Austin Caine/Vengeance (from_hell) wrote in marvel_nextgen,
@ 2011-09-02 10:13:00

Entry tags:

One Hell of a night (Nick)
This post takes place after the events of "Spirits of Vengeance".

The pain of the transformation still hasn't worn off by the time Austin Caine regains consciousness. He sits up and looks at his surroundings as the sunlight streams through the window across the room.

First thing he notices is that this is a motel room, so he at least had the good sense to not crash out on the road somewhere. The next thing he notices is that the coffee table a few feet away has a bottle of vodka and a bottle of tequila on it. Both are about half full. Just a few inches from that is his handgun. Again, he'd had the good sense to at least keep the shotgun under the bed.

"That explains why I want to puke so badly..." Austin says to no one in particular, trying to pull himself off the floor. As it does, it hits him all at once.

The screams, the hellfire, the burning...fighting the man with the black coat and staff...nearly killing him...the sons of bitches that murdered Sarah...

It all combines to send Austin scrambling for the bathroom, where he gets sick for a time.

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from_hell
2011-09-03 01:11 am UTC (link)

Vengeance considers the arrangement in question. It will be irksome to have the human questioning his judgments at every turn and extracting the proper price from sinners nearly impossible...but the ability to manifest when necessary, rather than only at nightfall was a boon.

Still, letting the human's mind burn out would make his job much easier...until the other fools like the mystics in Chicago begin impeding him. He could simply destroy them all, but it would be costly and then more would come after him.

Eventually, the Rider would enter the fray and then one or both of them would go back to Hell and leave no one to protect this realm.

"And I will be freed when necessary to do my work? You will not seek to stop me, no matter /when/ this occurs? In return, you will see and know all that I do or plan to do and I will know the same of you.

And I will kill only those who /truly/ deserve it. We will be of one mind from this point forward.

What say you, human?"

Austin considers this. He's still got the option of fighting this whole thing from now on, but if he does, then there's no telling when Vengeance will get out or for how long. He might wake up somewhere to find out that he's done something he can't forgive himself for.

Or, he could still bind himself to one place and never leave. But again, if Vengeance ever got out, there was no telling how he might take revenge.

This was the least of three evils.

When we hunt, you let me lead off. If I can't get the job done, you're up. We kill only when necessary or this we're no better than what we're fightin'. We stay under the radar and you'll get to take down all the sinners you can handle.

"Then...we have an accord. I will give you access to my power when necessary, human. Do not waste my abilities on trifling matters.

I will abide by the set terms." Vengeance says.

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	vicious_cycle 2011-09-03 01:17 am UTC (link)
	Nick nods, and lets the hellfire fade, and the ritual end. As Austin comes back to himself, Nick gestures to the bottle. "There you go. Bottle's yours, man. You're going to need it." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

from_hell
2011-09-03 01:23 am UTC (link)

Austin is already reaching for the bottle before Nick even says anything. He drinks. And drinks. And drinks.

He'd just bargained with a demon for control of his own body. There had to be some kind of silver lining in this cloud.

"I keep thinkin' I'm gonna wake up and realize I was dreamin' about a script I'm readin'. I kept tellin' myself that everythin' that happened was just a fever dream of some kind...but it's not. Not anymore." Austin pushes the bottle away finally, though it's nearly empty.

"I can't go back home like this. Ain't too many people I can count on anymore.

How do you deal with your life when the booze runs out, Nick?" he asks.

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vicious_cycle
2011-09-03 01:29 am UTC (link)

Nick shakes his head. "This is the good part." he says, without a sign of joking.

"You sold your soul. Only one you have. When this run is done, you and me are hellbound, and there's no way out of it." he replies, leaning back in the chair and putting his feet back up.

"I run a motorcycle repair shop in New Orleans. Get out on the road now and then. Once you have some control... well, you can have a life. Sometimes.

The nightmares don't get better though. And now, every time you damn someone to see their sins forever, you'll remember it. Nothing I've found helps 'cept whiskey.

Despite that, its better than what comes next... so when the booze runs out, I buy more booze. Speaking of which, if you don't smoke, you might want to consider starting. Good for the nerves, and you ain't gonna live long enough for cancer to get you."

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from_hell
2011-09-03 01:46 am UTC (link)

After everything he'd done, the people he'd hurt in the past, he supposed that this was karma catching up him. He'd done a lot of wrong, probably deserved to go to Hell, but hearing it put so certainly, so finally, was sobering.

"I used to be pretty good at fixin' cars and bikes. If the media ain't trashed my rep too much, I might be able to get some money before my accounts get frozen." Austin says.

"I used to smoke, but I quit. You said we're the Devil's Bounty Hunters, right? Maybe I better get to work before it's too late. Might be a few people I can escort to Hell before I get called back." he says.

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vicious_cycle
2011-09-03 01:56 am UTC (link)

"I'll be honest with you." he says, reading the expression. "No one deserves what you're going to see and go through, no matter what you've done. For that... if you know your way around bikes, if you want a job, I could use a hand, til you get shit sorted out. As for getting to work... there'll be time for that. Spend a night getting used to being you again." he replies, offering a cigarette.

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from_hell
2011-09-03 02:25 am UTC (link)

Austin takes the cigarette and places it between his lips.

"I might take you up on that job soon enough. I need to go see someone, though. Tell her that I can't keep a promise I made to her. Not until I can get this whole thing really under control." Austin says, pulling a lighter from his pocket.

Some things are ingrained, like making sure you have a lighter handy, even if you don't smoke. Never know when you'll make a friend over it.

"Hey, thanks man. You didn't have to help me out or anything, but you did. I appreciate that." he says.

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	vicious_cycle 2011-09-03 02:34 am UTC (link)
	No humor in the comment. "Yes I did. It was either help you out now, or kill you. This way is easier." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	from_hell 2011-09-03 02:38 am UTC (link)
	"You ever met anyone else this happened to?" he asks. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	vicious_cycle 2011-09-03 02:48 am UTC (link)
	"People with a demon where their soul should be? Yes. Most of them, I killed. Another Rider, no. That's why we're not trying to kill each other right now. We'll see how this goes." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	from_hell 2011-09-03 03:13 am UTC (link)
	"Not that you need me to say it but...if I /do/ lose control of this, Nick, then do what you gotta do to end it." he says, taking another sip of whiskey. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	vicious_cycle 2011-09-03 03:16 am UTC (link)
	Nick lights his own cigarette. "That part about killing when its necessary? Yeah, me and Zarathos made that deal. Don't worry. You lose it, I'll send you both to hell, promise." Sucks how easy these kind of promises are to make. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	from_hell 2011-09-03 04:05 am UTC (link)
	"You ever avoid sleepin' to try to outrun the nightmares?" he asks, trying to figure out how long he might be able to stay away before he /must/ sleep. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

vicious_cycle
2011-09-03 04:13 am UTC (link)

"When it started. I learned not to do that. But for what its worth, if you drink yourself to sleep, sometimes they ain't as bad. The hangovers suck, but not quite so bad as the peeks of hell. Unconscious ain't always quite the same as sleep, I guess. Stayin' up all night working, drinking or wenching and sleeping in the day helps a little too. They're worse if you sleep when the demon is used to being up and about."

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from_hell
2011-09-03 04:33 am UTC (link)

Austin nods, discarding that idea. He didn't want to become dependent upon drinking to stem the tide of nightmares, but the more he thought of it, the more he liked Nick's way of seeing things.

You ain't gonna live long enough for it to matter now.

"You hungry? If there's gonna be hangover tomorrow, we need booze and greasy food. There's a hash house down the way before you get to the discount liquor store." he says.

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	vicious_cycle 2011-09-03 04:37 am UTC (link)
	"See there, now you're talking." Nick has long since become comfortable with his drinking. It lets him sleep, and keeps him more sane than he'd be otherwise. Food is good too though. "Starving. And you just finished my last bottle. Let's go. I'll even buy this time. I'm the one with an honest job." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	from_hell 2011-09-03 04:43 am UTC (link)
	"I wanna refute your statement, but I was actor, so I can't really say my job was honest." Austin chuckles. "You get breakfast, I'll cover the booze. I got enough money for that and the rest of the week at this place. Once we're done trainin', I'm headed to New York. How bad does /that/ place set off the Rider Rage?" he asks. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

vicious_cycle
2011-09-03 04:48 am UTC (link)

"Were. I'm going to guess you won't want to be near Hollywood. At the very least, there'd be an investigation into why Mel Gibson is in a coma.

As for the big city - any of 'em will suck, but honestly, the demons are happier with something to hunt. Besides... soon as you learn to use the penance stare, you'll now exactly what kind of scum you're dooming. You'll see their sins when they do."

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	from_hell 2011-09-03 04:32 pm UTC (link)
	"You ever seen anythin' from someone that makes you think they still deserve to die, rather than just livin' with what they've done?" he asks. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	vicious_cycle 2011-09-04 01:03 am UTC (link)
	"Yep. But eventually, they'll get hell eventually. Living after the penance stare ain't living. Basically in a coma, living with their sins over and over, til they die. Sort of like the nightmares, but no waking up. Always seemed like a good warm up for what comes next." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	from_hell 2011-09-05 12:54 am UTC (link)
	That gave Austin pause. This Penance Stare seemed worse than death, so it might be the best measure in the arsenal to keep Vengeance sated. "You ever known any times it doesn't work?" he asks. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	vicious_cycle 2011-09-05 01:17 am UTC (link)
	"Yeah. It won't work on anyone without a soul. Some types of deep-rooted insanity can also be protection from it, as can doing all your crimes under the influence of some drugs - essentially, there needs to be a soul and a conscience, however perverted." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	from_hell 2011-09-05 06:03 am UTC (link)
	"Roger that. I'll have to keep an eye out for that sort of thing when I'm on the hunt." Austin says. "In a way, I see that Vengeance is looking to protect people, but...did your demon ever want to go completely crazy on everything it ever came across, like it does?" he asks. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

vicious_cycle
2011-09-05 06:31 am UTC (link)

"Not really... but in the past, yes. Zarathos has had previous hosts, and done this dance before. By now, he's a veteran at all of this. But during his first rodeo, back with Johnny Blaze, he was not happy about his servitude or being stuck with a mortal. Far as he's concerned, being up here and bound to me, he's got it as bad as I do.

On the other hand, Z doesn't care about protecting people, unless its practical to do so. When he's in charge, he's walked us right past people to be saved and all that. Its a job... he's the devil's bounty hunter. I can sometimes steer a bit, but that's ultimately what it comes down to - punish the guilty. If they're still around after the job is done, then maybe we'll see how the innocent are doing."

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