[ᴀᴢʀᴀᴇᴛʜ] ɪ ᴅᴏɴ'ᴛ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʟɪᴇ, ɪ'ᴠᴇ ʙᴇᴇɴ ʀᴇʟʏɪɴɢ ᴏɴ ʏᴏᴜ ━

[Sinister (DELETED 9842)]

Good talk? Stay safe? What was with this guy? He clearly had some extra knowledge about something and could get the drop on him and that was pretty intimidating on it's own. So what was calling him out for? It wasn't some kind of precursor for a fight or .. could it have been a warning? Or again, some sort of acknowledgement of their mutual presence - in which case by not acknowledging him back did he just mess up some coded greeting or - ugh what the hell. It was a mental torment having all of the questions and none of the answers. But this guy did... and well, probably and a more safer option was Eva but ... ****, it was hard just imagining himself going to that beautiful woman and having the duality of feeling both moronic and flustered.

He still hadn't chose to walk away, the threat level subsided with the freedom of choice and they were somewhere public so maybe he had a chance here...
Walk away. He's giving you the chance, walk away now.
But why? So he could go running back to Eva for seemingly no reason when he explained how some guy talked to him? It didn't get any more moronic and he, anymore flustered after something like that. Well, he called him out as if that justified in the slightest bit but /still/. He wasn't going to be susceptible to anything this guy could say, and it could prove worth a shot. Maybe it could give him some answer. Or maybe be the start of his very own slasher flick. After all the guy did just pull out a weird pencil, pen thing. Against all better judgement and self recommendation, this tom took a chance with curiosity because his obsession with knowing things was his Achilles' heel.

"Hey," he called back, his change noticeable as he consider his inquiry. He knew who he was, supposedly so.. "What are you?"

[Azraeth]

What?

Az had been about to lift the human bone to his chest so that he could concentrate on it like a focus and then go back to his apartment, which was where the tome’s power was anchored. And then he heard the voice of the guy he had just been talking to. Who apparently was not looking for an out? He carefully began to shuffle his tome back into his pocket as he half twisted, to glance back towards the man on the sidewalk. Okay. So maybe he had been reading the guy all wrong, which was totally possible. Az was the sort of person who fed on energy (not literally), but if someone showed him trust, he was normally willing to reciprocate ten fold. Similarly, when a person became closed off to him, he had trouble reading what was going on with them, which made interaction a little...difficult for him. He couldn’t reflect what wasn’t there.

“Oh uhhh.” He began fully swinging back around. “How about.” he said as he offered another half grin. “You tell me your name, and I tell you what I am? That’s usually how conversations work, in my experience. One person says something. The other person says another thing.” He shrugged then. It wasn’t so much that he was trying to ‘instruct’ the other man, as get past that weird awkward phase. Normally Az was way better at icebreaking because he was one of those people who had no problem talking to anyone. On one level, that served to make him very easy to talk to. On another level, he wasn’t afraid of addressing an elder or someone fresh turned with equal measure. People (regardless of their motivations and abilities) were essentially all similar enough in his book.

“And I don’t mean to be problematic, but do you mind if we move this? I have been to neither the Necropolis nor the Voodoo Cybercafe in ages. Those places tend to be very friendly to our kind, and even serve beverages in which most of us can imbibe.” He shifted, one finger on either hand lifting, and then both arms moving so he could point in the direction he was talking about. “Might even see someone you recognize there!”

[Sinister (DELETED 9842)]

'Tell me who you are,' words triggering an instinct that felt like an obvious cue to not to do that or you know, lie, both of which would've been easy to do. Still, it would result in no or less benefit to him to not met the other's simple requirements and this was all about maximizing that benefit. Being so caught up in all these changes and questions running through his mind, it really wasn't any kind the luxury putting this off or complicating it any further. His life and surely others were about carefully weighing risks and this vampire aspect might have tipped that side of the scale a little heavier, even with the supposed 'news' or 'announcement' but hey - beggers can't be choosers, right?

Sucks being the beggar, but it's time to take a risk.

Oh, move? Necro-voodoo-cyber what now? His face went confused blank again at those words and he shook it off after a pause. When the only normal word is 'cafe' and glossed over by the rest of the abnormal sentence, that is when you know you're in for some potential weird **** and made other key terms like 'our kind' go out the metaphorical window. Man, either this guy or he just stepped into an alternative universe where everything is 'different' and that was still an understatement. He wondered if this is what it might feel like if he was from the 50's and was just getting dropped randomly into the future, not understanding any of the 'basics'. Process overload.

He took a second to place both hands on his head, close his eyes and rub his temples before sharply breathing in and dropping them.
"Yeah okay." As if a few-seconds of temple rubbing was all he need to finally accept and go with the flow - from here on out nothing could possibly faze him anymore than it already did and while unbeknownst to him, he hadn't even gotten to the weird parts yet. There already was and probably still is going to be a lot of ... this so best to just accept it.

"罪 (Tsumi), but just call me Sinister - Sin." Because starting off with 'my name is sin' might have felt a little fake, and he was choosing to go the 'get this guy's trust right off the bat' route but still holding back on given his full name and being a completely transparent 'glass book' so to speak.

[Azraeth]

Well that was certainly a curious name. Japanese in origin, Tsumi referred to violation of things often considered sacrosanct. It loosely translated to ‘sin’ in English, which explained why the other vampire introduced himself that way, but it went a little bit deeper than that. Like calling a lobotomy a barely invasive treatment, or describing an autopsy as a ‘cut’. There was emotional and cultural weight and significance in that one word, which led Az to believe it wasn’t a real name. He doubted parents would be so cruel. Perhaps a moniker of some kind. Not that it really mattered, because the Mystic hadn’t been looking for a way to identify Sin - he just wanted to know what to call the vampire other than ‘that dude over there with the face’. Still, it supported his belief that the other male was, in fact, secretive by his very nature. “Are you a scorpio?” He asked with a faint smile.

And then he began in the direction he’d pointed out before. If Sinister was going to be closed-mouth, then Az had no problem with opening his. Some might have seen an imbalance in this situation, but Azraeth was not one of those. There was very little in the way of information he wasn’t willing to at least touch on, or go into more depth about. Because he’d once been very new to the whole ‘being undead’ thing. His own sire, Nikolae, a man he revered essentially as a living god, had only been turned shortly before him. In fact, after the return of the Elders from the Shadow Realm, when the Rift was first opened, Az and Nikolae had been some of the first two turned, along with Raeth’s twin brother. Though Azariel hadn’t been heard from in years. While the progenitor of the Dragomir had always been supportive of the Mystic, there were a lot of things Az had been forced to learn on his own.

“Nice to meet you anyway, Sin.” He said as his hands lifted so he could rub his palms together as if he was trying to build heat between them. “As for what I am, there are a lot of ways to answer that question. I’m the same as you in some ways. Well. In the ‘no longer needs to breathe’ sort of way. My Path? Mystic, though I guess that doesn’t really say much. Bloodline? Worthington and Dragomir. Or are you looking for my occupation? Up until a short time ago, I worked for the local university as a professor of anthropology and the occult. After Longslade though, **** hit the fan and I got let go. So now I’m sort of between jobs. Which. Let me tell you - reallllly sucks.” Each fact was offered at face value. They were vague enough that they didn’t actually say much about him, though that was mainly the fault of the broadness of the question. Though every step took him just a little bit closer towards familiar ground.

[Sinister (DELETED 9842)]

He scoffed a short laugh and glanced forward at the strange and sudden question before looking back to him again,
"No, Capricorn- I'm sorry what does that have to do with ...?" he let it trailed off, saying enough to imply the confusion but not seriously looking for an answer to it. It did make wonder what the other could be possibly thinking though with that kind of a train of thought. Nonetheless he listened very attentively to the man's words not to miss a single word should it hold or reveal or even hint at having more meaning that went deeper than their surface. Path, Bloodline, Occu- wow he was throwing it all at him wasn't he? He wasn't sure if he was going to even be able to remember and reciprocate an answer to each given aspect. Okay, okay, one step at a time. That first part was good enough to answer his question - suppose he kinda brought the rest of that on himself.

"Alright, ... that first part - the breathing - yeah was it." he confirmed what he was looking for. "And uh, Shadow Path, West blood and yeah, I don't really have a job right now..." Was that good or even right? It was kinda the first time he had to say those things and present himself as a vampire so upfront. A part of him wished Eva was there just so he look at her and confirm like a child and parent that had practiced and recited for this very moment - except you know, she wasn't there and they hadn't. Well at least he was trying.

[Azraeth]

Azraeth happened to love Gullsborough and the surrounding area. There was the Dragomir Temple, a property owned and maintained by his bloodline. The building resembled a gothic cathedral, though there were stained glass images which depicted certain scenes that had never been in the Bible. Nor were they representative of any known saints. There was the Necropolis, as previously mentioned, which was a nightclub catering to vampires. There was Atrum Nex, the guild hall for one of Az’s very first childer. Sadly, Mr. Scratch had disappeared into the darkness of the Shadow Realm some years before. Then there was the Voodoo Cybercafe, the Arbor Vitae winery, and Hotel West. In Az’s opinion, it was the most beautiful part of the city, rivaled only by Tomkin - which was technically outside of city limits anyway.

“Oh a shadow! That’s totally badass. You know I always wanted to be one of those. The sire is. Have you bled yet? That’s a real head trip the first time you see it. Black blood hanging out in the air before it disappears. There isn’t really anything ‘cool’ about being a Mystic. I mean we can come back in different bodies to the ones we died in, but that makes it sound a bit like we wear flesh like suits. Annnd that’s not entirely accurate.” He commented as the pair of them walked. He glanced upwards. It was unfortunate that there were so many city lights, because he would have liked to see the stars. Maybe if the were to detour to Thornside Park.

“And you’re a West! I haven’t seen Wolfgang in years. He and I used to work together in Velox Nocte, back during one of my brief stints as a lady. Nice guy. Little awkward.” He commented before coming to a stop on the street across from the Necropolis and the Voodoo Cybercafe. They were dangerously close to the mall. "Maybe I can help you find work. What areas do you have training in?"

[Sinister (DELETED 9842)]

"Bled yet?" he took on puzzled look as he held up and observed his hand, staring at his palm, wiggling the fingers and thinking about it whilst Az continued. It hangs in the air and disappears? Whoa, now that's something he gotta see. He shoved his hand into his front pocket though, probably something best to experiment with later.
"Is that what you are then? A Mystic?" He tried to recalled his post-siring on what Eva may have mentioned about Paths, but for the most part he did know one thing - she was a Shadow too. "That doesn't sound so bad - could be useful... Or at the very least a cool party trick. Though I guess there a catch like you can't have your or any past body back?" Perhaps for some that catch might not have been very bad, he personally was actually quite content with himself. As fun body hopping sounded there was some established confidence, effort into his look and plain good memories with his body he wasn't so sure he'd give up. Imagine though, if his thought were in vain and his assumption false that they could keep their former bodies on reserve like different suits - now that would beat floating blood any day.

Sin thought about the name he said 'Wolfgang' and unfortunately for him he still had yet to meet with anyone of his 'bloodline'.
"Oh, well I guess that's good? You're not going to kill me if you hate someone in a bloodline are you? Cause I'll be honest I don't really know any of those guys or much of anyone really so uh- 'Don't blame the child for the parent's sins'? Or something like that..." He didn't even think about the irony, more so in line of trying to figure out if there was an actual quote akin to what he said. Surely, it would get the point across either way.

"I'm still not sure how the whole 'bloodline' thing works - like does the make my sire some kind of ... mom?" he finally said thinking how weird it was just have a so called 'mom' who looked the same age as him, even if she probably was still some handful of years older than him. "Also, does that make any of them like family? And I know this might sound weird but hear me out - can I still sleep with any of them? I'm just saying - I don't want to run into a drop dead gorgeous woman or guy only to wake in the morning and go to the same family re- 'bloodline' reunion and discover it's like the worst taboo thing ever." Unbeknownst to the vampire just yet, the question of sleeping with childer was probably another one worth asking for say, the possibility a former fling were to become one and needing the knowledge to such a question.

Sin stopped with him without thinking about it, clearly far less concerned with their surrounding or where they were going as he asked about employment.
"Umm ... Not much?" Sometimes he hated these kinds of questions - the ones he didn't know how to answer. It made it easier just not answer them or play it off with some joke but alas not this time. "Kinda like ... whatever I could get? I kinda liked to travel and move around, so just room with someone, save money and then leave - never keep really important jobs but I've done many. Like, a jack-of-all-trades ... to an extent." He did his best to openly explain, his sentences slowing and a bit questioning as if he wasn't sure he was using the right words or if there was a better way to have said it all.

[Azraeth]

“Useful if you plan to completely start your life over, yeah, I suppose. Like if one day I randomly decided I was tired of Harper Rock. I could get into a fight I know I couldn’t win. A week or something later, and I’d be able to just leave with a new face. New identity. Maybe even slip seamlessly into someone else’s life.” He mused out loud, as if he’d honestly considered it a time or two. Maybe he had. “For the most part, I think people just find it jarring. Humans naturally associate a face with a person’s identity whenever possible. On the whole, it’s how they, and we by extension, identify and recognize each other.” For Az, who had been through that rodeo a few times, it gave him very little attachment to appearance. He had never been a particularly vain creature, and while he certainly found certain things and people pretty, or beautiful, the physical realm itself felt almost intangible to him at times. The world of darkness underneath everything else. The place of spirit and thought - that was what felt the most real to him.

It was as if the waking world, the one where everyone lived and breathed and existed, was this flat piece of paper with images drawn upon it. That was the real world to him. He could interact with it. Look at it. Appreciate it. He just didn’t feel particularly bound to it. He could walk away, set it on fire, crumple it up.

“Yeah no. That’s not my style. If I have a problem with someone, I assure you that I take it up with them directly.” Though Azraeth himself was not in the habit of making enemies. At one point, that had been a political move, because a person with a mountain of enemies had a mountain of problems to deal with every time he attempted anything. These days, it was just because he had better things to focus on. “You’ll find that most of us are like that though. It takes a very special breed of stupid to hold a childer accountable for a sire or grandsire’s actions. And on the whole, our community, shitty as it can be, isn’t about that.” A pause as he grinned. “I say that now. Watch you stumble right into someone who defies that very rule.” Of course that would be up to the Wests to deal with. Not that the Mystic suspected there would be much trouble there. He hadn’t heard much of them fighting in recent years, but there had been a point when he knew them to be organized enough to battle.

Before bloodlines had lost their ‘punch’ and factions had become the big thing.

And then factions had lost a lot of their gusto, and the vampire community itself had become this small place where individuals held power if they were smart and made the right connections. Not to groups, but to people.

“Every sire and childer bond is different. The one I share with the man who made me as I am, Nikolae, is very close. At different points in our history, he has been a lover, a friend, a confidant. He has been like a father, and a brother, and like a son. He is one of the few very constant things in my world.” He answered. Though that was hardly the end. “Some people reject their sires. Some fall in love with them. Some are indifferent. Some are grateful for the change, and some absolutely hate it. I think every bond is as individual as the vampires who make them up.”

And then Sin asked a question that made Az’s brows lift, and he struggled not to immediately laugh. Could he sleep with them. “Yes. Trust me. People in the same bloodline have been ******* for as long as vampires have existed I think. A lot of people are turned because they’re attractive. Now. Some bloodlines do have rules about that type of thing, so you’ll want to ask before jumping into the sack with anyone, but no. It’s not one of our social norms that bloodline is off limits in the sex department.”

He stretched slowly, considering crossing the street to get a look around the Necropolis. The last time he’d seen Amaranthia, the owner, had been several months back, and he vaguely wondered if she was still around at all. “Well there are all sorts of jobs people are in need of being done. There are the above board businesses, where you might be able to pick up some hours in any number of tasks. Those you’ll find in most job listings. Or you can post on CrowNet with some specifics, and you’ll almost certainly get hits. Some jobs veer into the criminal side. Such as putting down gangsters and selling their loot on the black market, or on the auction. There are also jobs listed through CrowNet, usually for specific items or tasks.” He eyed the man moment. “Something tells me you’ll excel in the area of...bloodshed!” Smile! And then he finally crossed the street, only to hold the door to the Necropolis open for Sinister, gesturing for him to enter at his leisure.

[Sinister (DELETED 9842)]

His words of a new identity weren't lost on Sinister; his gaze fell on the black street pavement for a moment with thought. They meant more to him than they probably should have and that didn't have to be a bad thing. Something he considered too or perhaps done - either way, another unspoken commonality between the two strangers. He panned back up to the other male.

"That actually makes sense - the face with an identity thing. Like one of those things you don't really think about it until well, you do." The imagery he made in his head of it to him, was a new and interesting perspective. "Would you fancy the thought of me playing devil's advocate and say something cheesy along the lines of: between makeup and plastic surgery, our true identities and what we choose to be perceived as our identity is jarring?" he raised a brow with a smile that suggested it was more rhetorical and lacking any serious intent on expanding on the thought. Az's insight was successful in still interesting Sin, despite being unaware of their very different and unique perspectives - it'd make for fascinating conversation one day should the two be come across the Mystic powers topic in the future again.

"Well that's a relief - and a whole community..." He didn't realize his life-alternating change could've gone as far as making him apart of a special little social circle, an actual community for vampires? What was that like? Was he now going to be expect to uphold some vampire-y standard he didn't know about this whole time? "Yeah I'd bet on that - I'm not always on my nicest setting either. Eh, I guess I needed another excuse to try and dial back the angsty teen sass." He shrugged, it was almost foreign to him - the idea that his actions could affect others, that he had to be mindful of that less it backlash on to him and because of some new blood connection. It didn't matter if he cared about the others or not, all it took was someone getting hurt and him taking the blame to lose all those potential allies and turn them right into potential enemies. He favored keeping as many allies as possible, even frenemies were better than nothing, as well as playing careful with the few he found inevitably against him at every end.

The relationship aspects - Ah, so even sires could be anything to childer. It seemed Az had his own complicated or maybe long story to go along with the details of his sire relationship; Sin genuinely had to wonder if he would ever be in the same position. Even better though, Az's response to his question made him grin, happy to have gotten perhaps the best reply he could imagine.

"Majority says 'yes', that's good enough for me." the male quietly chuckled, scanning both ways of the street not that he was sure if they were going to be crossing anytime soon or not. It was one of those little thing he could do while socializing so they weren't staring at each other constantly, or at the very least not staring while stretching. He turned back to him as he detailed the jobs - normal sounding or implied jobs and wow some straight up not-so-normal jobs one wouldn't normally discuss so openly - it was like being in America again. So much for the 'all Canadians are nice and say sorry too much' stereotype. He mentioned that 'Crownet' thing twice now, and the question slipped as soon as his sentence ended.

"Crownet? What is that?" It didn't sound like an obvious business / job searching forum. Azraeth was eyeing him and he didn't know what to make of that until he finally said the whole 'excel at bloodshed' part and he went blank, certainly not expecting that. His cheekbones seem to slightly raise as his cheeks tighten a bit - embarrassed at that strangely enough, and crossed the street. He didn't like being ... read like a book thank you very much, and maybe he was letting on more than he should or his reaction now accidentally confirmed something. He trekked on nonetheless, mumbling a thanks that even had his accent come out more like 'thank yer'. Leave it to some cute guy to get the better of him every now and then - just his life story.

[Azraeth]

He smiled. Azraeth was, to the very core of his being, an academic. He was also a nerd, but that was entirely beside the point. What was the point - is that he loved it when someone had the ability to make him think. It was, in fact, one of the qualities he loved most about all of the people closest to him. His sire, Nikolae was touched by insanity. There was no way to deny this, and Az had known it since the day the man had brought him a living baby to care for. Even so, Nikolae’s perspective on the world was such that Az constantly found himself trying to understand the motives behind the the motives behind the meanings behind the actions. Then there was Amalea, quite possibly one of the most intelligent people he knew. And Flynn. His Flynn, whose calm brooding hid an understanding of the world that betrayed the Paladin as this deeply complex and beautiful person. Indeed, Az’s need for conversation, intelligent conversation, was as strong as most human’s need for water.

“First of all, I am the king god of cheesy. Nothing you can say...will make me think less of you. I agree though. Shakespeare had it right. All the world’s a stage. Back when I was in college, I read a book about that. How people put on masks as a way to present themselves to the rest of the world. These masks aren’t just make up, but are comprised of things like clothing. The way a person wishes to be perceived says a lot about them. But so few people want to exist in their own skin.” Some people might have blamed that on media. Or consumerism. Az had to wonder if people on the whole had ever been truly comfortable with themselves. There was evidence that make up, wigs, and costuming had all existed for nearly as long as modern humanity. And then there was the subject of idols and gods. There was the simple explanation that early man needed to explain their origins through mystical cosmology, but to an extent, did it not also say a lot that man crafted gods after their own image? Like the inverse of the biblical quotation. Gods were what mankind wished to be. The most perfect versions of themselves.

“For lack of a better term, yeah. Mind you, get five of us into a room with four doors; ask us which is the best route out. Well. Suffice it to say that historically there would have been five distinct answers. One for each door, and one person refusing to leave. Which is to say that, in the past, we have had trouble with the concept of working together. Lately that has changed some. My hope is that it’s a trend that continues.” He admitted. But that was dangerously close to opening a can of worms. Azraeth had been a pro-vampire advocate for the undead acting with a single voice for a long time. His views were admittedly perhaps naive, on some level. People were always going to want to act in their own best interests, as opposed to in the best interests of the whole. But much too, as the winds of change had sparked a little bit of hope for this vampire community, some of the bitterness the Mystic felt on the topic had also been soothed.

“Okay so...bear with me. I know this is going to sound crazy.” He said as he held the door open for Sinister, who he was considering nicknaming ‘Left’. Though that seemed far too familiar. Perhaps he would ask the man at a later time if he minded. “So CrowNet is like this semi-mystical network that connects all vampires through the computer. In fact, if you get on any device that allows you to access the web, you will find it. Originally, CrowNet was controlled by a mysterious being known as the Crow. The only thing we know about it, is that it was supposedly the entity which led several elders to Harper Rock prior to the Holocaust.” And then he realized that Sin probably had no idea what that was either.

“Okay so the Holocaust was a point when all vampires in the world were wiped out. It was only in recent years that some of the old ones were able to break free of the Shadow Realm and return into the modern world.” Which was not nearly as detailed an answer as he would have liked to give. But there was a lot about Cobb, the Betrayer, which Sin didn’t need to know to get the basics. “Anyway, so CrowNet is basically just a magical internet thing that vampires can use. Currently it’s run by the Administrator, who we know equally little about. This because the Crow was weakened at one point by the vampires of that community I mentioned before.”

The interior of the Necropolis was dark, gothic, dramatic. It looked precisely the way one might have thought a vampire club might look. But that was the point. Hide in plain sight. There were blood dolls and other means of gaining sustenance there as well. And. Of course. Vampires. Vampires very openly being themselves. Az gestured around for a moment. “Well. Here we are. Feel free to cut loose a little bit here. Less of a great big magnifying glass on us in these walls.”