Path of the Vampire forum

<Marlow> "Mar.."
"Yes, Mama?"
"Fetch the cloth for me.. The one over there?"

A blonde woman with chocolate skin pointed to a red rag hanging off the edge of a small wooden table that was leaning against a small wooden shack. Marlow living on a small gypsy camp site. They moved around a lot. Moving from town to town, they had only got to Harper Rock the day before last. They were a small camp. Only about twenty or so of them. There were tents, and and a few wooden shacks they had taken residence within. This life, was all Marlow had known.

Her ma and pa and their ginger tabby Oscar. They were a unit. Her parents had taught her the family trade from an early age. They made whatever they could from whatever materials they could find from anywhere, even dumpsters and turned them into trinkets they could see for a few dollars to pay for food, and other bits and bobs they needed. Marlow's speciality was making dream catchers. She was pretty good at them, it took her a few hours to make one. Mostly from string and beads.

"This one here?"

She grabbed the cloth from its hiding place and threw at her mother, smiling at her. The woman caught it and began to cut at the fabric. Her mother probably had another one of her strange ideas, perhaps she'll make a purse this time.

"Will you find more items for me, darling?"
"What items do you want?"
"Anything you can find that we can use."
"Of course. I won't be long."

Marlow moved to where her mother say in a wooden rocking chair -- the very chair she can been conceived on her mother had told her when she was younger. She leant down and kissed her mother upon the cheek and grabbed the black satchel. She draped the strap around her white poncho that loosely clung to her hourglass figure. She pulled her long skirt higher, as it sat on her waist. Chocolate hues searched for her sandals as she slipped them on her feet after a moment or so of looking and threw a wave to her father who was carving something on a wooden pole. A symbol of a bear. She blew him a kiss.

A moment later she began to make her way towards the streets of Stag Heath, she was looking for any kind of dumpster that would hold treasures within it, that she could essentially use. Anything at all.

There was a dumpster brimming with treasure, ripe with smell of rotting food. She veered off into the alleyway where it sat against a brick wall. She moved towards it. Flipped open the lid and began to rummage.

<Kika> The storm was still raging as she fled the building of death. Kika hadn’t realized what had happened to her. She didn’t know that she’d be forever connected to the monster who had murdered her and took her mortal life away from her. She’d had hopes and dreams that she would never achieve. She’d never have the life with Machk that she was supposed to have. All because she chose once again to try and see the good in someone. It was her fault. She had led them to their deaths. And she had no one to blame for that but herself.

She didn’t know where she was. Kika was aware that she was injured but the rain had washed away every trace of blood from her body. Her fingers pressed against the place on her side and she was surprised to discover that the wound was closing. How was that possible? Was it possible? She didn’t have the answers.

Up ahead a young couple had take shelter in the doorway of an abandoned building. Kika was suddenly aware of a gnawing hunger burning inside of her but she didn’t want food. No she wanted something much different that this young couple had in spades. Without a shred of decency or subtlety she flew at the pair taking the both down with a strength she had never possessed before. Her fangs ripped into the male first, draining him dry in seconds. His partner started to scream and she tried to get to her feet but Kika was faster. She too was dead within minutes and Kika didn’t feel a shred of remorse for what she’d done.

Her next dilemma - she had no clothes. She couldn’t remain naked so she stripped the now dead woman of the dress and strappy sandals she’d died in. Both were a little big but she felt a little better now that she had something on. Leaving the bodies where they were she slipped off into the night, intent on finding a place to hide before the monster could catch up to her.

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

<Ambrose Acheron> Jose had fulfilled his duties perfectly. Before Ambrose on a stone slab which served as his altar lay a child swaddled in a blanket, Winneh the Pooh was digging in his honey pot while Piglet floated up in the air holding onto a kite perhaps too long and Eyeore stared balefully back at the viewer of the blanket as though the recipient of a Projected Depression ritual. Rabbit was nowhere to be seen, not that the Aztec priest noticed. From the folds out the blanket came a murmur, the child beginning to stir as Tizoc’s chanting increases slowly in volume. Beside the altar two braziers cast a reddish glow to the underground chamber setting a scene which could not be more hellish even without the soft chanting of Jose behind him, the thrall holding a black dagger up into the dancing illumination, his head bowed in supplication.

Laid out around the bundle of joy before the pair are the key items to another ritual, a chemical cocktail which would be unwise to drink,. steam rolling off and appearing like rolling clouds in a reddened evening sky, a single fang matching the pair in the mouth of the vampire priest taken from one of his feral ilk, blood from perhaps the same specimen as the fang and s ring of silver, Inlaid with a complex and beautiful celtic pattern Ambrose has no true appreciation for. All of this rests on the recently removed pelt of one of the region’s most efficient killing machines, the mountain lion.

As the pace of the chanting quickens, Ambrose begins dancing around the altar, at first slowly, but his footsteps quickening in tempo with the cadence of the chant. To an outsider the sight would either be amusing or horrifying, the next part of the rite settles the scene firmly in the horror category. As Tizoc dances past Jose he almost nonchalantly snaps the dagger from his thralls open palms and with each spin, each twirl the dagger slams down into the now screaming bundle on the table, blood beginning to fly into the air, the splatters seeming random at first but after several passes the ar obviously forming a circular pattern around the altar.

Jose is still chanting through tears and gritted teeth, the sight before him only visible for an instant before he closes his eyes against the atrocity trying to be anywhere but there in his mind.

From the bloody wreckage of the sacrifice, now unrecognizable in the center of the tablet rises a shape… a demi-fae called forth by Ambrose and bound for his purpose… finding his errant childer. Jose, having been carefully instructed on his part backs off, his head down, never glimpsing at the creature brought forth though he can hear it and feel it as sure as he could feel the heat from the flames leaping from the braziers… an energy, supernatural and terrifying. He finally spins, wheeling around and fleeing into the darkness.

Had he looked backward or tried to listen to anything but his mortal heart thrumming in his ears he would have heard his master intoning words in a very different and definitely non-human language while staring down the entity, rivulets of blood running down toward his elbows from his forearms which are raised toward the heavens. “Heg ume eren-eri ynes llus-usu…”

The flames of the braziers wink out suddenly, plunging the room into darkness as the ritual continues...

<Marlow> Chocolate hues looked through the dumpster, her hands were firmly inside the trash as she rummaged she looked for anything her mother would deem appropriate for what she needed, but who knew with her mother. She was always wanting to make things out of random things she could get her hands on. Her stomach pressed against the metal of the dumpster, her chest pressed against the rim as she leant over a little more, until the sky above her grew darker than what it already was.

She stopped rummaging and lifted her head to look upwards, a crack of lightening filled the sky, she was awestruck at the beauty before turning her hues back to the dumpster, she needed to find things quickly before it began to bucket down, but that didn't last for the long. The rain fell heavily upon her skin.

Her clothes soaked, even her poncho. Her mane of chocolate hair was now sticky and wet as the wet strands of hair clung to her skin, like glue. She found herself sighing. She needed to get back to her camp she couldn't rummage out here much longer. She stepped away from the dumpster and back towards the streets, she needed to either make way for the camp or find shelter whilst this storm does its thing.

Rubbing her hands against her forearms, she chose to find shelter.

<Kika> She found herself in an unfamiliar part of the city. Who was she kidding though? The whole damn place was unfamiliar to her. The buildings were a blur of color as she ran past them, much faster than she had been earlier in the evening. Every so often she would glance behind to see if she had been followed but so far the coast was clear. That meant nothing. He would come for her, of that Kika was certain. She didn’t know how or why but her gut instinct was something that she had always listened to and followed. This was no exception and the newly turned telepath was determined to put as much distance between herself and the man she would eventually come to recognize as her sire.

A strong gnawing hunger made it’s presence known. She’d passed diners and cafe’s but nothing they had to offer appealed to her. Her sense of smell was suddenly rather strong and the scents that came from those places made her ill and so she passed them. The raging storm had kept people indoors so she was able to continue on undisturbed. And then as she passed an alley she caught the scent of something that instantly captured her attention. Turning on her heel she slipped into the alleyway to see what had appeared on her radar.

<Ambrose Acheron> Tizoc nodded as the demifae lets out the information he wants in a hissing voice full of malice. Kika is closer than he had thought she would be. Luckily she had not taken the Path of the Killer, celerity was always problematic when trying to hunt down those who didn’t wish to be cornered. He is sure she must feel confused, alone, hungry and terrified at what had happened to her. Tizoc/Ambrose reached out to where he now knew her to be, seeking her mind with his own.

He moves toward the fadeportal that leads out to the station and steps through, appearing near the factory he was beneath an instant ago and begins to move north. He doesn’t move at a leisurely pace, no, he runs. Jose has gotten him a t-shirt and jeans, the shirt blood splattered from the pre-ritual sacrificial offering and now he pulls on a blue button up shirt as he races down alleyways toward the spot the scion of the gods told him he could find his absentee childe.

The rain pelts him, nothing new there. It seems it has been storming constantly since his return. He suddenly stops, standing stock still in the downpour as his mind locks onto Kika’s. He quickly assesses her thoughts and then paces himself as he walks toward a nearby alley where a familiar shape ahead is seen entering. What had drawn him up short was a third presence. A human. Kika would be much easier to handle if she wasn’t in the midst of a hunger frenzy. It was best to hang back and allow vampiric nature to take it’s course.

--The following transcript was a live chat roleplay--
<Marlow> Marlow had every need and want to find shelter, especially from this rain. Who knew that the heavens would open and this is what would happen. Chocolate hues turned to look at a woman who appeared in front of her - she was just inside the alleyway as the little chocolate skinned woman was on her way out. In the palms of her hands were a couple of beads, and other odds. To this woman in front of her she must look like some odd random woman that could potentially live on the streets. She blinked a couple of times.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” She said looking from her find in her hands to the woman’s face. The way she looked at her made Marlow freeze in her steps. There was something about this woman in front of her that just frightened her, was it perhaps the way she was staring at her? She coughed to clear her own throat and began to sidestep the woman. Hoping she would let her pass.

“I’ll just be on my way…” She said. As she moved forward one tentative step at a time. She was close to the woman now, hoping she could pass her.

<Kika> When the woman moved Kika moved with her, refusing to move out of her way. She heard the words that the female spoke but they didn’t make any sense to her. The telepath was focused on one thing and one thing only - sating the hunger pains that were clawing at her insides. Nothing else mattered to her.

As another attempt to pass by was made Kika’s hand shot out with a speed she never had before. Small, dainty fingers curled into the fabric of the drenched poncho to pull the unknown female in closer. “No you won’t,” she snarled. “You aren’t going anywhere.” The sharp points of her fangs easily pierced the fragile human’s throat and finally that gnawing hunger started to fade away. She was making an absolute mess of herself but rational thought had fled long ago.

Kika became aware of another presence and the lifeless body fell from her fingers as she turned around. The torrential downpour made it difficult to see who it was though the newly turned telepath had a very good idea on who it was. He’d found her. Too bad. She wasn’t sticking around to be subjected to another second of torture at his hands. Without a thought for the body on the ground Kika turned and fled the scene.

<Ambrose Acheron> Telepaths…. He thought to himself. They were always the most disoriented and damaged so soon after their return from the shadow that first time. He had been sired into the Allurist Path himself. his own telepathic abilities honed by decades of practice. Ambrose looks as the body on the ground before him and then after the fleeing Kika. Briefly he considers overwhelming her senses, rendering her confused and catching up with her easily but something stops him. He looks back to the mortal woman crumpled into a pile in the alleyway floor Just a feed. Ambrose himself has watched for any sign of the exchange of blood. that could bring her dying body back.

He stays there a moment moment watching before...

<Marlow> Marlow had not known the woman was going to reach out for her - she just assumed she was being odd, and was going to let her pass - but no. The woman had reached out for her, snaking an arm out. Grasping her and then pulled her towards the woman in such a way that her spine felt like it would snap from the pressure. ‘No you won’t’ the woman had said before she saw something in the corner of her eye. Was that… sharp teeth? It was too late to examine them further. This woman was already upon her - grazing the skin and breaking it. She could hear the crunch of her own skin and a shriek left her lips. It was loud, but her own shrieks were muffled out by the sound of the thunder cracking against the sky. There was no rush for Marlow to try and scream for help.


She could feel her own life being drawn away from her - Marlow didn’t know now what the woman was doing to her, but she suddenly weak and her body was beginning to sag against the woman - hoping she would support in some form, but there was nothing. Her knees had collapsed in on themselves and there was nothing now but a soft whimper leaving her pale, peach shaded lips. Then that was it. The woman withdrew from her and she felt her body drop the ground. Her head hid against the wet concrete - she could hear a crack. Was that her skull?

Eyes fluttered closed. “Ma….” she whispered. “Pa…” she called for them. Blackness took her then, comforting her. Death felt serene to Marlow she let it wash over her. A smile soon appeared on her now pale face - the blood had been completely drained from her body. After a few moments she felt a sudden hunger in the back of her throat, her eyes fluttered open.

<Ambrose Acheron> … there. Her eyes, they are opening. Now the vampire is faced with a fork in the road. Should he take this fledgling, his grandchilde back to the factory or pursue his fleeing childe. Decisions, decisions.

He hesitates for only the briefest of moments before looking at the awaking form of Marlow and mercilessly slamming his memories into her mind along with a telepathic image of his face and directions to the factory, Jose’s face and then a brief message. “I will explain everything to you. Do not go home, you will cause great harm to your loved ones if you do. Find Jose. Wait at the factory for me.”

That done the elder vampire sets of at a breakneck run in the direction Kika fled, reaching out and telling the fleeing vampire telepathically, “Kika… you just murdered a woman. You will murder more if you do not stop and let me teach you. Help you. We need to find Machk. I can help you.” The image of Marlow fading from life is pushed into Kika’s head along with the reason. Her latching on and draining the helpless human beyond assistance. Ambrose does not show her Marlow’s eyes fluttering back open. That tale will he told later.

Yes, it was definitely a dirty tactic to use on the gentle soul, showing her what she did and using her beloved to gain her attention but Ambrose didn’t wish this pursuit to end with a trail of bodies leading right back to the lair he has chosen. Especially since she seemed to be one of the vampires that needed only bite a human to begin the process of change.

He hopes it’s not already too late.. The last thing he needs is an insane fledgling turning everyone she runs into.