Reply to thread

Message

<blockquote data-quote="Lamprolign" data-source="post: 857379" data-attributes="member: 7860">015Early this morningI heard you knock upon my doorEarly this morningI heard you knock upon my doorI said, &quot;Hello, Satan,I believe it's time to go&quot;Robert Johnson - Me And The Devil Blues&quot;Boring,&quot; Mary sighed.Gabe lowered the copy of Rainbow Six, the last Clancy novel he'd picked up from the used bookstore.&nbsp; &quot;No it isn't, and it would be a lot easier to read without constant interruption.&quot;&quot;Excuse me,&quot; came the sarcastic reply.&nbsp; &quot;Don't you want to go somewhere, or do something?&nbsp; You've been moping around ever since you were suspended.&quot;Gabe only grunted and resumed to reading.&nbsp; He was just reaching the climax.&nbsp; The terrorists were about to release their engineered virus at the opening ceremony of the Summer Olympics in Sydney.&nbsp; He was startled back to reality by a loud knock on the front door.&quot;What now?&quot; he wondered aloud as he hauled himself off the couch.&nbsp; Gabe peered though the peephole.&nbsp; Chris Ebbing stood on the front porch.&nbsp; Gabe watched him for a few moments, and when Chris reached to knock again Gabe quickly pulled open the door.&quot;Damn!&nbsp; I wish you'd stop doing that!&quot; Chris said after almost striking Gabe's forehead instead of the door.&quot;Yeah, I probably will when people start using the doorbell.&quot;&nbsp; Gabe stepped back into the house, holding the door open.&nbsp; &quot;Why do you darken my doorstep?&quot;&quot;Oh, no reason, just thought I'd pop in, see how your vacation was going.&quot;&quot;Vacation, huh?&nbsp; That's putting it nicely.&quot; &quot;Hey dude,&quot; Chris replied, &quot;it could be worse.&nbsp; They could have taken you off active duty and made you sit in the office pushing papers.&nbsp; At least you're getting some downtime out of the deal.&quot;Gabe smiled slightly and shook his head.&nbsp; An asteroid the size of Texas could be hurtling toward certain impact with the Earth and Chris would find something positive to say about it.&nbsp; &quot;So, how are things at the office?&quot;&quot;Mucho loco, man,&quot; Chris said.&nbsp; &quot;Catch the news today?&quot;&quot;Nope.&quot;&nbsp; Gabe waved his dog-eared paperback in Chris' face.&nbsp; &quot;Been reading.&quot;&nbsp; Or trying to, anyway, he thought pointedly.&quot;There was a bus accident last night, broadsided a semi, then the gas tank went up.&nbsp; Kablooie!&quot;&nbsp; Chris waved his arms in the air to emphasize.&nbsp; &quot;No <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />,&quot; Gabe responded, jaw agape.&nbsp; &quot;Body count?&quot;&quot;Fourteen crispy critters.&nbsp; The story gets better, though.&quot;&nbsp; Chris paused dramatically.&nbsp; &quot;Witnesses said they saw a bear jump on the bus.&quot;&quot;A bear,&quot; Gabe responded flatly.&nbsp; He favored Chris with a deadpan stare.&nbsp; &quot;And were these so-called witnesses smoking crack? &quot;&quot;Maybe.&nbsp; But maybe not.&nbsp; I talked to my buddy down at the coroner's office.&nbsp; He says some of the dead that were brought in looked like they'd been mauled before they were fried.&quot;Gabe arched an eyebrow.&nbsp; &quot;You thinking what I'm thinking?&quot;&quot;Jenny Matthews?&quot; Chris offered hesitantly.&quot;Jenny Matthews,&quot; Gabe replied with a grin.&nbsp; &quot;See, I told you if you stuck with me you'd get the hang of this.&nbsp; Now, tell me about the lab reports on that hair....&quot;****Asher woke up in a familiar room.&nbsp; The study was unchanged in the seven years since he had lived here.&nbsp; A fifteen-year-old run-away scrounging a living on the street, he had found respite from the outside world within these old walls.&nbsp; For five years he had hung his hat at the restored church, but he had never called it home.&nbsp; The Haven brought back to many painful memories from his youth, memories he preferred to leave forgotten.&nbsp; It often seemed to Asher that his life really began when he started college at Northwestern.&nbsp; He knew the Sister had pulled some strings to get him a scholarship, but he had earned everything after that himself.&nbsp; He graduated with honors from Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism, and received his masters in journalism there nine months later.&nbsp; After short stints with two small midwestern papers, Asher recently managed to land a job with the Tribune as a beat reporter.&nbsp; He was the first in town to break the Abrams story, and it had seemed that the sky was the limit.&nbsp; The Haven, and older memories buried deeper still, had been the furthest thing from his mind.&nbsp; That was before that ... thing tried to kill him.&nbsp; After escaping, his first thought, once he was capable of forming a rational thought again, had been that the beast had some connection with the Haven.&nbsp; And, as usual, his hunch was correct.&quot;Good morning.&quot;&nbsp; The Sister was staring through the window.&nbsp; A dark calico cat was draped across her shoulders, its tail swishing very slowly.&nbsp; &quot;Says you,&quot; Asher grumbled.&nbsp; &quot;Oh <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />!&quot;&nbsp; Asher jumped up from the chair he'd been sleeping in.&nbsp; &quot;<img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />!&nbsp; I lost my laptop!&nbsp; <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />!&nbsp; <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /><img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />!&nbsp; This is bad.&quot;&quot;There are worse things that could have happened,&quot; the Sister replied calmly.&nbsp; &quot;I don't know.&nbsp; I might be better off if that thing had caught me!&quot;&nbsp; Asher feared he would finally learn what his editor meant when he roared, &quot;Or else!&quot;&nbsp; &quot;Damn it!&nbsp; I have to get home.&nbsp; I have to get to work. &quot;&quot;Until we find out what is going on, you should stay here where you will be safe.&quot;&nbsp; &quot;No way, Sister.&quot;&quot;We discussed this last night, Asher.&nbsp; You are the third person with ties to this place that has been attacked this week, and the only one to survive.&nbsp; There is no reason to think that your attacker will not return to finish the job.&quot;&quot; I'll take my chances,&quot; Asher said.&nbsp; &quot;I'm not going to hide behind your skirt tails like the others.&nbsp; I'm not like them.&nbsp; I'm normal.&quot;&quot;Indeed,&quot; sighed the Sister.&nbsp; &quot;Will you deny it until the end?&quot;&quot;There's nothing to deny.&nbsp; I'm not one of your freaks.&quot;****A loud knock resounded through the small hotel room, startling Piotr from slumber.&nbsp; &quot;Chert voz'mi!&quot;&nbsp; He rolled from the bed, landing in a crouch. Again came a knock on the door.&nbsp; In his week's stay he had yet to be disturbed during the day.&nbsp; Whoever it was would pay dearly.&nbsp; Piotr slipped silently to the door and pulled it open.&quot;Good afternoon, Mister Mironov.&quot;&nbsp; The deep voice rumbled with the force of stone grinding against stone.&nbsp; Piotr was forced to crane his neck to look up at the face of the huge man on his doorstep.&nbsp; &quot;You created quite a spectacle last evening.&nbsp; She is not pleased.&quot;Piotr stood for a moment, anger and embarrassment turning his face crimson.&nbsp; He was unaccustomed to failure, and unaccustomed to ungrateful clients like these.&nbsp; &quot;There were... complications.&quot;&nbsp; &quot;Indeed.&quot;&nbsp; The man's shoulders barely fit through the door as he walked into the room.&nbsp; The dark gray hat atop his head brushed the doorframe.&nbsp; He wore a long gray coat, and the two trunk-like legs that supported the giant were clad in light gray trousers and ended in black oxford shoes.&nbsp; Piotr backed away like a wolf confronted with an angry grizzly.&nbsp; &quot;Your reputation seems to have been greatly exaggerated, Mironov.&nbsp; The first time you are presented with a challenge, you run to your den with your tail tucked snugly between your legs.&quot;&quot;You might learn if my reputation is deserved first-hand, comrade.&quot;&nbsp; Piotr growled out the words.&quot;That would indeed be entertaining, but it will have to wait until you have finished Her business.&quot;&nbsp; The man smiled with glacial warmth.&nbsp; &quot;There is much that remains, and you have yet to deal with Asher Russell.&quot;Piotr glared at the giant.&nbsp; The big man smelled of cologne and gun oil, an unpleasant mixture to Piotr's hypersensitive nose.&nbsp; &quot;The contract called for three,&quot; Piotr said.&nbsp; &quot;Any more will require an additional payment.&quot;&quot;That shall be addressed when the time comes.&quot;&nbsp; The giant walked to the window and looked down on the street below.&nbsp; A drug deal was going down in the alley across the street.&nbsp; He watched bemused as merchandise and cash exchanged hands.&nbsp; A glint in the shadows caught his eye and one of the participants crumpled to the ground.&nbsp; The other pulled the body behind a cluster of garbage cans and calmly walked out onto the street.&nbsp;&nbsp; &quot;You have excellent taste in accommodations, Mironov.&quot;&nbsp; The giant turned and walked to the door.&nbsp; &quot;Do not disappoint Her a second time.&quot;&nbsp; He smiled and pushed back the brim of his hat.&nbsp; For the first time his chiseled face was clearly visible.&nbsp; A long scar ran from his chin across a frigid blue eye, cutting through a thick black eyebrow to disappear under the hat's brim.&nbsp; &quot;You will find that while She generously rewards success, She is equally intolerant of failure.&quot;© 2003 Austin Hale</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Lamprolign, post: 857379, member: 7860"] 015 [i]Early this morning I heard you knock upon my door Early this morning I heard you knock upon my door I said, "Hello, Satan, I believe it's time to go"[/i] Robert Johnson - [i]Me And The Devil Blues[/i] "[i]Boring[/i]," Mary sighed. Gabe lowered the copy of [i]Rainbow Six[/i], the last Clancy novel he'd picked up from the used bookstore. "No it isn't, and it would be a lot easier to read without constant interruption." "[i]Excuse me[/i]," came the sarcastic reply. "[i]Don't you want to go somewhere, or do something? You've been moping around ever since you were suspended[/i]." Gabe only grunted and resumed to reading. He was just reaching the climax. The terrorists were about to release their engineered virus at the opening ceremony of the Summer Olympics in Sydney. He was startled back to reality by a loud knock on the front door. "[i]What now?[/i]" he wondered aloud as he hauled himself off the couch. Gabe peered though the peephole. Chris Ebbing stood on the front porch. Gabe watched him for a few moments, and when Chris reached to knock again Gabe quickly pulled open the door. "Damn! I wish you'd stop doing that!" Chris said after almost striking Gabe's forehead instead of the door. "Yeah, I probably will when people start using the doorbell." Gabe stepped back into the house, holding the door open. "Why do you darken my doorstep?" "Oh, no reason, just thought I'd pop in, see how your vacation was going." "Vacation, huh? That's putting it nicely." "Hey dude," Chris replied, "it could be worse. They could have taken you off active duty and made you sit in the office pushing papers. At least you're getting some downtime out of the deal." Gabe smiled slightly and shook his head. An asteroid the size of Texas could be hurtling toward certain impact with the Earth and Chris would find something positive to say about it. "So, how are things at the office?" "Mucho loco, man," Chris said. "Catch the news today?" "Nope." Gabe waved his dog-eared paperback in Chris' face. "Been reading." [i]Or trying to, anyway, [/i]he thought pointedly. "There was a bus accident last night, broadsided a semi, then the gas tank went up. Kablooie!" Chris waved his arms in the air to emphasize. "No :):):):)," Gabe responded, jaw agape. "Body count?" "Fourteen crispy critters. The story gets better, though." Chris paused dramatically. "Witnesses said they saw a bear jump on the bus." "A bear," Gabe responded flatly. He favored Chris with a deadpan stare. "And were these so-called witnesses smoking crack? " "Maybe. But maybe not. I talked to my buddy down at the coroner's office. He says some of the dead that were brought in looked like they'd been mauled before they were fried." Gabe arched an eyebrow. "You thinking what I'm thinking?" "Jenny Matthews?" Chris offered hesitantly. "Jenny Matthews," Gabe replied with a grin. "See, I told you if you stuck with me you'd get the hang of this. Now, tell me about the lab reports on that hair...." **** Asher woke up in a familiar room. The study was unchanged in the seven years since he had lived here. A fifteen-year-old run-away scrounging a living on the street, he had found respite from the outside world within these old walls. For five years he had hung his hat at the restored church, but he had never called it home. The Haven brought back to many painful memories from his youth, memories he preferred to leave forgotten. It often seemed to Asher that his life really began when he started college at Northwestern. He knew the Sister had pulled some strings to get him a scholarship, but he had earned everything after that himself. He graduated with honors from Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism, and received his masters in journalism there nine months later. After short stints with two small midwestern papers, Asher recently managed to land a job with the Tribune as a beat reporter. He was the first in town to break the Abrams story, and it had seemed that the sky was the limit. The Haven, and older memories buried deeper still, had been the furthest thing from his mind. That was before that ... thing tried to kill him. After escaping, his first thought, once he was capable of forming a rational thought again, had been that the beast had some connection with the Haven. And, as usual, his hunch was correct. "Good morning." The Sister was staring through the window. A dark calico cat was draped across her shoulders, its tail swishing very slowly. "Says you," Asher grumbled. "Oh :):):):)!" Asher jumped up from the chair he'd been sleeping in. ":):):):)! I lost my laptop! :):):):)! :):):):)! This is bad." "There are worse things that could have happened," the Sister replied calmly. "I don't know. I might be better off if that thing had caught me!" Asher feared he would finally learn what his editor meant when he roared, "Or else!" "Damn it! I have to get home. I have to get to work. " "Until we find out what is going on, you should stay here where you will be safe." "No way, Sister." "We discussed this last night, Asher. You are the third person with ties to this place that has been attacked this week, and the only one to survive. There is no reason to think that your attacker will not return to finish the job." " I'll take my chances," Asher said. "I'm not going to hide behind your skirt tails like the others. I'm not like them. I'm normal." "Indeed," sighed the Sister. "Will you deny it until the end?" "There's nothing to deny. I'm not one of your freaks." **** A loud knock resounded through the small hotel room, startling Piotr from slumber. "Chert voz'mi!" He rolled from the bed, landing in a crouch. Again came a knock on the door. In his week's stay he had yet to be disturbed during the day. Whoever it was would pay dearly. Piotr slipped silently to the door and pulled it open. "Good afternoon, Mister Mironov." The deep voice rumbled with the force of stone grinding against stone. Piotr was forced to crane his neck to look up at the face of the huge man on his doorstep. "You created quite a spectacle last evening. She is not pleased." Piotr stood for a moment, anger and embarrassment turning his face crimson. He was unaccustomed to failure, and unaccustomed to ungrateful clients like these. "There were... complications." "Indeed." The man's shoulders barely fit through the door as he walked into the room. The dark gray hat atop his head brushed the doorframe. He wore a long gray coat, and the two trunk-like legs that supported the giant were clad in light gray trousers and ended in black oxford shoes. Piotr backed away like a wolf confronted with an angry grizzly. "Your reputation seems to have been greatly exaggerated, Mironov. The first time you are presented with a challenge, you run to your den with your tail tucked snugly between your legs." "You might learn if my reputation is deserved first-hand, comrade." Piotr growled out the words. "That would indeed be entertaining, but it will have to wait until you have finished Her business." The man smiled with glacial warmth. "There is much that remains, and you have yet to deal with Asher Russell." Piotr glared at the giant. The big man smelled of cologne and gun oil, an unpleasant mixture to Piotr's hypersensitive nose. "The contract called for three," Piotr said. "Any more will require an additional payment." "That shall be addressed when the time comes." The giant walked to the window and looked down on the street below. A drug deal was going down in the alley across the street. He watched bemused as merchandise and cash exchanged hands. A glint in the shadows caught his eye and one of the participants crumpled to the ground. The other pulled the body behind a cluster of garbage cans and calmly walked out onto the street. "You have excellent taste in accommodations, Mironov." The giant turned and walked to the door. "Do not disappoint Her a second time." He smiled and pushed back the brim of his hat. For the first time his chiseled face was clearly visible. A long scar ran from his chin across a frigid blue eye, cutting through a thick black eyebrow to disappear under the hat's brim. "You will find that while She generously rewards success, She is equally intolerant of failure." © 2003 Austin Hale [/QUOTE]

Verification