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::Abellio abit curious as to what these ill tidings are Looks down the dark corridor to see if anyone is watching and places a ear to the door for a moment to get an idea of what these tidings are about. Abellio stays quiet as possible during this process.::

(First Roll Dexterity + Stealth to stay undiscovered if at all possible.)

(Second Roll Perception + Investigation to investigate the situation that is unfurling on the opposite side of the doors.)

::If after 2 minutes no information is gleaned Abellio will leave immediately, to begin the last part of his celebration::

******Rolls*********
First Roll
Second Roll

(Refresh my memory. I you have enhanced hearing, you'll glean a bit more. Otherwise you cannot make out much. Mostly bits from the louder spoken Berro like,)

"Mumble, mumble, trumpets are blowing! I have mumble mumble two, mumble. Eyes watching, mumble mumble. Koban, mumble mumble, tell Dominik....mumble."

(Mario randomly bursts into flames)

::Not recieving much more than mubbles from the other side of the door. Abellio leave to finish his celebrations. While doing so he will pay attention to any trumpets blowing in the night air.::

::Abellio picks up his torch and candle snuffer and begins dousing flames and re-lighting them as he had once planned to do. He will do so until he has done this throughout the abbey.::

::After which he will search out Marco as directed.::

(Your celebration continues through the night. WIth little time before dawn, you'll need to approach Marco tomorrow. You'll run into him somewhere, probably meal time. Feel free to initiate the discussion.

Also, I plan to post, under another thread, a list of options for you guys concerning what is possible. Not to box you in, by any means, but to give an idea of exactly how much freedom you have as players and as vampires in the 14th century to do fun stuff. Feel free to add more. Kill everyone in the abbey, become involved in vampire politics, start a cult, takeover the town, etc. Histories have been constructed for people you may not even seek out. I have planned for a lot of eventualities. Maybe Cheyne will beat up Shanon Miller...again.)

::After a long night a meal sounds pleasing to Abellio. Abellio finishes up his celebration and heads to the nightly meal. Abellio keeps an eye out for Marco.:

::When Marco is seen Abellio waves him down and takes a open seat beside him.::

"How are you this evening Marco? I wish to start a conversation that will need to be later concluded tommorow. May I ask you a question of duties here at the abbey and finding my place and purpose here."

::Mario eats a pig. they are consecrated church property after all...

his hunger sated, he aides in their slaughter. he spends the rest of the day working hard with his new trainer, and goes to bed that night feeling much more at home, as though he has a place in this new order.

the next day he stops at the glassblower again to watch him work.::

(Unless the pig is ordained, it's a no-go here. But nice try.

I'll post later. Watching 10,000 BC right now...)

Mario:
You wake at the sound of the monks calling for prayer. Brother Michael, the Glazier, attends prayer and will be at his forge soon after. You find him stoking the fires, preparing a mold for a frame. He struggles to don his heavy apron as you approach. He grins eagerly, welcoming you in. You duck below a row of hanging hooks. This place is truly a shop of horrors. Sharp implements protrude at every angle. Soot-faced men glare at you as their sweat mingles with the ash, creating a mask of mud one might wear ceremonially in some pagan cult. The fires, oh god the fires. You nearly lose it as a log bursts in the oven near you, spraying sparks into the room. How can these men work under such conditions?? Wait, the sweat. Some of these men must be mortal. Odd, but you are already aware that some of the priests on the grounds are human, retainers to Malachi.

Michael sorts through a bag of tools before him, pulling forth a pair of tongs and calipers. He names many of the things strewn before him, as though you were terribly interested. ::

“Good to see you again, Brother Mario. Or is it too soon to be calling you that, eh? Once Malachi reels them in, most follow suit soon enough. You’ll learn your way, for that we can be sure. Another night here of combating the damage of time. As I told you before, most of the works you see here around the abbey of iron and glass are old. Very old, by any standards. We labor now only to maintain such works, not replace or better them. As though we could, heh. Much knowledge has been lost. If you go down to the crypt of the church, where the abbey’s treasure is kept, you will find reliquaries of such exquisite craftsmanship that the little monstrosity I am now cobbling up will seem a mockery of those! I am no apprentice, though I believe we all walk in the shadows of the giants of our past, wouldn’t you think?”

Abellio:

:: Marco smiles warmly and beckons you to take a seat with him on a nearby bench ::
“Of course childe. There is much to do here. One may find himself in penitent prayer throughout the evenings of their unlife, but of course, the rest of us seek more meaning to this existence. Mario seems to be doing well among the animal handlers and craftsmen.

I am afraid I know little of you, though I have naturally been elucidated regarding your affinity of nature. I admit, I am a bit unsure of our order’s, or my personal stance. While you could easily dissuade arguments against such a focus by conjuring romantic notions of Our Lord’s creations in and away from our corruptions upon this earth, I see the focus as an … as an anathema to Christ. In fact, Christ is not a man of this world, but one of the Kingdom of Heaven. This existence, even truly for those of us that deem themselves eternal, are not in accordance with the soil. We return to it once our wretched unlives are extinguished through stake, flame, sun, or other means. The earth is the domain of Satan, you was given power over it to tempt man. Jesus himself returned from the earth, rising to the Kingdom of Heaven. But aside from the traditional doctrinal arguments I may invoke, and no doubt others will invoke upon you, I see another problem. One stemming from our long presence upon this earth, since man housed himself in walls, has the children of Caine been upon this world. The truth is, there was a time when things were not as they are now. Such a notion seems simple, yet strikes at the very heart of the Church and its tenants. There is a truth that our kind and man once walked together in an ancient city. In fact, Cainites were even worshipped. Malachi condones such notions, as does Ignatius. They refuse to accept such a truth, as it undermines their belief of the separateness of our kind from mortal men, and our natural inferiority to the children of Our Lord. But such things should not be discussed. I regret mentioning them. These are not popular notions here, as you can imagine. I agree with Malachi on many things. But I also believe the past most inform our present.

But this simple monk only pretends to understand such things. The path Our Lord has laid for us is clear. We should be careful not to let such…trivialities distract us from our journey, wouldn’t you agree?

"uh... yeah. i haven't really thought about the past much though. things that are just... are, at least thats the way i've always thought about it. when i think about it. which i really don't. except now.

how do you stand this fire? or is it just me that reacts so to the flames? it could just be me. how do you make the glass do that?"

:: Brother Michael laughs. Gathering his tools together, he beckons you around the counter, farther from the flames ::

“I forget sometimes. Not many of your kind visits. I have to make house calls. I just repaired Renardo’s windows the other day. He’s the herbalist. Might go introduce yourself to that old curmudgeon some time. He’s a real character.

But I don’t think many do reflect upon the past. Difficult not to, I think. Some of my fellow brothers here are artifacts themselves. For now, I am contented presently to serve. Perhaps one day though…

:: Michael discuss at length his knowledge of glass-making, particularly his current task of glass-blowing, in which he utilizes a technique learned from Venetian glassworks using an old mould-blowing technique. You sort of understand the process, though the little things like fire and how the glass goes from molten to solid hang you up. Michael invites you to come by anytime. The men he works with are laborers employed by the abbey. The three men do not speak much and seem…distant. Perhaps they are also among “the simple.” ::

“You see childe, it is quite simple, though it takes many years to master. Your kind possess many gifts, magics that exert control over our world around us. But there are two forms of magic. There is a magic that is the work of the Devil and which aims at man’s downfall through artifices of which it is not licit to speak. But there is a magic that is divine, where God’s knowledge is made manifest through the knowledge of man, and it serves to transform nature, and one of its ends is to prolong man’s very life. And this is holy magic, to which the learned must devote themselves more and more, not only to discover new things but also to rediscover many secrets of nature that divine wisdom had revealed to the Hebrews, the Greeks, to other ancient peoples, and even, today, to the infidels (and I cannot tell you all the wonderful things on optics and the science of vision to be read in the books of the infidels!). And of all this learning Christian knowledge must regain possession, taking it from the pagans and the infidels. Much has been lost, but thankfully those like Malachi, enduring the centuries, have In themselves a great library of knowledge. Truly a wonder it is. How long, friend, have you walked this earth?”

"well, i think i'm around twenty years old. but i might be a little older. or younger. me and my brothers were born so close together, and we all lived, so it gets confusing.

...uh, if you ever need any help with the glass, i'd uh... be happy to h-help you, if you don't mind too much."

“A pup compared to many here. I see. It looks like you have far more to learn than I may teach, though I would be pleased to have you around.”

:: Brother Michael makes you a work bench, clearing off bits of scrape and odd jobs left unfinished. He dismisses two of the workers, who seem not at all upset or thankful. They walk off, meeting up with Salvatore who croaks some orders to them, clearly not considering them equals. He nods to you, grinning or scowling, you are not really sure. Sometime later you should stop over to see him. He’ll likely have chores for you. What a lot of work this has become! Still, it seems safe here and most of the monks are nice.

Marco stops by several hours later, as you struggle to bend a small bar back into place with a pair of heavy tongs. It will be some time, you imagine, before you are ready to work in the back with the flames. The portly monk lifts the fabric of his habit up as the ends skirt the dirty floor. He bows slightly to Brother Michael, you immediately returns to his work cutting small, circular pieces of glass from a large pane. You suddenly imagine the ruddish skin of Marco bursting, spraying the room with the copious amounts of blood he seems to carry. He seems to notice your close observance, as he sits near you on an open stole and adjusts his habit again near the neck where it has grown tight ::

“Curse of the blood. The condition you noticed. Our clans curse of hideousness, showing the scars of our soul on the surface. I have welcomed Brother Salvatore into our ranks, though he says he is content with his own clan. The history of my clan, Nosferatu, is …uncertain. But that is another matter. I simply stopped by to invite you into my reliquary tomorrow evening. I understand you were briefly tutored. There is much I can teach you of the world and our order. We may begin with simple reading and writing. The Scriptorium is no place for you, but who among us knows what the future may hold? I see in you a great potential. Malachi speaks of the ‘wisdom of the simple.’ I agree. While unschooled in many things, you possess a virtue that makes you the perfect student, unarmored by influence and corruption. I hope you will consider my offer. We can meet weekly, after evening prayers. I must continue my rounds. I do hope this work finds you well. It is good to work with the hands. Michael is a good craftsman. He may one day join us in our condition. Goodbye.”

:: Marco exits as Michael beams, likely having heard Marco’s last remark ::

(You've unlocked: Marco Tutoring. You may pursue such endeavors with him, leading to an allowable increase in Int, Knowledges, etc. And of course, he will be working to convert you to the Road of Heaven.)

(can we have a new thread or two for some of these peoples? and what roads are being taught here? i heard mention of tears and of heaven. what else? and where is tears detailed? not that i care to read it, but for future ref. i thought it was the salubri path, but i never saw it detailed.)

::mario nods, and then returns to work. while he has never been particularly inclined to work, was always lazy in fact, mario seems to take joy from doing things he is actually interested in. perhaps because he is now free, his own... man. and while he never enjoyed work, it was always a fact of life for him, first in agriculture, then in the church as the town priests glorified slave. the honest, straightforward tasks seem to suit him well, and he takes a liking to his work, spending the majority of his time on his two new jobs and learning their intricacies.

the only real void in his life comes from a loneliness that he scarce understands, and a desire for feminine acceptance and interaction. and better food. too few ordained people, and certainly not enough of them women. perhaps before work he should visit town...

mario continues in this vein for the forseable future, as he is rather content to simply be for a time. his dreams of newfound power are buried under his enthusiasm towards his new life and his seeming acceptance at the town and monastery.::