Edgewise

Carp Shoot: A Panic x Edgewise Bonus Chapter

Eugene's lips curled at the title. Calponia took a sip of her coffee and immediately spat it back out, more grounds than liquid. How was that possible? She glared at the coffee maker, her nemesis. Foiled again!

Mack shot back his whiskey. "I'm going to bed," he declared, making a face as he stood. "After a shower." He clapped the vampire on the shoulder, before staggering up the stairs.

Eugene waited for the tell tale slam of Mack's bedroom door before he spoke. "I know, I know, we had plans, but you saw him. I couldn't say no."

No, he couldn't and Calponia wouldn't want him to. Gremlins! No wonder Mack was so exhausted. She hated the little pests, but still, she was bummed to miss quality time with Eugene. Dating across dimensions & worlds made it hard enough to schedule time together. She hid her pout in her failed cup of coffee sludge.

On cue, the Edgewise groaned, communicating in the scent of bitters and a clink of glass. Eugene rose, donning a set of leather gloves. "Looks like I'm off." He headed for the door, completely missing the piece of paper that wafted down from the rafters. Calponia came around the bar, trying to make sense of the strange hand drawing when a tingling sensation spread across the back of her hand. The number twenty four appeared in inky black scrawl on her skin.

The world tipped sideways.

Calponia shrieked, falling. She zipped straight past a shocked Eugene, her scream taking on a higher pitch as she tumbled through the open door.

The vampire swore, following her a moment later. The tavern door snapped shut, a hint of whiskey scenting the air with smug satisfaction.

***

Calponia plummeted through the air. Flailing, she tried to right herself, sights and sounds rushing around her in a disorienting blur. Shocks of red flame painted the night, punctuated by shouts and laughter. Calponia swore she heard the sound of cheering a second before her body hit water. Unprepared, she swallowed a mouthful, frantically kicking in what she hoped was towards the surface. It would be par the course to nearly drown on arrival.

Her outstretched hands hit the silty bottom, making the water even murkier. She scrambled in the opposite direction, ignoring the burning pinch in her ill prepared lungs. Too deep, too light headed, she wasn't going to make it. An arm wrapped around her waist, yanking her against a hard body. Her head broke the surface a second later, Eugene holding her aloft as she gulped big mouthfuls of air.

"You really need to stop telling the Edgewise when we make plans," he muttered.

"No harm, no foul," she wheezed. Dammit but he was right. The tavern probably thought it was being helpful by sending her to tag along. Her pajama bottoms dragged on her hips, making it harder to tread water.

Eugene frowned. "Are-are they calling your name?"

Calponia looked at the shore, where, sure enough, a cluster of teenagers in various states of undress shouted her name. A boy with floppy brown hair shouted through a megaphone. "What a show! Our last surprise contestant of the night, number twenty four Calponia Anders securing a tie for the lead with another death defying leap off Devil's Drop!"

Not only did they know her full name, they acted like her appearance out of thin air was completely normal. The Edgewise must have been pulling some major mental influence to smooth their unusual entrance. Calponia and Eugene looked at each other, the former sputtering through a mouthful of tepid lake water. "Where the hell are we?"

He looked around. "Feels like Earth."

She splashed him. "Fine detective skills there, slick." Eyeing the crowd on the shore, she wondered just how much of a mental nudge the Edgewise laid down for her when she caught a flash of something much more alarming, skittering through the crowd like a demonic chihuahua. None of the teens reacted to the gremlin's presence, which meant it hadn't created enough havoc to properly manifest, yet.