|| Death Is Not Always The End || Open!

[who the heck is mikey]

I said hey, why you keep screaming at the top of your head?
- - -

Nathaniel tightened his grasp on her, but not too tightly. He didn't want to hurt her, but yet, he couldn't hurt her anymore than he already had. "I don't give a s**t about those girls, Auri." His voice had calmed considerably, and his fingers around her wrist loosened a bit, in hopes that she wouldn't run away. "Those girls are a ******** outlet. I can't stand myself."

Nathaniel held her wrist to his chest. He couldn't get the right words together. There were so many ways to say what he wanted to say to her, but if he said the wrong word, he knew that Auriana wouldn't listen to him.

"You would be different because I actually have feelings for you, Auri."

- - -
Doesn't matter what I done, or if I even crossed the line.

[Miss Murderous Laugh]

-- Auriana Kiasky --

Take a breath. Hold it in.
Start a fight you won't win.
All in all, you're no good.
You don't cry like you should.

If I go everywhere you want me to go...

Auriana pulled against Nate and when he tightened his grip and pulled her wrist to him, she fell slightly forward, stumbling until she caught herself, inches from his body. She looked up at him, tears in her eyes: a stunning yet miserable sight.

"But how can I trust you?!" she cried.

And that was it. Like a machine that was worked too hard for too long, she broke. Tears streaming from her pale eyes, she buried her head in Nate's chest, outright sobbing. Her breaths were quick and she shook with every shuddering gasp. She was so angry at herself, not at Nate. Forgetting everything, her mind went blank and she just clung to him. She closed her eyes, ashamed, and hid herself from his gaze in his coat.

"Nathanial..." she whispered, choked with sobs.

...How will I know you'll still follow?

So I'll find what lies beneath
Your sick twisted smile
As I lay underneath
Your cold jaded eyes.

[-SweeT OpheLiAC-]

B я a x

Brax couldn't believe it. He wasn't even there when she arrived! How could she be to blame when he didn't even have any information herself. Which was what he was expecting, but still. He was more of careless than she was, but just barely.

Her solid face formed into a sly and slightly scary smile. Two could play at this game. "Very. Funny." she said in a little change of her voice, making it lower and serious, "And for your information, I was slept in today...like last Friday." she said, trying to keep her smile slightly fake and angry while trying not to make it a real one. Sure, she has used that excuse a couple of times, but not likely. She usually tells the truth and says that she was out with her friends, never mentioning what they were doing, but still telling. And that was what bosses usually wanted to know, correct? The truth. But she couldn't take her chances just yet...he was still hiding something.

"And what...'business' were you doing, may I ask? I'm sure you were also looking for an investigation, correct?" trying to keep her smile and keeping from laughing, she glanced at the door that she broke, hearing a conversation outside. 'Auri...of course.' she thought, and also Nate. 'Oh...dammit. Why now? I don't want to miss this.' She wanted to pout, but she kept her cool. She would ask whoever was there witnessing the scene.

[ We're gonna ride the race cars.

We're gonna dance on fire.

We're the girls le disco.

Supersonic overdrive. ]

[who the heck is mikey]

I said hey, why you keep screaming at the top of your head?
- - -

Nathaniel bit the inside of his lip, letting his hand rest on her head as she cried. It completely amazed himself that he had let himself become such an a**. Sure, being a rude, obnoxious, angry German was a part of his whole being. But he knew himself better than anyone else, and Nate knew better than to treat anybody poorly.

But was he treating Auri poorly or was it her just being overemotional? She had a tendency to be that way.

He dismissed the thought, and wrapped his arms around her, hugging her. Nate was speechless. Listening to her cry, he tore himself apart.

The last time he'd seen anyone cry as hard as Auri was was when Marcus died. His sisters were completely destroyed, along with his mother and father. Nate seemed to have a heart of stone, and it bothered him.

Deciding that not saying anything was best, he let his cheek rest on top of Auri's head, drowning himself in his self-hatred.

- - -
Doesn't matter what I done, or if I even crossed the line.

[icegirl6274]

Тяасэ | Ратяiс | Баяоиэ

Now you want to take me down
As if I even care.
I am the monster in your head.

http://img338.imageshack.us/img338/3527/traceroleplay.jpg

Oh she was not messing with him. Trace continued to stare Brax down as she spoke. The corner of his mouth twitched in what almost seemed like irritation. Yes he was careless and rather lenient at times, but he wasn't about to let that become the defining trait of the Hunters. There was no way he was going to let them slip into a lazy state of nothingness. He had worked too hard creating them to let his workers treat him like that.

Maybe was overreacting, but it was the thought that had come into his mind. He wanted to make himself clear before anything else slipped. He already had two of his best workers outside fighting, arguing, or doing whatever the hell they were doing. He didn't need anything else on his back.

"You will be here on time tomorrow. Got it?" he said, or rather he demanded. His voice had an authoritative tone to it. "If you're going to come to me with nothing, you will at least report to work on time and pretend like you're being productive. I am paying you, am I not? Don't waste my time and money. You have a job. I expect you to do it."

His sentences were said with the most seriousness that he had shown in a long time. He stood, back straight and head up, looking down at Brax. He knew she was the type to do what she wanted. She didn't seem to care for authority. But that didn't work for him. Not all the time. He would let her slip sometimes, have some fun and whatnot. But he wouldn't stand for it if it became a reoccurring event. She was a good worker when she got down to it, but he just had to give a little push to get her there.

But then, as quickly as his pissy mood had come on, it seemed to disappear. His posture relaxed slightly, as did his expression. "My business, if you must know, has to do with a little plan I'm scheming up," he answered, walking over to the desk Dasha had cleaned off earlier. He sat down in the chair and looked at the desk top, noticing it's cleanliness, but not commenting. He looked back to Brax. "The Gagliardi man is back, correct? I just wanted to mess with his head a little. So I pulled the strings of a puppet I created a while back. Unfortunately, said puppet is now dead." He was avoiding the exact details, that much was obvious. He didn't want to give away his plans just yet. It would be much more interesting to see how things worked out in the end. With that thought, a small, wicked smile came to his face as he looked over to the wall. He could hardly wait.

And I thought you'd learn by now
It seems you haven't yet.
I am the venom in your skin.
And now your life is
в | я | о | к | е | и

[Tiara_Estella]

~*~Lucinda Fallow~*~

Lucinda had stepped back immediately when she noticed Auriana. Quietly she moved to the edge of an alley and sat on the ground. She sat there silently listening to the two and wondering if there was a way to leave without interrupting the little scene.

She frowned, she had no idea whether there was another way out. She sighed and walked down the alley, away from the two...away from the emotions. She bit her lip, a memory flashed, leaving as quickly as it had come.


"I don't cry..." she said emotionless...and then she ran.


She chose paths aimlessly, at one point hitting a dead end and cussing aloud. What was wrong with her? She never felt this strange...

She stretched her limbs and continued walking. She kept her thoughts concentrating on her task. It was her current purpose...her goal. All other thoughts were blocked out as she found herself behind Nate and Auriana. She paused, staring at them, realizing that she had gone all the way around them.


"Back home then..." she said softly to herself, redirected her thoughts. She let her feet guide her, letting her eyes wander among the buildings of the town. Her task was simple, remove any distractions without compromising the long term mission. In this case the distraction was also the only thing that made her appear remotely human to others. She had her emotions. ...Somewhere... and she knew better than to become some puppet...but she had to stay focused.


She now stood before her home... "Shelter..." she corrected herself, her face blank though her eyes seemed to water slightly.
She rounded the building, heading to the porch in back and bending over to retrieve two big jugs. She uncapped one and soaked the aging home with it, then she did the same with the other.
She stared at the building, hesitant, but only for a moment.


"Goodbye mother... Goodbye father..." she said softly to the building, then retrieved the lighter that she had gotten off of Nate earlier.
She tore a rotting plank of wood and lit it, then hesitated once more.


"I'm...s-sorry..."


She then threw the plank, the whole building instantly becoming engulfed in flames. The heat made sweat run down her body, but remained where she stood until every piece of wood was in flames. She turned away, walking back the way she came without so much a glance at the building. A tear ran down her face and she cursed her weakness; she let her tears fall untouched.
Slowly she made her way back, letting it all out and pausing halfway there to take deep breathes, dry her face and relax her muscles. Any trace of her tears seemed to have disappeared.


She continued on her path, making her way to the door with a missing knob and returning to her seat without a word.

~*~Lucinda Fallow~*~

[Miss Murderous Laugh]

-- Auriana Kiasky --

Take a breath. Hold it in.
Start a fight you won't win.
All in all, you're no good.
You don't cry like you should.

And now my conscience fades away...

Auriana's cries sounded like a wounded songbird; soft yet so sad. She was so embarrassed, so ashamed to be acting this emotional and weak around one of her coworkers, especially Nate. She hid her face from him, her sobs muffled as the warm figure of Nate hugged her. She certainly appreciated it, but at the same time she hated herself for making him upset, for using Trace for comfort, and for being so conflicted.

"Nate..." Auriana managed to whimper out from the folds of his coat. "Nate, I don't know what to do. I was so mad at you... but then I just got really jealous and upset for no reason. I was so selfish to think that I was the only one that mattered when you didn't even know how I felt. It wasn't fair, and I... I'm sorry."

She refused to look in his eyes, though hers were slowly ceasing to tear. "I really don't know what else to tell you." The time was dragging on and on, and she wanted to escape his grasp to the darkness where she could avoid the world, but she felt the steady, persistent beat of his heart against his chest, and Auriana stayed as if to make sure that it never stopped beating.

... A hundred years becomes a day.

So I'll find what lies beneath
Your sick twisted smile
As I lay underneath
Your cold jaded eyes.

[who the heck is mikey]

I said hey, why you keep screaming at the top of your head?
- - -

Nathaniel took a deep, long breath. "It's ok," he whispered. He enjoyed the moment, but it was quickly interrupted.

Nate hadn't injected himself for a while now. They hadn't had anything to kill lately. But despite that, his hearing had become exceptionally advanced. He'd learned how to listen.

And what he was hearing was definitely not something that should be there. "Auri," he whispered, gently pushing her hair behind her ear. "There's something moving over there." He watched the dark alley very carefully, until he knew for sure that it wasn't just an animal.

- - -
Doesn't matter what I done, or if I even crossed the line.

[-SweeT OpheLiAC-]

B я a x

Being slightly offended. She turned from angry, to faking, to being really, really angry. How could he? How dare he? Maybe she didn't have as much information as her boss wanted but that didn't make him in charge of her life. If she were to quit, she would. But not just yet. His rudeness wasn't worth her's. And if she could turn this into a fight, she would. Oh, she definitely would. While he hit it off with Auri, it was just sickening. She didn't mind the age difference or anything, but he was with Nate's girl...well, sorta. And that was wrong. She would never go out with someone that her real friend was going out with. Mildly flirt, but steal or kiss? So, she didn't reply for being on time.

Showing no expression on her face, she didn't intend to make it stay that way. This was it, even though she didn't want to tell him anything by now and just beat him to a pulp, she tool out a crumpled letter. Of what, of a ball. And there wasn't anything special about it as far as the note said, so it was probably okay and it would make him wonder. Sure it can be taken as s**t, but it was worth a try. If she wasn't going to quit any soon, then he better not fire her.

She got up and stood there for a few seconds and made her way to the front of his desk and slapped the letter on his desk. "It's a ball invitation." she spat at him. "And for your information, I do know the news about the Gagliardi man. And I heard rumors of a letter to this ball being put in his mailbox." Smiling, she finally felt like she was back at her job.

[ We're gonna ride the race cars.

We're gonna dance on fire.

We're the girls le disco.

Supersonic overdrive. ]

[Tiara_Estella]

~*~Lucinda Fallow~*~

Lucinda sat silently, slowly organizing her thoughts and shoving them in the back of her mind. She only half listened to the others. A name aroused and it piqued her interest, she remained silent, not really in the mood to ask or even show acknowledgment towards them.

"Gagliardi..." she repeated the name in her thoughts, it sounded oddly familiar. Then she remembered...

-_-It had been a long time ago, the last time she had seen Trace in her house. Her father had gone to his room as was usual and her mother continued with today's training. Lucinda was learning how to create mental blocks to separate herself from things around her. If she was successful, she could watch the most horrendous massacre of strangers or even close friends as if it were an old movie she had seen a thousand times.

Her mother's seemed to change as Lucinda seemed to conquer the skill in theory. She was unreadable and detached as she told Lucinda that her final test was in her room.

Quite eager to please her parents, Lucinda had gone up the stairs, pausing only at the sound of voices. The only thing she caught was that name, then the scraping of a chairs legs as someone stood up abruptly.

Afraid that she had been caught, she breathed in deeply and concentrated on nothing. She continued towards her room, turning the knob slowly until it clicked. She wondered what kind of test she would find.

The door creaked open and a loud thud was heard throughout the building as Lucinda collapsed.

Lucinda awoke hours later to find herself sprawled on the couch in the dark. Her parents had lain her there and had led Trace out, embarrassed by her performance. Lucinda curled up silently the rest of the night crying her last tears. Tears for the only creature she had truly loved. The pet was spattered all over the walls of her room, its corpse laid on the ground like a throw rug...-_-

Lucinda cringed visibly, her teeth grinding reflexively before she returned to reality. Her wide eyes returned to normal though her demeanor appeared forced and detached.

~*~Lucinda Fallow~*~

[icegirl6274]

Тяасэ | Ратяiс | Баяоиэ

Now you want to take me down
As if I even care.
I am the monster in your head.

http://img338.imageshack.us/img338/3527/traceroleplay.jpg

Trace tried to hide a smirk, but found it very difficult. He hadn't even been trying to make her angry. Yet it would appear he had succeeded in doing so anyway. It amused him. What did that say about him? He had grown to be able to unconsciously amuse himself by getting on someone's nerves. It made for a very interesting conversation.

Trace looked down at the letter Brax had set on the desk in front of him. Well, at least she wasn't so angry that she was going to withhold information from him. He picked it up and skimmed the writing. It was very fancy, neatly trimmed with little details in every corner. It looked as if it had been very thoughtfully planned out. Whoever was sending them out must have been one of the big shots in the town. Not that it mattered, it had just caught Trace's eye.

But that also meant the ball would be no joke. He was sure everyone was expected to dress up in their best....oh, yes. It said that right on the invitation. So, it was very formal. And the Gagliardis were invited? He had never seen Nikolas as the type of man who wore suits and button up petticoats. It wouldn't surprise him if the man had one, his house was as big as a mansion, after all. But still...

He looked up, pondering all the possibilities. "Good work, Brax," he complimented. "You're not completely useless after all." He smiled. He was obviously joking about it, but he wouldn't have been surprised if Brax took offense to it anyway.

He looked up as Lucinda came in. He set the letter down on the table and stood up. "Ah, Lucinda, my favorite grunt," he said, his voice coated in sugar. "I needed to talk to you. Do you have a minute?"

And I thought you'd learn by now
It seems you haven't yet.
I am the venom in your skin.
And now your life is
в | я | о | к | е | и

[Tiara_Estella]

~*~Lucinda Fallow~*~

Lucinda lifted her gaze to meet Trace's, her eyes were as blank as they had been when she had reported to him on day one. She nodded, ignoring Brax completely and concentrating on the glint that had appeared momentarily in Trace's eyes.

"At your command..." she added, noticing the glint return as she said these words. She wasn't in the mood to crack the puzzle that was obviously about to unfold. She needed to block out these emotions and doing as she was told was the best way to do it. Obediently she stood from her chair and stood beside Trace.

A strange feeling came over her, her gut told her that she was going to dislike her next task. She gritted her teeth and let her eyes meet Trace's in a fashion she knew to be demeaning herself. He seemed to be quite amused, but he had yet to show malicious intentions. She wouldn't like the next step, but she would deal with it and move on as she had always done.

~*~Lucinda Fallow~*~

[icegirl6274]

Тяасэ | Ратяiс | Баяоиэ

Now you want to take me down
As if I even care.
I am the monster in your head.

http://img338.imageshack.us/img338/3527/traceroleplay.jpg

Trace watched Lucinda as he came over to him. He didn't give much of a response at first. She seemed so emotionless. Well, perhaps that would make things easier. He didn't really know. But...well, it didn't matter for the time being. He gave her a slight smile, hoping to ease the pain of what was about to come.

Before he began speaking, however, he remembered Dasha and looked up at her. He gave her a slight frown. He then looked back to Lucinda. "Would you accompany me into my office, please?" With that, he turned and walked down the hall to the last door, pausing and waiting for her. Once she was inside, he shut the door behind her and walked back over to his desk.

"I'll need you to do something for me," he began. "As hunters, there is no chance as we are for us to actually stand a chance against a vampire. So..." He paused as he reached for the top of the desk. He grabbed one of vials filled with the black liquid. "We have found that vampire blood has special qualities. When taken, either through the mouth or through injection, it can give you the strength and speed of a vampire."

He let the idea sink in for a moment as he rolled the glass between his fingers. He looked as the thick liquid sloshed around inside. It was surprising......how such an innocent-looking liquid could contain so much power....and so much pain at the same time.

He looked back up to her, gripping the vial in his hand. "Unfortunately, it has some negative side effects," he explained, a rather serious expression falling onto his face. "The effects become less intense over time, but the first few days, sometimes weeks, of taking dosages can be quite painful. I hate to do this to new grunts, but it helps us pick out the weak ones from the ones that will stick with us. Survival of the fittest after all. But, since you are a new grunt and we'll need you to be at your best as soon as possible, I'll need to start you on these as soon as we can."

He continued to hold the vial as he looked at her. "Our new grunts always take it through mouth first. If you were to inject it as I do, it would probably kill you. Your body has to get used to it before you can start taking it that way. It tastes terrible, I will warn you. Try not to vomit. I would suggest holding your nose. You're going to experience a variety of symptoms after taking it, so I'm going to give a choice of where you want to take it. You can either take it here and I can set up some sort of bed or something here in my office so you can try to recover on your own, or I can rent you a room in one of the inns in town so you won't have to be near anyone. Wherever you would feel the most comfortable The decision is yours. I will be checking on you either way to make sure you're not dead and to bring you supplies."

And I thought you'd learn by now
It seems you haven't yet.
I am the venom in your skin.
And now your life is
в | я | о | к | е | и

[Tiara_Estella]

~*~Lucinda Fallow~*~

Her eyes shifted slightly at the sight of a kind smile on Trace's face. Understanding plagued her, she definitely would have a quite an indescribable next step. She nodded, turning only to looks at the others for signs to confirm her thoughts. She followed him to his office, letting her eyes linger on the general room before seeing him sit at his desk. She was going to stand but sat instinctively.

Her eyes seemed attracted to the vials, it was difficult to return her gaze to his when he spoke once more. She was a bit confused when he began, what would she have to do? Then he grasped a vial and her eyes opened slightly wider, a chill running down her spine as he stated what the liquid truly was. Blood...Vampire blood...

His voice seemed faraway as wheels in her mind clicked together and began to turn. He had been covered in blood the last time she had seen him. She had not recognized it because of its strange color, but now the dark liquid revealed that truth to her. He had killed a vampire on his own and told no one....That she knew of anyway.

She let her thoughts settle and returned to listening to him, her eyes lingered on the vial. It seemed like though most things amused him, the effects the liquid could have were one thing that he took seriously. He made various pauses, giving her time to absorb the meaning of this.

Her eyes met his as he finished speaking.

"The freshest blood... The vial you collected most recent... May I drink from it?" she asked silently, already deciding that she would take the risk, though chills ran down her spine at the thought of drinking blood from those creatures.

She let her thoughts choose a place, her home...That wretched building was nothing more than smoldering ashes by now. "I'd rather be out of the way when the effects overtake me..." she said mostly to herself as she thought of places she could go.

"An empty office here should be fine..." she decided, not wanting to be far from the others since the outcome was still unknown. "A room to myself is all I wish for..." she added softly, returning from her thoughts to watch her superior.

~*~Lucinda Fallow~*~

[icegirl6274]

Тяасэ | Ратяiс | Баяоиэ

Now you want to take me down
As if I even care.
I am the monster in your head.

http://img338.imageshack.us/img338/3527/traceroleplay.jpg

Trace nodded his head in understanding. He had expected such an answer. In his experience, he had gathered that most hunters, when put into this position, either wanted to be left completely alone or wanted to be with someone at all times. The latter was a bit less common.

He glanced down at the vial in his hand at her request before looking back up at her. "Yes" he answered. "I got this today, so it is only a few hours old. You're welcome to it. In fact, it was the one I was going to give you. But let me get you set up in your room first before you partake on this....interesting experience."

He gripped the bottle in his hand and walked over to the door of his office. Opening it, he walked outside and stopped at the first door on his left. He opened it to reveal possibly one of the cleanest rooms in the entire building. It was an unused office. It had a desk sitting near one of the far walls with nothing on it. No scattered papers, no black vials, nothing. The walls had a few empty shelves, but not many. In the far corner sat a mattress. Sheets were stretched over it and a large group of pillows sat in the corner, propped up against the wall. A blanket was draped over the mattress and another blanket was neatly folded on one end. There were also two boxes sitting near the mattress on the floor. They were folded up so that their contents weren't visible. Trace turned and looked back at Lucinda.

"I keep this here for times like this," he explained. "I'm sorry if it's not as glamorous as it could be. I can go out and buy an actual bed frame so that you don't have to lay on the floor. But I think the closer to the floor you are, the better. We don't want you rolling off the bed and hurting yourself." He smiled slightly before continuing. "You can try to take the stuff now if you wish, or you can wait for a bit. It's up to you. It's all up to you. Feel free to call for me if you need anything. Don't worry about inconveniencing me or anything. I'll try to stay here at all times so that I can monitor how you're doing. But on the same note, you can also feel free to tell me to leave if you want to be alone." He gave a shrug before turning and walking into the room. He gestured towards it. "Kind of an unpleasant thought, but I would suggest using that if you ever feel a sudden up-chuck coming."

He then turned and went to one of the boxes and squatted down next to it. He opened up the top and pulled out one of the pieces of cloth. There were quite a few folded neatly underneath it. He held it up, showing Lucinda. "I will get a basin of water you can soak these in if you get a fever. Or for any other purpose that you need. We have plenty so feel free to use them."

With that, he stood up again and walked over to the desk. He placed the vial down on the top of it. "So.....as I said, you can take this now or you can take care of anything you need first. Just let me know what you decide. I'll tell the others not to be too loud."

And I thought you'd learn by now
It seems you haven't yet.
I am the venom in your skin.
And now your life is
в | я | о | к | е | и