Vampire: The Requiem - Lordenshaw Opera House (Elysium)

[Loredoctor]

Mina and Jonathan walked away from Lydia and her clique, passing a large group of kindred engaged in general discussion. A young girl with gleaming metal braces clamping her thin legs limped by. Her spine was twisted. She looked barely older than thirteen, and although her face was ghostly pale she was beautiful, like a porcelain doll with blood red lips and calculating hers. A small Invictus symbol had been sown into her red and gold dress. Three men, naked to the waist, their faces covered by leather masks followed her closely.

Mina motioned for Jonathan to continue, and they moved deeper into the crowd.

[Jonathan Belmont]

"And here I thought some of the Dragons or the Witches were weird", comment Jonathan as he watched the young girl disappear from sight. "They're merely eccentric compared to her.

Shaking his head in disbelief, he turned to Mina. "Another old friend of yours, my dear?"

[Loredoctor]

Mina placed a hand on Jonathan's arm as she nodded politely at an asian man. "I have no idea who the young girl was, Jon. She's powerful, I can tell that much. Did you feel the beast in you rear up when she approached?"

[Jonathan Belmont]

"I sure did. If I met her on my own in a dark alley somewhere, I'd have run a mile. She must be pretty old to be that powerful, and if she that and you don't know her, then it looks as if the Invictus are bringing in reinforcements from outside the city."

Mina looked worried at this suggestion. "Perhaps she came of her own accord. Or maybe she was sent as opposed to being invited."

"A hostile takeover?"

"Or a shake-up by senior-management. So to speak."

"I guess that's possible. From what you've told me, the First Estate has been pretty stagnant in the city for a while now. Perhaps the threat of a new leader might wake them up a little."

"And if it doesn't, then the new leader can be a reality, rather than threat."

"In which case, it may be wise to find out a little more about the young lady."

"True, although I doubt we have time tonight. Scythia should be here soon."

[James Randel]

James watched the twisted girl walk through the crowd. Damn, he thought, I've seen it all now. I totally gotta get her for a music video.

He then resumed his lonely trek around the room making the most of the eye candy.

[Loredoctor]

At the top of the stairwell that led to the opera hall, Callidia could be seen talking on a mobile phone. Several kindred were watching her with interest, and she appeared to be enjoying the attention. It appeared as though her movements were more gracious, her poses more striking. However, where Lydia tried to enhance her attractive qualities, Callidia presented herself more assertively; her shoulders were squared, her posture straightened, her face calm yet stern. She exuded power, and there was no doubt in most of the kindred watching her that she was the Hierophant's second in charge, and her near equal.

Callidia finished speaking into the phone and placed it in her purse. She turned to face the crowd. "Our Prince will be here within twenty minutes," she announced triumphantly.

Jonathan heard someone mutter behind him, "And then the fun begins."

[Jonathan Belmont]

Jonathan felt the room tense at Callidia's announcement, the undercurrents of both hungry anticipation and fearful uncertainty both evident. Hierophant Scythia was clearly not someone to take lightly.

In saying that however, Calldia was obviously not to be taken lightly either. Neither were Lydia, despite her preoccupation with trivial matters, or Pyotr, or Roland, or anyone else that Jonathan had met that evening. It seemed to him that the architects of Kindred society were fair more accomplished, far more dangerous, than any mortal leader.

Which made sense. They had so much more time to refine the art.

Watching the unaligned who had earlier made a scene at the entrance drift past morosely, Jonathan asked Mina, "Did you wish to use those twenty minutes to introduce me to anyone else? Or would you prefer to wait for the Hierophant?"

[Loredoctor]

"Let's wait, Jon." She looked at her watch. "It shouldn't be too long a wait."

[Loredoctor]

Outside the entrance, an expensive car stops. Two motorbikes pull up beside it, and the riders, both clad in leather and helmeted, reach for guns. Everyone in the foyer becomes silent, so that the air seems still and tense. They all look in the direction of the doors.

Someone softly says, "The Hierophant has arrived."

[Maddoc]

Having been picked up by the taxi, Maddoc sits languorously in the rear seat. His eyes are closed, head lolling back against the headrest, a benign smile on his face. The taxi streaks through the City, closing quickly on the Opera House.

“You do know where I’m taking you buddy, right?” says the driver, squinting at Maddoc through his rear-view mirror. “I mean, you want me to stop somewhere? Give you a chance to change clothes real quick?”
Maddoc lifts his head, opening his eyes to stare blankly at the driver. It is his only response, and after a few awkward moments pass, the driver throws a bottle of water into the back seat.
“Well shit man, at least clean yourself off a bit,” he says.
Maddoc reaches for the bottle lazily, studying it like a long buried treasure, recently unearthed. He turns back to the driver, as if seeking instruction.

“The dried blood? On your face? Any of this ringing a bell, man?” says the driver, exasperated.
“Ahhh. Of course, of course…” purrs Maddoc, stripping of his worn hoodie to reveal an equally used t-shirt underneath. Then he opens the bottle, emptying the contents over his head in a flood.
“Awww, not on the upholstery!” laments the driver, still watching Maddoc in the mirror. Maddoc barks in laughter, scrubbing his dripping head and torso with the hoodie. “Thank Christ we’re nearly there,” says the driver under his breath, as the Opera House comes into view. “Why it’s always me gets stuck with the whack-jobs, I’ll never know.”

Bringing the car to a skidding halt at the foot of the building, he sees the freshly parked limosine, flanked by the two motorcycles. “Shit, we’re late,” says the driver, leaning over the seat to motion Maddoc towards the door with one burly arm. “Of you go then, man, you better hurry. Been a real fuckin’ pleasure, let me tell ya.”
Blowing the driver a kiss, Maddoc exits the vehicle and heads up the stairs to the entrance to the Opera House, leaving the soiled hoodie behind.
The foyer is no longer crowded, but there are still a few late arrivals milling around. All attention is on the Heirophant’s arrival however, and no one pays Maddoc a second glance. He drifts to the back of the foyer, also turning his attention to the limosine and it’s occupants.

[Loredoctor]

From where he stands, Maddoc is able to see a tall and regal female step out of the expensive car. She is followed by two burly males. The motorcycle riders scan the area and then stand to either side of the entrance, holding their guns. The female strides into the foyer, and the crowd parts before her. Not a few Kindred appear intimidated, and bow obsequiously.

James Randel looks up after he notices the foyer turning quiet. Kindred shift around excitedly or nervously, many craning their pale necks to see the commanding figure stride towards the stairs. He hears a voice say commandingly to his right, "Circle, to the Hierophant." A tense moment later, several Kindred push through the crowd.

Jonothan is almost brought to his knees by the flaring of his Beast. He nearly snarles. Mina places a hand on his arm and stands close to him. "Look, Jon." She nods in the direction of the Hierophant as she ascends the marble staircase. "She wears the Circle of the Crone symbol on her robes. This could turn nasty."

[Jonathan Belmont]

Jonathan studied the Hierophant as she ascended the marble staircase as if she were the Queen of the Gods ascending into the heavens. Whilst not conventionally beautiful, Scythia was striking nonetheless. Her posture was strong with an almost masculine edge, yet it was apparent from the way she walked that she could have moved more gracefully if she wished. Which, unsurprisingly, she apparently did not. No one who described her honestly would have listed subtlety as one of the Hierophant's strengths.

As she entered she did not cast her icy gaze around the room to see who else was there but rather stared straight ahead as she strode towards her destination, clearly confident in the knowledge that she was the most important Kindred in the room. Her face remained almost expressionless except for the tiniest hint of what may have been a smile. Or teeth bared in warning.

As he watched her, Jonathan felt the beast within him settle back into a state of watchful calm. It wasn't just Scythia's personal power that was intimidating – the Invictus girl with the leg braces was probably just as potent. Rather, it was the obvious control she exerted over almost everyone present. It was as if the room were full of marionettes, and she held all the strings. Even the slightest movement elicited a response that spread out from her like ripples on a pond.

Without taking his eyes off the Hierophant, Jonathan inclined his head towards Mina. “That might be a good thing. Scythia may not support our cause, but she is in charge, and the Carthians have never had any particular reason to hate the Circle. Perhaps the Movement should stand back while she deals with her traditional enemies? I know I wouldn't mind a Lordenshaw City without the good Bishop.”

[Loredoctor]

Sycthia reached the top of the staircase and turned around to face the vampire and ghoul crowd. Her gaze appeared to appraise every individual in the room, lingering on some and barely glancing at others. She stood still for a moment and smiled primly.

"Welcome," she said with a firm and gracious voice. "Welcome, kindred of Lordenshaw City. I appreciate all of you arriving here, for this meeting tonight is an important one. Since I my ascension to the position of Prince after removing the Mikhailov family from power there have been in total five meetings. This will be the sixth."

The Prince stepped forward to the edge of the floor. "Tonight we celebrate the arrival of new Kindred. Tonight I ask of the covenants and clans to endorse a new Tradition. But it will not be without some discontent, no doubt." She paused. "It has been the practice for covenant and clan elders or leaders to seat themselves in the booths on the highest tier. The booths are being repaired and are closed off, I have been told. Therefore, this is my decision. The leaders and elders will sit in the first tier, and I will maintain my position at the head of the stage."

Somewhere in the foyer, a Kindred hissed, "that bitch. She expects them all to grovel."

[James Randel]

watching the woman enter the room, James stood impassively in his corner. She walked with an arrogance he had seen in himself and his band mates many times.

Hearing the voice to his right he turned to see who was speaking as the Hierophant started her announcement

[Jonathan Belmont]

"The First Tier", Jonathan breathed. It looks as if the symbols on her robes are going to be the least of our worries.

Turning towards Mina he held her gaze. "Will Pyotr endorse this new tradition?"

His sire shrugged almost imperceptibly. "I don't know Jon. He isn't at all caught up in his own status or importance, but placing himself beneath all that is bourgeois in our society would certainly be a lot to ask."

"To be honest, the only ones I could guarantee will refuse outright are Sigismund and his cronies. I have no whether Nwoso or Teufel would think it wiser to resist now, or to put on a show of acquiescence and then resist later."

[Maddoc]

Maddoc listens to the murmuring around him, expressions flitting across his face schizophrenically. Leering, frowning, baring his fangs - it's as if he's trying on different masks until he can find the appropriate one to wear. He stays to the rear of the foyer, watching.

[Loredoctor]

James saw an ordinary-looking Kindred mutter those words, and then several of the vampires around him to cast warning looks in his direction.

Scythia crossed her arms under her breasts and glared at the crowd. "Ascend the stairs, Kindred. Enter the opera hall. I pronounce that court has begun." She turned and walked away, vanishing from sight. At that point, all the Kindred and ghouls in the foyer began walking up the stairs.

[Ivan Karpenku]

Ivan heads for the side entrance, and heads for whoever looks to be lowest ranking schlepp on the group, who got stuck with ticketing details.

"I am Ivan Karpenku. Heirophant Scythia is epxecting me to expose myself to her... I undertand that she has other things on her schedule for this evening, but I request just 15 minutes of the Heirophant's time, accompanied by the Vozhd Maxim. To whom must I speak for this?"

[Jonathan Belmont]

With Mina at his side, Jonathan made his way up the stairs and into the Grand Hall of the Lordenshaw City Opera House. Chandeliers laden with gleaming crystals illuminated everything with a warm, soft light that only just banished the shadows to the farthest corners of the room. The stage, richly framed with curtains of blood-red velvet, was watched over by three tiers of large, comfortable-looking chairs arranged in long curved rows, with the fourth and highest tier given over to private booths.

From what Mina had told him concerning previous Courts, these booths were normally occupied by the City's leaders, who could then look down on both the Hierophant and the rest of Lordenshaw's kindred with disdain. Tonight however, they were dark and full of shadows, although Jonathan wondered if repairs were really the reason for their being left empty.

Given the size of the Great Hall, the first tier of seating would have easily accommodated the entire Vampire population of the City, yet none who had entered so far had chosen to sit there. Most sat at least as far back as the middle of the second tier, as if wanting to maintain a safe distance between themselves and both Scythia and those that she had decreed would sit beneath her gaze. Following their example, Jonathan and Mina chose two seats at the end of a row about a third of the way up the second tier, in an area already occupied by a number of their fellow Carthians.

It wasn't until the flow of people entering the Great Hall waned and everyone began to take their seats that Jonathan realised that something was wrong. The first tier was still empty. None of the other Covenant leaders, or those Clan leaders who were not part of the Circle of the Crone, had followed the crowd inside.

"Discontent?" murmured Mina. "You might have been a little over-optimistic there, Scythia."

[Loredoctor]

Ivan heads for the side entrance, and heads for whoever looks to be lowest ranking schlepp on the group, who got stuck with ticketing details.

"I am Ivan Karpenku. Heirophant Scythia is epxecting me to expose myself to her... I undertand that she has other things on her schedule for this evening, but I request just 15 minutes of the Heirophant's time, accompanied by the Vozhd Maxim. To whom must I speak for this?"

Ivan faces a man in a white tuxedo, who is writing down something in a large book. When he heared him speak he did not hide a smile. "Mister Karpenku. Hmmmm. I see you have been listed to attend, and it was a last minute change to my book."

He finished writing and then stared at Ivan. "You wish to see the Prince?" He resumed. "Good luck, my Russian friend. However, I am more than certain the Vozhd will grant you an audience." The man pointed to a group of vampires at the bottom step of the staircase. Most of the crowd were already ascending above them. "The man with the red silk shirt on is Maxim. However, he may not talk to you if he has no reason to. Respect your position tonight; that's how it works in Elysium."