only manifests itself when directly facing the forces of evil," Jesse says, "or only when it is absolutely needed. Other than that, my abilities are unchanged, though I may have a bit more energy to pour into my spells. It takes me longer to fatigue, though that may be from my body having gotten used to the stress I put on it setting up these spells."
"I'm surprised you messed with the ley lines in the first place," Elizabeth comments, "one wrong move and you'd have obliterated the planet, and maybe all of existence."
"But I didn't, and I had explicit instructions from various books," Jesse replies, "if I hadn't, then the way things were set up, evil would have had the upper hand. The ley lines had been slowly shifted over the millennia since the fall of the Atlantis to give evil the upper hand. Every six thousand years, they will be in perfect harmony to give either good or evil harmony. Six thousand years ago on our birthday, they were almost completely against us. If the Power of Silver had not intervened and made me an Immortal, good would be hard pressed to win now with the balance in its favor. And because of the link that had been established between you, me, Alex, and my siblings to give me the strength to stand up against the Black Doom, the four of you became Immortals as well."
"So we have lived these past six thousand years because you were needed?" Elizabeth demands indignantly.
"Partially, yes," Jesse replies evenly, "but you all were needed as well. I'd have lost my mind long ago due to the slow drone of the centuries passing by."
"Who's to say you didn't lose your mind?" Elizabeth teases.
Jesse grins wryly. "True, but I haven't completely lost it."
Elizabeth wrinkles her nose. "Well, you can tell me more while you're giving me a tour of the city. Now go bathe. You stink."
Elizabeth shuffles Jesse out of her apartments and closes the door. Jesse wisely keeps it to himself that she smelled far worse than he did at the moment. But since he didn't want to be turned into a frog, he let it slide. He heads up to his rooms and bathes and then hunts up some good clothes.
When Jesse gets back to Elizabeth door, he finds her waiting for him in a bright blue and red tee shirt and jeans. Her long golden blonde hair was tied back in a pony tail. But what caught Jesse eye was her expression. She was not happy.
"How did you know my measurements?" Elizabeth demands.
"Simple," Jesse replies, "remember that dress I had made for you so you could accompany me to King Louis the XI's ball? I remembered your measurements from then. By the way, that dress is in the back of the closet, if you ever have need for it again."
Elizabeth purses her lips. "Well, I can't call you a pervert then. But you could have just cast spells on them to make them fit me."
"You'd have spotted those instantly," Jesse replies, "and then gutted me for being insensitive. Did you notice the spells shifted the clothes in the closet to show what you wanted?"
"I did," Elizabeth says, "nice work on those. But am I mistaken, or was there one garment that didn't change, no matter what?"
"Did you take a look at it?" Jesse asks apprehensively.
"It was the same style of battle garment that we wore in our fight against the Black Doom," Elizabeth says.
"It would be the exact same garment, but those outfits have long since been battered beyond repair even by us, or rusted away," Jesse replies, "so I just made new ones. These have the best protective spells even I can come up with without Alex's help, or the combined efforts of the five of us."
"Are they as good as the old stuff?" Elizabeth asks.
"Better," Jesse replies, "they have all of the same protectiveness of the old stuff, but with many new spells to fortify its defensive properties. But each one is specialized to protect against what we cannot protect well against. Such as for you, its built around warding off the cold. You could walk into a room chilled with liquid nitrogen and not even flinch."
"And yours has perfect climate control, doesn't it?" Elizabeth teases.
"Yep," Jesse grins.
"You never did like the changes in temperature," Elizabeth giggles, "six thousand years and you don't like winter or the dead heat of summer."
"I probably wouldn't mind too terribly if I didn't get caught in a blizzard or stuck in the midst of a jungle with mortals every century or two," Jesse huffs.
"Come one, I'm just teasing you," Elizabeth says, "come one, show me around town. Show me the hot spots."
"I just hope we don't attract too much attention," Jesse says.
"What, don't frequent the hot spots very often?" Elizabeth asks.
"That, and it'll be a surprised showing up anywhere that has people who know me with a woman," Jesse replies evenly, "and there'll be looks of envy from the guys at having such a beautiful woman at my side. Of course, a lot of the women will be giving you dirty looks."
"Like I care," Elizabeth huffs, "if I got you, I don't care what they say."
"You really mean that?" Jesse asks.
"Of course, ya big lug," Elizabeth says, rolling her eyes, "we've been friends for almost our entire lives. I know you better than anyone, even Alex. You know me better than anyone. I know that I got myself a good catch."
Jesse frowns. "You just made me sound like something you went fishing for."
Elizabeth laughs. "Well, this has to be a record for the most patience in fishing, ever. How long has it taken me to reel you in? 6,011 years, isn't it?"
"Since we were children," Jesse smiles, "let's go. There's a lot to show you, and there is that event at the skating rink tonight."
Despite being a practiced anti-socialite, Jesse knew where every major hot spot in all of AMC City teens to hang out, as well as every place that is ideal for a battle between good and evil, or between Immortals. They didn't encounter any of the other resident Immortals within the city, but they knew they were there.
The two were dressed for comfort, Jesse in denim jeans and t-shirt with a forty inch walking stick in his right hand. Elizabeth was also dressed in jeans and t-shirt, but she had a floor-length coat on as well.
"That's the skating rink?" Elizabeth asks in dismay.
The building in question was four stories tall, though it looked more like five. It also had three basement levels. The uppermost floor contained one of the world's foremost arcade's, while the floor just below it had a ice skating rink. The second floor held a rink for the special hoverskates that had recently been developed by one of Microsoft's subsidiaries. The three basement floors alternated between being used for paintball and laser tag. Tonight was the grand opening of the lowest floor as well as the addition of the newest laser tag supplies by another of Microsoft's subsidiaries.
"You wouldn't happen to have anything invested in this place, would you?" Elizabeth asks Jesse.
"Who, me?" Jesse replies, trying to feign innocence. Elizabeth whaps him in the back of the head as a response.
"Okay, so I still can't get you to believe one of my lies," Jesse replies sourly, rubbing what he was sure would develop into a bruise before his Immortality healing and regenerative spells took care of it.
"You know Jesse, I'm fairly sure I've been here before," Elizabeth remarks as she looks up in the sky, seeing familiar exact positions of stars.
Jesse just smiles mysteriously and leads Elizabeth to the skating rink.
"Hey Jesse!" a teenage girl calls out. She had reddish-brown hair that reached her shoulders and a small peppering of freckles here and there around her nose. She wore a bright green t-shirt and jeans, close to form fitting but not quite.
"Ah, Carrot, how are you?" Jesse asks as he shakes the hand of the girl identified as "Carrot".
"I'm doing fine," Carrot replies, "but what are you doing here? You hardly ever leave the House."
"I'm showing my girlfriend around the city," Jesse replies, "and this is a hot spot for teenagers."
Carrot turns to look at Elizabeth, surprise clearly evident on her face. "Jesse actually has a girlfriend? We thought he just wasn't interested, since he's denied it enough to where we can believe that he's not gay."
Elizabeth laughs. "He was like that when we were growing up. Does he still blister the ears of any girl foolish enough to flirt with him?"
"And how!" Carrot chuckles, "so, what's your name?"
"My name is Elizabeth," Elizabeth replies.
"So, you've known Jesse since he was a child, eh?" Carrot asks, a slightly mischievous glint in her eyes, "what was he like?"
"Well, he used to be afraid of girls instead of blistering their ears with insults," Elizabeth jokes, "if any girl besides me even talked to him, even his own cousins, he'd run off as fast as he could. I was the exception because me and Jesse are only a few seconds apart in age."
"Really, wow," Carrot says, "which of you is older?"
"Me," Jesse says, "by eighteen seconds."
"Incredible," Carrot gasps, "so, you're here for the festivities?"
"I'm here for the grand opening of the new laser tag and paintball floor as well as the official donation of the new laser tag supplies," Jesse replies, "and since I like messing with the press, I brought Elizabeth along. I can't wait to see the headlines: Professed Batchelor Seen With Date!"
Carrot laughs while Elizabeth frowns. She glares at Jesse. "Did you bring me here just for your games with the media?"
"Actually, no," Jesse replies, "I didn't think of the media until just now."
Elizabeth sighs and shakes her head. "I should have figured that. Just don't do it again or you'll regret it."
Jesse gulps. "Yes dear."
Carrot chuckles. "Well, I gotta be going. See ya later boss."
With that, Carrot runs off inside the Skating Rink.
"Boss?" Elizabeth asks.
"I own the store that she works at," Jesse replies, "I've invested in a lot of other businesses in the area as well. I've put a lot of work into this part of the world, investing a lot of time and money as well as blood and sweat to make this area perfect for the battles to come."
"So you've done nothing but been a Warrior and prophecy fulfiller these last six millennia?" Elizabeth asks sadly.
"Not completely," Jesse grins, "a few mental suggestions inlaid to the brain and you can leave people to go about these business with only a small amount of persuasion afterwards. Besides, I enjoyed myself many a time. The 1960s come to mind."
Elizabeth bursts out laughing. "Yes, those were the years, weren't they? You enjoyed being a flower child, didn't you?"
"No, I took that decade to rest and relax in Japan," Jesse replies.
Elizabeth snorts. "The Japanese are so uptight that you can't possibly rest or relax there."
"I wanted the peace and quiet," Jesse replies, "cleaning up a lot of World War II's aftermath was a pain. Between that and my slow upkeep of turning this town into AMC City, the city mentioned in the Prophecy, I was getting as short-tempered as Adam."
"And so you retreated to the Land of the Rising Sun to revel in the silence," Elizabeth sighs, "why not just find some deserted island and stay there?"
"Because I'm a busybody," Jesse replied evenly, "I took that break to go abroad and learn new things. I wanted to be among people, too, and the Japanese are so old fashioned that they rarely change culturally."
"They have in the last few decades," Elizabeth points out.
"Western influence," Jesse waves off, "but enough of that. Let's go on in and enjoy ourselves. I'll set you up with a pass so you won't have to pay every time you come here to have fun."
"That sounds like fun," Elizabeth says, hanging onto Jesse's arm, "I've always loved skating of every kind."
"Didn't you once try out for the Olympics?" Jesse asks.
"That was back in ancient Greece, and it was you who signed up," Elizabeth retorts, "though you did look cute doing those tryouts in the buff."
Jesse blushes beet red. The problem with Elizabeth knowing him for so long that she knew every single on of his faults, and every one of his embarrassing moments. She knew every awkward moment he had growing up, knew almost every secret he had, and knew exactly how to cheer him up when his spirits were down. Of course, that usually consisted of beating the living daylights out of him until she literally beat him to death or he started to fight back.
As the two of them walk into the Skating Rink after paying for Elizabeth's pass, the sense of a nearby Immortal comes to them.
"You are blocking the ability for other Immortals to sense you, right?" Jesse whispers.
"I am," Elizabeth replies softly, "any idea who it is?"
"Unless its someone new, which I doubt it, its probably Heather," Jesse replies, "she's roughly sixty years old. She's physically sixteen and a lot of trouble. Good with a sword though. She was taught by Connor Macleod."
"The elder Highlander?" Elizabeth asks in surprise, "I didn't know he took students."
"He rarely took students," Jesse replies, "and now he's dead. Duncan took his head so that their combined might could stop Jacob Kell, an Immortal slightly younger than Connor who has been dogging his steps ever since an incident a year or so after Connor became Immortal."
"Oh," Elizabeth sighs sadly, "I'll miss him. He had the attitude to outlast us all, but I guess it finally wore away at him."
"He was a great man when he was younger," Jesse says, "and one of the best swordsmen I have ever seen."
"I've only seen a few other Immortals besides us who are as good with a blade as he was," Elizabeth says, "Duncan Macleod, Methos, Kronos, Caspian, Bryan, Ramirez, and the Kurgan. Silas was just as good, but he used an axe."
"And all of them but Duncan and Methos are dead," Jesse says, "Kurgan took Ramirez's head, Connor took Kurgan's head, Methos took Silas' and Duncan took everyone else's."
"Duncan defeated Caspian and Kronos?" Elizabeth asks, surprised.
"He did," Jesse replied, "Duncan may very well become the last of us. He has the skill, and the heart. He's undergone a Dark Quickening and was returned the good after it with the help of Methos and the Holy Spring."
"Methos knows the location of the Holy Spring?" Elizabeth asks, stunned.
"He did," Jesse replies, "in another lifetime, I showed it to him."
"You know, he does know about the five of us," Elizabeth says, "and Cassandra knows of us as well."
"Methos thinks we died millennia ago," Jesse replies, "and Alex blocked Cassandra a couple centuries ago."
"Not bad," Elizabeth muses, "but you know that even Alex can't block someone as powerful as Cassandra forever."
"Not without help, he can't," Jesse grins, "I reopened our sub-psychic link and linked us all into the spells casting. It'll last another millennia, and then we'll just need to reopen the link and reaffirm the spell."
"Jesse, lets quit talking shop and enjoy our time here," Elizabeth says, "this is a date, isn't it?"
"That it is, milady, that it is," Jesse chuckles as he leads Elizabeth around. They switch their shoes for hoverskates and head for the second floor. There weren't many people there, since the use of the hoverskates was expensive and not many could afford them yet. Jesse was planning to wait a while before lowering the price of the hoverskates, but there wasn't much use being gotten out of them. Hoverskates had the advantage over normal skates and in-line skates in that if you could skate with normal or in-line skates, you could instantly be able to use hoverskates.
"Hey Jesse!" a feminine voice calls out. Jesse and Elizabeth turn to see a pretty teen with auburn hair skating in their direction.
"Hey Heather, whats up?" Jesse asks.
"Same old same old," Heather replies, "who is this?"
"This is my girlfriend, Elizabeth," Jesse replies with a smug grin.
"You have a girlfriend?" Heather asks, somewhat stunned. She laughs. "This'll definitely stop those rumors that your gay."
"It had better," Jesse says sourly, "I'm getting tired of those rumors."
"So, you're here for the opening of the new floors?" Heather asks.
"Yep," Jesse replies, "I have the unfortunate pleasure of serving in instead of a member of the Board of Directors."
"You're always the one who stands in for the Board," Heather says thoughtfully, "in fact, whenever a member of the Board is supposed to be somewhere, they send you instead."
"I'm their general lapdog, flunky, and go-getter," Jesse replies a bit evasively.
"One would think that the Board is just a fabrication and you're the one running everything," Heather laughs. Jesse laughs with her, though Elizabeth can tell that it was a forced laugh.
"Well, I'll be seeing you later," Heather says as she takes off, expertly sliding along the floor in the hoverskates.
"She hit the nail on the head, didn't she?" Elizabeth asks once Heather was out of earshot.
"Not quite," Jesse replies, "I'm merely the one really running the show. I coached Bill Gates into the founding of his companies and just run things behind the scenes. Stock market investments make me extremely rich and of course there are all those treasures that I have stockpiled all over the world. There have been a few tomb robbings of some of the stuff I shoved into some tombs of pharaohs like Ramses and the seven or eight pharaohs that followed him."
"And yet the rest of us are doing just as well," Elizabeth smirks, "minus the stock market. So tell me, have any parts of the Prophecy come to pass?"
"Just Master Gerim teaching us the ways of the Immortal," Jesse replies, "he was known as The Ancient, and was nearly as old as we are now when he died."
"Master Gerim was a part of the Prophecy?" Elizabeth gasps.
"As it turns out, he was one of my predecessors as Chosen One," Jesse replies, "a few other parts have come to pass. The annual re-banishment of Ahriman. He got his ass kicked by Duncan, though Duncan's latest protégé Richie Ryan lost his head when Ahriman was re-released."
"Same old technique?" Elizabeth inquires.
"Same old technique," Jesse nods, "ghosts of old enemies and the like. And Duncan has more dead archenemies than any other Immortal, even us."
"Its amazing that he has lived this long," Elizabeth remarks.
"He's only four hundred years old, including his years as a mortal," Jesse replies, "still, it is amazing that he has lived this long."
"How much longer until you need to go and start getting ready for that opening of the new level to this place?" Elizabeth asks.
Jesse checks his watch. "Um, about five minutes ago."
Elizabeth just stares at Jesse. He grins sheepishly. "Well, I've been having such a good time that I lost track of time."
Elizabeth sighs. "Same old Jesse. Come on."
"I still can't believe you lost track of time!" Elizabeth scolds as she and Jesse head home.
"But I was having a great time," Jesse replies with a hint of a whine.
"You lost track of time," Elizabeth repeats.
"But I had a very lovely lady distracting me!" Jesse protests, "I couldn't help but lose track of time!"
"Flattery will get you nowhere with me, Jesse," Elizabeth replies evenly, "you damn near made a complete fool of yourself, you know that?"
"I always do," Jesse replies, "a highly competent, yet socially inept gofer is my cover."
"Not amusing, Atalantari," Elizabeth replies acidly. Jesse gulps. When Elizabeth calls a person by their surname, or Clan name, then you might wanna check out the local cemetery for a nice place to be buried.
"What's gotten you so mad?" Jesse asks carefully. He knew Elizabeth well enough that this little stunt couldn't have gotten Elizabeth so riled up.
Elizabeth just growls softly and walks on. Jesse just sighs. He hoped it wasn't 'that time of the month', as most modern teenage males cursed it. Despite being Immortal, they were still human beings, with all that entailed save that they did not lead normal lives, or have normal lifespans.
A group of punks come out from an alley as Jesse and Elizabeth are a block from the House. An immediate sense of danger comes to the two Immortals.
"Hey, good lookin', wanna have some fun?" the leader of the group asks Elizabeth.
"Get lost," Elizabeth replies as she loops her arm around Jesse's.
"I think you misunderstand," the leader says as the rest of the punks surround Jesse and Elizabeth, "I didn't say you had a real choice."
The leader of the punks laughs, opening his mouth in a predatory grin to reveal fangs. Vampire fangs. The other punks grin open-mouthed, revealing that they too were vampires. Jesse and Elizabeth were not impressed.
"Got any wood on ya?" Elizabeth asks Jesse.
"Just this," Jesse replies with a grin, indicating his walking stick, "but we don't have to rely on that, now do we?"
Jesse twists part of his walking stick and draws out a thirty-two inch sword. He grins as he crouches into a defensive position.
"Nice blade, not your usual standard," Elizabeth says as she eyes Jesse's blade. She unhooks her arm from Jesse's and reaches into her coat, drawing out a beautiful rapier with a gilded hilt and a thirty-nine inch blade.
"Can't conceal a broadsword in a walking stick, and I don't want to make certain people suspicious by wearing a coat like yours," Jesse replies, "we'd better make this quick before your Watcher comes along."
"Agreed," Elizabeth says as she and Jesse move into defensive positions. Going on the attack against vampires when you're outnumbered ten to two is insane, even for a pair of Immortals as old and powerful as Jesse and Elizabeth were.
Three of the vampires charge Elizabeth, who idly sidesteps and knees one of them in the groin before leaping over another charging vampire, slicing off the third vampire's head mid-air. The decapitated vampire turns to dust.
Five more vampires charge Jesse, who flips over the vampire directly in front of him and dropkicks one of the other charging vampires. He then spins around and decapitates one of the other charging vampires, the vampire turning to dust upon decapitation. He then thrusts the rest of his walking stick, in reality his sword's sheath, through the rib cage and heart of another vampire.
The seven remaining vampires regroup, now knowing that they are were not dealing with ordinary people. Vampire hunters, perhaps? Or something even more dangerous. Whoever they were, it will be difficult taking them down. But they were outnumbered seven to two. The vampires each pull out a weapon of some sort, ranging from machete's and switchblades to the leader drawing a wazikashi, a Japanese short sword. Three of the remaining vampires surround Elizabeth and attack her systematically while the other four, including the leader, gang up on Jesse.
Jesse's sword darts around, parrying knives, punches, and the wazikashi with relative ease while Elizabeth easily takes on the three vampires after her. Just over six thousand years of near-constant combat has honed their fighting skills to an instinctive level, perhaps even beyond that. The two Immortals fight flawlessly, taking on their attackers with complete and utter ease. A small burst of light erupts from Jesse's left hand, blinding three vampires attacking him and enabling him to decapitate two more in the blink of an eye. He then forms a small ball of fire and lobs it at the vampire attacking him that was not wielding the wazikashi. The fireball explodes, taking the vampire with it, turning him to dust.
Jesse turns to face the lead vampire, something almost akin to pity in his eyes as he faces his opponent. The lead vampire blinks away the last bit of blindness, and is surprised to see three more piles of dust where his fellow vampires had been.
"You bastard," the vampire snarls, "you'll pay for that."
The lead vampire leaps at Jesse, hacking and slashing, trying his hardest to kill the seemingly invincible human.
Meanwhile, Elizabeth just blocks any edged weapon the three vampires attacking her try on her and follows up with vicious punches from her left hand and brutal kicks from both legs. Fairly soon, all three of her opponents are nursing injuries ranging from bruises to cuts to one disembowelment. The disemboweled vampire just stuffs his innards back into his gut and takes off. However, Elizabeth will have none of that. She summons up some of her magical energy and throws it at the fleeing vamp. The energy rips the vampires head off, turning it to dust instantly.
Elizabeth turns to face the other two vampires and smiles viciously at their stunned faces. They had not expected this. These two were worse than vampire hunters! They knew how to use magic! The two vampires try to run, but Elizabeth's right hand darts out, her sword almost snaking around the neck of one of the two vampires and its own running momentum decapitates it, turning it to dust. The moment that vampire begins to turn to dust, Elizabeth flicks her wrist and her sword sinks into the neck of the other fleeing vampire, decapitating it as well. As it turns to dust, Elizabeth sheathes he sword.
The leader of the vampire's was old, somewhat. He was the oldest of the gang of vampire's and was nearly a century old. However, a century had not been enough to give strength to his blood. And his sire had not given him much of his own strength. His sire had not been a strong or old vampire either. But the last of the gang of ten vampires was the strongest of the ten. But he was now facing a swordsman who could use magic and dusted nearly half of his gang on his own.
He lasted less than a minute.
As Jesse sheathes his sword once again and secures it in place, he grins at Elizabeth.
"Not bad for a first date, ne?"
Elizabeth just stares at Jesse before bursting into a fit of giggles.
~later, at the House~
"That was entertaining," Elizabeth says as she plops down into one of the chairs in her section of the House.
"Very invigorating," Jesse agrees, "one thing I've always loved about fighting vampires. They're stronger than most Immortals, even when they're young. They can take a beating like an Immortal and they can die like an Immortal. And above all, they don't make a mess when you kill them."
"Not only that, but we generally end up fighting other Immortals at night and fighting vampires makes for excellent practice," Elizabeth says, " have you ever incapacitated a vampire and then looted him before dusting one?"
"I would have done that tonight if not for the risk of being found by a Watcher," Jesse replies, "I still managed to loot them of their cash though. They never even noticed me picking their pockets."
Jesse produces a roll of bills as thick as two fingers, all of the bills apparently of high value as well. Jesse tosses it to Elizabeth.
"Spending money for you," Jesse replies.
"What about a birthday present?" Elizabeth asks.
"That will come later," Jesse replies, "besides, you've gone for centuries without getting a birthday present from me."
"And you always have a spectacular gift for me when we next meet," Elizabeth replies.
"It's a surprise for later," Jesse replies mysteriously, "I also notice that you're in a much better mood."
"That fight allowed me to vent some stress," Elizabeth giggles, "but I'm still mad at you?"
"Whatever for?!" Jesse demands, exasperated.
"If you can't figure it out for yourself, then I'm not telling you," Elizabeth replies acidly. Jesse just sighs. Elizabeth appeared to just be in one of her moods.
"How long before the others get here?" Elizabeth asks.
"Where'd you come from?" Jesse asks.
"None of your business," Elizabeth retorts.
"Oh well," Jesse says, "it's time for the five of us to get together anyway. The 6,000th anniversary of our becoming Immortals has already passed. But I can't help but feel that it is somehow connected to the Prophecy."
"Got a copy handy?" Elizabeth asks, "we can pore over it until midnight."
"No thank you," Jesse grunts, "I've looked it over enough from our birthday to you got here to last me for a while. I was looking at it yesterday before I went down to the Bar."
"Well then, why don't we go down to the bar and have some fun?" Elizabeth suggests.
"I know an excellent way to spook everyone there," Jesse says, grinning, "lets order Red Moblin Meat and plenty of it, secretly telling Pierre to prepare the final part himself in the kitchen."
Elizabeth groans. "Why must you always want to mess with peoples' minds?"
"Because its fun?" Jesse asks impishly. Elizabeth giggles in spite of herself.
"Come on, you," Elizabeth admonishes, "let's go get something to eat down at the Bar, and NOT mess with peoples' minds."
"Do we have to?" Jesse mock whines, earning a whap in the back of the head for his impudence.
"Yes, we do," Elizabeth scolds, rolling her eyes. This guy was the oldest and most powerful human to ever live? They were in big trouble when the final battle came.
~~
Note for you Highlander fans: I know that Connor Macleod took Kurgan's head at the end of the first Highlander movie, and that that ended the Game, but this is my own blend of the movie and the TV show. The animated cartoon doesn't take place yet, nor will it. Connor took Kurgan's head in New York in the mid eighties, and then he moved around the world for the next decade until the events of Highlander: Endgame. The Game won't play a large part in this story, but there will be many references to the past. There are other forms of Immortality here, but the Highlander style is the coolest in my opinion. Also, several Immortals may appear, ranging from Duncan Macleod to Methos to Amanda and Cassandra. Richie, of course, is dead. There may be a flashback or two with him in it, as well as some other now-dead Highlander characters, such as Hugh Fitzcairn and the three deceased members of the Four Horsemen.
The vampires here aren't from any singular place, like Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel, Vampire the Masquerade, or Marvel Comics (i.e., Blade). They are just sort of a compilation of various sources. Decapitation, sunlight, fire, and wood through the heart are common things to kill them, I ignore garlic, and I'm currently undecided on holy water and crosses, but sanctified ground they cannot enter. They have superhuman strength, agility, speed, and reflexes. They have an excellent sense of smell, sense of hearing, and night vision.
Also, this chapter turned out to be a LOT longer than I had anticipated. 20 pages long with the 12 pt font of Time New Roman. And believe it or not, this isn't even the longest chapter I have ever written.
Well, please review. I'd greatly appreciate it.
