A four-floor mall with four businesses per floor. The first floor consists of the Maki martial arts dojo (which teaches kung fu, karate, krav maga, taekwondo, muay thai, aikido, and kali on different days of the week), the local TJ Maxx, the local Taco Bell, and Gear Head (the local parts store). The second floor consists of the local Kohl's, the local Subway, Rebel Rebel Parlor (the local tattoo and piercing parlor), and White Wedding Bridal (the local bridal shop). The third floor is where you'll find the local Starbucks, the local Macy's, Bibliomania (the local bookstore), and Dope Jams (the local music store). The last floor is where you'll find the local Goodwill, the Crane and Tigress (the local Asian restaurant), the local AT&T store, and Hexidecimal Repairs (the local computer repair shop).

The Reverend stepped into the mall dressed in his humble cassock, the tapping of his shoes lost in the surprisingly lively mall crowd. He scanned the businesses, his smile hiding his distaste for their blatant predatory price gouging preying on mortal material hedonism and sucking their wallets dry. Throckett was sure that it was the perfect metaphor for something on the tip of his proverbial tongue, but he couldn't quite place it. He let the nagging feeling go and pushed forward. He had heard that Dr. Fairrivers was doing a local blood drive here from Susan; he wouldn't dare interrupt the man at his hospital and was hoping to speak with him regarding his current and possibly permanent rulership.

Finally spotting the setup, he quickened his pace, only to be stopped by one of the attendants; Tasha. He told the rather jaded woman that he would like to speak with the Doctor if he was here, and that he insisted in waiting until the Doctor was absolutely not busy as it was far from an emergency. After the woman left with his name and message, the priest took a seat in the waiting area. As he got settled in the cold plastic chair, he pulled out his well worn bible; warm to the touch from his handwarmers. He flipped through some passages looking for inspiration as he made a silent prayer. He prayed that the blood here would go to those that needed it, he knew now more than ever exactly how many lives drives like these could save.

The young Reverend couldn't have timed his visit better. The Ventrue doctor was just finishing his work on the last donor when his grey eyes fell upon the new-coming Malkavian. Having been raised Protestant, he asked a nurse to step in for him as he walked over. Throckett would hear a high British accent as Lysander spoke. "Heard about the damp squib over at Miss Dolzaev's, bloody shame, it is. Every power-player in Shadowhold's now on the pull so they can be in charge. Oh, my manners! I am Doctor Lysander Everitt Fairrivers, and you are?"

The priest, having hunkered down for the long haul, stood up hastily to greet the doctor. His eyes glazed over as he tried to mentally parse both the accent and the slang of the speaker. Thankfully the conversation steered back into the kind of English that the priest was comfortable using. He gave Fairrivers a small bow, keeping the kindred's hygiene in mind, "Reverend Richard Throckett, I run the Second Chance Church." he replied with a bright genuine smile that was only tempered by the seriousness of the discussion at hand. "Thank you for speaking with me in such short notice. The incident at the manor was... horrific unfortunate but also the reason why I'm here." 

The priest took a seat and gestured for the doctor to take his own. When Lysander seemed settled he continued; "I've learned that introducing yourself to the local leaders is customary, so I felt it best to personally introduce myself to what may be our new community leader and perhaps even get an idea of what Shadowhold would look like under their care."

The priest paused for a moment, letting the words sink in before continuing.

"I also wanted to bring something to your attention that may have been forgotten in the shuffle of power. The late Ms. Dolzaev, God rest her soul, had an issue with what she believed were Sabbat killing residents and possibly breaking the Masquerade. Despite my misgivings with the wholesale execution of our kind, I also care about the safety and security of those we once were. I understand that you are a busy man, I'm sure that you can spare some time on this matter as it would reduce the danger to Kindred and mortal alike.

"Ah yes, I recall her mentioning something about assembling a team to crack on the investigation. Any inconvenience, good Lord pardon me for saying so, seemed to drive her right proper barmy." Lysander said in a low voice, directing Reverend Throckett away from the humans. "I don't fancy the idea of wholesale slaughter myself, gonna take a real hard slog to figure out the pattern so I and my colleagues may save the next poor sap who takes a gander down the wrong alleyway."

Throckett let the relief show on his face. "So it's being taken care of." While he worried that things would turn violent; he was also aware that the matters were no longer in his hands. He had to protect what he could and not risk overreaching and losing it all. He leaned closer to the doctor for his next question.

"And your competition; Bingley and Brigham. What are they like? I met with you first as you seemed the most approachable." He gestured towards Fairrivers' doctor jacket. "What do you think of them? How do you think their rule will be should you not..." The Reverend paused as he realized that he wasn't quite sure how kindred leaders were elected. Was it democratic? Surely not a fight to the death or anything that barbaric. "Receive enough votes?"

"Miss Brigha- Oh, she does hate it when I call her that, Nina and I have been mates for forever and a fortnight, it seems. Her visions and readings always come true, so I'd recommend speaking with her next. She can usually be found at the chantry, at the Wicked Sorceress, or in the company of her fellows. She does have a tendency to be rather informal at times, though." Lysander then paused for breath before moving on to the subject of Lucretia. "Miss Bingley; however, you'd better be formal with her if you want to dodge a kerfuffle with her. She's always been a tad... authoritarian, so keep your wits about you if you plan on meeting with her."

The priest's eyes widened in surprise. He had been given an impression of an oncoming war and that the fight for praxis would be cutthroat but the way that this Kindred spoke of it all filled the worried Throckett with relief. Maybe things were not as bad as Emily implied. The Reverend already had a healthy respect for authority and greatly approved of Lysander's demeanor. He doubted that he would be disturbed at all by the doctor coming to power. However the mention of a prophet greatly interested Throckett.

If there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord, shall make Myself known to him in a vision.

"Divine Revelation." He said quietly, shaking slightly as he  was lost in the rapture of His glory. He blinked and his glazed eyes returned to their normal luster. He apologized to Fairrivers and as he subtly regained his bearings, thanked God for not having lost too much time. "Forgive me, Doctor. I seemed to have been lost in thought. I shall take your advice and visit Miss Brigham after this."

For the Lord God does nothing without revealing his secret to his servants the prophets.

He took a step back to indicate a polite departure. "I won't keep you much longer, and thank you for taking time out of your night to address my questions but I must trouble you for one more piece of advice. For Miss Bingley, how would you suggest I approach her? I'm quite unfamiliar with our people's culture and I do not wish to appear rude meeting her for the first time."

In reply to Reverend Throckett (msg # 8):

"Miss Bingley can usually be found on Seedy Row. Jewelry strikes her fancy, especially jewelry with onyxes or rubies. She does love receiving gifts. I'm sure our more artistic friends on Easy Street can make recommendations. Most importantly though, mind your P's and Q's." The young-looking doctor said, before handing the Reverend his card, "Do give me a ping if you need anything more."
This message was last updated by the player at 23:04, Mon 20 Dec 2021.

Throckett nodded politely as he took in the doctor's advice. Wealth and faith rarely went hand in hand and he felt that it was more than a little blasphemous to pawn a church relic for a meeting. He wasn't quite sure how exactly he would procure a gift for Bingley but he had faith that God would guide him in his endeavors.

"Thank you again for everything, Doctor Fairrivers. God be with you." He said taking the card and bidding Lysander a goodbye. As he left he eyed the card with a smidge of puzzlement; did every Kindred in Shadowhold have a card? Ms. Dubois had been eager to set up a website and a "Facebook" group, whatever that was, for the church. Perhaps the rather personable visits that the pastor had grown accustomed to were becoming obsolete. How could he adapt to better deliver His word?

Lost in thought, the Reverend pondered his way towards his next destination: The Wicked Sorceress.

   Stepping from the dojo, his old grey dufflebag slung on his shoulder, he walks towards the exit.  A few purchases tucked into the bag with a uniform and spare clothes.  His plain features blending into the crowd.  As he walks, sharp eyes scan the crowd from beneath the broad brim of a leather hat.  The night was still early as he walked out the door into the underground parking lot.

Putting the phone away, Rook goes to his nondescript car.  Loading his duffel in the trunk, he pulls out onto the ramp, and from there to the road.  A slight smirk creased his lips briefly, as he suspected Nefertari to be attempting to assemble people to address her Sabbat issue, or get information on Emily.  He admired her persistence, but there were other concerns than that.  The smirk disappeared, and he continued the drive to his destination.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:59, Wed 05 Jan 2022.

Emily's heels clicked quietly on the floor of the mall as she walked through the small crowds and drew the eye of many people as she passed depsite her casual yet expensive jeans and hoodie. Many of the passerbys eyes would then slide over to Joseph who similarly stood out for different reasons. She scanned the crowds for any faces she recognised and smiled to see a sea of strangers before gesturing for Joseph to step closer as she muttered into his hear. Jospeh gave a curt not in affirmation and gave her a questioning look before stepping back and following once more.

Emily wandered over to the area where the blood drive should have been held but was disspointed to find it empty and the Ventrue Primogen not in sight. She clicked her tongue on the roof of her mouth in annoyance and heade back to the car. "Take me to the Succubus please Joseph, may as well see if Lady Maharet is willing to shed any light on who the next proince will be."