[London January 15th 1240, 11:30 PM] [Moriel has received a letter from Thalaba that instructs him to please come to her manor because something important has come up.] [Presumably, for the sake of time, he is on his way there when a strange man in a black cloak walks by in front of him. Moriel cannot make out the man's face. But the man stops and turns to Moriel, facing him for a long while before a slight smile crosses his lips, which Moriel can just make out in the moonlight.] [Begin] #06* Moriel stops, because a man just stopped in the street in front of him and stared at him. Presumably. After a pause, he asks, "May I help you, sir?" [The man shakes his head and shrugs. "I do not believe so, Mr. MacRae. I have all that I want."] #06* Moriel tilts his head to one side and his eyebrows rise. "You know me." His tone is somewhere in between statement and question. [The man tilts his head. "No. Why would you say such a thing?"] #06* Moriel 's head tilts back to vertical and his eyebrows climb higher. "You know my name." [He nods. "Ah yes. Well that's not difficult to ascertain."] [He chuckles some. "I am sorry to aggravate you so much, Mr. MacRae. It was not my intention."] #06* Moriel eyes the stranger a bit more at that. He says carefully, "It is not entirely your doing." More eyeing. "May I ask you a rude question?" [He shrugs. "Only if you don't mind a rude answer."] #06* Moriel smiles faintly. "Under the circumstances, I can hardly object." What are you? [The man seems taken aback momentarily. "What am I? I am a traveler. I am a painter, sometimes, in the afternoons. I am a lover of fine meats and a seer of thoughts, I am a man. At least last I checked. I am a noble in some places and a beggar in others. Oh... and your family is a rotten piece of lambshank. See... I said it would be rude."] #06* Moriel actually laughs. "That depends on which family you're referring to." His thoughts seem to darken momentarily at that, but he brushes whatever it is off and looks up at the stranger again. "May I at least know your name?" [The man shrugs and bows. "I am Demetrius of Antioch, the Golcondite, childe of Demetria and apprentice to Saulot, the enlightened."] #06* Moriel blinks, astonished. "Saulot? But he..." He trails off, realizing a little too late in his surprise that this might not be a happy topic for Demetrius. [Demetrius leans forward and holds up a finger. "Dead? Ah yes. But so are you. And so am I and yet... here we are having a pleasant conversation about the nature of death."] #06* Moriel snorts. "I had heard he was somewhat more dead than us." [Shrugs. "I would not know. I have not gotten the chance to ask him. But he taught me a great deal about what it means to be human."] #06* Moriel 's face tightens suddenly at that, and he pulls away just a bit. "What is it about me that amuses you so?" [The man shrugs. "Would it make you feel better if I was unamused by you?"] [He shakes his head. "Regardless... I am amused that you seem to hate yourself so much. You hate what you have become and yet you make no efforts towards changing what you have become. As if you are trapped with no way out."] #06* Moriel jerks back as if burned. There is no way out. Save the sun. [The man shrugs. "I found a way out. Well... Saulot did. And I did through him. I no longer have to feed, and I no longer feel the uncontrollable urge of the beast."] #06* Moriel 's eyes widen and he leans back towards the stranger, hypnotized. "You...what? How?" #06* Moriel actually looks about ready to grab the man by the front of his cloak and shake the answer out of him, as realization slowly spreads through him. [The man shakes his head. "It's not as simple as that. But if you are truly curious... speak to the Salubri, if you can find them. Ask them about Golconda. For now... I must go and see my sire. She is expecting me... well I suppose she is always expecting everything."] #06* Moriel blinks. Still stunned, he responds automatically. "Sometimes. Not everything." [The man wanders off and stops for a moment. "Oh... You could always try and get a hold of some of Saulots old scrolls. I'm sure the Tremere have some of them. Golconda is a difficult road. Not many travel it successfully." He continues to walk off.] [Somehow an immense amount of time seems to have passed. It is probably around 3 AM now and while there are still several hours of darkness left, Moriel's prior engagement was hours ago.] #06* Moriel has just been standing in the street as if bludgeoned. He hasn't really been paying attention to the passage of time. By the time he even thinks to thank the stranger, the man is already gone. [Mini End]