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Post by heroesdreamer on Jul 25, 2023 13:40:15 GMT -7
Drew was at Coney Island, the owners had called him out to troubleshoot their network since some of their systems had stopped talking to each other. It was a fairly complicated fix but he was about done with it and thankfully he had fed before he left so no worries about hunger pangs. He was getting a lot better about keeping track of when he'd fed last and who from, he even had a spreadsheet encoded on his personal computer that kept track of that kind of stuff.
What he lacked was getting to hang out with fellow vampires, he knew of Blade, whom he was avoiding for obvious reasons, but the only other vampire he knew was Jubilee, and she had yet to reach out to him. Shaking out of his pensive thoughts, he finished up what he was doing and logged out of the computers, picking up his equipment and packing it away before opening the door to the main control room. "Hey, everything should be working fine now" he said to the foreman who gave a relieved sigh. "Thanks man, you saved our butts!" he exclaimed, "the payment should get to you in a couple days." They shook hands before Drew was guided outside and said good-bye before taking a moment to breathe in the evening air before he headed toward his car, which was parked about two blocks away.
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Post by BWS2K on Jul 26, 2023 4:20:36 GMT -7
Claws and barefeet scuttled along rooftops and skulked in the shadows of late, and this night was no different. Soon, the residents of Coney Island would start to make note of a pattern of mysterious disappearances and illnesses... but not just yet.
Drew Meyers was similarly being hunted, though in a different way. Baroness Blood had only recently arrived from overseas and was still establishing her presence here. As such, and as loathe as she was to accept it, her lair needed a degree of basic technological capabilities. The Old World's castles had no need of such accoutrements but here, where telephone and electrical lines crisscrossed every meter of existence...
And yet the old ways had proved best time and time again, like how she'd heard word of a recently turned individual with the skills to bring her lodgings up to date. It was merely a matter of ordering her obedient minions to approach Drew and pitch the opportunity to enter her service.
"Young one," came a quiet voice from a dark alleyway just ahead. A low inhuman whisper carried through the air: "My mistress, the Baroness Blood, bids you welcome to her island. She requires your services..."
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Post by heroesdreamer on Jul 28, 2023 12:38:08 GMT -7
Drew stopped to read a text from a friend, wanting to get together, and sent a quick reply before reaching his car. Just then, he heard what sounded like a voice coming from the alley just opposite and he frowned in puzzlement. "Hello?" he called out, freezing as the voice mentioned someone called the Baroness Blood, saying this was her island and that she needed his services. Could this be another vampire? He was scared but also couldn't help but be excited as he walked over closer to the dark alley.
Wondering, he said "Hello, how can I help? Do you need my work skills?" He asked, looking around the darkness, but even with his enhanced hearing, he still couldn't see anyone. He looked around to make sure no one else was watching before stepping into the alley and only then realizing the voice had called him "young one". He couldn't help but smile at that as he understood that he most likely was young compared to a lot of other vampires. Anyway, he said "Lead the way, and I'll see if I can help".
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Post by BWS2K on Aug 1, 2023 10:19:26 GMT -7
A shuffling of sounds and a figure emerged from the deep shadow, beckoning Drew to follow. Above, flanking them on either side from the rooftops, were two others watching the scene. Facing a trio of vampires would be a feat worthy of most heroes but Drew had agreed to come of his own accord. There was no need for things to become unpleasant.
"It is not for me to know the nature of your task, only that of my own - to bring you before my mistress," replied the center vampire in his guttural hisses. Based on his tattered clothes, he'd been waitstaff at an upscale restaurant of some kind. "Have you already feasted this eve?"
At this question, the sound of the other two peeling off to hunt their prey for the night was easily heard by Drew. Coney Island was becoming more and more dangerous past sunset. It was now just the two of them in the alleyway, the question hanging in the air between them.
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Post by heroesdreamer on Aug 10, 2023 12:50:03 GMT -7
As Drew's eyes adjusted to the dark, he finally saw a figure in the dark and nodded as the person stated that his mission was to bring Drew to his mistress, also he asked if Drew had eaten already. "Yes, before I came here" he said, also noticing the other two but breathing a sigh of relief as they took off. He stepped closer to the person, noticing the tattered clothes he was wearing. "Have you been a vampire long?" he asked, wondering why this Baroness kept her people in just ragged clothing.
He slung his work bag over his shoulder, unsure of how they were going to get to wherever this headquarters was, and he gave a look to make sure the guy from his last job was following out of concern. He then turned back to his guide and said "I'm ready to meet this Baroness", only then asking "How long has your mistress been here, at Coney Island?"
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Post by BWS2K on Aug 11, 2023 9:49:08 GMT -7
"Excellent," was the one-word reply. A vampire on the hunt could be gruesome enough. A pair or more might be... chaotic.
"Not long, no. My mistress is only recently arrived. We are still few... but we are growing." Drew's addition to their ranks was evidence enough of that, though most that Baroness Blood recruited in her initial efforts were rather weak-willed and good for little more than menial tasks and foot soldiering. This might explain their appearances as well.
"Ready? Good! Follow...!" The creature motioned for Drew to shadow him to the back of the alleyway and then on to a quiet sidestreet. He pondered the question about time a while, before responding: "It is not for me to know such details. I have hidden from many suns, but not too many." That was probably as close an answer as Drew was going to get.
"Here," he said, lifting a manhole cover in the deserted street and pointing for Drew to descend on the access ladder, "We go down now, through stone and shadow..."
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Post by heroesdreamer on Aug 18, 2023 14:10:27 GMT -7
Drew moved to follow the person who'd been sent to fetch him, smiling as he said it was good that Drew had fed beforehand, though he wondered about the answer to his question about how long he'd been a vampire. He supposed that depending on when the man had been turned, it was too easy to lose track of time, though that did make him wonder just how old the man was.
Shaking it off, he followed, keeping more to the shadows though he did turn back with a worried look to his car. Hopefully it was far enough away so that no one working tonight would notice it and he could get back to it before anyone did notice it was still there. Shaking his head to clear his mind, he caught the comment from his new friend about the Baroness's ranks growing and smiled, simply saying "That's good" before being directed down a ladder. Carefully he stepped down until he reached the bottom, then waited for his guide before asking "How many of you are there?", a bit nervous about having to face a crowd but still willing to go on.
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Post by BWS2K on Aug 28, 2023 7:39:45 GMT -7
A grim chuckle was the only answer Drew received: "...enough..."
The vampire led Drew through not a few twists and turns in the tunnel network before pausing at a passageway that had clearly been dug through the brickwork and earth beyond. and a crude wooden door fixed as an entrance.
"My mistress lay within, young one." He pointed to the door, pausing to make sure Drew actually entered.
Should Drew proceed, he would note a rather large central cavern dimly lit by occasional flickering torches. Lots of bare wall exposed halfway constructed (or destroyed) masonry and the ceiling was hidden in shadow. A vampire's senses would reveal more, perhaps, but not much more of note. In the middle of the chamber, however, was a more formal looking area - a small dais of about thirty feet in diameter with what was definitely a throne of some kind at its center.
Seated upon it was the regal form of who could be none other than the one who'd summoned Drew. A woman, cold to the touch and colder still to gaze upon, wearing dark robes and watching the new arrival intensely with a hunter's eyes.
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Post by heroesdreamer on Sept 5, 2023 13:30:01 GMT -7
To say Drew started to feel anxious at hearing the other vampire say "enough" would be an understatement, but he continued to follow down a winding path before eventually coming to a man made tunnel with a door at the end. The other vampire said his mistress was inside and so Drew opened the door and walked inside, at first taking his time and looking around. His first impression of the hideout was that it looked like something out of Skyrim, which made him smile, but then he saw the throne and the woman sitting on it.
Cautiously approaching, he bowed his head as a show of respect and then said "I was told you needed my help, ma'am?" He tried his best to focus on the lady in front of him but he was suddenly aware of just how big the room was and how alone he was. Still, he was there to do a job and said "You're lucky you caught me here tonight, since I had a job I'd just finished", before the thought occurred that maybe she was the reason he'd had to come out to the park.
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Post by BWS2K on Sept 8, 2023 20:29:32 GMT -7
The woman did not move at Drew's approach, save for her eyes tracking him slowly across the chamber. Neither did she respond to his bow. The implication that she needed him, or that she'd just been lucky to have him present simply wouldn't do.
Silence stretched on for what seemed like minutes, with little else to be heard be the faint sound of scuffles in he dark or torches burning.
"To begin," she finally spoke, "It is my increasingly unfortunate discovery that you Yanks do not understand the nuances of introductions. I am called Baroness Blood." She bowed her head forward very slightly.
"There are few things in this world that I have not discovered and fewer still that I have not bent to my service. In these modern times, however, I find a remarkable challenge in the necessity of utilizing certain technologies."
The Baroness gestured and a vampire wheeled a rather beaten metal cart out from the shadows. It creaked and rattled across the stones and trailed an unplugged bright orange extension cord. On the cart was a single laptop with other assorted devices, wires, and thumb drives.
"It is my understanding that vast quantities of information can be made available with such machines. I wish to access it."
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Post by heroesdreamer on Sept 18, 2023 20:08:17 GMT -7
The lady on the throne didn't say anything for the longest time, so Drew simply stayed quiet, his eyes flickering about as he could see somewhat into the surrounding darkness, but there was nothing to see. Finally she said something about Yanks not knowing how to introduce themselves before doing so herself, and he said quietly "I am Drew Meyers and I'm sorry if I offended you somehow". Running one hand through his hair, he felt really unsure about what to do next, so he was grateful when the Baroness explained herself, got to the matter at hand.
One of her minions rolled this rickety cart over with a laptop on it and several technical gizmos attached and then the Baroness explained what she needed. Drew nodded his head and carefully set his bag down, opening it and rummaging around before pulling out a couple of tools to use. Before he did though, he tested the laptop's Wifi and sighed with relief. "The good news is you guys can share the wifi with the theme park and it shouldn't put any strain on it. Unless you have your own network?" he asked, pausing before explaining. "My question is, I'm guessing that if you want to put your own information on it, you'll need a secure network, but usually that involves paying for internet service."
Still typing, he explained "I can work around this, just because if you pay for internet, they're going to need an address and I'm guessing you don't want your location known. This is going to take a few minutes though." Then he fell quiet as he typed away, concentrating on what he was doing.
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Post by BWS2K on Sept 22, 2023 12:48:25 GMT -7
The Baroness' only response was a slight narrowing of her eyes. She paid for nothing and expected everything, as her namesake might suggest. If Drew could manage to get a secure line via his workaround, all the better... though it was unlikely anyone else in the cavern would know the difference anyway.
After letting the silence linger for a few moments, she replied simply: "We have time, Drew Meyers."
The Baroness rose then, and began to circle Drew as he worked. She might be the most dangerous predator on Coney Island but it was primarily curiosity that drove her actions. This land was once called the New World but here, with all its electronics and digital data and networks, was the successor to that moniker - a Terra Nova of a kind undreamt of, and with the offerings of power that dwarfed even the Holy Grail itself.
She couldn't help but crack a feint smile then, recollecting her destruction of that fabled cup after drinking deep from its mystical waters. Its gift to her was the ability to walk in the sunlight and it was to belong to no others, not even all those many loyal vampires who'd sacrificed so much to follow their Baroness.
No, she'd decided that her time in Britain was over. It was time for a new home - and new followers. Loyal ones.
"Tell me about yourself," Baroness Blood asked quietly above the sounds of torches and typing. "Who is your master, Drew Meyers? Where is your territory, and whom do you serve?"
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Post by heroesdreamer on Sept 26, 2023 13:44:28 GMT -7
Drew smiled as the Baroness told him they had time, that was a relief! Some clients wanted impossible results right away, but what raised his hackles a bit was that she then approached him and walked around him, that made him nervous! Still, he did his best to focus on the issue, feeling pleased as he was able to connect the computer he was working on to the park's network and he was about to explain how it would work when the Baroness began asking him questions.
Sighing a bit, he explained "I don't know who my master is, she tricked me into thinking she was hurt and I went to help her when she bit me and I passed out. I came to in my apartment, which makes me think she'd been watching me, but I figured out on my own how to survive." Pausing for a moment as he worked through a potential issue, he then said "It still bugs me, even if she was wounded and needed help, why leave me? Unless she'd been banished or something, or someone was after her, but I have never heard anything from her."
"As far as what my territory is, I mainly feed off of delivery drivers from restaurants around my house and taxi drivers every once in a while, if I'm going somewhere where drinking would normally be involved. You know, to mask the illusion of "having too much to drink". I have to say though, you guys are really the first group of vampires I've seen." He stayed quiet about Jubilee, he was not bringing her into this and plus from what Mercury had said, she was adapting and had a good support system.
Shaking his head, he then changed the subject and said "Anyway, your network is up and running and it's also hidden with what's called a VPN, so no one from the park should know you guys are here." He wrote down the username and password and held it out to the Baroness. "This is what you'll have to enter when you want to use the internet, I can show you how to do that?" he questioned, wondering how much longer he had to talk to this other vampire.
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Post by BWS2K on Sept 30, 2023 14:48:44 GMT -7
The Baroness couldn't hide a toothy smile - the widest she'd shown since arriving in North America - at the trap Drew had fallen into. A classic technique and one which she'd put into use many times in her earlier nights as a vampire.
"Yes, I'm afraid so," she replied to his question about a little training. "But there is another option..."
Baroness Blood moved in close, lowering her voice to conspiratorial whisper: "...join me, and be a part of something much larger than yourself. I assure you that my plans for the future include much more than delivery drivers..."
And it was true.
Surely, this modern age was a marvel of technology and science that had already proved quite a formidable foe more than once, but a Baroness is undeterred in her vision. This one had already conquered the primary weakness of her kin and form, and looked forward to rebuilding her legion to rule more than just the night. She waited patiently for Drew's answer, only briefly reflecting how her last followers had met their end...
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Post by heroesdreamer on Oct 11, 2023 12:53:38 GMT -7
Drew simply raised one eyebrow as the Baroness didn't respond to his offer, instead jumping right to offering to let him join her group. It was funny, half of him was wanting to jump at the chance, but did he really want to join this group of vampires? He said "Now I appreciate the offer, but let's talk about this first. I've built up a pretty decent life for myself and I have friends, I guess other than wanting to belong with others like me, I would also like being protected against those that would hunt us. However, I still want to live my life, as much as it is, plus I could help other, newer vampires who are struggling with adapting to the life."
Drew set the piece of paper down on the cart he'd been working on and started pacing, as it helped him think. After a few minutes, he stopped and turned to face the Baroness. "Would you allow me to be "on-call", so to speak? What I mean by that is if you need my help, whether that is due to having computer trouble or if you recruit someone who is struggling and needs purpose or even just someone to talk to, I would come and help. I can be reached by email or you could send one of your members to fetch me, does that sound wise to you?" He asked, hoping she would accept what he was offering, he honestly wasn't sure if he even had a choice at this point or would be allowed to leave, but he hoped they could come to a compromise.
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