"The old bastard certainly likes to keep to himself, yes." Kent scowls noticeably when the Prince mentions Beckett; it seems he and his sire aren't on excellent terms. He folds his arms across his chest and lets out a low grumble. "I imagine he's got his nose stuck in a book somewhere, reading nonsense. I'd love to think he hasn't come around because of me, but he probably just can't be bothered." Kent also notices the man who wandered in, and watches him closely. He starts to say something before Dalton says it first, and instead just watches the boy to make sure he doesn't cause a scene.
Julian approaches the Prince and bows his head slightly. "My apologies. I was transfixed by the beauty of your carved mantlepiece. Such fine craftsmanship. You know how my kind has trouble letting such a magnificent piece escape our gaze. Julian, in embarrassment, seems to actually blush. Anyway, a happy new year to you Modius. I am honored to have been included on your guest list.
Julian turns his head from the prince just long enough to see the new comer. "Hmm, look what the cat dragged in.."
John grabs her wrist and has a drink of her blood as well.
Shane returns a nod to Morag.
When the Prince shakes his hand, he isn't blind to the fact that little fuss is made over it. That can be good or bad depending on how one feels about the attention of powers in a city.
The name Becket means nothing to him, he makes a note of it for later if he should ever talk to someone more informed. He backs away from the Prince to give the man room, and contemplates how soon he can leave. Not that he plans on that right away, but it's always a good idea to have an exit strategy.
He notices a few things... one, Becket reads books. Literacy, lot of that going around.
And two, that kid looks so lost Shane wonders if he should suggest Hare Krishna
This Beckett must be someone important, if the Prince is talking about him like that.
Patrick waits, listens to others and waits. He notes a newcomer, and as an opportunity presents itself, he asks the Prince "Sir, may I ask something? Have you by any chance know where my Sire, Lateland, can be? I haven't seen him for awhile."
BAPTISM OF FIRE - Thursday - December 31, 1992 –
--------------
You head over to the man brooding in the corner, his hands clasped together loosely fingertip to fingertip. He glares at the man who is surrounded by partygoers. He does not look up or rise to acknowledge your arrival.
--------------
As you offer your arm, the woman steps away and towards a new arrival to the party. He in turn hugs her as a child might a parent. The Prince once again glances in your direction as he scan the room…
--------------
Michael gives Charlotte a big smile and hugs her, ”I knew I had to come but I don’t wanna be here, Char. Will you stay with me?”
--------------
Modius shakes his head in the affirmative to the questions he receives about the newcomer, ”Indeed, Michael is a long-time resident. If any of us could be said to have a gentle soul it is he. His Sire though, was clearly a Monster…”
Modius nods to James, ”Indeed, though you are all young. There is strength in numbers and flexibility in youth. Chicago stagnates under the weight of its Elders. Soon, all of their Cainites will be Anachronistic, unable to function in a world where technology and its uses are fundamental. Whereas we, we will be on the rise and fully capable of embracing, so to speak, the changes wrought by this new technological age”.
Modius turns to Kent, ”You are better off here and at odds with him Mr. Atherton. That Kindred has made many enemies, enough for a few lifetimes, should his enemies believe you close to him it would make you a target”.
Modius smiles at Julian, ”Indeed, I have often lost evenings gazing at the fine craftsmanship that went into my Manse”.
He states that proudly making one wonder if he cannot see or simply will not admit that the once no doubt magnificent home is now a crumbling edifice, in many ways a metaphor for Modius’ Princeship and the once thriving Gary.
Modius winces at Patrick’s question, ”I regret to inform you Childe, your Sire from what I understand has met the Final Death…”
--------------
She moans with pleasure as you drink from her. The session lasts for a few minutes where she almost, almost pulls your clothes further off. She pulls back, ”My Sire will be looking for me. Wait here, I’ll head down first”.
She kisses you passionately on the mouth and turns to go.
As you offer your arm, the woman steps away and towards a new arrival to the party. He in turn hugs her as a child might a parent. The Prince once again glances in your direction as he scan the room…
Enough then. Brad drew back his arm and went to join the queue to greet the Prince.
"Don't get me wrong, I'm happy he's gone. Beckett's made enough enemies, myself included. I don't need his reputation dragging me down, and I'm sure as hell glad no one seems to think I know where to find him. I'll be happy if I never see his ugly mug again. Still, I find it odd that he hasn't... turned up. He was working on something here before we had a falling out, and I'm surprised he hasn't come back to finish it. It doesn't seem like him." Kent looks at Michael with an expression close to pity, and sighs. "Poor kid. Doesn't seem like he deserved something like this, the condition he's in."
John is sad to see her go, but the rules of etiquette are important. He begins to straighten up his clothes to look more presentable and follows her shortly after she leaves.
James addresses the prince, "Indeed, my prince. Chicago continues to gift you with all of it's newest and potentially most useful recruits. We already understand the modern world in a way many of the elders cannot. Here we have a place to thrive, to gain in skill and grow in our power." His voice takes on a thoughtful, perhaps even conspiratorial tone. "It maybe that someday Lodin regrets his decision to cede away that dynamism."
James turns to Patrick with sympathy in his voice, "Genuinely sorry to hear about your loss, Patrick. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to smooth things out for you in the days ahead."
"Oh... Thank you," Patrick falls silent after hearing that his Sire is dead, colors darken and sounds muffle.
He withdraws into himself, listening with half an year. Despite everything Lateland did, Patrick felt sadness for his death.
He's gone... So that's what I felt back then - his death. I feel sorry for him. On the other hand. I guess I'm free to do what I want now. No one to forbid me to show my paintings to others... Or attend to parties like this...
He brightens up a bit and everything he feels and see come to normal. Normal to him, anyway.
"I guess it has its merits," he mutters quietly to himself.
Rick looks at the brooding guy and asks, "Hey, what's your deal? You don't seem down to party."
Morgrym stands behind the prince attending and listening to all that is being said and waits unless the prince or another speaks directly to him.
Shane twists his head at the news of Patricks' sire, and thinks of his own sire. He hasn't seen her in some time either.
Morag tilts her head slightly when she hears another sire has gone missing. I'm lucky the price has taken me under his wing a little. I'd hate to just be on my own, but it's interesting that two sires have gone missing presumed dead.
BAPTISM OF FIRE - Thursday - December 31, 1992 –
---
Modius nods at Kent's comment, "Still, he lives here and causes no trouble so I look out for him as best I can. It seems that he and that Neonate have been able to connect".
Modius places a hand on Patrick's shoulder, "Difficult to hear whether one loved or hated their Sire. Chicago is a dangerous place, not like Gary. Kindred die there who cross others, Lodin has less control there than he claims as to its goings on. Certainly Neonates he bullies..."
Modius pauses as Bradley walks over, "Greetings".
For a split second he looks past you and smiles.
You all see a stunning looking woman coming from down the darkened hall in the direction of your gathering.
---
You come down the stairs slowly, the steps seeming as if they will collapse under your every step. You reach the end of the hall as the woman finally reaches Modius' side.
---
The man, Kindred, looks up at you, "No. No I am not, not with the Prince allowing a Chicago traitor in our midst and acting as if nothing is wrong". You follow his line of sight to the man who entertains the crowd still.
After his, erm, diversion, John re-enters the room. The air of the party seems to have changed. He watches his paramour sidle up to the man who must be the Prince. Glancing around the room:
he sees only the main group of Kindred. Clearly his mind is still stuck in the room upstairs.
John takes long strides toward the Prince trying to come up with a good explanation for being "more than fashionably" late.
"Ah, you must be Prince Modius." The large man towers over much of the assembled group. He gives an appropriate bow. "I apologize for not introducing myself sooner. I was... sidetracked. Please forgive my poor decorum. My name is John Anderson and I am honored to have your invitation and to make your acquaintance."
Tyrell continues listening to the conversations between Modius and his guests, trying to get a feel for the lay of the land. It seems like many of the locals are, at least in public, willing to support the Prince. As mention is made of disappearing Sires, the lawyer can't help but laugh a bit to himself. No worries about mine disappearing without anyone's knowledge... if Mac were to drop off the earth, the Ventrue would be trumpeting the fact to high Heaven.
Seeing as there's at least one man who has not yet presented himself to the Prince, Tyrell decides to go listen in at the Lick who is entertaining all the mortals and, thus far at least, snubbing Modius.
Modius pauses as Bradley walks over, "Greetings".For a split second he looks past you and smiles.
You all see a stunning looking woman coming from down the darkened hall in the direction of your gathering.
"Greetings, Prince Modius," Brad said, ducking his head carefully. "I'm very grateful for your invitation."
Brad resisted the urge to swing his head around all at once to see what was behind him, instead turning calmly. Someone else. Good. He moved politely out of the way for the woman.
[Rick sits next to the man and speaks quietly.
"I'm new to the situation here. Care to fill me in? I don't know what's going on between Chicago and Gary, haven't lived in either for awhile now."
Randolph politely waits his turn.
Michael gives Charlotte a big smile and hugs her, ”I knew I had to come but I don’t wanna be here, Char. Will you stay with me?”
"Of course." Charlotte replies with a warm smile, returning his hug, though it goes on for slightly longer than she's entirely comfortable with. Seeing Michael made her wonder about the people who were chosen to be vampires, how it was decided, and who felt like they had the power to do such a thing to someone. There was a time when she hated Jeremy for what he'd done, refusing to let her die. Bringing her into this second life.
She understood better now, most of the time. Jeremy had wanted to help. Well, no, Jeremy wanted to fix her. But that was the only way he knew how. She frowns, thinking that no one could be accused of wanting to help Michael. She didn't know who his Sire was, but thought she might like to kill them someday. Even if it meant their spirit stayed with her. "There's still room enough for one more." She thinks to herself. "Especially that one.".
"I don't want to be here, either." She admits to Michael. "I haven't met the Prince yet. You might say I'm avoiding it. I'm not sure why I even came." She looks around with a snort, "It's not like I see Jeremy here, either."
Shane takes it all in, listening to other people's talk as much as he can, observing facial expressions. He's not the most observant of his Clan, but here it's all hanging out as it were.
BAPTISM OF FIRE - Thursday - December 31, 1992 –
The Kindred chuckles at you, "If you were here for a cup of coffee even nothing has changed. Modius still thinks he's someone and Lodin still thinks Modius is no one, the truth lies as it does most of the time, somewhere in between.
That Kindred though, is a dangerous one. One Aleksandyr Danov..."
---
Michael steps back and looks up at you, "Modius is my friend, let's go say hi..." He taes you by the hand and begins to lead you to the large group of Kindred.
---
As you enter the man's orbit you find he has a slight Russian accent, "...what you would expect. My friends still there say this 'Everything the Communists said about Communism was a lie, but everything they said about Capitalism was true!'" The surrounding group laughs at the proverb. The "man" turns his gaze towards you. "Happy New Year friend".
---
Modius takes Bradley's hand as the woman arrives, "Delighted you could make it". "My dear", he murmurs to her.
He nods to Randolph, "Randolph, you and Bradley are both members of Clan Tremere, have you met before?"
As the very large John introduces himself Modius lights up, "Ah yes. I have been waiting for you to arrive. Not to worry, airports are a bother from what I am told by my Childe Alicia". He motions to the woman standing next to him, the one John is now most familiar with...
"Can't say as I've heard the name, though that doesn't surprise me. Is he here tonight?"
Was it the Prince's hand that was cold, or just Brad's? No time to worry about it now. He turned to see Randolph.
"I haven't had the honor. Brad Maurer," he said, offering his hand. "Hello."
"Blradley," says Randolph with an easygoing smile. He offers his hand as well. "Must be from different neighborhoods, can't say as I recall us crossing paths before."
Brad smiled back, silently considering how much he should reveal. Nothing was obvious, but rude and evasive. Too much so.
"I mostly keep to myself. Lots of reading."
"That explains it then; I run a business, so we just haven't managed to cross paths."
"That explains it then; I run a business, so we just haven't managed to cross paths."
"Always a good thing to have businessmen in the community," Brad said.
Dalton quietly watches on, awaiting the reason for Modius's gather.
Morag listens closely trying to hear who the various people introducing themselves are.
Patrick is silent, listening to others and waiting for Modius to speak why he has gathered everyone. Is it just a social event, or does he have something to say?
Kent just folds his arms across his chest, waiting to see what the Prince has to say.
Michael steps back and looks up at you, "Modius is my friend, let's go say hi..." He taes you by the hand and begins to lead you to the large group of Kindred.
Charlotte doesn't reply, but allows herself to be slightly dragged by Michael as he walks towards the group. As they get closer, she moves alongside Michael, ready to move in front of him should the need arise. The possibility of Modius actually being his friend felt quite remote - for all she knew, it was Modius who'd done this to him. She narrows her eyes slightly as they approach.
Shane waits too, I mean, what more can he say? but he takes in what he can.
BAPTISM OF FIRE - Thursday - December 31, 1992 –
He points to the man surrounded by guests and who is being approached by one of the Kindred.
-------------
Michael stops in front of Modius and bows. Modius gives a slight bow back, ”Greetings Michael, who have you brought with you?”
Michael smiles gently, ”This is Char, my friend”.
Modius turns to you Charlotte, ”Any friend of Michael’s is a friend of mine. Be welcome here. Tell me, who is your Sire my dear?”
-------------
As Tyrell processes the man speaks, ”My friends, could you leave us alone, I believe Mr. Barker has some personal business with me”.
The people begin to disperse clasping him on the shoulder, or shaking his hand, some of the women give him air kisses for he allows none to get too close to him.
Tyrell spots the familiar effects on the stranger's audience - he knows that particular Discipline well - and averts his gaze, relying on his sunglasses to hide the rudeness. He waits while the surrounding humans leave, then offers the other man a nod, still staring at his shoes. "Sounds like you've got the advantage of me. I don't think I know your name, but I have been getting the impression I might like to."
BAPTISM OF FIRE - Thursday - December 31, 1992 –
"It is a failing of my Clan that we are driven to know all we can learn. It is what has kept us alive so long when the odds are so stacked against us. Allow me to introduce myself that we come upon even ground once more, Aleksandyr Danov".
"They tell me knowledge is power," Tyrell replies evenly, "and that was once my Clan's highest tenet. It's a pleasure, Mr. Danov, and please, call me Tyrell. I couldn't help overhearing the last of your tales - have you actually heard from friends in the Sovie-, er, that is, in Russia since the coup? I've heard some pretty wild stories..."
BAPTISM OF FIRE - Thursday - December 31, 1992 –
Danov's "face" takes a dark look, "No, I have heard stories as well and I can only hope they are not true..."
BAPTISM OF FIRE - Thursday - December 31, 1992 –
Michael stops in front of Modius and bows. Modius gives a slight bow back, ”Greetings Michael, who have you brought with you?”
Michael smiles gently, ”This is Char, my friend”.
Modius turns to you Charlotte, ”Any friend of Michael’s is a friend of mine. Be welcome here. Tell me, who is your Sire my dear?”
Information! Brad didn't turn from Randolph, but he listened closely attention to Charlotte's answer.
Morag turns to listen as the woman from the hallway is being introduced. I'll finally get a name.
"I'm sure the stories are just that. For me, Russia's an object lesson in how not to run things anyway. Whatever their intentions, Moscow was never the 'new Carthage' it was promised as." Tyrell shakes his head for a moment before moving on. "I notice you don't seem to have stopped to speak with our worthy Prince."
BAPTISM OF FIRE - Thursday - December 31, 1992 –
"The failure of "New Carthage" is not what concerns me, it is what might replace it". He pauses and states nothing further.
"I introduced myself to the Prince upon first arriving tonight as he seems to like that regardless of the fact that I already introduced myself when I first arrived here in the City a month ago. If I did not know better I would think the Prince a Tzimisce. Tell me Tyrell Barker, what brings you back here from your travels to the west?"
"Ah, and why is he so dangerous? Influence?"
Michael stops in front of Modius and bows. Modius gives a slight bow back, ”Greetings Michael, who have you brought with you?”
Michael smiles gently, ”This is Char, my friend”.
Modius turns to you Charlotte, ”Any friend of Michael’s is a friend of mine. Be welcome here. Tell me, who is your Sire my dear?”
Charlotte watches the exchange between Michael and Modius with some curiosity, but stiffens slightly when Modius addresses her. "Walker." She replies simply. Feeling other eyes on her, she shifts uncomfortably and adds, "I have yet to see him here this evening, though." It seems reasonable to her that he forgot - got caught up tinkering with some kind of contraption. She doesn't say that, though, unsure of how much the prince can be trusted.
Morgrym continues to keep quiet unless addressed standing still, something he learned to do long ago.