Date: Fri, 12 Apr 2002 11:24:50 -0700 (PDT) From: Author James Subject: Chronicles of a Real Dark Knight 28 Disclaimer: This story, though maybe not in this chapter but in subsequent chapters, will have celebrities in it. I have no knowledge of their sexuality and this is not intended to imply their sexuality. This is all from my own mind. Scary!! People actually get a glimpse into my mind!!! Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, Angel and all related characters created by Joss Whedon. Copyright 20th Century Fox. Batman, and all related characters created by Bob Kane. Copyright DC Comics and Warner Bros. X-MEN, and all related characters created by Stan Lee. Copyright Marvel Comics and 20th Century Fox. Talamasca, Lestat, Louis, and all related characters created by Anne Rice. Copyright Anne O'Brien Rice. I don't know for sure if I will use all the above elements, but just in case, I have myself covered. In this story, which has been floating around in my head most of my life, you will find many universes merging, as the above copyrights reveal. I hope you all enjoy this. I appreciate any feedback that you may want to give. This story doesn't deal so much with sex, sex, sex, but more of my feelings that I struggled with and am starting to come to terms with. Part of his background is mine. I do hope that you enjoy it!!! Any emails you send, please tell me what chapter and story you are commenting on. Thanks. Chapter 28 Army of Darkness I walked down the streets of London exploring the city, beholding its wondrous landscape. You could almost feel the culture permeating your cells in this place. The city was truly enchanted. I came to an intersection that was rather open and I saw a large building in the distance. Immediately my mind recognized it as palace. What was its name? Buckley ham? Bucky ham? No, Buckingham. Buckingham Palace. I was remembering. But why would I remember a building in a country that I obviously was not a native of? I could tell that I wasn't from England by my lack of their native accent. Perhaps, because it's a palace, it was known all over the world. I left it as general knowledge and moved on. "Eric," the soft voice said to me. I turned. "Yes?" No one was there. "Hello?" I asked. "Who's there?" "Eric," the voice said again. "Who are you?" "Love," it said. Then it's presence faded. "Hm," I said, and then moved on. I wandered around the city most of the day. In one spot, I found a card amongst the street debris. It had the words "Council of Watchers" written on it, along with an address and telephone number. For some reason, I recognized that combination of words. I caught a cab back to the house. I went in and sat down, looking at the sunset and thinking about the things I had remembered today. My hand went down to the piece of material in my pocket and I pulled it out. I examined it again. "Where do I know you from? Why are you so familiar to me?" Brian sat in a chair in Garrett's underground laboratory. Jessica sat on the counter. Garrett, however, was busy mixing chemicals. "After examining your blood, Jessica, I discovered the chemicals used to create fear. Your natural Slayer metabolism quickly the drug and fought it off. If, however, you were fighting for your life, your metabolism would be too slow to save your life. I've created a chemical that should neutralize the effects of toxin." "What about me?" Brian asked. "I've synthesized something for you, as well. It should have the same effect on you. The Scarecrow's fear gas will have no effect on either of you." "Good. I mean to find him, or her, tonight." I heard the door open downstairs and stuffed the material deep into my pocket. I didn't want Christian to know what I had been doing. I loved him. I wanted to surprise him with my memories coming back to me. And it wasn't the time. Not yet. A knock came to my door. "Come in," I called. The door opened and Christian came in. "Hi," he greeted. "Hi," I said. I stood up and walked over to him, taking him into my arms. "How was your day?" I kissed him. "Busy. I've been working with my group on a few new songs for our album. They are coming along pretty well." I realized something. I had never met Christian's co-workers. I decided to ignore it for the moment. It was probably a way to ease me back into remembering. Christian was so good to me. "I'm glad to see you." I leaned in and kissed him again. "I can tell. You are in a rather chipper mood." "I'm getting my strength back moment by moment, it seems. I have the man I love with me. I have no worries. Why shouldn't I be?" "No reason," Christian said kissing me and pulling me close. "No reason whatsoever." "Are we going out to dinner?" I asked. "I thought of dinner in tonight. I'm going to cook. Are you hungry?" "Famished. I haven't eaten all day." "Why not?" "I was too busy to think about eating." "Busy doing what?" Christian asked. I noted a deep concern there, though he tried to hide it by changing his voice pitch and his facial expression. "Just thinking and walking." "Then let's get some food into that stomach of yours." I walked with Christian downstairs. We went into the kitchen and he motioned for me to sit in a chair at the table. He then went to work, busily preparing our dinner. I had the strangest sensation of being in Christian's position, preparing food. And someone was sitting watching and talking to me. The face was blurred, but I recognized blonde hair. Perhaps it was Christian's. The sun had set completely on London and the demon Macai headed out, along with his minions Puz, Shetar, and the beast. They headed off toward a cemetery. "I want vampires, Puz! Get them for me!" "Yes, sire!" Puz said. "My orb will locate mystical energy. If there are vampires around, we will find them." "Why vampires?" Shetar asked. "Back in the day, there were many that opposed vampires. Yes, they strike fear into the hearts of humans, but there are also many willing to fight the creatures. They do not hesitate. And you yourself said there are many Slayers who live just to rid this world of vampires." "But this society has grown lax in their superstitions. Books are written about vampires, making them see almost human. Their hearts are no longer sensitive to the evilness within vampires." "Some vampires," Shetar corrected. "There are some species of vampire that are almost human. If you recall back in the day at your last attempt to take the kingdom of..." "Don't mention that city's name. Neither will you mention the blonde Roman vampire. He is a thorn in my side that no longer haunts me. No one knows where he is, and no one needs find him. When I get my full power, I shall hunt him down and place his head on a pike. "Now, Puz. Where are my vampires?" "Right here, sire. The orb is aglow. There is a vampire here." The four beings stepped back. Macai could feel the ground shake as the vampire dug its way out of its coffin. The earth and grass began to move and then the demonic creature burst forth. It was a young child turned into a vampire. "A child," Macai said. He grinned showing all his pointy teeth. "A vampire child." The little girl turned to the creatures and snarled. "She needs to feed," Shetar said. "We need someone." "I will reach her and calm the beast within," Puz replied. He looked upon the girl focusing on her mind. The girl calmed, though she was breathing heavily. "She knows what she must do." The child's face appeared, hiding the demon within. She smiled at her four new friends and looked around. Smelling fresh blood, she headed off toward it. The four followed from a distance, sticking to the shadows. They watched as the girl approached a woman walking down the street. "Help me," the girl said. "What's wrong?" the woman asked stopping. "Where's your mother?" "I don't know. I'm scared." "It's okay," the woman comforted. She kneeled down and embraced the girl with a reassuring hug. "Ouch!" she exclaimed as she felt a pinch on her neck. The little girl had buried her fangs into the neck of her first victim. The blood flowed into her mouth strengthening her. She felt the woman's heart race with the pain and the fear. Then slow as no more blood was being pumped through it. The woman collapsed to the ground. The little girl turned and looked at her friends as they approached. "I'm not scared now," she replied wiping the blood from her lips. "Of course not, my dear," Shetar said kneeling down. "What is your name, so we may know what to call you?" "I am Morgan." "Hello, Morgan. My name is Shetar. This is Puz. And our great master, Macai." "Who is that?" Morgan asked pointing to the beast. "That is our friend as well. He has no name. He has no need of one." "He is beautiful," Morgan said walking up to the beast and petting it. "I love him." "Yes, she truly is a vampire," Macai said. "Finding beauty in the grotesque. Come. We have much more to do." The five creatures headed back into the cemetery in search of more for their group. Huntress and Mr. Freeze made their way toward the college campus after parking their motorcycles in the same alley as before. This time, however, they had a destination. It wasn't a patrol there were aiming for. It was a goal. They knew who they were after. Professor Paura of the Chemistry department. The arrived at the campus and Mr. Freeze took over, knowing the campus better since he attended here. They walked to the Sciences building and found the door locked. "I could freeze it," Mr. Freeze suggested. "I got it," Huntress replied kicking the center of the double doors. The lock broke and the door flew open. "Where is her office?" "Upstairs." The two ran up a nearby flight of stairs and headed down the hall. They slowed as they neared Professor Paura's office. To their relief the light was on, meaning the good teacher was in. Stealthily Huntress approached the door, not wanting to lose the element of surprise. A great crash came from the office and Huntress hurried to the door. The door burst open hitting the Huntress and knocking her to the ground. Mr. Freeze stood face to face with the Scarecrow. "Hold it right there, Doctor Paura," Freeze said holding up his freeze gun. "One move and you are an ice cube." "Tut tut, ice boy," Scarecrow replied. The voice was that of a male's, though it was twisted into a voice invented to induce fear. "Didn't your mother ever tell you it's not nice to point guns? Oh, wait. She probably taught you." The Scarecrow pulled out a small fist scythe and hurled it at Mr. Freeze. Mr. Freeze dodged it, his aim moving. Scarecrow took the opportunity to run down the hall. "I'll go after him," Huntress said. "Check on Professor Paura." Mr. Freeze ran inside the office and found the professor lying on the floor. "Professor Paura? Are you okay?" He knelt down and touched her, shook her slightly to get her attention. He then rolled her over to check her breathing. Blood was coming from her mouth and her open eyes held no life. "He killed you." Mr. Freeze stood and called an ambulance to the campus. Then he set out to help the Huntress. Huntress followed the Scarecrow down the stairs and out the door. "He's fast, I'll give him that," Huntress thought. "But he's not Slayer fast." The Scarecrow ran into some bushes. Huntress, figuring he was waiting in ambush, decided she didn't need to go through the bushes. As she neared them, she jumped, grabbing a tree branch nearby and swinging on it. When she reached the apex of the forward swing, she released her grip, coming down on the other side of the bushes and the Scarecrow. "What the..." the Scarecrow exclaimed. The Huntress punched him. He fell to the ground. "You sicken me, Scarecrow. Using fear to control others. Why?" "Fear is a very powerful tool, Huntress. You, of all people, should know." "What do you mean?" "Think of what you deal with every night. What keeps your blood pumping? What heats it up for a fight? Fear. Fear is the great equalizer. Fear can make the largest giant crumble and can make the weakest person fight. It strengthens and weakens the host. "I merely use it to my advantage. No longer will I be the one cowering in fear. I will be the master of fear." "Master my ass," Huntress replied. She approached the Scarecrow. He threw his leg out kicking her in the stomach. He spun his legs around and got to his feet. The Huntress threw a backhand and hit him in the face. He spun with the impact and fell against a tree trunk. "You're going to jail." "I highly doubt that." The Scarecrow stood up and jumped grabbing a low branch. He swung his legs out trying to kick the Huntress. She blocked his attempt. As his legs swung back, he pulled himself up onto the branch. He pulled out another fist scythe and hooked it onto a branch. Doing the same as the Huntress, he swung forward and on his forward apex pulled on the scythe. It cut through the branch and he landed on his feet. The branch came down between him and the Huntress, providing a brief moment for him to get a head start. The Scarecrow took off running across the campus grounds. Mr. Freeze came through the bushes. "Huntress!" he called. Huntress turned. Mr. Freeze triggered a trap and a pitchfork came down from the trees. Huntress tackled him, knocking him out from under the pitchfork. It imbedded into the ground. "Are you okay?" Huntress asked, standing up. "Yeah. But Professor Paura isn't. She's dead." "How?" "I don't know. There were no wounds on her. I called for an ambulance." The Huntress turned in the direction Scarecrow went. There was no sign of which direction he went. "I really don't like this guy," she said. "Let's go back to the Professor's office. Maybe we can search the office and discover why the Scarecrow wanted her dead." "Let's take this with us," Huntress said pulling the pitchfork out of the ground. "Take this back to Garrett. Maybe he can find some fingerprints on it or something. I'll go back to the office. It would be easier for me to hide in the shadows than you." "Quite right." Mr. Freeze took the pitchfork and headed back to the motorcycles while the Huntress headed back to the now deceased professor's office. To Be Continued... The Scarecrow is ruthless. He doesn't hesitate to kill if he has to. But how did Professor Paura die? Find out in the next chapter.