When the Realization hits [Corbin]

[Galia]

Galia was a little surprised at his response to the messages question. Probably take that as a no, or just that someone didn't want to admit to it. "Just found them, uh, in my house a few times. Never saw anyone." she said. The thought of it used to be a lot more disturbing. It wasn't so much now. A lot of things seemed to be that way all of a sudden. So much calm, it felt kid of wrong but not enough to actually upset her.

She watched as he want from beer to cigarette. He did seem kind of nervous. That...was almost funny to her. Given her current state of mind. She rather hoped it wouldn't go away. It would be nice to be so calm most of the time. Or at least, not as panicked as she often was. That was something he brought up, questioning her about it. It was a fair question. She wasn't even certain about the answer she'd give.

He also mentioned an oracle, and that she was how he knew what happened. She thought she'd heard of that, but had never seen her herself. She again wasn't sure if she could believe him or not. But what else was she supposed to do? Even if he was lying, what would that change? She was a vampire now regardless of how it happened. There was an eternity to figure it out.

She shrugged, "I don't know. I guess...I never even considered being turned into a vampire an option. I was always just afraid of them. Maybe, I dunno, being made into the thing I was most concerned about here let me chill out after the initial shock of it all." Galia rather preffered it this way, "You'd think there'd be more panic anyway, I've always been a bit...jumpy I guess. I mean I could handle maybe a zombie, but I pretty actively avoided getting into legitimately dangerous situations."

It was all very new to her, what new options would this bring? Would be interesting to see how these new powers she might be gaining would give her an edge in life, ignoring the problems of course of not going in the sun, and having to deal with guards and whatnot. Then again, she'd always been good at hiding, so maybe she'd just always be able to avoid them.

[Corbin]

When Galia spoke of finding messages in her home, Corbin felt himself tensing up. He was angry, furious that someone would go to that level of invading someone's privacy. What sort of words were to be shared in such a way that a person could not do face to face. Whoever the messages were from, they must be a coward. Corbin found himself wondering if it had been the stranger who spoke to him in thought about Galia. The telepath had not even bothered introducing himself, or even apologized for invading Corbin privacy within thought. Speaking in such a way was not uncommon for Corbin, but other past experiences had been with friends and family, or those who were to become good acquaintances.

Right away he wondered what he could do. Part of him wanted to investigate, and send out a message of his own. That Galia was going to be under his protection now. To tell the mind stalker that he was not just a customer of Galia, but that he was now her sire. Likely the stalker would know this soon enough, if he were keeping tabs on Galia as he claimed. Corbin made a mental note to speak with Aviana about this. She was an old friend of his from Chicago, the two had been out of touch but recently become reacquainted. Surprisingly she had been turned also, and was a telepath. Perhaps she could tell him more about this other vampire, or maybe she knew the one called Every.

Pulled back to reality, he focused on Galias words. She sounded so calm, and Corbin found a few things hard to believe. Here she claimed she maybe could handle a zombie before. Corbin knew she had powers of great use that would be handy not just against zombies. Was it possible she did not know what she was capable of before? She claimed to be afraid of vampires, that she avoided dangerous situations. How can this be true? From what he overheard in the alleyway tonight, he was almost sure she had been hunting the vampires who attacked her. And before, when he had looked into her thoughts he knew she had been attacked. Something was going on that he had not yet put together.

" I hope you have less to fear, but know there are still many things to be afraid of. Just know I am here for you. I want to be, if you are alright with that." As he spoke, Corbin reminded himself that he could not just force himself into someone's life, even if he was the one who turned them. " If someone was leaving notes for you at your home, that means they know where you live. Would likely be best if you find a new place to stay. That can be here, for as long as you want. You will always be welcome here. I can help you find a different place too. If a stranger starts leaving notes for you, we should find out who it is." His tone was calm, but inside his emotions were all extremes.

[Galia]

It seemed odd to her the way he reacted. That he seemed to care. This was all quite a lot, she was grateful for the calm though. She'd hold onto it as long as she could. She wasn't really sure he could do much about it, but it was interesting that he might have. She hadn't had the messages in a bit now, but she hadn't tried to leave either. She had just tried to live it out.

She listened to his next words, he said there were still things to be afraid of. That was hard to imagine, vampires were powerful right? And immortal. What did they have to fear? That did bring a slight bit of concern back to her. He told her he was still here to help her. A strangely welcome offer. She didn't know him. She only knew he'd turned her, and she took it that could be seen as a bad thing. But so far, she hadn't really had anyone offer to help her while in this city. There were a few moments where it just happened that they worked together with someone, but that wasn't the same thing.

He also offered for her to stay here, and to find a new place. She wasn't sure they'd care, whoever they were. The only requirement as that she not leave. She still wasn't doing that. But, still, the thought of not having to stay in a place she knew was compromised was a good one.

"Heh, well, it probably is safer here regardless. Though...I'm not sure about how to find a new place. I don't exactly make enough money to just...swap around easily. I guess." she responded. Though her thoughts became distracted by the idea of powers again, eager to test them out and then reminded of an issue, "What exactly happens...when the sun rises?" she asked. There was a slight bit of concern on her voice, but far more curiosity.

[Corbin]

With the passing of each moment, and the lack of violence, he began to relax. His paranoia shifting, holding less concern over her attacking him for what he had done. Once the shock wore off, her opinion could change. She would likely be safer now, having become a vampire. Though the possibility of her causing havoc still lingered. In the rush of turning her, Corbin had not considered all the responsibilities. With Othella things had been different, the two had already been taking care of each other. With Galias turning, it was a totally different experience. Snuffing out his smoke, he casually made way to the other side of the room. Starting up the forge, tossing in the cigarette filter, burning the evidence. His mind pondered over many things at once.

With mention of not being able to afford a new place, he gave a wave of his hand. As to note that this was not an issue. Corbin was not an overly rich man. Yet, knew how to obtain wealth, if he devoted the time. A new place could easily be obtained for Galia. Before vocalizing this, a mental note was made, that maybe she would not want him to do such a thing. He was a complete stranger to her after all. Though he reminded himself that he had saved her, that had to count for something. Plus he would rather she stay here for now. As protecting her, if she were elsewhere in the city, could prove difficult. The best thing was to offer her any and all possible advantages.

As she asked about the sun, Corbin began sorting through his lock box. Pulling out a few different parts he had improved. Pondering upon making some weapons for Galia. " I am by no means an expert on all things vampire. I can only share what I have experienced and what knowledge has been gained from others." As he spoke, he continued to sort through things in the lock box. Setting a few different things out beside the forge, he spoke on. " When the sun comes up, I grow very tired. At first it was hard to stay awake, but over the last couple years, it's easier to fight it. I know of others who fall out asleep, the moment the sun's up. Like some sort of vampire narcolepsy." With sharing the last of his words, Corbin hoped she never had to deal with such a curse.

'' Get caught out in the sun, and you will be critically wounded. An injury so bad, you will be unable to hold down much blood until you heal. The key is to have a plan ahead of time. Be resourceful, just find a place to hideout for the day. Though having an easy escape is definitely helpful, in any situation." With this said, he pulled out one of the home tomes he had crafted a while back. He had made a couple of them, but never imagined any of the extras would come in handy so soon. '' Have you ever heard of a home bound tome before? I have one here you can have. When used it will bring you here. It doesn't matter if you are wounded or powerless, this will always work." Walking over to set the tome upon the table.

''This is for you. Even if you never use it…. Good to have. Feel free to use it as much or as little as you like. " Hoping the item came in handy. His eyes would drift back to Galia. '' You should really get cleaned up though…" He was not trying to be rude, and hoped his words didn't come off that way. Simply this was not a sight he wanted his wife to walk in upon. Not that he didn't already have a lot of explaining to do. Best not to have it look like someone was bleeding out. '' Later my sister might come by. If you want, I can have her pick up a few things from your place for you? " His words sounded unsure. This was all new to him, and he felt as if he was doing everything completely wrong.

[Galia]

No violence, none yet at the least. No that was not on Galia's mind. She did not have that need, at least, not in and of itself. Consequences might be a little harder to grasp in the same way, but she was not violent. He took her comment about a new place fairly lightly, suggest he had an easy enough way of remedying that. Not that either of them could actually fix the issue. Nor that, her now being a vampire, was there any need for it to be fixed.

He also answered some of her questions, including some of the unasked ones. She certainly had heard vampires slept when the sun was up, and that it was dangerous to them. But most of that was in movies and who knows what's reliable, that was supposed to be fictional afterall.

But it was indeed dangerous, enough to prevent proper eating...drinking? Feeding. Even if she had to go somewhere less than ideal, find somewhere to avoid the sun. That seemed doable. After-all it wasn't like the sun just came up spontaniously. She should be able to time it, she just had to think in reverse of how she normally would do it. Avoid being out in the dark changed to avoid being out in the light. Well, maybe it would be a little more difficult than that.

She watched him pull out an item and explain it, a 'home bound tome' she mouthed the words after he said them furrowing her brow in thought. Nope, definitely never heard of that before. She looked it over as he set it down before picking it up. "Uh, ok. Thanks." she said, a little unsure but accepting. It was weird to her just how accepting she really was. But she wasn't sure if that was something she should or shouldn't be concerned about.

She had almost forgotten about the clothing issue until he mentioned it and she looked at it...man. That was awful. Yup, these were ruined. Were it just one or two cuts or tears maybe she could stitch it up but she was pretty sure that this was too out of her reach. How did she get this way? No wonder she didn't remember with these types of injuries. At least, that was her reasons for it. "Wow, that's a mess." she admitted holding the shirt and scrunching her face at it.

A sister pick up clothes. This all felt so strange. Familiar in the way of acting, yet foreign in it's parts. Giving and felt sincere but she couldn't understand the reason as to why someone would do this, or maybe it was just the how. The absurdity of immortality. "Uh...yeah, sure, that could be a good idea. Thanks." she looked up, remembering what he said about daylight, "So, out of curiosity and maybe importance...how long is it till sunrise?"

[Corbin]

By judging her reaction to the tome, Corbin guessed she had never used one before. Only recently had he tried the tome himself. It had taken him a while to get used to the feeling. The work put into it had all been worth it. Quite a few times Corbin was thankful for the quick escape the tome offered. " Maybe give it a try sometime tonight. Just to get the feel of it. No matter where you are, it will bring you to this exact spot." Spoken, as he moved to where the tome drop was. His tone sympathetic as he spoke on, hearing the comments in regard to her clothing. "I wish we had shown up sooner… I only wanted to help, and hope I have not gone too far with what has been done." As he spoke, the man made his way back to the forge. The area was just one large room, he didn't want to crowd her. Corbin knew first hand this was a lot to process.

"It's a few hours before dawn. As said before, I feel it best you at the least stay here tonight. Even if you never wish to see me again. People might be looking for you Galia. Likely me too. Not just people, but vampires. The vampires who did this to you. I might have scared them off, but surely they have friends. One I sent to the shadows, but he might be back. Likely whoever they work for, will not be happy." Corbin recognized a group of thugs when he saw one. His own father had been involved in organized crime. Being a son born out of wedlock, Corbin was thankful never having to involve himself in the family business. Growing up having spent the summers in Harper Rock; until his father passed away.

" I can get everything set up for you, while you clean up. Clean towels are in the bathroom already. Just help yourself to whatever clothing you find in the dressers. The wife and I are still working on moving in. Likely she might be at the house we have. Just feel it's safer here, now that she has been turned." After sharing this, he waited until she left the room before moving around. Staring by pulling out the bed, hidden within the couch. Claudette used the bed a few times, like after she got out of the hospital. He still felt guilty over the way things played out. Once the bedding was changed, he was back to working on weapons.

While the time passed, and he worked, Corbin reached out to Othella. Using one of his telepathic abilities, he gave her a heads up on what had happened. *Othella,I hope all is well with you this evening. Miss you. Not to be alarmed, but something has happened tonight. I am unharmed, but came across a woman under attack. Vampires took her life, but I gave her my blood. Could not let that be the end for her. I can't explain why, maybe it's because I know her in a way. We can talk about this all later. Just wanted to give you a heads up, so you would not be surprised to see a stranger sleeping on our couch. I love you. Looking forward to seeing you, it has been a long night.*

[Galia]

Galia nodded as she looked at the tome then watched him go where he said it would take her. His next comment about wishing he'd come sooner, and about how far it had gone, she could't think of a response too. And just looked back at the tome. Unsure. Had he? What about her? How utterly lost she was and yet how little fear she felt about it. Maybe it still hadn't fully sunk in. Maybe it had sunk in all the way, and now it didn't feel like it mattered.

Few hours till dawn, good. He suggested she stay here, which was something she was unsure about. But at the same time, she wasn't sure about other options. She didn't trust her own place. And she certainly didn't want to be stuck in the streets or something when dawn struck. Or...anywhere in the open really. And worse, he said people might be looking for her. She still didn't understand the circumstances involved in that.

She nodded as he mentioned the clothing and towels, blinking and hesitating about doing anything. She left to get rid of the ruined clothes and take a proper shower. She still felt the injuries, but they weren't as bad as she would have expected. She felt a bit clouded, just moving with the way things went. When she was done, and done inspecting the wounds and...blood? If that was the best word for it. She began getting changed into whatever she thought fit her best and coming back out.

She knew something wasn't quite right, but she couldn't quite place what exactly it was. It wasn't just the situation. She was doing something that wasn't right. Or would do something. It felt off. She didn't want to sleep here. She didn't want to sleep anywhere. What was it?

"The-" she hesitated, not really sure if she was trying to speak to Corbin or just herself, "There's something missing." she said aloud furrowing her brow.

[Corbin]

As Galia stepped into the other room, Corbin worked silently at the forge. His mind racing, replaying the events of the evening. Still justifying what he did to save the woman tonight. When she finally walked back out, he greeted her with a smile. Feeling the woman already looked a little better and hoped she was feeling better too. Yet her words shifted his expression quickly, to one of concern. His emotions often jumped dramatically in such a way. A trait that came with his turning, one he found exhausting at times. " What's missing? " Said, as he set aside his tools.

Before the woman could respond, Corbin hears the door. Turning, he expects to see Claudette, instead he faces his friend Aviana. She's like family, so of course had not bothered with knocking. The woman doesn't look happy to be here. Her eyes are locked on Galia, and not in a pleasant way. Lingering near the entrance, her gaze shoots from Galia to Corbin. When she speaks, her voice is accusing. " Corbin, what have you done? " Clearly she was upset, but Corbin couldn't fathom to what extent.

" I saved her life… Figured you of all people would understand. " His words hinted with disappointment. The conversation shifted, as she spoke to his mind. *She is a Paladin Corbin! Or was one! It was a while ago, but she attacked someone in the Docere bloodline. Isn't she the one the telepath warned you about?!* As she spoke, her gaze glared in his direction. With the accusations, Corbin suddenly wished he had not told her about the telepath and his warning.

His eyes twitched, as anger settled upon him. He couldn't explain why, but he felt strongly protective of the vampire he turned. " If you have something to say, I would prefer you say it aloud. " Shared with Avi, before sharing a glance to Galia, his expression turning to one of sympathy. Sorry she was having to deal with this. " Alright…. You should kill her now. Send her to the shadow realm, before she murders you and Othella while you're sleeping!" Her tone heartless, and Corbin knew she meant every word.

"Get out…" Flat cold words expressed, as he pointed towards the door. Avi looked at him in disbelief. "GET OUT!" Yelling at her then, before his world went black. He knew Avi had used her powers, and took away his sight. Instantly Corbin pulled out a handgun he had on him, pointing it in the direction he sensed her. " Harm her, and I'll shoot you." His aim was steady, as he spoke with confidence. " You can't even see…"

Instantly Corbin cut her off. " You're not the only one capable of mind tricks Aviana!" She didn't sound worried, as she clearly spoke to Galia then. " If you hurt my friends, in any way… I will kill you." The whole interaction happened so fast, ending with Corbin firing a shot in Aviana's direction. The woman would vanish, using a tome but not before attempting to cast a Waking Nightmare upon Galia. Should the power take effect the woman would be hunted for 5 days by nightmarish apparitions.

[Galia]

Much better being clean, and not in cloths with holes. That was good too. Though it was certainly overshadowed by a great many things, the pauses were helping. And the strange feeling of having forever to figure things out, that was good too. It felt like she needn't rush it, but at the same time, she rather wanted to. Still, there was a nagging feeling something was not right.

And then the door opened she looked to see a woman, it did not click for her the problem. But she recognized a moment of concern, she somehow knew her as a vampire. And now realized, the same applied to Corbin. It was all hovering around her like a familiar feeling. The woman's words however, did not bring her comfort.

She felt herself shrinking away from them. She looked between the two as they spoke, and the woman spoke again, this time, with something she really did not want to her. If her heart was still able to beat, it would have been pounding. As it was, things shifted. Her powers were not fully under her control, but her time as a paladin, even unawares as it was, caused a shift. Fear, perhaps not for her life, but instinctive enough to be so. Applying a power she didn't even know she had, to utterly vanish. As Corbin's world went black, Galia faded from it as well, backing into the room behind her.

A threat, a gunshot, Galia stayed on the ground quiet holding her hands over her ears. The sound of a gunshot wasn't unfamiliar around here. But aimed at her was so much more uncommon. She heard the threat and saw the woman vanish. Whatever bravery and calm she might have had for those moments was gone. "Nowhere is safe." panic revived itself to her as she spoke in shaking words

She might not have quite been her normal self anymore, her typical human self. But at least right now fear and panic still greeted her in this moment. And she found herself on the move. Outside, in the dark, anywhere she could go, her panic taking her only more and more to something that she didn't understand. "Something's missing, something's missing."

Somewhere to hide before sunrise, she might find that. But it would likely not be enough.