Who: The Vakarians (Cindy & Garrus) with Veronica Mars What: Cindy breaks out the pumpkin carriage of doom, shooting demons happen, all good things When: Beginning of the Breach Plot Where: Outside Shoegasm Rating/Warnings: Violence, lots of it Status: Complete!
Demons. Garrus couldn’t say he was the least bit surprised - it wasn’t his first rodeo with the likes of them, and it brought him back to the fond, fond memories of proposing to his now-wife in the midst of a hell-creature infested nightclub. Except, well, the hole that had been erupting with the likes of these before was concentrated in one spot. An eye of the storm sort of thing, a central point. Instead there were numerous ones of varying sizes in numerous locations, and one of these locations was Shoegasm.
Guess they knew where to get good shoes.
Magic wasn’t part of his arsenal, and to kill these creatures crossing through the opening above them - like a cluster of darkness, glowing a blinding emerald - it wasn’t exactly needed. He’d been prepared for an all-out alien invasion that all of his planning could be applied in this scenario too, which meant he was equipped to the teeth in high-tech weaponry and medi-gel for healing purposes. His armor, modified for the moment for human fit, had been calibrated with a kinetic barrier for defense and over his eye was the visor, which proved handy in detecting energy signatures. It’s signals beeped once the rift they were dealing with was at the point of bursting again, about to unleash another wave of those lanky, wispy demons emitting some kind of gaseous light.
Veronica had access to his weapons, too, including the incendiary ammo and cyro ammo for what they were dealing with. Leliana was at the side of her friend (this was a Thedas problem), and Shoegasm’s defense was left to them.
“I’m calling Cindy for backup,” he announced, tapping the contraption over his ears and eyes - it doubled as a communicator, and was wirelessly connected to send messages to the pumpkin carriage. “It’s going to spit more out any minute, and we’ve still got time until the Inquisitor guy comes to close this up.” An unclaimed car had been flipped over to its side in front of the store, which was a prime use for cover. When those fuckers weren’t teleporting, that is.
Vakarian was currently equipped with a Geth Pulse Rifle - instead of bullets it shot out a rapid stream of high-energy phasic slug that he’d modified with damage-increasing armour parts, and was using his impeccable aim to get those things right in the fucking head.
While Garrus wasn’t exactly human he did get what it was like to not have powers. Most times Veronica didn’t mind but times like this they’d really come in handy. Still Veronica managed. It helped that she had access to Garrus’ alien weapons too. Times like this also made her damn glad that there were no monsters or demons in her dream. Just your run-of-the-mill perverted murderers.
“Go for it,” Veronica called to him her gun aimed at the rift ready for anything else that came out at her. Cindy would definitely be an asset in this situation. Well she was one in any situation but that wasn’t the point.
Message received, loud and clear. Cindy had been working the muscles of her carriage for awhile now, in preparation - making sure all the functions were top notch, that nothing had short-circuited or burned out, since she knew something like this was coming. It always did. Without fail. Because this was Orange County, and it was the pulse, the very epicenter, of worlds colliding - a very special mix, and she would defend the fucked up place she had built her home in; that was her life now. One she’d chosen, and refused to run from.
Besides, when demons started attacking Shoegasm, that meant shit got personal. And oh hell no, ain’t no way some slime from the abyss was going to mess up the stock of Louboutin’s and kickass boots.
She took a route of backstreets and rural paths, dirt and dust left in her wake as the carriage bumped along and sped toward the scene. “On my way,” she told Garrus, via the communication device that had been installed into the vehicle - it was spoken back to him, as she adjusted the Blue Tooth-esque contraption on her ear. “ETA’s about two minutes.”
Those two minutes went quick, yet still felt endless. It looked like one wave of demons had receded, but there would be another from the stormy green portal that had, in an unwelcome way, opened itself up in a sanctuary of footwear. Cindy was here though, flipping switches, opening compartments - blasters were now engaged. “Hey guys,” she called cheerfully. “I’ll get a patrol going near the store, prevent any of those fuckers from going too far when they decide to come out?” Because they weren’t so lucky as to consider this setup void of action - a full-out battle would erupt, and soon. Teleporting demons were decidedly inconvenient.
There she was, a fairytale vision that collided with something straight out of a super spy film - the carriage was whimsical tank on wheels, a project he was proud of, and one that served one hell of a use. Good to have around when things like this happened.
Sweat collected around his brows, and Garrus was dirty from the debris and a bit scuffed but well and ready. With the little break they were experiencing for the moment, it was safe to uncrouch from behind the flipped car and saunter over. Also because it was an all-out demon war and he wanted to take a better look at his wife. Ever the romantic, even in the midst of chaos. “Hey, beautiful,” he smirked, adjusting the rifle in his arms - it needed a minute to cool from being overheated. “Sounds good, though. These ones we’ve been dealing with look like everyone’s depiction of what an alien could look like.”
Tall, green, and he assumed the multiple holes around its face were...something of eyes? They also had a shriek that stuck with him, a very distinctive but foreign roar that could rattle his very bones even from beneath the protection of his armor. It’d only lasted briefly before purpose took over and his finger went back to the trigger, but it wasn’t normal.
“Oh god,” Veronica had to suppress an eye roll at the brief tender moment between the two. Though she couldn’t blame them. It’d be nice to see Logan at a time like this just in case shit got too real. But she’d be fine, she could handle herself. Plus she had an alien and a fairytale spy at her side. Veronica was also aware that Garrus had proposed during a demon attack after his other failed attempts. So again she couldn’t blame them, she just wasn’t a huge fan. “Save the gooey eyes for later,” she added making her way towards the carriage her gaze reverting back to where the demons had come from.
“Yeah,” Veronica agreed. “It’s a good thing that’s not what Garrus is turning into to,” or she might have shot him or someone else that didn’t know any better. But apparently there were all types of different aliens and Garrus was going to be tall and blue from what Veronica understood. He already had the tall part down, but then most people were tall to Veronica.
“Anyway,” she said gun still poised her in hands. “We can’t let these fuckers mess with your store.” Even if Cindy didn’t technically run it anymore.
Well, Garrus could greet his wife however he wanted to - sorry not sorry, V, pull up those big girl panties and strengthen the vagina, it wasn’t like they were humping in front of Cinderella’s fellow blonde friend. “Hey handsome,” the fairytale spy winked, leaning out the window of the pumpkin carriage - it was idling for now, but she was ready for action now that they had some semblance of a plan. “I’ll do a few circles around the building then, won’t let them get too far once they pop out of the rift.”
And honestly? They looked like Hollywood aliens? How completely and utterly special. She slid a pair of protective sunglasses snugly over her eyes and, in her catsuit with a pair of sturdy boots, she was also ready for some out-of-the-carriage, hand-to-hand action if need be. It might be necessary, given that the next round seemed to have been shat upon them - what looked like skeletons, all skin and bones yet glowing figures, suddenly materialized out of thin air.
The loud shrieks heralded their appearance.
“Time to go!” Cindy proclaimed, and it was about to be balls to the walls with the cryo-blasters.
Garrus would go back to making gooey eyes in a minute, never fear, Veronica Mars - but right now his visor bleeped, the tint of text and symbols flashing through the pale blue glass of his eyewear. On cue with the flaring of the rift, an expansion and a blast of energy the technology couldn’t exactly identify but was still measurable on a scale.
“Something happens,” he began, his eyes going from Veronica to the small crate with their supplies. “There’s medi-gel - rub it on the wound, watch science work some miracles. It’ll only take a few seconds.” Considering none of them were of the magical variety, he made sure to come prepared once the blood was shed. And it was highly possible, considering these demons weren’t exactly the easiest to take down.
But instead of taking cover behind their steely makeshift guard of a scrapped vehicle, he was out in the open, pulse rifle adjusted and the visor helping him hone in on accuracy - because he was letting out a line of plasma energy into the nearest demon’s face. They didn’t seem to function headless, so that was the quickest way to get them down. It just took a couple tries.
“Remind me never to face the end of the world with a married couple again,” Veronica muttered under her breath. And yeah knowing this place there would be way more end of the world scenarios going on. Thankfully they never seemed to fully end the world.
There wasn’t much time for romantic embraces or for Veronica to complain too much about it anyway. Veronica was closer to the carriage than Garrus and did in fact take cover. However that didn’t stop her from shooting at the demons. Garrus already had one covered but there was another to the side of him that Veronica nailed right in the head. Her lessons were definitely paying off.
Headshots were the way to go, and they seemed to all be in agreement on that - simply because not many things, demon or otherwise, could function without a head. Cindy began the short patrol, just a circle around the building - while Garrus and Veronica were up front, by the entrance and closer to the rift itself, she was hitting up the sides and back.
Good thing too, because this particular brand of demon really could teleport - or whatever it was doing, phasing in and out of existence, but it was really goddamn irritating. Picking up the pace, she increased the speed and when the next one materialized, rammed it with the carriage and got it stuck under the wheels - those terrible shrieks, something only a creature from some hellish dimension could make, were satisfying to her ears.
Now demon parts were scattered all on the road, but no biggie.
An energy blast, so cold it was enough to physically burn, was shot from the weapons attached to her carriage - not just one, but multiple rounds, to take them down. She would gladly watch demons disintegrate in her line of vision. “How are you guys holding up over here?” she called over the comm device.
Most of his combat specialty rested in the role of a sniper, taking that golden shot from a distance - but these things required a special sort of proximity that involved the invasion of personal space. Demons were relentless, and every time an arm came swinging down he ran the risk getting knocked over. Garrus, for once, wasn’t the tallest one around.
One evaporated from its spot, and he knew right then and there it was relocating elsewhere - and he didn’t know where until it was too late, and its limbs cut through the air and flung him right into their cover. The impact of armor against metal, it caused the car to almost topple over onto Veronica herself.
“Ungh,” was his pained response over the device, the kinetic shield over his protective plates sizzling in a brief flash of electric blue. “Got bitchslapped by a demon, but still alive. Sorry for almost squashing you, Mars!”
His hands gripped the rifle tightly despite the impact and even if it was a little overheated, he’d use the goddamn weapon until it turned into ash between his fingers and move to the next. Bones aching, sweat beneath his armor coating him, Garrus raised the plasma gun and shot the stream of light into its head as it began coming at it again.
Oh good. They could teleport. Just what she needed. But there wasn’t much else she could do about it besides fight. It wasn’t like she was just going to sit around on her ass and let these things come for her and the people she cared about. “Jesus Vakarian,” Veronica replied as the car almost fell over on top of her. “You are almost more dangerous than them.” What? Someone had to crack the jokes in the middle of a war against demons.
However she spoke to soon as one of appeared right in front of her. Veronica was ready though shooting it right in the head, that is she would have gotten it in the head if it hadn’t phased out reappearing behind her. It swiped at her with it’s log green arm knocking Veronica to the ground.
“Bitchslapped by demons, 10-4; it’s on now,” Cindy called back, and she’d been circling around the building, about to approach the front - good timing too, because she saw that ugly thing attacking Veronica. Its distraction with the other blondie meant that Cinderella had a clear shot. She zeroed in with the center of whatever its forehead was supposed to be as the target, that blinking red dot as ‘x marks the spot.’
Locked and loaded, aim and fire. “Eat it,” she snarled under her breath, and immediately pulled the trigger. Another blast, this one not so icy hot but simply just fiery, shot from the weapon she’d lowered and scorched the offending demon to smithereens.
“Watch out for the fire, babes,” she made sure to add cheerfully. Didn’t want her husband or her bridesmaid getting singed!
The one coming at him was at least handled, pulverized into some ethereal pile of oozy green substance on the torn up street in front of Shoegasm. What all that was, he wasn’t planning to touch and figure out just yet - his visor registered a low read on energy signals but from what he could tell, demon leftovers posed no threat.
“Roger on the fire,” he replied back with a huff of a laugh. Garrus had heard the eruptions of fireworks from the carriage’s canons; Cindy’s target took some impressive damage and slowly, the shrieks of astral horrors were subsiding. Nothing outside the looked pretty - literally, it was like a patch of war located in sunny California - but at least the boutique’s damage was so far purely cosmetic.
He spared a cautious glance to the mini-hellhole in the sky before he circled around the car - he was going to refill the plasma cells for the rifle, but first, Veronica, and making sure that other one was dealt with. “You okay there?”
Veronica was on the ground when the fire comment was made but she still managed a reply. “Got it,” she said fumbling with her gun for the briefest of moments before shooting the fucking demon that had knocked her down in the head. Good. That was taken care of.
She sprung back to her feet not taking the time to dust herself off. Now was not the time to worry about demon guts, or more accurately brains, all over her. She could shower later. Right now she just needed to kill these fuckers.
“Peachy,” she replied sarcastically shooting at another ugly green thing. “I’ll take some more ammo too,” she called to Garrus but was still on the look out for demons.
With little patches of mini flames all aglow, dirt and debris and rubble (not to mention that overturned car), the outside of the shoe sanctuary had indeed seen better days. But the building was intact, the Louboutin’s untouched - Cindy was pleased, and she’d promised Leliana she’d look after their baby.
Deciding it was relatively safe (yet she still armed herself, pistols tucked into holsters on her utility belt), she leapt out of the carriage, boots crunching in the broken bits to head on foot and assess the situation. “We good?” she asked her companions, hand by her sidearm just in case she needed to draw it and fire quickly. “At least for the moment, I mean.”
Obviously, the rift was still open, flickering ominously and active, a sizzling portal to some hellish dimension. But that would be taken care of very soon.
Ammo it was - Garrus first emptied out the remainder of the empty clips from the plasma weapon, and grabbed a few that fit Veronica’s gun and tossed it over. “I think so,” he sighed, rolling his shoulders back a couple times to crack a couple kinks in his muscles. It’d been awhile since there was any ground combat, but at least he’d kept up with the simulations on the Citadel. Can’t slack too much around here.
In the supply crate, along with the medi-gel and omni-gel (a technological material used to patch things up, in case something fucked with their guns or the carriage got hit), were bottles of water to spare for them. “Good job, team. We’ve got our limbs and our faces still in tact. All things considered, it’s been a good night.”
Veronica nodded. All the demons seemed to be taken care of for the moment and it sounded like whoever closed these portals was on the way. Friends with Liliana or something. She had been a bit distracted with the fighting demons thing to actually pay too much attention.
“Your store lives to see another day,” Veronica quipped. Although did Cindy still own the store? Or was it Liliana’s now? Either way Cindy probably still thought of it as hers. As for Garrus. “I think we have very different definitions of what qualifies for a good night,” she smirked.
“I vote for staying until the portal closer guy shows up.” Couldn’t be too safe after all.