A Trip to the Bookstore

[Yawgmoth]

Shortly after sunset Ith Lazarus awakened from his daysleep with a goal in mind. Tonight would not be focused on deciphering the mysteries of the Lost Nights or tormenting the wretched souls within the walls of his Asylum. No, tonight's agenda involved a book located in a bookstore near the Rack area.

Warden Ith Lazarus was not someone that liked to travel outward from his haven, so when the rare necessity for such came up he made sure that there would be adequate protection. The night before, Lazarus had arranged for Dr. Wilson to cover both the day-shift and the night-shift. And Harold Smith, Head Security Officer of Amber Hills, would be Ith's personal chauffeur and bodyguard for the evening.

If Harold did his job right, he will already have the car running outside.

The ghoul had followed the orders given, and Dr. Lazarus found him parked directly outside of the employee exit with the engine running. The Doctor took a moment to admire his vehicle, the flawless black paint and perfectly polished bumpers. His ghouls, despite their other duties, kept his 1987 Crown Victoria in pristine condition.

Lazarus' Car

It is a shame I never got to use it for anything other than institution business...

Cast in the red glow of the brake lights, Ith looked into the perfectly shined back bumper and saw his blurred reflection. The thing staring back at him wasn't the way he always was, and the car in front of him was proof. He remembered buying it after several months of slaving under Dr. Brawn...

Lazarus shook his head forcing the thoughts away; there was more important work to be done.

The Warden entered his vehicle and closed the door behind him. "Harold, drive me to the bookstore located downtown. It is early enough that they should still be open."

"Yes, Warden." Harold put the vehicle out of park and started the drive to the bookstore.

[West]

Written In Water is a stately building of concrete and glass. With two stories of books, and the smell of oak, paper, and leather in the air, more than one customer has made this their home away from home.

Formerly owned by Erika Brady, Mekhet and one-time Seneschal, the building has reverted to ownership by her silent partners.

[Yawgmoth]

The vehicle stopped and Harold preformed the standard parallel parking maneuver. The ghoul exited his master's vehicle and opened the door for Lazarus. Ith took little consideration for his appearance and the unsettling mask on his face was something he decided to play off.

Lazarus' heightened sense of sight allowed him to view the exterior of the bookstore for a moment while Harold closed the door behind him. Finally it came time to enter the store and get this unpleasantness over with.

"Harold, enter ahead of me and talk to the shopkeeper. If she asks about my mask, inform her that I am a burn victim and sensitive about my appearance."

"Yes, Warden." The ghoul nodded in compliance as he walked ahead and entered Written in Water, his master close behind.

[West]

The interior is warm and comfortable, styled more like a personal library than a store. A few people here and there examine books, some taking a seat to peruse them. A man in a well cut suit watches the customers as he sorts through a card catalog.

[Yawgmoth]

If he was one for taking in the atmosphere of a place then Dr. Lazarus did not show it. Chances are that the good Doctor did not give a damn about the general ambiance; he was there for one reason and then he intended to leave.

It said I would know the book when I saw it...

Without any delay Ith begins browsing through the walls of books looking for something that would stand out to him.

[DaevaDude]

A few of the store patrons give Dr. Lazarus creeped-out looks, but nobody approaches him. In the Occult section, one work catches Dr. Lazarus' eye. Were he to stop and wonder why it had caught his eye, Dr. Lazarus would be hard-pressed for an answer. There's really very little remarkable about the book, other than its rather worn appearance. It is a commercially-printed book in standard binding, the covers plain black. The silver lettering on the spine isn't fully legible, but the books's title and author are repeated inside. "The Practice of Ritual Magic" by Ulysses Wright, printed in 1932 by a press in London.

[Yawgmoth]

This has to be it, but it hardly seems remarkable.

Reaching up to take the book, Dr. Lazarus grasps it and takes it down. The book's weight suggested that whoever read it would be getting a halfway decent bit of knowledge. It baffled the Doctor as to why the thing in that room wanted impressionable teenagers to read it, but he did not care.

Time to get out of here.

With nothing left to do, Ith makes his way toward the front desk to make his purchase.

[Darren Nash]

Ash felt so out of place. It was a bookstore and he couldn't remember the last time he had read. Thing is, he needed to learn more about ghosts, zombies and that kinda shit if he wanted any hope of improving his connection with Death.


Looking blankly from section to section he decides the best place to start was with someone who works there.


"Excuse me, could you direct to books on the paranormal please?" He asks, really unsure if that's the correct turn of phrase. Noticing the guy with the mask, he does what any normal person would do and ignores it. Ash does stare with his peripherals mind.

[West]

The man accepts the book from Dr. Lazarus, casually spinning it to look at the title. "I haven't seen you here before, have I? That'll be one thirty-two seventy-five," he says with a light british accent. He makes no pretense about not studying the doctor's face and mask.

To Ash, he simply holds up a finger and gestures to Dr. Lazarus. The Moros needs to wait his turn.

[Darren Nash]

Ash simply nods apologetically and steps back.

Bloody queues.