Vampire: Dark Ages - Scene 3: Dinner is Served

[Goatkiller666]

Alina

Alina finds herself descending quickly, but not quite falling, towards the ground. When she is still five feet off the ground, she falls the last way. A servant is standing by the door, holding it open. When Alina stands back up, knees and elbows bruised from the fall, he says only "Dinner is served."

Olaf

After several more rooms are demolished, a servant enters. Ignoring the ruins of the furniture, he says calmly "Dinner is served." Marchettus pats Olaf on the back and gestures towards the main room, translating the servant's statement into Norse for him.

Sabine

A servant enters the room and announces "Dinner is served." Wenceslas gestures to Timothy, who drops Sabine on the floor. The servant picks her up and carries her back to the dining room.

Seska

Seska hears the sounds of digging from outside her box. After ten minutes, with the sounds coming louder, Seska hears scraping of shovels on her lid. When the lid comes off, a servant is standing there with another man behind him holding a lantern. "Dinner is served." he says, not offering Seska a hand from her confinement.

The Dining Room (Gedeminas and Taduz)

Several servants enter the dining room and begin to set up the table. When they are finished, the majordomo turns to Lord Claudio and announces "Dinner is ready, sir. I'll summon the rest of the guests now."

Sir Leopold and Lady Almanov finish whipping the servant woman. Two of her fellows carry her away. Leopold and Almanov continue speaking as they make their way to their seats.

Mother Constanza gasps, and then Valdemar rises from his chair. "Please, allow me to help you to the dinner table, reverend mother." After a few minutes of chanting, she finally stops. He repeats, "Reverend mother? Shall we retire to the dinner table?"

Theophania stands and walks back to the table, leaving Georgette where she sits. Eventually, the nun rises as well and stumbles to the table.

Al-Nasir invites Gedeminas to join him at the table, still quite cheerful.

Two servants, having finished carrying the whipped woman away, return and pick Taduz up from the floor where he was lying. They carry him to the chair next to Gabrin, and seat him. His head falls forward and hits the surface of the table, which causes him to startle awake. His body is unharmed, though the memory of the seering agony is still fresh.

Matron Violetta, Casmir, and Mieczyslav stroll in deep in conversation. A few minutes later, Marta comes in, and then Dante. Marchettus and Olaf arrive next, and then Wenceslas, Timothy, and the servant carrying Sabine.

Finally, an attractive but feral woman enters, with Johann slung over her shoulder. She heads to the foot of the table, drops him into a chair, and sits next to him. Claudio calls out to her, "Dimitra, did you enjoy your hunt?"

"Indeed. Your fetching servant failing to collect this one actually ended up working in my favor."

[I'm leaving a space for Alina and Seska to react to being released before starting the meal proper.]

[Seska Karantanija]

Seska lay in the dark for an interminable period, unable to move, feeling barely able to breath with it coming involuntarily, the recent events playing in her mind over and over as nothing else was left to her. At first she was simply shocked. The conversation, the game she thought they were playing, had taken a strange turn. She could not tell if Amisa was misunderstanding the roll her faith played or if she was purposefully misinterpreting it to draw Seska out. In either case, she lost the battle of wits. First inadvertently cutting herself, then almost leaping into Amisa's embrace to make her change the subject. To the subject she had originally proposed! She hesitated because she worried about being too forward, too improper.

Everything went wrong in that moment. She still could not understand what happened. Magick? She could still see the distortion in Amisa's eyes as if she were still glaring at her. Herbs? She did have an open cut. Maybe Amisa slipped a substance into the blood pooling in her cupped hand. There are certainly substances which could fool her senses into seeing things which were not there and others which act a paralytics or sleep inducers. Was it both? Is the coffin real or is that a part of some lucid dream?

Through it all she yearned for Amisa's approval. She didn't want her to be angry. She needed her understanding. Her love.

Seska felt too aware for it to be a dream, though. Being unable to take deep breaths became stifling as the air became humid and stale. Blood slowly trickled down her right arm to land on her dress sleeve above the elbow. Her unclosing eyes became dry between bouts of tears. One can cry only so many tears no matter how much the pain. She could not scream. She could not scratch an itch which became an irritating tickle. She could not adjust the pinch from the fabric of her dress. She could not shift the press of her weight upon the bed of the coffin.

It seemed to never end.

Finally, after the gods know how long, her muscles relaxed as suddenly as they froze in place. She gasped for air and blinked her eyes. Simply being able to move brought relief to her aches, though it did not remove them.

Now she could feel the lid of the coffin. This was no dream. She pressed on the lid to no avail, straining already taxed muscles. She screamed for help in her native tongue, with what breath she could gather. Then, soon, she heard digging. Her yelling intensified. Her anger at Amisa growing with it. How dare she!

As the diggers grew closer her beating against the lid pushed it up, allowing dirt to spill in through the cracks. She continued to press, determined to escape this foul bed. The shovels finally removed enough dirt for her to flip the wood aside, letting her sit while more of the dirt spilled into her lap. "Dinner is served," the servant drones, as if entombing guests is a common occurrence.

Furious by now, Seska clambers out of her burial pit to trudge through the doors and hallways she was led with an unholy determination. Locks of her long red hair spill out of their braids in a wild fashion. Her dress has been soiled by dirt and blood. Her right arm caked by the now dried substance.

Finding the main banquet hall and its inhabitants mostly assembled, she storms up to Amisa and slaps her face with all the force she can muster. The strike leaves a streak of dirt and flakes of dried blood, but Amisa hardly registers the hit, as if it were nothing but a light tap. All of her rage spent in the one blow, Seska breaks down and leans against her host. She begins to sob uncontrollably. "Why? Why did you do that to me?"

[Goatkiller666]

The room is silent. Amisa gently pushes Seska back to look into her eyes. Her expression is thoughtful for a moment, long enough for the countess to feel silly for standing there so angry. Then Amisa laughs. It's a full belly laugh, where she couldn't speak even if she wanted to. As if waiting for her cue, all of Claudius' guests laugh as well. Even Sir Leopold joins in, once Almanov has started laughing.

After regaining her composure, the Lady Amisa strokes Seska's hair, almost kindly. Her hand catches Seska's gaze, and she uses it to gesture towards the empty chair next to her and says "Take a seat, dear. Dinner is ready, now. We'd all like to begin."

[Alína Nyárí]

Rubbing her elbows and knees, Alína looks at the servant in mild shock and mouths back at him, "Dinner is...served?"

Standing slowly while adjusting to gravity again, the Jewess' thoughts race at the normalcy of the statement, considering how she has spent the last 90 minutes or so. She had to find the child who had screamed and do what she could for her. But after that, she would take her departure and walk back to the Red Lamb alone, if no one else would join her. There was no possible way she would stay for more of this hospitality. Dara would accompany her and once back at the inn she meant to gather the rest of her things, harness Zoja, and begin the several day journey home.

Well, unless perhaps some pleasure may be in the offing...
No! Alína firmly tells herself. It is not permitted. Resist this growing urge and return home... she tries to convince herself as she enters the hallway.

Glancing quickly, she sees all the doors off the hallway are now open, and all the rooms deserted. Hearing the sound of derisive laughter, she makes her way back to the main room. There Alína sees her Lady lady being laughed at and pityingly told to take a seat. Leave with me when I depart, m'lady, she silently wills towards her Countess.

At this further sign of the rudeness of the hospitality being offered, Alína strides in to the room and looks quickly for Sabine, her breath catching in her throat when she sees the damage done to the young girl. Disregarding the noble bearing of Sabine's "host," she strides to the child's side and immediately begins assessing how she could begin to treat her.

[Seska Karantanija]

Seska nods, as a bashful child would to their parent, at Amisa's invitation and takes the seat beside her. She leans across the arms of the chairs between them to rest her head upon Amisa and stares at the table in a daze.

[Goatkiller666]

Amisa makes a quiet cooing noise when Seska's head presses against her shoulder, and she leans her own head over to press against the top of the Countess' head for a moment.

Sabine's face and arms are liberally covered with many thin shallow slices. Ragged, as though with broken glass; they'll likely leave scars, but otherwise aren't a danger to her. Her throat has been deeply cut. Whoever did it managed to avoid anything critical, but her vocal chords were damaged. If she were inclined to talk now, her voice would be almost silent, and it would cause her much pain. There is little that can be done to ease this kind of damage, only to alleviate the pain and prevent foul humors from entering the wound.

Wenceslas turns to Alina and hisses, "Please take your seat, dinner is about to be served." [Majesty is still in effect.]

The main doors (thought which you all entered originally) are opened again, and several servants enter. The first one says in a loud voice, "Lords and Ladies, and gentles all, dinner is served. Lord Claudio wishes that you all enjoy this repast, which is his pleasure to provide you and our honor to prepare and present. Buon appetito!"

The servants bring out many trays of different sumptuous foods. Roast quail, rabbits, a small roast pig with an apple in its mouth, several pasta dishes, with several colors of sauce on them, escargot, fruit salads with exotic and unknown fruits, and various seafood dishes.

Everyone's mouths are watering from the delicious smells, and even the nuns are seeming to come out of their stupors a bit.

The servants bring out drinks for everyone, red wines for Claudio's friends, and whatever each person had at the Inn the night before. Lady Almanov stands first, holding up her goblet. "A toast! A toast to the brilliant one who brought us together for such a delightful evening! A toast to the leader who knew how to add flavor to our dining. A toast to the one clever enough to attack his own kin for our benefit! To Claudius Giovanni, and to the destruction of Japheth, son of Cappadocious!" A great cheer arises from the crowd. "Speech!" they cry.

Claudius rises, motioning for silence. The crowd takes its time in quieting, but eventually he begins to speak, in Hungarian. "Welcome, welcome, my true friends." he begins. "Another year has passed and the Conspiracy of Isaac now stands on the threshold of victory. Your unflagging devotion to our cause has brought us to the brink of seizing Cappadocian power and wealth! I am in awe. Tonight I intend to reward that fidelity. Which brings us to our guests."

He gestures towards each of the characters. "Welcome, you who are new to our ranks. Let us talk about sustenance. Let us talk about the draught of life that sustains us."

"The smell of fine food entices and excites the palate, and makes the consumption all the more gratifying. Can you smell it? Does not the growing anticipation make the meal more and more desirable? This is the difference between the boorish peasant who devours his barley like a beast" he gestures at Olaf and Sabine, "and the refined palate requiring cultivated sustenance. Anticipation. The circumstances of the meal are as important as the food itself. Consumption is a holy act, and each drop should be memorable."

"Only the finest food should be selected. The food should be tenderized. Prepared. The eater must have a relationship with his meal. Then, when you bite a shred of flesh from your food, it's worth the blood you shed. Wouldn't our guests agree?" He looks pointedly at each character and awaits a reply.

Constanza speaks first, holding up her cross and saying, "Every act is one of reverence for Almighty God, and should be approached with a sense of humility and worship. But revelling in God's works, any of His works, becomes an act of self-aggrandization. Finding ecstasy through the depth and nuance of flavor in the flesh that God put on this earth to feed Adam's children is a worthy act. But what you're saying smacks more of the Morningstar's hubris."

Sister Georgette immediately replies "Amen" to this. Marta jerks her head towards Georgette at the word, and belatedly mumbles "Amen!" as well. Then she lowers her head again, as if she were looking at something cradled in her arms.

Claudio smiles, "I guess we know how all of the nuns feel. What say you, Sir Leopold?"

Sir Leopold replies, already somewhat drunk, "As she says, all of God's creatures are put here for us, yes? That means God wanted us to enjoy them as much as we're able. And I know that I enjoy venison better that I've hunted myself." Claudio nods and then turns to the as-yet-unintroduced man. As he does, Leopold says under his breath to Lady Almanov, though loud enough for most to hear anyway, "I know I'll enjoy that servent wench later this evening."

"Doctor Razven, what is your learned opinion on the matter?"

The quiet man with Lord Mieczyslav leans forward. "Tis all but fuel for the body. I wish only to quell the aching of my belly quickly, so that I may resume more cerebral pursuits. Delightful conversation, or study of the fine delicacies of God's physical creation."

When he gets to Olaf, Marchettus will translate the gist of the question, though the meaning of Claudio's gesture towards him and Sabine will be omitted. Likewise Casmir will translate for Alina. Al-Nasir will translate for Gedeminas. etc.

[Johann Von Braniff]

Groaning, I open my eyes and through blurred vision I gaze around. "Where...am I?"

[Alína Nyárí]

Sabine's face and arms are liberally covered with many thin shallow slices. Ragged, as though with broken glass; they'll likely leave scars, but otherwise aren't a danger to her. Her throat has been deeply cut. Whoever did it managed to avoid anything critical, but her vocal chords were damaged. If she were inclined to talk now, her voice would be almost silent, and it would cause her much pain. There is little that can be done to ease this kind of damage, only to alleviate the pain and prevent foul humors from entering the wound.

Wenceslas turns to Alina and hisses, "Please take your seat, dinner is about to be served." [Majesty is still in effect.]

The force of L-rd Wenceslas' charisma nearly bowls Alína over, yet the sight of Sabine strengthens her resolve to leave. Hearing Casmir repeat in Yiddish what has been said, she turns to look at the L-rd with disdain. "The elder sister somewhat has the gist of it, sir. There is nothing, nothing here I will consume. It is all treif, and therefore forbidden to me. Although there is no reason to keep the rest of you from enjoying the repast forbidden to me.

"However, I find that I am already weary. And I see that the child is asleep on her feet, and is in need of some attention I can provide her back at the inn..."

As she finishes her last, Alína moves quickly to gather Sabine in her arms before Wencelas has a chance to react and just as quickly turns to head out of the room. Seeing the main doors closed once again and guarded, she heads back towards the small door which leads to the courtyard where she had spent the last 90 minutes or so...floating, with every intent of leaving the grounds via a garden path.

[Goatkiller666]

"Trief, madam? Why, my chef has gone out of his way to prepare food even one such as you can consume." The last said with a sneer. He makes eye contact with Alina and continues, "The child is quite alright. Please take your seat and finish the meal with us."

[Claudio made 6 successes on his dominate roll.]

Alina returns Sabine to her seat and then sits down herself, preparing to eat.

The exotic woman from the forest is sitting next to Johann, and leans in next to him. "You're at Claudio's castle, pet. You were invited, don't you remember? We're about to have dinner." She repeats Claudio's question to him so that he too may answer in his turn.

[Seska Karantanija]

Amisa whispers a few words in Seska's ear, which cause her to stir and nod in response. She stands, a little unsteadily, and waves a servant over for a fresh glass of mead.

Once refilled, she begins meekly, "A fine meal should be enjoyed, and putting effort into it oneself does enhance the flavor. However the finest of foods can become dull if that is the only thing to ever cross one's palate." Seska looks up and down the table at the variety of food, and people assembled. Her confidence seems a little restored as she continues, "A simple meal one day can enhance the wonders of the banquet the next, much as some unpleasantness can enhance the warmth of a comforting embrace."

She holds her glass aloft to the Count, then waves it to the other onlookers then takes a very healthy draught from her glass before sitting and once more leaning upon Amisa.

[Johann Von Braniff]

I stare at the woman, realizing who she is. "I...you...I remember, you hung me over a crevice and threw me. You were going to kill me. You...are...you are a monster. Fangs and claws...and..."

I look around the room once more. "You killed me and I'm in hell, right? This is hell."

[Alína Nyárí]

Sitting bolt upright in her chair, and struggling to contain the urge to reach out to bolt down the foods she could eat as ravenously as she could, the Jewess lets a short bark of hysterical laughter escape at the question Johann asks. Her eyes widen and she clamps a hand quickly against her mouth to attempt to stifle anymore laughter from escaping, but behind her hand she mutters in Hebrew, not Yiddish, to herself, "Not She'ol. Not yet. But definitely on its doorstep. Gehennom, perhaps..."

[Gedeminas]

Gedeminas looks at Claudius as he speaks in incomprehensible Hungarian. As he listens to Al-Nasir's translation, he smiles and nods at the question Lord Claudio put to him, clearly agreeing.

"I accept that personally selecting and preparing the best food makes eating it more enjoyable. However, I do not see how any of us have any personal connection to the food on the table."

[Taduz Illyannovich]

Fire. Tapestries. What madness

Thoroughly shaken by recent events, Taduz in a semi-daze listens, watches, and tries to collect his thoughts.

[Goatkiller666]

Claudio nods his approval of Seska's statement. "I find that I enjoy most the times I sup after a very long fast. Denying myself for a time before approaching the next great feast... Mmmmm."

Johann's neighbor woman smiles at him. "No, pet. You're not in Hell. This is Claudio's castle." She laughs. Several of the others chuckle at this as well.

"I do not see how any of us have any personal connection to the food on the table."

Claudius holds up one finger in emphasis. "That is a very excellent point, young man." He claps his hands together twice, and calls out "Bring it."

Lothar enters through the main doors, leading two servants who are dragging a large and noisy sheep with them by a silken leash. Claudio smiles and says, "He has spirit. How unlike his breed. Well, my guests, here is your dinner."

He pauses a moment, glancing around the room smiling brightly. He takes a large woodsman's axe from yet another servent, and holds it out to the room at large. "Who among you will have the honor of the kill?"

When there is no immediate response, he continues, "Come come, did you want a temperate, bloodless dinner? Eating is destruction! Eating is death! And death is holy, as our Savior reminds us. Come!"

[Johann Von Braniff]

I stare at the mad man in horror. Looking around, I see a door, jump up from the chair and bolt toward it.

[Seska Karantanija]

He pauses a moment, glancing around the room smiling brightly. He takes a large woodsman's axe from yet another servent, and holds it out to the room at large. "Who among you will have the honor of the kill?"

Not quite slurring yet, Seska's pronunciation is verging on sloppy, "I much prefer the bow. I do not think you want me waving an axe about the room." She accentuates this with a twirling of her glass, which sloshes some of its golden contents over her shoulder. Giving an 'oops' look and a bemused smirk, she continues, "I might take someone's head off."

"That big fella though," waving in Olaf's direction, "he likes axes. Give it to him." Under her breath, though barely, she adds, "Make sure your dog of a man stands near him."

[Olaf_Magnusson]

As no one else seems inclined, Olaf stands up. "Thank you for the privilege. I gladly accept the honor of rendering the meal". SO saying, he swings mightily

OOC--dex/melee, please..with a willpower, to try and angle things so His Obnoxiousness gets sprayed

[Alína Nyárí]

Alína pales with the swinging of the axe, the suffering of the ram apparent despite the Norseman's skill. "A far cry from the ritualization of shechita," she mumbles to herself. "This truly decides it; not even milchik here. Since I have no choice but to eat, pareve it is, as I intended from the start."

[Goatkiller666]

Several snickers flutter across the room as Seska pours mead down her own back. Lothar only smiles more. Claudius holds the axe out to Olaf.

The tall viking grips the axe with long accustomed ease. The servants hold the beast still by the leash, and Olaf swings at the base of it's neck. His aim is true, but the beast managed fell to its knees just has his blow landed. What should have been an instantly killing blow instead only severed the spine without going all the way through. As he wanted, gouts of blood flew from the dying animal, gaining distance as it's heart pumps the life's essence into the air. Lothar and Claudius, as well as Olaf himself, are liberally splashed with the stuff.

Claudius smiles and applauds gently. Lothar dances back, and is making fastidious noises and trying to wipe the gore from his doublet. With no success; he only rubs it in further.

The sheep collapses to the ground, making gurgling noises as it's unable to push enough air through it's still intact throat to properly bleet. Olaf makes a second swing with the axe, finishing the beast quickly.

The closest door to Johann is just over his right shoulder, perhaps 10' away. He bolts towards the opening, and manages to get there despite the flare in his headache and a slight bit of dizziness. Dimitra may have struck him harder than he realized.

The door opens, and Johann sees a narrow hallway extending away from him. There are four doors off of the hallway, and a window between the first and second doors to the right.

Behind him, Johann can hear Dimitra nearly cackle, "Claudio, I'd almost be inclined not to punish your man for failing to bring this one all the way back. He's so much more vibrant when he has his free will." She rises as well, and takes a leisurely pace as she follows Johann out the door.