S121

Ortus Outskirts | 'Not Safe Inn'

Nicholas was about to ask for the phone when they came up to the motel. Needless to say, it was no better a situation than when he was driving along the forest road at night in the rain; a perfect setup to some sort of horror movie. He figured he would ask about the phone when they got to their room. Instead, he got out of the car and looked over the hood to Miranda as he pointed at the road sign.

"That's just a coincidence, right?", Nick asked the veteran hunter as he motioned over to the large roadway sign that spelled out 'Not Safe' with its remaining illuminated lettering.

Ortus Woods | City Outskirt

Nick could tell that perhaps all this was just as uncommon to Miranda as it was to him, as evidenced by how she had forgotten his name already. Either that, or maybe she was just trying to continue the conversation. After all, how often was it that she was likely to happen across such a situation as his? He wasn't going to press her for those questions, so instead he decided to introduce himself again.

"Nicholas, but you can call me Nick.", he calmly said to Miranda.

Ortus Woods | City Outskirt

Nicholas's expression gave away just how exhausted he was, as did the sigh that followed. This was all a lot to take in, but he tried his best and simply closed his eyes. All his worries were forced deep down for now as he brought up his first and primary concern: his family. They would be worried sick that he hadn't come home yet.

"So, what's your name?", Nicholas asked, leading up to his question.

Ortus Woods | City Outskirt

Nicholas listened as the woman explained as much as she cared to, then was silent for a moment as he digested it. It seemed almost like it was out of a movie or anime, entirely unreal but he was witness to it all. He was face-to-face with these creatures, he fought them, he bled out and bled them out in kind. They were very much real, and so was this woman's story.

Nicholas eventually let out a sigh as the tension in his body released. If what she said was true, then he was not normal either, but was also in no danger of dying. There was no way he should have been able to operate at the level his did with his injures, but here he was. The rest of this woman's story was true, so maybe his own physical anomalies were true too. After a brief moment, Nick spoke again.

"Alright, now booze would be nice.", Nicholas half-jokingly said before speaking flatly, "So what I'm hearing is that by killing those hellhounds, I've potentially got a few stronger monsters who want a piece of me. I've likely stumbled into a secret society tasked with fighting back these demons in a secret battle between good and evil spanning across centuries. Not only am I somehow not dead, I am going to heal like Wolverine and be just fine by morning.............. Okay. One last thing. My name's Nicholas, what's yours?"

Ortus Woods | City Outskirts

Nick held his tongue for a few seconds as he tried to consider what was being said. Whoever this woman was, it was clear that she at least had experience in hunting these creatures. Was there something more she hadn't said? After a brief moment, Nicholas let out a soft sigh and decided that he would attempt to follow the white rabbit.

"Okay look, there's a lot of things happening that just don't make sense. I just got attacked by.. whatever those things were... Hellhounds? You show up with guns, so I can only assume you were hunting them. Now I'm being taken to a place I don't know with injuries that really should kill me, but my blood's 50% adrenaline and caffeine right now. Could you fill me in on what's going on?", Nicholas asked the mystery woman. He didn't seem angry, but he wanted to get to the bottom of all this.

Ortus Woods | City Outskirts

Nicholas was perturbed by what the woman had said to him. Not only was she not taking him to a hospital, she was also seemingly did not know how human biology worked. This did not help in alleviating his suspicions of this woman, and if anything it made him feel like he was going to end up on the back of a milk carton. The pit in his stomach grew as he knew that this line of circumstances would likely lead to conflict. He knew the gun was on his right side, so if it came to bullets he would have to yank it with his right hand for maximum speed. He took mental note of his fingers, and by the absence of pain it was clear the adrenaline was in full effect. He flexed his fingers and had full range of motion, perfect for what he might have to do.

Despite his mounting suspicions, Nick opted to using the weapon as a last resort. Instead he continued to talk.

"Are you an experienced surgeon with a burn ward? What's the plan?", Nicholas asked, suggesting she had little business taking a seriously injured person to her home. Nick tried to verbally nudge her into making the decision to go to the hospital without escalating the situation.

Ortus Woods | Outskirts

Nick let out a weak grunt as he felt the needle slam into his leg. His gaze darted to Miranda as the adrenaline swiftly took effect, but he seemed rather shocked and a tiny bit miffed.

"I was going to drip feed myself that so it could last longer.", Nicholas flatly remarked as he felt the warmth flood his body. He could tell whoever this woman was, they were more a gung-ho sort, rather than whatever he had expected. Just what did he expect from a strange woman who randomly showed up to kill some hellhounds?

Before he could come to a conclusion, Nicholas could see that the woman had taken a wrong turn. Instead of taking the access road that would lead them to the city and to a hospital, they were now heading away. This patch of road was unfamiliar territory and he was at the mercy of whatever this stranger intended. Alarm bells sounded off in Nick's gut, and he could feel his chest tighten. In that moment he considered what he had at his disposal if this woman intended to kidnap him. He still had the .45 handgun from before, and better yet he knew it still had six hollow point rounds left. Despite his growing anxiety, Nick swallowed it down and spoke up. He made sure his words were measured and calm but still polite. For now, his injuries didn't even register; all that mattered was discerning this woman's intent.

"Oh. I think the hospital is the other way.", Nick said to his driver. His eyes darted to Miranda's hands and face in case she made any sudden movements or reached for a weapon.

Ortus Woods | Outskirts

Nicholas was drifting in and out of consciousness when he was listening to the woman talk. He couldn't tell if it was him falling into delirium or if he actually heard the woman correctly, but she spoke of people being injured worse. What was she on about? What was her "line of work"? Had he stumbled upon some sort of secret demon hunter world like some sort of comic or manga? It certainly didn't help that at any moment he could drift away and die.

What did focus his attention and force him back into the fight was the mention of adrenaline. Suddenly now he had a gameplan. If he could remain conscious until he made it to a medical center, then surely he would live. He didn't know if he could reach into the back seat with his arm and ribs being broken, but there was a second person here.

"A-adrenaline. Can you get it? My arm's broken.", Nicholas weakly said.

Ortus Woods | Outskirts

Now that Nicholas was sitting still and no longer in danger, the adrenaline that kept him conscious and moving was wearing off once more. His hands, arms, and upper body were badly burned. The flesh on his hands and forearms were blistered and his fingers were burned to the point the flesh was beginning to blacken. His right arm had a deep bite that looked deep enough to go down to bone and was covered in second and third-degree burns, and his chest was slashed deep. The only thing that kept Nick from bleeding out was the hasty cauterizing of his wounds earlier. Even the uncut skin over the larger portion of his stomach and chest suffered from first and second degree burns. What Miranda may or may not have seen was how his right arm and four of his ribs were broken in multiple places, and he was mildly concussed. It was a wonder he managed to live this long with those injuries.

Nicholas meanwhile was slowly losing consciousness. His head swayed and lolled as he tried to force himself to remain conscious, but he was quickly losing that fight. Nick was fearful that if he lost consciousness now, he may never regain it. Nick didn't answer Miranda for a good five seconds, but turned to look at the woman who had picked him up.

"No. It looks bad.", he barely managed to say through the haze.

Ortus Woods | Outskirts

The silence felt like it dragged on forever. Just how long was she going to be gone? Was she dead? Thoughts began to flood Nick's mind about what he should do. Judging by the gunshots, it had to be some sort of high-caliber handgun the woman was using, and if his assumptions were correct, they had to be doing something to the monster. If the monster showed up in the road, perhaps the truck could be used to injure it long enough to escape. Perhaps the woman herself was the victor, and she was slowly making her way back.

His questions were soon answered as he heard footsteps within extremely close proximity to the truck. It put him on edge at first until he realized they sounded human. Just then, the woman popped up to the side of the truck and threw something into the back of the truck before yanking open the driver-side door. Nicholas quickly reached for the glovebox and used it to hoist himself over and into the passenger seat. He wasn't too picky how he landed, as long as the two of them got out. Even the pain couldn't stop him.

Once over, he glanced to the woman on the other side of the truck.