week 2

[airlockedmods]

Week 2

[It's been about a week since the Champions woke up in their new consumerist hellscape of a temporary home and, despite a few odd goings on and the bomb incident with Church and Nari, things haven't been as bad as they could be. No one is even dead yet! But let's see how long that lasts.

Enjoy your week, Champions.]

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(( Also, don't forget to submit your AC and item rolls! You can also bother your Overseer here. ))

Comments

[power_of_dominance]

[Soma flinches at his name, then nods once, but he still says nothing.]

[daughterofthemark]

Your secret... it's something horrible, isn't it?

[power_of_dominance]

[There's a long pause before he finally speaks, his voice tired and unsteady.]

Some of you might understand why, yeah. The rest of you? You'll get it if... when I explain.

[daughterofthemark]

[Arianna extends her hand toward him, not touching him, as if letting a cat sniff her before trying to pet it.]

Please. Trust us.

[power_of_dominance]

....

[Soma doesn't take her hand, but while he keeps his chin down he removes his sunglasses and places them on her palm. He takes a deep breath and raises his eyes.

They're crimson and shine faintly from within.]

I'm not human. I'm Dracula, lord of all vampires, reincarnated.

[desperateprayer]

[ ...Clarith won't react. She knew somewhat already. Well, no, she comes over. And she'll place a hand on his shoulder.

She's here. ]

[power_of_dominance]

[So Clarith still trusts him, still wants to comfort him, even with her own pain still fresh in mind. She's a good soul, no matter what she might think of herself, and Soma trusts her in kind.

He reaches up, covering her hand with his own.]

[daughterofthemark]

...and if people knew, you would be seen as an enemy to humanity.

[She nods.]

[power_of_dominance]

Yes. The man who first became Dracula, Mathias Cronqvist, did so because his wife died of illness. He vowed revenge on God for taking her life so young, by defying mortality itself. Centuries later, he married a second time and had a son, but that wife was burned at the stake as a witch, though in reality she was a healer and a woman of science. That... made Dracula wage a war of genocide against all of humanity. He's never been portrayed as anything but a hateful monster, whether in rumor or reality.

[Soma takes a deep, shaky breath.]

I told Heart earlier that I'd only just found out about this myself, right before I woke up here. I thought I was weird but human my whole life, but now I have over nine centuries and multiple lifetimes of memories, powers no human could ever control, and... a craving for blood.

[daughterofthemark]

A cycle of hatred and revenge...

[Well, it's not exactly a cycle, per se, so much as one guy who keeps getting revenge on various people. A lot of this is stuff Arianna's never heard before. Some of it sounds distressingly familiar.]

...are you able to control yourself?

[power_of_dominance]

I don't know. I wasn't around anyone human much after I started to awaken, and nobody bled around me in that brief time. The only blood I smelled was demonic, and that didn't affect me.

[Though there was the fight with Julius Belmont, when they beat the living hell out of each other, but that blood carries traces of holy power that make it repugnant to vampires.]

It's part of why I'm so worried, I don't know how I'll react if one of you bleeds around me. I could easily fall into bloodlust.

[curdle]

[ Well, at least one person needs to validate Soma's worst fears! So here's Thomasin, saying nothing, not flinching, but staring with ever-wider eyes as if she's mesmerized by her own unmistakable fear. ]

[power_of_dominance]

[He sees that face, Thomasin. He knows what fear looks like. That same fear he saw in Mina's eyes before he fled from her into the castle, knowing that his inhuman side terrified her. Shame curdles in his gut and hunches his shoulders.]

[cyan_maid]

...Huh.

[Suddenly that explains a lot. Too bad she sold all her troll blood "potions" before she got here.]

[power_of_dominance]

... that's a pretty calm reaction, Jane.

[Meaning he's waiting for her to calmly slide out of the area and return with a wreath of garlic or something.]

[cyan_maid]

So?

[The biggest concern in her mind is that Soma can no longer eat garlic bread. That's just sad.]

[power_of_dominance]

You're not afraid of me...?

[Garlic was only used in one Castlevania game so maybe he can eat it? He's only partially transformed, after all. Which is good because garlic is a kitchen staple.]

[imnotfat]

...that's quite the secret.

[Even Togami had to stay silent for a moment. That's a rough one, Soma]

[power_of_dominance]

Yeah, that's putting it mildly. I haven't had time to process this either, I only found out a few hours before I wound up here. It's... part of why I freaked out the other day, when Church and Nari were punished. I was afraid if I smelled blood, I'd frenzy.

[Soma wrings his hands tighter for a moment.]

... I apologize for snapping at you, by the way.

[imnotfat]

I don't need an apology.

[Well that sure explains the cranky behavior. Vampires aren't known for being the epitome of friendliness, he supposes]

Are there any warning signs if you're losing control?

[Murdermall is bad enough, it doesn't need a crazed vampire biting people and stuff]

[power_of_dominance]

I don't know. Like I said, I only started to change a few hours before I was kidnapped. I know I have flashbacks to previous lives, but I'm not entirely sure what happens to me during one. I guess... if I start acting feral, or if my personality changes, that's when you should worry?

[tokencanadian]

...A-a what?

[Could you.... explain for the uninformed here?]

[power_of_dominance]

Vampires are undead, Pyrrha. Not living, but not really dead, either. They're monsters that look mostly human but drink human blood.

[He opens his mouth a little, letting her see how sharp and pointed his incisors are, even retracted.]

If I smell it, my fangs get longer and I'll... well, I'll attack.

[tokencanadian]

Then... then we'll do our best to keep you away from any blood. N-not that there will be any blood around here. I'm sure of that.

[Ahaha...]

[power_of_dominance]

I appreciate that. I don't want to be useless if something bad happens, but I don't want to be a threat, either.

[He makes a mental note that she's nervous around him now. So that's another one on the list with Thomasin, though Pyrrha seems less fearful than the other girl at least.]