Chapter Two-Four: Planning
Chapter Two: Planning
Tristan sighed after leaving his first class, well it would normally be the second class of his day, but due to his tardiness he missed his usual first class entirely. He turned down a hallway heading to his next class, soon enough after traversing the hallways for a while he made his way there. Inside there was a standard classroom set up, at the front of the room, there was a tall glasses clad man, with short gray hair, taking attendance. The teacher looked up from his clipboard and raised an eyebrow at Tristan and marked him down. He spoke in a dry monotonous voice with thinly veiled sarcasm “Well Mr. Carver, I see that you have so Graciously Deigned us with your presence, take a seat.” As Tristan did so a few of his classmates started conversing amongst them about the rather unexpected presence of Tristan. As soon as everyone had been seated and grew quiet the Teacher spoke again. “Today class, unlike the usual discussions of History that we have, we will be focusing on a different, less realistic and proven aspect of History. We will be talking about Mythology and the historical relevance and impact in past civiizations.” Upon hearing the topic Tristan chuckled as the Teacher started his lecture in earnest, a few students already falling unconscious.
In a secret office below the FBI HQ in New York City, a meeting of sorts was happening; it would be closer to call it a briefing. In the room there were around 20 or so men and women assembled, many were wearing the standard FBI back suits or field-wear others were in more casual modes of dress. They were waiting for someone; this was evidenced by the fact that one of the people gathered there was spinning in an office chair. He was not using anything to gain momentum, but rather he was a Wind mage and was using that to spin the chair at a constant speed. The man was dressed in a way most people would associate with the punk sub-culture, needless to say he did not look like someone that would be associated with the FBI. He actually wasn’t an official FBI agent, but was an operative for the top secret Supernatural Investigation and Subjugation Division, or SISD, though the investigation part mostly was left out so it was called the SSD by many. Officially it didn’t exist though many of the operatives did work for the FBI in some capacity. The mage stopped the chair as the door leading to the room opened and a man dressed in a suit walked in.
He carried folders in one arm, the other was free, and he looked less like a director in the FBI and more like a soldier, which he once was. He had a look in his eyes that only experienced soldiers would have, his looks could not be considered handsome, though they drew the opposite sex regardless. He had a veritable mane of hair of burnt gold; his eyes were a dark brown, almost black, those features contributed to his rugged and wild aura. When he entered the room, all eyes turned to him and waited for him to speak. He sat the folders on the end of the table and the person sitting there took one and passed the others down as the Director moved to his seat at the other end of the table. He sat in the largest of the chairs, which was located at the end of the long table most of them were sitting at. When everyone had grabbed one of the folders he folded his hands together and sat them on the table before speaking. “Today you have all been gathered for this.” He gestured to the folder in front of which, the folders the others held were complete copies of his.
“We are to search for and apprehend this young man, Tristan Carver. 5 years ago he was involved in an Order raid on a Rogue Vampire Coven and was listed to have been a casualty, a result of a failed Change. Recently it has been discovered he somehow survived and even Awoke in the process. Each of you is to use your sources to track him down, the Conclave has decreed this, he is to be brought in unharmed. Violation of this will bring certain punishments to happen to you. That is all, dismissed.” He then stood up and left, leaving the others to look over the folders and discuss amongst themselves. A few of the operatives that worked alone left soon after the Director did, among them the punk looking Wind Mage. As he left a less than kind smirk crossed his face as he thought ‘
This should be rather rewarding.’ As soon as the others left a tall lanky blond man spoke up. “Since the others have left let’s get down to business, so what thoughts do you all have on this subject?” Soon after the question was voiced most of the others left gave their opinions and thoughts on the matter.
In the corner of the room separate from the others sat a young lady who held the last picture of Tristan, it also had Kandace in it, same picture the men and women of the Conclave had looked at before. She gently caressed the picture, before standing to leave the auburn haired girl left ignoring the call of one of her colleagues, “Krystal Wait!” After she left the other men and women simply shrugged or other gestures before they continued with their discussion. There were around 12 of them left at this point, they each agreed that they would call the others should they discover a concrete location for their target. This was how most of those present worked the majority of the time, though on occasion there were those who sought personal glory above cooperation. Those types would usually either find the target and obtain them alone or would actively sabotage the others, though the latter hadn’t happened since the Director took over. Soon enough they finished ironing out everything and they all stood to leave. They all vacated the room until only 2 of them were left, the lanky blond man who spoke first earlier and an equally leggy blond woman.
The lanky man was still standing seemingly only tidying up the papers he had moved during the discussion they had had. A thought not his own came into his mind, ‘
So brother you still desire that girl, huh?’ He glanced over at the woman who was his sister and spoke aloud saying “Kind of,but that is not entirely accurate, I certainly find her attractive, any man with still functioning genitalia would. However I was worried about some of what she felt while looking at that picture.” His countenance frowned slightly before he thought a message back to her. ‘
From her I felt many troubling emotions chief among them were Rage, Despair, and strangely enough Hope.’ The Woman, his Sister scrunched her eyebrows in thought, it made her look cute, though usually such a mild word would not be used to describe her beauty. She was roused from her musings by another thought. ‘
The strangest thing though, was the fact that those emotions were so intense, but lasted for but a moment, before a strange calm took over. I have never seen some like this naturally happen, we should keep an eye on her, though we should not act unless things get dire.’ The Woman nodded and looked at where Krystal had sat not long before.
Chapter Three: Planning
Downtown in a penthouse located above one of the most popular clubs in the City a large muscular man stood looking out through some glass at the dance floor below. He was clad in a suit; just by looking at him you could tell that the suit was barely able to contain his large frame and muscles. He stood with his feet apart and his hands clasped behind his back. He was gazing out at the mass of bodies, which had reformed after a rather enchanting redhead left the club. A loud knock on the door broke him from his reminiscence. He yelled behind him, temporarily drowning out the dull beat of the music below. “Enter.” His response was brief, as he was a man of few words, though his deep rumbling voice, akin to an earthquake, allowed such. The door to his left opened up, and a short curly haired man in a pair of dress pants and a Hawaiian print shirt entered, with him, the music from the club bled in with greater intensity. It was cut off soon enough as the ornate door closed, forming a near sound proof barrier once more.
The shorter man, Alex, gazed about the lavishly decorated room, directly behind the large man there was a desk befitting of his stature. Across from the desk there were a few chairs, and littered throughout the room other pieces of furniture could be seen here and there. Among them was a red plush sofa of sorts, set against the back wall opposite the desk. Along the walls, some paintings were displayed, an art expert would probably be able to recognize a few of them, history expert even more. All of the items in this room were once stolen, and the man who owned them was the leader of one of the largest criminal organizations in the city, if not elsewhere. Alex approached the desk and paused to speak. “Apologies for the interruption Sir, but I have some news concerning the Vampire Fighter that is a favorite of yours. Brandon, I think he goes by here.” “What is it?” Responded the much taller man. “According to our sources Several people affiliated with both the Order and the SISD have been searching for someone that meets his description and abilities.” At the statement, the larger man turned around, revealing a rather fierce countenance, his nose was broken and he had a series of scars in a pattern akin to claw marks running across his face.
He released his hands from behind him and gestured for Alex to sit, before taking his own large seat. He spoke softly questioning the other man. “How much have they discovered?” “From our sources that they asked? Not much, but they probably have contacts within other organizations apart from ours and those connected to it. So unfortunately we do not know how much they truly know, but our own inquiries have revealed that they know he is somewhere in this city, most likely, they know he has been sighted here a few time in the past.” The large man across from him, Giovanni Nicoletti, nodded and spoke once more. “Do what we can for now, but in his next fight, pit him against Sparky, that will help in determining his skills. The result of his fight and perhaps what happens afterwards will determine how far we will go.” Alex nodded briefly before he stood up and left the room swiftly. Giovanni pushed away from the desk before standing slowly, his body and clothes creaking and groaning from the strain of containing his massive form. He stood up and turned towards the window and spoke softly. “Little Death Mage, I Hope you don’t disappoint this old Bear.”
In the New York base of the SSD, in a dimly lit office sat three people, The Director and the blond Twins. “So you two, what did you want to talk about?” The Director ask as he clasped his hands in front of him on the desk while he sat back in his chair. The male of the Twins spoke saying. “We are worried about Krystal and what will happen should she encounter Tristan. Her feelings were deep, to say the least, and strong. What concerns me the most however is that something removed the emotions soon after they surfaced, she may be the mole, unless she has either Awakened to some version of Mind magic or obtained a Mind clearing Artefact, that is the most likely scenario.” The Director Spoke up as the other man finished. “That is entirely possible, but doubtful, she pasted the recent checks with flying colors. However I do have some idea about who the Order Stooge amidst our ranks is.” He pushed away from the desk before standing and facing the wall behind him before he continued. “That is one of the reasons that I am having you go about this as I have. I hope that It will be to draw out the Mole.”
The Director turned around to face the elfin twins. “I trust you two much more than any of the other personnel here, especially so when it concerns matters of the Order. After all they are among the ones responsible for you two being the last remaining of your kind in North America. Well the last of those native to North America.” The Director then sat down shortly after he finished that statement. “I will need you two to do a few things when the time comes to it. You will most likely know what time I am talking about by what happens. This will most likely go down when or if we are ‘escorting’ Mr. Carver here.” The Director then opened a drawer in his desk and removed a folder much like those used during the meeting earlier in the day to hold Tristan’s information. He opened it and distributed its contents onto the desk in between the three of them. There were several dossiers of sorts that went with photos attached to their fronts with paperclips. He spread the Dossiers and photos between them evenly and spoke. “ These are the ones we will have to look out for, I have my suspicions about who it is, but I would rather we cover all our bases.”
Elsewhere yet another meeting was taking place in the City of Cross Timber, this one was of a decidedly less beneficial nature to many of those involved. Beneath a large catholic church hewn from stone the Order was gathering its agents to act on their current mission. Almost all the members there were obscured and clad in all sorts of robes and similar manners of dress. At the head of the rectangular room, opposite the entrance and the assembled patrons there was a podium of sorts where a robed and cloaked figure stood. The Figure spoke with an enchanting voice "Thank you Brothers and Sisters for showing up today for our meeting here, with the topic of the recent orders from our Bishop.” During her pause, many of the figures could be seen nodding their assent, others mumbled audibly in agreement. The Figure continued saying. “His Excellency has decreed that we are to end the blight that is a Death mage. He is in fact the survivor of the Cleansing of a Coven many years ago. His Excellency himself was present and was unable to save the poor soul. He now holds a grudge and in the past has targeted our Brothers and Sisters. In the pews in front of you, you will find all the information you need.”
Many of the assembled reached in front of them to grab the referenced information, contained within Hymn books of sorts. For a moment they all looked through the information, before most of the gathered stood up and left through the arched doorway that led into the room one of the few figures still left approached the one who had been speaking. The figure spoke in a lazy and carefree masculine voice. “So when I will I get paid for my services Sister?” The last word of the question being laced with barely disguised sarcasm and contempt. “You shall get your reward once we obtain the Heretic, or once it is confirmed that said Heretic has been Cleansed, no sooner, no later, than that. Your services up to this point have been satisfactory, exceedingly so. Nonetheless we would rather not have to search for you should the information provided be less than accurate. You as well as I know what happened to the last person in your position that disappointed His Excellency. I am sur-“ The figure extensive response was interrupted as their seemingly male counterpart waved their hands and said “Yeah, Yeah I get it, I’lll be back later.” They then swiftly left brushing past the other remaining people. The figure by the podium simply staring where the other person had left, not saying or doing anything.
Chapter Four: Planning
Below the Church being used by the Order, a largely built figure dressed differently from most of the other robe clad figures, being clad in leather like armor approached the figure still by the Podium. He spoke in a deep yet strangely lyrical voice. “Mistress should I deal with that foolish and disrespectful Mortal?” The figure responded by shaking it’s no, her head, she extended her arms, the robe sleeves sliding back, revealing creamy white skin covering elegant arms, she then gracefully reached up and removed the hood that had been obscuring her face. Had her face been revealed in public, everyone present would have gasped in awe and respect. She had elfin features with slightly pointed ears, but her eyes were slitted like a cats and her iris’s sparkled and were specked with the colors of the rainbow, her enchanting face was highlighted by her short spiky hair. “No, leave him for now, we may yet have use of him.” She shed her robe, revealing a slender toned figure, not busty or voluptuous by any means, but still capable of turning heads where she went. She started walking,her long graceful legs carrying her forward swiftly as she spoke “Human greed is a wonderful thing, especially useful for us.”
She paused for a moment to let her companion take up a position behind her right shoulder as she walked. “For now we shall keep our deal with their ‘
Bishop’ who seeks to deceive one of the Fae. Later though, should it come to it, we shall deal with him in a befitting manner, and let the humans realize once more that the Fae are not to be trifled with lightly.” She paused as they reached a door deep in the bowels of the system of hallways and rooms beneath the Church. She opened the door first with her companion entering behind her and closing it. As he did so blue runes flashed into life on the door, sealing this room from prying eyes, the Fae woman extended her arms and spun in a circle giggling in delight. Behind her, on her back insect-like wings shimmered into existence, a buzzing sound could be slightly heard as they moved at high speeds while she spun. “Haaah” she sighed for a moment in delight and relief before she continued speaking, her wings still present behind her. “What I am most curious about is this boy, which the foolish clergyman has a grudge against.”
She fell backwards onto the bed behind her, and then continued speaking. “He is intriguing, and curious to say the least, He has much magical power, perhaps even more so than the Queen. Though he doesn’t use it, nor does he use his other inherent abilities.” She paused in her reminiscence before she looked at her companion. “Go back to Mother, would you, and inform her of our progress so far.” After she spoke, he nodded and then shimmered out of being as he left the plane. She sighed again and reclined into the bed once more and luxuriated in the feel of it against her. She spoke aloud to herself. “That boy is interesting; I have never seen such a strong connection to a particular field of magic, or to Death itself. Hah, rather than him being unable to die, it is rather that Death cannot bring itself to claim him. “ She finished speaking and sighed again before she stretched her arms for a moment. “Hmm, he would make a nice Pet, or perhaps a Champion, if the oaf currently with me dies.” As she hummed to herself, picturing what she would do to him in either of those situations, one of her arms travelled downward across her body until coming to rest at its destination.
Back at his college Tristan gave a sigh of relief as he left his final class for the day. He gave a loud yawn, drawing the attention of the surrounding people to him. He walked out from underneath the overhang in the courtyard; his movements were swift, yet seemingly graceful and filled with power. Though many of those that knew of him practically despised him, he was still quite a sight drawing the gaze of many. He walked by many people on his way to the entrance, some were walking, others sitting at the numerous benches dotting the courtyard. He passed by a student confessing clumsily to a tall dark-haired girl clad in red. “-Your attractiveness is to such an extent that the air around you seems to combust at your beauty. You-” The girl held up a hand and responded “So you think I’m hot?” Her bland tone of voice couldn’t hide the amusement in her eyes. Tristan had the urge to face palm as he walked by, and a thought surfaced in his mind. ‘
Of course you say that, you tell that, to the only bloody Fire Elemental on Campus.’
While shaking his head Tristan swiftly left the Courtyard, and made his way through the small building that covered the front of the College, enclosing the Courtyard fully. He took a left once he reached the main road, heading to the place serving as his home here. Soon enough he reached downtown and stopped for a moment in front of his destination. He looked up at the brightly lit neon sign of the club, Sphere, it read it lit most of the area, now that the sun had begun to drop, many such signs and lights lit the area around the street. He continued looking at it for a moment before he put his head down and walked forward, bypassing the line as the bouncer let him pass without a word, recognizing him. Tristan took a path most did not even know was there. Soon enough he arrived at an elevator that opened as he took a step in front of it. He stepped into the metal square, as the doors closed the music of the club was muted, and replaced with a softer music that most would call muzak. He waited silently until the elevator gave a dull ding as he arrived, and the doors opened. He took a step out and the elevator closed behind him. The club in front of was a world apart from the club up Above.
Down here it was more like a club that catered to a certain type of entertainment; the scantily clad women in caged highlighted the point. On the stage that many of the male patrons, human or otherwise, were crowded around, held a prime example. The lyrics to the Nickleback song playing in the background described her near perfectly, besides possibly being a bit cheap with her worth ‘
I Got to Meet the Hottie With the Million Dollar Body.’ The easiest way to describe the women up on the stage would be a Raven Haired Goddess; she had curves in all the correct places, with nearly no excess flesh except where more than a handful was preferred. She was nearly naked up on the stage, though if she were naked most of the cheering, catcalls and wolf whistles would cease as everyone man or women gawked in awe at her magnificence. Her black hair stood out against her pale skin that glowed with a thin sheen of sweat, evidence of her exertion. She jumped down from the stage as her act ended and the cheering and similar noises reached a crescendo. She was slowly walking away from the stage, with the crowd parting around her, until she saw him, Tristan, her eyes widened and she ran towards him. The crowd behind her eyeing her running form appreciatively.
