16017/Enter: Blade

Enter: Blade
Date of Scene:	05 October 2023
Location:	Columbus Park
Synopsis:	June has a date with a werewolf, who tries to eat her, but she's rescued by Blade, a mysterious vampire hunter.
Cast of Characters:	June Connor, Eric Brooks

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June Connor has posed:
     Columbus Park at night can be a nice place. June had a date! Not with the best of company, don't get too excited. Rodrigo was his name. The guy was a big guy, a bit rough around the edges with a bit of a scraggly dark beard, impolite, but hey, know your level. It's not like she was going to do any better. He had offered to pay, which was a little unique. She knew what that meant with a guy like him. Down the metal fence line along the bushes, the two walk.

    "Come, let's walk over here," Rodrigo says, passing behind her. He catche her arm by the elbow, and pulls her down a quieter path. It isn't a dead end, but it's devoid of other people at the moment.
    "Whut?" June says, narrowing her eyes.

    "I wanna show you something," Rodrigo says.

    "Yeah, heard that one before." June rolls her eyes. "We're in a public place, are you serious?"

    It's not what she thinks. The moonlight comes and hits Rodrigo's face, and his eyes flash. Something canine. He starts to grow, and as big as he is, he starts to outgrow his clothes. Teeth elongate, and the hair that was already thick for a human, gets even thicker, and blacker.

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade was already hunting this werewolf. He is set up on top of a building adjacent to the park. A sniper rifle that is impossible to obtain legally has been loaded with silver rounds. Blade curses when he realizes that he won't be able to get a clear shot without possibly catching June in the crossfire.

Blade is approximately fifty yards away at this point. He hides the rifle inside of an easily opened air vent where the blades won't hit it and draws his katana, silent dropping to the pavement near the park. He then breaks into a sprint, hoping to begin this fight before the woman can be killed, or worse: Bitten.

June Connor has posed:
    "Fuck me," June says, her eyes going wide. "Every FUCKing time!" She backpedals a little. "Why can't I just get some dickhead who wants a one night stand? It's always gotta be some wizard that wants my soul, or a vampire that wants my blood, or now a...a...furry!" She pulls her own blade, which is a lot smaller than a katana. Hard to hide much in shredded jeans and a tee.

    There's a snuff at the insult, and Rodrigo lunges forward at her. June ducks low, rolling forward and stabbing up into the werewolf's gut. It lets out an angry bark as she recovers on the other side. She's fast. The kunai sticks out of the werewolf as it rears on her.

    "Okay, thought that'd be a little more effective." It lunges again, and she dives to the side. Time to run!

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade has covered several yards quickly by now, he's fast, but fifty yards even at his speed is going to take more than three seconds. He inhales, the scent of the werewolf, and June guiding him. Blood. It's not human.

Blade pushes himself harder, reaching his maximum speed. He doesn't think in words now, it's just intent, focus, and a bit of bloodlust.

June Connor has posed:
    June sprints, unfortunately for her, she's going away from help rather than toward it. She feels the werewolf as it leaps upon her flattening her to the ground with a thud. It tries to take a bite right at her neck, but just at that moment she shares a second trick up her sleeve. A small black orb in her hand is slapped up behind her, taking the beast in the mandible. A burst of black smoke sprays, the stench feeling the sensitive nose of the wolf. It yelps, pawing at its nose as bats at the stink. June attempts to take the opportuunity, shrouded by a cloud of smoke, to free herself, but the claws hold her by the shirt. She isn't about to let the shirt be the reason she dies tonight, and shoves hard up against the hold, tearing it open. But while the shirt rips, when the claw catches her belt, that holds, and she finds herself still caught.

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade is VERY close now. The scent has moved on a bit and he knows that June is being chased. Not yet smelling her blood, Blade remains optimistic that there is still a chance to end this without a greater tragedy. Just a few more seconds.. a few more.. his katana is being readied now. But it won't be long before the werewolf can hear him moving. His footfalls are not as loud as a human, but werewolves have insane hearing.

June Connor has posed:
    June is dragged backward, and she spins as the dog goes back down for another bite. She's not the best fighter out there, but there one thing she is very good at. Surviving. She rolls the back of her tricep around the werewolfs head, making it hard for him to get an angle to purchase a bite. She is flung to the side, but wraps her arm around it's neck, her body pressed up against its shoulder. She's not nearly strong enough to strangle it, but for the moment, she isn't bit. The cla catches one of the shredded jean legs, ripping the jeans open as it tries to pull her free.

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade flares his nose as June's blood immediately hits his nostrils. It is then that he enters the conflict, katana raised. However given that June is in the werewolf's grasp, Blade opts for plan B: He leaps off the ground, intending to drop kick the werewolf. June at least has a much better chance of escaping and getting out of his way. He says nothing as he flies through the air, both feet aimed squarely at the werewolf's back.

June Connor has posed:
    Rodrigo may have heard Blade coming, he may have smelled him coming, but June preventeded him from being able to respond, and he was so busy trying to clear her, he takes the drop kick straight to the back. He's knocked sprawling, hitting the posts of the wrought iron fence. June also flies into the fence, knocked free from her own hold. Ouch. She rolls away, looking back through the haze that remains from the smoke pellet.

    Rodrigo's attention is now inexorably drawn to Blade, pulling himself off the and growling, blood pouring from his back and gut. One hand snaps back, pulling a section of the half height metal fencing free from the ground, and he chucks it at the vampire hunter in retribution.

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade lands in a crouch, his plan going without a hitch. Rising now, his katana is brought in front of him, then arched down a bit. The slightest grin appears on Blade's face. However when the metal fencing is thrown at him, Blade is forced to break stance, and leap to the side, mostly clearing the projectile.

However a jagged part of the fence does graze his leg, which causes a sharp pain, and little else. The wound immediately begins to heal. It's nothing that will slow him down.

However there is now even less time to stop this creature before it kills someone, yes those precious couple of seconds mattered. A lot. Blade has no choice now but to charge the werewolf head on, katana swinging back, immediately flying into a sprint at full speed, pushing his body to its' limits, intending to bring the katana into a full arc at the werewolf's midsection in order to cut it in half.

June Connor has posed:
    Rodrigo moves to intercept Blade's approach, but he is caught off guard by the speed, its much faster than he anticipated. It's the last mistake he'll make. Blade's katana strikes through, tearing open his flesh, severing through his hardened spine, and his swing of retribution is lost as he spins with his own force, the top half of him flopping with an unsettling sound onto the ground. The lower half stands for a moment before it's position causes it to likewise drop, falling into the bushes of the neatly trimmed garden path. The werewolf whimpers and yelps its last few seconds, blood gushing out onto the stone walkway as it loses its strength, and then falls silent.

    June? Here green eyes are wide. She's staring, sitting on the hard concrete,^^^ blood of her own streaking down her left leg, the tattered jean leg floppy and loose. Her shirt is only barely existent, exposing several tattoos. the slice sprayed her with a good bit of werewolf blood as well. She looks up at Blade.

    "Daaaaammn."

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade pulls out one of his sidearms, loaded with silver bullets, and aims at the werewolf's head. He fires several rounds into it, even as the werewolf lies motionless. Now satisfied that the creature cannot in any way regenerate, he begins to douse both halves of the body in gasoline as they morph back into human form. He lights two matches, one for each half. The halves take flame immediately and blade holsters both his katana and handgun.

While keeping an eye on the flames in case they spread, Blade eyes June, in particular her leg where the claws struck. He inhales sharply, "Clawed on the leg. Fifty fifty chance you'll turn now."

June Connor has posed:
    June just watches as Blade's ritual of burning the body is executed. "You are some kinda fucked up guy," she comments. She pushes off, getting to her feet. Her back hurts from the impact with the fence, she's bleeding, and her clothing looks like it got in a fight with a lawn mower, a black bra easily visible under the now nearly useless Strokes t-shirt. "By that I mean thanks," she adds. "And I'm not turnin' nothin. I know better than to tell the cops about weird shit that happens. Best-and most unlikley-case scenario they laugh at me. This city is crazy as hell." She looks down at her shirt, pulls the shoulder up to cover the bra, but it doesn't stay. She sighs. "I really liked this shirt," she groans.

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade remains expressionless at June's reply, "By 'turn', I mean become like the thing that attacked you, and what is now burning until its' ash. That wasn't just some damned mutant you came across. It was a werewolf and one that didn't need the full moon at that." He looks to the moon now, which is still in its' third quarter.

He folds his arms, "There's no guarantee that you'll turn. Claws normally kill before you can find out. They don't normally bite in combat unless they want to turn you, because it's a promise that if you survive it, you'll become a werewolf. That bastard wanted you dead, probably for your meat."

"Name's Blade. Who are you?"

June Connor has posed:
    June looks down at herself. She is well toned, but pretty small and skinny. "Man, he must've been desperate to go for me," she says. She looks down at the claw mark. "Wait, I'mma be a furry too? Hell nah," she shakes her head, hands joining in a 'no good' referee motion. "What do I gotta do to stop that? Like, werewolf, silver and shit right? get like one of them silver vitamins or somethin'?" Maybe she has had some minor exposure before. Or watches movies.

    "I'm June, and that's a shitty superhero name," she adds. She looks down at the burning corpse. "What are you doin' here, anyway? You just go around lookin' for werewolves?"

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade smirks in amusement, "Nothing you can do to stop it, if it took hold. I'll keep an eye on you, I've got your scent, and if you turn? I'll find you. You can think whatever you want about me, but I'm the thing that preys on monsters like that." He inclines his head to the still burning halves of what was once the werewolf.

"I've heard every moral objection, every insult, every single last thing about what I do that anyone could ever say about it. And I've been hearing it since the second world war."

"I hope that you get to become the hero you want to be. I don't want to be the last face you ever see." If his sunglasses weren't on, she'd see a brief expression of regret in his eyes. Instead his mouth ever so slightly frowns before returning to its' neutral, horizontal line.

June Connor has posed:
    "Hero? Fuck, you got me wrong. I ain't a hero. I have neither the altruism nor bustline to pull that off." She looks at his muted expression. "You came to the wrong skinny bitch if you think I'm gonna bother judging your morality. And you know, it's a creepy as hell line to tell a girl you got her scent. You come tryin' to kill me, you best believe that'd be a mistake. I may not be as badass as you, but I know people who are. And they will fuck. you. up." She takes a step back, a little offput by the threat to possibly kill her. "Other than that, thanks, I think. For savin' me." A second-hand thought to actually show appreciation.

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade laughs, it's a rare sight, and June might very well be one of the few people who ever live, to ever see it, he even has to adjust his glasses a bit. He grunts at the end of it. It would have been worthy of social media, "Ah.. so you were talking about my name, not yours."

"It's not meant to be creative, just a name to know me by. As for the rest? I don't care what you do as long as you aren't out hunting humans. That should be plain and simple enough for you to understand. It's nothing personal."

June Connor has posed:
    June curls her lip a little at the comment about hunting humans. "You have some sickos you're lookin' for. Hunting humans? Like, eating people? How do you even get into that gig? Like, did they eat your dad or somethin'? Are the sunglasses suppose to hide your identity like some kinda mask or something?" She waves her hand over her face. "Because hell, I wouldn't be able to see anything if I wore them at night."

Eric Brooks has posed:
Blade doesn't change his expression this time, it remains the same, stoic, unmoving, "You might find out yourself one night. You've already met something most people don't know exists. Mutants got the short end of the stick, or maybe the long one depending on who you ask, when it comes to their genetics. I leave them alone."

"Regardless of how incredible their abilities seem, they are still as natural as anyone else. Werewolves? Vampires? Demons? Zombies? Other things? Unnatural. Every drive they have revolves around preying on the innocent."

"And right now? In my eyes you're innocent, no matter what else you may have done. You could say that I have a low bar when it comes to defining innocence. Why? Take a guess." He offers a slight grin.

June Connor has posed:
    "You got one hell of a low bar if you count me as innocent. Sure, tattoos don't mean someone is a rebel, neither do the piercings, but June knows full well that there aren't a lot of people who count her as innocent regardless of how the context is framed. "You're braver than me going after vampires. I fought one of them once, He could fuckin' outrun a sportscar. If you are lookin'for them, I know that you definitely didn't hear me say that there are some in the Hellfire Club."