Same thing, different century

Sheriff's Estate - The Vault


This room covers almost the entire ground floor of this house. The majority is taken up by a stylish reception area; three chunky, white leather couches places in a neat U-shape, with a low table in the centre. Another corner holds a modern, black table, six comfortable chairs placed around it as though for conference. The final feature is a bar, well-equipped behind it and with a pair of chunky fridge-freezers, containing a variety of synthetic blood. In one corner is a staircase, leading upstairs. On the same wall is a door through to the only area on this floor not part of this room, where sits a small bathroom and the route downstairs, a featureless door, metal constructed and lockable from one side only, though plated to fit with the design of the house.
Three walls are white, the fourth covered in ceramic panels to give some colour to the place. The floor is tiled, in a pleasant, neutral shade. Windows at regular intervals stretch from floor to ceiling, concealed blackout blinds above them. One wall bears a huge flatscreen television, and one aware of their surroundings will spot the speakers concealed at various points in the room. The general feel of this area is a clinical style, a blank, neutral canvas for whatever happens to be going on. Those who know Will generally refer to this area as The Vault, for the round pillars that stretch up to the roof.


A free evening means that Chloe finds herself at the estate. Will stated that he would be back after the weekend, though when she got to his rooms he wasn't there. There was no caring about that, really, as she was busily snapping photos of the armor and swords, along with the Templar's surcoat that fits over the armor.
Wandering up the stairs just after midnight, she flips through the pictures and smiles. Moving over to one of the pristine white couches, she seats herself and sets the camera on the table while she extracts her laptop. After hooking the camera up to the computer, she downloads the images and starts to prepare them for the email she promised to Skylar.
That she managed to sneak in when the majority of the vampires were out or at least in their rooms puts her more at ease. With the vast number that are staying at the estate these days, she's got to be careful. Only two that she's aware of, are completely loyal to Will and one of them is a sadistic bastard.

Quite the good evening that is progressing, as far as Marius is concerned. All that is left to cap the evening is his jaunt south of the border to truly satiate himself, then home again to sleep. He's used to burying himself should he not return before the sun's rise, but it is something of an unpleasant experience even if it is a necessity at times. The veteran certainly never rules it out as an option.
Regardless, the vampire enters the Estate, with his path taking him through the Vault. Slowing his pace at the sight of Chloe, there is a deathly neutral expression that comes down to hide any pleasure he may be feeling in the nights events. The room is crossed, his path leading to the bar first for that bit of a snack before returning to his chambers for things needed for the Hunt.
His toys.

So engrossed in uploading the images is Chloe, that she doesn't really move or acknowledge him. It's only when she hears noises in the kitchen that her head snaps up and she's on automatic alert.
"Oh," she says, glancing toward the kitchen. "It's you." Really, she knew about a few that were staying here, but the thought that the sadistic bastard is there in the estate, seems to make the color drain from the telepath's face. "Will is out of town," she offers, in case he doesn't know. Then she hastens trying to get the files uploaded so that she can get home.

"I am aware." Chloe isn't the only one who knows about the Kings movements, though hers is more intimate.
Marius tucks in behind the bar to access one of the refrigerators, and pulling a bag from the bag, tears it open with his teeth to pour the contents into a handy, near-to-hand mug. With a quick motion, the microwave door is opened, the drink placed in, and the door closed once again. Not a heartbeat later, the soft *hum* of the machine begins.
Now that he has a moment, Marius leans upon the bar from behind it, "What is it you are doing?"

"Uploading images." Chloe has no reason to lie to the man, even if she doesn't like and/or trust him completely. He's obviously Will's man, or the Sheriff's, but not hers. Not someone she can talk to like Mary, or exchange book knowledge with like Michael.
"You know that— never mind." Shaking her head, she focuses on the last image. Frowning, she starts to rotate it until it's at an angle that makes the sword look decent, then exhales a sigh. "Really wish there was more light down there sometimes," she mutters.

"Ah.."
The term is completely lost on the vampire.
"Pictures." That would be the definition of 'images'.
"There is more than enough light," *ding* "for us to see." Marius isn't really in the mood to discuss the merits of making it a little more difficult for breathers to see and move around their resting places.
Turning around, the mug is removed quickly and the door closed again before he dips his finger in the viscous, crimson liquid. Those who'd discoverd how not to make the blood clot was to be commended!
"You took pictures of the downstairs?" Now, with finger swirling around in his mug, he approaches. "Why—"
<Public> Private Eyes - Wesley offs to kill stuff dead. Play nice. :D

"Granted, but I can't see in the dark, and neither can the camera." Chloe furrows her brow, trying to fiddle with the image to make it lighter. It just winds up looking like a washed out museum image. "May have to bring a light down there for this one…" Undoing the work she'd done on the image, she starts to fiddle with it again, adjusting the luminosity.
"Okay, ew? Were you raised in a barn or something?" Realizing what she's just said, she snaps a hand over her mouth to keep from snickering. Chances are he was raised on a farm or a farming community. Although royalty was also known for being quite cruel in battle.
"I'm getting a gift for Will, and I needed the images to show what I was looking for."

Marius walks around to look over Chloe's shoulder at whatever it is that she is doing on that.. what is it called? He doesn't recall, and he's unconcerned.
More to the point, he's not pleased that photos have been taken and are now in existance, documenting.. what? Swords?
Ignoring the question regarding whether or not he was raised in a barn (they did let the animals in the house in winter— warmer that way!), he licks his finger before dipping it back in. "A gift?
"You wish to give him something of which he already owns." That's not something that he'd learned in court. He'd learned.. excesses— To give greater than anything or anyone ha been able to.. to attain greater works and attract the envy and the animosity of those surrounding. It is through works such as that where champions and Captains are chosen.. and respected.
"Unless you are having a matching dagger made? Or a new scabbard with his device emblazoned?"

"Can you not do that over my shoulder? While I don't mind you drinking blood in front of me, the thought of you dripping it down the back of my neck is really kind of gross." Chloe's nose wrinkles, and she edges further away from him. She's no doubt that his intention is to drop the blood on her if she gets cranky with him. At least she's trying!
"No, I wish to give him something that will compliment what he already owns. A new sword, made with an old technique. Not a copy, just using the same sort of designs so it fits into his collection."

"His collection," Marius repeats, her protests completely ignored. "Is that what you think it? A 'collection'?"
The veteran points to a picture on the side, "That sword was responsible for the death of hundreds of foes in one siege. Each of his blades represents the loss of life in the hundreds and even thousands." Just as his does.
"It is a collection, indeed." The last is said with a touch of a smirk?
Tilting the mug up, now, the liquid rushes down his throat, with some dripping from the sides of his mouth. Quaffing his drink with gusto.
Bringing a hand up to wipe the sides of his mouth soon after, it's only now that Marius steps back and begins a slow trek back across the room towards the bar. "Who have you discovered that can do this 'old technique', as you so quaintly put it?"

"Yes, it is a collection. One worthy of a museum, and quite frankly I know what a sword is used for, I don't need a recreation of every glorious battle," Chloe says, finally giving up on adjusting the image, and just firing off the email after attaching it. She's quiet for a few minutes as she's typing everything up, including a little smiley face at the end of it all.
Catching site of the blood running down his chin, she grimaces. "You need a bib," she says, only a slight bit of disgust in her tone. "It would keep your shirts from getting dirty."
Watching him as she goes, she can't help but check the couch behind her to ensure that there is no blood staining it. "Some guy at the Heritage Village. Owns Sky Blades? I think that's the name of the shop." She knows that's the name of the shop since she's on the website. "It's not like there's an old sword maker wandering around Dallas offering his input."

"A museum?" Marius spins around but remains in place. "His swords are each in perfect condition and ready to be called upon for use at a moments notice. My gladius and my grosse-messer.. both are unable to be replaced, or copied, and still serve me well."
Placing his mug down on the bar, he puts his hand upon it so he can be certain they remain exactly where they are. "Is it your desire that you will place his history behind some glass and treat that which he's known as.. merely some trivial collection to be wondered at by countless cattle?"
Marius takes the moment to look down at the front of his shirt; still clean. He'd caught the blood, but later? All bets are off.
"Sky Blades. Is it run by a vampire?"

"Which is why they'd make really great specimens for a museum," Chloe argues with futility. It will never get through to him that both he and Will are un-living, non-breathing history, and that their knowledge is worth a lot to some people.
"If I wanted his items to be in a museum, I would've asked him about it. Your attitude towards humans is insufferable. Guess what? There are more of us than there are vampires, and it's vampires with your attitude that cause places like the Fellowship of the Sun to exist." When she mentioned the Great Revelation to Skylar earlier? It was likely Marius she was speaking of.
"If it were run by a vampire, don't you think you'd know about the place already?" And didn't she just say that it's not as if vampires were running around Dallas offering their input on weapon building?
"You may decide to dislike what I'm doing, but I'm not doing it for you. I'm doing this as a gift for Will, and I know he'd be appreciative of it, no matter your attitude."

"There are also more rats in this world than humans. Does that make the rat superior to humans, because of sheer number? Yet, you hold the rat in much disdain, vowing to wipe it from the earth as the pest it is." While he wouldn't go so far as to call breather's 'pests' as he does rely upon their life blood to exist, the comparison is almost completely correct.
"Fellowship of the Sun exists because through the centuries, organizations have always appeared to fight the truth." Marius' hands remain exactly where he can see them. Chloe may not quite understand, but restraint is being exercised.
A great deal.
As he speaks, his German accent becomes more and more pronounced. "Centuries of war against those who are different, and those who are inferior always seek to bring down the superior. The Roman Empire, the Holy Roman Empire, Constanople— the like of which has never been seen since.. this century. Do you think the Turks could create Greek Fire? It was my ancestors that brought Rome to its knees, and we had no concept of aquaducts.. of stone roadways.. of a mail system to conduct messages. The weak have always feared the strong and always sought to bring it down."
Marius shakes his head, "And when it was done, we became peasants once again, pulling a meagre sustenance from the land where once grew grapes for wine."
Finally, Marius pulls his hands away and turns his back long enough to set his now empty mug to the washbin. "It has nothing to do with my 'attitude', kind."

"We don't need rats to survive," Chloe points out quite simply. Humans may be parasitic in their own ways, but they don't actually need to feed off of another creature to survive.
"The truth is always dependent on which side you're on. You see yourself as a warrior, doing his duty. They see you as a cold blooded killer, and I'm sure if anyone saw you eating, they'd think you were a monster too." The Fellowship exists for the simple fact that vampires are always painted in a negative light, and the ones like Marius perpetuate that.
"I'm sorry that your history is mired with all that stuff, and that you had to suffer through some of that yourself. But you have to keep in mind that this is a far different age than you're used to, and while I'm not suggesting that you mainstream fully, it'd probably help with your position to learn your way around the technology of now."
With the email sent fully, she shuts the lid of the laptop, then glances back over to him. "You're right. It has nothing to do with your attitude. It has to do with me getting a gift for my boyfriend. Whatever your thoughts are on it, I don't really care."

"Truth belongs to those who write history. I, for one, care not for how history paints us. My point is, this 'Fellowship of the sun' is nothing new in history. Templars. Crusaders. Turks. Goths. Vandals. All are the same." Marius considers the mug in the wash basin and thinks better of a second serving. He'll be going out soon.
"There is no need to be sorry about my experiences, kind." His voice rumbles low, a warning held, "Do not presume to know exactly what my position is, little lamb. Do not presume to know exactly what I do and how I discharge my duty. If there is any correction to be done, it is not your place, nor will it ever be your place to do so."
The first steps are taken towards the door leading downstairs and into the sanctum sanctorum of sorts. "I am certain he will humour you, clucking as a pround parent, 'Look how clever this girl is.'"

"You are not going to ruin this for me, you sadistic ass."
So much for sneaking downstairs to Will's room for some time away from Marius. Instead, she'll just stand her ground. She has every right to be here, as it has been offered as a safe refuge to her, and she's not going to run off just because of a new vampire in the building. Though the laptop is closed, she doesn't put it away. Instead, she reaches for one of the history books she snuck from the library, and starts reading it.
"I know full well what your position is, Whip. Will explained it to me what your job is, and that if anything, god forbid, were to happen to him, that I'm to turn to you for protection." Will may not have told Marius that, but he told her and that's honestly all Chloe cares about at this point. "So sue me for wanting to help you fit in a little more instead of you being so out of touch with humanity that you're nothing more than an archaic museum piece yourself. Not every vampire is as old as you are, and so not every vampire'll rise to your same ideals. Forcing them to do so is ridiculous."

Marius knows all about his responsibilities as Whip. It isn't a new position, certainly, though he's never taken on the role before now. He'd been separated from one of the few men he'd trusted and forged a bond with, and not pledging fealty to others put him out of the running more than a few times. That, and the minor issue of none really being able to control him. He has a modicum of restraint, but it is tested, and sorely, at times. How is that not fitting in and 'mainstreaming'?
He doesn't tear quite so many people apart, limb from limb, and remove their organs while they yet breathe. Not often, anyway. Not within the past 48 hours?"
His step is paused towards the door and slowly he turns to face Chloe with her history book. "We are an old race. You speak out of ignorance, and you will yet learn. I am not surprised that you hear Valentinus but you do not listen. One day, heed the words and you will be a better vampire for it. He is wise, and is a trustworthy brother."

"I hear and listen just fine," Chloe says with a snort. This man may be a vampire, but he's old and stuck in his ways. Will, at least, wants to retain his humanity and attempt at fitting into a new society, even though it likely goes against what he once was. Which is why she's getting the gift in the first place. Then she gets a wickedly evil grin on her face. "Don't worry, Marius. I'll bring you a gift as well." Then her nose is back in the book, and she's intent on ignoring him and his further barbs about how young and ignorant she is.

Marius turns his back on the king's pet and opens the door that leads downstairs. He's got a couple more things to do in preparation for his trip— soon enough he'll have a small holding of willing vessels, should the old man prove compliant, and he won't have to make such trips. Nor will he have to worry about people getting in between himself and his next meal…
Stepping onto the stairs, he closes the door behind him and descends.

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