"Yeah, still here. Come on, let's get everyone moving."

She nods, and follows.

The way's clear, but getting everyone out - not every prisoner is as talkative as the woman. One of them starts screaming and crying when Nausicaa tries to coax him to leave. One of them sits there staring at the wall, catatonic. One stares at her but keeps freezing as she inches out.

Nausicaa is getting very, very worried what the vampires are up to.

Gradually, gradually, prisoners are herded out of the mausoleum.

There's only one left, eventually; he's nervous, his eyes are darting and he keeps looking over his shoulder, but he's happy to follow Nausicaa's instructions.

Gaara's outside checking the path again; she's getting him to the ladder out, and her back's to the door - she's double checked her captives, she's not worried about them -

Someone is leaping down the ladder towards them, someone with a vampire's snarl - the prisoner screams -

She yanks him out of the way -

There's a stake at her belt and her hand's on it without her really noticing -

Nausicaa has terrifyingly good aim even when panicked and not thinking through what she's doing.

Just like that, he's dust.

She does not scream.

She checks the mausoleum, shouts for Gaara to come clear the area.

(The dust gets in her hair on her face on her clothes - that was a person - )

If anyone else showed up, they're not in the mausoleum proper, or by this entrance.

She'll lock the still tied up vampires into the cells, and keeps the keys on her, and then get last guy to the car - going with him - and make sure everyone's settled.

"Giles, you might want to leave, get them out of here."

He nods once, smartly, and guns the engines.

And back into the mausoleum.

...Is the other entrance clear?

(They might be expecting Nausicaa and Gaara to re-enter through the cells...)

There's no one at the other entrance, no.

Then they'll start sneaking in that way.

The empty entrance hall leads to an empty library.  The door to the next room, to Vanessa's throne room, is closed.

Gaara tries the sensory trick again.

No one's moving around very much, but diffusing enough sand through the next room will allow her to discern two roughly person-shaped figures, one next to each door, poised to strike around the corner as soon as someone opens it.

Gaara turns into sand, blasts through, her course set to intersect with the nearest vampire's probable position at that point, and to not return her to human form until she's at an edge away from both vampires.

The vampire she hits staggers backward against the wall.  Vanessa, on the other side of the room, draws a knife and flings it toward the door, then rushes for where it looks like Gaara's going.

Nausicaa avoids the knife then goes to intercept Vanessa.

Vanessa changes course, draws her second knife, and brings it up in an upward stab, hoping to use Nausicaa's momentum against her.

 The other vampire scrambles to his feet and rushes Gaara with a hatchet.

Nausicaa's not got so much momentum she can't twist, grabbing at Vanessa's hand at the same time she tries to punch her in the face.

Gaara turns into sand again and slams past - hopefully through - him and into the library.

Vanessa's face has shifted by the time Nausicaa's fist falls; unfazed by a broken nose, she goes for Nausicaa's throat.

The other vampire braces himself this time, and manages to keep his feet; he whirls around and - surprise! his hatchet is also weighted for throwing.