Betrayal and the Hunt (invite RP)

[James]

Near the harbor, James sat. Normally, the wolf prefers laying in a tree, or under a tree, or somewhere soft. But this time, he lay in a bush. It was new, it was something interesting, it was something he had never done before. A little uncomfortable, but he was small enough so that he was almost perfectly hidden. The perfect place to interrogate... it.

If you took a look at the gray wolf, you'd see an all at once calm and fierce looking dog with a scar going up the entire length of his right ear. If you looked closer, you would notice how his eyes were a bit misty, and you would see that they were just a little crosseyed. What was on the outside didn't much matter. What was on the inside did.

The Beast sat brooding in a corner of the wolf's mind. Surrounding it was a huge cage of strange construction, of the material which dreams are made from. As it was, the Beast could not break his cage. James walked over to the beast and reached through, pawing it between its eyes. The dark, immaterial mass writhed, squinted, and glared daggers at James.

James began his interrogation.

In a language that was no language, James asked, "Tell me... why did you choose me?"
It responded with little more than a nod, or maybe it was a tilt of the head. It mocked James with its eyes, still glaring daggers at him.
"You! Weird thing! Tell me why you possess me!"
This time, the Beast signaled a perceptable nod. In the language that was no language, the Beast answered back, "Because you are the one."
James growled at this answer. How was this meaningful? How did this mean anything to him?


The cage encapsulated the beast and James plodded back into reality. His eyes cleared and straightened, and the gray wolf wondered where he was to go. He had accidentally lost zip's scent the day before. He knew she was here, but was still not sure where to go, so he waited for a sign.

[Rajst Kalizkhanavar]

Rajst looked over to the Nosferatu, his voice cool and softly spoken, so soft that the non-Kindred would have to listen hard to hear his every word.

"It sounds like you've got all of your bases covered on the intel. What generations are the Kindred? What are their blood potencies? And how many Tremere?"

His peripheral vision caught a glimpse of zip as she pulled out the amulet that he gave her. The Assamite smiled softly to himself, glad that she had brought the amulet along with her. He was curious about what her husband's reaction would be, but the paladin seemed fine with him and the others.

[Zuka Zamamee]

"At least four- to five-hundred, enough that it's extremely dangerous to enter unprepared. Even then, you'll be hard pressed to go unnoticed. V'lauk is located in the realm of Valyria, where you are from. You've probably never heard of it because its within the Zafirbel Imperial Empire, but its the perfect example of the rich oppressing the poor. You will see what I mean when you get there. And slipping aboard is the easy part. If you have trouble with that, then you're screwed before the mission has even started."

Zuka turned to zip.

"Yes, the leaders are all different Kindred. The Camarilla was created a millenia ago due to the Inquisition that threatened to annihilate our race. Many clans banded together and created the Camarilla, writing many laws to ensure their continued survival. Let me give you an example for you. A pack of wolves are fiercesome predators, working together in a team to strike down more dangerous, numerous, and larger prey. Individually, however, a wolf can be overpowered and killed by its own prey. The same concept applies to the Kindred."

Then, the Nosferatu turned to the Assamite.

"The generations are everywhere from 4th generation Methuselah to 12th generation Ancillae. No neonates or yearlings are there, so you'll only be facing the more powerful Kindred. As for their blood potencies...I don't believe that the Path of Blood will be closed to you on this hunt. Feel free to drink away, my Assamite friend. And as for the Tremere...lots of them. Forty to fifty, I'd say."

Finished, Zuka looked back at them all.

"That answer your questions?"

[Akunosh Inarus]

Akunosh remained silent and mulled over this information. So, it was back to Valyria? So be it. If Dagoth Aria fell in his own home realm, so would the leadership of many Camarilla clans. Akunosh motioned for Ser Mormont to open the box he had. In it were several wooden stakes, flasks of holy water, holy symbols, wafers, silver coated daggers and shortswords, and other various anti-vampire equipment. He looked towards Zuka and smiled.

"Left over equipment from my last quest."

As he said this, he looked back at zip and noticed that she had pulled out an amulet. It took only a moment for him to register what the symbol was. It was the Assamite insignia. Akunosh's smile faded as he tried to comprehend what he was seeing. Well...it made some sense. Rajst was a good friend of zip's, and it was only natural for him to give her gifts. Wasn't it? Aku sighed softly to himself. Better an Assamite for a friend then an enemy.

"The amulet...you never told me about it."

His voice was soft and slightly sad. It wasn't that he was disappointed; instead, he was surprised that she would keep it from him.

[zipcat]

*zip started to wonder how she would get in, but she figured she could follow the Assamites. She could be very quiet to get away from predators, so she guessed she could be sneaky to get inside too. Remembering the strong hearing of the predators in her home realm reminded zip about why a stopped heart was important; it was silent. She couldn’t take advantage of that while pregnant, but she guessed it would have helped in this.*

*She started to think about what the place would be like, but when Zuka answered her he had all of her attention. Never did she know that their race was in danger, but she guessed it wise that they pulled together. It sounded like an easy way for a lot of troubles, yet she trusted that if they settled differences that they would be alright. The explanation of the wolf helped her understand, and she nodded. Most of all, it reminded her about James. She wondered how he was, and hoped that it was well, but she had other things think about; so she pushed her attention back where it was supposed to be. zip bit the inside of her cheek when Zuka said the other vampires would be powerful. Hopefully, no one would be hurt.*

*When Zuka asked for more questions, she shook her head as her own answer. If any of them came up with a question she didn’t have she knew it would be helpful. Then Aku had his guard open a box filled with things to hurt vampires, zip frowned. They looked like things ready to give torture. But if they had to fight she guessed it was good. She couldn’t help but hope their use wasn’t needed. In truth though, she couldn’t make herself believe it would go as she hoped.*

*The Amentan looked to her husband when he spoke again. A frown took over her face. She had meant to hide it from him, and that only made her feel worse. But she didn’t know how much of what she was supposed to tell or report to him. She was so sorry she didn’t tell him everything. It was true they both knew there were a lot of things they didn’t know about each other, but zip knew that was no excuse. She gave her husband the best ‘I’m sorry’ look she could before turning back to Zuka. This wasn’t the time to apologize, but she would be sure to later. Then she could tell Aku everything she was supposed to; or at least figure out what those things were. Again, she pushed her thoughts where they were supposed to be.*

[Rajst Kalizkhanavar]

Rajst thanked Zuka for his information, then noticed that Akunosh's men had brought out various vampire hunting tools. The Assamite cringed slightly at the sight of them, realizing at once that the paladin truly was a veteran killer. They were so much alike in profession, yet were often at odds because of their beliefs. It was truly a shame, but at least this time they would be working together.

Rajst growled audibly when he noticed that Aku's statement had caused zip to become saddened. In a heartbeat, he was a mere inch from Akunosh's face, staring coldly into the paladin's eyes.

"It was a gift from me to her. She doesn't have to tell you every aspect of her life, you know? And you will respect that, just as I respect that you are her husband."

His words, though harsh, resonated with previously unseen emotion. zip meant alot to him, and he wouldn't stand idly as her husband berated her for the slightest thing. The assassin's voice lightened up a little when he spoke again.

"I hope you do understand, my friend."

[Zuka Zamamee]

Zuka had, in the meantime, slipped into the darkness of the alley and disappeared while the others were preoccupied with Rajst's unexpected reaction.

None had seen him leaving, and little did they know, none would ever see him again.

[Akunosh Inarus]

Akunosh was prepared to explain himself when Rajst's face appeared before him. He was startled, but regained his composure just as quickly. He didn't expect that the Assamite would harbor such intense feelings, but there were things about their race that he was ignorant of. The paladin looked down as the assassin finished.

"Of course..."

The paladin walked past Rajst and back to zip. His voice was soft and low.

"I'm sorry about that, zip. Its just...I was surprised that he had given you such a dignitary gift and you had hid it from me. I can understand about you being afraid that I would get mad or upset, but I promise you that I won't get upset over these things if you tell me."

He knew that he was being hypocritical. There were things that they were not telling each other, and he knew it. But he would change it. Not only soon, but the moment that they returned to the Estate. He loved her dearly, and he wanted to make things known that he had kept hidden. He hoped that she would also return the favor. Before silence became prelavent, he spoke again.

"We can talk about this later. But I want you to know that I'm not upset about you having Rajst as a friend. I would trust your life in his hands just as much as I would with your life in Judith's hands."

[zipcat]

*Rajst’s growl pulled zip’s attention from Zuka. Suddenly he was in front of Aku, making her chest tighten. His words were true, even if zip didn’t agree that she didn’t have to tell Aku everything about her life. Though she didn’t have to report, but anything he wanted to know about her was his. Rajst’s last words assured zip he was trying to stand up for her, even if it was harsh at first.*

*She looked away from her husband and friend before Aku replied, even if she still listened. Realizing that Zuka was gone, she wondered if he would catch up later. Silently, she mouthed ‘Good bye, Zuka.’ Something told her she would never see the man who taught her to make poisons, and who put her husband on such an edge again. At least he helped her friend.*

*Her eyes looked up to meet her husband’s when he moved before her, and she listened mutely. Something about his words didn’t feel right, but zip ignored the sense. She was surprised when he told her he wasn’t upset about Rajst being her friend. The last thing she would ever want was for him to dislike her friends; and she had never even thought about that before. It was a scary thought.*

*At least Aku trusted Rajst though. Before he moved away, zip replied gently to the tender topic. There was one thing that would be best said now, rather than later. With the very tip of her fingers, she moved to touch her husband’s cheek. “Know that, anything about me is for you to know, you only need to ask, Aku.” The touch ended.*

[Rajst Kalizkhanavar]

Rajst smiled to himself in satisfaction when the paladin apologized to his wife. The Assamite then motioned for the group and his Rafiq to follow him. The Kindred shot like lightning down the dark alleys and streets of Titan, slowing only enough for the rest to follow. Within minutes, they were onboard of a small ship that was bound to Valyria.

Rajst and his Rafiq waited for the others.

[Akunosh Inarus]

Akunosh smiled gently when zip's fingers brushed his cheek, and he listened silently when his wife replied. The Assamites were suddenly moving, and the paladin motioned for his men to get the boxes closed and carried to the ship. Aku looked back at his wife and kissed her forehead.

"The same applies for me. We can talk more about this later."

Akunosh would follow next to his wife while his guards brought up the rear.

[zipcat]

*zip nodded to Aku’s words. She wouldn’t question him though. Secrets were secrets for a reason. Staying close to Aku, they followed the Assamites to the ship. She would look back before getting on, wondering if the Beast could follow her over seas. A sinking feeling told her it could.*

[James]

The bush closest to the docks ruffled its leaves as if of its own accord. As zip's smell came closer the wolf-boy James realized she was coming towards him! For the first time and without realizing it James wagged his tail, causing the leaves to ruffle even more. With her smell came the smell of others, as well. He became a little confused- was she going out to sea? Would she be leaving somewhere?

A poke in James' stomach caused him to instinctively move out of the bush. Without realizing it James was led by the Beast to zipcat. The wolf-boy followed her scent closely, discovering a boat out on the water where supplies were being packed. Searching the boat James found an earth colored cloak- the one belonging to zip!

His tail wagged furiously for a couple seconds more, stopping when James moved forward. One foot after the other took the wolf-boy to the gangplank where he stopped and watched the people carrying supplies aboard the ship. zip was on this ship, but would these men allow James to board?

[Rajst Kalizkhanavar]

Rajst was patiently waiting on the ship, his arms crossed and his back against the mast of the ship. The assassin's eyes watched the others as they entered: the paladin, Akunosh, the human knights, his enigmatic best friend, zipcat, and...a wolf? A smile flickered when the Assamite saw it, for he knew instantly it was more than a mere dog. This one seemed to have far more intelligence than the average canine. However, a short and slightly obese sailor didn't appreciate the presence of the animal and attempted to shoo it away.

In a heartbeat, the assassin was between the two, glaring at the sailor with the cold eyes of a professional killer. His eyes dilated as his jaw dropped. Without concious control, the man began to tremble in fear, cowering away from the Assamite. Though it wasn't needed, the Assamite put into words his wish.

"Leave the wolf alone."

The sailor nodded before bolting away, losing himself within the other mixture of crew. Rajst smiled in satisfaction before turning his attention back to the wolf. The vampyre knelt down and ruffled its fur.

"You seem to have a purpose as to your presence here. Don't you?"

[Akunosh Inarus]

Aku walked up the gangplank next to his wife, his knights bringing up the rear. The two men gave the boxes to the crew, who took it below deck and stowed it away. Aku looked over the seven Assamites and nodded. It would be a full day or two to get to Valyria, but they could spend the time wisely. Suddenly, Aku heard Rajst's voice. Damn he's fast, the paladin realized. He hadn't even seen him move until his voice anounced the fact that he was behind the group. Aku turned and noticed that James had followed. A smile came to his lips. He knew that zip and James were good friends and that his presence would help his wife.

When Rajst had mentioned the obvious, Aku walked to the other side of James, knelt, and went to scratch him behind his ears.

"That he does. His name is James. He's good friends with zip."

The paladin felt more confident about the safety of the group.