Wow, that's really rough. No need to apologize for the delay, fixing things like this obviously has to take priority. Take your time, we'll still be here.
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Daniel nods. "Right. What part do we play in this?"
Though initially wary to bring attention to himself, Daniel decides he won't be able to escape the attention of the conspirators here. He speaks up. "Even though I'm not one of your progeny, I was locked in that dungeon just like the others. I wasn't going to stay there waiting for them to put a stake in my heart and leave me for the sunrise. I don't know anyone else here, and I don't have anywhere else to go. As they said, we have few other options."
As shadow begins to engulf the room, Daniel finds himself squinting to try to see anything around him. Use the blood, use the blood. He focuses the power in his blood, using it to peer into the darkness.
Checking in, still here.
"Well, your sires anyway. Mine isn't one of these guys," Daniel points out as he absently scratches the side of his neck, trying his best to control the apprehension building in him. "Hopefully they don't just tie me down and leave me out for sunrise."
Daniel scratches his head. "I mean, I can give it a shot," he says after a pause. "But if Rodrigo actually has experience, he's probably the smart choice."
Been a hectic holiday season, plus for some reason my phone wasn't showing there were new posts. I'm still here though.
Daniel does his best to keep his apprehension from showing as he steps forward. He hates the thought of someone toying with his mind like that, let alone someone like Hardestadt, but there seems to be little other choice. This job had to be done, no matter what.
Daniel speaks up, having just thought of something. "What memories are going to be implanted in Rodrigo? Even if they can't beat your skill, they might find out if things we say are different from whatever they find in his head."
I think Jessica did. Lol figures.
Daniel joins the other two near the mirror in the hall. "Well that's weird as hell. Still, at least you guys have the right number of body parts," he comments dryly. He rolls his eyes at his own predicament, noting that his third eye feels like moves slightly under its lid in concert with his other two. "We'll figure this all out later. Let's get going. Don't wanna keep them waiting."
Daniel cocks an eyebrow. "Yeah," he adds after Justin. "Do you not know what you look like?"
Hearing voices in the other room, Daniel focuses his hearing to pick up what they're saying.
Daniel rises and quickly drinks his fill of blood. Even as he gorges himself, the thought that what he is doing isn't normal sits in the back of his mind. He shakes it off and quickly departs for the Great Hall. When he arrives, he steals a sidelong glance at a Kindred he does not recognize. Curious and more than a little suspicious, Daniel goes to stand near the newcomer. He decides to try Italian first. "I don't believe we've met. Are you one of the Founders'... subordinates?"
"Makes sense. I'll just have to watch my back. Not too different from before, just a little more... deadly, I guess." Daniel scratches the side of his head, looking pensive. "Thank you for answering my questions. And for not leaving me to be someone's feast. I hope we'll meet again." He awaits whatever response Teriel may have, then nods respectfully and departs.
"I'll try to keep that in mind. I'll be damned if I let myself die a second time from being naive. You mentioned that there are only seven healers left, but how many Salubri are there that are like us? Are they just as liable to stab me in the back as anyone else?"
Daniel frowns at this. "Then our very existence is a problem for the Tremere. I can't imagine they'll just let us be forever. Are we prepared for that kind of betrayal?"
"As am I. There's a lot here that's... odd. Odd even for this situation." Daniel moves near his sire. He remains standing, however, unsure of the protocol of interacting with, well, elder vampires. I knew I should've just stayed home that night. "Sir, I..." He falters briefly. "When our situation was explained to us, the Camarilla, kindred, remaining hidden, all that, there was a lot that wasn't said. You don't seem to be one of the Founders -- at least, they didn't speak of you like one. Yet you also seem distinct from the Conspiracy." He points at the lump on his forehead. "I was told this is the mark of our clan, a third eye. It's part of our power, what marks us as Salubri. But so little else has been said about us. As if we're not part of this or much of anything." Daniel catches himself before he continues rambling even further. He straightens and asks, "What are we?"
Apologies, August was not a good month for me. Family emergencies of varying sorts made it difficult to even check in, let alone post. Then the forums go down on us. Anyway, things have finally settled down again, so I should be good to go now.
Daniel takes his leave to move through the halls of the castle. He hopes to find Teriel specifically, if the man was even there in the first place; if not, then any of the Founders who don't seem too busy to answer questions. Regardless, to Daniel's mind, what he was about his own clan earlier said as much as what was left out, and he needed to learn more.
Talomyr & ST: In response to Camilla's words, Daniel again reaches up and brushes his hand over the lump on his forehead. It definitely hadn't disappeared since the last time he'd touched it. A third eye? How am I supposed to do anything with a third f+*@ing eye? Daniel scratches absently at the side of his head as he meets Camilla's eyes. "You'd be better off asking him, honestly. Isn't he associated with your group in some way?" His brow furrows. "If I had to guess, I'd guess he was trying to keep tabs on what those people were doing. He said he stayed apart from the slaughter because it's not something he would enjoy. I suppose he could have been one of them, but that's not the impression I got..." Daniel trails off as he thinks. "That, and maybe he was looking for new recruits. New Salubri."
Talomyr & ST: What was Teriel doing there in the first place? Was he just trying to recruit for his personal war? Daniel blinks. Wait, that's not me asking that question. That's not my thought. Who's doing this? Daniel shakes his head, trying to clear away the thoughts cluttering his head. "Salubri? Is that what you call his kind of vampire? My kind?" He shrugs. "I'm not sure what to tell you. We were brought to the estate ostensibly as part of a group doing work there of some kind. The dinner was that night. All those weird people asked us all sorts of weird questions. I was taken outside, and I wasn't there for their turning or anything else. Like I said, they probably wouldn't have turned me into one of them even in case of an emergency. I was food."
Talomyr & ST: Daniel hesitates to answer as he gathers his thoughts and tries to get a read on the woman questioning him. She seems kind enough to him, so perhaps he can still get out of this unscathed. "See, I --" Then comes the interruption, the screaming, the darkening of Camilla's countenance. Daniel reacts defensively. He leans forward, shouting defiantly back at her. "You'd better start tearing then, lady, because I don't know a damn thing!" S*$$, that was probably not the right thing to say. Don't antagonize crazy people, you know that! He moves quickly to do damage control. "I don't even know who the Conspirators are, and I didn't even know there were Conspirators or a Conspiracy in the first place. Do you mean all those people in the banquet hall?" As he focuses intently on Camilla, Daniel can feel the nodule on his forehead twitch ever so slightly. He reaches up to feel it, but finds it unchanged. He continues bitterly. "If so, then I don't know anything. None of them 'chose' me. They were going to eat me. Whatever they had planned, they didn't deem me worthy of inclusion."
I think I'll have some time later tonight, so I'll begin the questioning of Jessica then. Also, I had a question about Daniel's third eye. My understanding is that initially a bump forms on the forehead, and it "cracks open" upon learning Valeren 2. It then opens intermittently, like during periods of agitation, and also whenever Auspex or Valeren is used. Apparently when it's closed, it looks like a scar or something on top of the little bump, but the bump can be retracted and hidden for a scene with a roll. Of course, that little blurb also says the eye takes centuries to develop into an actual eye, and that for a long time it's just an open wound that bleeds when it opens and seals behind a scar. Anyway, my initial thought was that it was a bump that would open as a fully-formed eye for the first time either when Daniel first used a Discipline, or perhaps for some sort of vision due to Sight Beyond Sight (at ST discretion). What would you prefer?
"Last is fine. Should be, anyway." Daniel shrugs. "Teriel told me he was watching through Lothar. He was impressed by something I said and pulled me outside to spare me from being slaughtered. None of them chose me, apparently. Plenty of other things, too." A quizzical look crosses his face. "Do none of you remember the bite? It was pretty vivid when it happened to me."
Daniel's jaw clenches as he fights back a strange, primal fear of the fire brandished by this floating woman. He overcomes it quickly, standing steady. He stays quiet as Jessica tries to negotiate. His muscles tense and his hand drifts toward his pocket. Cure disease? Harness lightning? I hope you know how to do that, because I sure as hell don't.
"No one chose me? What's wrong with me?" Daniel shrugs. "You'll have to tell me about our 'clan' when there's time, and how that's different from any other clan," he says. "So what's our next move? Do we need to get away from here?"
"You offered a chance at survival, but here I am, dead all the same. Would I have simply been destroyed if I stayed in there?" Daniel gets to his feet, dusting off his clothes. "If so, then I owe you thanks for my, well, unlife. What do you mean I'll be viewed differently? What makes me different?"
Looking at it further, using those abilities also requires Daniel to be on one of three other Roads, not Humanity. That'd be a very long and involved RP process, so I think for now I'll leave it as is. Perhaps it can be revisited down the line.
Daniel wakes again with a start, bolting upright to a sitting position. A flood of different thoughts and emotions come rushing into him almost simultaneously. The confusion and horror at what sounded like a slaughter. The memory of his own life slipping away. The sheer, unadulterated ecstasy of feeding on blood. The shock that he was even awake again. But beneath it all, he can feel something that is at once both very familiar and utterly alien: hunger. He scrambles back a couple feet, looking up at Teriel. Fighting to control the fear and shock in his voice, he asks a question he already knows the answer to. "W-What did you do to me?!"
All right, here's Daniel's post-Embrace changes. Changes:
+1 Wits +1 Strength Disciplines: Auspex 1, Fortitude 2, Valeren 1 Freebies:
I am interested in the Salubri merits mentioned in the V20 Dark Ages Companion (Tracker's Mark and Blooded by the Code), but I think those require a Blooding ritual first. Is that something that could be done and/or purchased with XP later on? I'd be willing to change some of these freebies around/add some flaws/etc. if you want me to invest points in them now, too. Or if not, no worries.
ST: Daniel looks over his shoulder at the building, eyes wide, his voice catching in his throat for a moment. There was going to be a slaughter tonight? If so, there were far too many people in there for him to do much to save many others, especially if some of them were the powerful beings Teriel spoke of.
"A warrior, huh? I can defend myself well enough, but I've never, you know, used a sword or anything. Is that what you're offering? Swordsmanship training?" He sighs, shaking his head. "To be honest, sir, I'm not sure I totally believe what you're telling me, or if I even want to," he says, looking again at the three-eyed man. "I would assume this was all drunken rambling if not for... well, that eye. Even that could be fake, for all I know. Maybe I'll just look like an idiot at the end of all this. But if what you're saying is true, then I refuse to simply go off to my death. No way in hell," He smiles, a defiant look shining in his eyes. He extends a hand. "All right. So tell me, what is the nature of what you're offering? Who is Saulot? And if you're not like us mortals, then what are you?"
ST: [i[There's no way this can be real. This guy must be drunk, right? But that eye looks pretty real. Guess I'll play along for now.[/i]
"Survive, certainly, but just survive? I'd hope to aspire to more than simple survival." Something suddenly occurs to Daniel. "Is that what this is? What all those questions were? Finding people to help those being carve the world in their image?" he asks, gesturing vaguely back toward the building. "If so, what kind of strength are you offering? And why aren't you in there with the rest of them?"
ST: Daniel moves to greet the man in the garden, but freezes when he sees man's third eye. He rubs his eyes, expecting what must be an illusion to vanish. It doesn't. I didn't drink that much. What have I gotten myself into... After Teriel speaks, Daniel forces himself to look at the two regular eyes rather than the third. "I'm Daniel Sutton, son of... well, you wouldn't know him." He looks away, scratching his neck nervously. "The way you talk about it, I can't avoid this fight, can I? If not, I'd rather have strength than be without it." He extends his own hand tentatively toward Teriel's, but hesitates before actually making contact. "What kind of battle? Are you sure I'm the kind of, well, warrior you need?"
ST: Daniel looks around the room, seeing if anyone else seemed to care where he was or what he was doing. So much for that Sutton charm. He shrugs and turns back to Lothar. "Sure, why not? Lead the way."
Answers:
Daniel raises an eyebrow. "Not as a matter of course, no. Those who have earned that kind of treatment, maybe, but not in general." He scratches the side of his head as he speaks."Uhh, no, I don't think so. I see no reason to do so, and nothing but bad things would happen if I did."
Daniel shrugs. "In my own way. I'm not much of an actual hunter, but I'm good at finding things that are hidden. Especially when they don't want to be found. If you mean hunting animals, then I don't know. I've never done it." He laughs. "Howling at the moon? I'd say it might be fun to do with quite a few drinks in me, though I'd hope that's not all we do." He flashes what he thinks is a charming smile. Nailed it.
Daniel chuckles. "I'm part of everyone, aren't I? Or maybe I'm different," he suggests playfully. "Anyway, I'd say I am what I am, and I'm true to myself in my own way. Whether I let others see all that, well, that's the question isn't it?" He winks. "As for villainy, it's causing pain, committing crime, that sort of thing. Unavoidable in our world, for better or for worse. Even necessary, perhaps?" He chuckles again. Social chuckling is very important to mingling, after all.
Daniel blinks. More philosophy... "Simple vanity, I suppose. Or a desire to hide any potential weakness that others can exploit. Beauty isn't without its perks and uses, though. It's all fleeting because time comes for us all. No way around that."
"Of the two? Commitment, along with some degree of talent and inspiration. If pain is your inspiration, then maybe that can be just as important in its own way as commitment? I couldn't say, I'm not much of an artist." He's a bit taken aback by this random man's command to amuse or entertain him. "I'm good at finding things, finding people, gathering information, among other things. But whether you find that to be sufficiently of interest, friend, isn't really my problem. I'm not here to entertain you." With that he turns and walks elsewhere.
"Uhh, no? I'm right-handed, if that's what you mean." He waves his right hand for emphasis. "Walk the black road? Are you coming on to me or something? I'm flattered, but no thank you."
"Leaders deserve some measure of respect, but the best? Only if they've earned it. All else being equal, I'd prefer the guy on the throne himself to be competent and leading how he's supposed to." "Uhh, no thanks." Daniel takes a step away from Jadviga. He'd been paid to accost people before, but this woman's demeanor unsettled him. He knew better than to become too involved with certain kinds of people unless he needed to.
"They both go hand in hand often enough. But I'd say it's better to be feared. To be despised but not feared is to make yourself a target." Daniel rubs his chin pensively. "The Greek philosopher, right? The one after Socrates and Plato? I know the name and vaguely what he talks about, but I'm afraid I haven't really read much of his work." "I think so, technically. I like to conceptualize it as being its own thing, though. It's a little more interesting that way, I think."
"Carefully, with a skeptical mind. Beyond that, it depends on what exactly your goal is. As for your, uh, 'friend' in the cellar? Feed him false information and send him back, perhaps? At least it's more interesting than being a sadist.
[b]Have you made peace with death? Will you play a game of death with me? "I've accepted I'll die some day, but until then I'm going to win as many small victories over death as I can. And one way to do that is to avoid playing certain kinds of games unless absolutely necessary. So, that said, I'll have to respectfully decline your game of death."
Daniel shrugs at Amisa's question. "It can get tedious, but it serves its purpose. And this evening's conversation has not been all that trivial, really." He listens to her second question. "See? Like that. Odd philosophical questions. Hardly trivial. Anyway, that's an interesting question. A life without any sort of love in it might hardly be called living, but love can't grow or be maintained without survival. So I'd say survival."
"Our own wills, I'd say. Life is important, but life as a slave is hardly fulfilling." "In the mundane sense, absolutely. If you mean abstract and metaphorically and all that, I guess we only really own what we can keep for ourselves."
Just as things in my life seem to settle down, they get really distracting and hectic. Should all be better now, though. I'm gonna just jump in and answer the questions. And to clarify, would I be able to use 3 XP to give myself Italian as a third language?
Oh man, my notifications weren't showing there were new posts here for some reason. I'll jump back in as soon as I can.
Daniel is snapped out of his reverie by the sound of cooking implements and the smell of food. He lightly slaps his cheeks as he regains his composure. Enough standing around trying to figure this all out. We'll just have to go with it for now. He takes his meal off to one side and begins to dig in. He finds it surprisingly tasty. A little unusual in how it tastes so much more natural than his usual fare, but delicious all the same. His eyes go back to looking around the camp, picking out the different groups and individuals and mulling over what information he might be able to get from them. "So then," he mutters between bites. "Which of you do I talk to first?
Apologies, I've been a little preoccupied with some stuff going on in my life lately and haven't been able to post much. It's mostly sorted out now though so I think I'll be good to get back to posting.
"I'm Daniel. Daniel Sutton," he introduces himself. "I'm a private investigator by trade. I do speak Spanish well enough, but I'm not sure how useful certain specific tricks of the trade will be here." He pauses to scratch his ear before he goes on. "I, uh, also did some other work on the side. Off the books, not always strictly legal. Some of those skills might come in handy."
Deciding he has nothing to lose, Daniel speaks. "You don't suppose that guy sent us back in time or something, do you? I mean, given all..." He gestures vaguely around him. "Well, all this. Looks like a damn Renaissance fair."
Daniel's eyebrow raises almost involuntarily. "We're in northern Italy? Seriously? What, they use horse-drawn wagons in Italy?" He again looks around, trying to make some sense of what he's seeing. "Let's see," he begins, puzzling things together. "Assuming they're not f#!%ing with us, we're outside of Venice, but traveling in an old-fashioned wagon caravan, like Old West pioneers or something." He pats his sides. "My gun seems to be gone, and our clothes are, well, different. And there are a bunch of monks over there speaking Latin. That was Latin, right? Sounded like Latin," continues, directing his last question to Justin. Daniel suddenly remembers something the familiar man outside the bar said, and a thought pops in his head that shakes him to his core. He looks at the others. His eyes betray a growing sense of dread. "Do you remember that guy who talked to us? I think he said things would be the same, but also different. He said 'time does that.' You don't think... I mean, we couldn't have..." he trails off, unwilling to actually voice what he's thinking.
"Maybe? I don't know," Daniel replies, scratching the side of his head as he thinks. "I recognized him from somewhere, but for the life of my I can't remember where I would have met him. It was just my gut telling me I knew him." He sighs loudly, giving up on it for now. "Damn it. No idea where he went, either."
Daniel was surprised and confused by the sudden appearance of sword-wielding men inside the bar, but this latest turn of events was downright baffling. He takes stock of his surroundings, trying to make some sense of what he's seeing. A starry sky. A campfire in the middle of a campsite of some sort. There are horses nearby. The bar itself has vanished, as if it never existed. His clothes are different. He closes his eyes, thinking as hard as he can in an attempt to piece it all together... No such luck. None of this makes any sense. What the f+!#. He barely registers others speaking. His eyes open and he looks around for the source of the voices. "Everything was slowed down, and we went out the back door. Then there was that guy, then..." he trails off, shaking his head. Daniel grabs a bit of skin on one arm between two fingers and lightly twists it. It hurts. "Nope, probably not a bad dream. Where the hell are we, anyway?"
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