Disclaimer: Victoria DiThon Kestral belongs to me.  Oz belongs to Mutant Enemy.  Jason and the other werewolves belongs to Laurell K. Hamilton.  All other unspecified characters belong to me. No money is being made off of this.  Rated PG-13.

Tria ~ 1

Victoria DiThon Kestral stormed through the halls of the office building in downtown Washington DC, seething in anger.  Her two trusted lackeys followed behind her, more than a little worried about their boss.  She reached the main suite and banged through the doors, ignoring the startled guards.

“What the hell is this about, Sheridan?” Victoria asked in an angry voice, slamming a folder down on the desk of her boss.  “Part of our deal was that I stayed on the East Coast.  There is no way that I am going to California.”  She stood with her hands on her hips, defiance written on her face.

“But my dear, I need you to supervise the set up of my new operation in California.  It’s your specialty,” the drug-lord said smoothly.  “And remember, our deal was never put to paper.  I believe I have leave to change whatever I want.”

Victoria practically growled at him.  Angus Sheridan had contacted Victoria two years ago, in 1991.  The two had struck Sheridan’s version of a deal.  Victoria helped him, and he didn’t take her head.  Her “specialty” was the ability to blend into a crowd and contact potential dealers for the drugs that Sheridan imported from South America and Asia.  His territory extended from New York to Miami, and west to New Orleans and St. Louis.  Now Sheridan had his sights on California and Seattle, and wanted Victoria to do the fieldwork.  “Fine,” she snarled.  “But you get to bail me out if I get arrested.  I’m known here, but new places . . .” She left the sentence open to his imagination.

“I have every faith in you,” Sheridan said smoothly.  “I would suggest that you change your appearance though, so you’re not connected with any of your personas over here.”

The apparent teenager gave him a curt nod, biting back a sarcastic retort, and stalked out of the office.  Her lackeys rejoined her outside.  “What’s up, boss?” Alejandro asked.

“We’re going to LA,” Victoria replied.

Umver ~ 1

“You’re sending me where?” Jason yelled.  “Uh-uh, I don’t think so, Simon.”  The teenager stared in shock at his Ulfric, forgetting momentarily that his outburst could result in painful consequences.  Most likely from Marcus, Simon’s second-in-command, who was smirking at Jason the corner of the room.

“It’s for your own good, Jason,” Simon replied sternly.  “You’ve been going stir crazy around here, and it would probably be a good idea for you to have a vacation.  I have a friend in Seattle who will look after you.  He’s a werewolf, too.  It’ll be good for both of you.”

Jason rolled his eyes.  “Summer break in Washington, land of apples and coffee.  I’d rather stay in St. Louis.  My friends are here.”

“Friends you will lose if they find out about us, Jason,” Simon replied.  “I think you’ll like Oz.  I’ve known him for years.”

“Whatever,” Jason said.  “I’ll go.”  He stomped out of the back room of the bar owned by the resident werewolves of St. Louis, the Lunatic Café, and grabbed himself a soda.  During the day, the bar was a meeting place for members of the pack.  “Great, summer vacation with some old geezer who’ll treat me like a stupid kid.”

Richard, a fellow werewolf, walked in and overheard Jason’s last comment.  “So he is sending you to Seattle.  I’m sorry, Jase, I offered to take you down to Texas with me, but Simon said no.”  The first-year teacher sat down next to Jason and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“That’s okay, Richard,” Jason sighed.  “I’ll deal.  And to think that most kids would jump at the chance to go.”

Virate ~ 1

“Yes!” Oz cried when he read the letter from his contact.  “I knew it was down there somewhere.”  Theolus Ozcorun, known better by his nickname Oz, had been searching for a place called the Hellmouth, the supposed gateway to hell.  A close friend of his had been helping him search for it, and finally pinpointed it as being near Los Angeles.  “It’s too bad I have to drag that kid around with me, though.”

He leaned back in his desk chair and picked up the phone.  After making travel arrangements for his trip to LA, he called Simon.  “Hey,” Oz said.  “Is that kid coming over here this summer?”  Then he grimaced, glad that his friend could not see him over the phone.  After getting the details, he said goodbye and hung up the phone.  “Great, he doesn’t want to come.  This should definitely make for an interesting summer.”

Tria ~ 2

Victoria walked into her hotel suite and collapsed on the couch.  They had been in LA a mere two weeks, but it felt like forever.  Alejandro and Jared walked in behind her and locked the door.  Then both followed suit and also seated themselves on the couch.  “Sheridan sure expects a lot, doesn’t he, boss?” Jared said with a sigh.  “We’ve been on our feet all day.”

She echoed his sigh.  “It’s nothing I can’t handle, but I don’t want to be here in the first place.  Keep an eye out, guys, I’m gonna go take a nap before we have to go to that meeting with that gang, the Locos.  I can’t believe they think we’re moving in on they’re territory.  They don’t even deal drugs.”  Victoria grinned.  “Yet.  I have the feeling that the Locos are going to be our best contacts.  And pack, ‘cause tomorrow we’re going to that other town Sheridan wanted me to check out, Sunnydale.”

“Go take your nap, boss,” Alejandro said.  “I’m going on a food run, but Jared’ll stay here and pack.”  His partner nodded.  “Stop worrying so much!”

“Thanks, guys,” Victoria said, smiling fondly at them.  They were the only two in Sheridan’s service who she trusted completely, and they had proven their worth more than once in the past two years.

She headed into her room and was again startled by her appearance in the mirror.  Going by the name Toria DiStrall, she had gone all out.  For the past ten years, her hair had been nearly to her waist and its natural brown.  Now it was shoulder length and black with a silver streak down the right side, and a dark blue streak down the left.  For a finished touch, a small tattoo in the Celtic eternal life symbol was on her cheekbone to the side of her right eye.  “’Change my appearance,’ Sheridan says,” Victoria muttered as she collapsed onto the queen-size bed.  “I wonder if he even knows what I look like now.”

As Victoria mind drifted as she fell asleep.  Two hundred and eight years old and reduced to playing errand girl for Angus Sheridan.  How humiliating.

Umver ~ 2

Jason walked off the plane and gazed around the waiting area.  He was expecting an adult, but was appropriately surprised when a teenager approached.  “Are you Jason?” the teen asked.  He nodded.  “I’m Theolus Ozcorun, but you can call me Oz.  I’m a friend of Simon’s.”  Oz shook his hand, and Jason nodded, speechless.  After picking up Jason’s other bag from baggage claim, Oz led him to a beat-up old van in the parking lot.

Jason finally regained his sense of speech.  “I was expecting someone - older.”  He studied the other teenager, who was only slightly taller than he was.  “Just how old are you?”

Oz gave a small grin as he pulled the van onto the highway.  “A lot older than you think.  Nineteen at the moment.”  Before Jason could respond to this cryptic remark, Oz continued.  “We’re spending the night at my hotel, but tomorrow we’re heading to a town called Sunnydale.  I don’t know if Simon told you, but I’m a researcher.”

“What are you researching?” Jason asked, his curiosity getting the best of him

“I’ll tell you later.  You hungry?” Jason nodded slowly, completely mystified by his new caretaker.

Virate ~ 2

The next afternoon, Oz and Jason arrived at the only decent hotel in Sunnydale, California.  The entire town was small, and the desk clerk gave the two teenagers odd looks as they checked in.  Much to Jason’s amazement, the older boy had rented one of the two suites.

“We may be here awhile,” Oz merely said as they rode the elevator up.  “Might as well be comfortable.”  Jason had already learned that Oz was not a very talkative guy, and only nodded.

Later that afternoon, Oz disappeared for awhile.  When he came back, he was incredibly excited, or as exited as he seemed to ever get.  “I found it!” he told Jason.  “I found the Hellmouth!”

“The what?” Jason asked.

“The Hellmouth, a gateway to hell.  I first heard about it around five hundred years ago.  It moves around, and I’ve only found it once before,” Oz replied.  Jason was staring at him.  “What?”

“Five hundred years?” Jason gasped out.

“Oh yeah, besides being a werewolf, I’m an Immortal.  I’m about a thousand and six hundred years old,” the apparent teenager said.  “But don’t treat me any different.  Immortality's just another form of preternatural creature, like vampire.  But I don’t drink blood.”

The sixteen-year-old nodded, as Oz headed for his room.  “We’re going out to the mall in an hour!  I have some stuff to pick up,” he tossed over his shoulder before again disappearing.

Tria ~ 3

Victoria desperately needed a break.  She, Alejandro, and Jared had left LA immediately after a successful meeting with the Locos and arrived in Sunnydale early that morning.  They checked into a suite in the best hotel in town and slept until afternoon.  That evening, much to her lackeys’ dislike, she had disappeared by herself to check out the town.  Her imagination had been playing tricks on her at the hotel, making her almost seem to feel another Immortal - but not quite.  Then she had spotted some vampires on the way downtown.  As part vampire herself, Victoria needed to find the resident master and let them know she was not trying to invade their territory.

“Maybe they’ll be our dealers,” Victoria mused.  “That would bug Sheridan to no end.”  She smiled as she took a taxi downtown.  “Now for some shopping before finding the resident vamps.”  At the mall, she picked up some new clothes, trying to fit the part of oblivious, slightly punked out teenager.  There hadn’t been a lot of time for shopping before heading to the West Coast, or after they arrived, and her Toria persona still was not quite complete.  Finally adorned in new jeans, white T-shirt, black velvet vest, Doc Marten’s, and requisite leather trench coat with sword hidden inside, Victoria headed back towards the parking lot with her bags.

Muttering a curse in Gaelic, Victoria hastily ducked into a sporting goods store when she felt the presence of another Immortal.  Maybe it wasn’t my imagination after all, she thought.  Peering through the display window while pretending to look at tennis rackets, the apparent teenager glanced down the hall.  She nearly dropped her bags when she spotted the source, a teenage boy also looking suspiciously around, with another boy looking at him in confusion.

“My gods,” Victoria muttered as she headed out of the store and towards him.  “Hey,” she called in greeting.  “What are you doing here?”

Umver ~ 3

“Victoria?” Oz asked in surprise.  “I would ask you the same thing.  I heard about what happened a few years ago in LA, and figured you wouldn’t be over here for awhile.”

Victoria made a face, and replied, “I’m not here by choice.  And you?”

“Still looking for the Hellmouth.  But this time I think I’ve got it,” he said with a grin.  “We’re gonna go check it out tonight, want to come?”

“Wouldn’t miss it,” Victoria said.  “I have to go find the master vampire around here after sunset, but then I can meet you for dinner.”  Then she noticed Jason, who was staring at them in undisguised curiosity.  “And you are?”

“This is Jason, he’s hanging out with me this summer on the request of his pack Ulfric,” Oz said.  “This is my friend Victoria DiThon Kestral, a fellow Immortal.”

“Werewolf?” Victoria asked.  Jason nodded, impressed with her knowledge.  “Nice to meet you.”

The two shook hands and suddenly Jason jerked in surprise.  “You’re a vampire!” he whispered, peering closely at her.  Though he was not a werewolf yet, close proximity to the pack and St. Louis vampires had let him pick up a few things already.

“In a way, yes,” she replied simply.  Turning back to Oz and rapidly changing the subject, she said, “I take it you guys are staying at the Sunnydale Motel?  I knew I felt something - it was probably you, Oz-man.  Let’s meet at the hotel resturant for dinner at say, eight-thirty?”  Oz nodded, and he and Victoria clasped hands, before she walked away.  The two stared after her.

“How long have you known her?” Jason asked.  He could see the nearly wistful look in Oz's eyes.

“We were lovers for awhile after World War II,” came the unexpected reply.  “Not anymore, but we’re still good friends.  I don't get to see her as often as I'd like.  Come on, let’s go back to the hotel.”

Virate ~ 3

Victoria met Oz and Jason in the café, her face alight with a cocky grin.  “What’s up?” Oz asked.

“Nothing,” she replied quickly, a little too quickly.  Oz nodded slowly, knowing not to press.  “I’m not that hungry, so why don’t we head out?  My two travelling companions are not pleased with me going off by myself.  They can be a little overprotective.”

“Sure,” her friend replied, and they trooped out to his van.  After a short ride, they arrived at a patch of woods near some houses, with construction equipment nearby.  “This is where the Hellmouth is,” Oz said, gesturing to the woods.  “Unfortunately, the city is going to bulldoze the woods and build a new high school, because the other one is about to fall apart.  I just hope that thing stays closed.”

“I can feel the energy,” Jason said softly.  Victoria also nodded with a grim look on her face.

“I hope you brought weapons, Oz,” she said.  “I certainly loaded up mine.”  Glancing at Jason, she added, “You have no idea of the danger you’re walking into, kid.  Are you sure you want to come?”

“You’re such a pessimist, Toria.  I was here this afternoon,” Oz said.  “Come on, guys.”  He led them into the trees, and towards the center of the grove.  All three apparent teenagers being preternatural creatures themselves, the prickling sensation at the back of their necks grew stronger the farther they went.  Finally, they emerged into a small clearing, devoid of anything, even grass.

“Whoa,” Jason said.

“I agree,” Victoria said, her hand clutching the hilt of her sword in her coat.  Suddenly, an invisible force shoved them backwards.  A swirling fog in a myriad of colors appeared in the center of the clearing.  “What the-?”

Triaumvervirate ~ §

“WELCOME!” a voice boomed out.  "I HAVE BEEN AWAITING YOU!"  Victoria and Oz each drew their swords, and Jason stood behind them.  The fog condensed to form a figure in the exact center of the clearing.  “I AM TRIAUMVERVIRATE, THE DEMON OF THREES.  AND I HAVE A PROPOSITION FOR YOU.”  The demon appeared to be male, and had smooth white skin, with hair the color of the night sky with red, blue, and green streaks.  Its eyes were silver, with a cat’s slit pupils.

“A demon?” Victoria said, an unbelieving look on her face.  “As in some bad ass creature out to destroy the world out of hatred for mortals?”

Triaumvervirate laughed, his voice a silky sound that seemed to wind around the three.  “NO, VICTORIA DITHON KESTRAL, NOT ALL DEMONS ARE LIKE THAT.  AND I DON'T BELIEVE YOU ARE A MORTAL.  ANYTHING BUT.”

“How did you know her name?” Oz demanded.  His eyes narrowed when the demon smiled at him.

“I HAVE BEEN WATCHING THE THREE OF YOU SINCE JASON HERE WAS BORN, THEOLUS OZCORUN.  I HAVE NEED OF YOU, AND HAD WAITED OVER A DECADE FOR YOU TO MAKE YOUR WAY HERE," the demon said.  “AS I SAID, A PROPOSITION.”

“And what would that be?” Jason spoke up from the rear.  He tried to act much braver than he felt.

“AH, JASON, THE BOY WITH NO FAMILY, TAKEN IN BY THE ST. LOUIS PACK, AND SUCH A YOUNG MORTAL.  YOU ARE DESTINED TO BECOME POMME D'SANG FOR THE NEXT VAMPIRE MASTER OF ST. LOUIS, YOU KNOW.  VICTORIA, IMMORTAL AND VAMPIRE, WHO'S SIRE WAS AN OUTCAST AND THEREFOR SHE IS, TOO, OLD AND YOUNG IN ALL SENSES OF THE WORD.  AND OZ, IMMORTAL AND WEREWOLF, OLD BY ANY STANDARD AT NEARLY TWO THOUSAND.”  The demon’s eyes glinted in a mysterious light.  “YOU THREE ARE A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF WHAT I AM AND REPRESENT.  A TRIANGLE.”

“’Cause three is such a magic number,” Victoria said sarcastically.  “Get to the point.  What do you want?”  Oz glanced at his friend worriedly.  He had encountered demons before, and knew that it was not necessarily smart to anger them.

But Triaumvervirate merely laughed again, and the three shivered involuntarily.  “IMMORTAL, WEREWOLF, VAMPIRE.  OLD AND YOUNG.  HERE IS MY PROPOSITION: I AM PLANNING ON GOING TO SLEEP, FOR A FEW DECADES AT THE VERY LEAST.  I WISH FOR YOU THREE TO BECOME MY GUARDIANS.”

Against their better judgements, they were each instantly intrigued.  “And what would that entail?” Oz asked slowly.

“OH, THE USUAL.  I WOULD INSTILL THIS POWER INTO YOU-“ Triaumvervirate held out his hand, and three small orbs of light, red, blue, and green, appeared, circling around each other.  “YOU WOULD INSTANTLY BE ALERTED IF ANYTHING CAME NEAR MY LAIR AND BE TRANSPORTED THERE TO PROTECT ME WHILE I SLUMBER.”

“Against what?” Victoria interrupted.

“HOPEFULLY, NOTHING, BUT JUST IN CASE, HERE'S THE BENEFIT: IF YOU EACH ACCEPT, WHENEVER THE THREE OF YOU ARE TOGETHER, YOUR INDIVIDUAL STRENGTHS WILL INCREASE TREMENDOUSLY.  AND NO MATTER WHERE IN THE WORLD YOU ARE, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO CALL ON EACH OTHER FOR ASSISTANCE..”  The demon smiled, and held out his hand.  The three lights pulsed with beckoning power.

Victoria glanced at Oz, who looked back.  The two held a silent discussion with their eyes.  Then Oz turned to Jason.  “We can’t ask you to commit yourself to this, Jason, you’re too young.  But it’s up to you.  If you agree, so do we.”

Jason tilted his head and studied the demon.  Pomme d’sang translated into “the apple of life.”  The blood of were-creatures was stronger than that of humans, and vampires preferred it.  Being pomme d’sang to a Master was an incredible honor, and a position of great strength.  He decided.  “I accept.”

Victoria looked defiantly at the demon.  “So do I.”

Oz nodded regally.  “And I.”

Triaumvervirate smiled.  “PERFECT!”  The blue orb of light floated over to Victoria.  “YOU ARE TRIA, THE COURAGE.  YOU HAVE THE JUDGEMENT NECESSARY TO FIGHT, AND WIN.”  The light suddenly zipped into her chest, and she gasped.

The next orb, the red, moved towards Jason.  “YOU ARE UMVER, THE STRENGTH.  YOUR YOUTH PROVIDES YOU WITH THE ABILITY TO FIGHT, AND FIGHT WELL.”  It was also absorbed into him.

Finally, the green.  “YOU ARE VIRATE, THE WISDOM.  WITH YOUR KNOWLEDGE OF THE CENTURIES, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO KNOWN EXACTLY WHAT TO DO, AND PREVAIL.”  Triaumvervirate smiled as the light melted into Oz.  "I THANK YOU.  GOODBYE.”  And the demon disappeared in a flash of light, as suddenly as he had arrived.

For a few seconds, the three merely stared at each other.  “Did that really just happen?” Victoria asked slowly as she re-sheathed her sword.

Oz nodded and followed suit.  “It would seem so - Tria,” he said with a grin.  “But I don’t think we should tell anyone about this.”

“No one would believe us anyway,” Jason put in.  “Deal?”  He reached out his hand.  Victoria and Oz also reached out theirs, and with a somehow familiar feeling, they clasped each other’s forearms to form a triangle.  They stood there for a few minutes, smiling at each other, reveling in the newly found companionship.  Then they headed out of the woods and towards Oz’s van.

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This page was last updated: 6.14.4 ~jlg~