Terrible night... (IC)
I was worried... With everything that had happened, I was so worried that I'd lost all that I had gained, all that was important to me...
But they are not lost yet.
On the night of our last gather, a friend of mine called me, inquiring about a book he had come across among a recent incoming shipment. A separate page inside the book, far older, and what appeared to be inked in blood, troubled him greatly, moving him to seek my assistance. When it seemed there would be no council meeting at the gather any time soon, I went to have a look at the text. Upon seeing it, I knew this was something I needed to take off the man's hands, so I offered to buy the book, cutting him a check and returning to my nearby haven.
The book was "Unspeakable Cults", but the page within spoke of something even more unspeakable...it told the tale of Gehenna. I touched the page, trying to gather its history, but only heard vague voices...cries of pain. Some of the blood began to flake away from the page, so I hastily retyped the text onto my computer for safe keeping. When I finished, I stared down at the flakes of blood thinking, "I could know more....if only..." Foolishly, I gave in to my dare, my thirst for answers, and consumed a few flakes of blood. Like a hammer, a wave of power overwhelmed me. The blood was extremely old, so much so that I could not trace its lineage to one clan alone. It felt like all of them and none of them. All and none! After a while, I calmed. Nothing seemed wrong save my eyes were red, as if I had been crying. I felt wonderful! I put on some shades and returned to the gather...
The blood had chosen that moment to take true effect.
Jacob approached me and then hesitated, backing away with every step I took toward him. Our visiting Regent, William Walker, seemed troubled as well. When Zeek tried to call me to a council meeting, William insisted I send my Whip. I asked Ynez to go, having yet to officially choose, but knowing that I could not yet confide in Jacob to handle the task. Jacob instead went with me and William to my haven, where we dealt with the page that I had found.
By this time, light was glowing from my eyes, and my voice was harmonized with a deep male voice, the same voice I began to hear whispering in my mind, echoing the words of what I had found. William took the book when I handed it to him, pulling out the blood page to burn it. I felt the being take over me to speak directly to William, telling him to stop. The lighter's flame engulfed the page in an instant, and my mind shattered with the cries of billions, all time spanning before my eyes, the outcome of Gehenna shown to me in its horrid glory. William dared to look, and shared the vision with Jacob. I was crying, terrified.....I wanted the vision to be false. I did not want this to happen! William tried to assure me that it would not happen, that we would work to prevent it from happening. The voice had temporarily left mine, and though my eyes glowed, it seemed dim enough to risk going back to the gather once more.
When I arrived, I saw my symptoms fall upon another....Carlotta Giovanni. I knew she must have found something similar. When she asked suddenly, "You *burned* the *page*?", I knew I had to speak with her alone. Since Don Vincenzo seemed concerned, I asked permission from him to speak to her alone and received it, taking her aside to ask her not to mention the page again. I did not ask her to be silent, but warned her what others would think if she spoke of Gehenna. As we talked, the voice that now seemed to haunt both of us returned, demanding that we tell others of what we've found. We were both forced to our knees, Carlotta calling him "Father"....calling him "Caine". Don Vincenzo broke into the room when we were unable to answer the door, challenging the voice that only Carlotta and I could hear. Vehement at the Don's words, the voice possessed Carlotta's body, and made the Don vanish. Returned to her senses, Carlotta and I feared for our unlives. We needed to deal with whatever text she had found immediately. Thankful to find the Don still in existence, he granted me entrance to the Giovanni's haven, and we drove off.
I was surprised to find out not long after my arrival on the Penthouse floor with Carlotta, that Nathaniel had followed after me, forcing his way through the warded floors to find me. He was blind with anger, which grew more as he realized that the topic of Gehenna was at hand. He yelled insults and arguments at me, and the voice began to grow louder as well, demanding "Kill him!" At this, I shouted in desperation and anger, "If you don't believe me, then stake me like the liar that I am!" As he moved to do so, Carlotta moved in front of me, taking the blow, which missed her heart.
At that point, I felt myself drawn back to the gather. I told Carlotta that we would speak again soon, and told Nathaniel to follow me if he wished. We were stopped by Adam in the lobby, his gun set between my eyes as I stared back at him. Nathaniel and he began to argue over what had happened on the Penthouse floor, Carlotta and I explaining what exactly had happened. When we were allowed to leave, I headed straight towards the gather, my feet leading me to find the Primogen huddled around a table in a room. Sidney gave me a troubled look, and as Nathaniel stared at Martin, he rose and moved swiftly towards me, a stake finding its way into my chest, but not my heart. I held on to the stake as Nathaniel ranted, "She is possessed!" The voice was still lingered with mine, but I was not possessed, and calmly told Martin and everyone else present the same. When Martin seemed to believe me, he stood between Nathaniel and myself, and everyone began to bicker and assess the situation. The Prince arrived, hearing Nathaniel rant and me explain what had happened. To help rid me of the blood I had tasted, Von Strauss tore at my arm, allowing my blood to drain. I felt myself grow weary at first....and then hunger had me rise again. I could barely comprehend Martin's offer. "...two of my blood for two of yours..." it sounded like, but my thirst was too great to care. I nodded and drank, and at last was back to 'normal'.
It was asked that I stay at the chantry that night. As I slept in an empty room, my mind was haunted with recurring visions of Gehenna, and feeling that all who had seen me that night wished me dead, above all Nathaniel. As soon as I awoke, I returned home, wanting to avoid contact with anyone for the night. My ghoul Jonathan seemed troubled, watching me as I ambled about the house crying, lost in thought. I was capable of nothing more...
Carlotta called me Monday evening, talking about my concerns with Nathaniel, along with plans on what to do about her text. She seems also inclined to search for the Book of Nod in its entirety. I worry about the results of this course of action, but have agreed to help privately, so long as we are discreet. I want to find out who that voice was, whose blood I had tasted...
I received a letter from Nathaniel, moving me to meet with him at his office to talk. We at first argued, my eyes waiting to watch him kill me outright in his anger. But soon he began to understand what had happened, why I had spoken and acted as I had Saturday night. He told me that he did love me, and that he was so worried that my soul was lost... We were soon holding each other, and I felt the fear wash away.
We're to talk with our coterie tomorrow night. Nathaniel's voiced concerns about Martin possibly leaving our group, as well as Rhaat questioning my ability as primogen. I'm hopeful that things can be worked out. I'm incredibly tempted to speak privately with Rhaat, but knowing what support I have going in would help the matter.
The last thing on my mind involves my clan mates. Markus felt moved to call me the night prior to the gather. He claimed he needed some assistance in order to prove his innocence, possibly capturing Colfax in the process. But in spite of voicing my disdain at his poor choice of actions, I heard him out. He sought the Bone of Lies ritual, thinking that if he could make them he could use them to prove his case. I thought the request harmless enough....and I agreed. With permission to learn the ritual for myself (as I had been wanting it anyway for future use), I copied the procedural text onto a seperate paper and had it delivered to a location for him to pick up. "Burn the paper once you've learned it," I told him over the phone when he called me. I insisted that he keep me informed of what happens...
Jacob claims that Ynez lied to him about a few things going on within the chantry. Again, this troubles me greatly. If Ynez happens to join us at our coterie meeting, I may be inclined to discuss this with her. Misunderstandings are possible, but I cannot act as a representative for people if they do not let me know what is going on. Jacob is still not suitable to be my Whip yet...we're still working at talking openly with one another. It is my intention to work towards making him suitable, but to place him now would be a bad idea... As reluctant as Ynez is to act tentatively, I see no other that the council would accept or trust at this point as Whip. I intend to work hard not to be absent further, but I had no choice that night. I'm not happy she left the gather without telling me...I'm rather certain it moved Martin or Sidney to summon me at that dark moment in the Giovanni's haven.
And then there is our new arrival, Regent William Walker himself. I feel like it's been too long since setting eyes upon another of my clan I can trust on instinct. I still must tread with caution, but I am thankful that William is not a man that I feel an instant need to fear. I don't know how long he will be staying, but I know that in addition to dealing with Markus and Colfax, there are some other things about in the city that he is looking for. The book I found turned out to be one of them. It is possible whatever came into Carlotta's hands may be yet another....time will tell.
But they are not lost yet.
On the night of our last gather, a friend of mine called me, inquiring about a book he had come across among a recent incoming shipment. A separate page inside the book, far older, and what appeared to be inked in blood, troubled him greatly, moving him to seek my assistance. When it seemed there would be no council meeting at the gather any time soon, I went to have a look at the text. Upon seeing it, I knew this was something I needed to take off the man's hands, so I offered to buy the book, cutting him a check and returning to my nearby haven.
The book was "Unspeakable Cults", but the page within spoke of something even more unspeakable...it told the tale of Gehenna. I touched the page, trying to gather its history, but only heard vague voices...cries of pain. Some of the blood began to flake away from the page, so I hastily retyped the text onto my computer for safe keeping. When I finished, I stared down at the flakes of blood thinking, "I could know more....if only..." Foolishly, I gave in to my dare, my thirst for answers, and consumed a few flakes of blood. Like a hammer, a wave of power overwhelmed me. The blood was extremely old, so much so that I could not trace its lineage to one clan alone. It felt like all of them and none of them. All and none! After a while, I calmed. Nothing seemed wrong save my eyes were red, as if I had been crying. I felt wonderful! I put on some shades and returned to the gather...
The blood had chosen that moment to take true effect.
Jacob approached me and then hesitated, backing away with every step I took toward him. Our visiting Regent, William Walker, seemed troubled as well. When Zeek tried to call me to a council meeting, William insisted I send my Whip. I asked Ynez to go, having yet to officially choose, but knowing that I could not yet confide in Jacob to handle the task. Jacob instead went with me and William to my haven, where we dealt with the page that I had found.
By this time, light was glowing from my eyes, and my voice was harmonized with a deep male voice, the same voice I began to hear whispering in my mind, echoing the words of what I had found. William took the book when I handed it to him, pulling out the blood page to burn it. I felt the being take over me to speak directly to William, telling him to stop. The lighter's flame engulfed the page in an instant, and my mind shattered with the cries of billions, all time spanning before my eyes, the outcome of Gehenna shown to me in its horrid glory. William dared to look, and shared the vision with Jacob. I was crying, terrified.....I wanted the vision to be false. I did not want this to happen! William tried to assure me that it would not happen, that we would work to prevent it from happening. The voice had temporarily left mine, and though my eyes glowed, it seemed dim enough to risk going back to the gather once more.
When I arrived, I saw my symptoms fall upon another....Carlotta Giovanni. I knew she must have found something similar. When she asked suddenly, "You *burned* the *page*?", I knew I had to speak with her alone. Since Don Vincenzo seemed concerned, I asked permission from him to speak to her alone and received it, taking her aside to ask her not to mention the page again. I did not ask her to be silent, but warned her what others would think if she spoke of Gehenna. As we talked, the voice that now seemed to haunt both of us returned, demanding that we tell others of what we've found. We were both forced to our knees, Carlotta calling him "Father"....calling him "Caine". Don Vincenzo broke into the room when we were unable to answer the door, challenging the voice that only Carlotta and I could hear. Vehement at the Don's words, the voice possessed Carlotta's body, and made the Don vanish. Returned to her senses, Carlotta and I feared for our unlives. We needed to deal with whatever text she had found immediately. Thankful to find the Don still in existence, he granted me entrance to the Giovanni's haven, and we drove off.
I was surprised to find out not long after my arrival on the Penthouse floor with Carlotta, that Nathaniel had followed after me, forcing his way through the warded floors to find me. He was blind with anger, which grew more as he realized that the topic of Gehenna was at hand. He yelled insults and arguments at me, and the voice began to grow louder as well, demanding "Kill him!" At this, I shouted in desperation and anger, "If you don't believe me, then stake me like the liar that I am!" As he moved to do so, Carlotta moved in front of me, taking the blow, which missed her heart.
At that point, I felt myself drawn back to the gather. I told Carlotta that we would speak again soon, and told Nathaniel to follow me if he wished. We were stopped by Adam in the lobby, his gun set between my eyes as I stared back at him. Nathaniel and he began to argue over what had happened on the Penthouse floor, Carlotta and I explaining what exactly had happened. When we were allowed to leave, I headed straight towards the gather, my feet leading me to find the Primogen huddled around a table in a room. Sidney gave me a troubled look, and as Nathaniel stared at Martin, he rose and moved swiftly towards me, a stake finding its way into my chest, but not my heart. I held on to the stake as Nathaniel ranted, "She is possessed!" The voice was still lingered with mine, but I was not possessed, and calmly told Martin and everyone else present the same. When Martin seemed to believe me, he stood between Nathaniel and myself, and everyone began to bicker and assess the situation. The Prince arrived, hearing Nathaniel rant and me explain what had happened. To help rid me of the blood I had tasted, Von Strauss tore at my arm, allowing my blood to drain. I felt myself grow weary at first....and then hunger had me rise again. I could barely comprehend Martin's offer. "...two of my blood for two of yours..." it sounded like, but my thirst was too great to care. I nodded and drank, and at last was back to 'normal'.
It was asked that I stay at the chantry that night. As I slept in an empty room, my mind was haunted with recurring visions of Gehenna, and feeling that all who had seen me that night wished me dead, above all Nathaniel. As soon as I awoke, I returned home, wanting to avoid contact with anyone for the night. My ghoul Jonathan seemed troubled, watching me as I ambled about the house crying, lost in thought. I was capable of nothing more...
Carlotta called me Monday evening, talking about my concerns with Nathaniel, along with plans on what to do about her text. She seems also inclined to search for the Book of Nod in its entirety. I worry about the results of this course of action, but have agreed to help privately, so long as we are discreet. I want to find out who that voice was, whose blood I had tasted...
I received a letter from Nathaniel, moving me to meet with him at his office to talk. We at first argued, my eyes waiting to watch him kill me outright in his anger. But soon he began to understand what had happened, why I had spoken and acted as I had Saturday night. He told me that he did love me, and that he was so worried that my soul was lost... We were soon holding each other, and I felt the fear wash away.
We're to talk with our coterie tomorrow night. Nathaniel's voiced concerns about Martin possibly leaving our group, as well as Rhaat questioning my ability as primogen. I'm hopeful that things can be worked out. I'm incredibly tempted to speak privately with Rhaat, but knowing what support I have going in would help the matter.
The last thing on my mind involves my clan mates. Markus felt moved to call me the night prior to the gather. He claimed he needed some assistance in order to prove his innocence, possibly capturing Colfax in the process. But in spite of voicing my disdain at his poor choice of actions, I heard him out. He sought the Bone of Lies ritual, thinking that if he could make them he could use them to prove his case. I thought the request harmless enough....and I agreed. With permission to learn the ritual for myself (as I had been wanting it anyway for future use), I copied the procedural text onto a seperate paper and had it delivered to a location for him to pick up. "Burn the paper once you've learned it," I told him over the phone when he called me. I insisted that he keep me informed of what happens...
Jacob claims that Ynez lied to him about a few things going on within the chantry. Again, this troubles me greatly. If Ynez happens to join us at our coterie meeting, I may be inclined to discuss this with her. Misunderstandings are possible, but I cannot act as a representative for people if they do not let me know what is going on. Jacob is still not suitable to be my Whip yet...we're still working at talking openly with one another. It is my intention to work towards making him suitable, but to place him now would be a bad idea... As reluctant as Ynez is to act tentatively, I see no other that the council would accept or trust at this point as Whip. I intend to work hard not to be absent further, but I had no choice that night. I'm not happy she left the gather without telling me...I'm rather certain it moved Martin or Sidney to summon me at that dark moment in the Giovanni's haven.
And then there is our new arrival, Regent William Walker himself. I feel like it's been too long since setting eyes upon another of my clan I can trust on instinct. I still must tread with caution, but I am thankful that William is not a man that I feel an instant need to fear. I don't know how long he will be staying, but I know that in addition to dealing with Markus and Colfax, there are some other things about in the city that he is looking for. The book I found turned out to be one of them. It is possible whatever came into Carlotta's hands may be yet another....time will tell.