Awake and Dead {Nix}

[thane]

Take it and take it and take it and take it and take it all
Take it and take it and take it until you take us all
Smash it and crash it and thrash it and trash it
You're only toys

Try it you'll like it don't hide it don't fight it, just let it out
Steal and shoot it and kill it or take another route
Take it and take it and take it
You know they're only toys

Devour Devour
Suffocate your own empire
Devour Devour
It's your final hour

Devour Devour
Stolen like a foreign soul
Devour Devour
What a way to go



Sitting on the edge of the bed, he stood there silently, rubbing the back of his neck and turning his head to one side and the next, he heard the crack as his muscles snapped into place before rising to his feet.

The dim light that permeated through the blinds revealed it was a lousy motel room in a lousy side of New Orleans but he didn’t give it any mind, this place had served its purpose to shield him from the hateful rays of sun. How he missed it, to feel the warming rays on his skin…but no, he wouldn’t ever allow himself to be swallowed in a moment of self pity, Daniel rather die first.

The raging storm outside matched his mood, caustic wind and lightning raged from the sky in an impenetrable shroud of night.

Stretching, he rubbed a hand over his arm and the tattoos that covered the right side of his torso and arm. He got them in the beginning of the century, he needed a change from this eternal curse, needed to see something different as he looked into the mirror or he would go insane…something that revealed the changes that had taken place on his heart and soul, and the body art always appealed to him for some reason.

So leaning down, he picked the clothes from the floor and placed them back, securing his weapons back into place. Even when he was clothed, the absence of them made him feel naked, they had became an extension of himself, so much that he could almost sense when one of his bullets pierced its target.

Reaching for his pocket, he placed a fifty dollar bill on the stand and didn’t even bother to look at the sleeping woman in the bed. She wasn’t particularly a looker, but then again he hadn’t came here looking for sex, he had been looking for sustenance and that was exactly what he’d get out of here. She would wake up tired, would take a moment to recover but would be fine. Only thing, she wouldn’t remember his face. If her mind was strong, she would only think of him as a figment of some dream, but somehow Daniel doubted that she would even remember anything at all.

And so he pushed through the door that leaded into the gritty streets bellow, not bothering even in the least as the rain poured mercilessly over his head.

The dark wind was howling again and with it carried the taint of innocent blood.

It was time to hunt.

[rachel]

Don't cross that line
If you don't want to find what it feels like
Cause I know you'll be running
With your tail between your legs like a dog
You better bring all your guns,
Get 'em loaded cause it's almost game time
It's gonna be old time shoot 'em up,
Knock down, drag 'em out

Why was it that night was the only time she truly felt at one with the world? There had to be something really screwed up in her chemistry when she felt more at home at the midnight hour than during a bright sunny afternoon.

OH WAIT... THATS RIGHT. THERE WAS SOMETHING SCREWED UP WITHIN HER! THANK YOU ADOPTED MOM AND DAD! WAY TO SHOW THE LOVE!

Great... She was even sarcastic in her own thoughts.

Shaking her head, Adrianna Jameson, better known as Phoenix or Nix, made her way through the darkened park area with her normal, easy stride. Dressed all in black with her hair pulled up in a messy ponytail, she looked harmless enough if one didn't look beyond her feminine attire to the trained warrior underneath. That kind of mistake had gotten more than one creature killed.

Reaching the remotest parts of the wooded area, the dark haired witch took a moment to glance around her and then headed for a nearby clearing. With the full moon rising and a storm brewing, there was no better time or place to conduct a bit of magic.

Finding the exact place she sought, Nix moved to the center of the huge circle and let her bag drop off her shoulder. In quick, efficient movements, she soon had a circle drawn on the ground and then she was ready for the rest of the ritual.

Not sensing anything or anyone lurking in the vicinity, the young witch quickly lost her modern apparel and stood in the form the goddess had given her. With clear, precise words, Nix began to call the elements to her and close the circle. All around her the winds roared, trees swayed, rain fell and lightening flashed.

Unperturbed, the dark haired sorceress stood in the middle of it and felt power fill her soul. Even as she chanted she felt her Goddess's blessing wrap itself around her and again felt the rightness of the magic she had chosen to bestow upon her. In her mind, she heard the words spoken by the deity and felt a smile grace her features as she acknowledged the wisdom there.

When her new orders were given, Nix spoke up once more and the environment around her eased until her it was once again still. As her hair floated back around her and her skin shivered from the after effects of the elements, she broke the circle and stepped towards her clothing.

Only then did she become aware of someone... Something nearby.

Moving quickly towards her weapons, she leaned down and picked up a gun loaded with silver bullets. Never taking her attention off the trees, she flipped the safety and cursed the ritual that called for a witch to be ala natural. Good damned thing she wasn't the modest type.

[thane]

His stride was bold, never hesitating even as the mother of all storms seemed to want to punish the whole damned city for some crime it had committed against some god. And like hell he cared about it. Thane had bigger fish to fry and he would do so tonight, the curse of having to wait until nightfall always got into his nerves. At the hours of morning, he felt like a caged beast and it wasn’t a storm that was going to stand in his path.

Rising his head as another thunder cracked overhead, he wasted no time at crossing the streets, with uncanny ease dodging the high speed moving cars before he reached the other side. When he had his mind set on something, it was close to impossible to stop him from going the whole way. In a way, such obsession kept him grounded, gave him something to look forward to.

And that was the thought in his mind as he moved into the wooded area, just across the park laid his target. In a fortress of glass and steel, on the top floor of the building the bastard believed himself to be out of his reach. Probably was looking down the streets right now and laughing at him. It would be all the sweeter when he’d seen Death coming his way.

Suddenly, Daniel once again glanced up to the swaying tress and a frown appeared in his features.

Nothing out of the usual when the trees swayed amidst a storm, no, what caught his attention was that they weren’t moving in the same pattern the wind was howling. It was like they were caught in a different storm in their middle.

Grudging, he changed his path towards the clearing in the woodened area. He wouldn’t be foolish enough to let this seemingly unrelated event slip by, because it could come back and bite him in the ass later.

When he stood closer to the clearing, he was ready for everything.

Or almost everything as his blue eyes caught sight of the form of a naked female standing alone in the middle of the clearing. She didn’t seem aware of his presence so far, but he couldn’t prevent his eyes from wandering over her body.

It didn’t fail to appeal to his sex drive. He definitively felt tempted to ignore his quest for the night and disappear before sunset, leaving her wondering if she had only dreamed of him.

However duty should come before play even if he was strongly tempted otherwise, his hand sliding towards the handle of his pistol when he saw her taking a gun. So much for about the thought of some time off.

Standing into the clearing, he stood ready and eyed her.

“I doubt the one I’m seeking would hire you for protection, the bastard never had any love for beauty. So why don’t you tell me why I shouldn’t blast your brains?”

[rachel]

She'll make a grown man cry
She'll make a woman try
She'll make you wanna believe
And she will leave you high and dry
You got nowhere to run
got her phasers on stun
With her toys like the boys
She is second to none

Oh, wasn't' he just cute? All that bravado and manliness. It was almost enough to make Nix go all Scarlett O'Hara.

NOT.

The hot look he ran over her form was a different story, however. Damn, to bad this was all business and no pleasure. He wasn't so bad himself. For a dead guy, that was.

Oh yeah, she had no illusions about his state of life... or death. That was one of the things about her magic. It immediately allowed her to peg a creature for what they were and this guy was definitely one of the children of the night.

Rolling her eyes at his words, the brunette haired beauty leaned down casually and picked up her black duster. Keeping her eyes pegged on him, she shrugged it on one arm and then switched hands with her weapon so that she could draw it on the other side. Once it curled around her naked curves, she felt a bit more dignified and able to cope.

"First off... I don't know who the hell your talking about.. Secondly.. Try to pull that trigger and your going be be wearing your own bullets. Unless you've got enough blood in your system that you can afford that.. I wouldn't recommend it. I have it on good authority that while bullets might now KILL you vampires.. They sure as hell can slow you down and be a bitch to recover from."

Lowering her own weapon just a fraction, she tilted her head and eyed him with glinting eyes.

"I know why I am out here and it has nothing to do with protecting anyone or a midnight tryst... So that leads to the next question.. Why are you out prowling the night? Not attacking any unsuspecting victims i hope? I would hate to have to dust your ass after this polite conversation we've been having."

As she waited for his response, Phoenix took in his dress and his cold demeanor. Ok, evidently not one for idle chit chat. Shrugging a bit, she pulled her cloak tighter around her and fastened a few buttons with her free hand. Her mind mocked her for the fact that she was now naked but for her jacket and there was no way in HELL she was going to relax long enough to get hte rest of her clothing on with this guy around. The only luck she was having was that her boots were slip on and not lace.

Thank the goddess for small favors.

She was going to have to pray the night guard to her apartment didn't have fantasies about naked women in trench coats when she got back home. Talk about ACKWARD since he was barely out of his teens and had the bad habit of ogling her ass every time she walked away from him.

Wasn't she just the lucky one tonight?

"So... is this where we put down our weapons and play like good boys and girls or where we re enact the OK CORRAL? Cause.. as much as I love those old cowboy shows.. I'm really not in the mood to waste what magic I just called down."

[thane]

Alright, stop staring at her face, her legs and…everything else.

He’d be damned but even after two hundred years he couldn’t stop that heat surge inside him when he’d gaze at a woman’s form like that. But his cold bastard personality wouldn’t allow him to lower his guard before a stranger who just happened to be hotter than hell itself. Not even when all the blood he had consumed that day was trying to rush not exactly in the direction his brain was…what made him believe that she was all the more dangerous. Well, he wouldn’t lower his guard near those he knew even, but that was beside the point, he was just a paranoid bastard.

Luckily when she pulled her duster on, it helped him a bit to ease his nerves and keep his hand over the handle of his gun. There was no sign of fear on him, he could tell she wasn’t a vampire or a were, and he was fast enough to draw and fire before she had the chance to pull her trigger. Even if he was mistaken, if she did get a bullet in him or two, he would still be in condition to fight.

“A smart mouthed girl…how lovely,” he rolled his eyes in a sign of annoyance. “I wonder if you can heal from a bullet between the eyes.”

Stepping inside the clearing, Daniel was unable to find any sign that would reveal anyone standing in the bushes nearby and using that woman as bait. Perhaps she was telling him the truth after all.

“My motives are mine alone to concern with. And as for you dusting me, don’t fool yourself, a lot had tried and they’re not here anymore, but I am.”

Okay, better not meant what crossed his mind when he thought about her finely shaped hear, but it had nothing to do with dusting her.

“I have never been into cowboy shows, and I have the impression your fingers very well be more dangerous than that gun you’re weaving witch, so it is just for show, am I right?”

A quick arrogant smirk crossed his lips while he tilted his head and sized her up. Every civilian and their mother were looking for cover from the storm, so he wouldn’t have to worry about causalities if things got messy there.

But heck, he would be lying if he’d say he’d be hopping things didn’t get bloody messy, but instead them, the rain and the muddy ground type of messy.

[rachel]

All the boys wanna know
If she's got something to hide
All the girls are relieved
She's working for the other side
She's a sinner, a saint
She'll run it cool and hot
She's a secret agent
You can believe it or not

Touche'

All righty then. The man had a mouth on him too and he gave as good as he got. This was really getting interesting now! Nix had never really been into guys who were cowed by her own sarcastic nature and she had to admit.... Most were intimidated by her.

Not that she could blame them.. She was hell on wheels if she did say so herself!

It wasn't often she found a male who would match her threat for threat or insult for insult. Those that did usually ended up dead or being her bitch boy because they didn't have enough guts to back up their talk. Well, all except those of the A Team and a few other suppies in the area. Even she had to back down when faced with those ancients.

For the most part though.... Men just tended to dissappoint her. She suspected that wouldn't be the case with this one.

As his words flew across the clearing and threatened bodily harm, the dark haired beauty smirked. Here was a man who obviously was used to people trembling in terror around him and she suspected he wasn't used to his prey throwing it back in his face. Well, wasn't she ever the disappointment. She just wasn't in the mood to tremble and quake and if he wanted to terrify her.... He was going to have to get up earlier and pack a lunch.



"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh.... I'm shaking in the boots I don't even have on!" she retorted, batting her eyelashes falsely at him. "Hold on a second and I'll slip them on!"

From the returned look on his face, he didn't find her as funny as she did. Boy Howdy. Hold on to your fishing pole, foks, cause we got a live one here!

Grinning impishly and deciding that he wasn't truly a threat at the moment, Nix moved forward and slipped her slender feet inside her calf high boots. Once her feet were thankfully protected from the damp woodland floor, she tilted her head and gave him a brilliant grin.

"OH!! SCORE ONE FOR THE VAMPIRE! GO TO THE HEAD OF THE CLASS! SOMEONE HAS DONE HIS HOMEWORK!" she snarked at him before slipping her gun in the inside pocket of her trench coat. "Your right...I'm more deadly without a gun in my hand but make no mistake.... I'm trained in every form of weapon known to man and am an excellent marksman.... Don't let the pretty face fool you!"

Sashaying forward, she arched a brow and reached up to pull her long, wet hair out from underneath the coat collar so it spilled around her like a silk blanket. When she stopped and looked up at him, the lightening flashed around them and revealed a wealth of mischief in her dark depths.

"Might as well put away your weapon now, cowboy.... If you were going to shoot me, you wouldn't have stopped to talk me to death."

Then, making a show of how little threat she found him, she turned her back and proceeded to pack up the rest of her sacred stash and slip it into her back pack. Once that was finished, she eyed her clothing longingly and then sighed. There was no way in HELL she was going to get naked in front of this man again if it didn't involve wild monkey sex and since she was already cold and wet.....

"Damn it...... " she drawled. "My night guard is going to LOVE this...."

Turning back to the vampire, she arched a brow.

"So... Tell me... are you always a Peeping Tom or do you just make a practice of it once on a blue moon?" she teased.

[thane]

That woman had quite a tongue on her mouth, and Daniel was certainly considering ripping it out. If she’d make a bet she would win, he wasn’t used to people talking back to him and he didn’t like it at all. Others did tremble before him and die, even before they knew what happened they had already died.

Why he should care about this annoying woman anyways? He had no time for foolish distractions tonight, he had business to take care off. There were those who were overdue for their meeting with Death and he was coming to collect this night and he wouldn’t let a woman with an impertinent tongue to distract him from his goal.

He was about to turn around and ignore her when she made a show of turning her back on him like he wasn’t a threat at all.

That sight caused a surge of anger inside him that he could barely control. How dared her? Insolent bitch!

Curling his hands into balls, he crossed the distance between them with graceful and lethal strides that were uncannily silent against the damp and muddy ground bellow. When she turned around, he was right in her face and there was a mighty pissed expression in his features.

Daniel was ready to draw blood, ready for the kill.

He didn’t appreciate anyone talking back to him, not even a bit. Her insolence had caused an angry fire to rush through his veins and into his brain with untamed intensity.

“You don’t know when to shut up your big mouth woman!”

He was going to rip off her head, he was going to rip open her…

Coat?

It came as a surprise to even himself when he did and sent the buttons flying around, but the sight of her naked form and her smart mouthed insolence was driving him wild.

So wrapping an arm around her waist, he pulled her to him and claimed those infuriating lips in a demanding kiss just as the thunderous storm raged violently over their heads.

Yes, she talked too much and he liked her more silent.

[rachel]

I like the way you, put your hands up in the air,
I like the way you, shake your hair,
I like the way you, like to touch,
I like the way you, stare so much,
but most of all....
Yeah..
most of all....
I like the way you move!



Oh, show me how you REALLY feel!

Phoenix really wasn't all that surprised when her disregard sparked the man's anger. After all, she was used to men getting bitchy with her over her lack of submission so she honestly would have been dissappointed if she HADN"T gotten a reaction from him.

That being said, however, she wasn't exactly ready to have him go all caveman on her either. For a moment, she was to shocked to do anything but absorb his kiss. Never mind react to the fact that he'd just destroyed her last semblance of covering.

When she did finally come to her senses though, the poor witch didn't know exactly what to do first. Part of her wanted to kick his ass for taking liberties while the more feminine half wanted everything he was giving her.

So she decided to compromise.

Dropping her bag, she brought her hands up to grab his dark hair and she pulled harder enough that he was forced to break the kiss. Her dark eyes glinted wildly in the flash of lightening but there was appraisal there too.

"Oh... So this is how you wanna play? You should have told me you liked it rough, doll face. I'm just the sort of girl who can accommodate you."

All right. So maybe Nix had never been the sort to toe the mark. She'd always had to push the envelope and see what happened. She was that smart ass in the class who always had to do one better than the next person and was never content unless she felt the breath of danger down her neck.

It seemed tonight was no different.

Pulling his head down for another heated kiss, the witch then shoved him away and paced a circle around him with her coat trailing behind her. Wiping her mouth with one arm, she tasted blood where his fangs had no doubt nicked her and tossed her head.

"You know.. the last guy who tried that ended up without his family jewels...... What makes you think your going to be any luckier after that little stunt?" she taunted, careful to keep her stance prepared for attack. "As for my mouth??? I promise you.... Its just one of the many talented things about me...."

Smirking wickedly, the witch waited to see what he would do.

[thane]

Don't leave me alone
Cause I barely see at all
Don't leave me alone
I'm falling in the black
Slipping through the cracks
Falling to the depths can I ever go back
Dreaming of the way it used to be
Can you hear me

All the while his mind was aware that this wasn’t what he was supposed to be doing, that he should have more control over his instincts and that in that moment he was being weak, selfish...but like that stopped him from pressing her body against his, taste her lips and revel in the feel of her bare skin against his fingertips.

Daniel Thane wasn’t exactly subtle or a gentleman, wasn’t the loving kind of person. No, he was an angry cold bastard who couldn’t care less about anything but what He believed was his mission, his personal obsession. And in that way, by shielding himself from caring and keeping others away from him, he was protecting not only his own hide, but others as well. He wasn’t planning to call her in the morning, give her flowers or take her to dinner or even grow attached.

But heck if their discussion hadn’t not been one hell of foreplay as far as he was concerned. By standing up to him, she had stirred the pent up lust inside him, and he wanted her.

His fangs pierced her bottom lip just a bit, to draw only a taste of blood, and it was downright intoxicating.

The witch’s fingers curled into his hair, grabbing it and forcing his head back, causing na angry snarl to depart his parted lips.

His lust was obvious in his eyes as he stared at her, but the hold his arm had around her waist didn’t lose its hold of her.

And then once again, just as she had pulled him away, she pulled him back in and their lips merged again in a deep heated kiss. That woman had no idea that she was playing with fire and could very well get burned. But before long however, she surprised him once more and shoved him back. Caught by surprise, Daniel had no choice but to give under the force and stumble back a few steps.

His respiration was heavy with desire and his eyes glinted wildly into the night. Another angry snarl crossed his face and he frowned as he glared at her.

“There you go again woman, talking too much! If you think I’m the sort you can just walk over, you’re gravely mistaken. As far as your idle threats, if you intended on making good on them you would have already tried and lost your hand in the process.”

[rachel]

Wow.. Why didn't he tell her how he really felt? Snarly much?

Bitting her bottom lip in order to restrain the smirk that danced about the edges, Nix eyed him up and down before shaking her head. What was it about vampires and their volitale natures?

OH RIGHT... they WERE death dealers.

Really though.. Was there an unspoken law that said all of them had to be moody and cranky? Seriously, the bloodsuckers really needed to learn how to lighten up and have a bit of fun. Not to mention gain a sense of humor. Ho Hum. To bad she really didn't have time to teach this one that life wasn't all about threats and balances. She did, after all, have a job to do.

Mores the pity. He was such a mummy morsel.

Shrugging her shoulders, Nix leaned down and grabbed up her pack once more. Slipping it over her shoulder, she let her dark eyes drift over him once more and the cocked a brow.

"Baby, i would never DREAM of walking all over you. That wouldn't be fun for either of us. I'm not really into the whole pain thing when it comes to mutual pleasure." she snarked back at him before letting her grin break through. "Besides, what fun would it be if I made it that easy for you? Somehow, I don't think a man like you appreciates anything that comes easy!"

Grinning impishly, Nix took another step back and held up a hand in which a small card appeared. Flicking it towards him, she winked.

"Lets see if your half the man you seem. Business calls but if your really clever... You'll be able to find me!"

Then, as he caught the small white card with one word on it, she disappeared into thin air.

"PHOENIX"

[thane]

Daniel’s gaze traveled over her face, her lips…only to stop at the boots in her feet as he waited impatiently for a reply. There was a glint of approval in his eyes, mixed with desire that her fiery and challenging attitude had started on him.

When she spoke, his hand instinctively moved to catch the card she tossed his way and an annoyed frown appeared in his features when she vanished in thin air. Was the witch trying to lure him in a game of cat and mouse? Like he would chase after some women when he’d made a point to keep everyone in arms length, attachments were a stupid thing and he was ready to crumble the card into a ball in his hand and toss it away.

Somehow instead the card make its way into his pocket as the rain washed away the last remnants of her scent.

And once again he was in motion, quickly crossing the distance from the park to the buildings on the other side. His target hid into a tower of glass and steel, in one of the top floors, believing he had eluded him. Fighting his way up would take all night and could very well risk leaving him open to the first rays of sun in the morning.

It was a good idea to improvise, and the sight of a parked motorcycle down the corner was just the king of improvisation he needed.

Flipping a pocket knife out of his pocket, he shoved the blade into the ignition and it wasn’t long before the engine roared to life. So dragging the bike along to the nearest building, Daniel ignored the glares tossed his way and a glare of his own and a simple “Get out!” had all the suit types running off the elevator and allowing him space to climb the floors with the bike.

Over on the building’s rooftop, Daniel stood into the edge as he looked at the floor in the opposite building where his prey waited, it would be tricky but still doable. Turning around, he walked to the waiting bike, hoped into the seat and let the engine roar. There was no sign of emotion or hesitation in his face when he took off, increasing the speed as he went over the edge, before that surreal moment when he seemed to glide for just a second before gravity started pulling him down.

Crashing through the window, the bike steered when the wheels touched solid ground, making him almost lose his balance.

As thunder echoed outside, the sound of bullets roared in the inside and before long everything was silent.

His prey lay lifeless under his feet, the bullet hole between his eyes letting the crimson blood escape. Daniel’s hand searched inside his pocket and pulled out a card with a single word written on it.

“PHOENIX”

By the hired guns that waited in the lower levels of the building rushed up drawn by the sounds of bullets being fire at top and they pushed through the doors, they only found dead bodies. When the lightning lighted the dark skies, the killer was already long gone.