Midnight blue silk made her feel like a goddess tonight. Her dress was little more than fabric wrapped around her, sheer and thin in the perfect places, yet appropriate enough for her to move in without exposing herself. Under it, she wore little more than the necessities, a black lace ridden bra to support and accent her breasts accompanied by thin lace panties that barely covered the naughty bits. The dress was long, to her feet, with slits up to the top of her hip on either side, allowing for the quick swing of a leg if she needed to fight. Her legs and arms were perfectly outlined against the sheer fabric as well as her stomach, long and lean with the smallest bit of concavity to it. She hadn’t eaten in quite some time now but the time was coming up soon, she dreaded and craved it at the same time. Perhaps she’d find someone willing to sacrifice a little blood tonight and she wouldn’t have to hunt them down. Her feet were wrapped in black ribbons as she moved toward the front door, the feeling of her dagger against her back comforting. Every woman needed a bit of defense if things got too hairy.
The Red Lotus had given her a home when she’d not known the meaning of the word and Bella, a family she’d sworn to protect. The Schism Saints reminded her far too much of her village, of the struggle for power that ended only in death when the “gods” or “He” wanted it to. She feared this man she’d never seen because she knew something was strange about him. Normal vampires didn’t go around possessing others of their kind to merely hide their identity. What made her fear him even greater was the fact that he could be anyone she met or even saw on the street. This creature could be any of the vampires sitting in the Red Lotus right now or any of them she welcomed in the door, or threw back out it later on that night. She watched each of them as they came in now, examining their eyes and faces for a hint of the greatness that Him, the ruler of the Saints, must have possessed. She hadn’t felt a power that was any stronger than hers all night, then again, she hadn’t been wading in the crowds yet because the Lotus hadn’t officially opened for the night, the sun wasn’t yet all the way down. Daytime wasn’t too popular with many of their usual customers.
The sky around Nureese was red as Zen stepped out of the front door of the Red Lotus and hopped up on the podium that usually held the list of accepted attendees, gracefully crossing her legs. She’d already memorized tonight’s list and wouldn’t need it. Her mocha colored skin ached to absorb the warmth of the fading sun but she didn’t miss the humanity that went along with the feeling, the sheer weakness of having bones that broke easily and didn’t heal back instantly. Her hair was long and free tonight as she gazed out on the quickly darkening night, ice blue eyes absorbing all of her surroundings. What secrets would pass through the doors of Bella’s quiet bar tonight?
Bella eased awake as the sun slowly slipped beyond the horizon, she rolled over in her king sized bed, peered at the alarm clock, “I’m running late.” She thought. Bella slid off the deep maroon satin sheets, stepped into her soft slippers and slipped a silk kimono style robe on her nude body. She loved the freedom sleeping nude gave her. The vampire tied her raven hair into a messy bun atop her head and headed to the bathroom where she began filling her antique clawfoot tub with warm water and scented bath oil. She mused at the size of the tub, big enough for two, she grinned and pushed the thought aside. The music of the Red Lotus was quietly heard in her elegant loft apartment just above the establishment. She had several other homes in Nureese, but she preferred this apartment to them all, close enough so that if she was running a good half an hour late, it was no biggy. Because she just had to go downstairs and there she was, at work.
Bella laid her clothing choices for the evening out on her bed, a pair of tight black jeans, a pair of black wedged knee high boots, a hot pink halter top, a black low cut tightly fitted blazer and a long black knit scarf. It was February and it was cold outside. The bath was ready and there was a heavy steam that filled the bathroom, Bella slid the kimono off and slipped into the warm water. She leaned back against the warm porcelain of the tub and let out a long sigh as she immersed herself into the water. Thoroughly soaking her hair and body she washed her long black hair, cleansed every bit of her pale thin body and laid in the water for only a short while before deciding bath time was over and dinner is needed.
She dried with a huge fluffy terry bath towel and quickly dressed, she dried her hair with lightning speed and grabbed her bag and locked the door as she left. Most of her usual customers were in a little later which gave her time to scout for some dinner. She glided down the stairs to the Red Lotus and nodded to those who acknowledged her presence and slid out the front door.
The ally behind the bar was the best place to look when in a hurry, there was always some drunkard who was piss drunk lying on the ground. Being on a tight schedule Bella decided to pull the man from behind the dumpster from the ground, and drink from him. Her ivory fangs lengthened as her lips touched the tender skin of the neck and she dank until he was unconscious. He would remember nothing, and no one would suspect anything.
As she walked back to the bar, a light pink blush appeared on her cheeks making it obvious that she had just eaten. Upon arriving at the Red Lotus Bella was stopped in her tracks by the bouncer, Zen. She was looking extra lovely tonight, the blue dress that she was wearing left nothing to the imagination, (Not that Bella had to imagine, that is). Bella approached the vampire and gave her a light kiss on the cheek and asked, “How are you, you look amazing?”
"Will you still hold me when you see what I have done?
Will you still kiss me the same,
When you taste my victim’s blood?"
Re: Opening the Petals of the Lotus
Returning Bella’s kiss with a small peck on the lips, Zen looked skyward thoughtfully, asking the stars about a destiny she hadn‘t quite figured out. Her voice was a tiny bit entranced as she began to speak softly about the Schism Saints and her questions about the leader. “I’m good, my Bella.. You know, the other day when I showed up at one of those meetings I saw one of our own kind die and it scared me.” An accent slipped into her voice despite her constant attempts to be without one entirely. “You’d thing with all of the bloodshed I’ve seen and caused, death wouldn’t be a fear of mine anymore. But it was the insanity that scared me most of all. This vampire said a few simple orders as if He was speaking through him Himself, then, his eyes rolled back into his head and he simple turned to dust, as if he’d been staked. I’ve never seen anything like that happen anywhere but when the Saints are meeting. What kind of creature can simply inhabit then disintegrate us?” It wasn’t like she hadn’t seen the prophets do just that before, but this time, the reality had hit her. He was using them like shopping lists that could simply be crumpled up and stuck in the trash. This vampires weren’t prophets, they were just message boards and it made her angry, though, not angry enough to risk her life to put it to an end.
“But enough of that silliness. What‘s your drink special tonight, poppet?” Zen’s eyes turned to examine Bella, sliding over her figure like fingers that knew each nook and cranny. People, humans said that vampires couldn’t feel merely because they were undead and yet, she felt something each time she knew her friend and lover was near. Perhaps it was comfort, perhaps love, she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. It was the same emotion she felt when she thought about the man who had sired her and, she suspected, saved what little of her life was left in the dense jungles of Africa so long ago. A bit of confusion and mystery intrigued Zen but she stopped thinking about it as soon as she began to formulate an answer. It was the unknown that kept this vampiress going and she adored the thought of things continuing on through eternity with no answers in sight. The mystery of life was what kept the heavenly spheres turning, she’d always heard, without it, they’d cease to move.
Re: Opening the Petals of the Lotus
Zen kissed Bella, her satin mocha lips met with Bella’s ruby red mouth. Bella felt the electricity from their soft kiss shoot from her toes to the tip of her head, she shivered lightly as she looked into the vampire’s eyes, her stare was not met, Zen seemed to be asking the stars something, and Bella couldn’t quite figure it out. She was somewhat startled as Zen spoke; there was a tone in her voice that was unsettling.
Zen was afraid, and that scared the hell out of Bella because Zen was her rock, she knew she could count on her in case of another war, or an uprising of the Saints. Bella hadn’t joined the reigning gang of vampires, but she did her part to stay on their good side. She knew that they were much bigger than her and she didn’t like not being out of control, she shook the thought from her head, not now. A comforting hand landed on Zen’s shoulder, her soft skin shimmered in the lights from the Red Lotus.
Bella’s ivory fangs shone as she smiled ,consoling the distraught Zen.
““But enough of that silliness. What‘s your drink special tonight, poppet”
Her voice was light and carefree now, Bella thought for a second and said, “I’ll have a whiskey sour, and just tell the bartender to send it to my usual table. Thanks, doll.”
She tossed Zen a look and headed past the other guests standing outside. When she entered the Red lotus she made her way to the booth in the back corner, a scarlet lace table cloth adorned the round table.
Bella eyed the crowd from her seat, searching for something, or someone.
"Will you still hold me when you see what I have done?
Will you still kiss me the same,
When you taste my victim’s blood?"
Re: Opening the Petals of the Lotus
Zen moved toward the door, allowing several customers in first before she addressed the line of faces she didn’t recognize. As she let in a flurry of immortals, one face in the crowd mystified her a bit. A young girl, probably less than fifteen years old, stood small and frightened amid the line of vampires. It was obvious that she still had the warmth of blood running through her and the couple wrapped around each other behind her in the line were beginning to leer strangely at the woman. Zen shook her head and allowed each of them to enter the bar, but pulled the girl from the line to stand beside her as the line cleared out. The street was empty for a brief moment when the vampire turned to the girl, anger more prevalent than any other emotion within her body. Zen’s eyes flashed for a moment and the girl cringed, looking as if she would run if she could.
“Why are you here without one of.. Our kind?” The bouncer sighed softly and crossed her arms in front of her. There was simply no way she could allow a human girl entrance without causing a riot within the bar. Drunkenness and bloodlust could cause very dire circumstances for both the Lotus and the young woman before her. The girl couldn’t answer with anything more than a shrug and after a semi-long lecture, Zen released her back to the dark streets of Nureese. They would continue to come without protecting themselves, drawn to the danger of the immortals that gathered in the Lotus. They would meet their deaths, some of them, and the rest would be forced to live a life that was unending and required the blood of someone else to be continued. Zen enjoyed her life as a vampire, but she knew the choice wasn’t right for all that were given the gift. Before the crowd began to grow, she slipped inside the Lotus and ordered Bella’s drink slowly from the bartender, picking up a shot of brandy for herself. As she exited the Lotus yet again, the night had produced a dark violet sky and the crowd was once again thick. With a smile, razor sharp and the smallest bit hungry, she allowed more and more creatures into Bella’s bar and tried not to think too much.
Re: Opening the Petals of the Lotus
Another creature approached, looking just like a human, though his skin had an unnatrually healthy glow about it. He approached the bouncer confidently, he clearly had no fear of anything in this place. Though there was something warm running through his veins, what it was was literally shrouded in shadow. He waited for her to say something now, and knew he would probably have to explain a few things.
Re: Opening the Petals of the Lotus
Hunger was seething through the veins of the Bouncer by now, having not fed in quite some time. Each time a human passed through her velvet lined ropes, she felt like running her fingers over their plump arms and cheeks, down their delicate little spines, and snapping them. She didn’t consider herself uncivilized, no, much to the contrary. Her home itself was filled with relics of utmost taste and she spared no expense to buy them, to make them hers in almost a self-convincing method that she wasn’t the monster humans thought her to be. And yet… Now, she felt like the very Devil himself, Satan-incarnate, with the will only to murder and maim. Blood dripped from the eaves of her daydreams as she lazily let vampires by, their fangs the only thing she needed to see. As one figure came through the line, however, she immediately moved to block off the entrance with a speed that could barely be seen as more than a blur. Despite her need to feed, she was still alert as to creatures that might cause a problem. This one was masquerading as a human and caused a slight smile to cross her face, her eyes glistening silver over the icy blue. She couldn’t feel precisely what he was, however, as she searched his appearance. Not human, not vampire, not anything she’d seen before, and yet, his façade was almost impeccable. Had she not been an older vampiress, she might not have seen him as anything other than a simple human male.
Her lean body pressed against the fabric of her dress, a hint of the unknown but not enough to be indecent. With a slow hand motion she pursed her lips and put a hand against her cheek, still silent. It was a few moments before she spoke, her eyes looking him up and down as if they could read his soul if she tried hard enough. Finally, she sighed and her voice rolled out, rich and accented with the strangest mix from the ancient days. “Do you honestly think you can handle yourself in there? I don’t know what you are, but you’re not human. Some may be confused by your appearance though and take you for that and that’s what makes me wonder. Are you here for pleasure tonight, stranger? Or are you here to cause a fight?”
Re: Opening the Petals of the Lotus
"The former. And of the appearence, I can make myself appear more supernatrual, even to fledglings." He used the dark magic to change his appearance again, which made the dark mist cover him until he was done. This time his skin turned jet black, and just on the edge of noticable were the scales that made this skin up. Then, his ears disappeared, leaving only holes and his pupils turned into a slit. "This form should be sufficently reptillian that I don't confuse those customers you were talking about."
Re: Opening the Petals of the Lotus
Zen frowned slightly, her slim eyebrows forming the slightly furrow in her brow. Her ice colored eyes watched him carefully, taking in the transformation slowly with little amusement. These creatures that assumed a different face didn’t strike her as being sincere, and even if she was a monster, each entity that encountered her knew exactly what she was. The bringer of death for some, a despicable creature to others, it didn’t matter. She was what she was, a goddess, an arch angel, a blood sucker, a vampire, those involved with her could take their pick. Her arm moved silkily toward the rope and unclasped it, letting it fall to the ground. He could go in, but the bar tender would be notified of his appearance and of any moves he made. The Lotus wasn’t easily trusting of newcomers and their intentions, and as the head of the security in the joint, Madame Safisha took her job very seriously.
Nevertheless, he was a paying customer and she would admit him if only to empty his wallet. A sultry smile passed over her lips as she extended her arm toward the door, like a tv show host turning the letters on a big board only to reveal a petty phrase. “Enjoy your stay at the Red Lotus..”
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