The Bird and Her Beast

[Blackbird]

Night 1

There is a steel womb that rests within the basement of Chapter House Florin, the new center of the Ordo Dracul in Sacramento that she had helped create.

It was a sensory deprivation chamber, modified with a lock. Beside this was a small stool with a small alarm clock and towel resting upon it. At its front was Blackbird, naked and bare, staring into the maw. The message had already been left with the Grand Wyrm. Blackbird's first trial was about to begin. This chamber would be Blackbird's home for the next 72 hours. There would be no light, no sound, and no external stimuli of any kind.

The only companion she would boast was the Beast.

The timer set, Blackbird entered into the chamber under the watch of the Grand Wyrm. The door closed and, though she could not hear it, Blackbird was certain the lock was in place. Resigned to her trial, Blackbird breathed in, allowing her body to float on the surface. Among the kine, they could hear the pumping of their heart when subjected to these conditions, but the hearts of Kindred do not beat. Blackbird did not have this luxury.

It took mere hours before the Beast began to stir, becoming aware of its new environs. With only the dark and the pitiful neonate as company, it growled its displeasure and, for the first time in years, Blackbird did not move to reprimand it. However, this first night was tame. Soon the rising of the sun began to pull her to daysleep and Blackbird's eyes closed to rest.
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The First Dream

Annora found herself sitting in a clearing by a campfire, nearby which was two green pup tents. It took only a moment before she spotted the glinting form of a familiar 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS 454. The back trunk was open and a figure stood rummaging in the back. However, Annora was unafraid, in her heart she knew who it was.

It didn't take long for Ray to join her, carrying a pack of hot dogs, beer, . Her father. He was younger here than the last moment she had seen him on that fateful night in 1993.

This isn't a dream... it's a memory.

"I got a hold of Charlie," he said, "Seems like he needs some help down in Wichita. He's saying its some sort of canine cryptid, but I think its a vampire using... ah, what did you call it again? Allows them to be like a wolf?"

"Protean," Annora replied, glancing to the book of her findings. She had been traveling with Ray for five years now and, despite only being 16, had become a pretty solid occult scholar. It was her role within Ray's network ever since she showed an affinity for it shortly after he brought her in.

"Yeah... yeah that's right," Ray replied, "Listen, this thing is pretty slippery. Tracked down one of Charlie's contacts and put his ass in the hospital. So I'm gonna drop you off in Holdrege and have you stay with Maude."

The silence that followed was palpable. Annora was tired of being treated like a kid and she sure as hell didn't want to stay with Maude. She was one of those rare hunters that got out of the business, but she lived in a small town, which did little to keep Annora stimulated. She loved Maude, but Holdrege was just... dull.

"I want to help," Annora murmured.

"I don't want you in the field, you aren't ready," Ray said, his tone stern and tense.

"Fuck that! I've been going to the range with you since I was twelve," Annora yelled. She had been wanting to get out there and help. "I can do more than just sit here and read goddamn books!"

"This isn't some limp-dick fledgling, Ann!" Ray retorted, his voice becoming one of authority, "Do you have any idea what he'll do to you if he catches you? He nearly skinned Charlie's man alive! Even worse he could turn you into one of them! Is that what you want? No, I'm not going to be responsible for you becoming some blood-sucking freak, you hear?"

Silence fell again. It seemed like hours passed, but that was probably just because of the tension. The pair silently cooked their dinner and ate, but, though they were feet from one another, Annora did not even offer her father a glance.

Then Ray approached and knelt.

"Look, kid," he said, his voice gentler, "You're all I got. I can't risk taking you and losing you, you know? If this was something more manageable, I'd take you in a heartbeat, but I gotta be in it the whole time I'm down there. You'll get to go soon, alright?"

The sincerity in his eyes drew Annora's attention back to him.

Lighten up Ann... he's trying.

Ray cracked a beer off the six pack and offered it to her. "Truce?" he asked.

"Truce," Annora replied.

Ray threw an arm around her and Annora hugged him in turn.

"I love you, kid," Ray said. The statement was a genuine one. He wanted to look out for her and Annora just wasn't ready.

"I love you too, Dad," she replied. Again, a truth. Ray was an ass, but he was her father. Given the circumstances, he was a good one too.

Then, the woods around them suddenly became silent. Crickets didn't sing, owls didn't hoot, and the wind didn't even rustle in the pines.

A single twig snapped in the darkness, drawing the attention of both of them. Within the dark, a pair of eyes, reflecting against the full moonlight.

What? This never happened...

The event tipped Blackbird back to her reality. This was indeed a dream. The memory was a tender one, but her desire for the trial was about to bring her face to face with the Beast.

Part 2 and 3 to come tomorrow! Gotta run for now.

[Blackbird]

Night 2

Blackbird awoke from the daysleep beneath the water, her rest having involuntary expelling the breath she had held in to float.

Deep within herself, Blackbird could already feel the Beast pacing in it's cage. It knew what she was doing. It knew she was trying to understand it.

And it protested.

However, the Beast was not a vocal thing. It could not speak, but the grumbling growls deep within her mind was all the warning Blackbird needed. The struggle was about to begin.

It began with the claws of the Beast pressing deep into her psyche. It's instinct to hunt and the anxiety of its confinement began to worm into the Little Bird's weathered mind. In time, the cage rattled and crumbled as the Beast's fears became Blackbird's own. It called for her to burn more of her blood. To escape from her confines. To feed in excess. And under it's influence, the Bird tried, wailing against the walls of her prison, but the water and confined space restricted her movements. Her weak blood did little to satisfy the wants of the Beast as well, aiding little to the effort.

Thus, the pair languished together in increasing torment, floating alone within the water filled cell. The Beast's concept of time was affected by the prison. No stimuli caused the night to drag long. The Beast began to question whether it was truly satiated, crying for blood even as Blackbird's reserves of Vitae offered none for its use. The pangs of hunger became intense quickly, railing against Blackbird's resolve as she was pushed to weep from the phantom pain.

Though it felt like nights had passed, the pull to daysleep mercifully came and Blackbird again sank beneath the still waters of the chamber.
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The Second Dream

Annora awoke in her nightmare running.

Her father was nowhere in sight, but in her heart she felt he was dead, descended upon by the very creature that now pursued her and had watched them at their camp. Annora didn't turn, to look behind her, but she knew it continued to pursue her. Its roars were palpable and its brutish movement crushed undergrowth underfoot and strained trees.

The chase could not last.

The Beast closed the distance, railing against Annora's form and sending her into a nearby tree. In her agony, Annora could not run and was forced to view her pursuer. As it approached, her heart stopped.

She saw herself.

Feral and gaunt with hunger, with dark eyes and a mouth of predatory teeth. It's form was covered in nothing more than dirt and blood, it's long hair tangled and wild. But it wore her face.

The Beast howled in victory before diving for it's prey, cutting into Annora with teeth and claws. In the pain to follow, Annora nearly resigned herself to death. Yet there was a spark that refused to be quelled.

Survive.

Grabbing a nearby rock, Annora rammed it against her attacker's head. The Beast was stunned, providing Annora an opening to visit her own punishments upon it. Unleashing an aggression she did not know she possessed, Annora pushed the advantage, sending the Beast into a backpedal, at least for a moment.

Still this was a temporary arrangement and Annora knew it. She couldn't beat the Beast in a straight up fight. It's strength would always overwhelm her.

The chase was on yet again, but Annora no longer ran blindly. Instead she ran to a ravine. As the Beast charged yet again, Annora knew she had to sacrifice a piece of herself to complete her plan. As the Beast dug into her flesh with renewed vigor, Annora shifted her weight, causing the momentum of the Beast to be its own folly. Annora's flesh was rended, decorated the silent stone in dripping crimson, but the Beast had thrown itself over the edge, howling in anger and pain as it descended the depths.

Though the Beast peered upward with violent frustation from its new prison, it was Annora who stood above. She did not stay long. Continued victory could only be assured if she moved ahead of the Beast. Thus, as the Beast was forced to lick its wounds, Annora began to walk away.

Weathered and bloodied, but not beaten.

[Blackbird]

Night 3

The Second Dream had gone long.

Blackbird did not stir during the final hours of her trial, remaining submerged within the chamber in a fetal position of comfort.

Even as the Grand Wyrm opened the chamber after the alarm had signaled the end, Blackbird remained beneath the water.

The light, however, soon roused her and, noticing the figure beyond, Blackbird knew the time had come to leave the water's embrace. Her exit was slow, her form wet and cold. If her mind had not been engrossed in internal revelation, she might have likened it to a rebirth.

Instead she came to rest on her knees, remaining at rest even as she felt the soft touch of her towel as it was draped on her shoulders.

Looking up to Moretti, Blackbird's eyes glinted with hope, her expression almost alive with ecstasy.

"She's still in here, Grand Wyrm," she softly exclaimed, referring to her soul.

The lively expression of revelation soon faded, of course. Blackbird had not achieved her Change, she had merely weathered an assault by the Beast and been gifted a glimpse of the fortitude of her Soul. She had been given the understanding that the goal of her journey was possible. A wall could be built and the Beast's influence on her Humanity could be loosened.

And every journey began with a single step.