The Garlic Derby

Wasp hardly reacted at the touch of the singer, neither did she hear or notice the other two stallions, the one scrambling to reach the safety of the couch nor the one speaking. She could not move, felt frozen, exposed. The growing headache pinched her temples, making it feel like her head was being sucked into a black hole. Wasp saw Pelli coming towards her in a slow motion fashion. She got swept into his warmth, with the stallions muscular arms around her - she was safe. Leaning towards his chest she heard the beating of his heart and as she inhaled her nose got filled with his scent - the mare allowed herself to relax, even if it was just a little. Her ears flopped to the side in embarrassment as Pelli mentioned his brother. Wasp vaguely remembered him from school. Since she wasn’t really among the popular crowd and especially not the one from the rival school she had never really spent time with him. There was that time when Pelli found…

Her heart stopped as he said a name she hadn’t heard in several years, a name she hoped would be dead and forgotten, covered up and hidden. Before the mare had the chance to respond he had covered her lips with his own. For a split second million thoughts passed the mares mind, one got singled out and traced back to that the very first kiss. So much had changed since that day. A shiver traveled along her spine, up her neck and left a tingly feeling through her whole body. The kiss seemed to last longer than it really did and soon the stallion pulled away. Wasp leaned briefly against his hand with her eyes closed. As Pelli spoke again she looked up, deep sorrow filling her eyes.

“…The past…is always with you…it’s your shadow Pelli…have you ever tried running away from your shadow? You cannot escape from it. You can however try and face the sun, feel the heat against your face, leaving the shadow behind.” Wasp sighed deeply, suddenly she realized it was only her, Pelli and his brother left in the room. Her heart went up her throat not knowing at first where Lumin was and it showed in her body language. When she heard the singer’s voice in the kitchen together with the red irish stallion she relaxed. The striped mare swayed and took a side step to regain her balance. How had she become this weak? The bullet had been coated with…Had she survived GARLIC? Wasp looked at the stallion in the couch. He didn’t really looked scared but…shaken. Turning away from the blue stallion she wrapped her arms around her. It felt cold.

The mare mumbled, a bit to herself but still loud enough for the ones in the same room to hear her. “…my shadow is darker…much darker than you might think…unknowingly have you let it…pass through your fingers…unintentionally you have rested beside it…doing its bidding in some way. The call of haunts goes higher up than you know and soon…they will be at the top. Ruthless, harsh, bloodthirsty…they stop for nothing and they show no mercy. They rip you apart if you stray…” Turning towards the blue stallion again tears glittered in the mare’s eyes, but only just that they could be seen. Never had she thought she would be able to talk about this with anyone. She didn’t want to talk about her past but the stallion’s words about to fight them - he needed to know…at least some of it…

Sighing she sat down on the other end of the couch, noted the dried blood, her blood. Raising a hand to her shoulder she felt that there was a new bandage on. A sad smirk showed on her lips. It didn’t hurt or at least not in the way it had done. This was nothing. Apollos, the twin of Pelli looked at her with eyes that were so like his brothers. She smiled towards him but didn’t say anything at first. What could she say to someone she almost strangled? Something, just something…

”…I…I'm sorry…I…thought you were…Balor…he…” Wasp stopped and looked down before looking up at Pelli again. “I don’t like my shadows but we are all…to far into the depths of the dark now…to know how to fight them, to survive you need to know…certain things…about the Haunts…and about me…” Wasp wasn’t sure how Pelli knew her packname but either way. If his brother had a cure for GARLIC he was in deep trouble. Wasp thought she could remember some talk about killing off a scientist but she had never realized who it was or why until now. Taking a deep breath she continued. “…Balor was as you might know the stallion on the track, the one who tried to kill Lumin…he…was the central packs leader…my leader…I was his beta, the highest of the female haunts…the one he intended to have as his mate…no matter what I thought about it. Among the haunts…females don’t have much say even if they can go relatively high in ranking. Even the highest ranked female, the beta, is inferior to most male Haunts. The only ones that never can have higher status than a female are the pups…the newest members…” While talking Wasp kept her eyes on the floor, she didn’t dare to look at Pelli nor his brother. “Everything you do is put on your packrecord, good jobs gives you points, if you do badly you loose points. The pointsystem is to get higher up in ranking within the pack…if you are good enough you will one day be packleader…if you are male that is…I only got beta due to…Balor…he…had his…plans for me…” The mare frowned; she didn’t say it out loud but knew very well what the grizzled stallion had meant. Balor liked mares and he liked it rough and he liked to hit females…it wasn’t like he waited for her to say yes to him and he was always surrounded by low ranked female Haunts that hoped that their ‘services’ would give them credit and move them up a notch. “…when…when I left Balor was becoming pack leader of the downtown pack.”

The mare felt herself becoming restless, worried. Both stallions in the room had been silent. Wasp got up and walked up to the window. It wasn’t much to look at. It was dark and this high up you couldn’t really see much. “...the packs…they are probably a bit unstable now…until…Moreno steps in…he…he was the male beta…the next in line to lead the pack or in this case packs. But…Balor wasn’t the highest ranked pack leader but he was close friend to one of them…his name is Blackheart.” Wasp turned slowly and looked Pelli in the eye. “You know him Pelli…very well…you know him and you know his redheaded mate…it is in his shadow you have wandered for a long time…fighting against the dark but at times…you have worked for him…” The mare saw the blue stallion becoming tense, like he was trying to both grasp what she was saying but also trying to understand who it could be. What normal person would hang around criminals, especially when you worked with fighting against them?

“…You know all those assignments as a sniper, Pelli? When it was shot first – ask later? When those weird ‘mishaps’ was covered up? Those were no mishaps Pelli, no mistakes…they were all executed by the order of that high ranked Haunt…Blackheart is his pack name…but you know him as Be’lakor, chief of the FBI…”

-Wasp

(OOC Not much for Lumin/Conleth here - sorry - but send them in again and I will come to that I wrote about in the PM)

Conleth nodded, "I understand, but Wasp is more 'fried' than you. She needs time alone with... the blue one," Lumin interrupted, "His name is Pelli." Conleth nodded and continued, "She needs time with him. I think she probably has to explain a few things." He shivered, "I didn't fancy her calling me Blackheart. My heart may not be the whitest, but it isn't black!" Lumin tittered, "Your heart is green. The color of your country." Conleth chuckled, the deep bass laugh booming in the small space. The red stallion grabbed another beer from the fridge and downed it, eyes closed in sheer bliss. Lumin rolled her eyes and drank her glass of water. She yawned, blinking, "I'm so sleepy, mind if I take a nap?" Conleth laughed, "Not at all missy, but you better take a short one. I have a feeling we'll be moving out soon."

Lumin disappeared through a door on the opposite side of the kitchen from the living room. She switched on the lights, walked across the room, and leaped into the bed like a little filly. She burrowed under the covers, sighing with pleasure. They smelled so clean... Involuntarily she closed her eyes, drifting into peaceful sleep.

Meanwhile, Conleth was causing mayhem in the kitchen. As soon as Lumin left he began drinking bottle after bottle of beer. The chestnut could drink about twenty until he was drunk and he was well on his way to becoming inebriated. He swore as he dropped an empty glass bottle on the floor, which exploded upon impact. He got out the broom and began to sweep it up, swearing the entire time in an undertone. When he had finished he washed his hands and strode casually into the other room, just in time to hear, "you know him as Be’lakor, chief of the FBI…" He stopped dead in his tracks, glancing from face to face, "What did I miss? Who else are we fighting against?" He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, "Are we fighting the SWAT team as well now?" He grinned, "If we are I think I'll need another pint."

-Lumin and Conleth

(Sorry it sucks so badly, but oh well. It was the best I could think up.)

Kokopelli listened carefully as Wasp spoke. He didn’t know what she meant by her words but they chilled him…“unknowingly have you let it…pass through your fingers…unintentionally you have rested beside it…doing its bidding in some way.” How could he have let anything past him? He was the sharpest in the FBI, even the chief had said that, but as she continued his sense of unease kept growing. She turned to Apollos to apologize, but Pelli stood there brooding… what could she mean? Apollos nodded at the mare’s apology, glancing at Kokopelli’s furtive features.

“It’s no problem,” the doctor replied, “I fully understand.”

Kokopelli snapped back to attention as Wasp started to speak to him again. He took in everything, wanting to know as much about these Haunts as he could. Sure, he had read the reports, but he knew very little. From what he had heard the Haunts were just a minor gang… but not from the way Wasp spoke. They were a terror. As she walked to the window she began to talk of him. What was she saying? Was she implying that he had helped these monsters?? His eyes narrowed slightly and he felt his fist clench. How could she say that of him…? But as she continued to speak he couldn’t help but understand and feel the words ring true. The chief’s voice rang in his ears.

“It was just a mistake soldier… bad intelligence. We’ll get ‘em next time.”

But even though he was thinking it, her speaking his name aloud still caused him to step back in shock. How… how could he have not seen? That no good… His mind ran a mile a minute. He noticed his brother’s face grow pale. Pelli understood why too. Because of his involvement with the G.A.R.L.I.C antidote, Apollos was now a target of the FBI. It was a miracle they hadn’t found him yet. But why? What did all this have to do with anything? Even if the antidote was made they could still use it. Only an expert could tell the difference between G.A.R.L.I.C and lead poisoning. The lowlifes and lower class persons the Haunts hit wouldn’t be able to afford such a practitioner. Something was up… and he had to know what. He walked over to the kitchen door.

“Don’t get too wasted yet Conleth, I know of a place with better stuff than that. Wake Lumin soon and tell her to get dressed up.”

He turned back into the living room, sunset eyes blazing as he met his twin’s confused gaze and Wasp’s golden ones.

“You too. We’re headed to go see an old friend of mine…”

~Kokopelli/Apollos

(OOC: And cue The Red Dragon! It's a nightclub frequented by Pelli's more... unscrupulous sources. Looks like Lethy will get his drunken brawl!)

Wasp felt nauseous as they pulled up out front the nightclub. Pelli had just mentioned that he guessed that someone that could offer some clues to the puzzle would be at this ‘club’. If she had known what specific club it was she would have offered to be the driver and…no…deep down she knew that she wouldn’t have stayed hidden somewhere. She had never backed down from anything and she wouldn’t start now. It was no chance on Alma’s green earth that she would abandon Lumin. The singer was her charge, even if things changed, that this wasn’t a regular bodyguard job, that it had become something much more personal. Wasp knew the ones who where after them and knew what they could do. She couldn’t leave Lumin or the others to their fate. As they stepped out of the car Wasp had to fight the bile down. Did she react this way just because coming back here? The striped mare hadn’t said anything about her past to the others. As far as she could tell only Pelli seemed to know – something. She checked the streets, the escape routes but that was just to refresh her memory. This were her old turf and she knew this part of town well.

The mare looked up at the sign outside the entrance. The dragon’s eye glimmered. Every scale of the slithering body seemed to move like the creature was breathing. She knew it only was an illusion but it still got to her everytime. For a time this place had been her home, where she tried to make her living and this was the place where she had become a Haunt when Balor picked her up. The club was a common place for Haunts and their brother gangs. Lumin had found some black mane dye and now Wasp’s mane and tail was all black. Her eyes were dusky green; it was supposed to be blue but her own eyecolor mixed the lenscolor up. She didn’t become so much different but she hoped it helped some. Lumin had even found a black dress for her to wear. It was not decorated in anyway but still showed off her figure. To hide the bandage on her shoulder Wasp had put on a matching short jacket. Her stomach turned and a sudden cramp made her stop briefly as she past the entrance. Wasp dismissed it, the nausea and this was just a side affect by the antidote. It was just to be ignored. In a place like this, she had to be sharp and she could not show any weakness. Taking a deep breath she walked in after the others.

Conleth was with Lumin and Wasp knew not many could get past the Irish stallion, Pelli and Apollos had gone in the other direction, searching for the one Pelli thought he could some information from. The mare walked towards the center stage. There was only one mare dancing at the moment. Soon people would start to come and it would be more dancers. She watched the dancer, who was just slightly older what she had been when she came. It looked like the clubs owner hadn’t changed tastes, the younger the better. She twitched as she heard the voice behind her and felt the touch of someone stroking her from her lower back going over her rump and giving it a light squeeze. Wasp flattened her ears. She wanted to turn around and… But something with this place, the memories that were connected to it made her stand still but she trembled with anger.

“Well, well Stinger…I sure wouldn’t have guessed to see you here ever again…applying for your old job are you?”

Wasp felt the hand squeeze her butt again. How many nights hadn’t she been forced to put up with this and other things. She clenched her jaws, fought to remain calm.

“Still have the goods darlin’, but I would rip the lower part of the dress off…its to long to be sexy…the top is ok but you should loose the jacket. That just cover up the goodies baby and you know many of the old nags like the young fillys showing off.” The striped mare took a deep breath and then she moved fast. For others it looked like she removed his hand and placed herself behind the stallion, leaning forward and looking at him smiling. They never saw the knife in her hand that was pressed against his neck.

“Shadow…T-h-a-t was not a wise thing to do… not Balor or you or anyo…don’t dare laying your hands on me again…” She let the blade of her knife press slightly harder on his neck. How many times had she done this when she was in the military, making that final push, feeling the warmth of blood over her fingers? How many were her nightmares over this, the blood, the screams, despite the ones who had died by her hand had been murderers, tyranns and cruel ruthless people?

Glancing around she thought she saw Pelli coming towards her and she wasn’t sure of his expression. Whoever Pelli was looking for they needed to find that person soon. If they started to make to much noise…they would be spotted and it would be dangerous for all of them. Before the blue stallion reached them she let the sitting stallion go. He wasnt the enemy but he wasnt exactly friend either.

-Wasp

Conleth drank another beer, setting down the empty tankard with a thud on the bar. Lumin jumped, scowling at her cousin, "You've had too many." He snorted, "I haven't even begun to really drink." The bartender appeared as if by magic, whisking away the empty glass and replacing it with another beer, filled to the top with frothy amber liquid. Lumin sighed, she could practically hear Conleth drooling. Really, this was disgusting. He had snorted at her protests at pint number five, ignored her on number six, and was apparently completely oblivious of her mere existence on this one, number seven. She stood up and made her way to the bathroom. It wasn't easy, there was a real crowd forming tonight, and she had to weave between the milling unicorns. She felt a shiver run up her spine, was someone watching her? She whirled around, but saw no one even glancing her way. Must just be nerves, she told herself as she stepped into the ladies' room.

She felt the change instantly. The walls were red, everything was quite clean. It smelled like musky perfume in here and the light was low, the sound of heavy metal came from a speaker in the ceiling. Lumin rolled her eyes and gazed at her reflection, brushing her mane with her fingers. She looked foreign, even to herself. The dark eyeshadow Wasp had applied really made her look different... More dangerous and trashy. It was intended to draw attention to her eyes rather than to her markings. She had been told this was in the rough part of town and had dressed as she imagined most people did. A black leather jacket, a punk t-shirt, black jeans, and lace-up boots. She stood out like a sore thumb in the crowd of dress-clad mares, despite her attempts at blending in. Lumin sighed and resigned herself to her fate, stepping out of the loud restroom into the even louder room.

She wove her way over to an empty table away from most of the crowd and sat down at the chair leaning against the wall. The hairs on the back of her neck tingled again. Someone was definitely watching her... She looked up, straight into the amber eyes of a younger stallion. They were predatory, Lumin instantly felt afraid of him. He crossed the room, heading right towards her. He sat down next to her and murmured, "You a new recruit?"
"What's it to you?" She was trying to sound like most of the mares here.
"A fiery one. Best not to speak to those higher up than you that way. I can tell you're from the pack. Is this your turf?"
"Yeah."
He looked her up and down, "This is a rough area, requires a certain type of person. You don't look like a killer."
She leaned in closer, "Looks can be deceiving. Besides, some of the best don't look like killers."
"I like your style." He leaned in close, his hot breath making her feel slightly faint, "I bet you'll go far..." He put an arm on her shoulder and she looked into his eyes defiantly. He laughed, "You really are good, you almost fooled me. I thought you were just trying to impress me. Clearly you're the real thing." He moved even closer to her, touching her face with one hand, reaching behind her with the other, "I really like you."

She could feel his hand moving down her back, caressing her body. He leaned in even closer and kissed her. He had her pinned, she couldn't move. He began to stroke her butt, and moved his other hand to behind her as well. She was beginning to feel sick at this stallion's actions, but she couldn't move. Everyone was far away. She closed her eyes and tried to act like she was enjoying this. He pulled away and looked at her, "I can tell you want more, babe." He moved in again, his arms around her. She felt his hand move up her shirt and her eyes snapped open, widening with horror.

-Lumin

(Conleth's brawl will happen in a second...)

Pelli walked into the bar self assured. He had on a black leather jacket with a white muscle shirt underneath and black pants. Simple but perfect for this place. Besides, the bulky jacket was perfect for hiding the gun he carried. Apollos followed after him folowing him as he strode up to the bar, noting Conleth make a beeline there as well. Pelli chuckled, he liked that Irish man's style. Apollos sat near the amber stallion watching him order beer (he himself ordered a margarita, one margarita). Pelli tapped on the table and the bar man appeared. He flashed his badge (even though it wasn't real anymore, this guy wouldn't know) and the barman's eyes opened wide. He settled quickly though, nodding in understanding.

"What can I get you, sir?"

"I'm lookin' for Zee. He around here tonight?"

The bar man pointed up to one of the more private booths and Pelli headed that way. He trotted up the stairs in time to hear Wasp's angry voice. Great... He walked faster, pushing his way through the crowd to see Wasp holding something to his target's throat. At the sight of him she released the dark stallion and gave him a threatening glare. He shook his head, putting a hand on Wasp's shoulder.

"That's Ohanzee, a Pan Lord and our contact... play nice," he whispered in her ear.

He then turned to the purple and brown stallion.

"Sorry, Ohanzee, but that's what you get when you play with the fire of someone else."

The brown and purple stallion chuckled dryly, putting a hand to his throat, "How was I ta know she was yours, Spots? I haven't seen ya in a while. And the last time I saw her here she was free game like the rest of 'em."

Kokopelli smiled wryly, "Perhaps, though back then you didn't have ownership of the place. It was still free territory. Though it seems like you've got it going fine. You sure your guys got the place secured?"

The striped stallion narrowed his eyes and leaned towards him, "You doubtin' my abilities to guard my territory, Spotty? I got men everywhere here, ain't no Haunt trash gonna ruin my night."

"So the Griffins have let off, eh?"

"Psh, those push overs?" Zee replied with a smile, leaning back once more, "They ain't no trouble to me. They just wrestle with the other twos and we sit all quite like here in the south of town. We Pans know our place, 'bout time the Haunts learned theirs."

Pelli smirked, "How would you like to help me with that?"

The other stallion's navy eyes sparked, taking a drink, "And how could I get in on such a delicious deal? You Feds about to do a crack down or somethin'?"

"No... not exactly. I just received intel that the FBI captain is actually the leader of the Haunts."

The Pan Lord choked on his swig of brandy. One of his attendants pat him on the back to get him breathing again. Eyes watering from choking on the strong liquid he looked back up at Pelli.

"You serious? Man tell me you makin' up this shit."

"I wish I could... But it's true. Be'lakor is his name."

Zee hissed, "Blackhart... I should have known the bastard would be high up in the ranks... And all I thought they had was the White House, now they got the bleedin' secret service and crap..."

Pelli started, "What was that?"

Ohanzee looked at him in surprise, "You didn't know man? One o' the Haunts men is the bloody Speaker of the House. Ain't no Vice Pres or Pres, but it's close. I swear... its only a matter of time before they knock off the two."

Pelli felt his mind haze. That was it. That's what was going on. The GARLIC, that was what they were going to do. They were going to poison the president and vice president so as to get their man in the White House. They would have control of everything if that happened. Ohanzee's voice began to drag him back to the present.

"Yo, yo Spots, what you thinkin' man? You just got one o' those funny far away looks."

"They're going after the White House, Zee. You watch yourself and send an alert to the other gangs. If the Haunts get into the White House it's all over for everyone."

The purple and brown striped stallion stared at him a moment, taking it in, then nodded and motioned to one of his body guards whispering to him. The stallion nodded and spoke into his walkie talkie. Pelli glanced around catching sight of Lumin at a booth with another stallion. He took a step forward when he saw him pin her. Conleth too seemed to notice as did Apollos. He nodded over to the young stallion.

"Yo Zee, one of your stallions is getting frisky with my friend."

Zee finished giving instructions to two swift looking colts then turned to look where Pelli was motioning as they ran out the back door. He narrowed his eyes.

"That ain't one o' mine man. He look like a Haunt. Bachus, why don't you go greet our new friend."

One of his body guards, a bay with a scar on his muscled shoulder, snorted and walked over to where the colt was. Pelli followed, noting Conleth on his way to the rescue as well (followed behind by his twin). He wondered who would get there first... The angry Irish drunk or the bulky, brain dead guard.

~Kokopelli

((OOC: First, sorry for the language... Zee, well Zee is Zee. Second, feel free to play Bachus how ever you want. He's strong, but a tad slow. You can have the Haunt have a gun even if you wish and have there be a fun shoot out with breaking glass and screaming customers. Also, I have to say Fantasy, though I didn't tell you this was Pan territory and Haunts weren't allowed, that made for an awesome tie in to a fight! But to get you caught up to speed: There are four gangs. The Haunts you all ready know. They run the Center and West of the city. The Pans, who Zee is a part of, run the south section of town which includes City Park. The Griffins who are mentioned are the most powerful gang, but quiet and rule the East and South East. The Pards are last, the most vicious and blood thirsty of the four. They run the North and like to cause trouble. The Pans are federal suck ups by the way. And Ohanzee looks like this:Zee. I may intro him to the Vale some day for kicks!))

Wasp had taken a step back when Pelli came. “I know who he is and…” she sneered but stopped as her blue companion revealed that this was the one he was looking for. Wasp couldn’t really believe it. Shadow was his contact? How long had Pelli known him? Her past came faster and to close to the present than she wanted too and it scared her. Did the blue stallion really know what she had done in the past? How much did he really know? How much had he talked to Zee? She looked around, a bit nervous, observing the ones around her. Some of them had that glazed stare that told her that they were affected by something other than liqueur. The mares at the club showed more than they covered. Wasp knew her own dress was tight enough to make her bust look larger than they really were but it wasn’t as near the lack of length like the others. Her eyes sent poisoned arrows at the stallions that stared at her. That time had past when she had to take those looks, no longer would she let others abuse her, to take advantage of her.

The mare tried to follow the stallion’s conversation. The club had been a gather for all the gangs but as time went past in had developed to be only for Pans even if it happened that some from the other gangs came here…making deals… The words made Wasp look at Zee one more time; did he say the White House?? Oh no! Had they gotten that far up in the government? Part of her wanted to find Lumin as she heard a big commotion, something was happening at the bar and Wasp quickly stormed towards it as thought she heard Lumin’s voice. She heard the loud voice of the irish stallion and watched him without greater effort grab the haunt by the collar, ripping him off from the singer. Wasp came through the crowd just in time to see Conleth unarm the haunt from his gun. Glancing at the smaller stallion she thought she recognized him and he must have recognized her as well if his look was something to go by. The red stallion gave the haunt a punch and with that the haunts attention to her were broken. Conleth and the haunt clashed and the blade of a knife glimmered in the dim light. Wasp knew that Conleth could take care of himself and she knew that Bachus was on his was as well as Pelli and Apollos. She needed to get to Lumin! The mare was so focused on getting to her charge that she didn’t see the big bodyguard of Zee. He was a large muscular stallion and his upper arms had to be thicker than her thigh. Focused to get to the haunt he didn’t seem to see her and somehow he shoved her in her gut with an elbow.

Normally this hadn’t been such a big deal. Wasp had taken worse beatings and was still standing afterwards but it was something different this time. She couldn’t move; it felt like someone clawed her from the inside, ripping and slicing her lower abdomen. The mare whole body seemed to be revolting. Wasp clenched her jaws, trying to bear it out. All the years in the gang and then the special force taught her to deal with pain, how to ignore it, to continue on regardless. Even so her breath became short and strained, soon sweat started to show on her neck and brow. She tried to suppress the pain but couldn’t help the muffled groan. Taking a step back she sat down on a seat. All the voices around her faded, they seemed to disappearing in a blur. A wavelike sound in her ears blocked them out as well as the music. Around her the club started to fill with people like the fight never had happened and volume increased. It was loud but she didn’t hear more but the rhythmic beat from the music seemed to be the same as her heart. The pain came in waves and despite her fighting it back it became harder and harder to ignore. Wasp tried to think, was this an effect caused by the poison Balor never told her about? Maybe an effect so new that not even Lumin’s father or Apollos knew. Could that be why they hadn’t chased Apollos down, because of a new version of GARLIC? Maybe the antidote didn’t work as they thought it would? Maybe it was slowly devouring her from within like a parasite.

Out of nowhere came a new pain, if possible even greater than the one before, with the sensation like it was splitting her in two. Wasp grabbed the small table in front of her, making the drink glasses that stood there shake and clink. Then she noticed the blood on the seat. She stared at it perplexed. Where was it coming from? Had the haunt been in company with another? Maybe it wasn’t Bachus? Maybe the other haunt used a silencer to take her out? But why hadn’t they made a clean shot? Why in the stomach? So many questions spun in her head at the same time as wave after wave of pain rolled over her. It made her press backwards, gasping for air. In confusion she met the eyes of Pelli’s twin. She saw him say something to her but she couldn’t hear what. He seemed to wave at someone at the same time he came closer to her. She couldn’t see Pelli…Oh Alma, how she needed him! Would she ever have the courage to tell him that she had always loved him? Would there ever be their time? Her voice sounded thinner and weaker than she had wished for as she called out. “…Pelli…I…I need…you…something…is wrong!” The mare then felt the world fade into a black spinning swirl.


Someone was stroking her forehead, whispering tender words she couldn’t really make out. She lay on something hard and cold. Someone else touched her down by her stomach and by reflex she moved her hands to remove whatever it was, only to be held back by a third pair of strong hands. Like all strength had left her she couldn’t fight back. Her whole body felt numb, sedated and unable to move even if she did her best to make it obey her commands. The mare tried to focus. What was happening? What time was it? A male voice close to her head, it first sounded surprised then the tone became sad as it responded to the one that apparently was touching her stomach. The touch hurted and she moaned. It felt like the time when she was shot pretty badly and was laying in the jungle with big bleeding wound. When her platoon found her they were amazed that she had been alive. Wasp fought to open her eyes and tried to fixate them on the one that held her. She saw a blue figure above her and felt herself relax. He was here, he was here… “…Pelli? What happened? Didn’t the antidote work? Did they find us? Am I shot? Is Lumin safe? Is the others…safe?”


-Wasp


OOC: Changed it a little...just so it fitted better with your reply Fantasy..it was so good

Lumin tried to throw him off, hissing like a viper. He wouldn't let go...

Conleth stood, blue eyes flaming. All the sudden he was in a half sober, half drunk state, filled with the kind of fire that only can come after a few too many pints. He felt Apollos get up and start towards Lumin, but he stood still, incredulous. It was too bad that state didn't last for long. They say that you hear something before you see it, apparently Conleth was out to prove that sound waves travel faster then light. There was a bellow that sounded like, "GET OFF MY COUSIN YOU BUGGER!" and the crowd scattered in an almost biblical fashion. When one considered the size of the Irish stallion, who was about as large as the average draft, you would think that he moved slowly. Not so. A thoroughbred would have a hard time keeping up with him when he was riled. And Conleth was bloody well mad.

He tore the young stallion off Lumin, who fell against the wall. The stallion yelled, "Put me down, you son of a..." Conleth hit him across the face with the side of his hand, "Are you sure you wanna finish that sentence?" The stallion snarled, "You are messing with the wrong guy," He drew a gun, aiming at Conleth's chest. The chestnut snarled, knocking the gun away, "Yeah, I do. Real men don't use guns, sonny." He punched his nose and swore loudly. Someone screamed in background. The young stallion bellowed in rage, lunging for Conleth and pulling out a knife. Soon the two stallions were fighting in earnest. Tables were flying, women screaming, and over all the commotion the yells of, "You bastard!" and "Bleeding bugger!" were heard. Lumin ran away, disappearing among the panicking crowd.

Bachus had finally entered the brawl, the stallion doing his best to punch the Haunt, but occasionally he would miss and hit Conleth. Which really cheered the drunken Irish stallion up, I can assure you. Finally, after what seemed an hour, the fight was over. The Haunt was not in good shape, most of his teeth were missing, a few cuts on his arms, and one eye was swollen shut. Conleth had a deep gash on the side of his face and one black eye, but other than that was fine. Bachus was virtually unscathed, after all, he didn't join the fight until later. Conleth picked up the Haunt and held him bu the shift against the wall, snarling into his face, "First, leave women alone, especially my cousin. Second, don't insult those bigger than you. Third, deflate the ego. Last," He punched him, letting go and watching the unconscious stallion fall to the floor in a heap, "don't pick fights with Irish stallions."

He turned around just in time to see Wasp fall from her seat, falling on the floor and laying motionless. He instinctively knelt by her and supported her head, "What happened?" His blue eyes gazed at Pelli, "Could she have been shot? Dear Alma, if it was my fault I'll..." He looked away, staring at the prone form. Oh hell.

Lumin had swiped up two guns as she moved to the back of the room. These unicorns had to be stupid, leaving guns laying about as if they were commonplace. With a shudder she remembered that, at least here, guns were common. She darted through the door, leaning against the wall, breathing in the cold air and savoring it. She walked along the street, her shoes clacking against the cement sidewalk. She stood underneath a lamppost, unsure what to do next.

-Lumin and the Leth

The blue and sunset spotted stallion ran after the giant body guard. He shoved through the crowd, but as he did so Pelli noticed him shove Wasp back into a seat rather hard in his efforts to get past her and to the intruding Haunt. He snorted watching her go down. He slowed and turned back to her then to where Conleth had the Haunt in a strangle hold as Bachus went and tried to land blows. It all looked rather comical, especially when mixed with the high pitched screams of the women here. His attention went back to Wasp as he heard her voice faintly over the din. He saw her clutching her stomach and doubled over. His eyes widened with shock and he forgot all about the wrestling men and Lumin, running to her. His brother made it but minutes before he did.

"Wasp! Wasp are you okay??"

Apollos ignored him, picking her up, "We need to get her somewhere comfortable.”

Pelli turned to the Pan Lord, “Zee…”

He waved his hand, “Don’ worry about it. Take ‘er to my office. Down that hall. First door on your right. You can’t miss it.”

Pelli mumbled a thank you as he followed his brother who was half way to the door all ready. Pelli opened the office door for him but when he tried to go in he put his hand on his chest.

“No Pelli, I need you to stay out here.”

He was shocked. His brother was telling him he couldn’t be with his… his… When she needed him? He wanted to protest, scream, punch him in the face for saying something so stupid, but before he could do anything the office door was all ready closed and locked. He ended up just punching the tinted window on the door. He leaned up against it and slid to the floor, helpless. What was he going to do? What had gone wrong now? Had the antidote not worked? He sat there for a while until the door opened behind him and Apollos beckoned him in. He stood and was about to enter when Conleth joined them. It didn’t even register to him that Lumin wasn’t there. He just wanted to get to Wasp. He practically ran the few paces to her side. He sat beside her and placed her head gently in his lap. Her breathing was a bit shallow but not bad. He sighed, she was going to be okay… Her eyes fluttered open as Apollos walked over to where he was sitting to whisper in his ear.

“She’s okay Pelli. She… she had a miscarriage. The antidote to GARLIC will do that coupled with trauma like she received. She doesn’t have to know… It might be best.”

He stood meeting the shocked and confused gaze of his brother calmly. Pelli couldn’t find the words to say. Wasp… she… a baby? When? His head spun. He hardly heard Conleth’s voice. Of course he didn’t hold it against her… she had probably been with plenty of guys besides him… But he shoved those thoughts away as Wasp began to speak. At the mention of Lumin he started and looked out the door. He hadn’t noticed Ohanzee come in. He noted his gaze and understood.

“Don’t worry about it. I got the girl covered.”

He snapped his fingers and a fleet looking filly came up beside him.

“Paula, go find Miss Lumin. Her friends want to see her. Oh, and be careful. Where there is one haunt there are bound to be more. Those bastards always travel in packs.”

The tan mare nodded gravely and ran off in search of the young mare. Pelli turned back to Wasp quickly.

“Everything is fine. You weren’t shot and the GARLIC worked. A little too well… you just had a… a reaction. That’s all. Everyone is all right. You’re all right. And that’s all that matters.”

~Kokopelli/Apollos

She felt so cold and she couldn’t help the shivers that went through her body. The room started to take a clearer form and as she recognized where she was her eyes went wide. The spare Den! But it looked different. Gone were red drapes, the trashy heartshaped bed, the pillows, the red lamps and the faux polar bear pelt in front of the fake fireplace. Instead there was a dark colossal desk in oak that filled most of the room. There were also some leather armchairs, a small table that had a whisky bottle and a few glasses on it. Wasp tried to scramble to her feet but only managed to crawl up towards the blue stallions lap. It was only a few times she had been forced to go in here, mostly to dance before the stallions that didn’t want to be seem among the normal audience. It was often big shots, in fact one time Wasp was pretty certain it had been stallion from a pretty high position in the government. He had been kind though. After his hour was up he gave her a generous tip. He had never touched her, only watched her move. But then there were others. If they paid for an hour, she was theirs to do with what they wanted. She had no say. One time she had refused to dance more intimate with a stallion. He had tried to force himself on her but she had defended herself by dodging his attempts. That had made him furious and when he finally caught her he had beaten her. The room might be different now but she knew very well where he had shoved her into the wall, how he ripped her outfit, how he touched her and…

A reaction to the antidote? Wasp shivered again and pressed herself against the blue and sunset stallion as she closed her eyes. She felt so safe with him near. He was so warm, his scent was almost intoxicating and the sound of his heartbeat…she wished that the world around her could just disappear…that it only would be him and her. It had only been him despite what she had worked with. In a way it was thanks to Balor. Wasp couldn’t understand why this stallion made her feel like this. It had been the same feeling that she had felt that time in high school. It was like they were two fitting pieces of a puzzle. There was so much to be told but so many things had happened. She wasn’t even sure what day it was.

“…I…if…If I'm…If I'm not shot…he…Bachus…he…just accidently shoved me…I'm not weak…that’s nothing compared to…” A quick glance on Pelli and she stopped. She couldn’t bare his look if she told him. It was shameful both what she had worked with and how her dam had treated her. Her dress was starting to feel stiff. On the desk and on the floor beside her there was several paper towels that was bloody…It looked like someone had tried to wipe the floor. Then she remembered the blood on the seat. “…the blood…why did I…bleed…if I'm not shot? Why did it hurt so?”


A set of icy blue eyes watched the pale mare under the street lights. So she lived still? He raised his gun and was just about to shot as he heard voices and saw a tan mare followed by several Pan Members. He swore under his breath and backed into the shadows. He needed to get back to the clan.

- Wasp
and unnamed Haunt

[alright throwing void into the mix! back at the hotel room]


The Blue and Purple Filly giggled and stumbled along the hallway. Void sighed and tugged her along… probably a bit more forcibly than was necessary. She was quite intoxicated, as was indicated by the way her mini skirt kept hitching up over her ass unnoticed. Void didn’t fail to take note – via a rather long drawn-out look- of her enticing lack of undergarments. Just the kind of mare he liked… a little drunk a little loose and a whole lotta young. Void showed his teeth in what she might take for a smile – if she didn’t see his eyes- as she fell on him for what was possibly the hundredth time since she exited his car. A little beer was always a good thing but this was beginning to get ridiculous. He didn’t bother to try and steady her feet not did he attempt to pull her skirt down. That little number hadn’t stayed down when she was sober… it was highly unlikely it was going to now. Besides half the city had seen her rather firm backside already and in her current condition she didn’t seem to mind. It would be coming off just as soon as he could manage anyway. “Just a bit further Lovely.” He murmured as they came to the room. He fumbled in his pockets, searching for the right card. His efforts were further hampered by the filly clutching at his arm and planting rather slobbery kisses wherever she could find bare flesh. Ah but sometimes it was nice to be in his career. Ladies tripped over themselves just for a chance to meet Lumin or maybe sign a record deal. It provided all sorts of wonderful opportunities. The door clicked open, just as she was busily running one had through his short, spiked hair and the other was roving to more… unmentionable regions. With a grunt he picked her up and bodily carried her into the room only to plunk her unceremoniously down on the plush living room couch. He really should get her back in his room but the others were all out and he was feeling just a bit dangerous tonight. He stepped back and looked her over once. Her makeup – which had been pristine earlier in the night- was smudged and her hair a mess. She must have put in some extensions because long think strands of her dark hair were coming out, making her look a bit lopsided. Her white tank – brazenly slashed with some unknown punk band’s name- was wrinkled and hanging off one shoulder. A bit sloppy, he thought, but pretty enough still to make it worth it. His eyes quickly traveled down to her skirt – which hardly deserved the name. It was just long enough to touch her thighs as she sat. The sight of that barely there covering over her dark legs set him to drooling. However, instead of jumping on her as was his first instinct, Void turned with “Stay there Cookie” and went to the kitchen shedding his shoes and coat as he went. Once there he retrieved a bottle of wine. It was not that he thought she – what was her name? He was sure that she’d told him at some point… Bah he hardly cared. When he was done with her she’d be shoved out the door and sent on her way without so much as a goodbye so what did it matter now?- needed any more encouragement. She would have come out of the little clothes she wore back in the car if he’s let her. He’d thought about it then seriously but the idea of ruining his brand new Alligator skin seats had made him shudder. They were hideously expensive. He tipped the bottle back as he made his way over to her and pulled off his tight fitting shirt with his other hand. “Your turn Sweets” He said as he sank down beside her. The bottle of wine found its way to a side table and he pulled the curvy filly on top of him. He didn’t even notice when her foot knocked over the precariously placed bottle, spilling the expensive liquid onto an even more expensive carpet. Things were going quite well – she was an enthusiastic little thing- when the sound of voices in the hall and a click of the door knob alerted him to the immediate arrival of Lumin and her entourage. “Shit” he swore. Dumping the scantily clad filly over on the floor he stood just as the door opened…

Void and random unnamed filly. Blue with purple spots and a black mane

Lumin felt a hand on her shoulder and whirled around, fist raised. She didn't relax when she caught sight of Paula, but pinned her ears back and snarled, "Who are you?" Paula looked at the singer, sizing her up immediately. Young kid, not quite full grown but not really a half-grown, still clinging to innocence even now. She murmured, "Take it easy there, lassy. Pelli sent me to find you. It's safer inside." Gripping Lumin's arm, the mare purposely steered her into the Red Dragon, ignoring Lumin's struggles. Lumin was being dragged through the door, glaring at Paula for her rudeness, when she saw Wasp. She broke free of Paula's grip and dashed over, "Wasp? W-what happened?" She looked from the towels, to Wasp, then to Pelli, then her gaze swung around to Apollos, "Is it bad?" She shivered, "Oh Alma, I'm so sorry!" In a rare flash of brilliance she whispered, "I'll get everyone a water." She trotted off to the bar, returning moments later laden with cups of icy water, "Conleth, go get the others."

Conleth rolled his eyes but retrieved the rest, looking for all the world like an exasperated but obedient dog. He chugged a glass of water, blinking hard. He was still not quite sober and had trouble focusing on the problem. He muttered something about "cleaning off my face" and was gone. Lumin handed Wasp a cup, "Drink it. It might help..." She shivered, painfully aware of the open door. She got up and closed it, glancing outside as she did so. The scene outside the building was peaceful... Almost too peaceful. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled and she turned around to her friends, eyes wide, "We need to get back to the hotel. As soon as possible. I think- well, I don't quite know what to think, but I feel that someone is still after us all." She dipped her head to Zee and Paula, "Sir, Ma'am, thank you for helping us. We won't forget it." Paula snorted, but didn't say anything. Some people were just so naive...

Conleth reappeared, car keys in hand, "I can drive, Pelli, if you want to sit in the back with Wasp." A voice cut in, "You will not! You're still half-drunk, I'll drive." Lumin jumped slightly as the speaker emerged from the shadows. Her blonde-brown mane was tied back in a pony tail, her green eyes and horn glinted slightly in the light cast from the many lamps. She grinned, "The name's Atlanta." She folded her arms across her jogging suit and her grin widened, showcasing pearly teeth, "Besides, I have a feeling we might be chased. I don't want to brag but," She rolled her eyes heavenward in an attempt at modesty, "I'm a great driver. Best one you'll ever meet, anyway!" Lumin didn't like this cocky mare much, but she had to agree. Conleth was as drunk as a skunk.

Atlanta helped them into her green sportscar then revved the engine. She grinned, Lumin grimaced, resigning herself to her fate, "Listen to that baby purr..." Atlanta stomped on the ignition and they were off. Lumin regretted sitting shotgun immediately and clung onto the door handle for dear life. Atlanta cackled madly and executed a gut-wrenching turn. Lumin groaned, her misery echoed by Conleth's moan of, "Oh sweet Alma!" Atlanta checked out the rear-view mirror and snarled, "Damn! They're following!" She ordered Lumin to get the pistol out of the glove compartment. With a sickening lurch, they rounded a corner and sped up, Lumin guessed they were driving at about 90 mph. She dug through the glove compartment, which was filled with all manner of knick knacks, finally picking up the gun, "Now what?" Atlanta glanced into the mirror again, hissing a curse, "Roll down your window and shoot like heck." Lumin did as ordered, firing at the black Mercedes behind them. She noted, with satisfaction, that she hit the windshield with at least one of the bullets and it was now filled with so many cracks it was almost impossible to see out of.

Conleth moaned, "Oh hell."

-Conleth and Lumin, NPC Atlanta

(Hope this makes up for lost time!)

Kokopelli was grateful as Lumin walked into the room causing a slight distraction from Wasp's question. He hadn't thought up a good lie yet... He knew she didn't need this now. Not after so much had happened. They had just run from a murderer, killed a gang member, been blacklisted by the FBI, stumbled on a conspiracy, and got into a bar fight. She didn't need to know about... well that quite yet... As the shock ran away he found it harder and harder to keep the questions from coming to his mind. What kind of girl was Wasp? Surely it wasn't his was it? No... it couldn't be... someone else... And as that thought kept pushing into his mind, his frustration grew. He knew he shouldn't be mad. They weren't together. They weren't... No matter how much he wanted to be... He absently accepted the water from Lumin, sipping it as his thoughts whirled. Suddenly Lumin was speaking and asking to leave. He nodded, mind still filled with other thoughts. he watched as Apollos helped Wasp up and out of the building, giving him one last look before exiting the room. Pelli clasped Ohanzee's shoulder and muttered a thank you. The brown and purple stallion nodded but kept him there for a few more seconds, gripping his own shoulder.

"No thanks needed. Just stop them Haunts and consider us square for life. If they succeed we're all dead."

Kokopelli nodded gravely. Zee released his shoulder and Kokopelli continued after the others. He was ready to sleep... He had had enough excitement for one day, but it would seem fate was not on his side. He was about to get in when a strange voice spoke from the darkness. He looked at the new mare exasperated.

"Who the hell...?"

He started but she answered his unfinished question promptly. He rolled his eyes. She was a Pan, that was sure. He saw the characteristic mark in the suit. He simply jumped into the car readying his gun. He was sure that if Zee thought something was afoot, there was. And he was right. Suddenly they were driving down the streets at ninety miles and hour, his brother clinging to the seat muttering swears every few seconds. He was impressed at Lumin took charge up front and shot out the windshield of the car behind them. He himself shot back at them, one of his bullets blowing out their front tire. He watched them spin out and hit a light pole, satisfied, as they themselves turned a corner to safety. He stretched as he exited the truck and muttered a thank you to Atlanta. He watched up and down the street, gun ready as his little crew entered the building. He was thankful it wasn't needed though and he let out an inaudible sigh as they all entered the elevator. He led the crew to the door and froze. He thought he heard noises from within. What now?! He readied his gun yet again making a motion for the rest to get out of the line of fire. He gently turned the nob till it clicked and threw open the door gun ready. He stood dumbfounded as some half dressed jerk jumped up from the couch. He noted the scantily clad filly on the floor and contorted his face in disgust but lowered his gun slowly.

"Uh... Lumin... You know this jacka... guy?"

~Kokopelli

Most of it had been a blur. There were only short glimpses, almost like the flashy light when the car passes under the streetlights. Faces, she knew them but they blurred together with their voices. Gunshots, several of them, who at first made her jerk. She thought she heard Pelli swear. There was also an unknown voice but she felt too weak to do anything. Pain still cut trough her body but not as much or as strongly as before. Apollos spoke, asking her something but she couldn’t make it out. She felt him checking her pulse. It was hard to keep focus on what happened. Suddenly the sound of screeching tires and then a crash – but there was no impact. It wasn’t them. Trying her best she looked at the blue stallion who tucked his gun away. As he did she saw his FBI badge, it was hard to look at, still after all these years. Even now made her feel guilty, she still remembered his look, his fright. Leaning towards the doctor she let the memory swallow her. She couldn’t protect herself from it, there was no strength left to put up a protective shield.

Cornered the filly held up her hands. The flashing light made the ally seem like a party with blinking lights. She snarled at the police officer that stood the closest but he held his ground. Carefully he spoke into his radio, requesting more backup. Taken barehanded on an entry in progress, she couldn’t talk her way out of it, couldn’t blame it on someone else. She was alone. The filly bit her lip. Her first job, her first hit and she failed. Curse those laser alarms. Balor hadn’t told her of those. Maybe it was one of his tests? Two police cars had already come when a dark blue car with dark windows parked beside them and a red pied stallion stepped out. He looked like a typical detective, trench coat, hat and a cigar in the corner of his mouth.

She squirmed in her cuffs as she sat at the sidewalk. The pied stallion talked to the officers who pointed at her and then at the broken glass, finally they did a motion that made her realize they had noted her gang symbol. As he came up to her he showed her his badge, FBI. Shit! Shit, shit, shit! Balor had warned her! Show the symbol for all – except cops – and especially the monkeys. She couldn’t hide her surprise when the cops left them, left her alone with the FBI-guy. He kneeled beside her, smiling. She just glared at him. The stallion was in his late forties, maybe early fifties. He had started to get a belly but was still quite fit. The smoke from his cigar made her, in some weird way, to feel safe. His warm brown eyes were kind and caring.

“Hey there kiddo, what mess you have made for yourself…” He stretched out his hand to pat her on her head. She jerked her head away at the same time as she hissed and stared at him. “DON’T touch me monkey!” Strangely and to her surprise he didn’t get angry. He didn’t make a motion as to strike her. “No need for name calling kiddo, no need for that. I'm not the bad guy here. You are the new pup aren’t you?” Her eyes that became wide with surprise confirmed his question. “Oh, kiddo…do you know what mess you are in? How did you get into this in the first place?” His voice sounded so caring and actually sounded like he actually cared for her, that he wanted her best. For a split second her features relaxed before remembering. “What mess? Why the hell would you care what I do?” The stallion sighed and sat down beside her. She moved away from him. He only smiled. “Well kiddo, perhaps it’s because I care too much. Maybe it’s because I'm a father myself. I would hate if my kids would be doing this. To be all alone in the world, I would hope that somebody cared. There are so many things that are better than this life. I have a son your age. But he doesn’t need my help, at least not now. It’s you I want to help now kiddo. You don’t need the gang. They use you for things like this!” His words felt like honey. He softened her sharp edges and made her relax. Made her feel safe and she didn’t feel afraid anymore. Then she noted that one of the cops had come back but he wasn’t alone. “What ya doin with one of mine Warin? Haven’t I made it clear for you to stay out of this? I'm loosin ma temper here…” Beside the purple officer a red grey stallion appeared.

The pied stallion stood up. “I'm just trying to stop you from ruining another life Balor…I had hopes for you too…” The grizzled stallion snorted. “Yeah…well…I prefer to have cash than struggling in the gutter like you! You didn’t take the hint last time Warin…” The filly could just watch in horror. Their voices became louder and angrier. Finally the pied stallion said something and turned towards her. Then there was a muffled sound, a look of surprise in his eyes before he fell over her legs. She noted the blood and watched it color the street red. Someone unlocked the cuffs and pulled her to her feet. “Come pup…NOW!” She watched them place a gun beside the fallen and some drugs in his pocket. Then they hoisted a dead body from the trunk of the police car, by the looks of it the body of a homeless colt. His clothes were in rags and he was very dirty. They placed him so it would look like he had shot the FBI man. He also got a gun in his hand. The filly couldn’t take her eyes from one of the few that had spoken kindly to her ever since she came here. Words that the person had meant, that he was someone that really cared about her, for real. His breath seemed to get more painful and the look of it made her eyes tear up. She ignored the angry call as she kneeled beside him. His voice was very weak. “…Kiddo…please…don’t make the same mistake as Balor have made…leave the pack…create your own future...stand strong...do the right thing…you don’t need…” His voice grew silent at the same time as the muffled gun sent a bullet through his head. Blood and something else splattered up on her face. Someone gripped her arm hard and dragged her from the scene. The pied stallion’s eyes stared at her, unseeing.

The mare jerked and came back to the present as the car stopped. She became more alert as the car door opened and fresh air came in. Despite this she still felt somewhat woozy as she followed the others. She had squirmed free from Apollos hold after sneering that she didn’t need any help like a darn foal. As Pelli readied his gun outside Lumin’s suit she became alert, at least more alert then she was when she stepped out of the car. She followed Pelli closely as he walked into the suit but almost stumbled into him as he stopped. But she didn’t get surprised of what she saw. She knew this bastard. Anger flared up inside her like a volcano and just like that she forgot her own pain and how tired she was. Within seconds she was by the couch and the couple. She grabbed the now very confused drunk filly by the neck while screaming at both him and the filly.

“WHAT have I told you Void?! WHAT have I told you, JERK! IDIOT! Stupid bastard! Don’t take your lady friends here! You have your own…what did you called it…love hut…downstairs! You can play your dirty games there! Why do you take them here? What you do downstairs is your business! But this is Lumin’s suit; this is where she should be able to feel safe! To be alone! And don’t you dare dragging your usual story with me! I don’t take that SHIT from you!” Then eyes still fuming she turned to the filly, who tried her best to squirm away. “YOU! OUT!” she sneered before she pushed her towards the exit which made the filly tumbling into the Irish stallion before she scrambled out the door. Then the striped mare didn’t have any strength left and she sunk down on the floor. Still awake but utterly exhausted. Despite that she still managed to glare poisoned arrows at the pale singer’s manager.

-Wasp

Lumin didn't really answer Pelli, she just looked past him at the cocky stripped stallion and sighed nodding. Why had she ever let herself be used by this slime ball... And yet she kept telling herself it would be better someday. That he really did love her somewhere, he just was like this. Pelli watched Lumin's response and flattened his ears. He didn't like this guy one bit and Lumin's response to him only made him wonder what kind of relationship the two of them had. Of course his question as to who the jerk was was soon answered by the stallion himself. Wasp's angry voice cut in from behind him and she charged in cussing. He watched in dark amusement as she screamed at the sleazy stallion and threw the filly out the door. She really was a commanding figure. It was something he loved about her, that confidence and sense of strength. However, he didn't like how the striped stallion followed her every move and seemed not ashamed but pleased to be yelled at by the yellow and navy mare. He stepped forward slightly as he invited her onto his lap and flattened his ears more, if that was even possible. He felt an instant hatred for this stallion. Part of him wanted to chuck him out of the room like Wasp had done to the filly, but another part of him wanted him to stay and perhaps, if he was lucky, he would get shot as collateral by one of the Haunts. Either way he didn't like it. He hadn't missed the look he gave Lumin when she had walked in either, it was similar to the one he was giving Wasp now. Kokopelli held Lumin's shoulder and steered her towards the bedroom.

"Why don't you go rest... We've had quite the exciting night."

The young mare nodded and passed by the enraged Wasp and Void quickly before disappearing into her bedroom. Pelli turned to Conleth and Apollos who were out in the hallway still. It seemed like Apollos was actually holding the Irish stallion back and the anger on Leth's face only confirmed this. Pelli stepped out and pushed him towards the elevator door.

"Why don't you go home and rest too, Conleth. We'll take care of Lumin. You should be safe out at your house anyway, the Haunts aren't after you."

The angry stallion nodded, "Yeah, fine. But kick his ass for me will ya?"

Kokopelli smiled, "I'd be more than happy to oblige."

Conleth nodded, shook the hands of the two brothers, the disappeared behind the elevator doors. Pelli turned to his brother and nodded inside to the room where Wasp's angry voice could be heard yelling again. He walked in and leaned against the wall. Apollos looked at the situation quickly before retiring to the kitchen to grab a glass of water, down some sleeping pills, and retire to his own room mumbling something and rubbing his temple. Pelli watched the chaos between Void and Wasp as calmly as he could for now. She could handle herself. But he was definitely looking forward to fulfilling his promise to Conleth. Oh boy, was he...

Please, dear, Alma! Give her a gun, a knife, something to knock the stallions head in! Her whole being ached but most of all her lower abdomen and the numb pain made her grunt as she slowly got to her feet again. Her legs however failed her and made her fall right into the arms of the seated stallion. The mare didn’t stay long in his embrace however. She roared as she gave him a hard slap. His hands hadn’t missed their chance to touch her. Her jaws were clenched and her body trembling with fury when she finally managed to form real words.

“Do…do that again Void and I swear the ladies will miss certain parts of you…and I tell you…it will hurt you…more than when the ladies scorn you for the loss of it… However I might do the world a favor Void Alati…because what mare in her right mind would love somebody like you and the thought of anyone that would want a foal sired by you!! It..it..”

She didnt end her triad of angry words as she felt a wave of nausea roll over her. It was like an icy cold wind engulfed her. She must have gotten up to quick. She swayed as she turned away from him. It was only by sheer will she managed to remain standing and not fall into the lap of the stallion with the icy mane again. Instead she somehow managed to get to the balcony door. As she put her hand on the handle it was like she got burned as her body remembered. It remembered all those years in training and the years with the pack. Always be careful, always suspicious. Wasp swallowed hard, felt some of the pain and nausea go away. She looked down at her dress, felt her self feeling sick at the smell of the blood and just the notion of what it was. She took aim for her own bedroom, just next to Lumin’s, she had to get out of these clothes. If she could she would burn them. Burn them as she had done with the last piece of clothing she had worn when she been at the club last.

She swayed slightly and just gave a quick glance at Pelli as she passed him. Why did he look so angry? Hurt? Those eyes seemed to pierce her body, aiming for her heart. It caused her, unwillingly, to utter a sob before she could stop herself.

“I…I'm…I'm just going to…change…clothes…oh…umf…” The mare paused as another roll of pain went through her. It didn’t hurt as much this time. The Garlic, it was probably just a sideeffect, nothing else. “…I be right…back…” With that the mare opened her door and slide in.

The room was dark but for once she embraced the dark. With a yank she ripped the upper part of the dress. It wasn’t much force needed since the fabric was thin. Her thighs were stained but she couldn’t understand why. A bloody handprint on her belly, it was probably Apollos. Had he touched her? Why had he touched her, and why there? She looked in the direction of the bathroom and then the bed. Her body decided for her and soon she found herself lying on the covers. She was so dead tired she didn’t even bother to cover herself up.

It didn’t take her long to fall asleep, but there weren’t any peaceful sleep. She whimpered. It was darker than black and the only light was the full moon. She didn’t know where she was but it seemed to be in one of the alleys downtown. In the dark red eyes glowed and the howls in the distance approached her. Then a voice, one she had hoped never to hear again whispered. “You will never escape the pack Stinger…you belong to the Haunts, you belong to the pack, to me…forever…” She saw the stallion move towards her and as he did he transformed into a wolf and its fangs glittered in the moonlight. The last word echoed in her mind.

Wasp screamed and looked in horror at the one that held her. Her first instinct was to fight, the other to flee, but she couldn’t do either because she was held down. It took awhile for her to rid herself of her dream and realize she wasn’t in the alley. That Blackheart wasn’t there. Warm tears slowly fell down her cheeks. The one holding her let go and she rolled over to her side and hid her face with her hand. Now she started to feel her shoulder too. She had no clue who were in the room. It couldn’t be Lumin because there was no way she would be able to hold her. The only thing she knew was that it wasnt someone that meant danger. Not with Pelli outside. She sobbed as she spoke.

“What do you want?”

-Wasp

He’d expected a lot of things after all he’d said to Wasp but he hadn’t expected her to jump right into his lap! Well being honest with himself he had, just a little, otherwise he wouldn’t have said them in the first place. She wiggled about a bit, pretending like she hadn’t meant to end up in his lap, but he knew it for the game it was. After a moment’s pause – slow wits do to the drink probably helped slow his reaction too – Void got down to business. He laughed and rearranged her a bit, settling her in more comfortably and let his hands roam about.

One found her rather ample breast – her most attractive feature in voids opinion. They were just barely restrained by her dress and just begging to be let loose. While the other hand… it traveled to more scandalous regions. His hand was just slipping up her thigh, while he giggled a bit drunkenly, when she slapped him quite soundly across the cheek.

Had he been able to think straight he probably just would have picked her up and carried her into the next bedroom but he was dazed enough that it took him a moment to react. The slap wasn’t the problem. It was the fact that she had hit him, but not as hard as she could. He knew she was capable of it, that didn’t surprise him at all. Indeed Void had no illusions that if she wanted to she could physically harm him. But the slap wasn’t nearly as solid as he would have expected if she really wasn’t into him. It was hard but not that hard and gave him a moment’s pause to sort it out. Was she just playing around or did she mean it? He was in one of those moods where he didn’t mind a bit of roughness. Really instead of curbing his enthusiasm it did just the opposite and Wasp would have suffered the consequences of such an action – if he hadn’t wanted her before he certainly did now! – Except she used his moment of surprise to rise and scream at him.

That settled that he supposed. He frowned a bit when she mentioned separating him from his member… It was a rather important part of his anatomy – one that he used often! But he took her seriously, serious enough to not attempt anything else while she was angry and he was tipsy anyway.He shrugged not having any sort of real reply to her tirade and watched her make her way to the balcony. By god but her butt in that dress. It was too much for a twice scorned stallion.

He thumped his head on the back of the couch before sliding foreword and rubbing his hands over his face. His pants were rather tight in a certain area and he glanced down before groaning. THAT wasn’t likely to get any better tonight. Two women on top of him and two women gone just like that. Damn night wasn’t likely to get any worse. “Fuck.” He muttered before rising unsteadily and ambling over to the kitchen area to find more booze. It was going to be a long night – and not the kind of long night that he liked.

-Void

[if void's posts ever get to be too much or offensive or anything just let me know, they'll be taken down]

Pelli watched the interaction with less calm ease than he originally thought he would. As he took in the scene before him he found Wasp in Void's lap, his hands all over her. She slapped him and got up but even that didn't seem convincing. He flattened his ears and looked away, not really paying attention to her tirade. Only the mention of the word 'foal' caught his attention and a stab of pain pierced his heart. No... Was... was that foal... he had hoped that maybe... He leaned against the wall this time to support himself from this blow. He stared at the ground taking this in. He had hoped that... that maybe she would be faithful to... to him. He hadn't loved another... He grit his teeth at the thought that she would do that to him, that she would even venture to have a foal by someone besides him! He looked up as Wasp came back into the room. Anger, pain, hurt, all of these things shone in his eyes as he looked at her and her reaction was a quiet sob. Of course she would feel that way... Why shouldn't she feel regret over losing one piece of meat... He snorted and turned from the doorway through which she had disappeared. Of course the view on the opposite end of the room wasn't any more pleasant. the stripped stallion known as Void was getting up, the unmistakable bulge in his pants making Pelli sick and even more angry. He turned and punched the wall before storming off to his own room, too angry to deal with anything further that evening.

-~-~-~-~-~-

Apollos was popping the pills into his mouth when the tipsy stripped stallion entered the kitchen. He flattened his ears in disgust at such a creature with no manners or taste before quickly downing his glass of water. He watched as the stripped stallion searched the cabinets, probably for more liquor to help in his drunken mood along. Apollos grinned to himself, he had assumed as much would happen, and was quite proud of the fact that he had hidden every last drop of liquor in the oven. He doubted anyone would bother looking there. He nodded to the stallion and strode away to his own room to retire to sleep. However, his sleeping pills didn't do as good a job as he had hoped. He sighed, waking in the middle of the evening. He looked at his clock and discerned that it was only 1 in the morning, not much rest there... He rubbed his eyes determining to give himself a stronger medication when a thought passed his mind. Wasp... He should probably check to see how she was doing. He tiptoed out of his room and into hers silently. She was, thankfully, still asleep, so his little check up might go unnoticed. He noted that she hadn't washed up yet and felt sorry for her, she must be truly tired... He thought of just letting her rest but her health and the idea that perhaps she was too tired to wake made him stay. He walked over and gently examined her listening for her breathing, her heartbeat, checking that the bleeding had stopped. Lastly he placed his hand gently on her stomach, feeling to see if there was any internal damaging. Suddenly though she started thrashing against him. Alarmed he help her down. So much movement could hurt her more! He waited until she stopped thrashing then let her go. He watched her with pity as she his herself from him, asking her simple question. He gently placed a hand on her back.

"I... I'm sorry Wasp... I didn't mean to wake you. I just wanted to make sure you were okay after... well after what happened at the club. How are you feeling?"

The mare took a deep breath. Like it had been a piece of clothing, the last of her upset expression she had shown when he had woken her up vanished. Once more her face was practically empty of emotions. Slowly she rose from the bed, ignoring the stallions hand on her back and the light dizziness she felt. Her personal mantra kicked in. Don’t give in to weakness, don’t show it, dismiss it, hide it and forget it. “Do you realize what danger you put yourself in Apollos… I was sleeping…and…my dream…you scared…I’ve could have killed you… It had been over before you knew it… you know I could have done it before… if it hadn’t been for…Pelli… I'm sure you know that…I would have done it before I realized it myself…” Wasp sighed as she looked at him. She ignored her half naked state, didn’t bother with covering herself up, she just didn’t care. Her underwear was of the practical sort and was made in simple cotton other than something with lace. Besides, Apollos was a doctor, he wasn’t like Void. He wouldn’t jump at her at the first chance he got. Void had learnt that fairly quickly what she was capable off, but he still tried, like a airheaded misbehaving male dog. The thought of him made her flatten her ears. Bastard! She knew he had some good qualities, even if it was hard to believe. He was good at what he did but other parts of his personality left much to be desired. Those however overpowered the good ones especially when he was drunk. The mare cast a quick glance at her shoulder, poked at the bandage that covered the injury and then ripped it off. If she was taking a shower she would take the chance of cleaning that wound.

Parts of her soft fur on her thighs was matted from the dried blood, she touched it as she looked up at the red stallion, the moons light made it look like he was glowing. “What does Garlic do…really…? I know the basics but they could of course have…done changes…after I left…” After listening to his explanation she nodded. If the Haunts managed to do what they had planned, nobody would know what really happened. “I'm taking a shower…I can’t stand the smell of myself anymore…” The mare didn’t really wait for a reply, what would he say about it? No? Wasp muttered to herself as she walked towards the bathroom. “… darn period is whacked up again…just the perfect time for Flo to come now…”

She sighed in delight; the shower was divine, even if the hot water was almost too hot. It removed some of the thoughts that flapped around in her head like spooked hens. However she surprised herself with thinking of Pelli and how it would feel like to just let her head rest on his chest. To just stand there, stand still and not having to be on your guard all the time. As she leaned against the wall in the shower and closed her eyes, memories of their night in the shed flashed before her and she sighed again. She hadn’t meant for it to happen. Never had she let anyone that close, let alone a stallion. His tender kisses and nibbles on her neck and his tender embrace. The soft whispers in her ear and… They had been like two fitting pieces of a puzzle. Did he remember it at all? For him it was probably nothing; didn’t mean anything. The mare rubbed her arms. When she had left the Vale the thought of him had helped her keeping her head above the water. The thought of him at her side, as she had to dance dressed in skimpy outfits in front of stallions that were old enough to be her grandsires. That made her strong enough to put up with the groping from stallions like Void. Her mental image of the blue stallion had also helped all those lonely night in the military; it helped her to remain strong.

Wasp let herself slide down to the floor. She hadn’t let herself think of it until now, the way he had looked at her just some hours ago. He hadn’t said a word to her but his eyes… they had screamed at her ‘How could you?!’

-Wasp

Void awoke groggily and in a foul temper. There hadn’t been another bottle to be found last night. He was sure – fairly so – that there had been quite a few stacked in neat little rows the first time he’d snagged a bottle but when he’d went back to look the cabinet had been empty. Maybe it had been the wrong cabinet, though if that was the case then all of them had been the wrong one. He’d tossed quite a bit of kitchen items in the floor in the process of finding the right one. Hell at that point he’d have settled for a bottle of cold medicine, anything at all.

He’d have gone out for more, but at some point Void had misplaced his keys too; which meant he couldn’t even retreat to the safety of his room and the stock of hard liquor therein. It had been a long night. Finally with the small comforts which the now stained couch afforded he found the blurred sleep of the mightily inebriated.

Drunk as he had been the night before that didn’t stop him from rising early – much as he wished otherwise. No one else seemed to be up. Or at least if they were no one was in the room with him. For a few moments he eyed Lumin’s door and thought about sneaking in. Wasp was an early bird though and he recalled more than one time where she’d caught him “up to no good” as she called it. Not to mention the one time he’d tried to find her bed in the darkness. He twitched a bit remembering the knife she’d thrown at him. It had stuck in the door, just beside his head. Just a little to the left and… Neither of them had said a word and he’d just stared at it a moment before making a hasty retreat – for prudence’s sake of course. One didn’t bother with a woman when she was armed. He wasn’t that big a fool.

He gave over thoughts of Lumin fairly quickly and rose, still in search of strong drink. His head was pounding and the general remedy for headaches was a bout of good whiskey. That’s what his grandma had always said. The buckle on his pants still clinked and he had to hitch them up a few times before he remembered to button them.

Void wandered into the kitchen area again, wondering if he’d just missed the right spot the night before. He had been pretty toasted after all. Mistakes might have been made. Plates were broken and thrown about as well as a pile of what was probably most of the dry good in their stock. One cabinet even hung off its hinges. In short, the place was a wreck. He didn’t really remember making such a mess of things but he must have. His feet crunched on glass as the disinterestedly poked at the pile of boxes before checking the cabinets again. Still nothing. Sighing he slumped over the stove, head in hands. This was not the way he wanted to start the day. Then behind him he heard a noise and turned.


Void doesn't really have a lot to say here continue as needed

Apollos chuckled and rubbed his hand behind his neck in response to Wasp's reprimand. Perhaps he was lucky that she hadn't killed him! He had taken maybe a hard slap to the face into account but this was Wasp they were talking about, a trained body guard currently on edge, who knows what kind of damage she could have done? But no matter... It was his duty to help her, risk of death or not. He was just happy she still had no intent to hurt him despite the fact that she was only half dressed. Perhaps she trusted him... They sat in silence for a moment, Apollos scrutinizing his hands and Wasp watching him. Finally she broke the awkward lull with a question and one he knew he could answer. He looked up at her and grinned wryly.

"Well I doubt it could have changed much. The same doctor that made the antidote was in his early years forced to create the poison itself. I doubt that anyone in the gang would be smart enough to change anything and still keep the properties they wanted. GARLIC is a rather picky poison. As for what it does it basically simulates the signs of lead poisoning. However, where lead poisoning effects the blood stream and liver, GARLIC works in far more areas than that. Due to its multiple components creating the effect the poison is harder to concentrate on and stop. Also, though the Aconite within the poison should be quickly lethal, the other poisons serve to counter it slightly and slow the process to a painful crawl... The good thing is this could allow a doctor such as myself to treat the patient. The bad thing is that normally doctors are too busy treating for lead poisoning that by the time they realize it is GARLIC they are too late. Of course even if they did realize it it wouldn't matter... only I have the antidote which is why we need to stop these Haunts and mass produce the stuff.

Wasp nodded as he finished, deep in her own thoughts. He thought perhaps he should say more but nothing more came to mind. He feared another awkward silence when she broke it proclaiming that she was headed to take a shower. He didn't blame her either... He stood up as she walked to the bathroom door, muttering. He flicked his ears back to catch what she said and sighed... He hoped he was doing the right thing by keeping that information from her... But she needed her focus and mourning a lost child wouldn't do in a situation as they were in. But no matter how he justified it, it felt wrong. Not to mention that Pelli was confused and upset. If he told her perhaps she could explain to him what had happened... But now there would be tension and it was his fault... He opened the door and left her room. He was about to enter his own when he heard a noise from the kitchen. The striped stallion known as Void was awake again and obviously looking for more spirits. He sighed and shook his head as he took in the damage done to the kitchen. If they hadn't been in a five star hotel with maids to run errands for them they would have probably starved. Seriously, they were in a dangerous situation, they couldn't go shopping. He was probably lucky Pelli hadn't walked in on his first. However, the object of his desperate search and the events of the past day gave him his own desire for a good drink. He walked into the kitchen, the stallion turning to face him. He gestured for Void to move.

"I can guess what you are looking for friend," he said taking in the mess. It was worse than he had thought... "and I know I can use a good swallow myself after last night. So... if you could please step aside."

The striped stallion just looked at him in a hung over way, moving too slowly for Apollos' current need. He gently pushed the stallion aside with a small 'excuse me' and opened the oven door, taking out a bottle of vodka. He took off the cap and raised the bottle to the now incredulous face of his companion.

"Cheers."

Swigging from the bottle he strode away, leaving the so called manager to either curse him, stare at him dumbly, and plunder the rest of the stores. Probably all three... He didn't quite care now, he had already ruined the kitchen, what more could he do if he got more drunk? The worst case scenario would be he would pass out and he would have to give him mouth to mouth or something... But quite frankly he would take that over lying to Wasp... He hated this crap... Why he let Pelli pull him into it he would never understand. He took another swig from the bottle and locked the door behind him as he entered his room.

~Apollos

-~-~-~-~-~-

Kokopelli lay awake for some time. In fact, he wasn't quite sure if he ever slept. His mind kept flashing images in front of him. Be'lakor's evil face... Balor's dead body... Ohanzee telling him of the Haunt's connections up top... but mostly what flashed through his mind was Wasp... Her face... her eyes... her smile... All he had ever wanted was to make her laugh... to light up when he was around, to make her feel safe and wanted and... and loved... He saw her in High School, beautiful but scared to go home... He remembered seeing her again at that party, their night... But the images that flashed through his mind the most were her shot... bleeding... hurt... and he hadn't been able to stop it. In fact he had caused it. He had fucking caused all of it... He tossed onto his side then back trying to rid himself of the guilt, the pain, the hurt... She had hurt him too... Why... After everything? Why... Did she even know about the foal? Probably not. And with that sleazy manager... He sat up and rubbed his temples, trying to get the pictures out of his mind. Of her with him... Him kissing her... holding her... murmuring nothings into her ear... He shook his head violently and stood up, pacing. It was no use! Sleep was impossible! He looked at the clock and was surprised at the time however. It was early morning, about 6 am. He must have slept. Those pictures must have been the haunting tricks of nightmares. He sighed and walked over to the bathroom, splashing his face with cold water to wake himself up fully and clear his mind. He needed a drink. A strong one. He pulled open the door and walked out into the main living room. He didn't quite take in the mess of the kitchen until his feet hit upon crunching cereal. He looked down and registered the mess. What. The. Hell. He looked about him and finally noticed the liquor bottled in the oven. That was one of Apollos' tricks... But he wouldn't have made this mess. He grabbed a bottle of whiskey and went back to the living room, slumping on the couch. Most likely that drunk bastard Void has done it... looking for more liquor that Apollos had hidden... great... He drank a bit then put the bottle down on the table beside the couch. He let the warm liquid burn away all his unpleasant thoughts and he just sat there. He didn't want to think... didn't want to move... He hardly twitched an ear when he heard footsteps coming from beside him. He just didn't want to care at the moment... And that was that.

~Kokopelli

She had taken her time with the shower. Lumin had given her different lotions and other things that made both mane and fur shine and feel smoother. How many times did she allow herself this? She shook her head. Not many. Her task was to always be on the move and on watch. It wasn’t much sleep for her but on the other hand, when she slept she never sleep good. Even then she was moving, only backwards, moving through painful memories that refused to let her go. The mare let the brush go with long strokes through her yellow mane, tried to think of something else. It had grown longer since…since their night…he had let it out, watched with a soft smile on his lips how it cascaded down her black shoulders. How he had sat down behind her, lifted some of it and started to kiss her neck. If she closed her eyes… she could almost feel it. Why was he so angry? He hadn’t said it; he had in fact not said a word but…his eyes. If her eyes, when she was angry, could glow the blue stallion’s eyes were a raging fire. She had never seen him angry, real angry, but this was…like a hurt anger. Why he had looked at her like that… Was it because she had failed taking care of Lumin? That she somehow dragged him into this mess.

The bleeding had stopped. At this point she didn’t think so much about it. Her periods had always been irregular and sometimes it went months before she had one. She knew stress could do that. It had been a lot lately. Just the notion that they had known she was alive, having to watch both Lumin and her own back. She looked at the watch, 6 am…she had been in the shower longer than she thought. Perhaps she should go out and take a round. She had a small surveillance camera that she used to keep an eye on Lumin door so nobody could enter without her knowing. Lumin’s door had also its own code to get in. Attached to another camera was a moving detector that started filming if something moved, most of the time it was only Lumin, still it was good to have.

Pulling the thin light lemon colored silky robe around her she took a final glance in the mirror. She looked tired, worn but at least her mane and coat looked better than ever. The mare leaned her head in her hands… all of a sudden she became so sleepy…Maybe if she just rested her head a little… It didn’t take long for the black and yellow mare to doze off, sitting on the toilet and leaning on the sink.



The young purple pied and striped mare impatiently waited for the elevator to get to the right floor. She wandered around in the small space while humming her latest hit. Impatiently she pressed the floor button again even if she knew it wouldn’t help.

“Finally!” she muttered as the elevator pinged announcing its arrival to the top floor. She took a last glance at her reflection. Good gracious she looked hot today! Her black long mane was shiny and the tip if it touched her lower back. The only thing that lit it up was the pale minty green highlights, all natural even if some journalists claimed it wasn’t. She snorted at her reflection. It was so silly. Void was happy though because that might lead to a co working deal with some mane color company, with her making commercials. She didn’t care, as long as she made money and got invited to parties. Like the one yesterday. She looked down on today’s outfit, it was just as hot as the one she had on yesterday. It was in fake leather, shimmering in almost a oily kind of way, going from a similar purple color as her fur to a weird shade of ‘dirty green’. Her skirt was…almost not a skirt since it hardly covered anything up. Again, Tari didn’t care. It was made by a famous designer who had almost shit his pants when she had said she liked what he did. He had as good as tossed this at her. It fitted her very well, like a second skin. The corset helped to push certain assets up. On her feet she wore boots with a lot of buckles and the boots went all the way up to her knees. They shimmered too, but more in a black and purple hue.

She pressed in the code and all the other security things needed. Void the horny bastard, he better be up. He was a funny guy. Sometimes she wondered if the things Void said, did he think them through before actually letting them out of his mouth? He had at least not let so many frogs escape him when she was around. Last night he had left the party early, without giving her a ride as he had promised her and by Alma he would hear about it today. Instead she had spotted a hot stud in a just as hot car and had grabbed him just as he was on his way into the car. He had been young, in the age group most of her fans were in. With the way he acted he probably was one. He hardly dared to look at her and when he did his eyes couldn’t help but roam to certain places. When he dropped her off she had kissed him as thanks. His car had stood still for a good while. He probably was calling all of his friends about what just happened.

By Alma what a mess! Apparently there had been a party here too. In the little nock where you could hang your clothes lay a filly’s shirt. She knew who it belonged to, the filly that Void left with. Trashy filly.

As she passed the kitchen she heard someone in there but she went straight for the living room as she saw someone sitting in the couch. She went closer and noted that it wasn’t someone she knew. With a bottle of whisky in his hands she guessed that he had to be one of the last to leave the party. She walked up to him and stopped on a place where he couldnt miss her standing there. He had to let his eyes travel along her legs, up to the almost non existent skirt and then continue upwards. When nothing really happened she plunked herself down close to the blue stallion, legs folded under her and then leaned on the back of the couch. She patted him softly on the inside of the leg.

“Hi there hot stuff…eating breakfast I see” The soft patting transformed into little strokes and she giggled. “…like to share that perhaps?” She flicked her hair back with her other hand. “…you see I'm a little thirsty…” Tari started to lean against him, her chest touching his shoulder and she tickled him just a little at the back of his neck with her other hand. “You wouldn’t be a meanie and say no now…would you?” she whispered softly in his ear.


-Wasp
-Tari (uhuh)

A bright red stallion swaggered up. Void was sure he had a name but he had never taken the time to learn it. He watched the other stallion a moment through red bloodshot eyes – really it was probably more of a glare than casual looking, Void was in a foul mood- before the stallion spoke, asking him to move.

The striped stallion couldn’t think of one possible reason why the great red lummox would need to get at the stove. Truthfully he was still trying to gather his thoughts enough to ask why when he was rather roughly shoved aside. The shove was enough –though the strong drink from the night before likely helped- to make Void stumble into the fridge on the opposite wall. He cursed and spun; well he tried to spin but ended up on his back in the pile of kitchen things he’d discarded on the floor. Seeing as how he was positioned on the floor there was little that Void could do but watch as the other stallion opened the stove, tipped his bottle at him and went merrily on his own way.

Void floundered about on the pile of things. Boxes and bags flew as he struggled to get up. He fell back more than once and after a while he just gave up and started flopping trying to hit the edge of the mess. Boxes burst and all sorts of foods spilled onto the floor, but he made it! Standing up he gave a bag of macaroni a negligent toss behind him and like a ravenous wolf descended upon the open stove. He rummaged about the contents for a moment before he settled on a bottle and quickly made his way onto the balcony to drown his sorrows.

Unfortunately however one can only hang over a railing, bottle in hand, for so long before patience and said bottle run out of their appeal. The wine went dry all too fast and Void grumbled to himself at the necessity of going for another. Gods but his head hurt! He ignored anyone about at that point and made a bee line for the kitchen.

Something a bit stronger was in order this time. Luckily there was a squat little bottle of whiskey beneath some of the more costly stuff. He snatched it up and wandered out of the kitchen, thinking that the couch would be a particularly welcome comfort.
Unfortunately he noticed the couch was already occupied by the one stallion that he would rather not see. The same blue jay from the night before was sitting on the couch – Void didn’t fail to notice the liquor bottle he had - with Tari nearly in his lap! Now when had she gotten here? He scrunched up his face. Hadn’t he left her at the party last night? Shrugging he thought no more of it. She found a ride home obviously.

Well, unexpected or not it was good to see her here. She was a pretty little thing. Not too many mares with stripes like that. The only one he’d seen that could come anywhere near to comparing to himself –though she had mentioned once or twice that she had a sister … and a brother, though Void thought as little about the brother as he possibly could; which is to say, not at all. He did wonder on occasion however if said sister was just as striking. Pretty didn’t always run in families.
He put on his best smile. The one the ladies always fell for and opened his arms wide. A bit of the whiskey sloshed over his wrist but he didn’t care. He still didn’t have a shirt on and though he wasn’t as muscular as say, the blue birdie over there, he knew what his body did to females so he showed it off as much as possible. “Well now, isn’t this a pretty picture. I think the whole house is currently swilling back a bit of drink” he chuckled and found one of the chairs to plop himself down in. “Only one way to end a part right.” He said raising his bottle “and that’s to get drunk again the next morning.” Laughing he took a swig and then looked Tari up and down.

He didn’t particularly like how close she sat to the blue stallion, her hand on his leg, especially not since she SHOULD be sitting so close to him. His ears went back a bit at the thought of being so left out but he brightened soon. He knew how Tari was. She’d be back at his side soon enough.
“So love” he said deciding to tease her a bit. “None of the pretty boys at the party caught your fancy? I didn’t see you leave with anyone. I however had a fantastic time... or at least I WAS having a fantastic time till that fellow there ruined the fun.” he winked at the blue stallion but didn't wait to see his reaction. Tari was the one he cared about, at the moment.

-Void

Kokopelli hardly noticed the new filly that had come into the room. If he had been thinking clearly and not of what had happened last night he might have had just enough thought to think her an intruder and threaten her at gun point. As it was he was rather numb to everything at the moment. Not to mention slightly tipsy. He did finally notice someone when she was directly in his field of vision. Slender legs impaired his view out the large glass windows and he absently looked up. She was pretty, but her outfit did little for him. He couldn’t help but wonder how Void had managed to get another piece of trash so quickly. Though, as he looked at her, she might just be his sister. That might explain the trashy outfit. He looked away again but the mare, obviously not dissuaded, sat down next to him. He looked absently at her hand on his thigh as she spoke, his numb mind slowly turning the gears. At her inquiry he shook his head and made to hand the bottle to her when Voids voice grate across his ears. He flattened them as he sat opposite them, obviously trying to entice this new filly to his side. He was slightly surprised that this filly wasn’t with Void from the first and sudden panic filled him. Had he left the door unlocked? How did she get in? Who was she again? He spun his head around and looked at the door. It seemed secure enough… Had Void let her in? No… He seemed genuinely surprised to see her. He turned to the striped filly and quite bluntly asked.

“Who the hell are you anyway?”

If she was offended he didn’t really care. He had been shot at, nearly had Wasp die, and on top of it there was that whole fiasco with the… With… He looked at Void and his ears flicked. Could it have been him? Did he and Wasp… His mind threw images at him and he shut his eyes and forced them away. He did NOT want to think about that! It couldn’t be him… she wouldn’t go with a slime ball like him. His ears suddenly registered someone speaking, in answer to his question or not he didn’t know. He forced the thoughts from his mind with a final mental shake and turned to the filly again.

“Sorry, I didn’t catch that. Who are you?”

~Kokopelli