The Fiend #24

The Fiend #24

Link(14th image):

https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/48854938

-----

A little close to twelve o'clock, Daniella would be standing with the man who is named Trevor Rourke; the two meeting as a surprise date formed by Daniella's older sister Nora Reynolds. The two for a time had spent the hour together getting to know one another over a cup of coffee and chatting. To Daniella's surprise, they had a little bit more in common than anticipated; thinking him a possible dullard or some fool attempting to act gentle and shy for the sake of earning her favor, but shows himself to be a genuine article.

It was cute to her to see how his shyness appeared when ittedly being a nerd as an adult with his love of Star Wars for a man who works as an ant for some bigwig in the city. And Trevor never shown himself to be a desperate fellow to have her around, knowing her profession was known in Newark as a tv hostess debating about the acts of superheroes with guests to argue with.

All in all, Daniella felt normal as she spoke with him.

"I'm glad to have done this," she said to Trevor with a warm smile, "it's been some time since I got to be a bit open with someone."

Her words made Trevor blush and run his fingers through the back of his hair with an embarrassed smile. "No problem, really. It was nice to talk with you. And hey, if you'd like I wouldn't mind seeing you again--"

"--I'd like that."

"O-Oh. Good. Good. I'll call you! See you later, Daniella."

The two exchanged their goodbyes with Trevor going one way, and Daniella going another.

A warm feeling spreads in Daniella's heart to have agreed to meet him again soon. A growing smile formed on her face at the feeling that came from feeling normal again, and forgetting about her woes for a change.

-----

A couple hours later, when the sun was nearing the west as it sets, Richard sat in one of the pews of the local church, with Maxwell approaching to sit down by his side. Their were a few others sitting in the pews, conducting silent prayers or sitting there in their thoughts, but paid no mind to any others around.

"So what have you been up to, Rich?" Maxwell spoke to break the silence they shared.

Richard looked at the altar before shaking his head with a shrug. "The same ole same ole really," he answered, "the world keeps on turning, and I still lead the Order and it's followers. As of late though, I feel drained from it."

"Yes, I can see. A gray hair or two is showing on that head of yours, old friend. I don't envy you one bit."

"Heh, you aren't spring chicken either, Max. Seems the hairs are already getting gray on that mugshot of a beard."

They laughed together on this before going quiet again.

"Have you ever considered a time when you would have led the Order, Max?" Richard had asked the priest while looking at the altar once more. Maxwell shifted his body to be leaning against the seat he was in, and folded his arms with the thought of his question coming to mind. Then, he would answer him.

"When I left the Order, it took me awhile to adjust to the life of a god-fearing man. I had renounced my mystic abilities, and ties with the supernatural that granted me my power to act against the monsters of the dark; banishing all manner of monstrosities from our world to save the innocent. I'll it, it was fun back then, young and in the prime of my life. More fun too with you, Rich. But after what had happened...what I had lost, I realized that I never was meant to be anything greater than this. And when I left the Order, I found a clarity -- a realization about who I was really, away from the constant threat of the unknown: I'm a man of God. Not a perfect one, but a man of God nonetheless."

Maxwell looked at his friend who waited to hear the answer to the question that led to his monologue. He nodded for him to continue on.

"As the years went by, distancing myself from the Order and simply spectating your works as heaster, I knew that you could, and I could not. Despite it being questionable, you know the tough call, where I couldn't. Even if it meant hurting others, you had the gall to do what was necessary. So...no, I don't believe I ever would nor could lead the Order. It's not in me to be that kind of man, Rich."

Maxwell then felt Richard pat his shoulder while looking down.

"... I'm sorry about Mona, Max."

"I know... I know. But I know that I have made the right choice in doing the works of God in a way that won't endanger others ever again. Just , Rich, to not wear yourself down or others under you. We are only human."

Nodding to this, Richard observe the altar, and looking at the wooden cross towering behind it near a window.

They would be quiet and watch it together within the the silent mumbling of others and their prayers.

-----

Elizabeth would be in her lavish apartment; a lavishly decorated hotel room that had a good view of the city of Newark. She was sitting in bed, a cigarette lit between her lips. In the with were two people -- one man and one woman, resting underneath the blanket on both sides of her. They weren't anything to her really. In her anger over what she had seen(Daniella smiling another person), Elizabeth had charmed these two random people into her bed, and acted on an impulse to numb her emotions. But it failed... miserably in fact. She didn't feel any better. Her anger remained, and not even the charming man or the beautiful woman sharing her bed could quell it.

As she fumed with her anger, the two were waking up, and she noticed them still underneath her spell. Without looking at either of them, she said a command:

Take your things and get out.

With that said, both the man and the woman obeyed and collected their belongings before walking out of the bedroom and out the apartment in a magic-induced daze.

When she was alone, she went to put on some clothes.

"Idiot... I'm such an idiot. Why am I not happy for her? She's trying to be normal, and I should be happy for her, but I am not. Ella was smiling at him -- that four-eyed wimp in a tie. How can she see that as attractive?"

She ventured out her room and into the living room, then standing in the center with a huff. "Maybe he's just a friend? Perhaps I was just reading things wrong, she can't be with someone like him...but he got her to smile like that. Why is it so damned maddening? How could that be?"

In her moment of mental pondering, she heard the sound of a knock coming from the door to her home. She would make her way over to see through the peephole. Outside, waiting for Elizabeth to open it, was Daniella Reynolds.

"I'll be damned..." Thought Elizabeth. "She came to me...? She truly came to me."

"Lisa? Lisa, are you home? Please open up, I need to talk to you." Daniella knocked on the door twice and waited for it to be open to her. She had mustered up the courage to come to Elizabeth and speak to her; wanting questions to be answered about how things ended between them over a month back. But nothing happened as she waited there. Maybe Elizabeth wasn't home? That wasn't true. Without being in her fiendish appearance, her sense of smell was enough to detect the scent of the woman's perform -- a notable scent that Daniella had memorized since their first meet a long time back. So she knew that in a moment or two, the door will be opened if she waited enough.

And enough she did indeed.

The door to Elizabeth's apartment opened with Elizabeth herself being revealed from behind it.

"Hey," said Elizabeth with a soft smile.

"Hi," responded Daniella with a smile that was faint, with a heart warmed by the sight of the other.

They would both go inside, and begin their talk.

-----

"I always forget how big and fancy this place of yours appears compared to my home. It makes me feel somewhat odd to be here."

A cup of Darjeeling tea had been given to Daniella by the hostess of the home. The scent lingers in her nostrils, and the taste was strong against her tongue; favouring the beverage in that moment, and deeming it superior to the coffee she tends to make.

Elizabeth looked at her smile from enjoying the tea, and found herself warmed by it.

"I'm surprised you came to see me, Ella. It's been awhile, hasn't it," asked Elizabeth from the long couch in front of the chair that her guest was in. Daniella looked at her, lowered the cup of tea from her mouth to say, "I know. Honestly, it took some time to choose whether I wanted to see you or not. And as I did think about it, I leaned more on the 'not' part of it. But I needed to speak with you about some things from before..."

Elizabeth shifted her body to recline on her chair, and nodded to her. "Okay," she said and waited for the questions.

The two spoke, about the Order, about it's origins, the half-demon Behelith, the rogue sorceress Korin, the man calling himself the "Woeful Prince", and everything involving their ties with the organization that the two have worked with. And in turn did Elizabeth answer to the best of her ability; answering some and unfortunately not able to answer others. Much like Daniella, Elizabeth had no knowledge of who the sorceress and her master was, nor not knowing about the half-demon whom she shot into the aic River. However, the blonde beauty confessed to have known about the Order's past with demons, spoken to her by Richard Holden, her mentor and leader of the Order.

This raised questions for herself, as she had the displeasure of being faced with the Woeful Prince inside of Maxwell King's church. The way he spoke to her, the hateful glare, all made it seem as if he knew her; calling her a snake that would doom those around her, and swearing to destroy her for the sake of his mother(he speaks of Daniella as such). If the man knew Elizabeth, then there was more to her than meets the eye, and it made her wonder just who is she if not Elizabeth Sharpe.

"I see...so not much can be answered. I should have known." With a sigh, Daniella closed her eyes and sipped the tea she had and finished it.

Elizabeth looked at her quietly. She wondered on the one thing that's been on her mind, from last month and from what happened earlier.

"Ella," she started to speak, "Are you... dating someone?" The question had Daniella pause as she lowered the cup from her mouth. "I don't know if it's my business to ask, but I did see you earlier at the cafe. I was wanting to talk to you, but you were busy so I left." Elizabeth told the truth, but kept her feelings about it away.

"... I'm not sure," Daniella answered. "It was a thing my sister set up for me. I'm not so sure about it, but I'd like to see him again, to try to give him a chance. He seems sweet, although timid as a sheep."

"I see...who is it?" Elizabeth knew the answer already to this question, as having left the area of the cafe, she looked into the man named Trevor Rourke; an for a small conglomerate business in Newark, having no criminal record, no horrible past, not even an embarrassing photo from college. He was truly spotless, although right on the money with his sheepish demeanor, which annoyed Elizabeth to no end. Hearing Daniella mention him and pondering about seeing him again had pained her in heart; restraining her anger for him beneath her usual pokerface.

"His name is Trevor Rourke."

"I see...well if you're happy with him, then I guess that's fine," Elizabeth said while hiding the anger in her tone.

It was then quiet between them.

Then the vibration of a phone interrupted them, and Elizabeth answered it with Daniella watching her.

"Mhm. I'm on it," said Elizabeth. She then hung up and got up from her seat. "Duty calls."

"What is it," asked Daniella curiously with Elizabeth going into a drawer to grab a gun from inside it. That question had an obvious answer.

"Got vampires located in the East Ward, near the port at the river.

"Wait, you're going alone?"

"It's not new. Been doing this before you came along, and after you left. I'll be fine." Elizabeth marched towards the door, and behind her did Daniella follow her.

"What are you doing?" asked Elizabeth as she met Daniella's eyes, which were focused as she answered. "I'm going with you."

"Uh, why? You're not of the Order anymore, it's not your business."

"I'm not going to let you go alone. I may have flipped off the Order, but... you're still my friend. So who am I not to help you."

Elizabeth was touched by this. A faint red blush forming on her face as she scoffed and said, "Fine. But you better not have lost touch with your skills."

Daniella grinned and said, "Oh you of little faith," as she walked with her out the apartment and into the night.

-----

Durga, a vampire working as Alexander Warren's lieutenant, groaned longingly in a chair as she was supervising the productivity of those inside. For her master, Durga had been assigned to overlooking the blood of the coven's victims, and by Alexander's command, is to make sure all things went swimmingly and without a hitch. She had to make sure none of the more freshly born vampires made an attempt at sneaking a bite or two from humans they managed to drug and keep there in the building.

"U~~gh this su~~cks!" She huffed and kicked aside an empty oil drum. "Stupid Alex, leaving me to babysit these brats. Who does he think I am? Can't wait to make him pay for this big-time!"

Little would the vampire know that her night was about to become more than intended -- same goes for all who were present in the warehouse, both man and vampire alike.

The sound of the wall being smashed through, and the sight of a man being thrown through it, made Durga stand upright with her fellow vampires and their thralls staring at those entering through the wall.

"Let's get to it then, huh? I'm not the type to let any of these parasites run amok. Let's burn them down to cinders."

"I'll make sure to tear them limb from limb. You just be careful."

The pair, Elizabeth Sharpe and Daniella Reynolds--assuming her Fiend form--appeared before all those present.

Durga recognized them. Then a smile with her fangs had formed.

How it goes is told in the next installment

To be continued

(I won't lie, I had writers block for a good two days...but every self-proclaimed blogger has their days, right? Even I, who's humble enough to it they're mediocre! Anyway, hope you like a calm before the storm! *Laughs in trickster*)