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 Posted: Sat Sep 29, 2007 8:06 pm
Jessi had spent about an hour more in the museum after she'd parted from Thomas. She'd rationalized the delay as wanting to blend in after the strangeness of the day. Really she wanted to see if there was anything else in the collection that might be of family interest. Her grandmother would tear her a new one if she found out she'd overlooked one of her Uncle's pieces.
Satisfied that there wasn't anything else of real note in the place she headed back to the hotel. She didn't bother with a taxi. It would have been a waste of money for how close she was to the place.
When she got to her room, she showered and preened herself into presentability, and then donned the closest thing she had to company clothing: pinstripe pants, a white button up top with no tie, a vest and neatly polished black pumps. As she applied a bit of makeup, trying to read the directions to her host's home without jabing herself in the eye with a mascar wand.
With herself arranged neatly, she grabbed the little black purse she'd packed and stuffed it with the contents of her jean pockets. In the pocket of the vest she tucked a small silver flask, and a charm bracelet. Her pants pockets were filled with a few odds and ends, including a switchblade and the directions.
With her clothing neatly pressed, and her pockets filled, she grabbed her coat and headed out for the night into god knew what.
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Posted: Sat Sep 29, 2007 9:25 pm
The door was answered by a young girl in a light blue party dress. Her auburn brown hair fell perfectly into place and framed around the base of her neck, dipping in where the ears were and fluffing out again at the chin. Her eyes were a strange violet and she smiled lightly at Jessi. "Oh that's sweet. "
She giggled, whispering lightly. "I wouldn't bother, you'd be better off taking the head."
With those words she turned around and led the girl in through the hall. For someone who on the outside seemed to take so much pride in appearence the home was not much different then the museum basement. The interior was decorated to match the outside of the house with furnature that seemed handmade rather then manufactured.
Despite this everything was cluttered with an odd collection of items from varying centuries, making the immortal seem like a packrat of odds and ends. It looked like junk until one looked closer and noticed that every single one of them could have been categorized as an antique, including a gramophone, an old typewriter and a scroll that appeared to be rescued from Alexandria.
The girl led Jessi to the kitchen whitch was decidedly cleaner for the dinner and set neatly with mild apetizers and salad, a pot of coffee centrally located. She gestered the girl to sit and grinned, revealing a row of slightly pointy teeth. "I think Lexicon will be up soon. You wait here. enjoy the coffee. Very tasty that."
The sharp toothed servant then disapeared into the kitchen, likely continuing with other tasks.
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Posted: Sun Sep 30, 2007 10:21 am
"Thank you, I will," she replied softly. Jessi watched the servant go, wondering to herself what she was. She didn't think she'd ever met anything like her. For a moment she wondered what she'd gotten herself into.
She dismised the thought and poured herself some coffee in an effort to not look rude. She knew she'd said something about caffeine when they'd first discussed the painting. The trouble was she didn't remember just what it was. Hopefully Lexicon or Cleon or whatever her name was wouldn't notice. With that, she sipped it experimentally. It tasted clean.
She glanced over the food displayed. It looked like a pretty swanky setup. She doubted this was all for her. Cleon had something about a guest and wondered silently if she meant Thomas, or someone else.
Her attention wandered from the food to the room around her. Apparently curators had a habit of migrating their collections into their home. She vaguely remembered seeing Louis's flat back in Narrowsville. The place made a garbage dump look neat, but most of the mess had been pieces that didn't fit in at the museum or that he was studying. Come to think of it, Vicious always had alot of wierd random crap hanging around Chany's house when they were kids. Maybe it was an eccentric mage/supernatural being thing rather than a curator trait. Whatever the reason, she felt strangely at home in the slight mess.
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Posted: Sun Sep 30, 2007 12:06 pm
It took nearly ten minutes before Lexicon entered the room through the trairwell at the other end. She was still dressed in the white suit, cleanly pressed and immaculate despite whatever project she might have been distracting herself with.
Calmly the immortal sat on the other end, pouring a cup of coffee as she stared at her. The girl entered a moment later, setting a platter of roast lamb on the table before sitting herself. She made herself comfortable before showing another sharp toothed grin at Jessi and brushing back her hair to reveal a glimpse of almond shaped ears tufted with a small bit of fur.
"Thank you Plinea. Miss Milharn I'm pleased you've chosen to join us. The painting is downstairs if you wish tooccupy yourself later, in the meantime I am willing to discuss any questions you might have, provided you will answer any of mine."
Through it all Plinea continued to busy herself with cutting portians of the lamb and distributing out the plates filled with the meal. She didn't speak once during the action, appearing to amuse herself with the process as she snuck glances at Jessi like one would fresh meat or a new plaything.
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Posted: Sun Sep 30, 2007 12:47 pm
Plinea's periodic, all too knowing glances were starting to unnerve her. She distracted herself from them by sipping her coffee and turning her attention on Cleon.
"Thank you for inviting me, Ms. Cleon. I'm glad that I won't have to work on the painting in an open place... The meal looks lovely by the way," she responded, glancing at the creature across the table from her.
"I'd be happy to answer any questions that you have and that I know the answer to."
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Posted: Sun Sep 30, 2007 8:43 pm
Plinea grabbed a large section of lamb, beginning the meal right away as Lexicon spoke.
"Thank you. I am afraid I do not cook much. You have Plinea to thank for the meal."
She started off with the salad herself, taking a section of pita bread before speaking again. "Plinea says you are armed. I assure you such measures would be pointless. I have no intention to harm you ."
She poked her salad, eyes drawing up to meet Jessi's "There are no questions I have for you that I do not already know or don't find necessary. Where should I begin?"
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Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 7:15 pm
"Oh uh... It looks lovely, Miss Plinea..." Jessi poked at her salad for a moment, trying to think of what she wanted to ask of Cleon. She had alot of questions, but it alway came down to asking the right question with her kind.
At the mention of her weapon ahe blinked, and fished the little switch blade out of her pocket and laid it out on the table. "I meant no offense, I just travel prepared.... I guess I'd like to know just what you both are to start with, if that's ok."
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Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 9:34 pm
Plinea grinned, once again showing a row of sharpened teeth. She stood op with her plate, sneaing one last glance at Jessi before slipping back into the kitchen. Lexicon leaned forward, glancing briefly at the dagger. "None taken. I understand the need to be cautious. I do not think it is appropriate to discuss Plinea's...heritage. To be honest she has never so much as given me a sraight answer though she has hinted anywhere from lycan to sidhe. It is of little importance....though she seems to have taken an interest in you. I would consider this a mixed blessing."
Lexicon took a long look at Jessi before picking out a knife from the table and holding her hand out for Jessi to see. From there she made a quick incision across the palm, continuing to keep it steady so the girl could see the wound repair itself only a few seconds after the damage. "The appropriate term would be immortal. Specifically I am human, only I heal far better then what is considered normal and I don't age."
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Posted: Fri Oct 12, 2007 7:01 pm
Candles flickered, light seemed to thin as Derial approached the podium, his eyes swayed from face to face, letting them think it was them that he was looking at. Just as he neared the back of the room someone caught his eye, GotMaschine, he wasn't sure if the man would ever show to his sermon, but he did, and that made his anticipation for the night to grow ever stronger. Derial could only hope that he could prove Got proud.
Beginning of service was rather routine, he knew he could not dive into the matter too soon, or some might feel out of place and loose interest. With this in mind he lulled many by talking about subjects that were familiar to them, and slowly started to close off the end of his sermon reflecting on it all. "When you want something, and you thrive for it through the thick and thin, especially the thin, and in the end you finally get it, you appreciate it so much more. Is it because it is increased in value? Yes and no. No because it is exactly what you were aiming for, but yes, because you had to work for it. I believe that God's way of giving us strength is it not? When we want peace in this world, when we want to be better, we get socked and overloaded with burden of sin and other horrible things, some things that we have no control over and it is thrust up on his." He paused for a moment reflecting on how he became a vampire in the first place, it was placed upon him not by choice and yet he had to make do with it.
"Most give up and become corrupt by the things that casted up on us, but those who thrive to be more than just that, and make through it all, they are rewarded the most, they are the ones who reach true enlightenment of man. The ones cursed by the heavens but never give up, they are the ones who reap the true rewards."
A few of the stewards came up the alter, they knew Derial sermon well and knew all too well what was going to happen next, so they stood before the cups and awaited his command.
"So I ask of you all, do you think not that God would bless those who strength is strong even when facing death, those who have faith, they are the ones who are rewarded. So please, take your cups and join me in a drink, test your strength, prove that you truly believe, and receive the glory!"
A lot of smiling faces shimmered through the crowd, most of which were vampire brethren they have gone through this ritual just as well before, and grew to like Derial's sermons. In fact those that were brought here were primarily either friends or family to the vampires. It was a great way to spread the word, and get people to come. In fact many continued to come because their friends would talk to them about it afterwards. Tonight many of those who attended here would take the leap of fate and drink from the cup of life and death, death of their mortal self, life of their eternal vampire. Only those that were already informed about vampires and accepted would receive the silver cups of vampire blood and cyanide. Those that were nonbelievers, he placed red and white wine mixed together in it, making them feel a stomachache, this was the metaphoric burden the struggle they had to go through, if they did not puke it up, there was another thing inside the drink, a drug, it was a stimulant and mixed with alcohol would awaken their strength and speed. They would see what it was like to be enlightened, and soon one day they will have the choice to become vampire or stay human.
Rest of the stewards passed out gold cups, giving it to the vampires, even GotMaschine, it was filled with human blood, it was enough to parch one's lips, but not enough to quench the thirst, making the stomach crave it even more. It was his way of making even the vampires have to face a certain difficulty. His gold cup raised, "May we all face difficulty, so we can become for it."
With that, he gobbled down the blood appeasing his throat.
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Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2007 8:11 pm
Jessi glanced in the direction Plinea had scampered off, feeling uncomfortable even before the curator had said the words 'mixed blessing.' She diverted her attention back to the woman though and watched with great curiosity as the woman injured herself. The painting in the museum suddenly made sense. The curator wasn't a Grigori with a penchant for modeling, and she wasn't a mage (or if she was, she had yet to confirm it). The woman was just suffering from one of the numerous 'curses' that existed in the world.
"I understand. I've never met any of your kind, but I've heard Louis talk about you."
She strightened in her chair and glanced around at the assortment of items. "So, do you traffic in items like Thomas, or was he just an unusual find?"
**********
Got wasn't sure whether to be pleased or aprehensive. The man had made quite the home for himself, in a place where death seemed rather mundane. Derial was garnering support for an intiative that was dear his own heart, but his seemingly wanton conversion of the living was risky. He had never bothered to delve into how the man seperated his flock- the weak and unneccessary from the true believers. He just understood that not everyone standing in the room at the moment was going to get converted.
Perhaps it was a reflection of his age, but disquiet siezed upon him when the cups were handed out. Newborn kin could be violent when they rose, and often would slaughter the nearest living things with impunity. No one was being restrained. The living weren't being seperated from the soon to be dead. He wondered if he was about to see a bloodbath. The elder accepted his glass, but did not drink of it. He was too busy watching the crowd to do so. There was only a slim chance he would have taken a drink otherwise, because thoughts on the volume of humans being fed off of would have distracted him.
He had no idea how Derial was concealing his operations from hunters. The whole task seemed impossible, but yet here he stood in the man's church. Everyone seemed thrilled. Everyone seemed oblivious to the over whelming danger they could be in.
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Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2007 10:08 pm
She'd never heard of a Louis, but considering how Jessi spoke of him she considered the man a mage, there were more of them then people would think.
"Not me specificaly I'd assume."
She took an apple from the bowl, studying it carefully before returning it. "I found Thomas at an estate auction, I don't normally make it a habbit to collect enchantments but when you live as long as I have one tends to take pity on the cursed. Incidently the man in question did not die of natural causes, I did purchase one other item from the estate you may like to take a look at. It is also in the basement."
********************
Kagen took his time to approach Burke, once he finally did He ordered a drink before making conversation. "You're covered in blood."
Burke scowled. "It got a little messy."
"I'll bet." He grinned, withdrawing an envelope from his jacket and laying it on the table. "I took one down on the way over myself, the number appears to increase faster then taking them down. Even with the older ones running the show it's becoming more difficult to keep these incidents silent. Won't be long before you have every hunter withen 200 kilometers circling in."
"Yeah, and that'll be just great, cluster of idiots running around with their heads half cocked."
"Like us?"
"
"Not in. However I did do some checking, apparently someone does not cover their tracks well."
Burke sighed opening the envelope to remove the folded papers inside, various reports, maps, simplified courtosy of his friend. "Someones an idiot."
"Indeed, but the rise in incidents do appear to coincide with the arrival of the church. Apparently this is not a first time incident either."
Burke studied one of the reports, rubbing his head in irritation. "200 years?"
"At least that, mostly minor. It appears someone has stepped up their actions."
Burke grumbled. "A damn church....When do you wanna move in."
Kagen drew the papers back towards him. "I would wait on it. The number of...occurances our little instigator may have protection. I would advise contacting some of the older...gentlemen before moving in."
"I hate vampires...Have you been inside yet?"
"No, that would be tantamount to suicide. The church of Ascension is by word of mouth."
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Posted: Thu Oct 18, 2007 7:52 pm
A wet slurping sound emitted from Derial's mouth as he moved his tongue across his lips, not a drop of blood would be spared tonight. Not when he had achieved a part of his dream. There before him were all the humans who sipped from the silver cup, their bodies withered quickly as death knocked on their door. Soon they would be filled the blood of the vampire, quickly overcome by its power and filled with true life.
However, he knew all too well that once a human gained a desire for blood, some could be driven mad at such a thing, ah even he, a man of such restraint, gives into it every so often. So he was prepared for those who were changing. He would not let these wolves endanger his flock. No, he would make them wolf in sheep skin, and as always he did it in such a way it seemed that the wolves were unaware they were no longer sheep.
Thump, thump...thump. Death rung, and there before him, every man and woman who tipped cup, came crashing down across their pew. Death had killed them, and though the vampire blood should of kept them on their feet, the sedatives he placed within their cups were enough to bring down any creature, and quickly all came to a rest. When they woke from their sleep, the other vampires would have enough cup of blood to feel their weary stomachs.
It appeared however the falling of the bodies that came on so suddenly started to cause a panic among the crowd. Those who knew not what was going on, those newcomers, perhaps feared feared the worse...did he really put such deadly things within the drinks? Was he really going to kill them all? Fear broke even the strongest man. However, sanity and reasoning of a silver and golden tongue could quell the harshest storm.
"Do not friends, as I said before, have faith!" He raised his hands, and gestured for the vampires to take the wolfen sheep and move them aside. "They are not dead, no instead they may more alive then any of you could ever imagine. However, faith comes at a price, their bodies are weaken from it, but they are not dead. When they awaken, you will see their inner strength show throughout, they will be a person. One day, you too all could share the same fate as them, and you will wake up with the smile on your face." As if to show them he grew a smile of his own.
"Please leave these men and women here, they all knew what they were going to do tonight, and that they would not be going home. So rest assure that we have taken quite the provision to keep them here and protect them all. Tomorrow they will be back with you all, until then though, leave knowing they are in good hands." As he dismissed them he gave one of his last closing pieces to his sermon, "I wish you all to have a challenging day ahead of you, after all the more curse we are by life, the more we blessed."
With that said, quite the people started to part ways, leaving ample room for him to move towards Got. He wondered how the man had taken to everything, it was quite the spectacle was it not? Such a hard ruse to pull off, but it had its element of grandure that seemed to entice more and more newcomers to come enter their way in, like GotMaschine. He knew all too well that the people leaving always had questions on their mind, wondering what exactly truly was going on, the mystery was quite compelling, perhaps Got was in the same boat, if so he was more than willing to help him out.
"Hello there," he greeted Gotmaschine a few feet away, "I am sure you have many questions, and I would love to answer them all," he quieten his voice to a small whisper to keep it from listening ears, "however we should quick, the less people here, the more we are in danger."
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