They had taken a cab to the south eastern corner of Central Park. It was quicker, less stressful, and it saved them having to find parking. Now they were seemingly leisurely strolling along the pathways around The Pond. This time of year the masses of tourists were gone, and this time of day the lunch crowd was beginning to thin, and IC could simply enjoy the crisp autumn...pardon...fall air, the sight of the colourful leaves clinging to the trees soon to flutter down. She steered toward an empty bench overlooking the water and sat.
Valentina couldn't sit, but she forced herself to do it anyway. In a place like this, it was easier if you could run quickly, if you needed to run. Maybe she was just being paranoid, but it kept her alive, most of the time.
"Ladies." A soft voice came from behind the bench. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"Ah, Mr. Wolfe, I assume," IC said lightly and only marginally turned, glancing in the direction of the male voice. "Care to join us? I mean, in a way that won't have our necks twisted."
"Do you know how delightful that sounds?" Wolfe chuckled and moved to sit between the two women. He turned to Valentina and smiled. "Krásny pták, you keep beautiful company. Is this the employer you mentioned?"
Valentina gave him a 'who else' look. "She's curious about a few things." As was Valentina.
IC's delicate nose wrinkled imperceptibly, but she managed to resist the urge to move off a little as the distinct scent of animal filled her senses - more on a mental level than actual smell.
"Well, one thing I'm no longer curious about..." IC said in a coolly unrepenting tone, "and no amount of cologne can mask that." She pulled her light coat tighter. "And if I'm not mistaken, your kind is usually loyal to the death. Is that the case with you, Mr. Wolfe?"
Wolfe sniffed a bitter laugh that sounded more like a bark. "Běžím sám, madam. I am loyal to my own kind, but they died off years ago."
IC gave a delicate snort. "So, since Mr. Sleep is není tvého druhu, Mr. Wolfe, how is your loyalty to him?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. "Do I have to be concerned for his safety?"
"Safety with me? No. Safety from others? Ehhh..." Wolfe see-sawed his hand and chuckled. "Sleep doesn't know. He's new to people like us. And we are an 'us' on this bench, aren't we?"
"We are," IC confirmed. "Though I believe Ms. Ash here is relatively new to this, am I wrong?" She gave Valentina a questioning look past Mr. Wolfe.
"That depends what you consider-" Valentina froze. The hairs on the back of her neck rose. She might not have a preternatural sense of smell, but she knew something was off, very off. And it wasn't with the three of them.
Wolfe's nose twitched as he caught the scent of something that didn't belong. Fine hairs stood on the back of his neck stood on end as his strange, light eyes took in their surroundings. "Are you expecting company, ladies?"
"No," IC said quietly. Even before Valentina had stopped short, every single nerve ending in her body had tingled, and the sense of dread became stronger with every moment. But the presence of another, uninvited supernatural being was not really what was so unnerving. Not being able to discern the nature of this being and its power was.
Wolfe sighed and stretched before standing. If they were to be attacked, he would at least be ready for the trouncing. As it was, the smell was a bare whiff on the breeze, barely discernible above the odour of cars and human stench. "I remember when there were more sheep in this park than fowl. Do either of you remember? They were very tasty, especially when eaten young."
Valentina glanced at him, then away. "We should get out of here. It's too open." She tried to appear casual, but it wasn't working as well as she'd have liked.
"We're in a park- it is meant to be open." He insinuated himself in front of the women and scanned the pond. Nothing seemed amiss, other than being green in the middle of an ugly city. There were no pleasure crafts on the water today, but a small gaggle of geese floated close to the bank nearest to them. Their beady dark eyes occasionally watched the three people.
More than occasionally.
One of the geese honked loudly, a sound that set the hair upon Wolfe's neck on end. He turned and growled from between bared teeth. "Go. Now."
Valentina turned to usher her new boss away, her eyes darting left and right.
IC was near paralysed. The sound of the waterfowl arrowed straight into the marrow of her bones, turning every fibre of her body to ice. "They're here to kill us...us all..." she whispered, then another feeling... "Comply or be wiped off the face of this realm..." It was a mere breath on the suddenly chill feeling air. IC shuddered.
"They're birds: I'm sure the message isn't so fancy." Wolfe spit on the ground as a goose plodded up the bank towards him. It blinked beady eyes at him and honked loudly at the man. That seemed to wake the others from their game of pretending to be a normal gaggle, and they approached the bank to stand behind the leader.
"Oh effing great." Valentina took a step back. "Geese from hell."
The largest goose took wing and came straight at Wolfe's head. He swatted it down, but another one grabbed hold of his coat. "They're not from Canada!"
IC found some of her fighting spirit. "Definitely not," she snorted, "Canadians are more polite than that. For one, they would introduce themselves. Even the Sasquatch and the Ogopogo have more manners than that."
Wolfe growled as he neatly snapped the goose's neck and flung it into the water. He kicked at two that had taken hold of his ankles but they held fast even as Wolfe toppled over. "I'm going to eat every last one of these miserable shits!"
While backing away, IC glanced around to see if people were taking notice of this rather unusual display. All they needed was for some misguided animal rights activists to interfere. "We need to move, get out of here," she said quietly to Valentina. "We're drawing too much attention."
"You think?" Valentina muttered. "Shit, cops. We should probably move a little faster."'
"Head north!" Wolfe threw another goose onto the pile at his feet before picking up another. Without warning, he sank sharp white teeth into a gander's long neck.
Blood has a way of telling tales.
The man promptly spit out a mouthful of feathers and gore. "Come- I know the way." He grabbed IC by the hand, blood notwithstanding.
IC recoiled slightly, but she complied. "What have you found? I can't sense anything!" she hissed. "That worries me. I can always sense not just that someone is different, but also what they are!"
"Martha Stewart didn't cook the goose. Just run, damn it!" Wolfe tugged her along and turned to shout at Valentina, "You too! Move it, pták!"
Valentina took one look back, then turned and ran. "They're not giving chase." In fact, they seemed to have resumed their act of being perfectly normal geese.
All except the one that dove down and tried to grab hold of Valentina's neck. She let out a strangled squeal and tried to shove it off. The creature snapped at her, trying to get a grip.
IC gasped, seeing the goose attacking Valentina. She stopped dead and forcefully pulled Wolfe back - or tried to. "Wolfe! Get that creature off her! She will--"
"You hired her to be your muscle! It's just a stupid bird!" But Wolfe stopped and growled at the goose, who stopped just long enough to honk at them as he rushed forward.
"Just a stupid...look out." For reasons unknown, a well-meaning police officer decided to help out by aiming his firearm at the goose. The creature moved, the shot went wide, catching Valentina in the chest just as she leapt in front of her boss.
"Fuck... Not again..."
"Shit." Wolfe grabbed the goose before it could make a break and snapped its neck cleanly. Dropping the carcass, he managed to catch Valentina before she fell to the ground. "This isn't a good look for you."
"You don't like blood-soaked?" she said weakly, feeling the damp stain of red spreading across her shirt. She closed her eyes and let the darkness claim her.
to be continued...
Běžím sám - (Czech) I'm running alone
Krásny pták - (Czech) beautiful bird
Není tvého druhu - (Czech) not of your kind
Pták - (Czech) bird
Erin Y - Mr. Wolfe
Mirren H - Valentina Ash
Myr S - IC Rowley
Valentina couldn't sit, but she forced herself to do it anyway. In a place like this, it was easier if you could run quickly, if you needed to run. Maybe she was just being paranoid, but it kept her alive, most of the time.
"Ladies." A soft voice came from behind the bench. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"Ah, Mr. Wolfe, I assume," IC said lightly and only marginally turned, glancing in the direction of the male voice. "Care to join us? I mean, in a way that won't have our necks twisted."
"Do you know how delightful that sounds?" Wolfe chuckled and moved to sit between the two women. He turned to Valentina and smiled. "Krásny pták, you keep beautiful company. Is this the employer you mentioned?"
Valentina gave him a 'who else' look. "She's curious about a few things." As was Valentina.
IC's delicate nose wrinkled imperceptibly, but she managed to resist the urge to move off a little as the distinct scent of animal filled her senses - more on a mental level than actual smell.
"Well, one thing I'm no longer curious about..." IC said in a coolly unrepenting tone, "and no amount of cologne can mask that." She pulled her light coat tighter. "And if I'm not mistaken, your kind is usually loyal to the death. Is that the case with you, Mr. Wolfe?"
Wolfe sniffed a bitter laugh that sounded more like a bark. "Běžím sám, madam. I am loyal to my own kind, but they died off years ago."
IC gave a delicate snort. "So, since Mr. Sleep is není tvého druhu, Mr. Wolfe, how is your loyalty to him?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. "Do I have to be concerned for his safety?"
"Safety with me? No. Safety from others? Ehhh..." Wolfe see-sawed his hand and chuckled. "Sleep doesn't know. He's new to people like us. And we are an 'us' on this bench, aren't we?"
"We are," IC confirmed. "Though I believe Ms. Ash here is relatively new to this, am I wrong?" She gave Valentina a questioning look past Mr. Wolfe.
"That depends what you consider-" Valentina froze. The hairs on the back of her neck rose. She might not have a preternatural sense of smell, but she knew something was off, very off. And it wasn't with the three of them.
Wolfe's nose twitched as he caught the scent of something that didn't belong. Fine hairs stood on the back of his neck stood on end as his strange, light eyes took in their surroundings. "Are you expecting company, ladies?"
"No," IC said quietly. Even before Valentina had stopped short, every single nerve ending in her body had tingled, and the sense of dread became stronger with every moment. But the presence of another, uninvited supernatural being was not really what was so unnerving. Not being able to discern the nature of this being and its power was.
Wolfe sighed and stretched before standing. If they were to be attacked, he would at least be ready for the trouncing. As it was, the smell was a bare whiff on the breeze, barely discernible above the odour of cars and human stench. "I remember when there were more sheep in this park than fowl. Do either of you remember? They were very tasty, especially when eaten young."
Valentina glanced at him, then away. "We should get out of here. It's too open." She tried to appear casual, but it wasn't working as well as she'd have liked.
"We're in a park- it is meant to be open." He insinuated himself in front of the women and scanned the pond. Nothing seemed amiss, other than being green in the middle of an ugly city. There were no pleasure crafts on the water today, but a small gaggle of geese floated close to the bank nearest to them. Their beady dark eyes occasionally watched the three people.
More than occasionally.
One of the geese honked loudly, a sound that set the hair upon Wolfe's neck on end. He turned and growled from between bared teeth. "Go. Now."
Valentina turned to usher her new boss away, her eyes darting left and right.
IC was near paralysed. The sound of the waterfowl arrowed straight into the marrow of her bones, turning every fibre of her body to ice. "They're here to kill us...us all..." she whispered, then another feeling... "Comply or be wiped off the face of this realm..." It was a mere breath on the suddenly chill feeling air. IC shuddered.
"They're birds: I'm sure the message isn't so fancy." Wolfe spit on the ground as a goose plodded up the bank towards him. It blinked beady eyes at him and honked loudly at the man. That seemed to wake the others from their game of pretending to be a normal gaggle, and they approached the bank to stand behind the leader.
"Oh effing great." Valentina took a step back. "Geese from hell."
The largest goose took wing and came straight at Wolfe's head. He swatted it down, but another one grabbed hold of his coat. "They're not from Canada!"
IC found some of her fighting spirit. "Definitely not," she snorted, "Canadians are more polite than that. For one, they would introduce themselves. Even the Sasquatch and the Ogopogo have more manners than that."
Wolfe growled as he neatly snapped the goose's neck and flung it into the water. He kicked at two that had taken hold of his ankles but they held fast even as Wolfe toppled over. "I'm going to eat every last one of these miserable shits!"
While backing away, IC glanced around to see if people were taking notice of this rather unusual display. All they needed was for some misguided animal rights activists to interfere. "We need to move, get out of here," she said quietly to Valentina. "We're drawing too much attention."
"You think?" Valentina muttered. "Shit, cops. We should probably move a little faster."'
"Head north!" Wolfe threw another goose onto the pile at his feet before picking up another. Without warning, he sank sharp white teeth into a gander's long neck.
Blood has a way of telling tales.
The man promptly spit out a mouthful of feathers and gore. "Come- I know the way." He grabbed IC by the hand, blood notwithstanding.
IC recoiled slightly, but she complied. "What have you found? I can't sense anything!" she hissed. "That worries me. I can always sense not just that someone is different, but also what they are!"
"Martha Stewart didn't cook the goose. Just run, damn it!" Wolfe tugged her along and turned to shout at Valentina, "You too! Move it, pták!"
Valentina took one look back, then turned and ran. "They're not giving chase." In fact, they seemed to have resumed their act of being perfectly normal geese.
All except the one that dove down and tried to grab hold of Valentina's neck. She let out a strangled squeal and tried to shove it off. The creature snapped at her, trying to get a grip.
IC gasped, seeing the goose attacking Valentina. She stopped dead and forcefully pulled Wolfe back - or tried to. "Wolfe! Get that creature off her! She will--"
"You hired her to be your muscle! It's just a stupid bird!" But Wolfe stopped and growled at the goose, who stopped just long enough to honk at them as he rushed forward.
"Just a stupid...look out." For reasons unknown, a well-meaning police officer decided to help out by aiming his firearm at the goose. The creature moved, the shot went wide, catching Valentina in the chest just as she leapt in front of her boss.
"Fuck... Not again..."
"Shit." Wolfe grabbed the goose before it could make a break and snapped its neck cleanly. Dropping the carcass, he managed to catch Valentina before she fell to the ground. "This isn't a good look for you."
"You don't like blood-soaked?" she said weakly, feeling the damp stain of red spreading across her shirt. She closed her eyes and let the darkness claim her.
to be continued...
Běžím sám - (Czech) I'm running alone
Krásny pták - (Czech) beautiful bird
Není tvého druhu - (Czech) not of your kind
Pták - (Czech) bird
Erin Y - Mr. Wolfe
Mirren H - Valentina Ash
Myr S - IC Rowley
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