by P. S. Power
Claire and Keane didn't react, but Nikki picked up the pad.
But you didn't say anything did you? She didn't say anything to him did she? Claire tilted her head slightly to one side and shook it.
Brows furrowing, Nikki looked hard at Zack. After a few seconds her inner self started talking, Are you reading my mind? Catacomb, barnacle nose, chocolate mouse. Three.
“I'm not reading your mind, not really, I only know what you tell me. Um, catacomb, barnacle nose, chocolate mouse, three? Chocolate mouse? Is that a mousse dish for cats? ”
The girl looked shocked and simply nodded her head for the others to see.
So you know everyone's inner-most secrets? The brunette asked. She didn't seem shocked or doubtful, just a bit resigned.
He shook his head. “No, not really. If I know to ask the right question people's other selves will usually tell me things and so far as I can tell people always tell the truth on that level, but most people don't go around calling out everything. Most of the time they share things like, my back hurts, or you look tasty. Or at least lately people have been sharing such things... Most of the time I try to ignore things on that level as hard as I can. I only got all that right now because I really can't hear in all this noise, so I'm paying attention to it.” He lifted his shoulders, hoping he looked non-threatening.
She shook her head.
Well, I'm glad you're on our side!
Everyone at the table grinned, except Betty, who didn't know what had just happened.
They talked for a while, commenting on other people in the club mainly. As crowded as it seemed, the Vampires could pick out who was drunk, who looked to get lucky and who just wanted to dance, with, if not perfect ability, at least a pretty high success rate.
Claire declared that people should dance. This time when her deep self spoke he knew for certain that he got a lot more information than she spoke out loud though.
Vampire politics say that I can't dance with you first. Normally I'd offer you Keane, but you might find that off-putting. It would be considered an insult to offer you Betty as she's a mere servant and below your station. It is a bit of a quandary really. I think the best thing to do is have everyone dance in a group. Betty and Nikki first, then Keane, then you and I will join.
Keane didn't bat an eyelash at whatever she said out loud. Nikki stiffened and looked at Keane who gave her a look that basically communicated “Uh, yeah.” with a sarcastic edge to it. Betty's eyes popped open, when Nikki wrote all this down for her.
“Claire, I don't really know how to dance. I usually just sit and watch...”
She smiled and said. Dance! It will be fun and given your temperament I don't think you'd want to drink Keane's blood or have sex with us all tonight instead, which are the only other options left us barring complicated ceremonies that we can't put together easily on short notice. It would be a grave insult to turn down this offer and not accept something else.
“Dancing then. Or in my case, flapping around to music.” Sighing he waited for the girls to hit the floor, rebuff the first three waves of guys trying to come and dance with them, then watched Keane take the floor and merge with them. It wasn't so much dancing as sinuously twisting around each other without touching. Other people actually stopped their own dancing and stared.
Claire tapped him on the shoulder lightly, signaling him to go. He dragged himself across the floor, hoping to find some way out of this. Nothing came to mind as he reached them. Nikki and Keane stopped suddenly when the music stopped, Betty a beat later. The music started again, a fast driving beat. Keane's Shadow reached for him then Nikki's did. He summoned his own Shadow around him and twisted as if he were trying to move through a shortcut that would take him into Betty, following a path he could barely sense at all. They responded by moving away, then Nikki swung back around toward him and he moved into the space between Keane and her, swept his hand past Betty who undulated. Up close he could see that the Vampires were doing all the work for her, acting as counter point to her movements. She suddenly spun toward him, again he twisted and spun, this time with her, holding himself about four inches away from her, their Shadows intertwined. Nikki took over, pulsing in front of him, a complicated gesture that he didn't understand, but could feel and follow anyway.
Keane thrust past her, their energies touching as the beat hit, he locked with him and they moved side by side. He just let his body do whatever Keane did, then after twenty seconds of this, the girls moved into him, they rocked in counterpoint to him, never touching, passing back and forth from Keane to him.
The music ended shortly. He turned to go back the table when the music started again, a slower beat this time. Claire moved over to him, actually pressing her body to his. He caught the idea after a few seconds, he needed to follow her, sticking to her and not breaking contact. Their palms touched and he synced his movements to hers, letting his Shadow self mingle with hers just enough so that when she moved back he felt pulled toward her and when she moved forward he felt her pushing slightly against him.
Toward the end the movements got complex, and it took all his attention to match her movements. Thankfully she remembered not to move faster than his body could take, or he probably would have cracked a vertebrae. Well, in reality he'd just have fallen down or something, but it would have been embarrassing, which could hurt too, if on a totally different level.
The music stopped suddenly and so did they. Dead still, instantly.
People around them started clapping and cheering. When he looked around to see what had happened they seemed focused on Claire and himself. Apparently the Vampire had carried him well enough to make the whole thing look good.
Claire took his hand and moved him back to the table. Sitting he took a sip of his drink. They chatted again for about ten minutes using the strange system they'd worked out. The topics ranged from dancing to politics. They all complimented his dancing. He told them it had really been all them, that he'd just followed along. This made Keane chuckle inside, his face remaining blank.
Drinks started arriving for the girls, much to their amusement, and one for Keane which he acknowledged with a glance and a lifting of the drink toward the cute, but slightly heavyset peroxide blonde that waved to him. They didn't actually drink, not even Betty who could have. Zack just didn't drink alcohol so hadn't thought about it before, but Betty didn't seem to either, even when it came for free.
Much to his shock, a drink came for him as well. A small note with it said, “Want to dance? Valerie.” It had little hearts by it. Zack blushed and showed it to Keane who sat next to him. He didn't have to wait long to find out what Valerie looked like because she walked up to the table.
“You must be the famous, Mr. Hartley. I'm Valerie, perhaps you've seen me around the mall?” She wore clothing, but it seemed hard to notice this fact when he looked at her. Blonde now, he recognized her indeed, having seen her twice. Her hair had shifted color, he thought.
Just to make everything clear, Claire spat out, Succubus! Her lips moved in time with the word he heard from her inner self.
“I can see you're here with friends, but perhaps you could spare time for a single dance?” She addressed Zack directly. Given the show they had all just put on, he could hardly claim not to be able to, he didn't know how well he'd do with anyone else. Claire and the others had definitely led out there and carried him.
The music restarted.
Apparently the Succubi could communicate without issue even with the music.
He couldn't 'hear' her Shadow speak, not without opening up the raw flood of sexuality she represented. He could hear Claire and the others still, so he used that as a guide to the conversation.
They negotiated something, dealing with him and dancing. He got that much. Claire demanded that the other woman restrain herself and not use any of her 'tricks'. Part way through this another man approached. His Shadow self had as strong a sense of sexuality as Valerie did, but it didn't call at him like hers manag
ed to, thankfully. That would have been too much for him to handle, given the memories that had awakened a few days before.
Valerie smiled and grabbed his hand suddenly, pulling him toward the dance floor. He found his body responding, even as he tried to turn his focus away from her. She stopped and pressed close, swaying suggestively while just barely making contact with him.
Desperately, he turned his mind away as hard as he could. She represented loss of self, to Zack at least, even if he didn't understand why. This wasn't something to play with, that much resonated through his entire being. Focused on the crowd, searching for distraction, Zack noticed something he would have missed a few moments before.
A man in a white jacket, hair a bit too long or too short to be fashionable, with thick, dark-rimmed glasses sat across from a girl, leering at her. She seemed a little drunk, or perhaps tired, her Shadow slowing in its actions as he watched.
The man smiled and looked around. His Shadow fairly crowed. Something seemed very wrong here, this reaction didn't seem like a guy that wanted to just pick up a cute girl. The whole thing felt... wrong.
Zack focused on him and stretched his inner self toward the man asking, Why so happy, friend?
The Shadow within the man looked normal, but felt horrible, like a monster of some kind, it turned toward where Zack danced with the Succubus and said, This girl is mine now. Some drugs in her drink and she won't even remember this, if she lives. It can't fail! Now to get her to my car. Wait, let her get deeper. She didn't come with friends, there's no one watching for her...
“Valerie, can you hear me?” He asked, close to her ear. Feeling her nod as he watched, he said, “In the direction I'm looking, there's a girl, Asian? The man she's with put something in her drink. He plans to rape her, I think...”
She spun around to look, after a moment she yelled in his ear, “The girl is Charli. From the mall. Come on.”
They raced back to the table. Valerie slapping at men's hands as they tried to grab her while she walked. She pulled him along behind her as fast as the press of bodies would allow.
“Norris, get over here! Mr. Hartley says that Charli, from Princess Pretty Nail, has been drugged by some creep that plans to rape her. We need to stop him.” This got everyone's attention, except Betty who just looked confused, then expertly hid it.
Keane nodded to Nikki, who looked at Zack.
Her Shadow told him what she needed, and much as he did when he'd danced earlier, he let her lead. He held out his arm again and they danced across the floor. As they closed on the table she spun toward him, then away, letting her hand seem to slip at the end of the move, flying toward the table, knocking the drinks over. Spending a few seconds apologizing she then turned and said, It's drugged.
Keane moved to run interference, but to his surprise Valerie walked up to the man and hit him with a full dose of whatever it was she did. The creep stood, a dumb look on his face, hardly moving, until she guided him away. Zack could literally see waves of lust and passion wafting up around them as they walked, a glittering, rose-colored pattern that looked a little like a heat shimmer on a summer's day.
Claire and Nikki took Charli by one arm each and carried her out. Betty floating behind them.
Out the door, Claire suggested they think of a place to take her.
“My house. We can get there quickest I think. Through the alley in back. This way.” Valerie had already led the would-be rapist back there with Norris and Keane.
They discussed what they should do with him.
Claire took charge instantly. “Take him far away and deal with it. You know what to do, Keane. We need to take Charli here someplace where we can arrange for aid. Mr. Hartley has volunteered his dwelling and for transportation there... Mr. Hartley?”
“I can only take you one at a time, but the shortcut goes right to my door step. You have to step about six inches high when I take you through or you'll trip. It doesn't hurt or anything, this isn't like line travel even, it's just like taking a step. So Claire, Nikki, Charli... Who else is going?” Valerie raised her hand, but Norris and Keane both said they had other things to do. Betty raised her hand.
“Right. Then, Claire first.”
He took her arm and delivered her to his doorstep. Almost instantly he stepped back for Nikki. Then decided Betty should go, leaving Valerie to hold up Charli, which she did without effort. Getting the girl through turned out to be difficult. He finally just picked her up and carried her, glad that this shortcut had more of a step sideways than a twist.
One more trip was needed to collect Valerie. He took her arm and felt passion and sex rip though his body. He dropped her arm and stepped back.
“Sorry. I can't take you if you're going to do that. Can you calm it down again?” She nodded that she could, though it took her several deep breaths. Her eyes closed in concentration, her body relaxing visibly as she stood there. When she opened her eyes again he took her arm gently, ready to drop it if needed.
The energy coming off of her still caused his soul to ring with desire. With longing, but he got her through, somehow. It helped that the contact lasted only a few seconds.
The others had already gone in. Charli lay on the old thread bare and broken down sofa, with Nikki kneeling by her. Claire spoke on the phone, her voice calm and practiced, professional as if this kind of thing happened all the time.
“Yes, the address is... What is the address Mr. Hartley?” She told the other person to wait a moment and handed him the cell phone.
“Mr. Hartley? This is Wu-Li. I'll come directly, what is your address please?” Zack told him. He said he could be there within thirty minutes. He'd be bringing his apprentice as well.
“Wait, are you near the mall at all?” He asked the Master before he could hang up.
“Dan and I both, yes.”
He asked them to meet him at the entrance of the mall nearest the Candles and More, tossed Claire the phone which she caught easily and ran out the door. Wu-Li must have understood his intent, because he saw two men running toward him when he stepped out the other side of the shortcut. They both moved with greater than normal speed, not the blurring speed of a Vampire, but fast enough to get either of them a gold medal in the Olympics.
When they got to him, he took the Master's arm and led him through, not hesitating at all. Then he stepped back for the other man, who looked to be about thirty-five or so. White, with a well cared for mustache, and a heavy case with a strap. Without hesitation he put his arm out and walked with Zack through the point in space his master had just disappeared into. Zack felt impressed, since walking into something like that without knowing what it was required either fearlessness or great trust, and the man, Dan, hadn't even met him before.
“Across the street there.” They padded over quickly and were inside, the whole thing taking less than a minute.
The two healers went to work quickly. They discussed the nature of the drug with Nikki and to Zack's surprise, Valerie. The succubus seemed to have more than a passing knowledge with the effects of various drugs for some reason. Particularly ones used in rapes.
“I think I've heard of this one. It's something new, a combination of Flunitrazepam, you know, the date rape drug. Very pure, with some other drugs. It hits hard and fast, the effects last about six hours, sometimes more. If an overdose is given, death generally occurs in two to four hours, when the person stops breathing.” Valerie nodded toward the girl on the sofa. “She's not very big. The jerk could easily have misjudged the amount in the dark. Drugging a person like this isn't as simple as most people think. Not if you want them to live.”
Wu-Li looked up at Dan, his apprentice. “What would you suggest?”
“Samsara root would be best, but we don't have any. I know it grows wild in the Himalayas, but I don't know of anyone that might carry it around here.” He shook his head. “Other than that my next move would be to take her to an emergency room...”
“Just so. The Underground Market outside
of Toronto would have it, however.” Wu-Li said.
Zack looked at the old man.
“Okay, so we go there and get this? Is it near a Nexus point at all?”
All eyes on him suddenly, except for Betty and Charli. Betty had moved in and was applying a cold compress to the girl's head, which appeared to be all right with the healers.
Wu-Li told him briefly about the Underground Market, literally underground, secret and a Nexus hub like Underwood was.
“You'll need gold, to purchase the Samsara. I don't have any on me. Dan, you can take some from the box and use the node point in the back of our shop. Mr. Hartley, can you get there though? You've not been there and have nothing to identify the location with...” Concern covered his face.
“Dan, do you know where it is?” Zack asked.
“I went once before. I don't know if I could find it on a map...” he replied.
“That'll work. We'll make it work. Come on.”
Without question, Dan ran with him out the door.
When they hit the mall Zack motioned the other man to take the lead, starting to gasp as Dan easily covered the distance. Zack's legs began to burn as he pushed himself, trying to keep up, and failing. It occurred to him that what he'd thought had been a mad dash to save Jennifer had been a fairly mild jog in reality. Luckily for him he'd been in the lead, setting the pace.
At the store, Dan asked for a moment, which worked for Zack as he sat on the floor sucking in air. Something about the night seemed to be taking a toll he noticed.
Moments later Dan came in with a small dark brown cloth bag in his hand. Whatever was inside it clinked as he moved, only once, then the man held it silent in his hand as he tucked it into his waist somehow.
Getting to his feet he walked to the room, much smaller than the one in his store, that held the Nexus point.
“Dan, quick, focus on the Underground. Remember it. What was it like? Did you go to the Apothecary there? Think about it. What did it smell like?” Dan closed his eyes in focus.
