Sixteen knights under the Blood leave the Prince's court, lead by Ludwig and his guest Charles. With them, looking very incongruous, is Lucretia. She is without armor, without weapons, and easily a head taller than any of the men. Once outside in the light of the full moon, her alabaster skin seems to glow faintly, while the rest of the knights fade into the darkness by comparison.
Ludwig calls to them all, "Men. Oh, uh... and Lady. Go to your homes, and bring only what you need for a quick trip. It's two days hard ride to Passau, and we'll need men to mind our sleep during the day. Bring only a few ghouls each, knights all, who can survive a hard ride at night and be useful in protecting us during the day. We'll need to wrap ourselves in thick blankets, so we aren't held back carrying coffins and wagons. Meet at the western gate in one hour, prepared to ride immediately." With that, all the knights spread out into the city to gather what they need.
Charles and Lucretia are left alone in the square. "Have you made a hard ride like this before, my Lady? If not, I could suggest some ways to make it easier on yourself."
Last edited by Goatkiller666 on Mon Mar 07, 2011 1:38 am, edited 2 times in total.
Charles frowns. "Well, this might be unpleasant. You'll want to wear men's breaches, though. Propriety be damned, you'll not make this on a side-saddle." [He goes on to describe several items that the GM doesn't know enough about horses to actually describe here, but assume he got several successes on his Int+Ride roll, and it's all very good information.]
"You'll want to leave your servants here, unless you've a good guardsman. Ludwig is welcome to bring anyone he wants, but many are likely to die by Lupine claws. With everyone else bringing armsmen, there's no need for you to risk your own soldiers on something like this."
"Other than that, I'd suggest you bring only what you'll need for your analysis, and a couple of large thick blankets, to be wrapped in. Anything else would just weigh the horse down and get in the way."
Over the next 20 minutes, several Cainite knights arrive on horse, with one or two ghoul soldiers each, likewise mounted. As the number of mounted knights approaches 50, Charles returns. He rides up on a magnificant stallion of deepest black. Several hands taller than any other mount there, with a white mane and white tail, the beast catches the eyes of all.
He rides over to Lucretia and frowns. "I see the blankets, but where is your horse?"
Charles just stares for a moment. Then, he dismounts and walks around to the horse's head. He bites his hand, a gruesome gash, and lets the blood fill his two cupped hands. Surprisingly, none spills out from between his fingers, though it seems to be nearly half of a pint of dark black liquid. He holds it up to the horse, who leans down and drinks it all up. The blood almost seems to flow into the horse's mouth, since again none is spilled on the ground.
The beast stomps and snorts a bit after the draught, but then calms down. Charles then pulls a dagger from his belt and uses it to slash at the animal's throat, but it seems unhurt. He returns the blade to it's home, and turns to Lucretia.
"You'll want to use those blankets as padding for the ride, I think. He can carry both of us, now. But the saddle only fits one backside." He takes the blankets from her and begins to roll them into tight bundles. Then, using leather strips from his saddlebags, he ties them in that shape, and then attaches all three to the saddlebags behind his saddle. It's a rough padding, but certainly better than nothing at all.
Most of the others are watching this, especially Ludwig.
She nods in appreciation and waits for him to mount his horse. Concentrating for a moment, four tendrils of inky darkness sprout from the ground beside her. Two cup her hands and two writhe beneath her feet. They work in concert to deposit her gently onto the makeshift saddle before vanishing into the ground.
Charles' horse remains unphased by the tenebrous arms, though most of the other nearby horses come close to panicking. Their riders get them under control quickly, and most are too cowed by Charles' presence to complain. Ludwig glares at Lucretia, however, but says nothing.
He looks around at those gathered, perhaps counting them off in his head. When he sees the last Cainite ride up, he gestures to the guards at the gate. The doors out of the city open, and he rides out. No ceremony, just a strong sense of urgency is in the air. The rest of the knights follow behind him, balancing their urgency with the dangers of riding at night. Soon, there's a long string of riding horses, two or three abreast, on the road.
Charles takes up the rear, and Lucretia is forced to grab hold of him to avoid falling off the horse after just a few gallops. He reaches back with one hand to grip her arm and pull her closer. "Hold on tightly, girl. It's going to be a long ride." [He continues with some other suggestions that the GM doesn't know enough about to write.]
She clings tightly to his cold, dead flesh. The wind rushes through her hair. The moon, almost full, illuminates the land in ghostly shadows which she drinks in with her unblinking eyes.
"Does he think it as beautiful a night for a ride as she does?"
Charles laughs. "He does. Though, he is surprised she is able to notice it, what with all the bouncing. Perhaps Charon would like me to quit holding him back?" With that, he kicks his feet into the horse's flanks, and it surges ahead. As the road leaves a copse of woods, he leaves it entirely and runs on open grass, passing the knights easily.
He pulls up alongside Ludwig to say "I think my horse needs to be worn out a bit. I'll go ahead and find us a place to camp. How far did you intend to go tonight, and by which route?"
Lucretia barely managed to hold on to Charles' back, and uses this opportunity to grip harder.
Ludwig calls back, "We follow the river road all the way to Passau. We should be able to get almost to the village of Dorfl. Find us a roadside cottage away from habitation, and we'll stay there and feed from them after we've slept."
"Excellent. I shall await you."
With that, Charles once again lets Charon have his lead, and the horse charges ahead. For two hours, they gallop without stopping or slowing. The horse doesn't even seem winded by the effort. But eventually, Charles pulls him to a stop near a small farming cottage by the side of the road.
He trots to the house, and dismounts. Leaving Lucretia where she is, he pounds on the cottage's door calling "Open in the name of the Duke!"
Shortly, a man opens the door and then tries to close it again when he sees Charles' corpselike pallor. Charles kicks in the door before it can be latched closed, and then touches the man on the forehead. With that touch, the man stiffens taught. His skin sinks into his body, and he falls over, looking more like an old corpse than Charles.
He moans, and tries to get back up, having trouble with his arms and legs not moving very well, but by then Charles has moved into the house. Brief cries of surprise can be heard from a woman and several children, and then Charles walks back out.
"The rest should be here in an hour or so, I'd guess. Well before sunrise. Come, let us try to make the place fast against the sun's hurtful rays." He holds out his hand to help Lucretia down from the horse, ignoring the pitiful moans from the people inside the cottage.
She slides down, briefly stumbling into his arms. Standing up, she goes to Charon's head and pets him awkwardly in thanks.
She enters the house with Charles to look at what they have to work with. Seeing the youngest struggling to reach the mother, she picks it up and places it next to her. Concentrating, three tendrils sprout from the walls. With a small pout she dismisses them and tries again. This time seven tendrils snake out from the house's supports. "They can be stored out of the way," she calmly beams before noticing Charles has already started to tie them with rope.
She looks through the house for heavy fabric or other materials which can block light coming through windows or gaps in the walls. Gathering what she can, she begins to seal the house.
"Andrius and I have been companions for 500 years. But even I do not know most of his secrets, especially on matters of Obtenebration. I've seen him hunt down errant clan members. They've used the powers to try to stop him, and he's used the powers to destroy them. But half the time, I never even saw it happen."
He pauses to wipe some drool from the mouth of the youngest child. "With him, it's more like a religion than a power. He prays to the shadows, speaks with them, and they answer."
"But, tell me of your own line. I gather you're related to his, or he wouldn't teach you anything. Are you all so... unique? Who founded the bloodline?"
She nods. "Her grandsire is Marconius whose own grandsire is the Great Shadow as it is the Pale Shadow's. As an object can cast many shadows, so too does the Darkness have many layers. He sought to understand those depths. They in turn cast their hue upon him and he in turn cast this hue upon his spawn," she explains calmly.
"Has the Reaper's Friend heard of Strasbourg? The Fae Shadow now holds court within its walls. Once again the shadows of the Great Abyss and the shadows of the Fae dance together."
Charles listens to Lucretia's statement, then his eyes look upwards as he muddles through the chaos. After a few moments, he says slowly, "Strasbourg? We have not been there. But we only go where Andrius is called. So, I must take it that your grandsire keeps the Lasombra of his city well in hand. Or simply keeps the Lasombra out of his city entirely."
"The shadows of the fae? Interesting. That almost seems like a natural progression of our two clans. Andrius has suggested that there might be some kind of connection between the Abyss and the Underworld. Is that where your grandsire delves?"
"What do I seek? Like all of my clan, you know the Doktor, I study death. My chosen aspect of death is in how to deal it out in this world. I found that my own clan has few with whom I can discuss this. But Andrius does little other than hand out death to those who otherwise don't die."
"In ten mortal lifetimes, his imagination hasn't failed to inspire, in this area. Still, I'm quite looking forward to studying the dying of lupines. Their spiritual nature may prove very enlightening."
"Overlap? Excellent. The Doktor is well respected in my clan. Many would consider it an honor to be able to exchange information on mutually interesting topics."
"So, what may I expect from a lupine? I find myself woefully unprepared. I did not expect to get such an opportunity when I came here, or I most certainly would have spent some time in study."
