Julian Blackwood (synapticstatic) wrote in nybynightic, @ 2020-08-06 03:36:00 |
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Entry tags: | activity type: log/thread, character: ariel lee underwood, character: julian blackwood, npc: maya dethanatos |
It's time to break the Malkavian Primogen for answers—only to discover she's already pretty broken.WARNINGS None • STATUS Complete
Of course all those windows meant that one could look in as well. Well, maybe not these windows as they all seemed to be tinted so that one couldn’t especially peer in from the outside. Still, it was like much of New York in that they reminded Julian of an open mind that one could just peer into. Which was the reason he was here. After Ariel had approached him yesterday with the offer from the Sheriff—well, it was one that Julian would have been hard pressed to pass up.
Whether he was going to be able to pull it off or not was another matter. Maya was said to be unusually strong herself for someone of her age and generation. Julian had to wonder if it was for the same reason as himself. He supposed he was about to find out.
Approaching the Primogen here had seemed the safest course given the possibility of her current state of mind. So Julian waited and at the sound of approaching footsteps he looked up.
Ariel had been blunt in his conversation with Julian. He had listed what they needed, what they wanted, and then offered the exchange. It was all very simple. Besides, there was no point in hiding things or playing games with a Malkavian. They’d figure it out eventually anyway. He hadn’t bothered dressing up for a role like he had with Sethius. Maya didn’t need to be thrown off by his appearance. The jeans looked like they’d been through Hell and back. The t-shirt was old and proclaimed itself to be from The Kinks “Word of Mouth” tour which he thought was ironic, all covered in a leather biker jacket.
Trying to catch Maya at the Tower seemed safer than approaching her at her haven. Who knew what sort of traps had been set up - maybe even worse than the Labyrinth. He’d heard about that weird house in Los Angeles, after all, but that might have been a unique situation. Still, he wasn’t about to risk his and Julian’s unlives just for the Hell of it. But he was also running a hint late and that was his fault. He had been… hesitating. Going in without Amadeus backing him up made him weirdly nervous.
He had a lit cigarette hanging from his lips and one hand shoved in his pocket when he finally arrived, wasting no time in finding Julian by scent alone. Not caring that it was technically against kine law to be smoking inside, he gestured with a movement of his head towards the elevators and headed that way. “This is kind of your last opportunity to back out, if you’re second guessing at all.” But he didn’t think Julian would be - the reward of a broken blood bond was pretty huge.
Julian fell into step behind Ariel. He was a stark contrast to the Gangrel with his tailored coat down to his shiny leather shoes. He may have been a Malkavian but he had been groomed in this life by a Ventrue and it showed. He looked very much like he belonged in the Tower.
“I’m not. I agreed to do this and I will.” The deal was a large part of it but there were other reasons as well. The knowledge to be gained, though that part was an old habit that was not going to die anytime soon. Within their world knowledge was as much a part of their power as the things they could do because of their Blood. There was also curiosity. Julian knew there had to be a reason the Sheriff had chosen him for this besides the fact that trading for the favor was an easy one.
It was hard for Julian to not pick up on the energy coming off of Ariel. He wasn’t actively prying but it was there just the same. “Are you sure you’re not having second thoughts?”
The elevator doors dinged open as Julian reaffirmed his decision to be there. Ariel slipped into the brightly lit death trap (he had never trusted elevators), holding the doors open for Julian with his hand. “I don’t have a choice. Leo’s doing,” he gestured vaguely with his hand because he didn’t actually know the details outside of ‘out of town’, “And Kjell’s fucked off.” That was probably a bit more information than he should have given away but Hell, everyone would know sooner or later. That was the nature of Kindred.
Once Julian was in the elevator, he pressed the button for the appropriate floor and they ascended. He didn’t really blame Kjell for leaving the city. It was not a great time to be sticking around for anyone and if he didn’t want to deal with it, seeya around. They had only just gotten the news that Kjell couldn’t be found but it was weirdly not surprising. “I’m not sure how Maya’s going to take to seeing me,” he warned Julian, “We had an agreement. I broke it after a time.” Of course, he also wasn’t sure Maya was even still alive. The smart thing to do would have been to eliminate her so she couldn’t talk.
The doors dinged open again and once more, he held them open for Julian - this time for him to go first. “That way,” he gestured with his head in the appropriate direction, “Fourth door.”
Taking the lead this time, Julian headed down the hallway. He wasn’t sure what they were going to find when they got there. Maybe they wouldn’t find anything at all. After all who was to say that Maya was here at all. And if she was—well, no one knew better than Julian that you never knew what state of mind you were going to find a Malk in.
He knocked on the door and waited for an answer. When he didn’t get one, Julian went ahead and opened the door and stepped inside. The room was dark with only the bright lights of the city pouring in through the window but he could sense the primogen in the room. He flipped on the light switch next to the door as light filled the room it seemed as if the woman sitting in the chair and staring at the wall suddenly came to life.
Those deeply knowing dark eyes fell on Julian and then past him too look at Ariel. The sight of Ariel caused her to frown but her attention was drawn back to Julian. It was clear from the focus of her eyes that she was looking at him but not in the way others tended to look at one.
“Julian Blake Prescott. There is a black mark about you.”
The full name caused Julian to raise an eyebrow but it didn’t otherwise bother him. The fact that she could see what he had done though did bother him. He looked back at her trying to see if she had the same. “And you do not. Curiouser and curiouser.” So her strength didn’t come from the same source as himself.
Ariel followed along in eerie silence, something he had picked up a long time ago but was practicing again in an effort to… Mess with Amadeus. How often could he sneak up on his lover? After all, his scent was everywhere now so--Well, anyway. He didn’t want to be thinking about the Sheriff right now. He focused on the moment. Honestly, he wasn’t surprised when there was no answer at the door and he was tempted to just kick the damn thing in to make a point but Julian had a cooler head… And it was unlocked. Fantastic.
He shut the door behind them as the blond Malkavian turned on the light. There she was - ‘alive’ and kicking. Or had she been there for ages, just sitting in the dark like a broken toy? Ariel noted that look but was relieved that her curiosity was on Julian. “Prescott?” he repeated, giving Julian a look that said something like ‘how white can you get’. Ariel moved off to one side to be just out of view, watching and waiting. He was curious as to what Maya meant by ‘black mark’ but it didn’t wholly matter.
For now, he would let them test each other, learn where Julian could and could not press. He could have said something like she was a hypocrite for picking on any sort of black mark considering she had murdered the fucking Ventrue primogen and they knew it. Not yet. Just remain out of eyeline, giving Julian a quiet not to say keep going.
Amusement ran through Julian at Ariel’s reaction to his birth name. He wondered what the other’s reaction would be if he knew that he was very white in that he was a trust fund baby from an old money family. Right now though the focus was on Maya.
Whatever thoughts she had been in before the primogen was slipping back into, to the point that she seemed to have forgotten they were in the room—or just couldn’t be bothered to care. Julian crossed the room to the chair she sat in and squatted down next to it. “Maya,” he said softly but she hardly seemed aware. It was a state that Julian himself knew all too well. The odds of getting her to come out of it to have an actual conversation was unlikely. Not without knowing her trigger and even then it wasn’t guaranteed that it would work. Something had pushed the Malkavian into the state she was in.
Julian stood back up and looked to where Ariel stood off to the side. “There’s no need to worry about breaking her. She’s already broken. It doesn’t mean the answers aren’t there though. Just—do me a favor and pull me away from her if she starts to react badly to this.” Because he could end up in too deep to react in time if she suddenly woke up.
Turning back to Maya he stepped closer and placed his hands on the temples of her head before he pushed into her mind. Given the fact that she was older it should have been harder than it was but it was like any defenses that her mind once had were gone.
“Damn,” Ariel muttered to himself as she seemed to fade right back into nothingness. He had seen this before but had never really... Felt it. He had seen it in women who had lost their children, families who had lost their homes - like their minds were wasting away. But he said nothing else and simply watched Julian and Maya’s interaction - though one could hardly call it that. It was most certainly one-sided. Julian only confirmed what he had begun to suspect. Grand.
But at the Malkavian’s request, he nodded and moved closer. He wanted to be prepared and having to run in might cost some precious time. Not that he actually knew what it would mean for Maya to react badly. He supposed he’d know it when he saw it. While he watched, he took the moment to snuff his cigarette on the heel of his boot, then tucked it into his jacket pocket just so he wouldn’t leave a mess. Manners mattered, right? But otherwise, there wasn’t much he could do while Julian probed Maya’s mind.
What are you hiding in here Julian whispered across the primogen’s mind as he looked into. As he did he could see the thoughts she was lost in. What she had done to the Ventrue Primogen weighed heavily on her and she was stuck in a replay of it over and over again. She hadn’t wanted to do it. That much was clear. Being in her mind like this, Julian could get a different perspective of it than anyone else had. He could feel in the memory how she had fought against every step she had taken towards that bed where the sleeping form of Alex Caine lay. How she fought against raising the knife but once she had she had been mindless to it, stabbing again and again until the heart was shredded.
The memories skipped around. Or perhaps they were just rewinding themselves because what came next was what had to have happened before she had gone to Alex’s haven. It was Sethius’ cutting his wrist and filling a goblet with his blood before passing it to Maya to drink. It seemed as if he was talking to someone but as Julian tried to get closer to those memories, to see who it was that lurked in the shadows, they disappeared like they had never been there at all.
There were others like that. As well as blank spots within Maya’s mind as if someone had just cut the memories out. Wipe the slate so that Maya who wouldn’t remember who it was that had caused her to do it all.
Pulling out, Julian looked at Ariel again. “She was dominated.”
Ariel had no idea what Julian was doing but so far, so good. He felt awkward just standing around, waiting but there was nothing else to do. Thankfully, he didn’t seem to need to yank Julian away from Maya. He was able to separate without incident. “Of course, she was… That explains a piece of the puzzle,” the apology suddenly made more sense. “Paint me a full picture as best as you can. We need to know everything,” even the slightest bit could be a clue at this point. Even the shapes of the goddamned shadows.
Julian ran his tongue up over his teeth as he looked at Ariel and considered. Malks made others twitchy. After all no one liked to have their minds messed with or for someone to know what they were thinking or feeling. So he wasn’t completely sure just how what he was about to suggest was going to be received.
“I can do better than try and paint you a picture of it all. I can show you,” he offered. He raised his eyebrows in question as he made the offer then gave a shrug of a shoulder as if it didn’t matter one way or another to him. But it would easier and Ariel would get a much clearer picture than if Julian tried to explain. Especially since he doubted that the Gangrel had ever felt what it was like to be dominated and not in control.
His immediate reaction was to start growling, deep in his chest. Dangerous pale eyes glared at Julian for his suggestion… But it wasn’t a no either. It was just a showing of his distaste at the idea of having his head messed with. His hands balled into fists for a moment before he forced them to relax. Fucking Malks and their goddamned bullshit fuck fuck fuck.
Yet he knew he had to. It would be easier. He would be able to see everything Julian had, everything Maya had to offer, in excruciating detail then. “Fine. But I swear to Christ, if you do anything else, I will rip your dick off and make you eat it,” this was not an empty threat and honestly, Amadeus would do something worse, he was sure.
Julian just raised his eyebrows again at the threat. He wasn’t surprised by it all. He was more surprised that Ariel was actually agreeing to it. “Don’t worry. I won’t mess around in there and make you walk off the roof of the building.” No, he only tended to drive kine to such extremes when he was in a mood and decided to whisper in their minds until they were worn down.
Before Ariel could think twice after that little comment, Julian reached out and brushed his fingers over Ariel’s temples. He didn’t have to touch for it to work. It just helped to ground him and help him focus on what he was doing. Otherwise he was likely to start wandering around in there and unlike with Maya that wasn’t the purpose here. It was his own thoughts that were needed here.
Now that he had been in Maya’s mind and seen her memories, it was easy to pluck them back out of the web and push them into Ariel’s mind. Not just what Maya had seen but what she had experienced and felt. What she even felt now as if she was an empty shell that had been scrubbed clean but left with the lingering horror of what had been done to her.
He had been about to tell Julian that it’d be his own death warrant he was signing if he did something like that but he didn’t get the chance. It was just so much entering his head at once. He wanted to fight it but Ariel did his best to keep himself from reacting. And not a bit of it was good in the slightest. From start to finish, the puzzle just got worse and so did the guilt for the things he’d thought and felt about Maya. Would it be kinder to simply kill her?
They would definitely need to replace her as Primogen, though, that much was certain. Once Julian was finished though, Ariel looked between him and Maya. The expression on his face was dark, contemplative. Could they just leave her? For now, they would have to, he supposed. Ariel moved past the younger Kindred and quietly went over to Maya. Still, he said nothing as he knelt on the ground in front of her, taking her hands in his. He held them tight, leaning over them. The words he spoke were so quiet they barely made it past his lips. Even then, they were in an older form of Italian.
Whatever it was, it took longer than one might expect - the only sign of what he had been doing was the literal sign of the cross as he finally released Maya’s hands. “Well,” he started as he stood, “Let’s go talk to Amadeus about your payment, I suppose.” There wasn’t much else they could do here. And obviously, they wouldn’t be going to the Haven.
Julian just silently watched as Ariel prayed over the Malkavian who was unlikely to ever be whole again. Not that any of them were actually whole but there were too many pieces carved out of Maya now. Shards of the mirror that were lost and would never be able to be filled. The fact that she had been dominated though answered the question for Julian though as to why the Sheriff had wanted him to do this. He was too intimate with the ways of the Ventrue. Knew what it was like to have that domination turned on you.
When Ariel was finally done and spoke again, Julian nodded and followed him out of the room.
He left the light on even though Maya probably didn’t even notice.