Date: Fri, 2 Apr 2010 17:53:25 -0500 From: Paul Tolbert Subject: A Newfound World 1 Disclaimer: I don't know these characters. Trademarks of WWE. is mine 9:14PM "Damn it", said FBI Special Agent Dave Bautista as he sat behind his desk, slamming down a few folders filled with countless files that he'd been sifting though all day. Dave was becoming increasing frustrated that he hadn't yet figured out the connection between the murders of Jessica Sniderman, a college student and the yet unidentified 23 year old male he'd been investigating for 2 months. Both were young in their early 20's, both killed in an alleyway and both had a visible cross-like marking on their left cheek created by the sharp point of a clean knife. They seemed to be random killings at first sight, but Dave knew better. He felt something else was going on. He shuffled through the various files on his desk and pulled out 2 gruesome black & white crime scene photos, one of Jessica and of the unidentified male. "What the hell is going on here?" Dave said to himself. He paced his eyes back and forth between the two photographs, as if hoping he would be able to figure out the connection. Sure he was frustrated by the lack of progress in the investigation, but something else bothered him even more. Something that was a first for him in all his 12 years at the Bureau. Both victims had 2 nail-like puncture wounds on their necks, spaced centimeters apart. Not only were these wounds strange, but both victims had vast amounts of their blood drained from their body. Crime scene investigators who stumbled upon this discovery were baffled as to what caused the neck marks. Anyone who was told of the details of the crimes of course all came to the same conclusion; a vampire killed them. One day he'd overheard 2 of his colleagues saying such. They noticed that he was listening in and asked for his opinion. Dave just chucked and said 'Yeah. Killed by a vampire. Case closed'. Ironically Dave knew that this theory was anything but. In fact, he'd bet his life that they were indeed killed by a vampire. As Agent Bautista fiddled through the mountain of files and occasionally took peeks at his laptop which displayed his e-mail inbox, a soft knock was heard through his office door. He quickly looked up from the clustered mess that had made its way onto his lap and floor beneath him. "Come in", he said with a raised voice to be sure he was heard clearly. The door swung open slightly and a head poked through the small opening. "Geez what happened here? A Hurricane blew roared thru here and scattered your case work everywhere? Oh By the way when are you going to realize that it's pointless trying to figure out who killed those people?" A short and lean male slowly entered the room, tucking his hands into the front pockets of his dark blue Jeans and stared at the agent with a smirk painted across his face. Dave just sat there with a blank expression. He was looking at the person who was the reason he knew that the existence of vampires was more than just a myth. --- It was around the discovery of the 1st body when these two strangers met. Dave went out to canvas the crime scene for the third time; something he regularly did with his investigations to ensure nothing had been overlooked or tampered with. He dug in his coat pocket for a pair of rubber gloves and was inserting his right hand in one when noticed someone walking up behind him. He tossed his gloves to the ground and reached in his coat to pull out his standard FBI Issued handgun from its holster. He spun around with excellent precision and pointed the barrel of the gun towards the intruder, realizing he was only a few feet away. Dave wandered how he was able to sneak up on him that closely without making a sound. "FREEZE! FBI! HANDS IN THE AIR WHERE I CAN SEE THEM!" Agent Bautista shouted, making sure to keep his eyes on the person, who he now identified as an African-American male, early 20s with a short and slender frame. The man just stood there, staring back at Dave. He stood his ground, not flitching at the site of the firearm pointed at his chest. This struck Agent Bautista as odd. "I SAID PUT YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR!" Dave repeated, this time becoming agitated. Once again there was no response from the stranger. Adrenaline was coursing through Dave's body as it usually did when he was involved in this kind of situation. His heart was beating at a rapid pace, beads of sweat starting to form above his brow. 'Why the hell is this guy just standing there?' he thought to himself. As this thought formed in Dave's mind, the man then tilted his head to the side and proceeded to scan Dave with his eyes, moving them in a sweeping motion. He took a deep breath and began to speak. "You won't find the killer", he said softly. He kept his stance, arms still by his side instead of in the air as Dave had ordered. "Excuse me?" "I said you won't find the killer. Trust me when I say that this is a lost cause." As the man spoke, Dave started to feel a sense of calmness rush through his body. He didn't know why but he felt there was no danger here. 'This guy could very well be the killer himself' Dave thought; however his gut was telling him that it was safe to put his gun away. He remained cautious though and decided to keep it at his side. "Who are you and why on earth would you say something like that?" "My name is Lincoln Burios", he said, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "What happened here isn't your regular cut & dry murder, no pun intended." "Oh yeah? Well then Mr. Burios why don't you tell me what this is exactly. Should I consider you a suspect or just a nutjob wanting attention?" Lincoln began to lick his lips and chucked. "I'm neither. Do yourself a favor and be a bit more careful OK? If I had been the killer coming back to look at the work I made, I could have very well taken you out, even though you like 10 feet tall". Lincoln then proceeded to step backwards. He spun around and walked out of the alley. Dave intended to tell him to stop, determined to get more out of this guy. He then decided that his attempt would be futile as the man didn't seem too phased by the threat of being shot just a few moments ago. He picked up his gloves, put them back into his coat pocket and walked to his car. It'd been days after the incident that they both crossed paths again, this time Lincoln divulging more information about whom he was and what he knew. This was when Dave discovered that his case victims were most likely killed by a vampire. Lincoln also explained to Dave that he himself was a Vampire Slayer, one of only 9 in the world who've been gifted with enhanced human abilities to combat not only vampires, but demons and other unworldly creatures of the night. Lincoln told Dave that he too had been hunting this particular vampire for awhile now and that it was his job to 'Deal with the killer', not Dave's. --- Dave, now focused on the man in his office replied. "Well if it's pointless, then why are you searching for him as well?" "Well technically I'm not really searching for 'him' per say, I just generally hunt down vampires when I come across them. Hopefully I'll end up dusting the one who killed your victims. Besides even if by some chance you do find your vamp, I doubt you'd know how to handle him. You're gonna Proceed to read him his Miranda Rights and book em? What an excellent way to protect the lovely citizens of Los Angeles." Lincoln proceeded to sit in the chair in front of Dave's desk and propped his legs up on the edge. "What am I suppose to do? Just sit back and call the case closed?" "You don't have a choice. What else can you do? I'm sorry you're caught in this situation but there's no good ending to it either way you slice it. Just let me handle the creatures of the night and you deal with the scum on the streets." "Whatever". Dave began to put the scattered papers on his lap back on the desk. He looked at Lincoln, who had become preoccupied with his fingernails. He sighed and peeked at his laptop once again. No new messages. "Well I gotta go do some... You know slaying. Remember what I said ok big guy?" Lincoln got up and proceeded to walk towards the door. "Wait", said Dave. He too got up from his chair and walked over to Lincoln. "The answer is no. We've gone over this before. It's not gonna happen." "Look Linc I've arrested countless criminals and gone up against the hardest of them. I think I can handle a vampire or 2". Lincoln rolled his eyes. "Oh yeah cause a vampire or demon for that matter is very much the same as your average bank robber or kidnapper. Sorry but I think it best that you don't come with me during my patrols. It's for your safety". Lincoln winked. "One day you'll say yes, just a matter of time you know", Dave said with a big grin. "Maybe" Lincoln opened the door, patted Dave on his shoulder and left the office. A tingling feeling shot up Dave's spine as Lincoln touched him. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Closing the door, Dave made his way back to his desk, sat down and began to massage his forehead. Dave enjoyed having Lincoln around to talk with. He was curious to know everything he could about this newfound world that he had been introduced too. He closed his eyes again and leaned back in his chair. He began to visualize Lincoln in his mind. His mocha colored skin, his slender yet defined figure. He then proceeded to think about how soft Link's lips might be. And those eyes. Dave could get lost in those eyes and on occasion, he would get lost in thought while staring into them. It caught him by surprise how he began to develop feelings for Lincoln, especially considering the circumstances that met under. Dave sat up straight and began to clean up so that he could head home for some much needed sleep. As he went to turn off his laptop, he noticed that he had a new e-mail message in his inbox. The sender was marked 'Anonymous'. Figuring it might just be spam, he thought about just deleting it. Curiosity however got the best of him and he proceeded to open the message: MAYBE. -Linc ***