knightsoflegend | chapter five ♔ it'll be a day like this one when the sky falls down

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chapter five ♔ it'll be a day like this one when the sky falls down

the blues - switchfoot

WHO || The Knights
WHAT || Failboat returns from the disaster in LA as the Knighthood goes on lockdown
WHERE || The castle, London
WHEN || Directly after this, Fall 2017
HOW || Actionspam

Hasmed's announcement does not brook any rebuttal: all Knights are recalled to the Castle, where they must remain until the Section Heads and Jack Chessing have spoken about the events in Los Angeles that have left the Knighthood without their usual leader.

The entire Los Angeles area is now covered with a dark miasma that has interfered with any signals that might be sent out from phones, etc., leaving the whole world wondering what exactly is happening down there. Final images showed horrendous monsters, a panic of citizens, looting and violence from humans and Shadowkind alike.

Hasmed has warned of extra magical wards on the castle, and anyone arriving will immediately take notice of one very prominent one: above the entire roof of the excessively large building hovers a black and red sigil in the air, a pentagram in a circle surrounded by runes or words in an unknown language, stretching for miles.

[ This is the social log for post-LA lockdown. Failboat must complete the top log before being allowed to tag outside of it. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Not entirely sure, actually.

[She looks the absolute least offended ever, offering up an answer with little prodding.]

At least half succubus, though, on my Mom's side. No idea what my Dad was, though.

[Toby nods. She knows who her father was, though he never knew what she and her mother were. Secrecy was a lot more important back then, and her mother had relished the role of faerie bride far too much not to pretend to be mortal. Amandine the Liar, they call her.]

Have you ever tried to find out?

[Toby could. Blood will always tell, and she's very good at reading blood. But it seems a little impolite to just ask someone if they want her to lick their blood. Especially when they haven't known each other for more than five minutes.]

I wouldn't even know where to start. I came through the Veil. Didn't even find out what my Mom was until the day I got pulled through. I never met my parents.

[Bo, you know so little about magic in this world, it's sad.]

Even if I had, I wouldn't remember them.

[Toby hesitates, weighing her words.]

I'm... very good at figuring out what people are. Sort of my specialty. If you ever decide you want to know, I could help.

Wait, seriously?

[It's been something she's been unsure about forever, something she didn't think she could ever get anything conclusive about. It isn't that she cares for her sake, but it could affect her kid now. She wanted him to know what he might deal with down the line, if he wasn't quite the same as she was.]

That would be freaking awesome, okay. Is it, like, a magic thing?

Yeah, that's where it gets weird. [She grimaces a little.] I specialize in blood magic. I can learn everything about you, even secrets you don't know about yourself, but I need to taste your blood to do it. Blood remembers, even when your mind doesn't.

Oh honey, I've done weirder. That's like child's play.

[It's not a kink, Bo. Please.]

Why don't we go somewhere less public, though. I should probably put the baby down for this. [She hooks a thumb over her shoulder.] Our room is over here if that works?

Good idea. [Toby probably should worry more about this, or at least realize that Bo is talking about blood kink stuff, but she... sure doesn't (wis 7). She just nods and starts in the direction Bo pointed.] It won't take too long. I just need a drop.

[It's not like she actually has a blood kink, but she's probably slept with someone who does at some point in her life, js.

She leads the girl back to Andrew's room, where she's essentially lived since they got together, and moves to lay Caeden in the bassinet inside. She manages to settle him inside it without waking him, and then moves to one of the storage closets.]

Let me just find a pin or something. Finger works?

I've got a knife. [Of course Toby just has a knife on her. Who wouldn't wander around a supposedly secure castle armed?

Not that very much of the world feels secure right now. She pulls it out of the sheath on her belt. It glitters silver.]

And yes, that's fine. I don't need much. A drop will do.

That works.

[She has one on her too, but it's hidden in a sheath inside her boot, and this one is already available.

She holds her hand out to the woman, palm up.]

Feel free to do the honors.

[Then she can get what she needs easier.]

[She takes Bo's hand with a nod and raises her knife. I'm not really sure what you're supposed to roll to cut someone's hand enough to bleed but not enough to do more than minimal damage but I got a nat 20 so I guess she manages it whatever it is. Then she raises Bo's hand to her mouth, the smell of copper and cut grass filling the air as her magic surges in response to the blood as it hits her tongue.]

[It's at the precise moment that Toby's raises Bo's hand to her mouth that Andrew walks in. He even sees a glimpse of the blood before Toby's mouth covers it. He stops in the doorway, glancing from Toby to Bo to the bassinette. After a moment, he clears his throat.]

I, uh-- Maybe I should take Caeden on a walk, babe. Leave you and your friend to enjoy yourselves. [Look, for all he knows, a post pregnancy succubus unlocks new kinks. He's not here to judge. He just doesn't think the baby should hang out during.]

[Bo seems to be not bothered by Andrew's appearance in the slightest, face brightening as she waves him over with her free hand.]

No way, honey, stay. [She looks back at Toby with excited eyes.] She's like a blood psychic or something. She said she can tell me what my parents both were.

[Toby might object under other circumstances. She's not a psychic, she's a fae blood worker. Under these specific circumstances? She's a little distracted. Toby's great at blood work. It's her whole thing. She knows the taste and feeling of the blood rolling on her tongue. She knows how to tease out someone's heritage, to find out what the blood knows even when the person doesn't.

She's never had this happen before.

She suddenly starts to cough, blood coming up and out of her mouth and spilling all over herself and Bo's arm. She hurls herself backwards and looks up at Bo, wide-eyed. At least she doesn't pass out (fort 21).]

Oberon's balls. [She wipes her mouth and glances over at Andrew.] I need water. Now. And then like a gallon of coffee.

[Andrew has about two seconds of confused relief before he's... right back in a panic because wow that's a lot of blood.]

Shit. Are you okay? [He says to Bo as he rushes to her side. Sorry, Toby.]

[No, she's not really fine. This chick just threw up what feels like a gallon of blood right in front of her because of a single drop of her.

She's scared shitless, really.

But she doesn't look it as she hides it behind a facade of getting shit done.]

I'm fine, Andrew. Go grab a pot of coffee, okay? I'll get cleaned up and get the girl some water.

[Toby wipes her mouth again, grimacing, and sits up.]

That's never happened before. Apparently you're descended from a bottle of weapons grade hot sauce.

[He super duper doesn't want to leave, because he's pretty worried and freaked out by this whole thing, but nods.]

I'll be right back. [He doesn't keep a coffee pot in their room, so he's gonna run down to the kitchen to start some.]

[She loves you, Andrew, but she needs half a second to deal with this before she has a mental breakdown and being fawned over ain't gonna help.]

Come on. The bathroom's over here.

[They both needed water for different reasons.

She pushes open the bathroom door, turns on the faucet, and gestures to the cups near the sink.]

They're clean.

[She's just gonna turn on the water in the bathtub to rinse her arm off over here.]

I was just drinking your blood. It's probably a little late to start worrying about germs now.

[But she nods gratefully and goes over to the sink. She swirls the first few sips in her mouth and spits it out to wash the taste out, then fills the cup again and takes a long drink. She needs to clean herself up too, but washing the blood out of her mouth is more important. Usually blood lends her strength, whether its hers or someone else's. Right now? Not so much.]

Something was blocking me from reading your blood. [She frowns and turns towards Bo, still sipping from her water, though more slowly now.] It burned me.

[Andrew moves as quick as his long legs will carry him, flying into the kitchens and getting a pot of water boiling. Thankfully there's some state of the art coffee makers around this place, so it doesn't take long for him to be on his way back with two giant travel mugs full of coffee and some sugar packets crammed into his pockets.

He'll be back in a minute. Carry on.]

[She silently hopes that Andrew hurries because she's kind of an internal mess at the moment and just faking her way through it.]

The same thing happened when Ana tried to check on the baby ages ago. Now I don't know if he was the one being blocked at all or if it was always me.

Well, I can check that too, though I'd understand if you don't want to bleed your baby. Especially since I'm guessing it's going to just be more of the same.

[She's still frowning. She isn't exactly naturally gifted when it comes to detective work. She's just stubborn and good at shaking things until answers come out. But she has one trick that usually works.

Having it fail her is extremely disconcerting.]

We need to find out why you're being blocked. And who's doing it. Then we can figure out how to get around it.

I don't exactly want to put you through that again, either.

[But yeah, she's guessing it's not gonna have a different outcome.]

I don't even know where to start with that. I mean, I came through the Veil. Who would know or even care that would bother here?

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