Tag: Highacre
#18 – Jimmy “The Velvet Glove†Valentino
Jimmy Valentino was a name feared on the professional boxing circuit, he had been quick like fox but packed the uppercut of a grizzly bear. He earned the nickname Velvet glove after his tenth straight win by knockout; they said his gloves must be lined with velvet the way he put guys to sleep.
Those days seemed like a whole life ago now. Jimmy had grown old and round; the beer belly hanging out of his dirty white vest suited him in his new role as barman. Jimmy ran the local watering hole for all the local thugs and drunks in Higharce, the place was called the Bears Uppercut. It was the only thing Jimmy had left to show for all the money he’d won boxing all those years. Well that and the old heavyweight belt he had hung up behind the bar.
Having proof he was a former champ seemed to stop any trouble coming Jimmy’s way. Somehow though old troubles seem to find new ways of catching you to you. Mike Grell caught up to Jimmy the night he walked into the Bears Uppercut doing Luca Bell’s dirty work.
“No fucking way. If it ain’t my old mentor Jimmy the Velvet Glove himself.â€
Within three minutes of hearing these words Jimmy was on the dirty, stinking floor of the back alley behind his bar with Mike and his goons in suits laying the boots in to him.
“This is for you never officially retiring so I could win that god damn belt of yours.â€
“Oh piss off you whiney little brat.†Jimmy managed to get out between the kicks to the ribs.
“Got some fight in you yet all man. How about we go a round right here? Get him up boys†Mike spat with a shit-eating grin all over his face.
The goons in suits pulled old Jimmy to his feet, bloodied and bruised, his dirty white vest even worse for the beating he’d taken.
Mike’s left jab came in at Jimmy and instinct took over, weaving right Jimmy caught him with a left of his own.
Blood ran from the now broken nose of Mike Grell. Wiping the blood away with the back of his palm he chuckled to himself.
“You’ve gone and done it now Jimmy old pal.â€
His fine suit ripped and shredded falling to the floor as the change happened. His body covered in fur, his broken nose elongated and formed a muzzle. Mike grew and bulked out into the monstrous form of a werewolf. With one swift sweep of his arm he slashed at Jimmy the goons in suits looking on as their boss went to work.
Slashed and blooded across the chest, Jimmy spat his own blood on the floor.
“I might be old and a bit out of practice but let’s dance.â€
Frozen for a moment as he tried to understand what was going on Mike watched as Jimmy went through a similar transformation, but Jimmy grew taller and wider then mike, his short fur speckled with grey like his hair. Jimmy stood proudly before Mike in his Werebear form.
“Yeah that’s right kid, I always was bigger and tougher then you. Wont no velvet glove knocking them fellas out back in the day. Just the left over power form being an alpha predator Werebear. Now I’d say you best change back and run home to your boss before you piss me off anymore.†The words sounds like the low rumble of a storm as they left the huge jaw of Jimmy in Werebear form.
It seems all kinds of creatures are gathering in the city of Highacre, old debts and new means not everyone’s leaving alive.
#16 – Vera Macrae.
A place like Highacre draws a lot of different people to it. Vera Macrae came here as a young girl. Leaving her the home in Scotland that she adored so her dad could come and work the thriving docks Highacre. Vera’s mother ran a local shop; she sold old books and trinkets nothing very exciting to the eyes of a young girl like Vera.
Now eighty years later Vera runs the shop, her parents long since passed. Her interest in the shops wares has grown a great deal of the years. The spark of interest was ignited the evening an old gentleman in a long flowing coat came calling, his knock came at well past midnight. Vera snuck down the stairs to see her mother handing the man what looked like an old wooden jewelry box she had seen about a hundred times, just resting on the mantle piece in the lounge. His face lid up as he opened the lid pulling out a heart shaped crystal from within. Crushing it in his frail old hands the gentleman ate every last piece of the crystal. Vera couldn’t believe her eyes as the old mans face stretched and then pulled taut, right in front of her as she watched him grew younger and younger, until he stood, tall and handsome no older than twenty. The gentleman thanked her mother, handed her a selection of small diamonds and other wondrous looking gems before turning and leaving.
Over the next few years Vera saw more and more of these strange events, woman vanishing into old mirrors, rings healing a broken limbs. Vera final confronted her parents about what was going on. They couldn’t hide the truth anymore and told her everything. They where the crafters and collectors of all manner of magical, mystical and supernatural trinkets and charms, the experts in the fields of magical constructs and transferral of magical energy to a non magical item. It all seemed so wonderful to her back then as she was trained and educated in all these new and exciting things.
After fifty years of running the place alone, dealing with all sorts of strange people and creatures, all in search of power or knowledge through her wares, she was sick and tired, ready for something else.
Luca Bell the local crime boss and by all accounts vampire had sent men to turn her place over twice in the last month, he was just like all the others looking for something, acting like Vera had something secret and hidden away. They never found anything and would leave her to clean up their mess.
They never paid attention to her tiny little lounge upstairs.
Opening the old wooden jewelry box on her mantle piece Vera looked longingly at the crystal heart inside, it was nearly ready a month more and it would be fully formed, after all these years of waiting. Vera could finally do something new; she could be anything she wanted in her new life. And Vera wants to be young and powerful.
#15 Luca Bell
Corruption ran through the streets of the once great city of Highacre. It was now a place of crime, murder and things even fouler still. Luca Bell, head of the local crime family was the cause of this. He had control of the police department, the local papers, all the business and bars in the city paid him a share of their profits for ‘protection’. No one could get to him; any who tried didn’t last long. He was untouchable, or so he thought.
Luca couldn’t control the cruel twist of fate that was dealt to him. Luca was diagnosed with terminal cancer. He had six months to live. Word got out quickly; every local two-bit crook thought now was their time to make a play at the big time. Luca wasn’t guna be around much longer someone had to step into take his place. Luca was damned if he was going to let anyone replace him.
Dark and other worldly things where always rumored to be going on in the dead of night somewhere in Highacre. Luca hoped one rumor was true. He had his most loyal men out searching the streets for this myth. Three months had passed and nothing, Luca was growing weaker and more enraged as the days passed.
In the end the myth came to him. Through the doors from Luca’s balcony came the man he needed. He had no name he’d long since forgot it, he simply went by Mr B. now. Sinking his teeth into the neck of Luca, he damned him and saved him in one moment.
Looking into the eyes of Mr B. Luca asked what would happen now? Mr. B grinned, his sharp fangs showing. He explained that Luca was now immortal, free to control the city, as he had been, that now he was a vampire he would be stronger then ever before. All Mr B. asked for in return was control of the east side of Highacre, where the hospital and blood bank where. Luca agreed and thus the two vampires formed a fragile alliance.
Luca sort out all those who had wished him dead so they could take his place, finding them in the night, devouring those who didn’t beg enough and only maiming those who said the right things. Ruling the city now with an even tighter grip Luca longs to discover what other myths of Highacre are true his new bodyguard, the ex boxer Mike Grell, has proven werewolves to be true.
The world of the supernatural seems to go hand in hand with the crime world.
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