Enter the Taurobolium

[Yawgmoth]

The late hour allowed for little enough traffic that the ride to Taylor's place didn't take longer than fifteen minutes. It was on a secluded road heading away from the Gilded Cage of Sacramento in an upper middle class neighborhood. The house looks to be in excellent condition, and appears rather large from the outside, and nicely decorated.

((OOC: I know the picture is taken during the day. I just like the look of the house. Deal with it!))

Approaching the door to the house, Taylor unlocks three deadbolts and opens the door. Inside the house seems much smaller than it appears on the outside, it's almost as if the walls are thicker than in a normal house. Along the walls are all kinds of abstract, surreal, art. Overall, the house feels very modern.

"Okay guys, the spa treatment is downstairs. Do we want to get right to business?" Taylor's voice is still perfectly feminine.

[Sean]

Sean walks in, gawking at the house. "Nice Digs, Tots. For real."

At Taylor's question he grins "Hells yeah, let's see what you got goin on."

[DaevaDude]

Dahlia Sawyer looks around the place, and seems to approve. "A nice home... you've got a taste for decor." she says. "I'm more interested in the spa, though, so show me the way downstairs."

[Yawgmoth]

Taylor guides the two through the living room. As they pass through, they'll take notice of the massive abstract and surreal pieces of art that adorn all four walls. There is a lack of much furniture, only a single purple chair in the corner facing a 40" plasma screen on the QVC shopping channel. The floors were hardwood, and were completely without scratches of scuffing. Next, they entered the kitchen which had suspended cupboards with glass doors -- it was somewhat obvious that the glass cups and plates inside had never been used. The stove, dishwasher, microwave, and even the sink look in brand new condition, also as if they had never been used. A large bookshelf, filled with cook books, is against the wall next to an oak dinner table.

Time to lead them downstairs. Hopefully Dahlia doesn't get too freaked out from where I hid the stairwell...

Taylor moves to the bookshelf and with a slight grunt pushes it to the right, the ease at which it glides suggests that perhaps there are wheels beneath it. Once again pulling out her pink Hello-Kitty keychain, she selects a key and unlocks the door which was previously obsecured by the bookshelf. She looks to Dahlia, and gives a slight smile. "If the security seems a bit tight, you'll understand after you see the results why I gotta protect my special treatment method."

Taylor reaches out and flicks on a light, illuminating a rather elaborate staircase leading downstairs. She looks over her shoulder and gives Sean and Dahlia a look before she starts to walk down.

Hopefully they'll like what I've done with the place...

If they choose to follow Taylor downstairs, they'll be treated to the fully glory of Taylor's taurobolium. The floors all polished stone, and in the nexus of the floor a small-sized pool is set into the ground filled with a dark crimson liquid, from one side there are stone stairs leading down into the mixture. Sean would, no doubt, be able to tell it was blood based. The smell is that of insense and herbs, the air warm and humid. Taylor walks to the side of the taurobolium pit and smiles, his white teeth gleaming in the light, he gestures toward the pool. "Well, this is it. This is my spa."

[DaevaDude]

Dahlia looks a bit taken aback by the hidden stairwell, and the look she gives Taylor in response to his comment about needing to protect his method suggests she might think him a bit nuts, but she goes along anyhow. It's hard to tell whether it's the lingering effect of Awe, or whether she's too curious or foolhardy to back out after following things this far.

She is clearly impressed by the spa area, though. She walks around, checking out the place. She approaches the pool and bends close, seems about to touch it, then stops. She visibly focuses on the scent.

After a few moments, she says "Okay, so what can you tell me about what's in it?"

[Sean]

Sean's digging this whole secret passageway nonsense, and he's making no secret of it. "I gotta admit, Taylor. I'm impressed."

He had some idea of was in the small pool, but he wanted to see what Taylor would tell Dahlia.

[Yawgmoth]

I wonder how gullible she is.

She waits a second to reply to Dahlia's questioning, and uses the time to kneel down and dip her hand in the pool and give it a slight ripple. "It's a mixture of some special oils and herbs I bought in various Oriental countries years ago when I traveled the world." Time passes silently for a moment, and the only noise is the slight sloshing of Taylor's hand moving ever so slightly in the the liquid. "And there's one final ingreedient -- but giving that away would ruin how it works miracles."

Taylor stands and uses the other hand to reach inside her pocket and procure a handkerchief which she uses to dry her other hand. "I've named it the Taurobolium after an old Pagan ritual which was said to grant beauty. And Dahlia, it's waiting for you..."

[DaevaDude]

Narration:

Dahlia bends down on one knee and dips her fingers in the liquid, stirring it around, then looks at Taylor, smiling. "It's blood, isn't it? The secret ingredient. You should know it's hard to fool a woman when it comes to blood. Blood's something we deal with every month from the time we start to bloom until we... get past having to worry about that."

She stands up and flicks the liquid off her fingers into the pool. "So, is this some sort of microbial treatment, or one of those enzyme things?"

[Sean]

Sean rolls his eyes behind Dahlia's head, giving Taylor a look. She's a bright one, isn't she?

[Yawgmoth]

Surprised by Dahlia's intuition, Taylor masks her shock with another laugh. She looks over to Sean for a moment and gives a look to convey the inner frustration. Taylor is no idiot, however, and just continues onward with what she was saying before.

"Oh you are a smart one! Remember what I was saying about the ancient Greeks and their Tauroboliums? Well, the group was called the Cult of Cybele and they would take new initiates and place them under a bull and then slit it's throat. The new guy would be drenched in a sudden shower of hot bull blood." Taylor motions to the pool and winks at Dahlia. "In honor or the tradition, I've mixed ample amounts of bovine blood into the mixture. You'd be amazed at how eaisly local butchers will part with it."