Rhage: He left the club behind, skin crawling and blood nearly boiling with a need that not even the most willing of females could come close to satisfying. As tall as he was, it was easy enough to hide in the shadows of the alleys, his heavy booted feet, blades hidden in the tips, splashed through puddles of refuse. The sickeningly sweet stench filling the air was a mixture of piss, trash, stagnant water, and body odor. Yeah, it was easy to see where that was coming from, a few bodies huddled together behind a dumpster ahead, using the flipped-open lid as protection from the light drizzle that fell. Beyond that, though, he caught the scent of sex, the sounds of two bodies grinding against each other almost lost to the sudden onslaught of heavy street traffic behind him. He didnāt bother looking for the couple, no need to tempt his beast or cause the prostitute to lose her john and the cash he held.
Buildings rose up on either side of him, the brick facades glistening and slick in the light rain and seemingly twinkling light the stars that shown in the skies overhead. He sought that familiar smell, that familiar fight, anything that would promise a fight to slake his thirst. So far, though, he was coming up empty. Humans, humans, and a few rats here and there were all he found, the alley opening up into another street. The foot traffic was a little lighter and he found himself wandering the sidewalks until he reached the park at the heart of the city. The thick scent of fresh cut grass still clung to the area, the rain growing heavier and turning the dirt into mud beneath his feet.
He didnāt care, though. He didnāt hesitate to trek through the first of many puddles gathering, water sluicing down the back of his neck and down the collar of his shirt. The heavy leather of his jacket protected him for the most part, the dark opaque sunglasses perched on his nose keeping his eyes and focus sharp. The rain masked that putrid scent of baby powder, not catching his attention until it was almost too late. He turned his head just in time to see the knife buzzing past his left cheek, the sound of it in his ear as he ducked down and away. Spinning around, he kicked out, sweeping the feet out of the lesser that jumped out at him. The pale white skin seemed to glow in the dark, helped along undoubtedly by the sheen of water coating him. With a casual flick of his wrist, he brought the blade down, striking his target easily enough.
Too easy. Not even a fight, really. He growled in frustration, standing up as he tucked his blade away.
In the few seconds the not-fight lasted, the rain had stopped, the sudden silence in the world around him giving him pause as an eerie sensation ran up his spine. Baby powder. Lots of it, the area suddenly reeked of it. Was it carried to him on the wind? He turned in that direction, narrowing his eyes as he scanned the area. His preternatural ears picked up the sounds of heavy feet sloshing through muddy ground, and that eerie feeling was back.
He followed his instincts and turned to start walking in that direction, doing his best to keep his steps light as he sought to sneak up on whatever and whoever had his senses all firing at peak power.
Mary: *Tying my semi thin jacket closed and putting up the hood as I make my way up the stairs from the parking lot and out into the cold air. It was about ten at night, the start of my volunteer shift at the suicide hotline. I walked across the dark lonely streets as I walk towards the direction of the building that housed Caldwellās Suicide Hotline that was run by mainly volunteers trying to help those in need and make a difference in the world. I liked volunteering there ā¦ it kept me busy and thinking of others and not leaving me to my own thoughts about my own pathetic life. I was single, alone and a workaholic. I worked at a law firm as a secretary. Nothing fancy, nothing great ā¦ presumably a boring mediocre job. I was looking for something else. But I didn't know what I was looking for.
It was still drizzling rain as my way over across the pavement, the water sloshing into my cheap flats from Target seeping the cold and wetness into my skin. I wished I had some leather rain boots to keep me warm and dry, but I could barely afford to pay the electricity bill to keep my cottage warm and food in the fridge on my salary. Especially after all of momās hospital bills but she was comfortable and at peace when she passed and thatās all that mattered to me. Itās just another obstacle in what was called life. I was hoping for the best and tried to stay positive.
I was ducking between the alleys of the building when I came across a small group of men. I hurried along trying to stay close to the street lights as I prayed they hadnāt noticed me. I could hear their low voices discussing drugs, money, guns ā¦ I pressed on knowing that eavesdropping would not be seen as an accident and ignorance was bliss. But I barely got around the corner of the building when I hurt running footsteps and felt the grab of an arm around my waist as I heard the banter.*
āDid that bitch hear our deal?ā One said.
āNot so fast, chica ā¦ what did you hear?ā He spoke into my ear as I felt him pull me into the group and moved his arms around mine.
*I could barely make out the words over the thundering of my heart. I tried to think of a response at the same time as a way out of this mess.* I didnāt hear anything. Nothing at all. Ok?
*I tried to struggle my way out of the stranger's arms and even used the heel of my foot and step on his, but he was wearing heavy boots and it just slipped off into the ground causing a sting to go up my leg. Fuck! Damn my shoes! I tried to elbow him in the ribs but his arms were too tight around my arms. My adrenaline was kicking into overdrive as I fought my way against being robbed or worse .. rapped. It was odd ā¦ as my brain got into fight or flight mode ā¦ I smelled a sickly sweet scent like baby powder? What the hell?*
Rhage: [He could feel a ripple of excited energy course through him and knew the Beast was only just beginning to wake up. The smell of baby powder grew stronger, followed by the muffled sounds of an argument. The voices were almost jovial in nature, but the menace and lethality that flowed just beneath the surface was unmistakable.
His heavy, booted foot sloshed down in a small puddle, water splashing out in each direction, along with the sucking of the mud as he took another step. Another step, another puddle, the branches of trees and bushes adding their own cacophony of water droplets splashing down overhead. With all his weapons still tucked away, he reached up with the back of his arm and pushed a particularly branch out of his way, and from the corner of his eye, closer towards the paved path that wound its way through the park, he saw them. Just a small group, there were six of them, and in the middle of the little Kumbaya circle, they held a woman.
From what he overheard, the lessers were interrogating the woman, the possibility of her having overheard something seemed to be piquing their interest. He couldnāt quite tell if it was real or just put on for show, a lure to frighten someone away and make the game of Cat And Mouse that much more appealing to them. Not that heād ever known the lessers to be smart enough for something like that, though. Meanwhile, heād managed to close in on them, hanging in the shadows of the plant life all around him, the constant drops of water still falling down through the leaves working to his advantage and hiding the tiny splashes he couldnāt quite stop as he took each painstakingly measured step.
As the words in the conversation became clearer, he could hear the woman tell the lessers she hadnāt heard anything. Not that they cared, he figured, given they were more concerned with other things besides a possible set of loose lips. He stepped out of the shadows the moment he saw her struggle, the flash of blade catching his eye in the streetlight.]
She said she didnāt hear anything, assholes. Maybe you should move on.
[He knew he had to be careful around the woman. Human, he couldnāt risk her getting hurt or seeing the fight ā¦ if he could help it. He moved in quickly, coming up behind the lesser holding the woman, and wrapped his arm around the guyās neck, pulling him back and forcing his spine to bend in an unnatural way. Without a care in the world, he let the body fall to his feet, his hand darting out to grab the woman by her arm and pull her back out of the way.]
[One word was all he could afford, urging her on the way with a gentle shove that belied the ferocity brimming just beneath the surface. With the flick of his wrist, his blade slid down out of the sleeve of his heavy leather duster and the fight was on.]
Mary: *I struggled helplessly against the guy holding me, but his hold was too strong, none of my self defense training could help me against brute force. My fear was taking over as my calculated chances of survival dwindled. Suddenly, I heard someone try to intervene. Thank God! The guys let me go and then I heard the command to run. I ran as fast as I could but I felt another arm grabbed my purse and then using it to pull me closer to get his arm around my neck as one of others grabbed a hold of me. Another one tried to grab my arm so two of them held me on tight, tugging at my upper body and arms, I had to stop struggling in order to not pull my arms out of my sockets. I was able to watch the newcomer, a flash of leather and blonde hair moving incredibly fast, as he grabbed one guy after another fighting them all on his own. He was violent, calm and deadly. The men holding me also were so surprised that their holds laxed and I was able to break free as they ran and joined this brethren against the lone fighter. I ran a bit to get out of armās reached and I went into my jacket pocket so I could find my phone and dial 911. I kept looking up to check on my savior and as my hand grabbed hold of my phone I watched in horror as he snapped one of the menās neck.*
Hey!! Oh my God! What the are you doing?! *The guy laid lifeless at a weird angle and I dropped everything and ran towards the body to double check and then without warning I felt someone grab me by the hair causing me to fall hard on the ground and my arms were seized and I was being dragged away. I screamed as I felt the pain of the impact and the hot scrapping of the pavement as they dragged me across the grass onto the sidewalk and into the street. Then a figure leaped into the air and landed on the back on the man dragging me away and I saw a gleam of silver as I watched a blade go into the manās sternum and then a flash and pop! As my eyes adjusted back after the explosion of light ā¦ there was nothing there.*
What the ā¦ *I got to my feet as best I could, hald crawling and half kneeling trying to run from the whole scene ā¦ I had no idea what the hell was going on. But I knew I needed to get out of here. I ran towards the lights of the streets. And then he appeared in front of me out of nowhere. I skidded to a halt, confused and scared as my knees gave away.*
Rhage: [The fight was barely enough to take the edge off his insatiable hunger, the beast bristling under the surface to escape. The woman, who didnāt seem to be able to run fast enough to get away the first time, took off again, drawing the attention of the last couple of lessers. The bastards were dumb enough to turn their backs on him to go for her, which was offensive in a way that grated on his non-existent nerves.
Before he could even discern the difference, the fight changed from merely saving a human from the clutches of the lessers, saving her and her soul ā¦ it became something else entirely. The beast within lashed out through him, a fierce possessiveness breaking through the surface. A strange sensation coursed through him at the sound of her voice, which finally broke through the blood lust. Like a beacon drawing him near, the closer he got, the more the beast sensed the danger she was in.
And was far from tolerable of it.
With a fierce growl, a neck snapped, a body fell, and chase occurred. In a blur that he barely recognized, he was on top of the last lesser, his blade sinking home through the center of his chest and the puff of gold dust evaporating under him. He didnāt have time to waste, though. He knew, somewhere in the back of his mind, that he needed to get to her. He just hadnāt figured out why. Whether it was to pull her into his arms and somehow into himself and make sure she was safe or if it was simply to make sure she didnāt do something foolish like call the human police, he couldnāt quite tell. Either way, when he stood in front of her, chest heaving from the exertion of his battle, all he could do was stare for a moment.
Words didnāt escape him long when he took a single step forward, eyes scanning down her body to her hands where. Empty, he couldāve sworn there had been a phone at one point. Heād have to retrace their steps, make sure no phone call had gone through. No text or anything else, for that matter.
And then, two little words wrapped around him like a loverās caress. His gaze snapped back up to meet hers, pupils dilating like the hunter whoād just cornered his prey and was getting ready to pounce.]
[Half order, half plea, he suddenly felt drunk with a need heād never felt before. He couldnāt make sense of it. Didnāt want to. Something inside screamed out for him to take her, to bury himself inside her until heād found a place to call home again.]
Mary: *I was kneeling on the ground trying to catch my breath as I watched the man looking at me. Well ... analyzing me it seemed as he looked me over from head to toe. Perhaps he was high his eyes were dilated and he was breathing heavily as he started to stalked towards me.
He was huge ā¦ built, big-boned and thickly muscled ā¦ I mean I just watched him kill those guys. He has cerulean blue eyes that were focused on me. He was dangerously handsome ā¦ like he belonged in the movies not standing in front of me. Thick wavy blond hair is short in the back and longer in the front and he had his lashes were thick and he has a great nose and his lips were perfect with a chiseled jaw with golden skin. Seriously ā¦ sexy. I shook my head ā¦ what the fuck is wrong me? He was a killer.
As he stepped towards me, I fell back on my ass and and I crab walked backwards on the pavement attempting to get away. My hands getting scratched on the gravel and dirt preventing me from escaping as he kept coming towards me. I stretched my arm forward in a poor attempt to stop him from killing me. My adrenaline was pumping in my veins *
Say what? That I just watched you kill those guys!!
*I finally found purchase and I got up quickly looking for my phone that I dropped to finish dialing the CPD. But it was nowhere to be found. I looked around trying to ignore the huge shadow following me ā¦ unfortunately he was hard to ignore.*
Rhage: Anything. Say anything.
[For the love of the Scribe Virgin herself, the sensation that tickled his skin and seeped in through every pore to caress his very soul, he couldnāt get enough of it. The Beast within craved another note, another syllable, another sigh from her. Even as she retreated, he kept moving forward. Like a moth to a flame, he knew somewhere at the back of his mind that it was to his own peril, but he didnāt stop. Couldnāt stop.
Even when she was back up on her feet, her back turned to him as she looked all around for her phone, he craved more. Distracted as she was in her search, he walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. In a loverās embrace, one arm was around her midsection, hand splayed over her abdomen to keep her from escaping. His other arm curled up, fingers tracing the delicate column of her neck, his thumb expertly tucking up under her chin to tilt her head up and back. He leaned his head down, brushing the tip of his nose against her exposed flesh, inhaling her sweet scent until he was absolutely drunk with it. He hadnāt a care in the world, and the oddest /need/ to keep her. Protect her.]
Speak. [He breathed against her neck, lips brushing her warm skin only to awaken a desire so strong it had his blood singing in his ears.] Please. [Pleading for her to speak even another word, the world was forgotten, her struggles ignored.]
Mary: *I suddenly felt strong arms come around as he pulled me towards him. I struggled at first but then his hand was warm even through the layer of cotton of my shirt while his other hand found purchase on my neck. I remembered how easily he snapped the neck of one of those men and held very still in fear. I could feel my pulse against his hand as I felt a soft caress of his ā¦ nose? I heard him inhale ā¦ was he smelling me? What the fuck? Then I heard his low timbre as I could actually feel his request against my back as his voice vibrated in his chest ā¦ almost as if he were purring.*
Look ā¦ uh ... sir? I wonāt say anything, ok? Just let me go.
*I could feel his hand spanned across my entire neck easily encompassing it almost fully in the palm of his hand. I could feel the calluses on his hand from what I could only assume were years of fighting and hard labor. Probably years of killing people. I try to wiggle my way out of his arms as he seemed distracted by something as was not holding me as firmly. But as I moved all I could feel ā¦ was ... Ā /him/. Instantly I felt warm and flush and my mind went blank as I could feel his large hard body against my back.*
Rhage: [The more she moved in his arms, the more he responded. He couldnāt fight it. Couldnāt stop it, not that he wanted to. The two separates parts of himself wanted to buried so deeply inside her that the line of demarcation between her and him became blurred by a passionate need. And it was a need. The beast inside him craved her in a way nothing had ever tempted it before.
And when he knew she could tell exactly what she did to him, he swore he could feel her respond, maybe grow a degree warmer herself. It was only when he battled the will of the beast back, knowing he wouldnāt and couldnāt take her without her consent that he could finally release his hold on her. He knew he must look insane, must be scaring the absolute shit out of her. Hell, he was scaring the shit out of himself. He felt drunk, between the fight and the lust that lingered just below the surface, he felt like he wasnāt in control of his own body.
He stumbled back a single step, forcing his arms to drop down to his sides, to let her go despite every fiber of his being screaming at him to keep her and bring her home.]
I didnāt mean to ā¦ scare you.
[He was breathing hard, practically panting as he fought to remain in control. Clenching his fists, it was all he could do to keep from reaching out for her again.]
[Whether he was speaking to her or to himself, even he didnāt know. But, before he could let the beast win and take control of his body, before he risked shifting into that monstrous form, he turned and fled, but not before taking a deep breath to let her intoxicating scent fill his head.]
Mary: *I was released from his arms, his nearness washed through me like an ice-hot rush. My stomach felt like it plummeted to my feet. Or at least a bit lower, between my legs ā¦ I had a sudden age I couldn't begin to understand.
The tension in his body was apparent and I tilted my head slightly at his failed attempted at an apology about my fear but instead his body showed signs of holding on barely by a thread. From the heavy breathing to the clenched fists, his focus solely on me ā¦ almost as if he was going to explode any moment. It was unnerving. So, I took his command to run to heart and turned to run towards the parking lot to get to my car. My blood pumping clearly from fear but in the back of my mind I knew that I was attracted to the man. Embarrassing as it was to feel arousal during an inopportune moment. I forgot all about the phone and my missing purse. I could replace the phone, credit cards ā¦ they were pretty much maxed out anyways and I only had a few dollars. I was barely making ends meet so the purse was inconsequential to getting away from this crazy and dangerous situation.
The night air was cold, I fumbled with the keys since my hands were shaking so badly as my adrenaline was coursing through my veins that I dropped the keys twice before finally being able to open the door. Suddenly a felt a whoosh of air around me and gasped in surprise.*
Rhage: [The fight for control was brought to a whole new level as he watched her run away from him. There was a part of him that wanted to go after the woman and protect her, see her home, hold her ā¦ and then there was the other part of him that craved the satisfaction of destroying each of the Lessers that had dared laid a hand on her. He stood there, fists clenched, grinding his teeth and using the pain to ground himself, to give himself something to focus on other than the base need the beast was trying to embrace.
That small bit of clarity that aching pain brought to his jaw also brought a dawning realization. With that realization came a sudden wave of focused calm. He glanced around the small clearing, the sidewalk running through it, and the pool of light from the streetlamp over head. Muddy footprints filled the area, a few of the deeper ones pooled with water from the light drizzle of rain. As clear as if heād taken a picture with a camera, he swore he remembered the woman with a purse in her hand, the metallic chain of the strap flashing in the streetlight. But, she didnāt have it with her when she ran off as heād told her.
In a mere instant, a slew of scenarios played out before his eyes. One of the lessers had managed to snag her purse, had her wallet with her ID and her address. They could show up at any time, during the daylight hours, and finish whatever sadistic game theyād started here in the park. They could rob her blind and screw her life up. Hurt her. Kill her. Things that wouldnāt let him have a momentās peace for the rest of his existence.
Just like that, he disappeared, reappearing in the shadows just behind her. He watched her open her car door and he was tempted to step up and force his way in and to drive her home. He was such a fool. If any of the Brothers were around, bore witness to this, heād be the laughing stock. Instead, he managed to hold back from such insipid measures. He stepped up behind her, still standing within the shadows, and took a deep breath before reaching out and pulling himself from her memories. He left her with just enough to scare her, having barely escaping a mugging hoping it would encourage to hurry on her way home.
When he was finished, he drew back, watching her for just a moment, waiting for her to drive off and leave him behind.]
Mary: *I suddenly felt a wave come over me ā¦ wait ā¦ where am I? I looked around, alone now. Crap. I should just go home and call in sick. Iām not feeling well. Thank God those guys only took my purse and ran. It could have been so much worse, I just need to get out of here. I can replace things. I wondered if I should place a police report ā¦ but seriously it's Caldwell ā¦ Iām sure they have bigger problems than petty theft.
I put the keys in the ignition, thanking my lucky stars that I kept my keys in my pocket rather than in my purse like most women. When the car finally warmed up, I made my way home and made mental notes to call the bank to cancel my debit card and get replacement insurance card. Those thugs will be surprised when they looked into my wallet and saw that it only had a few dollars and one lone bank card. Shaking my head. Theyāll realize too late they wasted their efforts. Still ā¦ I shuddered. I need to get home.*
