"For you, my friend, they are the angels of death."
-Man against monster. Monster against self. The story is as old as time. Living above us, below us, and among us, they assimilate themselves into our culture, and us into theirs. To the common man, they are simply known as night terrors, but to the initiated, they are the Darkstalkers-
EPISODE TWO: RIVALS IN DARKNESS
Demitri sat gazing upon his own reflection. He ran his face across his strong, square jaw and up his well-chiseled cheek. His light blue eyes, surrounded by the darkness of his soul, seemed dissatisfied with his physical shell.
"Vanity has a price, Lord Maximoff", a sultry woman's voice called from behind him in the darkness. Maximoff spun around to stare down a tall, athletically built woman whose voluptuous curves could make any straight man weak in the knees, and possible incite jealousy in the not-so- straight ones. From her long, sparkling, mint-green hair to her azure eyes to her perfect breasts to her runner's legs, she was a sight to behold.
As if the body itself was not enough to warm up a room, her dress was no less than questionable as far as her intentions were concerned. It seemed to mesh the feathery shoulder straps of a noblewoman with the leather armor of a fighter, but the codpiece was cut so low down her chest that her abs were visible. Her arms and legs sported tight pink spandex which was obviously meant to be a flashy battle suit, and at her hips were two black and violet demon wings, which to the uninitiated resemble bat wings.
At first the vampiric noble was taken aback by her sheer magnificence, but he quickly regained his composure, and his trademark scowl, "And who in Makai are you?"
The woman, a succubus or sex demon, threw her straight locked behind her ears and gave him a radiant smile, "Most call me Mistress, but for you, Morrigan Aensland."
Demitri placed his hands upon his hips and let out a hardy laugh, "Well this IS a surprise! A representative fighter from my ancestral rivals has come to challenge me for the title of Ruler of the Night. Am I mistaken?"
"Actually", Morrigan mused, "I wanted to talk."
"Talk?" Demitri blinked, well on guard.
~
Talbain was dressed in a pair of deep blue jeans, brown leather cowboy boots, and a white t-shirt with a brown leather jacket sporting beige cotton undersides places over that. His hair was pulled back except for the bangs, which were spiky like he preferred them. In his arms he was bearing a bouquet of roses.
He walked down the sidewalk, trying not to cough on the foul city air, which even now clogged his sensitive nose, and made his way up the metal staircase to the second floor of a brick apartment building where he hoped to meet an old friend.
He practically tapped the knocker against the door compared to the force he was used to putting into everything he did and waited patiently.
"I'll be there in a second", a young woman's voice called from somewhere inside. Talbain smiled: she had probably just gotten up at the sound of the knock. Catwomen tended to sleep a lot during the day and party all night.
Finally, the door opened and a twenty-something beauty with tanned Caucasian skin, teal eyes, and long, bright blue hair that was currently all over the place stood there yawning quietly. An interesting note about this woman was that, while she was reading a pink bathrobe around herself, she could not hide the fact that she had cat-like paws for hands, and in place of human ears she had two cat ears atop her head. In addition to that, a white tail could be seen waving independently behind her.
At first she hadn't quite got it all together yet, but when her eyes adjusted to the light so she could see who her visitor was, she smiled brightly, showing her kitty fangs, and embraced him, "Hi Jon! How ARE you???" She looked at the roses he was holding in his hand and snatched them, "For me? Oh! You shouldn't have! Come in!"
Talbain made an almost pup-like yelp as she grabbed him by the arm and pulled him inside the apartment, kicking the door shut behind them with her dancers' legs.
~
Talbain stretched, making himself comfortable on Felicia's fluffy, satin-colored couch. It would have been completely out of place if Felicia didn't have a habit of taking fancy looking things and putting them in a not-so fancy apartment.
Felicia walked in with a bowl of popcorn and plopped down into a sitting position, "So, what brings you all the way from the country?"
Talbain smiled a bit, his eyes unable to hide the pain in his heart, "I just needed to get away for awhile I guess after what happened."
Felicia looked concerned, but that didn't seem to stop her from eating, "I read about what happened Jon. That was horrible: I'm so sorry for you, and those poor kids."
Jon winced a bit: he didn't like to think about it and his eyes darted around the room looking for a chance to change the subject. He found it in the papers on her desk, "So, you've been writing again I see."
Felicia nodded vigorously, "Uh huh! I'm real close to being able to put out a second album. I want to show everyone I'm not a one-hit wonder."
Talbain looked to her with that knowing gaze and turned his mouth up in a smile, "It doesn't matter what the critics think. You know you're great and your voice should be the loudest one in your head."
Felicia gave him a genuine golden child smile: not one of those superficial ones like she found herself having to do during autograph sessions. Things had taken a turn for the better in her life when she did a sonic attack with her voice during that bizarre Darkstalkers Tournament and ended up signing a record deal, at least, in most ways. In others it was a major constraint on her personal life and a whole new kind of stress.
She looked over at Jon, who was looking over her papers. Thank God for friends like him, she thought. Friends who would never lie to her but always saw the good in whatever she did. Friends who knew her.
~
Demitri slowly circled around Morrigan, who seemed willing to stand there, perfectly postured as a manikin, and be admired like the goddess she was. His intentions may have been erotic as well as militant, but he would never admit that.
His eyes narrowed as he stopped, "What have you come to tell me woman?"
Morrigan smiled, closing her eyes, "I guess I just wanted to get a first look at the legendary Demitri Maximoff. After all," her eyes opened, "I hear of your imminent return to the Demon World."
Demitri's blood red lips turned upward in a sneer as he turned around, a strong wind whipping around him that became as a flaming yellow aura, blowing his cape in the air around like a kite, "My revenge will be GLORIOUS!"
The arrogant noble was stunned as a sudden sweep kick knocked him off his high horse, not to mention onto his back. Morrigan placed a black- heeled foot upon his chest and leaned her head over her knee, smiling with deadly beauty, "A mighty man you are, but it will take much more than a good bluff to defeat Belial I hope you know."
Demitri was enraged, "How dare you deceive me!" His large, strong hands grabbed her by her heel, and the large, strong arms they were connected to swung her in a hard throw onto her face. He stood, brushed himself off, and chuckled, "Two can play at the leverage game, now get up. It is time for battle."
~
"Yeah, that was a great show", Felicia laughed as she and Talbain looked over the pictures of her tour, "I'm not sure what that cowboy thought he was grabbing when he went for my hiney, but I bet the tail was more than he bargained for."
Talbain leaned an arm against the arm of the chair. Felicia noted how his muscles showed through the white cotton of the t-shirt, and she couldn't help smiling a bit at that. She had always felt something for Jon, but she didn't want to let him in on that for fear he might not return it, or worse, that he might and it would ruin the friendship.
She slowly stood up, a bit nervous as she wondered if he had seen her staring at him like that, "You hungry? I'm gonna get some more popcorn ok?"
Talbain looked to her face and nodded as she went into the other room. Only when she was out of sight did he look back down at her pictures.
~
Morrigan sprang into the air, turning the jump into a backflip that made it impossible for the pursuing Demitri to grab her in mid-air, as her wings became eight individual spiked chains that knocked him even further from her.
Demitri landed in a kneel, his flame aura flaring with the intense heat of his rage. He pulled a hand back, making a slight chant under his breath, and a bizarre ball of fire resembling a screaming face fired forth from his hand like a magic missile at Morrigan. This technique, the signature move of the Maximoff Family, was the Chaos Flare.
Morrigan crossed her arms in front of her chest, blocking her heart as the blast impacted her, forcing her spiked chains to reform as demon wings at her side. When the smoke had cleared, she opened her mouth, letting a bit of smoke escape. Her body had slight patches of dirt all over from the gray aftermath, but she was otherwise unharmed.
Her eyes narrowed down at Maximoff: arrogance she could tolerate, but lack of respect for fashion was an insult. She crossed her hands at the wrists, raising her arms above her head. A bright flash of light began to emit from her palms, forming a ball, which split into two circling 'bats' of light.
She fired the attack, her own signature family technique, right back at Demitri. It slammed his directly in the face before he could recognize it.
"Soul Fist", he muttered, "How predictable."
In his prideful mockery he failed to notice that the Soul Fist was only a decoy. Morrigan appeared in front of him at a diagonally downward facing slant, arm out in front of her as a look of anger crossed her face.
Demitri was batted across the floor and into the nearest wall. Needless to say, he was feeling the blow, but mostly as a blow to his pride. He started to get up, but as his eyes winced open, he saw that he was alone, and fell onto his back with a groan.
~
High in the skies above the Earth, over the clouds, a certain succubus was flying homeward on her wings of steel, a smile upon her face. She looked back towards Castle Zeitzereich, "Until next time, Demitri Maximoff."
-Man against monster. Monster against self. The story is as old as time. Living above us, below us, and among us, they assimilate themselves into our culture, and us into theirs. To the common man, they are simply known as night terrors, but to the initiated, they are the Darkstalkers-
EPISODE TWO: RIVALS IN DARKNESS
Demitri sat gazing upon his own reflection. He ran his face across his strong, square jaw and up his well-chiseled cheek. His light blue eyes, surrounded by the darkness of his soul, seemed dissatisfied with his physical shell.
"Vanity has a price, Lord Maximoff", a sultry woman's voice called from behind him in the darkness. Maximoff spun around to stare down a tall, athletically built woman whose voluptuous curves could make any straight man weak in the knees, and possible incite jealousy in the not-so- straight ones. From her long, sparkling, mint-green hair to her azure eyes to her perfect breasts to her runner's legs, she was a sight to behold.
As if the body itself was not enough to warm up a room, her dress was no less than questionable as far as her intentions were concerned. It seemed to mesh the feathery shoulder straps of a noblewoman with the leather armor of a fighter, but the codpiece was cut so low down her chest that her abs were visible. Her arms and legs sported tight pink spandex which was obviously meant to be a flashy battle suit, and at her hips were two black and violet demon wings, which to the uninitiated resemble bat wings.
At first the vampiric noble was taken aback by her sheer magnificence, but he quickly regained his composure, and his trademark scowl, "And who in Makai are you?"
The woman, a succubus or sex demon, threw her straight locked behind her ears and gave him a radiant smile, "Most call me Mistress, but for you, Morrigan Aensland."
Demitri placed his hands upon his hips and let out a hardy laugh, "Well this IS a surprise! A representative fighter from my ancestral rivals has come to challenge me for the title of Ruler of the Night. Am I mistaken?"
"Actually", Morrigan mused, "I wanted to talk."
"Talk?" Demitri blinked, well on guard.
~
Talbain was dressed in a pair of deep blue jeans, brown leather cowboy boots, and a white t-shirt with a brown leather jacket sporting beige cotton undersides places over that. His hair was pulled back except for the bangs, which were spiky like he preferred them. In his arms he was bearing a bouquet of roses.
He walked down the sidewalk, trying not to cough on the foul city air, which even now clogged his sensitive nose, and made his way up the metal staircase to the second floor of a brick apartment building where he hoped to meet an old friend.
He practically tapped the knocker against the door compared to the force he was used to putting into everything he did and waited patiently.
"I'll be there in a second", a young woman's voice called from somewhere inside. Talbain smiled: she had probably just gotten up at the sound of the knock. Catwomen tended to sleep a lot during the day and party all night.
Finally, the door opened and a twenty-something beauty with tanned Caucasian skin, teal eyes, and long, bright blue hair that was currently all over the place stood there yawning quietly. An interesting note about this woman was that, while she was reading a pink bathrobe around herself, she could not hide the fact that she had cat-like paws for hands, and in place of human ears she had two cat ears atop her head. In addition to that, a white tail could be seen waving independently behind her.
At first she hadn't quite got it all together yet, but when her eyes adjusted to the light so she could see who her visitor was, she smiled brightly, showing her kitty fangs, and embraced him, "Hi Jon! How ARE you???" She looked at the roses he was holding in his hand and snatched them, "For me? Oh! You shouldn't have! Come in!"
Talbain made an almost pup-like yelp as she grabbed him by the arm and pulled him inside the apartment, kicking the door shut behind them with her dancers' legs.
~
Talbain stretched, making himself comfortable on Felicia's fluffy, satin-colored couch. It would have been completely out of place if Felicia didn't have a habit of taking fancy looking things and putting them in a not-so fancy apartment.
Felicia walked in with a bowl of popcorn and plopped down into a sitting position, "So, what brings you all the way from the country?"
Talbain smiled a bit, his eyes unable to hide the pain in his heart, "I just needed to get away for awhile I guess after what happened."
Felicia looked concerned, but that didn't seem to stop her from eating, "I read about what happened Jon. That was horrible: I'm so sorry for you, and those poor kids."
Jon winced a bit: he didn't like to think about it and his eyes darted around the room looking for a chance to change the subject. He found it in the papers on her desk, "So, you've been writing again I see."
Felicia nodded vigorously, "Uh huh! I'm real close to being able to put out a second album. I want to show everyone I'm not a one-hit wonder."
Talbain looked to her with that knowing gaze and turned his mouth up in a smile, "It doesn't matter what the critics think. You know you're great and your voice should be the loudest one in your head."
Felicia gave him a genuine golden child smile: not one of those superficial ones like she found herself having to do during autograph sessions. Things had taken a turn for the better in her life when she did a sonic attack with her voice during that bizarre Darkstalkers Tournament and ended up signing a record deal, at least, in most ways. In others it was a major constraint on her personal life and a whole new kind of stress.
She looked over at Jon, who was looking over her papers. Thank God for friends like him, she thought. Friends who would never lie to her but always saw the good in whatever she did. Friends who knew her.
~
Demitri slowly circled around Morrigan, who seemed willing to stand there, perfectly postured as a manikin, and be admired like the goddess she was. His intentions may have been erotic as well as militant, but he would never admit that.
His eyes narrowed as he stopped, "What have you come to tell me woman?"
Morrigan smiled, closing her eyes, "I guess I just wanted to get a first look at the legendary Demitri Maximoff. After all," her eyes opened, "I hear of your imminent return to the Demon World."
Demitri's blood red lips turned upward in a sneer as he turned around, a strong wind whipping around him that became as a flaming yellow aura, blowing his cape in the air around like a kite, "My revenge will be GLORIOUS!"
The arrogant noble was stunned as a sudden sweep kick knocked him off his high horse, not to mention onto his back. Morrigan placed a black- heeled foot upon his chest and leaned her head over her knee, smiling with deadly beauty, "A mighty man you are, but it will take much more than a good bluff to defeat Belial I hope you know."
Demitri was enraged, "How dare you deceive me!" His large, strong hands grabbed her by her heel, and the large, strong arms they were connected to swung her in a hard throw onto her face. He stood, brushed himself off, and chuckled, "Two can play at the leverage game, now get up. It is time for battle."
~
"Yeah, that was a great show", Felicia laughed as she and Talbain looked over the pictures of her tour, "I'm not sure what that cowboy thought he was grabbing when he went for my hiney, but I bet the tail was more than he bargained for."
Talbain leaned an arm against the arm of the chair. Felicia noted how his muscles showed through the white cotton of the t-shirt, and she couldn't help smiling a bit at that. She had always felt something for Jon, but she didn't want to let him in on that for fear he might not return it, or worse, that he might and it would ruin the friendship.
She slowly stood up, a bit nervous as she wondered if he had seen her staring at him like that, "You hungry? I'm gonna get some more popcorn ok?"
Talbain looked to her face and nodded as she went into the other room. Only when she was out of sight did he look back down at her pictures.
~
Morrigan sprang into the air, turning the jump into a backflip that made it impossible for the pursuing Demitri to grab her in mid-air, as her wings became eight individual spiked chains that knocked him even further from her.
Demitri landed in a kneel, his flame aura flaring with the intense heat of his rage. He pulled a hand back, making a slight chant under his breath, and a bizarre ball of fire resembling a screaming face fired forth from his hand like a magic missile at Morrigan. This technique, the signature move of the Maximoff Family, was the Chaos Flare.
Morrigan crossed her arms in front of her chest, blocking her heart as the blast impacted her, forcing her spiked chains to reform as demon wings at her side. When the smoke had cleared, she opened her mouth, letting a bit of smoke escape. Her body had slight patches of dirt all over from the gray aftermath, but she was otherwise unharmed.
Her eyes narrowed down at Maximoff: arrogance she could tolerate, but lack of respect for fashion was an insult. She crossed her hands at the wrists, raising her arms above her head. A bright flash of light began to emit from her palms, forming a ball, which split into two circling 'bats' of light.
She fired the attack, her own signature family technique, right back at Demitri. It slammed his directly in the face before he could recognize it.
"Soul Fist", he muttered, "How predictable."
In his prideful mockery he failed to notice that the Soul Fist was only a decoy. Morrigan appeared in front of him at a diagonally downward facing slant, arm out in front of her as a look of anger crossed her face.
Demitri was batted across the floor and into the nearest wall. Needless to say, he was feeling the blow, but mostly as a blow to his pride. He started to get up, but as his eyes winced open, he saw that he was alone, and fell onto his back with a groan.
~
High in the skies above the Earth, over the clouds, a certain succubus was flying homeward on her wings of steel, a smile upon her face. She looked back towards Castle Zeitzereich, "Until next time, Demitri Maximoff."