Arioch lay in the boiling water while he stared at the dark mosaic that was pressed against the ceiling. The different shades of black and grays with hints of purple made his eyes swirl. His golden skin was red with heat, and his breath exhaled through the dark bathroom, his fingers caressed the different candles that sat around his bath while the other held a coupe glass. Windows circled the bathroom, but they were covered with black lace, leaving patches of light streaming around the room.
A tall man walked into the bathroom, his monolid eyes moving over the figure in the tub. His pale bleached blonde hair was a wavy mess around his face and the long military coat was over the top with medals and jewels. He moved closer, watching his friend be so pathetic. Ever since he had accepted fate, he just laid around in depressing air.
Minjun whispered a silvery voice, saying, "Arioch," but the body remained still. "Arioch, how long have you been sitting here?" Arioch lifted his glass to swallow down the last bit of blood. "Arioch…" his name lingered in the air.
"Minjun, you're supposed to be looking after the clan while Nandi took some time away," Arioch growled, moving his arms and legs.
"She is back and with bad news, Arjun has been turning mortals" Minjun lingered in the air.
Arioch stood from his bath, steam flowing from his body. "Did she follow protocol?" He grabbed a robe and wrapped himself in it.
"Yes, but…" Minjun said but he was interrupted.
"Good, and I will be here…" he moved through the door towards his room.
"But…" Minjun began again.
"We need to amp up security here. I had a little mortal sneak in. She was loud, but she got in, so lock each door from now on" Arioch shook his head at the memory.
"Oh, I will do that but… maybe… You should…" Minjun trod lightly on the subject.
"I will be here," Arioch said firmly, which made the Minjun just stare at his back before leaving Arioch in his solitude.
….
Marv rushed through the alleyway towards a gothic club called Thirst. She pulled at her hair, which was curling in different directions while her flare black jumpsuit was riding up. She walked by the familiar wall, which had Greek sculpture wallpaper and neon lights. Marv stepped down onto the main floor, where a bar stood at the side while a stage and DJ booth at the very end, and tables stood next to a dance floor which was separated by a statue of Selene, the goddess of the moon and the mother of vampires.
Marv stood admiring the tall statue, with the crescent on her forehead and a far-off look in her eyes. "Marv, hey" a chipper voice sounded behind her.
She turned to see a redhead with a face so small, she looked like a fairy but a goth fairy "Evening, Lace" Marv moved to the bar, pulled off her bag, and placed it in the safe behind the bar. She pulled on her waistcoat, which was part of her uniform, and placed a name tag on it.
"So happy you came into work today, ugh," Lace explained as her eyes rolled. "Chad canceled at the last minute, and Joe wanted to get Kristy to take the shift, for 'practice' but thank god the boss said you should take the shift instead" she craved ice when Marv looked at her. "Now I get to spend the shift with someone I like," she smiled, wiggling her eyebrows.
"Have you made the boss's drink yet?" Marv said in a monotone voice.
"Nope, you know he only drinks YOUR East India Negonri" Lace smiled suggestively but Marv just struggled.
On cue, the boss came down the stairs from his office that overlooked the entire club. He looked too young to run a place like this, but his eyes looked hurt and tired. He placed himself at the bar, his back hunched as the purple neon light reflected off his deep sepia skin and down his long hook nose. Marv watched him for a moment. He looked like he held the world on his shoulders but she shook her head and went back to the drink.
Lace placed a whiskey with a piece of ice before Marv. She inspected the ice block before throwing a light rum over it, watching it run to the bottom on the glass. Then she circled the Campari around the edges of the ice block and watched the mixture turn orange. She added an East India Solera sherry to the drink at his request. Before grabbing a lemon peel, squeezing it on top of the drink and slowly rubbing it around the edge, then swirling the drink within. She walked it over to her boss and placed it in front of him. As usual, he didn't touch nor did he say thank you or even acknowledge her.
But she watched his gaze into the glass, like he was looking into a crystal ball, like it was telling him that his life was long gone and he was ok with it. "So, are you still on your vampire high?'' Lace asked, pulling Marv's attention from her despondent boss.
"A bit. There is not much online when it comes to vampire facts, just folklore and movie lore," Marv said while she chopped different garnishes.
Lace still hacked away at ice "tell me about it but I have some insanely old books, I found them in an abandoned library" she took a deep breath in, through her rambling "this book is filled with facts and stories that is so different from folklore and mainstream media. Though some mainstream media have some of this shit right but always hybrid is such a concept" Marv stared at the woman, who finally got the point "I was thinking, maybe we get together at my place and look through them, I would love to discuss different takes on the subject" she smiled with hopeful eyes.
And for a moment, it seemed like the whole club was quiet, waiting for Marv's answer "sorry, I can't, this week I am completely booked but if it is ok, I would like to borrow a few" Marv said, and the room felt like it sighed.
"sure" Lace said with a worried look in her eyes. "no problem" she went back to carving just as a rushed sound came from the boss.
Marv turned to see the seat empty, and the boss was nowhere to be found but the drink still sitting in the glass. It was unusual since he always finished his drink before disappeared without even a sound. Marv turned back to her co-worker, who was still hacking the ice as if nothing happened, so she cleaned up his glass and kept preparing for the shift.