FULL MOONLIGHT---Ch 4---We're On Our Own. (PG-13)

[lionsonleashes]

FULL MOONLIGHT----Ch 4---------We’re On Our Own.

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DISCLAIMER: I don’t own ‘Moonlight’, or any of its wonderful characters. I’m just taking them out for a run! No copyright infringement is intended.

SUMMARY: A multi-chapter action-adventure featuring Mick, Beth, Josef, Guillermo, Logan, Talbot, Simone, and some really big werewolves, among others. Rated PG-13 for mild language and violence.

SPOILERS: Follows on from all 16 episodes of ‘Moonlight’, as aired on CBS. Follows on from Allegrita’s FanFic, ‘Presto Agitato’, Ch 1 & 2. (Mick and Beth ‘seal the deal’ and are now lovers.) Follows on from Desdemona’s FanFic, ‘Silver’, Ch 1 thru 7 only. (Talbot finds out about vampires in general, and Mick in particular, the hard way!) Borrows, with Eris’ kind permission, her original character of ‘Karl’ from her many fine FanFics.

OK? Hold on! Here we go again!

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Josef glanced at his cell’s screen before keying to answer it…..the Lead Cleaner. He allowed himself to hope for just one more second….then he answered the call.

“Kostan.”, he said, his voice quiet and clipped, his expression intent.

Mick and Beth glanced at each other, and then they both returned to watching Josef. Deep concern was etched on their faces.

Josef listened to what the Cleaner had to say. He tried not to allow his disappointment to show on his face, but Mick knew his friend well…. he saw it, he could smell it, and with his heightened vampiric ears, Mick could also hear what the Cleaner was saying to Josef. He just didn’t understand it….’they’ wouldn’t help, not the ‘locals’, and not the ‘national level’. Who were ‘they’? ‘Locals’? What…..like a Labor Union? ‘They’ didn’t want to get between us and the Legion? Huh? What did the Legion have to do with this? He started to speak, wanting to ask questions of the Cleaner himself, but Josef held up his hand in a clear wait-a-minute gesture. Mick remained silent, waiting.

“I thought that might be the case.”, Josef said softly into his cell, “But….it was worth a shot.” He glanced across his desk at Beth before continuing. “Now, here’s something else that’s worth a shot…..Would you be so kind as to check into the availability of any human werewolf hunters for me? Start in Alaska with any former apprentices to, or associates of, …..” He paused and looked at Beth again, one eyebrow raised in a silent question.

“Jeremy Turner”, Beth answered.

“Jeremy Turner.”, Josef repeated into his cell. “He was an outfitter and guide who hunted rogue werewolves on the side up until about twenty years ago. He was based in Alaska. He passed away about fourteen years ago here in LA.” Josef paused, listening. “Yes…that’s right. It’s come to my attention that a human can be quite successful in this capacity because the rogue is usually focused on us.” Josef paused again, listening. “Yes….they’re related….he was her grandfather.” Josef smiled and chuckled softly, glancing at Beth again, “Yeah…who knew?” He sighed and rubbed his eyes with thumb and forefinger, suddenly looking very tired. “Alright….thank you….keep me informed.” He hung up and sat silently looking out his office window at the nighttime streets of LA far below. Even after 400 years of watching humanity invent one wonder after another, electric lights still amazed him sometimes…so beautiful, especially when viewed from a distance. The streets below were awash in golden light. It all looked so deceptively peaceful.

“Well?” , Mick asked after several seconds, unable to stand it anymore, “What’s happening?”

Josef turned back to face them. “The werewolf community won’t help us, not locally, not Nationally.”

Mick blinked in surprise….it had never occurred to him that that was even an option. There was a community? And if so, why wouldn’t they help? “There’s a bunch of local werewolves?! Here in LA?”

“Haven’t you heard a word I’ve been saying, Mick?” Josef replied, sounding exasperated, and rubbing his eyes again. “No…there is no Pack here in LA. As I said, wolves hate big cities. The nearest local Pack is in Northern California, and it’s a very small Pack.”

“And they won’t help because…?” , Beth asked.

Josef sighed. “They’ve heard rumors, all the way up to the National level. Rumors that the Legion is going active in LA. The Pack doesn’t want to be anywhere near that situation. They’re maintaining what they consider to be minimum safe distance.”

“Wait, wait a minute….”, Mick said, holding up a hand to stop Josef, “The Legion hunts werewolves too?”

“Not usually, and the National Pack Council would like to keep it that way.” Josef replied, “Like Beth’s grandfather, the Legion‘specializes’…. in us.” He paused to smile at Beth, making sure she knew he meant no offense. “The Legion doesn’t hate vampires, per se. They accept us as part of the natural order, and generally they just monitor us, keeping track of where we are and what we’re doing. They keep a very low profile and it’s easy to forget they are even there. It’s not our numbers that really bothers them either. That tends to be self-limiting, just like lions and zebras. The population of predators is naturally limited by the population of their prey, or in our case, their ‘donors’. No, what the Legions takes issue with is power, specifically, political and financial power. They become belligerent towards us if they think we are acquiring too much influence over human society, too much power.”

Mick’s eyes went wide, experiencing an epiphany, “That’s what happened in the French Revolution?”

Beth blinked, looking back and forth between Mick and Josef, confused. The French Revolution? How was that historical horror involved in any of this?

Josef nodded. “Yes. They decided the French vampire Tribe had acquired too much power and control over human society at that time….both political and financial. And, I suppose they weren’t wrong. The French Tribe had made some poor choices in caring for their population of humans. They had too much political power, too much wealth….they became decadent….. while the humans were starving in the streets. That mistake cost them dearly. The Legion decided it was time to purge our numbers in France. It was easy for them at that time in human history….just give the already starving and angry peasants the information they needed, and then stand back and watch the massacre. They didn’t even have to get their own hands dirty. Now a days, however, torch-bearing mobs and guillotines are hard to come by….and, based on their attempt to kill Mick recently, I’d say they are planning on getting their own hands dirty this time around.”, he turned and looked back out the office window, his expression sad, almost forlorn, “What I don’t get is why? What have we done to anger them? Sure, we have several vampires in prominent positions in City Government, but LA is thriving! The humans in LA are not being mistreated or oppressed. Then there’s me….I have a lot of wealth, and control over financial matters, but I like to think humanity’s financial health is better off because of what I do. An awful lot of humans have good paying jobs because of me.”

Mick was watching Josef quietly. If he didn’t know better, he’d swear his old friend’s feelings were hurt by the Legion going active on his watch…..as though he regarded it as a personal failure in his leadership of the LA Tribe.

Josef paused, sighing and momentarily staring at his hands in his lap. “Anyway,” he continued, “the Legion doesn’t generally worry about werewolves because weres are not politically active, except for occasionally lobbying for environmental causes. Werewolves are all a bunch of dirt-loving tree-huggers. The closest they come to wealth is land ownership, and they could care less about politics, other than trying to slow down global warming, and so forth.” He chuckled, shaking his head, and glanced across his desk at Beth, smiling, “They’d love you, you know, with that hybrid car you drive. Ironic, if you think about it….The granddaughter of a werewolf hunter chooses a car that would make a werewolf proud.”

Beth didn’t know what to say to that…. “Well, I mean, I care about the environment too…what’s wrong with that?”, she responded, feeling alittle defensive.

“Nothing….” Josef smiled sadly. “Like I said….they’d love you. Save the planet…..rah, rah, rah.”

Mick was still absorbing what Josef had said about the French Revolution…..Suddenly, the List that Talbot had shown them made sense….that was the Legion’s opening volley. Give the local human population information…..that’s how it starts. Then they followed that up with their attempt to kill him. He starred at the surface of Josef’s desk, lost in his own thoughts.

“So,” Beth said, trying to put pieces together herself, “the werewolf community won’t help because they don’t want to attract the Legion’s attention?”

“Precisely.” Josef nodded, “Humans with information, and motivation to harm us, can be tremendously dangerous to both our kinds. Especially when they are organized and well armed, like the Legion.”

Mick snorted derisively, “And splashing vampires all over the streets of LA isn’t going to attract attention?”

Josef looked at Mick. “Unfortunately for us, the Legion will consider that kind of werewolf activity to be a good thing. This rogue suits their purposes. If they notice him, they won’t interfere with him, and they would undoubtedly disapprove of any Pack representatives trying to stop him. The Pack has gotten much better at ‘policing their own’, as Beth’s late grandfather put it, over the past few decades. Ordinarily, media coverage about mangled bodies, or complaints from a city’s vamp Tribe, would bring a team of weres to hunt down and kill the rogue. But the Pack is not willing to do that in our case, lest they find themselves joining us in the Legion’s crosshairs.”

“So now what?” Beth asked, “Should I call Talbot? Ask him to come down here so you can fill him in on the situation?”

Now it was Josef’s turn to snort derisively, “What?! No….no way do I want that man in my office. He can’t control his fear around me, and the smell of his fear sets my teeth on edge…. literally. I’m tense enough already.”

Mick smirked, “Well, Josef, perhaps he wouldn’t be so afraid if you wouldn’t go out of your way to frighten the poor guy every time you see him.”

Beth’s head whipped around to look at Mick, her eyes widening slightly. “He does?!” Before Mick could answer, she whipped her head back to glare at Josef across the desk. “You do?!”

“Now Beth….” , Josef began, smiling with as much charm as he could muster, given the circumstances, “Would I do something like that?”

She knew he would. “Damnit Josef!” Beth fumed, glaring, “What is wrong with you!? Ben saved Mick’s life, placing his own life in great danger in the process! Don’t you get it? He saved your best friend’s life…..and you treat the poor man like that?! Plus, he’s the one that figured out what that List was and then told Mick about it! You wouldn’t even know about the List if it weren’t for Ben!”

Both Mick and Josef were taken aback by Beth’s anger. She was perched on the edge of her seat, leaning forward towards Josef, glaring. Josef was astonished to realize that he had actually leaned back in his own seat slightly, unconsciously moving away from the onslaught of Beth’s disapproval. He purposefully leaned forward again and met her angry glare with one of his own. His usual boyish charm evaporated, replaced in an instant by an air of silent menace.

“You are the only human who can talk to me like that, and live. I hope you know that, my dear.”, he said quietly. Josef wasn’t smiling now, and his tone made it clear he was deadly serious.

Mick growled softly, his eyes fastening on Josef. He was sure his old friend wouldn’t hurt Beth, so he made no move to put himself between her and Josef. As much as he hated to admit it, this was an important lesson in vampire etiquette, and Beth had to learn it sooner or later. Josef was the 400 plus year old leader of the LA Tribe. That couldn’t be taken for granted or dismissed……especially not by a human.

Josef ignored his friend’s soft growls, keeping his eyes locked with Beth’s, and working hard to keep his own eyes brown. He didn’t want to terrify Beth, he liked her immensely, but, she had crossed the line, and he couldn’t let it pass. Whether she knew it or not, she had just challenged him in his own office. A mere human…..challenging him! Dressing him down like a school boy! He reminded himself that Beth only had his relationship with Mick as a frame of reference on how to behave around him, and Josef knew he allowed Mick to get away with things he would never tolerate from any other young vampire, let alone any human. He held her gaze until, several seconds later, Beth finally dropped her eyes.

“All I’m saying,” she continued quietly, “is that Talbot doesn’t deserve to feel menaced by you. He could have let Mick die, but he didn’t. He got thrown into the deep end of the vampire pool and he hit the water swimming. He didn’t have to tell Mick about the List, but he did. Don’t you think he’s earned maybe just a little bit of consideration?” , She risked glancing briefly at Josef’s face again before returning her eyes to her lap. “Besides….the man signs my paychecks. You’re going to get me fired.”

Josef chuckled softly, and all three of them relaxed. Confrontation over, Beth had stepped back in line. “Well now, Miss Turner. I certainly wouldn’t want to be responsible for you re-joining the ranks of the unemployed.” He favored Beth with a gentle smile, boyish charm firmly back in place, reassuring her that his anger was gone. She smiled tentatively back at him, and let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. “I promise to make an effort to be…..less scary…..around your boss, the esteemed ADA.”

“Thanks.” Beth said simply.

“You are welcome, my dear. Now,” Josef continued in a clipped, all business tone, “Here’s how the next 24 hours are going to play out. First of all, you, Mick, are going to take Beth home now. She needs to get some sleep….and I mean actual sleep…..in bed….alone.” He grinned. Beth blushed. Mick stared balefully at Josef. “She has to work tomorrow.” Josef continued. “Beth….”, turning his attention back to her, “Tomorrow, you will privately bring Talbot up to speed on our furry friend….need to know basis. I leave that up to you. You tell him what you feel he needs to know, and keep him updated as this situation progresses. Again, what you feel he needs to know, when you feel he needs to know it.”

Beth nodded her understanding, surprised that Josef was trusting her with that much responsibility.

“Mick.”, Josef continued, “After you get Beth home, and all tucked in for the night, you come to my house. I’ll meet you there. By now, Karl will have Logan settled in.” Mick’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “Yes,” Josef answered the unspoken question, “I pulled Logan in because we need his expertise. Ryder is still in South America…..the lucky bastard. Anyway, by the time you get there, I’ll have Logan up to date on what we’re facing and have him started on sending out the community-wide alerts, on both the wolf and the Legion. I’m issuing a voluntary-evacuation notice to the entire LA Tribe. Once you arrive, I want you to teach Logan a very important lesson. You are his Surrogate-Sire, after all, and this particular lesson is long overdue.”

“Oh now, wait a minute…..”, Mick began, but Josef cut him off with a talk-to-the-hand gesture.

“We can argue about it later, Mick,” he said, “But, you know I’m right….and my house, with my staff, is a safe place for this very necessary lesson to happen.”

Mick had that deer-in-the-headlights look, but said nothing more. Beth wanted desperately to ask questions. Mick….Logan’s Surrogate-Sire??? That was news to her! And what was this ‘lesson’ Mick was supposed to teach Logan? She decided she would hold her questions until she and Mick were back in the car.

Josef continued, “After Logan’s lesson, the two of you can start cyber-tracking this rogue. He’s certainly not from around here. According to the Cleaner, all of the Packs, right on up to the National level, deny they are missing a Pack-Mate. So, this very bad boy is most likely a lone wolf, but he has to be from somewhere, and he has to have arrived in LA somehow. You’ll be checking planes, trains, and buses for anyone who stands out. And then there’s hotels. He has to be staying somewhere when he’s in his human form.”

“I know the drill, Josef.” Mick snapped. “This is what I do for a living, remember? We’re looking for a big guy who’s from out of town. Got it.”

“Fine….you don’t have to get testy. After sunup, you can either grab some ice box time at my place, or go home. You’re call…..but you’ll have to set your alarm, cause you’re getting up early. When Beth gets off work, there’ll still be several hours of daylight left, this being summer time. So, tomorrow afternoon, you and Beth will go to the site of the most recent kill and try to follow the victim’s scent back to where the chase began. Perhaps that will give us some idea of where this rogue is hunting.”

“OK,” Mick interrupted again, “First off, why not try to pick up, and follow, the wolf’s scent instead, follow it right to him, instead of trying to track the poor bastard that he ate? And secondly, how am I supposed to follow a scent through city streets in broad daylight? Who knows how many miles it might cover? I’ll get sun-sick! Been there, done that….not wanting to repeat the experience, thank you very much. Wouldn’t it be easier on me to try to follow the scent at night?”

Josef’s eyes widened. “No! Absolutely not! Are you nuts?! You want to put yourself in some back alley, at night, with that thing on the loose?! Even the Cleaners aren’t willing to do that! You want to end up in a little plastic bucket like the last guy?” Josef shook his head and took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. “Young and stupid. OK, look…..it’s nearly impossible for us, vampires I mean, to follow a werewolf’s scent, unless it is extremely fresh. They do have a distinctive scent, and you can smell it if you are close to one, but for some reason, the scent they leave in their wake degrades quickly. Another werewolf could track it when they’re in their lupine form. Their noses are amazing. But, for us, the werewolf’s residual scent fades into the background scents very quickly. It’s some kind of defense mechanism they have, a sensory camouflage, if you will. So, backtracking the victim’s scent is our best bet for figuring out where the chase started, and therefore, where this brute might be hunting.”

Josef paused, flicking his eyes between Beth and Mick. “Now, as far as following a scent during the day, that’s where Beth comes in, that’s why she goes with you on your little day-trip tomorrow. Beth drives you in that little werewolf-approved Prius of hers, while you try to follow the scent from the open passenger-side window.” Mick rolled his eyes and started to speak, but Josef silenced him again with an upraised hand, “Not ideal, I know, but it’s better than getting eaten while trying to follow the scent at night. Daytime is much safer. A werewolf can transform during the day if they choose to, but they’re highly unlikely to do so in a crowded city…..too much chance of being spotted. Beth’s car will protect you from sunshine-related health issues while you scent through the window. She’ll have to drive slowly, and stop often, but hey, that’s what those hybrids are good at, right Beth?”

Josef smiled at Beth, and she smiled back uncertainly, silently considering the idea that she was, in a way, following in her grandfather’s footsteps. She felt strangely proud. She was about to participate in a werewolf hunt! Maybe she ought to strap on grandpa’s silver sword for the occasion? It would look good with her black cargo pants.

“Alrighty then!” Josef continued brightly, like he had just delivered an inspirational locker-room pep talk, “Mick, I’ll see you at my place after you take Beth home tonight, and I’ll see both of you here at my office tomorrow night after your tracking endeavors are completed, and after the sun goes down. Any questions class?”

Beth and Mick looked at each other, and then back at Josef. They both shook their heads. Wow….what were they getting themselves into? Not like they really had any choice…..both of them knew they had to play the hand they were being dealt. Either way, they both knew that tomorrow was going to be a very big day.

[coco]

Just excellent. I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying this story
Looking forward to more

[lionsonleashes]

Just excellent. I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying this story
Looking forward to more

Thanks Coco! I'm so honored to have you as a new reader!

[MSJ_sunglasses]

Definitely got my attention too

[lionsonleashes]

Thanks Sunglasses! I'm glad you're enjoying my story. There's much more to come!

[jen]

Wonderlful!

I love the little bits of science you have included in this fascinating tale, and Josef's admission that there are vamp scientists. I wonder a genetic specialist has been turned. Someone had to have done Mick's DNA scan.

This is absolutely intriguing.

Thamls. Lions!

Jenna

[lionsonleashes]

Thanks Jen!
Yeah.....I like for things to make as much biological sense as is possible.... when dealing with mythical creatures, that is!
I'm so glad you are enjoying my story! :curtesy:

[jen]

Totally agree.

When you think about it, the features of the Moonlight vamps all fit together nicely when you think of rapid cell renewal (hence, rapid healing, no aging, needing to sleep in freezers to relax but not turning into a block of ice over night). The heightened senses, increased visual acuity, basic vamp allure, extra sensory abilities; speed and strength all speak to increased mental abilities and a corresponding increase in organically based electrical energy output.

Our vamps are alive in Moonlight.

The story is absolutely fabulous, Lions. I am enjoying it again and seeing new things in it! Looking forward to the new chapter!

Thanks

Jenna

[lionsonleashes]

Oh, I like how you think, Jenna!
Yeah.....you totally get it.....the way I see the Moonlight Vamps. They are not reanimated, slowly rotting, corpses. I couldn't stand that, and had to put my own 'spin' on their biology. While still matching it with the "Canon" of the original story.
They are very much alive.....just very different from ordinary humans.
I'm soooo happy that you enjoyed my story enough the first time to re-read it again!
I'm nearly done with Chapter 28. Fleshing out the details. Thank you for your patience and support!

[jen]

just bumping this up

[lionsonleashes]

Thanks Jen!

[jen]

This is great!

Josef is a wonderful leader of the L.A. tribe and the is the consummate politician. He protects his people and knows the complex arena of species politics.

Jenna

[lionsonleashes]

Thanks, Jen!
And thanks also for the tip about the "per say" goof. I fixed it. It now reads the proper "per se".
Lions

[jen]

Wonderful,

I can so see this confrontation between Josef and Beth go down this way. Thanks!

Jenna

[francis]

Seems to me that Josef has everything under control - or so he likes to think. I wonder about that lesson, too.