[center][b][u]Collab post between Kingfisher and OneFatBadger[/u][/b][/center] [center] [img]http://i.imgur.com/uRFBukv.jpg[/img] [/center] Despite the anarchy that was spreading across the city, some swathes of Santa Somabra managed to remain untouched by the ensuing chaos. The Nyctari were quick to learn from the riots, and there was soon a practical army of enforcers guarding the families main source of income. Cicero and Maddie made their way warily through the red light district, making sure to keep their possessions tight on their person. Squat, ugly-looking buildings ran along either side of the grimy street, with scantily clad sex workers calling down to passers-by from balconies high up above, and leaning across brick walls in small packs. The district was buzzing with all manner of noises, as people scuttled back and forth, seeking out whatever perversion took their fancy. The street was swarming with life, like an anthill on a summer’s day, and a variety of stenches wafted through on the cool midnight breeze, none of which bared much thinking about. The pair’s destination was the most grandiose building on the street; with great purple pillars out-front, and extravagant silk curtains hanging in the clear glass windows. A tight cluster of women in form-hugging miniskirts and tube tops stood in the way of the ornate wooden doors, one of whom called out to Cicero as he and Maddie walked over. “You look like a right creepy fucker,” she snorted, looking the man’s dark silk hood and brown trench coat up and down “I can do the weird shit, but it’ll cost you.” She shot them both a gap-toothed grin, and her friends laughed along. [color=ed1c24]“How much would it cost for me to get to use my favourite little toy on you?”[/color] Maddie chirped, as she strode right up to the group. The working girl looked slightly taken aback, and the smug grin on her face faded completely when Maddie gently pushed back her red blazer, revealing the harpy knife she wore on her hip. One of the group hissed something in Italian, but they begrudgingly moved apart; Cicero and Maddie striding right through them and into the building. Maddie paused for a moment as she past the working girl, giving her bronze cheeks a firm squeeze, before catching back up with Cicero. The interior of the establishment had been done up like an old Western saloon, with smooth wooden tables dotted about the place, a winding staircase leading to the bedrooms above, and a long bar at the farthest end of the room. Squeals and screams of all sort drifted in from the bedrooms on the upper level, and a lone barkeeper stood watch behind the counter. “What’s your poison?” The barkeeper called out as the pair made their way over. He was a huge man in a white wife beater that hugged his bulging gut, and a slick purple dragon tattoo covered the left side of his face. [b]“What would Señor recommend?”[/b] Cicero asked in his calm, smooth voice. He paused, hovering over the bar, before softly rapping his knuckles three times on the polished counter. A wicked smirk spread across the barkeeper’s pudgy face “I think I’ve got just the thing.” The large man led Cicero and Maddie over to a huge vending machine, with a clear glass window and gleaming steel frame, before hitting 666 on the number pad. A deep groan rung out from inside the machine, like the dying grunt of a wounded animal, promptly followed by the sound of whirring gears. Slowly, the vending machine shifted sideways, revealing an empty doorway in the side of the wall, which led to a downwards winding black steel staircase. [color=ed1c24]“Rad.”[/color] Said Maddie. “I think you’ll find the range we have available to be to your liking.” The Barkeeper shouted after them in a voice that was dripping with sleazy intentions, as the vending machine slid back into black behind them. There was a short walk down the staircase, with the metal steps clanging beneath their feet, before the pair arrived in a claustrophobic little room with tacky brick walls and three enormous steel doors that looked as those they belonged in an asylum. A vampire dressed in a crisp black suit, with a dark purple tie, stood at the centre of the room, his powerful arms folded closely across his muscular chest. “Room 1 is currently in use-“he was beginning to say, before he was suddenly cut off as Maddie shot forwards and clasped his throat in a death-like grip. Maddie had always relied on agility to win her fights, in life and in death, and she was fast even by vampric standards, giving her the opportunity to sink her bestial nails into the guard’s throat and rip it straight out of his neck, at a speed almost too rapid for the eye to register. A fountain of dark red spilt forth from the vampire’s neck, and hot blood bubbles frothed in his open mouth as he stumbled forwards, choking and gagging. The guard’s body swayed limply back and forth, before Maddie placed one hand on either side of his head and twisted it with a sudden sharp and fierce movement, snapping his neck. The vampire’s body crumpled and collapsed on the ground, blood pooling out across the warm stone floor. Cicero bent down, carefully guiding his hand through the corpse’s breast pocket, before removing a long silver key. The dark figure slid the key into the first great steel door; opening it to reveal a lean decaying man who had a small blonde girl pushed up against a white china sink. “The bloody fuck are you cocksuckers playing at?!” He hissed as the pair stepped inside the room, turning to face them as he released his grip on the little girl. “I’ve got the room for another two hours yet, piss off!” As he spoke his slender brown tongue visibly flapped back and forth inside his mouth, which was exposed through one rotting cheek. [color=ed1c24]“Sharing is caring.”[/color] Maddie said sweetly, before darting towards the undead figure and scooping him up off of the floor, slamming him into the wall with such force a sickly crack rang out through the soundproofed cell. The figure fell to the floor, the air knocked out of him, whilst Cicero calmly guided the horrified young girl out of the room, shutting the door behind him and leaving Maddie to her prey. [color=ed1c24]“You’re sloppy,” [/color]she giggled at the corpse-man who lay sprawled across the floor [color=ed1c24]“You should know better than to visit the same kiddie dungeon more than once in such a short space of time.” [/color] “Get fucked, you crazy bitch.” Snarled the corpse man “There’s nothing you can do to me that’ll make me talk. I can’t feel pain.” [color=ed1c24]“Perhaps not in the conventional sense,”[/color] Maddie pondered with one finger placed delicately on the corner of her lip[color=ed1c24] “but everyone can feel pain. You just need to find the right spot to poke, or the right nerve to yank on with searing tongs.”[/color] She grabbed hold of the corpse man’s lower jaw, before slamming his head back into the wall. He laughed through her fingers “You’re just not getting this are you?” [color=ed1c24]“Oh, that was more for me.”[/color] She admitted with a sly smirk. [color=ed1c24]“But it’s like I said,” [/color]she cooed icily [color=ed1c24]“You’re sloppy. You leave trails for people to follow, patterns that can be picked up on. Always little blonde girls, always roughly the same age, always the floaty pink dress with the white bow. It wasn’t hard to trace it back to the real deal.” [/color] “Abigale…” wheezed the corpse man, wide eyed and shaking. [color=ed1c24]“You’re one sick little puppy.” [/color]Maddie cackled, snorting slightly [color=ed1c24]“And now my boys have got your itsy bitsy niece all tied up and ready to cook. What is it you like about her, anyway?” [/color] “Sweet little things…” mumbled the corpse man, gazing off into nothingness [color=ed1c24]“Eurgh, whatever. Now start talking, or your squeeze ends up in bite-sized pieces all over Santa Somabra.” [/color] “Diego will kill me if he finds out I squealed.” The corpse man spoke in a quiet voice. [color=ed1c24]“Which is worth more to you; your life or your blonde-haired cunt?”[/color] Maddie sniggered. “Get it over with, then.” [color=ed1c24]“Where is Treviño hiding?”[/color] snarled Madeline “A boat, it moves around so he’s never in one place long.” [color=ed1c24]“Called?” [/color] “He never keeps the same name for more than a couple weeks,” The corpse man said with a loose shrug “last time I was on board it was [i]The Baron’s Gambit[/i], but there’s no way it’s sailing under that name now.” [color=ed1c24]“You better tell me something useful, or my boys are going to start taking chunks out of baby Abigale’s hide.”[/color] Maddie said with a dark frown. “He’s got his own sweet vice,” The corpse man said, laughing without humour “I guess the dead want so –fuckin’- badly to cling on to little sprinkles of our past lives. There’s this broad he can’t stay away from for more than a fortnight. They get up to all sorts of naughty things in this little house up in the hills. Only us real high up Rotfaces know about her.” [color=ed1c24]“What’s so special about her?” [/color] “I’ve never met the dame myself. Just did a drop off to the house this one time. If I give you the address, will you let Abigale go?” [color=ed1c24]“Brownie’s honour.”[/color] Maddie said with a twisted grin. [Center][b] *[/b] [/center] [color=ed1c24]“Where’d you disappear off to?” [/color]Madeline Hollinghurst asked Cicero as they strolled down a blacked-out street. [color=ed1c24]"You missed all of the fun.” [/color] [b]“I had some purchases to make.”[/b] Cicero said plainly. [color=ed1c24]“Not little girls, I hope.”[/color] Maddie smirked. [b]“Not little girls.”[/b] Cicero replied, the hint of a smile flashing across one corner of his mouth. [color=ed1c24]“Now we know where Treviño’s been this whole time, I’m guessing you’ll want in on the action?” [/color] Cicero stopped in his tracks, turning to look Maddie in the eye. [b]“We’ll have to drop this, for now. We’ve just ruffled the feathers of two of the deadliest predators in Santa Somabra.” [/b] [color=ed1c24]“For fuck’s sake…”[/color] fumed Madeline, colour rushing to her necrotic cheeks. [b]“We’ve threatened the security of one of the Nycatri’s establishments, and we can’t risk them catching wind of that. I play a delicate game, one that I cannot allow to be threatened by drawing unnecessary suspicion to my person. Equally, the full wrath of the Nyctari family could pose a serious threat to you and your Reapers. The wisest course of action would be to go our separate ways, and reconvene some nights from now.” [/b] [color=ed1c24]“Fine.” [/color]Maddie managed, her fists clenched. [b]“I’ll be in contact.” [/b]Cicero promised, slipping away into the shadows. [color=ed1c24]“Later, fuckboy.” [/color]