Amirah
Rogue Werewolf
Bounty Hunter
Sure fatal doses, malcontent through osmosis.
Posts: 53
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Post by Amirah on Mar 27, 2011 18:15:07 GMT
"I can sure as hell guarantee that this is not about you and as a result no one involved will care about your part in it," Amirah snipped. "You are less than nothing to the people I am dealing with every single day." She noted the way he stepped towards her again and what that meant, the way he was stepping up the challenge, crushing the space between them that was already so full of tension and anger and all the things that she wasn't saying, the answers she was unwilling to give. So she stepped forwards too. "I am not asking you to fight my battles, I am not asking you to fight at all. You will not be on the front line when I make my move."
Too many of her years had been spent manipulated by others and she didn't like anyone trying to pull her strings no matter the means or motivations. If she was honest he was probably right, he probably did deserve to know at least the minor details of what she was up to but Amirah didn't know how to explain it without inviting more questions. Maybe he wouldn't dig any deeper into it, but she wasn't sure she wanted to take that chance either. Even if he did ask and she refused point blank to give any more of her story over to him he would be able to see the agony in her eyes, it would be written plainly on her face the moment she used the word 'sister' or 'family', words that had been absent from her vocabulary for so long she wasn't sure she remembered how to say them now.
Amirah stepped closer again; "If the positions were reversed I wouldn't be such an asshole about it. Either help me or refuse, but do not push me for details I cannot give you."
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Thatcher
Rogue Werewolf
Vampire Hunter
Whatever pain may come, today this ends.
Posts: 90
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Post by Thatcher on Mar 27, 2011 18:42:12 GMT
Front line. Make my move. Fight my battles. The words Amirah used -- regardless of the tone in which she pushed them his way -- spoke of a personal tie to whoever or whatever she was going after. She had a right to her privacy but Thatcher refused to go in blind. At the end of the day it didn't really matter whether or not he was in danger, he had been in the crosshairs before countless times and would be again and all that would change was the reason, but he didn't like being led along the way Amirah was suggesting. Yes he should have trusted her to use the information she needed and be on her way but something about it didn't sit right and that grated at him, plucked at his own already frayed nerves and got his hackles up.
"Are you kidding me?" he rumbled down at her. "You're more of an asshole than I am most days." There was almost a joking air to it, something taunting and amused but there wasn't even a trace of a smile on his face or in his eyes. "I'm not asking you to tell me everything, don't jump to conclusions. If I'm going to help with you this I need to know the basics. I need to know what to avoid, who to avoid. There are some sources in this city who will only deal with me and if that's the only way to get your information then how I am supposed to know what's important and what's not?" There was a trace of the wolf in his gaze but it was only the faintest flicker, tamer than the burn of only moments before. "Either you trust me or you don't, Amirah. It's one or the other. Which is it?"
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Amirah
Rogue Werewolf
Bounty Hunter
Sure fatal doses, malcontent through osmosis.
Posts: 53
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Post by Amirah on Mar 27, 2011 19:07:57 GMT
Shit. Thatcher had a point there. Amirah felt her cheeks burn with anger as she glared up at him, her jaw slanted at an angle, her canines still sharp with the rage of her emotions. There would be people who didn't want to speak with her either because they didn't know her or, equally as likely, because they did know her, or had heard of her at the very least. Amirah Novak was as likely to cut your balls off as hold a steady conversation, the rumours went. Amirah Novak once tortured a vampire for six days without stopping to eat, drink or sleep, people whispered in the gutters of cities across Europe and South America and beyond. She had her own sources of course, those who knew her beyond the stories that got tossed around in the backs of clubs and bars, but Los Angeles wasn't one of the places she had put the time and effort into cultivating that kind of network. If he had to talk to people on his own then he would need to know what was vital information and what wasn't or if someone was bullshitting him. Thatcher was right and Mirah hated that she had to admit it.
She had gone very still and very silent, not even responding to the almost-joke about her attitude no matter how accurate it might have been. "His name is Oshiro. A vampire. He is bringing a werewolf with him from Japan and I intend to steal her." Amirah chest hurt, her jaw ached. Surayya's profile burned the back of her mind. Amirah stared at Thatcher as if daring him to ask her to go further with her explanation, not giving ground, barely sucking in air.
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Thatcher
Rogue Werewolf
Vampire Hunter
Whatever pain may come, today this ends.
Posts: 90
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Post by Thatcher on Mar 27, 2011 19:50:41 GMT
Thatcher definitely did have a strong and solid reputation in Los Angeles and it was one that had ensured he got what he needed or wanted one way or another, either because people knew better than to try his patience or because they were so intimidated by him to begin with that they simply handed over information before he even needed to work out some sort of arrangement. Here in the big bad city of Los Angeles Amirah needed that and he was offering it to her but he needed to know what he was dealing with. He needed to know what to ask, how deep to dig, how hard to press. Without those details he was wading into murky waters without a lifeline and he wasn't willing to do that. It wasn't worth it. Had he known the stakes his opinion likely would have changed but he didn't and so was reluctant. Amirah had to trust him, and not just a little. She had to go all the way if she wanted to get this done before the month was out.
The word vampire always got some sort of rise out of him and this time it was an increasing tension through his shoulders and a more intense glow of wolfen ferocity in his eyes. "How old is this vampire and how well known is he?" Without even needing to ask he could tell that it was the werewolf in the equation that was a sore subject for Amirah and from what he could tell he didn't need to know specifics about her, so he didn't ask anything beyond one question, "How highly does he prize this werewolf?" He wouldn't ask for names or attachments, why Amirah seemed willing to risk everything for one wolf. That was none of his business at the end of the day and it didn't change the questions he would need to ask to get the information she would need.
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Amirah
Rogue Werewolf
Bounty Hunter
Sure fatal doses, malcontent through osmosis.
Posts: 53
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Post by Amirah on Mar 27, 2011 20:11:39 GMT
There was no choice here, she couldn't hold back from answering these questions if she wanted his help and she did, she needed it. "Old," Amirah said. "Six to seven hundred years. Keeps to himself, rarely leaves his ivory tower from what I have gathered from sources in Japan. He owns multiple global conglomerates and lives in the pent house of his own hotel." In other word a heavy hitter, but one that didn't have an interest in America, he was happy being the king of his own little realm in Japan. "He has no presence in the States, business or otherwise."
To answer the second question she had to take in a harsh breath through her teeth. "The werewolf--" Amirah winced physically, her eyes narrowed and her lips puckered, it was like barbed wire in her mouth trying to get the words out. Finally she looked away from Thatcher, dropping the challenge and paying it no attention while she tried to wrestle her voice under control. "He paid an exorbitant amount of money for her. She's a status symbol. It is unlikely he will let her out of his sight for long." Amirah hated to even think about it, it made her see red; this vampire treated her sister like an object, like a thing, a mindless, empty vessel that he could parade around as a pet. God, she couldn't wait to fix that. She stared at a nondescript point on the wall, wanting to put her fist through it.
"Is that it?" She asked, still glaring at the wall. "Are you done?"
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Thatcher
Rogue Werewolf
Vampire Hunter
Whatever pain may come, today this ends.
Posts: 90
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Post by Thatcher on Mar 27, 2011 21:07:33 GMT
This Oshiro sounded like a real target, someone Thatcher was already all but itching to kill and wipe off the face of the planet. But it sounded like it wasn't his fight and he respected Amirah enough to leave her to her own battles. He listened to what she said with his hands lifting to settle upon his hips with his eyes watching her. This really was a personal matter to her and part of him deep down was almost sorry he had pushed and pushed the way he had. It wasn't a regret he would voice or give life to, not when they were already moving on. There was no sense in dredging it up again and freshly riling already raw tempers and emotions.
"If that's all I need to know to get you the information you want then yes, I'm done." It might have seemed only a small offer on her part but for Thatcher it was enough and all he had really been asking for. "What exactly do you need to know about the city and how soon?" He moved from where he had been standing, arms dropping to his sides as he made his way into the kitchen again, claiming his empty glass on the way past so that he could refill it from the same bottle. This time he poured a second measure into an extra glass which he carried through into the living area again, offering it out towards Amirah. It wasn't an olive branch but it was as close as he would come.
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Amirah
Rogue Werewolf
Bounty Hunter
Sure fatal doses, malcontent through osmosis.
Posts: 53
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Post by Amirah on Mar 27, 2011 21:25:15 GMT
In a strange and spiteful way she wanted to ram it all down his throat, what she was up against here and how this was not a time to be jerking her around in any way, but her stoicism won out and she clamped her jaw down at his affirmation that he was done if that was all he needed to know. Amirah was still wrestling with the idea that what he might really need to know was that she was in more danger just for thinking of getting close to Oshiro; she didn't want, need or expected his sympathy or anything like it, but the fact of the matter was that Oshiro had bought Surayya from Marek and if word got back to him that Amirah was going after her oldest sibling it could lead the bastard right to her. She didn't know where he was, she didn't know how much time she might have to get out of the way before he rained hell down on a city like Los Angeles to find her. Marek would rip places apart with his teeth to get to her, Amirah had never doubted that. But just as she was never sure of his location he was never sure of hers and that was how she had stayed alive and free all these years.
There was so much information she could give him that she didn't know what she should, what she was capable of parting with.
Amirah sighed through her nose and took the glass from him, swirling the liquid around but not raising it to her lips. Instead she angled her eyes back to Thatcher. "Who the big players are, the packs, any rogues I should be aware of. I only know that Oshiro is coming here for business, what kind and with whom I wouldn't guess at, but he may have connections to shipping companies that transport vampires. He will most likely come by ship at least part of the way." She paused again, glancing down into the amber liquid in the glass, grinding her teeth. "He cannot know I am coming for her."
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Thatcher
Rogue Werewolf
Vampire Hunter
Whatever pain may come, today this ends.
Posts: 90
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Post by Thatcher on Mar 28, 2011 21:35:54 GMT
Thatcher had already decided that he would act as though the information was for him and not for someone else. It would be believable enough to anyone who knew him and his intense, uncontrollable hatred of vampires of any kind. They would accept that he wanted to get to a powerful vampire like Oshiro and hopefully there would be no questions asked. He didn't know what this meant to Amirah but he did understand even before she said words to the effect that she needed to keep her involvement in this a secret. No one could know she was the one seeking the information. If he was reading the situation right then one slip on his part could put her in even greater danger than she was already facing. Thatcher wouldn't allow that to happen.
"And he won't." Thatcher drank from his glass and then lowered it to his side. That, it seemed, was that. There were no two ways about it. What Thatcher believed would be the case would be the case if he had any say in the matter and he fully intended to have his say. More than that, even. "If you want everything all at once you'll have to give me a day, maybe two, but I can tell you about the packs and notable rogues now. The big players." Thatcher had been in Los Angeles long enough to know those things and he had agreed to share the information with Amirah. She could hold him to his word.
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Amirah
Rogue Werewolf
Bounty Hunter
Sure fatal doses, malcontent through osmosis.
Posts: 53
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Post by Amirah on Mar 28, 2011 22:29:59 GMT
When he said it like that she believed him. Amirah nodded, reassured. Thatcher understood the gravity of this situation even without the details and she appreciated his black and white approach to the situation, even though he had proved resistant and she had pissed him off. There was still no chance she would have taken this to anyone else. Amirah counted few people as allies and she liked even less people than that but the male wolf had qualities that she admired and she did trust him. Otherwise she wouldn't be standing in his apartment at that moment; it was as simple as that.
Amirah smulched her lips together in thought. Now that her ire was fading she was starting to feel tired; it had been a long and arduous trip from Boston and she couldn't quite recall the last time she had actually put her head down to sleep. Still, she would feel restless if she tried to sleep now, knowing that there was information she could be plucking from Thatcher. Once they were done she would check into a motel and sleep. Amirah would force herself into lasting a while longer. "All right," she said, finally lifting the glass and tipping the contents into her mouth in one motion, emptying it. She didn't drink alcohol usually, it had never been a part of her life and it was just another one of those things that set her apart from the rest of the world, one of those common practises that she failed to understand. Now she made a face, scrunching her nose up and looking at the empty glass with accusatory eyes.
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Thatcher
Rogue Werewolf
Vampire Hunter
Whatever pain may come, today this ends.
Posts: 90
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Post by Thatcher on Mar 28, 2011 23:11:42 GMT
When Thatcher gave his word on something that was that. He kept to his word and it really was that simple, that clear cut and final. As it was, though, not many people received his word on anything unless it was a promise of their destruction. There were very few who had earned enough respect to receive any other kind of promise from him. Amirah was one of those rare few. As she downed the alcohol he watched her as though gauging her real condition in that moment, not physical but mental and emotional, and when she made the face and glared down at the glass he couldn't help the small smile that turned his lips up at one corner.
"There are three packs in the city if you count the suburbs and Beverly Hills. In the city centre there are only two: Stanton's, one of the largest I've ever known at more than sixty members strong and counting and one led by a female called Rayne, smaller and weaker with a lot of unrest. The smaller pack is coming apart at the seams and it's only a matter of time before it splinters altogether. The third is led by a male named Mar and they live outside the city proper. Simply put, they're insane. For now they're staying out of the city and the affairs of the packs here but again, it's only a matter of time before they make their move, whatever that might be." Thatcher made it his business to know what was going on in the city and that was being made very clear now as he spoke to Amirah. "As for rogues you should be aware of there is a pair living on the outskirts. They're old, though I haven't been able to find out exactly how old, and every word I've heard about them is negative or at least cause for concern. Some say that they are mad." He had bowed enough to rest his hands upon the table where his half-drained glass now sat in front of him, there was a focused kind of tension through his shoulders and a serious look on his face as he concentrated on what he was saying. "There's another group on the outskirts but I haven't been able to find out much about them. They're shadows. Wraiths."
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Amirah
Rogue Werewolf
Bounty Hunter
Sure fatal doses, malcontent through osmosis.
Posts: 53
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Post by Amirah on Mar 28, 2011 23:30:23 GMT
Amirah had placed her own glass down and folded her arms as she listened to Thatcher speak. She paced a little, restless despite being tired, and shook her head as he finished. "Crowded," she commented succinctly, raising one hand from her arm to press her leather fingertips to the point between her brows, heaving a long sigh. "Just what I need."
It was, in fact, exactly what she felt like she didn't need in this case; sometimes a city with a large supernatural population made it easier to hide in plain sight and sometimes it was too many eyes and eyes with too many unknown connections for her to feel secure. Did any of the packs have members who might know someone who knew someone who had heard of Marek and his little genealogical project? There was no way to know. It made her feel uneasy, unsettled. Amirah rolled her shoulders and cupped her hips with her hands again, ceasing in her little prowl to turn back towards Thatcher. Now more than ever she realised how much she really did need his help; she couldn't spend the next month second guessing her own footsteps, concerned about tipping off the wrong people.
"What about vampires?" she asked. "Are there old ones here?"
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Thatcher
Rogue Werewolf
Vampire Hunter
Whatever pain may come, today this ends.
Posts: 90
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Post by Thatcher on Mar 28, 2011 23:51:58 GMT
"Very crowded," Thatcher confirmed, keeping his eyes on the female werewolf a few feet away. That same tension he had noticed several minutes ago hadn't yet faded; if anything it had intensified, their discussion of people and parties of power sending troubled thoughts through her mind. That didn't dissuade him in the least when it came to sharing what he knew. These were the things she had asked to know and so he would tell her. He would answer her questions so long as they were in line with her original request and as of yet she hadn't strayed from that.
"Only one of what you might call considerable age and from what I've been able to learn she keeps to herself. She has at least one werewolf in her company, some say two, though if the second one is real and not just a rumour then they're a new addition. Like I said, she keeps to herself." This was where Thatcher was not to be doubted. Vampires were, to put the matter plainly, his speciality, and while he made it his business to know of those of significance he certainly made it his business to know about the undead in the city. "All others on my radar are relatively young." His smile was hollow. "At least as far as immortals go."
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Amirah
Rogue Werewolf
Bounty Hunter
Sure fatal doses, malcontent through osmosis.
Posts: 53
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Post by Amirah on Mar 29, 2011 0:05:21 GMT
A low growl peeled free of her throat at the mention of this female vampire with a werewolf companion. Amirah knew what that meant, she knew all too well what that meant, but that was not her fight and not her problem. There were vampires all over the world who kept werewolves as pets or lovers or both and Amirah could have wasted decades trying to liberate the creatures from their un-dead captors but she had enough on her plate just trying to find and liberate her own siblings from whomever held them in bondage. "In her company," she repeated with an unamused huff of laughter; her eyes had dropped off to the side as she slipped into thought. It was possible this female vampire could know Marek but it was equally possible she was just some sadistic psycho bitch who liked to kidnap wolves herself; there was need for caution but no need for outright worry, Amirah would simply make sure to stay clear of that one. Unless Oshiro went anywhere near her, then Amirah might have to get involved whether she wanted to or not. There was too much to speculate on, too many unknown variables. She would have to wait and see what happened in that instant.
"These packs, the larger ones," she said after a drawn out silence, shifting her weight listlessly again and tilting her face towards Thatcher. "They give you no trouble? Is moving through their territory a problem?"
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Thatcher
Rogue Werewolf
Vampire Hunter
Whatever pain may come, today this ends.
Posts: 90
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Post by Thatcher on Mar 29, 2011 0:30:44 GMT
It riled Thatcher too to think of werewolves being kept by vampires, the very idea of a creature as proud and powerful as a wolf serving or submitting to something so vile and unnatural as one of the undead. Thatcher himself had been kept by vampires and though he had been human at the time the memories of his captivity were ones that would never fade; he had suffered an immeasurable amount at their hands on so many levels, physical, mental and emotional alike and it was because of their cruelty and spite that he was the way he was now, hard and ferocious, no longer the warm and compassionate man he had been in his time as a mortal. It had been because of a wolf owned by vampires that he had been changed himself and that had given him the strength and means to destroy his captors and tormentors. Wolves had no business being in chains or under the heel of those so much lesser than them. Frankly, it disgusted Thatcher.
"So long as you don't bother them, they don't bother you." He straightened, taking his glass with him though he kept close to the table. "They tolerate rogues on their territory so long as they don't draw attention to our kind. That's the general understanding and while I've been in Los Angeles there have only been a small number who have dared to cross the line. They're chased out of the city altogether or put down, depending on the offence itself." He easily and smoothly drained the rest of his drink and set the glass down on the table. "Fly below the radar and you won't have any problems."
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Amirah
Rogue Werewolf
Bounty Hunter
Sure fatal doses, malcontent through osmosis.
Posts: 53
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Post by Amirah on Mar 29, 2011 22:00:38 GMT
"Good," Amirah said. Despite her age and the fact that she had been born a wolf Amirah had never been in a pack, the wolves that Marek bred didn't constitute one, they didn't have anything like a pack structure, they were barely a family let alone anything more complex. Marek liked it that way, she thought, because wolves were dangerous as a pack and it was much easier for him to control them when they were frayed and distant. Only now, on the outside, did she view the shared blood between her and her siblings as anything of importance. Only now did she view her children as hers. Out here her arms ached for them, she felt a raw kind of pain even after all these years knowing that her children had been raised by someone else, that they had been forced into submission, used and broken and ground down into shades of who they were meant to be. There was a sharp and familiar pain through her chest; her thoughts were getting away from her, running off in anxious little tangents.
She folded her arms again, biting her lips together. "Oshiro will not go near pack territories anyway, but it will good to know where the boundaries are," she said, dragging her thoughts into a constructive, cohesive line. "I will separate the wolf from him at dawn," she went on, eyes on the floor with an intensity that could burn through the floorboards. "The more daylight hours I have to get her away from the city, the better. He will not be able to track me." There were few people who could track her, and that wasn't arrogance speaking.
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