Carolina/Open | after 'History of the Occult" | PG?
"Thank you," Carolina had said to the crowd at the conclusion of her lecture, flicking off the slide projector. She had been surprised when the Mages Guild had asked her to do a scholarly lecture on the way dark magic had evolved and influenced mainstream practices throughout the era. She'd agreed, but not without wondering about their motivations in asking her. Were they trying to sniff her out? Find out what she knew?
Whatever the reason, Carolina knew that this was her area of expertise, and so she'd put together a lecture comprised of the most accurate sources she'd collected on the subject, as well as some of her own research. She'd included visual aids, some of which were no little gory. Well, she had suggested to the audience that those with weak stomachs might like to take their leave of the lecture hall before she began. No one had taken her up on that suggestion until the first of such slides, when half a dozen of the audience members suddenly darted out of the room, clutching their abdomens. How did such shrinking violets face that which the Mages Guild was created to do?
At the end of her lecture, Carolina received polite applause, as was typical at such decorous events. Some of the audience looked glassy-eyed, although she couldn't say whether it was because they had been under the influence of substances, or because they were simply still shell shocked at the thoroughness of the blood magic section of her lecture. Either way, she could do little more than hope they'd seen what they'd come for.
Packing up her notes and equipment, Carolina took her leave of the podium and headed toward the crowd.