driftfleet | 002 In Which Vampires are Silly

Entry tags:

002 In Which Vampires are Silly

Who: Akeldama and you!
Broadcast: Yes
Action: Planet side and Iskaulit
When: throughout December

Iskaulit library - actually more in late November ~~shh~~
[What was Lord Akeldama to do with himself when he didn't have the life he normally lived at home? No drones, no going out to the see the latest show at the theater. None of it. So he had headed to the library. True, he typically only read what appeared in the gossip rags now-a-days, but that didn't mean he was incapable of a good book.

Well... that's if he could find a good book...

Curiosity had compelled him to look at one of the books on Earth history, but he clearly hadn't gotten very far, sitting there, drumming his nails against the table as he stared at one section]

Planet side - shopping!
[At the first possible opportunity, Lord Akeldama was shopping! He was sadly lacking in clothes and he wanted so much to be able to burn those horrid jumpsuits that had been given to him. They were a travesty against all things fashion after all.

So he could easily be found in the formal section of a clothing store browsing different options that fit his taste... in as many colors as he could possibly afford. He didn't like not having funds to just do whatever he wanted.

He had also found a fabric store while he was there, browsing quietly. Not like he could do anything with it after all. An unfortunate side effect of metamorphosis, no more creativity.

That was until he had happened to find a blue paisley fabric. It was exactly his style!]

This would make the most perfect waistcoat! A shame though...

Open Broadcast
[Of course here is Lord Akeldama and he has to make this a post. Why? Because he's showing off in a way. So he'd seen all of this about "ugly Christmas sweaters" which why would someone do that to themselves. But he had found something else and he was playing this off as if it is completely normal.

So Lord Akeldama is dressed in dark brown trousers, a sage green jacket, a rose gold cravat, and this vest as if it were a waistcoat. Nothing odd to see here, just a vampire in an ugly Christmas vest...]

This truly is a remarkable place. It has been so long since I've had the chance to visit a city such as this.

So what have been your favorite things to do here? I would like to know what all I have missed thus far.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Lord? Lord indeed... Keith blinked at the response and then nodded.]

I'm Keith... pilot on the Huntress.

[He frowned a bit at the retreat.]

You okay?

[Kosmo was definitely wary, but the pup was pretty solidly glued to Keith's side. He didn't growl, though, just had the hair on his neck and shoulders raised up. In order to fit into Atroma's size restrictions, Kosmo had been de-aged physically, but it seemed that he retained most of Keith's training from their two years together, so he was already surprisingly well-behaved for a young wolf.]

A pleasure to meet you, my dear.

[He's standing greater than hand shaking distance apart so they can't do that]

I am well, darling. Perfectly. It is only for concern for your little friend there. I am a vampire. Most animals cannot stand to be near us. Cats really are the only creatures that don't care enough to tolerate us. I'm sure there are some that don't mind, but I do not wish to push it.

I do assure you though, he is in no actual danger from me, but they tend to follow instinct over polite conversation.

[It was surprisingly well behaved he would agree, staying by its master's side]

[Keith looked surprised and then glanced down at Kosmo for a moment. He could tell the wolf was wary, but...]

He'll be okay. He's not exactly a normal Earth wolf.

I can see. He is quite colorful for a wolf. Still it must be his choice.

[If an animal was brave enough to approach on its own without pressure to do so, it might be less likely to panic especially since he wouldn't approach it.

A shame... he had used to have so many animals and now it could only be cats]

Out shopping this evening?

[And going to continue like he's not standing a good number of steps away]

Well, he's not from Earth, so that's probably got something to do with it.

[His choice? Hm... Keith glanced down at Kosmo and just let it be for now. Instead, he moved over a little so that he was between them, making the conversation less awkward by being closer. Kosmo seemed to understand, and sat where he was.]

Yeah. I'm looking for some gifts for friends.

Perhaps. He might be more tolerant of the supernatural.

[Normally he might have said not to get between them simply because if the wolf panicked and went for the vampire, Keith would be in the way, but since the pup was relaxed enough to sit down where he was, he wouldn't say anything about it]

Splendid. That's what I was doing as well. This is the first planet I have been on and I do say, there is a lot to see here.

Maybe. He's kind of a little supernatural himself, considering.

[When one had a teleporting wolf, being in the way was rarely a problem.]

There definitely does seem to be a lot. And it's probably better stuff then when we stopped at the trash planet.

Is he now? How fascinating.

[Of course "supernatural" is different in their world, but it still interests him to hear an animal be referred to as supernatural]

Oh yes, I did hear about the trash planet. I do say I am glad that I missed it. Sounds like it was quite messy.

It was. But we did manage to find a lot of useful stuff there. We were able to build some weapons and add things to the ships and create a private communication network separate from the Atroma communicators. It ended up being a lot more useful than we though.

[Keith glanced at Kosmo.]

He is pretty fascinating, actually. He can teleport. I found him in outerspace, so he can do things that Earth wolves just can't do. His intuition is on a level I've never seen in a dog before.

[Lord Akeldama practically perked up when he heard that]

Private network? That sounds most useful indeed. It was at least productive then.

Outer space? So he is a space wolf? [Lord Akeldama studied the pup sitting by Keith's leg. He was definitely well behaved. Most dogs or wolves would have come at him by now or fled. He's not going to move closer now, but perhaps next time he wonders if he might be able to stand closer] A teleporting space wolf? How fabulous. Of course I imagine you must have a terrible time of it catching him for b-a-t-h time.

[Yes, he actually did spell that...]

[Keith nodded.]

If you can get a device to hook up to it, we can show you how it works. We've been avoiding hooking up any of the Atroma devices to it. It helps prevent Atroma from accessing it.

[He nodded again about Kosmo.]

I found him on a ... well, it looked like a whale and it was traveling through outerspace... so, I just kind of call it a space whale for lack of any other name for it. But, yeah. I don't really know where he came from or how he got there. We saw something crash, and tracked it down... this was what we found. [Keith looked down at him, and Kosmo looked back up when he felt he was being looked at. He wagged his tail.]

He's actually not bad with that... he likes the water, so it's not hard to get him to go in. It can be hard to get him to come out or stop him from shaking the water off everywhere. Or, if he teleports, he tends to leave it behind in a puddle. [Keith shrugged.] He seems to be able to pick and choose what he brings with him. That includes loose hair.

If I do receive one, I will let you know. I understand completely not using one of the gadgets that they have given us.

[He looks down at the young wolf again as Keith was recounting the story of how he found him, nodding along, interested in the story. Given that Lord Akeldama had never been off world before this, he will have to take his word for it.

The comment about Kosmo teleporting off without water or loose hair did get a chuckle from the vampire]

Well, I suppose it is more efficient that way. But more work for you. At least he doesn't dislike water. Many canines do, at least domestic ones.

[Keith nodded and then chuckled slightly about the water comment.]

I guess. I never had a dog when I was a kid. Figures... my first dog, and he's from space.

[He shrugged.]

I believe that is what someone would call "ironic".

I have known many who have owned dogs and there are a surprising number that don't like water. Perhaps its a breed thing. However more cats don't like water.

[Keith snorted a bit, and then nodded. He supposed it was ironic.]

It could be a breed thing. [He smirked a little.] Yeah. Cats definitely not... unless they happen to be the Blue Lion of Voltron.

[There's a pause at that before Lord Akeldama answers. Keith should be proud. He actually made the vampire speechless for a moment]

Space wolf who is now your companion, space whale, and now a blue lion. My dear, you have seen some very strange things in your young life. Even I cannot possibly claim those.

You know... after a while, I forget how strange it all sounds. I guess I just got used to it.

[Keith shrugged. Keith didn't know Akeldama well enough to make the call on whether he should be proud or not about making him speechless, but it wasn't a rare reaction when he talked about things he'd been through.]

I suppose I am not one to talk. A goodly number of people have never heard of vampires here and a few who have thought I was simply going to attack them. How uncivilized would I have to be.

I don't know... a lot of worlds don't exactly have "good" vampires in their lore.

[Keith shrugged a little. But, then...]

So... you're a vampire, then?

So I have been lead to believe. To be honest though, we weren’t always so civilized. Stories have their truth somewhere. And animals know it too.

[He gives a nod of his head towards Kosmo]

But with the integration of supernaturals into English society and the position of drone being less taboo than it was, there’s no reason for vampires to behave as such. Well-off vampires can afford to retain as many drones as they need.

And yes, I am a vampire. But neither you nor he has any reason to worry. While I am lacking my drones, the Atroma have provided something that seems to work in place of blood.

So like... people know exist and stuff?

[Keith looked surprised.]

And this is all okay in your world?

[Well, clearly he is a master of words...]

Of course they know we exist, my ducky darling. My neighbors know I am a vampire even if they might prefer to not live near me. Though I had my town house long before they did so it was really their decision to move next to me. And it's not like I can just up and move.

For the most part. Drones are viewed with more suspicion by government agencies than clavigers because they have the agendas of their vampire masters, but it is not an undesirable position. I give patronage to my boys, they assist me with daylight business and other necessities. I don't know about the hives, but I have no requirement for them to stay if they decide to move on.

[There were some odd words in there... and Keith sort of looked a little confused.]

What's a drone and a claviger? And... hives? What do you mean by patronage?

Well, you see, both vampires and werewolves have a terrible time getting work done during daylight hours, when most businesses operate. Drones and clavigers are basically servants to a supernatural master. Drones serve vampires, clavigers serve werewolves.

Now, because we have found those with high creativity levels are most likely to have the excess soul needed to survive transformation, both groups employ those in creative fields. Vampires mainly select drones from artists, sculptors, and musicians. Werewolves tend to look at actors and dancers because of the physicality. In return for their service to us, we give them money to fund their art. Patronage.

And a hive is a group of vampires with a queen, a female vampire who can change others. I am a rove and do not belong to a hive because I grew tired of the hive queen telling me how live my life.

Oh.

[Okay... that all made sense, oddly enough. Keith nodded, having listened to the whole thing.]

So, you don't have a queen at all? Was it that particular queen or do you just not like being in a hive altogether?

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