The was a soft chime as the street car rolled up to the stop on the corner of West Pine and 34th, coming to rest in the pool of amber light cast by the street lamp. The car sat there for five minutes before the chime sounded again and it rolled on along it’s track toward the next stop three blocks down, leaving behind a single passenger standing in the light.
Jack Winter watched the street car pull away and pulled the front of his London Fog trench coat closed against the chill air of the early autumn night. He settled the flat cap over her short black hair, and tossed away the half finished cigarette he had been nursing for the past twenty minutes. His eye trailed the dim ember of the butt until it hit the black asphalt street, then his gaze rose the full moon overhead.
He couldn’t see any stars in the night sky. You never could in the city. Too much light pollution for the distant glimmer of celestial bodies to gain any kind of foothold. But he could feel them up there, radiating just beyond his sight like they always were.
The stiff soles of his shoes tapped a staccato rhythm on the pavement as he turned and began to walk down 34th street, heading for the bar were just last night a murder had taken place. A young bar tender, just getting off his shift in the small hours of the morning, had been robbed and stabbed ten times. There hadn’t been any witnesses, and the police were having trouble identifying what kind of blade had been used. Jack had a hunch he knew, but he needed to see the crime scene to be sure.
It was a short walk to reach the bar, and just as Jack had expected there was only one bored looking officer standing guard outside the yellow tape that encircled the scene.
Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.
Jack walked over to a bench a few feet further down the quiet street and sat down, bringing his foot up across his knee and pretending to adjust the laces. Black gloved hands deftly slipped into the inner pocket of his coat, and Jack extracted a small vial of fine purple powder. It was nothing more than dried and powdered skullcap, lavender and a bit of heather. A perfectly normal herbal tea blend meant to aid in relaxation.
Standing up, Jack walked casually past the officer on guard, dropping the vial at his feet and stepping on it to crush the fragile glass and release the power in a puff. As he did, Jack reached out with his mind, seeking that radiant power of the heavens. He grabbed a mental fistful and shoved it into the powder, sparking the latent potential of concoction to life even as the officer breathed it in.
Jack counted to five, turned to catch the officer as the man suddenly slumped limply to the ground, snoring in a deep sleep that would last for the next few hours.
Lowering the man onto the ground, Jack swiftly ducked beneath the yellow tape and hurried over to the dark red stain on the asphalt outside the bar’s front door. He drew a crystal hung on a length of corded leather from under his shirt and held it out, once again drawing on the radiance to empower his spell.
Starlight shone from the many facets of the crystal, spilling out over the scene in a dim, silvery glow. The dark stain stood out in sharp contrast now, blazing with the remnants of life it had once contained. The shimmering starlight traced the lines of the past, outlining where the victim had sprawled on the street, bleeding out his last.
Jack moved the crystal, and the ghostly outline shifted to reveal the assailant standing over the victim. Seven feet tall, but hunched over nearly double with arms too long for its emaciate body, the creature bared needle sharp fangs as it raised blood stained talons over it’s kill. Ten curved and razor sharp, dagger-like talons.
“Fucking cambion,” Jack sighed as he put the crystal away, shoved his hands in his pockets and walked away from the scene. It was going to be a long night.