The Warehouse (Sparda/open)

[Sparda]

When Sazan was dragged back in by this kakai barrier, Sparda could tell something was amiss. It was only when she stared down at her hands and uttered a terrible scream, however, that he realised just what had happened to her.

Only the Nightmare could elicit a reaction like that.

"Sazan!" he cried, and ran over to her. Taking her by her shoulders, he shook her gently, looking into her suddenly crazed eyes. "Sazan, listen to me! It's just an illusion, everything's alright!"

The devil rounded on Jean, eyes ablaze with fury. "What did you do to her?!" he roared - but Jean was already making his escape. For a moment, every bone in Sparda's body screamed for vengeance - to give chase, to turn the true Nightmare upon Jean and rip his knowledge of Scarecrow's operation from his mind before ripping his body to shreds - but he couldn't risk making this situation worse. The screen they'd been thrown was already showing explosions in the castle's escape tunnels; the occupants were trapped.

Sparda kicked himself. How had he not anticipated a man on the inside?! And now, everyone in the castle might be about to suffer horribly for his bravado... He could almost have ignored the gunfire outside before he realised someone else had to have run into Scarecrow and his thugs. He couldn't leave the warehouse, however, not with that barrier still up and Sazan still breaking down. He'd turned around to attempt to snap her out of it when there came a great crash against the barrier from outside. He tilted his head and turned back to glance out the nearest window. On the other side, a young woman was thrashing the barrier... with none other than Cerberus in her hands.

But even that fact failed to register in Sparda's mind beneath his sudden terror. "STOP!" he yelled at the girl. "Leave it alone, you fool -" Too late. With a mighty swing of the Devil Arm, she broke the barrier down and disappeared into the warehouse. This idiot may have doomed the castle!

There was no time now to worry for Sazan, and Scarecrow and Jean had to be long gone by now. The devil hurled himself through a portal back to the castle, and found himself in the midst of hell broken loose. A gas hung heavily in the air - almost as heavily as the unholy screams of terror made by almost everyone he found running through the hallways in a panic.

This was what Scarecrow was doing... He'd replicated the effects of the Nightmare in a neurotoxic gas. The implications were horrifying enough to contemplate, but Sparda still had no time to contemplate them. If there was one person here he had to save, it was Lori. The devil reached out, calming himself enough to extend the grasp of his familiars throughout the palace... He soon found the Queen, about to walk headlong into an area of the castle that had been gassed. Two large, skeletal hands reached out from the darkness around her, lifting her to her feet and pulling her through the shadows to the Dark Knight, who took her himself into a bridal carry.

"I've failed," was all he said to her, a barely audible whisper, before portalling away. They emerged on a rooftop a good distance away and he set Lori upon her feet - in time for the castle to explode.

The devil watched, dumbstruck. Explosion after earth-shaking explosion rocked the proud castle, casting their fiery glow over the city. With every wall that collapsed, every tower and battlement felled, Sparda felt a piece of his own heart crumble away just the same. While the mighty palace fell, the Dark Knight dropped to his knees, defeated. He could no longer focus on the burning castle; his stare was distant, disbelieving. His breath came in shallow rasps. Slowly, his gloved hands clenched, their grip tightening until his balled fists trembled visibly...

He threw his head back, in full view of the Queen he had miserably failed, and unleashed a guttural, demonic scream of anguish and fury that echoed across the city.

[Ϟ Scar ϟ]

The man nodded as Jean gave him instructions as what to do next. He threw the radio back into it’s bag and zipped it up, after grabbing a bottle of gin. He pulled the cork off with his teeth and spat it onto the ground. He took a drink from the bottle and left the alley. When he let he began to walk around drunk so people would just ignore him. To add to the effect he began drooling to make people thing he was a crazy drunk which would keep people from bothering him. He was able to mask the scent of the bag to keep anyone from possibly getting on to the fact he was just in the castle. Jean had taught him how to do that kind of stuff being how he had very little spy knowledge compared to Jean’s. To think the two had only met recently in a bar.

He kept stumbling about in an odd direction to make people think that he was a homeless crazy drunk on top of it all. Which he technically was. And then he heard it, the large explosions and then the demonic howl which came from the castle. Jean had told him about Sparda which made the Drifter nervous, he had never even known someone of that power could of possibly existed and from what he could tell he made a few powerful enemies by siding with Jean but in the end all it was about was money. He didn’t care about who suffered he just wanted a paycheck to stay alive even if he made himself exposed to danger in the process.

He had walked crazily about until he arrived at the building he was meant to get to. He had been told of the location where he needed to go to for his pay. And from the job he had done he would be swimming in the dough from it. He knew the job went smoothly from his side but he wasn’t sure about on Jean’s and Scarecrow’s side. But he was in a job full of death, if they didn’t come back he would of cared either, while it may of seemed heartless it had just been natural for him by now. He entered into the building and dropped the bag next to the door and drank the last of the gin and threw that down with it.

”Anyone home?”

He asked to make sure his comrades had arrived back safely.

[Terry]

“What?”

Eve turned around just in time to witness the castle outside the window catch ablaze, eyes growing wide and her mouth dropped at the sight of the building being encircled in smoke while fire stretched out from it and caught the nearby trees on fire as well. The Ice Queen had no idea how the castle was destroyed and she was even further ignorant that it had been by her own hand.

“We have to get out of here now—!”

But when she turned around she saw the child was also gone, as if he had just vanished. Eve searched the room far and wide but found no trace of the child nor where he could have disappeared to. Growing ever more cautious of her surroundings Eve left the room with Cerberus and returned to the area where she found Sparda and Sazan. When she got there the only person that remained was Sazan. Eve didn't know where the other guy had gone off to or why he would leave the girl behind but that was unimportant now as she steadily approached her, keeping a safe distance away just in case and not wanting to make any sudden movements or fall victim to anymore surprises.

“Miss, are you all right?”

[Xukas]

The blue pelted feline had been walking around the city, he had been exploring this new place. Passing some warehouses his ears twitch, looking around he sees a semi truck come right at him. Rolling out of the way, Xukas grows at the truck as it speeds off. "Man, how rude...,No manners at all."

His ears pick up on the sounds of conflict nearby, the feline dashes forward. Upon arriving at the scene he sees the aftermath of a skirmish. Before he could investigate, the sounds of massive explosions can be heard in the distance. "What the hell?..." Scaling a wall, he climbs to the top of a warehouse, only to look as what was clearly a important castle structure was reduced to rubble.

Jumping down he runs over towards the warehouse he had heard the skirmish coming from. Walking over to what looked like a few empty barrels, he takes a whiff of the residue gasses and gives a snort "Some kind of gas, it seems to be some kind of hallucinogenic." His head shakes as his body tackles with the residue gasses. After a few moments his bodies defences nullify the effects "A very potent hallucinogenic, indeed."

He grows at that revelation "This cannot be a good thing." Looking around he hopes to find a witness to what had occurred to get answers.

[Ayen]

“Miss, are you all right?”

All of Eve's good intentions would fall on blind eyes and deaf ears as all the Hybrid could see was a walking corpse heading towards her. Sazan was quick to get up to her feet and force distance between the two with the thrust of the back end of her scythe, holding it at the ready if what she saw as a beast dared to move another step. Madness in her eyes.

[.:Amilia:.]

Cameo Post:

Harker looked out the window of his penthouse at Harker Industries. He was wearing a robe covering his nudity while sipping straight Whiskey from a crystal glass. The boom had clearly brought him from his slumber, he had left Jessica behind in bed just to stare off toward the Castle watching the plum of smoke raise into the sky. Harker simply took a long sip from the chilled Whiskey, he would set the empty crystal glass down and begin refilling it.

"'Spose I'll have another drink, my pocket book is feeling a bit stressed now."

[Cazador]

Jean emerged from the shadows and appeared on top of a building not too far from the castle. He wanted to see just how well his bomb had worked. Needless to say, it was very satisfactory to him. The mighty explosion caused the very heart of the city to be ripped out from its chest. Hundreds of soldiers who were in the castle could be seen running out while many more would be left inside to die. The ones who ran out would be left in a very sorry state. Some of them set in a blaze of fire, others with their limbs blown off, but all had the same look of terror on their face from being hit with the nightmare. So much death and destruction. The rioters of the city would be able to look on and feel a sense of victory as everyone could see the large blow that had been dealt to the crown.

For Jean though, it didn't matter. He didn't do it for some great cause. It was all for the sake of the reward and for the thrill. He could hear the cries of the demon echoing through out the city from his failure. To make matters worse for the demon, he would never know Jean's true identity. He was a man of many faces and could walk by the demon the next day without him ever knowing who he truly was. It was a shame though to see so many warriors cut down in such a dazzling finale. He smiled one last time at his handy work before disappearing into the shadows again. The next time he would reemerge, it would be next to Jack, The Drifter. He would continue to maintain the appearance of a child at the meeting point as he never revealed his face to his clients.

"Jack... Don't mind the appearance. I prefer working incognito. Our contact should be here shortly to pay on behalf of our client."

The man disguised as a child looked through the shadows of the city. No one had followed them. Not surprising considering the large blazing distraction outside.

[Sparda]

A few long, painful seconds passed. His scream of rage echoed on into the city. And in the glow of the flames that engulfed the castle, Sparda finally bridled his fury. The Queen was still vulnerable, and he couldn't afford to have his judgement impaired by his frustration. When the devil had at last composed himself, he slowly rose to his feet and instructed Her Majesty to gather a team of Royal Guard escorts and make for Harker Industries' headquarters. With Hellsing not yet fully situated in their new base, Harker's side was the safest place for the Queen right now.

He cast a portal for her, and Lori slowly departed. When she had gone, Sparda looked out once again upon the stricken castle. His mission had been a total disaster. He'd gone in utterly unprepared, and the enemy had been waiting for him with just the right tools on hand to ensure their success... He'd make no such mistakes next time. Next time, he'd have Scarecrow's plans laid bare and Jean's head on a platter.

He reached into his pocket and produced the cellphone that had been set to him. After a moment's pause to gather his thoughts, he flipped it open and dialled the stored number, waiting for the old friend on the other side to pick up.

"Ranka, it's me. I need your help. Prepare a medical team on the double, I'm bringing a patient and a plan."

He flipped the phone shut. No more need be said right now. Another portal opened up, through which the Dark Knight stepped to return to Sazan. The girl from earlier - the one who'd foolishly broken down the kakai barrier and set off the bombs in the castle - was trying to talk the Hybrid down with apparently little success.

"Back off," he snapped at her as he approached. In any other state of mind, he'd reason that she couldn't have known what would happen as a result of her actions, but the embarrassment of his sound defeat was unsurprisingly still very fresh. He approached Sazan without another word; there'd be no reasoning with her in the state she was in. Before she could turn the scythe upon him in a panic, the devil bore down upon his friend and delivered a powerful chop to the back of her neck to knock her unconscious.

Before she'd even hit the floor, he swept her up into a bridal carry, taking the scythe in his hands. "Whoever you are, I suggest you either fall in with Her Majesty or lay low," he said to the strange girl. Behind him, yet another portal opened up. This one would take him and his passenger to Isafaro, where he could have Sazan treated for the gas. Without another word, he stepped back through the portal and disappeared.

[Xukas]

The feline had entered the warehouse and was watching the events unfold. His gaze falls upon the one known as Sazan and a low growl escapes his mouth "So, that is what the gas is capable of..." Another growl erupts from his jaws "Whoever designed this gas needs to be stopped."

Moving forward he decides to aid these beings in their efforts to stop whoever made this stuff. Rushing forward he barely misses the portal and ends up standing in front of where the portal was "Well, that is just perfect, where the heck is this Isafaro?" He paces back and forward figuring what to do next.

[Cazador]

OOC: MY last post for this thread.

A cloaked man walked in from the other room and appeared before Jean and Jack. His face was covered in darkness and his voice was muffled from the cloth over his mouth. He looked at them both for a moment before reaching into his baggy sleeve to show two bags presumably filled to the top with diamonds. The man tossed the two bags towards their new owners. Jean in his child form caught the bag. He could feel his hard earned reward through the cloth. He reached in to look and pulled out a decent sized diamond. There was no doubt it was real.

"It is to your liking?"

Jean held one of the diamonds up to the light to further admire it.

"Very much so. Tell your boss I look forward to a prosperous business relationship."

Jean nodded towards Jack in a satisfied look. No words were said, but he was sure he could tell it was his way of saying 'To a job well done.'

Jean vanished back into the shadows leaving Jack to his new fortune. As he moved through the darkness of the city, the sound of the rioters would be heard growing even louder. The sight of the destroyed castle was no doubt, raising their moral. The fires of the city were continuing to grow. It would only be a matter of time before total anarchy would ensue. There was one sound though that he continued to hear from the shadows that the rioters spoke... 'Deshi Basara...' Rise. Their political agenda didn't matter to Jean. He was paid and that was all that mattered.

He started to rise from the shadows outside of a tall building. No one had seen him so he transformed back into his normal form before walking into the large complex. The place looked like a wreck on the outside, but on the inside it was very decorative and beautiful. Jean took the stairs up to the top floor and reached the lone room on the top of the building... his. He opened the door and entered a dimly lit penthouse. It was a very calm atmosphere. There was a record player next to the door and it seemed like a good way to celebrate a job well done with music. He opened the top and set a record in it.



Jean removed his jacket and sunglasses and placed it on a coat hanger. Next to the hanger there were several noticeable pieces of art. A painting of the assassination of Julius Caesar. A short story book on the shot heard around the world that started the american revolution was left on the dresser. A painting of John Wilkes Booth sneaking behind President Abraham Lincoln was next to the art piece of Julius Caesar. There was something else next to the pictures. There was nothing artistic about it. It was just newspaper clippings on the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Jean looked at them for a moment before smiling. Perhaps they weren't pieces of art after all. Maybe they were trophies. The penthouses walls were covered in pieces of art that showed the assassinations of old public figures.

Jean made his way toward the bar and poured himself a glass scotch on the rocks. He took a small sip before heading toward the balcony of his penthouse. He had a full view of the rioting city. The castle still burned brightly through the night. It made all the fires from other rioting areas look like nothing, but candles competing with the sun itself. The sounds of yelling, chanting, and fighting were drowning out the night. The chaos of the night looked so wonderful from far away. Jean took another sip of his scotch and sat down on a chair nearby. No doubt the fires of the bomb would be gone by morning, but the wounds inflicted would remain on the soul of the city.

[Ϟ Scar ϟ]

Jack looked over to the man that had walked in form another room, probably his buyer. He nodded at Jean knowing not to ruin his guise as a child, while it was a different form of which he had met Jean, Jack knew that it wouldn’t be something he shouldn’t questioned about Jean, he was a far more skilled person then what Jack was, all Jack was good at was shooting things and without the guidance of Jean’s he doubt he could of pulled off something that he had done. It wasn’t personal, what he had done tonight, he didn’t feel back or good about the deeds he had done. When the bag was thrown to him Jack caught it and opened it an picke dup a diamond it felt real but he could tell.


He looked on to Jean when he pulled out a diamond and examined it telling the man who had given them the diamonds. He nodded when the man asked if it was to their liking. It was indeed, it was actually the most amount of money had had gotten his hands on, he didn’t even know what the heck to do with it. He would probably buy more gear for future work on his weaponry or other items. He had a drifter at heart so he didn’t want to settle own in the town and unlike Jean he couldn’t change shape or whatever it was Jean had done. He would have to move to a new place despite not showing himself to anyone and disposed of all evidence linking the crime to him he was a bit worried since there were creatures that were supernatural and underworld types he didn’t even know had existed.


He stuffed the bag into his duster coat and nodded once more at the man and at Jean before Jean left. He left the building after placing a small yet very powerful bomb in the bag which he used to invade the castle. Everything inside turned into ash which would make it impossible to find him. He wondered what to do next but walked further around town, avoid any riots that would possibly harm him. He would just blow the heads off of the rioter’s heads off it they ever got to close. He entered into a general goods shop and purchased a six pack of beer and a map of the continent he currently was one, he paid the store clerk and told him to keep the change.


He yawned and opened a bottle of the beer and took a drink of the alcohol. He went to a apartment complex and purchased a stay for a few months, he hoped the city lock down would be over by then because he would want to move on quickly soon. He went up the room and settled down and drank some more of the beer and relaxed against a wall.

(OOC: Thread exit)

[Terry]

Eve was forced to take a step backwards after the thrust of Sazan's scythe, holding Cerberus in her right hand and over her shoulder ready to strike if necessary. But she really didn't want to fight someone who was clearly not stable. Before she could do or say anything more Sparda stepped in from a portal and told her to back off. She wasn't in much position to protest so she did as he said, watching him knock the woman unconscious and then take off through the portal.

“It would help if I knew where the queen was!”

Eve yelled at the empty space before looking towards the sight of the castle burning out the window. She fled from the warehouse and ran towards the scene where the castle was burning down. The Ice Queen didn't get any further than two steps before she was stopped by someone who looked to be from the fire department.

“Stay back. It isn't safe here.”

“There are still people in there!”

“We're doing all we can.”

“No, you don't understand. It's my fault that this has happened. I have to get in there I have to help them!”

“What?”

The Ice Queen made a run for it pass the fireman, ignoring his screams towards her to come back and doing perhaps the dumbest thing she has ever done: running inside a burning building. Instantly the heat hit her hard, sweat poured down her face as she was forced to hold her breath both from the smoke of the fire and the gas that was set off earlier. Following the sounds of panicked screams and finding a man who was too wounded to walk on their own. She helped him up and guided him out of the burning wreckage as quickly as possible before the rest started coming down. Bringing the man to the firefighters and doctors on scene to help them. Pulling the jacket off her back and giving it to the man as a blanket prior to letting the doctors take him off in an ambulance. While one person didn't seem like a lot to the world, that was one person less Eve had made sure this terrorist group didn't claim. Standing up to her feet, Eve looked over to the firefighter.

“You're barking mad!”

“I am. Now, how mad do you have to be to get an audience with the queen?”

[Xukas]

(OOC: This is Xukas's last post for this thread)

Xukas leaves the warehouse and takes off towards the castle, since he did not know where the queen was, maybe he could get some information from somewhere else.

Arriving at the scene he is greeted with strange looks by some of the emergency services, but that did not deter him. His gaze instead turns to the fire that is still raging in the ruins. Walking forward, he raises his paw-like hands as a pale blue energy pours out and starts to engulf the flames of a section of the castle, putting them out.

Sensitive ears swivel as the sound of muffled cries can be heard nearby. Without hesitation, Xukas runs into the castle ruins, his energy shielding him from the flames and also putting out any flames he ran into. Following the faint cries he stops before a section of wall. "Stay away from the wall." He yells before taking his sword from it's hilt, and with precision worthy of a master swordsman he cuts a door shaped hole in the wall. Using his energy he grabs the door shaped piece of wall to prevent it from falling inwards, before flooding the room with energy, the energy would put out any flames, while not harming those inside.

As the energy subsides he looks in to find several survivors, alive but clearly shaken. Putting on his best re-assuring face he gestures for them to follow him "C'mon, I've cleared the way, stay close."

The survivors nod before following this strange feline, they had no idea what he was but he clearly wanted to aid them so there was no reason not to follow him. One by one they exit the newly made door and follow the blue feline-creature towards the outside.

Xukad leads the group of survivors out of the castle and into the fresher, and much clearer air outside. Looking towards the paramedics nearby he barks out orders "Get some blankets over here, and get these people checked over."

The paramedics nod and tend to the survivors, while Xukas looks around "Now to find someone who has a clue where the Queen is" He speaks outloud.