Chapter 3: House of Thorns

[Karalexia]

Meila grinned in morbid satisfaction as the slimy form squirmed and writhed, falling apart before her, bleeding and shedding gory chunks as she continued to stab it, until it was rendered a bloody smear upon the table. She lowered her hand, still grasping the cone tightly as she breath heavily, as if the action caused her body to exert itself to the extreme and yet, there was something amiss; it didn't feel as though she were truly there in the room, at least not in corporal a form. Meila had difficulty understanding exactly why this was, as for all intents and purposes, it felt real enough to her and her twisted mind, yet, she was able to recognise inconsistencies with how her body was reacting and it was starting to trouble her.

The lights flicker and shine upon the waitress, startling Meila as she spoke, prompting the young girl to lob the waffle cone across the room at the enigmatic figure; she breathed heavily and sneered as she listened to the words spoken. Cautiously, Meila approached the waitress and the slip of paper in front of her, wondering what it was that the woman wanted. Coming to a stop in front of the waitress and the pen and paper, Meila gripped at her head, as her headache intensified; the shadows that spiralled the room slipped down onto the floor and stretched out along its entirety, carpeting it in inky blackness, making it appear as though Meila now stood within a black void of emptiness, except for herself, the waitress, the counter and the stationary.


Meila picked up the pen and looked at it for a moment and then pressed its tip to the paper, starting to write; এটা আপনি চান কি? আমি এখানে কেন? যেখানে এখানে? তুমি কে? এই অধিকার মনে হয় না. আমি কি লিখছি?


Meila looked up at the waitress expectantly and then glance back down at the paper as her words shifted and changed form; What is it you want? Why am I here? Where is here? Who are you? This does not feel right. What am I writing? 

Meila frowned and took a step back from the counter, eyes affixed on the paper as if lost in thought, but her mind was blank; the only thing her mind could interpret at that moment, was the headache that pounded violently, causing her to growl in anguish.

 

[NovaPheonix]

The woman at first only responded with a confused expression. She glanced down at the writing thoughtfully. "You...sign a check...with your name." She spoke carefully at the girl. She sounded somewhat embarrassed about having to explain it, and the moment was very awkward. Then again, this entire situation was awkward. Meila was surrounded by darkness, the only beacon she had was the spotlight and the woman who was nudging the paper in her direction with her slender manicured hands. The woman's face was without imperfections and she almost glowed slightly underneath the light, She resembled the depictions of angels, minus a set of wings. Servants of a higher power. Was this the work of a god? Was this strange light that beamed down on the two of them a divine light? Nothing could be known exactly. At least, until Meila made her choice.


(Week 3 end)

 

[Karalexia]

Meila glanced around at her dark surroundings and then back at the seemingly confused woman; she tilted her head slightly to the left as she was told that she needed to put her name on a check. Meila glanced back at the slip of paper and then back at the woman that seemed perfectly illuminated by the light above; she didn't pay it too much mind however as she pressed the pen to paper again and started to scrawl upon its surface; মেইলা. After a few seconds, the words reformed and spelt 'Meila' and she looked back up at the woman in slight irritation as she asked, "Now what? what are we here for?"

 

[Umbrie]

Selene Approached Johnny, recognizing him from earlier. well, she recognized his importance to Caeda and well, she remembered him from her limited interaction. she generally rarely forgot faces. especially when they left a significant impression. "i need a ride as well." she greeted, remembering his name from when they met at wonderland. "seeing the craziness i went through. i need somebody who is only thigh deep in the rabbit hole rather than fully immersed." she greeted, assured she could trust him based on their limited experiences. she was quite capable of observation and had an eye for the dishonest. so a seemingly honest person would be something nice to see for once. "either way, i need you to help me climb my way out of this rabbit hole. will you help me?" either way, she wanted to return to Lyre and especially return to Wonderland, because she needed to hide from the real wonderland for a bit. either way, when the trip to Lyre would start, she would rant about everything princess forced her to do, just to get it off her chest. assuming she was allowed inside the passenger's side of the vehicle first. to most, the tangents would sound like the ramblings of a drunken sailor. random and pointless.

 

[Xistund]

Anthony sighed a bit, god it was David, now he had to wait to get any word in edgewise. God you'd think some mages would not waste their words but of course, the head of the guardians of the veil would be the one to talk his ears off and want to know his business. Wait what was that about that pirate dude escaped, good on him he seemed like an awesome guy for a no good blood sucker, though maybe it was just his own love for old things speaking but he wished the old sailor luck. Oh wait there was a pause. "David, I know things are busy now at Black Bay right now but I need to speak to a fate mage about something. I can't get out of Lyre right now, I'm having some of my own issues here. But if Rammy is there or if you can give him a message I'd like to hear back as soon as possible."  











Johnny looked as the assistant to the queen entered, with the young elf like girl. It was strange now seeing her for what she really was, he seen her many times at the wonderland casino. He turned back to this Thorn lady as he was told off, the lady seemed to not be able to take a joke wait she knew why he was not affected by his time in the other world?


Before he could ask anything the assistant interrupted, he forced a smile as he was told his new orders by his new boss. He wondered if he had some kind of femdom kink he always seemed to be the bitch boy to high-powered females. Wait what was that last part about the pledge having its way with him. "Alright sounds like an easy first job.... What exactly do you mean about the pledge?"


Oh, good Thorn was leaving now too. It seemed like he was not going to get any answers from people, it is annoying when people don't tell you shit and act all mysterious doubly so when you work for investigative journalism. 


Selene came to him and he gave a little bit of a smile to her and hoped it would not be a too awkward, it was kinda both their faults for being in that mess. Her's for being princess's target his for jumping in the mirror after that Terrence doll and she following to help them. Johnny got up and dusted himself off. "Alright, well where do you live, my bike's just in the front. I don't have a helmet your size, so I'll be sure to be careful but you're going to have to hold on tight to me."


 

 

[NovaPheonix]

"What exactly is it that you need to discuss with my driver, of all people? If there is something you need that is so urgent, I am more than qualified to handle it, Tempest." It didn't sound like he was planning to let him talk to Ramses at all. "I have more capable agents than him anyway. Voiler is a Fate apprentice, for one thing."  This would mean, to Tempest, that the warden in the asylum was actually more experienced than Ramses and was trained by David personally. "The cleanup of the asylum is mostly finished, and we even had some visitors the other day. Michael is still being strangely compliant. Anyway, allow me to patch you through to the asylum line." Another pause, and an interlude of classical music, and Tempest was now speaking to the head of the asylum. "Yes? 'Ello?" the agent of french nationality picked up the phone. 






Thorn made her way into her car, sliding inside. She rolled the window down and spoke to the man nearby her. "We both made pledges to the freehold, if we break them...it's effectively a curse, so don't try any funny business." She leaned a bit closer, edging her slender body out the window. "But, between you and me...if you get cursed, come to the public library and...you won't have to worry about a thing." Thorn chuckled a bit, turning on the ignition and letting her older model car roar to life. "C'mon, get moving...there's almost no room on this road for both of us!" She jokingly honked her horn at the motorbike.






Once her name was signed, Meila found herself sitting on a bench next to Anthony (Tempest) who was talking on the phone to people she didn't know. To Tempest, it would seem as if she never went anywhere. Now, the girl viewed the world through awakened eyes. Her power was no longer dependent on her masters, and not a simple leveraging of energy from some dark deity. The power was now all her own. She was granted her awakening by the Obrimos watchtower, and would now be entrusted with the arcana of Forces and Prime. The very energy of the world, and magic itself. Raw, ethereal power was now in her hands. The dragon symbology would still power her magic, enforcing her raw tenacity, but it was more a tool than the crutch it once was. She was a mage now, no longer a petty witch.


(Week 4. Session 2 End)

 

[Xistund]

Tempest made a frustrated sigh ashe was patched through to someone else now. Why can't he just speak to a freaking fate mage who did not just push him off to someone else. He ran his hands over Meila's hair softly as he got to talk to the asylum head. This is all the girl needs is to think he's going to lock her up or something. "Hello, Voiler was it, this is Tempest. David just patched me in with you. I need some help with a girl who's for lack of a better word a huge magic jinx."






Johnny had a lot on his mind as he started his bike making sure that the girl was holding on tight. So he'd be held to his word. Well he should have expected that he was still working with fairyfolk. He'd wished he got the contract out in writing if there was any loophole he'd know they'd most likely exploit it and call it fair. He'd just have to try and not make too many more deals if he could help it. He took the girl to the place she told him to drop her off. That witch lady was still following him, he still needed to know her story in this epic fairy tale. 
 

 

[Karalexia]

Meila blinked and glanced about at her surroundings; just as quickly as she had found herself in town at the 'ice cream shop', she found herself back next to Tempest, sitting on a bench as though she had never left. She held her hands out in front of herself and studied their backs and then slowly turned them and just as carefully, studied her palms; Meila then started patting up her left arm with her right hand and then repeated the procedure the opposites, feeling herself as if she doubted that she were actually there. Meila sighed and sat her hands in her lap and closed her eyes for a moment, taking in a deep breath, smelling and tasting the air; from what she could ascertain, she was back in the 'real world', or at the very least, her version of it. Still, she couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss, that something was different; though it did not trouble her in the least and she couldn't help but wonder why.

She winced slightly as Tempest ran a hand over her hair, not expecting the contact, drawing her out of her deep state of thought. She glanced at him curiously, wondering what it was he was speaking about and then recalled that Kat had asked his assistance. Meila didn't know that Tempest was worried about her thoughts on the asylum which he was trying to contact; it didn't matter too much to her anyway as she didn't have any idea of what an asylum was or was used for. She sighed again and closed her eyes, returning back to her thoughts, though not as deeply as she was now listening to the man's voice next to her. 

 

[Morgy]

What had it been? Almost seven years now that she thought about it, seven years since the girl’s unholy rebirth yet the more she thought about it the harder she found it to be true.  Time itself didn’t seem to matter much now that the idea of slowly dying was a simple figure of the past, she was now able to live without the worry of wasting time. After she had joined the pack the chains binding her to a normal life seemed to crumble into nothing more than dust. If she wanted to spend days or weeks traversing a forest she could, under her sire’s watchful eye of course. In fact, that’s what the young vampire had planned for this evening.
 


Ever since the day she had saved the life of her sire from hunters she had been taken under the woman’s wing being taught how to live and act like one of the damned. The only problem it posed was the pack was more feral than most vampires, in the sense that they weren’t used to interacting well with society. This proved to be problematic at certain times but it was nothing they couldn’t overcome. For now, Cilthia was heading toward the nearby forest to begin hunting with her sire. The thought excited her, she always enjoyed the times where she could be alone with the one that had been the reason for her rebirth. Though usually having a rather cold nature around most of the pack and to outsiders Cilthia took on a rather unique softness around her sire.
 


After about an hour of walking through the town Cilthia had arrived just outside of the local forest. Her disheveled attire billowed in the brisk autumn breeze as she waited for her sire to show up. As the pack was essentially a group of nomads they looked like everyday hobo’s, old and torn clothing being a common theme in their attire. That in itself was its own advantage, what sort of mundane would want to speak with the wandering homeless? In the past though Cilthia had gotten unwanted attention due to her looks, a double edged blade that had given her a fair amount of good fortune as well as bad luck.

Spoiler

Cilthia Darkwill

Spoiler

Clothing

 

[NovaPheonix]

"Well, honestly...around here the normal order is that lock away and study anyone who causes problems. I'm sure the master wouldn't let me do much more than that." Tempest managed to make out through his accent. It sounded like there was talking in the background too, a woman and another rather rough sounding Frenchmen. Another man sounded like he was screaming quite loudly behind them. "Oh, don't mind them. Just a normal visit."






Wonderland Casino


"We need to go, like right now...I can sense something in there. That whole place stinks of Fae....god...it's like she's graffiti'd the whole place!" Thorn had followed Johnny further than the Queen would've liked, but she was a free spirit who could not be bound by even her magic. "It's so..." She covered her eyes, but the terrified expression of Thorn's quivering face allowed Johnny to imagine it. Princess's foul aura corrupting the air, swirling with colors like a horrid abstract painting. No meaning, no sense to it visible to any rational mind. It looked almost like an oil painting spilled along the street, and Thorn looked so frustrated that she backed out of the parking lot. "Come with me to my library." She waved her hand after giving him directions, voiding his contract for a short period of time with a simple expression of her will. She was strong enough to not only do this but contain the surrounding Paradox. "I'd like to talk to you a bit more in private unless you'd rather me re-enable your curse and leave you to suffer?"






Winter came, walking towards her childe with a hearty smile. "Maybe it all the way out here safe, Snow? That's good."  The white-haired woman with long eyelashes and fierce snowy eyes covered by dark eyeliner guided her charge through the woods. "We're at a boundary. Between the weird folk...the native people...the foolish humans who seek us out, and of course...our only worthy prey." The forest was home to many types of powerful threats. "Stick close." She started to sniff. She swiftly started moving up the mountain path and smashing away branches with her hands, crushing snow underfoot. "and keep up." 


The morning snow was light, and while it provided more mobility it did nothing to aid the hunters in terms of visibility. If they found themselves lost, they could end up in the jaws of a dragon, so the locals say. The only thing worse in these parts than a dragon was the Princess. Though the kindred did not serve any Princess, they obeyed the Prince. Though, this pack skirted even that authority. They were wandering wolves. 


(Week 4, end, beats on monday)

Spoiler

 

 

[Morgy]

Cilthia would flash a rather rare warm smile as she saw her sire, something that might be seen as an abnormality from her usual smirk or shit eating grin. That smile would soon turn into one filled with a crazed lust for the hunt as Winter sped forward up the mountains path. “Yes Ma’am” Was all Cilthia said before she followed close behind her teacher, her eyes peeled for any of the threats she had mentioned earlier. Though she had come across a dragon before and had met the prince when they first arrived there were still mystery’s to be had. “What are we hunting?” It had been a week or two since Cilthia had fed so the thought of the hunt was rather appeasing, to go with her sire was an added bonus given her preference to winter of the rest of her pack. Hopefully this would go smoothly so she could move on to her next errand for the day, looking into the other vampire clans of the city. Cilthia didn’t have much experience with vampires outside of her own pack so naturally she was curious as to how others groups ran things. Perhaps a meeting with the prince was her best bet, after all she nor her pack had done anything to actually upset the ruler of this land, yet.