Elijah Mason (elijahmason) wrote in populouspostea, @ 2014-02-13 16:39:00 |
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Entry tags: | cecily pardee, deirdre prewett, elijah mason, irene putman, isaac holt, johnathan ackerman, rating: pg, status: complete, t30: free zone → holding cell, t30: holt tower → isaac's office |
Prison Break (2502)
Who: Cecily Pardee, Deirdre Prewett, Elijah Mason, Isaac Holt, Irene Putman, & Johnathan Ackerman
Where: Territory 30 → Free Zone compound
When: Night & pre-dawn, Jan. 28th, 2502
Rating: PG
Status: Complete
As Irene made her way up to Isaac's suite, she couldn't help but be nervous as the impending mission was getting close and closer. Her mind was running a million miles an hour trying to keep everything in order and make sure nothing important was forgotten. It also took her a great deal of willpower to have waited even this long before taking action on the humans of the Free Zone. Once she had gained confirmation from the inside that Elijah was alive and was being held captive, Irene had to stop herself from going right over there, raising hell and probably getting herself killed in the process. Then she had to stop Isaac from doing the same the moment she had told him the news. All-in-all, the several days it had taken to gather up the necessary manpower and resources had been trying on the vampire and she was eager to see this plan come to fruition. She was eager to have Elijah back where he belonged and in safer hands. The second-in-command knocked once on her maker's door and then let herself in.
Isaac was just as eager to get his progeny back as Irene was. Perhaps even more so. A few days ago when Irene had come to him with confirmation that Elijah was still alive and being held captive by the Free Zoners in his Territory, relief didn't begin to describe what he'd been feeling. After the good news had sunk in, it took everything Irene probably had to convince Isaac not to go storming the castle, so to speak. It was also why he would not be accompanying his Second in this mission even though he very, very much wanted to. But, even he couldn't trust himself not to rip off a head or two and put them on some grotesque display. The Territory Leader had a glass of scotch in hand when Irene knocked and entered and he turned to the vampire, lifting the glass to his lips and taking a sip before asking, "Is everything prepared?" He then set the glass down on the office desk and took a seat behind hit, his other hand indicating to one of the two empty seats in front of it.
"As prepared as it'll ever be." She murmured, eyeballing the chair she had been offered but deciding against it. She was far too antsy to sit down at the moment. She did, however, think scotch sounded like a great idea and debated about stealing the rest of Isaac's glass but instead she walked over to help herself to a glass of her own. "I have a really good team with me, but I don't anticipate this is going to be easy." She said after a swallow of the alcohol. She was silent as she allowed the burn of drink to settle warmly in her stomach. "I'm worried about making things worse." She admitted finally, "Getting Elijah back is the priority but, in the process, we could be making a lot of angry people even more angry and that, in turn, could endanger more innocent lives. I don't want to stoop to their level but I also don't want them attacking any more safehouses."
Out of reflex, Isaac's jaw clenched. His anger, however, was not aimed at Irene, but at those that had taken from him. The vampire drained his glass and got up from the desk to set it on the mini-bar. Without meaning to, his gaze was stony as he looked upon on Irene, "They made it worse by attacking those I'm supposed to keep safe and kidnapping one of those very same people." Isaac turned away from his Second and murmured, "If it were up to me, I'd have every one of them involved killed." With some small effort, the Territory Leader's expression softened and his sighed, "Do what you can to get him back, Irene. That's all I want. That's all we want." He paused and then asked, "Did you ever find out why he was taken?"
Irene shook her head in response to his question, actually not phased by Isaac's anger. It was a logical emotion for him to be feeling and Irene knew her maker well enough to know it wasn't directed at her. She was angry too but she also had to be realistic if she was to properly lead this team. "No, I only got enough to know he's alive and his general whereabouts in the building. Beyond that I know a rough number of humans to expect to greet us and I have some leads on who their leader is but not much else. I'm hoping Elijah can enlighten us some more…" She fell silent as she watched her maker, finishing up the rest of her drink before speaking again, tentatively, "Isaac...it could be dangerous bringing back a prisoner of our own but I'll do it, if you want me to." While Irene was trying to avoid stooping to their level and taking a hostage would be doing just that, she had already demanded non-lethal force from her team and the chance to get some real information out of someone could be beneficial. Although, it opened up an entire new can of worms when thinking about just how that information would need to be extracted. It wasn't something she was personally comfortable with but she would always default to her maker's wishes when it was asked of her.
The Territory Leader quickly debated the option Irene presented him with. On the one hand, there was no telling what kind of information they could gain by taking a prisoner. After all, hadn't they done they same? An eye for an eye? However, going on that logic, there was no telling how long that would go and innocents no doubt would get tangled up in the process. On the other... Not taking one could potentially leave them vulnerable to other forces aside from the Free Zoners. Other vampires wanting to expand their Territory could see Isaac's lack of action as a weakness.
Isaac sighed and finally turned back to face Irene. Blue eyes stared down at his Second and he placed a hand on her shoulder, "The priority, of course, if Elijah. Get him back. If you have an opportunity to bring anyone else back... Take it."
Deirdre knocked on the door to the Territory Leader's suite with more confidence then she would have had months ago. She still did not interact with the Territory leader, but she had at least met him on a couple occasions—when she had actually been on good behavior. Her 'insolence' with her former boss was not a factor working with Irene, and Isaac could kill her in an instant should he decide to. Actually, Irene could too, but she respected Irene. And she respected that the Vampire they were going to get mattered. She trusted Irene's judgement that this mission was worth it. Deirdre wasn't happy about the idea of attacking a human settlement, but Irene had given a non-lethal order. That made her trust this mission more. The rest of the crew was assembled, selected because they could be trusted with the non-lethal requirement, and danger.
Irene watched the indecision in Isaac's eyes as he mulled over her words. It made her feel better knowing it was just as difficult of a choice for him as it would have been for her. Now she knew it wasn't just an emotional decision, but a logical one as well. She gave a slightly tense smile to her maker and a nod of understanding. In that moment there was a knock on the door behind her and the vampire sent a small glance over her shoulder in the direction of the sound. "That's probably Deirdre." She said, her nerves getting another small boost as she realized it was time. "Wish me luck." She told Isaac, lifting herself up on tip-toes to press a kiss to her maker's cheek. She knew this was a dangerous mission and the humans weren't going to play by the same rules she had set for her team. If this was the last time she saw Isaac she at least wanted to end it on a good note.
His arms slid easily around his second progeny and Isaac pulled her closer into a tight hug. Head was turned into the woman's and the vampire murmured in Irene's ear, "I don't need to wish you luck." A tiny smile curved his mouth and he added in a more serious tone, "Irene? If it's at all possible... Be careful. I've already lost someone close to me because of the virus. I can't lose two more." The Territory Leader then pressed a kiss to the woman's hair and released her.
A ding sounded at the end of the hallway and Johnathan Ackerman stepped into view dressed as he usually was when danger was involved: Gray cargo pants stuffed into black combat boots, a ribbed black sweater protected his arms and over that was the usual tactical vest in addition to the weapons he carried on him. The one huge difference, however, was the strangely absent katana usually strapped to his back. Looking left then right, his gaze lit up when he spotted Deirdre and he smiled, "Ah, Miss Prewett!" He greeted warmly while approaching her, "We seem to meeting each other in less than pleasant circumstances."
Deirdre smiled at the formal greeting from the man approaching, Jonathan? "'ello." She couldn't match his level of formality, so she didn't try. "I'm sure we could be in worse circumstances." Not that she was necessarily looking forward to a raid... but they had worked together before, and the other man was clearly capable. Deirdre wasn't nearly as skilled with the non-lethal unarmed combat, but was armed with a tazer, which would at least do the job. "Hopefully this goes smoothly." She was getting nervous hovering outside of the Territory Leader's suite, and anxious to get the mission underway.
Isaac's confidence in her did more than she could express for her nerves. The bond she shared with her maker meant that ultimately it didn't matter what happened in life as long as he was still pleased with her and honestly, she would always be appreciative of his constant support of her. She didn't have any more words for the older vampire and so she just smiled at him and then went to greet those behind the door. She'd expected Deirdre but she hadn't expected Johnathan Ackerman standing there smiling at her. They'd made a good team before and the rest of the crew had been hand-picked. Irene had expected to be more nervous but the more everything came together the better she felt. "Well." She greeted them both, "Are we ready?"
The former vigilante chuckled and grinned, "That we could be, Miss Prewett." He said, turning to stand beside her, "That we could be." Johnathan, too, was anxious both for himself, Isaac, Irene, and Elijah to get things started. While Johnathan himself held no great love for the race of vampires in general, there were a few, such as Elijah, who had proven themselves to be above the majority of their kind. Over the centuries, Johnathan had come to call Elijah a friend and he could only imagine what sort of hell he'd been put through during his capture. Hopefully, that would change very, very soon for the vampire. His attention was then caught by Irene leaving Isaac's suite and he greeted her with a warm smile, although he remained silent. He knew by now that Deirdre was Irene's immediate subordinate and would know far more than him if everything was fully prepared for the mission so he deferred to the mortal.
Deirdre nodded at Irene, switching for a moment into work mode. "Everything is assembled, and everyone has been briefed. The route is mapped. There was a little Revenent movement between the Tower and our target, but it was cleared by the advance team, so we should have a clear path there and back."
In the Free Zone holding cell he'd been left to rot in, Elijah Mason sat curled in the darkest corner he could find. Since Cecily's initial visit some months back--He couldn't remember exactly when anymore, it seemed so long ago--she had returned in a somewhat regular fashion. After a while, Eli supposed they had formed a kind of friendship that develops when two individuals find themselves in similar, unpleasant situations. But, there was an added bonus to Cecily's visits: When she could, she offered her blood to him. At first, he had refused on the basis that he couldn't trust himself not kill her. But... after some convincing, Elijah had given in. It was something he needed after all and very, very slowly he began to get better. Currently, he was by far from 100%. He could still hardly move well, but at least the pain was manageable.
His captors at this point had all but forgotten him aside from posting a guard outside and the occasional check. Except for Cecily, he was now completely alone... and it had long since weighed on his mind. Not for the first time that night and in the previous nights, Elijah wished for the connection to his Maker once again.
Cecily couldn't sleep again. Or maybe she had just gotten into the habit of sleeping late so she could be up at night. So she could visit Elijah. They were no longer using her in their interrogations of him. She was grateful of this, and relieved too that they hadn't killed him. She could feel that they were trying to, almost. But they hadn't just sent him out into the sunlight at least, so she could still see him and talk to him. It was lonely in the quarantine. But they liked having her still, liked knowing they could use her whenever they wanted. And they still used her sometimes, but not like they had with the Vampire.
"Good." She nodded at Deirdre, "Great. Then I guess we're ready." Everything seemed to be falling into place almost too easily. Irene didn't know whether to be relieved or to be wary of this fact. If it was too easy now then what was going to end up happening down the line? She gestured with a small nod of her head that they should get to the elevators and downstairs where everyone was probably waiting for them. Irene wasn't taking much with her except her knife. It was certainly large enough to be deadly if she used it in that way but the vampire was skilled enough with the weapon that it could be used in a non-lethal way if needed.
Soon, the group assembled and additional instructions were given before they piled into the vehicle waiting to take them to their destination. Johnathan, as he understood things, learned that to be as efficient as possible they would be traveling by vehicle to a certain point before proceeding the rest of the way on foot. Using the cover of night, the majority of the humans would be asleep and thus, the element of surprise would be on their side as they made their way to Elijah. It was a sound plan, but even the most solid of plans could go sideways and Johnathan only prayed their luck would hold out. He, too, had only knives on him but Johnathan didn't expect to use them unless under extreme circumstances. For the most parts, his hands, arms, feet, and legs would be the better deterrents.
Deirdre waved to the driver as the disembarked at their preliminary destination. It was dark, but she searched the shadows for Revenents anyway, for movement in the shadows that indicated danger was near. She wasn't as used to searching for human watchers, so her instincts weren't as strong there. Their early intelligence though had indicated the most likely location for exterior gaurds, and it should be easy enough to avoid them, at least until they came to the entrance they intended to breach to gain access. She looked to Irene for her next order.
Elijah wasn't always aware of how much time passed inside the compound now that he wasn't being questioned every day as he had been previously. With Cecily's blood in his system, it meant there was less silver and he was able to better hear when the guard fell asleep at his post—these days he almost always did—and Eli could finally hear the rhythmic breathing on the other side of the door much better than he had before. That usually meant he'd get a visit from his young friend and in anticipation of that happening, Elijah uncurled himself from the corner and went to sit as he usually did against the bars. Still, he wasn't exactly sure when Cecily would make an appearance and drifted in-and-out of consciousness until her scent reached his nose and Elijah instantly became alert. Sitting up, his gaze shifted toward the door.
Cecily smiled as she approached the Vampire—she could feel him sitting up. Waiting for her? Or just reacting to her presence? She still did not always know with him. He did not feel as sick to her (though he was still not well), but she still was not feeling his emotions the way she felt other people's. "Do you have a story for me tonight?" It was still strange to her that she was now what she would consider friends with the creature They considered a Monster. But they did not let her see many other people, and Elijah would talk to her at least. Their part of the base was quiet, as usual, and Cecily was bored. He could always fake sleep if he did not want her company.
Irene was mostly silent on their drive into the Free Zone and to the drop off point. She was running the plan through her head and really, there wasn't much else to say. It seemed like the others in her group felt the same and the silence in the vehicle wasn't tense necessarily but it was certainly palpable. The vampire only had brief words with their driver when they climbed out of the vehicles, reminding him to stay back until the command and also to maintain radio silence. After that, she quietly lead her team, Deirdre and Johnathan included, the few blocks over to the building they were headed.
They'd been told of a basement entrance on the south side of the building, a broken window long since boarded up but easy enough to breach when they had enough muscle on their side. Yanking the boards from the window was easy for a vampire like Irene although she couldn't help the noise it made. Still, after a moment of silence to make sure no one was shouting or running their way, the vampire was satisfied enough that they hadn't been noticed and she only gestured once for everyone else to follow her as she slipped into the darkness of the room below.
As he had before on their previous mission, Johnathan brought up the rear of the group and watched their six for both human and Revenant alike before slipping quietly through the window after the next-to-last person. In the darkness of the basement, the Gifted immortal wished he had the sight of a vampire in the moment... along with his katana. Despite being very difficult to kill, Johnathan didn't particularly fancy traversing an unfamiliar location with potential hostiles somewhere inside. The former vigilante paused long enough to pull a Snaplight from a pocket on his tactical vest, cracked, and shook it before rolling it out in front of the group to light their way.
Deirdre was grateful for the light that Johnathan provided, and fanned out slightly from their location trying to find the doorway they were told would be on their right. She strained her ears to listen for signs of ambush from the humans in the base, but for the moment, it appeared to be silent. And their door should be... Where was the door? Deirdre paused turning to Irene when she didn't find anything. She must have remembered their directions incorrectly. Irene would know how to find the door they were supposed to use.
Elijah chuckled, feeling a little bit better upon seeing the young lady and hearing her question. As he settled back against the bar, he asked lightly, "Why? Do you want to hear one?" The vampire must've been doing better if he could dole out witty remarks like that.
Cecily sat down near him. "Do you have another suggestion?" They were limited in what they were able to do here. But perhaps he had other needs? When had he fed? Did he need... well yes, he always needed, he barely ate enough to survive, nevermind heal all of the damage They had done to him, but they were very limited in what she could do for him, at least without harming her or becoming obvious. The only reason they both hadn't been killed was because They didn't know it was happening.
Irene was glad that Johnathan had thought of things like lights for the rest of the group to see. Sometimes Irene forgot that not everyone could see so well in the darkness as she could and she had been so focused on the goal it hadn't actually occurred to her. That's what teams were for, she supposed, so others' strengths could balance out any weaknesses. She'd already been scanning the room they entered into and noticed the lack of the proper doorway at nearly the same time that Deirdre had. She made eye contact with the human and a small shake of her head to indicate something was off. A tiny noise was made by another of their team to get Irene's attention as he found a separate doorway and she went to check it out. She didn't want to risk just opening it so the vampire pressed her ear to the door to listen for any life on the other side.
She waited for a moment and heard nothing, no movement, no breathing and there was no light coming from underneath it either. It seemed their informant had been incorrect, but at least they still had options. She rejoined the group and gestured them close so she could speak as quietly as possible. "It seems clear out there right now but I think it's safe to say we don't know what we're going to find on the other side of that door." She whispered, "We may need to split up so be prepared. Keep radio silence at all times. Press talk twice if you get into trouble and three times if you find Elijah." As she spoke she had her walkie in her hand, pressing the button as indicated to emit a small bit of static from the other walkies.
Johnathan made sure to have his own walkie easily accessible in case of an emergency while nodding in affirmation to Irene's instructions. The former vigilante then moved toward the door to against the wall, stopping on the side that would open in order to bring up the rear when they moved out.
Deirdre determined that, of their trio, she was the most expendable and took the lead, opening the door and lighting a soft glow into the hallway beyond. It made sense for her to lead too because as the sole true human in the group there was a better chance of surviving discovery by these supposed ‘Free Zoners’. If she couldn’t talk her way out of the situation, they would at least be less likely to kill her immediately. At least in theory; she hoped they wouldn’t have to put it to the test.
There wasn’t much to see beyond the first doorway&mash;a dark hallway. No markings telling them if they were going in the right direction or not. But at least for the moment, neither was there anyone to catch them sneaking around. Deirdre looked back at the others before venturing forward.
Elijah chuckled, turning so that he actually faced his young visitor. Now that Cecily was able to assist him on occasion by providing him blood, the pain when he moved was not bearable instead of triggering the effect of, "Oh, God I'm just going to curl up in this corner and die" feeling. Elijah studied the girl a moment, his head tilting a little as he contemplated what to tell her but finally, all he really did was ask, "And what sort of story would you like to hear?"
Cecily smiled when Elijah humored her. “A story from history.” She hadn’t been to school in a year, and had always enjoyed being a student. Elijah had actually lived what for her had just been docu-vids and lessons in a classroom. And he would be able to make it more interesting sounding than her teachers back in the day. It would help pass the time. “Maybe an adventure? It’s boring in here…”
Irene fell into step several paces behind Deirdre. It was a bit more nerve wracking knowing they were stepping into the unknown but, at the very least, things seemed quiet around them...for now. She was still wary of assuming this mission would turn out easier than expected. Not until they had Elijah and they were in the vehicles back home would she be celebrating. The hallway they were walking down was fairly short and with only one or two opened doorways on either side that Irene or one of the team would glance inside before moving on again. Eventually they came to a split, with identical looking hallways going in opposite directions. Irene had been hoping the group could stay together but she wasn't about to take the chance of going the wrong way down one hallway only to have Elijah just around the corner on the other side. So, the vampire lifted three fingers in the air and then pointed down the left hallway, indicating she wanted three members of the team heading down the left side and the remaining two would come with her down the right.
As the last person filed out the door, Johnathan stealthily followed suit as a hand reached out for the doorknob and pulled the door closed behind him. Since the door had been closed to begin with, closing it after him seemed logical and made it less likely for a patrol --if there was any down here-- to notice anything out of place. When he came up to the end of the short hallway, he noticed the silent single and watched as three members of the team broke off and proceeded to the left split of the hallway. Inching up, Johnathan silently tapped Irene on the left shoulder to make her aware of his presence and then indicated he was ready to proceed.
Deirdre watched as Irene indicated the team should split. She chose the right pathway, forging ahead and trusting the others would distribute themselves behind her as they saw fit. A short distance down their path, a set of stairs opened up into the hallway. She frowned, their intelligence, such as it was, said that they wanted to be in the basement. She bypassed the stairs in favor of searching for another door, another way in to their destination, she froze just past the staircase… Was that the sound of footsteps?
Elijah he wasn't sure why, but the circumstances surrounding his turning came to mind. Despite having known Cecily for many months now, talking about Isaac changing him was still rather personal. Instead, Eli's mind focused on another vampire that had frequently been in his thoughts lately: Irene. Even that mere thought brought a smile to his lips and he said, "When we get out of here--and we will eventually--I hope you'll get to meet an extraordinary woman." The vampire then proceeded to talk about Irene, the race riots, the impact on their relationship and how they could never really be seen together. Mostly, though, Elijah talked about how resilient Irene had been through it all. Eventually, however, they'd only been together a few years before Irene's desire to change things tugged on her heart and they parted ways. He paused after that and small smile curved his mouth, "We parted on amicable terms. I knew I couldn't very well prevent her from doing what she wanted. But... I guess, in a way, Irene was always the one that kind of got away."
Cecily smiled at his reassurance that they would get out—that struck her more than his assurances. He’s said we. Not when he got out, but when we got out. She hoped he would get out, be free again, but had no expectations of her own release. They had discarded Elijah, but she was still useful, potentially. It was also beyond her imagination to know anything beyond even this corridor, this cellar anymore. She missed feeling the sky and the sun. Then he began talking about Irene, and Cecily settled back against the bars listening. Elijah was a good storyteller, and the heroine of his story was inspirational. It was easy to forget for a while it wasn’t just a story and that Elijah was telling her something real, although his mournful comment at the end about her getting away brought the story back to reality somewhat. “The heroine doesn’t always have to end up with the hero of the story at the end.”
Irene heard the footsteps too. Two sets, to be exact and as she pressed herself to the wall just behind the stairs she gestured a small warning at Johnathan in case he was too far back to hear them still. It was two men and they were chatting as they came closer down the hallway, seemingly oblivious to the intruders at the bottom of the darkened stairs. Irene hoped they would just pass by but as footsteps fell closer and voices got louder she had a feeling they wouldn't be that lucky. At least the men were distracted with conversation and that put them at a disadvantage. The vampire made eye contact with Deirdre and wished for a moment they could communicate more directly. Irene only hoped Dee understood that they had to time this perfectly. If they go for the first guy too soon then the second one could be given a chance to get away to alert the others and that would be unacceptable. Their gazes were broken as footsteps hit the top of the stairs and began descending, a flashlight was clicked on and a single beam of light hit the bottom of the stairs. Irene held perfectly still, not even breathing as she waited for the first man to reach the bottom and then a moment later the second man joined them. They were still talking and that gave her the perfect opportunity to reach suddenly for the first guy.
His flashlight clattered to the ground and spun across the concrete as she caught his arms against his sides and clapped her other hand over his mouth to stifle any noise he might make. Irene stepped back and brought the guard with her, leaving Johnathan and Deirdre to take care of the second man. The guard was quite a bit larger than her but the vampire easily overpowered him as she held him still and spoke into his ear, "You're holding a vampire here. Tell me where he is and you will live." Of course she wasn't planning on killing him but he didn't need to know that. His eyes were wide as he tried to wiggle out of her firm grasp but she only held him tighter, "Do you understand?" She asked, "Will you cooperate?" His struggles died as her words finally registered with him and he only nodded. She asked him again if he was going to tell her and he nodded again. Irene slowly brought her hand from his mouth and the guard took two seconds to catch his breath before suddenly he was shouting and certainly not cooperating. Her hand clamped down once more to stifle his shouts and Irene looked to Deirdre or Johnathan to take care of him since her hands were full with just keeping him still and quiet. So much for that plan, it looks like they were still on their own.
Even after centuries of combat training, practice, and overall practice, surprises still tended to, well... surprise. Johnathan froze for a second at hearing voices and the sound of footsteps descending the stairs. There was the agonizing moment of waiting for just the right opportunity which, if he interpreted Irene's eye contact with Deirdre, would be soon. Sure enough, as soon as the men reached the last step, Irene made her move and so did Deirdre. Her fist went flying into the second man's face and Johnathan took the advantage of the distraction to slip up behind the man. His right arm easily slid around the neck, Johnathan's other arm strategically trapping the other man's as well and the former vigilante went through the sordid ordeal of choking the man into unconsciousness. It wasn't easy like in holo-vids and movies, where after a few moments the bad guy was on the ground. It took time, muscle and energy because the victim was fighting for every breath of air as much as you were choking it out of them. Johnathan did his best to focus on his particular task, half aware the other man was shouting or some such until the man in his arms finally went completely limp. Carefully laying the man on the ground, Johnathan quickly checked for a pulse and murmured while eyeing his companions, "He'll live."
Deirdre shook her hand trying to shake away the pain once it became clear that Johnathan had the guard secured—even if he was still struggling to render him unconscious. The sudden shout drew her attention to Irene and her captive who was apparently not going to cooperate. They didn’t have the time for a prolonged interrogation. And they certainly did not want to deal with the complication of an alarm. Deidre pulled the tazer from her belt and struck him in the stomach. The chest would have been better, closer to the heart and all, but that was too close to where Irene was holding him, and he was thrashing as though he had any hope of getting away. It was safer to take the easy target.
Elijah chuckled and nodded, "You're right, of course. I'm rather glad that didn't happen." The vampire shrugged, "Well, 95% of the time. There are moments where I wonder how things would be if we were together longer." Elijah paused again, studying the girl with a thoughtful expression on his face before lightly asking, "What about you, Cecily?"
Cecily tilted her head. “What about me?” She grinned at him. “I think you’re prolly pretty awesome, but she don’t sound like she stays put. Or do ya mean about heroines and heroes. I like that in my stories sometimes.” She shifted. “I like it best when the heroine gets what’s best for her in the end most of all. Gender bias and all. I think you deserve a happy ending too.” She made sure to reassure him. “It’s prolly coming up on dawn soon. Shift change should be coming up.” She didn’t want to go back to her room, but it wouldn’t be good if she was caught with the Vampire either.
Irene stepped back and released her hold on the man at the same moment that Deirdre was pressing the prongs of the taser to his stomach. The guard went stiff as electricity coursed through his body and that shut him up just long enough for Irene to pull out her knife and thunk the handle to the back of his skull hard enough to knock him out completely. His body crumpled to the ground at their feet and Irene just sighed a bit, wishing that had actually worked and they were one step closer. "Let's go." She muttered, keeping her voice low and her other senses alert in case the man's shout had drawn any unwanted attention.
While the ladies contended with the remaining human, Johnathan produced another Snaplight, checked the pocket watch to find that dawn was approaching, and crept forward into the direction Deirdre had initially gone to do a quick check. A knife was produced in case the man's shouting before it abruptly stopped alerted anyone. Now, time was beginning to be of the essence and while it made him uncomfortable even thinking it, the former vigilante wouldn't hesitate to use the blade in his hand if necessary. To his dismay, the hall ended so Johnathan hurried to double back and say, "Up the stairs," while tapping his wrist to indicate they were growing short on time.
Deirdre nodded and moved up the stairs. It would have been nice had there been better intelligence, but she supposed they had as much as they were going to get. Another hallway, and short distance down it, more doors. This was getting old fast, but the lock on one particular door caught her attention. Not just one deadbolt, there were three. That struck her as odd; none of the other doors had been so locked. She indicated the door to Irene and Johnathan.
"No," Eli admitted, "She isn't one to "stay put," but I kind of always liked that about her." Said the vampire with a small grin. His gaze moved toward the meager window placed just under the ceiling and noticing that it did seem to be growing lighter outside. Elijah's expression turned to concern as his attention turned back to Cecily, "You should probably head back to your room. I wouldn't want you getting in trouble because of me."
“Is it getting light out?” Cecily asked, feeling him look towards the far wall. She couldn’t tell, but if he was right, then it would mean the shift change was coming, and with that was usually some sort of bed check on her. She didn’t really want to go, but it wouldn’t do to have Them notice her visits to the vampire who was supposed to be dying. “I’ll be careful if you will.” She smiled at him and got up. “I want to hear more about Irene next time.” She left him as her parting comment, and then began navigating the route back to her room in the quarantined area.
Irene also saw just how unusual the lock was when Deirdre pointed it out to her. This was promising although there was a pointed risk with trying to get through it when they had no idea what was on the other side. Irene glanced briefly between her companions to see if they were thinking the same thing she was and then she crouched down to press her ear to the door. She was listening for movement on the other side, for any sign of life within the vicinity but the vampire didn't pick up much of anything at the moment. They would just need to be quick because that could change at any moment and a glance through the crack of the door jamb showed the deadbolts very clearly locked. She dug into one of the pockets of her pants and came back up with a lock picking set. It was good that Irene generally carried spares when she carried any at all in the case that a set broke. Undoing these three locks would go much quicker with another pair of hands so one set was offered to Johnathan while she got to work on the bottom most deadbolt.
The gifted man took the offered picks and got to work on the top bolt. Within a handful of seconds, the lock sliding out of place could be heard and Johnathan got to work on the second with the same results a moment later. A tiny smirk spread across his face as he put the two picks away and he murmured to the vampire, "I think you're losing your edge, Miss Putman," he lightly teased while handing the items she'd given him back. Johnathan then took a step back, ready for whatever might be behind the door.
Deirdre watched the other two make short work of the locks. It was like they had keys. She would have to ask for lessons when they had some free time. Even if she didn’t get as good as they were, it would be quite a skill to have at her disposal. She looked down the hall watching making sure they were not disturbed, and then watched as the door opened. “Back downstairs?” She murmured. It was the right direction at least, if their intelligence was any good.
Elijah nodded, "Yes," he said in answer to Cecily's question about it getting light out and then chuckled at the positive response to his story about Irene, "It would be a pleasure, Cecily. And be careful!" He called softly out as she got up and left. The vampire was, once again, alone and he sighed, glancing to his usual corner. Eli painfully got to his feet and stiffly moved in that direction before slowly sitting back down with the aide of the wall. If he had still been human, Eli would've likened how he felt at that moment to a hard days work on the farm he'd down centuries ago in Maine. Only, of course, it was 10 times worse and he was back to counting the hours and minutes of when he'd finally be free of this place.
Cecily counted her steps down the hallway, turned left, and then paused as always to feel for the guard who was at the door. He wasn’t paying attention to her; his attention was drawn towards the access to the rest of the compound. Cecily frowned, that meant his replacement was probably coming, and she didn’t have much time. She began preparing her speech in her head… She’d gotten up to get a drink, she’d gotten lost, forgotten how to get back to her room… lies that the guard would believe of the little blind girl. He tended to forget sometimes what her gifts were, and she would take advantage of that if she needed to.
Irene managed to roll open her lock shortly after Johnathan had begun on his second one. She playfully rolled her eyes at his teasing, "At least I brought the picks." She muttered in return, pocketing said items when they were handed back to her. Her ear was pressed to the door one more time and with still no sign of life on the other side she gave the indication that they should enter. The vampire quietly turned the door handle and pressed open the door to allow Deirdre and Johnathan to go first as she was planning to lock the door behind them again. It could be risky if it meant locking them in with the unknown but she felt it was more of a risk to leave such a normally secured door open to whomever may come down this hallway and check it.
Johnathan gave the vampire a grin before all his attention was focused on what might be on the other side of the door. Slipping quietly past Irene after Deirdre, the former vigilante found himself on small landing before stairs descended before them once again and he reaffirmed the human's comment with a nod. This time, there was some source of light toward the bottom of the stairs from distant point to the right in what Johnathan concluded was a hall. Glancing to Deirdre, a hand was tapped to a chest and he signaled he'd take point this time around as he was uneasy that their path suddenly had a light source somewhere. Steeling himself for a surprise, Johnathan lightly and carefully started his descent.
Deirdre was content to let Johnathan take point. Any other time she’d take a moment to appreciate his touch, but this was a mission and his touch had been communication. She noticed the light as well, and her stance hugged the wall as they descended the stairs. Quietly. Lights meant people, and people here were enemies. The less notice they gave them, the better.
Cecily frowned as she felt the other guard approaching. It didn’t’ feel right. Lies would not be enough. She should’ve left sooner. She shouldn’t linger either. Nerves got her moving again. Away from the door, away from the guards. And back to her room, if she could get there in time.
Irene closed the door behind them as silently as she could and just as easily slipped all three deadbolts shut again. Now no one would come from behind them without her knowing about it and that helped ease her. Also, it meant she could put her full attention on the task ahead of them. She maintained several paces behind Deirdre but still tried to sense anything coming up ahead. Light footsteps reached sensitive vampire ears, they were faint and hurried, and moving in the opposite direction of them. That seemed unusual as if they had been noticed any guard would be coming closer. Irene didn't say anything about it yet, knowing silence was currently the more important decision. For now, she would keep her ears on the direction the footsteps had fled to. It could be dealt with if and when they returned.
Reaching the bottom step Johnathan lifted his left hand to curl his fingers into a fist, signaling a stop to the others behind him. Fishing out a mirror from his Tac vest, the gifted man inched it toward the corner until he saw one guard sitting near another door. As he returned the mirror to it's pocket he thought, This has to be Elijah... Turning his attention to Deirdre and Irene, Johnathan lifted up one finger to indicate the guard. Johnathan then pointed to Deirdre and then tapped his own chest again, signaling they'd go around the corner on the count of three. His gaze then darted toward Irene, the same finger twirling in the air to indicate the vampire should continue to bring up the rear. Turning away, Johnathan silently counted down with a hand and when he reached one, slipping quietly around the corner.
Deirdre nodded acceptance of Johnathan’s signal—one guard. They could handle one guard. There was tension as the gifted man counted down, and then it was time to act—he stepped around the corner, and she followed as quietly as possible. Her hand was on her taser, but if they could avoid using it… The guard got up quickly—though there was a lag in his movements as though he had been sleeping and was not yet ready to react quickly—he had clearly not expected three people he didn’t know to come down the stairs. Close the distance quickly, Deirdre thought, subdue him before he can raise the alarm.
It felt wrong. She didn’t recognize the guard… no she felt more than one, which was a bad sign. They had they finally decided to kill Elijah. And if that was true, then they would come for her too. She just hoped that the little bit of blood he’d taken from her would give him a chance—that maybe he’d be able to fight them off? That this would be his chance to escape. And she would hope her humanity would spare her again. That she would still be considered useful to Them. That they weren’t coming for her too.
Irene followed her crew around the corner at the signal but something didn't feel quite right to her. The one single guard who was just getting to his feet certainly hadn't been the same footsteps she'd heard retreating. "There's someone else too." She told Johnathan and Deirdre, slipping past them while they took care of the unhappy guard. Her hand was kept lowered near her knife as she crept by herself further down the hallway. She could sense someone now, more like she could hear their heartbeat getting louder as she got closer and it was beating hard. Irene knew fear when she sensed it and it became increasingly clearer to her that whomever she was going after was very afraid in that moment. It was either a very nervous guard or, more likely, not a guard at all. Perhaps another prisoner? Maybe they knew where to find Elijah. "Is someone there?" She asked quietly, glancing around another corner, "I won't hurt you if you step forward."
Johnathan threw a punch when he was close enough. It was by far from anything that would knock the bloke out, but the action was immediately followed by shoving the man back against the wall and clapping a hand over the guard's mouth.
"Unless you prefer to be tazed by my lovely associate here, I do hope you'll cooperate." The guard nodded, "Right then. If you'd be so kind as to hand her the key that will release Mr. Mason from his confinement."
Deirdre glanced over and nodded as Irene took off alone after… whatever she had heard, but the guard was in front of them, and he needed to be taken care of first. She watched as Johnathan easily subdued him and stepped in to reinforce the threats being made to him. He clearly had not been chosen for his bravery, as he blanched obviously when asked to produce the key. The guard fumbled for his keys, dropping them to the floor. Deirdre kicked them away, getting space from him before bending to pick them up. “Which one?” She waved the set in front of the guard, whose eyes bulged. Deirdre rolled her eyes. “Should just take care of him.” She murmured dismissively. The guard didn’t have to know that they weren’t planning on using lethal force. Maybe implying otherwise would help with the cooperation.
Elijah had decided he'd better get some semblance of sleep and was just beginning to doze off when he thought he heard something. All his vampiric abilities due to the frequent application of silver and little to no blood were still not up to par despite Cecily's sporadic donations. Hadn't he heard the sound of keys dropping and voices? Elijah strained to hear Cecily's departing steps... And, after having been visited by the young girl numerous times, could barely hear her nervous heart beating. The vampire wasn't sure if something was happening or if she was just nervous about returning to her quarters. At any rate, Eli risked the guard's ire by calling out, "... Hello? Is someone there?"
Cecily could feel the woman approaching her. Unfamiliar. Cecily couldn’t read her, and that scared her too. The woman must be Gifted too, able to block Cecily’s ability to sense thoughts. So they were going to kill her too, there was no other reason for sending in another telepath. And no reason to hide, obviously she knew Cecily was there. She could still try the innocent act. “I was just getting a drink. I didn’t sleep well and I got lost…” She let the words tumble out like she’d practiced them in her head. “I wasn’t…” And she then Elijah was calling out. Oh no… that would get the guard after him. “…going anywhere.”
Irene's footsteps halted when a young voice met her ears and she turned to face the girl. It was obvious by the excuses she offered to Irene that the girl thought the vampire was another guard and her words made Irene frown a little. She was about to open her mouth to speak when a far more familiar voice called out and it took most of her willpower not to shout back at him. "Elijah…" She whispered almost to herself, briefly looking in the direction his voice had come from but she couldn't go to him just yet. She had this girl to worry about first. "I'm not going to hurt you." She repeated, "Are you a prisoner here as well? Are you from the safehouse?" Irene hadn't been told about a girl captured alongside Elijah but she also hadn't been in the territory when the attack had happened so her knowledge of the incident was limit to what others had told her.
Johnathan smirked at the guard, continuing the charade started by Deirdre and pulled one of his knives from it's sheath. It was held up to the guard and the gifted man asked in a very serious tone, "Which key?" The blade was touched to skin, nothing that would be vital and nothing that would break the skin, but the tactic worked because the guard was even more cooperative. He started enthusiastically blathering beneath Johanthan's hand and he released him.
"The-The big round one! With red rubber around it! Jesus, please don't kill me!" He cried and Johnathan tried very hard not to roll his eyes and instead flipped the knife in his hand and used the hilt to knock the bloody twit out.
Johnathan then looked to Deirdre, shaking his head, "How on earth did this bloke become a guard?"
It wasn’t appropriate, but she laughed. “I guess they didn’t plan on him actually needing to keep anyone out?” After all, the prison was buried in the basement of a building well outside of the heart of the territory. “Or maybe the use the ones with talent to guard against the Revenants.” It’s what she would do, were she the one in charge. Whatever the reason, they had the information they needed from him. She bent to bind his wrists, just in case he woke up before they were done. “Hopefully that’s a good sign.” They still didn’t know what shape Elijah would be in when they found him, and how difficult it would be to get him out again.
Now Elijah knew he must've fallen asleep because he could swear he'd heard Johnathan outside along with an unfamiliar female voice. His mind must've finally cracked under all the stress and lack of food especially since a flare of hope rose within him and he called out louder, "... Hello?!"
Cecily noticed the softly spoken name. The woman used his name; she didn’t call him a monster. And then she was saying she wouldn’t hurt Cecily? Cecily didn’t exactly relax, but she was less scared now. “You know Elijah?” She asked. The woman and looked to him, but hadn’t gone to him… She wasn’t going to just let Cecily go then. Cecily would cooperate with her then. “I’m under Quarantine.” She parroted the words she’d been told over the last months. “I don’t know… what you mean by safe house?”
There were other voices, unfamiliar voices, people that felt unfamiliar. And then Elijah was calling out again. She held her breath unconsciously at the sound—afraid for him—afraid of what the guard would do to him. He was supposed to be dying—he was supposed to be dead. She needed to know more—and reached out to gently touch the arm of the woman she couldn’t read, hoping the physical contact would tell her more about her intentions.
Irene noticed the moment that Cecily reached out to her that there was something more to this girl. She'd been so distracted with Elijah and worrying about their safety that, for one, she hadn't noticed that the gifted girl couldn't see although it seemed obvious now in the way the girl looked in her direction but not at her. "I'm here to help Elijah. And you too, if you want it." She said, wondering for a moment what gift this girl had that required physical contact and wondering what exactly she meant by quarantine. "We don't have much time. Do you know where he is?"
The physical contact helped; she had never failed to get a sense of someone when she touched them. And what she sensed from the other woman was enough to reassure Cecily that Irene was sincere about helping Elijah, and that was enough for her. He would die if they kept him here. “This way.” Cecily took the woman’s hand to lead her down the hallway towards Elijah’s prison. She reached out trying to feel where the guard was… but he was… he was unconscious? “There are others with you?” She asked, trying to identify the other people she was feeling.
"Two others with me." She confirmed, "Plus three more in another part of the building and others waiting for our call once we get out again." She had just managed to gain this girl's trust so she felt it best if she divulged all that she could lest she come off as keeping secrets. Irene followed the girl down the hall, still having a hard time sensing Elijah nearby despite how close she knew they actually were. They must have really done a number to him in this place, no wonder Isaac thought he was dead. "What's your name?" She asked the gifted girl.
Johnathan stepped into view of Irene and made a gesture toward Deirdre, "Miss Prewett has the keys. We just— Hang on, who is this?" He asked when he noticed Cecily.
Deirdre held the keys in front of her with the right one out, ready to open the door quickly if they were ambushed from behind or something. She was almost as surprised as Johnathan when they caught up to Irene and found she was not alone, that she had a young teenager on her arm. “A prisoner?” She asked, one of the captors, or theirs?
Cecily felt mostly cautious curiosity from the new comers, although the younger woman apparently thought they might be taking Cecily as a prisoner… Cecily decided to ignore that for now, trusting Elijah to protect her. He would be able to if these were his friends. “I thought you were in a rush.” She pointed out in a tone only a teenager could manage. “He’s getting better but he’s…. sick.”
Irene couldn't help the small grin of amusement at that tone that the girl had given back to Johnathan and Deirdre. "She was just showing me where Elijah is being kept. Deirdre, be ready to signal the other group when we get there. We're going to have to make a hasty exit." She looked back over at Cecily and gently gave her hand a tug, "Let's keep going."
The gifted mortal trusted Irene's instincts so he wasn't too concerned with the appearance of the young girl and if she could help them find Eli, then it would certainly speed things up. That was a far better option than the half-blundering about they'd been doing since entering the compound. "Right then." Johnathan gave Irene and the girl room to lead the way and resumed his previous position of bringing up the rear by keeping an eye out for guard's relief shift. No doubt he or she would be making an appearance soon.
Deirdre juggled the items in her hands, putting away her weapon so she could pull out the communicator. Communicator in one hand, keys in the other, she stayed close to Irene and the girl. When they turned the next corner, it was clear they had arrived. She stopped walking for a moment, looking at the prison before them. Then hurried to unlock the door, certain they had found him.
Elijah wasn't sure what to make of the unfamiliar face at his cell door, let alone why it was being unlocked and opened. The vampire tensed for the worst, wondering if, after so many months left to starve, they were going to try one more time to get the information they wanted. Eli pulled his legs toward him, prepared to make some kind of last stand yet some inner emotion compelled him to ask, "What's going on?"
Cecily tightened her hand on the unknown woman’s arm; nervous now what was going to happen. The younger woman at least was feeling confident as she approached the cell to unlock it. Elijah was uncertain. “They said… they were here to help you.” Cecily said, trying to comfort him, and make sure he knew she was there at the same time.
Irene could hardly stand the anticipation now that they were so close. The moment she heard Elijah's voice again relief flooded through her. She had heard him shouting, of course, but it was different when he was right there in front of her. As soon as his cell door was opened by Deirdre, Irene gently pushed away from their group and into the small room, "Elijah!" She greeted, moving instantly to his side and dropping to her knees so she could wrap her arms around his shoulders in a hug. It wasn't completely professional of her as leader of the group but she'd been so worried. "We thought you were dead." She said, pulling back to look at him with a frown. He looked awful, it was clear he desperately needed blood and this close to him she could smell the silver in his system. "There's no time to waste...we need to go."
It was a relief to see Elijah alive, although he certainly wasn't well judging from his appearance. That was a bit disconcerting knowing how good Eli took care of himself, relatively speaking, for a vampire and gave the two of them a moment by keeping an eye out for any more guards.
Deirdre followed Johnathan's cue, and stepped away from the door once it was open, stepping back and turning from the vampires, though she kept her eye on the hallway around them, and the girl they had brought with them.
His ears registered what Cecily was saying, but it was almost as if there was no one else in the room when he laid eyes on Irene. Still, Eli wasn't sure if he was dreaming or if this was real. Cecily had never been part of his hallucinations before and neither had Johnathan or this other woman present so when Irene dropped to her knees in front of him and hugged him, the pain at being handled burned away the shock of seeing her. It took everything Elijah had left not to lose it right then and there because Irene was right. If they had broken into the compound to save him, chances were someone within would notice something amiss. "... Irene?" He asked, doubt still evident in his voice.
Cecily wasn't sure what was going on; who these people were... but the woman was Irene? Irene that Elijah had been telling her stories about tonight. Here. To rescue Elijah. The stories were more true than she'd realized.
Irene gave a brilliant, comforting smile to Elijah when he said her name. "I'm here, darling. Don't worry. We're going to get you out right now." She promised him, reaching to gently take one of his arms and loop it over her own shoulder. She knew he was in no condition to move but he was going to have to if they were going to get him out. So she used her own strength mostly to get him up on his feet, wrapping an arm around his middle to steady him. "Deirdre, contact the other group and tell them to fall back. Johnathan, take point and make sure the coast is clear." Then she looked to Cecily, "Are you coming with us?" She asked, hoping it would be the case.
Johnathan immediately gave a nod and went to backtrack his way toward the stairs, he stayed at the bottom as long as he dared, listening, before returning with the others, "It's clear. I suggest we hurry. If we dally any longer, we're bound to run into unwanted company."
"Already signalled them, boss." Deirdre admitted with a grin. "I'll take lead still." She put her words to action, heading back down the hallway toward the door they had come in through. Now was not the time to search for possible better routes, it was time to take the known path back towards their exit and the rest of their party.
A muffled cry of pain came from Eli when Irene got him to his feet and he leaned heavily against the other vampire even though he didn't really want to. Unfortunately, his body was giving him no choice. Despite that, he was firm in his insistence that Cecily leave with them and in a strained voice, he said, "Cecily comes with us. When they discover I'm gone, they'll hurt or kill her." Once that was said, the rest of the time passed in a blur as Elijah mostly concentrated on keeping his feet under him and moving.
Cecily felt his pain—and felt a joy that Elijah all but insisted she come with them... He was right. When They found out he was gone, her usefulness would go down dramatically. And if they were looking for a scapegoat, she would be an easy target. Cecily appreciated that Irene asked her too though—that she had been given a choice. "I'll come." She watched as Irene all but carried Elijah through the hall. "The guard isn't waking up yet." She offered, trying to be helpful. She didn't know what their path was, but she could at least offer that bit of information to help the escape succeed.
Irene was methodical in her steps, trying to keep a steady pace for Elijah who she knew, at this point, was putting all of his concentration just on placing one foot in front of the other. On the way in, she had been their eyes in the darkness mostly and her sensitive hearing didn't hurt either. On the way back she relied more so on her team getting them back the way they had come. Apparently luck was on their side as they made it back to the original room without running into another guard and the ones they had left unconscious had still been in their spots. The rest of the team was waiting for them at the exit point with a prisoner of their own they had captured, one of the guards they had encountered along the way. It was good they had thought about it because in the heat of the moment Irene had completely forgotten about the conversation she'd had with Isaac before any of the night had happened. She helped Elijah up through the broken window they had come in and then swiftly followed him up into the fresh air of a very early morning.