SPEC: INTO THE NIGHT (RPG)
Part 4, Posts 61-73


POST No 61/Armand

He was floating in a sea of darkness, feeling weightless, couldn't move at
all. The dawn was coming and Armand sensed it as a dim light somewhere in
the void. He felt Melisande's fear, how was it that he was connected to
that girl? Pandora was feeding on her! He could not let her do it! He tried
to communicate with his fledging sister... "Pandora... stop...", but the
effort was too much in his condition. "Daniel..." he thought... "I love
you...", and then the blackness claimed him again.

POST No 62/Pandora

Pandora heard Armand yell at her to stop, and was momentarily angry. Then
she listened harder, *Daniel......I love you* then silence. Armand was in
trouble. Pandora released the girl and flew to the now unconcious Armand.
She cradled his body in her arms, and flew back to Lestat's place. She
placed Armand in her bed, and shielded their thoughts so Daniel would not
panic. "Armand," she said softly, "Armand, please, come back." She rested
her head on his body, and sobbed. She felt a hand on her head, and looked
up, her faced streaked with bloody tears. "Armand!" she said in surprise.
Armand smiled. "Was it my imagination, or did you fly twice tonight?" he
teased. Pandora smiled. "Yes, but I'll have you know I hated every second
of it. But I would do it again, for you Armand."
Armand smiled sweetly at Pandora, and kissed her passionately. "Listen Pan,
it's almost light. Can I stay here? Will you stay with me tonight?"
Pandora considered this for a moment before answering. "Yes Armand, I will
stay with you, but only if we just sleep. Gabrielle and I sorted lots of
THINGS out tonight, and I don't want to jeopardize that."
"I understand," said Armand, and brushed Pandora's lips with his own. "See
you at dusk" he said. Pandora crept into bed, and fell asleep.

POST No 63/Myst

Lestat suddenly came to a stop in mid air, he turned his head towards me
"Someone has got to Armand, and while we are up here I know how to solve a
small problem." With this he released me. As I was falling I saw out of the
corner of my eye that he was returning the way he had come, back to his
lair. I frantically searched my swiss cheese of a memory, did I know how to
fly........................

I was standing outside, the snow was turning into a blizzard, the wind was
picking up the just fallen flakes from the floor and smashing them it my
face. I turned for the last time, looking to the door of the temple, Turned
my back on it, and began to walk back down the mountain. I was for the
first time returning from a mission incomplete, I had been sent to the
Tibetian monastery to find out the truth about the stories that they had
learned to levitate whilest in prayer. It had started alright, they took me
in, fed me and allowed me to stay as long as I wanted, I could roam the
halls as long as I did not disturb those that were in prayer. All went
well, but after a year they had not let me see for myself if it was true,
they could fly. So one night I decided to find out for myself, that was
when things had gone wrong and why I was heading down a mountain in a snow
storm. The blizzard was increasing in intensity, I started to look for
shelter from the storm, there, by that tree. I headed towards
it..............

POST 64/Myst

As I got closer to the tree I could see what appeared to be a sort of
hollow at the base of the tree, it appeared that it might be large enough
to keep me safe in it. As I got even nearer I saw that the hollow was a lot
deeper than I first thought. I managed to crawl deep enough in so as to be
shielded from the driving wind and snow. There was nothing to use as fuel
for a fire, and anyway I could not have started a fire in the tree as it
would have burned down leaving me with no shelter at all and one very large
used match stick. There was only one thing left for me to do. I closed my
eyes, wiggeled my bumb to get confy, and then started to free my mind of my
dismal suroundings. After about an hour time stopped having meaning for me,
soon there after or what seemed soon to me, it could have been a few hours
to even a day, my awareness of my suroundings started to incress. I seemed
to be able to sense my suroundings, the wood of the tree around me, the way
it was pumping the goodness of the soil up through its bark and out up to
its leaves where it could make as much use of the stormed dimmed sun to
process its food in preparation for the comming winter. I stretched my
consciousness out away from the tree and into the storm. I roamed the
mountain and sensed others like me who had managed to find shelter from the
storm, and there were others who were not so lucky, those who lay dead on
the ground, frozen stiff, and yet others who lay in the snow still alive,
but for how long, one does not know, their limbs dead from frost bite,
their mind filled with the pain as the cold slowly crept up there arms and
legs till it reached their hearts to claim them as it's own.

My eyes opened with the realisation of the power every human had within
him, the ability to make him master of his surroundings, to be able to
totaly control his environment only using his own inner abilty. I stood up,
stepping from under the tree I moved into the night storm. As I started
down the mountain, I slipped on the wet ground, with all the ice on the
snow my boots found no traction to grip. Sitting on the ground, I removed
my boots and now soggy socks, stood, and headed on down. With the steam
rising from where my feet touched the ground I entered the storm...........

I opened my eyes, only an instant had passed, I was still heading towards
the ground at an incredble speed, I stretched my consciousness to my
surroundings and through the sheer force of my will, slowed my descent, I
came to a slow stop just inches from the ground. I lowered myself the last
bit till my feet touched the ground, I started to head out of the ally and
into the new dawn.

I spent the rest of the day killing off my persona of Jonathan, he had
filled his task and it was time to move on. As the dusk approached I headed
towards the cafe where it had all started, sat in my favorite booth and
ordered a nice cuppa of hot chocolate, I leant back in my stool intending
to have a good think. As I looked up there stood the girl, Melisande. She
asked if she could sit down, I nodded ................

POST 65/Armand
He opened his eyes finding himself lying in a soft bed. He could hear the
water running in the bathroom, someone was taking a shower.
::Good night, you sleepy head:: - he heard Pandora's voice in his mind.
Armand was confused for a moment, then it all came to his mind... The hell
breaking loose in Lestat's parlour, that damned mortal that wouldn't die,
Daniel's questions, his own reaction and finally... that poisoned blood or
so it seemed. And not to be forgotten, Pandora's rescue ::May I meet you
there *sister*?:: - he sent teasingly.
::Of course not! Better for you to be shielding yourself Armand, I don't
want Gabrielle hearing us!::
'Gabrielle!' - Armand thought while shielding himself - 'and Daniel, how
will I explain this to Daniel?'
Pandora got out of the bathroom, a big towel around her beautiful body, her
dark hair still wet. "You'd better take a shower and go to look for Daniel.
I wonder were is Gabrielle now."
Armand went into the bathroom and as soon as he finished taking a shower
scanned the house to see what awaited him out of the bedroom. He didn't
find Lestat, maybe he was out to hunt already. Gabrielle, where was
Gabrielle? She was still in her room. Well, Daniel he could not hear. So...
he would have to go and look for his lover, make amends for yesterday and
maybe... he smiled to himself thinking in that beautiful boy waiting for
him in the other bedroom. He opened the door carefully, peering inside.
There he was, still asleep, so beautiful! Armand slipped himself under the
covers and began to kiss Daniel in the mouth. The younger vampire stirred
giving into the kiss and opened his eyes. Suddenly memories of the day
before washed over him and he broke the kiss trying to get himself free of
the loving arms that sorrounded him. "Let go off me!" - he said angrily -
"you really think you can leave me like yesterday and then return as if
nothing has hapenned!"
Armand wouldn't let him go. He forced his lover onto his back again. "I
love you" - he said, his voice husky with passion - "forgive me."
Daniel tried still to get up of the bed, but he couldn't, Armand's strength
prevailing. "I'm tired of this" - he said now with tears in his eyes - "you
never give yourself to me, you keep running from me..."
Armand looked at his fledging with sad eyes realizing he could lose Daniel
if they continued like this. He lifted his hand to his throat and made a
deep incision, letting the blood flow freely, staining his shirt and the
covers of the bed.
With a small cry Daniel locked himself in Armand's neck, his blood, so
powerful and sweet at the same time. The images began to come freely, all
memories, the good ones and the bad ones. Again Armand's mind slipped past
his life with Daniel, the long years of nothingness with the covens in
Paris and Rome, his life with Marius, the brothel... He started trembling
as he felt this painful memories passing through his Daniel, he even shied
away unconsciously. But Daniel held him now, not letting go. And all that
had been Armand's life laid bared in front of his lover. He felt drained,
lightheaded. But then Daniel craddled his head guiding him to his own
fountain of life, and he drank, greedily, until both felt asleep in each
one's arms.

POST 66/Daniel

Daniel was dreaming. All colors and light. He was on a yacht. One of the
ships in Armand's small armada. But where was everyone? Desolated it was.
Like an old ghost town. As he walked past the passage way to the bar, he
saw half emptied glasses sitting on the counter top. He could smell the
liquor. Bourbon. The memories of stumbling from bar to bar in a drunken
haze.....and when they all closed....to the liquor store for the next day's
supply. The
pure insanity of those days. Of being pursued by a demon with an angel's
face. Waking up in hotel rooms, not even knowing what country he was in.
Immediately reaching for the bottle to kill the hangover. even in his
dream...the memories came....some how merging. Daniel to walk the deck
toward the front of the ship. Wind biting cold, as only wind on the sea can
be. Why here? he thought to himself. He heard music. Beethoven....Eroica.
He followed the sound of it. Getting louder and louder. There was a girl
there....dark hair....beautiful. No more than 15 or 16. Tattered clothes.
Succulent little limbs. She smiled at him. Why did she look so familiar?
She embraced him, kissed him, slipped her warm little tongue in his mouth.
He grabbed her by the neck and felt the pounding of her pulse. She smiled
at him again as he held her away from him. "Going to kill me again,
Daniel?" She asked. He let go of her instantly. Oh God.....she had been his
first victim. The little runaway Armand had brought to him that first night
of his immortal existence. "Oh god, GET HER OUT OF HERE!" he had begged
Armand. "Take her now" had come the rousing response. She was crying
now.....in his dream.
"Why? Why now?" he implored her. "My sister" she whispered. She stepped
forward again....her hair whipping around her. Her mouth was on his
again....and then he was awake...and it was Armand's mouth. His demon
lover. At first he resisted....pushing him away. He couldn't forget the
secrets....always the secrets. But in the end.......he always
won.....Daniel always gave in....and what sweet surrender it was.

POST No 67/Lestat

He woke from the death sleep ahead of the rest, as was the norm. He decided
to go out immedatly to feed before the others awoke, he did not need to
feed as often as he used to, but decided that as it was going to be one
hell of a night that he would best perform filled. He opened the window to
his room and steped out. As he rose in the evening air, he could smell the
scent from the night's garden rising with him, with his improved vampiric
senses picked up even the faintest of smells. He heard the sounds from the
street below as he floated above, no destination as yet decided on. Where
would he hunt tonight, in the french quater or in the slums where there was
always an abundance of criminals to feed on. No tonight he felt like doing
something different. There was this mafia Don that he had seen awhile back,
a vile man who was into anything that made a proffit, be it prositution or
drugs he would not even think of stopping at murder to achive his aim. Ah
yes that would be it, a feast for a king or a Devil. Now where was that
scum of the earth hidding tonight. He extented his mind out amongst the
population below, he touched one mind here another there, looking for a
hint of, or trace of his quarry for the night. This may sound like an
impossible task, looking for a single person in such a large crowd, and it
normaly is. But this was such a special case, the creature he was hunting
was so well known through his evil deeds that about every third person had
heard of him, and this was proving true as he scanned those below, but the
hard part was finding someone who knew where he was now.
Yes, there a flicker, something about the towers, that could only be the
Phoenix building. The Don had bought the land two years ago off the city
council, he had built one of the largest towers it the city, and in the
penthouse, he had made his headquaters.
For the average person it was impossible to gain access through the
security, not so for someone who did not intend to use the normal entrance
and walk in, he was going to make a real entrance, one that the Don's
security would not forget soon. He rose to the penthouse outside, using his
inhuman senses sought out the Don. Ah yes there he was, in the lounge.
Lestat took a deep breath, flew at the window. All of the Don's securtity
were caught by surprise as Lestat crashed through the bullet-proof window,
he landed, looked at the Don, moved with lighting speed and grabed him.
Turning he flew out the window with the Don under his arm. He rose Into The
Night sky leaving the earth behind him, bending his head to the Don's neck
he began to drink..............

POST 68/Gabrielle

She had just opened her eyes, she was in her bed, she still couldn't
believe she had managed herself to leave Daniel's room, but then, she owed
some loyalty to Pandora now, didn't she? Ah, Pandora...where could she be?
Maybe she had arrived to the house when Gabrielle was already asleep, but
then, why hadn't she gone into her room? She opened her mind, scanning the
house for her lover, but she wasn't able to found her. She felt Armand, he
was already in the house and he was alright...'but not for so long' she
thought while noticing where he was...he was in Pandora's room, and with
Pandora! He had forgot his shields completely! That greek-slut was in the
shower and the idiot imitation of a vampire was talking of stepping in! And
then Pandora's voice came clear 'Shield yourself, I don't want Gabrielle to
hear us.' and Armand had shielded his mind just then. Of course Pandora
didn't want to be heard! Now Gabrielle would kill her! She dressed herself
up with murder bloody written in her mind, she had dumped Daniel for the
woman! DA-NI-EL! A gorgeous ashen-haired and violet-eyed vampire with a
hell of a body! And what had Pandora done? Spent a good time in her room
with someone who could have been so easily one of the 'Saved by the Bell'
kids! Now that was too much, she went right towards her room, she was
really up to cut heads and more when she saw the bathed Armand leaving,
surely the cinic would go to Daniel, now she was really *really* MAD! A
little voice was whispering in her mind : 'Take care, she is old and
powerful and can make that lovely face of yours fly very, very far from the
rest of your body' but there was another voice answering 'If she dares to
put an ancient finger on you, then Lestat will kick her ass with all
Akasha's power.' Gabrielle decided to hear this voice better. When she
entered Pandora was choosing her clothes, she was in a towel, had she to be
so beautiful?
"Gabby!" she run towards Gabrielle and tried to kiss her, but she broke
apart "Something bad girlfriend?"
"Yes...you! Liar! I can't believe I refused Daniel for you!"
"You and Daniel WHAT?"
"ME AND DANIEL NOTHING!!!! Because I was so stupid I believed we had
somethig good happening, but I was wrong."
"What are you talking about? I care for you..." she tried to reach for
Gabrielle and once again she failed.
"Don't lie to me! No when I had seen Armand leaving with my own eyes, no
when I saw you together and in very good terms. I hate people to lie to me,
at least just keep your liar mouth while I leave this room."
"Hey, wait a minute, you are wrong...nothing happened between Armand and
me."
"Nothing?"
"Well..." and image of Armand kissing her passed her mind and
unfortunatelly Gabrielle picked it.
"Oh, that's nothing! Well, at least I had a bit of diversion too!"
Gabrielle sent her and image of her kiss with Daniel "But I had enough
brain in my head to leave his room and not sleeping with him, but that was
only because I had this silly idea we were in love, but don't worry! I know
now I was only another in your list! Hope you had had fun!"
And then Gabrielle run out of the room, leaving Pandora screaming for her.
She run out 'till she reached her bedroom, and then she let her body fall,
as the blood tears that were crossing her face and Pandora would never see.

POST 69/Melisande

I don't remember really whether I fell asleep in the alleyway. I probably
would have died of exposure...I was weak and relatively thinly dressed. All
I really know is that I made it to my apartment and to my bed, somehow.
It was about two in the afternoon when I woke up. The sky outside was still
sullenly grey, and the lack of any artificial lights in my little hole of
an apartment didn't make the atmosphere any more cheerful. Quietly cursing
fate, winter, and personal poverty, I shoved my blankets off and proceeded
to brew a pot of coffee and stick something fairly edible into the oven.
The coffee was done first, and I poured myself a cup overloaded with half
and half, Hershey's cocoa and sugar, more like hot chocolate than coffee.
Memory of hot chocolate. Johnathan had made a cup of the stuff before he'd
been...killed.
It seemed like it was the lot of everyone who entered my life to get eighty
sixed by a vampire, I mused as I sipped my hot coffee. The first one was
probably my big sister, who ran away when I was only about six or seven.
Celeste hadn't been more than fifteen, a waifish little sylph that had been
the only member of the family over the age of two couldn't leave out my
little brother who would suffer my company willingly. There were fond
memories of romps through the woods when we still lived in the country...
My father, however, couldn't bear living in one place for very long, and
they'd picked up and moved to the city. Celeste was utterly furious, and I
knew that the move from everything Celeste loved was the straw that broke
the camel's back...though Celeste had had more than enough reason to want
to run.
Why I suspected a vampire in Celeste's continued disappearance wasn't
exactly clear to me...I just knew. And then came Holly, Christine's little
sister, and whoever snatched her. Poor kid...she wasn't even as old as
Celeste had been.
And then Christine, of course. Can't forget Christine. That was the first
time I'd ever seen firsthand what a vampire could do. I'd figured out that
the one who kept killing the suicidal had gotten her...Christine was so
desperate by then...though I'd never thought she was *that* suicidal, to
even consider getting that close to a vampire.
And then Johnathan. Hell, I didn't even *know* Johnathan. He was
just...just some other guy. There was something special about him, I
guess...he was sure a strange guy, obsessed with getting a cup of cocoa,
but who could blame him? Besides, I've met some *much* stranger people in
my time...
I paused in my thinking, looking over the walls of my apartment. They were
about as grey as the sky outside where they weren't plastered with my
life's work, my drawings and paintings and blurry little photographs and
newspaper clippings and everything else I could come up with.
All about vampires.
The photos and the paintings and the drawings were all mine. I'd done
enough of them to fill a museum...or at least the walls of an efficiency
apartment. Each vampire had his or her own little section of wall, their
every feature lovingly sketched and re sketched and sometimes meticulously
put into a painting.
I do my best. They're really quite good. Mostly the paintings are better
than the photos.

Dinner was done, I could smell it from my, ah, bedroom. I rushed over to
the kitchen and pulled the casserole dish out quickly...Oh, so it was
macaroni and cheese. I unceremoniously scooped a couple of spoonfulls into
a bowl and munched thoughtfully, every so often taking a big drink of
coffee, finishing off the half pot I'd made.

Rest of the afternoon wasn't that eventful. I took a shower God, the
feeling of hot water is so wonderful sometimes and put on some clean
clothes, a navy turtleneck and my Marshall McLuhan t shirt and a pair of
good, broken in jeans. Black boots, etc, etc. I wasn't planning on lurking
tonight. Hopefully, my vampire days were over for the moment, I'd have to
hide a bit and hope that somewhere in their little lives a thought came in
that effectively obscured where I was sitting. By the time I looked at the
clock next, it was about six thirty, and the sullen
grey sky had turned sullenly black.

I didn't feel like a second helping of the rubber du jour, so I emptied out
the dinner cookie jar and amassed about five dollars. Enough to get
something hot at the diner down the road...I shoved the bills and change
into my pocket and headed out...pausing just long enough at the door to
grab my backpack. Always be prepared.

As I ambled into the diner, I noticed a very familiar face behind one of
the tables.

Well, well. The dead guy ariseth.

I walked over to Johnathan Smithe's table and tapped a hand on it quietly.
"Mind if I sit?"

He nodded. I took the chair opposite him and waved for a waitress.

"Hamburger, lettuce and mushrooms, hold the ketchup." To Johnathan "Well,
hi there. I thought you were dead."

POST No 70/Pandora

She watched Gabrielle run away crying, and once again thought of
returning to her camotosed state. It would be so much easier then handeling
this. First Marius, dear Marius, and now Gabrielle. It was too much.
Pandora packed up her things, and for the fourth time in her whole immortal
existance, she allowed herself to fly. She didn't care where she went, and
just let her instincts guide her. When she opened her eyes, she was, as she
knew she would be, completely lost. She didn't know if she was still in San
Francisco or not, and she didn't care. She slammed down the sheilds on her
mind to stop anyone finding her, and lay down on the ground. She wasn't
hungry, hey, she would never have to feed again if she wished that to
happen.
*I won't make the same mistake this time* she thought, as she let
herself sink into the ground. *I'm going underground this time, I won't be
trapped that way.*
Before she closed her eyes, ready for her long sleep ahead, she sent out
two messages, but did so in a way that the recievers of these messages
would have no way of replying, or finding her.
*Gabrielle,* she said *I love you girlfriend. I rose from my sleep for you,
yet now you have driven me back. Ironic, isn't it?*
The second message was much shorter. *Armand, forgive me.*
As Pandora closed her eyes, a single blood tear ran down her cheek, and was
absorbed by the earth.

POST No 71/Myst

I had to smile as I heard Melisande's order, it sounded as if she had not
eaten in a week, then again she may not have.
"Well, hi there. I thought you were dead."
"Hi yourself, and no not yet"
The waitress brought her order, looking at the meal infront of her, i was
reminded that I had not yet eaten in the last few days either, "Sorry, er"
looking at her name badge, "Vicky , could I please see a menu?"
"So what gives, why are you here and not yet dead, you not a vampire or
something?"
"Long story", Vicky arrived with a menu, and left me to have a look. As I
was looking for something to eat I decided to sum up my life, "I was once a
normal human mortal, I did the church thing and everything, then at the
turn of the Millenium, I tried an experiment that went oop's. It could have
been a lot worse as at the time I was messing with the very source of life.
The BOSS upstairs decided to teach me a lesson and sent me to the begining
of time. Since then I have been hanging around, then about two years ago
something happened, don't ask me what, and due to this
I deliberatly blanked my mind. And yesterday was the first time I started
to remember".
"Yes, I think I will have the Chicken, wait make that two". As our waitress
left to get my order, I turned back to Meli, "So why are you bugging my
vampires, it could get you into trouble ".....

POST No 72/Lestat

He was walking down the street, he had got rid of the body a while back,
and had decided to go for a walk before heading back to the flat where the
other's were. As much as he loved them all, it could sometimes be
soffocating and he was also missing Louis, he hoped that all was ok with
him. It was strange how things were changing since the mortals had
appeared. They somehow focused the vampires energy's back into their
relashinships, forcing them to confront their Lovers, to sort out there
greavances. But it was a powerful magic and he could see alot of them being
hurt if they
were not carefull. Lestat was brought out of his thoughts by someone's
radio, it was playing a type of African love song, he turned to see who had
the radio on and couldn't see anyone anywhere near with a radio, yet he
could still hear the
voice singing the lullaby. He shut out all the other voices around him and
focused on the sound, the song looked as though it was coming from the
gutter. Yes there, sitting on the curb was a street girl, in her hand she
had a cup, she was singing to make some money to be able to eat tonight.
Lestat was amazed that such a voice was reduced to having to sing in the
gutter. His voice was great, but this was unbelievable. He bent down to
place some money in the cup, he reach into his pants and brought out what
he had there, it filled his hand. He had taken the Mob bosses money before
dispposing of the body, so he not only had the large
amount of cash he normaly carried, but alot more. He dumped it all into the
cup, and moved before the girl could see and then thank him. He smiled and
started to head back to the
flat...............

POST No 73/Armand

They were both lying in the soft bed, the covers scattered on the floor,
the sheets stained with blood. Armand stirred just a little, carefully
brushing a stray of hair out of his lover's face. Memories of the circle of
blood came to him, the passion and the love, and the visions of his life...
Daniel had at last obtained from Armand what he always wanted, his lover's
full soul. Armand felt so vulnerable now. 'But Daniel would never hurt him,
would he? Daniel loved him.' He left the bed now, a slight shiver passing
through his body. 'He had to control himself, control the fear, not to ruin
it again.'
Armand almost jumped when he felt Daniel's arms around him. His fledging's
eyes went wide. "Are you alright?"
"Yes" he slipped away from his lover's arms, trying to smile "you just...
surprised me." He dared not look at his fledging's eyes.
He felt Daniel's hands on his neck and back, gently easing the tension out
of him. "It will be alright Armand" Daniel said softly kissing his temple
"it will be alright. I love you, trust me."