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Post by NightshadeVII on Nov 8, 2021 11:39:10 GMT -6
Samael had no idea why he had agreed to this. This was not his kind of work. A new colleague was supposed to have their first day today, and the dullahan had been informed that some ritual called a “hazing” would have to be performed. For some reason, everyone else had been unavailable on this day, meaning that Samael was left with little to no idea of just exactly he was supposed to be doing. The few internet searches he had done had only added to his confusion as well. Some sources explained it as a series of ridiculous practical jokes performed on a new, or “green” as some called it, colleague, while others explained it as getting the person in question to do all the tedious duties no one else wanted to do. The dullahan’s research almost led him to believe that he himself was being hazed as well.
But, as this day was otherwise mostly going to be filled with paperwork, and no one else could take care of this task, Samael really did not have a choice. Ideas were hard to come buy, especially since Samael had been told years ago that his humor was a bit too morbid for the WDSA at times and he did not want to explain where he managed to get buckets of blood yet again. It always got awkward. But honestly, his coworkers knew who they were putting to this task, surely that meant they also knew what to expect?
Finally, he had decided on something arguably more tame, but also less likely to scare their new colleague away with. And besides, they had multiple storage rooms that desperately needed to be cleaned and organized anyway, so surely no one would mind him borrowing this one specifically? Especially if it meant everyone else got to hand the rookie a tedious task. That did seem to be in the spirit of hazing.
Luckily, another of his colleagues had taken on the task of showing the newcomer around, which Samael was quite grateful for. There was no way he could adequately explain and describe the building as others could, so he preferred to leave that to someone else. And besides, he had already let his colleague know where he would be waiting for them.
To kill time, he had managed to get his hands on what looked like a beach chair of sorts, to complete the setup.
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Post by indeath on Nov 26, 2021 2:03:06 GMT -6
There was a pep in August’s step and a grin that refused to leave his face. His blue eye twinkling with excitement for the next step in his unlife. WDSA had approved his employment and he was official now. Officially official.
He could use the company cups without feeling guilty, they got blood just the right temperature. If he added a little coffee it gave it a fun flavor and made him feel a little less monstrous.
He’d gotten to know the building quite while during his lurking but the official tour had been pretty fun. They had then told him that there was a job for him in one of the storage rooms. Someone needed a hand. August kinda hoped it was to help capture a loose creature or something equally exciting but his gut told him it was something much more mundane. Still he knocked on the door a little loudly than intended and stood there grinning in the doorway.
“Howdy! It’s the new guy! I’m August Hayes, nice ta meet ya!”
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Post by NightshadeVII on Dec 8, 2021 4:55:02 GMT -6
The dullahan had zoned out just a little as he waited. With nothing to do, his mind wandered, perhaps to places where even he couldn’t follow it. And as a result, he didn’t really realize that time had passed until there was a loud knock on the door, and a young man standing there, smiling broadly. He introduced himself as August, spoke with an accent and grinned like this was a fun day in the park. But how was Samael to know if this was other people’s definition of fun, being introduced to new people and all that. In that regard, the dullahan’s world-view was biased. Either way this new person, August, was… cheerful. For better or for worse.
“Mister Hayes. Welcome to the WDSA”, Samael extended a hand to shake, as he knew was customary among humans and once-humans, “I am Samael O’Carrick.”
Once formalities were over, Samael tucked hands into his pockets, the gesture tinged with a slight hint of the dullahan not really knowing what to do with himself. Though he didn’t exactly feel nervous, he more just felt out of place. He really was the entirely wrong person to have trusted this job to. But there wasn’t much to do about that now. Everything was planned out and prepared, so it would seem that the only way to go with this was forward.
“I trust you’ve been made aware that there’s work for you here?”, Samael questioned gesturing to the room behind them, that strange echoing voice of his seeming perhaps a bit too monotone, “are you ready to get started?”
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Post by indeath on Jan 9, 2022 21:10:30 GMT -6
August smiled at what he assumed was Sam’s face, it was hard to tell though. It was an odd kinda mask? Was he in a band? Severe allergies? The list went on. Hopefully the guy would clue him in. In the mean time he returned the handshake, feeling guilty as always for the lack of warmth though this guy had pretty cold hands himself. Maybe he wouldn’t even notice.
He nodded happily at Sam.
“Ya sure don’t go to work for a holiday! … Well unless ya a tour guide but I ain’t. Don’t know if folks like night trips heh. Alrighty roo! Do we have a rogue sprite livin’ in these here boxes? Or a troll lurking in the ladies toliet? Oooh it’s gremlins isn’t it? They’d be a real nuisance in a place like this!”
August looked around with excitement. He still had high hopes that this was creature related. It was his new job after all. He adjusted his new uniform jacket proudly. It was still pretty stiff and he’d been a little disappointed when they said no to patches or pins. Underneath he had a floral t-shirt and a pair of grey jeans. Doc martens were the obvious choice for shoes. He felt pretty darn cool.
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Post by NightshadeVII on Mar 13, 2022 9:56:04 GMT -6
Samael had encountered many strange ways of speaking in his centuries of living, yet this one was somehow entirely new to him. Hayes’ accent was unplaceable, seeming more like a mix of multiple. Perhaps the young man had spent a lot of time travelling. Still he seemed to be in a good mood, even if he was slightly overexcited. Once he heard what was actually in store for him, he would, undoubtedly, be mildly disappointed.
Still, Samael attempted to make a friendly sound, though as always, it sounded more like a wheeze. To quickly gloss over his faulty vocal chords, the dullahan began to speak again.
“Nothing of the sort yet, this is more mundane”, he explained, “we’ve been meaning to clean up organize the storage rooms of the building for months now… and since there currently isn’t any other jobs, we agreed that it would be a good way to introduce you to a handful of the things you will be dealing with in a…”, he paused, as if thinking, “well, a safe and controlled environment
While he spoke, he led August deeper into the storage room, until they stood before rows upon rows of packed industrial shelves and cabinets. It was easy to see that any sort of organization was sorely lacking, and that most items appeared to have been dumbed or crammed into the first and best open spot. It was almost embarrassing.
“As you can see it leaves a lot to be desired, cursed weapons mixed with grimoires, the pixie wings and dragon scales got swapped. Again. ” Samael crossed his arms as he spoke, the movement stiff in an almost militaristic way, “the shelves do have categories written on them, so it shouldn’t be too hard to navigate.“
Then he turned to look at August, head tilted slightly in a gesture that could be believed to be sympathetic. “Well, there’s no time like the present, as they say. I’ll offer assistance of course”, the dullahan said, his voice echoing in his ‘helmet’, “Just be careful, some of the items here are quite malicious, and a possession tends to ruin one’s first day at work.”
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Post by indeath on Apr 6, 2022 18:39:39 GMT -6
August shoulders slumped slightly at the words ‘clean up’ and ‘organize’, not a magical beast by any means. Though his supervisor seemed super interesting. August’s brain was abuzz with questions that he almost missed the rest of Sammy’s speech, that was until the words ‘cursed’, ‘grimoire’ and ‘pixies’. His already big eyes seemed to grow larger at these words and the excitement in them was obvious. Even boring tasks were exciting in this place! He looked at the shelves, trying to figure out where to start.
“Possession huh? Maybe the ghostie will do all me work right? That ain’t so bad. How long have ya been working here, Sam? Have ya been possessed before?”
He began trying to sort out a shelf by taking things and putting them in piles based on what he thought might go together. It was very tempting to play around with a couple of things but he was trying to make a good impression. Honestly he had no idea what most things were. He honestly wasn’t sure if vampires could even be possessed, it sounded like an alive person thing. He didn’t want to mention it though because he’d learnt a hard lesson about coming out of the coffin too early.
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Post by NightshadeVII on Jul 17, 2022 2:45:03 GMT -6
It was clear that August had expected something more exciting for his first day at work, and to be perfectly honest, Samael would definitely also have preferred something more proactive. However, after a few unfortunate situations in the past, the WDSA had decided that it would be best to ease newcomers into the job slowly. It’s no use scaring people off on the first day, they had said as they, ironically enough, assigned the dullahan to this task. Still, the young man seemed determined to do a good job, as he set to it, organizing things he felt went together.
“Me?”, the dullahan echoed, caught off guard by August’s question, “I’ve worked here for the better part of 15 years, I think. Though, I didn’t exactly start out sorting storage spaces back then.”
Quietly, the dullahan took to working on another shelf, assisting in the creation of Hayze’s piles. Some of these things he remembered confiscating, with varying degrees of success. Still the sheer amount of junk the organization had accumulated over the years really was impressive, but then again, what he classified as junk could still do damage in the wrong hands.
“I try to avoid being possessed during work hours”, came the dullahan’s cryptic answer, with perhaps a hint of humor in his tone? It really was impossible to tell with his ‘helmet’ obscuring the words. “It’s more trouble than it’s worth. Haunted books and daggers really aren’t as interesting as they sound. Which is probably why they’ve ended up in a broom closet like this.”
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Post by indeath on Jul 20, 2022 17:03:02 GMT -6
“15 years! Lawdamimbo! I hope they give ya long service leave… What was ya first case? I bet it was bombaroo! Did ya have to capture teeny tiny fairies or somethin’?”
August worked with gusto putting this here and that there. WDSA really needed a labeling system or something. He hummed loudly to himself in between the conversation as he sorted. He found a pretty funny looking mask, its paint was cracked and it was made from very old wood. A clown face was painted in red and white frowning dramatically. There were large holes for the eyes. It smelt like ash and saltwater. He put it in front of his face and turned to Sam. Surely if he didn’t put it on properly he wouldn’t be cursed.
“Sam! Sam! It’s me Gonzo the clown! Yada yada yada!”
He put it down with a chuckle. He really wanted to know about the helmet but politeness stopped his tongue.
“Right! No possessions durin’ work time. Have ya ever seen anyone possessed? Do they start spittin’ green gunk or tell ya what ya mum’s doin’ in the afterlife? I reckon me mum would just barbecue and hunt.”
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Post by NightshadeVII on Nov 15, 2022 19:22:27 GMT -6
“My first job, huh?”, the dullahan mulled over the question, “I think it was a malevolent poltergeist in some downtown mall, or an occult smuggling bust, I can’t remember.” Like on many other occasions, the dullahan kept purposefully vague. He was a private person, undoubtedly, but here, it was more for dramatic effect than anything else.
“Careful with that one”, Samael reached out, as if to take the mask from august, but stopped himself, “it took twenty agents to subdue the last person who wore that mask. And that was a human.” In reality, the mask held no power on its own, it was one part of a larger ritual that had been doomed from the start. But August didn’t need to know that, not now at least. A few ghost stories here and there could play perfectly into the planned hazing, if the dullahan was doing it right, of course. Wryly, he thought of how his coworkers would probably ban him from hazing duty after this. What a shame.
With a few books in hand, all of them draped in heavy chains and sigils, Samael turned to look at August. “Green gunk? Sometimes”, he shrugged, “some try to tear you head of, of course. It depends on the nature of the spirit, but some are polite enough, if you approach them right, you can even get the spirit to cooperate with you in some cases.”
Finally, after a little more work, the final piece of his plan revealed itself, at first appearing like a plain metal disk, but upon further inspection, the object revealed itself to be a spirit-bound chakram. The spirit bound to the weapon was quite-laid back, and had been brought out on missions by agents before due to it’s cooperative nature. In reality, it didn’t belong in the storage room at all, but after being put to the task of hazing, Samael had requested the spirit’s help. It had perhaps seemed a bit too eager to participate in the morbid prank, but the dullahan didn’t mind.
“Speaking of possessed…”, Samael began and nodded up at the spirit-bound weapon, “could you hand me that? I have no idea why it’s just lying there. It needs to be locked up properly.” Then, as if on second thought, he added, “be careful. It reacts to touch and is quite aggressive.”
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Post by indeath on Nov 22, 2022 5:01:58 GMT -6
August almost dropped the mask at Sam’s words but caught it just in time. Vampire reflexes for the win. He smiled awkwardly before placing it gently down like it was a ticking time bomb. Which possibly was. August certainly didn’t want to murder the whole office on his first day, possessed or not. He wouldn’t win employee of the year like that.
“Ya mean like a spirit buddy? That’d be pretty bombaroo ta be honest. Me mate Ru helps ghosts pass on. I just like ta chat to them. Must be lonely when no one can hear ya!”
August gaped at the heavily chained books. Wondering if he was really up to this task after all. This stuff was the real deal. At least he had an expert like Sam about to oversee his progress.
“Righto! No worries… Lemme just try’n get it ta like me.
He eyed the chakram with determination and moved his head close to it. “Hey lil buddy… ever see Xena warrior princess? Pretty cool huh? She has a weapon just like ya!”
He gently picked it up and began to pass it to Sam. Hopefully his friendly words subdued it. Maybe it just wanted to be acknowledged.
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Post by NightshadeVII on Nov 24, 2022 18:33:52 GMT -6
The Dullahan’s exaggerated warnings seemed to have exactly the intended effect, with mister Hayze believing every word and eyeing each item with more apprehension than before.
As August picked up the weapon, handling it with care and talking to it in a cheerful, friendly voice, the metal began to tremble. It was barely noticeable at first, but quickly became hard to ignore. The metal sung, sounding almost like a hive full of angry wasps, playing the role of possessed weapon perfectly. Feigning urgency, Samael reached out to take the weapon from August. His hand slipped, the sharp blade edge cutting though his glove, drawing dark red blood.
“Oh…”, the word was quiet, but hung heavy in the air, filled with what almost sounded like dread. The chakram seemed to come alive, as if suddenly revitalized. It spun out of both of their hands, flying between them and ricocheting off a wall.
“Get down!”, Samael abandoned attempts at getting the bladed weapon under control, instead moving towards August and pushing him out of the way, behind one of the many shelves. The weapon bounced around the room behind them, furious and uncontrollable. Just as August was tucked somewhat safely between the shelves, there was a sharp cutting sound, metal meeting flesh, a cut-off groan, followed by a dull thud.
Samael laid splayed on the ground, now disturbingly headless. The chakram embedded solidly in the ground, right where the Dullahan’s neck should have met his head. Selling the illusion, Samael lay still as a corpse, which had proven to be a talent of his over the years.
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Post by indeath on Nov 29, 2022 2:43:55 GMT -6
August had done his best to keep ahold of the Chakram but he’d failed. His eyes widened in horror as it cut Sam’s hand. His horror mounted to a crescendo and he screamed loudly as Sam’s head flew straight off. Worst first day at work ever. He’d sacrificed himself for August. Whyy.
“Oh! Oh! Lawdy! Saaam! Sammy!! Oh should I do CPR? Can vampires even do CPR?? He ain’t got no mouth neither…”
August crawled over his eyes wide and bloody with tears. He moved a hand to Sam’s neck. No pulse. Was he meant to have a pulse. He should have taken a supernatural first aid course or something. He didn’t know CPR but he’d seen enough films to know what it looked like. He began pushing down on where he assumed Sam’s lungs were.
“Come on buddy! Heads are overrated! Please be okay…”
Big red salty tears fell onto Sam as August continued trying to bring life back to his corpse. He’d just lost a new friend and a job all at once. What were Simon and Ru going to say? He could imagine their looks of disappointment clearly as if they were in the room. Maybe he wasn’t cut out for this. Would he go to prison for supers or something?
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Post by NightshadeVII on Dec 26, 2022 7:23:36 GMT -6
Augusts words and attempts at resuscitation went in vain. There was no pulse to be found, unsurprisingly, and the the dullahan’s body was unnervingly still and unresponsive, blood steadily pooling at the stump of his neck. Of course, Samael was just fine, even the cut on his hand had been faked, for some dramatic flair, and his affinity for playing dead was almost uncanny. The sudden drop to the floor had been painless, but perhaps that was one of the advantages of being a corpse. Either way, it seemed like his act had been convincing enough to fool August, after all, the man was begging him to wake up and attempting resuscitation- comical, his situation considered. The dullahan had to applaud Hayze’s tenacity.
Eventually, Samael’s gloved hand twitched. After a few moments death-like stillness, his shoulder and elbow jerked into motion, stiff and uncoordinated, as if the body was relearning how to use itself, movement a foreign concept. A hand clamped down on the vampire’s shoulder, pushing down as Samael sat up, steadying himself. Each movement was out of tune, like there was an amateur puppet master pulling strings attached to the Dullahan’s limbs. Keeping up the act of reanimated or possessed- which came more natural to him than most- it seemed as if the dullahan reoriented himself, slowly “looking” around the room, like a thing possessed. Until he saw August.
Soon enough, the grip on August’s shoulder tightened, and as the dullahan rose, the other was pulled up with him. The vampire’s feet left the ground, Samael lifting him without the slightest show of effort. Inhuman, uncaring strength. A black, tar like liquid dripped from the gaping wound where Samael’s head sound be, trickling down the discoloured skin of his neck and though he had no eyes with which to see, he somehow still gave the unsettling impression of staring straight at august. A sound like a hundred metallic insect wings radiated from the Dullahan’s body, grating the ears, though there was no way to tell why the sound was even possible.
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Post by indeath on Dec 29, 2022 4:11:22 GMT -6
August’s panic levels continued to rise. He would have to move planets at this point and given what he had learnt in Wathais, it was a total possibility. Honestly going to another planet would just be fun. Funner than killing your new work pal for sure.
When the body came back to life he had a split second of hope before it sagged into terror. Had he accidentally set off some kind of reset? It seemed angry. At him.
“No, no, no, nooooo…”
Then the headless and possibly possessed Sam grabbed August and lifted him up. He was surprisingly light as a vampire. He struggled in dead Sam’s vice like grip. August’s eyes were bloody with tears and he grimaced in fear. The black tar was not a good sign, he shivered in fear. Well at least if he was slain he wouldn’t have to deal with the horror and shame of killing Sam. August struggled even more as the awful buzzing sound started, it couldn’t mean anything good.
“I’m sorry Sam! I was real careful honesty… I really liked ya. Please don’t kill me…Maybe someone here will be able ta put ya head back on??? Maybe a bit of sticky tape heh..”
Now was not the time for jokes but all logic was out the window. He looked around for anything that might help or someone.
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Post by NightshadeVII on Jan 7, 2023 18:33:14 GMT -6
The dullahan let August dangle for a moment, for a bit of a dramatic flair. Honestly, he was surprised to have sold the illusion so easily. Perhaps the strange, featureless glass head he wore wasn’t as big of a giveaway as he assumed. It was a nice thought at least.
When finally, Samael decided he had tormented the poor rookie enough, he put the vampire down, quickly, but carefully, allowing August to steady himself before letting go. With little warning, he reached out with a gloved hand, ruffling the young man’s hair in a goodnatured manner. Again his movements were smooth and natural, faking life to the best of his abilities. The strange noise had been making, grating and metallic, changed, turning into a strange, dry wheeze, the product of vocal chords that went unused most of the time. Samael was laughing.
In a morbid display, the strange glass head remade itself, the clear material pushing effortlessly through flesh and fusing together. “I’m just messing with you, Hayze”, the dullahan spoke as he regained full use of his voice, “some of my coworkers suggested that I be in charge of your hazing, and uhh…” Samael shrugged. Nonchalant or awkward? “I generally don’t know how that works.”
There was quiet for a moment, as the dullahan moved to pick up the weapon still embedded in the floor. “Are you alright?“, Sam finally asked, the question suddenly occurring to him.
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