The wakey-wake thread (pre-dawn Sun. 4/1/07, Leo/Jocelin)

[Detritus]

As your cognitive faculties ramp their way up to full efficiency, you notice that you're lying flat on your back upon a large table, and that you're naked. Jocelin lies between Leo to her left and Antoinette to her right. Antoinette hasn't yet begun to stir.

A glowing hemisphere surrounds you, and it is difficult to tell what lies beyond it. You aren't injured, nor do you feel thirsty, which comes as a bit of a surprise to Leo in particular.

It dawns on you that there are others with you, all of whom are unclothed. Rebekka, Sarah, Sabine, Camille, and Anneke all are there. Sarah's hair is a nondescript brown instead of its usual magenta. Anneke's glass eye is missing.

Completely unconcerned with her nudity, Rebekka comes to you and positions herself between your heads.

"Welcome back to the waking world. How do you feel? What do you remember?"

[Huxley]

"Failure" The word comes out more like a cough, dry, rasp, and guilty.

((OOC: Are the others with us, Rebekka and co, laying on the table too?))

[Detritus]

((OOC: Are the others with us, Rebekka and co, laying on the table too?))
((No, it's just Leo, Jocelin, and Antoinette lying on the table.))

[Huxley]

((OK, cool))

Leo sits up, and looks at Anneke, thinking of his dream. He glances back at his companions: "Menachem and Jack are not here. How did we survive?"

[Detritus]

((OK, cool))

Leo sits up, and looks at Anneke, thinking of his dream. He glances back at his companions: "Menachem and Jack are not here. How did we survive?"
Rebekka and Anneke both breathe in to answer your question, when they look at each other and stop. The same tension you noticed between them on Mr. Johnson's boat is there again. Camille seems to side with Anneke, and the other Tremere with Rebekka, during this brief confrontation. After a moment, Anneke dips her head slightly and permits Rebekka to answer.

"Samantha made certain demands after your visit to her manor. Eventually, Arcadian acceded to engage in a duel with her, but only if she released his agents.

"Samantha seemed to have a very strong hold on Menachem, somehow. Technically, I suppose you could say he defected, but I do not believe he was acting completely of his own accord in the matter. The rest of you were returned unconscious."

Rebekka falters, lowering her eyes, and Anneke speaks into the silence, in a voice barely above a whisper.

"It was my sad duty to report to Gwynnis, Justicar Toreador, that Arcadian Walsh, Justicar Malkavian, was destroyed in a legal duel with Samantha Drake, member of Clan Malkavian, shortly after midnight on March 31, 2007.

"I grieve for your loss," Anneke says to you. "I do not know what I would do, were my Sire and Regnant to be destroyed."

After a momentary pause, Anneke says, "Jack is nearby, in one of Prince Johnson's secondary havens. He is safe."

[Kalzazz]

Jocelin blinks

"He did that . . . what . . . why? I thought the main criteria for our mission was plausible disposability?"

[Huxley]

Rebekka and Anneke both breathe in to answer your question, when they look at each other and stop. The same tension you noticed between them on Mr. Johnson's boat is there again. Camille seems to side with Anneke, and the other Tremere with Rebekka, during this brief confrontation. After a moment, Anneke dips her head slightly and permits Rebekka to answer.

"Samantha made certain demands after your visit to her manor. Eventually, Arcadian acceded to engage in a duel with her, but only if she released his agents.

Leo tenses up, and his stare becomes intent on Rebekka.


"Samantha seemed to have a very strong hold on Menachem, somehow. Technically, I suppose you could say he defected, but I do not believe he was acting completely of his own accord in the matter. The rest of you were returned unconscious."

Rebekka falters, lowering her eyes, and Anneke speaks into the silence, in a voice barely above a whisper.

"It was my sad duty to report to Gwynnis, Justicar Toreador, that Arcadian Walsh, Justicar Malkavian, was destroyed in a legal duel with Samantha Drake, member of Clan Malkavian, shortly after midnight on March 31, 2007.

Leo's face slackens, showing no emotions aside from his thin flexed arms.


"I grieve for your loss," Anneke says to you. "I do not know what I would do, were my Sire and Regnant to be destroyed."

After a momentary pause, Anneke says, "Jack is nearby, in one of Prince Johnson's secondary havens. He is safe."

He stands, lip curled, voice snarling: "Where is she?!... that fucking bitch, where is she!! I'll kill her! I'll KILL HER!"

Leo breaks down, leaning on the table, grabbing its edge with his full grip to direct his emotional energy somewhere, while still attempting to maintain some semblance of control.

[Detritus]

He stands, lip curled, voice snarling: "Where is she?!... that fucking bitch, where is she!! I'll kill her! I'll KILL HER!"

Leo breaks down, leaning on the table, grabbing its edge with his full grip to direct his emotional energy somewhere, while still attempting to maintain some semblance of control.
While Leo is collecting himself, Camille, Sabine, and Sarah hustle Jocelin and Antoinette outside the ward. Sabine closes the portal she opened, making the hemisphere whole again. Anneke and Rebekka both give you some space until the ward is re-sealed. Once the ward is again whole, Anneke speaks.

"She has not returned to her haven tonight. Nor have any of her allies appeared at their havens, so far as we can tell."

Anneke pauses for a moment to exchange looks with Rebekka before she continues.

"Your desire for revenge is understandable, even commendable, given the circumstances. But it must remain focused. You will have your chance for revenge, I suspect. I do not believe we have seen the last of Samantha, but she will most likely lay low for a while.

"However, you cannot exact revenge if you do not know where she is. If it pleases you, you may take part in the search for her and her allies. Indeed, I assume you will have singular motivation in tracking her down. Do you believe that your traveling companions from Dallas can be trusted to assist to the best of their abilities?"

[Huxley]

Leo calms himself, burying his hatred.

She will pay...

"I am certain that Jack will act in the best interest of the Camarilla. Jocelin is good-hearted, but she does traipse around with Anarch sympathizers"

[Detritus]

"The Anarchs have ever had a contentious relationship with the Camarilla, but they are still a part of that august body," says Rebekka. "Jocelin's sympathies run in that direction because she knows no better, but they are not wholly or even mostly an organ of the Sabbat. It is a fact that Anneke seems to forget on occasion."

Anneke glares at Rebekka, who merely returns a calm gaze. You get a sense of a poised, urbane young woman gently confronting a rebellious teenage sister. The feeling is enhanced by the handspan's advantage in height that Rebekka has over Anneke.

As soon as the moment had come, it is passed.

"It was not meet of me to lose my temper, but the signs of conspiracy sang in my ears. A defector, a witless childe who hands a mortal enemy a singularly potent weapon, an investigator who did not think to bother bringing anyone skilled at Auspex when charging out to search the grounds of a Malkavian, all of these things were very suspect."

Realizing that she might not be in complete control of her emotions, Anneke takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly.

"There was a conspiracy, it simply did not extend as far as my initial surmise would have had it. There will be tough questions for you, for us both, from people whose job it is to ask such questions, but I believe you will do well if you are steadfast in your answers," Anneke says to you.

"Assuming, of course, that you have not partaken of Sabbat vitae yourself," says Rebekka with an inquiring arch of an eyebrow.

[Huxley]

"I did not drink any vitae offered me when at the manor, but I was unconscious for a time. I suppose I will find out one way or the other, soon enough..."

Leo sighs: "Of course I'll search out Drake, and it would likely help clear the others' names as well if they were to come along. If you don't mind, I have a couple questions first, though..."

"I am not as hungry as I was before. What was I fed?"

(response)

Leo pauses a moment before asking his next question: "In... what way was Arcadian Walsh destroyed? How did it happen? She didn't... actually...?" Leo lets the question trail off, assuming they'll know he's talking about diablerization.

[Detritus]

"We did feed you," Rebekka says. "The ritual works better when the participants have a bit fuller stomach than you did when you were turned over to us."

"One of Rebekka's miracles, if you must know. Wine into vitae. Almost Scriptural," Anneke says, giving Rebekka a droll little smile.

"Ja, ja, er weiss schon das ich bin Zäuberin," says Rebekka with a grin of her own. Anneke shrugs at this last statement.

All traces of mirth leave the faces of both women at your next question.

"I am afraid she did," says Anneke. She reaches to place a comforting hand on your shoulder. "She must have been doing it all along, working her way up her lineage. What I would not give to learn why I didn't see it," she says with a pointed look at Rebekka.

Rebekka lets out a heavy breath and says, "I don't know. All I can think of is that one of my Sabbat counterparts has devised a ritual to mask the veins in the aura." She looks pensive, troubled, an emotional state you're unaccustomed to seeing from Rebekka in the short time you've known her.

"Could you counteract it?" asks Anneke.

"I'd have to see how it works, otherwise, no. Bring me back Samantha or one of her magically proficient associates alive, and there would be a chance," Rebekka says to both of you.

Anneke nods in grim acknowledgment and says to you, "If your companions from Dallas were to help us with that, that would surely clear their names."

[Huxley]

"Is there any question as to whether or not the generation die would've worked, or been obfuscated somehow?"

[Detritus]

"Is there any question as to whether or not the generation die would've worked, or been obfuscated somehow?"
"The die would have worked," says Rebekka. "If you got an unusual reading, perhaps a reading lower than you expected, remember that a practitioner of blood magic may temporarily lower their generation."

[Huxley]

Leo nods, letting the diablerie, as well as the event leading up to it, sink in, but feeling more in control of himself in the present.

"Would there even be a need to bring her into custody, now? With how well known I'm sure the event will be, do we need to prove she is a diablerist?"

[Detritus]

Leo nods, letting the diablerie, as well as the event leading up to it, sink in, but feeling more in control of himself in the present.

"Would there even be a need to bring her into custody, now? With how well known I'm sure the event will be, do we need to prove she is a diablerist?"
"If I see her without her veins, I will do my best to bring her into custody," says Anneke. "As tragic as the destruction of a Justicar is, and it is a telling loss, we are talking about the nullification of the Sixth Tradition, if there truly is a ritual out there that can mask a diablerist's aura."

[Huxley]

Leo nods as this sets in. "Missing the forest for the trees, as the saying goes... that will be a difficult task"

He contemplates a moment, grabbing his chin.

"Lets get this interview over with so we can get to work on the real issue at hand"

[Detritus]

"The Sun will rise soon on Palm Sunday. The main conclave will not begin until Easter sunset. There will be time for the interview, at least until the next night," says Rebekka.

"But not later," says Anneke. "Your instincts are correct to attend to business as soon as possible," she says to you.

Anneke looks thoughtful as Rebekka lowers the ward.

"It would be useful if all those involved in the search could read auras," Anneke says to you both.

"So it would," says Rebekka, looking a bit surprised that she did not think of it first. "Will there be time to teach it? To those of clans who do not come by Auspex as easily as ours?"

"There are ways to intensify the lessons," Anneke says to Rebekka. Rebekka widens her eyes, puts her palms outwards, and takes a step back.

"I have done this once before, Leo, but this time, I will ask your leave." You hear a tutting sound come from Rebekka.

"The speed with which Disciplines can be taught may be greatly enhanced if the student permits the teacher to subject him to Dominate. It is especially effective if the teacher is also skilled at Auspex. I propose to use this method of instruction, again, by your leave, to teach you how to read auras."

[Huxley]

Leo considers this for a moment, idly looking at the floor.

...

Looking up at Anneke: "Permission granted"

[Detritus]

"Thank you," says Anneke.

"You will teach the girl?" she asks Rebekka. "She is basically yours now."

"I will. I seem to fascinate her, for some reason," Rebekka answers.

"And Jack?"

Rebekka thinks for a moment, and a tone of reluctance appears in her reply.

"I would have to say Jürgen. He is already in the city," says Rebekka.

"Indeed. How do you know?" asks Anneke. Rebekka just shrugs.

"Shall we get our things and dress?" asks Rebekka. Anneke motions for Rebekka to lead the way.

[Huxley]

Leo follows wordlessly.