Post by Tamsin on Jun 4, 2017 11:47:52 GMT -8
Tamsin
The pages of the grimoire had seen better days, but that was the beauty of the books. Old as dirt, meant they'd lived lifetime beyond those of the person who held onto them. Used them. Tamsin's grimoire had lived many lifetimes, and it was evident in the way the old text creaked, pages had to be settled back into the spine, and more than that the wealth of withy knowledge that was to be found upon the pages. She'd poured over the book for days now, and in the quiet of the house there could be hear chanting at times. Now, book clutched tight to her chest, she was coming in from the back patio with a slow exhale and a glance around to see where everyone else was, because she knew what lay ahead of them tonight. Or at least ... knew what had to be done.
Alec
Alec was pouring himself a drink, a smile given as Tamsin came into the room. The stopper was replaced in the decanter and the glass lifted; used to gesture to the book. "Got it all figured out?" It wasn't an easy undertaking; they all knew that. Just as they knew Tam-Tam had been 'cramming' for this not so little test of hers. It was a worry they all shared. The not knowing what would happen. Not knowing who would be out to stop them. Not knowing what it would do to Tam, and if she'd survive it.
Cam
Cam turned her head as she heard the back door open and watched as Tamsin came into the room. A small purse of her lips as Alec asked if she had everything all figured out, but she put the worry aside, and slipped from that lean she'd had against the counter to slide her arm around Alec's waist. "Of course she does. Now, let's finish these drinks, and get the hell out of here because I believe we have a witch to meet up with." She then glanced toward Tamsin. "Wasn't there something you said we needed to get for this thing still? Aside form all the candles, and herbs and stuff you've been collecting for the last two days?" -d
Justen
It was about that time that Baby pulled up out front. Yes, there was more junk in the trunk. No, don't ask where the hell he got it. If he didn't already know his life was one truckload of weird, he would think so now. At least this one was fresh out of the morgue, no need to dig up one out of a graveyard. Justen waited in the car because the last thing he needed was to step away, even to step inside for a moment, and run the risk of someone jacking his wheels.... with a dead body in the trunk.
Tamsin
That had been one hell of a conversation to have with him. At least it had been over the bacon cheeseburger pizza, and before the sex for dessert. That was one hell of a way to make up for asking the man in her life to find a fresh corpse of a born local for the spell. Mind-blowing zorro mask wearing, spank his ass a few times sex. Tamsin looked between Alec and Cam at Cam's question, and gave a small, guilty little grin. "Justen is taking care of that part..." Speaking of, she sent off a text from her phone to see if he'd gotten back yet, because they needed to meet up with Agnes soon at the graveyard. Creepy was getting even creepier.
Alec
"Hm..." Alec nodded and then looked toward the front of the house. "And that would be him." That car was distinctive, and one didn't have to have superior hearing to catch the sound of that engine. Alec was more than slightly appreciative of it, as one classic care owner to another, she was a fine piece of work. Alec knocked back his drink, and then nodded. "Time to roll." he headed out, grabbing his jacket as he went.
Cam
Cam looked toward the front door, and there was a small lift of a brow before glancing back toward Tamsin. Alec's move had her following suit, and there was a delayed step as she looked at their resident witch. "You should have let him help, too, Tamsin.." She gave a small glance to Alec as he grabbed his jacket, and then headed out the front door, before looking to Tamsin. "He's worried about you too, witchy." She leaned and pecked the other woman's cheek, before she snared her own jacket and headed out and caught up to Alec, giving a squeeze to his arm, before she glanced toward the car and then back to Alec. "Do you smell that..?" Death was in that car. Was it the trunk? Damn. -d
Justen
He's had worse things in his trunk. Weird assed vampire hybrid heads. Jars of dead man's blood. King of hell... Weird shit. Justen leaned in the seat to look at the trio through the car window. "He ain't getting any fresher." Looking between the three of them, he lifted a brow.
Tamsin
Cam's words to her had Tamsin's brow knit. Then she looked to where Alec had already headed outside, and she gave a quiet mutter to herself. Grabbing her sweater, the witch headed out and toward the car. A glance toward Justen with a small smile, before she, grimoire clutched in her hands, cut off Alec at the pass before he could get into the car. She didn't say anything, but she grabbed him in a hug, and kissed his cheek. It was an 'I'm sorry', and heartfelt, because it registered on her face. Then, she was sliding into the back with Cam to let the two men sit up front. A lean back, and she looked forward, with a small exhale. "We have to hurry.." She said, and that's all, but there was a growing edge to her voice that would ensure all three of them knew.. it was serious.
Alec
Alec smiled at her, the kiss to the cheek returned in kind and then he was sliding in once the girls took the back seat. He nodded to Justen, and then looked back to Tam-Tam. "Where are we meeting the witch?" Surely the woman wasn't doing this in her shop. Not where weird shit could scare the tourists.
Cam
Cam gave the two a smile, at least she knew she needed to include Alec, though really, it shouldn't have required some prodding. But then, Cam pretty much lived and breathed Alec, so it was natural he was in on decisions when it came to her. A glance toward Tamsin at the question of exactly where they were meeting the strange, knew too much other witch. -d
Justen
"Why do I feel like we're about to be thrown into Weekend at Bernies three..." Justen glanced at the girls and waited until Tam gave the location and then he dropped the car into gear, and after a check of his mirrors and a glance over his left shoulder, he pulled from the curb. "After, am I going to be able to burn and salt the body? Make sure he doesn't come back?"
Tamsin
Tamsin laid the grimoire on her lap as she turned to give the location they needed to head in to meet up with Agnes."St. Louis Cemetary.." She gave the address, and then as Justen was pulling out and heading onward, she heard his request. "If there's anything left to salt and burn, of course you can.." She smiled, then glanced between Alec and Cam, then looked out the side window as she quietly readied herself for the ritual ahead.
Justen
Make that weekend at bernies 4....
Alec
"So," Alec looked at Justen. "You like your corpses well seasoned." Nodding, he offered out. "Sodium's bad for you, you know. Maybe try a little lemon pepper..." Alec smirked as he cracked jokes, trying to keep the tension at bay, but it was still there, under the surface. Waiting to creep out and snap at each of theem.
Cam
She gave a small pat to Tamsin's shoulder, but when the little witch didn't seem to pay her any attention, Cam figured she was busy trying to ready herself even more for what lay ahead of them. Looking to Alec, she chuckled, before glancing toward Justen. "After hearing about the two boxes of pizza he put away, I don't think he's too worried about sodium, babe.." -d
Justen
"Hey, that was good, the pickles were a little on the chewy side, but the flavor was awesome." He looked into the rearview at them and then back at the road as he headed for the cemetery. "How long do we expect this to take? We need to keep an eye out for the cops. Last thing we need is for them to interrupt us." Never mind the fact that they'd be in the cemetery, with a corpse, doing god knows what to it, if the cops showed up before the deed was done, the spell could go wrong.
Tamsin
Tamsin felt the hand on her shoulder, but she'd been focusing, and yet, when she heard the banter, she drew out of that little headspace, and answered Justen's question. "If Agnes did her part, the spirits will be there, ready to allow me to help them, allow me their power... if they all agree, it won't take long..." If they all didn't, or, if the other witches found them first, then the trio would be busy fighting off the other witches, while Tamsin fought for her life. And the rest for the other wandering souls. That was the part she was leaving out for now though. "Head for the tomb of Marie Laveau." The most powerful witch, that was where the ritual had to take place.
Alec
When Justen pulled up at the gate on Conti, Alec slid out, and glanced around, before breaking the padlock off the gate. Pulling the chain, he glanced around again, before swinging the gates open so Justen could pull through. With his phone in hand, he led them through the maze of tombs to Marie Laveau's.
Cam
Cam turned and looked when Alec slid out and broke the lock and the chain off the gates of the cemetery. She frowned when he remained outside the car, but was leading them slowly through the maze of tombs until they could easily see the tomb, already bearing the marked upon XXXs on its freshly painted walls again. Cam looked at Tamsin, and then turned back just in time.
Agnes
Agnes appeared out of nowhere it seemed in front of the car's lights. "Hurry. Get inside 'da tomb. 'Dere ain' much time... 'dey a'reddy comin'." She hissed to them all, and then turned about and let the gate of the tomb swing open and what was usually appearing to be a solid wall of brick and mortar, was now an open expanse with the voodoo queen's final resting spot centered in the middle of the tomb. -d
Justen
Justen shut the car down and moved to the trunk, where Alec joined him. Between them, they lifted the corpse and carried it into the tomb. There wasn't any place else to put the dude so they set him down on the vault. Justen then pulled his Colt, checked the rounds to make sure they were in fact, the witch killing variety and then he racked it, chambering a round. Moving back to the car, he grabbed his tool bag, closed the trunk, and then headed back into the tomb.
Tamsin
Tamsin moved out of the car once it stopped, and it was almost instantaneous. The sudden flooding of the glimmers around her, and around the tomb. Faces came from the darkness, and the whispers were there, louder than she'd ever heard them before. Her hands moved to her head, and she took a staggering step back. Only after a moment did she speak out.. "ENOUGH!" Her voice was loud enough to be heard, but etched with the pain that the whispers had been driving through her. Tamsin turned green eyes to the others, before she moved inside, grimoire settled at the head of the tomb, near the head of the body the boys had brought in, and then she handed out candles for the others to help her place them around the interior of the tomb.
Alec
Alec's lips twitched upward, as he took the candles she handed him. "Do not piss the woman off..." He lit and placed candles about and then moved toward the mouth of the tomb. If anyone wanted in that Tam-Tam didn't want there, they'd have to get through him.
Cam
Cam took the candles from Tamsin, brow raised at the loud tone of voice, and then at Alec's retort. "Mmm. Especially after this.." She grinned to the two men, and then moved to set the candles where Tamsin pointed.
Agnes
Agnes was standing near the mouth of the tomb, and when the candles were settled around, she turned her head and looked back at Tamsin. "Start 'da rit'al. 'Dey here.." She turned then to look toward the other three. "She start 'dat rit'al, she can' be stopped. She stop, she g'won die.." The words were plain, spoken without emotion, as the older witch turned about and started forward. Once she broke the threshold of the tomb, she vanished.
Coven
In the distance, there was a large spark of light, and the sudden flaring upward of a fire near the back perimeter of the cemetery. The same came a moment later on the opposite end of the cemetery. "BENNETTTTT WITCH!!" A male voice bellowed outward. Shit was getting real. -d
Justen
"Hey, I know where my bread is buttered." he smiled at Tamsin, and took the candles from her, and moved through the room, lighting and setting them, before he took up a place near the door with Alec. Slipping that nickel-plated Colt once more from his belt, Justen stood just inside of the doorway, green eyes scanning the cemetery beyond.
Tamsin
She gave Justen a quick smile, and once the candles were in place, Tamsin shook her hands slowly, and settled them along the sides of the corpseās head, with her fingertips along the temples. The candles that were set in place, jumped to life, each one a single flicker, before they illuminated the entirety of the tomb. And as they did, the incantation was begun. "Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe." Tamsin said it, repeated it slowly, and as she spoke it, the candle flames began to grow. As they grew, there were glimmers outside the tomb that would begin to draw and gather, and one by one they would begin to slip past the men standing at the doorway. The sheer number of them was quickly amassing, and through them they could see faces on occasion, figures not just glimmers, and one of those figures seemed to look very much like Agnes, with subtle differences in appearance and clothing. "Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe.."
Alec
Alec watched as the shimmers passed between he and Justen, and there wasn't a thing he could do about that. That was needed, but it didn't make him feel any better. He glanced toward Tam-tam, and then looked back out the doorway, looking for the physical bodied to show up. The voice from the far end of the cemetery had him wanting to take the fight to them, but he knew he couldn't leave the girls. Dividing their ranks was the last thing they needed to do.
Cam
Cam was staying back closer to Tamsin, though when the candles flared up, that had her head turning, and there was a little too close for comfort move as she nearly caught her jacket sleeve on fire. The glimmers were nothing they could do anything about, but the voice. She glanced to Alec and Justen with a dark-eyed gaze, and then she looked back out toward the opening of the tomb.
Coven
Outside the tomb the weather was shifting. The wind was growing, increasing to the stirring of trees, and leaves upon the ground. There was a sizeable note of energy bustling and buzzing in the air, and then they could see the fires sparking up closer this time. And the voice, was no longer bodiless, there was a figure that it belonged to. "BENNEETTT WITCH! You're being VERY NAUGHTY!!" The man appeared at the edge of the row three rows away from where the tomb they inhabited was, and after he showed himself, there were other figures coming clear of the tombs and gravestones to be seen. "COME out COME out!"-d
Justen
"Why don't you come in, you bitch!" Yeah, yeah so it was a dude, but Justen was all about the insult. That Colt came up, aimed center mass at the dude as he asked Alec, "How many do you think there are?" Would be a good idea to know. "This is going to get ugly."
Tamsin
Tamsin's eyes were closed, and the incantation continued. The glimmers were increasing, the number growing, and the intensity with which they glowed was increasing as well. More and more, the whispers starting to break through to where even the vampires, and the hunter could hear them. Tamsin's head tipped back, her voice a slow draining rasp as she worked the spell harder. "Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe."
Alec
Alec was ready to start snapping necks but he wasn't fool enough to take the fight to them. Here they were defensible. Out there, it was too easy to be overwhelmed by sheer numbers. Alec squinted as he looked out, and then over at Justen. "A dozen, so far, scattered around...." He looked back out, and then back to Justen. "What else do you have in that bag of yours?"
Cam
The boys were focused on the coming fight, but it was Cam who was hearing the whispers now, and she was watching Tamsin. Dark eyes focusing on the witch, and the way her body was contorting here and there as the glimmers around her seemed to just.. vanish once they made contact with Tamsin. Cam was officially past slightly worried, and moving into edged toward panic now.
Coven
"AHHhhhh! The BENNETTTTT WITCH has playmates..." The man spoke, with a rumbling laugh. A flicker of movement, and then there were four in front of the tomb. Words uttered, that sent Justen and Alec backward before they tried to breach the doorway and get inside. -d
Justen
Justen went backward, a grunt given and then that Colt came up, two rounds sent toward the first one coming through the door. Even if he missed, not likely, but possible, the thought of bullets flying at them might just slow them down.
Tamsin
Agnes had underestimated the number of souls that wanted their release. The number of witches that had suffered torment through the centuries within New Orleans and needed a way out. A way to find their peace. Tamsin was channeling the masses, and her body was wracked with it all. There was the sudden influx of glimmers, the bright white light around her as her body shuddered, the incantation was almost drowned out by white noise that seemed to have invaded now. Eyes tightly shut, and the first few trickles of blood from her nose were present, but the incantation continued. Even if no one could hear her speaking the words aloud now. Stop her, and she dies... the spell's completion was her only forward play.
Alec
That was not an option. Alec wasn't going to let anyone do harm to Tam and after picking himself up, he moved, a mere blur to the eye as he went after those trying to make their way in. Justen's two rounds saw one go down, and in that time Alec had snapped the neck of another and thrown a third bodily out. The fourth, Alec grabbed on the fly, launching himself and his victim into the air, over the tomb across the way. With his arm locked around the man's head, he landed, the sudden jolt as they hit snapping the man's neck. Alec let him go, and then he was moving again, only this time, he was going after their leader.
Cam
Cameron was watching Tamsin, and when the trickling of blood was there, she could smell it before the first drop even hit the beauty's skin. That had her startled, but then the shots were fired, and Alec was gone in a flash. She was torn. Her stomach in knots, and she finally yelled to Justen. "GO help him! Don't let anything happen to him. You two protect each other!" She yelled it at him, even as she moved toward Tamsin, and though Cam had no witchy mojo herself, she was there, offering a single brush of her hand against Tamsin's shoulder, to rest her fingers on her and then speaking under the silence that was there. "I'm here, Tamsin... I'm here.. come on, witchy...use me.. whatever you need. I got you.."
Coven
The four that were there were taken down, but as Alec went for the leader, there was a sudden leaping body. This one wasn't a witch, and the amber glow of the eyes told him that any connecting of mouth to his skin was going to be bad. Another trio of figures besides the werewolf were moving, and they were chanting, and as they did, gravestones were cracking, breaking apart, and flying toward Alec, and as Justen made himself visible, it would be at him as well. -d
Justen
Justen was already on the move, but Alec was nothing but a blur of movement. He moved forwards, toward the leader, ducking low and trying to dodge the debris as he went flying. When the werewolf launched itself at Alec, Justen turned and fired. Again, it wouldn't kill him, but it would hurt like a son of a bitch.
Tamsin
That touch almost unsettled the spell, but there was no response, only the sudden flaring of candles to unimaginable heights within the tomb. Agnes appeared, and then was gone again as a swarm of the glimmering continued. There was a rise in the incantation that Tamsin was doing, and the energy that was always around her was to the point where Cam would have broken out in a sweat.
Alec
As the wolf leapt towards him, Alec twisted, hand driving forward, inward, fingers closing around the heart and as the bullets from Justen's gun hit, he completed the turn, the wolf falling to the ground several feet away. Alec stood, heart in hand, blood dripping from his fingers. The heart was tossed to the ground and then he was closing the distance on the leader.
Cam
Two of the witches had slipped behind, and she broke off the touch to Tamsin and was launching herself forward in that blur before they could get too far inside. She took a blow to the side, but had one neck snapped before another came, and the second one was trying to play retreat.
Coven
The leader was watching, his eyes dark, his hands moving to his side, and there were the rest of the followers coming forward toward the approaching Alec and Justen. Chanting, debris still flying, and that werewolf was snapping and trying to get a piece of Alec after scrambling to get back on his feet from the shot fired by Justen and then there was nothing as the wolf fell. Others were encroaching on the two men still. "AH! Which one of you should I kill first?! Which one of you is the BOYFRIEND?!" The leader called out, louder. "Come on, boys.." And then they could feel it. That invisible barrier that was going to keep Justen and Alec from reaching the leader, but not his lackeys. -d
Justen
Justen turned, mag dropped after taking down another three, and fresh mag rammed home. As that barrier came up, keeping them from reaching the asshat, Justen turned again, and fired at him.
Tamsin
The blood trickled down from her nose, and yet the ritual kept going until the sight of glimmers was no longer visible. The sound of the whispers in the air was dulled, and then there was only the sound of the action outside, as well as the work Cam was doing to keep Tamsin safe inside. The candles flared violently, and then they were doused. Darkness crept over the tomb. Eyes opened, but Cam could see they were not, in that instance, the usual green but instead white. Tamsin caught herself on the stone tomb before her, but then started moving out from the enclosure. The witch that had run before was turning about, and with a single swipe of her hand and the single word "Modus!" The witch went flying into one of the standing tombs, and there was a sickening crunch as bones broke. As she approached, the white of the eyes shifted to the green, and she called out to Alec and Justen. "At once!" Get the leader together. And she called out to break the spell binding him behind the invisible barrier. "Phasmatos Siprum, Emnis Abortum, Fasila Quisa Exilum San!"
Alec
Alec heard Tam-Tam and as that barrier began to drop, he was moving, a blur of motion, right for that main man. He didn't have a gun as Justen did, but he did have brute strength and a burning desire to see this asshole ended. Alec reached out to grab the man by the hair and jerk his head back. He turned, using the man as a shield, exposing the man's back to Justen as his fangs sunk into witch's throat.
Cam
Cam was moving out of the enclosed space, and when the witch went flying, she was already moving to help drop Justen out of the way of a gravestone headed right for his head. Alec was on the leader, and there was a moment where it seemed that was the easy way out, before Cam saw something in the man's hand. She screamed at Alec to watch out, and then prayed like fuck Justen was a quick shot, because that piece of wood in the leader's hand was going right for Alec's chest. "SHOOT NOW JUSTEN!" A quick and quieter please was on the end of that, but all she cared about was that he shot first before the man had a chance to stake Alec. -d
Justen
Trigger was already being squeezed, and Justen didn't simply give it a double tap, he fired until he had to drop the mag. He was ramming another home when Cam hit him, taking him down. Grunting, he tipped his head back to once more get a bead on the guy, just in case he wasn't dead. Sometimes these bitches were hard to kill.
Tamsin
There was biting, gun shots. A lot of them, and if he wasn't down yet, Tamsin was helping that point when she raised her hand and spoke out. "Incendia!" And it wasn't just the leader that ignited, but every one of the bodies, and those not yet dead around the graveyard. Tamsin's head turned as she looked around her, and then once she was certain the threat was seemingly ended, she crumpled to the ground.
Alec
FIRE! Not his friend! Alec let the guy go and backed away, a glance given around the graveyard. He caught sight of Tamsin as she dropped, eyes going wide. "Shit..." He helped Justen to his feet and then he was moving, running back to the tomb.
Cam
Cam could see the sudden flaring fires starting where bodies, and moving people had been, but her eyes were focused for the moment on Alec. When she could see him moving backward, grabbing hold of Justen in the process the immediate panic subsided and she was able to fleetly move to where Tamsin had hit the ground. She picked her up and got her back inside the tomb where they could all regroup. Where the body had been, there was nothing but a shadow of a previous outline, so Cam settled Tamsin to the solid stone, and then gave her a once-over. -d
Justen
Justen wasn't as fast as Alec, obviously but he was all out running. Witches going up in flames... Nothing unusual there. Seems to be par for course for their lot, no matter the century. When they reached the tomb, he was stepping over charred witches to get to his.
Tamsin
She had been lain on the stone tomb. Silent. The blood at her nose had stopped, and it took a few minutes before there would be a sudden upward start, and green eyes shot open as she gasped harshly. A glance around, getting her bearings, and then she was immediately looking to find Justen, and then glancing to the others, with a single, raspy question... "Are they gone?"
Alec
"Gone." He smiled at her. "Are you alright?" Alec didn't have to see the blood to know it was there. That kind of magic always has a price. And Alec worried just how high that price was going to be.
Cam
Cam could see it, smell it even if she couldn't see it, and she glanced to Tamsin as she started upright. Alec giving her the answer to her question as Cam's dark eyes moving over Alec. Tamsin had Justen, Alec, and her to worry over her, Cam's primary worry would always be Alec. No offense to anyone else. No immediate signs of werewolf bites or stakes through the heart, so she turned her attention to Tamsin, worried as well to what the cost of that ritual would be for the witch. -d
Justen
Justen was at her side, a smile given her. "Yeah, you pretty much toasted them." He smiled as he studied her face, fingertips caressing her cheek. "How are you feeling? That was a lot of juice you put out, and a lot to take in."
Tamsin
She caught his hand at her cheek with her own. It was small, that spark that passed through her hand and into his. But, as he'd said, that was a low of energy she took in. "Agnes didn't tell us... how many..." Slight accusatory tone there. "There were more than she let on..." And she reached up with her other hand then to swipe at her nose. "Head's a little achy, but, I think I'm okay.."
Alec
"We should probably get out of here, before the cops start showing up." It was a sure bet, some citizen called the cops, if not for the light show, then for the gunfire. "The sooner the better. " And god help them if there were traffic cams to catch them. The one thing they didn't have to worry about was Google Earth. None of those Google images of city streets was ever taken at night.
Cam
Cam was already one step ahead of Alec, in that she was leaving some of the candles scattered around in the tomb, before she grabbed out one of them and made a makeshift pentagram as best she could on the ground. Defiling the tomb, trying to get into the crypt of Marie Laveau. That was shit that happened here. And the cop/Fed was on it. Once she had the scene staged she glanced back to the other two before she set her hand on Alec's chest to make sure for herself that they're been no contact with the stake. "Tam, can you walk? Or..." She looked between the two men, and then back to Tamsin before Cam started out of the tomb, to cut a path for them through the now crispy fried witches. -d
Justen
Didn't matter if she could or not, Justen swept her up in his arms and carried her out to the car. He settled her in, and then moved to the trunk and popped the lid. His tool back was plucked up from within the tomb and carried back to the car, the items within stowed back in their rightful places. And then, he was sliding in behind the wheel, starting the car up.
Tamsin
Swept up and carried, there was a small laugh, tired as it was, before she tucked back a few strands of her hair, and then eased herself into the car when he helped her in. She stifled back a yawn. Pretty sure she was ready to sleep until noon. She just felt tired.
The pages of the grimoire had seen better days, but that was the beauty of the books. Old as dirt, meant they'd lived lifetime beyond those of the person who held onto them. Used them. Tamsin's grimoire had lived many lifetimes, and it was evident in the way the old text creaked, pages had to be settled back into the spine, and more than that the wealth of withy knowledge that was to be found upon the pages. She'd poured over the book for days now, and in the quiet of the house there could be hear chanting at times. Now, book clutched tight to her chest, she was coming in from the back patio with a slow exhale and a glance around to see where everyone else was, because she knew what lay ahead of them tonight. Or at least ... knew what had to be done.
Alec
Alec was pouring himself a drink, a smile given as Tamsin came into the room. The stopper was replaced in the decanter and the glass lifted; used to gesture to the book. "Got it all figured out?" It wasn't an easy undertaking; they all knew that. Just as they knew Tam-Tam had been 'cramming' for this not so little test of hers. It was a worry they all shared. The not knowing what would happen. Not knowing who would be out to stop them. Not knowing what it would do to Tam, and if she'd survive it.
Cam
Cam turned her head as she heard the back door open and watched as Tamsin came into the room. A small purse of her lips as Alec asked if she had everything all figured out, but she put the worry aside, and slipped from that lean she'd had against the counter to slide her arm around Alec's waist. "Of course she does. Now, let's finish these drinks, and get the hell out of here because I believe we have a witch to meet up with." She then glanced toward Tamsin. "Wasn't there something you said we needed to get for this thing still? Aside form all the candles, and herbs and stuff you've been collecting for the last two days?" -d
Justen
It was about that time that Baby pulled up out front. Yes, there was more junk in the trunk. No, don't ask where the hell he got it. If he didn't already know his life was one truckload of weird, he would think so now. At least this one was fresh out of the morgue, no need to dig up one out of a graveyard. Justen waited in the car because the last thing he needed was to step away, even to step inside for a moment, and run the risk of someone jacking his wheels.... with a dead body in the trunk.
Tamsin
That had been one hell of a conversation to have with him. At least it had been over the bacon cheeseburger pizza, and before the sex for dessert. That was one hell of a way to make up for asking the man in her life to find a fresh corpse of a born local for the spell. Mind-blowing zorro mask wearing, spank his ass a few times sex. Tamsin looked between Alec and Cam at Cam's question, and gave a small, guilty little grin. "Justen is taking care of that part..." Speaking of, she sent off a text from her phone to see if he'd gotten back yet, because they needed to meet up with Agnes soon at the graveyard. Creepy was getting even creepier.
Alec
"Hm..." Alec nodded and then looked toward the front of the house. "And that would be him." That car was distinctive, and one didn't have to have superior hearing to catch the sound of that engine. Alec was more than slightly appreciative of it, as one classic care owner to another, she was a fine piece of work. Alec knocked back his drink, and then nodded. "Time to roll." he headed out, grabbing his jacket as he went.
Cam
Cam looked toward the front door, and there was a small lift of a brow before glancing back toward Tamsin. Alec's move had her following suit, and there was a delayed step as she looked at their resident witch. "You should have let him help, too, Tamsin.." She gave a small glance to Alec as he grabbed his jacket, and then headed out the front door, before looking to Tamsin. "He's worried about you too, witchy." She leaned and pecked the other woman's cheek, before she snared her own jacket and headed out and caught up to Alec, giving a squeeze to his arm, before she glanced toward the car and then back to Alec. "Do you smell that..?" Death was in that car. Was it the trunk? Damn. -d
Justen
He's had worse things in his trunk. Weird assed vampire hybrid heads. Jars of dead man's blood. King of hell... Weird shit. Justen leaned in the seat to look at the trio through the car window. "He ain't getting any fresher." Looking between the three of them, he lifted a brow.
Tamsin
Cam's words to her had Tamsin's brow knit. Then she looked to where Alec had already headed outside, and she gave a quiet mutter to herself. Grabbing her sweater, the witch headed out and toward the car. A glance toward Justen with a small smile, before she, grimoire clutched in her hands, cut off Alec at the pass before he could get into the car. She didn't say anything, but she grabbed him in a hug, and kissed his cheek. It was an 'I'm sorry', and heartfelt, because it registered on her face. Then, she was sliding into the back with Cam to let the two men sit up front. A lean back, and she looked forward, with a small exhale. "We have to hurry.." She said, and that's all, but there was a growing edge to her voice that would ensure all three of them knew.. it was serious.
Alec
Alec smiled at her, the kiss to the cheek returned in kind and then he was sliding in once the girls took the back seat. He nodded to Justen, and then looked back to Tam-Tam. "Where are we meeting the witch?" Surely the woman wasn't doing this in her shop. Not where weird shit could scare the tourists.
Cam
Cam gave the two a smile, at least she knew she needed to include Alec, though really, it shouldn't have required some prodding. But then, Cam pretty much lived and breathed Alec, so it was natural he was in on decisions when it came to her. A glance toward Tamsin at the question of exactly where they were meeting the strange, knew too much other witch. -d
Justen
"Why do I feel like we're about to be thrown into Weekend at Bernies three..." Justen glanced at the girls and waited until Tam gave the location and then he dropped the car into gear, and after a check of his mirrors and a glance over his left shoulder, he pulled from the curb. "After, am I going to be able to burn and salt the body? Make sure he doesn't come back?"
Tamsin
Tamsin laid the grimoire on her lap as she turned to give the location they needed to head in to meet up with Agnes."St. Louis Cemetary.." She gave the address, and then as Justen was pulling out and heading onward, she heard his request. "If there's anything left to salt and burn, of course you can.." She smiled, then glanced between Alec and Cam, then looked out the side window as she quietly readied herself for the ritual ahead.
Justen
Make that weekend at bernies 4....
Alec
"So," Alec looked at Justen. "You like your corpses well seasoned." Nodding, he offered out. "Sodium's bad for you, you know. Maybe try a little lemon pepper..." Alec smirked as he cracked jokes, trying to keep the tension at bay, but it was still there, under the surface. Waiting to creep out and snap at each of theem.
Cam
She gave a small pat to Tamsin's shoulder, but when the little witch didn't seem to pay her any attention, Cam figured she was busy trying to ready herself even more for what lay ahead of them. Looking to Alec, she chuckled, before glancing toward Justen. "After hearing about the two boxes of pizza he put away, I don't think he's too worried about sodium, babe.." -d
Justen
"Hey, that was good, the pickles were a little on the chewy side, but the flavor was awesome." He looked into the rearview at them and then back at the road as he headed for the cemetery. "How long do we expect this to take? We need to keep an eye out for the cops. Last thing we need is for them to interrupt us." Never mind the fact that they'd be in the cemetery, with a corpse, doing god knows what to it, if the cops showed up before the deed was done, the spell could go wrong.
Tamsin
Tamsin felt the hand on her shoulder, but she'd been focusing, and yet, when she heard the banter, she drew out of that little headspace, and answered Justen's question. "If Agnes did her part, the spirits will be there, ready to allow me to help them, allow me their power... if they all agree, it won't take long..." If they all didn't, or, if the other witches found them first, then the trio would be busy fighting off the other witches, while Tamsin fought for her life. And the rest for the other wandering souls. That was the part she was leaving out for now though. "Head for the tomb of Marie Laveau." The most powerful witch, that was where the ritual had to take place.
Alec
When Justen pulled up at the gate on Conti, Alec slid out, and glanced around, before breaking the padlock off the gate. Pulling the chain, he glanced around again, before swinging the gates open so Justen could pull through. With his phone in hand, he led them through the maze of tombs to Marie Laveau's.
Cam
Cam turned and looked when Alec slid out and broke the lock and the chain off the gates of the cemetery. She frowned when he remained outside the car, but was leading them slowly through the maze of tombs until they could easily see the tomb, already bearing the marked upon XXXs on its freshly painted walls again. Cam looked at Tamsin, and then turned back just in time.
Agnes
Agnes appeared out of nowhere it seemed in front of the car's lights. "Hurry. Get inside 'da tomb. 'Dere ain' much time... 'dey a'reddy comin'." She hissed to them all, and then turned about and let the gate of the tomb swing open and what was usually appearing to be a solid wall of brick and mortar, was now an open expanse with the voodoo queen's final resting spot centered in the middle of the tomb. -d
Justen
Justen shut the car down and moved to the trunk, where Alec joined him. Between them, they lifted the corpse and carried it into the tomb. There wasn't any place else to put the dude so they set him down on the vault. Justen then pulled his Colt, checked the rounds to make sure they were in fact, the witch killing variety and then he racked it, chambering a round. Moving back to the car, he grabbed his tool bag, closed the trunk, and then headed back into the tomb.
Tamsin
Tamsin moved out of the car once it stopped, and it was almost instantaneous. The sudden flooding of the glimmers around her, and around the tomb. Faces came from the darkness, and the whispers were there, louder than she'd ever heard them before. Her hands moved to her head, and she took a staggering step back. Only after a moment did she speak out.. "ENOUGH!" Her voice was loud enough to be heard, but etched with the pain that the whispers had been driving through her. Tamsin turned green eyes to the others, before she moved inside, grimoire settled at the head of the tomb, near the head of the body the boys had brought in, and then she handed out candles for the others to help her place them around the interior of the tomb.
Alec
Alec's lips twitched upward, as he took the candles she handed him. "Do not piss the woman off..." He lit and placed candles about and then moved toward the mouth of the tomb. If anyone wanted in that Tam-Tam didn't want there, they'd have to get through him.
Cam
Cam took the candles from Tamsin, brow raised at the loud tone of voice, and then at Alec's retort. "Mmm. Especially after this.." She grinned to the two men, and then moved to set the candles where Tamsin pointed.
Agnes
Agnes was standing near the mouth of the tomb, and when the candles were settled around, she turned her head and looked back at Tamsin. "Start 'da rit'al. 'Dey here.." She turned then to look toward the other three. "She start 'dat rit'al, she can' be stopped. She stop, she g'won die.." The words were plain, spoken without emotion, as the older witch turned about and started forward. Once she broke the threshold of the tomb, she vanished.
Coven
In the distance, there was a large spark of light, and the sudden flaring upward of a fire near the back perimeter of the cemetery. The same came a moment later on the opposite end of the cemetery. "BENNETTTTT WITCH!!" A male voice bellowed outward. Shit was getting real. -d
Justen
"Hey, I know where my bread is buttered." he smiled at Tamsin, and took the candles from her, and moved through the room, lighting and setting them, before he took up a place near the door with Alec. Slipping that nickel-plated Colt once more from his belt, Justen stood just inside of the doorway, green eyes scanning the cemetery beyond.
Tamsin
She gave Justen a quick smile, and once the candles were in place, Tamsin shook her hands slowly, and settled them along the sides of the corpseās head, with her fingertips along the temples. The candles that were set in place, jumped to life, each one a single flicker, before they illuminated the entirety of the tomb. And as they did, the incantation was begun. "Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe." Tamsin said it, repeated it slowly, and as she spoke it, the candle flames began to grow. As they grew, there were glimmers outside the tomb that would begin to draw and gather, and one by one they would begin to slip past the men standing at the doorway. The sheer number of them was quickly amassing, and through them they could see faces on occasion, figures not just glimmers, and one of those figures seemed to look very much like Agnes, with subtle differences in appearance and clothing. "Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe.."
Alec
Alec watched as the shimmers passed between he and Justen, and there wasn't a thing he could do about that. That was needed, but it didn't make him feel any better. He glanced toward Tam-tam, and then looked back out the doorway, looking for the physical bodied to show up. The voice from the far end of the cemetery had him wanting to take the fight to them, but he knew he couldn't leave the girls. Dividing their ranks was the last thing they needed to do.
Cam
Cam was staying back closer to Tamsin, though when the candles flared up, that had her head turning, and there was a little too close for comfort move as she nearly caught her jacket sleeve on fire. The glimmers were nothing they could do anything about, but the voice. She glanced to Alec and Justen with a dark-eyed gaze, and then she looked back out toward the opening of the tomb.
Coven
Outside the tomb the weather was shifting. The wind was growing, increasing to the stirring of trees, and leaves upon the ground. There was a sizeable note of energy bustling and buzzing in the air, and then they could see the fires sparking up closer this time. And the voice, was no longer bodiless, there was a figure that it belonged to. "BENNEETTT WITCH! You're being VERY NAUGHTY!!" The man appeared at the edge of the row three rows away from where the tomb they inhabited was, and after he showed himself, there were other figures coming clear of the tombs and gravestones to be seen. "COME out COME out!"-d
Justen
"Why don't you come in, you bitch!" Yeah, yeah so it was a dude, but Justen was all about the insult. That Colt came up, aimed center mass at the dude as he asked Alec, "How many do you think there are?" Would be a good idea to know. "This is going to get ugly."
Tamsin
Tamsin's eyes were closed, and the incantation continued. The glimmers were increasing, the number growing, and the intensity with which they glowed was increasing as well. More and more, the whispers starting to break through to where even the vampires, and the hunter could hear them. Tamsin's head tipped back, her voice a slow draining rasp as she worked the spell harder. "Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe, Ven el forte es cufe."
Alec
Alec was ready to start snapping necks but he wasn't fool enough to take the fight to them. Here they were defensible. Out there, it was too easy to be overwhelmed by sheer numbers. Alec squinted as he looked out, and then over at Justen. "A dozen, so far, scattered around...." He looked back out, and then back to Justen. "What else do you have in that bag of yours?"
Cam
The boys were focused on the coming fight, but it was Cam who was hearing the whispers now, and she was watching Tamsin. Dark eyes focusing on the witch, and the way her body was contorting here and there as the glimmers around her seemed to just.. vanish once they made contact with Tamsin. Cam was officially past slightly worried, and moving into edged toward panic now.
Coven
"AHHhhhh! The BENNETTTTT WITCH has playmates..." The man spoke, with a rumbling laugh. A flicker of movement, and then there were four in front of the tomb. Words uttered, that sent Justen and Alec backward before they tried to breach the doorway and get inside. -d
Justen
Justen went backward, a grunt given and then that Colt came up, two rounds sent toward the first one coming through the door. Even if he missed, not likely, but possible, the thought of bullets flying at them might just slow them down.
Tamsin
Agnes had underestimated the number of souls that wanted their release. The number of witches that had suffered torment through the centuries within New Orleans and needed a way out. A way to find their peace. Tamsin was channeling the masses, and her body was wracked with it all. There was the sudden influx of glimmers, the bright white light around her as her body shuddered, the incantation was almost drowned out by white noise that seemed to have invaded now. Eyes tightly shut, and the first few trickles of blood from her nose were present, but the incantation continued. Even if no one could hear her speaking the words aloud now. Stop her, and she dies... the spell's completion was her only forward play.
Alec
That was not an option. Alec wasn't going to let anyone do harm to Tam and after picking himself up, he moved, a mere blur to the eye as he went after those trying to make their way in. Justen's two rounds saw one go down, and in that time Alec had snapped the neck of another and thrown a third bodily out. The fourth, Alec grabbed on the fly, launching himself and his victim into the air, over the tomb across the way. With his arm locked around the man's head, he landed, the sudden jolt as they hit snapping the man's neck. Alec let him go, and then he was moving again, only this time, he was going after their leader.
Cam
Cameron was watching Tamsin, and when the trickling of blood was there, she could smell it before the first drop even hit the beauty's skin. That had her startled, but then the shots were fired, and Alec was gone in a flash. She was torn. Her stomach in knots, and she finally yelled to Justen. "GO help him! Don't let anything happen to him. You two protect each other!" She yelled it at him, even as she moved toward Tamsin, and though Cam had no witchy mojo herself, she was there, offering a single brush of her hand against Tamsin's shoulder, to rest her fingers on her and then speaking under the silence that was there. "I'm here, Tamsin... I'm here.. come on, witchy...use me.. whatever you need. I got you.."
Coven
The four that were there were taken down, but as Alec went for the leader, there was a sudden leaping body. This one wasn't a witch, and the amber glow of the eyes told him that any connecting of mouth to his skin was going to be bad. Another trio of figures besides the werewolf were moving, and they were chanting, and as they did, gravestones were cracking, breaking apart, and flying toward Alec, and as Justen made himself visible, it would be at him as well. -d
Justen
Justen was already on the move, but Alec was nothing but a blur of movement. He moved forwards, toward the leader, ducking low and trying to dodge the debris as he went flying. When the werewolf launched itself at Alec, Justen turned and fired. Again, it wouldn't kill him, but it would hurt like a son of a bitch.
Tamsin
That touch almost unsettled the spell, but there was no response, only the sudden flaring of candles to unimaginable heights within the tomb. Agnes appeared, and then was gone again as a swarm of the glimmering continued. There was a rise in the incantation that Tamsin was doing, and the energy that was always around her was to the point where Cam would have broken out in a sweat.
Alec
As the wolf leapt towards him, Alec twisted, hand driving forward, inward, fingers closing around the heart and as the bullets from Justen's gun hit, he completed the turn, the wolf falling to the ground several feet away. Alec stood, heart in hand, blood dripping from his fingers. The heart was tossed to the ground and then he was closing the distance on the leader.
Cam
Two of the witches had slipped behind, and she broke off the touch to Tamsin and was launching herself forward in that blur before they could get too far inside. She took a blow to the side, but had one neck snapped before another came, and the second one was trying to play retreat.
Coven
The leader was watching, his eyes dark, his hands moving to his side, and there were the rest of the followers coming forward toward the approaching Alec and Justen. Chanting, debris still flying, and that werewolf was snapping and trying to get a piece of Alec after scrambling to get back on his feet from the shot fired by Justen and then there was nothing as the wolf fell. Others were encroaching on the two men still. "AH! Which one of you should I kill first?! Which one of you is the BOYFRIEND?!" The leader called out, louder. "Come on, boys.." And then they could feel it. That invisible barrier that was going to keep Justen and Alec from reaching the leader, but not his lackeys. -d
Justen
Justen turned, mag dropped after taking down another three, and fresh mag rammed home. As that barrier came up, keeping them from reaching the asshat, Justen turned again, and fired at him.
Tamsin
The blood trickled down from her nose, and yet the ritual kept going until the sight of glimmers was no longer visible. The sound of the whispers in the air was dulled, and then there was only the sound of the action outside, as well as the work Cam was doing to keep Tamsin safe inside. The candles flared violently, and then they were doused. Darkness crept over the tomb. Eyes opened, but Cam could see they were not, in that instance, the usual green but instead white. Tamsin caught herself on the stone tomb before her, but then started moving out from the enclosure. The witch that had run before was turning about, and with a single swipe of her hand and the single word "Modus!" The witch went flying into one of the standing tombs, and there was a sickening crunch as bones broke. As she approached, the white of the eyes shifted to the green, and she called out to Alec and Justen. "At once!" Get the leader together. And she called out to break the spell binding him behind the invisible barrier. "Phasmatos Siprum, Emnis Abortum, Fasila Quisa Exilum San!"
Alec
Alec heard Tam-Tam and as that barrier began to drop, he was moving, a blur of motion, right for that main man. He didn't have a gun as Justen did, but he did have brute strength and a burning desire to see this asshole ended. Alec reached out to grab the man by the hair and jerk his head back. He turned, using the man as a shield, exposing the man's back to Justen as his fangs sunk into witch's throat.
Cam
Cam was moving out of the enclosed space, and when the witch went flying, she was already moving to help drop Justen out of the way of a gravestone headed right for his head. Alec was on the leader, and there was a moment where it seemed that was the easy way out, before Cam saw something in the man's hand. She screamed at Alec to watch out, and then prayed like fuck Justen was a quick shot, because that piece of wood in the leader's hand was going right for Alec's chest. "SHOOT NOW JUSTEN!" A quick and quieter please was on the end of that, but all she cared about was that he shot first before the man had a chance to stake Alec. -d
Justen
Trigger was already being squeezed, and Justen didn't simply give it a double tap, he fired until he had to drop the mag. He was ramming another home when Cam hit him, taking him down. Grunting, he tipped his head back to once more get a bead on the guy, just in case he wasn't dead. Sometimes these bitches were hard to kill.
Tamsin
There was biting, gun shots. A lot of them, and if he wasn't down yet, Tamsin was helping that point when she raised her hand and spoke out. "Incendia!" And it wasn't just the leader that ignited, but every one of the bodies, and those not yet dead around the graveyard. Tamsin's head turned as she looked around her, and then once she was certain the threat was seemingly ended, she crumpled to the ground.
Alec
FIRE! Not his friend! Alec let the guy go and backed away, a glance given around the graveyard. He caught sight of Tamsin as she dropped, eyes going wide. "Shit..." He helped Justen to his feet and then he was moving, running back to the tomb.
Cam
Cam could see the sudden flaring fires starting where bodies, and moving people had been, but her eyes were focused for the moment on Alec. When she could see him moving backward, grabbing hold of Justen in the process the immediate panic subsided and she was able to fleetly move to where Tamsin had hit the ground. She picked her up and got her back inside the tomb where they could all regroup. Where the body had been, there was nothing but a shadow of a previous outline, so Cam settled Tamsin to the solid stone, and then gave her a once-over. -d
Justen
Justen wasn't as fast as Alec, obviously but he was all out running. Witches going up in flames... Nothing unusual there. Seems to be par for course for their lot, no matter the century. When they reached the tomb, he was stepping over charred witches to get to his.
Tamsin
She had been lain on the stone tomb. Silent. The blood at her nose had stopped, and it took a few minutes before there would be a sudden upward start, and green eyes shot open as she gasped harshly. A glance around, getting her bearings, and then she was immediately looking to find Justen, and then glancing to the others, with a single, raspy question... "Are they gone?"
Alec
"Gone." He smiled at her. "Are you alright?" Alec didn't have to see the blood to know it was there. That kind of magic always has a price. And Alec worried just how high that price was going to be.
Cam
Cam could see it, smell it even if she couldn't see it, and she glanced to Tamsin as she started upright. Alec giving her the answer to her question as Cam's dark eyes moving over Alec. Tamsin had Justen, Alec, and her to worry over her, Cam's primary worry would always be Alec. No offense to anyone else. No immediate signs of werewolf bites or stakes through the heart, so she turned her attention to Tamsin, worried as well to what the cost of that ritual would be for the witch. -d
Justen
Justen was at her side, a smile given her. "Yeah, you pretty much toasted them." He smiled as he studied her face, fingertips caressing her cheek. "How are you feeling? That was a lot of juice you put out, and a lot to take in."
Tamsin
She caught his hand at her cheek with her own. It was small, that spark that passed through her hand and into his. But, as he'd said, that was a low of energy she took in. "Agnes didn't tell us... how many..." Slight accusatory tone there. "There were more than she let on..." And she reached up with her other hand then to swipe at her nose. "Head's a little achy, but, I think I'm okay.."
Alec
"We should probably get out of here, before the cops start showing up." It was a sure bet, some citizen called the cops, if not for the light show, then for the gunfire. "The sooner the better. " And god help them if there were traffic cams to catch them. The one thing they didn't have to worry about was Google Earth. None of those Google images of city streets was ever taken at night.
Cam
Cam was already one step ahead of Alec, in that she was leaving some of the candles scattered around in the tomb, before she grabbed out one of them and made a makeshift pentagram as best she could on the ground. Defiling the tomb, trying to get into the crypt of Marie Laveau. That was shit that happened here. And the cop/Fed was on it. Once she had the scene staged she glanced back to the other two before she set her hand on Alec's chest to make sure for herself that they're been no contact with the stake. "Tam, can you walk? Or..." She looked between the two men, and then back to Tamsin before Cam started out of the tomb, to cut a path for them through the now crispy fried witches. -d
Justen
Didn't matter if she could or not, Justen swept her up in his arms and carried her out to the car. He settled her in, and then moved to the trunk and popped the lid. His tool back was plucked up from within the tomb and carried back to the car, the items within stowed back in their rightful places. And then, he was sliding in behind the wheel, starting the car up.
Tamsin
Swept up and carried, there was a small laugh, tired as it was, before she tucked back a few strands of her hair, and then eased herself into the car when he helped her in. She stifled back a yawn. Pretty sure she was ready to sleep until noon. She just felt tired.