yeah that happens if you turn into a vampire

[cross_and_bow]

(prologue)

Bella slips into the school by a side door; she just saw a thing and she thinks she's seen it in a book before and thinks it's supposed to be mostly harmless but before she wakes Giles up over probably nothing or kills a likely neutral demon she wants to check.

And she pushes into the library.

Comments

[cross_and_bow]

"Great! Something we can just unproblematically agree on."

[thisvorlunatic]

Snort.

[cross_and_bow]

Drive drive drive orange trees smashed-up beehives.

She parks.

"Voila."

[thisvorlunatic]

"Time to disintegrate a lot of screaming statues. Please stay out of my line of fire. I have been grazed by a nerve disruptor before and the statue's horrible screams convey the sensation pretty accurately."

[cross_and_bow]

"How wide a beam is it?" she asks, hopping out of the car.

[thisvorlunatic]

He gestures a range of diameters between about two and twelve inches. "The strength of the effect varies with distance from the center, and the beam spreads out as it travels through the air. The inner beam is permanent nerve damage, death if it gets you in the brain; the outermost edge is temporary excruciating pain; in between, and after it passes beyond its maximum fully effective range, you're taking your chances."

[cross_and_bow]

"Okay. I am pretty good at dodging shit, stupid superpowers are good for that, I might cut it closer than non-Slayers would be advised if the situation calls."

[thisvorlunatic]

"Well, it's your risk to take. I just don't want you taking it uninformed."

[cross_and_bow]

"Mmhm, just don't, like, yank your shot wild if I roll under the line of fire with an inch of clearance or something."

[thisvorlunatic]

"Noted."

[cross_and_bow]

"...d'you have limited charge to worry about or is it an infinite ray gun?"

[thisvorlunatic]

"I'll have to recharge it every so often but I already checked and local electrical outlets present no challenge to my universal power adapters. It would stretch credibility to imagine that I might run out of charge in one battle, unless we spend twelve solid hours disintegrating statues."

[cross_and_bow]

"There might be literal tons of them but they're very heavy so I still don't think it will take twelve hours."

Here is a giant hole in the ground. It's dark down there.

[thisvorlunatic]

Miles has goggles in his pocket that suffice to let him see where he's going.

It's probably reasonable to attempt stealth at least until the point where he can tell how many statues he'll need to disintegrate.

[cross_and_bow]

No argument from Bella. She stays a ways behind him, climbing down when he's had a head start.




Gosh that's a lot of lumbering statue jobbies. They're dancing.

[thisvorlunatic]

Well.

Miles picks a nice vantage, and then he starts shooting. The underground chamber quickly fills with the horrible screams of dying statues.

[cross_and_bow]

The dude around whom they are dancing changes tactics.

"Can you get me a path to him?" Bella murmurs.

[thisvorlunatic]

"Let's find out."

He picks off a line of statues. They seem reluctant to touch their disintegrating brethren, which helps.

[cross_and_bow]

They move pretty fast.

Bella moves faster. She charges, dodging and weaving. Statues suffice as cover when the dude in the middle takes exception to her approach.

There is a blurring scuffle and then Bella has his implement of mysterious magicalness and he has a snapped neck.

[thisvorlunatic]

The remaining statues disintegrate neatly and quietly, without the cracks or the smoke or the horrible screams.

[cross_and_bow]

"Phew," she says. "Thanks!"

[thisvorlunatic]

"No problem."

[cross_and_bow]

"I do not see any obvious loot here, but I can wait around without depriving you of your ride if you want to loot hunt."

[thisvorlunatic]

"A quick look around can't hurt."

He has a quick look around.

[cross_and_bow]

There is a little loot but none of it readily exchangeable for US dollars, the principal currency in which plane tickets are sold.