Vampire Hunter Duo
Part 1
It wasn't the smartest thing Duo Maxwell had ever done, but after
surviving years as a teenage terrorist in a war fought with mobile
suits, walking alone at night in an area considered to be less then
reputable was among some of the safer activities he'd ever done.
Downtown Toronto could be dangerous at night.
The American turned up the collar of his ankle-length trench coat and
shoved his hands in his pockets. There was a definite chill in the
air as the summer was slowly being replaced by the colorful arrival
of Autumn. During the day, it was warm and sunny, with gentle breezes
rustling the leaves and creating showers of gold, red and orange. At
night however, the temperature dropped dramatically, and Duo shivered
as the air seemed to pierce right through his clothing and into his
bones.
He kept his head down as he walked, and the rays of moonlight glinted
off the tawney tresses that cascaded down his back in the familiar
weave he'd adopted as a child. Pausing, he looked up at the moon, and
his mind turned to thoughts he'd been having with increasing
frequency lately - mainly, what his friends were doing now.
" I wonder if Heero ever looks at the moon anymore," he said aloud,
almost wistfully. It had been so long since he'd seen the Japanese
pilot, or any of the others for that matter.
After the Eve wars, Duo had been struck with a sharp sense of loss.
All of his life he'd been fighting - on the streets, for food, or in
the war, for revenge. He'd never known anything else, had never been
granted the time and place to learn what there was when you weren't
guarding your back at every passing moment. Even his earliest memory
was of him, at age five or six, fighting back against an older street
bully.
The feeling of uselessness had compounded when he saw that each of
the others had made preparations for life after the war. Quatre had
always intended to follow in his father's footsteps, taking hold of
the reigns of the Winner Corporation and running it like the well-
oiled machine that it was. Trowa meant to stay with the blonde pilot,
working part-time at the circus with his siter - the pilot formerly
known as Nanashi had found himself a place with the Arabian and had
no intentions of leaving. Duo smiled at that - Trowa and Quatre
looked good together, the blonde and the uni-banged. He snickered.
Wufei had followed Sally Po into the field of Law Enforcement on a
world-wide scale as a member of the Preventers. Always passionate
about justice for all, Wufei intended to be one of the more dedicated
peacekeepers, dousing the small flames of violence that tended to
flare up.
Even Heero had something to turn to - the war had barely ended when
Relena offered the taciturn boy a job as the head of her security
detail. That would suit Heero perfectly - the Japanese pilot needed
to have some control in the peaceful world to be happy. And with
Relena, he'd never want for anything ever again. Duo frowned
slightly. It still hurt to admit that, but Duo wanted nothing more
then Heero's happiness.
And his heart...
" If her royal whine-ness can make Spandex Boy happy, then all the
more power to her." Saying that however, didn't lessen the pain any,
and he decided to not think about it at all for now.
Duo resumed walking, kicking a rock out of his path, banking it off a
telephone pole with it's light burned out. The one across the street
from it still burned though, and cast flickering shadows over the
sidewalk.
Duo had left Quatre's home in the desert sands of Saudi Arabia almost
two months ago, and had been wandering ever since. He remembered that
night fondly, and with a little sadness - it had been the last time
they'd all been together.
They had all been quiet, each reflecting on their plans for the
future. At some point, all of them had asked Duo what his future held
for him and he'd laughed at their questions, saying they'd know when
*he* knew.
The shock of the night had come when Heero had given him an
indecipherable look before casually informing him that he could
always use a partner in Relena's security detail. Duo would have
jumped at the chance but the thought of working for a woman who
treated him like the scum on the heel of her boot was less then
appealing. Heero had shrugged, telling him to at least " Think about
it." That night Duo had packed up his things and left, knowing the
longer he stayed, the harder it would be to leave.
He had always intended, in the back of his mind, to go back someday.
He kept tabs on his old friends, curious to see if they were happy in
their new lives, and new from his checks that they had spent some
time looking for him immediately after his abrupt disappearance.
However, the Deathscythe pilot was like a ghost, evading their
searches with practised ease. The closest anyone had ever come to
contacting him was Quatre, who had tracked down one of the old
confidential email addresses Doc. G had used to confirm his missions.
The only message the Arabian had left was a simple: " Come home when
you're ready. We'll be waiting. ALL of us."
The emphasis on the word *all* hadn't been overlooked. Duo smiled for
real at that particular memory and picked up the pace, eager to get
to the warmth of his motel room. He still didn't know what he wanted
to do or what his aspirations were but it was nice to know he had a
home when he was ready. He hadn't even had that much when he was a
child.
A noise up ahead caught his attention and his head lifted quickly,
violet eyes scanning the road warily.
Nothing. His eyes narrowed slightly - he *knew* he'd heard something.
He could sense it. Call it a leftover remnent paranoia from the war
but he could *tell* when someone was watching, or nearby.
Suddenly an orange blur shot out of an alley entrance, streaking
across the road and disappearing into lush growth of the park. A cat.
Duo grinned faintly, relaxing his muscles a bit.
Suddenly movement from the same alley caught his eye and he had just
enough time to turn towards it when something black collided with him
at high speed, knocking the wind out of him and slamming him to the
ground.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
" I hate boring nights!"
A tall, slender young woman strode up the street briskly, a look of
pure annoyance adorning her face. She stopped and put her hands on
her hips, turning slightly to scowl behind her.
" Are you coming?"
" Yes, yes Jen," her partner grumbled. Jennifer sighed as she waited
for Koby to catch up before starting her stalking again. " Are we in
a hurry?"
" No. I just want to get this over with," she grumbled. " I'm hungry,
I'm tired and I'm bored. Do you really want to deal with me right
now?"
" Not particularly."
" I rest my case."
" But you're my partner," Koby Fisher continued amusedly. He grinned,
showing even, white teeth that gleamed in the dark. He was tall, very
well built, and wore dark atheletic clothing. " And I have no choice
in the matter."
Jennifer Lupsor, former member of the LAPD, threw her hands up.
" See? No one loves me." The brunette tossed her head, nearly
smacking her partner in the face with her shoulder-length ponytail.
" Everyone loves you. But you still have to patrol with me. There's a
Kiss here and we have to find it."
" Yeah, yeah," she muttered. The winds were picking up again, and she
could feel it through the thin layer of her windbreaker. " And do NOT
mock me about the jacket."
Koby shrugged, holding his hands up placatingly. " I told you to
dress warmly. Canada is not known for its tropical temperatures."
" Shut up. Why couldn't this latest batch be in Hawaii?"
" Because it would make your life so much easier if it were."
The two were members of a secret organization that had been in
existence for hundreds of years. Jennifer grumbled as she rubbed her
arms, trying to get the blood circulating - why she agreed to join
the motley crew of a group was beyond her sometimes. " I should have
stayed in LA."
Koby looked at her, serious for a moment. " Do you really mean that?"
Jenn glanced back at him, chewing her lip. She remembered the
screams, the blood splashing the walls. The way her eyes had been
forcibly pried open to the harsh realities of the world around her.
The knowledge she gained that night would be forever etched in her
memory and she knew she could never go back to the innocent she used
to be.
" No." She sighed. " I'm just tired."
" I told you to take a nap this afternoon."
" Smart-ass Canadian."
Suddenly, the hair rose on the back of Koby's neck, and a familiar
twinge ran down his spine. His partner noticed the change in his
demeaner and tensed visibly, all signs of amusement gone in a
heartbeat. She checked the area carefully.
" What's up partner?" she asked warily, eyes darting back and forth
through the shadows, squinting in an effort to see past the murky
gloom.
" Something Jen," Koby replied in a low voice. He glanced at her.
" We got one."
" Active?" Jen's finger's tightened around the handle of her weapon,
hidden within the folds of her jacket.
" Nearby," Koby nodded. He straightened and nodded down the road.
" Let's go!"
Jennifer cursed as her partner suddenly sprinted past her, down the
sidewalk and she pounded after him.
Two blocks down, and suddenly Jennifer could hear a strangled yell
and she tried to force herself to go faster. She could already
envision what was happening, having seen it so many times before and
she narrowed her eyes. Ahead of her, her partner slid to an abrupt
halt, and she nearly skidded into him. Taking in the scene he was
staring at, Jennifer let her own jaw drop.
A boy, maybe half her age, was rolling across the garbage-strewn
alleyway, fighting off a vampire.
And winning.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Duo's instincts had kicked in even as the person, whoever they were,
crashed into him. He'd rolled with the guy and thrown him off, into
the side of the building next to the alley, before somersaulting to
his feet. Looking up, he'd barely had time to blink before the guy
was on him again, flying at him with outstretched hands, and Duo's
eyes had gone wide at the size and sharpness of the mans nails.
" Shit!" he swore between clenched teeth, struggling to keep those
claws from reaching his eyes. What does he want?!? He suddenly
turned the man's forward motion against him, throwing him over his
shoulder and into a stack of trash bins. Straightening, he raked the
hair out his eyes roughly. " Buddy, I don't know what hole you
crawled out of, but you picked the wrong guy to mess with."
Adreneline burned through his system as elation filled his mind.
Nearly-forgotten battle-euphoria tingled throughout his limbs and he
exulted in the feeling of freedom - a feeling he hadn't experienced
since the day he'd been forced to blow up his Gundam. He hadn't been
in a decent brawl in ages. Then a wierd noise penetrated his ears and
he focused on his crouching opponent.
He was growling.
'Or to be more specific,' Duo's shocked mind amended hasitly. ' He's
snarling.' Duo took his first good look at his attacker.
The man was dressed in ragged, dirty clothing that hung off of him in
tatters. His hair was unbrushed and clumped with dirt. Streaks of
brown marred his pale, gaunt face and Duo realized with a start, that
there were two sharp-looking pointed teeth hanging out of that
foaming mouth. As he looked up, he met the man's eyes and he took a
step back. A raging hunger burned in those soulless, pupiless depths.
Those weren't human eyes. They weren't even the eyes of a rabid
animal.
" What the fuck are you?" he said in a half-whisper. It was all he
got out as the creature attacked again. Once again, it tackled him,
jaws snapping at his throat but tearing only his jacket collar. Once
again Duo rolled with it. This time, however, the creature dug in
with it's claws, sinking them into the thick material of Duo's trench
coat, preventing the American from throwing it again. Duo's senses,
though occupied, suddenly picked up the arrival of two spectaters,
and he kicked out savagely, connecting with the creatures abdomen and
knocking it's grip free from him.
Scrambling to his feet, Duo spared a quick glance at the new arrivals
and saw the shock on their faces.
' Civilians,' his mind processed. 'Keep 'em out of it.'
The man-like creature came at him one last time, but this time Duo
was ready. A long, vicious-looking knife slide from it's sheath in
the wrist lining of his trench coat into his hand and he met the
creature's lunge with a sharp slash across the throat, slicing a
deep, jagged tear.
It stumbled to a stop, gasping and clutching its torn throat in rage.
Duo used that brief moment to pull his gun from the waisteband of his
jeans and levelled it calmly.
*BANG*
*BANG*
*BANG*
Once in the head, twice in the heart, all three at point-blank range.
The creature dropped like a stone, crashing into a pile of garbage
with a sickeningly wet *slap*.
" Fuckin' crazy," Duo muttered, panting lightly. He shoved the gun
back into the back of his jeans. " What a night." He started to head
for the corpse ro check for ID or something. Suddenly, a voice rang
out into the night air.
" It's not dead yet."
" Huh?" Duo blinked as he remembered the two civilians and turned
slightly, giving the man a strange look. He brushed his bangs out his
eyes with one hand. The other pointed to the corpse.
" Yer kiddin' me, right?" Duo turned to face his watchers. The man
was about half a foot taller then his own 5"7" frame, and powerfully
built, dressed in black trackpants and a matching jacket. The girl,
was tall and slender, with a angular face, etched with the hard lines
of life. Duo's extended hand turned into a pantomime of a trigger,
aimed at the corpses torso. " This guy's been pumped full of lead -
yer telling me he's gonna survive?"
" He's not a man," the girl said calmly. " And you have about thirty
seconds before it recovers completely and attacks you again."
" Uh-huh." Duo nodded, as though he understood, wondering why it was
always him that had to deal with the loonies. Then he twitched and
looked down. The leg of the 'corpse' was moving. He backed up a
step. " No way!" he breathed, eyes a bit fearful as the body began to
rise slowly.
" Here!" Duo's head snapped up and he automatically caught the object
she threw at him. He looked at it curiously. It was a wooden stake,
polished to a high gloss and extremely sharp. He raised an eyebrow.
The girl pointed at the moving body.
" Stab it in the heart."
" But--"
" DO IT!" the man beside her shouted, fists clenching convulsively.
Duo gripped the stake nervously, looking back at the man he'd shot.
" He's down!" he protested weakly. Visions of Wufei danced in his
head. " It's not honorable to strike someone when they're down!"
The girl swore and stepped towards him.
" He's not a human!" she yelled. " He's a VAMPIRE!"
Duo's eyes widened in disbelief and the girl cried out. " Look OUT!"
Duo whirled around to see that snarling visage leaping at him again
and he reacted instantly, slamming the stake home into the creature's
chest, watching as the vampire's eyes seemed to widen in shock before
it exploded, turning to dust. Duo froze, gaping at the enormity of
the situation he'd stumbled into. The girl stepped up next to him,
breathing a sigh of relief.
" 'Bout time," she muttered, toeing the ashes with a look of disgust.
Duo wasn't about to disagree. He swallowed thickly and blinked
several times. He noticed belatedly that he still had the stake in
his hand and he dropped it quickly, wiping his hand on his jacket. He
started visably as a hand came down on his shoulder, snapping his
head around and twisting out from underneath the lax grip so he was
staring at the two of them.
" W-Who are you?" he asked, blood pounding in his ears so loudly he
wasn't sure he'd be able to hear them. He could still see the pile of
ashes, slowly being scattered around by the wind. What the hell had
he just done? The girl smirked and picked up the stake he'd just
dropped.
" I'm Jennifer, and this is my partner Koby." He smirk grew wider,
revealing flashing teeth. " We're vampire hunters."
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