geistnet | I'm Waking Up: Origin Stories.

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I'm Waking Up: Origin Stories.

You’re an old man who had a nasty run-in with Something That Went Bump in the Night, and once believed that the only way to make sure that you never had another problem like that again was to pick up a gun and shoot supes in the face before they killed you or hurt your family – and then some government shitheads called you up and told you that they’re your friends, you all have to get along. They took your weapons, sent you to some fucking program that felt too much like Alcoholics Anonymous. You hang up on them every time they check on you, but they still know exactly what you’re doing, every second of every day.

You’re a house wife in a quiet little town, accustomed to turning a blind eye towards the strange things that happened to people after dark because the local police either didn’t have a clue or were letting those things happen in the first place – and then some nice people in coats came in from God Knows Where, arrested some crooked cops, and made it all go away.

You make a new batch of cookies every Sunday, to give to the coated fellows who still hang around at the street corners downtown; some of them are young, so very young, and remind you of your younger brother. Your little ones want to be just like them someday.

You’re the kid who learns Judo rather than Track and Field after Math every day (Teacher Felipe says that you have to know how to defend yourself), then takes a quiz all about vampires, fairies and werewolves in Occult Studies. Every Wednesday, you tumble around with your classmates, and get mad whenever your best friend does his Superman thing and beats everyone to the top of the hill by flying there. Every Friday, a guy with more guns than you have teeth comes to school, takes over PE classes, and talks to everyone about what he does for a living. Sometimes, he takes “special kids” with him to another school, for special people like them. You hope that he won’t take your best friend away.

You’re the manager of one of the biggest call centers in the country. You’re happy because life’s been great ever since you opened your doors to the local vampire community. They’re damned good at their jobs, and you don’t have to deal with the HR nightmare of overtime, of medical bills and lawsuits anymore. And you feel safe, because you know that if one of them ever steps out of line, you know exactly who to call.

You’re the girl who leapt through time, who met a handsome stranger who took you to a fantastic place full of talking trees and flying fish, the girl who was loved and fucked and tossed aside when you started getting boring.

You came home and found that your house wasn’t your house anymore, that your parents have been dead for decades and all of your friends were old and gray while you haven’t aged at all.

They found you crying on a swing. They told you what happened, and helped you set things right.

You’re the drunkard at the local bar who sees monsters in every face, and still remembers what it was like years ago, when you didn’t have to be afraid of the dark, or wonder what’s beneath all the human skin and human smiles of every person you meet. The Truth fucked you up, you see. You wish that once upon a time, you had the better sense not to listen.

Whoever you are, if you were born between 1999 and 2066, you know about Hunters. You know about the conspiracies and compacts they are a part of, and the Vigil they keep between Day and Night, Light and Shadow. You know that some of them are human, and some of them aren’t, and some of them are somewhere in between. You know about why they’re here, and what they do while nobody’s looking. Hate them, love them, worship them, or revile them: it doesn’t matter. The World of Light and the World of Darkness have blended together, and that means that Hunters are around to stay.

o r i g i n s t o r i e s.

This post is devoted to threading out the stories of player characters of Waking the Dead prior to their arrival at the Falner Estate. Tag in and tell us yours. We have a feeling it's a good one.

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Barbie watches her with amusement for a moment before she's sitting back down and fetching a pack of her own.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but... you're kind of lucky. Vitae didn't used to come in packs."

Once the bag is empty, Ella lets go, sighing as her fangs retract. She's getting better at it.

"I was wondering why the blood felt so weird. I mean Good Weird, I guess blood will now taste good to me from now on? But it's probably scary for newly embraced Kindred to wake up thirsty and have to bite someone..."

And Ella goes silent at the thought of her biting someone. And no longer being able to see the Sun...and not even being able to eat food again.

Edited 2014-08-09 21:55 (UTC)

"It is, although I think that I'm going to have to train you on how to feed on somebody eventually. Just so that you know how to do it."

There were methods, after all. Ways of making sure that a vampire didn't end up killing somebody.

Ella had a lot to learn.

Ella smiles weakly. "Yeah, I don't want to accidentally kill someone. The idea of actually biting a person feels...strange though. I guess it'll feel different when I actually need to, but if I can make do without it..."

She swings her legs out of the bed and jumps to her feet. Her balance is great. No, excellent. "Do I really just fall asleep when the sun goes up? Do I...need a coffin?"

And then she remembers earlier that night and facepalms. "Can I even keep studying?"

Those questions remind Barbie of the kinds of things that she used to keep Riley up with, back when she knew close to nothing and had too many strange assumptions.

Since the girl is standing, though, Barbie is standing as well. She's also sending a mental missive to Celeste.

Prepare my car. I'll make my own way back with Ella... she needs some space.

"First: no, you don't. Second: no, coffins are ridiculously showy. Third... yes, you can. But you'll have to focus your efforts on studying how to be a vampire first, and on learning a little more about the World of Darkness."

She looks towards the door, then back at Ella.

"Would you like to go? I can fetch some good clothes for you, and give you a bit of time to freshen up."

"So I don't get tired or anything and it's like...going to bed? Also how much Sun is too much Sun? Or any Sun at all is a bad idea. Indirect light, maybe?"

She can't help but smile at Barbara's opinion on coffins. "Yeah, I figure I need a crash course at being a vampire. Or three. Who are you exactly, anyway? I've seen your face on the Internet, but I rarely do anything else besides studying." Quite the sad confession, but that was Past Ella, right?

On then does Ella notice the bloodstained clothes she's in."My flat? All my clothes are there. I don't really do...freshening up. Do we need to use the services or bodily functions are not a thing?"

"Bodily functions aren't a thing for us, beyond hungering for blood."

Saying that with just a touch of wryness.

"I can send some people over to your flat and have them fetch all of your belongings. That way, we can go straight to the Falner Estate." She smiles. "I'll answer all of your questions once we're there. One at a time, of course."

Winking at that. Ella's mood shift was nice and a little relieving.

"Oh, okay."

She's not answering the rest until they move, it seems. "W-wait, to Falner? Me? Can I even enter there?" Well talk about being surprised by rather obvious news.

Ella simply walks towards Barbara, but waits for her to lead. That's half their newly sire-childe bond speaking (which Ella has no idea about just yet) and half reminding her manners.

Barbie, on the other hand, is heading towards the door and opening it a crack.

"Celeste, can you please fetch something suitable for Ella to wear?"

The voice on the other side is deferential, and there's the sound of footsteps as Celeste heads off. Then Barbie's turning her smile back towards Ella.

"I don't think a good-looking girl deserves to be punished by heading somewhere nice in nothing but a hospital gown, so."

Ella stops mid-step, only then realizing she's still on the hospital gown, her bloody clothes throw by the end of her bed. Again, if she could blush...although the memory of the feeling pushes through anyway.

"Oh but I could just wear...those..." Her own voice betrays her though, because she wants nothing to do with them. "What happened to the virus, anyway?"

Anything to make time while this Celeste mystery person (vampire?) fetches her clothes.

Oh, baby: Barbie knew you'd like something good and fresh to go around in. It's only proper. (And she totally knows the feeling.)

The older vampire leaned back against the wall right by the crack of the door, and folded her arms over her chest. Ella might be able to tell that she was much more relaxed now, and right about ready to respond to anything that came her way with grace.

"It died the moment you were Embraced. You're not longer alive, so there was nothing for the Coldshadow to feed on."

"That's good to know."

She's going to stand there awkwardly, hoping her butt doesn't show. There's nobody else in the room anyway, but still, she would be embarrassed all the same.

"I don't feel dead, though. I also don't feel alive..." She tries to feel her heartbeat again, but there's nothing there. "Never been dead before, so maybe this is how that feels. It's not that bad. Kind of cool actually."

"Um...what's going to happen to me? I get it you live in the Falner State, and I'm pretty sure you're actually some sort of important person that I can't quite put my finger on just yet. I feel a bit out of place here."

"I actually don't live in Falner. I live in the house that I inherited from my parents after they passed away."

Barbie pauses there, looking thoughtful.

"Given your personal circumstances, though, it would be best if you stayed on the Estate grounds. My husband and I count as your legal guardians for the moment, at least until we can come to some sort of agreement with your mortal parents. We can secure a new place for you to stay."

Her parents (!)

"Oh, bloody hell."

The thought had menaced to pop up a few times, but now that Barbara had mentioned it there was no going around it. They were going to kill her, again. Probably out of sheer disapproval. "They're going to lose their minds! Not only they don't like supernaturals, they hate vampires."

She's pacing now, mind you, most of the rest of her concerns thrown to the back burner while she focus completely on the clusterfuck her family life is about to become. "Knowing them, it would be easier to just tell them I packed and left to parts unknown. We can't do that, can we?"

"I'm afraid we can't. We're legally obligated to let them know what has happened to you, especially since you'll need to register your new status."

At that point, though, Barbie smiles again. Just so.

"Granted, I am also legally prepared to deal with any fallout from them on your behalf."

Before anything else can be said, though, there's a quiet knock. Barbie turns away to open it just a crack and pick up the clothes that Celeste has fetched. They're a decent set; some of Barbie's old things.

"Here, Ella."

"Oh, this is going to be splendid."

She's still not entire sure of why is Barbara going through such pains to help her, but Ella's pretty sure she won't get much by just asking. Better just appreciate the help and try not to make a mess.

"Thanks." She picks up the clothes and then...looks around, find the bathroom and hides there. A few moments later she walks out; the clothes aren't super fancy, but they are obviously fancier than what she was wearing as of late. "I guess I don't need to worry about getting cold anymore?" They're not that revealing, Ella.

"No, unless it's the kind of cold that is out to destroy you. It's happened to me more than once."

The expression on Barbie's face is the kind of exasperation that comes with one too many nights of going out on the field and facing crazy renegades.

"Let's go. The car is waiting."

She leads the way, of course. Celeste and Raura have already gone ahead: another one of Barbie's trusted staff is behind the wheel of the car that pulls up to the curb for them both. Barbie waits for Ella to climb in first before settling down beside her.

"So would you like us to drop by your old place before we go to Falner?"

Ella makes a face. "Noted." So, cold was alright, but never ridiculously cold.

She follows Barbara in silence, still feeling a bit like a dazed puppy as she looks at the woman's (who looks like a teen) back. She enters the car and tries not to touch anything.

"Hm? I suppose I should pick up some things. My books..."

She'll probably remember her other things, like clothes and personal belongings later.

"I'll help you."

She can feel Ella's nervousness, and she honestly can't blame the girl. Everything has changed rather quickly, and it's been barely two hours. There is still a lot more to discuss once the both of them have settled down.

"You don't need to be so shy. You're my childe now." And then, to the driver: "Bring us to Ella's flat."

"I- thanks."

Barbara's words are reassuring and calming, more than Ella would have imagined. Is this what it means to be someone's childe? This woman has become something of an anchor to her, although it's not as terrifying as what her father had thought about it. To him, sires and childer were something more akin to slavery mixed up with Elaine knew what taboo practices.

"O-okay." Yeah, the shyness will take a bit to go away. "There isn't really much in my flat so it should be quick enough."

"Even if there was a lot to move, we've got the time."

She says that gently but firmly. Barbie, of course, plans on doing whatever she can to make Ella feel a little more at ease. Given what they're going to have to end up talking about later, it would be best if they got as comfortable with each other as quickly as possible.

The car pulls out of the hospital quickly enough, and the roads look clear. They'll be at Ella's place within fifteen minutes or so, at the rate that they are going.

Ella nods silently. Once they arrive, she heads up quickly, leaving her door open so that anyone following would be able to enter. There really isn't much to see there; while the flat is obviously high end, Ella never found the right moment or the right mood to decorate, considering she was there much against her will and due to her father being an obnoxious sod.

She snorts at the thought, because it's true. A moment later she has her suitcases open and is putting clothes in, while filling her backpack with whatever useful book and notebook she runs across. Her mood seems to be peaking now; up until that moment she hadn't realized how much she wanted to leave this place.

Barbie does follow Ella up after making some last minute calls in to her people down in Falner and instructing the driver to keep the engine idle while they wait around. She doesn't enter the flat, though: she seems to be content with watching Ella from the doorway. That might have something to do with the fact that she's now working through another cigarette.

She notes, of course, the fact that Ella seems to be doing a lot better, and that she's starting to seem almost relieved that she was packing up.

"This wasn't exactly home for you, was it?"

Taking a little break, Ella looked to Barbara and smiled, although some of the sudden surge of energy that had taken her died down with that smile.

"Father sent me over here to study at PU, partly because I had gotten a scholarship and partly because he wanted to put as much distance between my girlfriend and me as possible. He succeeded."

He hadn't considered what it would happen afterwards, though.

"He succeeded for the moment," Barbara said, with notable firmness. "You get to decide what you want for yourself now."

That was how Riley had "raised" her, after the Methuselah had set her free from Christopher Rivera's influence. She intended on doing the same for her own childe.

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