AU: Questions for the Angels (Josh)

[Dr. Sean Neville]

((OOC: This occurs immediately after AU: Strawberry Fields Forever.))


Sean spun around, finding himself face-to-face with the puffin High Priestess.

As often occurred when one stood as tall (and with as excellent posture) as the Hunter did, he towered over her, as the blonde woman was of shorter stature and a slender build. Despite his skill and reputation as the best hunter in this region (and his reputation was well-earned and never contested, not after all of his solo work after the retirement, and then passing, of his beloved mentor, the late, great Robert Hopkins), he knew better than to underestimate her based on her human appearance alone.

Lesser hunters died, or worse, for making such mistakes about the assorted supernatural creatures that they faced.

Quickly scanning the room, Sean came to a bleak assessment: they couldn’t simply dash out the side door to regroup. Instead, they would have to use finesse and face her head-on. Unfortunately, Joshua from the House of Bernstein was beside him.

He cared deeply for Joshua, despite the unlikeliness of their coupledom, but he knew that his lover was an unpredictable element. He lacked Sean’s same training and patience, he had recently diablerized another vampire Lord, with concern about the future effects of that action. Moreover, she had insinuated that Joshua was under the Hunter’s thumb, which often earned a violent reaction if the vampire Lord was left to his own devices. If his growl was any indication.

Sean stepped forward, staring down at the blonde woman. “Surely this comes as no surprise.”

[Joshua Bernstein]

The priestess stared up at Sean, folding her arms across her chest.

"Did I say I was surprised?" She clicked her tongue against her teeth as if disappointed at the suggestion. "Oh, no, we were expecting you."

Josh bared his fangs at her. "Oh, were you?"

[Dr. Sean Neville]

This was the aspect of Hunting that he hated most, when the supernatural creatures – almost always leaders of factions – had attitude. Sean dealt with it, of course, as he was witty and could hold his own in an argument. Still, the only supernatural creature with whom he wanted to banter was Joshua, and, currently, the vampire Lord was threatening the puffin priestess by showing his fangs, no banter involved.

That was fine. They would find a way out of here, just as they had – just as he had – countless times before. Even if the priestess had stated outright that this had been a plan to trap them, the Hunter simply had to keep his wits about him, so that he could plan an exit, either through negotiation followed by burning the entire building to the ground, or by shooting them with his crossbow before burning the entire building to the ground, or by discarding the middle step entirely and burning the entire building to the ground while he and Joshua made a run for it.

He had to remain calm and confident, but not get too cocky. “Then you know how this has to end.”

Of course, from the puffin priestess’s perspective, surely she thought she and her cult would succeed in this task. But Sean couldn’t allow that to happen.

[Joshua Bernstein]

"It ends with you and your pet giving up your life force for our god," She answered, pulling a knife from one sleeve and lunging at Josh.

He dodged, but the knife still scraped along his side. He hissed in surprise as the contact burned him.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Most of the other supernatural creatures knew better – or at least exercised better judgment – than to refer to Joshua as his pet. The fact that Sean could toss the vampire from one end of the room to the one (and, in fact, had done so before during past fights) had no bearing on the fact that Joshua remained the Lord of the House of Bernstein, dangerous in his own right, and unquestioned in his position with the immunity provided by his agreement with the Hunter. He had nearly thrown a fit when Sean had referred to him as “tame”, and, only then because Sean had needed to offer reassurances to get assistance.

However, all thoughts about the antagonism evaporated upon hearing his lover hiss from contact with the knife.

It must have been blessed.

Of course it was; they were in a religious cult’s lair, after all.

“I’m sorry to disappoint,” he remarked, leaping back and out of the way. He didn’t have to worry about pain from a blessed weapon, but, being mortal, a knife would kill him surely enough if it struck him in the wrong organ.

Then he pulled an arrow from his quiver and loaded his crossbow, taking a shot. They were separated only by a short distance, but it was a sloppy shot. At least Joshua wasn’t in the way, so he needn’t worry about shooting his lover by mistake.

[Joshua Bernstein]

"Not a disappointment at all," The priestess grinned, rolling out of the way of the crossbow bolt. "It isn't fun if you don't fight back."

Josh grimaced at the echoes of sentiments he had expressed to his own victims on more than one occasion.

The priestess thrust her dagger in the direction of the Hunter this time, whispering a prayer under her breath.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean, too, recognized the sentiment, although not as one that he expressed. While he fought well and he never shied from a fight, he had no bloodlust. Killing supernatural creatures that threatened humanity was a part of his sworn duties, nothing more and nothing less. If tomorrow someone invented an aerosol spray that would irrevocably transform supernatural creatures into harmless goldfish, then the Hunter would begin using that in his arsenal. He never shied from a fight, and, in the right conditions, they could be invigorating, but he didn’t crave them.

He certainly didn’t subscribe to the notion that his job would be worse if the creatures didn’t fight back. He deliberately got the drop on vampires, ghouls, and demons for that reason.

But, invariably, he heard that same sentiment again and again from all manner of adversaries.

Did they all think they were original?

He managed to dodge the blade, and he went deliberately sliding across the floor, facing her the entire time, as he loaded his crossbow again for another shot.

“I’ll give you one opportunity to renounce your plans and give up,” he informed the priestess. Typically, he didn’t give creatures that chance after they had taken a shot at him (or, in the rarer cases when Joshua accompanied him, had tried to hurt his lover), but given the nature and scale of this conspiracy, having assistance at stopping it would be superior to having another corpse.

[Joshua Bernstein]

"Do you think my devotion to our god so little?" The priestess sniffed, clasping both hands in front of her. "I would willingly die in service to seeing our lord rise upon this earth."

Joshua continued to grasp at the wound where her knife had hit, glaring in her direction.

Purple light emanated from her hands, coiling about her body.

He didn't want to have to fight off a puffin elder god, and so he glanced briefly towards Sean, checking to see whether Sean would shoot or if he ought to launch himself at her.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

“Well...” Sean replied with a shrug, getting a small dig in at her while he was at it. Anything that he could do to provide a distraction, anything he could do to try to push her off-balance, he would pull out all stops in this situation.

He was fighting an Elder God from a puffin cult, which would usher in the end of humanity as they knew it. Much like she would die to allow that to come to pass, the Hunter would give his life to prevent it. He had been trained for that, to make whatever personal sacrifice was necessary for the good of the whole.

But he would try to avoid dying if possible. His goal was to preserve as much human life as he could, including his own, and to preserve Joshua too, even though the vampire wasn’t human; he was his lover, and that was enough.

“I hope you have a good death,” he said, by which he meant he would let her die for her religious cause, because there were no other options.

He checked quickly to make sure that Joshua wasn’t in his line of fire. Then, after lining up his shot, he sent his arrow flying straight for her eye.

[Joshua Bernstein]

The priestess hardly had time to react before the crossbow bolt impaled her through the eye, resulting in an unpleasant mess. The purple light dissipated before her body even hit the ground.

From across the hall an unholy shriek sounded, and Joshua winced, his enhanced hearing making the sound excruciating.

"That came from upstairs," He informed Sean.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean watched the priestess’ body for an additional few seconds, first to make sure that no additional light came forth, in case she had been able to transfer the force to someone else. Second, to make sure that she was well and truly dead. However, her body didn’t twitch, and, he approached it cautiously to kick it lightly.

She was dead.

That had needed to happen.

However, before he could check in with Joshua about his injury, to make sure that the vampire could move without pain and continue with their task, the shrillest shriek he could remember hearing outside of banshees pierced the air. He glanced at Joshua and nodded in response to the vampire’s remark.

“Can you walk?” He asked, waiting only a few seconds before he started off in search for the stairs.

He had no desire for supernatural powers; his psychic abilities were more than enough. At the same time, the ability to fly would come in useful in this moment, as would teleportation or intangibility, anything that would allow him to reach upstairs more quickly.

However, he trained to keep himself in peak condition, and he would get there soon enough, running into the lion’s den as he did.

[Joshua Bernstein]

"I can walk," Josh confirmed. He would need to have this checked out as soon as he returned to his coven, because he had no idea what sort of blessing was on the blade, but he could push through the pain.

Even if pain wasn't a sensation he was used to feeling anymore.

He took off after Sean, ignoring the blazing pain in his side.

He was going to take down as many puffins as possible in retaliation.

They bounded up the stairs, and he sniffed the air.

"This way," He took off down the corridor, stopping before a simply wooden door. Another shriek rang out from behind the door.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

One way or another, Sean would get Joshua back to his coven so that a healer could look over his wound. If that proved beyond Joshua’s healer’s capabilities, then the Hunter would find a witch or someone else who owed him a favor; many supernatural creatures, or people who traded in the supernatural, owed him favors. That was one means through which he maintained surveillance over the City.

However, he would have to concern himself with Joshua’s injuries later; for now, he had to assist the person screaming upstairs, which meant he had to run up the stairs.

Thankfully, they had the benefit of the vampire’s enhanced sense of smell, since Joshua directed him towards the proper door. Unfortunately, after trying the doorknob, he concluded that the door was locked.

Thankfully, the door was made from wood rather than steel. Sean sized up the door for a moment, taking note of its hinges. Then he stepped back and ran at it, battering it down with the full force of his upper-body strength, using the focal point of his left shoulder. The door splintered around them and he stepped through. “Stop!” He called.

Not that he expected the puffins to heed him, but since he had already announced himself with the door, it couldn’t hurt much.

[Joshua Bernstein]

The puffins performing the ceremony didn't even look up from their victim, but those guarding the doors leaped into fighting stance.

"You can't stop us," One of them declared, rushing towards the Hunter. Joshua barreled into the room after, leaping onto one of the other puffin guards and burying his fangs in its neck. He felt the shifter convulse as he drank, and when he was done he tossed the body aside.

"Anyone who doesn't stop gets to be my breakfast," He announced, glaring at the puffins letting out the blood of some poor shrieking woman in the middle of the room.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean hadn’t expected his warning to work. It rarely did when dealing with supernatural creatures, rather than when talking to humans who had accidentally found themselves entangled with the supernatural, or with the occasional one who had done so deliberately but experienced a change of heart. Moreover, the puffins weren’t merely shifters; they were religious fanatics. Of course they wouldn’t heed his warnings. They wouldn’t belong to a destructive ancient cult if they could reason logically.

Likewise, he had fully expected the puffin guards to leap into actions, and so he loaded his crossbow again and shot one of the other guards through the heart.

He would have smiled at Joshua’s warning, but for the human sacrifice presently on the table before them. Still, his lover made an intimidating force when he wished to be (well...to people who weren’t Sean, at least).

“And I’ll shoot you in the face,” he added, just in case they needed the additional incentive. To demonstrate that, he kept his crossbow raised, ready to aim and fire at a moment’s notice.

When no puffin immediately attempted to take him down, he approached the table, ready to shoot each puffin in the head if he had to, anything to rescue the poor, shrieking woman.