Chapter 2
It had been an interesting night, the woman obviously not prepared for the endurance of Immortals. Eventually we slept, me very lightly. I awoke just as she was getting out of bed.
"I'm just going to take a shower" Marie said.
"Okay", as she wondered off to take a shower, I got up, and went to get a few drinks of water; at least while the kettle was boiling. I heard the paper arrive on her doorstep, and went to get it. I walked in drinking coffee and reading the headlines; I was still trying to get my mind around this world. The preternatural was legal, vampires and all. It was illegal, and considered murder to kill one without a court warrant. That would certainly make sense of last night's fiasco.
She came out the shower, and various small talk was engaged in. I had a shower myself, no point using magic to clean up, and enjoyed the feel of hot water on my skin. I came out, and put my clothes back on. The arrangement was for me to call her later, and go out tonight. As I left I made straight for a DIY store. Yes I ran; no car, and found a load of screw drivers. I took apart the 'timer', and found the technology inside way beyond me. Quinn might have been fine with this, but I certainly wasn't. I might well be here ten years at this rate. Shit a doodle do!
I made my way to a library and did as much research on the preternatural, and history as possible. I've learnt to speed read over the years, and a photographic memory certainly helps. A lot of long lived preternaturals have photographic memories, just that sometimes they have not learnt to use them, or they are suppressed for some reason. I read thousands of pages! By this time it was mid afternoon.
Money was not a problem at the minute, I had thousands still in my wallet. An idea still struck me though. I could do what I did best, take out drug dealers, and steal their money. Time to go find myself a victim or two. May as well make an impact around here. Short of going to one seedy area, the Vamp District during daylight, I had to find gangland territory. I got into a taxi. It made me laugh when I saw the taxi drivers face when I told him, "Take me to the outskirts of dodgiest gang district around here". Priceless.
I won't bore you with details too much. As soon as I picked up ID's off the almost dead bodies, and used magic to get them to tell me who they worked for, I went for the big fish. I hit him, and his house. By the time I finished, and got account numbers and passwords, I was a few million up. It is quite easy for a preternatural to get rich quick, if they need to. Those preternaturals that are unscrupulous where I come from often control many drug cartels, or huge crime syndicates.
I then left no living witnesses. I did not use my guns, just snapped a few necks on both occasions. Then when I was a couple of blocks away, a large fire started where I had just been. I wonder how that happened, accident-not! I needed some materials to alter the ID's and I was ready to go. I may as well find out who the major players are. I got a few materials for altering ID's, got my photo taken a few times. Ready made fake ID'S. This did not take as long as one would think, a few hours. All I had to do was rent a hotel room for a night. While I was doing this, I asked for a number of really good estate agent, may as well house hunt. I haven't owned a house in centuries, usually large buildings, but may as well start small-ish. I find looking at property exceedingly boring, unless I know i can change it as I see fit.
In this case I couldn't. I settled for a five bedroom house, with nice garden. That and the furniture set me back about almost half a mill. I also ordered some guns, and a car and a few other things. I priced up the cost of getting both types of ammunition. This is not the kind of thing you do on the internet. I priced it according to what I knew from my own world. Crap it was going to be expensive, and highly illegal. Time to waste another couple of drug dealers. I needed some major criminal players, and I thought about zipping to South America, and offing a cartel. Done it quite a few times before, but that was home. Till I knew what was what though I would need to stay reasonably smallish. For all I knew a seriously dangerous vampire ran them, and I could get wasted. When night came, I got a taxi to another city, and killed a couple more drug dealers. A couple of them were Werewolves, but not too powerful. I discovered one little fact, shapeshifters here were as strong as back home. I make it sound easy, and it wasn't that difficult to be truthful. But think about it, two werewolves that are not immortal, or even long lived; and a couple of dozen humans wielding SMG's against someone who is just over a 1000 years old. In my world, I've written just about every tactic, espionage and military manual in existence on the western hemisphere; and quite a few in Russia too. They were dead, not a chance. However, I'm sure if I run across a major vampire, or shapeshifter it might be different. I really didn't know yet.
I was accumulating cash though. I transferred a lot of their monies into one account, and then started to transfer it all over. The idea of making it really hard to trace, but any long lived preternatural being gets good at hiding trails, money or otherwise. Sort of our raison d'être as it were. Either that or get found out. Next step was get set up as hunter. I needed to go on a few courses, and get recognized, in effect turning me into a federal marshal. How stupid is that. Most humans that turn hunters that don't have preternatural skills, either have backup or wind up dead; very very quickly. Ho hum. Needless to say the course was easy. I'm still sort of seeing Marie, but told her I'm setting up my own business, hence not too much time, but she was busy at work anyway. While the irradiated fluid rounds are hard to make, I'm still trying to arrange it. I had plenty of silver nitrate hollow point rounds.
I had also looked up applicable laws, and most were the same here; except the preternatural stuff. There was also a nearby university that did 'Preternatural Studies'. I had a few words with the lecturer, and asked about text books on the subject. All in all, I was very busy over the next few months. I set my self up, as a preternatural investigator / exterminator or hunter. Within a day or two of my company getting set up, the news got out, I received a call from the Master of the City secretary or something, someone called Jason. Jean-Claude wanted a meeting at 3am. This would be interesting. It was currently 8pm. There was no chance of me going in unarmed. I had used the dealers contacts, and money to get hold of quite a bit of kit.
I had a BP vest, military issue that could also store items. I had two shotos in 'holsters' like guns under either arm. Underneath the left holster was a 9mm handgun, another in the small of my back. A P90, with plenty of spare ammo, some of which was stored in my small backpack. This same pack, also military issue held some grenades, two fragmentation, three flashbangs, and a couple of thermites. I looked like I was dressed for the battlefield. Off I drove to meet at the club 'Guilty Pleasures'. I'm sure I was breaking various dress codes, and other laws, but fuck it. Probably a master vampire, and I hadn't survived this long by playing nice and fair. Just to hide my 'clothing' I had a jacket on. They would obviously expect me through the main door, screw that. I had hacked into various databases, I'm good with computers, and got the building plans. A normal backdoor, an underground passageway, and an entrance on the roof that led all the way down to the club. The first two passageways would be guarded, especially the second of the two. The roof looked favourite. I approached the building and parked about three blocks away, and approached on foot. When I found a nice back alley, I climbed the wall, as I had been taught during training, using correct breathing and visualisation. I went up the wall like a spider. Once on the roof, there were no sentries, I made my way to the entrance. The door was padlocked. I picked the lock, and very quietly and carefully made my way inside. No guards, nothing. As I came down the stairs, there was still no one around. This led straight into the club, via another doorway. At a guess though, anyone that came in through this way would be friendly, or they could sense another preternatural threat. I arrived at the other door. I had to focus my hearing, to 'drown out' the music, but no one on the other side either. It was either a very well orchestrated trap, or they expected me this way. A very simple combination, I reached into my backpack, and got the relevant piece of kit. As the keycode flashed onto my screen, I put the code decipherer away. I typed in the code on the pad, and in I went. I walked down a few more stairs, and did my jacket up, don't want to look armed in a club full of people. I walked around a group of people all looking at the stage, and towards the office. I could hear voices in there, Anita's, somebody else; and another with a voice that sounded like silk. I opened the door and walked in. They looked up at me.
"I believe we had an appointment, I assume you are Jean-Claude?" I said to the man behind the desk. He was a very attractive man, I don't swing that way, and had long dark curly hair to his waist. He was wearing a business suit at this point. The other was a well built man, obviously did weights, had very tanned skin, and brown hair to his shoulders. Anita stood there in black jeans, a roll neck, and trainers. At least I wasn't too underdressed, I looked like I belonged in a SWAT team. Jean-Claude stood up, but did not offer to shake my hand.
"I am, Anita you've met, and this is Richard"
"Morning folks. Now what can I do for you Jean-Claude at this hour?" I could hear him mentally summon help to his office.
"That will not be necessary JC, summoning help" with a mean predatory smile on my face. I could read shock in all of them, although they did not show it by facial reaction; it's all in the eyes. Anita's eyes had a feral look about them. Two very large vampires walked through the door, closing it behind them.
"We want to know where this ammunition came from" Jean-Claude said pointing at a distance to the blue ammunition. If he was allergic to sunlight, even touching would cause parts of him to burn. I could hear another walking towards the door, and it opened. A man who was almost 5' 8" walked in with sandy hair, and the coldest ass eyes next to mine. He was a pro killer, no doubt about it. He also had a gun pointed at me, and walked to the opposite side of the office, that way if he missed, or the bullet went through me he wouldn't hit anyone else.
"Told you, it's classified" I stood there completely nonchalantly.
"I have never seen these type of ammunition before, ever" said the man with the gun.
"What does that prove? Not one damn thing" I replied
"Maybe I have some government contacts?"
"Do you have any current or ex Area 51 contacts?" I could see him shake his head.
"No"
"Didn't think so. Here's a bus load of shut the fuck up" I gave him 'the birdie' just to antagonise some more. Being the true professional he was, he didn't care less. Points for him.
"You expect us to believe you're from Area 51" Anita asked.
"Read between the line people, please engage just one brain cell, come on, just one" It was Jean-Claude who spoke next.
"This was deliberate by the Government, leak them into circulation to prove there are other methods of killing us"
"Hurray for the vampire brains in the operation. Even anti-shapeshifter rounds too. Would you like to see?" They all nodded their heads. "I know Ted, easy does it". Immortal intuition is a great thing, we all have it, improves as we age. I reached into my pocket, and threw one over to Jean-Claude who caught it flawlessly.
"Both rounds are hollow point, for maximum damage on impact. The silver nitrate, and irradiated fluid spread throughout the tissue causing irreparable damage. Aim for the head or the heart, anything else is your ass"
"What I want to know is why then set yourself up as a vampire executioner?" asked Anita.
"Why not? I have a unique skill set, and equipment to enable me to do it"
"If I were to tell the vampire council of this, their wrath would be unpleasant" Said Jean-Claude.
"You think we don't know where they are? Area 51 is a good 20 years ahead of normal government, which is ten years ahead of you" Anita looked at 'Ted' who nodded.
"So you're telling the truth, what does the Government plan to do to the Council if they don't like it?' asked Jean-Claude.
"If they play up, then vampires are history. It just so happens there is a biological weapon in the US, and France to kill everyone of you. It'll take a few months to spread. But no where on earth will be safe. Complete genocide"
"They wouldn't dare" said Richard.
"Oh they would" said Jean-Claude, "how quickly humanity destroys what it cannot tolerate or understand. I cannot tell the Council of either fact, I fear what would happen". Jean-Claude looked me in the eye, I looked back. He was trying to 'roll' my mind, he had no chance.
"May I go now, or is there anything further JC" I could also tell my abbreviation was pissing him off, albeit slightly.
"Yes you may go" said Jean-Claude. Phew, my manipulation was complete at this point. Not only did they believe I was an operative, or ex-operative of this Government, but Area 51 too. Being Immortal allows me to control my body, absolute; and I told my body to make no 'tells' that I was lying. My heart beat did not change, neither did my pheromones etc. Keeping your opponent off balance is essential in any manipulation.
"Excuse me" I said. He looked down at me with real anger in his eyes. 'Ted' was still watching me.
"Let him leave" Jean-Claude said. They moved. I walked out the office, and out the entrance to the club. As I walked away, I could sense intention my way. I know it sounds strange. Have you been out walking somewhere, and look about 20-30 meters behind you and find someone was looking at you? Soon as you see them, they look away. It's exactly like that, except I've refined the sense for use against snipers. I had a tail, an airborne one. I walked a few blocks in the wrong direction, and down a side street. I kept walking and found an apartment block with ladders up the side. I climbed to the roof.
"Come out, come out where ever you are. I know you're there vampire". I increased my sight, and spotted a blonde vampire at what he thought was my range. "I can see you" and undid my jacket reaching for a pistol, and getting a silencer out. "Land or I will shoot you dead" I said aiming. He was fast, but not for a preternatural like me, and shot him in the gut. My pistols are a version of the 'five seveN', a 9mm pistol for use with the P90, i.e. they use the same rounds. Will penetrate a Kevlar jacket at 300 meters, and here's the doozy, when they enter the target they rotate without deformation and don't tumble; hence a more grievous wound. Nice eh? Needless to say the vampire was hurt, and bleeding. But with a 21mm hole all the way through you, what's new?
"Last chance to land, slowly, or I do the same to your head?" The vampire came in for a slow landing. As he landed I shot out both kneecaps, he fell screaming. "If you want to talk to me, use the damn phone! Follow me again", and I pointed the gun at his head "I'll fucking destroy you. Now fuck off!" and I walked to the edge of the building, and climbed down the stairs. This was a dangerous game I was playing, and must be very careful or I would be undone. My beeper went off, someone somewhere needed a vampire slaying, goody! I got to kill someone.