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Neon Moon
chapter twelve

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❛ so come rain on my parade
'cause i wanna feel it. come shove
me over the edge 'cause my head is
in overdrive. ❜
— Doomed, Bring Me The Horizon

                     THE TENSION WITHIN THIS LITTLE BAR WAS ENOUGH TO MAKE HER SKIN CRAWL. Marisol stood next to Seth, her arms crossed over her chest. Jacob stared down their new professor friend with a heated glare. "Alright, how about we relax, huh?" Seth vocalized, rubbing his hands together. He looked between the two with a ghost of a smirk. "Let's just take it easy. We'll never get out of here if we're at each other's throats." Marisol snorted.

His head turned slightly to catch her eye. "That's very mature of you," she said, offering him a tight lipped smile. A sigh fell past his lips, but he chose to ignore her little jab. "I get that we're all a ragtag bunch of ramblers here, but my guess is tonight's not going to have a Scooby Doo ending. So whatever beefs we got, forget 'em. Or else we're all gonna get juiced."

Marisol's mind went toward her hand juicer at home and the lemons she would use for lemonade. Regardless of how blunt it seemed, it always succeeded in ripping apart the skin of the lemon and taking all of it's juice. Her muscles tightened, her stomach turning. "Or worse off, end up like the Cisco kid did earlier."

"Yeah, where is Ranger Gonzalez?" Tanner asked. "What happened to him?" She wasn't too sure, really. When she played everything back in her mind, it's hard to focus on one thing. So much had happened. So much blood had been shed. Seth gave a slight shrug. "Forget him," he replied, unconsciously glancing toward Marisol. "Let's just worry about the next wave."

She turned back toward the gated exits, bottom lip bitten between her teeth. So many people had died, surely they weren't thinking of coming back for seconds. A silence fell over the group. The absurdity of it all had washed away, leaving behind the reality of it all. Vampire or not, they were in serious trouble. "We need a plan," Jacob spoke up.

Marisol turned back to the group, waiting for someone else to speak up. "That's easy," Scott said. He moved back toward a table where a stake lay abandoned. "Grab as many shotguns, knives, and wooden stakes as you can." He climbed onto said table like the hero in a story book. "That way, when those bloodsuckers come back, even if we can't kill them, we'll make them wish they were never unborn."

She cringed at the intensity of his tone. He really was playing the hero role a little too much. Richie scoffed, his aversion to the younger boy clear. "We're gonna need a better plan than that," he said.

"Let's hear it, then, Captain," Marisol retorted. Every eye in the room focused on him. A miniscule grin crawled over his thin lips. "It's coming to me." Marisol and Seth both rolled their eyes at Richie's arrogance.

Despite his claim of having a plan, everyone seemed to separate. Kate and Scott followed Marisol to one end of the bar. "Scott," the woman spoke up, capturing the boy's attention. Her mouth twisted into a frown. "You need to remember that this isn't some comic book or movie, okay? You can get hurt, you can die here." His brows furrowed.

He didn't ask her why she told him that. He didn't get mad at her for reminding him of the real danger they're in. Instead, he nodded his head. "Let's break some more chairs and get the pieces to Jacob. If you find any guns or knives, grab them. And keep an eye out for loose ammo. There may be a chance it's unused."

Scott was the first to follow orders. He walked off from the two, leaving Kate and Marisol to themselves. Marisol grimaced as she pushed back her hair. She'd kill to have another shower right about now. Blood, sweat, and whatever else coated it, leaving it stringy and crusty. "Marisol," Kate called out, startling the woman out of her thoughts. She whirled around to find the dark haired girl watching her.

"Yeah?" she replied curiously. Did she need something? Perhaps she was looking for a shoulder to cry on. It would make sense. The stuff they had witnessed had affected her as well. Kate drew in a deep breath, her shoulders moving with the action, wringing her hands out in front of her. "How... How do you do it?"

"Do what?" Marisol asked, brows furrowed, face contorted into one of confusion. Kate's face gained a bit of color. Her mouth opened, the words struggling to plummet off of her tongue. "How do you... Kill them. How do you do it without feeling guilty?"

She took a step back. The question hit her like Gonzalez's bullet had back at the motel. It stole her breath away. She stared at Kate sadly. "I don't," she admitted. "I feel guilty, but I try to focus on the fact that it's either them or me."

Her eyes slowly scanned the room, landing on Seth as he dumped gun powder into a glass vase. A tremor of a smile tickled the corners of her mouth. "And I'm just not ready to die yet."

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          "If you could choose how you die, what would you choose?"

          Marisol glanced toward Seth, Richie's deep question hanging in the air between them. It had been one of those nights. They were outside her house, a picnic blanket sitting next to Seth's vehicle, hiding them away from the prying eyes of her parents. Seth had smuggled them some alcohol, though they had lied to Richie and gave him water instead of the tequila Seth had scored from the little corner store close to the school.

          "Why would you want to choose?" she asked, confusion wiped across her face. He sat back on his arms, eyes looking up through his glasses and at the vast array of stars. Seth took a swig from his water bottle filled with the burning alcohol. "Then it wouldn't be as scary," he admitted. "If you know, you can prepare."

          "I would die peacefully in my sleep," Seth stated, pointing toward Marisol with a crooked grin. "Right beside you." A grimace splashed across the younger boy's face and he made a small noise of disgust. A slight blush colored her face, her lips parting in surprise.

          Death was never something she liked to think about. The grief that came after was a big factor. She could remember the sadness she felt after her grandfather, and after her uncle. She remembered that sinking despair that felt like two strong hands pulling her into their clutch. She could remember the scratchiness in her throat, the burning behind her eyes, the constant dread. It was an ugly feeling.

          And yet, Seth's idea didn't sound too bad. She finally smiled, shaking her head at her boyfriend with so much love twinkling behind her eyes. "I want to die in a cool way," Richie said. "Like, I fought off five guys trying to mug this pretty girl. Or fighting a shark in the ocean."

          "Dukes and Hazzard," Marisol blurted out. Richie's smile grew, and he nodded excitedly at her example. He wouldn't mind dying if he did it in a cool way. Maybe it would be a car accident. Or maybe he could die from a random heart attack. It was the unknown that Richie didn't like.

          Two expectant pairs of eyes turned toward the girl sitting between them. She stared down at her untouched bottle, pondering on her choice. She wouldn't want it to be painful. Drowning, fire, that all scared her. She'd be in so much pain. Her lips pursed in thought.

          "You'd probably die trying to help someone else," Richie commented with a grimace. "You'd be helping an old lady cross the street and get hit instead." She glanced toward Richie with a slight frown. "There's nothing wrong with being helpful. You should try it some time. Kindness is a virtue."

          "Not when people take advantage of said kindness," Seth argued. Her head whipped around to face her boyfriend. She was stunned to see him smiling at her, cheeks a light glow of pink. He reached forward and tucked her hair behind her ear. "But it is refreshing," he admitted.

          Suddenly, it was as if they were transported back to the playground. He was no longer this handsome teenager, rough around the edges. Instead, he was that same boy nervous to go down the slide. That same boy who was so stunned by her hug that he looked as if he'd pee his pants. And she was that sweet girl without a care in the world. She was that same free spirit that saw something in him that no one else did.

          "I don't care how I die," she admitted, falling back onto the blanket. Both boys followed after her, laying on opposite sides of her. They all turned to the stars above them, and the soft smile of the crescent moon. "As long as I have you two, my life would be well lived."

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Even in her line of work, it still surprised Marisol to see so many weapons in one place. she's had to deal with serial killers, terrorists. She had once arrested a man who kept fifteen boys in a barn solely for their company and their youth (he claimed to have been Bloody Mary reincarnated). And yet, it still amazed her. The world continued to prove how shitty it could be.

She held the knife tight in her grasp, the other holding a pointed chair leg. Professor Tanner seemed to be enjoying this all a little too much. It reminded her of those LARPing people in Virginia. Tables were turned on their sides, acting as a makeshift shield away from whatever horrors were to come.

"When this is over," Seth whispered, his arm brushing Marisol's. She jumped a bit, glancing toward the man curiously. "Yeah?" Her heart was hammering in her chest. Had it ever really slowed down in the first place?

His eyes met hers, warm and reminiscent. She felt her throat swell. "I'm gonna make it up to you." Her chest grew warm. In her heart, she knew he was serious. She just only hoped they'd make it out alive. "Do you remember when we were at my house, and we were drinking and talking about dying?"

He nodded, though she wasn't positive he really remembered. It had been so long ago. She swallowed around the lump in her throat. Her hand trembled at her side. "I told you guys that I didn't care if I died.. I just wanted to have you two in my life."

"You're not going to die," he snapped. She blinked, ignoring the stinging in the back of her eyes. A sigh left her nose. "That's not what I'm saying," she replied. His body tensed, nerves alight with electricity. His brows furrowed. "I'm just saying that... even though you shot me and you kidnapped me, I'm glad... I'm glad I got to see you again."

Before he could respond or react, the sound of rattling chains sounded in the room. She had so much more to say, and he had so much more to respond with. Their heads moved back toward the direction where the sound came from. The gentle slapping of bare feet sounded next.

Marisol's fingers squeezed tighter around the blade as a dancer entered the room. Her skin was tanned, scaleless. She looked so normal. Everyone readied their weapons. She couldn't be the only creature coming to kill them. "But the Lord stood with me and gave me strength," Jacob spoke lowly, loud enough for them to hear.

Swiftly, Marisol moved her hand to the necklace dangling around her throat. She gave it a tight squeeze, whispering a silent prayer of protection and strength. Growling echoed in almost the silent room. Goosebumps raised on her skin.

"Six against two," Seth muttered. "I like those odds."

The large culebra paused in his movements, seemingly flexing his muscles. Before they could attack, several bodies came to a stand. They hissed menacingly at the live dinner standing before them. Marisol started to worry that if she did make it, would she ever stop hearing it? "This just got biblically worse," Jacob argued.

"Wait a second. I know that lug nut and his biker chick. They weren't culebras before." Marisol snorted. "Neither was that perv, either," Scott said.

"Didn't we conclude that they're basically vampires?" Marisol asked. "When your bitten by a vampire, their venom gets in your blood. It's like a viral infection. It alters your DNA until you're a vampire, too." Seth glanced toward her, brows furrowed. She started to feel all of their eyes casting glances her way, quickly redirecting their attention back on the dangers ahead.

Richie continued to stare at her, curiously. She hesitantly looked back, her head moving from place to place until she couldn't take it anymore. "What?" she snapped. His shoulders lifted in a lazy shrug and he quickly turned back to the culebras before them. "I like fantasy books, okay? Sue me."

"Can we not do this right now?" Seth asked, a hint of a smirk curled at the corner of his mouth. Marisol's eyes dropped into a glare. The creatures started advancing on them, taunting them with every inch lost between them. Her knees bent, ready to lunge if needed to. "Scott," Jacob whispered to his son, "listen to me. Don't let your anger get the best of you."

Kate took a step closer to Marisol unconsciously. "There's a fine line between self-defense and depraved violence." The smell was putrid. Blood, metal, body waste. It all swam in the air, given life by the creatures before them. "Dad, I got this," Scott hissed. Jacob shook his head. "There are better ways to channel your grief."

"Who says I'm channeling grief?"

Tired of the back and forth, and the waiting, Professor Tanner spun the stake in his hand with a loud grunt. "Alright, it's time to ring the dinner bell!" He hit the cymbal with the heavy end of the leg. He stepped out from behind their wall, extending his arms out with a taunting grin. "Culebras!" he exclaimed in a singsong tone. "Come out to play!"

With every thrust of his hips, the gun sitting in his private zone went off. Bullets broke the skin of the culebra, but didn't seem to phase it. Seth and Richie shot at the dancer, bullets forcing her a few steps back. Her shriek echoed in Marisol's skull.

Regardless of how many bullets they fired, the culebras remained strong. It felt as if they were stuck in a Western movie, and they were fighting off a band of robbers stealing from their small town. Kate's shaky hand grabbed Marisol's wrist in a grip so tight that it wouldn't be surprising if she bruised. "They're still coming!" the young girl shrieked.

"Keep shooting," Seth shouted over the gun fire like a leader. Marisol's eyes slipped over toward him with a soft smile. It was only seconds after that Tanner's gun clicked. "Shot my load!" he announced with an angered grunt. Seth's gun followed, clicking with his next shots. "I'm out!"

Seth grabbed Marisol's waist, forcing her to squat behind the tables. She drug Kate down with her. "Everybody down," Richie instructed. The rest crouched behind the table, all except Richie. Her eyes locked onto Seth's. He was so close, hand still resting at her side. "God," she hissed. "This better fucking work."

A prideful smile flashed across Richie's face as the beeping of the cellphone buttons sounded. "Ye who has little faith," he replied. Seth rolled his eyes. The sound of the other phone ringing caused Marisol's back to stiffen. Without hesitation, Seth placed his hands over her ears, their heads bumping together as he pulled her into him.

Richie fell against them, the group huddling together. Their makeshift bomb exploded in the center of the room, sending splintering wood in every corner. Marisol looked up to see Seth's eyes screwed closed. "Did it work?" she asked in a hushed tone, unaware of how loud her voice really was. Seth then covered her mouth, brows furrowing, and yet a smile seemed to play his lips.

She could finally hear the growling, the howling of injured animals. Her eyes flashed toward the table, as if she could gaze through it to see the collateral damage done by the bomb. She felt Kate knock into her, her terrified voice calling out her brother's name. The young boy leapt over the table, machete in hand.

Kate was the first to stand, watching in fear as her brother stood at the toes of a monster. Seth's grip left her body, leaving her cold. He and Richie stepped up to the weird, advanced mutant they had seen entered from the stage. His hands were long, and pointed like blades. "Shit!" Seth hissed.

She didn't know who to watch. Scott, or her boys? How was she supposed to protect them all? That's what she's supposed to do. That's what she took an oath for. The clattering of metal caught her attention and her head snapped toward where Scott stood defenseless. Jacob gasped, pushing Kate closer to the table and moving around her. He called out for his son, pain in his tone, panic filling his body like a flood.

Tanner threw a rock at the culebra, capturing her attention from the boy. Her tongue was like a lasso. She locked onto Tanner's cock gun and ripped it off, startling the professor. She shoved him against the wall, his head bouncing from the surface. Another culebra caught Jacob before he could reach Scott. Marisol rounded the table, panic settling deep inside her bones. She gripped the stake in her hand with whitening grip.

Before she could stop him, Scott ran at the culebra with full force. "No!" she screamed. "Scott!" Jacob cried. Scott's body was thrown through a space in the wall protected by a wooden barricade. She advanced on the dancer, swinging her blade with as much strength as she could muster. "Perra malvada," she screeched, anger and despair filling her voice.

The dancer reflected her attack. A clawed hand connected with her cheek, forcing her to stumble back. She kicked out her foot, connecting with the dancer's stomach. The dancer fell back against Jacob, his hands now stained with ichor. He easily twisted her to face him, ready to plunge the stake in his hand through her heart.

"Seth!"

Richie's voice was tight, and it resonated in her head. She turned around to find Richie on his back. Where was Seth? "Seth?" she called out. Her body ran cold. She felt frozen in her spot. For a moment, her eyes met those of the monster.

"Hey!" His voice lifted the cold chill in her bones. Her head snapped toward the sound, finding Seth holding a full chair in front of him. Richie quickly got to his feet, grabbing another chair. The two ran at the monster, impaling it with the chair legs on both sides. One would pierce his heart.

She released a breath. It didn't last. For when his eyes met her, panic flashed within them. Low growling sounded from behind her. She whirled around to come face to face with the biker chick Richie had mentioned earlier. Hands came to grasp her shirt, claws digging into her shoulders. Her shoes couldn't get traction. The blood, the ichor on the floor forced her to lose her balance.

She kept the monster arm's length away. The impact knocked her weapons from her grasp. She grunted, struggling to get her legs between them. She pressed the sole of her shoe into her stomach and pushed her off with all of her might. Once the weight left her body, she flipped over onto the ground and scrambled for her blade. The culebra lunged once more, only for the blade of Marisol's knife to pierce her chest.

An angry growl left the woman's throat as she forced the blade deeper, dark blood spilling over her hands. The creature's cry filled her ears, and then silence as dust sprinkled over her. Seth was next to her in the next second, kneeling beside her and helping her sit up.

The sound of a chainsaw filled their ears. Kate stood behind the very culebra that hurt her brother and her father with the chainsaw revved up. Her arms shook with the power of it. They all watched in silence as she let out a cry and forced it into the culebra's neck. She dragged it further and further down, cutting into her bones and skin, until she exploded into a cloud of dust.

"Are you okay?" Seth suddenly asked, grabbing Marisol's face and making her face him. She nodded her head. "You... What happened? Richie--" Seth's thumbs ran along her cheeks, scratching away the dried blood from before. His forehead came to rest against hers. "I'm okay," he whispered. "We're okay."

Out of the corner of her eyes, Marisol noticed a movement. Had they missed one? She placed her hands on Seth's shoulders, her breath coming out sharply. Seth watched her face fall, turning to see just what she had noticed. Santanico stood behind Richard in all her glory.

Richie spun around, startled to find the woman he had trusted behind him. "You can't leave, Richard," she stated. Seth slowly rose to his feet. "Not yet." That white hot anger began to siphon it's way into Marisol's veins. She glared at the woman, fingers tightening around her knife. "You belong here. Somewhere inside, close to the bone, you know it, too."

He lifted the knife, pointing the tip toward Santanico. His breathing came out in sharp waves. "No, you don't know me," he argued. It felt as if she was staring at that little boy, broken and in pain. Marisol stood to her feet, ready to step in and help if Richie needed her to.

"That's not true," Santanico said. There was a small pause where her eyes flickered over toward Seth. Marisol instinctively grabbed his arm, a frown creasing between her brows. Her eyes fell on Marisol for only a moment before flickering back to Richie. "I know you better than your brother does."

"You have some nerve," Marisol hissed. "Tus mentiras te alcanzarán. Espera y verás." Seth placed his hand over hers, capturing her attention. She bit her tongue. Richie squeezed his eyes closed. Everything was starting to rip his brain apart. "You tell me, brother," Seth spoke up. "Does she?"

"I'm in your soul, Richard." His confidence was dwindling away. She was ripping apart his sanity. "But I don't blame you for being suspicious," she explained. "I asked you to trust me, but I didn't tell you what was coming. I wanted to show you who I was, on my own terms."

What, a literal man eating monster?, Marisol thought. That would definitely not be something she added to her dating profile.

"The world is much more complicated than you know." She was moving closer. Her voice lowered, and she was advancing on Richie. Seth seemed to notice this, too. "Richie," he blurted out. "Look at me. Don't listen to this."

Marisol felt her stomach begin to turn. That feeling she had experienced when they got here returned. "I taught you how to see," Santanico whispered. Richie's arm lowered. He was hooked on her words. "That was only the beginning."

"Don't listen to her, Rich," Marisol spoke up. She couldn't help but watch Santanico herself. The culebra's eyes began to fill with water. She was locked in on Richie. "I don't want to hurt you," she said. "I need you. And you need me, too."

Seth's hand that rested on Marisol's traveled to her other arm. He slid down the length of her arm, stopping directly at her wrist. "You have to let these people go," Richie said. A tear trickled down Santanico's cheek. Seth's fingers slipped between hers, his movements becoming more jerky. "Richard, stop," he demanded his brother.

"Something's coming, remember?" Richie sighed through his nose. "Then let them go." The blade Marisol was holding was taken from her grasp. Seth readied to stab it right through Santanico's heart, but stopped at the sound of a gun shot. Marisol flinched, hand coming to cover her ears. Blood exploded across Santanico's skin.

Red stained Richie's white shirt. The color drained from Marisol and Seth's faces. "Richie," Marisol gasped. Her head felt light. He turned to face her and his brother, a crease between his brows. "Oh, my God. No, this wasn't—" Marisol turned to Seth with panicked breaths. "This wasn't supposed to happen."

Santanico unleashed a manic roar, shifting back into her second skin. Richie fell to his knees, face falling slack. Seth was the first to move. Santanico forced him away, throwing his body into the man behind them. Marisol was next, spinning away from Richie and into a table. She rolled over the surface and crashed amidst the rubble of their earlier experiment.

"Richie!" Seth shouted, his eyes locked on his brother being dragged away. He struggled onto his knees. He cried out his brother's name as the stone door closed between them. Richie was gone.

rumi says . . .
yall we finished episode seven. we
have three more episodes to go until
we finish season one!!!

i *hate* writing action scenes.
especially for this fandom bc so much
happens. 💀 and i want to add my own
twist to things but its sooo hard when some
stuff that happens is important to a character's
growth in the series. but i did what i could,
and i still really like it.

what are your thoughts?
how are we feeling about these two?
( i love them so much )

i hope you guys enjoyed it!
feedback is seriously appreciated!