angry men don't write the rules, and guns don't right the wrongs

[notwitty]

“This isn’t up for debate, Della.” Patrick Brighton stands tall at the head of the room, staring down the witches with a wave of his hand. His wife, Frida, sits on his right, and his daughter Bridget on his left, and while he respects Della and the work she’s done for the coven over the years, this is a line he doesn’t intend to cross. “We’re not joining Tamara Monroe.”

“Well. Playing favorites again, are we?” Della crosses her arms in front of her chest as she stares up at the stage. “You’ll let Eliza come in here and bring that beast —”

“Name calling is beneath you, Del. But then again, maybe it’s the company you’re keeping.”

“Eliza,” Patrick gives her a look. “Not helping.” Eliza holds up her hands in return. “And I haven’t decided whether or not I’m going to give Isaac the opportunity to speak.”

“I just don’t understand why you’re taking the side of monsters.” Della glares at Isaac, and Isaac steps behind Eliza, almost as though she might be able to intercept the glare. He then holds up a hand.

“I’m being called a lot of names and I haven’t even said anything yet.”

“And you shouldn’t be allowed to say anything at all! You’re not one of us!”

“No, but I’m trying to help you.” Isaac’s spine straightens as he takes a step closer. “Those hunters that you want to team up with? They’re not doing it to help you. They’re doing it because you’re powerful and they want to control you.” He holds up his hands again. “Tamara Monroe doesn’t want to ally with you to save you. She’s not looking out for your best interest. She’s just making a note of who to kill last.”

Della looks furious. A gasp of silence rolls through the room, but Isaac isn’t one to sugarcoat things, and beating around the bush hasn’t really caused things to sink in. Before she can try to get the upper hand, Isaac interjects again.

“The hunters are here. They tried to kill me this morning for walking down the street. They will come after your coven and your families, and there is no time to debate this anymore. You need to keep your people safe.”

Patrick looks over at Frida, concern in his features. Della looks like she’s going to argue her case, but before she gets too far, someone stands in the back of the room, and there’s the sound of a gun slide being pulled back. Everyone turns, and a man stands in the middle of the crowd, and he has a gun pointed at Isaac.

“What are you doing?” Patrick demands, stepping forward. “Put that down!”

“I don’t have to listen to you, witch.” The man has a wild look in his eyes. Isaac can see another man looking horrified in a way that’s more personal. The hunter had a partner. “If I had a say in any of this, I’d take every one of you abominations down. But right now, I’m just here for him.”

He turns and fires. The bullet shoots through the air, and Isaac quickly steps in front of Elijah, taking two bullets to the chest. Neither of them were kill shots, but they hurt, and the werewolf stumbles backwards into the witch behind him.

“Oh, I forgot how much that hurts,” Isaac grumbles.

“There’s no wolfsbane in these bullets, but I’m sure a headshot will do the trick.” The hunter prepares to shoot again, but the metal begins to heat in his hand, burning his skin and the hunter hisses before dropping it to the ground.

Patrick is on the stage, hand on the staff that marks him the leader of the coven. “That is enough.”

That should have been the end of things. It wasn’t. Instead, the hunter pulls out another gun, extending his hand and shooting Patrick Brighton at center mass. His body jerks three times as the bullets collide and the room erupts into screams, none more than the women at the front of the room. The witches begin to run, trying to find the nearest door to escape the carnage. Another shot sounds, and Frida Brighton follows her husband, landing on the stage in front of them.

Bridget Brighton doesn’t hesitate, however. There’s a reason she’s been designated her father’s heir, and she acts quickly. She takes the staff, letting it settle into her hand before slamming the end of the staff down into the ground, chanting as she does. A shockwave echoes out through the center of the room, blowing down the walls of the building down and sending people flying.

The other hunter in the room had tried to come to his compatriot’s aid. Instead, he gets sent flying, a jagged piece of wood slicing through his chest from behind. The hunter who shot her father gets knocked to the ground, but he comes to his feet again, staring her down.

“Kill me if you want. But there’s more of us here. We’ll take our pound of flesh either way.”

“So you want to play a game, then?” There’s a dangerous edge to her voice.

“Bridget,” Eliza’s voice is calm, but there’s an undercut of fear to it. Bridget is a good girl, but she’s also a grieving one. “Bridget, we’re better than this.”

“Maybe we are. But that doesn’t mean we don’t deserve to defend ourselves.” The wind picks up around her and she draws her hands out in front of her. She chanted another incantation, before drawing her hands together. The world flickers, and Eliza’s eyes widen.

“What did you do?”

“I trapped them in here with us.”

The hunter’s eyes widen. “You can’t do that.”

“Oh, I can do whatever I want. You’re the one who started this.”

“We’ll find a way out. We’ll stop the spell, even if we have to kill you.”

Bridget smirks. “You’ll have to catch me first.” And with that, she disappears from sight.

The hunter tries to leave but Isaac is there before he can get far. The werewolf clotheslines him down to the ground, before shoving a hand into his chest, claws first. The man cries out in pain, before looking up at him, eyes still filled with that wild energy.

“You’re one of Scott McCall’s wolves. You won’t kill me.”

“Maybe. Maybe not.” Isaac twists, feeling the blood start to leak through the wounds. “But you forgot two things. One, Scott’s not here right now, and you shot me. Twice.”

The hunter snarls as Eliza comes up over Isaac’s shoulder.

“And what’s the second?”

“It’s not the head of my coven you just killed.”

Comments

[undermyfeet]

[Danny scowls, but he can acknowledge the truth in what Bonnie's saying.]

Fine. But be careful. If things get bad with the hunters, let him do it his way.

[He should not be advocating for killing people but too many of the people he cares about have died or are going to die today. He's not going to lose Bonnie too.

David, on the other hand, glances over to Faith with a raised eyebrow. "We're working on a business arrangement. And then I got stuck in here."]

[madskilled]

( "I promise." She pulls him into a hug. )

You're into dudes, aren't you?

[maleficum]

Oh, extremely.

[He'll hold up his hand with his wedding ring as proof. While the years that he could have spent exploring his sexuality enough to put a more concrete label on it were hijacked by a demon, that doesn't really matter. He's pretty much Ezra-sexual at this point.

But Danny and Bonnie finish their moment before coming back over. "You go with Bonnie," Danny points to David. "And direct any witches you find down to the sewers. We'll try and get them out."]

Sounds like a plan.

[madskilled]

Married dudes.

( She doesn't mean it how it sounds. That's just Faith. )

And... break.

[maleficum]

See you on the other side.

[And with that he will take Bonnie by the arm and jerk a thumb over his shoulder.]

C'mon. I think there are more houses this way.

[moralitypolice]

What should we do? Have them shelter in place or lead them to another entrance into the tunnels?

( She's still so worried about Danny, but he's in good hands and with powerful witches. )

[maleficum]

[His eyes scan the scene for a moment, trying to keep track of everything that's happening.]

It doesn't look like they're looting. These seem to mostly be attacks of opportunity.

[So maybe sheltering in place might work, if the house is quiet enough.]

[moralitypolice]

Shelter in place, then. Keep them inside, doors locked. Curtains shut.

( This too shall pass. )

[maleficum]

[David nods, before glancing back over his shoulder and ushering Bonnie towards the nearest house.]

C'mon. Let's check this one first.

[moralitypolice]

Okay.

( Hands at the ready incase she needs to fling a spell, Bonnie flanks him from behind as he approaches the door. )

How do we know which houses are witch houses?

[maleficum]

[David pauses, considering, before glancing over the ones they're approaching.]

I think it's safe to say that most of them are witch houses. But I think the herb gardens are a good giveaway.

[Not the simple act of having one but more what they're growing in them.]

[moralitypolice]

( Maybe he saw things she didn't. She doesn't know. Either way, the first house is amenable to staying inside, and they even light a ... hand candle that keeps anyone out.

The second won't open the door. )

We're not asking you to open your door. We're just asking you to stay inside. It's not safe tonight.

[maleficum]

[David will occasionally place protection spells on the door as they pass, and this one is no different. He places his hand on the wrought iron gate as they pass, murmuring a soft incantation under his breath and ready to bring pain and sorrow to anyone who didn't speak friend to enter.

However, as Bonnie is speaking through the door, footsteps come from their left.]

Bonnie.

[moralitypolice]

( Bonnie hears them, too. )

Stay inside!

( Bonnie turns, reading to fling her arms with a spell but something is thrown, a grappling loop with ends that wrap around her arms. It's like something she's seen in an action movie, but normally, it's thrown at legs. )

David!

[maleficum]

[They try to throw one at David and he deflects it away, having already seen the warning shot of Bonnie being grabbed. This squad is a small one, just two or three, and David cuts that down to two with a flick of his wrist. The two men watch as the neck twists at an unnatural angle, and the hunter drops to the ground.

One of the pair doesn't hesitate. He brings up his gun and fires, catching David in the shoulder, rendering one arm useless. David swears under his breath, before stumbling backwards towards Bonnie, prepared to get her and pull her towards an exit while he had the strength.

He doesn't notice the shape moving across the rooftops over the hunter's heads.]

[undermyfeet]

[Danny waits until they round the corner before turning back to Faith with a nod.]

The far end of the barrier would be that way.

[He turns and points to indicate.]

So once we're underground, we want to keep them heading north.

[madskilled]

Point the way, Harry, and I'll go wherever. Where you go, I go.

( But, sure. North. She can go North. )

[undermyfeet]

[Danny nods, before starting to funnel folks down into the tunnels, standing at the top and keeping a look out. They manage to get about half of them down below, before a new voice enters the fray.

"Danny!"

He turns, and sees a woman with gray streaks in her dark hair, accompanied by a tall man in a bloody shirt.]

Eliza?

[madskilled]

Witches?

( Asks, still overseeing the others climbing down into the sewers. )

[undermyfeet]

She is.

[The older witch quickly envelopes him in a hug, and for a moment he takes it, holding on to something sturdy. An adult, who can make the calls so he doesn't have to.

Eventually Eliza pulls back to look at him. "Your sister. She has the --"

Danny cuts her off, shaking his head before pulling it out of his pocket.]

No, she doesn't.

[Eliza catches a glimpse of the staff, before turning back to Isaac over her shoulder. "We need to get him out of here."]

[madskilled]

( Faith stands back before he helps one witch climb down, steadying them, slayer hearing still doing its thing. )

We're working on it. Tunnels lead out of the neighborhood.

[notwitty]

["You should go after Bonnie." Danny's eyes are on Isaac and the werewolf raises an eyebrow, curious as to how he's getting into this.]

Sorry, who's Bonnie and why do we care?

[He doesn't mean it to be callous, he's just trying to get a sense of the priorities. Danny takes that question as any sane person would and before he can get angry about it, Eliza holds up a hand.

"She's a Bennett witch. She's powerful and she's an ally. Is she out there on her own?"]

[madskilled]

With another witch. Jury's out on if he's a friend or not.

( She heard you, kid. She's also got jokes. )

She's also a friend of a friend. So, if you won't, I will.

[notwitty]

[Isaac shakes his head. No, those reasons are good enough. He'll handle this. He doesn't know who this woman is, but odds are, he'll be able to heal. She might not. He can't tell much by scent beyond human.]

No, I've got it. You keep them moving.

[Eliza nods as well, gesturing them towards the sewer. "Be careful, Isaac."

Isaac nods as he disappears.]

Always am.

[madskilled]

Alright, Liz. We got this.