Path of the Vampire forum

Despite his success, Raker was going through an existential crisis. He always had power over his peers. It was an exhilarating sensation. To think it would all end one day. What was worse was not knowing. Could be tomorrow ... could be a few decades. Some find comfort in the fact that all humans seem to have that one thing in common. Death. Raker almost has the opposite reaction. How could a man who manipulated himself into a life full of success and power fall to the same fate as the lowly cockroach. It was insulting. Unlike the famous tyrant Qin Shi Huang who drank mercury trying to escape this fate Raker actually has the chance to live forever.
Vampires - one of pop cultures most feared and revered subject. Featured in movies novels and video games. Their existence meant only survival to Raker. The sudden appearance of these creatures drove Raker to pull all kinds of strings. The problem was sorting out the reality from the fiction. Vampires becoming a part of modern culture is almost the perfect disguise. From wackjobs claiming they saw vampires soaring over the city riding on a carpet to lovesick teens jumping at any boy hoping to take advantage. Ridiculous. Raker was almost ready to give up when one of his colleagues from his college days called him. His friend said that a friend of his works for a man who owns a bar. The owner of said bar supposedly is pale and barely ever eats or drinks. The chance of such a rumor being true, however, was very very slim. At the end of his search though, he was willing to try anything.
Wearing a simple coat with the collar up, Raker hoped to catch the owner at the bar. They say first impressions are the most important. If that's the case Raker could easily see this place becoming his favorite. Upon entering he smiled at the 20s decor and jazz music in the background. Staring at the stage, Raker hardly noticed the man standing at the entrance. After a second Raker looked at the man and plastered on the smile he uses to impress chief executives and the like. "Wonderful place you have here." Wanting to get the pleasantries aside he simply offered his hand. "I am Mr. Raker. Is the owner in right now?" This little hunt of his better bear fruit and soon.

Raker wasn't sure what to think of the owner. Certainly not to be underestimated. Turning his head at the loud crash Raker watched as a bumbling drunkard dropped her glass. From the corners of his eyes Raker watched how the owner would react. His scrutiny paid off tremendously. Who would have thought such a powerful creature of myth and legend would be found in a bar, by cutting himself on a broken glass no less. He contained the excitement at the discovery, however; as Raker nodded politely and sat himself down at the bar. Now the only issue was getting a position of trust. After some research Raker discovered the owner is quite the pianist. From his accent it'd be safe to guess that the owner came from either northern France or possibly Belgium. How to use these to his advantage? The owner already heard his local accent so bluffing about his nationality was out of the question. Perhaps a common interest in music? Raker had no clue as to the owner's preferred music style. Classical judging from the piano? Looking back on his knowledge of classical music Raker found ... nothing. Well he knew some of Beethoven's work but not much to stand toe-to-toe with a musical professional. After a few more seconds of brooding on what to do, he refocused on the bar around him. More specifically what to drink. Something weak seeing as a clear mind would be best when interacting with an apex predator of the night. Water it is then. Tapping on the counter in tune with the atmospheric jazz music he waited for the owner to return. The hunt was far from over it seemed. Raker decided it best not be the prey in this case.

As the owner sat next to him Raker simply turned and smiled coldly.

"It isn't about selling anything. It's more what you can do for me."

Clearly this man was the type who didn't have all the time in the world. So Raker couldn't can't really waste time. A more direct tact was required.

"Speaking of which ... Interesting coloration. Is it too forward of me to ask what blood type you have?" Raker said as his smile curled up devilishly. Like a predator that cornered its prey, he continued, "Where are my manners?! I gave you my name but you haven't given me yours. I seem to be at a disadvantage. Of course if this is a bad time we can take a rain check. I know a lot of people that'd be very interested in this lovely establishment of yours."

As he said this Raker turned to get a full view of the jazz band, looking for the piano he had heard of. Raker grinned as his cold eyes caught it in their cross hairs. "Magnificent piece. Heirloom perhaps? I'm sure your friends and family are overjoyed to have a musician of such talent." Raker needed more information to work with. Mentioning his friends and family even briefly could give him more threads to pull. Such connections can potentially become liabilities.

All throughout history many prominent figures scrambled in their age for a way to cheat death. Maybe to rule their empires or for a lover. Whatever their motivations were they failed horribly. Some even ended up poisoning themselves. Raker, however, was so close he could taste it. Raker would succeed where they failed. He'll rule forever. Et regnabit in aeternum.

Raker blinked as the realization dawned on him. He made a mistake. The days of sifting though rumors and information has him exhausted. Raker could not allow his stress to put him in a position of weakness here.

Grabbing the bridge of his nose he sighed. "Straight to the point then? I and several others have recently acquired information on the specifics of your ... diet. This information would be very incriminating to say the least. There is a way out of this of course. One which would be not only benefit you but also your business. If your situation ... also applied to me as well then I would not let those incompetents release this information. If that scenario came to pass then I could easily make the problem go away." Raker said this in a hushed tone, unleashed all of his manipulative arsenal.

Raker would ... could not fail here. Raker grinned as if he was sharing a secret with a long time friend. "I don't want to be enemies. We can be partners in crime. Think about it. The heat on you would vanish and you'd gain a very grateful veteran of certain types of business."

As he said that last bit he cracked his ring finger. Raker was bluffing of course; he had no evidence of Cedric's nightly activities. All of it was just to appear in a position of strength. Predators target the weak links. In order for prey to survive they either relied on superior numbers or make themselves seem more powerful than they really are. Survival was key.

He was also slightly vague on what the information actually entailed. Let Mr. Cedric do the thinking. Cedric's own mind will scare him more than anything Raker could say. Suddenly his grin vanished. People looking over at them would say he looked pissed. It really just revealed him for what he was. A sadistic, cunning, cowardly monster. Raker doesn't need fangs or an aversion to sunlight to accomplish that.

"Or we could part ways. Role the dice. Leave what comes up next to the fates. If you believe in such things that is." Worst yet. Raker looked like a man with nothing to lose. He wore an expression that seemed to say "I'll take you down with me if need be."

He played his hand a little too soon. Stupid stupid stupid. If Raker makes another mistake here he could possibly end up bleeding out in an alley way somewhere. Or drained. Raker's charming mask vanished for a brief instant. It revealed the desperation of a cornered animal. It disappeared almost as soon as it appeared.

Once again his face was the picture of charm and almost regal grace. There is a silver lining however. Raker was a good gambler. No one got as far ahead as Raker without taking risks. He was betting his life on this one.

"Forgive me I phrased that a bit too aggressively. I am not the one who wishes to persuade you with this information. I am simply offering to make the people who do vanish. I would make a very profitable investment to be sure. Also I must say you really are excellent at purging any leads back to you. But once the fanged cat shredded the bag so to speak several extremely wealthy individuals looked into it. They can afford to hire ... talented ... specialists to look into these things. These people are like the bloodhounds of the underground community. Forgive me for not saying more. It's just you have all the cards right now. I am at your complete mercy. I came here unarmed willing and ready to help you. A sign of good faith."

Damage control. Raker was spinning a web of deceit to save his skin. This Cedric was obviously not reacting well to black mail. Well nobody would react well. Cedric just has all the real power in this exchange. Raker's power came from his resources and artistically spun words. If someone sees through his words he would fail and have to resort to ... murder. Killing a vampire was out of the question obviously. So the only option was more words! Hopefully enough to get him closer to his goal. Then he could use the blackmail excuse and his vampiric powers to eliminate a few rivals ... it'd certainly make his plan more believable. It would also have the added benefit of increasing the stability of Raker's power base.

Raker mentally crosses his fingers.