Christmas 2016: Jonas

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Starfish
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Christmas 2016: Jonas

Post by Starfish »

The old St. Commons estate in Sleepy Hollow, a few miles from Salem.

Jonas: "I have a feeling we probably should get one of those woodworking manuals on repairing houses to keep they same style without making it look like a patchwork mess." Jonas told Cassie while looking over the damage on the side of the house. "At least replacing the shingles on the roof won't be hard. Plus replacing the insulation."

Cassie: Floating higher up in the air, Cassandra took a closer look at the worn and battered wooden planks on the side of the old building. Surrounding herself with several shadowy arms, she reached out to give some of the poking out parts a gentle tug. Pieces of wood rained to the ground as the plank disintegrated.

Cassie: "At least we can no longer say the place has been uninhibited," the hovering girl commented. "Now it's just a home for termites instead of people."

Jonas: "The termites need to go as well. As well as the critters in the basement." Jonas added, sidestepping when it rained more wooden bits.

Cassie: "Awww, really?" Cassie tossed away the splintered wooden pieces, having them join the other rotting remains scattered about the overgrown garden. "But they're so cute - whatever they are. They didn't even try to bite me anymore after I put out some food for them last night."

Jonas: "I know, but I'm a bit afraid the SPCA might get angry when Melody's girl bites them." Jonas explained.

Cassie: Tipping over until she hovered upside down, the thick mane of raven hair cascading downwards, Cassie descended towards her uncle and gave him her best puppy eyes. "But I already thought of names for them," she said, managing to make her lip quiver.

Jonas: "Cassie," Jonas said, peering up at her, his white dead eyes nearly shining in the darkness of the night. "THink about it, do you want the responsibility of taking care of wild animals inside your house?"

Cassie: The teenage girl pouted. "No," she eventually admitted, making the single word come out as disappointed as possible. "I'll get them out of the basement later. Some pieces of meat should do the trick."

Jonas: "Good girl." Jonas nodded. "Now we just-" he got cut off when there were gunshots in the distance. Jonas turned and squinted towards the direction it came from.

Cassie: Rotating in mid-air, Cassandra returned into an upright position, floating a few feet higher as she looked in the same direction as her uncle. "This is the third time tonight," she commented, a wary expression on her youthful face. "This neighbourhood really changed from how I remember it."

Jonas: "You should have seen it back in my time." Jonas commented. "I have a feeling that things will just degrade more and more." he told her, still staring towards the direction from where the sounds had come.

Cassie: "Especially now that everyone believes the X-Men are dead and done for," Cassandra remarked, her feet gently touching the ground as she joined her Jonas' side. Cocking her head, the teenage girl gave her uncle a sly smile. "Someone should remind them we're still here."

Jonas: "On the one hand... the whole retiring idea... on the other hand... I really want to beat someone up." Jonas added, squinting. He turned to look at his grand niece. "Cassie, would you like to team up and clean up?" he asked her.

Cassie: Cassandra perked up at the question, the girl's face brightening with excitement. "Are you suggesting what I think you are?" she asked, her black-painted lips forming an impish smirk, while she held up her hands in a dramatic fashion. "The spooky St. Commons spectres, skulking through the Sleepy Hollow nights."

Jonas: "Secretly stopping sly suspects past sunset till sunrise," Jonas agreed. "But if you're going to suggest we wear matching outfits while doing it, it should better look good on me."

Cassie: "You can never go wrong with black leather and some purple highlights to add splashes of colour," Cassie pointed out, actually bouncing and skipping about in her excitement. She performed an impromptu handstand on the small cobblestone wall, watching her uncle upside down.

Cassie: "Though, in your case, I'd definitely go for the bare-chested look. It would be way more intimidating."

Jonas: "..." he squinted at her, "Are you also picturing me in a leather loin cloth or those tiny underwear things... what they call... speedo's?" he asked her.

Cassie: Balancing on one hand, Cassie raised the other to hold up her finger. "Not any kind of speedo, mind you," she pointed out. "It would have snazzy metal studs."

Jonas: "...I didn't think of that. Well if I look in them, then you may put me in them." he said, then blinked, "I mean, make them for me to put on... not in front of you. I still find it strange to be naked around you. Which is strange seeing that... we.. "

Cassie: "That we are related?" Cassie suggested, cartwheeling off the shallow wall to stand right in front of Jonas. The unsettling nature of her wry smirk was fully intentional. "Or that we slept with each other?"

Jonas: "A bit of both." Jonas replied.

Cassie: "Would it be any consolation if I told you that I'd have no problems being naked around you?" Cassandra asked, stepping up to Jonas, gently draping her arms over the pale mutant's shoulders.

Jonas: "Not much, but I guess I don't have any problems with it." he shrugged with her arms on him. "So, until I get a studded leather loin cloth as a superhero uniform, how about we go and see what made those bang bang noises?"

Cassie: "You'd rather face thugs armed with guns than me, don't you?" Cassandra snickered, unable to resist the temptation to lean in to give Jonas a quick smooch on the lips. "Let's go then!" She let go of him and raised one arm to the night sky. "We're Vampire Uncle and Ghost Niece, and together we're protecting Sleepy Hollow from evildoers of all kinds!"
"The secondary penis slides into view. And they all lived happily ever after."
Kieron Gillen
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Re: Christmas 2016: Jonas

Post by Starfish »

Downtown Sleepy Hollow.

Cassie: The big man did his best to look tough despite his flamboyant outfit, but the girlish scream by one of his friends drained all colour from his face. "Holy hell, she ate Jimmy!" A shaky hand pointed the heavy gun towards the floating mass of tentacled shadows, the flailing arms of another man disappearing inside the dark portal.

Jonas: A second later, Jonas came out from the portal, gong straight for the man with the gun, and shoving him against the wall behind him, holding the hand holding the gun. "Last warning," Jonas hissed as he pinned the guy, "You give us answers, or you join your friends in the darkness."

Cassie: "Yes, and it's always hungry." Cassandra's inhuman form revealed an unnerving grin, the only defined aspect of her morphing black features being her eyes, glowing with violet light. The inky tentacles curled towards the other two bodyguards in the big man's entourage, who nervously backed off.

Jonas: "I can't!" the man yelled, blood drained from his face out of fear, "They'll kill me!" Jonas squinted with his white lifeless eyes, "I'll do much worse than kill you if you don't tell me who you're working for."

Cassie: "Maybe he wants to join his friend Jimmy." Cassandra's amorphous shadow form moved closer to the ground, creating eerie shapes in the dark alley. Her face moved closer towards the frightened man. "Someone must get all that protection money you extort from the people on these streets, and I'm pretty sure you know who it is."

Cassie: Raising her shadowy hand, the girl's fingers had taken the shape of smoky claws. "We only want to have a friendly chat with them."

Jonas: Jonas tightened his grip on the man's hand, feeling bone crush between his grasp and the pistol's grip. The man screamed, "Tell me!" Jonas urged once more. "Tombstone!" the man finally yelled. "What?" Jonas asked.

Cassie: Cassandra's eyes narrowed, the violet glow flaring up as she gave the helpless man an intense look. "Are you joking? Don't tell me this is what he calls himself." She looked from the captive thug to her uncle. "Why didn't we think of that name? That's much better than Greymalkin or Uncle Vampi."

Jonas: "Damn it... Maybe I can do something like that... what about... Casket?" Jonas asked Cassie while the guy in his grasp whimpered in pain.

Cassie: "Oooh, I like that." The shadow girl gave the vampire boy an excited look, the squirming man seemingly forgotten. "My first thought was Sepulchre, but Casket rolls much better off the tongue."

Jonas: The guy groan in pain, getting Jonas' attention again. "This Tombstone, who is he really? Where can we find him?" Jonas asked.

Cassie: "Don't break him just yet, uncle," Cassandra chimed in, her shadowy form curling around the captive man. "You promised I get to play with him, too." She gave the thug a predatory grin, while several inky tendrils slithered around his arms and legs. "His friend feels so alone in my darkness."

Cassie: "Wait... wait!" The fear had widened the man's eyes, his voice trembling as he spoke. "I tell you everything I know."

Cassie: "Yes, we're listening..." The girl's smoky form leaned closer, dark talons stroking the man's cheek.

Jonas: "He... Tombstone, he knows about you..." The guy said. Jonas smirked, "Hear that niece, we're getting famous," Jonas told Cassie. "Nah, I mean, he knows about two.... ffucking freaks getting in his way."

Cassie: "How rude of them," Cassandra remarked. "Perhaps they just won't accept how he and his goons bleed this town dry any longer. Can you blame them being fed with up seeing their fellow neighbours terrorized by greedy thugs?"

Cassie: She tore her stern gaze away from their captive and looked at Jonas. "Did you hear that? Maybe we should team up with those other two and take on Tombstone together."

Jonas: "Oh sweety, I'm getting the feeling he was talking about us." Jonas told his niece. He looked back at the guy, pushing him higher up against the wall, "How about you phone him to come here?" Jonas asked the guy.

Cassie: "Ooh, does that mean we managed to annoy an actual crime boss?" Cassie asked, sounding a little too excited about the whole idea. Before Jonas could answer, however, her glowing eyes narrowed, and she glared back at the poor man in her uncle's grasp. "Hey, you called us freaks! That's not very nice!"

Jonas: "No that isn't very nice, is it?" Jonas said, squinting at the guy in his hands. "How about you phone your boss, and then tell him where to find you?" Jonas asked very nicely, "I can't... I don't have his number." the guy begged. Jonas cocked a hairless eyebrow, "You're telling me you don't even know how to contact your boss?"

Cassie: Sighing dramatically, Cassandra turned away and began to saunter through the alley, the shadows around her moving in eerie patters. "I'm getting bored," she complained, cocking her head. "If we can't play with his boss, I at least want to play with him."

Cassie: Spinning around on the spot, she flashed Jonas a toothy grin. "Maybe this Tombstone will come find us faster if we do something really nasty to his henchmen."

Jonas: "Heeey, what did I say about disemboweling people?" Jonas asked her, "We only do that when they do it to us. No, we're just going to break a few bones." THe henchman started to scream when he heard what was planned.

Cassie: "Who said I was going to disembowel him?" Cassie pouted again, holding up her hands in defence. "I would have only teleported him a little. One part goes here, the other there..."

Jonas: "Okay, but just as long he doesn't die. Here, catch!" Jonas said, hefting the guy back and then throwing him towards Cassie and her amazing portal of darkness.

Cassie: The poor man's panicked scream abruptly cut off when the pitch-black vortex swallowed him whole and closed behind him. As the remaining thugs watched in horror as their leader disappeared, Cassie was obviously in no rush, whistling a tune as she leaned against the wall of the building.

Jonas: Jonas turned to the others, "If you want to join your friend, stay and work with Tombstone," he announced, "However if you want to stay alive, I suggest you start doing good... because the boogie man will come for you if you don't."

Cassie: Somewhere in the far distance, the man's screaming could be heard again, becoming gradually louder with each passing second. Cassie still waited patiently, occasionally glancing upwards into the night sky. "Excuse me for a second," she then said, floating upwards with no rush.

Cassie: The free-falling big guy found his rapid descent stopped in the last possible moment, bouncing off a blanket made of rubbery darkness. "Oh, and tell Tombstone we're waiting for him, or we'll just have to continue playing with you lot."

Jonas: Jonas grinned at them as he stepped back towards his floating niece, ready for her to envelope him into darkness and do her little shadow play to give them one last scare before they teleport away.

Cassie: Cassandra gathered her uncle in several shadowy tentacles, lifting the two of them off the ground. "And don't you forget it, boys," the teenage girl reminded the men below, waving her finger at them. "This is our town, and we're looking out for its people. So take your nasty schemes somewhere else."

Jonas: "Psst, dark and broody, not nice and perky." Jonas whispered to Cassie.

Cassie: "Oh, right." Cassie cleared her throat and tried again, spreading her arms along with several menacing shadowy shapes, including dark fanged maws and black serrated blades. "We are the night, and if you disobey us, we'll devour you!"

Cassie: She looked back at Jonas. "Was that better? I think I maybe overdid it a little."

Jonas: "Nah, that's okay, now do your thing... that cool shadow thing." he urged her on.

Cassie: "Ah, yes, I almost forgot..." Cassandra took a bow in front of her involuntary audience. "I would wish you a good night, but then I'd be lying, so all I'm saying is - may we never meet again!" The otherwordly shadows drew closer, congregating in a spiralling vortext that swallowed the two mutants.

Cassie: When they were gone, the portal disappeared in a burst of dark spectres and black birds, leaving nothing behind but dispersing smoke.

Jonas: Jonas blinked when he saw they were back in their kitchen. "Well, that went quite well. Think a nice cup of coffee would go down quite well right about now. Coffee? Tea?" he asked as if nothing just happened.

Cassie: "Some tea with sugar and milk sounds wonderful right now," Cassie replied, skipping over to the kitchen table so she could hop up upon it, letting her legs dangle over the edge. "We should sill have some biscuits, I believe."

Jonas: "Mmm, cookies," Jonas mumbled as he started to gather what he needed from the cupboards. "So, Tooombstone, man what a great name. Wonder how he got it."

Cassie: "Whatever the reason, I seriously doubt he got it for his smarts," Cassandra remarked, idly kicking her legs back and forth. "Maybe he kills people by sitting on him."

Jonas: "Or he owns a gravestone making place. Oh! That would be a good idea, he owns a graveyard."

Cassie: "Where he buries the people he kills?" Cassie sounded almost hopeful. "You know, that makes me wonder." She turned her head to look at Jonas. "Perhaps we should try to find out more about this guy, before he finds out too much about us. The last time I confronted a bad guy without being prepared it turned out bad for me."

Jonas: "And how would we go about doing that? Go from seedy bar to seedy bar, rough up some ruffians until they tell us what we need to know?" he asked as he boiled the water. "Come to think of it, we're practically doing that right now. We're halfway done."

Cassie: "Really? Yay, go us!" Cassie flashed a grin. "I knew we'd make a good team." After she had calmed from her bout of excitement, she put on a thoughtful expression and began to tap the side of her chin. "I also know how much you like to punch bad people, but how about we go about this my way for the second half?"

Cassie: "Instead of punching them, we could try to trick them into talking to us and spill their secrets," she suggested.

Jonas: "Hmm," Jonas hummed in thought as he made the coffee and tea. "I'm listening..."

Cassie: "Suppose there was this lost little damsel in search for some tough guy to protect her from the rough, cold nights," Cassie elaborated, a sly smile playing across her lips. "Surely such a sweet thing could pose no threat to those mean men, and her pretty little head could never understand the shady dealings they're bragging about the entire time."

Jonas: Jonas squinted, "You talked me into wearing this," he gestured to the skimpy black studded loin cloth like speedo, "But I'm putting my foot down on wearing some sort of strapless little dress."

Cassie: Cassandra giggled. "Well damn, there goes my grand plan," she said, letting her head fall to the side as she sighed. "Unless..." The impish smirk returned to her black lips. "I know this might sound crazy, but what if I wore that strapless little dress?"

Jonas: "It's so crazy that it just might work." Jonas said, sitting down at the kitchen table with the cups of tea and coffee along with a plate of biscuits.

Cassie: "Not to mention it's a nice change to hurting people all the time," Cassie commented as she slipped into her chair. "See? I told you we'd make a great couple. I mean... team." She gave Jonas an awkward smile as she reached out to grab her cup of tea.

Jonas: "Something really unusual happened to you when you were young." Jonas commented. "Anyway, we can get to undercover hero work after our break."

Cassie: Cassandra snickered. "Oh, you have no idea," she said, and raised her sugar-coated spoon to lick it clean.
"The secondary penis slides into view. And they all lived happily ever after."
Kieron Gillen
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Re: Christmas 2016: Jonas

Post by Starfish »

Downtown Sleepy Hollow

Jonas: "And there they are... look at that guy, selling drugs to a kid. He really needs to be taught a lesson." Jonas said as the two of them stood in the shroud of darkness, watching three men of Tombstone sell their wares.

Cassie: "Yes," Cassandra agreed, slightly cocking her head to the side as she watched the three crooks. "Had he paid better attention in school, he would have known that he's being ripped off." She glanced sideways at Jonas. "Oh, you meant the dealer, right?"

Jonas: "No no, I meant the kid.... look at how much he's paying... in my day you didn't need to pay a tenth of what he's forking out." Jonas replied.

Cassie: "To be fair, in your day kids also could buy their lunch for a nickel and still have enough spare change to go watch a movie afterwards," Cassandra pointed out. "Now, shall we do the poor kid a favour? More good deeds should involve punching, by the way."

Jonas: Jonas cracked his bony thin fingers. "Yes please. The faster we can get the location of that Tombstone guy, the better for everyone. Oh, Cassie, can you try that thing we talked about? With the shadowy ghouls and spirits? I want to see if they really do crap their pants."

Cassie: "And here I thought you had forgotten about my little suggestion." Cassandra gave her great-grand uncle the sweetest smile, before it gradually turned devious. "Now let's find out, shall we?" As they crept closer under the cover of darkness, the teenage girl began to gather the ambient shadows and bend their shapes to her will.

Jonas: Jonas snuck to and got into a comfortable position, waiting and watching for the show to start. As he watched the deal finish, Jonas made a mental note to maybe do something about the drug addicted kid as well.

Cassie: Concealing both of them inside a thick mass of swirling shadows, Cassandra let the ghostly shades and spectres she had created take the stage, spilling out of the dark alley like an eerie stampede. One of the crooks dropped the cigarette out of his mouth as he saw the smoke-like apparitions descend upon them.

Jonas: Jonas winced as a guy immediately started shooting at the shadows. "That didn't take them long to draw fire. Should do something about their trigger fingers." he added, watching the men scream in horror as the monstrous shadows go at the goons.

Cassie: "Only their fingers?" Cassandra asked, sounding almost disappointed as she took to the air to join her smoky shapes in their assault, inky black tentacles reaching out of the mass of darkness to grab the thugs, who were still wasting their bullets by shooting at shadows.

Jonas: "Or their entire hands," Jonas added as he stepped up to plate. He stayed behind the guys, not wishing to be accidentally shot, and quickly grabbed one of the thugs from behind who emptied his clip. In all the darkness, Jonas was strong enough to clench the guy's hand that held the gun to hear bones break.

Cassie: "Oh my, I think you broke his fun-hand," Cassandra remarked, lifting the other two thugs into the air by wrapping her dark tentacles around their ankles. "He's got some really boring evenings ahead of him now."

Jonas: THe guy screamed in pain, "At least his voice is still working." Jonas commented, "If you stop struggling, I'll stop squeezin!" Jonas yelled at the guy. The guy just replied with "My broke my fucking hand! What the fuck are you things?!"

Cassie: "A spooky memory or your worst nightmare," Cassandra answered the guy's question, the play of shadows turning her pretty face into something far more frightening as she leaned closer. "The choice will be all yours."

Jonas: Phrases like 'Get away!' and 'No! Stop!' were yelled among others. Jonas slapped the guy he was holding to get him out of his fearful state to start getting answers out of him, "Focus, now listen, I want Tombstone. Where is he?" Jonas asked.

Cassie: The thugs started whimpering in fear - or so it seemed, anyway. The fearful sobbing was soon replaced by nervous laughter, as one of the captive men turned towards the two mutants. "Waiting for you creeps," he answered.

Cassie: Leaning closer with a scowl on her face, Cassandra's response was cut short when the SUV parked nearby switched on its floodlights and bathed the street in blinding brightness.

Jonas: Jonas flinched, squeezing his eyes closed as he got momentarily blinded. In that moment however he started hearing the gunshots. He tried to block the bullets by pulling the guy he held in the line of fire, but he wasn't even able to budge the guy. At first he thought it must be the light, but then the pain started to set in. Pain was ebbing from his legs, back and side where he was shot.

Cassie: "Jonas!" Cassandra flung her captives aside and rushed towards her uncle when he reeled from the hits, even though moving against the glaring light felt like walking against strong wind. The shadowy spectres she had created flaked away into nothingness around her, and even the summoned tentacles began to bleed away black smoke.

Cassie: She couldn't see anything but blurry silhouettes moving against searing brightness, even though her uncanny instincts still acted to protect her from the flying bullets. The first three shots impacted against haphazardly created shapes of solid darkness - then her powers lacked the strength to stop the fourth.

Cassie: A cloud of black smoke exploded from the back of Cassandra's skull, the girl's head flying backwards when the final bullet caught her right between the eyes.

Jonas: "Cassie!" Jonas yelled in pain, collapsing to the filthy ground. He could not see much, and what he did see was his grand niece falling to the ground, her body lying lifeless just outside arm's reach. "...Cassie..." Jonas managed ince more before he blacked out.

Jonas: The gunshots ceased when both heroes fell. Behind the blinding floodlights a door opened. Tombstone, a tall muscular man, skin pale as his hair, stepped out and walked over to the two bodies. "He's still breathing. Bring him. Leave the dead one."

Cassie: The voices around her drifted into the distance as the glow vanished from Cassandra's wide open eyes, their unfocused gaze directed into the night-sky. A wispy trail of shadow danced above her face, rising up from the bullet hole in her forehead like black smoke.

Cassie: "What a waste," one of the thugs said, his voice sounding as if it came from the far end of a long tunnel. The vague shape of his face moved somewhere far above the lifeless girl. "She was a real cutie."

Cassie: "One less creepy kid on these streets, if you ask me," another replied from somewhere even farther away. "Come on now, let's get rolling before the cops show up!" Hurried footsteps, followed by doors being slammed shut, before the car took off with screeching tyres, leaving the dead girl to the dark of the night.
"The secondary penis slides into view. And they all lived happily ever after."
Kieron Gillen
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Re: Christmas 2016: Jonas

Post by Starfish »

Jonas: Jonas flinched when he felt the slap on his face. Everything was blurry around him, hard to focus, and there was a constant thudding in his ears.

Jonas: "Wake up, hey, wake up!" another slap on his face caused Jonas to concentrate harder. "I heard you've been looking for me." the big guy in a suit said. Jonas squinted. "Well here I am. There anything I can help you with? Do you have a complaint about how I run my business?" the pale man asked with a smirk.

Cassie: "Someone should call an ambulance." The voice of a boy came from far away, like a faint echo, as if she lay on the ground of a deep, dark well. "Dude, her brains got blow out - what's an ambulance gonna do for her?" The other voice sounded closer for some reason.

Cassie: "What are you talking about?" the first boy asked the other. "She had a bullet wound right between her eyes," the second one replied. "I swear it was there!" The voices became louder and clearer as she felt like slowly drifting upwards out of the bottomless pit.

Jonas: Another hit to Jonas' face. "...ow..." was all that he could manage sarcastically. Tombstone smirked, cracking his knuckles. "So you and your girlfriend wanted to play heroes, yeah? Funny, you don't seem much like a hero... look at you, you're bleeding on the floor." The big guy told Jonas.

Jonas: The thin mutant was cuffed to a chair, bare chested with the gun shot holes still bleeding. Jonas's face was bleeding just as much from all the pummeling the boy got as well. "..hehe..I'm.. ruining... your floor... take that." He managed once more.

Cassie: "Then where did it go?" Again it was the first boy who spoke, arguing with the other. "I don't know, man, I'm just telling you what I saw! And this chick totally took a bullet to the head." They sounded so close now, as if standing right by her side. Just one last step to climb...

Cassie: "Whatever - it's not like she's just going to..." Their debate stopped as soon as her lungs filled with fresh air, open, dead eyes blinking several times as the light of life returned to them.

Cassie: Cassandra gasped, the tensing of her muscles causing her chest to be lifted off the wet ground. Her limbs twitched, before she slumped back onto the hard concrete of the alley, the air flowing from her lips as she resumed breathing. "Holy shit..."

Jonas: Jonas couldn't feel his chest. Actually he could, but he wished he couldn't, It was burning, each time he breathed he coughed up blood. "Uh, Boss, is he... is he like you?" one of Tombstone's men asked, "'Cause this guy should have kicked the bucket by no-oof." the man was cut off as Tombstone's next punch hit the goon in the stomach instead of Jonas.

Jonas: "He ain't nothing like me... he's just a mutant, that's all." Tombstone leaned down to get close to Jonas' head. "You got a hard time dying, don't you? You know what... I think I'll keep you as my punching bag from now on."

Jonas: "..Cassie..." Jonas whispered.

Cassie: "Jonas!" Cassandra sat up as she yelled her great-grand uncle's name. The two youngsters who had found her body were so startled they jumped back and almost tripped over their own feet. "Oh my god, she's alive!" one gasped, while his friend was much closer to crying. "Please, lady, don't eat our brains!"

Cassie: Shuffling back on her feet, the raven-haired girl staggered slightly, until she managed to regain her balance. Reaching up with both hands, she put one to her chin and the other to the side of her head. There was a cracking sound as she forcefully relocated the vertebrae popped by the bullet impact.

Cassie: "Miss... are you... okay?" the braver of the two boys asked her, fearfully staring at the dishevelled goth teenager who had looked quite dead only minutes ago. Not that she looked much better now.

Cassie: "Why yes, I couldn't be better," Cassandra replied, her black-painted lips forming a wry smile. "Just afraid I'm too late to the party, so if you'll excuse me now." Both boys swallowed and stared, but otherwise had no objections. In fact, they were left quite speechless when the girl disappeared in a swirl of shadows.

Cassie: "Should I still call an ambulance?" the second one eventually asked. His friend turned to him and just stared, almost as pale as she living dead girl who had just vanished in front of their eyes.

Jonas: Tombstone was wiping his hands on a rag, wiping the wetness of the boy's blood off of them. "Heheh, kid can take a beating like nobody's business." he said, He threw the rag on the floor and pulled Jonas' head up to make him look at him. "Well kid, I got a change of heart, I was actually hoping to have killed you by now with my bare hands, but it looks like I'll be needing something sharper instead."

Jonas: Jonas squinted, wathing the big guy turn and take a large machete from a table. "..Cassie... get here... now... quick..." Jonas whispered.

Cassie: The imposing man stepped up to the bound mutant, his free hand grabbing Jonas by the neck. "Take a good look at it," Tombstone said, holding up the machete to show it to his victim. "This is what awaits everyone who think they can mess with my business."

Cassie: He raised the weapon, its long, sharp blade shining in the bright beams of the floodlights pointed at the captive youth. "Now, what to cut off first..." The machete came down in an arc - and was stopped inches from Jonas' shoulder by another blade, this one created out of pure solid darkness.

Cassie: "Sorry to leave you waiting, uncle," Cassandra said, appearing in a swirling mass of shadows. "I had to wait for the perfect moment to make my entrance." Her counterstrike sent Tombstone staggering backwards.

Jonas: "Serious... talk when this is done..." Jonas said, his eyes squinting at the moving shapes of darkness passing through the lights. Tombstone yelled for his men to shoot her while he tightened his grip on his machete ready to slice at Cassie as well. "Lights please," Jonas told Cassie.

Cassie: "You're right - every show needs the proper mood lighting," Cassandra remarked, her shadowy tendril already zipping about the room as she spun around. There was a series of loud crashes as they stabbed into the powerful floodlights, exploding them in a shower of sparks one by one.

Cassie: For a brief moment, they were all bathed in perfect darkness, only surrounded by the frantic yells of Tombstone's men. Then the blackness was repeatedly torn up by the small, brief flashes of gunfire.

Jonas: The second when there was absolute pitch black around him, Jonas grit his teeth and tightened his muscles as he yanked at the restraints and chair, tearing and breaking them, making him stumble to the floor. The darkness brought renewed strength, the pain of his wounds feeling less than what they were, the bullet holes starting to heal as well. Jonas looked up at the flashes above him, and the confused men, blinded by the darkness, shooting anything they thought was moving.

Cassie: Encasing them in an orb of solid darkness, invisible among the natural blackness surrounding them, Cassandra shielded them from the stray bullets and used the brief reprieve to kneel down by her uncle's side. "Jonas, are you alright?" she asked, all theatrics drained from her voice and replaced by sincere worry.

Jonas: "I'll live... maybe... I hope. Really don't want to be shot again in my life." he told her. "Tombstone, I think he's a mutant... he hits like a tank. Need to be careful around him." Jonas said, coughing again and spitting out some blood.

Cassie: Cassandra gave her uncle an encouraging smile in the dark and took his hands to help him up on his feet. "So what?" she asked, her cheeky demeanour coming through again. "I've handled bigger brutes than him. Do you seriously think he could..."

Cassie: She was cut off when Tombstone sliced through the black barrier with his machete, then simply reached through to grab the girl by the back of her neck and lifted her into the air. "Think you can hide from me, little piggies?"

Jonas: "Cassie!" Jonas called, pushing himself up and going through the tear in the dissipating shadow bubble. He came towards Tombstone with his own fist ready for a punch, and felt like he was hitting a bag of cement.

Jonas: The moment when Tombstone retaliated with a hit of his own, Jonas dodged down grabbed the arm holding Cassie, pulling it hard against the elbow and twisting it. Tombstone didn't even say one word in pain when his arm was dislocated and his grip let go of Cassie.

Cassie: Reflexes honed by years of being an acrobat allowed Cassandra to land on her feet, dodging out of Tombstone's reach even while she was clutching her aching neck. She watched Jonas tangle with the tall man, looking for an opening to exploit.

Cassie: However, in the meantime his men had figured out that firing blindly into the dark wasn't the brightest idea, and one of them shined a cone of light from a flashlight through the room. The teenage girl winced when the bright beam caught her eyes. "Get more light in here, you idiots!" someone yelled.

Jonas: "Cassie! Blind them!" Jonas yelled as he twisted and pulled, grabbing Tombstone's arms behind the big guy, trying to subdue him.

Cassie: "Great idea," Cassandra replied, a hint of sarcasm in her voice as she shielded her eyes with a raised hand. "I think they had the same." The deafening noise of gunshots echoed through the room when the thugs finally had a target in their sights.

Cassie: Struggling to deflect the incoming bullets with her dark forcefields, she avoided the second salvo by vanishing in a vortex of shadows, reemerging behind the surprised henchmen. "Let me have this before you hit someone in the dark," she said, black tentacles snatching away guns and flashlights.

Jonas: Tombstone easily lifted Jonas, quickly moving and smashing him against a wall. "Cassie! Move your ass and finish with those idiots! I need help with this guy!" Jonas managed while being repeatedly hit against the wall.

Cassie: "Oh quit your whining, or do you want them to believe we're not scary superheroes?" Cassandra resembled a pitch-black kraken, multiple arms emerging from her shadow form and grapple and throw the hapless henchmen. "Besides, it's only one guy - your little niece is dealing with a half a dozen over here."

Jonas: "Damn it woman, he's... he's using.... using me to... to punch holes.... in the wall!" Jonas yelled as he was by then being slammed over and over against the wall while he held tight on to Tombstone's arms, keeping the man from doing anything else.

Cassie: "Then be glad you're useful for once," Cassandra remarked, unable to contain her mischievous snicker. Still, it seemed as if her uncle was in serious need of some assistance. "Oh fine, I guess we can still capture these for the police later."

Cassie: Creating a dark portal in the midst of her ethereal form, the floating girl used her additional limbs to reel in her flailing, screaming prey, sending Tombstone's henchmen a safe distance away.

Jonas: "Just do what... what I do an... knock'em out!" Tombstone then changed tactics, smashing Jonas one last time against the wall, the big guy jumped body first to the floor, elbowing Jonas who finally let go.

Cassie: "Leave him alone, you pale monster!" Cassandra rose into the air behind Tombstone, summoned shadows wrapping around the tall man's arms to stop him from pummelling her uncle. "Uhm, yeah, I'm talking to you, big guy... not the other pale monster."

Jonas: Jonas groaned nearly blacked out himself for a second before he shook his head and pushed himself away from Tombstone. He stumbled back and grabbed one of the torture tools they used on him, a very sophisticated instrument that was very heavy on the one side with a wooden handle. He smacked the big guy with the large hammer over the head.

Cassie: The hammer appeared to take more damage than the head it hit, Tombstone looking more irritated by the mighty swing than actually fazed. "You're a real hard-head, aren't you?" Cassandra remarked, trying to entangle the tall man to stop him from fighting back. "And surprisingly strong..."

Jonas: Jonas slammed the hammer down on the guy, over and over again, "Tentacle him! Tentacle him!" he yelled, forgetting to add the tentacle should go down his mouth and nose into his lungs to knock him out.

Cassie: "This is not the time to get kinky, Jonas," Cassandra reminded her uncle, having troubles of her own when Tombstone manage to pick up his dropped machete and demonstrated his incredible strength by slicing through some of her shadowy limbs.

Jonas: "I meant tentacle... his lungs!" Jonas yelled as he swung the hammer at Tombstone's hand, trying to knock the machete out of it, or just break one piece of bone at least.

Cassie: Tombstone grunted when the hammer hit his arm, responding by thrusting his elbow into Jonas' face, before he swung the blade in a wide arc to send Cassandra staggering back as well, oily blood oozing from the long cut along her side.

Cassie: "If you believe I need any of my men to deal with two children, you have no idea why I earned the name 'Tombstone'," the tall, pale man said, gripping the long blade tightly as he advanced on the injured girl.

Cassie: "I don't think this is working, Jonas," Cassandra told her uncle, drawing on the ambient shadows to help mend her wound. "He's stronger than an elephant and tougher than bricks. We need to think of something else..."

Jonas: Jonas threw the hammer at Tombstone before doing a bit of a hobbling charge at him, jumping on the guy's back and trying out a choke hold. "Cassie, we need to get him knocked out!" he yelled.

Cassie: "Got it!" Cassandra threw herself into the strike when Tombstone attacked her again, waiting for the right moment to engulf the machete with her darkness and teleport the blade away. With Jonas one his back, she jumped on his chest, her arms and legs wrapping around the man's body while her shadows went straight for the face.

Cassie: "The show's over, so lights out!" Inky blackness covered the brute's pale face, covering his eyes and ears and oozing through his mouth and nose.

Jonas: Even with his lungs flooded with the tendrils, TOmbstone still wouldn't go down, "What the hell is wrong with this guy!?" Jonas yelled, "You're not supposed to keep going this long!"

Cassie: Even with the darkness to help her, Cassandra had to fight to keep the struggling man restrained. Without wasting another thought, she did what her guts told her and engulfed the tall man inside her shadows. Even with all his strength and toughness, he couldn't prevent the black portal from swallowing him.

Cassie: When Jonas and Cassie landed on their feet again, there was no more sign of Tombstone. "I thought we all could use a little breather," the raven-haired girl remarked, following her own suggestion as she caught her breath.

Jonas: Jonas was laying flat on his face. He looked up at her, confusion on his face for a moment before he even realized what she did. "Where... where did you teleport him?" he asked.

Cassie: "He's swimming with the fishes now," Cassandra replied, crouching down by Jonas's side to help him back up. "Which means that I sent him as far out into the sea as I could," the teenage girl explained. "If we're lucky, he's not only tough as rock, but also as heavy."

Jonas: Jonas cringed, taking a deep breath as he stood, half leaning against his grand niece. "So... if he does need to breath, he'll drown, and if he doesn't, as seen by the choke hold, then he'll just walk back. Hope he gets lost underwater."

Jonas: Jonas sucked in a breath at a sharp pain in his body, "Okay... ow.. I... Cassie, I think I still have bullets inside of me." he said, looking down at himself, the holes now scabs that he poked at... which bled a little each time he did.

Cassie: "We need to get you to a doctor," Cassandra said, supporting Jonas by draping his arm over her shoulder. "Preferably not one found at a hospital, because those are always awfully bright - and people might want to know how those bullets ended up inside your body."

Jonas: "Not going to a vet." Jonas said first. "Oh... speaking of vets... where's Dr McCoy now?" he asked Cassie.

Cassie: "To be honest, I'm not sure," Cassandra replied, grabbing Jonas' wrist to steady him. "He might be at the new place they have evacuated to, but I doubt the hospital there will be up and running again anytime soon. They may have a medical tent, however."

Cassie: Looking up at her uncle, the teenage girl smirked. "Unless you don't mind me taking care of you."

Jonas: "...yeah, okay. But if you're going to be cutting me open to dig out bullets, you better get something to dull the pain... and wear something clean." he said, eyeing her ravaged clothing. "Still not sure how my healing works with infections."

Cassie: "Lucky for you, I doubt we'll have to cut you open to get the bullets out," Cassandra assured her uncle. "After all, I've got my shortcut to get to things. And don't worry, I know the perfect thing to take your mind off the pain."

Jonas: "Perfect... now these guys..." Jonas said, looking at the few men that was knocked out during the fight. "On one hand... they need to end up in prison... on the other hand, I really wanna shame them publicly before doing so."

Cassie: Cocking her head, Cassandra reached up to tap the side of her chin with her index finger. "Oh, I'm sure we can think of something humiliating," she remarked, a devious smile on her lips.
"The secondary penis slides into view. And they all lived happily ever after."
Kieron Gillen
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