genessia | Shirtless in Seattle (er, Genessia) [Open

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Shirtless in Seattle (er, Genessia) [Open | Action]

[The setting: A small, well-kept park, one with lots of trees ringing it and a nice selection of flower beds. In the center, a fountain; surrounding it, a paved surface wide enough to drive a horse and buggy around.]

[On that paved surface, a man, average height, white hair, startlingly white skin. Bare from the waist up, wearing baggy pants and athletic tape to protect his feet and hands from the rough surface. He's currently in the middle of what looks like an intricate dance - one that involves rather a lot of kicking, spinning, and wide, arcing movements. There's a portable radio playing a bass-heavy track on repeat; one can watch long enough to see him repeating the pattern in time with that song, provided they don't get close enough for him to notice.]

[His repetition isn't perfect, but it's good. Better than one would expect from a human who had only been practicing a couple weeks, anyway. Good enough that you can see where his partner in this 'dance' would be. Watch a little longer and you might notice he's doing things that don't strictly adhere to the laws of physics - movements just a little too sharp, a little too free from the forces of friction, and generally not quite normal. Watch him long enough to see him come to a stop, and you might notice the scars. There are quite a lot of them, from puncture and slashing wounds - some of them in locations that should have been fatal.]

[Do you approach the shirtless albino? Or do you watch from afar and wait til he notices you?]

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[Rip had been out for a walk after being in an apartment for so long. The huntress just needed a breath of fresh air really and it just so happens her feet took her towards the sound of heavy bass music.

She came to a stop under a near by tree and watched the man move to the music. Even from here she could tell it was some kind of training even if she didn't know what for. But, what caught her attention were just how sharp a few of those moves were. Definitely not normal and that's what really kept her interest along with the scars.

Now it was a matter of seeing if he noticed her. Rip knew better than to interrupt someone in the middle of a practice like this and she really did NOT feel like being attacked tonight.]

[It really is a pretty repetitive pattern, once you stop to examine it - it's clear he hasn't been practicing the art for very long. Still, it's pretty to watch, in that sort of 'This could probably be used to kill someone' kind of way.

After another full cycle, he winds down, hitting 'stop' on the player and grabbing a towel. Not that he needs it; he has yet to break a sweat. Yet another checkmark on the 'probably not human' list, if Rip's keeping score. Hell, he's not even breathing hard.

It's when he goes to take a slug from the bottle of water that he finally notices Rip, standing off at a distance, in the shadow of that tree. The overhead lights are pretty good here, but the foliage over there is dense so it's a pretty deep shadow. Once he spots her, he notices the vaguely cold aura he's come to associate with vampires - having basically lived with three of them for the past several months, he's gotten much better at spotting them.

This presents a bit of a quandary. Not being a full vampire himself, he could be in some danger if she wants to attack; true, he has a really deep bag of tricks, but he doesn't have his coat on, so the entirety of his armory is out of reach. Just his hands, feet, and a few thousand demon souls. Why, he's practically naked!

However, she hasn't attacked. And doesn't appear to be preparing to; she was just... kind of staring. At him. With his shirt off. Cue a blush bright enough that it could probably be seen in the dark.]

[So he did notice her. Rip had been doing the mental tally of all the things that screamed 'not human' that he did and there were quite a few. Which, was why she was keeping her distance at the moment. He read as...similar to Augustine to her senses. Vampire, but different at the same time. However, the other she found undeniably attractive.

This one? She was wary and very curious.

Rip was trying her best to be in control of herself and on her best behavior for the most part so for once, attacking a stranger wasn't even remotely on her mind. What she was interested in, was seeing what other kinds of vampires lurked within the various cities of this place. So far, she wasn't disappointed.

But, since he took notice of her, she gradually moved away from the trees and came forward. She was wary, but curious as she came to a stop several feet away and still hiding in the shadows. If he tried to attack her, she'd defend herself or attempt to run. Simple as that. ]

Good Afternoon, hope I wasn't disturbing anything.

[He slings the towel around his neck, an unconscious duplication of his coat's fur ruff, and caps the water bottle. Little time-buying movements, allowing him to lose the blush. Showing weakness to a predator is a good way to get bitten, after all.]

Nothing important, at least at the moment. You've caught me at a breaking point, anyway.

[Her accent is... strange. It takes his brain a moment to place it. German? Certainly somewhere in that family of languages, at least. She could be from an entirely different world, though; much like Anya and her pseudo-French.]

Was there something you needed? [He's certainly trying to be polite. How does one address an unfamiliar vampire? 'My blood is not for sale or trade'? 'Want to go grab a cup of Type A'? 'Bring out your demons and fight me'? 'Care for a spot of tea'? Soma clearly isn't sure.]

Ah, sorry. My name's Soma. Yours?

[At least he was wary of the predator she was and was guarding against, something Rip noticed and found slightly amusing as she watched his little time stalling movements with a faint smile. Did she set him on edge just by standing there? How strange! And here she hadn't done anything to make anyone worry about her, yet.

...Not that she intended to. Rip was always walking that tight rope of control, even now. Though, if he had made any of those offers, she would have laughed...and then probably backed away at the offer of bringing demons out to fight. Sorry, but she wasn't quite that kind of vampire.]

Not particularly, I vas vandering and curious vhen I heard the music.

[She shrugged slightly and even slipped a hand in her pocket. See? She was practically harmless!]

Rip van Winkle. It's a pleasure to meet you Soma. Zo, vhat vere you practicing? I don't think I've zeen anything like it before.

[Hand in pocket. Harmless. Yeah. Let him put on his coat and he can give a demonstration of just exactly how wrong that notion is. Still, it's a gesture - and gestures are about all you can get, when both participants in a conversation are capable of murder without giving normal people time to blink. And trust him, he was glad she wasn't the demon-summoning type.]

Capoeira. Brazilian kickboxing; I've been using it as a way to focus past the... urges. [No sense in playing dumb, now. She almost certainly knows what he is.] It helps, some... but it also accelerates the condition.

[He plops down on the edge of the fountain, not caring in the least about the miniscule amount of spray that might hit his back.] Rip van Winkle? As in the guy who slept for twenty years?

[At least they knew better than to try and hash out which of them was the stronger vampire in broad daylight. Though, she had a sneaking suspicion that in a fight she would loose and that was enough to quell her from attempting. Strangely enough, she was finding more of an advantage to get along with others of her kind here than antagonize them..like she tended to do with most other people.

Then again, she did have a fair amount of distractions and reasons not to be...horrible.]

Hm..I probably should haf paid more attention vhen I vas in Brazil zhen. I vonder how I missed seeing such an interesting fighting style.

[She watched him sit and didn't move from her spot in the shadows for the most part. Rip was fully content holding a conversation with a little distance between them just to be safe. Though his question does get a slight wince and a long suffering sigh.]

Yes, only it vas fifty years for me and I'm obviously a voman. I swear zhat question vill haunt me for zhe rest of eternity.

It was developed by African slaves preparatory to overthrowing their keepers. The art is still practiced, but it's not as widespread as it could be. [He uncaps the bottle again, but doesn't drink. It's not like water is helping to curb the thirst any. He sets the bottle aside, and begins unwrapping his hands.]

Well, better it's out of the way now than the awkward wait for someone to put two and two together. I'm sorry if it's a sore subject. I assume you prefer Rip over van Winkle? Or is there another name by which you would prefer to be addressed?

If it's not as wide spread, zhen no vonder I missed it. [She shrugged slightly and glanced towards the fountain to study it for a few moments while he drank. Somehow, she doubted whatever he was drinking would actually satisfy him considering she didn't catch the scent of blood from anywhere near them.]

It's not so much a sore subject az an annoying one vhenever anyone hears my name and haz heard of that particular story. Thankfully, it doesn't happen az often az you might think.

[She turned her gaze back to him when he asked what her preferred name was and smiled slightly. At least he was courteous enough to ask.]

Rip vorks fine. It's my name after all and I'm curious about something. Vhy are you drinking vater? Even if zhe practices helps you focus, vouldn't it be better to haf zomething that helps take zhe edge off?

[Soma stares at the water bottle for a moment after she asks. Why does he abstain from blood?]

Because I'm afraid. [Of what, though? He doesn't seem keen to elaborate. Getting the answers to that question will take a little more prodding.]

[That makes her pause and wonder why he even admitted such an obvious weakness to a predator he barely knew. At various points in her life, she would have jumped on that information and used it to torment him...

However, Rip liked living and had gained a little bit of a self-preservation instinct in the last couple of years, thankfully.]

Of vat? If you don't mind me azking.

[Though, she might have a few guesses if he was abstaining. Like perhaps hurting others. A notion she still found ridiculous.]

Of losing control. Both of myself, and my power. That's... kind of the whole idea behind this, really. [He makes a vague gesture, meant to indicate his capoeira practice.] Meditation through movement. Sort out things in my head while my body does something physically repetitive but engaging.

[He sighs, and very nearly crushes the bottle by accident. Not that it's a terribly sturdy bottle to start with - it's a water bottle, after all. But the crinkle of plastic is enough to make him realize what he's doing before he can soak himself.]

It doesn't seem to be helping very much.

[Her eyes flickered to the bottle when she heard the crunching crinkle of plastic while she contemplated what he was saying. She supposed, she wasn't the only vampire with that issue of control. Just compared to others she wasn't as powerful...just bloodthirsty and tended to leave her own wake of destruction and blood when she did.]

Obviously.

[She sighed softly.]

Zhen find something zhat does vork. For me, hunting animals und having lovers, people...to care about seems to help as long as I can manage to keep myself vell fed.

[For now anyway. Rip was always dancing that fine line.]

[At least she doesn't have to worry about losing her soul and going on to murder her friends afterwards. Being Dracula's reincarnation and a candidate for his position as Lord of Shadows is kind of a sucky job.]

I take transfusions once a month from a hospital in Everglade. They knock the edge off - but it's lasting less and less between visits. Physical exertion used to help... and there's not really anyone here I'd consider taking as a... lover. [He may have just blushed hard enough to start fires.]

[No, she just has to worry about loosing control and killing people which in turn would get herself killed one way or another. Lets just say she has experience with that particular situation and wants to avoid repeats in her new home.]

Vat is it about ozher vampires and getting all embarrassed by zhe lover's suggestion?

[Obviously he wasn't the first one to blush at her 'helpful' suggestion.]

Vouldn't it be better to find zomeone villing to share zheir blood vith you? Especially if zhe transfusions aren't vorking zhat vell anymore?

[...it sounded logical to her anyway...]

Because if I go over fully to vampirism, if I willingly give up the last shreds of my humanity, I'm not sure I'll be able to keep what little of my sanity is left. And me going off the rails would be bad. Not just for me, not just for my friends, for everyone. I have a demon in my head, Rip. One that wants nothing more than to break free, destroy humanity and put God Himself to the sword. Complete, total annihilation. Hatred incarnate. I do not want to become that person.

[She's listening and part of her was finding it funny that he was telling HER this. Rip fully embraced her inhuman nature and her version of insanity and bloodlust that went with it.

One might even argue there was no humanity left within her. And yet, she was...controlling herself for the sake of the ones she loved and adored. Everyone else she would willingly slaughter.]

It zeems zhat among vampires, I am a rarity vhen it comes to zhe lack of literal demons vithin my head. Or zhe fact zhat I gave up on my humanity a very long time ago.

It probably wouldn't put you any more at ease to know that there isn't just one. There are hundreds. Maybe thousands. I lost count... some time ago.

[He sighs, frustrated.]

Speaking as a vampire... what would you recommend, to someone who really, really needs to keep his head together, even if he does end up turning to blood? I know that most of our kind would simply say to embrace the night...

[....No that didn't put her at ease in the slightest and might even make her a little wary of him. ]

Vell, embracing vat you are does help... und finding outlets to bleed off zhe bloodlust.

[At least that's what she's found over the last three years.]

I hunt animals vhen I can und find ozher creative outlets to bleed off zome of zhe lust. But, I alzo never allow myzelf to go hungry. To do zo vould be...disasterous for me.

Hobbies and feeding. [He sighs, and folds his arms.] It always comes back to blood. I guess... I really don't have a lot of options, anymore. Nothing is working like it used to. Not since we fought him.

Nozhing ever lasts long term vhen you are fighting zhe very zhing you need to survive. Vhich is vhy I don't fight it.

[She shrugged slightly. Why bother fighting her need for blood? It would only make thing worse in the long run for her if she did.]

Oh? Vho did you fight?

Were you around when it rained blood in Everglade? I fought the guy who caused that - Vlad Tepes Dracula. Actually... some allies of mine fought him, while I went after the source of his power. I beat that, and they wounded him pretty severely. Enough to make him come to his senses, and realize that it really was his wife that had arrived, not some clever homunculus. The last he had ever seen of her... was her ashes, the remnants of being unjustly burned at the stake as a witch.

[She shook her head. Rip hadn't been there when it rained blood and trust her, that was something she wouldn't have forgotten. But, the moment he mention's that name, Rip perks up and might have a slightly fond smile on her lips for a brief moment before hearing the rest of what Soma had to say.]

Vell, if zhat vas zhe last time he saw his vife, I can't blame him for being upset. But, I zuppose it's a good zhing you vere able to bring him to his senses again, even if it vas by attacking him.

[Incidentally, she doesn't seem bothered by that in the slightest.]

But, vhy vould fighting zhe source of hiz power cause you problems? I get zhe demons in your head zhing, vhich...I am beginning to vonder if zhat's normal for vampires und I'm just zhe odd one out.

[Which wouldn't surprise her. Her own creation wasn't exactly...normal.]

Zhen again, I suppose you vould haf to be powerful in your own right to beat zhe source of hiz power, right?

Dracula - the one in Everglade, mind you, not the one who sings - and I have... quite a lot in common. We're from the same world, and he's the source of my curse. We use the same powers. So when I exposed myself to the source, it's possible I absorbed some of that power - or accidentally added myself to the recipients list, so to speak. That... would explain a lot, actually.

[He frowns, deep in thought. If he had somehow gotten 'added' to the heart of Chaos's power stream, then there was bound to be a lot more power at his disposal. Power he wasn't using, as Vlad was forced to use his to maintain the castle. It all made a terrible kind of sense.]

That smug son of a bitch. He knew this would happen. He had to.

I figured it vasn't Augustine.

[She'd like to think she knew one of her lovers well enough by now to know he wasn't capable of what Soma was describing. But, she was curious to hear that he was like Dracula and somehow had similar powers. Call it a personal interest of hers. ]

Does it? How can you be zo sure?

[She settled to lean against a tree with arms crossed in front of her. To her, this conversation just got a lot more interesting.]

How does one even haf ze same powers az him? Are you related zomehow?

Yeah, no; Augustine is a peach compared to Vlad. You could say he's my ancestor. There's a lot more to it than that, but that's all I'm comfortable saying right now. I... sort of inherited the powers, after he was killed. And the curse that goes with them. Only, with him being here, the source doesn't know which of us it's supposed to feed... so it seems to be going for both of us. This is all guesswork at the moment, but it fits the circumstances.

[He starts to lean back, but the chill spray of the fountain reminds him that would probably be a bad idea.]

If what I suspect is indeed what's happening, I really need to go talk to the old man. He'll probably be pissed off at me if he wasn't expecting it from the start; he does not like it when people play with his things.

Augustine is a peach compared to most vampires I know.

[Which might be part of why she liked him. Not that she was going to mention to much about that. Instead, she was listening to Soma and finding herself more than a little amused by his speculation. ]

Vell, if you go talk to Dracula, can I tag along? I really should say hello in person zometime.

You can, but I can't guarantee he'll speak to you. He can be somewhat reclusive at times... and at other times, he's a bit of an ass. He's mellowed out a bit since Lisa got here, but he's still not what I'd call a nice person. Meet me at the Cloak and Dagger shop around eight in the evening, say... three days from now?

I zhink I can handle myself if he doesn't vish to see me.

[Though, she was still a little amused.]

Zhen three days from now it iz.

[ Konoka is more of the approaching type.

She was en route to her patrol in Fayren, being one of its deputies, but seeing someone train reminds her of several people at home, and thus figures injuries would be on the way. She can't tell if they can regenerate at a glance... but those scars told otherwise. And those inhuman movements and marks told her that she was likely dealing with someone stronger than they look. ]

Hey!

[ She calls out to him. Something about him feels just the slightest bit familiar too. ]

[Most of those injuries happened before he became functionally immortal, but she has no real way of knowing either of those details. He doesn't regenerate unless he wants to, but he can heal some pretty gnarly wounds nowadays.

She catches him near the end of a set, purely by coincidence. As he winds out of the last roundhouse kick, he's barely breathing hard; certainly not hard enough to be human, after an exertion like that.]

Oh, uh, hi! Be with you in a moment... [He says, as he quickly grabs his towel to sling around his shoulders. In absence of a shirt, it's at least SOME covering for his overly prudish side.]

[ Her guesses on 'what' he is are at best wild conjecture, so she doesn't dwell on it. ]

An interesting place for you to train. Wouldn't you prefer a gym, where equipment could help?

[ If he had open wounds, she would heal those, but it was so far looking doubtful. ]

Most gyms don't have equipment suitable for someone with my strength, and I prefer to avoid the ones that do because of the clientele they usually attract. Last time I tried, I got into a fist fight with a werewolf.

[He does have some minor scrapes and cuts from the pavement, but they're not in any way dangerous-looking. Just the kind of injuries you'd expect from someone performing full contact acrobatic maneuvers on pavement.]

Oh! That's too bad.

[ Though instincts nagged her to heal those anyway, she decided using her power like this might seem condescending. Instead, Konoka decided to approach another subject. ]

So do you train all the time, or is this something more recent? I'm more of a mage myself, but I do like to jog to keep my stamina up.

It's more recent. I'm trying to keep my mind occupied, keep it off of... other things. [Like buying a keg of blood and installing a tap on it. Little things.]

It isn't really working, though. It helps until I stop, but then the thirst is worse than before.

I see.

[ Thirst? Konoka wonders about that. She's heard that use of term from vampires before. ]

If you have certain tastes, then what's wrong with going to Everglade?

[ She knows a whole litany of problems, but it will tell her a lot on which one he lists first... if he bothers to. ]

Because I don't want to lose what little humanity I have left. I live in Everglade, and I go to the hospital there for monthly transfusions. They aren't helping anymore.

[He's got a whole litany of reasons why he doesn't want to drink blood, but the primary one is all about humanity.]

Humanity.

[ Konoka frowned and looked thoughtful. ]

Ah, I wish I understood more about vampires. At least, the ones who want to live among humans, to better help them. Eva-chan is kinda tight-lipped about her nature... but then again, she's also on a completely different power level.

[ As if coming to a decision, Konoka nodded. ]

If I can, I'll consult someone on what might be making you... thirstier, I take it?

Eva-chan? I don't think I know anyone by that name - with or without the honorific. As for power... I have rather more of it than I ever wanted. If your friends can help me, then by all means, contact them. I'm getting tired of fighting just to stay afloat.

Oh!

Evangeline is someone I know. I just call her Eva-chan to be cheeky. A very strong vampire who surprisingly doesn't cause a lot of trouble! I'll consult her.

In the meantime, please hang in there.

[ He's not the first person that Konoka has wanted to consult help for. Maybe she needs to start taking more lessons from Eva. ]

[Great. Another super vampire. Just what he needs. Between this Evangeline and Dracula, he has a feeling his life is about to get very difficult. But the die is cast, now.]

I'll try. Maybe I can step up the transfusions in the meantime; they worked for a while, maybe making them more frequent will help me hold out longer.

Alright then.

[ Konoka gave a nod. ]

We'll keep in touch, Mister...

[ Oh. Never even introduced themselves by name. Whoops. ]

Oh wait! I didn't even introduce myself! I'm Konoka Konoe.

It would be somewhat difficult to keep in contact without knowing each other's names, huh. [He cracks a genuine smile for the first time since they've met.] Soma Cruz. Just Soma is fine, no 'mister' needed. I'm not all that much older than you look; I just graduated from high school.

Wow.

[ Konoka's short, so she might also appear a little more childish than she actually was. ]

Soma then!

Yeah, so did I. Feels forever ago though!

[Five minutes, Marc Spector had told himself. Five minutes of shuteye on this park bench. That's all a body needs after a night fighting muggers and gangbangers. Then he'd he'd take a sip of his (aptly branded) Moonbucks Americano and make his way back to Stone Ridge for some real sleep.]

Ah, crap.

[One hour later, the beats and thumps of an awfully familiar bass-heavy track rouse him from old dreams of dying in the Sudanese desert. Groaning, Marc dusts some fallen snow off his shoulders before turning around in his seat. Any irritation he would've felt at being woken up like this is quickly replaced by recognition and pride. It's been about a month since Soma had started coming to Sand Gym, and it looks like he can't get enough of what he's been learning.]

[Smiling, the aging ex-mercenary waits for a break in his routine then cups his hands to his mouth. Not that he has any illusions; from what Soma had told him before, Marc's pretty sure the boy had already been informed of his presence.]

That's what a month gets you! Think of where you'll be in two!

Edited 2018-04-01 13:56 (UTC)

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Shirtless in Seattle (er, Genessia) [Open | Action]

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Meant to tag this much sooner! orz