Levi's steady drinking had slowed, a satisfied gurgling noise leaving his throat. His dilated pupils, which had swallowed the entirety of his eye, finally contracted down, slowly becoming their once normal size. His stomach had stopped crying after a few short moments, filled to a satisfied point. He wasn't full. Far from it. But chances were he'd never truly be full ever again.

He was starting to loosen his jaw, wiggle it into a better position, when there was something on his neck. It squeezed and he choked. Then there was fingers in his mouth and it didn't take much effort from them to remove his teeth. He had already been shifting them to get a better grip. The one he had had been hard to manage. No good for pulling.

Then he was on the ground, having removed his hands from Lex's shoulders in surprise. For a moment he just laid there, staring up at the ceiling before his eye darted to the side, focusing on the face on the one who had pulled him away. The only thing he took real notice of was the wing. And some clarity returned to him. That wing was bad. The owner was bad. With a low whining noise he tried to roll over. If he did, if he was fast enough, he'd try to scramble away.

The world spun around Lex as his head lolled to one side, no longer bothering to keep it upright. He felt cold and the tips of his fingers were numb along with his feet. There was someone pressed close to him, holding him up - that was important. He knew it was important, he just couldn't remember why. It was getting harder to breathe and that seemed notable too but he wasn't able to hold that thought in his head for too long. His head felt fuzzy, light, like it was filled with helium.

And then he was falling, the room flowing past him on his way down. He hit the floor hard - the air was forced from his lungs and his head banged uncomfortably but the pain was muted, like he landed on a thin mattress instead of solid ground. His vision spun momentarily as it adjusted to the new position. There was something he needed to do but he just.

Couldn't.

Remember.

It was on the edge of his mind, the tip of his tongue, so close and yet just out of his mental reach.

He needed to breathe though, that he at least knew was crucial. So that's what he focused on, the movement in his periphery forgotten in order to pull more attention to pulling air into his lungs and out of them at a steady rate. If Lex could just get it under control, he'd be better. Inhale, hold one two three, exhale, hold one two three, inhale, hold one two three, exhale...

"Aris!" Jules exclaimed. He was stepping in, and saving Lex. She was relieved. Mtumishi had been but a step behind Aris, and now stood a few feet behind, waiting and making sure a fight wouldn't ensue. The kid was on the ground now, and Lex was falling.

His head hit the ground with a disgusting thud and Jules gasped. Was he dead!? It would be all her fault! No, he was breathing. Julia grabbed her pack from behind her and rushed to Lex's side. She dug into the pack and found a protein bar and some water. She ripped the bar open and threw the cap back on the water. She had to help him. She owed it to him at least, for volunteering over her and sparing her this.

She set the water down and lifted Lex's head into her lap. "Here," she said, "Eat, drink... you have to." She glanced over her shoulder at Aris and the newborn vampire. Aris would protect them. He wouldn't let the kid attack Lex again. He wasn't hungry still anyway right? She lifted the water to Lex's lips.

The fledgling hit the floor, and moved away. Aris' dark eyes narrowed and he drew his sword. That wing twitched again and he glanced around. Too many threats. Two vampires, and the hooded man. The hooded man was dangerous. That man seemed to be near every time Aris woke from that strange dream. A dream that wasn't really a dream. It felt like he had been dreaming but he couldn't remember much. Couldn't remember how he had fallen into whatever state he had been in. He couldn't remember clearly the events following his last talk with Mtumishi and here. Gaps in his mind. He knew it had something to do with Mtumishi though. It had to.

His body was still tense as he tried to judge who the bigger threat was. Shawn or Mtumishi. The fledgling could be dealt with easily, but the other vampire would undoubtedly prevent that and Mtumishi...there was no telling what he might do. Aris could fight them both at the same time, but that might end badly for him. He made his decision quickly, sword gripped tightly in hand the Garuda turned towards Mtumishi and attacked in a thrusting motion with his sword. Every instinct in his body was telling him this man was the bigger threat. This man needed to be dealt with first.

Aris drew his sword. What was he doing? The kid was trying to get away, there was no longer a threat here. Then the Garuda was turning on him, lunging at him with that sword. Mtumishi was frowning under that hood. How did this man continue to break his enchantment? No one had ever broken it, and this man had twice now.

Mtumishi swept his arm out as Aris struck at him with the sword, flicking it away effortlessly. The blade sliced into his skin and brought blood. Though it was very little blood. Where his skin split, metal could be seen. It would be a strange sight to see metal where flesh and bone and muscle should have been.

He could sew it back together later. The skin, real skin, would heal itself eventually, adding another scar to his collection. He reached forward and grabbed Aris by his throat, swiveling the Garuda as he plunged him towards the floor without mercy, with a force capable of breaking ribs if Aris didn't keep still.

Mtumishi grabbed the arm on the side Aris had his single wing, using the arm to pin the wing against his own back. He placed a knee in Aris' lower back and applied pressure. It was all effortless. He leaned over Aris. "You were intended to keep the peace, and keep everyone alive." The others would hear this and hopefully be reassured by his presence once again.

"You are not to attack and kill anyone under my watch." He leaned into Aris' ear, jumbling the sound waves as he spoke so that the vampires couldn't hear his words as he whispered. "I need you all alive and in one piece. I will not keep my life, if I do not harvest yours." He knew the Garuda couldn't repeat those words, couldn't warn the others. Not that it would matter. He was going to put his spell on him for the last time.

If the Garuda broke this one, he would just remove the man. It was better to have all of the others than none, thanks to the bird. Perhaps he could just put him into a sleep until they reached the city. That way he didn't have to give the man up. Not to mention, he wasn't sure how the others would react to his killing of the bird man. Then he'd have to enchant them all, and he couldn't do them all at once. It could be disastrous.

He flipped the Garuda now by giving that arm a harsh tug, continuing to pin it to his body as he crushed the man against his own wing. His free hand reached up to grab Aris' jaw, forcing his face to meet Mtumishi's. He would look into Aris' eyes and repeat the spell, warning him that if he didn't cooperate that he would remove the Garuda's other wing.

If the spell took, he would help the Garuda up and turn to the others before reassuring them that Aris wouldn't be trying to kill any of them any time soon. He hoped they would put their trust in him still, seeing that all he did was control the situation to all of their benefit, keeping them safer still.

((I apologize again for being AWOL. I'll try to remember to reply at least once every two days, but school and other activities are going to keep me pretty busy, I'm afraid. I'm not ready to give up my spot here just yet, though, and I hope you guys can bear with me.
And sorry if there's a lot of narrative in here going back... at least ten posts. I'm sorry I missed so much. I had intended to post earlier, and I started one about two days ago, but then I think I fell asleep and lost it. :P))

Levi growled, ferociously. Shawn wasn't sure if it was in response to his warning to be gentle or just due to hunger and impatience. He narrowed his eyes intending shove the kid towards the girl before he got out of control, when the one-handed man spoke to the kid, telling "Levi" to come to him.

He looked broken, defeated, weak. So he was going to sacrifice himself, then. Shawn couldn't keep a smile from creeping across his face as the kid moved towards the man, jaws clenched, and relief spread across the girl's face. He found a certain irony in the situation, that the man who had tried to prevent him from getting to his prey was now about to be drained by that prey--Shawn's offspring.

The kid hesitated for a moment, but the man encouraged him. How noble. This is why there are so few humans left. Shawn eyed the hooded thing, but it didn't interfere as Levi finally gave in to his hunger, becoming more animalistic as he pounced, bit the man, and started gulping down his blood.

The man was losing blood fast, looking as if he were about to faint, which didn't bother Shawn one bit. The smell of blood fueled his own hunger, however, and his fangs elongated, his nostrils flaring as he turned to look down at the girl again, about to ask her if she would feed him--though he was almost ready to just take blood soon if no one volunteered it.

But she kept her eyes glued to Levi--apparently that was his name--as he fed on the man, asking him if he would stop the kid. "Why should I? He offered."
The girl took a step towards the pair, but the Garuda was faster, his wing twitching as he wrapped a hand around the teen's neck and squeezed, wedging his fingers between the kid's mouth and the man to pry the fledgeling off, and it worked. Shawn frowned slightly. He might have to teach the kid a few things--usually it wasn't that easy to separate a vampire from its prey once it had latched on.

The kid fell to the ground and lay there for a moment. Shawn snarled, moving towards the Garuda, drawing his sword. His offspring looked at the Garuda and rolling away. Shawn wasn't sure what was going through the Garuda's mind, until he turned and began to attack the monster.

Shawn was very aware of the man lying on the floor, bleeding. The girl was offering him sustenance. There--they were his sustenance, ripe for the taking... he was dimly aware of something else niggling in the back of his mind. You could get away now, with the kid. While everyone else is busy. Run from the monster. The clang of a sword on metal made him turn to look at the Garuda and the monster. It has metal instead of bones--and apparently the Garuda isn't entirely its slave. Should I fight it now? Two stand a better chance against it than one, and we might actually defeat it.

Blood--it was bleeding a little, and his stomach clenched, his pupils dilating as the hunter instinct rose. Food, death of the enchanter, death of the Garuda... which was most important for survival? He tried to think logically despite the red haze which was descending over his eyes.

The thing grabbed the Garuda by the neck, forcing it to the ground, telling it that it wasn't supposed to attack or kill anyone. That was good. But it hasn't obeyed so far.
He made a split-second decision that the enchanter was the worst threat, drew his knife, and leapt onto the hooded thing from its left side and slightly behind it, swiping his sword down towards the neck in what would usually be a decapitating move if the skeleton weren't made out of metal--I hope I hit a weak spot in a joint and my sword doesn't break... With his left hand, Shawn stabbed the knife towards where he guessed a man's ear would be underneath the hood, hoping that would be a weak spot where he could damage crucial internal structures--whatever those were. Simultaneously, Shawn bared his fangs, intending to bite the joint between the man's neck and shoulder, hoping to get at least a little blood to sate his hunger temporarily, make him stronger for the fight. Though his hunger made him more ferocious, it was a short-term effect, and he would weaken severely soon if he didn't get any sustenance.

Too fast. This man was too fast for him. It was like fighting a vampire, such speed. His sword was gone and Aris hit the floor hard, grimacing lightly though no sound left his slightly parted lips. He wriggled a bit, but not too much. He wasn't exactly in a position to be writhing around, his wing twitched slightly. Pinned awkwardly and painfully against his back, his body was tense and all he wanted to do was shout for Jules to run away, to take the other human and get as far as they could as fast as they could. There was too much danger here.

Aris could do nothing but lay there and listen to Mtumishi's words, then he was flipped over, that wing pinned uncomfortably beneath his entire body. He wriggled about a bit more now, shaking his head from side to side. No. He didn't want to look in that man's eyes. Every fiber of his existence screamed for him not to look. Mumu had him by the jaw and that grip was strong. He could feel it, feel the spell beginning to settle over him like a warm, comfortable blanket. Aris wriggled, trying to shake his head, trying to fight it as best he could. He could feel himself slipping away, his true self slipping to the back of his mind as this new self, the one Mtumishi wanted fell into place.

The Garuda bit down hard on his own tongue, drawing blood and sending a burst of pain, like tiny explosions throughout his nerve endings. He concentrated on that pain, concentrated hard on it. If he kept focus on that, then perhaps the spell wouldn't take hold so easily or so completely. Aris was fighting with everything he had. A flicker of movement caught his attention, from the corner of his eye he saw it. The vampire, Shawn, came at Mtumishi.

Jules watched helplessly, half cradling Lex as Aris attacked the hooded man. The hooded man wasn't a man at all though, that was obvious now. And he was hurting Aris. It made Jules angry, and scared, both. She wanted to get up, and help. But what could she do?

Then the original vampire was attacking. Jules gasped. What was happening!? Her heart raced. She'd missed something here. At first she'd thought the caped man was good. The vampire had told her otherwise. Then Aris was attacking him, and now the vampire. The caped man had to be awful.

Jules put the food and water down and moved behind Lex, putting her arms under his and around his chest. She pulled, dragging him across the floor until he was a safe distance from the fight. She released him and retrieved the food and water and her pack, realizing as she returned to Lex that the kid was nearby.

He looked scared again. Not like a monster anymore. Though the blood smeared around his mouth and chin was a little horrifying. "Here," she said to the kid, handing him the food and water. "Your... friend... needs to eat and drink, so he can get some strength back. You owe it to him."

Jules gave the kid the evil eye. Heck, he seemed scared and confused, maybe he'd be some kind of fearful of the eye for some reason. Besides, the pair had been friends. She was sure there was something inside him that wanted that still, and wanted to protect that.

She reached into her bag and grabbed something like a hand towel. She used it to wipe the blood off of Lex. His wounds weren't exactly like vampire bites. No, the kids teeth hadn't been sharp enough yet. While there were holes, they seemed bigger, more like rips. They'd certainly still be bleeding, if Lex had any more blood to spare.

Thankfully, in a way, he didn't. She didn't want to leave Lex here in the care of the kid while he was still bleeding. It might make Levi crazed and cause him to drain Lex of whatever was left of him. She wouldn't believe that the kid would do it though.

When Lex was clean, she looked at the kid. "He's counting on you now," she said, hoping that would mean something to him. But she had to do something to help Aris, and the other vampire, too. He wasn't all bad.

She stood, tossing the bloodied rag away from them. Her hands still had some of the crimson substance on them, as did her long sleeved shirt in various places. Oh well. She could change again later. They were in a mall after all. For now, she watched the three.

Mtumishi had released Aris' jaw when the vampire attacked him. But remained where he was, keeping Aris pinned. While Shawn's sword had broken skin, the skin wasn't as thick as human skin, nor did the body require the blood it held. The blood, while real; his original blood, was merely for show. A small amount trickled from the wound that caused no real damage, only gouging away at some of the metal that made up his throat.

Shawn had then stabbed into Mtumishi's ear. While his eyes were the only sure way to disable Mtumishi, keeping him from being able to see, and making defending himself much harder, Shawn's knife had stuck a cord. Literally.

The half mechanical brain inside his head alerted him that he was being bitten. No matter. Shawn would more than likely hurt himself, being that Mtumishi's skin was so thin over metal, and wouldn't get enough blood to do more than piss him off. Which was lucky for him, being that Mtumishi's blood had been designed to repel vampires and other flesh eating creatures. If Shawn got more than a drop or two down his throat, it would burn him and taste something like motor oil.

Mtumishi intended on flinging the vampire off of his back. But he was malfunctioning with that knife jammed into his ear. For a moment, he just sat there, unmoving, trying to plan his next move. His eyes flickered between their yellow color, and a dim glowing. And then they went black, as if someone had turned off the lights in a room.

While he was still on top of Aris now, he was unable to move. In fact, his brain had shut off completely. They could push him over, kick him, anything, and he wouldn't move or respond. All the while, a human heart would continue to beat, ever so slowly inside his chest, protected by a shell of steel. He would reboot soon though.

If the others wanted to get away. Now would be the time, before his system restarted. Someone would need to get him off of Aris' chest though, since he weighed nearly 500 pounds and was unable to control the distribution of his weight now.

Jules turned around in time to see Mtumishi shut down. He wasn't moving now. It was strange. He was like a machine that someone had unplugged. He was just sitting there, stuck in the position he'd been in when it happened. Jules moved forward quickly. "Aris!" He was being crushed! She pushed at Mtumishi, but couldn't budge the machine. "Help me!" she commanded of the vampire, half frantic and half angry that Aris was still being crushed.

Levi had managed to scramble off, only stopping when he was sure he wasn't being followed. Fear clouded every judgment he made, fogging his mind and tunneling his vision. He turned to look back, inwardly very afraid the one-winged slaver was after him, that he was probably going to die. But he wasn't. No...instead he appeared to have gone after the hooded man. That was...a relief.

He relaxed almost visibly at that realization, a breathy noise leaving his lips. But he tensed again as his eyes traveled, landing on a figure slumped a little ways from him, the girl leaning over it. He couldn't see the face but he did have a view of its right arm; it had no hand.

His eyes widened, opening his mouth to try and ask the girl what had happened, why Lex was on the floor, but some dribbled out of his mouth and and he absently lifted a hand to wipe it off-- and stopped at the swathe of red. He stared, dumbfounded, at his own hand, blinking. Then it dawned on him and he let out a whining noise.

He did that...he did that to Lex. That was his fault. He sat there for a few moments, staring at his own hands with disgust and fear and a few other emotions he would never admit to feeling at the realization. No. How could he?

He twitched at a voice, lifting his eyes from his hand. The girl was staring at him, glaring at him. But she didn't have a weapon and the only thing thrust at him was a bottle of water and an energy bar. He blinked, watching her as she dabbed at Lex's neck.

Then she looked at him again and he nodded slowly, scooting back over to Lex. He hesitated to get much closer, but eventually did. He eyed his friend, putting the food down next to his head. His neck was clean now but...but he could still bleed from it. It needed to be bound.

He wiggled a bit, lifting his arms and removing his soiled shirt. There were still some clean strips to it, near the bottom. If he could tear those he could bind his neck. When he had finished that, the action taking some effort, he moved, standing slightly so that he could move over Lex to straddle his chest. It took more effort and willpower but he eventually managed to get it wrapped, albeit sloppily. His now ruined shirt was tossed aside.

Levi took a moment to be sure he was still breathing before moving off and resting the older man's head in his lap, food and water back in his hands. He watched, unable to speak to his friend and tell him to eat or drink. His throat was too tight to try.

Aris was relieved when Mtumishi released his face, the spell unable to fall over him with the eye contact broken. Things were happening so fast, the vampire's attacks had landed. One seemed to be a critical hit, but Mtumishi wasn't human. Wasn't vampire either, he was something else entirely. A cyborg, an android? Aris didn't know, and he didn't care. Right now all he cared about was getting out from under the lifeless, far to heavy body that had completely shut down. Most likely thanks to that stab in the ear from the vampire.

The vampire. Aris' dark eyes were watching the vampire now, warily. The Garuda squirmed and wriggled this way and that, trying to get up. The weight was too much, he felt like his torso was caving in, and it was hard to breathe, but honestly his main concern was the vampire. It could kill him easily, and it most likely would. Vampires could not be trusted at all. It had attacked Mtumishi, not to help Aris, the Garuda knew that, but to eliminate a large threat. He jumped slightly when Jule's voice cut through the air. Demanding that the vampire help her, and there she was. Pushing at that heavy mechanical body.

Vampires couldn't be trusted though, that vampire. Aris fully expected it to try and kill him, and then either take Jules as a food source for a while or turn her right then and there. He grit his teeth hard, grimacing at that thought and the weight on his body. This...this was not a death fitting for him. It wasn't a death fitting for anyone really. Pinned down by a deactivated robot man thing, and finished off by a vampire.

There was someone leaning over him - it took him longer than he would've like to realize this, and longer still to realize it was Jules. And even then it took some time to register the fact that she was trying to get him to eat, to drink, to regain his strength. She gasped. Something was happening in the periphery of his vision and he tried to see, lolled his head to get a better view, but he was pulled out of the way harshly. Fingers dug into his chest, under his arms, and he got a brief flash of pain before he was no longer moving.

Jules was talking though it seemed muted, but that may be because he was focusing on his heartbeat. Lex thought it was getting stronger but he couldn't tell for sure, all he knew was that the sound was comforting. There was pressure against his neck now, arrhythmic swipes of fabric against where the bite marks must have been.

Bite marks... It was hard to think of. That just a few moments ago a vampire had been latched onto his neck, that he was being drained, that he was so close to becoming a dry husk of a shell.

But it wasn't any vampire. It was Levi.

Someone was straddling his chest, pulling something tight around the crook of his shoulder and under the arm on the opposite side. At first he hissed, the press against his wound sudden and unexpected, but he relaxed quickly. He couldn't sustain being tense for too long.

He could tell they were having difficulties - constantly stopping and starting, hesitant. Lex couldn't get a good view of their face but he assumed it was Jules. It seemed like the others were fighting, something not good, and he didn't know where Levi had run off to.

Moving, again, and this time his head was cushioned on something softer than the ground. He lolled his head once more, trying to see who it was. At first he saw a bar, a protein bar maybe, and shifting again he saw water. Looking straight up though he found, not Jules as he had expected, but instead Levi. Levi, with his face screwed up like it was the end of the world. Looking so human, looking so devastated. The kid's face was so different from the blanked, animalistic expression that had painted his face what couldn't've been five minutes before.

Lex was tensing and he needed to stop. Tensing made the blood flow more and more blood flow right now could mean more blood loss. It was going to be fine - Levi wasn't going to hurt him again, not now, not now.

Right?

The harsh clang of his sword against the--android, maybe that was what it was?--against its metal skeleton deafened Shawn momentarily, and he gritted his teeth against the pain of the vibrations that ran up his arm.
But he immediately opened his mouth again, screaming in pain and rage as he spit out the tips of his fangs, which had chipped off upon the forceful contact with the metal under the thin layer of skin.
Working automatically, his tongue lapped up what little blood was coming from the cut. But after several moments, he hissed and spit it out, screaming. His throat was on fire.

He panted, looking around for another food source. He had to get pure blood down him now, or else... he didn't know what. The pain was unbearable, and in his frenzy for food, he didn't even realize that the monster was no longer moving.

He pulled the knife out of the thing's ear, causing sparks to fly, and his eyes lit on the Garuda lying prone underneath the thing. The girl was saying something, but she sounded far away. He may have been somewhat in shock from the pain, and his hunter's tunnel vision had kicked in completely--but neither of those things registered with him. Only one word. Food. Will ease the pain.

He leapt down to the side of the Garuda, a blur to human eyes, and bit it in the shoulder. The teeth didn't pierce smooth, small holes like they were supposed to--the now-broken teeth ripped larger, painful holes in the skin as Shawn applied pressure to force them in.

Finally. He drank deeply, the rich blood soothing his burned throat as it went down, filling what had begun to feel like a hole in his gut. It only occurred to him on the second or third swallow that Garuda blood might not be beneficial, considering that they were enemies of vampires as well--but it tasted good, pure, absolutely amazing to a famished vampire, and at the moment he didn't really care if it might poison him later on. He'd find something else to feed on to heal himself later on if that was the case. He always did.

The red haze began to clear from his vision after around five large, ravenous gulps, and he had the sense of mind to bring up his sword to protect against any attacks the Garuda might make--but wait, it was pinned under this thing. Which wasn't moving. And the girl was pushing on it, rather ineffectively. The sight which presented itself to Shawn as awareness of his surroundings slowly came back to him was rather comical, and he laughed. The fledgeling caring for the man he'd just almost bled out. The human girl trying to move this monstrous thing. And him feeding on the prone Garuda, which had tried to attack him almost every chance it got. He found every bit of it ironic, and the situation suited him just fine.

The girl was looking down at the angel, frantic as she shoved the android's body. "Help me!" she demanded. She was wearing a comical expression, half panic, half anger, complete helplessness.

Slowly becoming sated as he drank more, Shawn looked down at the Garuda. I don't think I've made him my friend--not that he ever was. Then he looked back at the girl, narrowing his eyes as he licked at the blood smeared around his mouth, his broken fangs showing. "Why should I? All he's ever done is attack me. Him being stuck under this thing suits me quite well."

Aris saw the vampire's attack almost before it happened, and then the creature was upon him. Broken fangs ripping into his flesh, his lips parted but no sound of pain left them. His eyes had narrowed dangerously, their dark color flashing and swirling with a burning rage. A pure hatred, but he was trapped. He could do nothing, pinned awkwardly beneath an unmoving thing that weighed far more than it looked like it should. It was crushing him, bruising him and would probably break some of his bones if not removed soon. His body twitched, muscles straining to break free even as strength was being pulled out of him with his blood.

His life blood, his essence. It was already hard to breathe with this thing a top him, crushing him. Now it was even harder, his heartbeat seemed to increase, to pump more oxygen filled blood through his body in greater quantity, only for it to be pulled out of him and into the mouth of that horrible creature. Such an underhanded, honorless attack only further proved to him that vampires absolutely could not be trusted. Finally the creature pulled back, the expression on the Garuda's face was one of pure hatred, distrust and anger. That vampire would die, Aris would make certain of that. Though, first he had to get out of this ridiculously stupid situation. His lips moved for a moment, then snapped closed.

Still, his life wasn't that important was it? Jules needed to run, to get away from these vampires, and who knew if this mechanical thing was truly dead or not? Blood ran down his shoulder from the tears made by the vampire, but the wounds would close, eventually. The scent of his own blood made Aris painfully aware that there was a fledgling only a little ways off. Would it come and feed on him now? No doubt it was still ravenous. Aris was writhing again, wriggling, struggling. Almost frantic to get up. What if the vampires attacked Jules now? There was no way he could save her.

Jules was pushing on Mtumishi, pulling. Nothing was happening. Something she'd done caused his hood to fall back. She'd have stopped to be rather appalled by the immense scarring of his face, and wonder how it all had happened, but there was no time for that. It wasn't until she heard a laugh that she stopped and faced Shawn angrily.

"That was a dirty thing to do! Attacking Aris like that without his permission and while her friend was helpless. And now you aren't even going to keep him from being crushed!? And you're laughing! You're despicable." The anger, pain and disgust were clear on Jules' face and she turned her back to him. She was sure he was no good. Though when she had the time to think about it, she'd realize that his words were true. Aris had only ever tried to attack him.

For now, she didn't care to reason with herself. Her friend was hurt and she was just a stupid helpless human, as always, who could hardly help herself, much less Aris or anyone else. She pushed angrily at Mtumishi again, hating everything. Hating Mtumishi, hating being a human, hating this fucked up world and hating Shawn.

She wondered if Levi would help. Wasn't he stronger now? Levi the newborn vampire... and Aris bleeding. This was a really shitty day, and it might get worse yet for Aris. She wouldn't let it. She would throw herself in front of Levi to stop him from hurting Aris again if she had to. "I'd strike a deal with the devil to move this hunk of junk." She said, angry and frustrated still, giving it a good kick.

Tears were threatening to well up in her eyes and spill down her cheeks. I can't do it Aris. I'm just a weak human! She'd fail him now and continue to fail everyone always, for being a human.

Levi just watched, opening his mouth as if to say something but unable to. Every time he tried his throat seized and he was forced to look away. Eventually he just gave up and watched Lex, only absently wondering how he'd get him to drink.

His shoulders tensed when Lex's eyes finally landed on him, glancing off to the side and chewing the inside of his lip. He could feel his friend starting to tense, probably out of fear. Levi really didn't blame him.

His eyes finally moved back to Lex, not even offering a smile. Nothing he did right now could ever make this okay. He lifted the water bottle, hoping to get it into Lex's vision and maybe Lex would realize he needed to drink. It wasn't like Levi could really tell him at this point.

He twitched at the yelling coming to his side, glancing over to the one-winged man pinned beneath someone who had yet be moved. And blood. The winged man was bleeding now and he could kind of smell it and, while his stomach did twist a second time, he didn't want to get up. He couldn't just leave his friend. Besides why would he ever willingly get close to a slaver, pinned or not?

He looked away, ignoring the angry yelling from the girl and the snarky not-yelling out of Shawn. Ignore it. He'd be fine if he ignored it. He needed to concentrate on the man who, in all likeliness, probably wanted Levi nowhere near him.

Shawn stood up, narrowing his eyes at the girl who now looked like she was about to cry. Who had just accused him of being a monster. She really was no different than everyone else, but once, just once, he wanted to say it.

His voice was low and threatening as he spoke. "You will not hesitate to grab a rabbit stuck in a trap and kill it for food. Take advantage of its weakness. Kill it when it has done nothing to you, just for your own sustenance, and you don't think it's wrong. This Garuda has tried to kill me more than once, and yet I have not killed him--yet, at least." He looked down at the Garuda, taking its hate-filled gaze and meeting it with a curled lip before looking back at Julia. "Think very carefully before you spout off at me again, for just taking what I need to survive."

He looked back down at the Garuda, weighing his options. Kill it now, while you have the chance? ...of course I don't care what the girl thinks, and alive it will always be a threat to me. But speaking of threats--what happened with that thing?

He turned to the deactivated robot and looked it over carefully, especially at the ear where the knife had damaged it, and grabbed his knife to cut off the clothes to examine it more. He wanted to learn more about it and make sure it was truly dead, broken--whatever you said for a thing like this--unable to be a threat to him any more.

"And crying will help the Garuda least of all, girl," he remarked offhandedly as the garment fell to the floor.

"I'm not crying," Jules snapped, trying even harder not to now. She didn't have anything to say. He was right, about everything he'd said. She was just upset. Mostly because she was useless, and that sucked. "My name is Julia," she said, still mostly snapping. "Not girl."

She knelt beside Aris, close to his chest. She pulled her sleeve down over her hand and pressed it to his neck. She knew it probably hurt him, but it would help stop the bleeding, which she assumed the best thing, since there were two vampires here. "Hang in there," she said, wishing she could do something more to help.

Jules looked over her shoulder at the vampire. He was examining the machine. Depending on what he did, he'd find a very thin layer of skin over a metal shell. Inside the shell made up of silver and steel, he'd find real organs, hooked up to bits of wire and machinery. The organs used some of his original blood, they'd needed to. But were powered mostly by other substances and electricity.

He was 75% machine and 25% human, or the remains of one anyway. If someone knew what they were doing, they could move some wires around, and reboot the machine in a way that wiped him clean. He could be a powerful ally. Jules actually knew a thing or two about that kind of stuff, but the chances that she'd know or be able to figure out a cyborg were slim, though she'd encountered them before.

Mtumishi's brain was also his original, though mostly machinery. That's why he had the ability to feel. Though those had been turned off for the most part. She was annoyed still, that the vampire was taking his sweet time toying with the robot instead of moving it off of Aris. He wasn't going to move it off of him. She understood why, but it still annoyed her. That was fine. If he took the thing apart enough, maybe her and Aris both could push it off.

"Good to know what to call you." Shawn glanced at Julia long enough to see her kneel over Aris before looking back at the machine with his lip curled. She's so attached to that angel. Good thing I don't have to deal with her hanging around.

He focused on the cyborg again, looking its scarred skin over carefully and inhaling its scent--metallic, motor oil, with a hint of burnt flesh--and made a face before slitting its skin open methodically from the top of its head down the middle of its back, trying not to let his hands come in contact with the blood. That wasn't hard, since there was so little of it and he didn't have to dig the knife in deeply.

He also used the knife to peel the skin away from a sort of metal casing. Vital organs--what I want to get at--are probably in there. He looked for a way to open the casing. Screws--there, in a row down the back.

He frowned slightly, not wanting to dull the knife, but a glance around the linens store revealed nothing that looked useful, so he carefully inserted the knife into the notches in the head of the screws and turned. One by one, they popped off, and he opened the "ribcage". The hinges squeaked as the curved metal sheets fell to the ground on either side of the Garuda's body, taking some of the weight off of Aris but they weren't in a position to support the cyborg without Aris underneath it.

He examined the jumble of flesh and wires. Pinkish fluid flowed sluggishly through clear plastic tubes to lungs and a heart, but otherwise there were no major internal organs to speak of. A loose jumble of wires had occupied most of the internal cavity.

The heart--it was still beating slowly. Without another thought, Shawn plunged the knife into it and twisted it several times before withdrawing it, his lips curled in a snarl. Then he moved onto the head, removing the screws along the back and examining the brain, which was hooked up to what looked like computer hardware as well. He could see wires running to the eyes and the ears, and see several damaged wires where he had stabbed the knife into the cyborg's ear.

For good measure, Shawn cut apart its brain as well, then turned to examining the limbs. Nothing special there. Humans had developed this technology ages ago. Metal cylinders with hydraulic joints controlled by electrical signals.
In examining the arms and legs, he had moved them off the Garuda as well, further lightening its load--not intentionally, of course.

Having finished his examination, he stood and looked around, at the girl--Julia--then the kid--Levi. They were the only ones he'd consider taking with him. He didn't particularly feel like staying here any longer, considering that he wanted to avoid further cyborgs and the werewolves he'd seen the day before, and would prefer it if both the one-handed man and the Garuda died here.
The girl probably wouldn't come with him if he killed them in cold blood, and having her around as a food source would be nice.

Aris wasn't sure how long he could last, being crushed under this thing. He was just glad the other vampire hadn't come over to bite him as well. When he got out of this situation he would kill them both. Vengeance, and to protect the humans. Though perhaps it was mostly vengeance. Vampires always took and took and didn't care who they hurt in the process, they enjoyed hurting others. Aris knew that for a fact, he knew that first hand, and this vampire with his fledgling would pay for what other vampires had done. All vampires would pay. Also, humans, as limited as they were, would never be safe with vampires around. The humans needed to thrive. This world belonged to the humans.

The garuda grimaced when Jules pressed her sleeve covered hand against the vampire's bite marks. His eyes were on Shawn though, watching carefully for another attack. The vampire seemed far too preoccupied with the thing crushing him though. Aris was grateful for that, at least for now, though there was no telling what the vampire might do once it was done playing with this thing. Apparently it seemed like the vampire was taking it apart. A man that wasn't a man. A robot, or android or cyborg. Aris wasn't sure which. He wasn't sure what difference between those three words were and it didn't really matter.

Each piece the vampire removed lightened the weight on him, it was still crushing him, but not so heavily. He felt like he could actually breathe some. He had been afraid that given a few more minutes of being crushed he would pass out. Now it didn't seem likely as the weight was lessened on top of him. With the right leverage it shouldn't be too hard to shove it off now, but Aris was on the ground, he couldn't get any leverage and he could only put so much force behind pushing the thing due to this awkward position. He began to wriggle a bit, shoving at the metal thing. It moved slightly. Lighter, but he still couldn't move it on his own.

((Ohhmygosh I just caught my oven on fire. It's been one of those days. *sigh*))

The bleeding had almost stopped completely, but Jules kept pressing against the wound. The holes were much like the ones the new vampire had given Lex. Jules realized everyone here had been bitten by a vampire now. Even the old vampire, right? That was how it worked, she thought.

Luckily, Jules' bite had been easy. It hadn't really hurt at all. And she hadn't been attacked. Yes, lucky. She wondered how the old vampire had turned, as she watched him curiously while he took apart the machine. Parts were coming off of it and falling to the floor. At some point, Aris began trying to move it. It budged.

Jules stood and began pushing on the thing, too. She really was no help. She thought maybe if she rocked it, that it would help. It was more off balance now that random pieces were missing. She pulled, and pushed, and pulled and pushed, and it began to sway ever so slightly. She hoped she wasn't causing Aris more pain, but it was working.

Finally it fell off to the side. Jules was relieved. And somewhat proud. So maybe she wasn't completely useless, today. She was standing in front of Aris, unsure if he'd need help getting up. She'd help him if he needed it. If he reached for her she'd put her shoulder under his arm and help support his weight. "Are you okay?" she asked.

She looked over her shoulder at the vampire. "Thanks for the help," she said sarcastically, though still unable to really blame him. She was never more ready to get out of this place. She hoped to be able to leave soon. But now other things were causing her to question how, and when and with who.

With Aris, of course. But they couldn't just leave Lex, and they couldn't just let the vampires take him. And Levi, he still looked scared, and confused. Lex wouldn't want to leave his friend, she assumed. It was quite a predicament, these human feelings and emotions. Once again she wondered about the old vampire. Did he have any of those? Feelings? He must have once...

Shawn's eyes were drawn from Levi to the Garuda and the girl as the cyborg's metal frame screeched. The girl was rocking it, the Garuda was trying to wriggle out from underneath... No.

Baring his chipped fangs, he drew his sword, ready to attack the Garuda the moment it stood up. He cursed under his breath as he saw the blade, a significant portion of one side of it dulled and even a medium-sized triangular chip had fallen off of the blade.

But there on the floor beside the Garuda was the angel's sword. Right, it had fallen during the fight. He stooped and snatched it up, examining it as he kept an eye on Julia and the Garuda. Sharp, in fairly good working order despite it having smacked the cyborg's metal skeleton earlier, and maybe a little longer and heavier than the one he was used to using, but he'd work with it a little and it shouldn't be an issue. The main thing is that the Garuda--which is still alive--I should have outright killed him when I had the chance--was unarmed. At least temporarily.

The girl was offering help to the Garuda, help to the one who'd done nothing but attack or serve the cyborg since Shawn had met him. Idiot human. He curled his lip, keeping his eyes on the pair as he circled towards Levi, glancing at the one-handed man lying on the kid's lap as the fledgeling offered him water. He cursed mentally. He didn't want to drag the kid around if he didn't have to, but it didn't look like the kid was planning on leaving any time soon.

He had two options: stay to control the kid until it finished transformation, or leave like he wanted and put an ignorant fledgeling on the loose. What small sense of responsibility he had niggled at him to stay near Levi, though he intended more to force the kid to stay near him. He didn't want to be around when the Garuda healed. The best way to survive a fight was to avoid one, after all.

The girl's voice rang out--a sarcastic thank-you. "You're not welcome." His voice was dry as he hefted Aris' better sword in his right hand, his own damaged one in his left, and returned the knife to his belt.

"Actually..." He stepped closer and to the side, so his back wasn't completely towards Lex and he was approaching the Garuda and the girl head-on, and his voice was deceptively soft as he addressed them. "Give me one good reason I shouldn't kill him now."

She stood between Aris and the vampire. Her heart picked up pace. Was he insinuating that he was going to kill Aris? No! She wouldn't let him! Aris may have tried to attack the vampire, but it didn't mean he deserved to die! The vampire had attacked people. Did he deserve to die? No. She didn't believe that either.

He wanted a reason. She didn't really have one. All of her reasons were her opinions and her wants. "I- I don't want you to," she finally said, clearly unable to come up with a good reason. Maybe it would be enough. "He doesn't deserve to die," she added. Aris wasn't a threat to the vampire in this state. Was he?

Maybe the vampire would just leave. Would he? Would he leave Aris alone? Would he leave them all here to pick up the pieces of his mess? She swallowed, her throat dry. A fear building that he would kill Aris right here and now. Aris was in no shape to defend himself now.

Wriggling and shoving, with Jules help, the heavy thing was finally off of him. He inhaled deeply and grimaced. Bruises had already formed across his body where the thing had been sitting but they would heal quickly enough. The bite marks the vampire had given him had scabbed over rather quickly but they were no where near fully healed. He took another deep breath of unhindered oxygen, giving another grimace, but at least nothing was broken. That had been pure luck. It took Aris longer than he would have liked to realize Jules was standing there, waiting for him to get up, offering to help him. Also, the vampire.

Body tense, Aris scrambled to his feet quickly, an arm reaching out to wrap around Julia's waist and pull her close, close and behind him as he turned to face the vampire. His single wing twitched and caused him to wince. It was sore and bruised as well from being so awkwardly pinned beneath him for so long but it would be alright. His right hand moved, fingers twitching slightly, then the movement stopped as he realized his sword had been knocked out of his hands. It wasn't in it's sheath, but it wasn't on the floor anymore either. The vampire had it. Aris grit his teeth, that anger and hatred hadn't left his eyes and only increased as his dark eyed gaze met Shawn's.

The vampire was advancing, Aris was swordless, but not exactly weaponless. His feathers could be dangerous. He had proved that the day he met Julia, he had used one to kill a wild dog. He reached behind him and plucked a brown feather from his wing, he barely winced. The tip of the feather was very sharp, and Aris could through the light things very precise, with enough force to send them into a creature's skull. His stance was defensive, and he glanced once at the fledgling to make sure it wasn't doing any further harm to the one handed man. It only took half a second worth of a glance to see that the fledgling hadn't done anything yet, then all of is attention was on the advancing vampire.

Aris' body ached that was true enough, but there was immediate danger here so that ache had been pushed to the back of his mind. He might not be able to fight to his full potential in this state, but he sure would try his best. He had to keep the humans safe. Their safety came first.

Levi said nothing, nor did his expression change. Well, it was possible it did a little bit but Lex couldn't quite focus on the details just yet. His head was still fuzzy feeling and he was beginning to feel warm again - quite frankly he wanted to close his eyes for just a moment but he knew that doing that was dangerous. Something to be avoided, at least for now, and he shouldn't be sleeping anyway; not after he had just been sleeping for a couple uninterrupted hours.

There was shouting coming off to the side, out of his sight, and he was starting to get worried. Something was happening, something not that good and rather important, and he just couldn't tell what it was and that bugged him. He needed to know. Lolling his head though did nothing to show him what was going on, though.

In the corner of his vision there was movement and Lex tensed again, bracing himself for... For what, he didn't know. In the end there was nothing for him to prepare for - it was just Levi proffering the bottle of water he had seen before. His throat was dry when he swallowed, tongue sticking to the roof of his mouth. He was thirsty, that was true, and water was just being offered to him and suddenly his head was turning, lips dropping open and neck straining forward to get closer to the plastic.

Julia didn't want him to. What else did I expect? There is no other reason to let the Garuda live. Yet he still hesitated for a moment, glancing between the Garuda and the girl.

His hesitation cost him his easy chance. The Garuda scrambled to his feet, pulling the girl behind him, and plucking a feather out of its wing, holding it ready to throw, it looked like. I haven't seen that before. He narrowed his eyes, his upper lip curled as he stared at the Garuda whose eyes were filled with hate.

He tone was mocking as he spoke. "What, you won't defend yourself, Garuda? Let your girlfriend do the talking and the begging for you?" Then he lowered his voice, continuing to meet the angel's eyes. "Tell me why you hate me. I never did anything to you, but so far you've been nothing but a threat to me."

He hefted the Garuda's sword in his hand, unsure why he hadn't charged the Garuda yet. Maybe he was getting tired of constantly fighting, constantly having to watch his back. Maybe he didn't want to hurt the girl or completely alienate her, still harboring some small hope she'd come to understand him--pesky idiot though she was. Not that he'd admit either of these things to himself.