Author's Notes: Alright, this is a little hard to explain. You see, I've become absolutely obsessed with the vampire/supernatural hunting genre, so of course I had to write a fic. I explained it as best I could in the fic, but here's some background info just in case-
The society I made (The Ripper Organization--crappy name, I know. So sue me) is a company of mercenaries that specializes in vampire hunting. It's an underground operation, so only the highest of government officials and the wealthiest investors know about it. Sounds cliche I know...and it kind of is. But oh well. I was watching a friend play Bloodrayne while I dreamt this up. You'll get over it, I'm sure.
Anyway. The hunting teams are broken up into groups of three; a Gunner, a Swordsman, and a Coordinator. The names are self-explanatory, so I won't insult your intelligence by telling you what each does.
Rather than using real names in the early chapters, I'll be using the code names I've given them. Each team's name originate from old world gods and deities. The main team that I'll be writing about is the Norse team, thus Norse god names. As time goes on, I'll be converting to the canon names like Jounouchi and Yuugi, etc, but for now I'll be using code names. I tried to make it as obvious as possible to tell who's who, but yeah. Even if you can't tell you'll know eventually :D
THIS IS AU. Obviously. I've played around with the ages and stuff, but the relationships for the most part will stay the same as canon as I can make them, with afew little surprises. But please. No reviews telling me that So-and-So character is not 23. I know that, but here they are.
Also, I totally took a couple lines from Blade Trinity. I am so unorginal, but that movie's hysterical. I just could not help myself. Forgive me, plagurism gods. I'll make a MLA Handbook sacrifice later, I promise.
Yes. I'm adding to the insanity that is the YGO/Vampire crossover category. Yes, I did die a little inside when I decided to do this. Blame Blade Trinity, Anita Blake, L. A. Banks, Anne Rice, and Bloodrayne 2. It's all their fault.
That's enough rambling. On to the cliche.
"Do you see the target, Oden?" he somehow deciphered, despite the intense cackling of the radio in his ear.
"Yeah, Siren 6. I see it…but could you fix the radio please? I can barely understand you," answered the hesitant Oden. A pair of dark looking twenty-somethings walked by, giving him a mysterious glance as they passed. Oden tried looking as commonplace as possible. He found it difficult to hide the katana at his side, however. He was told that ability would come with experience.
"No can do, Rookie," Oden recognized the gruff voice of Loki 5 on the other end through the static. He could tell the man had a cigarette in his mouth. "That static's always been there. No matter what we try it won't be goin nowhere, so get used to it."
"But couldn't the targets hear it? Wouldn't we be found out, Loki 5?"
"Man, was I this freaked out when I first joined this damn team?" Loki sighed, and then grunted out of impatience for the newcomer. "Look, kid. Number one; that number crap is only for the suits at H. Q. You don't need them when you're just talking on the fucking radio. Number two; this has been our communications system for years. Those suck-heads haven't noticed it yet, so I'm not gonna question it now. Just get your ass in there and get the job done!"
Oden heard the click as Siren jumped in. "Well aren't we cheerful tonight, Loki?" she said, the pang of sarcasm almost piercing. "This is our first mission with the new swordsman, alright? Give Oden a break. At least he's thinking about consequences. Unlike some people."
Loki grunted with slight disdain. "If you weren't so cute, I'd be really upset with you, Siren."
"Lucky for me then," Oden practically saw the victorious grin on her gentle face. "Oden, this is a typical vampire safe house. Nothing too big here. All you need to do is go in and take out every target you can sink that sword of yours into. Meanwhile, Loki will be going after the proprietor of the establishment. I presume you've looked over the target profile, handsome?"
"Maybe. Maybe not. I like to play it by ear."
"How droll. I hope for you sakes you did. You're only going to have one shot at this."
"One shot's all I need," Loki boasted with an overconfidence Oden found himself envying. "You know they call me the One-Hit-Wonder."
Siren replied with a playful scoff. "Whatever you say, Mr. Wonder. As much as I'm enjoying this witty banter of ours, we do have a mission to take care of. Oden? It's party time, kiddo."
"Got it," Oden replied, stepping out of the shadows and looking at the front door of the rave. Pounding heavy metal music shook the ground, and he knew there would be a large victim count tonight. "I'm about to go through the front. Wish me luck."
Loki laughed as he took the last drag of his cigarette and snapped back the barrels of his guns. "Let's roll, ladies."
Most vampire hunters in the Ripper Organization (R. O. for short) were in their mid twenties. Oden had just come of age. His exemplary swordsman skills were what got him into basic training, and his never-give-up attitude was got him through it. Then he was quickly placed on a team and thrown into the field. Stripped of his birth name, the boy he once was ceased to exist. Sure. He still went by that name during the daylight hours and when he was off the clock. But when the time came to strap on those blades and join his team, he was Oden. Oden was small, but agile and swift; perfect qualities for a hunter swordsman in this underground society. Oden was all business.
The inner workings of the R. O. were still unknown to Oden, as they most likely would for the rest of his life. All he knew (would ever know) was that it was a business for hunting in the supernatural realm, specializing in vampires. International leaders would pay out the ass to get rid of their messy vampire problems. The R. O.'s leader, known only by the name ONI, was well aware of this fact. He'd created an empire on it. R. O. hand picked their soon to be hunters, trained them, and then sent them out to kill, giving their employees a hefty little paycheck for their services.
It was a hell of a way to make a living.
The day Oden met his teammates, he was a nervous wreck. Would they accept him right away? After all, he'd heard this team had just lost their Swordsman while on a mission. He was a replacement; Nothing more than a way to fill the space. Why would they just grin and say "Welcome to the team?"
Siren, the team's Coordinator, was the one he saw first. She was a very kind looking woman, roughly 23 or so. She was gorgeous to boot. Long, white, silky hair careened down her face into her sparkling blue eyes. Her china skin had a pink tint on the round cheeks of her smile. Oden had to do a bit of a double take when he first laid eyes on her, stammering a bit as he introduced himself. Siren had simply laughed and shook his hand, saying she was happy to meet him.
That's when Loki walked it.
At first, Oden didn't know what to make of him. The team's Gunner was a rough looking man with a ruffled mess of sandy blonde hair and a thick stubble across his strong jaw line. He had an all-business stare, but a glint of rebellion in his cinnamon colored eyes. But one thing was for sure; Loki had a stature to be envied. Tall, sculpted, relaxed. Loki's presence would not be ignored by anyone. Hell, even Oden found himself in awe at the overall sensuality that this Loki just oozed. The cigarette in his lips left a smoky halo around the rebel's head. He looked over his new teammate critically, folding his muscular arms with a slight scowl.
"You're the new blade?" Loki half scoffed. "Is this a joke? You're a baby."
"Loki! That's how you greet our new teammate?" Siren had gasped. "That's just rude."
"Well sorry, but it's true!" Loki argued, not bothering to remove the cigarette from his mouth as he talked. He turned back to Oden, the critical glare painfully apparent. "What're you? Twelve?"
"Eighteen," Oden answered with as much masculinity as possible. He felt so dwarfed with this Loki around.
Loki shook his head. "They're getting smaller and smaller. Soon this whole damn operation'll be run by fucking midgets."
Siren automatically reached over and whacked him across the arm, resulting in a bit of flinching and protesting on the rebel's part. "Now you stop that!" she instructed. "They wouldn't have brought him here if he couldn't do the job. And I thought I told you to quit smoking around me. It's such a vile habit."
Loki glared at her a moment, but the gaze softened as he grinned. "Ya know, you're pretty when ya get all mad like that," he smirked, destroying the cigarette in the ashtray of the table Siren leaned against.
She simply rolled her eyes. "Please. I think I might die of cliché if you keep it up, Loki."
Oden observed this exchange, questioning the professionalism of it all. Was this how all teams talked? Teams spent countless hours in high risk situations, just doing their job. That's what it was for them. A job. Not some noble quest to rid the world of vampirism. They did it for the money, and it was worth it.
Perhaps it was normal to be friends with your teammates.
"Do you know each other's real names?" Oden suddenly asked his new team, wide eyed and curious.
The two blinked a moment before Loki raised a brow. "What're you talking about, rookie? That's the first thing you learn in basic training. Never reveal your name, not even to your team. You're just asking to get fucked if you do," Loki said gruffly, as though he could say it any other way.
"I was just asking-"
"Well, don't," the man snapped. "Real names are a big no-no here, kid. That's what the codes are there for. So use em."
Siren nodded with a softer expression. "It's too dangerous to reveal ourselves," she said. "But enough of that. I think it's time we got Oden his new toys."
"That was it? I'm a little disappointed," Oden sighed, exiting the building. His shining katana and kodachi blades reflected the light from the moon and the nearby street lamps. One good thing about vampires-
They were a clean kill. No blood. No mess. No stains on your clothes. Just a rusty powder that Oden found to have the rich odor of blood.
"Well, I'm sorry to hear that, rookie," Loki's voice crackled in his ear. "Because I just had a barrel of laughs taking that rich suck-head out."
"That's fascinating, Loki," Siren replied dully. "Good work, Oden, but you've got to be more careful when you infiltrate these types of places. There were a couple of times that targets bumped into you and your weapons. That could've been messy."
"Well it's hard not to get bumped into when you're surrounded by a mosh-pit of vampires," Oden said back.
"Touché," Siren laughed. "In any case, mission completed, boys, get back to base. Looks like we've got a new assignment waiting for us."
"Busy night," Loki snickered. "Pay day's gonna be good to me this month."
Oden waited by the bikes for Loki. Normally this was a BIG no-no in the world of hunting. No one on teams was supposed to associate with each other in a public place. But Oden was still a little sketchy on the precise directions to H. Q. And considering the business, precision was a must. So when he saw Loki calmly stroll down the alley with a large duffel bag tossed over his shoulder, Oden prepared for a stern talking-to. But Loki just smirked and took a drag of another cigarette. "What? Ya get lost already?" he asked.
Oden nodded.
"Oh well. Just follow me," Loki said, strapping his duffel to the back of his bike.
"Loki? What's in there?" Oden asked curiously. The duffel had made a metallic thud, and it looked extremely heavy.
The rebel just grinned. Zipping open the bag, he pulled out a monster of a shotgun. Double-barreled, each barrel as long as Oden's forearm and twice as thick.
"These," Loki said, snapping back the barrels, "-are my toys. These babies are specially designed to shoot just about anything out of the barrel. Stakes, bullets, sun-dogs maybe even a small rat- whatever gets you hard," he muttered. "Shoots the ammo with the force of a damn wrecking ball. I've seen these babies blow right through concrete, so you can imagine the damage to a fleshy little vampie. And I've got two of em."
Oden marveled at the power of those guns. He knew he'd see some powerful weapons in this business, but he'd never seen a shotgun that huge. How Loki carried two at once amazing him. But Loki had the arms for such a task. He didn't need to be sleek and swift, but he was. As the Gunner, it was his job to be the strength; the brute power to blow away the opposition. But he also had stealth on his side, since he wasn't too big, just strong. Loki had it all, and Oden admired him. This was the power of a seasoned hunter.
Oden craved that power.
The smaller boy noticed some spots on the cargo khakis of his partner. They were a deep crimson, and still looked wet, though some of the stains had already set. "Loki? Is that…?" he stammered a little, pointing.
Loki glanced down at his pants, and then rolled his eyes. "Aw man! I just got these things!" he flailed a bit.
"Vampires don't bleed, Loki. How'd you get blood on your clothes?"
"There were a few familiars hanging around my target. Stupid mother fuckers. Think that just by helping out a suck-head they'll be rewarded with eternal life. Apparently that includes protecting the bastards with their lives. Well," Loki smirked almost evilly. "I gave them that opportunity. But killing humans is so messy. And it's hell to explain to a dry-cleaner."
Downtown lights whizzed by as Loki and Oden sped down the street. The younger hunter found it hard to keep up as Loki flew around corners, almost daring him to try and keep up. Oden took the challenge, but soon found himself losing control so he slowed down. He almost heard the blonde laugh inside his helmet.
They reached the underground entrance only 10 minutes after leaving the safe house. Loki put in the password for the voice recognition system, and the two drove into the parking garage. Oden saw many pairs of hunters talking, and as they parked he noticed two girls whizzing off to the exit.
"What the fuck is going on? Are all the suck-heads out tonight?" Loki groaned, taking off his helmet and shaking his hair out. Oden smirked and kicked the stand of his bike.
They went down the elevator to the conference rooms, passing many fellow hunters along the way. Oden didn't know any of them, so he found himself more interested in the industrial layout of the office. It looked more like a garage than a company, but the high tech gadgetry proved to him that this was a legit operation. Loki on the other hand, walked through the halls and bridges completely unimpressed, and he would greet some of the passing co-workers.
Suddenly, a small girl of about Oden's height called out from an adjoining hall. "Onii-chan!" she said brightly, brushing her auburn hair from her smiling face. Loki's expression brightened as well as Oden saw him truly smile for the first time. The girl ran over and threw her arms around Loki with a small laugh.
"I take it you two know each other?" Oden snickered.
Loki glared at his partner, but the joy in his eyes didn't fade. "Oden, this is Nymph," he said, flicking a cigarette butt to the floor. "She's a Coordinator. Nymph, Oden. He's my new Swordsman."
Nymph smiled, but looked very concerned. "You're a hunter? You look so young!" the bright eyed girl exclaimed.
Oden nodded. "I'm eighteen. But you don't look like much of hunter yourself."
"Well she's one hell of an informant," Loki said, ruffling Nymph's hair. "I was on her team for a couple months. Cute as she is, I sort of adopted her as a little sister."
"He's been my onii-chan ever since," she grinned.
Loki rolled his eyes. "Thought I told you not to call me that," he grunted, lighting up another stick. Nymph promptly took it away and tossed it on the ground.
"And I thought I told you to stop that! Those things will kill you, Onii-chan."
"Nymph, I'm a goddamn vampire hunter. My job is what's gonna kill me, not these damn pieces of paper."
"Hmph," the redhead pouted, but quickly turned as a tall brunette of Loki's stature (though much cleaner cut) and a shorter, leaner man with long black hair and an assortment of piercings called her back over. "Oops. Apollo and Hades need me," she smiled. "Nice to meet you, Oden. I'll see you around, Onii-chan." With that the girl was off, and Oden noticed the scowl on Loki's face.
"What's wrong?"
"I don't like those guys," Loki muttered.
"They're her team, right?"
"Well, when I was on her team, Apollo—" Oden assumed that was the tall brunette, "—was our Swordsman. And he always had a thing for her. And let me tell you; that guy's a pervert. I was pretty ticked off when they transferred me and made him a Gunner. And that other guy, Hades…he just gives me the creeps."
Oden snickered. He made a mental note that Loki wasn't as harsh as he appeared. He was actually a big softie when it came to girls.
After the encounter, Loki and Oden continued on their way to the room where Siren was waiting. She was dressed in pretty causal attire; white shirt with a black leather jacket, a pair of dark boot cut jeans and black heeled boots. Her hair was tied up in a messy bun, and a pair of thin reading glasses rested on her nose. She looked up from a folder and smiled when they entered the room.
"My boys! You're back," she grinned, then her face became slightly distorted. "Ugh, what died?"
"You know the answer to that," Loki said dully, plopping into a chair, lifting up his legs and dropping his boots right on the glass table. "Lay it on me, sweetheart," he smirked, resting his hands behind his head. "Who's the next victim?"
Rolling her eyes, Siren lifted herself off the table with a wistful laugh. "Hate to break it to you, Loki," she smirked, "But you two were just a little too late getting here. Another team already picked up the mission."
"What?" Loki exclaimed. "No fucking way! Only a higher level team can take a mission out from someone else! Who the hell would take our missions?"
"Looks like Team Roma would," Siren answered matter-of-factly, resting the file on the table. As she sank into another chair, she just sort of smiled. "Look at it this way. Now you've got some free time."
"Team Roma?" Loki snorted. "Those pricks again? How do they keep getting a hold of our goddamn files?"
Siren fidgeted a bit. "I dunno."
"Shit. Never even met them and I already hate their guts. I got bills to pay, dammit."
Grinning, Siren shook her head. "Oh you poor baby, you."
"Hmph."
"Well, you're going to have to get over it. I just read over a high-risk mission we've been assigned to for next week. It's a co-op."
"Oh yeah? Haven't been on one of those in a while," Loki said thoughtfully.
"Co-op?" Oden repeated. "What's that mean?"
"We'll be working with another team on this one. It doesn't happen often, so you can be sure this'll be a tough one," Siren told him. She looked a little concerned. It was understandable. Oden had JUST completed his first routine mission, and now he was about to be thrown into a very high-risk situation.
Loki just shrugged those large shoulders of his and cackled. "Don't be so dramatic, Siren-baby. Every co-op I've been one could a been taken care of by a single team, no problem. But who's the lucky team getting paired with pros like us?"
"I'm glad you asked. You know how you said you've never met Team Roma before, Loki?" Siren smirked.
Loki's smug expression turned bland. "…Yeah? What about it?"
"You won't be able to say that much longer."
Loki stared for a moment before pulling out his pack of cigarettes. "Son of a bitch."
Author's notes: End Chapter 1. Hopefully it wasn't as horrible as I think it might be. I did just...make all that up in a 6 day time period- 3 days planning, 3 days writing and editing.
Anyway. Chapter 2 will be up pretty soon, I imagine. That is unless World of Warcraft takes over my brain as my friend says it will. Later!