Superstition

[Red XIV]

Superstition
Episode One
Welcome to the Jungle

It was late on a Friday night, or, depending on how it is viewed, early on a Saturday morning. The stars were out, shining down on the city of San Francisco from millions of light-years away. The moon, however, was obscured by the clouds, just as the weather man had predicted--a rare occurence, for sure. The streets were, as they usually were at this time of night in this part of town, quite empty. There was a beggar sleeping in his own filth here and there, but, for the most part, the streets were deserted. A sea of silence had fallen upon the area. The only sound that could be heard was the faint sound of a police siren off in the distance. It was one of those eerie quiets often found in horror films. And, just like in those horror flicks, that silence was eventually broken by an ear-splitting, blood-curdling shriek.

"Help!" came a woman's shrill plea for aid. The voice could be traced back to an alleyway that spilled into the empty street. The alley was dank, dark, and strangely smelled of rotten eggs--a typical alley. A young woman of no more than twenty years stood near the mouth of the alley, her dainty hands held up in defense as a menacing figure, shrouded in darkness, advanced on her. The woman continued to back away until she hit the curb. She felt herself almost trip on the curb. She wobbled on the balls of her feet for a moment, but had been able to regain her balance before falling. The figure from the alley remained in the shadows, just out of the range of the nearby street lamp. The being seemed hesitant to step out into the bright, flickering light. The woman was tempted to use her assailant's indecisiveness to escape. The only problem was that she was so stricken by fear that she couldn't bring herself to move a muscle. The opportunity went up in smoke when the figure in the alleyway finally stepped into the streetlight...

"Oh, my God! You, you're a vampire!" the woman exclaimed upon seeing her attacker in all of his glory. Normally, vampires look like an everyday human. However, when they're in attack mode, vampires are known to show their true skin. When vampires are in true vamp mode, they tend to have jutting foreheads, sallow cheeks, pale skin, and sharp fangs. The vampire standing in the figurative spotlight looked just like that.

"Sure am, toots!" the vampire replied with a wide, toothy grin.

"You're going to... to eat me, aren't you?" the petrified woman asked, to afraid to move.

The vampire shook his head, "Eat you? Of course not. I'm going to take you out to a nice restaurant and we'll have a nice sirloin dinner," he stopped himself, unable to contain himself any longer. "Of course I'm going to eat you! How stupid can you be? I'm a bloody vampire! Have you met a vegetarian vampire before?" he asked rhetorically. He didn't wait for a response to continue. "No? I didn't think so. Now, why don't you just stand there just like that while I drink some of that sweet, sweet blood of yours, eh, toots?"

"No, please!" the woman screamed as the vampire lunged at her. The rest of her cries were drowned out by the sound of an ambulance the next street over. After the ambulance was gone, the woman was already dead, drained of life's water. The vampire dropped her lifeless corpse to the cracked pavement with an uncaring shrug. He raised an arm to his blood-stained mouth, and wiped the crimson stuff from his lips with his sleeve. Just then, he heard a voice call out his name.

"Oi! Boyd! Over here!" came a voice from in the alley. The vampire looked up to see a familiar form stepping out of the shadows of the alley. It was another vampire, a friend of his. The second vampire was considerably smaller than the first. He made up for his size with his stout stature. The one thing that stood out about the second vampire was the ice cream cone he held in a thick hand.

"Where've you been?" the first vampire, Boyd, asked, sounding almost annoyed with the other.

"I was getting some ice cream, can't you tell?" the second vamp raised his cone to Boyd's eye level. "You want some?"

Boyd knocked the cone out of the vampire's hand, sending it splattering to the ground, "No, I don't want any ice cream! Vampires don't eat ice cream!"

The second vamp couldn't tear his eyes away from his ruined ice cream. "But... that was my ice cream..." he lamented.

SMACK!

Boyd smacked the other across the forehead. "You idiot!" he hissed. "What took you so long, anyways?"

"I didn't have any money, so I had to get some. Lucky for me, there was this nice, little, old lady takin' a walk, so I killed her and took her purse," the second explained.

"You killed a little old lady? Nice," Boyd cut in. "Why did you need money? You could've acted like a real vampire, and just go into the ice cream shop, kill the clerk and everyone else inside, and make yourself a damn ice cream."

"Don't judge!" the second snapped. "Besides, I did all of that... after I had my ice cream."

"You are such a moron, Jackson," Boyd muttered under his breath.

"I'm just the way God made me," the second vamp, Jackson, said in defense.

"God didn't make you; a cheap prostitute did in an alleyway behind Captain O'Keefe's Beaver House," Boyd replied coldly.

"That's cold, man!" said Jackson, offended by the other's harsh, yet true, words. Vampires are created by being bitten from a vampire, and, in turn, drinking the blood of a vampire. In the case of Jackson, his sire had gone by the name of Krystal.

"That's enough, you two!" came a strict voice, distinctly female. Both Jackson and Boyd looked up at the same time to see a beautiful brunette approaching them. She wore a brown tank top, tattered blue jeans, and combat boots. She sported a nasty cut on her cheek, earned in a fight with a demon a few years back. Her name was Amy Hendricks.

"Oh, hey, Amy!" Jackson called out to the serious-looking woman.

"Amy," Boyd said simply, his head turned downwards slightly.

"Jackson, Boyd," was her simple greeting.

"What's going on?" Boyd asked her, avoiding eye-contact all the while. Both Boyd and Jackson knew that Amy was one of the higher-ups in what most called The Gang. When she made a personal visit, then that meant that there was something serious going down.

"You're needed back at the base," she stated. "Now, come on, let's go."

The two vampires nodded in unison.

"Sure thing," piped Jackson.

"Right away, boss," Boyd mumbled.

And with that, the trio departed from the alley, leaving only the lifeless corpse of the innocent young woman in their wake.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A little while later, Amy, Jackson, and Boyd arrived at The Gang's headquarters: a run-down factory in the bad side of town. It wasn't anything fancy, but it met their needs, and that was enough. The trio headed inside, where the rest of the gang should be waiting.

[Aerif]

There was a large anti-drugs campaign bill-board ironically shading the circle of youths smoking cannabis. However the group weren’t the only teenagers on the street, earlier on by the shade of a cable car’s bench, another youth had arrived, alone, and more conspicuous than an axe-wielding Viking.

Now he was standing in an alleyway, standing as still as a statue, observing the group. He was interested in the social and economical factors that the youths were undergoing through the decline in political power of America. Also, he had nothing better to do on a Saturday morning, especially because the police where now searching the house of the now deceased Leonardo Smith.

The longer he stood observing, the clearer the group became, and he could now see some distinct similarities between the behaviour of the group and the bill-board. The boy on the bill-board was doing the same thing as the boy underneath the bill-board; in fact the only thing that was really different was that the colour of the skin of the men. The main thing that the lone youth noticed was that there was no hand-cuffs anywhere near the physical man. Whilst on the bill-board there was. That had to be fixed.

The boy who had been hiding, Leo, came out of this concealment; upon understanding what it was he should do. The smoking of this substance was obviously not to be praised, but to be punished. Though there were no authority figures around, nobody to punish the offenders, so this would need to be Leo’s job, despite the fact that he had a feeling inside that told him he didn’t truthfully want to do it.

The tallest man in the illegal activity had spotted Leo. He was African-American and had unfortunately found himself at the bottom of the wealth spectrum that had hit the country; he didn’t appreciate Leo entering their ‘party’ without invitation.

“Who the f*** is this little n****?!”

As he had planned, he managed to get the attention of most of the members of the group. There were a few who hadn’t noticed at all, too caught up in their hallucinations to care. But the ones who had noticed were no more appreciative of the company that they had just acquired.

Leo now had a rather vacant, curious look on his face.

“You are bad people!”

The sounds of collective laughter were the only response to Leo’s statement. This hurt Leo, who hadn’t completely gained full grasp of the English language, he was confused and hurt and more intent in ‘punishing’ the drug-abusers.

“Let’s beat the s*** out of this little b******!”

“Grab his wallet!”

They had somehow made baseball bats materialise within their hands, and were coming towards Leo in a slow, menacing manner. Their eyes were filled with the anger and greed that capitalism-gone-wrong had induced.

***

About half an hour later, the dead bodies of the group members were being collected by an ambulance. There was no trace of their attacker, and the paramedics didn’t seem to care, the corpses didn’t have enough money on them to pay for any kind of health care, and in the eyes of the paramedics, that meant they didn’t matter any more than dead rats.

Meanwhile, Leo was entering the factory that had previously given him shelter. There were a lot of people present and since Leo wasn’t really the best of communicator he decided to isolate himself from the crowd, sitting on a chair in the corner of the room, away from people that for some reason he didn’t feel he quite belonged with.

[Imposter]

The air was stale despite the fan’s revolutions in the room. Lights lit up every row and the counter enclosed around a door opposite the entrance. This place offered aid to the sick, broken, and desperate. There was a placebo for anything and everyone; one would just have to look for it. It was amazing that such a place could still be twisted and deformed into something corrupt. However in this day and age corruption is the norm.

Night had taken hold and the open sign in the front window was no longer was lit. Two men in lab coats were in this building one scurrying about much like a rat in a cage while the other stood silently watching carefully what was going on about the room. The hum and murmurs coming form the old radio on the counter filled the radio masked the question of the rushing man.

“Adam…Adam! Are you listening to me at all? I’m serious here mate, you should get a ride with me tonight, crazy things happen on this street when darkness creeps in like it has. You hear it in the news all the time, people die, lives snuffed out…puff!”

The man motioned with his hands the action. Adam looked his attention pulled away from the newscast on the radio.

“I’ve been doing this for years Charles, no need to worry about me. It’s my business and I always finish what I start by myself, call me traditional it is just how I am.”

Charles sighed and waved as he left out the entrance the door locking behind him. Adam nodded and began about his own work. Entering the door behind the counter flipping off the lights behind him and shutting off the radio. His hands working to the routine developed from the years that had passed, filling bottles and mixing pills, the orders all memorized and simplified to roll through his mind as he collected his own personal thoughts. Something was amiss tonight earlier conversations foreshadowed such an event. Adam was to meet along with the throng of others that found solace amidst the gang on this eve.

Once finished Adam closed up the store and exited via the back entrance into a dark alley. He walked slowly, as if enjoying the stroll in the dim aura of streetlights. The sounds of the city broke through the silence of Adam’s mind. The buzzing of streetlights and signs, the roaring of engines, voices and screams all mixed together bringing along with them the thought of the city as it once was. The thought was only tasted for a moment before it fluttered away by reality.

Adam paused and looked at the building in front of him. At one time it had harbored many laborers producing goods to be sold feeding the endless cycle of supply and demand. Now however it had become the safe haven for corrupted, deformed, and manipulated forms of life twisted by evils unheard of. To many it was home and a refuge that provided a way of life fitting for the times they were now in. Adam smiled as he turned the door knob to one of the side entrances, the noises within the building were much different than outside. Laughter screams, and casual talk flooded his ears. This gang owned the night and had nothing to fear inside the confines of this factory. Adam noted how his mind already drawing conclusions to tonight’s agenda.

Adam however had no time to enjoy the pleasantries of the company he had been apart of for so long. As he passed through the throng only a few faces registered in his memory. A look of slight surprise ran over his face as he contemplated just how many members this brotherhood had now.

“I must have a word with the inner circle.”

He hardly heard his own voice over all the commotion. Adam’s eyes looked over the scrawny fellow sitting in front of a door. The creature didn’t budge but just grinned sinisterly towards the pharmacist. Its cold ebony eyes trying to size Adam up much like many previous encounters. It was a joke to the monster to play the patience of those who requested an audience although it never actually bothered Adam. After the moment it moved and Adam moved onward.

The room was black with only a few flickering candle lights amongst other this on a large table in the middle of the room. Adam could feel the presence of each of the inner circle about him. The ones in charge of the welfare of so many beings congregated in such a secretive place seemed talked amongst themselves as Adam entered. He stood before them all with a slight smirk on his face.

“I do not wish to tell you how you should go about your duty here as part of the inner circle but I do wish to share one piece of advice before tonight’s gathering takes place.”

Silence was the expected response; he had gained favor with most of the inner circle over his years residing here. As he spoke a few of the members shrieked knowing where his advice was coming from, their ears burning. Adam bowed himself out amongst the circle and proceeded back to the mass of others waiting for the meeting to begin. To him the words held no power but to others as he saw brought forth pain. However with each step they echoed in his mind.

“The wise in heart shall receive commandments: but a prating fool shall fall.”

[Sharzademar]

Foolish was the only way to describe it. Deep in the bad side of town, on this dark, Saturday morning, a man in an expensive was walking down an empty, rundown street. The buildings were damaged by age and vandalism, and the only people who would ever be in them are either the poor or a group of thugs planning a hit.

It just so happened that this man was a thug, a very successful thug. Many people feared the very sound of his name. He was known for his cold, direct way of speaking and his apathy towards the suffering or death of the innocent. But he failed to realize that his informants are crooked. That's why the damn fool stumbled into the wrong part of town, in the wrong street. Here, nobody gives a damn about anything except money.

Four people jumped out of a secluded alley in raggedy clothing, carrying lead pipes. The ringleader stepped forward.

"Buddy, you picked the wrong, f***in' neighborhood." he said in a gruff sounding voice.

The thug stepped forward to meet the ringleader's challenge. Now they were face to face. "Listen, ***wipe, you don't know who the **** you're dealin' with! Back the **** off!"

The thug then shoved the ringleader to the ground. The other three men charged after him, but the thug pulled out a tommy gun he was concealing and shot them down.

"That's right, you don't f-"

Before he could finish, a jagged hand from behind burst through his chest, killing the thug instantly. Kazhuld stood with the dead man on his arm, grinning. He was an ominous, gray figure, with jagged, elongated fingers, and eyes of fire. Another figure almost identical to the other walked pass him while saying, "They're like ants, Kazhuld, it won't do you any good killing them one by one."

Kazhuld flung the body to the ground and ran to catch up with the other gray being. "But Malignus," he said while running, "it's so exhilarating!" Malignus stopped and turned around so Kazhuld could catch up.

"Kazhuld, their may be humans where we are going."

Kazhuld's gray, distorted face grew angry. "HUMANS?! IN THE GANG?!"

Malignus returned his shout, "CALM DOWN, KAZHULD!"

Kazhuld gave Malignus a look of disgust and continued to walk forward.

Malignus follwed him, saying, "Listen, Kazhuld, humans have the capacity for good and evil. They understand the world outside this... hell." Malignus's voice was filled with delight when he uttered the word.

Kazhuld looked unmoved. "And?"

"And?! They are our key to the unevitable spread of our corruption! How do you think this cesspool of scum was formed? By sin! By us!"

"Is this what the Gang stands for?" said Kazhuld.

"Well....no..."

"Then what does it stand for, Malignus?"

Malignus looked confused. "I... don't really know. We'll find out today, I guess."

Kazhuld and Malignus finally arrived at the HQ of the gang. They stepped inside the run-down factory, only to see a massive collaboration of humans, vampires, and other creatures.

Kazhuld looked around impatiently. "What are we doing here?"

"Just wait." Malignus said. And so they waited amongst the group.

[Halie]

((Ooc: Matthew, Jack and Felicity are Mina's cousins. Just so you know.))

The navy sky hung over the Darkmoon family mansion, and the moon was full and shining silver, lighting up every star. It was a perfect night for the Darkmoon elders to set out and hunt for food. In the Darkmoon's living room, the white walls stood tall as Felicity sat against them whilst gazing out of the grand windows, watching and waiting for the elders to return. Matthew and Jack raced around the room nearly knocking the finely crafted Darkmoon ornaments from the tables and mantels as they rushed past them, causing Felicity to jump miles each time.

"Be careful! You'll get us into trouble!" Felicity cried, but the two boys ignored her.

Before the three children could continue what they were doing, a huge wooden door slammed open, causing them to stand in fright of who was standing at the door.

"Where on Earth is my dinner?! Are mother and father not back yet?!" the small, slim figure yelled. It was Mina Darkmoon, the three children's cousin.

"Uh...n-no, M-mina, they're still out hunting." a frightened Jack said.

"Then don't you think you should go out and look for them...?"

Mina meant it as an order. Realising this, Matthew and Colin sighed slightly to each other.

"I'm sorry, do you want to say something?" she asked sarcastically.

The two boys rapidly shook their heads, their eyes widened like circles. They scurried out the door with Felicity following them shortly after. She was just as afraid of Mina as her brothers.
After the children had left, Mina sat down. She wasn't even that hungry, she just could never get enough of tormenting her cousins. They were so afraid of her, she could make them do anything. Her aunties and uncles were afraid of her too, and not to mention that her parents loved her to bits. She had her entire family in the palm of her hand. Though the outside world was much different. At first glance, they thought of her as a puny, defenceless little girl, but little do they ever know about her controlling, over-powering nature. But it didn't matter to her, she rarely had to interact with the outside world anyway. Only occasionally would she or her family step foot in the daylight, and that was only in their human forms.
A short while later, the elders returned with the children carrying two big brown bags each. On each of the bags were dark patches of red and brown. By seeing them, Mina figured they had succeeded in their hunt. The elders entered the kitchen, leaving the children to follow behind with the food, though they appeared to be struggling.

"Would you lot hurry up?! There'll be nothing of me if I don't get my food!" Mina tormented them, but only quietly so that her parents nor her aunties and uncles would hear.

They paced themselves only slightly, before Matthew dropped his sacks and wiped the sweat from hsi brow.

"Well, you could help us, you know?"

"Bloody hell, no. How dare you even ask! I could break a nail, or get blood on my hands! I ought to throw you in a fire! Now come on, stop slacking!" Mina yelled.

He sighed, picked up his bags and continued to the kitchen. Mina returned back into the living room and looked at herself in one of the mirrors. She was rather fond of her appearance, and loved to pose in front of the mirrors. After a couple of minutes, she was still looking at herself and smirking at what she saw, before one of her cousins, Felicity, rudely interrupted her with a plate of meat.

"Erm...Mina, I brought you your food. Would you like me to bring it to the dining room so you can eat with us?" she said, though she didn't really wish for her cousin to join them.

"No, I'm not hungry anymore. Take it back. Tell mother and and father I'll be upstairs and that I'll have it later." Mina replied. She'd only refused the dinner out of spite.

Felicity turned around with her teeth gritted. She and her brothers hated visiting their cousin Mina. She always treated them like slaves, except for when they were around the elders, where she'd act sweet and iccocent. Luckily, they'd be going home tomorrow, and wouldn't be visiting until the next full moon.

[Imposter]

Many times Adam would find himself surrounded by silence, throughout his whole life he could remember moments much like the one that was taking place now. The whole room had been cast under a spell with the appearance of the High Council. Many of the High Council were of the highest ranking officials of the Gang and had taken upon themselves the mantle of leadership in the dealings that the Gang would undergo. The whole system stuck and many of the members found themselves falling in the tow of a specific member of the High Council, the result was a mass of members serving one of the High Council. The whole idea was very reminiscent to the tribes within the nation of Israel or at least that was the connection Adam always was drawn too.

So Adam sat and listened along with the rest of his associates to what the High Council’s news would be. It was very seldom that the whole gang would be called together for anything, so whatever the announcement was it was pretty huge. The atmosphere was filled with feelings of both anxiousness and curiousness. Then one of the High Council stepped forward from the rest and began to speak.

“My children, my friends, and my foes we the High Council have asked you all here tonight for a two very crucial pieces of information that need to be shared with you. The first is something very troublesome to the quality of life we all have in this utopia that is San Francisco. You see, it has come to our attention that someone slipped up and their attack got caught by the media! The issue will be resolved but it cannot be stressed enough that as a member of this gang you do not act selfishly and spare people. Those you choose to kill you kill, and those that choose you.....you kill! Not just for your own sakes but for the sake of this gang....your family.

This all brings me to piece of information number two; since the media leak we must inform you for your own safety. Some of you may or may not know that there are certain organizations especially in the powerhouse that is Europe that are bent on the destruction of those like us. San Francisco our beloved home has requested the aid of one of these organizations. We however know not which organization or when they will arrive. So all of you must exercise caution in your nightly lifestyle. I doubt it needs to be said but if somehow names or the location of this gang are found by the organization due to one of your follies....well may God have mercy on what’s left of you.

Since we have had such a large number of new recruits recently that have yet to experience anything close to this degree we as a collective family are offering safety within this confines until the issue is resolved. For the rest of you, I’m sure it has been quite some time since such a blood lust has been built up like this, so feel free to find an outlet to release it all Hehehaha! This meeting is officially over.”

Adam moved through the screams, mumbles, and roars into the polluted outside air of the city. His mind already wrapped up in thoughts of all the possibilities that could happen in such a short amount of time. For the moment however he would need to brush it all aside. His hand reached into one pocket and pulled out a small phone, his fingers dialling one of the few numbers he knew. He stood off out of the streetlights view as the phone rang on the other end.

“Hello there it has been a few years hasn’t it ole friend?”

“I’ve kept good health and I’m sure you have too, I don’t mean to sound rushed or anything but I just got finished a meeting with the Gang and it seems that there is some news that you and your family should hear about, and of course I’d love to see how much your daughter has grown.”

“Oh the whole family is down! Well I’m sure everyone should hear what I have to say, I’ll be there shortly.”

The phone disconnected and Adam began to make his way down the street. Throughout many of his years
Adam never really made many close acquaintances but one family in particular had left a unique imprint on him. Although they were different then never sought solace in the Gang but instead within their own family. That unusual life always held Adam’s interest. He chuckled to himself realizing that he said shortly, to himself shortly meant a few hours since after all an hour was hardly even a drop in his bucket of life.

The rest of Adam’s journey was made up of the contemplation of what actions he would take with those two pieces of information he and the rest of the Gang were given. It was true that it had been sometime since Adam had dealt with anyone from any sort of organization, the thought was almost exciting. Before he had come up with a definite conclusion he could see a large mansion behind beautifully cast iron gates. Grafted to the top of the gate was a plaque that split as one entered and the name above read Darkmoon. Adam half heartedly smiled and pushed the gates open and began to make his way to the front door.

[Sharzademar]

The crowd was roaring with excitement over the High Council's announcment. Gang members were rushing out of the factory to satisfy their thirst for blood, many of them letting out blood curdling yells. Still in the factory was a number of young looking people, vampires and the like, along with a few older members who most likely stayed behind to protect their headquarters. Kazhuld was anxious to kill, and began to dash for the door, but Malignus grabbed his wrist and jerked him back.

"No, Kazhuld!", said Malignus in a authoritive tone. "You just got recruited!"

Kazhuld looked at Malignus with comtempt. "How dare you command me! I am a being bred of hatred!"

"And I am a being bred of hatred with a year's more experience than you." Malignus mockingly replied.

Malignus was growing very impatient Kazhuld, yet he knew that it was typical of a wraith to disregard organization, especially if it forced him to mingle with humans.

"Whoa, dude, what are you?" said a dopey voice coming from behind. Kazhuld turned around to see a human male with many peircings on his face, wearing a torn up pair of jeans and a jean jacket, with a black shirt underneath that depicted a motorcycle on fire. Kazhuld leaned slowly towards the thug, until the human's face was barely an inch away from the wraith's disfigured monstrosity of a face.

At first he spoke softly, "I, human, am an embodiment of the negative energy you create. Every time you get angry, cry, make others cry, and inflict or receive pain of any kind, you feed me." With each word, his voice grew louder and more agressive. Just as he was about to kill the unsuspecting man, Malignus grabbed Kazhuld's shoulder and threw him back.

"What he is trying to say is, we are wraiths. Now, good luck to you, and may you cause much pain." Malignus said while holding back Kazhuld, who had already gotten up and was furious.

"Oh. That's cool." said the thug, who simply walked away as if he was intoxicated. Malignus turned back to Kazhuld, with anger literally buring in his eyes. "Have you not listened to a thing I said?"

Kazhuld replied, "We are wraiths, Malignus! What happened to your anger?"

"I channeled it. It is my weapon. Instead of becoming a wildfire, I wield a flamethrower. Do you understand?"

"No!"

Malignus sighed. "Very well. Just don't kill anybody, ok?"

"Fine." said Kazhuld.