Siren Search (Open to Siren Event Participants)

[Ambrose Acheron]

Tizoc, better known as Ambrose Acheron these modern nights, sits quietly in front of the computer desk. His thrall, Jose over his shoulder pointing out how to navigate the intricate maze of the internet, Crownet to be specific. He brings up a forum board and begins typing. Jose remains quiet behind him, only speaking when his master makes a typographical error or a spelling mistake. The words appear on the screen slowly, painfully slow to Jose who is a text guru. He knows better than to mention his master's deficiency in technology however. He knows better than to question him at all. El hefe dislikes questions.

The words on the screen read:

To whom it may concern,

Some of us were recently affected by an event supernatural in nature which led to some unusual emotions. It led to some unusual actions. It bound us temporarily to another. Made us feel something akin to love. I have found out what it was I believe. I wish to find the creature which was responsible for this.

If you too wish to find out exactly what caused these feelings to happen, reply here, we will set up a time and place to meet and we can use our combined assets and skills to find this being.

Ambrose looks to Jose who gives the message a once over before nodding that it contains no errors and Ambrose hits the send button. Instructing the thrall to wait and tell him of any responses as they come in Ambrose once again opens up the book he found on the matter of Greek mythological creatures and leans back.

"A siren. The only thing it could be."

Years, no, decades of occult study has bestowed upon the Aztec priest knowledge of a plethora of mythological and supernatural creatures. This one though not uncommon in legends is far from indigenous to Canada. Like his new name it comes from Greece and there are enough clues in the writings about it that he feels confident it can be tracked and if need be, killed.

[Adelita (DELETED 5973)]

The words could have only come from Ambrose, Lita decided, after reading the Crownet post. Who spoke like that, other than someone that was as old as he was? But that wasn't what had her attention. It was one phrase that had her reading the posting multiple times. 'Akin to love.' In her mind, that meant that Ambrose had come to the conclusion that he did not actually love Adelita and that in reality, whatever she felt that night was not love either. Lita blew out a breath of relief in learning this, even though she frowned a few seconds later.

She should ignore the message, because she now had her answer. But did she really? Not the complete answer anyways. Lita certainly wanted to know who felt the right to enter her life and try to manipulate it for their own personal reasons. Why would someone do something like that? Let alone take a personal interest in her life?

After the woman gave it some thought, she replied with a simple and quick response.

I can meet any night at any time. Count me in. Spanish Rose She decided to use an alias, just in case Adelita changed her mind about going on this adventure with Ambrose. Hopefully, others would reply, so the woman wouldn't be forced to be alone with the male that claimed to have loved her and then killed her in the same night. She wasn't bitter about it, but it was a bit awkward.

[Dominique]

“What do you mean the color is no longer available?”

HOPE pulled the cell phone from Dominique’s ear and she looked at it like she had the wrong one for what she just heard. Her eyes went to her car and the nasty looking scrape where the 1968 FORD MUSTANG Fastback 428 Cobra Jet was sideswiped by some crazy blonde in a Porsche that had more color on it than her own body. LESS went to the door and panels that were damaged. A slow caress took place while the voice in the phone tried to smooth over the disappointment that filled her tone.

“Dom…” The man was choosing his words carefully. “Dominique.” The young shadow knew why. Her dark orbs drifted over the top of her cherished cherry bomb red baby to the restored 1965 Jaguar XKE OTS that just so happened to be the property of none other than the one married to the man full of bad news on the phone. “It is just how it is. Color is no longer being made. Got something close to it though. Really close and happy to give you a discount.”

Dominique pulled a small switchblade from the pocket of her shorts as she cradled the cell between her shoulder and her jaw. Carefully as if she was about to perform some impromptu surgical procedure she knelt down and got close to the side of the vehicle and took time to choose just the right spot. Her lips came together to press at the spot she decided on then pulled back.

“Sorry, baby.” The sharp edge of the small blade in her hand went to the beautiful red paint and with expert skill the blade sank deep enough to lift a decent size chip of the brilliant paint. “I had to do it.”

“I understand. No worries. I would be upset too. Ever find the crazy driver of that Porsche?”

The man really didn’t have all the information on what she was up to but to assume she was calling him baby was a huge stretch. She folded up the knife and held the precious bit of paint in her palm eyeing it like it was a tea leaf that could reveal the answers that no one else could.

“Not you, Fred.” She growled as she slid the chip into a baggie. “I got your wife’s ride finished. Happy to drop it off along with a sample of pain that I know you can use to create a little mixing magic and come up with what I want.”

“I don’t mix well and you know that.” The protest was not going to be accepted. he knew it. She knew it too. “Fine bring it over. Give me a deal on what I owe you?”

Dominique ended the call without another word. Fred was **** out of luck unless he became a mix master. Sliding into his wife’s car with the plastic baggie pinched between her teeth was problem free. The engine purred to life as it should. Before setting off out of the underground garage of Vita Bella she pulled out her cell to check on something. If Fred was a fail then she needed a back up contact. Swiping back and forth on the bookmarked links she inevitably found herself on crownet. That is when a message caught her eye as she was moving around in there to get back out. Navigating the pricey car out of the property was not easy with the cell in hand but she pulled it off until the contents of the message had her hit the brakes and come to a sudden stop. Her teeth almost released the baggie pinched between them.

Creature responsible? Blonde perhaps? Funky car with a whole lot of explaining to do? Seems there was a search party gathering and the petite shadow was ready to toss her hat in. Her car looked like **** and some fine looking female had some explaining to do.Dominique never really posted on crownet since way back with that whole mess before she turned to the dark side. So she quickly came up with the one name that fit outside being stupid and giving her own. Batgirl.

Let me know when this meeting is taking place. I can be reached here.

Once that was typed out she posted the message and cleared her cell. Things were looking up. The pain issue was being solved and now she was a little closer to finding out where Penelope Pitstop had taken off to.

"Soon..." Dominique mumbled as she sent the gas pedal down and let the car fly like it was meant to.

[Niklaus]

What happened a couple of weeks back was something Niklaus chose to ignore and not acknowledge. When it came down to it, the answer was plain and simple; it wasn't him controlling his body and actions. The 'Real' Niklaus would have never gotten -that- close with Tomi. Hell, he didn't even like Tomi! It was only a shame that the memories were still vivid and scarred in his mind, it would really have been better if he had simply forgotten what happened with Tomi. All those disgusting emotions, the...kissing and touching. Yeah, that was definitely not him.

At first he thought that he had been drugged, maybe by Tomi herself but that didn't make any sense. She never injected him with anything nor blew some kind of magic powder in his face. The magic powder being something like Scopolamine; yep he did his research. Scopolamine, often called the Devil's Breath was a powder that could just be blown at someone's face to take away their willpower and make them do virtually everything you want. Tomi wasn't that smart, he knew it and to be honest, she was as appalled, disgusted and regretful as he was after they both regained their senses.

The Killer tried to research the phenomenon that affected him and all he could find were some urban legends and folklore mythological creatures, aka a wild goose chase. Just because he chose to ignore what happened with Tomi didn't mean he didn't want to find the culprit. No Sir, it was only a question of time before they would be found and dealt with, probably tortured. There -had- to be payback. He should have had contacted others to see if anyone else got affected but chose not to. Why? Because then, he would have had to admit that he was a victim and kinda hooked up with this girl that normally pisses him off on a good day. Not happening.

Then he saw the post on Crownet. His brain subconsciously highlighting several words, such as; unusual emotions, unusual actions or even... akin to love. This couldn't be a coincidence, other vampires definitely experienced the same thing that happened to him and Tomi. The message wasn't signed and he didn't recognize the writing style, at all. Usually he could have an idea of who was who according to the way a person wrote on Crownet and their crownet handle, if they had one. Was this legit? Could be. The thread already had replies too from... Spanish Rose, then Batgirl. He was pretty sure he knew both of these ladies. There was no point in beating around the bush, not if it meant a better chance at finding the creature or whatever it was who put him in such a terrible position and made him disgusted with his actions and un-Niklaus behaviour. He would type his response, short but communicating exactly what he thought. He was down for this.

"I'm in. Free anytime. Let's kill this *****."

- Niklaus

[Corentine (DELETED 6472)]

As Cori walked down the street towards Lancasters, she found her fury growing with every step. How the hell could I have tried to seduce a damn human? It was not Cori's MO to seduce anyone...as she was the one who normally was hit on. It had to be a vampire with some grudge? One that could insert powers into another's mind... wait, was this even possible? Cori had allowed another into her mind but she was still in control of her faculties, she was still in control of what information was given to the telepath. If not a vampire then what was it?

Her feet moved faster down the dimly lit street and with each step she took she found herself no closer to an answer. A damn human..and not even the sort of human that she would have been attracted to in her mortal life! " I also giggled," she said out loud. Giggled, never have I done such a thing.

Cori was a killer and a ruthless one at that. She took great pleasure in eviscerating anything she killed, merely to take a look inside. Her actions tonight were surely fueled by something..but what?

Cori took her phone out to place a call to Trahir. She had not spoken to him in awhile and was a bit hesitant...before dialing she noticed a message on Crownet. The message resonated with her...it stopped her dead in her tracks. Others had similar events occur..others had felt the same mock love as she did.

Without hesitation, she replied back...

" Tell me the time and place and I will be there."

The message was sent and Corentine hoped that this could possibly lead her to what had caused this. She would exact her revenge, in more ways than one.

[Ambrose Acheron]

The old ritualist watches the letters appear on the screen like magic. Jose had tried to explain how it all worked but Tizoc honestly could not have cared less. It was enough that it worked and his childer and thrall could make the human creations work. He had no reason to learn. He motions toward the words and the Thrall reads them aloud while Ambrose thinks this situation through. Four other vampires have responded already. Quite the gathering. Perhaps an elder would be among them or they may know where one found be found.

He dictates to the thrall what to type back. "Tomorrow Night would be best. To give everyone a chance to prepare, say midnight. There is an Asian food place called Dragon's Lair in the 8th Dimension Mall." Jose looks puzzled as he types but says nothing knowing it isn't in his best interests. El hefe never conducts business publicly. Especially not in a restaurant.

After Tizoc has him check the message for errors he dismisses Jose and leans forward and hits send.

He pulls out a pen and paper and begins to write a list of things for Jose to pick up that day before sleeping.

[Adelita (DELETED 5973)]

Lita checked the Crownet after a couple of hours to see if there were any other replies. Batgirl, Cori and Niklaus. Well, she knew at least one person going on this needle of a haystack hunt, maybe two if it was Ambrose who put that message up. Even if through Jose. The thought of the thrall made Lita roll her eyes as she tossed the phone on the couch she was sitting on and went back to watching her Telenovela she had TiVo'd earlier in the week.

As she kept watching the program, Lita wondered what preparations she should be making. Niklaus obviously wanted to kill the thing from his Crownet posting, Ambrose was probably going to offer it up as a sacrifice of some sort, and Batgirl and Cori seemed to not know what their stance was yet either. Chances are, most of them wanted to kill the creature. Adelita didn't believe it had to go that far. Maybe the creature wasn't even aware of what it did. That happened to her once. She didn't know what she would do to Elighan when Lita had used her powers on him that one time.

After giving more thought to what Ambrose wrote, Adelita decided she wasn't going to change a thing. She wasn't bringing anything other than her good looks, and whatever she could carry in her purse. With that decided, Adelita got up from the couch, made some popcorn and went back to watching her week's worth of Telenovela.

The Next Night:

Lita rummaged around in the wardrobe Elighan gave her, looking for something to wear. Dresses or skirts were her usual forte, but just in case, god forbid she had to run from a man who might want to sacrifice her again tonight, heels might be a bit impractical. So, the Mexican woman decided on a hunter green v-neck t-shirt, short black shorts, and gold gladiator sandals, with a gold belt that sat snugly on her hips. In her bag was the essentials; makeup, a small hunting knife, credit cards, and some small, petty cash.

Lita left a note for Elighan that simply read, 'Don't wait up. Went hunting for a creature. Kisses! Lita.' Simple, and to the point, because she didn't want him thinking she died again. Or getting all worried. Though, she didn't say what type of creature. Lita shrugged. Elighan was always going to worry, even though she was a vampire and Adelita was sure that even if she did die, she would be right back here when she could get back.

Lita had absolutely no idea where the mall was, so she had to text Winny to get directions, but once that was all figured out, it was really easy. After all, her apartment was on the same side of town. Lita didn't even need to take a train or anything, she could just walk! And that's exactly what she did. Lita walked to the mall, stopped and socialized with a few people she had seen before on this side of town, sold the last few 'Frost Bite' pills she had in her possession for a few extra bucks and was at the mall in no time. Right before midnight too. Even if it was 11:58 p.m.

The woman stopped at the mall map and looked for the place she was looking for, using her right index finger to make out a best direct course and a possible escape route if Ambrose wanted to cut her open any time soon and then headed to the Dragon, whatever. When she arrived, Adelita shook the hostess off and headed directly for the bar where she ordered a glass of house red and simply waited.

[Zodiac]

Jennifer read the entry several times before she stood up from her desk and slipped her lap top under her arm. She took a look around the shop to be sure all was well, then told one of the sales girls she was going upstairs if she was needed for something. Pandora's Box was, in some ways, just as much her baby as it was the owner of the establishment and she took running the place quite seriously. There was always something needed to be done here or in one of the other stores she had overseeing duties to.

She unlocked the door marked EMPLOYEES ONLY and went up the stairs to the second floor. A cherry scent caught her nose at once as she walked through the chapel area and opened another door marked WORKSHOP. Inside, she spied her employer working a process Jenn herself had helped with many times before. Rows of empty bottles were lined up on the large bench. Carefully, the girl dressed in gypsy attire tipped a large ladle, causing the reddish liquid to ooze into the funnel placed down into the neck of one of the bottles. Once full, the funnel was moved to the next empty bottle and the process was repeated.

"I smell me a batch of Nana's Cough Suppressant- Cherry flavor." Jenn laughed.

"Made with real cherries and all natural ingredients." the almost whispered reply floated into the girl's thoughts. "It is September and I am still behind on making this stuff for my living customers." The mystic paused and replaced the ladle into the large, cooling cauldron she had prepared the syrup in. "So what is up? You come to help bottle up?"

"I can do that and I could have a couple of temps help, if you want them to see what is actually up here." the girl's eyes turned and looked at the pile of bones waiting for processing-none of them from any animal mortals knew about. "But I found this and thought you'd want to read it. Especially after you woke up in a strange apartment recently."

"Oh gods. Is it in the gossip sections?" Zodiac removed the leather apron she wore and approached her chief assistant. She took the offered lap top and looked on the screen.

To whom it may concern,

Some of us were recently affected by an event supernatural in nature which led to some unusual emotions....

"Even worse." she sighed after reading the post and scanning the replies it had already gotten. Not even taking the one name into consideration that would normally suggest that if they were there, she should be elsewhere. She could not help it. The person was so full of themselves and double speak ******** that it made her nerves scream like a fire alarm.

But that was not the reason why she stared at the screen and looked saddened.

Vampires declaring war on the Fae. That was going to work about as well as anything they have tried before now which usually equaled the success of lead balloons floating away. The fact that it was quite possible a Siren had drifted into their presence suggested more of their kind was beginning to come to this area. They hated vampires, so it made sense they would be drawn to the spot the night feeders were establishing a new beachhead on this world. There had been no hint a Siren was here before recently.

So what else was answering the call that the old enemy had returned?

Vampires could not even deal with humans as far as how to treat, deal, work with, and a number of other things, so what made these few think that managing to kill a Fae, or at least an ally of the Fae, would come with zero repercussions? Repercussions all of them, not just this apparent band of adventurers currently forming, would have to deal with.

Could a fae be killed? She supposed it was possible, but any clues how to go about it went to the graves of vampires who had not managed to escape the Nexus when it opened again thanks to Cobb. As far as the few who managed to return, it was business as usual.

'I know more than you do and I am not sharing the info. Respect me'.

Anything in print or written had either been destroyed or in the hands of collectors, mages, or rotting away on shelves somewhere in the care of people who did not have a clue what they actually had.

"Is this a good thing or bad?" Jennifer finally interrupted her train of thoughts.

"As I see it? It's a bunch of monkeys taking hammers to a highly unstable bomb." she replied. Normally she would have been compelled to do what she could to help such a group from making a bad situation worse, but as of late she was questioning such actions. Anytime she stuck her nose out or tried to warn people she was ridiculed, considered insane, or physically accosted. The mystic gypsy was getting tired of such things. People like this? They knew where her shops were and that she could be contacted there if needed. If they needed her help, they could come find her. She sat the lap top down and began to reply.

~Hello to all. This sounds like an amazing adventure you are planning, but if you all manage to stir up an out and out war of us -vs- the fae?
Have fun with that.
Just be sure to admit to the rest of us you started it. It would be soooo refreshing to see honest souls for once.
Laters~

~Raggedy Ann~

She clicked send and handed the laptop back to Jennifer. "I got cough syrup to bottle, but keep me posted on any more entries." she fumed as she returned to the process at hand. Odds were she'd find herself hip deep in all eventually and be the one blamed if the deal blew up in their collective faces. Mr Ego would make sure of that part.

[Niklaus]

A creature. It was a creature that was being blamed for whatever happened. Fair enough. That would help narrow down his own research before the meeting. Niklaus found two more posts on the very same thread; another person interested in joining the party and finally an address and a time was set for the meeting in question. He had no idea who the thread maker was and if they were trustworthy, he would be the judge of that but meanwhile, he had to gather as much knowledge as possible. Choosing to review the mythological creatures one after another to single out those that seemed the most relevant when it came down to the event that transpired just a while ago. The Killer ended up with quite a considerable number of pages about sirens, satyrs and some other deities that could have been the culprit. He didn't have enough to come to a definite conclusion so the meeting had to be fruitful, he was counting on it.

The material he obtained was then transferred to his phone for easy viewing whenever he felt like it, the man was never one to enjoy sitting behind a screen for long. He noticed one further post on the thread, from a certain 'Raggedy Ann', warning them about an 'out and out war of us -vs- the fae.' Dramatic much? He had an idea of who would have posted such a thing. The way the post itself was written in that god awful font colour, unnecessary symbols, elongation of words, underlining and coupled with the negativity, sarcasm and 'know-it-all' attitude. It wasn't worth replying to because firstly, the post in itself had nothing helpful to their cause and secondly, trolls didn't need to be fed - even if it was quite entertaining sometimes. And thirdly if he had posted back, it would have been snarky and amusing. Something along the lines of "War? One where battles are fought with penises and vaginas?"

Would he have been wrong? Not really. The creature had chosen to make them fall in 'love' with random individuals, not attack one another. So what kind of war could really erupt? One fought with 'love', of course. While it was true that it might not have been malicious, Niklaus still wanted payback, in his kind of way. Even if it was Cupid himself that had shot them with his heart-shaped arrows of love, cause **** Cupid. He tilted his head back only to find Liza, his thrall reading over his shoulder with a grin. "Well, that one must have a stick up her ***, huh?", she added with a giggle before looking to the Killer. He knew exactly what she was going to ask, and the answer was no. "I'm not letting post back. I -know- you. Well, at least not yet", he told the redhead. Liza was an avid gamer and was used to forums, reddit and 4chan in particular. He knew she took enormous pleasure in trolling and baiting, and even more in trolling the trolls themselves. The human liked to amuse herself and piss others off, he couldn't blame her for that. Everyone had something that entertained them, right? He got off the chair and moved to his desk where his weapons laid, "I'm not kidding, Liza. Be good. I'm not going to log out either, keep me posted if anything new and worthwhile pops up on that thread."

"I can be a good girl", came her response, cheeky girl. He had some reading to do and chose to retire to his room to finish his reading on his phone. The next night came fast enough, and he was ready for it, physically and psychologically. It was time to meet the crew. He chose to travel light; there was no point in bringing anything other than his trusty Venom and his sword, along with a backup gun just in case like he always did. Light enough, right? The Killer chose to dress casually, with a simple shirt, jeans, boots and his leather jacket to conceal the holster and sword strapped to his back. Heading out of his crypt at 23:00 sharp, he figured he would walk there and enjoy the night. He was rather used to the 8th Dimension Mall, courtesy of hunting fractures there just a while back - even if it was one of his least favourite places to scout. It would have been his first time actually visiting the Dragon's Lair though; he didn't eat, after all. By 23:45, he had already reached the mall, momentarily glancing at the map of the place near the entrance before making his way to the meeting place, Dragon's Lair. He figured he would kill some time browsing their menu as he waited and he didn't have to wait long. The first person he recognized was the Spanish Rose herself, Lita - who headed straight to the bar. Niklaus would glance at his watch before making his way towards her nonchalantly.

"Well, well. Hello there." he greeted the woman, flashing a welcoming grin. It had been a while since they last hung out too.

[Dominique]

Dominique left the shop with what would have been the long lost cherry bomb red color that was missing on the drivers side panels of her car. The night had improved just because of the fact her baby wouldn't be left flawed much longer. All it would take is a few hours in the garage and she would be back to new. The mix master's wife was grinning ear to ear as she left the shop parking lot in her Jaguar. All involved were happy and that was really the goal of successful business as far as the young shadow was concerned.

Sliding into the driver's seat and closing the door took little effort. HOPE slid the key in the ignition and fired the machine beneath her to come to life. The loud deep rumble of all the horsepower a driver could want rattled the metal chassis. There was a long night ahead and the wheels would be turning and taking her back home. The familiar buzz of her cell needing her attention gave her another reason to pause her routine. Easing back and lifting her hips slightly gave her the room to pull the cell phone from her pocket. A reminder was flashing and she deadpanned looking at the paint in the passengers seat next to her. She had almost forgot she had plans.

"Looks like we have somewhere to be." She really needed to stop talking to her car. It would be rather easy to do if it were not for the fact that she had some of her best conversations with the restored vehicle. "Your paint will wait."

After a few minutes invested in driving through the city streets Dominique found herself making her way through the doors of 8th Dimension Mall. She rolled her petite shoulders lightly as she pulled her dependable backpack over her shoulder and situated it so that it was secure behind her arm as HOPE slid into the denim front pocket of her shorts. It was a quick walk up to the restaurant intended for the meeting. She checked her cell for anything last minute and when she found nothing noteworthy she returned the cell back to where she carried it.

Standing outside the restaurant reminded the woman that she had given up the Thai. Hopefully there would be some western foods that would agree with her cooking up within. Her mind had her believing she was hungry for a burger. What were the chances she would find one fresh from the grill?

Pulling the door towards her made it easy to enter. What she found when she arrived had her dark eyes widening as her feet carried her forward. A face she had not planned on seeing was visible. Spiderman and a few other late nighters she imagined. Not many were found eating out after midnight. Not the warm blooded variety at least.