Umbra Noctis - Tavern/Club RP

After Richards left, Katarina excused herself to an upstairs room to change her clothing. She would be a few minutes, then the vampire would sidle back downstairs in a clean suit, twirling one of the Glock .45s she'd mentioned to Hawk earlier.
"Ah, Richards. I swear the man has clairvoyance. That or he just knows me," Acheron chuckled, halting the gun's motion around her finger. "Now, before someone gets onto me for it, I'll just set it here on the counter," she said, placing it on the bar counter and waiting for someone to take it to the check room. Seeing as how Telu, Sorano, and Phoenix were all busy at the moment, that rather left it up to Quill.

Soren looked back at Void. "Well, since that other vampire who left mentioned some sort of hunting party, I'd wondered if you had enemies. But now that I know you don't, I have to really hope they're not after me for a murder charge I left open back in Westvale, my hometown..." Soren kept her voice rather low.

Outside, Sorano turned to face Maybelle and smiled.
"Thanks, Maybelle. Let's just get this thing up onto the spits." Once the meat was ready for cooking, Sorano asked Phoenix to turn the heat up by some 20 degrees.

If Maybelle didn't go back inside just yet, then all three of them would be able to hear voices coming up the path, unless the sound of the flames interfered with Phoenix's hearing. Quite a few of the voices didn't sound too friendly.

Quill took the pistol, and showing the familiarity with weapons caused by being around either of the two avians for a while, removed the magazine, and pulled the slide back, ejecting the chambered round, if one was there. If there was, her hand would spring out to catch it and slip it back into the magazine. She then handed both to Katarina.

"Seeing as trouble appears to be inbound, you may keep a hold of it. Please don't load it unless you have to."


Void listened to it. "Are you the cause of the death of that charge?" Soren felt that lying would be seen and punished by the Xelor.


Phoenix boosted her flames by the degree asked for and then spoke.
"I can feel a group of angry minds coming down the pathway. Not anyone who resides at the in."

"Heh heh. Very well, I'll hold onto them," Kat chuckled, slipping them into side holsters that she'd strapped on under her blazer. "Figured I'd best adhere to the rules of the house before our group of visitors arrives." She then proceeded to take up her spot in the chair again.

Kilgore shook her head.
"No, but they think I am. But even a so-called freak like me had friends in the elderly folk of the town. This old gentleman, nicest guy I'd ever met even though he knew of my discipline choice. He was like my grandfather. He passed away from a heart attack." Soren paused for a moment. "The kicker is... He passed right after I'd learned how to cause them."

"What?" Sorano perked up and paid attention. "Oh... You're right. I'm going to have to be inside before they get here. Telu can't very well be the face of the inn for the locals to know." The Felix went back inside as quickly as she could, and the Trogon cook would come out to take her place.
"Looks like I'll be out here while Sorano deals with that group comin' up our front path."

Hawk kept his head on the table, not seeming to move. Only those closer would be able to see the frankly rather alarming array of kit the underside of the table had picked up.

Void looked at her. "And you are sure it wasn't an accidental discharge of this spell?" He meant no accusation, just wanted to clarify.

Greg looked up. "Hey, the locals expect only humans here, right? Then the blackbird and the... Time mage should probably go."


Phoenix looked at Telu, opening one fiery eye. "I won't smoke anyone unless they turn on me. Can you protect yourself?"

"I'm positive of it. It's a tricky process and no amateur can do it unless they're hell-bent on killing someone," Soren replied.

The group of people coming up the front path finally knocked on the door, causing Soren and Katarina both to look towards it. The hemocryomancer looked at Void and gestured that they go upstairs to avoid being seen. The Felix girl came around from behind the counter, panting a bit, and took a moment to compose herself and catch her breath.

"They'll expect what they'll expect, Greg. As far as they can be concerned, every non-human-looking individual here is an inferior to the nearest of the human-looking individuals," Sorano said, glancing over at Greg. "That's how we dealt with the last group who came with that turn of mind."

Outside, Telu nodded.
"I can protect myself well enough, if'n I have a knife handy. And.. Well. Miss Maybelle, you don't have so much to worry about. You're human and won't draw much attention to yourself from them folks at the door," the Trogon said, smiling to Maybelle. The expression was slightly tense, however.

Void went upstairs with Soren, ducked into an empty room, and locked the door behind them.
"Ok. Do you wish to know who did it, or if it was an accident?"

Hawk just sighed and slapped an official document on the table. "Thassa right-to-exist warrant. Some humanoid pick it up please. It's not legal if I hold it. You can say I do the heavy lifting and don't speak. Oh, and can't think well."

Phoenix smiled at Telu. "I can hide both of us from their sight, if you wish."

Once they were upstairs, Soren was able to relax a little. She looked at Void when he posed his query, and nodded before answering,
"I do wish to know. I know I didn't do it, but proving it to the Westvale judicial council.... Well, they're a tougher nut to crack. I don't want to change what happened, as most would, but I want to know if someone else was responsible for it, or if it was just his health." The mage looked troubled; obviously this issue had never quite left her alone.

At the sound of Hawk's hand putting something on the table and the flutter of paper, Katarina looked over.
"Seeing as how I'm the nearest, I suppose it doesn't matter if I hold it, does it? Most mortals can't tell an Acheron vampire from a pale European mortal, as it stands," she said, picking up the piece of paper and glancing over it.

Then, all present in the lounge would be able to hear Sorano's voice as she opened the door to speak with the first group of the two that had come.
"Hello! Welcome to Umbra Noctis. How may I help you?"
"You the proprietor of this place, missy?"
"I am, sir. Do you have a concern or grievance to file?
"Damned right I do! What's with the sound of artillery coming from this area?"
"There are a lot of rocks and unstable crags in the area, sir, it might have been one of them falling. Or any of the trees around here. We do need firewood, after all. But if it was something that one of our patrons was responsible for, then please rest assured that I will speak to them personally about the issue."
"You'd better, or else I'll come back down here again with more muscle behind me! Mark me, missy."
"Of course sir, it'll be taken care of. And how can I help you?" The Felix's voice was apparently directed to another person, and the sound of a few people walking away was audible.

Outside, Telu looked down at Phoenix and tilted her head.
"And how wouldja do that, dearie?"

Void nodded. "Well, once this has settled down, and I have enough space to put a circle down, I'll take you."

The document was pretty much how he'd described it. Legal permission to live from seven governments, three worldwide scientific institutes and permission for his owner to kill anyone who tried to kill him.
Under that bolded paragraph was a mass of true legalese, involving ability, IQ and similar.

Hawk had the decency to look ashamed when he heard the crowd complain about his shots, although he said nothing, and kept one "ear" on the lobby, wondering what the second group wanted.


Phoenix shrugged. "Mind tricks. It's easy and not very detectable."

Looking a little bit worried, the priestress/maid still want to see what these people are and stays.
"I... I'll be fine. I can take care of this if you want."
Well, she looks a tad nervous still, but she seems to be able to handle the encounter.
"But... what if these are burglars? Or rapists?"

---

The ogre isn't exposed in plain sight, but he would be too large to hid himself anyway. Not that he can prove he is working as an auxilliary for humans anyway. Upon hearing these are official, he seems relieved. It won't slow down his meal being cooked.

---

Kryl couldn't help but hear from the first floor the sound of people talking below him. He tries to overhear what is said.

((Wall'o text ahead x_x Sorry! Important for this new group. And I don't like ghosting without permission, but until Blue can control Fenz again, he's upstairs.))

"You can help us by letting us in, ma'am," came an unfamiliar voice. It was male, and had a slight overtone of superiority in it. "We six have been tracking inhuman signatures to this location, and we ask that you step aside and allow us to confirm that."
"Of course, but I must ask that you obey the rules of the premises; foremost of which is handing in your weapons, and secondly, don't destroy the estate. We are a law-abiding business, as evidenced by this certification on our wall," Sorano replied, gesturing towards a framed document as she moved aside to let in the group of six humans. She seemed uneasy, and if Maybelle had come back inside, glanced over at her and Quill.

Four of the group were men, the other two, women. They seemed of the modern-day sort, yet had an air about them that suggested they were used to seeing creatures of myth and legend. They all dressed in different combinations of similar clothing: slacks, long-sleeve shirts, boots, strapped holsters, and jackets. A couple had swords, and the rest had at least knives. They all carried a gun or two of some sort. The leading male, a Caucasian, had a stern look upon his features. One of the men had Native American blood in his line, the other was of African descent, and the two women were of Asian and western European lines, respectively. They lacked the air of the burglars or rapists that Maybelle feared.

Katarina looked towards the door, tilting her head. These didn't sound like any group she'd heard of or clashed with before. She assumed they had no business with her as they walked inside. But one of them smelled funny to her, and she snarled to herself, keeping up her nonchalant facade. It was a scent only she, and anyone else with superhuman senses, could know. One isn't quite human...

"Would you please hand your weapons over to me?" Sorano reiterated, standing behind the counter and tapping her finger on it indicatively. She'd had someone move Fenza upstairs and out of sight, probably while the Volcan was still snoozing.
"Very well, ma'am," the Caucasian sighed, nodding for his crew to follow the order and handing his weaponry to his apparent right-hand-man, the Moor. They would pile the weapons in front of Sorano, and she would take them back to the closet, separate from everyone else's belongings. She had an ill feeling about this group.

"You have shockingly few humans on these grounds... I sense..." stated the Asian-descent woman, silently counting to herself. They would be able to see her soundlessly counting, "One... Two... three... four..." Then, "Five? No. Seven? Wait... Nine. Nine inhuman presences," she said aloud. She looked over at Chuck and Orage, then over at Sorano, then at Hawk and Kat. "Five are here, where are the other four?"

"That is for us to know, and for you to find out," Katarina replied coolly.

----------------
Upstairs, Soren nodded to Void and put her ear to the floor to listen, catching the Asian woman's revealing statement of the nonhuman population of the inn.

Outside, Telu nodded.
"Well, if it comes down to that, please go right on ahead."

(Maybelle is outside, sorry for not clarifying this)

Chuck stats to find these guys are lack basic well mannered comportment for human... a sign showing they think of them being superior. If this continue, he may have to delay his lunch for some more fun!

---

The other mercenary what thinking to himself:
"Looks like I should prepare for trouble..."
Having a look for the wounded child he protect, he ponders:
"But I must stay here for now..."

"Hmph. No point in holding up the deaf-mute-idiot act then." Hawk already seemed annoyed by the air of "Meant to be here" that they were exuding and had decided to up the ante a bit, though would still follow any instruction Kat gave, as she held his papers.
"I think your count may be slightly squiffy. It's only detecting non-humans. Pity it doesn't detect dangerous ones."

Quill, when Sorano looked at her, would lay a large book on the bartop. Anyone able to see magic would instantly recognise it as a spellbook, and Quill shift from careful and cautious to exactly the same, but now combat ready.

Phoenix heard, or rather felt, the mood in the bar. She looked at Telu. "Right. I'm doing it now." Her flames drop to low, and instead she touched Telu and closed her eyes, rendering them both completely invisible to any senses, as she made their minds' signature on the world, their "I am here" signal, vanish completely. Anyone looking at them would find their attention just... Slipping to something else before they could question the fact that there were humanoid birds there. Others would only notice if they did something drastic.

((Is oki, Nik. :3 That's why I left it open ended. Something I got used to doing so I would avoid ghosting people's charries. *nodnod*))

The Asian, in response to Katarina's statement, approached the vampire and looked her square in the face. Acheron seemed unimpressed.
"And you... You're-"
"Yes, yes. I'm one of them. If you have a bone to pick with me, then see you outside," Kat interrupted, waving dismissively and making a shooing motion. The Native American fellow looked over at Hawk, as did the Asian, when the blackbird spoke up, the woman now distracted from glaring at the vampire. He replied to Hawk,
"If she included dangerous humans, she'd be useless as a tracker. She focuses only on sapient inhuman signatures..."
"...In order to track down things like you," the woman said, indicating both Hawk and Katarina.

Sorano noted Quill's spellbook. If there was something the Felix could do, she would have done it, but as it was, her alter form was of little use other than espionage. However, a latent ability, which resided in most Felix, would emerge if she were pressed to it. She felt nervous as the apparent leader of the group approached her and stared straight into her eyes.
"What?" she said, stepping back from the bar with a confused and affronted expression.
"Nothing. You just don't feel human," he replied. Sorano's confusion left in favor of the affronted look.
"Neither does she," the Felix retorted, pointing at the western European woman.
"And there's a reason for that that is unimportant, miss." The man stepped back and looked over in Chuck's direction. The Moor of the party did the same.

Outside, Telu freaked out a little bit as Phoenix erased their mind signatures. But it was partly due to her ever-present fear of catching feathers on fire. But inside, the Asian picked up on the disappearance.
"Now there are only seven? Strange..."

Hawk looked equally unimpressed. "I've seen scarier than you lot."

Quill would take herself and her book to the front desk, whisper to Sorano to go find the others and then turn to face the group. "You lot are intimidating my boss, so I'll be talking to you now." Her eyes glinted dangerously in the hood and a slight, constant rattle could be heard from her.

Phoenix smiled reassuringly at Telu. "I never burn other things unless I wish to. You'll be fine..."

At the statement of the vanishing of two people, Greg would smile to himself. Having been under the firebird's command for years, he knew exactly what was going on.

"We could say the same, birdman," replied the Native American. At this, Katarina preempted any retaliation from Hawk by raising her hand in the 'halt' gesture.
"I would refrain from using derogatory terms around the blackbird, manchild. He's nothing short of technologically gifted and intellectually superior," Acheron stated, in a quiet, svelte voice she reserved for intimidation and negotiation. Then, at Sorano's pointing out of the European, Katarina contributed her two cents. "That reason being that she's a Dhampir?" The vampire practically spat the word, and the last member of the troupe glared at her.

"So what if I am, child of Hell? It just means that I'm prepared for daemonkind like yourself," the woman retorted.
"Watch your tongue before I rip it out of your skull." Kat shot back coldly.

"We have no business with you, girl," said the African man to Quill. "You're not one of the presences that Chi-Yun picked- What is that sound?"

"Sorry for jumpin', dearie. I know you better'n that, but I just can't help it." Telu said to Phoenix, chuckling sheepishly.

Hawk frowned and placed his holdout pistol on the table. "Both of you, shut up."

Quill looked the African in the eyes. He would still be able to see nothing beneath her hood. "You start acting like that towards my boss, sir, and you make it my business."

Phoenix smiled at her. "No problem."

Void, listening at the door, looked at Soren. "What should we do?"

Katarina, glancing over at Hawk as he placed the pistol on the table, grinned and folded her hands on her leg. "Very well." The Dhampir smirked and laughed a little.

"Don't tell me you're his pet? I'd thought it was the other way around, but this is so much richer!" she said, starting to laugh harder. Kat's eye twitched, but she felt this one was better answered by the alleged 'master'. That and she knew what the pistol on the table was capable of. Clearly the Dhampir didn't.

"Believe me, we have no issue with you, miss," the African said.
"No, it's just your guests," added the Caucasian, still looking over at the mercenary group. Or, what members were present.

Soren stood up and sighed.
"Well, if you don't mind making your presence known, I'm going back down. But let's try and stay out of trouble," she said, scratching her head and shrugging.

Hawk glared at the Dhampir before glancing at Kat and deciding to wing it, hoping she'd follow on and back him up.

"Neither of us are pets of the other. I accidentally... Reincarnated? Reconstructed? Anyway, brought her back after I fell through the roof of her crypt in the european mountains and opened a few major wounds onto some dust. For some personal reason she's never made clear, she took a liking to me and used me as a donor instead of prey, even if it was rather forced for the first time she fed. She repays this by keeping my Authorisation papers. It's an arrangement which pleases us both. We travel a bit." He shrugged. "Nothing else to say, really."

Quill looked annoyed. "So, what do you intend to do to our guests?"

Void shook his head. "Best we stayed at full readiness up here. I can bring us both down in a flash if fighting starts. Just... Go for immobile or disabled rather than dead. Id' like to know who sent them, see if the problem will be reoccurring."

It would be a lie to say that Katarina expected the alibi that Hawk started, and the glance back at him was at first of incredulity. But the vampire caught on quickly and turned the expression into an affirming grin, playing the movement off as an indicative glance backwards. The Dhampir scoffed before mumbling,
"Whatever. Most rogues usually get put down."
"Most rogues are also less than four centuries old, Dhampir." Katarina would leave it at that and say no more, instead baring a toothy grin. Since she was outed anyway, it didn't matter if she hid her fangs or not. The European simply glared at the vampire before turning her nose up and walking towards the troupe's leader. Psh. Whelp. Acheron thought, then looked back at Hawk and nodded a "well-played" sentiment.

The Caucasian crossed his arms, then took a seat at one of the tables. "Our business is controlling nonhumans. They give us a reason, we put them down, like rabid dogs. If any of your guests here make a move against us, other than the lip like that Hellchild back there was giving us, we have been authorized to remove them," he explained, pulling out a leather wallet. The inside of the wallet bore an embossed seal of some type of human superiority association. Acheron's lip curled at the constant use of Hell-related names for her person, but she knew it was best to let them believe she was of the lineage of Vlad III Tepes, Lord Dracula.

Sorano put a hand on her hip, standing to the side and behind Quill. She may not have cut any more menacing a figure than an annoyed mother, but she'd be damned if she stood idly by with these people in the inn.

Kilgore nodded. "Naturally. I may have been taught to kill, but there are quite a few interesting tricks I can do to incapacitate."

When she wanted to turn back to Telu, Maybelle saw nothing. She understood, however, that there's a trick involved, and do not mention it to not blow this cover. Now that things are silent around her, she tries to get what those who speak over the path are saying, slowly approaching. Mentally, she does a small prayer to the Moon Goddess.

---

Looking back at those staring at him, still on his too small chair, the ogre ask them:
"... What? Do I have food or something on my face or what? Can't you see I'm simply waiting for dinner?"
Anyone able to read mind nearby could sense someone's both angry and excited... this is coming from Orage.

(Huh. Seeing as this fight is kinda inevitable, how's about we share it out, a kill/disablement for each person wanting to fight? Hawk, Kat, Soren, Void, ?Quill?, Chuck&Orage... Six peeps, six kills. With a possible problem of a regenerating Dampcloth. Sorry, I meant Dhampir.

Oh, and I want to share a line here I read which, ironically, is what Hawk's doing. <v<
"The other benefit to taking the moral high ground is that it makes a much better spot to snipe from later.")

Hawk would catch Katarina's nod, but wouldn't return it not trusting his expressions, as he'd been exaggerating them for years so that humans could roughly gauge his emotions.

"Too bad, then. Two of us have Auth papers from the world government allowing us to live as humans. Greg here holds his boss' paper, and you've seen who's got mine. Now, I have a funny feeling you wouldn't show me your search-and-entry warrants and goverment authorisation as hunters.
Because I'm not human. So, why don't you show Greg, if indeed you have them, and he can tell us if you don't have true official documents, as he's been doing counter-forgery for years.

If you don't, I am now giving you your verbal warning, as it states on my Auth.:"

Here he would quote the relevant section.

"Page Five, Section Two, Clause IX. 'Any attempt to harm either the bearer or subject of this document without proper counter-authorisation will result in the revoking on the subject's part of Section One.'

Section one is detailing the many ways that I can't kill you where you stand. Which is a pity, because you're really, really tempting me."

~~~

Outside, Phoenix would nudge Telu, her voice still heard by Maybelle. (They're both still visible, it's just that when you look at them, your attention has a massive tendancy to wander until you're not looking at them.) "Human Superiority." She spits onto the floor. "Let's go find their transport and torch it before the fight starts."

(Understood Phoenix's power, Maybelle was just having a quick look and has a somewhat short attention span anyway)

((Yeah, this fight's meant to happen. x3 Killable NPCs. And lol at "Freudian slip" on Dhampir. x3))

The Caucasian man looked over at the blackbird with a sneer, but nodded to his lackeys to produce their papers, opening a slot in his badge wallet to pull out his own. All six flattened out the documents on the table at which their leader sat.
"Come look at it if you want your proof," he said, glancing over at Greg.
The papers were authentic, printed with a government seal and watermarked, signed by an individual who was apparently in charge of one Subhuman Control Agency. "Basically states that we are authorized to terminate any nonhuman who attacks us with ill intent."

"Does it outline what constitutes a nonhuman life?" Katarina pointed out, glancing over at the Dhampir.
"Yes," the man replied curtly. "Daemonkind, mechanoids, lycanthropic beings, shapeshifters, and trollkin are all included and listed by name. Others include merfolk, centaur, fae, dragons-"
"Essentially anything but human. What about your human halfbreeds?" Acheron pressed. The man looked rather cross.
"Special cases. Each case is reviewed by an SCA judge and granted human rights should they be deemed as human. And yes, she was deemed so. Class A Sapient Individual granted Full Rights, Responsibilities, and Privileges," he said, preempting another query from the vampire.

Back outdoors, Telu tilted her head and bristled.
"Now, I'm no kind of violent bird, but that kind of thinkin' just knots my down," the Trogon muttered. "I think it would be best for miss Maybelle to go inside. I get the feelin' Sorano would appreciate her presence," she said, hopefully having Maybelle hear what she said. "Miss Phoenix, I don't know what kinda help I could be, but I do remember hearin' some sort of car being parked just outside the gates."

Hawk grinned, pouring over the document himself. "B-e-a-utiful. I see a lovely little issue here. It says you are authorised to kill only non-humans on the term, and I quote, "if attacked with ill intent". Greg's human. Pure."

Greg vaulted over the counter and laid a loaded M249 on the counter, cocking it and aiming the machine gun at the group. "Unfortunately for you, if you break your legal document, everyone here is legally allowed to defend themselves with appropriate force. And I dunno about you, but I'd be suspicious, seeing as your weapons..." He glanced at Hawk, who clearly nodded and took up the dialogue.

"The ones you handed over got pasted by my nanites. The ones on your person... Well, I'd advise you to look around and see what we've got, before you just go for your guns." He walked carefully up to the Dhampir.

"Kat, I'll be leaving you the option if you two wanna cat fight, but first..." He smiled at the Dhampir, and held out a hand to her, magnetising and stripping any guns on her person, a cascade of spare parts falling from her holsters. "Don't forget that you're not the only ones with high tech and powers. Call this your last chance to leave. If you don't, well...

We'll do our best to try and leave you in one piece, and not bleeding out."

~~

Phoenix smiled. "I guess it's the black van with the blacked out windows. No subtlety. Guess I'll now be ironic." The petrol tank spontaneously combusted, destroying the van. "Hope there was nothing expensive in there."

~~

Void looked at Soren. "We should get down there." He clamped a hand on her shoulder and blinked them both into the centre of the bar, just beside the group. Void hoped Soren wouldn't throw up, it tended to ruin the entrance.

Needless to say, the wind was rather sucked out of the group's sails. And they all jumped when Void and Soren blinked into the lounge. The blood mage managed to kick her wave of nausea, but just barely. She dry heaved a little, but was quick to regain her composure. The Native American fellow looked least surprised and most perplexed.

"What the hell..? A cyborg?" That's when the explosion sounded. "What the fuck was that?!" exclaimed the African, running towards the door and throwing it open to see what had caused the sound. "Chief, someone just bombed the hell out of our van!"
"What? That's not possible! Aw shit... All of our equipment was in there! Whoever was responsible for that, either gets killed or owes us a lot of money!" shouted the Caucasian.

"And this freak owes me a new set of Smith & Wesson 9mm semi-autos," spat the Dhampir, pulling back her fist and throwing a hard right at Hawk. At that moment, Katarina showed off her speed, getting up from the chair and catching the girl's hand in her own, stopping the punch cold.
"You'll not touch him, halfbreed twit. You realize that you about drew first blood and therefore would have made it legal for one or both of us to proceed to knock you down a notch or two? Call it a mercy, what I'm doing for you here," Acheron muttered darkly, pushing the Dhampir backwards and into the Asian woman, who barely caught her comrade.

Sorano, all during this time, was starting to hit certain levels of anger that would trigger her latent ability. It would take only one more straw to break the camel's back, so to speak. And that one straw was the Caucasian's next outburst:
"Threatening an SCA agent with bodily harm will get all you subhumans killed!"

That triggered her. That one word. 'Subhuman'. Everyone in the room would suddenly get hit with a paralyzing headache, except for those with mind powers stronger than her own, caused by what would sound like a shrill scream. A psychic shout. The pain didn't last long, but it would be long enough to get the attention centered on a seething Felix girl, whose draconic traits were beginning to show on her hands and the presence of dragon fangs in her mouth.
"I want everybody OUT of this inn if you're going to fight! If you don't go by your own will, I'm kicking you out!" she yelled, leaning on her palms on the counter, showing that talons had replaced her nails. Her face was contorted into a mask of rage.