Path of the Vampire forum

--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--

* Mayhem shook his head with a blank expression that said he meant exactly what he said, "No. I calculated the chances. Him being a cop was highly unlikely. He looks too stupid." He did have a smile hiding under that blank expression however, from being told she was a daddy's girl, "It's not anything to do with you guys being the softer sex... In all rights, women have always been stronger. We men can hide behind the stereotype that we should always be reserved so we don't have to disgrace ourselves by showing our weak selves and emotions. Women are always told that they're either too emotional or too reserved, yet they still stand as they see fit."

* Every frowned, "You'd be surprised how stupid some of the cops I've seen are. There's also crooked ones." But, a small twitch of her lips showed her amusement, "Piers isn't bad, though. I like him now that he didn't try to kill me again and his thrall, Ginger, is really sweet." She thought about what he said and gave a soft shrug of her shoulders, "Where I grew up it wasn't one way or another. Emotions didn't matter, they just kept it easier to keep control." She tugged on her hair lightly, "Maybe it has to do with inner beauty or something."

* Mayhem chuckled, "He's not a bad guy. Even though he didn't know exactly what it was that compelled me to arbitrarily buy from him, he tried to cheer me up. But not being bad and not being an idiot are two separate things. The weirdo acted like we were life-long friends when we had just met. He was... surprisingly sharp though." He stared at her in a way that said he wasn't going to push her to tell him where she grew up, but that he was interested if she wanted to talk, "See. Women definitely have inner beauty, men are just gross. If I look in the mirror I see the proof of how ugly I am inside." He chuckled.

* Every felt her lips twitch in amusement, "He's an allurist, doesn't surprise me the guy was charming as a human. Wouldn't doubt if you were, too." She chuckled, leaning back. A soft shake of her head was visible, "You don't look that way in the mirror because you're ugly inside, Jayden. Allurists are the most human out of vampires, which is why you have your reflection on some manner." She removed another safety pin from her pocket, poking her finger lightly to allow a wisp of her shadowy blood to linger in the air. "I mean, hell. I'm made of shadows and used to have to think of how to project one onto my body, creating natural ones you have."

* Mayhem blinked. He wrapped his arms around his stomach and bent over, laughing, "Ku.. Haha. While I did mean that reflection, I was meaning in a more poetical sense." He grinned, "And as for charming? I dunno. I've always been as I am. Though, I don't recall ever being so depressed all the time like something isn't quite right inside me." He spoke while he watched her blood in a curious amazement. A hand started to reach out like he wanted to take a hold of her wrist to get a better observation of the blood, but he froze his arm in a quick stop, remembering himself. She wasn't a specimen. "That's... Really amazing... I mean, it sucks for you, but..." He shook his head, "And Piers totally wasn't charismatic. He was a goofy dork. I mean, what dealer does their own merch?"

* Every held out her hand as she noticed he'd started to move, watching her blood disappear as a shadow would on the ground, "You've never seen me bleed, have you?" She lifted her eyebrow, collecting a knife to make it easier as she wasn't too concerned about healing. "Eh, it's only bad if I'm in a crowd of humans. I've taught myself to project my shadow without much thought now, I only lose it on the full moon like I do the rest of my abilities." She then gave a soft shrug of her shoulder, "I wouldn't know, I wasn't into drugs. I did drink a lot as a human."

* Mayhem leaned in to observe it closely when she cut herself, though his lips pursed into a frown, "It's not good to intentionally hurt such pretty skin." However, since she already had, he let himself reach both hands out. One to take a hold and the other to put just below her arm to see what the shadowy blood would feel like if it dripped onto his hand. "I did them with Lil, but I like my brains so I was always careful about moderation. It's not only bad business but also sloppy for a dealer to be a user. To use like he does, he must definitely have things that make him too unhappy to bear without the stimulant to take his mind off. Most vampires don't seem affected by toxins, if he's one of them, I wonder how he'll fair without the high..."

* Every gave a soft shake of her head, "I don't scar, Jayd. My skin will be fine." And it was, as it always was. She watched her blood drip down, not landing in his palm but splash onto the air itself, lingering and staying there. "Everyone has their demons, I suppose. Maybe he can afford it." She felt her lips twitch softly, "Dealers that use might also know how to properly distribute and enhance their drug of choice to get a better quality product." A hum escaped past her lips, "Curtis isn't bothered by toxins like I am, so there's a chance Piers isn't. We'll just have to see, but hopefully he'll learn before he does the hard way like Micah and I have."

* Mayhem still didn't like it. Then again, he wasn't a fighter. So he didn't really deal with wounds on a daily basis. He nodded silently to her words, "Yeahhh... Toxins are... It was a good thing you, as embarrassing as it was, put that 'lost child' id in my wallet."

* Every snickered, "Well, would you have preferred the 'lost child' in your wallet or me having a microchip implanted into your *** cheek, or my address tattooed onto your wrist?" She asked, although she had a bracelet for him back in her room.

* Mayhem paused and stared at her in aghast, "Nothing ever has or will go in my *** in any way shape or form." He vowed that the last time would be the time his parents had to give him a suppository when he was four. "And tattoos aren't bad, but it'd totally make me look like an owned man. How would I get a girlfriend then? So I guess the 'Lost Child' works."

* Every stared at him, point blank. "Honestly, getting shot in the *** hurts a lot less than getting shot in the crotch." It was something she was familiar with and wouldn't go into detail about. "That's why you put it in a place someone wouldn't look, like the bottom of your foot."

‹Mayhem› .....

* Mayhem shuddered.

* Every blinked lightly, "I've had it happen twice."

‹Mayhem› I've only ever really... Been shot by those bastards in the sewers on few occasions... And then attacked by that huge freaky monster thing.

‹Every› I stop counting how many times I've been injured. I've only lost my arm twice, though. Leg once.

‹Mayhem› ... Lost....

‹Every› My limbs kind of... fade back into place. Killers grow them back.

* Every shrugged.

‹Mayhem› ... Can any of our kind lose their head and live?

* Every frowned, "None that I have seen. We can take on several critical wounds and keep kicking. Gunshot or blade to the head or chest. I watched someone take on five before getting shot down."

* Mayhem had always had naturally pale skin, so there wasn't much of a difference regardless now. But he skin seemed to pale at the though.

* Every lifted her lips into a small smile, "We come back after a week, Jayden, and there are powers that aid in healing. One can increase the healing of critical wounds to become regular." She lifted her shoulder in a shrug.

‹Mayhem› Even so...

* Mayhem shuddered.

‹Mayhem› Half of me would like the 'trip' to experience first hand and collect data...

‹Mayhem› But... Yeah, I willing chose the pain of dying once because of this damned inquisitive nature.

* Every snickered. "The 'trip' isn't as pleasant as one might think. I've been in the shadow realm twice too many times for my liking. Once by my choice, as I was unable to lower a bounty. The second because a dick broke into my home."

* Mayhem glanced up when Dante came in. The young man held a manilla folder along with a brown bag. He eyed the two before sitting the bag down in front of the woman, full of useless garbage that Jayd had been telling him to collect Every now and then for the family. He figured he might as well give it to her. And then the folder to Jayd. Dante spoke in a monotone voice, "Even if you don't like it, we have a meeting." Jayd was obviously about to run when the thrall grabbed his ear to start dragging him along, "At least let me pick up my bag on the way by! Le'g'go. Eve! Save me! Talking to people is suppose to be his work!"

* Every lifted her eyebrow as she watched Dante enter, her hazel eyes flickering in amusement as she waved to the thrall in greeting before she looked to the bag, "Thank you." She chimed and then resisted the urge to snort. "You don't have to speak to people to do your job, Jayd. Go do your meeting, email me tomorrow and I'll reply when I land. We'll have to go out when I get back sometime."

* Mayhem whined pathetically. Dante however was as precise and detached as always, swiping up Jayd's computer bag as they went by without any amount of clatter to his movement. Honestly, the thrall seemed more vampiric than the master, "I will... Jerk. I was having an important conversation." He sighed as he was dragged upwards, out of the hotel.

--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--

<Satine> It wasn't going as well as she hoped. Scratch that. It was not at all as she anticipated it would be. Micah was receptive as well as others when she initially lurked on the family board. She wasn't huge on computers given she never really was one to hang about on the net back home. Things started out okay but as the weeks passed she had been finding she was starting more fires around her in her interactions than she did in her own head. It was safe to say everything pretty much had blossomed into trouble every time she turned around. Of course it would be easy to see in hindsight where the responsibility for majority of the **** storms belonged. It was just going to take a lot of work on Satine's part to accept it.

<Micah> He had told Satine if she needed him, all she had to do was call. It had been a couple weeks since he’d had the chance to speak with her so he figured she was doing alright. Hopefully she was adjusting to the life she’d been tossed into. It weighed on him a bit that she hadn’t been given the chance to choose whether she wanted it or not but going by the last interaction he had had with her, Satine didn’t seem to be resentful and for that he was grateful. Normally he wouldn’t care too much what people thought about him but this one….there was a bit of guilt there, mostly because he hadn’t been able to grant his wife the time to get to know her sister. Micah was hopeful that in the end it would work out, not just for Vel, but for all of them.

<Satine>Given the recent events the young necromancer decided it was time to ask more questions that would make the transition easier for her. For one thing she needed to get her hands on those documents that would help her bypass all the red tape of needing identification and what not. She had a number but she figured at this point she really didn’t have a whole lot of room left for more trouble to be added to her list of things to take care of.

Stepping out of the mall after her shift ended, Satine sent the number Micah had given her to contact him. It had been a couple weeks since she last talked to him. She had no idea if it would annoy him...or her. The things she needed to ask weren’t as simple as where the local creamery was located or the dry cleaners. Her fingers went quickly in tapping out a message then looking at it. It sounded winded. She erased that one and went with the simple and direct approach.

-You busy? Ready for more answers-

The red tipped fingers hit the send prompt before she could change her mind. Now all she had to do was wait for a reply. Until then she would pick up more receipts from the printers and the sales tags that she had ordered with the store logo neatly at the top. The store was almost out of them.

<Micah> He had been debating running over to Masterpiece to see if there was anything waiting that required his immediate attention. It had been a good few weeks since he’d stopped by, finding that his free time had become less and less. Micah wasn’t complaining about that. He hated nothing more than having loads of time and nothing to do with it. So, Masterpiece it was. Just as he went to stick his phone in his pocket the device vibrated in his hand. Satine flashed across the screen, with the little text message icon. Speak of the devil.

-Text- No I ain’t busy. If you got questions, I got answers. Meet you at the hotel.

Never dawned on him to ask her if the location was fine with her but the message had been sent. At least she’d be able to use her tome to get there and she’d probably beat him to the hotel anyways. Sticking the phone in his pocket he took the elevator and headed for the portal that would drop him in the middle of Pandemonium.

<Satine>The text came through as Satine was pulling out her tome. The idea of being able to just read something then be at a set location was still new to her. Here she thought the whole time that vampires were supposed to be able to sprout bat wings or whatever and fly. It was not the case at all. She had seen her sister roll out of thin air as well as summoned by both Micah and Velveteen while she was standing at work. She had yet to see any bat shaped shadows fluttering overhead. The feeling of a solid surface beneath her feet and the dark red interior of the hotel lobby reminded her she had a destination and had arrived.

Satine stuffed the tome and her cell in her tote bag and pulled it tight over her shoulder. Her eyes still were cautious as they did a sweep of those that were visible. She figured a smooth solid pace to her hotel room door would leave her moving through unnoticed. Once Velveteen worked through her feelings Satine would see about mixing and mingling.

She was just about to pull out her keys when that feeling that had her eyes gravitating towards the direction of one she couldn’t miss if she tried, which she wouldn’t. It was the same with her sister. There was a connection to both that was able to override any mood, intention or whatever else Satine had going on at the moment. If they were present her *** was pretty much front and center because she had yet to figure out the bond, connection or whatever was preferred between her and them went deeper than anything she would ever have known as a mortal. Deeper than her layers of her cold flesh and veins. It was unbreakable and unavoidable.

“Where can we talk?” She looked around again and was not so sure she wanted to do it where people were just hanging out.

<Micah> As he had expected she was already there when he stepped out of the fade portal. Anyone else might have mistaken her for Vel, but he wasn’t one of them. She didn’t dress in the same way as Vel did and she wasn’t wearing those damn glasses that Vel had started to wear. An identity crisis she called it but Micah would bet his gun hand that she had ulterior motives, especially once she saw his reaction to them. Now he was pretty sure that she only continued to wear them because it got a reaction out of him.

At her question he looked around. The room was far from empty. Several others were visible to him, either sleeping or minding their own business as was wise of them. He didn’t take kindly to people trying to stick their nose into **** that didn’t concern them. The room he shared with Vel was absolutely out of the question. Vel might have come to terms with what he’d done but her issues with Satine in general still lingered. Micah doubted she’d appreciate entering her room and find that her sister had been in there. It was the same reason that Satine’s was out of the question. He wasn’t going to do anything that could possibly raise Vel’s ire.

“Up there.” He pointed to a shadowed corner on the balcony that was pretty much out of the way. He would be able to see anyone who came in and if he needed to make his presence know he wouldn’t have to step out far. It would offer the seclusion needed for the talk Satine wished to have. Turning he headed for the steps, knowing she wouldn’t be far behind.

--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--

<Satine>She nodded and that was exactly what was happening to her. At first it seemed like a coincidence but now she knew it wasn’t. The grin that appeared on Micah’s face said even more about him than she had really known before. He could smile. She started to do the same as she looked at him but then her lips reacted quickly as she took in a deep breath and remembered that this was an allotment of time that he was giving her to answer questions that she really needed to get figured out before she made anymore trips outside the hotel. the less she knew about what was going on the more likely she was to get in more trouble than she already had.

“Where do all those creatures that are in the sewers come from? They aren’t like us...vampires, right?”

Satine was hoping that was not the case or that somewhere down the line she could have that to worry about. It would be nice if she could believe in the romantic notion of the vampire movies where you never grow old and you are older than dirt but never look or feel like it. That part wouldn’t be any skin off her *** to endure. If anything she would be pretty happy hearing it from the head honcho himself, Mr. Andras.

<Micah> A good question. He was pleased that Satine was actually asking him things that she really needed the answers to. “They are Paladins, and footsoldiers. They’re humans but they aren’t your average, run of the mill humans. There's something supernatural about them especially the paladins. And they like to attack vampires on sight so its best you don’t try to make friends with them.” He’d had more than his fair share of run ins with those assholes and while he didn’t carry any scars from those altercations he could remember the battles. Many a night had been spent working off his aggression by stalking through those dank sewers killing anything and everything that crossed his path. Therapeutic at the time but now they didn’t offer him enough of a challenge. No, Micah spent his time in the castle now killing Lionelli and picking up gun parts for his wife.

“Some think its a good idea to make friends with Paladins. I’m gonna tell you right now, that that is a stupid move and if you choose to do that you’ll just piss me off and I’ll probably end up shooting you for being stupid.” Micah never understood how some of the vampires in the city thought consorting with Paladins and Sorcerers and all that was a good move. It wasn’t. It was a stupid thought and a good way to get yourself killed but then again...people weren’t smart. That had been proven time and again.

<Satine>She heard every word Micah had said and she felt a few muscles twitch where she was sitting when he mentioned he would shoot her himself if she took up to being friendly with the sewer dwelling hunters and their buddies the paladins. So perhaps that was a good way to earn a few brownie points and some worthwhile practice. Killing off any of the ones she could find. Maybe they were juiced up on power but they were now fair game. She made a note of that and nodded. She could see them light up like those night bugs with her new ability she discovered. Nothing like having built in thermal vision.

“No worries on that so save yourself some bullets. I like to play with my food but not call it my best friend.” Satine settled back and decided now was the time to ask about those humans that lurked aroudn the city and would ask her if she wanted to make some money. Blood thieves. Was that it?

“What is a blood thief?” Satine had a few reasons she wanted to know as she had been finding them approaching her often. “Can we feed from another vampire? Humans dont drink vampire blood and still stay human do they?”

Satine felt like she as well as those she had become aware of were proof that a human didn’t survive such an act. Or... did they?

<Micah> “Long as you ain’t seen you can play with your food all you want.” He recalled with vivid clarity the state he’d found her in not long ago. The night she’d tried to feed off of Bunny she reminded him of a wild animal, or a crack addict looking for her next fix. It made him wonder if she was going to be one of those messy fuckers. He hoped not, and he sure as **** hoped that she was smart enough to dispose of the bodies. Sooner or later she was going to have to get that under control, the sooner the better.

A blood thief. “Blood thieves are humans that feed on vampires in order to steal their powers. They don’t get to keep them and after so long they have to feed again. Sometimes you’ll find them lurking around the city and they’ll offer to buy your blood.” He pinned her with a stare. “Don’t sell them your blood. Blood thieves rate up there with Paladins on my list of ******* annoyances that need to die. My advice would be to just turn around and walk the other way. Your blood is my blood and I dont share that ****.”

--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--

* Athena came right up to the woman's apartment. For a moment, she paced in front of the closed apartment door before she pivoted on her chunky 90's styled heel and knocked on the door three loud times.

* Every sat at her computer, clicking away at the keys as she hacked and listened to the music playing through her cellphone until the knocking started, her hazel eyes moving to the door briefly and back to the screen. "Come in." She called, "Doors open." And then began to transfer files before pulling the square framed glasses away from her face.

* Athena was nervous, she didn't do well in crowds and she never had many friends. This was a new step for her. She had a little piece of paper that had been torn from her journal in her hand. This way she would remember who had so nicely offered to give help to newbies. Rion had told Athena so many times to speak to other members of the family but the thought brought a lump to her throat. While she swallowed it down she opened the door to her aunt's apartment and walked in. "Hello, Eve." her voice soft as she closed the door behind her.

* Every folded her glasses and put them in her bag, still not entirely comfortable with the fact she had to wear them once again after getting shot in the head. Hearing another female greet her, she lifted her gaze to see a vaguely familiar face until it dawned on her the girls name. "Athena." She greeted, offering the small smile that was always given to family she wasn't close with. "How are you?" She stood up, pushing in her chair before motioning to one in front of the fireplace. "Please, take a seat."

* Athena smiled lightly, hoping that it wasn't too obvious that she was nervous. It probably was despite her best efforts to look otherwise. "Thank you." she said once Every gestured and mentioned for her to take a seat. The woman carried her slim backpack over her shoulders and once she sat down she shrugged it off and place it on her lap. Her hair was back in a plain ponytail and a leather jacket too big for her swallowed her top-half. As she sat back to try and relax she crossed her denim pant clad legs. "I was wondering if you had any time to answer a few questions?"

* Every reached up to adjust the bun on the top of her head briefly as she took in the girl's appearance before following over to the opposite chair, barefoot. Quietly, the squeak of her hedgehog prompted the woman's hazel eyes to move towards the clear ball that was rolling freely against the flooring. "Mhm, what's on your mind?" She pulled on the hem of her tee-shirt lightly, one of the sleeves hanging off her shoulder from the size.

* Athena cleared her throat softly, she turned some in her seat to place her backpack from her lap to beside her left foot on the floor. Silently, she looked over at the other once she was settled and smiled softly. "I've been noticing some things that are...quite different." she swallowed again, nervous obviously. Then the clear ball caught her attention from the corner of her eye and she thoughtlessly looked over to smile at the rolling item. Athena loved animals and without thinking she asked. "What's the hedgehog's name?" Looking back over at the other with brightened eyes.

* Every inclined her head, the action itself one that could see in a canine. She wondered, sometimes, if it was an effect of meaner things and mentally made a note to ask her sire later. "Well, vampirism does that sometimes. What's up?" She paused, her hazel eyes moving over the other's body language, "I'm not going to hurt you." It was an automatic statement when people were nervous. "Squeaks, lame, I know. But." She shrugged.

* Athena laughed softly, it was a sound of her good nature. Of course she wasn't, Ath knew she was silly to think she would. "It's not too lame. I'm sure he or she squeaks a lot." she smiled, showing her white teeth and fangs. "Well, as I've continued to fight zombies and animals.. I've noticed that I feel different." she paused, trying to word this right. "Like, when I'm really hungry.. and I focus hard enough.. I can feel myself.. be less hungry? Athena stumbled over her words, her eyes squinting some in her frustration to form sentences that might make sense. "But then I get tired.." Now chewing on her inner cheek as she waited for the other to laugh and explain that she was just simply crazy.

* Every looked to her pet, a small twitch of amusement visible across her pale pink lips, "He. He's pretty quiet on a good day." Looking back to Athena, she crossed her leg over the other before her arms folding in front of her chest as she listened to her. A curious expression played across her features and then a chuckle escaped past her lips. "Blood boosting. It's a necromancer power, you'll get used to it."

* Athena also couldn't help the smile that formed on her lips. Looking again to the other's pet to watch him roll all around. Now thinking to herself that maybe when she was able that she too would get a pet. At the sound of the other's chuckle, she looked back over and her eyes widened. "Ah, so that's what I am.." she chewed on her lower lip in thought before she asked. "Is there anyway that I can research what might happen to me in the future?"

* Every moved her hazel eyes to the lights above that she kept dim and debated briefly before getting up and moving to collect a flashlight that she kept in her drawer. "I can make you a list of abilities, you may or may not receive. I'm born to shadow, but I have access to that path from age." She paused, thinking, "Rion can always answer them, too. She's a necromancer, as is Velveteen and my childe, Nishaa."

* Athena would nod at each name mentioned. She made a mental note to ask these vampires about their Necromancer abilities. Her eyes watched the older vampire with respect as she moved about her apartment. "I would more than appreciate that, Eve. Thank you very much." she chewed on her lip, another question hovering over her head as she debated asking. While the other woman moved around she nudged her foot to her bag gently, always feeling better when she knew her things were near.

* Every rubbed the base of her neck as she collected her flashlight and a notebook, "You'll eventually be able to speak with a wraith to learn fadewalker to go towards shadow powers or immortal, to go towards killer. That's my sire's born path." She explained and then went to the other female. "One thing about necromancers though, I'd avoid bright lights at all costs." She held it out, "Might wanna see for yourself why."

* Athena had set up her phone so all she had to do was double click her lock button to take a picture. The light off her phone's camera flashed and she rubbed her thumb gently over switch on the flashlight, turning it off. "Let's see here.." she mumbled to herself, turning her phone back around to glance at the picture she just took. "W-" At first, she was in shock. Where was her face? Her blue eyes, her found cheeks, her full lips? Then even with a blink the image didn't go away. The realization hit and she inwardly screamed at the image that was staring at her. That was her face?! THAT WAS HER FACE?! Athena shook her head suddenly, her hand dropped her phone and she bit down hard on her inner cheek to keep herself from screaming like a little girl.

* Every began to write down the powers quietly, her pen scratching on the paper quietly until she felt a bump of plastic against her ankle and the brunette paused in her actions to pick up her pet. It was hard for her to think she almost had him for three years, a birthday gift from Lia. Good to no duck face, I'm waiting for someone's face to get stuck like that. She shook her head, removing Squeaks from his ball before moving to put him back in his cage. Bedtime, critter. Spade ain't here to put you up in case I fall asleep and I'm sure no one would appreciate a rodent running about. She heard the phone hit the floor, her own memory of recalling the differences in traits still fresh at times. That's not that bad, really. It only happens in bright lights. Allurists look like corpses in mirrors, mystics often take on new bodies if they die. She listed off traits mentally.

--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--

* Athena | It was a moment or so before she could form a response. The woman's body was in shock, her eyes had widened and she was beyond embarrassed. Slowly her head shook, leaning forward to pick her phone up from the other's floor. Not wanting someone to accidentally walk on it. "Only bright lights?" she asked, sighing some. It was a little comfort, if that. "Can you tell if someone else is a vampire?" A question that had been lingering in the back of her mind for some time now. Glad now that she had the courage to ask, that only left one more question that she needed to ask.

* Every blinked lightly at the question and paused, having not been asked it before. A moment later, she scratched at the side of her nose, "Well, we don't have a heartbeat. Most of us are very pale." Although, even as she spoke and sat by the firelight, she herself looked very healthy. "All Paths but allurists cannot eat off the bat, but we can teach ourselves. It's just... not pleasant. Or clean."

* Athena wrinkled her nose just a little. "Yeah, Rion said that I probably shouldn't try drinking or eating unless I wanted to throw up all of my guts." she adjusted in her seat, moving around some so that she could sit comfortably. Looking over at Every she gave a nervous smile. "I have another question but it may seem.. weird." she trailed off. What would seem weird to a vampire? Who knows.

* Every nodded, "Yes, that's exactly right." She had never done it, but had seen it enough, "It's kind of like... instavomit." She shook her head, pulling at the hem of her shorts as she pulled one knee to her chest and set her chin on top of it, peering at the younger vampire. "Weird?" She lifted an eyebrow, "Go ahead and give it a shot."

* Athena tried to figure out a good way to ask this. Instead, she shrugged out of her leather jacket and folded it over the arm of the chair she was sitting on. Now just relaxing in her tank top that exposed her tattooed arms. "Okay, so I like to walk around a lot..." she bit on her lower lip as she attempted to make sense of this so Eve could understand. "And I keep..seeing people... who ask me for help."

* Every pursed her lips lightly, the words causing her to appear curious, "Well... seeing people is normal..." She scratched at her cheek with painted blue fingernails, "I mean, I see wraiths and spirits in addition to it because I have a medium ability from the Necromancer path."

* Athena nodded slowly, trying to make sense of everything. "It doesn't freak me out, really.. I just don't know how I'm supposed to help." The woman's features twisted from confused to annoyed with herself. "They just keep crying out for me to help and I don't know how." she sighed. "It's frustrating. I want to help, I do. It only freaks me out when I confuse them for something living and try to you know.. eat them."

* Every lifted her shoulder softly in a shrug, "You'll be able to figure it out eventually, you're still new. When you feed on a spirit, you just absorb their energy making it possible for you to use powers unless you're tapped out of juice. For lack of a better term."

* Athena pressed her lips together, shrugging too. Then her lips smoothed out into another small smile. "Is there anyway to practice?" she asked, her head tipping in curiosity.

* Every drummed her nails lightly on the side of her leg, thinking about it. "Honestly? The only way I learned the difference was paying attention to the way they moved. The way they act. My wraith, for example, is the spirit of a man that I turned who died shortly after. You can always pay attention to him, see if it helps?"

* Athena 's eyebrows raised. Her hand rubbed over one of her inked arms. "That's a good idea. I don't tend to pay attention to stuff like that unless I feel threatened.." she was honest, re-crossing her legs as she leaned back. "Yes, that's a wonderful idea, Eve. Thank you. I will."

* Every nodded and dug out her cellphone, tapping through it a few times before she held out the device where a picture of a younger version of herself and the mentioned man stood together in front of a beach setting. "That's him, if he ever flirts I'll probably be able to hear it and tell him to behave, but if I don't, just remind him that he can be dispelled by a Necromancer."

* Athena leaned over, her hands moving to the edge of the chair to grip gently onto. Looking over the picture she nodded. "I'll tell him, definitely. " Now looking uneasy at the mention of a man flirting with her. Flicking her gaze back into the woman's face with a small genuine smile. "Thank you, Eve... for all your help."
* Every felt her lips twitch in amusement, "He's harmless, though. It's if he ever returns to the physical realm that we'll have to worry." Her fangs were visible for a moment, guilt crossing her features as she leaned back before the expression was replaced by a genuine one. She nodded. "You're welcome, Athena."

* Athena was amused by that thought. What would happen if he did return? She wasn't sure and she knew that her and Eve weren't close enough to ask. Especially now, seeing Eve's pretty features twist into something of guilt. "Let me get out of your hair, I'd hate to soak all of your time up." Now standing, moving to gather her things to leave Eve to her privacy.

* Every stood lightly as well, a soft shake of her head being given, "You're not soaking up all of my time, and you're always welcome to come by if you'd like. I ain't usually doing much." It was sad, but true. "Working on my car, mostly or organizing something." Scratching lightly at her wrist, she went to open the door for the girl on her way out.

* Athena wanted to say how excited she was to meet another female who liked to work on cars but she thought it best to leave that to next time. "Got it. I'm always around." she shrugged on her jacket first and then her backpack over her left shoulder. "Let me know if you need any help too." Walking now out of the open door the other was holding for her.

--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--

[Rion] She was silent as she bent over the autopsy table, her fingers brushing gently along the corpse’s clavicle. It was only that patch of skin that hadn’t been bruised or bitten, and it was there she found the most of her story. The skin was freckled and soft, and it told her everything she needed to know about the young woman’s habits. She had been extremely well taken care of, despite the brutal end she had met. With a quiet frown, the Necromancer moved her attention to her face, most of which had been mauled and eaten. As she inspected the wounds, she brushed her fingers through the limp red curls, watching as a few dirt particles fell onto the metal operating table. No vampire could have done this, she was certain. No, there was something else here, something darker had taken their aggression out on the teenager. “What in the hell did you get yourself into?” Her question was voiced quietly, as if not to disturb the girl.

The belief that the dead didn’t talk was one that she had never fallen victim to. No, the dead were the best storytellers in the world, if one knew how to listen. That belief had made her one of the best examiners in her field, and it had also achieved her some of the worst nicknames. None of it mattered, of course. Only the dead. With a steady touch, she dabbed a cotton swab over one of the cuts as she waited for the teenager to speak to her. “From the looks of your clothing, you were going on a date. Did he do this to you?” Dropping the swab into a container, she took a step back and shook her head. “No, unless he was a creature I never heard of, he couldn’t have hurt you to this degree. It is not logical. Did he leave you alone, perh--”

The sound of metal rattling cut off her question, and her blue eyes jumped from the corpse to the drawers where the deceased was kept. “What the ****?” Snapping off her gloves, she pushed the table to the side and headed for the drawers, just as then flew open. “Oh. Oh, ****,” she muttered, watching as two corpses lifted themselves from their tables, their sheets falling to the floor. Behind her, the table began to tremble, and her gaze swept to the redhead as her eyes flew open. “Well, isn’t this just grand.” Shaking her head, she pulled her cell from her labcoat and quickly dialed her sire’s number, her eyes locked on the corpses as they ambled towards her.

“Yeah, I’m going to need you. Like, yesterday. I’m at my office.”

<Micah> The sound of shattering glass was always therapeutic. While things had, for the most part, been relatively quiet there was still the issue of his newest childe. Satine. She wasn’t the problem per say, but the amount of backlash he had gotten from his wife had been a little unexpected. He’d expected her anger so that wasn’t the issue. The constant cycle of emotions and moods was what had taken him off guard and now he found that he’d rather be as far away from that as possible. Just until the two of them could manage to sit down and talk **** out.

Finding that he needed to let off some steam, Micah had retreated to one of the abandoned building in a seedy part of the city where the sound of gunfire wouldn’t be unusual. While he preferred live targets, using empty glass bottles would work just as well. For an hour Micah lined up a row, and shot them all down with deadly precision only to start all over again. It wasn’t doing all that much to make him feel better but three was just something about that sound that calmed his raging anger. He’d lost count of how many bottles he’d destroyed, but he did know there wasn’t another one to be found. He used them all up and now, he was resorting to old cans. The sound wasn’t nearly as satisfying though.

A very distinctive ringtone shattered the silence surrounding him. Fitting he thought, given who he’d set it for. Zombie by the Cranberries was perfect for Rion, or so he thought. And it wasn’t one he heard often. His Ghoul was extremely independent and only called if it was something she couldn’t handle on her own which was why he was quick to answer. Not even a hello managed to pass his lips before she started rambling in his ear. “Alright. Give me five minutes, and I’ll be walking through your door. Ain’t knocking either, so if you expect polite call someone else.” Ending the call, he tucked his gun away and left the building.

[Rion] As she stopped in her backtracking to catch her breath with useless lungs, the Necromancer studied the corpses as they made their slow trek to reach her. They weren’t as gruesome as one might have believed, having been dealt with before being locked away. The two men that had come from the drawer could have passed human, if she were to overlook the vacant expression, lifeless eyes, pale skin and the scent of death that clung to them and refused to give up. It was the teenager that gave her pause. Her red hair fell in clumps around her shoulders and her skin began to peel from her bones as she moved to throw her legs over the edge of the operating table. As she straightened completely, the intestines that she had yet to examine fell to the floor with a rather unlikable sound. “I don’t get paid nearly enough for this ****,” she muttered under her breath as she continued to watch them warily.
He had said he was one his way, but she was beginning to doubt that five minutes would be enough. For corpses, they moved fairly quickly, yet they didn’t seem to pose a threat to her. They watched her just as she watched them, and every twitch of her fingers had them pausing. When the teenager’s feet hit the floor, she stumbled forward and sank to one knee, as if even in death her wounds were too much. “What happened to you?” The question came from her without a second thought, and she quickly shook her head. Great, now she literally was talking to ******* corpses. Add that to her list to bring to her therapist on Thursday. Dr. Wyatt would have a ******* field day with this one. Shoving her hands through her hair, she stumbled back when the larger of the men fell forward, his arm smacking into her chest. The unexpected weight had her pressed against the metal drawers, and she shoved her knee up to connect with his stomach. As his lips parted, she pried him from her body and pushed him back.
“No. Play nice until Micah gets here. He’ll know what the hell to do with you,” she snapped while she patted down her pockets. “What a great day to leave my gun at home.” Shaking her head again, she kept her gaze on the teenager as she tried to crawl towards her, leaving a trail of blood and guts in her wake. “This is going to be hard to explain come morning. Where the hell are you, Micah?”

<Micah> It was less than five minutes. He didn’t like coming to her office. Rion’s boss was a bigger dick than he was, and that was saying something. Micah had told her to quit time and time again but Rion refused. She liked her job, dickhead boss excluded. Sooner or later she was going to have to give it up whether she liked it or not but the killer hadn’t really told her about that part yet. The inevitable explosion that was sure to come when he broke the news wasn't something he was looking forward to. If she insisted on working on dead people, Micah would send her to Vel. His wife did own the morgue after all.

True to his word, he didn’t bother to knock when he arrived at her office and he was about as subtle as a bull in a china shop when he shoved the door open to step inside. As soon as he crossed the threshold he froze in place, his feet rooted to the spot as that smell assaulted him. Flashbacks of the night his mother died assaulted his mind followed by the night he’d found Rion in the morgue. He couldn’t move, but deep down he knew he had to. Using every single ounce of willpower he possessed he managed to reach into the pocket of his jacket and pull out a small container of vaporub he’d nicked from Vel. The killer’s hands shook as he unscrewed the cap but he managed to get it open and stick some underneath his nose, like Vel did when she was going to be around human blood. A few minutes later he couldn’t smell the chemical and formaldehyde, thank ****.

A quiet groaning got his attention and he lifted his gaze to see a few summoned zombies reaching towards his childe. Why was she just standing there? Surely she was strong enough to take them down. So, why wasn’t she? Drawing his gun he brought it up and fired of three shots in rapid succession, watching as the corpses hit the floor. “The **** you doing summoning zombies in a place you can be caught Rion?”

[Rion] She knew the moment her sire had entered the building, his very presence seeming to cause a tugging in the center of her chest. She ******* hated the feeling, but try as she might, she hadn’t been able to find a way to rid herself of it. From the moment he had cornered her and ripped her life from her hands, she had been his [un]willing partner. She hated that she had to call for him, and she hated it even more than she was nearly jumping out of her skin as she listened for the thud of his boots against the tile. As the door swung open, she caught his scent as well as the familiar vapors he used to conceal the smell of anapestic. ****. She’d forgotten about that part. Unwilling to tear her gaze from the zombies, she lifted her hand to signal for him to wait, but it was too late.
It was almost as if the man couldn’t wait to kill something, and she could only watch as the zombies collapsed one by one to the floor. The girl was the last, her dull eyes widening as the bullet lodged in her frontal lobe. As her lips parted, a strangled sound left her throat and she fell to her knees, bathing the necromancer’s lab coat in brain matter. Closing her eyes, she carefully wiped the excess from her face and shook her hand out as she turned to face her sire, her expression displeased. “There is a reason I hadn’t shot them, Micah,” she said, her voice calm, and yet it was clear that she was agitated. “I didn’t want to attract attention, for one. For two, how the **** do you expect me to be able to explain the brand new holes in their head? I doubt saying I got bored will go over well with the D.A.”
Tracing her tongue over her teeth, she peeled off her lab coat and draped it over the table, her blue eyes sweeping over the corpses at her feet. “I’ll have Becca handle it,” she muttered, before finally turning her gaze to him. It seemed to click in that moment, that he had accused her of causing the damned thing. “Haven’t you heard? Raising the ******* dead is my favorite past time. I just can’t get through a night without having the loving embrace of a zombie to rock me to sleep.” She held onto her sarcasm like it was her lifeline as she grabbed a scalpel and kneeled down, digging the bullets from their skulls.
“I was hoping you could tell me what happened, actually. I was sitting here working on Jane Doe, and the next thing I know, the drawers are shaking and these guys are joining the party. I didn’t do anything that I’m aware of.” She hated admitting weakness, and she didn’t meet his eyes as she pocketed the casings. “Don’t touch anything. I want no sign that you were here.”

<Micah> He tucked his gun away and shot her a glare. He loved Rion but hated her attitude, probably because she reminded him of himself. “Ask me how many fucks I give?” He didn’t really care if she wanted to keep them alive. They were zombies, not toys. It was times like this that he really wanted to force her to quit this ******* job. In fact it was on the tip of his tongue to do just that but he was trying to be calmer about ****. But he’d told her she couldn’t continue to keep it. Her time was almost up, she just didn’t know that yet. Micah gestured to the corpses on the floor. “You’re gonna ***** about a hole in their head, but did you ever stop to think how you were gonna explain how they became reanimated?”

He kept his back to the door and allowed his gaze to travel around the room. She better not have surveillance cameras in this ******* place. That was a whole other can of worms that they didn’t need to deal with right then. He didn’t see anything and allowed himself to relax a little bit. Her office gave him the creeps just like the morgue did and he just wanted to see what she needed and get the **** out.

Her words stung and his biting tone reflected that. “Well excuse the **** outta me Miss Independant,” he snapped, refusing to let her see that she’d managed to cut him with what she’d said. “Don’t worry. Ain’t gonna touch any of your precious ****.” Again he gestured to the dead again zombies. “They were dead. Then they weren’t. You’re a necromancer - you summoned them.” Did she even know what that was? Maybe he should explain. “Necromancers, or anyone who has managed to learn the ways of the necromancer, can raise zombies. That’s what you did, you just don’t realize it. Try again.”

[Rion] “You’d have to have a heart to give a ****, tin-man,” she retorted easily, her eyes never wavering from the job in front of her. Despite the irritation clouding her vision, her fingers worked deftly to remove the remaining bullets from the concave skull of the last zombie. The flesh began to rot beneath her touch, and she couldn’t explain the twinge of guilt she felt in the center of her chest. It was a foreign emotion, and she lifted her fingers to press them against her chest bone as if that would ease the ache that spread like a fire through her heart. What the **** is happening to me?
With a frustrated sigh, she finally swept her gaze to his, the blue of her eyes darkening to a raven’s black. She couldn’t seem to control the emotions whirling around inside of her, and she knew he’d notice. He never seemed to miss a thing when it came to her, but she couldn’t exactly run to him twenty-four seven when something went to ****. Not only did she harbor a very strong, unbreakable will, she figured his wife would have a ******* aneurysm if she showed up at their door. Unwilling to back down and tell him he was right, the medical examiner arched a brow as she crossed her arms over her chest, “I could have explained that someone stole them. It’s not unheard of. There are sicker fucks than us out there.” It was a **** poor excuse, but it was one that neither could really deny.
Shoving her hands through her hair, she began to count back from ten as she moved to her feet. Her gaze remained locked on the man as he scoured her office with a look of contempt mixed with fear. She knew the second his gaze lifted to the ceiling what he was looking for – and what he would find. The hooks where the cameras used to hang were bare, the wires dangling uselessly from the wall. She tried not to feel insulted that she would have been that stupid, but the irritated growl still spilled past her lips as she clenched her fists against her ribcage. “I don’t give a **** about you touching my ****, I just don’t want any proof that you exist in the goddamned database. It’s hard enough keeping Osiris off the grid.” Her tone was sharp, and she took a step towards him as the walls began to pulse. ****.
Not real, it wasn’t real.
Stopping short of reaching him, she shook her head as if to clear her thoughts. He wouldn’t understand, but she cared about him. She couldn’t explain it, nor could she rationalize it, but she did. The thought of someone finding out about his existence caused her to err on the side of caution, even in its extreme. Trying to ignore the way the lights flickered and dimmed above his head, she barely refrained from reaching out and shoving him from the path of shattering glass. Focus on him. Sinking her teeth into her lower lip, she continued to count back as she watched his lips move. “As if I wasn’t enough of a freak before,” she muttered under her breath as she dusted off the leather of her corset. “I don’t even know where to begin trying, Micah. I…” she sighed then, her eyes closing. “I don’t know how.”
God that hurt to admit.

Turning away from him, she focused on the drawers at the far end of the room. What had she been doing when this happened? Right, wishing the dead would come to life. Closing her eyes, she took a breath and held it in as she tilted her head.

--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--

[Rion] She didn’t lift her hands like some ******* voodoo princess in a cheap horror film, but instead, she simply concentrated. Each body had been unclaimed, their stories never told. Each corpse that lined these walls would never be able to seek justice. They were forever condemned to a life of the unknown, and it was because of her. She worked her *** off, she put everything on the line to be able to weave their tales, but she had come up empty handed.

She was damned good at her job, and she would find the answers. There was just something she was missing, some tie that she couldn’t knot and it ******* pissed her off. As if the power was fed from her emotion, the second she let out that agitated breath, the drawers began to shake. When she took a step towards them, however, the trembling ceased and the room was filled with silence. “Well, that was anticlimactic,” she sighed.

<Micah> “I don’t ******* need you to protect me Rion,” he snapped out sharply. “Trust me. I’m not a stranger to the ******* cops around here. They stand up and take notice when I go past, and I’ve been shot more times than I can count for stupid **** I’ve done. If I happen to pop up somewhere there are plenty of people that will make sure that evidence never sees the light of day.” She was so ******* stubborn. More so than he was at times. Micah totally got the need, the urge to be independant. Relying on others sucked and it had taken him years to get to where he was now. Understanding and accepting that sometimes you had to ask for help was the first step but no one could show her that until she was ready. Until then, he’d just do as he had been since siring her. Sit back and wait for her to come to him. Eventually she’d come to realize that he wasn’t her enemy.

“As for the bodies, I’m sure that there are sick bastards out there but you could have simply said you didn’t know what happened.” He looked around her office, more comfortable now that he had discovered the cameras gone. You never knew who could be watching after all. “Weird **** happens here all the time. Pretty sure Vel’s had bodies come up missing in the morgue. Wouldn’t be the first time there was no explanation for something like that. You’re a smart woman. I’m sure that you could have whipped up a story that was believable.”

His expression and tense stance softened ever so slightly. “You aren’t a freak and I don’t want to hear you calling yourself that again. Got me?” He shook his head. “You can do it Rion.” She was her own worst critic. She was entirely too hard on herself, and she analyzed every tiny little thing down to the smallest detail. If she was going to do this she was going to have to let go of that.

The drawers started to shake but other than that nothing happened. He shook his head and stepped forward to rest his hands on her shoulders. “You’re thinking too hard. You have to relax.” He knew that was easier said than done. “Close your eyes. Clear your mind. Find it within you and focus on it. When you find it, you need to concentrate on that and direct it outwards.” And if that didn’t work, he’d think of something else.


[Rion] “I don’t give a **** what you think you need, Micah Andras.”

The words tore from her lips in another feral growl, and she found herself looking past him to focus on the cracks forming in the wall. It spider-webbed through the tile, and she narrowed her eyes when it stopped just short of reaching the ceiling. Of course, she knew in the back of her mind that if he were to turn and look at it himself, the wall would be as pristine as it always was. Get a grip, Rion. It was a mantra she had adopted at a young age, something she constantly told herself – and it never seemed to work. In fact, in most cases, it only proved to make things worse for her. Snapping her teeth together, she forced her gaze to return to his as a dull ache began behind her eyes. She could feel the pressure building, the desperate need to reach out and strangle the life from something – or someone – nearly overcoming her. Instead, she opted to focus on his eyes, the tension in his features.

She knew she had upset him.

She couldn’t find the words to say what she really thought of him. She didn’t handle the caring **** well. It was one reason she opted to stay alone as often as she did, because her and emotions just didn’t mix. “Look, just let me do things my way, alright? It’ll save us both the headaches,” she muttered as she pressed her fingers tighter against her ribs. She could feel them bruise beneath the force of her hold, and she closed her eyes to steady the pulsing in her mind. She could hear the faint buzz of her laptop, the electricity that coursed through the wires above their heads, and the sound of fading footsteps down the corridor. The light steps told her it was Becca, and she breathed a sigh of relief when she heard the lunchroom door swing shut behind her. When she felt the weight of his hands, her eyes slowly opened, the blue back in play as they scanned his features. She looked defeated, exhausted. “Hey, it’s the best thing I could call myself, you should feel lucky,” she said with a tired smile.

She knew he wanted her to keep trying, and she didn’t want to let him down. She could feel the pressure building in her chest, the need to prove herself to him, and she hated it. It reminded her far too much of her earlier days with her father, the desperation to get just a smile from him. Shaking her head, she quickly turned from him as he spoke, his voice like velvet as it moved through the air. His accent was a comfort to her, the familiarity of the southern drawl a reminder of home, of happier times. “One more time,” she whispered, and took that breath she didn’t need to calm her nerves. When she turned her gaze back to the drawers, she let her hands fall from her sides. ‘Clear your mind, don’t overthink.’ It was totally clichéd advice, but who was she to judge it? He knew far more than she did.

She only let her eyes close for a brief second, and when she re-opened them, she watched as the drawers began to shake. Her despair swirled in the pit of her stomach and her hands began to tremble. She couldn’t do this, she was going to let him down, she was going to fai—“****.” Before the last thought could fully form, one of the drawers flew open, the sound of metal screeching against metal filling the air. Cupping her hands over her ears, she watched as two more doors banged open, revealing ragged and vastly decaying corpses. “I can’t believe that worked,” she whispered, her eyes wide with wonder. “They’re… beautiful… Can I keep them?”

<Micah> There was so much he could have said to her. It was on the tip of his tongue to lash out at her and reduce her to a blubbering pile of nothing, thats how angry she had made him. Something stopped him. Rion had an acid tongue. He knew that. But it didn’t change the fact that she’d stung him with her sharp words and defensive attitude. He found his hands curling into fists at his sides and his eyes closed behind the dark lenses concealing his eyes from her. Counting never helped him much but there was a first time for everything. This time though, he actually thought it might be helping until she opened her mouth.

“Fine,” he snarled at her, easily catching the quiet words he didn’t think he was really supposed to hear. “”Do it your damn self then. “Scuse the **** outta me for tryin t’help you with somethin. I get it. You’re this big, bad independant woman and you don’t want my advice. **** it, you won’t get it no more. Happy now?” Micah had no idea why he let this one get under his skin so much, why he allowed her words to penetrate the iron clad wall he kept firmly in place to prevent that kind of emotion. What was so different about her? He just didn’t have an answer to that.

Some of the anger he had been feeling bled away when he caught sight of her face. The exhaustion rolled off of her in waves and he regretted his harsh words but they were out there and he couldn’t take them back. Not that he would have, it wasn’t his way and Rion was completely aware of it. Micah let her comment go and instead chose to encourage her, simply giving a nod of his head when she said she’d try just one more time. He knew she could do it she just lacked the confidence.

Seeing the expression on her face when those drawers flew open….he’d never seen her look so damn happy. Zombies made her happy. Zombies that she managed to raise with just the right amount of faith and encouragement. Of course she’d want to keep them. He warred with himself for a minute then sighed. “Gonna have to secure them, if you want to get them out of here.”


[Rion] “We both know that isn’t true,” she replied calmly, despite the twist of her stomach. There was something about him that made her way to lash out and fall to her knees all in the same breath. She couldn’t assess why she reacted to him in the manner she did, and she couldn’t explain why his anger suddenly made her feel like a child being scolded. With a snap of her teeth, she fought the sudden urge hit him. Instead, she pushed her fingers into her sides with more force than before and focused on the creatures as they ambled around aimlessly. There was a touch of amusement in her expression when the female hit the table, only to try to continue walking forward.

“They aren’t exactly intelligent creatures, are they? They should fit right in with the rest of the crowd,” she laughed, her fingers slowly relaxing their assault. The second he had spoken again, she knew that she had been right in her assumption - he could yell at her for hours, he could tell her he was done with her, but he pulled through in the end. Deep in her heart, she knew it worked both ways. She couldn’t seem to be without him, but it wasn’t a connection that screamed romance and butterflies. It was something deeper, something that pulsed in her blood - and something she was not about to analyze.

Shaking the thoughts from her mind, she tipped her head to the side as her mind began to work. She began her attempt to piece together an escape plan - until she realized she hadn’t a ******* clue where to begin. You know who does, though. Shoving her hands through her hair, she turned her attention from the zombies with some effort and scanned her sire’s face. She was surprised he had agreed to her desire to keep them, but she hadn’t let it show in her expression. At least, she hadn’t meant to. She wasn’t aware of the faint gleam in her eyes as she raised her brow. “What do you suggest? I highly doubt we can pull them off as a rare breed of dog,” she smirked. “I believe Belinda in reception would buy it, but she would believe you were the second coming of Christ if I told her so.”

<Micah> “Do I?” He couldn’t help the way that those two words came out of his mouth. She pissed him off, challenged him at every single turn and while he respected that once in awhile it would be nice if she would just drop the attitude. The killer wouldn’t hold his breath on that, as Rion wouldn’t be Rion without that hard exterior and Micah didn’t think he’d like her even half as much without it.

Thankfully no more was said on it. His gaze turned to the zombies standing there with vapid expressions on their faces. As he looked at each one he wondered what their story was. How had they died? What had their lives been like when they were alive? It wasn’t that he cared about them. He didn’t care about them, it was more his own morbid curiosity. They served no purpose other than a ritual ingredient. Or target practice for a fledgling. But Rion wanted to keep them.

“Maybe...getting them out of here is a bad idea.” Sure they could probably tied them down and use duct tape to keep their mouths shut but they were already decomposing. Rip that tape off would probably result in ripping half their jaw off. Same thing with tying them down, or using duct tape to secure their arms and legs so they didn’t move. They’d be ruined. “I think it’s best to put them out of their misery. You can summon more at the hotel and leave them there. It’s safer, and that way you ain’t gotta figure out a way to get them out of here.”

[Rion] “You do. You’re just lashing out. You know, there’s medication for that, pops,” she grinned, her eyes dancing with mischief. She knew she was balancing on a precipice where one wrong move would send her tumbling into the unknown. It was the story of her life. Her attitude, her personality, her very being left an unwanted taste dancing on people’s tongues. Even when she wasn’t acting out, she was treated as if she carried a disease that no one wanted to contract. It sickened her - and yet, she just couldn’t stop. Self destruction, her psychiatrist had said in a bored tone. No, she was just a fucked up lunatic. The self destruction was just a fun side effect.

Shaking the dark thoughts from her mind, she crossed her arms once again and turned her attention to the trio as they stumbled around. It was enlightening, it was beautiful - and it was tragic. It was everything she enjoyed in life all rolled into one, it was her. They each had a story to tell, a life they had once lived - one that had been so tragically ripped from their hands. It was a twisted kind of poetry that caused her chest to tighten. If she hadn’t been turned, would her story have lived on? It was depressing to think about what would have been said - if anything. She had a sinking suspicion that she would have simply been dust in the wind, forgotten for eternity.

“I suppose you’re right,” she muttered as his voice broke through her twisting turmoil. “There’s no way to explain them, is there? I know how they’d be treated. One look at me in the light one night and I nearly gave a man a heart-attack. We’re too hideous for the real world.” Her words were spoken in a quiet tone as she shook her head. “Go ahead and kill them. I’ll just summon them where they’ll be safe and loved. Maybe even leave one in Osiris’s room. I’m sure he’ll love it.”

<Micah> Was she giving him permission to kill them? He didn’t need that **** really. Once he’d decided that transporting them was out of the question their death was already on the cards so to speak. “Thank you,” he drawled in a rather dry tone. “Been waitin here all giddy like for ya to go on and tell me that I could kill them.” He hadn’t been, and he was sure that she knew that too. But if he wasn’t his normal sarcastic self Rion might think he was sick or something and give him one of those what the **** looks that she was so good at.

Now that he had been given the green light - he refused to say permission again because that **** just wasn’t cool after all - Micah drew his gun and fired off three shots in rapid succession. The zombies dropped to the floor and he was already moving before the hit, blade in hand to cut off an ear from each corpse. He was low on them after all and it was a shame to let them go to waste.

“So I’ll see you back at the hotel then?” He started to stand but then he got a rather fine idea if he did say so himself. Rion’s boss had an office in this place too. It was about time that Micah paid him a visit, but he wasn’t going alone. Using the blade in his hand he cut off the hand of one of the zombies and arranged the fingers so the middle one was pointing up in a **** you gesture. “Got a stop to make. See you in a bit.” He didn’t wait for a response before he called the shadows to conceal his body as he left her office. Dr Dick’s office shouldn’t be hard to find. Micah was looking forward to leaving him a present, right in the middle of his desk. **** you Dr Dick. **** you indeed.

--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--

<Satine> It was not as if she expected to find Andrew Krepsi hanging around anywhere particular. He went one way and she another. However, the gangster was missing an arm and a leg at the last sighting of him. She had tried to sew it all back on but really it had to work itself out in the end. She was told things like that would resolve given enough time or intervention. In her defense she had used her limited pwoers to heal him a little. Enough to say she was feeling for his losses but not not enough to say she was going to shed tears of guilt over it.

Bugsy, as she called him, deserved it for shooting her in the back not once but twice while she was sleeping. He was loaded up and clowning around and got the business end of her attention. She was growing stronger and her response time was becoming quicker and more lethal. The vampire was not the only unpredictable one hanging out in the parking garage of a rather large tower.The bullets in the back were only a mild irritation as was his sacrifice of limbs.

Satine looked at Juice Box and found the blank expression on his face less than encouraging. So much for getting any answers out of him. She was half tempted to tie him up again and give him a little motivation to tell her something more than he currently was.

“Fine if you can’t figure out where he is then get out there and find someone who might?” Satine nudged the massive wall of flesh wrapped in a dark suit and topped with a red banded fedora. It didn’t move so she sent her open hand to his chest with force and growled. “Move before I get thirsty.”

While the six foot and then some thug rolled out of her presence she pulled out her cell phone and decided to do the random question thing with Micah. He usually would answer and it was generally spot on. Her fingers went to work as she made her way into the back of the van to see what clues were left behind.

-Question. Seen any one arm and legged inked up gansters recently?-

She hit send and let the message float to its destination. Pocketing the cell she then went to work at unzipping a duffle bag that was so full of itmes she had to tug hard to get it to open.

<Micah> The target had gone down easily. Too easily for his taste really. But it was over quickly and that was just what he wanted. Upon reading the memories of this particular target Micah had discovered something his newest childe had been remiss in informing him of. Satine had decided to make that one her own personal punching bag. His memories had been littered with successful strikes from her and the occasional heal. So much like Vel who had done the same thing to that ***** Fforde Victor. Was that what Satine was doing? Toying with him to have her fun with the thought of killing him somewhere in her mind? Too late he’d already done it for her.

He was pretty pissed at her. She didn’t have permission to **** off and attack anyone for any reason whatsoever. Had she come to him and explained herself he might have given it to her. But no. She took it upon herself to do so without even bothering to see if it was ok. People got killed for that ****. Micah didn’t know who this guy was. Who he was connected to, what his lineage was. Small details that could have made all the difference in her starting a war or someone figuring that one wasn’t worth the effort. Needless to say, he was ready to kick her ***. He just needed to find her, and he’d start with the hotel

After using his tome he used the portal that would take him into the depth of Pandemonium. Satine was nowhere to be found. His lips pressed together in anger and he started for the portal that would take him to Bullwood but it turned out that it wasn’t necessary. His phone went off with a text from the woman in question.

-text- Just the woman I want to see. You have five minutes to get back to this hotel. You and I need to have a talk there Alice.

<Satine>Her cell danced in her pocket as she lifted up to her knees. In her hands was a wallet loaded with a bunch of identification cards that gave her a reason to sigh. Not incredibly bright to have all of them in one wallet. Even more questionable was having them at all. The missing bodies that matched the ID cards were hopefully dsicarded away where they would never be found. Satine scooted out of the back of the van and landed on her feet. She pulled the cell from where it was resting and swiped the screen with her thumb to view the message. Her brow shot up instantly.

That was quick and interesting to say the least. What the **** was up his ***? Alice? So he was going to counter her references of Vel and him being the King and Queen of Hearts? Whatever she was supposed to get back to the Hotel Hell for ASAPcouldn’t be that bad then. She shrugged and tossed the wallet back in the van. All the faces of the recently missing would have to wait. The guy was worked up about something and there was only one way to find out what it was. She pulled out her tome and used it. Stepping into the lobby she looked around. Where was that inked up seven foot wall of wonder?

“Honey, I am home.” She called out figuring if that smart *** announcement didn’t get a response she would go to her hotel room. Not that he would be there but she could use a few more changes of clothing while he arrived for the impromptu meeting he called.

<Micah> He waited rather impatiently, fingers drumming against the ritual altar. The longer he waited the angrier he got. She had no idea what she was in for and he didn’t much care. He didn’t care if he had saved her and given her a second chance at life. He didn’t care if she was Vel’s sister, in this instance she was his childe and because she was, the necromancer was subject to his rules. And she’d broken one of the biggest ones he had that he had set in place to protect his lineage. That **** just wasn’t ok with him.

“Ain’t your honey and if you call me that again I’ll cut your tongue out.” He pushed off the ritual altar and stalked in her direction. “Killed a man tonight, for masquerade violations. Read his memories as I normally do for your sister and guess what I found?” His arms crossed over his chest as he glared at her. “Saw you made this one your *****. Does the name Andrew Krepsi ring any bells with you Satine?” She could try to deny it but it wasn’t going to get her anywhere. She was busted.

<Satine>Her walk towards the hall where she could find the door to her hotel room was cut short by the man’s voice before she set eyes on him. She froze and for a moment wondered why she felt like she was slowly catching on fire. The heat of his eyes couldn’t be that powerful. Or could it? She was feeling like she was in trouble and for what she had really no clue. One thing was certain. The man missed his bowl of sunshine when he woke up and reminded her of such as he announced he was not her honey. Imagine that. She wasn’t his either. That was the moment his profession of killing someone got her to turn around rather quickly. Then Andrew Krepsi left his lips and she knew why she had less than five minutes to arrive. Micah was all sorts of unhappy and pissed off.

Satine’s eyes widened. He better be be messing with her.

“Say what?!” Satine growled when it sank in rather quickly.

Bugsy! Dead? Well what the ****. No wonder she had not seen him. Her mind started a fire because she was feeling the anger rolling in. Sure the guy robbed people and was a bit messy in his pursuits of his goals but why the hell was that any reason to kill him? That was infringing on her claim. She had two limbs off and was working on the rest. She even bought him a vintage Piaggio Ape scooter so he could get around and keep his parts on ice until he healed up or she took the rest. It was a sick thing they had going on but it worked for them and who the **** was Micah to go messing that up? Her eyes narrowed. Velveteen. She was still bleeding resentment over her existence.

“He is mine. He, however, is not a *****.” Her bells were ringing alright. She moved closer to where her brother-in-law-sire was towering over the ritual altar. “Why you so bent out of shape? I am out of your hair and not bugging my sister. Where is he so I can go claim his carcass?”

Satine’s jaw tightened as she waited for an answer. She expected one. A location so she could ask Krepsi what the **** he was doing clowing around and got their attention.

<Micah> He struck a nerve. Excellent. He felt a smile start to form on his face. She was pissed that he’d taken away her toy. Aww. That made him chuckle, quietly at first as she made her demands. Let her think that she had the right to make those demands on him. He could play along with that for now. It seemed that Satine still had that rebellious streak that pissed him off in the very beginning, back when he’d first met her in the stockroom of Adrenaline Tattoo. That same streak was what had landed her in this position and while it was admirable, she was going to learn fast that he had little tolerance for rebellion.

“Are you deaf? Done told you I killed him.” He pulled out his gun and placed it on the altar. His fingers lovingly caressed the grip and his eyes turned to meet hers. “Found him in Gresse’s.” Micah sneered as that name left his lips. What a stupid name. Lame and not at all original. Cheesy and very teen if anyone were to ask him his opinion but no one had though he’d be happy to voice it if he needed to. “He got teleported out of there and landed in the middle of the fryin pan so to speak. I waited until everyone else had got their shots in then I took mine.” He was flat out grinning now, the blood lust he’d felt earlier returning with a vengeance. “I shot him in the head Satine. His head exploded in a shower of blood and all kinds of other awesome looking stuff. Then he turned to ash right there at my feet. You wanna see him Satine? ‘Fraid he’s coolin his heels in the shadow realm.” If she wanted to visit him that bad Micah was sure he could arrange that for her.


<Satine> “You don’t have to be a total ***, ya know that right?” She glared at him.

What the hell was the bloody issue? Bugsy stirred up a mammoth size hornets nest. That was apparent. With the sound of Micah’s gun setting on the altar between them she was feeling his challenge. The fact he was sneering was completely unsettling. She never saw that before.

“So, you went and took my pinata and had yourself a party and you didn’t even ask me?” The fire in her head lit up like a four story cardboard box was fed into it’s center. “Totally uncool! **** yeah I wanna see him. Where is the shadow realm? East side or West side? You can’t kill him once he was already killed…” She felt her teeth stretching behind her lips and it took a lot to keep her jaws from widening even more than was likely wise given the man had a gun within reach. “Right?”

Krepsi was likely in rough shape but she figured he could be patched up just like his car after she took it for that first spin. She would just give Juice Box a couple slices and fill the crazy ******** back up until he was good to go. Then she would kick his *** for getting her into this spot with Micah. She could only imagine Velveteen was likely grinning like a chesire cat over this wherever the hell she was.

<Micah> “Didn’t see your name tattooed ‘cross his forehead before it exploded. And even if you say he was yours you ain’t got no claim on him. He was a masquerade violator. Twice he was seen usin powers, something I warned you about when I turned you. Wasn’t lying when I said people got killed for that **** now was I?” What was her deal? Why had she decided to start attacking this one? And seriously? She hadn’t heard a word he said.

“Lemme repeat myself. And I’ll use small words so they sink in this time.” His irritation could be heard with every word he spoke. “He is dead. Dead like Chester only he’ll be back in a few days. He’s in the shadow realm.” He gave her a rather dumbfounded look at her questions but then it occurred to him that he had never really told her much about being killed. “Yeah you can kill a vampire again. We come back after a certain amount of time. You don’t ever want to go there. It’s a fucked up place. I ain’t ever been sent there but I’ve been there cause I’m a fadewalker. Only two ways to ever get there - bein killed or bein a fadewalker.”