Shiro's Sanctum

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and works; all other characters and worlds belong to their respective owners. I'm just playing with them.

Betad by morde24, Atrius, Hermes, Priapus, Marethyu, Old Man of the Mountain, TheDonFluffles, Malcolm Tent, Mike, God of Lore and Beans

The Guild of Gamers: The Occult

Chapter 04: Vengeance from Beyond the Grave

– Emma Barnes –

Modelling had a bad reputation in the media. There was always some sleezebag taking advantage of the models, links to organised crime, prostitution, that kind of thing. Rumours that the models had to put out were all too common, but honestly, in her experience, they were completely unfounded.

Her agent was a woman, and so was the head of the agency she worked with. Nobody had pressured her for sexual favours, and she'd seen not even a hint of them being linked to the Empire despite being in their territory (aside from probably paying them for 'protection', but that was what happened to every business in Brockton Bay).

Gripping the sheets, she moaned lewdly as the older man sheathed his large cock inside her formerly virgin cunt, whispering sweet nothings into her ear and kissing her next as she pushed her hips back to meet the manhood that had snatched away her virginity.

So, how had a day of modelling ended up with her in bed with a virtual stranger? Well, that was easy.

Alexander was another model, a new one who was a rapidly rising star. He just had this presence during shoots that made the camera adore him, and he clearly loved the spotlight. She was convinced he was a former super-model, but she couldn't prove it or find him online. She'd had the pleasure of watching him do a shoot, and he was magnificent. She thought she was good at her job, maybe even better than the twins that worked there, but he just lived for the camera. 

They'd made eye contact while she'd been watching him pose, and he gave her this… look, a mixture of hungry and knowing, and she felt her panties get damp, and her mouth go dry. 

They'd talked afterwards, his silky voice giving her advice for her own shoot, and when she went home that night, she'd dreamt of him.

In truth, she'd thrown herself into modelling lately to try and take her mind off… her. She hated Taylor for her weakness, but she'd been sure that Taylor wouldn't break under their torment, that Taylor would finally grow a backbone and stop being such a victim. 

Instead, Taylor had disappeared. Nobody had seen her in weeks, and most people assumed she'd run away since the last sighting of her was her dad seeing her going to bed, or that she'd thrown herself into the Bay, since she apparently hadn't taken anything with her. 

Something vaguely resembling guilt ate away at her, and she hated it. Taylor was the one so weak some pranks broke her completely. Taylor would have never survived against the ABB if she was the one in that damned alleyway. The weakling would have probably not even put up a fight; she wouldn't have been deserving of being saved like Emma was. She'd have just cowered and let those chinks do whatever they wanted with her. 

If Taylor's disappearance was related to them- if- then it was a simple truth that Taylor was so weak that she couldn't be reforged, couldn't be made strong, and she didn't deserve pity. She should just be forgotten. 

So when spending time with Alexander finally took her mind off Taylor and all her memories of her former best friend, both before the incident that made her choose to break away from Taylor and from her attempts to get Taylor to finally toughen up, she found herself constantly drawn back to him.

When she was with Alexander, it was like nothing else mattered, like life itself was shining a spotlight down on him and leaving the rest of the world in darkness. He was the centre of every conversation he was in, the star of that show called Life, and there was something dangerous about him.

It was the way he walked, prowled, like a predator stalking its next meal. She'd never admit it out loud, but Sophia tried the same thing, and it just didn't compare; even Sophia seemed like a housecat next to Alexander. He moved with such grace, such power, and she wanted to be like him.

One day, as they had been talking between shoots, his hand came to rest on her leg, barely covered by the skirt she was wearing for a photoshoot; she'd looked into his eyes and known he was testing her, seeing if she'd push him away. She didn't, couldn't, as he caressed her thigh, a slender finger rubbing circles into her inner thigh. He'd kissed her, and she'd just tilted her head and let him.

It was a miracle they didn't get caught, with her make-up needing fixing from his forceful, possessive kiss.

From there, her submission had made him bolder, and as days went by, he'd moved from innocent touches to outright molesting her as he pleased, and still she'd said nothing. He'd told her to send him pictures of herself, and she had, wearing less and less until she was exposing herself completely to the camera for Alexander's pleasure, a scandal that could ruin her modelling career, but still she couldn't bring herself to care.

Alexander called her beautiful, a work of art, and his sweetly-whispered words of approval made her hunger for more. She'd been complimented her entire life, but she knew she'd do anything to hear Alexander praise her more.

So when he had wanted her to make an excuse to visit him at his home, she'd agreed, even knowing exactly what he'd wanted from her. A driver from the agency had picked her up after she'd told her father she was spending the day with Madison, taking him to Alexander's mansion just outside of town. It was as extravagant as the man himself, and being led in, it didn't take long until she was giving him a… private modelling session.

One that had seen her removing more and more until she stood in front of him utterly nude, his intense gaze wandering her naked body, soon replaced by his hands.

Crying out in pleasure, she begged him for more as he took her from behind, her face pressed against the silky sheets of his bed, his hands on her hips as he claimed her in a way no one else ever had. He was amazing. He was everything.

He didn't pull out, but her mind was too enraptured in pleasure to care about the potential long-term consequences as she felt his seed flood her womb, Alexander filling her in a way that she didn't know she needed.

A sharp pain in her neck momentarily dragged her from her pleasure, but in the haze of euphoria, it quickly faded as she cried out in pleasure. As he pulled out of her creamed slit, she collapsed onto the bed, glistening with sweat, and rolled onto her back. Staring up at him, he almost seemed to glow as he stared down at her with a bloody smile, her blood coating his lips.

Cutting his wrist with an abnormally long fingernail, he demanded she drink from his own essence, and while something within her clouded mind screamed, she latched her lips onto his cut wrist with adoration, drinking deeply of his essence.

– Alexander –

I need the spotlight, perhaps even as much as I need blood itself. Brockton Bay has no real showbiz industry, but to my surprise, it is where one of the bigger modelling agencies is located.

It might not be movies, but the camera loves me all the same, so regaining some of my limelight as a model was easy enough… oh, and I turned the manager into a Ghoul.

[Create Ghoul]

By feeding a mortal your vampiric vitae, you can transform them into a Ghoul, a vampiric servant addicted to your blood. This halts their ageing and grants them a minor regeneration factor. 

I needed them not to pay too much attention to my weird schedule, and having her at my complete command, thanks to the power I got from Taylor, was just convenient. 

And then I met Emma, and something deep inside me demanded vengeance. I drained Taylor of her very soul, so it's only natural that part of her remained behind in my mind. It's something to keep in mind, but the memories of Emma's campaign of torment and humiliation against Taylor came to the forefront of my mind.

I've gotten slightly better at exploring the memories I steal when I fully drain someone, but I need to be more aware that draining someone entirely can cause them to… change me, if only in small ways.

I'm still me, but with Taylor's memories in my mind, I set upon gaining vengeance for a girl long dead, buried in my graveyard. I am not a violent man by nature, and I'm certainly not wasteful.

Emma has spent the last month helping me master Presence and Dominate, her mind now putty in my hands, though she was already a broken doll.

[Dominate, Discipline of Control: Apprentice]

[Conditioning]

This allows you to slowly condition someone and make them more obedient to you until they are a slave to your will. The stronger-willed the target, the longer this process takes.

[The Forgetful Mind]

This allows you to rewrite the memories of a target, slowly altering or wiping their past memories. The more impactful and older the memory, the longer this process takes.

[Presence, Discipline of Emotions: Apprentice]

[Dread Gaze]

This power allows you to inflict unbearable terror within your victims.

This isn't the first time I've fed on Emma, nor the first time I've taken her. She's been my practice dummy for memory alteration, gradually losing her free will as she becomes more and more obsessed with pleasing me.

See, I needed a… blood doll, an obedient source of blood I could rely on, and Ghoul blood is not a viable substance. A dark part of me has taken satisfaction over watching Emma slowly lose more and more of herself, replacing it with me.

But as I said, she was already broken. I know this for one simple reason… what I got from feeding on her.

[Dementation, Discipline of Madness: Novice]

[The Haunting]

This allows you to inflict maddening visions upon your victim.

[Veil of Madness]

Allows you to force a victim to become overwhelmed with a chosen emotion, becoming incapacitated with laughter or sobbing.

She isn't a cape, but her mind was already so shattered that she granted me a Discipline just from feeding on her enough. I might just be doing her a favour. With my ability to modify memories comes the ability to explore someone's memories, though it's a slow and draining process. 

I know what broke little Emma and who put her back together in such a malformed state. I haven't forgotten about Sophia, nor their little lackey Madison.

As I turn Emma into a Ghoul, I smile to myself. She'll be a useful tool, and I can get other Blood Dolls. With this, her mind is mine to do with as I please. How fitting that it is Taylor's power that allows me to make Emma well and truly mine. Her thoughts, her senses, her body, they're all mine to use as I see fit.

I need to be careful not to trigger the famous M/S protocols, which is why I'm happy to have a relatively unimportant girl as my pet. The PRT have little reason to be looking at her, even with her friendship with Shadow Stalker.

"Who am I to you?" I ask, placing my finger under her chin and tilting her head up to meet my gaze.

"My master, my love, my everything," Emma responds, awe in her voice as I reshape her mind to make her truly mine.

"You cannot let people know that. If they find out, they'll separate us. They'll take you away, and you'll never see me again; you'll never feel my touch," I warn, watching her eyes widen in true horror. "You must keep our relationship a secret, my dear."

"I- I will, I promise," Emma promises submissively.

"I know you will, pet," I praise, seeing her beam.

Moving over to one of the chairs, I give her a commanding look.

"Come, worship me," I demand, seeing her quickly move over to me as she falls to her knees, her mind responding to my desires. For the first time since I arrived in this world, I feel like I'm at home as the barely legal redhead worships my cock, uncaring of her need to breathe as her desire to please me overpowers even her self-preservation.

I deserve adoring servants, and if I don't have my old fanbase, then I'll just make more. These powers suit me.

I should be adored, and Emma is a good first step in assuring I will never be without adoration. 

– Later –

With Emma sent home by another of my conditioned servants, some errand boy for the agency who was particularly weak-willed, I head out myself.

I have not been idle this past month. In fact, I've been quite busy. If I want my plans to go ahead, I need to become a semi-successful hero, at the very least. As such, I've been quite the industrious little hero this past month while using the wonders of PHO to leak that my powers gave me a need to drink blood that I've had trouble controlling.

I drank from Rune and several other women around the Docks when I was starting out, after all. 

I've avoided Cape fights, of course. The Empire has finally stopped actively searching for me, but they do tend to show up anywhere I spend too long. My senses have allowed me to avoid them for the most part, and I've stuck to the safer parts of the city for my forays into heroism.

In fact, I've avoided all capes for the past month. Keeping my hearing enhanced means I can hear them coming long before they arrive. There is only one Stranger in the city, and she hasn't been used against me, after all… I think? Hm.

I can hear the Armscycle coming from half the city away (an over-exaggeration but not by that much), and while the PRT does tend to show up wherever I am, they don't use the best way they have to actually catch up to me.

My 'patrols' happen past Vista's bedtime, after all. If they were willing to let Wards out past midnight, maybe they'd try and send their invisible girl after me, but Elasti-girl doesn't allow her daughter out that late and besides… I can still hear her just fine, and I do have Sense the Unseen, so I'd know if she was around.

As an added benefit, constant use of Auspex has improved my abilities with it considerably. It means I get thirsty faster, but Brockton Bay has plenty of criminals for me to feed on (even if it means inferior male blood; it's just not as sweet).

[Auspex, Discipline of Sensing: Apprentice]

[Aura Perception]

Allows you to perceive a person's aura, detecting various details about them through it, along with their current emotional state.

[Unerring Pursuit]

Allows you to create a supernatural bond between you and a target, allowing you to view your victim on any reflective surface.

And, of course, I've done a lot of running.

[Celerity, Discipline of Dexterity: Apprentice]

[Fleetness]

Your speed and dexterity are further increased, even beyond what most see as superhuman.

I can actually outrun Armsmaster's bike now, which really annoyed him the one time he tried to chase after me. I'm not quite faster than the eye can see, but my powers are growing steadily. That said, I feel like I've hit a wall at Apprentice, and I think I know why.

I need blood, the life essence of someone aligned with the Discipline. To get any faster, I need the blood of a speedster; to make my presence more potent, I need the blood of someone beloved by many. Cape blood is my best option, but that comes with its own risks.

Emma's blood was useful for Presence, but not enough to help me break past this roadblock. She's adored, but only in a mortal way; she's just a popular schoolgirl and amateur model, after all. 

The important thing is that I'm stronger now, and I've shown it to the heroes of this city. I make Velocity seem pathetic; I believe he's faster than me but can't interact with reality while he moves, while I very much can. 

The PRT wants me, and even the Empire has changed from wanting to put me in my place for attacking Rune to wanting to forcibly recruit me, which I know from conversations they didn't realise I was listening to. 

I went with Ebon for my cape name, and frankly, if it wasn't for the Unwritten Rules, I imagine they'd have shown up at my house already. I will not wear a full-face mask; it would be a sin to cover up and deprive the world of my good looks, and my domino mask is hardly an unbreakable disguise.

Between my piercing red eyes, long black hair and unnatural beauty, how could anyone ever mistake me for anything less than extraordinary? 

The agency I work with even has two Empire capes working there as well, Jessica and Nessa Biermann, or Fenja and Menja. They don't know that I know who they are, but I know they know who I am. 

I've listened to them speaking to Kaiser or Max, and it seems like the hunt for me has been mostly called off as long as I don't start going after Empire capes or operations. I wonder if they'd still be considering the soft sell if they realised I'd worked out the identities of… basically every Empire cape?

Between my ability to smell capes, my new Aura Perception, and the twins accidentally exposing Max Anders as Kaiser by vastly underestimating my hearing, the rest basically fell into place. It'll be useful information in the future.

I may be planning on letting the PRT recruit me, but that won't last forever, and one day, perhaps in the far future, I'm going to go my own way. I may just want to drain a dozen neo-nazis on my way out, something the PRT wouldn't permit me to do.

Hookwolf has killed dozens of capes, and so has Lung. The strong do not need to concern themselves with the so-called Unwritten Rules. That's why they're Unwritten, so they can be conveniently ignored when the need arises. I will grow in power, and if the PRT are smart, they'll bend over backwards to keep me for as long as possible as I surpass them, getting more powerful until even the Triumvirate pale in comparison to me.

Rules are for lesser men, and speaking of lesser men…

– Adam Mustain (Skidmark) –

Things had been going so fucking well; he'd had his turf, enough drugs to overdose the entire city, and plenty of holes for him to stick his dick in.

Then the fucking vampire showed up on his turf, and things immediately started going to shit. The fucking leech didn't even have the balls to attack them directly, just running away like a fucking pussy anytime the Merchant capes showed up to try and deal with the fucker, and he was just too damn fast.

His men were scared to go out at night in their own fucking backyards, but that just meant they needed to do their deals in broad daylight; it wasn't like anyone was going to stop them. The cocksucker didn't show up in daylight; after all, everyone knew vampires hated sunlight.

But now the shitstain had gone too fucking far, as they stood in front of one of their burning drug labs, rage flooding his veins at the sight of his money and drugs going up in smoke. 

Squealer was by his side, looking nervous as she glanced around at the shadows as if she was expecting the fanged fuckface to jump out and attack them. He knew better, Ebon was a chickenshit coward who was too scared to fight them.

Mush had been sent to another drug lab, which was also burning down. They had almost a dozen scattered through their turf. Ebon had only hit two, and he'd told his boys to prepare in case the oversized mosquito dared show his face at the others. This wasn't a major setback, but he was getting fucking fed up with this bastard rampaging through his territory.

Who the fuck did he think he was? They were the Archer's Bridge Merchants, the biggest badasses and best businessmen in this shithole city, and this store-brand Dracula thought he could take them on?

"Skids," Squealer said, trying to get his attention.

Nah, this bitch was going to pay for this just as soon as they worked out how to find the cowardly bastard. If the fucker was able to actually fight, he wouldn't have run off so many times, but the coward even ran away from fucking Mush.

"Skidmark!" Squealer shouted, making him look over to her. Squealer just pointed down the street.

Standing there, without a single fuck given, was the cock-sucker himself, an arrogant smile on his face as he stared them down. His men paused, staring at him in shock and confusion.

"What are you fucks waiting for, a written invitation? Fucking shoot him," Skidmark shouted, pulling out his own pistol as he placed a field over the barrel to speed up whatever went through it, let's see the little bastard dodge-

Pain. His body ached as he slammed into a wall, Ebon standing where he was a moment prior, having closed the distance before Skidmark had even managed to draw his gun, staring down at him with disdain.

"I suggest you all leave; I might even be kind enough not to chase you," Ebon stated, looking at his shocked men. Squealer wasn't taking that shit as she aimed her own pistol and pulled the trigger, the bang making his men flinch.

Fucking useless junkies.

…why wasn't Ebon hurt?

His hand extended towards Squealer; he turned it over and opened his palm to reveal the bullet he was holding, his eyebrow raising in amusement as he gave Squealer a challenging look.

"I really wouldn't advise trying that again. I might feel the need to return your bullets to you, with enthusiasm." Ebon said simply, tossing the bullet into the air a couple of times before he caught it and threw it at the ground at Squealer's feet.

Hard, the ground cracking from the force.

His men broke, fleeing for the hills as they left him to his fate, even Squealer scrambling to get back into her ride, not hesitating to drive away and leave him in the dust, all while the smug cock-sucker stood there with an air of superiority as if he was so much better than them.

But while the prick was watching Squealer drive away, it had been all the distraction Skidmark needed to take aim, layering as many fields on his gun's barrel as he could. How dare this cumstain turn his back on him.

Pulling the trigger, he flinched back from the sheer noise the shot made as it was accelerated a dozen times over; even Cockula couldn't dodge it as it pierced the back of his skull and kept going right out the other side.

Skidmark grinned, rotten and yellowed teeth on display as he waited for the prick to fall, freezing as Ebon turned around, a brutal exit wound in the dead centre of his forehead.

Reaching up, Ebon touched the wound with idle fascination as it slowly started to close.

"Ah, Skidmark. I'm going to have to hurt you for that," Ebon said with a calm smile, and as he went to fire again, the pain overwhelmed him a second time. He didn't let it stop him, trying to pull the trigger once more.

Only, that was rather difficult considering where his trigger finger currently was, Ebon holding his torn-off arm with a confused look.

"Hm, I'll be honest, I didn't think you were so… fragile," Ebon said idly, tossing the severed limb away as Skidmark stared at where his arm once was, torn off below the elbow. "Oh well."

The drugs and shock delayed his reaction for a while before reality caught up with him, and the screaming started.

"Come along, Skidmark, let's go meet our local heroes," Ebon said cheerfully, approaching him with a smile. "This isn't quite the first impression I wanted, but I'm sure it'll work out just fine all the same."

— Bonus Scene — Sherrel Bailey (Squealer)

"What the fuck are we supposed to do?" Mush asked, looking panicked as they gathered in one of the Merchant's hideouts. This wasn't the first time that Skidmark had been arrested, but some had stuck around long enough to see Skidmark getting… disarmed. "We've gotta get Skidmark out of there; maybe we should grab that Panacea chick?

"Are you fucking stupid? You want the PRT to come down on us like the hammer of fucking God? Or New Wave to tear us a new asshole? Panacea is off-limits. Everyone knows that you retard," Sherrel said, facepalming. "Skids said I was in charge while he was gone, and we're gonna need to lay low for a while. Skiddy hasn't done enough to get Birdcaged so we can bust him out later when fucking Dracula isn't wandering our turf."

"But-"

"But fucking what, shitstain?" Sherrel said, stepping into Mush's space as he paused. "What part of I'm in charge was too hard for you to get into that empty skull of yours?" 

"Why should we listen to-" one of the men said, cutting off as she swung her wrench at his head, the sound of bone cracking making the room go silent.

"Because my babies are the only reason we're even still around and because I'm the only one around here with a fucking brain. Mush, go check on our other drug labs and spread the word for the men to keep their heads down for a bit while I work out how we're getting Skiddy out," Sherrel ordered, making him blink. "Did I fucking stutter?"

Maybe it was that she was standing over the unmoving body of the last fucker who talked shit to her, but for once, the junkies actually listened to her as she stepped over the body and entered her garage.

Fucking morons.

Pausing, she looked around and made sure no one was watching as she locked the garage and went to her stash.

Pushing the cocaine and cash aside, she pulled out the small vial of a sticky red liquid, uncapping it as she downed the best drug in the fucking world, shuddering as she felt the power flood her veins. 

Get Skiddy out? Yeah, she'd do that. Her new boss wanted to drain the worthless shit to the last drop after all, even if the idea of drinking any fluid from Skidmark disgusted him.

But for now, she had a job to do, and if she failed, she'd never get to taste the crimson ambrosia again…

Right after she flicked her bean, watching Ebon in action had gotten her so fucking wet.