Welcome to Gaia! ::

"I...see..." As much as she would have liked to believe Anton, and everyone else who stated the same, Acinemod highly doubted his absence of secrets. Everyone had something to hide just as everyone had something to fear and none had one without the other. Twas one of those rules of life that were never to be broken by those of living cells, which oddly includes all deities in existence. A self-sufficient, self-preserving AI would be the ultimate "being", just like a highly intelligent, fearless serial killer with unlimited resources. Hmmm...interesting. One might consider a vampire a close relative, so if he wasn't one of those, then what would she classify him as? Was he worse? Anger and anxiety made the doctor irritated. Of course, that wasn't enough for her start a crusade against that which currently bugged her. That would be unreasonable. Anton was an unidentified specimen, automatically valuable. Acinemod closed her eyes and tried to remember everything in the room while screaming mentally in disbelief. "What?" Despite all that was said before, Acinemod was pinned on the idea that the creature before her was a vampire. Now she just had to find out. After the short analysis of the room, the strange physician calculated the odds of her success should she walk into the bathroom as if she forgot something and brought out her medical coat. Would there be enough anesthetic on the inside of her coat to take him down or would he die from too much? "Too risky. You don't want to kill him, dammit. You don't even know how strong he is...maybe...Maybe a thorough investigation of his abilities would be enough to estimate what would work. Yessssss. That would be perfect, but..."

Jagged shivers chomped at her spine and to the back of the skull at the extremely short distance between them. Normally she'd carve them a new face, though it wasn't as if he were very dangerous...or was he? There was nothing more to suggest that Anton was any of the species the doctor had ever come across before, which meant that he was rare and probably way more threatening than the usual dangers. The creature wasn't even the slightest bit afraid when approaching her. What could all of this mean? Had they seen each other before? If Acinemod wasn't so nearly delirious at this point, she might have ripped herself out of the chair when Anton began playing with her hair. Even before that, he might have found himself threatened already with the nearest object. Of course, the situation wouldn't have looked so serious because she was still in a robe. Acinemod opened her eyes slightly and threw out a strange sigh of relief before answering his perfectly voiced questions. "I'm a human." If only that was said in a more honest tone, he just might have had more of an incentive to believe her. The strange doctor shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "That...isn't true, technically. Humans usually don't...would you like some tea?" Smooth transition. Acinemod gripped the arm rests of her chair and pushed herself to stand. "I'm sure there's some ready somewhere. I'll go check in the bathroom-err kitchen." Freudian slip anyone? The situation was becoming more irritating by the second, especially since there was still a boy that needed to be taken care of. Could you imagine what the kid would think if she shoved a drugged or injured Anton into the next room over? Acinemod sighed roughly and walked as composed as possible towards the kitchen, stopping to lean in the door jam. "Everybody lies and everyone has secrets." It was then that she noticed the sharp knife on the counter. Oh, what stroke of luck!...if it was possible or efficient. Acinemod gripped it's handle and turned back to Anton slowly. A suspicious formation marked her face. "What exactly are you?"

"Brilliant, Ace. Just brilliant. You've now succeeded in throwing yourself into a life threatening situation. Now, how the hell are you going to get out of it?" Nothing raised her blood pressure so quickly that day than his approach. Acinemod took a few steps backwards into the kitchen and steered herself as close to the counter as she could. The least she could do for herself was bring sharp objects within reaching distance or, in this instance, the lights. Anton didn't seem very shy about making physical contact. That didn't sit well with her and neither did the sudden stabbing of the chest that he had achieved. Acinemod flinched at the sight of her new chef knife, all bloody and tainted. Nothing ever seemed to escape the touch of red. "If you weren't embarrassed by what you are then you wouldn't have danced around the specifics of my question in the first place. Therefore, you have released one secret to me." Yes, just continue the conversation in the face of blatant danger. Acinemod reached up to his grasp and carefully attempted to release herself, clearly trying to avoid the choppers that stood so close by while taking notice of his easy heal properties. The least bright thing to do would be to rip the ligament from him. Sudden moves indicated some sort of fear or extreme distaste and often sparked the reflexes of the one whose grasp was trying to be escaped. Though it would have been interesting to test Anton's reflexes, experimenting with the wendigo didn't strike her fancy. Living did. The knife drawer wasn't so far away. Still, it would do her no good. There had to be a way to blind him for a few moments. Could he see in the dark? The ability wasn't so uncommon in creatures; however, there was always a fraction of time where the eyes had to adjust and cause temporary blindness. This new idea didn't suffer the scrutiny of her conscience because it was the only novel thing to do. There was always at least one "power off" button in each room and this one was just under the lip of the counter. "You should know better than to attack the defenseless. Flick! All was black as night and the moon was quarantined by the thunder clouds. Only the single flashes would give them light sight. Acinemod quickly dropped to a crouch and dashed past the cannibal to exit the kitchen. Her closet was the next door over. Rushing into that room, the strange doctor used the secondary entrance to the bathroom and slipped inside, slamming the door shut and locking all the locks she could. It was too dark to see them, though she knew well enough how to get around the place without her eyes. The adrenal glands pumped their resources into her blood stream as she forgot of the other element in her situation, the other bathroom door. Anton might not have noticed the second entrance to the bathroom, but didn't seem stupid enough to not follow the direction of the noise to the other doorway. This realization made her body fly over to the second entrance and attempt to close and lock the second door. If she somehow couldn't manage to lock the door before he got to it, the least she could do would be to try to hold the door closed.

Guilt gnawed at the back of her neck at his point. Anton did offer his wine and company; however, the company had certainly turned sour. Acinemod finished locking the rest of the mechanisms on the other door and proceeded to walk to the other side of the bathroom. There was no way the creature could get at her. After all, the person she bought the bullet proof glass from was sincere. That's what she thought until the first blow to the door. Crack! Shock rained down through her body like a wicked hail storm. "You've got to be kidding me!" Not once in her life had she ever been scammed by another person in terms of goods and materials. All transactions were completely safe and guarded. Who was it that she got the glass from?! Right now that didn't matter. The glass fell in sheets onto the floor and crumbled to shards, easily whisking towards her. Thankfully there was a piece large enough for her to pick up with the sleeve of her robe. If nothing else she could at least cut the hell out of him. Acinemod reached frantically for her clothes and quickly began unlocking the second door to the bathroom. "Hurry! Hurry! Hurry!" Even though the locks were open in a few seconds, it still didn't seem as if she were moving fast enough. Acinemod slipped quickly past the door and into her closet. The only safety available for her was between the layers of clothes. Still, the best thing she could do was leave her home entirely. What would happen to the boy then? Yes, the very same boy she had recently saved. She couldn't just keep him on anesthetic for hours. His liver would be spent. There had to be a way to get to the boy without attracting the cannibal. "Dammit! Why do the dreams always turn to nightmares?" Acinemod rushed further into her closet and shoved off her robe, quickly replacing it with her medical coat and pants. There wasn't enough time to button up her coat and it was dark. Who would notice? Her skin was near identical to the coat. Suddenly, fear got the best of her. "Stop!" The yell resulted from impulse. Blood slithered out of a slit in her right hand from gripping the glass when she yelled. It seemed as if this was the end to the last long chapter of life. Pain didn't really bother her much now. Dr. Irralius stepped silently out of her forest of clothes and reached for the pistol on the interior of her pants. All this time she thought she'd never need to use it. Well, look who was wrong. "Stop or i'll shoot you!" Just to be sure he knew she was serious, Acinemod fired a warning shot into the floor, right at the doorway of the closet. She didn't know where he'd enter from and it didn't matter at the moment. If he came into view with intent to cause harm, she would shoot him. There was no other option. Negotiating was ripped off the table by his fowl intentions.

Outside the mansion...
Evyione hummed softly while she floated gently on top of the water. It was so peaceful tonight. Her slightly pointed ears twitched when she heard the soft flapping of wings. When something landed on her nose she opened her eyes. A little white petal was sitting there. Smiling she plucked it off her nose and tossed it aside. Then another joined it. Then another. Then another. Looking up she saw that the tree titled over the river was raining off it's flower petals. Feeling a little playful she broke out of her floating position, stood, and curtsied. While doing so all the water that matted down her white dress dripped away until it was dry. Holding the ends of her dress she twirled around as if she was dancing. While she was twirling she started to float out of the water. The floating stopped when she was just high enough that her feet barely scrapped over the water's surface. Still humming she continued to twilred around, her feet causing light ripples where ever she stepped. Her long dark hair floated and swayed as if it weighed nothing at all.

The boy. Why did he become so important of late? It wasn't as if the child meant anything to her. There were many young people waltzing around the place and the majority of them were dead. Could it be possible that the sudden challenge sparked her care? How bizarre. Who would have guessed that a challenged, one as life threatening as the current situation, was enough to cause feelings for another person within the doctor. Acinemod began calculating the chances of Anton not following if she slipped through the entrances in her place to the child. The percentage of failure to maintain the current security was high. There had to be a way to lose him. How about rushing past the cannibal as fast as possible? "Anton isn't that stupid and neither am I." How about going off the balcony and through one of the lower windows? There's really nothing to lose. "Yeah, other than my life if I don't jump correctly. Also, I'd have to cross the room to get to the other side, to the balcony." Why did the chicken-anyway, that thing is practically immortal and that's the only viable choice left. Standing there isn't an option. Irralius grappled onto the idea and moved silently towards the entrance to the main room. Ten feet of contemplating lead her to believe that a mad dash would be more productive if done so at the exact moment of discovery, should he notice her creeping silently across the room. At the portal, her heart squeezed one final spasm of panic and then strangled itself to a forced, regular beat. Calm was what was needed. Acinemod walked lightly across the room, keeping within the blackness of the night as she made it across the room. Only then did the pain from her hand become increasingly apparent. The doctor flinched and clenched her jaw, a small snap from the collision of teeth sounding. Would that be enough to alert the cannibal? No one could be sure. Still, should the task be completed without discovery, Irralius would dash through the glass doors and rush to the edge of the balcony. If Anton caught sight of her plan, the doctor would be forced to try to make it to the balcony before being blocked. Regardless, the goal of each attempt was to get to the edge of the balcony and drop down into the trees. From there, the windows were in reach. The doctor would surely find a way of entering a nearby room.

""s**t!",she shrieked. Acinemod hadn't anticipated such an extreme reaction from Anton, even if he was something unusual. There were very little options available and the best one was the riskiest. Dashing towards the window would make her whereabouts completely obvious. Maybe she should have thought of that before hand. Still, there were more pressing matters at hand. It may have been dark and all, but the projectile was blindingly clear. Wooden and splintery would be her fate if she didn't do something. Acinemod attempted to drop diagonally to the floor to avoid damage, though it didn't work out as well as she'd planned. Blood ran down her neck from the bloody wound of her former ear. The auricle was all the way across the room, impaled to the leg of the chair. Acinemod somehow ignored this fact and miraculously made her way over the balcony. There was no time to open a window. She'd have to crash through one with the hopes that it was already open. The balcony sat over the edge of the forest, dangling over a few thick branches that she took advantage of by jumping on. With one great leap of faith, Acinemod made her way over the life threatening downfall and into one of the only unlocked windows that she guessed right on. "Perfect!"...not really. A tall, pale skinned fellow with glistening choppers rose from the bed across the room and smirked. "I was just thinking about grabbing a bite." Acinemod didn't have any time to acknowledge him; running out the door without a second glance and flying down the hallway. The blood from her ear was starting to itch her neck. "What is irritating me?!!?!",she exclaimed aloud. That was when she noticed her ear was gone. "...No..." Cupping the bleeding wound on her head, she turned around slowly to look back. A sort of a daze came over her. It was enough for the previous creature to appear behind her. "Running away, are we? You look hurt. Let me help you." Nothing would move. Acinemod dropped her arms and crumbled backwards against the new foe. He was happy about her compliance, sweeping the doctor into his arms in a pinch. Nothing was working. No alarms were sounding from the inside. "What is going on?!" Clearly she hadn't remembered that the damage to her ear had also smacked her brain to the other side of her head. Her motor functions weren't working. In a case like this, the live mop of curls on her head would take over, but that wouldn't help because it was tranquilized. Acinemod was clearly just a pretty vegetable about this point and it pissed her off. The creature was moving faster than her eye could keep up with, so they closed. Would Anton catch up to them?

((OOC: I never really realized just how long four months is until now. sad ))

[Necromancy]

Suddenly, the mansion emerged from between the trees. At first, Mikael had thought it to be a cloud of fireflies, but as he moved closer he saw that the lights were windows in a vast structure that sat within a clearing whose boundaries were blurry. The trees thinned out significantly, but brambles and bushes and all sorts of smaller plants surrounded the place, and not a few large trees still stood around it. Luckily (or was it luck?) there was a path which extended straight from where Mikael had been walking to the front door of the building. He had been trekking through this wilderness for three days, and this was his third night in the forest. He had prepared for a week at least, but he had become lost at some point after the first night here. For the last two days, he had been wandering around, trying to find his bearings or some sign of the mysterious mansion he had been searching for. And here it was, appearing all of a sudden out of the mist, from behind the biggest and oldest trees he had yet seen.

The building itself was clearly ancient, probably dating back to the time of the Tzars and possibly well before. Oddly, it reminded him of how he had always imagined Baba Yaga's house, though hers would have been much smaller, and this one lacked the chicken legs and the fence of skulls. The architecture seemed to be a patchwork of various periods, and it sprawled up and away from him in an arcane pattern he could not quite fathom. Towers rose at strange angles, rooms connected in ways that did not seem quite possible. The house was partially overgrown with ivy and other weeds, and many of the windows were broken, gaping open like empty eye sockets gazing over the wild garden around them. Many were intact, however, and for the most part it was these from which the lights shone.

So it was inhabited. The legends were true. In part, at least. It was probably vagrants and outlaws who came here for the most part. He wasn't worried; he had dealt with such people before, and they generally would not attack unless provoked. They were not his concern; he was here because he believed there might be truth to the tales which told of this place as being a meeting place for another type of outlaw; those who were beyond the law because they were beyond human.

Mikael walked up the path. He ran his fingers over the chain of charms and amulets which was currently wrapped around his right arm. Crosses, yes, and symbols of most faiths, as well as an eclectic collection of occult iconography and folk charms. Most had been blessed by a priest acquaintance of his in Moscow, who had also given him a supply of holy water. The others he had enchanted himself, or they had their own intrinsic power. One, a little Hamsa of silver, gold and lapiz lazuli, had no power he knew of, but it had been a gift from his Babushka, and she had said it would keep him safe. So far, at least, it seemed she was right.

In his bag, along with his survival gear, his books, and various magical materials and implements, he also had a few stakes, garlic oil and cloves, a crossbow with silver-tipped arrows, a high-caliber revolver with silver tipped bullets, and two knives, one with a blade of silver, the other with a blade of cold iron. Finally, he had a high-powered flashlight which reproduced the spectrum of sunlight, and the containers of holy water. He hoped he wouldn't have to use any of these weapons, and to be honest he wasn't sure they would be of much use given his few run-ins with the Vampyr and a few other things that go bump in the night. His charms and spells had served him better. But they should serve to drive off hostile humans at least, and one couldn't be too careful.

He reached the door. It was huge, and carved of some wood so dark it was nearly black. Ebony, perhaps? Or had it merely been darkened so by years of rain and wear and tear? The hinges and handle were brass, or perhaps gold. There was a big knocker in the shape of a dragon in the center of the door. He almost knocked, and then tried the handle. The door creaked open.

The room beyond was shadowy and dim, but there was still enough moon and starlight filtering in through the windows and the holes in the ceiling that he could see well enough. There were the shapes of furniture, some covered in sheets, some bare, some broken, all dusty. A few paintings on the walls. A glass cabinet, its panes smashed, filled with ruined knick-knacks. His eyes alighted on a set of nesting dolls like the one he had played with as a boy. But beyond him and them, the room was empty.

All was silent, save for the susurrus of the wind whispering in the trees.

Mikael turned his attention inward, recalling some of what he had learned of the magic of spirits, and in particular the taboo art of Necromancy. He knew all sorts of magic, but he seemed to have a special facility with things risen from the dead, or who never quite made it there. Moreover, such things seemed to have an uncanny way of finding him. Or rather, he had a way of getting himself into situations where he would encounter them. Either way, he had a sense for such things. He closed his eyes, standing in the ruined foyer, muttering a mantra under his breath and holding his chain of charms. He opened his third eye and reached out with the sixth sense, searching for the spirits of the living, the dead, and those between.

[/Necromancy]