forum Teeth and Talons [Closed]

Started April 21, 2019 by @Imperfect_Autumn group

tune

EDEN:

Eden hated murder. She hated it with a passion, even though she did it herself. She did it for a reason. Those she killed, she killed for a reason. She killed those who harmed. She killed those who violated. But she never slaughtered a child. Never in her life as a murderer.

Yet these people did. A child. He was a child.

Her body shook with rage, eyes narrowing into slits. She shared Morrigan's fury. She'd met Eric when she welcomed him in the mafia. She remembered his tears, his sobs. She remembered how he thanked Mor for saving him. She remembered him vowing for revenge.

The revenge he'd never get. The revenge she'd get for him.

"He was unarmed."

Eden snapped. She snarled, a malicious aura leaking out of her. She slammed her hands on the table, face twisted in cold fury. She told herself to be calm. She told herself to be a leader. Then her recruit's eyes flashed in her mind and all that control shattered. She was going to be Blackhole. She was going to ruin the Wolves. She was going to let go of all her restraints and give hell to her enemies.

They were going to pay. Their Alpha was going to pay. She wanted to be the one to slit his throat and watch him bleed.

Declare a war. the Voice crooned. You want blood. Go get it.

"If it's a war they want…" she started slowly, face void of any emotions. "It's a war they'll get."

Amber

Heads turned toward the door as another man stepped in. Andreas, their nurse. Late once again. Sterling was sure to be annoyed about that.

Amber’s thoughts were only confirmed when she felt him sigh. He was probably looking at the man with a raised eyebrow (he was), scowling (yup).

“Andreas. This is the third time I’ve asked you to be somewhere and you are late. Next time, there will be consequences,” the Alpha’s deep voice rumbled in his chest against her back. “Now sit.”

Amber sighed through her nose as she faced the table once more, trying not to stiffen or shudder as she felt Sterling’s fingers brush over her navel. Yeah, it felt nice, and she knew he wouldn’t go anywhere with it, but it was still weird. Even after almost two years.

She was thankful for him, truly. Thankful for this, even. He protected her. She had been flirted with, hit on, and pushed against so many walls before he came to her with a proposition.

“You be my ‘plaything’ and I’ll be yours. They won’t touch you if they think you’re my girl,” he’d said.

And she had scoffed and turned away, thinking the idea ridiculous. But then it happened again and again. Hit on, flirted with, pressed against a wall only to be saved by Sterling with a fierce word to whichever man was doing it. So she had reluctantly agreed.

Really all that meant was sitting in his lap as his fingers brushed across her skin, or getting pulled into a hallway for a quick (cough or not cough) kiss. Sometimes she spent the night in his room, though they went no further than cuddling. Which was incredibly awkward the first night, but she had grown to enjoy it. She knew he had gone through something similar to what she had gone through, so it was nice to have someone she could talk to. Even if that someone was the boss of the oldest mafia in the area.

Amber blinked, drawing her attention back to the present. Sterling had leaned back in his seat, taking her with him and making her let out a small, surprised breath before she relaxed against him again.

“Well. Now that everyone is here, I suppose we can start. Amber, care to tell them what you told me yesterday?” he began, his fingers slowing on her skin.

She nodded and looked out over the group. “Another Wolf is dead.”

ELLE:

Elle watched as Morrigan's lips twisted into a cruel smile that was frightening even to her.

"Good," her best friend snarled, drawing back from the table to straighten her shoulders. Elle shuddered despite herself—she pitied whoever found themselves in the way of Morrigan or Eden's inescapable, merciless wrath.

"Do me a favour, E?"

Morrigan cocked her head to one side, letting her eyes brush over each person in the room. "Once we find Eric's killer…. let me be the one to kill him. To get revenge. Unless anyone else here as a problem with that?"

Eden shook her head, blonde curls bouncing. Though it was selfish and awful of her… she would gladly hand over the option of murder to someone else. And besides, if Morrigan had a personal quarrel to take up with the murderer….

The poor boy's face swam across her mind's eye, pushing yet another sliver of pain into her pincushion of a heart. It joined the haunting photograph of the girl from the newspaper…. Valerie Morrison. Seventeen years of age.

Conflict crossed the poor girl's features.

BARRY:

Barry watched mutely as Andreas was reprimanded yet again, terrified and trembling as he took a seat beside him. Unlike the poor nurse, who was practically an open book, Barry was careful to keep his expression numb and devoid of emotion, slipping into the role of the harsh killer his Alpha needed him to be.

Briefly, his eyes flickered to Amber. Once upon a time, he had harboured a stupid little schoolboy crush on the beautiful woman. Luckily, those days were long over. But he pitied her, to be saddled with someone as brutal as the Wolf.

When she opened her mouth to speak, his eyes widened, then narrowed imperceptibly, first with shock, then with range. "Another?" he hissed despite himself. "Who?"

Sterling

"Not likely anyone you would know," Amber began, once more shifting. Sterling released her, and she stood, tearing a hand through her hair as she paved from one end of the room to the other. "She was young, only nineteen. She had been with us for a year and a half. Madeline Rothman. She was showing potential."

The woman room a deep breath, anger flashing in her eyes as she turned to face to others in the room. Not only was she Sterling's "plaything," she was also his second in command, his underboss. She had wicked aim when she was on a job, could slice through a person's neck in a heartbeat. Well… less than a heartbeat. They usually didn't make it that far. Especially not when she used the skills Sterling had decided to have her work on. Those, though, she preferred not to use unless it was absolutely necessary.

"And she was killed by a Raven," the blue-haired woman breathed, pulling a black feather from her pocket and slamming it down onto the table beneath her hand.

It took everything in Sterling not to growl at that. Those Ravens thought they could kill his kind, his family, and get away with it? Well, they had something coming for them. He wouldn't let this get far enough that they could.

The Boss's eyes shot to Gray, narrowing in thought when they landed on him. Grayson was a spy, his best spy, at that. If he couldn't figure out who did this, who kept doing this, no one could.

"Grayson, I'm going to need you to begin a search team for whoever did this," his voice reverberated around the room as he spoke. "And when you find them, don't kill them. Bring whoever it was to me, and then I will decided on their punishment."

WILLIAM:

Whoever had done this messed with the wrong family. William was brutal. He could kill. But Eden and Morrigan? They slaughtered. They played until their victims were begging. They did every little thing to ensure they were very much alive and awake when it happened. They were merciless when they needed to be. It was one of the things William loved and feared about them.

His leader looked at Morrigan, her face blank, void of any emotions. Then she nodded slowly, eyes blinking to display the intense rage. The whole room, thanks to Morrigan and Eden, became suffocated to breathe in. Kaden shuffled in his seat, staring down at his lap, trembling. William understood his discomfort.

“The kill is yours,” she said before she turned her attention to all of them. “The Wolves waged war against us by killing our people. The last straw was the slaughter of Eric. Tell the Ravens to remain in groups. Protect children and pregnant women. Protect those who cannot defend themselves,” her eyes turned sadistic, as if she was already imagining what she'd like to do to the Alpha. William didn't know what she had in mind. Even just a few minutes ago, he'd interrupted her interrogation, and he was certainly glad he did. She would have tortured him for hours end if he hadn't. “Any Wolf you find trespassing, bring them to me. Do not kill them. Do not harm them. I will enjoy tearing them to pieces as I wait for their coward of a leader to appear at our doorstep. Let every Raven know of this.”

William nodded, standing up as well.

“Elle, Kaden,” her eyes shifted to her Second and Fifth. “Elle, you are responsible for drawing out the killer. Do not engage. Do not kill. Bring him to Morrigan. And you, Kaden… whatever you do, you will not pick a blade. Whatever supplies you need, you will let me know. A healer must always be ready.”

He nodded.

“Ravens… let’s tear them to pieces, shall we?”

GRAY

Gray did not flinch. He was proud of that. He lifted his head to meet his Alpha’s, no hesitation, no nothing. Whoever was behind this… he would bring to his leader. He would help bring them to ruin. He'd bring Blackhole to the Alpha, tied up and on his knees like he deserved to be.

“Understood, sir,” when he spoke, his voice was shaking. Fury. “I will not let you down.”

COLTON:

“Sir? Mr. Howard demands your presence.”

Sometimes, Colton hated the path he had chosen for himself. Sure, he liked capturing criminals. He liked putting them in their place. He, however, did not like the countless hours he had to stay up for these jobs, or the large amounts of reports that needed to be written.

Colton sighed heavily, setting down the report he had just started writing. The co-leader of the task force, Kasey, had just left to get the sample report they’d submitted in just a day ago. It was, they hoped, a piece of cloth from an investigation site of a murder. Colton hoped it was either a Raven’s, or a Wolf’s.

He ran a hand through his hair, straightened his back and made his way to his boss’s office.

LUCAS:

Sophomore year in high school was the worst year for Lucas McArthur. It wasn’t because he was bullied. He wasn’t. He was the vice president of the student council. His then-girlfriend (now wife) was the president.

No, it was a tough year because of what went down with his younger twin sister. She'd changed. That year changed their lives. That was the last time Lucas had ever seen her smile or laugh. That was the last time he had seen his sister being his sister and not just an empty husk. To this day, she had never admitted her story. She never spoke of what happened to her, but they all had an idea. Well, their family, that is. Things are easy to piece together when you find your sister bruised and broken and just a shell of who she used to be. His little sister was abused. By who, Lucas never found out. She never spoke.

And so Lucas decided to go into law. He wanted to bring justice to those who were wronged, like his sister. He wanted to protect his wife. So he became a police officer. His dream was to get into the Task Force one day, a special team designed for those who hunted mafia lords and took down their empires. He wanted to do that, too.

“Lucas McArthur?” Lucas looked up in alarm. “Sir Howard would like a word with you.”

Lucas’s heart raced.

VIOLETA:

Violeta missed the days when she could dream about an artistic career. She missed the days when she could draw or paint and think—this could be worth something one day. She missed having the time to pour her heart and soul into every piece she made, she missed having hopes and dreams for the future. She missed art courses in college. She missed teaching kids and teens to draw at the art studio a couple blocks away from her mother's house.

But that future had been wiped away in the blink of an eye. Debt does not favour anyone, least of all her mother and disabled sister. A personal debt, too, and to an absolute asshole who knew her family all too well.

"Send Violeta to officer training," her uncle had ordered, "Just like her father. He would have wanted that for her. And with the money she gets from that, you can pay off your debt to me."

So now, she was stuck in this awful blue uniform, wielding a gun at those who dared to disrespect the law.

"Violeta Ahmeti?"

A voice broke through Violeta's concentration—another officer, trying to get her attention. "Howard wants to see you in his office." It was Delia, the friendly-enough woman from Violeta's department. "Better get to it."

As she made her way to her boss's office, Violeta felt her gut twist in fear. Had she done something wrong? Was she going to be punished? Fired?

COLTON:

Colton had taken a seat in Howard’s office, calm and composed, waiting for the rest of his team to arrive. His superior officer hadn’t said anything to him other than a greeting and Colton didn’t bother with the chitchat.

Five minutes later, the door opened and a young man stepped inside. He had brown hair, a soft face and glasses perched on his nose. He looked serious enough for Colton. The leader of the Task Force had never seen him before. Was he, perhaps, the new recruit to the team?

“Hello,” he greeted in a calm voice before deciding to sit, not bothering with questions. Good. That man had some sense. That was very good.

VIOLETA:

When Violeta entered Mr. Howard's office, the last two people she expected to see were the young new recruit from her department and the leader of the Mafia Task Force. Well, one of them, anyways. Colton Miller, famous throughout the NYPD for his continued victories.

Why were they here? Why was she here?

Biting down on her lower lip, she seated herself beside the other new recruit (Luke? Lukas? Luca?).

Kasey

She was the last to the office. Go figure. Well, she thought she was, anyway. Wasn’t there supposed to be one more person? Either way, she still felt late. Was she late? No, no. Her watch said she was still a couple of minutes early. Great.

Kasey stepped into the room, her thoughts running much like those. She swept into her usual seat beside Colton, her copartner on the Task Force, and gave him a sharp nod and quick smile.

LUCAS:

Lucas swallowed thickly, hoping he wasn’t fired. But if he was, why would there be Colten Miller here? And that follow new recruit, Violeta… why would she be here?

Then the door opened again and in came Kasey, the co-leader of the MTF. Lucas grew more and more nervous. Finally, when Kasey had herself seated, Mr. Howard set his papers aside and looked at us.

“Allan is not here, but he already knows of this,” Howard began, “Do welcome your new teammates, Lucas McArthur and Violeta Ahmeti. They will be joining your team. Congratulations on your promotion, Mr. McArthur, Ms. Ahmeti.”

VIOLETA:

Violeta’s eyes widened, growing wide in disbelief. The Mafia Task Force? Two sides of emotions battled for dominance inside her. Elation and pride——and a sinking feeling of disappointment. Each promotion brought her a step further from her dream of being an artist, but on the other hand, such a promotion was amazing.

“Th-Thank you, sir,” Violeta managed to stammer, gathering the last of her cool and attempting a collected air. “I won’t let you down.”

LUCAS:

Lucas blinked. He couldn't believe his ears. He was getting promoted. Not in the position above his own, but to a specialized team of Mafia Task Force. He was going to catch the mafia. He was finally one step closer in trying to help people from those criminals.

"Thank you so much, sir," he bowed his head, keep a composed look on his features. His new team leaders didn't say anything. Howard merely nodded.

"Now, as for your mission…" he pulled out a stack of papers. "It seems Ravens and Wolves have been going out of control. There have been seven murders of officers so far. Four by the Wolves. Three by Ravens. We can assume they're working together. Bring them down."

VIOLETA:

Violeta’s head was spinning by the time her boss was done briefing them on the new mission. Mafia Task Force? Her? The insecure girl who was only here in order to pay off a debt?

Swallowing, she gave a curt nod.

Kasey

Seven officers dead. Four by Ravens, three by Wolves… What was the deal with these murders? What were they gaining from it? Information?

“How long ago was the most recent body found?” she asked, pulling out a notebook as she looked over at her partner.

COLTON:

Colton clenched his jaw, trying to hold in his tongue. No matter what, those criminals never failed to cause trouble. Seven deaths…

He looked to the side, locking eyes with his partner. They needed to arrest their leaders as soon as possible.

“A few hours ago,” Howard replied, holding out the files. Colton stood up to get them, sitting by Kasey and showing her the pictures of the dead officers, from first to latest. “Your case starts now. Do not me down.”

“We’ll not disappoint, sir,” Colton’s eyes flashed as looked at his superior officer. “We’ll bring you the criminals.”

Kasey

The queen of the force nodded at the officer. “We will do our best to catch them as quickly as possible,” she vowed before turning to the images Colton had placed in front of her. She frowned as she looked them over, flipping through them. “How far apart were each of these?”

COLTON:

Their officer folded his hands over his table, eyes sweeping across each member of the force, new or old.

“A week,” he responded. “Except two. It seems one of the officers was at the crime scene when it was happening. The culprit, a Wolf, killed him to keep him silent.”

“And there are no cameras to catch even a glimpse of the murderers?” Lucas spoke up quietly, words hesitant. Colton turned his haze towards him.

“No,” Howard responded, looking at Lucas with a piercing gaze. “It seems each murder occurs where there are no cameras.”

“Is it possible for the criminals to have contact with someone in the police force?” Colton finally questioned, looking down at the pictures on the table. “Hence why their location is always away from the camera’s vision, as well as in remote areas. And since McArthur brought it up, perhaps we’ll need to put up cameras on places we hadn’t tried before. What do you think, Kasey?”

Kasey

“Putting up new cameras would be expensive. If we have the funds for it, though, it could be a good idea,” Kasey mused, leaning back in her seat and letting her gaze drift over the rest of the team. “And maybe we should only send people out in pairs from now on. That way, one can always be watching the other’s back and call for help if it’s needed.”

COLTON:

Colton nodded at his partner. Out of all the people, he was pleased to know she was the one he could count on to watch his back. He couldn’t trust anyone else. Not even their second-in-command, Allan, despite his good intentions.

“You offer good suggestions,” Howard nodded, satisfied. “I will see what I can do with that. Anything else you’d like to add?”

“I have a suggestion, sir,” Colton’s eyes flickered to the new recruit. He seemed to mind the attention, but pretended he was okay with it. “What if we were to check the officers for involvement with the mafia? Like the King said… there might be some criminals offering information. Perhaps they’re also being threatened.”

Howard seemed to think over it, humming in understanding. “That might create unrest,” he said. “Any way you lot could think of to reduce suspicion and increase teamwork?”

"We'll think about it," Colton answered, already standing up, the reports in his hands. "Well then, Howard, I suppose we should take our leave. Think over it by ourselves. We'll present our findings as often as we can."

The higher officer nodded. "Very well," he picked up his steaming cup and took a sip. "You are dismissed."

Colton nodded, swept a glance at his new teammates before exiting the room.