InsaneJournal

Current location:	Boston
Current mood:	hyper
Current music:	Queen -- Princes of the Universe
Entry tags:	ben, fic, hsu, timeline: misc

First Challenge
X-posted to Danny's journal at IJ

Boston, MA (Danny aged 23)

The Immortal he sensed and was now following was young, perhaps even only recently experienced his first death. Certainly, by the strength of his Quickening, he had taken few, if any, heads.

Just the kind of Immortal he liked to hunt.

For nearly a thousand years, he had walked this world, his skills as a warrior honed on the battlefields of the Holy Land where he had first realized he was Immortal. Since then, and learning of the Game, he had made the most of those skills, determined to become The One, and that goal was always made easier when he happened across a young, inexperienced one. And in these modern times, where the most many new Immortals knew of a sword was in video games there were plenty. If they were really lucky and found a teacher, they might have had all too few years in actual training and were no match for him.

This one had two mortals with him. One was a tall, sandy haired man who appeared in his early forties and, perhaps the man who raised him. The other was in his early twenties, the same age the Immortal appeared to be, dark blond, so maybe a brother? No, he changed that assumption when he saw them put their arms around each other. They had all just come out of a nearby nightclub and were far too distracted to suspect they were being followed.

Then the young Immortal looked around, his eyes searching, so he had been sensed. He watched him hurriedly talk to the two mortals, both of them then worriedly following his gaze. The Crusader nodded and indicated down an alley as the older man was clearly urging the Immortal to get away. “I’ll just follow. He knows it has to be this way. It’s the rules of our kind.” Another brief, animated conversation between the three, and it was clear that the Immortal had convinced the other two that he would fight. To his surprise, the older man was the one who pulled a talwar sword from under his coat and handed it to the younger.

***

Daniel took the sword from Sean McManus, his primary bodyguard for the past three years, kissed Ben, and walked into the alley, his gaze not leaving that of his challenger for a moment. This was his first real fight. Both McManus and Ben had tried to dissuade him, to make a getaway, or to wait for more backup from his father’s men, but not only did he feel he had something to prove since Hsu gave him his first death nearly a year ago, but as he argued with them, this was part of being Immortal.

He had been well trained. Ever since he’d arrived at the Ranch, combat skills had been strongly emphasized in his education. Andy, Lars, and later Orestes had taught him hand-to-hand skills, he had sword-trained with Cody, Sebastien, his father, and even Snowman. In an age where true sword skills were very rare indeed, he had been taught by the best from a young age. While the focus of Hsu’s organization was on destroying the Watchers, neither was it ever forgotten that there were still many Immortals out there who simply wanted to challenge and take heads, not knowing or caring that their true enemy were mortals.

“Daniel.” McManus caught his arm. “I’ll be right behind you.” As was standard amongst the bodyguards, there were standing orders to shoot a challenger if it looked as if any of Hsu’s inner circle was going to lose a challenge. It was a simple order, although not always as simple to carry out. What if there wasn’t a chance to shoot? And this was not just one of Hsu’s circle, not even Cody, but his son.

“I’ll be okay. Look Dad’s spent fifteen years teaching me to fight; it’s about time I put it to use. And he knows that I’ll only grow stronger if I take some Quickenings. It had to happen sometime.” With that, he took a deep breath and turned to face his opponent.

McManus was calling Orestes, letting him know of the situation, not that Hsu’s lieutenant could do much. Either way the fight would be over before he could reach Boston from New York, and Hsu was in Switzerland with Cody right now. Next to him, Ben was worried. He hadn’t known about Danny’s immortality for very long, was still getting used to it, and while his friend had told him about the possibility of such fights, to actually have it happen, was something else. And he also didn’t know just how much training Danny had actually had.

“You don’t want to get rid of your audience?”

Daniel shook his head, his hand flexing on the sword grip the only sign of his nerves. “No, I always perform better with a crowd.” So, that was a bit of bravado, but he was not going to dismiss his backup.

The Crusader shrugged. It mattered little to him if they saw their boyfriend die. “So long as they know not to interfere.”

“They know.” Though Daniel knew if it came to it, it wouldn’t be abided by. He swung his sword a few times to loosen his wrist.

Easy meat, the Crusader thought, grinning at the worried friends and the young Immortal’s nerves. Already, he had his broadsword in hand, and without anymore fanfare, he attacked. Convinced that this head would be quickly taken, he held nothing back, no testing, probing exchange.

Daniel managed to block, but gave ground, and he silently thanked Snowman. Those bouts, where he had no chance of winning, had taught him how to deal with an opponent stronger and faster than he was. And this man, while good, was nowhere close to the vampire’s abilities. The fight now began in earnest, and Daniel held enough of his own, not afraid to give ground as he eventually turned them into a wide circle around the alley. Every lesson he was taught ran through his mind. His opponent was strong and experienced, and it was a hard fight with Daniel working on wearing the man down.

One strike the Crusader made came down really close to slicing into Daniel’s left shoulder, and Daniel barely dodged it. In fact, he didn’t entirely, and he hissed as the blade grazed his upper arm. It was so close that McManus nearly fired, and he likely would have if it had been a clear shot. Still, Daniel was having some success with getting in a few slices, especially on his legs as he got under the man’s defences.

The Crusader was getting tired. What he figured would be a fight over in a brief minute or two, was now lasting much, much longer. Had he misjudged his assessment of this Immortal so badly? Was he really much older than he appeared? He broke apart for a small breather, maybe he was feeling his age a bit because this young punk, although hurting, looked almost as fresh as when he’d started.

Just as grateful for the break, Daniel eyed him warily, his sword ready for another attack. Not only had the training prepared him, but his habit of dancing nearly all night long had also helped build his stamina. But he needed to end this, to show his father that he could do this and not have to rely on his bodyguard to win a challenge. He took a deep, stilling breath, let it out, and then attacked. The Crusader was ready for him and their swords locked, and for now, Daniel held him there, but didn’t seem able to break apart. Over the older man’s shoulder, he could just glimpse McManus moving quietly in position directly behind the Crusaders back, one hand with his gun aimed and his other holding onto a very worried looking Ben. A brief look of understanding passed between Immortal and bodyguard; this was something of a set piece that had been practiced (and practiced and practiced), and if it didn’t work, then McManus would have less than a second to take his shot.

Seeing that his back-up was ready, Dan met the Crusader’s eyes again. This had better work…it should work. He let the man push forward with the swords, forcing Daniel to twist his arms so he couldn’t help bending as the blades lowered, becoming more horizontal. Bracing himself, Dan pushed the hilts towards the man’s gut.

The Crusader had him, the young Immortal was slowly being forced onto his knees, a little more and one twist of his blade would send the other flying out of his hand…. At first he could only register surprise as a searing pain stabbed into his stomach, and he looked down. It was then he saw the thin stiletto blade jutting out of the modified tulwar’s hilt and into him. “Bastard.” Slowly, so slowly, he slipped to his own knees, his sword clattering unheeded on the pavement as he clutched at the blood flowing freely from the deep wound. “Who the fuck are you?”

McManus wasn’t sure, worried that every moment that passed would be a moment too late, but at the same time understood Daniel’s need to fight this one on his own. He let out a long breath as the challenger slumped to the ground, even if his gun didn’t waver from its target.

Looking a little stunned himself, Daniel held his sword up, ready for what he knew he had to do. So many times his father, and others, had ingrained in him not to let an enemy have a second chance that any thought of mercy didn’t occur to him. It hadn’t occurred to him to ask for introductions. Why should he know his who his enemy was; back at the command center, Orestes would look him up in the Watcher Chronicles and change his status to inactive to use the cold, clinical term of the Watchers. “Daniel Hsu.”

“Hsu? You’re not him. He’s my bank-. Shit!” The realization of the mistake he had made, and the one he so very nearly had made, dawned on him too late as he saw the glint of steel sweep down.

As the head rolled to the ground, Daniel stepped back, watching it in morbid fascination.

“DANNY!”

He turned at Ben’s shout. “Wait there!” He knew what to expect, but at the same time, he didn’t. Being told about Quickenings, even seeing one, could hardly fully prepare anyone for the experience. He had to rely on McManus holding his friend back while the storm raged. His bodyguard had more pressing matters on his mind than Ben. First, he sent a quick message on the phone before the Quickening knocked it out, which just briefly stated a code word that meant Daniel had won. Then he would watch the area while Daniel was in the throes of the Quickening, while he was vulnerable, especially if a Watcher, the dead Immortal’s or another, was lurking.

That all took just a matter of a second or two as the white mist slowly enveloped the body and drifted to Daniel. He waited for it, heart pounding in his chest, and then the first bolt of lightning hit. He screamed, unable to control his body from jerking backwards, sending his arms flying wide. Then another hit and another. Holding a hand up, it seemed that the lightning was flowing from his fingertips, and he was only vaguely aware of a nearby dumpster exploding. By now, he could no longer even scream as windows shattered from the buildings around them. The power of the storm seemed to hold him upright, and only when it subsided, did it appear to drop him as Daniel fell to his hands and knees, gasping for breath and shaking.

Only then did McManus let Ben rush to his friend’s side from the partial overhang of a door they had sheltered from all the flying debris in. “Dan! Are you okay?” He knelt by his lover, putting his arm around him.

Dan managed to nod, the Quickening still raging inside him as he sought to control the essence of his challenger. He grabbed Ben’s arm, his hazel eyes almost panicked as he fought not to be overcome. “Talk to me, please.” Give him something to hang onto.

“Okay. When…when you told me about this, I didn’t think you meant…you know…. Shit, Dan, that wasn’t just a storm, but nearly the fuckin’ apocalypse.” At that Dan managed a thin smile, his friend rarely swore. That helped him gain control over the Quickening more than Ben probably realized. Everything his father, Cody, or even his grandmother had tried to describe to him about Quickenings came nowhere near to how it actually felt. The pain shooting through him, the confusion as experiences bombarded his senses, and the power that made him feel he could do anything, that he felt more alive than he had ever done before. “Dan? You sure you’re okay?”

“Never better, Benji.” His grin faltered a little as Dan realized with some surprise that he was rock hard and incredibly, incredibly horny. He coughed a little as he processed that piece of information. No one had told him of that little after effect. The grin quickly returned. “Let’s just go home…right now.” The last two words came out as a sexually heated growl.|

***

Hsu had waited with the very little patience he possessed fraying rapidly. When word first reached him via Orestes of this challenge, he had abruptly ended the meeting he was in, ordering out the other people with a brusqueness that bordered on rude. Then he had just sat in the conference room, his concern for once easily readable on his face. While he feared a Watcher attack on Daniel more than anything, he was always very aware that some Immortal hellbent on the Game could destroy what he fought so hard to keep from the Watchers. What if despite all the training Daniel had gone through, that simply through a lack of real experience he lost in something most Immortals considered a natural trial of their lives. He should be there, protecting him, but he knew that was impractical, especially with Daniel in post-graduate studies and wanting a taste of life.

However, there was nothing he could do, thousands of miles away as he was, except wait for Orestes to call again.

Before the phone had even completed the first ring, Hsu answered it with a growl, unwilling to acknowledge to himself just how hard his heart was pounding. To protect Daniel so long from the various factions of the Watchers only to lose him to the first headhunter he came across. “Well?”

“We just got the code, sire. Daniel won. He won.” Orestes sounded almost as relieved as Hsu now felt. If Daniel had lost, who knew what Hsu would have done.

Hsu slumped in his chair, taking a few deep breaths. Relief didn’t even begin to describe what he felt. “Have McManus call me directly when he gets Daniel back to his apartment. Then I will call my son in the morning as I’m sure he’ll be busy until then.”

***

When Daniel spoke to his father later that day, and had repeated the details of the fight which McManus had done earlier, Hsu could hear his pride and sense of accomplishment and victory. He had always wondered how much of a warrior his son would turn into, but just hearing his description of the fight showed that, while he probably would never wear that role like Hsu did, underneath, perhaps quite deeply, he certainly carried his father’s blood. When it came down to it, Daniel could be a good warrior.

“I’m proud of you, Daniel. Very proud. You fought so well. I wish I had been there to see you. I knew your opponent, a client of the bank.” Having made Daniel go through the Chronicles, they had found the Immortal’s entry, a Teutonic knight by the name Werner von Orseln, who claimed to have been present at the creation of the Order in the Holy Land. “He had many assets in Eastern Europe, which are yours now.” The man had directed that on his death all assets be given to his mortal wife and adopted children, but as was a condition of Hsu’s long term accounts, he seized such and all property if he was challenged. That, of course, extended to his son.

They talked for a little longer, their conversation for once warm and friendly. As it drew to a close, Daniel couldn’t help asking. “Dad, after the Quickening…why did no one tell me that I would feel, well, hornier than hell? That was normal, right?”

For once Hsu didn’t object to being called ‘Dad’, in fact Daniel could have sworn he heard him give a soft chuckle. “Well, we trained you in every other aspect that I thought I should keep at least one thing a surprise. I take it neither yourself nor Benjamin objected?”