Bloodhunt

Wherein Aurin and Masagh's hunts collide.

Filled with people both proud and poor, the Imperium is a land of ambition, glory and a belief in the power of the mortal spirit.

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Aurin
Posts: 936
Joined: Sat Dec 05, 2020 6:03 pm
Location: Kalzasi
Character Sheet: https://ransera.com/viewtopic.php?f=43&t=1041
Character Secrets: https://ransera.com/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=1061
Letters: viewtopic.php?t=3581

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After his initial riposte, the Kinraven and Masagh were too often in too close of quarters for him to comfortably attack; that was the downside of having an ally, even a temporary one. They might not remain allies for long, but Aurin wasn't in the habit of back-stabbing without a damned good reason.

While he was paused from the action, though, he was not idle. He conjured sounds and even smells for the vampiric senses of soldiers closing in from several directions. He vaulted for a better vantage.

"Ew," he mumbled to himself when Masagh got literally in the shit. He might not allow himself to smell the sewage, but he knew it was there. He steadied himself; vomiting now wasn't going to help anyone. At least for the short period of their exchange, lengthened as time often was by battle in the blood, he was able to observe a vampire fighting; they weren't a hegemonic bloc or anything, but it gave him some things to watch out for.

And then, finally, there was an opening and Aurin vaulted directly behind the fell creature and he began to stab as fast as he could, one-two, one-two. They might merely slow it down, but if it needed blood for its thaumaturgy, then every big of magic it worked and every drop of blood he spilled was less power it would have to kill them—or kill him; he didn't know what happened to whatever Masagh was when driven to that point.

He vaulted back, sure its reflexes were quicker than his. When it turned, he flung his daggers for its eyes and whispered to Whomever might be listening for a little bit of luck to aid his skill.
word count: 294
“I don't want to be at the mercy of my emotions.
I want to use them, to enjoy them, and to dominate them.”
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Masagh
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Oct 03, 2022 6:51 pm
Title: Highborn
Location: Ecith
Character Sheet: viewtopic.php?t=3798
Plot Notes: viewtopic.php?t=3804
Character Secrets: viewtopic.php?p=21241#p21241




Masagh watched as Aurin leapt at the vampire. The redvein was adder fast and vicious with his blades. Blood gleamed on the steel as Aurin delivered a stabs before dancing back out of range of the vampire. Masagh began to charge in to back him up from the other side. Daggers seemed to leap from Aurin’s hands towards the vampire.

It bent to dodge, like it had known they were coming. But their reflexes didn’t quite match Aurin’s skill. One dagger struck a pillar and spun off, the other sunk into the vampire’s shoulder and the base of his neck. Blood spurted like liquid spilled from a cup, staining the leather of his garb. The vampire stumbled to the side.

Masagh hadn’t slowed. He did not strike the man with his blade but set his shoulder into his ribs. They both crashed to the wet sewer floor with a murky cascade of water once again. He wrestled with the vampire, shoving his face into the puddle. The vampire thrashed and attacked him with fist and knee. Masagh weathered the blows with curses and grunts.

A fist across the jaw sent the vampire sprawling, dazed. Masagh seized the opportunity to wrap his arm around the man. As the vampire began to struggle again, Masagh settled into the headlock.

“Aurin.” He grunted. “I’ve got him, if you’ve got words.”

He was interrupted when the vampire sent a lance of blood stabbing into Masagh’s side. The ghoul grunted and drove his fist into the man’s kidney. “Settle down, Kinvaren. You are in deep shit… metaphorically and literally.”

The vampire seemed a formidable foe, or at least capable of escape. With a tendril of willpower, Masagh’s greatsword rose into the air and shimmered as two Duplicates appeared around it. Each blade flew through the air silently so that their tips were set against various vital points on the vampire.

The water around them settled as the fight stilled. While the vampire was breathing hard Masagh was completely still. He had waited so long to find answers. While it was true that the Creth could extract them from the head of a corpse, he was not familiar with that ritual. What’s more, he couldn’t exactly go to his mother and explain that he had been moonlighting as a vigilante across Gel’Grandal despite her explicit instruction to stay on the compound.

No. He needed answers from the living tonight. So he would have to play the next few minutes carefully.

“So.” Masagh said, settling his free hand on the shoulder wound Aurin’s dagger had inflicted. He pressed and listened to the man groan in pain. “We’ve got some questions for you, Kinvaren. Best answer honestly.”

There was no response except for the vampire renewing his struggles. Masagh hit him again and tightened his headlock.

word count: 497

• Knight of House Creth
Fademantle of Apocrypha: 7 Links •
• Highborn Ghoul •

User avatar
Aurin
Posts: 936
Joined: Sat Dec 05, 2020 6:03 pm
Location: Kalzasi
Character Sheet: https://ransera.com/viewtopic.php?f=43&t=1041
Character Secrets: https://ransera.com/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=1061
Letters: viewtopic.php?t=3581

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It was as much a dance to stay out of Masagh's way as to do his share of the damage to their shared prey. When he wasn't stabbing, he was watching with all his senses, arcane and otherwise. It took but a thought to have his blades back in his hands, blessed be their enchantments. Watching the vampire struggle and fight taught him a great deal, though he might not be able to articulate it all just yet.

Once Masagh had him in a lock, Aurin vaulted up close. The Kinraven beast didn't stop struggling, though, and it seemed Masagh's attention was on adapting to whatever it did to wriggle out of his grasp.

"So they run on blood... and so does their magic."

When a flailing arm got loose, Aurin slammed the heel of his boot down to pin it, then impaled the pale palm, nailing it to the floor with his blade. Kneeling, he plunged the other blade between the two lowermost ribs. His smile was nasty. Without words, he repeated the stabbing up between each set of ribs until he pulled out, followed by a gout of dark blood from the vampire's armpit.

"You're going to die today, Kinraven. That is not in question. How long it takes and how much it hurts depends entirely upon you."

Despite the odd violent spurt from violence done upon his undead flesh, the vampire's blood didn't seem keen to come out. All the same, he was so perforated now that the magic seemed to be losing its hold on itself.

"Do you understand?"

Blood-red eyes gleamed at him defiantly, but it was growing brittle, his struggles weaker. Aurin plunged his dagger between collarbone and neck, careful not to damage the vocal apparatus. He pulled it free.

"My steel is sharp, but it would still take some doing to saw off fingers, toes, cock and balls... I come from a long line of sick fucks, friend. I suggest you cooperate."

Eventually, that defiance seemed to crumble. Aurin patted his cheek, then nodded to Masagh.

"I'm just studying. I think you have the list of direct questions, hey?"
word count: 366
“I don't want to be at the mercy of my emotions.
I want to use them, to enjoy them, and to dominate them.”
User avatar
Masagh
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Oct 03, 2022 6:51 pm
Title: Highborn
Location: Ecith
Character Sheet: viewtopic.php?t=3798
Plot Notes: viewtopic.php?t=3804
Character Secrets: viewtopic.php?p=21241#p21241




Masagh patted muck from his garb as he watched the surprisingly vindictive Aurin work. The redhead expertly cowed the Kinvaren operative with a brutal bit of torture. Masagh was standing now, dripping sewer water back into the dark water beneath their feet. So the foreigner wasn’t here specifically for the Kinvaren, but to research the weaknesses of vampires. Was the Rune of vampirism enough for this one’s faction to go to war over? Sure, the Creth fought vampires on sight, but that was mostly due to their history with the Kinvaren.

As a matter of fact, Masagh distinctly remembered the only two vampires he did not fight on sight being visitors to the city. Not Kinvaren. He found himself wondering who this other vampire faction was and why Aurin hated them enough to travel here and fight in the sewers just to find an edge. Perhaps the Creth could indeed find an ally. After all, vampires were viewed as pretenders to the Graveborn, thieves of their existence.

“You know who I am.” Masagh said finally, crouching down next to Aurin. He indicated the white hand and ichor drop sigil on his cloak clasp. House Creth. “Tell me why your Coven has increased activity against House Creth and the King this past season?”

The vampire’s eyes blinked at nothing before he seemed to struggle to find Masagh’s face. Then he grinned weakly through crimson covered teeth. “Your… House will fall soon. Too long have you corpses been allowed to walk free in our city… You will… See, soon.” Masagh frowned down at the man. Confident in this conviction even here at the end of his life.

Theirs was a bone deep feud.

“My House was there before Gel’Grandal, and will remain.” Masagh muttered. “How did your Coven know of the meeting with the Goblin King’s representative?”

He glanced briefly at Aurin, but the man had certainly earned a bit of trust today.

“Your House is not so secure as you might think it… Cracks in the foundation.” The vampire laughed wetly through the blood. “It seems the long cold existence of your… “ He coughed. “Undeath is not appealing to… all.”

A traitor? Masagh visibly straightened and curled his fingers around the hilt of Ghoulblade tightly. So it was true. Masagh had suspected it for a few weeks, but hearing it from the vampire’s own lips was different. If this traitor was actively trying to bring down Creth, this was their biggest threat in decades.

He leaned over the vampire and put his hand on the man’s shoulder. Masagh pressed his face in close to the man. “Who is the informant?” Masagh hissed through his teeth. His dull, cloudy eyes searched the man’s face for the answer.

“Or what… You’ll kill… me?” The vampire said, unbowed. “I’ve got half a dozen holes in… me as is.”

“Exactly, I’ll kill you.” Masagh said softly. “If he kills you, you die.” Masagh leaned back and indicated Aurin. “If I kill you, your soul will be trapped in stone about my mother’s neck for an eternity. You will know no rest. You will serve Creth.” Masagh stood then, lifting Ghoulblade to his shoulder.

“So, who is it?” Masagh asked again.

The vampire stared up at him unblinking. He was a hard man with eyes like flint. “Don’t know… sorry. I guess you…ah… will just have to… murder more innocent Vitalitasi, monster.” Then he turned to Aurin. “You sure you… want to ally… yourself with ghouls? They eat… the living you know.”

Masagh hissed softly. “We prey on the innocent far less than your ilk, Kinvaren.” He forced himself to keep the blade from lashing out. “Although I do eat the occasional vampire heart.” He turns to Aurin. “I’m done with this trash, all yours for whatever you want of it.”

word count: 665

• Knight of House Creth
Fademantle of Apocrypha: 7 Links •
• Highborn Ghoul •

User avatar
Aurin
Posts: 936
Joined: Sat Dec 05, 2020 6:03 pm
Location: Kalzasi
Character Sheet: https://ransera.com/viewtopic.php?f=43&t=1041
Character Secrets: https://ransera.com/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=1061
Letters: viewtopic.php?t=3581

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Hazel eyes watched with acute interest. His arcane senses augmented his observation; he would know if the Kinraven was going to attack before he moved, so even if he moved faster than Aurin's mere mortal body could, he could be practically prescient about it. And Aurin was nothing if not a survivor.

When Masagh looked at him, he looked back, auburn brow raised in question. But it seemed as though he were just calculating the risks inherent in speaking plainly in front of a relative stranger. Aurin could understand that. They were fast allies here and now, but as soon as the vampire was dead, anything could change. The foreign ne'er-do-well wasn't looking for new enemies in far-reaching places, however. If nothing else and barring any hard passes on Masagh's side of things, he was interested in having an odd sort of contact within the Imperium which was older apparently than the Imperium itself. The House of Creth, he said to himself, looking back at the bloodied vampire when Masagh's attention turned back to him.

His eyebrow arched again when the vampire addressed him, as if vampires didn't eat the living. At this point, Aurin didn't truly believe in the innocent. There were the more innocent, perhaps, and if he himself had any weaknesses, it was the few people he tried to keep safe from the worst of the world without showing undue attention lest one of his enemies take things out on one of these more innocent creatures.

Aurin blinked. That had been a rather quick interrogation. He hadn't even had to do much.

"Wait, wait, wait... you don't want to trap him in your mother's locket or whatever? I mean, all right. Just seems like a waste." He turned his eyes back on the blood-red eyes of the magical predator. "All right, all right, all right. Now to kill you dead... pierce the heart, remove the head, and burn everything, correct?"

He might very well have been asking the Kinraven himself how to do it, or Masagh. But Aurin was prepared to find out what worked by trial and error. He had brought silver, as well as a wooden stake. Mists, he had even had a rather garlicky past few meals so it would be in his blood and possibly cause an early release if he was bitten.

The ginger exhaled pungent breath into the vampire's face. No amount of brushing had gotten ride of the scent of garlic entirely. He was just going to have to let his body process it.

"My breath. That's gross, yeah?" he asked the vampire.
word count: 449
“I don't want to be at the mercy of my emotions.
I want to use them, to enjoy them, and to dominate them.”
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