First Impressions and Firm Salutes

[Moonfang]

When Roderick found the letter late in the evening, returning from his excursions out into the City of Sacramento, he almost thought he felt his body bristle with goosebumps. He kept himself calm though. It wasn't a promise or a guarantee, just the first step. And to ensure he made the most of it, he had to prepare.

Another trip into the Avalon 'Armory' was required first. A careful look through the selections acquired him a proper suit compared to what he normally wore now. Without the proper tools to do it himself, he had to make use of a 24-hour dry cleaner. In the meantime, he continued with what training he could outside of the Invictus. Proper greetings and mannerisms would be a must to make a good impression.

The night had come and dressed in a business formal suit and tie, he rode in a taxi to the office of Daniella Sage. One of the few times he does so, to ensure that his suit doesn't get needlessly wrinkled. While the cabbie carried on about a recent sport victory, Roderick sat in quiet meditation. He went over the basic plan in his mind.

First, get in, make a good impression by addressing her with her full title, shows initiative. But don't share too much or it will seem questionable. Or worse yet I will make a mistake. Second, answer her questions completely. Ensure that she can trust me completely. Someone showing up out of the blue is sure to raise suspicion. I have to quell them or I won't be able to earn my place. Third, do whatever it takes to be accepted into the Invictus. Everything can be repaid in due time. Fourth, find work. Show that I am useful. Earn trust, favors, boons, friends.

The cab came to a rolling stop before an office building, payment was made to the cabbie and Roderick exited the car and looked before him at the suddenly imposing structure. Most importantly, he reminded himself, no plan survives first contact. A quick adjustment of his tie, and Roderick takes the first step to his goal.

A ride up the elevator later and Roderick exited to the floor he was directed to. It was quiet except for the faint clicking of a keyboard coming from what appeared to be a secretary's desk. A final check of his suit and the old soldier approached the desk, stopping to stand before it while waited to be recognized. The clicking didn't stop even as he stood there for several moments, finally, he softly cleared his throat, bringing an end to the nose.

The secretary's face flashed for a moment with annoyance before it was expertly masked by a smile. "Yes? Can I help you?"

Roderick returned the smile with one of his own as he said, "I have an appointment with Miss Daniella Sage."

The secretary directed him to take a seat while the call was made though Roderick chose to stand, looking to the doors to the office where his future resides.

[Daniella Sage]

Daniella had been in her office, going over her security check list, looking for ways to modify it and make it more efficient. When the call came that she had a visitor, she wasn’t surprised, she had been expecting Roderick. But she was used to people just coming to her office and knocking on the door, but to each their own, she thinks, standing and making her way out of the office.

She straightens her blazer, and then makes a quick check of her skirt as she approaches Roderick. She pauses, allowing her Beast to make its displeasure known, it growled and bared its teeth at the weaker Beast standing before her. She had learned that with age it became easier to sooth it and put it back within its cage. Smiling, “Sgt Pearson? I’m Miss Daniella Sage, pleased to meet you.” Said the British shadow, extending a delicate hand. "If you would like to follow me, we can move to my office." she said in a friendly tone.

[Moonfang]

Don't run, don't run, don't run.

The moment that Roderick felt the Beast on him he had to chant that mentally to keep his feet firmly planted on the ground. It had been a while since he last felt the Beast of another pressing on him so. It didn't help that it came from a very beautiful and unsuspecting figure. He had first felt it with his sire when she used it to help suppress his own Beast after the Embrace. He had compared it to the power of just being in the presence of a superior officer, the constant reminder that they were in control. But this was different.

It reminded him of his Drill Instructor back at Boot Camp, the one who reminded him of who was in control with a broken nose and a black eye. Although he kept his face as calm as he could, he was sure that when he put his hand gently into Daniella's own, she could feel him trembling. "By all means," he said in a humorous tone to her suggestion, "It's your show." On the surface, it was nothing. But he hoped that she understood what he meant. She was the one in control now. He was a fledgeling before her. A mouse before a lioness and he was walking right into her den.

[Daniella Sage]

Beast, no Beast

OCC: Daniella has the Mask of Tranquility, listed, and does not emit a Beast

She did feel the slight tremor, and put on her friendliest smile, the tremor gave her a sense of power, something she wasn’t used to. But it didn’t go to her head; she enjoyed treating everyone equally and with respect unless their behavior dictated otherwise. “Excellent! Right this way!” she said, her tone up beat.

She leads him to her office door, still ajar, and motions for him to enter. Her office wasn’t much to look at; the most notable feature was that it was filled with books, of varying subjects. There was everything from William Shakespeare, to various books on art collections. She hadn’t had time to fully decorate it yet, still new to her promotion. But there was the soft, yet exotic scent of Japanese cherry blossom in the air, she had taken a page from the pleasant aroma that surrounded Martha. There were two leather chairs and a couch that filled the space quite nicely in front of her desk. She gestures to the seating area, “Please, have a seat.” She says as she closes the door. She selects on of the chairs, not choosing to sit behind her desk, finding it can intimidate some people. “I hope the Domain has been treating you well since you arrived.” She says, crossing her legs at her ankles and tucking them off to the side. “Allow me to properly introduce myself, I am Lady Au Pair Daniella Sage, Mistress Keeper of the Domain of Sacramento. I would greatly enjoy hearing more about you sir.”

[Moonfang]

When she spoke, Roderick realised that the pressure he felt was of his own design. His sire's horror stories made to ensure he behaved respectfully might have gone a bit too far. When she turned to lead him to her office, he takes a moment to adjust his tie and relax.

When he entered the office and took in the scent, he froze in place, looking around desperately for a moment before relaxed, his brow falling as he realised the source of the scent. He gave himself a mental shake before catching up to Daniella, hopefully before she took notice of his behaviour. He took his seat and at her direction, introduced himself. "I am Roderick Pearson, Former Sergeant in the United States Rangers. I was born 1960. Lived a normal enough life. I joined the Army in 1978 and volunteered for the Rangers the first chance I could," Roderick smiled as he spoke of the army, his eyes unfocusing slightly as he reminisced. "RACK was both paradise and hell. I'm proud to have made it though. I would continue training until 1983, that's when the US intervened in Grenada. No amount of training could compete to the heat of battle. I made it through all of them, even as my brothers in arms were wounded and killed around me, I made it though Grenada, Panama, the Persian Gulf, Bosnia and Herzegovina, all the way to Afghanistan and Iraq."

His smile faded then and his voice grew a sharp edge to it as he spoke, "Then those bastards decided that just because I got a little old, I couldn't fight alongside my brothers. When I made it clear I would not take a desk job, they discharged me with full honors." Roderick quieted then, looking to Daniella to see if she had any questions thus far.

[Daniella Sage]

As Daniella listens, she nods here and there, letting him know she was listening as he spoke. He hadn’t mentioned his Embrace, though not many Kindred did, it was more of a private matter for some. She had never spoken to anyone, except Ricardo, about her Sire and embrace, and wondered if she would ever trust anyone enough again to talk about such matters. But he sounded young, and he had a weak Beast, so he must have been embraced fairly recently. “Sounds like you served honorably and with pride! Such an accomplishment sir, so many years of service. Was it always a dream of yours to join the service?” she asked, curious. It also dawned on her that he may be of service to the Domain with his military experience and training; surely he could help with patrols. “And you visited so many countries! Did you ever get the chance to explore any of them?” she enjoyed travel, though she never really got to do any of it herself, she loved hearing stories of others travels. She frowns when she heard the last of his story, “Oh that is horrible! I must admit I know little of the military’s inner workings, but it seems a little severe to just discharge someone after so many dedicated years of service! That must have been a difficult time for you, what did you do after?” she inquired.

[Moonfang]

Roderick nodded at the first question. "It was, from when I was very young, hearing stories of past wars from anyone who would tell me. It didn't excite my family too much, it was shortly after the Vietnam War and both of my parents were on a full anti-war kick. My brother and sister went right along with them." He waved a dismissive hand after the comment, quickly adding, "But nevermind. I severed ties with them long ago."

He straightened himself in his chair as he thought on the next question. "I visited as much as I could. Most of what I remember are battlefields, unlike 'regular' army, Rangers are under the United States Army Special Operations Command, Airborne. Our purpose stems from a command given by Norman Cota on Omaha Beach. 'Rangers Lead the Way'. We didn't get the luxury of being able to capture a location and stay there to rest. We were dropped in ahead of the main forces to clear out the worst of it and move on, sometimes several days ahead of the main army. By the time that things did quiet down enough that a soldier could pay a visit, we were being dropped somewhere else with a new threat." He grunted softly and looked out the window at the city. "To be honest.. I'm still not entirely used to being settled like this."

After he takes another moment to think, Roderick looks back to Daniella and answers her final question, using it to spring onto the rest of his story. "The military has to play politics as much as it plays war. A story about a soldier dying on the battlefield because he broke a hip doesn't sell well to the public. Besides, eventually, I wouldn't have been able to keep up with the younger blood... I had hoped I would have died in combat before that happened."

He quickly continued on before his statement could hang too long. "Afterwards, I returned to California and did my best to fit into society again. But I couldn't let it go. Either I was too rigid on establishing rules and regulations or my own means of enforcing them were seen as 'too harsh'. I went from job to job for almost a decade until in Los Angeles I came upon a young woman being attacked by a group of men. I attempted to beat the men away and prevent whatever they had planned. But when the dust settled, I had a fatal knife wound and she had killed more of them than I did." He grew melancholy as he added, "Her name was Miyako and she became my sire."

He put a hand over his face and rub it before brushing his fingers through his hair in one motion. "There are.. way too many stories to tell without several nights to tell it. In short, she did everything she could to make sure I could survive. That was all she could do. She was an Advocate, specifically she worked as a spy for the LA Invictus. She was working to infiltrate a large organization of Daeva who were attempting to drive out the Invictus and other groups, wanting to turn LA into a paradise for their passions to run wild, regardless of Masquerade. Before she meet me, she had been uncovered and her existence expunged from official Invictus records, thus not threatening any agreements between the two groups. Thus, she was left without a support group surrounded by hostile groups."

Roderick brought a hand up to rub at his brow as he went on. "That might be the reason she Embraced me, because she didn't think she could go it alone. And maybe it was so because we managed to survive for almost a year with subtle feedings, stealing what we needed and moving quickly when we were found. But eventually it had to come to an end. We were found and surrounded before we could escape. At least, both of us. That was the only time she used her Dominate on me. Against my will, she sent me out the nearest window and along the rooftops while she kept their attention.. The last thing I saw was the windows being blown out by a sudden rush of flames."

[Daniella Sage]

She smiles wistfully at his story, “It is wonderful that you perused your dreams!” she then struggled to remember if she had any goals before she was embraced. Her parents surely had goals of marrying her off and making her a house wife, destined to live life on a farm much like her parents. But, times were different all those years ago.

Her eyes widen at his story, she was clearly enjoying hearing him tell it. “What an exciting story! Do you ever get the urge to travel back to those places, or are the memories too much?” she asked, curious. She hadn’t had much contact with someone who was in the military. “So you are used to being on the move constantly, this must be a big change for you. Perhaps Herald Villiars will have a job for you to help keep you busy.” She said with a smile, Martha was great at helping Kindred find their purpose within the Domain. “I know I enjoy having others join me on my patrols, and would be honored if you would join me one evening. It makes for a much more enjoyable evening when you have someone to share the evening with.”

Nodding her head, “I certainly understand politics. And I can understand what you are saying, though I still find it to be a little severe. I mean, how can anyone expect a trained solider to go from a battlefield, to a desk job and be satisfied?”

She was struck by his story. His embrace was not unlike her own, and for a moment she was lost in the memories of that cold November night. Laying bound on the ground with a knife wound to her stomach, her life blood pouring out in the rain. Instinctively she touches her stomach where the nasty scar remained. It takes her a moment to snap out of her memories, and she quickly smiles nervously, something clearly has her off her game. “My, what a story! And what a tragic end to your Sire, I'm sorry to hear it.” She wondered if Los Angeles was looking for him, and what type of repercussions this may hold for the Domain. “How much training had you received prior to that tragic night? Is your Sire’s tie to the Invictus something you wish to pursue? Or are you simply looking for training in regard to proper manners and etiquette?”

[Moonfang]

Roderick let his head tilt to the side in thought, pondering the return to those places. After some thought, he shook his head. "If I had ever thought about returning," he said with a small shake of his head, "those are in a past life. I have no desire to travel now. I know, that sounds contradictory, but I do want to grow familiar to always having a place to return to. A place I can call home. A job I am in pursuit of will go a long way to doing that." When Daniella mentioned spending an evening with someone, Roderick had to take a moment to get his thoughts straight, focusing on what she asked and not what it implied. "Um.. Yes, I expressed interest to Herald Villiars on patrolling. Especially when it came to training neophytes in proper patrolling technique. But I would enjoy first learning from one more experienced.. In the city patrol, that is." He had to catch himself before he carried on the perhaps accidental innuendo.

He cleared his throat, adjusting his jacket to put his mind onto the next question. "It is fine, perhaps there is some manner of fate in the works. Being discharged permitted me to meet Miyako and that lead me to a new life where my training will be put to it's full potential."

Roderick took a moment to think on his past training as he responded, "My training consisted mostly of how to survive. I suspect now that she didn't believe she had long. Proper feeding, how to move around without arousing suspicion. Proper feeding locations, the basics on just how to survive. Pertaining to the Invictus, she mostly covered how not to make a fool of myself. Proper title usages, how to behave in gatherings, introductions. However, she wasn't able to teach me how to thrive." He lowered his head and is quiet for a moment before speaking on. "I want to honor her service to the Invictus. I know that each city has little ties to each other. But it was the Principles and the Ideals of the Covenant that she served most of all. I want those in LA and elsewhere to know of her."

Looking back up and into Daniella's eyes, he spoke with resolution, "Though my actions, I hope to show that she was a Kindred of Quality."

[Daniella Sage]

Nodding her head, “Excellent! There are training classes offered every once and a while on self defense, and I look forward to seeing what you could teach other Kindred.” A sly smile spread across her face for a brief second before vanishing, “We will have to set something up before you leave. I patrol on most evenings, though with my new duties as Keeper I cannot get out as much as I would like. So an extra set of eyes is wonderful to have.”

She slightly turned her head to the side, intrigued by his words. “Fate can certainly take hold of our lives at any moment. It is something I have always believed in, like my Sire embracing me, I believe it was fate Fate for him to find me that evening and bring me into this new existence. I do hope to see your training come to its full potential!”

“Sounds like she trained you in the basics at least, which is great. Would you be open to me asking you a few questions about proper titles usage?” she asked, only believing he knew what he was doing if she heard it with her own ears. It was something she had learned over the years from people saying they knew the correct title and ended up screwing it all up. “I don’t doubt the training of your Sire; I just prefer to hear it for myself. After all, it is my job to ensure that you have the proper training.”

She was unsure about how her could honor his Sire, “Do you intend to honor her service by joining and offering your service to the First Estate? Do you believe in the Ideals of the First Estate?”

She heard the resolution in his voice, “Your actions do speak volumes of yourself. Especially within an Invictus Domain. Your words, actions, and service to the Domain work towards proving yourself a Kindred of Quality. It is not something for everyone, not for the weak minded, but for the strong and determined, hardworking Kindred who seek to not only better themselves, but the First Estate as well."