Narg
Independent Alliance
Posts: 153
|
Post by Narg on Sept 7, 2018 8:26:00 GMT
Alister could smell the blood from a block away. His senses had heightened since his embrace, and his sense of smell regarding blood was exemplar. Solomon strode ahead with vigor and excitement.
"You're gon' luv it! You get to meet the Family!"
Solomon laughed brightly and kicked a crumpled up beer can down the street. Solomon had informed Alister of the basics of Kindred society the past couple of weeks. Alister knew that Solomon was underneath the Prince as Sheriff of Oddhaven, but he certainly hadn't been spending much time arresting people. Almost every waking night was spent with Solomon at his side, learning to hunt, practicing discipline, and mostly working out blood addled frenzies. Typically it involved Alister throwing down with Solomon in a sparse apartment, but lately his strength was proving dangerous to the structure of the abandoned apartments they called home. It was time to move to a different venue.
They approached a dark, brick, bar on a street in Swenton, crammed between various apartment complexes underneath a rusty train bridge. The neon sign boasted it's name, "THE CRUSHED NUT," in all capital letters above the door. The Open sign was off, but the noise from within suggested otherwise. When Solomon and Alister walked in the door, a young looking, heavily tattooed woman sat on a stool in front of them. She had Jet Black hair in an A-line, and was skinny as a twig, but looked like she was ready to break something in two.
"Where you been Solomon? No Bash for a month and then suddenly it's game time?"
"I'd say calm down, Annie, but that ain't the point of tonight now is it?" Solomon quipped back.
"Fine, be that way," Annie replied, "Who's he?" She said eyeing Alister with suspicion. "You got teeth, Man?"
"He's got teeth." Solomon interrupted, "He's mine. Show her your teeth Alister." Solomon extended his fangs. Alister, catching his drift, followed suit. Annie nodded and tilted her head towards a staircase leading downwards, where a large ruckus seemed to be coming from. As the two vampires descended, the smell of blood became thick. There was a large room with a square pit in the middle, clearly an illegal fighting ring. Shouting and screaming Vampires surrounded the ring where a thin Asian man and a large blonde woman circled each other in the ring. The large woman moved with blinding speed and knocked the other vampire unconscious in one blow.
Solomon screamed from the stairwell, "Large Lexi takes 'im out again!" His booming voice carried through the room catching the attention of all within. The crowd cheered with vigor as Solomon made his way into the center of the ring.
"It's good to see y'all again, 'n good fer my sorry ass to finally whip up a bash ain't it!" A mixture of cheers and boos and jeers erupted from the crowd before Solomon spoke again. "Now now calm down. I know I fucked up, but you can beat the shit outta me fer it tonight. Well... at least ya' can try! Errybody is really here! Anorexic Annie, Large Lexi, Samurai Jack, and even Chevzie Wevzies decided to bring his pansy ass to meet the new member of the family." A large laugh erupted from the crowd as everyone looked over towards a conservatively dressed man, who apparently was not usually present. "Dave the Rod is here, and finally me, the asshat who forgot to call a damn Bash. But that's not point of tonight. Tonight is to socialize, meet our new man, Alister, and throw down!" The crowd roared in excitement as Solomon screamed one last time over them, "Why you listenen' to me jabber! Time for you Fucks to fight!"
The festivities began again. Annie, coming down from the stairs above, patted Alister on the back, and said, sneering at him, "Welcome to the best family you have now. Fuckin say hi." Alister wasn't sure if she could actually smile, but that was certainly something close.
Solomon disappeared into the crowd leaving Alister to meet his new family, and blow off any steam that may have been built up.
|
|
|
Post by Alexandre LeChevalier on Sept 7, 2018 9:02:20 GMT
Alexandre stood out like a sore thumb. Not only was he the only one sporting a suit, but he was also the only one seated, on a balcony of sorts overlooking the fight pit. It didn't look like a terribly sound structure, with a mesh wire floor and chains acting as a railing, but it was at least able to support him and another kindred, standing, with whom he was talking. Once Solomon announced his entry, though, LeChevalier respectfully rose, offering a small smile and nod when introduced as "Chevzie Wevzies".
From there, he looked at Alister, raising and eyebrow and making his way down. By the time Solomon had left his side, Alexandre was there. "You must Solomon's childe. Alexandre LeChevalier," he smiled while extending his hand. "You know, Solomon had never sired someone before. You must be quite impressive to have caught his attention. I'm sure there's quite a story there."
|
|
|
Post by Alister Rockwell on Sept 7, 2018 9:23:01 GMT
A crowd formed around Alister pretty quickly, different people elbowing forward to clap him on the back, punch him on the shoulder, or clap his hands. So these were his fellow Brujah - Solomon had told him everything about them, their shared blood and disciplines, their problems with anger, the dream and death of Carthage, the revolutionary penchant and a desire to fight for something greater than themselves. Alister realised he still needed to stop thinking in terms of 'him' and 'them' - he was one of them now.
And as he shook hands and returned punches and arm wrestled one who had obviously watched Predator recently - "Newbie, you son of a bitch," were his exact words of greeting - he felt immediately like he belonged here. There was something comforting knowing that these sorts of people still existed on this side - Alister had spent most of his youth roughhousing, and then later working and stealing, with people just like this. With his disease behind him, restored strength and vigour, and a new lease on life (so to speak), he felt like he had come home.
The smell of blood filling the area only made it feel more at home. It made him feel like he'd entered a pub and everyone had had too much.
An attractive, stubbled Vampire with piercing blue eyes dressed in a subdued suit who walked like he had a stick up his arse came over and introduced himself as Alexander LeChevalier - 'Chevzie Wevzies' as everyone else seemed to call him. Solomon had explained ahead of time that he was something called a 'Primogen' - one of the Camarilla higher-ups, something of an advisor to the Prince when she bothered to listen.
Alister took his hand, and shook it firmly. "Rockwell. Alister Rockwell," he greeted jovially. "You'd have to ask him for his reasons. Basically, I beat up a fat dickhead in a nightclub and Solomon liked me enough to storm Roeststadt Medical to rescue me from the basement bitch before she turned me into a ghoul. So you're a Primogen?"
|
|
|
Post by Alexandre LeChevalier on Sept 7, 2018 9:37:00 GMT
Alexandre nodded, seemingly impressed. "Rodriguez may claim otherwise, but yes, I'm a Primogen- have been since a killed a werewolf way back. I'm impressed- Solomon clearly educated you quite well on our society. He's always had a strange mixture of loyally tame and savagely wild, so I wondered what sort of sire he'd make. But I'm not at all surprised that he seems to be a good one.
"But I'm sure you sell yourself short. Even with Solomon's assistance, Roeststadt isn't easy to get into or out of. Or so I've heard, but from a biased source. You'll here we Brujah are angry because we're insecure, but the way the Tremere squawk about how vital they are it's a wonder no one seems to see it as the hot air it is. Tremere is a mutual enemy of your Solomon and I, and now you, it would seem. Roeststadt is still under that Tremere with the unpronounceable name, no? Something like 'Circe', the witch of old. I assume if you were there, and Solomon saved you, he did it from her."
|
|
|
Post by Alister Rockwell on Sept 7, 2018 9:48:46 GMT
"Rodriguez? Shit, was he...no. No, don't know him. But fuck, so you actually did kill a werewolf?" Alister asked incredulously. Another Brujah slapped him on the back on the way to the ring and muttered "Welcome to the rebels without a cause." Alister went on, "I thought Solomon was shitting me. He said pretty much every Kindred who goes after one solo gets ripped apart, so how'd you do it?"
Alister pretty clearly didn't respond to LeChevalier's comments about Roeststadt Medical. He tried not to think about it - it was still too much. He still had dreams, and without fail they all went the same way - he was strapped onto that operating table with his blood streaming out from his forehead, only this time there was no Solomon to save him.
|
|
|
Post by Alexandre LeChevalier on Sept 7, 2018 10:04:06 GMT
His silence on Roeststadt only made the Elder more curious, but he politely quieted the emotion and instead answered the question. "Your sire was right to tell you so. I wasn't alone when I took it down, though. A batch of neonates and the previous Primogen were there, and it shredded plenty of us. My sire had given me this spear as a parting gift, though, and when one of the beasts was mauling a less fortunate compatriot, I managed to stab it through the eye and finally put it down.
"That's why I was made Primogen, actually. Good timing. Popularity rises and fall in this clan. Appropriate for the clan of change, I suppose. And I suspect good timing is why you were embraced.
"Ironically, I was embraced for not getting into a fight. And here I am at this cage match. My sire wanted me to restore our legacy as philosopher warriors, back in the time of Carthage, Athens, and Rome. An unpopular desire these nights, I fear. Your sire seems to have gotten you up to speed on the current events of the Clan. What do you know of our history?"
|
|
|
Post by Alister Rockwell on Sept 7, 2018 10:14:28 GMT
There was something about LeChevalier - he was one of what Solomon had called the 'warrior-poets', the great thinkers who chased the dream of Carthage over revolutionary urges. They tried, according to Solomon, to lift the whole clan up to their previous glories - unsuccessfully, as 'the Rabble are called that for a reason'. But there had been a deep respect in Solomon's voice as he spoke of them, and Solomon himself spoke often of the need to fight for something greater than one's self. A higher cause, a higher calling - for Solomon, Alister had learned, that was freedom in all of its forms. Alister wondered what drove LeChevalier - the desire to return the Brujah to their philosopher-King history, or something else? He was clearly more than a wannabe Hulk.
Talking to LeChevalier, he felt that same unquenchable passion he felt from Solomon - just directed differently. Solomon was an explosive, rapid-fire blasts of motion and passionate zeal. LeChevalier seemed more restrained - a slow-burning fuse that might one day ignite a powder keg.
Plus he'd killed a fucking Werewolf. Learning Werewolves were real, and that the whole "Vampires vs. Werewolves" thing wasn't just Hollywood, had been a shock - so had been learning about how fucking deadly they really were.
"A little," Alister replied. "I know about Carthage, that the Ventrue and Rome fucked us over. Solomon talks about that a bit. Our bloodline traces from...Troile? Not Brujah himself, but a Vampire who fed off of him? And we were involved with Russia too, I think? The Bolshevik revolution, until the Soviets fucked that up? One thing I don't understand is why most of us go with the Camarilla, they seem like assholes and the Anarchs seem more like our-"
"Come on newbie, we come here to beat the shit out of each other, not listen to Chevzie Wevzies here drone on about how 'we wuz kings'."
The massive blonde woman who'd been fighting when he walked in came up behind Alister and slung an arm around his shoulders. "We got one rule for first timers here, newbie," she declared in a thick Irish accent. "If it's your first, you fight, and you get fucked up. S'let's get you in the ring 'fore your Pa comes running over, he can kiss you better afterwards. Let's find somebody t' fuck y'up."
She looked at Alexander, and smiled. "Hey, Chevzie, when was the last time you got down in the pit?"
|
|
|
Post by Alexandre LeChevalier on Sept 7, 2018 10:31:51 GMT
"It's been some time indeed," he smirked, then as an aside to Alister, "As I said, I was embraced because I didn't get in a fight like this. But a Primogen has certain duties, and duty calls."
Raising his voice, and with a dramatic change from the soft-spoken polite gentleman of ten seconds ago, he called out, "Indeed, the last time I was in the ring I may have been in the neonate's shoes, a fresh arrival. I haven't fought in general in some time, even with Rodriguez's goons! I may have gotten rusty, but I don't want you pups thinking that means I've gotten soft," he called, taking off his suit jacket and handing it off. "What say you, Alister, a quick scrap? They won't let us resume our pleasant conversation until we have." The blonde grunted her agreement.
|
|
|
Post by Alister Rockwell on Sept 7, 2018 10:44:11 GMT
"What...really?" Alister asked, a little put off. He was more than happy to fight - he and Solomon had spent quite a few nights so far smashing planks of wood in each other's faces - but Alister had a few inches and probably 30kg on LeChevalier. Large Lexi seemed like she was more in his weight class. But fine, if he really wanted. "Alright, if you're sure, I'll take you on."
A few smirks and smothered chuckles by the other Brujah went unnoticed by Alister - the Neonates always needed to learn the hard way that they weren't invincible.
Lexi gave him a shove forward towards the pit. Alister took his own coat off - freshly cleaned for once - and let somebody else take it off of his hands. Underneath he was wearing basic jeans and a dark t-shirt. "So this is just a fistfight? I'll go easy on you then," he quipped, feeling confident. He'd already beaten death, what could LeChevalier really to do him?
|
|
|
Post by Alexandre LeChevalier on Sept 7, 2018 10:51:47 GMT
"Just a fistfight," LeChevalier confirmed. "And I appreciate that. As I've said, it's been some time," he said, stone-faced, as he stepped into the ring. "Alexandra, dear, would you mind officiating?" he asked, again stone-faced, making it difficult to tell if it was in jest.
|
|
Narg
Independent Alliance
Posts: 153
|
Post by Narg on Sept 7, 2018 17:05:05 GMT
"You have to be kidding, Alex." A young woman in a sports bra and sport shorts with a long, tied back ponytail, quipped at the Primogen. "Since when was the last time you ever saw me stop a fight?"
The people around them chuckled and moved to the edge of the ring. A man in a leather jacket came up behind Alister and started pushing him towards the ring. "Don't worry." The man said with true loathing coating the back of his words, "LeChevalier doesn't even practice his disciplines. Too busy reading about the Tremere and transgressions of old to actually do anything of use for the Clan." The man had dark hair and stubble, with an aura of menace about him. He seemed dangerous, like a hunter who had gotten bored killing deer. "Show him what for, Newbie. If you really are Solomon's then you should have no problem beating this bookworm." The man gave Alister a shove towards the pit. The crowd parted, letting him stumble up to the edge.
Alexander saw from afar, a familiar face had introduced himself to Alister. David Rodriguez talked into Alister's ear as he lead the fledgling up to the pit. Alexander was sure that Rodriguez was trying to pull more clout, even from the newbie. Alexander was fortunate to have reached Alister first. Given the chance, Rodriguez would have absolutely poured lies and slander into Alister's ears, turning him away. Alister had the potential to become a faithful friend and ally, if left uncorrupted by a certain Diablerist.
Had Rodriguez not Diablerized the previous Primogen, he would most likely have the title now. He was active in fighting the Sabbat and putting down rowdy Anarch Coteries. Considering, he was invaluable within the clan. But whispers of his Diablerie had reached the ears of all the Oddhaven Brujah. You don't do that. Not to family, seemed to be the general attitude regarding the whole scenario.
Had Solomon not been sheriff he would absolutely have taken the job as Primogen, being respected within the community, and a father figure to half the wayward Brujah in the city. Were Solomon not there, the Oddhaven Brujah would hardly have behaved like a family, especially given the animosity between LeChavalier and Rodriguez. The faction lines within the Clan were starting to form. Even commitment to the care of a rowdy family was beginning to look as if it weren't enough. The Oddhaven Brujah had to choose between an alleged Diablerist, and a Brujah averse to fighting, and both choices smelled like shit.
Alexander, being politically savy, quickly realized that attendance of such gatherings would be sorely necessary if he were to wrest power once and for all from Rodriguez and his ilk. This fight with Alister could prove to be the first step down the road to a much needed Image change.
|
|
|
Post by Alister Rockwell on Sept 8, 2018 1:17:46 GMT
Alister frowned. While he had no idea who was talking to him, Solomon's firmly respectful opinion of men like LeChevalier had sunk into him too, and LeChevalier had been nothing but good and courteous to him. Plus, he'd killed a fucking werewolf! So he wasn't much inclined to listen to opinions that ran so counter to his own. "Jesus, what's up your arse? It's all in good spirit," he said over his shoulder, put off by the unrestrained malevolent hostility. Writing him off as just another dickhead - all groups had at least one - he vaulted the chains and strode into the center of the ring. A good number of the assembled Brujah cheered "NEWBIE IN THE RING!", and Alister couldn't help but feel a strong sense of camaraderie for it. It was damned good to feel welcome in a group again after so many bit jobs as an enforcer or a bodyguard. Cracking his knuckles, Alister waited for LeChevalier to ready himself on the other side of the ring before dropping into a fighting stance. He'd go easy on him, no reason to give a brutal beatdown to the Primogen on his first day as part of the Rabble. Until I specify otherwise, you can assume Alister is going easy on LeChevalier because he's not taking him seriously as a fighter. Reduce Alister's Strength score by 2 and his Dexterity and Brawl scores by 1 each.
|
|
Narg
Independent Alliance
Posts: 153
|
Post by Narg on Sept 8, 2018 1:57:16 GMT
Alister rolls for initiative. 9+QiZVz_Npp_going on 18. Ain't celerity dots crazy.
Roll to see if Alex ties 8+p_ nope.
LeChevalier will declare, then Alister will declare. Alister will resolve then LeChevalier will. ยท
|
|
|
Post by Alexandre LeChevalier on Sept 8, 2018 2:25:52 GMT
LeChevalier had readied himself into a boxing stance, waiting for Alister to enter the ring. Once Alister had likewise put himself into a fighting stance, Alexandre threw an experiment punch at him, keeping a distance and remaining defensive while trying to get a feel for his opponent's capabilities.
|
|
|
Post by Alister Rockwell on Sept 8, 2018 2:45:44 GMT
Alister had been in enough brawls to know a test punch when he saw it. That was good, most people were smart enough not to jump at the other guy screaming right off the bell. Watching the punch come in, Alister went to sidestep the punch and retaliate with a jab at LeChevalier's non-functioning left kidney. Splitting dice. Alister's current Dex + Brawl score is 4, his Dex + Athletics is 5; add 3 to both for his Celerity dots. Since Dex + Brawl is lower, that's the score (7 total) that's split. Alister allocates 4 dice to a Dodge maneuver and 3 to the Strike.
|
|