You're brought into Toronto, Canada, either ordered by the Council to join the Pack or Clan that resides there for the impending war, to strengthen their numbers, and provide a hand within the war, or you've moved here simply to find a fresher start to life. Will you stand on the sidelines in the Neutral Territories? Or will you decide to take part and choose a side? Your destiny awaits you, make sure to head over to our homesite (link found in the Navigation Section) to begin your journey!
"That's good you have a home, I'd have offered a place within my clan if not," she said. At the mention of a clan, the corner of Jace's mouth involuntarily twitched. It wasn't that he was bad at lying or hiding information, he just wasn't mentioning the whole council thing. It wasn't like she had specifically asked if the council had sent him, in fact if she had asked he would not have lied and would have told the truth. However, Jace merely shrugged it off. It shouldn't bother him. It seems I forgot to introduce myself as well, my name is Xalia. It seems we have quite the crowd in here today," she said, looking at the ever-growing amount of supernaturals in the bar. At least now she had a name, Xalia. A lovely name for quite the lovely lady. Her blue topaz eyes skimmed over his human food, a smile dancing upon her lips. He had just had a meal that was, well, more fitting of a vampire. Why not have a human meal as well? However, Jace could see how odd it may look.
"I'll have to go confront the new ones, see who they are, get to know where they came from," she said, rising from her chair gracefully in the way that he would expect from someone like her. "Liam, do you happen to have pencil and paper that I could borrow?" he complied, handing her the materials. When she expressed thanks, his smile was so crazy it seemed like his face had stretched wider, the corners of his mouth pulling all the way to his ears. What a suck up, though it wasn't like he had a choice other than to comply.
Her hands moved swiftly across the paper, pencil in hand. The graphite pressed down on the white sheet, forming numbers. Jace was guessing it was Xalia's phone number, a means of contact that she was granting him.
"I do expect you to contact me if you're ever looking for a clan, or someone to talk too," she said kindly. Though Jace doubted he would ever decide to join the clan, at least while the war raged on, it would be nice to have a friend or at least good acquaintance in this town. She was the first townsperson he had met, and his only possible friend as all other ties with all other people had been cut. She was indeed a kind lady who seemed very polite and friendly, just the person you could go grab a drink with.
As she addressed the others, Jace tore off the other half of the paper and scribbled his own digits down. No matter how fast he wrote, Jace's handwriting was always so neat it looked like it was printed straight off of a computer in Times New Roman font. Picking it up, he politely waited until she had finished her sentence.
"Thank you for chatting with me. This is my own number, just in case," he said, an unknowingly charming smile bringing the corners of his mouth up. Handing her the paper, he returned to his meal. He did not want to interrupt her shenanigans with the new vampires.
Jace listened to her inquiry, taking his hands with visibly healing bruises and scars and clasping them together on the polished wood bar, his thumbs rubbing circles around his knuckles. He had indeed bought a home, however, he had not seen it in person nor stepped foot in it yet. It was a purchase he made online by contacting a local realtor, so he had yet to make an official opinion on the home. He was not very picky with his homes, he only ensured his had lots of windows with views of the forests and mountains and lands beyond. The most he knew about his house was the square footage, amount of bedrooms and bathrooms (2 and 2) and he had seen a couple of pictures of the views. However, Jace decided it would be more exciting if he did not see pictures of the home and went home to be surprised by its appearance. Hopefully he would not regret that.
“I have purchased a home here, yes,” he replied simply. He had debated about telling little miss nameless about how he had not yet seen the house, but decided that was boring and personal. Small talk was what they were making.
A waiter came over to check on Jace, probably expecting him to order yet another beer. Instead, Jace ordered one of their larger burgers with bacon and avocado, with a side of fries. The waiter simply nodded and was off, getting his meal ready. Jace wished this vampire lady would let him pay for his meal, but he presumed it would be rude of him to decline her offer, and that she would instead insist. He never liked arguing, especially with someone so polite. When his burger and fries arrived, he ate it normally though he was quite hungry: with normal sized bites, not gulping anything down in one swallow. Perhaps after this chat he would go for a hunt of sorts, his own little personal housewarming. For himself.
The oh-so-mysterious vampire woman gave a glance towards her group of vampire colleagues. It was kind of threatening, and made Jace smile inwardly. Definitely had leadership abilities. She then reverted her attention to Jace, smiling.
"Oh, I know the Bartender personally, she won't charge me a dime," the lady said aloud, though the bartender did not hear her. Jace chuckled as he thought of ways this girl, rather, vampire, knew the bartender personally. He could imagine more ways than one.
"Tell me about yourself Jace, I'd like to get to know the person I'm buying for," she said, smiling again and waving towards a bartender, a different one from before. "I'll take another." She smiled at him, and he returned with a smile and a nod. He seemed to be… well, attracted to her. Thinking about her words, Jace looked forward and smiled as she avoided giving him her name. That was alright, Jace would play along. Rubbing his thumb and index finger along his jaw, a habit he had when he was thinking.
"Well, there's not much. I'm from California, just moved to Toronto tonight. In fact, I've still got all my belongings in a rented moving trailer out back. I guess I'm looking for a clean slate and a nicer, quieter area." And because a specific council asked me to join the clan. Not to mention I needed a clean slate because I was notorious for beating vampires and werewolves to a pulp. He only thought this in his head, and maintained his smile, but in his mind thoughts were swirling. Either way, there was no way for him to prove he had been sent by the council anyhow with that letter he burned but five minutes ago. Even if she didn't require proof of your invitation, there would be no way to prove his real reason for coming here. Not that any of it was important, it was okay to deny the Council's request, right?
Jace had nearly downed another beer when, out of his peripheral vision, he saw one of the female vampires heading towards him. Looking at her out of the corners of his eyes, Jace saw that it was the one whom another vampire girl had addressed as the leader Xalia, the very vampire he was supposed to speak with about joining the clan. Sipping his beer nonchalantly, Jace gave a small smile as she sat and set his beer down. She was dominant, though completely friendly. Jace, with his slightly hunched over the bar, arms resting on the counter, made no move to appear dominant or submissive. Just casual and friendly, nothing more nor less.
She was of an average height, around 5'4" or 5'4", give or take. She was quite thin, appearing quite light as well. Her eyes were icy blue, sharp and piercing. The girl's hair was black, wavy, and rolled all the way down to the small of her back. Jace could definitely see this vampire as the leader of a great clan at war. Rubbing a thumb against the dark stubble that lined his jaw, Jace wondered what brought her to the bar and why she had come over to talk to him.
"Why hello there, may I ask your name?" The dark-haired woman waved the male bartender over. "I'll be paying for him as well," she added, smiling towards the bartender who nodded in response. How nice of her. Jace crinkled his dark eyebrows together a little, and smiled slightly.
"The name's Jace. May I ask yours?" he asked, though he thought he already knew. Fingers wrapping around his beer glass, he took a swig before setting it down to speak again. "It's very kind of you to pay for a stranger." Jace pushed thoughts of clans and joining and battling to the back of his mind, it was not happening. The city of Toronto was nice, and not a bad place to be a rogue. Sitting up straighter, his white shirt wrinkling over his back, Jace looked at her with a smile and kind face.
Jace, after having driven his meal home, walked back into the bar in his human form, excluding his eyes which were fading from the red tint of a recent human meal to his regular stormy blue. He had not had nearly enough beers yet. In the bar there were many new people, whereas before it had been empty. Two female vampires, a male vampire, and yet another female vampire. When the scents of these fellow supernaturals hit his nostrils, nostalgia took him back to a dark place. The bodies of his opponents lay injured, battered, bruised, beaten, bloodied, etc. in front of him. The sounds of crowds cheering and booing, the feelings of his own new sets of bruises and scars upon his body. Then, after he had left his career of fighting, he had been contacted by the council not via person but via mail. That was what had really brought him to Toronto… Quickly, Jace shook himself out of his memories. These people in front of him were not his enemies, not the people he was meant to fight or hurt or be hurt by. Just regular people in this bar. With a small, inward sigh, Jace realized he may need even more beer than he had thought he would.
Walking to an empty, isolated spot on the bar apart from the four strangers, waiting on the bartender. His white shirt stretched over his back as he hunched slightly, placing his elbows on the bar and using one hand to hold his jaw with his thumb and index finger. Dark, long brows knitted his forehead together causing a few crinkles. A bartender was quick to come over. When she asked him what he would like to drink, he questioned what their darkest beer was and ordered that. With a nod, she was off and Jace was back to thinking. Calling the bartender over again, he asked for directions to the bathroom. Following the direction of her finger, he excused himself and strode off.
Closing the door and locking it, he pulled a lighter out of the back pocket of his jeans. Pulling the letter out of his pocket, he looked at the signature. It was signed by none other than the council itself. Narrowing his eyes, Jace flicked the lighter cap with his thumb, watching the little flame flicker and become bigger. Holding the note over the sink, he set it afire then dropped the letter in the fire-proof sink. When it was nothing but ashes, he proceeded to rinse them down the sink, simultaneously putting the fire out. Putting the lighter back in his pocket, he opened the door and walked back to his spot at the bar.
A fresh, dark, frothing beer awaited him. Sitting down, he grabbed his calloused, rough, bruised hands around the cool glass and took a big gulp. His Adam's apple moved up and down with the movement, and in just thirty seconds he had downed the entire glass. He was not hesitant to order another. Running a hand through his ashy, dirty blonde hair and running his crystalline blue eyes over the bar, he managed to hear (by accident) a part of the strangers' conversations.
"E-excuse me, Xalia? I didn't mean to interrupt, but I was sent here to find you. This should explain…" Jace took a quick glance over to her hands, which carried a letter. A letter that was a carbon copy of the one he had just burned. His gaze turned steely, and he looked away. Swallowing and making slight fists with his hands, Jace realized that the person he had been meant to speak to and join forces with was in this bar with him. It was just too bad that he would not be joining forces. The rogue life would be good enough for him, observing the war. He wanted no more fighting in his life.
Jace stepped cooly into the bar, tired as could be. He had just driven to Toronto from California, bringing all of his belongings with him. Hearing about the abundance of Vampires and Lycans, forming a clan and a pack, in this area had intrigued him. He had already purchased an apartment, one whose balcony overlooked some of the forest and woods of the area. Jace's eyes had slight bags under them, and his hair was ruffled. The drive and moving of furniture had made him a little tired, but what had him really exhausted was his lack of sleep. It had been a few days since he had shut his eyes for more than thirty minutes, when he had decided to move to Toronto. Now that he was here, he was hungry and thirsty. What really sounded good was a good beer and perhaps a burger. This bar had seemed like just the place. As he stepped in, he felt a group of girls giggling and glancing at him. Smiling slightly in amusement, Jace took a seat at the bar. Someone was ready to take his order immediately, and were off in an instant to get his drink and food ready. He was rubbing his thumb and index finger along the stubble of his jaw tiredly when he noticed a giggly girl next to him. Jace could clearly smell the booze coming off of her in intoxicating waves, and her behavior also displayed her drunken state. She was laughing and hiccuping uncontrollably, her hair a mess, her dress was messed up, and one of her shoes seemed to be missing. Suddenly, Jace's craving for the burger was fading as he realized how long it had been since he had drank blood, specifically human blood. "Hey there," Jace said to the blonde lady. She gave a rather impressive belch and turned to face him. "Hello, there sir," she said, her words slurred. "You here- with- anyone? Girlfriend? Friends?" she asked, hiccuping the entire way. Damn, this woman was messed up. "No, just me," he said smoothly, looking at her chocolate eyes steadily. "But I guess you could say I'm here with you, now," Jace said, a slight tone of flirtatiousness apparent in his voice. The girl opened her mouth to say something, but instead hiccuped. Jace's food was set down in front of him, and with a thanks to the bartender, he scarfed down the burger in a few bites and took a few swallows of the beer. "Oh, god…" the girl muttered. "I better get going." As she started to unsteadily rise out of her seat, a bartender stopped her. "Hey, lady. You shouldn't drive like that, and you didn't pay for your last three drinks," the bartender said, gesturing to the girl's empty glass. Wow, last three? She furrowed her brows. "I don't… I don't got no more cash on me," she said, her half-closed eyes blinking slowly. Without a word, Jace pulled his wallet out and handed plenty of money to the bartender, waving him away when he brought back change. He merely considered it paying for his meal. "I'll drive her," said Jace, taking his car keys out from his pocket and helping the girl out of the bar on her unsteady feet. She was giggling and putting her arms around his shoulders, his waist, anywhere she could. Jace just let it happen. Silently, he slipped her into his car. "Where do you live?" he asked, turning the key, the car humming to life. "The apartments- just down the street… Number 101…" she said, her words bubbling. How convenient, those were the apartments where Jace lived. Rustling through his bag, he found his chloroform cloth and quickly and efficiently put her to sleep. In the blink of an eye, he shifted. His teeth grew, his skin paled, and his bloodlust grew. Using his teeth, he punctured her neck and took long, good gulps. He stopped himself before she was too drained, sitting back in his car seat. His eyes turned red, and he relished the moment before becoming human again, driving to her place to drop her off.
Get better Zoe 
