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-"Dialogue"-

("Inner thinking")

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CHAPTER 7

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Jackie was examining the info that Aria had given her. Well, 'given' was not the right world because the mercenary had basically tossed it at her with no care or respect after getting angry for some reason and turning to the nasty; which now that the engineer thought of it was strange. Nothing had irked that woman before or disturbed her in any way and now that she was more calm, a couple of things the informant had said were itching in her mind like a bothersome insect.

What the hell had she meant when she said that about being from a country that didn't exist anymore? or that America was a continent with tons of countries? And what was that about ww2? What had she really meant when she said that she wasn't in any record? and what the hell about looking like a heritage? She had even spoken in another language. Spanish now that she considered the accent. And What did all had to do with London?

What had that all been really about? She had no idea and that bothered her greatly, partly because she knew that Aria was right, and partly because she couldn't picture the big panorama here. The pieces were scattered, but they were in front of her. What was she missing? and what was she really playing with? Suddenly it didn't seem as if she was the one ordering those two around, but rather that they were just letting her do so. That was probably the case. But why?

She groaned and hit her forehead on the table. Yeah, she was just some girl that had gotten into this by accident. But she was not going to try and overlook it. That simply wasn't right... or perhaps she simply didn't want to be seen as pathetic... She didn't care what others thought of her. But she could not live with herself if she allowed herself that. So she looked at the info and took a decision.

Whether she felt good or bad, she had to check the place.

A few hours later and time had advanced to be the middle of the night as silently as she could to do some recon of her own in the building Aria had oh so casually mentioned was producing some of the chips that were used to change humans into vampires. She wanted to see for herself what all and prove, more to herself, that she was capable of doing something important and useful on her own, because truth be told she was still very wary of those two. They were undoubtedly dangerous and she still wasn't sure what they wanted or what all this was about. By now she was considering adding a sign on her shop's door 'Beware the dog. The cat isn't trustworthy either'

She finally reached the building. It was an industrial navy that had been a fabric when this side of time was on a good economical streak, but now it was abandoned... or not quite so. As she observed it from a distance she saw a few cars leave the building; which prompted her into hurrying to enter the place through the back. Hopefully they all left in those cars, which it looks like that's exactly what they did.

She wanted to be able to do something if it just happened that the intel Aria had gathered was true, so she had come prepared. In her duffle bag she had bolt cutters, a taser, and some other things she thought she might need... like a gallon of gasoline and matches. She felt proud of herself for thinking ahead. Using the bolt cutters, she sliced through the bars to the basement and entered without any noise or trouble.

Jackie crawled inside easily and quietly sneaked around the decent sized basement. The place was huge, more than weird and eerie. It wasn't as dusty as it should be, meaning that it wasn't totally abandoned. She explored around and found a room full of beakers, test tubes and other things. It looked like a prop for a cheap horror movie. Her eyes scanned the place and, under some dim green light, one thing caught her attention. A briefcase chained to the wall and at its side an entire array of test tubes. When she approached the stuff, she clearly saw that the test tubes contained chips in them. Aria had been right about this place.

She shivered at the sight, thinking of how many people would die due to these things if she didn't act, how many lives would be destroyed... She was not gonna allow it. In her anger, she doused the room in gasoline, due to the old papers and furniture around the place it was sure to burn easy and fast, but before she lit her matches, she cut the briefcase loose with the bolt cutters and put it, whatever the contents were, inside her bag, because something told her that if it had been chained like that, it was important and maybe incriminating for whoever was doing this monstrosity.

With what little fuel she had after covering the entire basement fairly lightly, she made a line over to the window and hoisted herself up and out, lighting a match and throwing it onto the line, and watching the fire flare to life. Hopefully that the entire building would burn down with everything inside.

Jackie cut the briefcase open with the sturdy bolt cutters, finding even more stacks of money. A sneer of disgust curled her lip up as she stared at the dirty money. This dirty money was made off of the blood and lives of other people and the mere thought of using it violated her own personal morals. However, using it to pay Aria would be just fine. The mercenary would probably strangle her at best if she found out Jackie burned the money along with the rest of the facility. With a fast motion she dumped the contents of the briefcase into her duffel bag before tossing the sleek black and leather case into the fire.

With a shaky breath at what she's done, Jackie hurried back towards her home while sirens began blaring everywhere on the street. What, they're searching for the arsonist who did it already? What a fast response. She gagged in disgust at herself and what she has been doing lately. Setting fire to buildings … I'm a criminal, that's for sure. But she checked the surrounding buildings attached to it and they were all empty too. No innocent people that would get hurt.

Jackie turned onto the sidewalk, walking more obviously and less suspiciously as two officers came walking down the sidewalk. With a calming exhale she gripped the duffle bag tighter, walking a little slower and relaxed as she moved aside to make room for the officers. One of the officer's sharp gazes caught sight of her tight grip, his face remaining neutral but red flags shooting up behind his gaze.

"Excuse me miss. Would you care to tell us what you're doing out at this hour? Its pretty late. Is there some problem?" -One officer questioned her.

"Problem? Uh, not at all. I'm just trying to get home." -Jackie said with a shrug.

"Mind if we ask what's in that bag?"- The other officer asked.

"Well, to be honest it's money. I know, I know it looks really suspicious and weird but I have a good explanation for it." -Jackie said, pulling her bag around and desperately wracking her mind for an excuse. What, she decided to withdraw her life savings in the middle of the night? Anyone would find that weird. With a tense hand she unzipped the bag, watching as an officer shown a flashlight at its contents to reveal pastel colored fake bills bundled up inside as Jackie picked one up, looking at it in shock.

"Monopoly money?" -One of the officers asks, baffled before the other started laughing.

"What, that's all?" -He said while blinking, probably relieved it wasn't actual money, "you had me going there for a minute, sweetheart but humor me. What are you doing with Monopoly money out here in the middle of the night?" He asked, looking around and half expecting a fellow officer to jump out of nowhere and yell 'surprise'.

"Uh … y-yeah, haha, you caught me, I'm on a Monopoly heist and my friends dared me to start walking around with all this. When I saw the building catch on fire I started to head home" - she honestly admitted, tightly gripping her duffle bag. When? When could have someone switched it out? How did that happened?

"You saw the fire start?" - The officer asked, seeming weary and focused on her.

"Uh, yeah why? There were some other people there, some on their phones who were already calling so I didn't bother to call anyone" - She quickly said without any planned lie.

"Hold on, miss. That street is deserted and when police arrived no one was one scene" - The other officer's eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Really? They must have run when they heard you coming. That place is often … uh" - she hesitated, glancing off to the side. - "Tell you what, go there sometime Thursday at 3:00 am to the building across the street and you will see exactly what I mean" - she says. Well great now some drug lord is busted, that's for sure.

"And you know this why?" -He crossed his arms and tilted his head.

"People from this area often come to my shop" - like said drug lord who made her fix his car for half the price it should have been, and then made her give it up for free when she found his crack stash in the back of his car. Nearly scared her to death especially since no one else was there. -"And … sir, I'm sorry sir, but can I please go home? I really don't like discussing this kind of thing in the open" - Jackie admitted, honestly concerned as she looks around the buildings. The gangs here are fairly rough and definitely won't like her squealing on them. She had enough trouble with them as it is.

The officer nodded. -"I understand your concern. Does this man happen to be named Victor de Niro, otherwise known as Mario on the streets?" -The officer questioned. Her heart skips a beat as she shuts her mouth, looking off to the side as she covers her mouth. Crap.

He stares at her for a few moments before pulling out his card. - "Please, if you have any information regarding this man contact me or any other police officer. He is very dangerous" - the officer says, seeming nervous and hopeful himself.

"Y-Yeah, will do" - Jackie says, putting the card in the duffle bag before zipping it shut. - "Now I need to go, Officers" - she hastily said as she looked around carefully before hurrying off. She hadn't realized she was in Mario's territory until that officer brought it up. She was absolutely in some deep trouble if anyone actually saw her.

Mario was the main reason she now had the shop all to herself. He chased away all of the other workers away and threatened to kill them, leaving her all by herself at the shop, vulnerable and living without a peace of mind knowing he could come for her at any point he wanted to and destroy the shop, steal from her or anything else he wanted to. The thought honestly scared her. Before, with no one else there, she felt safer knowing the others were safe. But now there were 2 more people living at her shop and she had no intentions on letting Mario get his hands on them, although she also wondered what could happen if Mario even tried. She grit her teeth, picking up her pace.

Jackie hurried down the street and turned around a corner, spying some of Mario's men, known by the tattoos on their biceps of a pair of crossed pipes, leaning against the wall in wait for her. She grit her teeth, nervous before dipping inside the only nearby open shop. They'll have to leave soon enough and if not she'll beg the shop owner to let her stay there the night. She stepped inside, almost immediately regretting it the moment she saw all the old artifacts and tiny trinkets covering the entire shop from top to bottom.

"Oh~ well welcome, my dear. I hadn't expected anyone at this late hour" - someone said, nearly making her jump out of her skin. She whipped around, spying a man in his upper twenties and too many tattoos to count covering his entire body up to his fingertips. She stared at his neck where the tattoos went right up underneath to his jawline. His hair falling lightly over his eyes and his tattoo reminded her of the guy earlier that bugged her but there's no way her luck was that bad. However, after a moment studying his creepy smile she recognized him for sure. It was the same guy.

Now she double regretted her decision to come in here when she recognized the man that had followed her into some food store on an early incident.

"Yeah, sorry about that. Were you just about to close up shop?" -Jackie asked, not really caring if she was a bother at this point. At least he wasn't wearing the bunny eared hoodie. She had more pressing concerns about the two men waiting for her. It was only a matter of time before they decided to come inside and drag her out but having a witness in here might deter that. Hopefully.

"Not at all. After all, the most interesting things tend to happen at night" - he said with a cheeky smile as he stands up, revealing he was wearing a black robe with a sash tied around his waist to hold it together. He tapped his chin, leaning over the counter as he stared at her. -"Say now, aren't you the girl that owns the car shop a few blocks down? We didn't get the chance to introduce ourselves at the food store" - He asked as he tilted his head with a cheeky grin.

"Yeah" - she said, turning around to take a look at the shop. She's never noticed this shop tucked into the small crevice that it's in. The shop wasn't very wide but it was deep. Not any part of the wall or shelved could be seen beyond the … well, by what she could only describe as voodoo and occult items stacked everywhere. Feathers, sticks, fires, weirdly bound books in strange languages … she definitely chose the wrong shop to step into. -"Uh, what kind of shop is this?" -She asked, turning around and seeing his face an inch from hers. She jumped back, startled as he grinned with the strangest laugh slipping out between his teeth.

"Che hee hee hee~ well, this is a very special shop, dear. A shop where humanity and the supernatural collide. Is there anything that you've wanted but could never obtain through regular means of hard work?" -He asked, leaning his head in and tilting it with playfully gleaming eyes that put her nerves on end.

" … and if there is? What do you have to help?" -Jackie asked with a raised eyebrow. She might as well chat with the guy to help ease up her situation. His grin grew wider as he clapped his hands together with a broadening grin.

"Excellent! Which is it you desire? Wealth? Love? Guidance? Pet control and training?" -He asked, staring at her from under his bangs.

"Guidance" - Jackie admitted, now becoming a little more interested. Even if this was all voodoo witchcraft fake crap there might be something to at least gain from this. Plus she had time to kill with those creeps out front. His wicked grin softened to a smile, putting her at ease for some reason. He turned and walked towards the back without another word, motioning for her to follow. She walked down the long hall and watched him pull the beads back in a door frame before turning back to her with a cool and collected smile.

"Then allow me to be your very own guide into this world" - he says with softened eyes, holding out his hand for her. Jackie stared into the dark room behind him, cautious. This could be dangerous. But, she figured if she had to fight anyone it would be with this man and it was better than with Mario's thugs. He was tall and had an air of disturbing confidence but she was more likely to escape from him than the two outside.

"Sure, why not? Let's see what you got for me" - she said, taking his cold hand. Why was his skin so cold to the touch? Her mind briefly pondered on the thought as he walked into the darkness of the room. Her grip tightened as her eyes scanned the darkness, unable to make out any shapes. She jumped slightly as candles began to light on either side of them, narrowing and getting closer the further they walked. Even with the fire flickering she could not see the wall or where the small, violet flames were coming from.- "Just how deep is this shop?"- Jackie asked, uneasy.

"Worry not on details, sweetheart. I will guide you perfectly through the darkness pervading this space" - he says in a slightly mysterious voice. Strange … but it was all part of the show.

"Then I'll trust you with that" - Jackie answers in a fairly carefree way. For some reason she felt her worries melting away and being left behind. She genuinely felt she could trust this man for one reason or another despite how suspicious this entire shop was. The flames began to slowly shift in and out of focus as she began to stumble over her own feet. Her entire body felt heavy and a strange high buzzed in her head, keeping her smiling throughout.

"I am glad you feel that way, Jackie" - He said, giving her hand a light squeeze. Jackie's feet wavered as she blinked, the same slight smile still on her lips as her head tipped back.

"Why … am I here?" -Jackie asked, her hold loosening but his remaining firm and tight.

"Your heart is warm and welcoming despite the troubles you've been through. You understand pain and work to make others feel better, though it often ends with your own heart breaking. I find it amusing you try so hard yet received so little … which is why you will make the perfect sacrifice" - He says, pulling her arm sharply. She fell forward much like a puppet without strings into his arms as he hugged her. Her pupils lightened in color as her head tipped back, staring into the darkness as he deeply laughed. "And now it begins" - the stranger said as he dipped down and picked her up, walking a few more steps into the back room.

He walked into the small room lit by violet flames. A stone table that had been prepared beforehand served as the woman's resting place. The cloaked man gently moved her head into place over the markings as well as her arms. The slender rock held her torso and legs as he pulled her arms out and strapped her wrists down to two pillars on either side of the stone. He kept humming a strange and ominous song as he set up two tubs under her arms which would collect the blood in the center.

He took a long, blunt dagger and set it in the center tub before pulling out a large scythe, shifting it into the form of a large curvy black dagger that seemed to be made out of obsidian.

He held her shoulder down as he carved into her skin, never stopping his chanting, and letting the blood flow freely into the container underneath while he etched the deep designs into her flesh. His smile never stopped growing as he finished with one arm and moved on to the next, watching her blood drain into the slender tub underneath. The dagger in the blood began to faintly glow in pulsating shades, accepting the offer briefly before fading back into darkness. He hummed a little louder and cut deeply into her other arm, making small designs and marks with the tip of his blade.

After a moment of watching he stepped back, letting her heart naturally pump the blood out of her veins and drip into the shallow tub. After a few minutes of watching he took two black ribbons and tied them tightly around her biceps to act as a tourniquets before kneeling down and taking the blood soaked dagger out of the tub and held it high in the air. His strange eyes glowed with the same tint as the dagger's light. The dagger flickered in it's shape and the blade seemed to take on a watery form for a second as it beat at the same rate as the heart of the bounded girl.

"And from this moment on is when the true fun begins" - he murmured, his eyes glowing with maddened delight as he drove the blade down into her chest, stabbing her through the heart with the ethereal blade while all the lights in the room went out.

A single blast lit up Hans's face as he fired his gun. The man's mouth wickedly grinned as his head tilted to the right, making the bullet skim his cheek before leaping back further into the shop to avoid another shot at him. Aria slipped past Hans and ran up to Jackie, pushing her fingers against Jackie's neck as Hans and the stranger had a menacing stare down.

"Amazingly she is alive. Just seems to be drugged, not to mention blood drained" - Aria said impassively, even bored. - "That's impressive. Now we'll be taking the girl here" - She pressed something on the side of the goggles she was wearing and a triangular light appeared over her visors. Then she took out another gun to fire again and watching the man dodge.- "Now that's more interesting"

Hans walked over and gripped Jackie's wrist, cutting through the ropes with his bowie knife. He freed her arms and wrapped his coat around her limp form, hoisting her up in his arms before walking out the door without a care for the dead man. Jackie needed medical attention.

"Oh? The kitten doesn't want to dirty her claws?"- the man threw some long metallic needles ahead and Aria jumped forward to block them with a sort of plastic buckled shield before she shot again towards the man who grinned and ducked out of the way, throwing a few needles her way before raising his hands up. This time the needles penetrated the shield and sunk into her forearm.

Aria froze, sucking a fast breath as she spied light glinting off of thin threads that had embedded themselves in the shield through the needles, and a second later the man approached fast and hit her in the chest sending her back.

Hans looked at this without interfering. The gaze he sent the mercenary was one of annoyance that seemed to ask 'Are you done yet?'

"It seems the kitten got tangled in the yarn treats. What will she do now, I wonder?"

"Now I know how strong and fast you are. But what are you, I wonder?" - Aria purred as she stood up and looked at the not thread, but wires struck in her forearm. She grinned and took out a taser from her side pocket. She got clear of the needles and that she used to deal an electric shock to the strings before leaping aside and getting clear of them.

"I don't like people endangering my income"- She chants something in a strange language and the next second she moves with incredible speed towards the man. Rather than hitting him straight, she turned sideways to kick him from below and then twisted to shoot at him and this time at least one bullet hits him in the arm

Grim countered and when he was about to hit Aria, Hans appeared from nowhere and kicked the man towards the wall and looked at Aria with a bored expression that seemed to say 'Now finish him so we can go'.

Aria didn't waste time. The kick had slammed the man against the wall and she jumped forward on the man to smash her first on his head, he managed to move so that Aria's fist doesn't hit his head but she uses her other hand to grip his face, sticking her fingers in his eyes cavities and starting to slam his head against the wall while the sickening crack of bones breaking is heard. The body jolts a bit and Aria grabs his jaw to rip it off the skull and tosses it away.

The mercenary then followed the rule of 'pillage first', and after looting the body, she turned towards Hans and the unconscious Jackie - "I'll get extra this, right?" -She asked with a grin.

Hans turned around and began walking away without looking back. Aria followed behind but she did look back. There was just something weirdly comfortable and even familiar about the sensation of this place.

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