There was obviously some trouble downstairs. The thin walls of the up stairs office let its sole occupant hear everything. He listened as his army of many fell to the might of a few. The Tzimisce\'s red eyes opened to reveal the glow of rage. How dare this Camarilla and Caitiff ilk come and disrupt my plans?! What was even more embarrassing for the flesh crafter was that the great Sabbat army he\'d been breeding was falling to so few warriors. He detected five beings. A weaker sixth aura could be scarcely made out.
A Nosferatu for sure
The Tzimisce was old, about twelve hundred to be exact. He\'d lived far longer than most of his clan or organization usually did. Five hundred was considered a ripe old age in the Sabbat, so for one as old as he, respect came without question. He rose up from his chair and walked to the altar he\'d built. Upon it stood a display of blood, human flesh and bone. He slowly began to gather the pieces of flesh and manipulated them into a solid form. Flesh crafting came easy for one as old as he. The once useless and rotting flesh quickly became a walking breathing monster. It stood about two feet and let out a high-pitched scream.
You will go to the other Sabbat locations. You will tell them to flee the city. You will tell them to wait for me to send them word to return. If I do not send word, tell them to stay far away from this city.
With that, the small flesh creature went out through the air vent and disappeared from sight. The Tzimisce touched his clawed green hands on his horns. They truly were mighty killers. He had made them when he was young and had kept them ever since. He\'d changed his face hundreds of times but his horns had stayed the same. He returned to his chair and sat down with elegance. If Jake McCloud wanted a fight, he would give him one, for if he lost this fight then she would come, and if she came then more than just this city was in peril. She would unmake the world.
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Things were going well. Jake took the head of a young Sabbat Brujah with a single swipe of his blade. They had avoided detection for so long Jake was beginning to think he and Benny would make it to the office without having to fight. Benny sank his claws into another enemy and ripped open his chest. The gore covered the Nosferatu but he didn\'t mind. He was enjoying himself. Jake could hear the battle taking place near the gates of the warehouse. The rest of his team were in place. Gunshots were ringing in Jake\'s ears, and the sound of screaming Sabbat filled the moments when Kerr and Scott were reloading.
The two spies hadn\'t made it into the building just yet. The upset Sabbat had stopped them in their tracks. Fuckers, Jake thought. His blade was knocked out of his hand by a Gangrel in animal form. He was older. Jake avoided claw swipes and punched the Gangrel in the chest. Jake pulled a revolver from his coat and fired it at the head of his enemy. A wild animal cry was heard as he fell down. Jake pulled a hunting knife from his boot and removed the Sabbat\'s head. Benny had already reached the side door and stood waiting, frustrated. Would McCloud stop fucking around?
Jake grabbed his blade and ran for the side door. Locked. As Benny began to pick it, Jake decided to kick it down. "Want to tell everybody we\'re here," Benny snarled, glaring at his partner.
"We have to hurry or Conner and Digital will be dust," Jake replied.
Shaking his head with disgust as the door banged loudly onto the warehouse floor, Benny turned invisible for the next part of their mission. Jake did his best to become a shadow himself. Now they were inside and Jake could see a large display of fire whirling around. Jake saw Scott and Kerr picking off vampires left and right from atop their perch. Conner and Digital could not be made out but Jake would guess that since the fire was coming from somewhere, it was probably coming from them.
Benny swarmed up the stairwell slitting throats of Sabbat as he went. Jake followed suit and in a similar fashion took the heads of anybody Benny left alive. They found the third floor deserted. The Sabbat that had been up here had gone to joint the fight against the intruders downstairs. All that stood between Jake, Benny and the office were two very angry looking fire demons. They’d worked out a plan for this. They’d known what had been waiting. Jake marched close to the door and made his presence known. The two demons turned into their fire form and began to move towards Jake.
He stood still, waiting for Benny to come through. The fire grew close and Jake debated moving but just as the flames were about to touch his skin a blast of water hit them. Benny - still invisible - had busted the water pipe on the wall. The high-pressure blast had ended the two demons. Benny faded into view and approached a very relieved Jake.
“You’re welcom,e McCloud,” Benny hissed. Jake buried his relief and, without a word, made his way to the office door. It was unlocked. Jake waited for Benny before he opened the door. They opened the door and stepped into a room filled with flesh, blood and bone. Sitting atop a throne-like chair, the Tzimisce elder sat with a look of pure hatred.
Jake stopped cold. When he planned the raid he knew he might find something odd on the other side of the doorway, but he didn\'t think he would find the Sabbat leader waiting for him. He was unsure what his next move should be. The Sabbat leader hadn\'t spoken or made a move so Jake didn\'t give him reason to make one. Jake had wanted the backing of the Oligarchy demons before he engaged the Sabbat leader. He was old, Jake could sense that much. He was also powerful, for his very aura leaked from within him. Jake looked to find Benny had vanished from his side.
Coward, Jake thought. So here it was, Jake McCloud, proud Anarch leader against a being far greater and far older. Jake had killed one elder and although it was something he was proud of, he didn\'t feel like repeating it. Jake\'s blade began to glow ever so dimly.
"So," the Tzimisce began, "you\'re Jacob McCloud. I expected someone of your reputation to be a bit older." Jake wasn\'t sure if the Tzimisce was referencing his physical age or his actual age. Jake was only eighteen when sired and was a young Kindred by comparison to the elder. Either would have been appropriate.
"Well, sorry to disappoint you, but I am the one you\'ve heard about," said Jake.
The Tzimisce let out a loud laugh. "On the contrary Mr. McCloud, I find it fascinating that one so young has gained so much power! You are truly a mighty force in your own right. However, you are nothing compared to me." At this moment, the Tzimisce turned to face his computer. He waved his hand and Benny came into full view. He\'d been typing away but now retreated in horror at being decloaked.
"Sewer rats think they are so discreet, but I can always see them," the Sabbat chuckled. "Your plan has failed McCloud. Your band of men may be able to kill my children, but none of you can match me. Leave now I estimate that you\'ve bought this city only another month... before we take control."
"I\'m afraid I can\'t do that," Jake said. "This city is free of your kind and I intend to see it stays that way. I\'ve killed one of your kind before and I\'ll do it again."
"Then by all means, Mr. Mcloud", the Tzimisce stated, "try." A sinister smile spread across the foul being\'s face, a contortion that only motivated Jake onward.
The younger barely had time to raise his blade before a strong, clawed hand wrapped itself around Jake\'s throat. Fortitude kicked in as Jake put all his blood into making sure his neck didn\'t snap. Benny leaped at the Tzimisce, only to be thrown through the brick wall by the powerful ancient\'s free hand. A sick grin crossed the dark lord\'s face as he used his that same hand to begin rearranging Jake\'s countenance. The younger fought with all his might and managed to plunge his blade into a kidney of the Tzimisce. The blade\'s magical poison entered into the Sabbat elder and forced him to release Jake from his grasp. Blood flowed from the right side of the powerful flesh crafter, his dignity wounded worse than his body.
Benny had recorvered by now, a splitting headache being his only prolonged symptom. He went to the computer and inserted a flash drive. Luckily, there was no security codes on this unit - probably because it was the Tzimisce\'s personal computer. Benny began to download files he deemed interesting and deleted everything else; even though it was useless, he\'d cloaked himself again. The Nosferatu had a mission to complete, and that was eradicating the Sabbat network and blowing up the office. Jake could handle himself.
The Tzimisce grabbed a large rapier that had been on display, unknowingly entering into Jake\'s specialty domain. Their blades clashed faster than the human eye could see. The small office was now cut to shreds by the flashes of steal that had intruded upon it. Jake was a master swordsman and possessed a sword that fought for him. The Tzimisce had accidentally evened the odds. Suddenly, Jake felt himself be lifted and was soon after thrown unceremoniously through the doorway. Knowing this was a fight he could not win on his own, Jake took the opportunity presented to him and ran from the office, making his way to the first floor where his friends had all but eradicated the Sabbat underlings.
"The leader is here! The leader is here!" Jake yelled. As he said thi,s he was punched in the gut and thrown into the ceiling. The Sabbat leader had made his way down and had resumed beating Jake to death. The blood loss was beginning to weaken the ancient; he knew he had to make Jake\'s death quick before he found himself unable to fight, so he\'d followed. He raised his sword to finish Jake off once and for all.
BAMM!
A large, powerful bullet hit the Tzimisce in the head and knocked him to the ground. The bullet in question had come from Scott\'s gun. Jake leaped to his feet, prepared to fight to the death. The Tzimisce also rose, his head already healed from Scott\'s bullet. By now, Conner and Digital stood by Jake\'s side. Scott and Kerr reloaded and took aim.
Suddenly, a huge explosion came from the third floor - Benny had blown the office up. The Sabbat network had been wiped and Benny possessed enough information to end the Sabbat in most of North America.
The Tzimisce heard the explosion and realized at once what had occurred. So... this group had proved more resilient than he\'d first thought. They\'d routed his army, stopped his invasion and blown his base of operations to bits. They only had one thing left to do; kill him. The Tzimisce would not let that happen. He was a God amongst Kindred... yet his side still leaked blood. He realised belatedly that McCloud\'s blade was magic; their was no other explanation as to why he hadn\'t healed. He could feel the flesh trying to repair, only to be denied by the deep stab. These fools would pay! He began to mold the surrounding flesh into horrors that were unimaginable to all.
The disembodied limbs of fallen Sabbat warriors, as well as the poor fledglings left in the warehouse, began to swirl together and be molded. Jake watched in horror as two giant beings began to take shape. Conner began to counter the spell but the Tzimisce’s age and experience made merely Conner’s attempt at magic throw Jake into Digital. Scott and Kerr both fired, but their bullets were easily dodged. Suddenly, standing before the group were two giant monsters made entirely of flesh. Jake looked in horror at the twenty-four foot monsters standing in front of him. They each had four arms and spikes of bone stuck out from their peeling skin. Jake heard Conner utter a single word; ”Zhvod.”
As he said this, a giant arm swung to crush Digital. Jake shoved him out of the way and went into a somersault to avoid being crushed himself. Jake saw Conner had engaged the Tzimisce. Conner’s exile filled with practice had paid off, for his magic was doing well against the much older vampire\'s. Jake dodged another arm swipe and slashed the Zhvod’s flesh. It let out a cry of pain and went to stomp Jake into the dust. Jake caught the foot in his hands and used it to tip the monster back.
Meanwhile, Benny and Digital had engaged the other Zhvod. Fire and claws were the main weapons here. Scott and Kerr had apparently each picked a monster to fire on, for a steady barrage of high velocity rounds ripped through the flesh monsters\' heads. Jake looked to see that Conner was beginning to weaken. He’d used a lot of blood in his first assault so now the Tzimicse was chipping away at the Tremere. Jake leaped up and landed on the top of his Zhvod’s head. He plunged his blade directly into its skull and then leaped off, withdrawing his sword smoothly as he went. The monster went mad with rage and turned its attention to the two snipers.
Jake rolled into battle and resumed his sword fight. Conner also had a blade, so the Sabbat leader was forced to fight both Jake and Conner simultaneouls. The silver flashes came close to Jake’s head several times but he always kept enough distance to maintain his life. Conner used a different strategy. He would engage, back up, blast with fire, and then re-engage.
The fight went on like this for several minutes, with neither side showing weakness. The chaos that took place between the other four kindred and the Zhvod was completely ignored by the three swordsmen. All that Jake could hear was the sound of roaring monster and ringing gunshots. The smell of burning flesh filled the air. Jake spun on the tips of his toes with his sword looking like one silver ring. The Tzimisce rolled on the ground to avoid decapitation. Conner went in for a direct assault but was met by a stiff and hard punch to the abdomen. The force of the blow lifted Conner high into the air, cracking his back and then throwing him like a rag doll into the path of the Zhvod.
The Sabbat leader watched as his baby went to kill the pesky Tremere once and for all. The Zhvod wrapped his arm around Conner and began to lift him into the air. The Tzimisce smiled and yelled at his pet, “Crush him!” A single bullet hit the Zhvod’s hand and Conner was dropped to the ground. Kerr stood atop his perch and cocked his rifle looking quite pleased with himself.
The Sabbat leader was so infuriated, he didn’t even know he’d been stabbed through the heart. Jake McCloud stood behind the Tzimisce and sunk his sword deeper into the old Kindred’s body. The Tzimisce looked at the blade poking out through his chest before him and felt its poison leak into his body. Instantly weakened by the foul effect, he began falling, sliding off Jake’s samurai sword and hitting the ground with a meaty thud. Black blood leaked from his mouth as he looked to see Jake standing over him.
“I-I-I,” he croaked, his lips working soundlessly around the black ichor until, finally, he managed to press out what he wanted to say. “I failed.” He gazed upon Jake with a look of desperation, uttering one last phrase before the paralysis took hold: “She will kill you all. Fear her. Destroy her.” With that, he fell silent.
Jake raised his blade and ended one thousand, two hundred years of evil. All that remained were the horns of bone. Jake didn’t take the leader\'s warning as anything serious for the moment; one problem at a time was his philosophy. Still, the words stuck in his mind, She will kill you all. Fear her. Destroy her.
He would see what Benny had gotten off that computer to answer the questions that had been raised. Jake saw the Zhvod had fallen silent. They had been killed by the other five members of his team. All that had been meant to accomplish had been done. The Sabbat had been destroyed. Jake exited the warehouse with his friends, knowing Digital would burn it to the ground. Jake couldn’t shake the Tzimisce’s words, though. Just when one threat ended, a new one shaped up to present itself, it seemed. At least life wasn’t dull.
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A few miles away, the sight of a burning warehouse filled the eyes of a dark newcomer. She was pleased. She was one step closer to her goal. The wind fuelled the burning fire.
Chaos had been the real victor of tonight’s war.
/end.
