Blood Haven, a precast thread

Talon sat relaxed and stretched out on one of the twelve
oversized, black leather couches that ringed the mammoth interior of the room being prepared for the celebrations...

"Crucifiction is more like it Lana, I've never felt so much anger, or hunger"

Talon looked not at the face or eyes of the woman he spoke to, but her long, shapely legs as they were draped over his own, his hand slowly dragging his nails up and down them to send tiny shivers over her satin skin.

"There will be blood wasted, not by my choosing, but so much blood it makes the river run red once again..."

Talon Lafayette was not a prophet, prophets died making claims that may or may not ever come true in thier lifetimes, while he was immortal and had live to watch history repeat itself more than once already.

"There was less then ten thousand after the treaty was signed, fifteen thousand of us died in that river that day... Now... Now? There is a quarter million total and the energies are like a flame to all the hungry undead and immortal in the world. I have seen assasins, fallen angels, rogue Lycan of a strength only legends told of, and now the humans have a new, more powerful leader..."

He wasn't telling the long legged beauty anything he was sure she didn't already know, simply voicing his thoughts and trying to fight the waves of lust that rippled from her body and called to him. It was always that way around her, as if he were cursed to lust for a woman he could no longer care for or trust, his dreams even in death haunted by her face and voice.

"Four hundred years wasted... what the fuck do these humans think building an army of two thousand against the undead? The wolves will eat them for breakfast and then turn on each other for lunch once it starts?"

Talon eyed the woman and her sultry looks she gave him, his own body responding slowly to her heat but still in control, a control he knew drove her just as crazy as she did him.

"How many new guests do you have Lana? No, I'm not worried about the taxes you're not paying, how many new killers are in our town tonight?"

He asked a question he knew she'd never completely answer, her own sidelines lining her pockets better than the businesses he had fronted for her so very long ago... Maybe that was what irked him the most, he had helped her from the start and now she cheated him by pretending she wasn't running half a dozen underground schemes, tax free?

He lifted from his seat easily, swinging the long pair of legs gently to the leather surface before moving to the rail of the balcony that over looked the undead half of the city, the river that split it and the human half beyond.

"When was the last time you were among the fleshies Lana, on thier side of the river, are we fools to trust them and have I led all of us down a path of self destruction?"

He mused out loud, knowing his guest wouldn't answer if she did have one, that her eyes were on his frame and the headache that was growing behind his own eyes was probaly her fault.

He wasn't the kind of immortal to second guess himself, had prided himself on finding the least bloody of paths to walk as if trying to make up for the thousands that had died that one night... But now none of it mattered as the treaties expired in less than a week and the ancient parchment that hung on the wall with the blood signatures were no longer valid...


"Come Lana and tell me of the guest list. Have we made sure each is treated like a King or Queen and all demands big or small have been met? I'm sure you have as your as talented as you are beautiful, just as I'm sure it will cost me a small fortune?"

He smiled and turned, his eyes running over the woman who looked so nonchalant and relaxed, the waves of sexual energy rippling off of her and trying to beat down his own personal defenses... a battle that had waged for almost as long as the tentative peace had existed in Blood Haven.

"Tell me so we can go meet the first, and continue this charade for another four hundred years?"

Lana Ver'idian

"Talon.." Her voice purred out his name, lush mouth presenting a pretty pout as she laid her bedroom eyes upon his thoughtful face, "Baby... Why must you torment yourself so? .... That's My job." Sliding further down the couch, kicking one dainty ankle over the other and reclining back. Knowing his eyes followed her long sleek legs up to the short skirt barely managing to cover her resting bottom, he could scent her as easily as she could see the fire lit within his eyes whenever she drew near.

"You know this list, sweetling.. You were there, remember?" Heated eyes raked over him boldly, her body shifting none to subtle while ripples of pleasure tightened certain areas of her skin. The sight of his pectorals under that dinner jacket making her kitten purr to renewed life, watching him move like the predator that he is was so fucking sexual it would make a nun shed her robes and beg for release... "You read off each name."

Ok maybe I should've had a few rounds in the sack before coming here tonight..

"Can you see them from there?" She asked mockingly, knowing the human activists were just across the river on their side of the bridge, loudly protesting any and everyone who might cross to the 'other' side. "Chanting their racist propaganda.." Shifting she rose from the couch and moved to him, her bust pressing to his chest to swell against her blouse opening before she halted moving. Pretending to peer over his shoulder, a knowing smile hovered over her face, her hands resting at each hip.

He took her hands then, removing them from his person and pushing them behind her back. Eyes meeting, she growled low in her throat, daring him with her eyes to kiss her, to take her then and there.. Waitress be damned!
And yet he made no move, but his brow did cock up at one side, his eyes darkened further, "No, I am not picking your pockets.." She laughed and pulled free of him before she shamed herself by begging him.

"Racist lot of them... They will sign the treaty, as they have done for centuries now. Why? because they may out number us, but we can take out five times our numbers before we fall... and they know it." The heat in her eyes dissipated a little but did not completely go out. "They want what we have.. Foolish beings that they are.. " She moved around him to stand at the balcony and peering down to see the cars lining and winding their way to the front of the massive castle. Chariots of steel and fiberglass, delivering their wealthy, their sick minded and their own degenerates to the very doors that protected them... To Talon.. "They think .. living forever is so glamorous." She scoffed at that and stepped away.

"Signed in blood and hung for another hundred years.. Providing some Television Evangelists doesn’t break in here and start throwing holy water on everyone like last time.." She chuckled, far fetched for one to imagine that something like that had actually happened.. And what was worse? The humans believed it would work! "Granted I do enjoy a wet time.." none to subtle there either, but she wasn't known for being coy or playing shy.. It just wasn't in her nature.

"We could skip all the hooplah and go fuck..." mouth twisting up as she met his cool gaze once more, "No?.." Turning to the ballroom, watching people scurry to get things finished off in time, "Shame.." Yes, it was all that was ever on her mind.. FOOD, well good times, food and money. In no particular order. He knew her games, she knew that he knew too... yet she played them anyway. Something had to break up the monotony of every day boredom after these many centuries.

“Perhaps later then.” She dismissed him for now as a play toy, but he was never far from her mind, nor her heart. Perhaps that is what fueled her so? She never tried to analyze them, it was too painful, it pissed her off and then she had to go on revenge fuck binges to wipe that smug look off his face.

“The human mayor is coming, and all their political bullshitters. Everyone within Blood Haven is expected to be here and ready to sign.” Granted those arriving to Blood Haven after the ceremony still signed the same agreement, and in blood but it was kept on file in the offices until they either left, died or signed the century declaration of peace. All was squared away, everyone was arriving and yet he fretted still.

“You worry yourself far too much, It is not good for you..” She tried hard not to care, but now and then it slipped in. A chink in the armor around her beating heart… Don’t ask about that either, it tends to piss her off.

"Yes. The humans need us as much or more as we need them, our banking system the the foundation for thier growth and our research saving human lives every day."

Talon was aware of Lana's involvement in the illegal areas of the street business, knew that that at least for now the good of it out weighed the bad, his mind carefully calculating her worth to him and the Lady he served, the City of Haven.... For now she was an assett, for nowthere were bigger problems to deal with, the growing hatred of the humans swiftly becoming an angry wound he would be forced to deal with.

"The racists, someone is stirring them, my people tell me MOST of them are in the human armed forces as well...."

He shared a tidbit of knowledge, one that showed the slight chance the humans could hurt the immortals if they all attacked at once, his own defenses able to protect the seven floors but not the entire non human city below. The slightest chance was a flaw, a weakness, and given the right opportunity and the right, ruthless enemy?

"I need to know Lana, of the comings and goings of the new faces, I know it rankles your senses to spy for me but this time....."

This time she needed to bow to his needs, this time she needed to step off the neutral line she so carefully walked, for if she didn't? There wouldn't be a next time...

He moved, his figure becoming a blur, then suddenly stopping in front of her as his hands gripped her arms to suddenly stop her and he watched her face twist with a range of emotions he never knew she possessed.

"Tread carefully Lana, KNOW who you serve and why.."

His own energies swirled about him, working hard to hold back the power of her succubus, his face growing hard, unreadable as he found the energies deep within to hold it back.

"What ever we are now, it is NOT enemies"

He spoke carefully, his body reacting despite his control as his eyes bored into her own.

"I would not like to see you hurt Lana"

Lana Ver'idian

"The racists, someone is stirring them, my people tell me MOST of them are in the human armed forces as well...."

So the humans were allowing their army to participate in things that they were hired to prevent. This was not good, either their governing body was slipping or there was in fact something far more powerful playing with their minds. Granted that didn’t mean one of their own was manipulating, Martin Luther King moved mountains and he was but a man. Anything and everything was possible, highly probable it wasn’t their kind at all but some human they deemed near sainthood to follow. Try as she might, she couldn’t think of anyone right off the top of her head with that kind of punch vocally, but she knew who did have insider knowledge.

"I need to know Lana, of the comings and goings of the new faces, I know it rankles your senses to spy for me but this time....."

He caught her attention then, the gasp she uttered wasn’t silent by far and his sense of hearing was impeccable. Eyes wide, she tried to gather her thoughts and those fucking useless emotions under control once more. It was hard having these feelings all rampage through her system at once, how did the human race deal with this!? She hated Hades more now than ever, the past one hundred years having been pure hell as she tried to adapt to her new hybrid body and mind. She was mad, offended that he would ask her of all people to do his dirty work and yet she was moved, touched and excited once more to be of some service to him… To be useful to him and there for closer as they had not been in centuries. How did she cope with this madness? She knew she would accept before he even finished speaking, how could she not give him what he asks of her? Hadn’t she always…

“I…” Her acceptance was cut short as he moved to her, taking her up by her arms and nearly lifting her from the floor, their eyes locked on each other.

"Tread carefully Lana, KNOW who you serve and why.." His mouth inches from her, his body pressing so closely her skin aches with the invading cold of him. His scent teased her senses, eyes flaring as did nostril to inhale that succulent aroma… Talon.. His name a shivered longing sigh through her brain and body. Heat pooled low in her groin, the throbbing came just once, but it was a potent reaction in its lust.

“I know full well…” Her tongue lapped over her lips, she thought of nothing more than pushing him to the vacated couch and crawling atop him to ride out the hunger burning within. “Just whom I serve… Talon.” Her eyes left his mouth, journeyed up his narrow nose and cheek to those twin orbs boring into her soul, and again she shivered.

"What ever we are now, it is NOT enemies" He went on, blatantly ignoring her invitation again.. and again… and yet again! Frustrating man! Ah, but he isn’t a mere man, he is a vampire. A strong leader, fierce fighter and down right HOT fuck… and he was squeezing her arms a little too tightly!

“Damn it!” She swore, flinching as the lust haze cleared a little from her mind, the fog lifting to cringe at his treatment.

"I would not like to see you hurt Lana." He confessed .. Brutally.

“Then let me go, damn it!” She yanked to free her arms before she bruised. “Damn, I am not a china doll but I do bruise.” She hissed at him, wrenching her arms free but her body did not.. could not walk away from his. Standing toe to toe, her head had to tilt a little to meet his eyes, but she boldly did so. Her pixie like features glaring right back at him for a long quiet moment before her stern countenance relented and the twinkle began to come back into her gaze.

“I know when to get out of the burning building Talon… And I know when to stay and keep the riff raff out of my Haven. You want answers?” She stepped back then, a waiter passing by with a tray of champagne just in the right time for her to snatch a glass off the silver tray. “I will see about getting some.” Tipped the glass she drank it down quickly, setting it on a table to their left before returning back to Talon’s brooding face.

“Shall we go to the greet line, Baby?” Facial expression once more playful yet a seductive secret smile hovered as she peered over her shoulder at him. “I am sure they are going to be here any moment and we should be there to greet the… guests.” Hips swayed as she began walking towards the main stairs and leaving Talon to bring up the rear… And hers. A good time to meet with Marcus, perhaps even Redgrave might know something? Names and faces swirled through her head only a moment before her eyes lit up on the guest line arriving, shedding their coats and talking in small circles while awaiting their host’s permission. “Oh goodie.” A whisper, her smile spreading as senses flared. She could cause so much mischief tonight…

Ken stood in the back of this rabble. Sqauking, yelling, some even protesting. Ken shook his head, dressed conservatively, blue suit coat, tan dress slacks and brown loafers he looked like any other ordinary human even though however Dusk was falling he wore a pair of dark glasses over his eyes. Oh sure he looked human. but thanks to his father and his High and mighty view on keeping the Bloodline pure his eyes gave him away to what he truly was. One of the last surviving members of the Vella'Mourte line of wolves. Over the last few century's he watched as his bloodline and others slowly grew weaker, inbreeding and even *shiver* mating with humans had weakened the once strong race. had he slept with humans? well, no one needed to know that. Ken made his way through the crowd lazily, the hairs on his neck tingling and he frowned.

Finally Breaking through the crowd he made it to the barrier separating the city. The guards stepping up to stop him he just looked at them, a lazy, but faked, good natured smile crossed his face. His eyes scanning the area before him he looked up, admiring the cold beauty of the city before him. Blood haven it was called, a City where humans and others like himself could live in peace. He snorted at the thought....peace....it was laughable, but he had run long enough. And he seemed drawn to this city, the promise of sanctuary, of....peace, a place he may finally be able to settle down. He was sure there would be enough work to keep him busy.

His eyes flicked to the officer before him as he spoke Let me see your ID Ken's brow arched. Quickly however he tried to think back, he couldnt remember if he still had that Warrant out for his arrest after the Bombing contract he took to take out a human civil liberty's court. "Im afraid i dont have ID on me officer" he officer looked to his buddy and nodded him over we have many..ahh....High....profile...ah..people, inside the city, we cant let anyone in without ID"

Ken held up his hands in a friendly "im unarmed" gesture and gave the cop a lazy smile. "its alright officer, im expected" the officer looked to his buddy again resting his hand on the butt of his gun holster his eyes shifted to the cops hand then back to his face, with a sigh ken closed his eyes, lifting his hand to the glasses he wore over his eyes, removing them his eyes opened and lifted to the cop "Officer, i dont have time to play tag the bad guy with you, im here on business" the Officers eyes moved over him then raised to meet his eyes, that piercing yellow stare, Kens eyes were cold, calculating, as was often when anyone not like him stared into his eyes they froze in shock.

"if you dont mind officer, step aside" his voice had grown an octave colder, the cops jaw slack his eyes wide. His buddy radioing in they needed assistance Ken grew weary, placing the glasses back over his eyes he was just suddenly gone. A burst of his Lycan speed one instant he was there the next he was past the cops, as they just stupidly blinked they never once realized they needed to look behind them Ken just walked into the city once more in a lazy Casual stroll.

Once more a tingle on the back of his neck had him looking around. He Felt a strong flex of energy and realized it for what it was. Vampire. Turning on his heel he made his way towards that pulse. As he arrived at a large stone carved building he sensed the guy before him. Had the taste of were-rat, hired guard probably. "Im here seeking employment and a safe haven to rest" the guard merely nodded and escorted him inside. Within minutes he stood in a lavish room with a male and exceptionally Beautiful female.

No one saw Lilith, no one knew she was watching the city. No one realized she could see the police at the gates, or the extra security throughout. No one saw her because she was circling high above the city itself and humans just never had learned to look up. Even after all these years living with non-humans, they kept forgetting that danger could drop from the sky as easily as it could run at them on the ground.

Fallen or not, she was still an angel and flight was her preferred method of transport.

She considered simply leaving for the night. Clearly there was some big to-do about to happen and she really wasn't dress, or interested, in whatever it might be. The only reason she had for coming to Haven's castle was to greet the Lord of the City...some vampire (she shuddered inwardly) named Talon...and make her presence known to him.

She'd had problems once when she hadn't let a city's Lord know she was there. For some reason they frowned on not knowing assassin's were in their territory. Paranoid freaks always thought she was there to kill them, is if there was no one else important enough to kill in their cities.

Still she made it a habit to let them know she was there so that they didn't decide to come and hunt her down...unless of course she actually was there to kill them...then it was a different game entirely.

No, she couldn't wait. She was going to have to crash whatever party was going on tonight. Sighing to herself she began to circle the city, her arcs becoming tighter as she moved down until she simply dropped at the front gate of the castle, managing to bypass all the extra security and clucking her tongue softly. She'd let this, Talon, know his guards were lax, there really was no excuse for the startled look on the Senschal's face.

"Wh...how...?" the man stumbled over his words trying to figure out where this strange woman had come from.

"Angels fly dear man," she said soft as her wings disappeared. It was the one shape change she made commonplace. Wings were a wondrous means of transportation but other than that...well they really did get in the way. It was hard to be unobtrusive with them, they tended to draw the eye.

"Now," she continued, "I know I am unexpected and not on whatever list you have so I'll make this brief. I need to see Talon, or someone he trusts and will let him know that Lilith is in his city."

She watched the man's eyes widen at her name and chuckled when he paled slightly. When you'd been killing people as long as she had, you got a reputation among other creatures just as long lived. When you'd been killing since before most of them alive today were born...well her name was known.

The man tried to stammer something and finally gave up, finally just motioning her inside and guiding her to an antechamber with a group of other people. Clearly there was going to be some sort of reception, or receiving line...something...and it would get her in to give her greetings to the cities Master.

She just hoped she wouldn't have to make it too public. It really wouldn't do to have her prey knowing she was in town. They tended to spook and run, made her job damned hard and she didn't like that. For all her notoriety she rarely had to change her appearance on a hunt. She was a loner of the first degree (some called her a hermit) and rarely went out unless she'd been hired for a job. Even those that hired her never saw her in this age of electronics, allowing her to be even more anonymous.

Stepping into the room she'd been led to she simply leaned back against the wall farthest from the people in it, her leather pants and flying vest molded to her body like a second skin and drawing more than once glance, that she ignored, from people in gowns and suits.

Lord was she crashing a party! Oh well, she didn't plan to stay long. Only long enough to make her presence known...then she had a job to do.

Loren did not like the way this crowd made her feel. The pain, the fear, the hate rolled from them, a darkness that she could nearly see, and definitely taste. It gave her a bit of a headache, honestly, but she knew too many of the mortals here to stand by and let them do something stupid.

So, instead, she did something stupid. Working through the crowd, she spent a moment with every single face she recognized, no matter how remote or old the connection. Fortunately, it was very hard to forget Loren, and even harder to remember her unkindly. Many bitterly twisted faces found a smile as the diminutive Dream slid into their field of vision, and all were happy to hug her, or shake her hand...

The shake lasted a little too long. The hugs lingered unnecessarily. Loren let her hands exchange the anger and fear for hope, her skin warming with the effort, her face a bit flushed. Though some of her "victims" were sorely confused, unable to process why they suddenly wanted to go get an ice cream or read an extra story to their child, they each turned and threaded their way back through the mob.

Loren was tireless. If she couldn't change all of the minds here, she'd make as big a dent as possible. Quite a dent, really, by the time she felt the tremors in her hands, the pulsing blackness behind her eyes that signalled she had "converted" too much pollution. Still, the change in size- and temper- of the crowd was noticable, and Loren knew that her presence would be remarked upon. Of course, it would not be remarked upon uncharitably... she hoped.

Peering at the castle, Loren felt just a twinge of curiousity. Though she'd never been, never introduced herself to the one known as Talon, she knew of him. Everyone did. She only prayed that he did not know of her. But what concern was a Dreamborn? Certainly no centuries-old vampire would quirk a brow in concern to think upon Loren. She wasn't even sure such creatures dreamed...

Dizzily, Loren turned and headed for home. A long sleep and a stiff drink were required. The order in which she would fulfill these needs was uncertain.

IC: Deagan Roarke

This little shindig was high class, tuxedoes and evening gowns, canapes and patte-that sort of thing. Talon had wanted him to dress up for the occasion, as his legal ward, and official social conscience project. Oh he'd worded it as a polite request, but nothing he said was a request, vampires only knew how to make orders-even politely worded ones.

So Roarke obliged him with coming to his little diplomatic party wearing a new flannel shirt, barely worn bluejeans, and a freshly polished silver belt buckle. his favorite stocking cap over his shock of long unruly brown hair. He definitely wasn't the tuxedo type, and if that pissed Talon off-well by now he'd should be used to the little dissapointments in life.

He sat at one of the vacant tables the multitude of forks and salad forks fine porcelain charger and dinner plate knocked out of place as he raised his legs placing his well-worn scuffed and dirty cowboy boots atop them crossed arrogantly over the ankles.

His chair was tipped back. A handful of the canapes in his hands. Canapes since Patte was just the french word for dog food. He snorted in amusement at the irony of that thought. For a blood-sucker Talon certainly had good taste in grub.

He ate and watched as the dignitaries lined up and Talon and Lana entered to meet them. He instantly was hammered with the heavy dose of pheremones Lana pumped out whenever Talon was near her. Not that she lessened the dosage of pheremones by much when he wasn't around her-there wasn't a minute of the day where her scent didn't scream at the top its lungs: "LET'S FUCK!"

He had known Lana at least as long as he'd known Talon. Going through puberty was particularly a trial living in the same building as her. Not that he ever acted on the hormone driven juvenile fantasies he'd developed starring her. Neither her or Talon were monogamous, but only a fool would not realize there were sparks between them-hell there was an entire forest fire between them. Hell, if either of their souls were imprinted with words they'd be "His" and "Hers". And that was the reason there. Roarke wasn't the type to poach eggs from another man-even if that man was an arrogant, self-righteous, self-serving vampire like Talon.

As Talon looked over to him he smiled as if saying, "What, I have a new shirt on?" and he raised a canape by the little toothpick as if adding, "Oh and thanks for the free chow."

Soon, just a couple more years, and his pack would have recuperated enough to go on their own and he could tell Talon where he could shove his protection and his graciousness.

Just then another woman entered from the door beside. She wasn't human. Her scent was nothing like it. It was the first time he'd smelled anything like it. It was...damn...it was power...like the weight of the air before a storm...or the split second before a lightning strike.

Intrigued he arched an eyebrow, watching.

The black sedan had traversed the bridge amidst so many others. It felt strange to him to be there, amongst them, dressed in the traditional panels of a tuxedo. He was, for the first time in many years, crossing the bridge unarmed. It had become typical of him to carry a weapon, always, when it came to straying into the territory of the inhuman. They were not primitive. Talon had given humans a certain degree of safety amongst them. He had helped maintained an otherwise fragile peace for centuries. But they were, in the end, beholden to their nature.

And some risked Talon's wrath to play the part of hunter when given the opportunity.

The absence of his pistol's weight against his chest was an uncomfortable one. It had been the means to saving his life several times both in Blood Haven and Haven alike. Human and non-human had fallen on the opposite end of its barrel, crumpled up from the high-caliber rounds that he'd come to rely upon. It was as much a part of his daily wardrobe (albeit a concealed part) as his belt or watch.

But -she- had told him to leave it and he could not disobey her. Not after that night. A week ago. The memory of it coaxed a tremor of obedience through him and an almost violent surge of hatred. Lana. She would be there. In his mind he saw the vixen in full dress, jewels and gown, gorgeous and wicked and a hidden mess of sex and sensuality. His prick stirred. Every thick inch threatening to come alive, harden, and make itself counted for.

It was hard to force himself down and to choke back desire. Damned hard. And had he not been so capable, so gifted of will, he would have gone mad a long, long time ago.

If he had been able to Marcus would have killed her years ago. When they'd first met, when this had all started, he had tried again and again. Each attempt had been cut short, abandoned, aborted. Willful, stubborn, and noble aside he simply could not murder her. It had been a frustrating reality. It'd helped force him to acquiesce to the nature of their arrangement. Broken him.

As you would a horse.

The hatred had never died. It never would. In some way he knew it was part of her triumph over him. There had been a time when he was too noble and righteous to feel hatred. There had been a time when he had been so honorable a man that even the most trying of circumstance had managed only to bring out the best of him.

Those days were gone. She had stripped them from him. Even the memories seemed hard to grasp now, after so long of her.

Amongst non-humans, Marcus was known. There had been a time when he was a soldier, leading raids sanctioned by Talon within non-human territory for those that had broken the truce. He had killed on their land. Friends of theirs. Family members. After, he'd lead the Mayor's security detail and been present during pacts and discussions, he'd even become recognizable.

But nobody, at this party, paid him particular attention. He was, after all, no longer the Mayor's security. He was a liason. A go-between.

The Mayor saw him as an extension of his empire. A black man to connect to voters, to dissenters, as well as an expression of strength personified. Marcus would have quit long ago. But it hadn't been allowed.

The party was awash in lavish decorations. Men and women, dressed smartly, circulated with trays of hors d'oeuvres and glasses of champagne. Marc ignored them both. He abandoned the Mayor and his machinations for the bar, keenly aware of where Lana and Talon lingered. It helped when he was far from her. It helped more when he could not see her.

Drinks did not help but he had one all the same. The liquor was all top-shelf, Talon was never one to ignore a chance to wade through excess. He endured the bite of the gin with grim determination; the mood that would define him throughout most of this party if he was fortunate.

But he knew she wouldn't let him be. She never did. The pleasure she took from him, even from tormenting him, was too great for that not to be a certainty. And, as far as Marcus was concerned, the bar was a place where he could prepare himself for the inevitable as best he could.

Haven was an interesting place, in the same way a ticking bomb was interesting, you can fiddle with the wiring all you want, but unless you’re one hell of an expert, you won’t stop it, or worse, you’ll just blow it up early, and even if you do defuse the dammed thing, it’s still a bomb, it’s just waiting for someone to come along and reconnect a wire or two. The treaty was a wire in the bomb that is Haven, a big shinny red one that was just begging to be cut, every hundred years they replaced it, praying to whatever powers they believed in that no one came along with a pair of scissors in that time.

At least, that’s how Isaac saw it, every time it was replaced he could help but wonder about it, even now as he walked up to the entrance, dressed in a black and purple suit he was curious if some fool would cause a big enough stir in there that the whole thing would go down like the titanic (which was quite a shame, it was a lovely cruse until that point) maybe Talon would get sick of babysitting the city and snap, maybe some suicide bomber would take the chance to try and take out as many as he could, hell, maybe Isaac himself would get so bored that he went at the treaty with a lighter, just to get some entertainment.

That last thought brought a smile to his face, until a large hand grabbed his shoulder not 5 feet from the door, then the smile went away.“Is this, really necessary?” Isaac asked the pair of guards that had stopped him on his way, one of them carrying a lockbox in hand “every time we do this, and every time I manage to get at least one thing past you, I never use it” he held his hand out to the one who wasn’t carrying the lockbox “come on, cant we just settle this with a gentlemen’s agreement?”

The guard looked down at his hand then shook his head “you know the rules, you’re not supposed to bring a gun in, and you know we can’t turn a blind eye to it” “the boss man gets rather angry when we do that” the one holding the lockbox added “and I don’t mean accidentally spilled the milk angry, we might get fired, with actual fire.”

Isaac sighed and reached in to his jacket, nonchalantly retrieving the pistol (a well polished FN FNP) hidden within and tossing it in to the open lockbox without further argument “there, can I go now?” he asked, not waiting for an answer before trying to walk past, only to have a hand fall on his shoulder once again, only this time he bothered to react. Before the guard could blink, Isaac had grabbed his hand with enough force to make him wince at the pain, then pulled him close with a positively murderous look in his eyes “I’m getting kinda tired of that”

“Sorry, but like I said, its out job, and Talon is more likely to kill us for not doing it then you are for us doing it” Isaac crushed the hand in his grip for a moment, testing to see if he would break, but he didn’t. “Bah!” he said angrily as he released the guards hand “I could do more damage with my pinkies anyway” he then proceeded to produce a set of knuckle dusters, three knives and a small amount of explosives “there, that’s all of my toys, now can I go?”

“Yeah” the guard agreed, knowing that anything else on him would be hidden well enough that they would never find it “you can get this back when the signings over” “oh I will, and if any of its missing it’s your head!” he warned before turning away and continuing inwards. Technically he hadn’t lied, or broken the rules that said he wasn’t permitted to bring a weapon, he had given all of his to the guards, and since he was already on the grounds, the pistol he had pocketed from them when they stopped him a second time didn’t count as him bringing a weapon, at least that’s how he saw it anyway.


The party was much of the same, lavish surroundings, tiny food, dresses that cost more than some people earn in a year, at least they had reigned in the decorators before they started practically gluing money to the wall in an attempt to show off like many of the younger immortals did. Isaac was already bored, all the ass kissing and politicking that was going on did little to amuse him, so he made a quick line to the one thing he could always count on Talon to have on offer, high class booze, he took a seat at the bar and ordered himself a drink, rum, straight, no ice, he hated ice in his drinks, always melted and ruined the flavour, then he just waited, something interesting was bound to happen eventually.

The warm flesh beneath her hands was melting the cold in her veins as the deep amber liquid pulsed through her being. A soft moan escaped her lips as the man slumped against her, his hands moving across her body in a heated embrace ... his senses dulled into an euphoric haze of want.

The steady rhythm beating out a deafening call to the monster lurking beneath became laboured. Each thump came slower ... slower ... until the vitality that was there a moment ago siphoned from the living being wrapped in the clutches of one of the most dangerous predators mankind has ever faced.

Olivia laid him down slowly on the soft grass; the wind playfully tugging at the strands of hair leafed across his temple. The dark colour of his hair starkly contrasted the pale contours of his features ... drained of every drop of blood ... the silvery light of the moon further accentuating the quiet form.

Her cheeks had a healthy pink glow to them as she took a deep breath and threw her head back, sighing into the night sky ... sated ... satisfied ... on top of the world.

There was no better feeling than the pulsing heat of human blood, filling up her mind with memories, emotions ... the bittersweet agony of human suffering. How she treasured it ... envied them. They were blessed with life and emotion and had no idea of the treasure they held just by having a heartbeat as a constant companion.

Looking back down, Olivia’s dark blackberry eyes instantly clouded into a cold and unforgiving black.

“You deserved it,” she whispered to her victim before carelessly shoving the evidence of her indulgence across the edge of a cliff to tumble to the ravine below where no one would ever find it.

Blurring into motion, Olivia came to a standstill a few minutes later on the shores of a magnificent river that divided a city called Blood Haven. A smile tugged at her lips, the irony of the name almost amusing to a vampire as old as she. There was no haven from the bloodlust, nor should there be a haven for the people that served as their daily sustenance. Vampires were at the top of the food chain and it was marvellous being there: End of the story.

In one smooth move, Olivia jumped the river landing solidly on the opposite embankment. She was dressed in an elegant dark robe that clung to her form like a jealous lover. The soft folds bristled in the wind around her legs as she moved on silent feet, her dark hair spiralling down her back and moving with every step she took. The castle keep loomed in the distance as she approached, another sardonic smile flitting across her features at the absolute audacity of it.

Talon - the Lord and Master of his keep - with his little minions crawling at his feet. Her soul purpose for coming this far was to meet the self-indulgent vampire in order to congratulate him on his feat of ingenuity. Isn’t that what every vampire wanted? Power and control over all?

An amused little laugh bubbled from her lips as Olivia stepped through the imposing oak doors that adorned the front facade of the ancient building. Noting the heavy security detail, Olivia was promptly ushered into a 'waiting room' of sorts, that comprised of quite a few unusual beings. Olivia slowly walked through the room, soaking up the different emotions ... hesitating for a moment where she could hear a heartbeat calling to her. Taking a seat along the side of the room, she gave her eyes free reign to wander...

‘This is going to be interesting’, she mused to herself.

Scraaaape.

Kayla's eyes watched those around her, unsure on what to make of all this. So much... activity. To be honest, it rather bothered her. Too many faces to watch at once, too many hands and bodies to keep tabs on.

Scraaaape.

And thus her fingers took to the one thing that calmed her; attempting to sharpen her knife while keeping tucked into the alcove of the hall. This was supposed to be a day of peace and promise, of trust and wellwishes. Things that Kayla doubted could ever exist, but she did her best to force a smile to her lips when others looked her way.

It hurt, actually hurt. Her lips felt as though they might bleed if she had to bring another forth.

Scraaape.

Where was Talon? Make sure those questionable eyes and hands and suchnots kept clear of him. She would try her damndest to behave here, but if anyone else wanted to start up, she would be sure to try and be the one to finish. He should not have to soil his hands with fighting. He was strong, so strong, but also the epitome of vampiric grace in Kayla's eyes. She would much rather fight for him than let his fist be first raised.

She tested her knife against her fingertip, frowning at the line of blood that quickly flowed. Sticking it to her lips, she slipped the knife back into the bag she carried, the whetstone joining it. Her boredom was sated, at least for the moment. Peace customs. Customs like Christmas and Halloween. Customs that had come to lose their meaning, at least in her eyes.

Kayla simply followed the beliefs of those closest to her. Peace, war, heaven or hell. She would believe whatever words were echoed around her.

The blood was still coming. Damn these mortal veins.

She had half a mind to simply run the finger against her dress, but that would soil it. She was supposed to stay presentable for this... thing. She sighed again, feeling so uncomfortable in the confining fabric. She needed movement.

But right now, she also needed a drink. Slipping her way past the gathering of guests, she approached the bar, mumbling lowly her drink of choice.

"I hate these things," she hissed softly, shaking her head before she sipped her drink.

She was too close and too attractive. The mix was maddening. There was a moment when he wondered, truly wondered, if it was Lana's doing. Marcus looked over his broad shoulder, attempted to see if the vixen on Talon's arm had a wicked little smile on her face.

But he couldn't see her. It was just bad luck.

"Me too." He said. A vain attempt to be polite.

Because his prick was already hardening. The great and lewd length of it straightening steadily down the corded stretch of his thigh and straining the confines of his tuxedo's dark slacks. Marcus flexed his hands against the bar's edge and watched as his ebon fingers turned pale around the knuckles. It did no good. His heart drummed violently in his chest and the sound of his pulse filled his ears. She smelled incredibly sweet and the warmth of her so near was a distraction of its own. Of all the places along the bar she'd slid up beside him, found him when Lana was weakening him. The fates were laughing at him.

The torment was endless.

Marcus tried hard not to look. Looking was a step. Even a wayward glance over something so fine could ruin his restraint. It'd shatter him, break down the dignified reserve he desperately clung to. That was him! He had been a Princely man once! The bestial urges buried within the human psyche had once been well within his control.

He turned his head and looked at her. A fair-skinned, porcelain doll of a thing. She was beautiful, strikingly so. She was petite. It was enough. In his mind Marcus could envision her shapely little hips braced in his strong hands and the hard drum of his body as it battered her own. Lust, unabated, surged through him like a fire. The flames of it licked across every synapse, every nerve. Visions of her body bent beneath his, stretched out with feline grace, as his hard length buried itself inside her, made his mouth run dry and his breathing turn low.

"Do you want to get out of here?" A bold invitation. His tone spoke volumes.

Marcus didn't make excuses. He didn't attempt to conceal what drove him. The incredible size of his hard-on would be clear to any eye that looked and the shame of it, the awful shame of it, was overwhelmed by the primal inclinations surging through him. Lana. He'd kill her. If he survived this, if he ever got through it, he'd kill her. He'd strangle the life from her wicked little eyes and watch her perfect, pouted lips turn blue as she slipped away.

But for now there was only this gorgeous, fair-skinned woman beside him and his submission to the powers that drove him. He wanted her. Badly. Now. Away from here. All the restraint, all the desire to say something clever or witty and engage in the slow build and natural conversation that she undoubtedly deserved... it was nothing in the face of his wants. His desires. The maddening grip they had on him making him bolder, quieter, and deadly serious as he lifted the deep brown of his eyes onto her.

He didn't even know her name.

"I'm Marc. Let's get some air."

He'd been slapped. A part of him wished she'd oblige him now. A part of him hoped that she wouldn't indulge him, or herself, in the sultry little game that he was initiating. Maybe, just maybe, if she turned him away he'd survive this night with his dignity (his -real- dignity) intact. Marcus clung to the hope that he was too much a stranger. He hoped that she was afraid of him; a six and a half-foot tall dark-skinned black man. She was a pixie in comparison. A sweet beauty.

But the more he tried to wish for her to deny him, the more he wanted her. The more his thoughts shifted to those lusty images of her beneath him, atop him, and trapped against him. And the more he thought of her, let his eyes find her own, Marcus felt like she'd need this too. Like a shared outlet would help him find some solace in the night's crowd, amidst these people and in the heart of all these politics.

Or so he convinced himself. Because, like any man stricken so, in the end the total submission to the primitive came with justifications.

Talon sighed and watched the room, his mind going back to another time when such powerful, arrogant and dangerous creatures all gathered together. It had been a move of desperation then, the war had decimated each breeds ranks and left them weak, some helpless, others simply sick of it all...

"Thank You all, Ladies and Gentleman, for coming here tonight."

He broke from the waiting game and moved to the center of the room, turning slowly to see where each guest lounged, stood or simply tried to hide, his eyes resting on each until they met them and he could nod or smile to them.

"Look about us at the walls and see the scrolls, the signatures in blood from a time some of you never witnessed but perhaps have heard of....perhaps NOT, what makes it significant is that the treaties become null and void tonight, and each of us have a choice to make once again."

He stood quietly and watched the men and women in the room, knowing with out having to look who the first signature was on the first scroll, and as well who was the second....

"My name is Talon Lafayette and I am your Host tonight, this lovely woman to my side is Ahlana Ver'idian, she's put on this feast and setting for all of us, and her name sits directly below my own on THAT scroll..."

Talon had a flair for the dramatic and enjoyed using it at times, this was one of them, but with a deadly warning and meaning to all in the room including himself...

"Four hundred years ago the strongest, most dangerous survivors of a meaningless war came to another room with one purpose, that being to set aside the differences, to see each other as equals despite any perceived advantage or strength... to admit what we all did was wrong and try over the years to make it RIGHT"

He snapped the last word like a whip and let it echo off the walls and floor, turning slowly once again to see each face and judge if the speech had sunk home.... or not?

"Tonight we're here to repeat history, we choose a path together... we either join together in peace.... or fight each other as enemies, the choice is ours"

He spoke the last words in a level voice, his words never more honest and smile more genuine as his eyes met any and all that looked to him.

"Come, move from your corners and greet each other, forget the differences and suspicions for one night, there are stories we might tell about each other but those too are in the past... we make history tonight and this should be a celebration, a party...a night to revel in simply being alive and with new friends"

He opened his arms and looked about him, offering a hand to any and all bold enough to accept it, or a warm hug to those of the fair sex who might prefer that greeting...

"Shall we?"

Lilith remained against the wall through Talon's speech. Her expression, unflappable, seemingly uncaring. She certainly didn't look as if his words moved her. She knew about the old treaty of course but she hadn't been there to sign it. She had remain neutral during the wars, keeping to herself in her private keep. It would have been too bothersome for humans to find her there and she hadn't disclosed it's location to a non-human in centuries. She'd safely ridden out the storm without issue or problem.

She hadn't seen any reason to get involved.

Now she was caught in the middle of the need for a new treaty and could have cursed the timing. No doubt Talon would keep anyone that didn't sign, here in his damned castle. She'd have to find a way around that, she had no intention of signing anything that would ensnare her in the affairs of this city's denizens...human or non.

Watching him make his rounds through the crowd she stayed against the wall, waiting, letting him come to her. He wasn't her lord, she owed him no allegiance, so she saw no reason to go to him.

When he did, finally make his way to her end of the room, she stepped forward, accepting the hug he had given every other woman who dared his embrace and tilting her head to murmur in his ear, "I'm Lilith, and I seek permission to run my quarry to ground in your territory, Talon."

Simple, to the point, and with the utter assurance that he would know her name without further introduction.

caela said:

Lilith remained against the wall through Talon's speech. Her expression, unflappable, seemingly uncaring. She certainly didn't look as if his words moved her. She knew about the old treaty of course but she hadn't been there to sign it. She had remain neutral during the wars, keeping to herself in her private keep. It would have been too bothersome for humans to find her there and she hadn't disclosed it's location to a non-human in centuries. She'd safely ridden out the storm without issue or problem.

She hadn't seen any reason to get involved.

Now she was caught in the middle of the need for a new treaty and could have cursed the timing. No doubt Talon would keep anyone that didn't sign, here in his damned castle. She'd have to find a way around that, she had no intention of signing anything that would ensnare her in the affairs of this city's denizens...human or non.

Watching him make his rounds through the crowd she stayed against the wall, waiting, letting him come to her. He wasn't her lord, she owed him no allegiance, so she saw no reason to go to him.

When he did, finally make his way to her end of the room, she stepped forward, accepting the hug he had given every other woman who dared his embrace and tilting her head to murmur in his ear, "I'm Lilith, and I seek permission to run my quarry to ground in your territory, Talon."

Simple, to the point, and with the utter assurance that he would know her name without further introduction.

Click to expand...

"NO"

Talon smiled and watched the angels face twitch, then settle into the flawless image it was once again...

"The choice is yours Lilith, either not sign the treaty and wait outside Haven's borders for your prey to come to you, or sign the treaty and agree to abide by the common rules and suffer the consequences."

He knew the power the fallen angel still could draw, knew too that she didn't waste words and so met her on fair, honest ground...

"I won't condemn any in the City to death without fair cause, you're claim to hunt is not valid until I say so on this side of the river, and without the treaty signed by you..."

He smiled softly and offered a hand, his eyes hard but frank in what he offered, his body seemingly relaxed as he waited for her reply... and decision.

"NO"

Lilith felt her lips twitch before her face slid back into the smooth mask of indifference that she usually wore. She listened as he continued to speak without so much as a further twitch of an eyelash. her face revealed nothing of her thoughts, or emotions, nothing of what the angel was thinking.

What she was thinking was that it would be easy enough to kill Talon now, while his hand was offered in, seeming, friendship. The Lord knew she was bristling with weapons. She was never unarmed. It would be easy enough to garrote him, take his head, before anyone could react to it.

All that stopped her was that he wasn't her target.

Upstart child that he was, he was a child with power and the leader of this city. No doubt killing him would throw it into chaos and that wasn't her purpose. She wasn't here to start a war...though she'd been paid to (very nicely) a time or two in the past. It wouldn't be the first time a city's leader had tried to place constraints on her action either.

All that really meant was that she had to be sneakier then usual unless he chose to grant her permission to hunt her prey. Easy enough.

She knew she'd been staring at his offered hand long enough that any human, and most non-humans would have been insulted but at last she reached out and took it. Her grip was firm but not hard, she wasn't trying to get into a pissing contest with him, she'd leave that to men...and shifters. She knew her strength and value and being able to beat him at arm-wrestling didn't factor into her sense of self worth.

"I'll live by your rules while I reside in your city Talon, but I do not live here, asking me to sign your treaty, effectively becoming involved in your politics, is a bit much. I will however sign a short term contract saying I will live by your treaty for as long as I remain here, and should I ever return once my hunt is done. Will that agree with you?"

Talon smiled, knowing that death had once again passed over him,but what was death to a creature who had no soul? Perhaps, he hoped that in some small way the angel before him had a code of honor that might guide her actions.

"By MY rules, and NO death without my consent, that means not taking your prey outside the city as well, correct?"

He defined the agreement and then nodded, knowing she'd not waste time lying, that coming to him was but a formaity and if she chose she'd fulfill her contract then fight, or flee...

"Make yourself at home, I insist, we have rooms for you while you stay in the city, not as heavenly as you were once used to I'm sure but enough to take care of any earthly needs. You can contact me through my assistant Kayla Hayes if it is a minor matter, or visit me directly if it is of importance to you"

He released her hand and bowed slightly, then tuned gracefully to move to the next guest that might approach...

"It is a pleasure to meet you Lilith, come visit me again when it isn't business"

Kayla glanced up as the deep voice echoed its own sentiments, not having realized her grumble was audible to those around her. A faint smile came to her face, not forced- true. Another of her situation? Those employed must accompany those they serve... Or simply a man with his own agenda?

Her eyes narrowed with a stare into her nearing-empty glass. If this was the case, this man should be watched. The treaty was a time of peace, a moment of open arms to all. A chance for those of ill will to take advantage.

She glanced to him once again as he spoke, eying him over.
His own agenda, alright.
She saw what it was now.

Not unless the prospect of peace and good will was that exciting a thing for him.

"I'm Marc. Let's get some air."

She simply purred an agreeing noise at him, peering over her shoulder to the events unfolding. Talon was seemingly without harm, enjoying himself and his revelry in the attention of those around him. A few moments out of this stuffy room, these staring eyes... That would calm her.

Another affirmation, this time in a nod. "Kayla. Let's."

A girl of few words.

Stepping from the bar, she glanced back at him, walking for the door in a stride that knew this path well. This little intermission could lead to many things, she decided. Many, many outcomes raced through her mind. This man would try to kill her. Her blade would finally taste the blood it craved; blood other than her own. This man would try to woo her. Possibly the same outcome as the first scenario. Others, and other still. Some ended nicely, others better than the rest for at least one of them.

Pushing the door open with her hip, she looked at him, this towering fellow over her own short stature. A curious sight to others, no doubt; the contrast between the two.

The sounds of the gathering behind them was muffled by the closing door, Kayla closing her eyes and taking a deep breath as she arched her back. This was better; much better. "Thank you."

The noise of the crowd faded and deep down, beyond it all, some part of him recognized that his intentions had given him a respite from Lana's intoxicating proximity. She moved with a grace he was much familiar with. A sparse sway in her hips, concealed with intent. Kayla had all the makings of a siren. The vision of her movements was enough to set some the sparks rippling through him to blaze. All at once his prick surged against the linen confines of his pants, threatening now. And still, despite it all, he fought. He fought hard to keep control.

The door closed and all at once it was as though the worst of it had passed. The relief was palpable and certain enough, gave him enough respite to gather some thoughts.

But still, she was soft and small. The kind of woman that a man could lift with ease, dominate and claim. He'd never envisioned the primitive means of coupling when he was a boy. It'd always been romance. Sweetness. The kind of loving that a man was meant to give to a wife. Lana had changed that. She'd ruined him. Some how she'd broken the parts of him that made sweetness possible.

She'd taken his ability to stay chaste and pure for his future bride, too.

And she'd stolen his bride.

It took every effort to keep his hand from reaching for her. Instead, he folded his hands together behind his back and kept pace with her.

"Marc," he said. "Who did you come with?"

There was only one "living" soul that called him Marcus with any familiarity. That fact, alone, had nearly driven him to hate the name.

Outside there was only the faint drum of conversations. No laughter. Little ease. Despite Talon's speech, as motivational as any could be given the dynamic, few seemed eager to give his suggestion an immediate effort. Marcus did not doubt that the Mayor would sign. The men of Haven knew well enough to avoid a full-out war. For the elections, for the masses, they waved their fists and beat their podiums.

But the reality of fucking with this side of the river was a grim enough enterprise that Marcus sincerely doubted that any of the Mayor's cabinet considered it a real option. Not now, anyway. In a few years there would be a different story. That was certain. The Mayor's ambition would drive both sides to war in time and when it did Marcus would fight in it.

A consequence of Lana's unhinging of his primal self had been a pleasure for bloodshed he'd never remembered feeling so strongly. He had always been the professional. Cold. Efficient. Balanced. But now, now things had changed. Now, inside himself, he felt a hunger for every evil act his hands committed. Lana turned corruption into a disease and played Typhoid Mary.

And he just couldn't get free of her.

"By MY rules, and NO death without my consent, that means not taking your prey outside the city as well, correct?"

Here she looked at him once more. He was going to make a straightforward hunt complicated. It had been a long time since she'd dealt with complicated, it could be an interesting change for a time. And when it was no longer amusing...well she would follow her own rules above his at that point.

"Agreed, though if my prey leaves the city on their own business, I will follow and complete mine. If they are outside your protection of their own free will all bets are off, but while they reside under your grace I'll play by your rules."

It was as good an offer as he was going to get from her. They both knew that she hadn't had to come to him at all. She could have simply slipped into the city like a wraith, done her job, and left, leaving behind only the body, and her signature letting to the leader of the City thanking him for his hospitality in her hunt. He would never have known she was there.

Holding his gaze she waited and when he offered her rooms in his own castle her eyes did widen slightly. It was spoken as an offer of hospitality but it wasn't a question. She'd known enough rulers to know when she was being given a polite order. He wanted to keep and eye on Death...she didn't blame him, but it was annoying.

Who did this upstart child think he was compared to a being of her age and lineage?

It didn't matter, she was in his lands and her own code of honour dictated she abide by his laws unless he was her prey...and he wasn't.

"Rooms would be lovely," she managed to say, her voice soft and gracious, but there was a steel edge to it, sharp and glittering, and promising danger, if one was listening closely enough.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Lilith, come visit me again when it isn't business"

"Perhaps I will, when my own business is done."

Watching him set to mingle with the crowd once more, she had to wonder if her prey was in this room. It was possible. She, however, wasn't dressed for a party. This was something that was easy enough to fix.

She felt no compunction to hide the use of her powers, she had them, they were there to be used. A slight haze seemed to form around her body and the leathers she had been wearing melted away, seeming to be absorbed into her skin leaving her bare for only the briefest moments until a blood-red sheath formed around her body, trailing to her ankles where a pair of strappy heels had formed on her feet. Much more festive and suitable for a party. She simply left her tumble-down mane of loose chestnut curls to fall across her back as she moved away from the wall to mingle more with the crowd in the room.

Perhaps she'd find some amusement even if she didn't find her prey this night.

Loren had been troubled by curiosity the whole way home. Dreamborn may not suffer the frailties of the flesh as easily as mortals, but the frailties of the soul... well, to those, they are perhaps even weaker. The sounds of the party, the beautiful clothes on the ones going in, they called to her. She would have to make a return, and swiftly...

When one is as honest, and as gorgeous, as Loren, getting ready for a party is a very simple matter. Already accustomed to two-minute showers by virtue of a water tank too small for twenty six people, Loren worked just a little unnecessary magic with her hair and eyes as she slid into a long-sleeved, low-necked, exceedingly clingy black velvet dress. It cupped her breasts like a lover, slid slickly and possessively around those small, tight hips. Even if Loren had been the sort to think herself beautiful- which she wasn't- she would have been pleased with the picture of black and bone-white she presented. Dream had taken its hold, her hair taking on a black so deep, so brilliant that it danced violet in the light- save for the damned streak, of course, as pristine white as ever- and her eyes, still hidden behind those horrid little contacts, held an unnatural but not unattractive glitter, a promise, a lure to tell her all your deepest wishes and most sordid dreams.

Just one last matter. As Loren readied herself to leave, she stopped in one of the bedrooms, finding its occupants deeply asleep. One of them, Henry, had quickly become a secret favorite of Loren's. He was an older man, pudgy and round and amiable, like everyone's favorite grandpa. He had been a sailor, a poet, a member of the Merrymakers, an all-around fascinating soul. When Loren needed a lift, she asked Henry for a story. Tonight, she would take from him a dream.

Her palm rested lightly on his forehead in a soothing gesture as she gathered the sleeping man's joy, his fond memory recast broad and true on the cinema of his subconscious. It brought a smile to her lips as she soaked in the Dream, though she blushed as well- apparently, Henry had known some truly -flexible- women in his youth. Loren never took enough Dream to wake her subject, unless, of course, that was her goal. Just enough to feel refreshed, to sparkle in that maddeningly inscrutable way.

And off. A rare indulgence in a taxi ferried her to the edge of the bridge- no driver from this side of the river would go further. Of course, Loren didn't need him to. She submitted to a cursory search, though honestly, if she had had a weapon under that dress, you could have seen it from twenty yards out.

With a slow, befittingly awed walk, Loren made her way into the hall, just in time to hear Talon's speech. An interesting man, with admirable goals... it were his methods, then, that may draw her concern. Too many in this hall cast dark, sickening Dream at her, and she blinked hard to steady herself, calling on the loveliness she'd soaked in from Henry to fortify her in a room stuffed to the brim with Vampires, Werewolves and... and things she could not name, and wouldn't even if she knew what to call them.

Champagne flute in hand, Loren moved toward a table, wanting badly to sit down. Finding one occupied by an... underdressed, perhaps, but certainly comfortable looking fellow, she rested a pale hand on the back of a chair and offered Deagan one of her most time-honored seductions- a bright, even, slightly too-small smile, a smile of mystery and promise and reticent lust. "May I join you?"

His eyes wandered around slowly, taking in all who had arrived, the scents mixing and mingling on the air. Ken took the time, sorting through the different scents, matching them with the bodies they belonged to. Wolf, angel, vampire, and a few others he associated with. Huffing slightly he cleared his nose of the scents he had taken in and looked as a voice caught his attention.

"Thank You all, Ladies and Gentleman, for coming here tonight. Look about us at the walls and see the scrolls, the signatures in blood from a time some of you never witnessed but perhaps have heard of....perhaps NOT, what makes it significant is that the treaties become null and void tonight, and each of us have a choice to make once again."

Ken let his eyes wander over to where the Vampire pointed, his eyes taking in the scrolls hanging on the wall, his eyes narrowing, zoning in he idly read the names on the scroll clear as day from across the room. His ears however had zoned in and where listening, seemingly not paying attention but his ears where.

"My name is Talon Lafayette and I am your Host tonight, this lovely woman to my side is Ahlana Ver'idian, she's put on this feast and setting for all of us, and her name sits directly below my own on THAT scroll... Four hundred years ago the strongest, most dangerous survivors of a meaningless war came to another room with one purpose, that being to set aside the differences, to see each other as equals despite any perceived advantage or strength... to admit what we all did was wrong and try over the years to make it RIGHT"

Ken's eyes rolled at the vampires attempt at dramatics, although he had to admit Talon did have a point when it came what the scrolls meant. But even in his centurys he knew if even quietly that both sides still knew a war was coming, and with that war they were preparing, each side had their spies, each side their soldiers, the peace between the races was fickle if anything. Just from the jobs, hired by both sides Kennedy knew or at least suspected the peace wouldnt last, not for another 400 years, tensions where too high

"Tonight we're here to repeat history, we choose a path together... we either join together in peace.... or fight each other as enemies, the choice is ours. Come, move from your corners and greet each other, forget the differences and suspicions for one night, there are stories we might tell about each other but those too are in the past... we make history tonight and this should be a celebration, a party...a night to revel in simply being alive and with new friends"

Ken raised the glass he had taken when he entered, a toast in agreement he finished the liquid in the glass and set it down, as Talon came around Kennedy stuck out his hand and took the vampires Firmly, their eyes meeting, that piercing yellow gaze holding Talons for seconds before Kennedy Looked away, a sign that, at least for now, he accepted Talon as the Master of the City as the Vampire moved away kens golden yellow gaze moved about the room. With a huff he moved over to the scroll, his right hand moving up he gently traced his fingers over the delicate parchment, flexing his hand a single finger, his pointer finger, trailed down his left wrist, the nail turned claw drawing blood he leaned down, and signed his name with that blood stained claw.

Lifting his wrist to his mouth he licked the wound and healed it, tasting his own blood after so long his eyes drifted Closed for seconds before opening again, his name was signed in blood, turning he moved to Talon once more

"It is done Talon, " he looked around "i seek Lodgings, and can pay well for them, " his eyes this time Held Talons as he awaited an answer

Lana Ver'idian

Eyes lit on Deagan, that defiant glint in his eye and sensual smirk caressing his lips on down to the crossed muddied old boots he slapped down on twelve hundred count ecru white tablecloths, and found it rather amusing. The cockiness in the room alone was enough to dampen any panty within range to view two such hot specimens of maleness. Tonight was going to be a trial all of it’s own with simply keeping her hands to herself.

A toast to Deagan and she followed silently behind Talon as they made their way down the short flight of stair between dining room and entry. His speech pretty bland, she had heard it a few times already. Perhaps she should suggest to his little personal assistant to rewrite some of these things for him as he was slacking off.

And then the angel entered and everything within Lana stilled, calm for the first time in hours as her eyes followed those sleek legs and tight ass around the room. Natural enemies, if she was not a fallen creature, but Lilith was still deadly… and all knew it. Why was she here within their sanctuary? Ears listened as eyes followed, boldly letting the angel know she was watching as well as listening.

Moving about the room, she kept within range of hearing as Talon and Lilith spoke, firing words back and forth as they negotiated what was permissible and what was not. It rattled Lana a little that he would dismiss a known assassin so easily, and allow Lilith to sign a smaller document stating the same damn thing? What was the difference between her name on a scroll hanging on a wall and her name on a paper in a filing cabinet? Silly, but then again, the angel never made much sense … nor had Lilith ever cared to. It made no difference, although the beauty did show more than a bit of ankle in changing her clothing to suit the occasion. A smile as the heat flared once more within Lana, a knowing smile tugging her face as she spied the revealing wardrobe change. Perhaps the fallen one was bi-curious? A question Lana could ask if they crossed paths during her visit to Blood Haven.

His scent lingered long after he left, but she knew where he play as well as just how much he hated her. His aura so vibrant and sensual, so dark and brooding whenever she drew near. Lined with silver and flaring hotly with need for Lana’s ‘special sauce’. Eyes drew to the door him and the little one had exited through, the desire strong within her to go watch him plow those tight little fields until she begged off and limped away. Poor Marcus… Poor, Poor Marcus… How he hated so … brutally.. Almost as good as his fucking. Who knew hate sex would feel so fucking good?

Again her body spiked hot, her pheromones radiating around her and mingling with her already potent aura. A brief thought of Lilith came to mind, trying to picture just how saintly the fallen one would behave with a little demon juice pumping through her dried up husk body. The visual so amusing, a soft chuckle came unbidden from Lana’s lips. Sipping her wine, she shook hands as the variations of the gang bang danced in her mind. Sin was so much fun, but how far had she fallen and why was Lana so curious all of the sudden?

Perhaps it was due to the inactivity lately. All the men parading around, all dressed to the nines and the women present.. Pretending just like her, to be ladies of breeding and behavior. Behind closed doors… We’re all just sluts.

Speaking of eye candy….

Redgrave.

Eyes found the pure looking vampire, he stood out so damned loudly, how could she have missed his arrival?! Damn, she was growing lax in her attention. Damn hormones and fallen angels, but then again she really did enjoy her hormones … and maybe she’d enjoy the angel too? Smiling, she made her way slow and casually towards her newly arrived distraction. He never did give it up, always out of play and too busy… Maybe he had an aversion to succubae? Whatever it was that kept him from her bed, she was definitely going to find out.

After all, Who ever told her no for long?

Glaring a moment as one single name came to mind, she pushed the thoughts of him away and focused on the face of Isaac. “Good evening Mr. Redgrave, I see you have decided to join us.” She held out her hand to him waiting for the greeting before continuing. “I am hoping you have something…” She paused, her eyes roaming him face for a moment, thoughts invading yet again, “Interesting for my bedroom in that little shop of yours?”

IC: Deagan Roarke

The newcomer, the gorgeous woman who smelled like power barely constrained had drawn Talon like a magnet draws iron filings. Roarke had watched them walk off in conversation.

Another werewolf was signing the treaty. Roarke could tell, he was a werewolf because his scent was so clearly...similar...but purer...more potent than his own or any of his pack. Werewolves had a very distinct scent-at least to another werewolf, but this one smelled more...well purer. Could he be one of those crazy purebreeds Mykos had told him of. Without a pack of their own they were vulnerable out there in the human world all alone. Werewolves like dogs were social, pack oriented, creatures.

On the other hand he may be mistaken about the lonewolf. The amount of pheremones Lana was pumping into the air from being surrounded by so many people of power was quite distracting after all. The poor woman had already been worked up as she and Talon had more than likely played their usual game of sexual chicken before entering the filled audience hall of Talon's castle. Now as she swooped onto Redgrave, the resident black marketeer of Blood Haven, like a hawk would to a mouse in a field somewhere.

He watched her with him for a moment, a small pang of jealousy being felt.

Why? He had no claim on Lana. She was Talon's paramour, and thus none of his concern, but..., she was with Redgrave. He most certainly understood the emotion that Vampire struck in him. Word was that Redgrave would sell arms to anyone with money including the universally despised HLM, the butcherous cowards that had decimated Roarke's pack and taken his father from him.

Then another scent was brought to his attention an ephimeral scent, subtly shifting every second to defy definition. A woman approached laying a hand on the back of the chair beside him saying, "May I join you?"

"I know you, I've seen you around before. You go by the name of Loren, right?" Roarke blinked as she sat down suddenly feeling overdressed next to the stunning woman dressed to the nines at his table now. He had dressed this way to piss off Talon, not to look like a jerk next to a woman who didn't need such an implication. He quickly pulled his feet off the table and sat up straight. "Uh, yeah," He answered, "No one else is at this table."