Vampire: The Masquerade IC (Don't forget your hat!)

She settled down beside him, closing her eyes as the night began to lighten. A dark screen slid down across the fencing behind the seats, plunging the back into darkness. Full protection from the sun, while still being able to move about. Perfect. "You'll get another chance to have fun, I guess when we've dealt with Arikel..."

"About that... She may or may not be alive.. We're not sure." He looked at her and laughed kissing her neck. "You're a bit too playful.. Now, let's get rest."

And so the first day ended; time passed, and eventually night had come once more. They were in his family's townhouse.

He arose, around 8 PM. He knew she'd still be asleep and helped guide her up to the living room, placing her on a chic white sofa.

She opened her eyes slowly, running her hand along the material. It was quite comfortable, definitely more so than the van. Sitting up, she took the time to fully take in the house. It was a lot better than the apartment, that was for sure. Getting to her feet, she wandered around for a bit. A little after sunset, perfect. Switching on the TV, she began scanning for news reports of the massacre. Any mention of people leaving the scene would easily turn out nasty. Even with the ease of avoiding suspicion, it didn't stop members of the public from suspecting her.

He sat next to her and examined the news before sighing. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and slid a bit closer to her. "You know, we'll be leaving by giovanni private jet. Hope you don't mind being first class on a plane with like, three people on it... Ahaha."

She smiled, resting her head on his shoulder. Becoming bored with the news, she changed it round to an action movie. "Have you ever had one of those moments, when you imagine what it would be like to be a different generation?" Her eyes closed momentarily anyway. For the time being, movies weren't of much interest to her.

An eternity of fear and dark things that crept up and poked at Asia's legs, hoping perhaps for a morsel of the terror that threatened to consume her. But she was selective in her demons, seeking out only a handful of the worst to focus on and detest, hands on either side of her head, crouching, facing into a corner as her imagination worked against her in the susurrous depths of the cellar.

Light calls. Light calls, light calls, the walls of the halls. Stand up! For I am not light, and light has no legs, the dregs are eggs and I am their chef, the chef...

Asia found it within her, as she always did, to rise and traverse the silent horrors of the cellar and creak open the door into blessed night. She made her way to a lightpost and stood for a moment in its glow.

A police car drove by, the occupants of which seemed to give Asia suspicious stares. Reason's been had for such looks, and crooks hide in nooks to be found by the kooks... I hide, myself, but first, thirst. Rain is coming, rain is coming.

She walked the streets and waited until a solitary car approached from an intersection up ahead. The night was quiet, and no one else was in sight as the headlights drew closer, closer...

Asia threw herself into the road, and with a horrible screech the vehicle swerved, impacting a lamppost which brought it to a destructive halt. Asia, quite unharmed, calmly stood up and surveyed the wreckage, licking her lips with pleasure at the sight of blood on the windshield.

She strode over as the car door opened and an injured yet angry man, who appeared to be in his late forties and possessed a prominent beer belly, stumbled out and yelled in Asia's face.

"Are you insane!? Just who the hell do you think you are, coulda got us both killed, damn teenager! What's your name? I'm going to give your parents hell, you hear me, hell!!!"

Asia considered this. "I think my name is a continent, is a continent. If you were named after a place, would you like it to be a pretty name or a pretty place? I think your beard is a pretty place for a louse, a house for a mouse. House for a mouse..." She tilted her head, dwelling upon this latest revelation. "It does not matter, it does not matter, it does not matter, it does not matteritdoesnotmatter. Smile for your picture, mister! There isn't a camera but for me, for me you see."

With that, Asia punched in the man's nose, indenting the weak cartilage into the hollow space in the front of his skull. While he reeled in pain, she sidestepped his thrashings and reached out a hand for his neck. "Down you go!" As Asia turned around, she thrust the man's head down in a swinging motion, upsetting his balance and bringing the back of his skull to crack against the pavement. "Down you go..."

She knelt by the man, who moved no longer, and sipped his blood for several minutes, swishing the vital liquid around her mouth with her tongue. At the conclusion of her feast, she stood and wiped her mouth with an arm. "Another drunk driver, perhaps, they will think him. Another drunk driver, perhaps he was, for I did drink him! Is it not dark, is it not dark? HAAAAAAHAHAHAheeeeee!"

Asia strode off into the night, the cackle still hanging from her lips.

"I've been told it can be done. You just have to drain someone of a generation higher than you, and then supposedly you assume that generation.. Which means after we deal with Arikel your generation could become third instead so... Don't worry about such trivial things; we were created as we are and that's above humans.."

She drew herself up tighter. "I guess I was thinking... lower down. It's nothing really." She couldn't help but think about what she was going to do. Possibly move from a Ninth to a Third? Was that what she wanted, really wanted? Since Third's generally slept, didn't paint much of a future for herself anyway.

"Of course you're no doubt worried but... Really, unless you become alone like they did, you'd have no real REASON to worry. You'd be fully protected and strong. So don't worry.." He gave her a reassuring smile before hearing cackling off in the distance. Not good.. A druggy? A Malk?

She got up slowly, making her way over to pick up her bag before wandering around to locate her room. "I'm still kinda tired, didn't get the best sleep and all." Continuing to wander, she finally went into a decent looking bedroom and placed her bag on the ground, getting under the warmth of the blanket.

He stood up and walked out the front entrance. He looked on the street and finally sat on the stoop, lighting a cigarette. "Strange.. Could've sworn I heard someone laughing like a crazy bastard.. Ah well; just the neighborhood I suppose." He took a hit off his cigarette and blew smoke up at the night sky. He could see the redstar that had appeared in the night. Supposedly a sign of the apocalypse.

Asia did not walk down the sidewalk; rather, she half-stumbled, half danced, arms spread out wide to steady her body as her feet moved her erratically from the left to the right, leaning first this way, then that.

She lifted her gaze to observe the crimson star in the night sky, stopped, and stared at it for a while. How strange. How strange. I suppose it is too high up for gray. But not for pink, I think, to drink the highest of them all! So far to fall, so far to fall.

It was then that Asia noticed the man sitting on the step, smoking into the brisk night air. Now here, seer, is a creature that does not like the wind.

He noticed her stumbling and stood up. Her eyes were aimed up at the red star as well. He hadn't had much in the way of riddles; English wasn't his first language after all. So, he sat there and began to try his best. He spoke quietly to her.

"That star, so far, so far, red and dead, dead dead dead. Sign of the end, not my friend, your friend? And your name? Let's play a game, rhymes and times. I'm bored, fraid I've no sword, so no threat to you, don't feel blue."

He felt stupid making such childish rhymes, but if this person WAS a malk, there'd be an equally irritating response in rhyming. If she wasn't, he'd probably just blow her off and act insane; though her staring..

Asia continued on her course, eyes on her feet, tracing their weaving path until she found herself directly in front of the man. Even after his greeting, she continued her fluidly unsteady movement, saying, "If the end is the end, there's more to follow. Hollow, is not the cylinder, and yet it keeps rolling, it keeps rolling? But show me this sword you haven't, I wish to see where it's gotten! Rotten, friends are rotten, friends are rotten, games are friendly and yet see I no winner, sinner! Hell is for the best games."

She stopped suddenly, clasping her hands together behind her back, facing out into the sky as if it would have some insight on the subject.

He looked at her and sighed. He was right; fucking Malk. Though.. Their dementation ability WAS a useful one. "Fair lady of night, whose clothes look none-too-tight, your name, your name? No fame or yes fame, perhaps a game, a game? You know more than the snow that fell on me, for what you see is not what I be. I am vampire, killed my sire, killed my sire. Know you the words? Or would I be better off talking with birds, with birds?"

He was mocking her speech patterns but was thinking of actually recruiting her; after all Torries and Malks got along somewhat well, with their Progenitors being twins and all.. Though Malkav was unconfirmed as finally dead or not.

"My clothes are my own, thank you, and name is unnamed. If blood is not to be had, then neither is name, and thus, no game, know the game, for you do sit and I do stand, and I do stand!" Asia curtsied and began to walk away.

"I suggest you stop Malk, or this might be your final night. I'm sick of being some lyrical bastard. Tell me; what happened to Malkav? Is he dead, like that idiot first risen Antediluvian?"

He cracked his knuckles. Dealing with Malkavians has always been dangerous; no time to change now.

Sleep refused to come. Eventually getting up in frustration, she wandered around for a while longer before noticing him at the doorway, talking. "Probably one of the relatives, here goes." She fixed her hair and walked over beside him, putting on her 'good girl' smile.

"Malkav? Malkav? Where it came from, anyone may guess! Yes, yes! No less than I know so, aye, goodbye!" Asia executed a twirl, waving her hands about in an awkward flourish. The sky, the sky...

Asia did not make any move to escape, nor did she even acknowledge Victor's aggression (Or the presence of a third party, for that matter).

He felt his blood flowing; it was a small chance but a chance all the same; but then he noticed Kataryna had walked out onto the porch. Whatever. He begin to attempt dominate at the malkavian.

"What. Happened. To. Malkav."

Most malkavians were twisted in mind so dominate was bugger all against them; however on an off chance it might work.

Asia ceased spinning and lowered her hands to her sides. She stood motionlessly, without even her usual swaying, confused by this new presence inside her head.

"What Malkav is," she said slowly, "isn't here, and what he isn't, I know! I know, bro. If you were me, you'd see, see? Won't you ignore the facade? won'tyouignorethefacadewon'tyouignorethefacade Too fast you were, liar, sitting there. No chair, no chair."

"HE'S THAT FUCKING NETWORK, ISN'T HE YOU MALKAVIAN! SPEAK! BEFORE I GIVE YOU YOUR FINAL SUNRISE RIGHT FUCKING HERE!"

He felt anger swelling up at this irrelevant talk and forced his dominance further into her skull. "Stop. Your. Incessant. Blatthering!"

She tugged his arm to get his attention. "Try not to get angry, that's what they want, to get your judgement impaired by strong emotion." She stepped closer to the girl, releasing him as she did so. "Look honey, we're heading off to do something important. Just take your time when you speak, okay?"

He released the dominate and looked at Kat. How NEW was this fucking fledgling? "This is a Malkavian; they know shit without having to tell. Their stupid insight ability makes em capable of it. Just like your clan's capable of looking sexy-as-hell without putting on any god damn makeup. Just like MY clan's a family. Just like Ventrue are natural born leaders, and on and on.. They don't need our emotions fucked up and she's clearly more mad than that Dr. Jack from England."

Asia giggled as the Domination receded. How funny these two were! So close, and yet, too far, too far, the star and the earth, but soil in a pot happy makes not! Happiness makes one not, I must have forgot. I must have forgot.

"Malkav is none, for your fun! But to me, I see. IseeIsee I see and hear and why can't you, if you care so much? Too much, and such, and such as the corpse is overlooked, for it is dead, and I won't come back again, I won't come back, then! When I won't come back again."

She threw her hands into the air and laughed once more. "FINALLY! You see, you see?"