Chapter 16: Stupid
(A/N: I almost didn't post this chapter due to me having already forgotten that I said I would and getting side tracked with something else. Luckily, I still had this tab open and when I went to close it, I saw the screen for publishing chapters. We were quite lucky today people, but let's work hard so next time we can walk away with that W through our efforts. One Team! One Team! Wildcats!)
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Jeremy opened the door smoothly, calmly, and made his exodus from the vehicle. Taking the bag that rested between his feet throughout the ride with him. Only the smallest hint of a part of his mind telling him, perhaps she won't get out of the truck.
Though, the thought is quickly vanished because before he can even close his door, her door is swinging open and she is out on her two feet, quickly trotting around to his side. Telling him quite clearly that the look, he had reserved for only those few women that he truly sought to dominate through pain and pleasure, was still quite capable even with the new bod.
It shouldn't really be a surprise, however.
The look really didn't require a certain facial feature or compatible component to be effective, like a chiseled jaw when one wanted to flex the jaw bones to get the girls going, or an indentation between the brows when one gave a slight eye brow raise to display interest and intrigue. No, the look was based more around a feeling. The feeling of you're my bitch, I'm your daddy, now show me your tongue. And while it may not be a literal translation, conveying intent, feeling, with a look, is not something that can be lost simply with a change of face. It's about will.
He reached into the truck bed, pulling out the slightly old looking shovel that no doubt had accompanied Matt when he was trying to make money doing people's yards that one summer.
He had caught sight of it when he was making his way to the truck when Vicki first showed up, and immediately decided that now was as good of a time as any to acquire that oh-so-valuable ass grimoire. Not only to have it on hand, but also because the knowledge inside was bound to give him some ideas. Perhaps, it might have information on options he could take to mend himself in a way that wasn't just swinging in the dark, but an actual solution....unlikely, but who knows.
And then, when he was at the Salvatore house, and he happened to acquire a few goodies that he wasn't expecting on his trip, he knew with certainty that he was going through with his plan to make Vicki the worlds first gold digger who actually gave more than she took away.
Which was why, as she looked at him a little weirdly as he held out the shovel for her to take, he held firm to his resolve and did not question if he was making the right decision on moving for the grimoire now, or waiting until he could, at the very least, set up some early warning system surrounding the grave site to let him know if anyone was coming...no matter how unlikely, seeing as how the grave of Giuseppe Salvatore was not only very out of the way for anyone coming to visit the grave of anyone dead in the last century, but also he reasoned that the longer he waits, the more likely it is that Stefan, Damon, or Anna will start showing up in town, visit the grave, see it's freshly dug up, and start either asking questions or hunting for the culprits.
Either way, it's best to get this done as soon as possible...and if he was being honest, the level of threat that he felt from either of the brothers was quite close to slim to none, no matter how fragile he was. Damon would definitely go for Vicki first, which would give him all the time he needed to make his move with what he got from Zach. And Stefan would likely initiate a conversation, which would once again give him all the time he needed to make a move. And if the lore held true from the show, the chances of the cocky little shits dodging was pretty much zero.
So, as he pointed to the grave of Giuseppe Salvatore and gave Vicki a look that said, just go head and say no, he sat himself against a head stone opposite to where she began digging and began to examine the weapon and clip that he took from the safe.
It was a standard model pistol with a clip loaded with bullets that had a finely carved and coated wooden tip that would definitely fit better in the hands of Alaric than in the hands of Zach, along with a few darts filled with some purple liquid that he reasoned was some form of liquified and diluted vervain, similar to what the founding families drink in order to not be compelled. Only in a higher concentration.
He couldn't help but wonder, as he watched Vicki struggle to shovel and he silently loaded his weapon, why Zach didn't just kill the two brothers off at his earliest sign that there was no loved lost between them and him.
At first, he thought maybe Zach just didn't have any imagination and he thought his only option was to drug their drinks like the scooby gang, and he didn't want to take the risk, but clearly that wasn't the situation.
He thought on it some more for a second and came up with a few possible conjectures, and then shelved them all on that special shelf that contained every thought process or nuance that he found to be worth nothing, because who really gives a shit why Zach didn't take out his uncle-nephews and went back to examining the weapon.
It was clean. Lacking dust. Rust. Clearly well-maintained, regularly cleaned, and checked on, and he knew Zach would notice its disappearance, but he no longer cared about being super stealthy. If he wanted something else from the house, he wouldn't take it by sneaking around...unless it was more fun that way.
Regardless, the weapon, for all appearances sake was fully functional.
However, he has never been one to trust a gun. Not with the jamming, deterioration, and just the random times that a gun just popped a screw due to faulty construction or assembly or wear and tear.
So, with that, he picked up the darts and began to examine them carefully, lamenting that he couldn't locate the apparatus that was used to fire them and gave them a quick, thorough once over, as he ignored Vicki complaining, only casually reminding her that she left him for dead every so often, while honestly keeping most of his focus on his ears to catch any noise from his surroundings, like a shuffle of grass, leaves, or a vehicle.....there were none.
Time passed, as he sat with his back against that headstone, seemingly calm and relaxed, but only he knew just how coiled his entire body was at every single second, ready to move at the slightest hint of the wind catching his ears in a way that spoke of zippy bastards trying their luck.
It wasn't until the sun began to set that something happened. Other than him having to show the gun to Vicki a few times, which seemed to interest her more than cow her in order to get her to finish the job of digging, which he explained to her was actually for her own good.
"Flushes the toxins out of your system," he said.
It was bullshit. He didn't even try to act like it wasn't. But, he learned quickly that Vicki seemed to truly enjoy being treated like shit, so really, who was at fault here?
When she asked him what the gun was for, he told her the truth.
"Took it from Zach's. I've heard there were some assholes in leather jackets running around trying to look cool. This is mostly for them. And you, if you stop digging again." The threat went walked over, because she did stop again. Many times.
The sun was going down and Vicki was, according to her words and just how deep she was in the hole, almost done.
That was when shit got interesting.
It started quickly, with him, feeling his body tensing in a way that he was quite familiar with, only it wasn't with this body.
And then, immediately after, not even half a second later, he started to feel this itchy, tingly sensation at the back of his neck that didn't fit his body's usual modus operandi and was a completely new sensation.
However, he merely registered it in the back of his mind, along with the tension in his body, as he focused his entire being on the world outside his head, making certain to give nothing away through his movements.
His hand, placed oversized hoodie pocket that Jeremy thought was cool for some reason, and Vicki brought with her in the truck to give back to him. He had given it to her during their night in the woods and she had not thrown it away, which was stupid, but now served its purpose of hiding his weapon.
"Vicki," he called out casually.
"What?" she looked up, not looking as tired as he thought she should be, but definitely looked like she was about to bitch, only to stop abruptly as she heard the sound of the wind whooshing to her side.
Jeremy though heard it right before he called her.
Already knowing that it had to be a vamp and wanted to make sure that their attention would be drawn to her first and foremost, because the first rule of helping anyone is to help yourself. Obviously.
Jeremy watched as the vamp, a skinny, middle-aged man, dressed casually and reeked of stupidity, as evident by the smug look that he was wearing the moment he stopped zooming, looked at the two of them like a predator looking at prey, only for Jeremy to slightly relax the finger of his hand that was not holding the weapon in his hoody big pocket.
The man watched them, as Jeremy watched the man, and Vicki slowly fell back on her ass, her eyes widened and a scream slowly flowing out of her mouth as she fell.
Jeremy noting the weight positioned throughout the man's body, and waiting to see if any others joined him, reasoning that the man would not start snacking alone, once he saw that it was only two teens engaged in some light grave robbing.
And then, the moment Vicki's butt and back hit dirt, and the man's weight shifted to his left foot, indicating that he was about to turn and move in the direction of the grave, Jeremy flicked the finger that he had tensed, which was followed by a loud smash as the door on the back of the truck bed a few yards away fell down.
Immediately, the man's head snapped back to look at the source of the noise, just as Jeremy brought his hand a few inches forward, away from his body, the pocket that held his weapon opening in the bottom, like the entire pocket was cut out across the bottom stitching, which it was, and he turned his wrist slightly, no other parts of his body moving other the slight movement of his forearm as he moved his hand forward, and his wrist, and then his finger as he pulled the trigger.
*Bang* *Bang* *Bang*
Three consecutive shots rang out through the air one after another, leaving no space between the sounds of the shots nor them hitting flesh.
The first shot, straight in the dick, because he wasn't sure just how good vamp reflexes were, so he decided that a shot to the head might be dodged. The chest, might be dodged. But no matter how quick the reflexes, a shot to the groin, even if dodged, was still likely to end up in a leg, which should have given him enough time to aim true, he reasoned.
The next two shots went straight into the knees.
His eyes, noting how the vamp never even reacted until the last bullet hit true, and also confirming that it was true indeed...the vampire diaries vampires were slow as shit to react.
He hopped up, his mind muting any protests from his body towards the action, and did a quick glance towards the freaking out Vicki, and quickly focused on the vamp that he hadn't once moved his weapon away from. Keeping it trained, as he took out the dart and flicked it straight into the open mouth of the vamp who was yelling for some reason, which quickly shut his ass up.
Though, the chocking gesture was a little unnecessary, since he clearly saw the dart puncture the pitiful man's throat and then be swallowed, which was quite lucky for the man. He had no right to complain.
He stood a little ways away. Watching to see if the wounds healed, trying his best to spare bullets just in case his ears caught a rush of wind or his eyes saw a blur in the distance, and waited to see what would happen for about ten seconds.
When the man did nothing but writhe and put on a perfect display of how to be a pussy, he slid his feet over to the grave and snapped his fingers at Vicki to get her attention, as his free hand pointed at the shovel, but his eyes never leaving the man, which was a good thing, because as soon as he snapped his fingers, the man snarled and focused his bloodshot eyes on Jeremy as he pushed himself off the ground like he weighed nothing and flew at him.
Which, caused Jeremy to stroll his ass out of the way, as the voice over from a football video game that he couldn't remember the name of said "spin move" in the background, as he spun, never letting his eyes leave his prey, and making sure to avoid his nails by as wide a berth as possible, since he this was his first vampire encounter and he did not yet know whether or not their nails elongated in this world and if they were toxic. Like he said, he keeps an open mind...until he can gather some facts to confirm what he already knows.
The man soared past Jeremy, their eyes locked onto one another as Jeremy noted the look of disbelief on the man's face as he went flying by and falling almost face first into the headstone where Jeremy had been seated which was over eight feet away. A pretty good distance covered for a maddened arm vault from a nearly flat position.
Jeremy took on a look of wonder as he gave small and quick claps to the man, as he kept his gun pointed in his direction. And then watched as the man started to convulse and foam at the mouth, clearly having a reaction to the dart he ingested like a real dumbass.
He kneel down a little and took the shovel from Vicki's seriously shaking hands as he made his way to the man's seemingly passed out form.
And then, when he was close enough, he raised the shovel with one hand, angled it, and struck it down as he clenched them abs and tracked it with his eyes as it landed on the man's ankle causing a snap and a crack.
And then proceeded to let a small smirk for on his lips as the man started to scream once again, as he shook his head like he was looking at an idiot, while also noting the lack of any movement from any part of the man at all, which made him wonder if the dart had a sort of paralytic effect, but still allowed them to remain conscious, like the nail of the Canima in Teen Wolf.
He noted in his mind that he would have to examine the chemical composition of the dart, and question Zach about where he got it and how he got it, whenever he decided exactly how to position himself with the man.
But for now....
"Now then," he spoke, as he rested the gun on his hip, still pointed at the man like he just got done pulling a quick draw, and placed the shovel pointed end in the ground as he held the handle. "I'm going to ask you some questions, and your going to give me some answers. And while I'm doing that, Vicki, I can clearly see the coffin right beneath you. Just use your hands to clear away the rest of that dirt, and then come up. I want you to meet a vampire."
He did not pay attention to the girl or her ramblings, already knowing that the first thing she would do when she left was to go bury herself in the first thing she could find to suppress her mind...not that he would allow it.
He leveled the unmoving vamp with his gaze, not moving any closer to his body, and deciding that he needs to move quickly, since he has no idea how long the paralyzing agent, if that's what it is, will last.
"Why don't we begin with what you're doing in this town, yes." He asked, noting to himself how little he had truly confirmed about the creatures in front of him and that he seriously underestimated his protagonist aura when it comes to running into nonsensical danger, as he made yet another note in his mind to find the journals that his old man supposedly kept on hand to document his findings and give them a thorough look over before he ventured out again.
He looked at the vamp, as the vamp looked at him.
The relaxed look never leaving his face, like he was just chatting with a friend and not a creature that should have really just gone for the kill and then, at the very least, it probably would have at least got to lay at least a finger on one of them...unlikely, but very possible...though still unlikely.
Seeing that a friendly chat wasn't going to get him anywhere, he raised the shovel, prepared to put it to use once again, like the capable tool that it was, however the vamp seemingly did not want to give him the chance.
"Wait, wait, wait!" The vampire quickly said, stopping him just as the shovel was about to come down on the same ankle once again. He looked at the vampire, his relaxed expression still evident on his face in the red light of the setting sun, as he smiled a little wider, showing his teeth. And then, quickly raised the shovel a little and slammed it down onto that same ankle, producing another snap, crackle, and crumble, of bone being shattered.
"Ahhhhhhhh!" The vamp had the audacity to yell, which made him, still with the same face, making Nagisa's everywhere give him a passing grade in acknowledgement, raise the shovel high in the air, as the vamp locked eyes with him and quickly shut its fucking mouth.
"Oh, what's wrong? I thought you wanted to scream, so I was giving you a reason. Oh, no, wait, do you mean to say you didn't want a reason. Am I being cruel to you unnecessarily? I tell you what," I leaned a little forward, like he was giving the incredibly freaked out vamp a great deal, if only he would take it. "How about this, I ask you questions," He said, his amiable expression still in full display, as he once quickly flipped the shovel and spun it one time, like a hammer, and let it slam onto the foot attached to ankle that he shattered, though he was pleased to see the vamp not make a single sound other than the clanging of teeth. "And you give me answers, okay?"
Well, he asked his questions.
"Why are you in town?"
"I was bitten by a girl named Anna and told to watch the mansion you robbed for any vampires that came to visit. When I saw you two, I decided that maybe you knew about the...*Slam*"
"Why are you lying?" He asked another question. An unplanned question. "Tell the truth?" He phrased it like a question, since he said he would only ask questions and he is a man of his word.
"I thought that I could drain you two and she wouldn't mind since you did go into the mansion she told me to watch and if I said I killed you both because of that, she should let me off."
"She doesn't let you feed off the town's people?"
"No, I have a supply of blood bags that she brings once a month, so she will know if...*Slam* *Slam* *Slam*"
"Did I ask you to make empty threats?"
"No."
"How long have you been watching?"
"Two months."
"Have you seen any vampires coming and going?"
"No."
He took a few steps back and stood beside the shaking Vicki who was watching the entire interaction with bloodshot eyes of her own, like she was the one being questioned.
"Vicki, this is a vampire, a nigh immortal creature of the night." He said, never once taking his eyes off of the vamp. "And this," he raised the gun in his hand, with the barrel still aimed straight at the vamp. "Is a weapon filled with wooden bullets. It's the wood that kills them if its through the heart with a stake. I'm not sure about a bullet," That was a lie, he clearly remembered something about a little wood close to the heart of some vamp and it being a big problem. "But since our new friend here has been so cooperative, I do not think we need to find out today. Do you?" He asked the girl, who quickly shook her head no. Not muttering a single word, but he could clearly see the motion out the corner of his eye.
He watched as the vampire visibly relaxed, and then acquired a hole his head, right above where the little furrow between the brows would go, and watched as the vamps eyes went unfocused.
"And that, was how you get a deadly predator to let their guard down." He said, as he sent a wink to the stunned girl, who was way too focused on the vampire sporting the new brain hole to speak. Causing him to let a brief look of annoyance to rear its head at having his only company in this endeavor be a girl who, for all intents and purposes, just couldn't handle her shit.
'Well, it's not like this was planned,' he thought as he silently stepped to the side of the vamp. His steps, close to the ground, barely ever disconnecting from it, just in case he needed to move his entire body at a split second. 'Though, she was pretty clutch with the digging and what-not. I couldn't have set it up the way I did if I was out here alone, or digging myself. So, perhaps I should reward her...after I punish her.' He concluded his thoughts as he came up close to the side of the vamp, his feet aligned with the side of its chest and raised his shovel at an angle as he brought it across his chest towards his right shoulder, his right hand still keeping the gun leveled on the chest of the vamp, and then quickly brought it down and straight through the neck of the vampire. Throwing his full weight behind the strike as soon as he saw it make contact with the throat allowing the shovel to pierce straight through and sever the head.
Even far in the future, quite far in the future, when asked, Super Jeremy still will not be able to definitively say for certain why he decided to off the vamp in that way. Only that, he truly felt like he should go for the head...
And then...shit went very stupid, and a little bit crazy.
*Crack*Pang*Clack*Booooooom*
"Jeremy!"
.................
(A/N: Additional chapters are on patreon.com/TheGreatestHunter. Also, this chapter was over 4000 words. Clearly, I put absolutely no thought into the length of my chapters. It's about feeling. Feeling. You know. (Who knows the reference?)Parenthesis.)
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