Maya couldn't help but stifle another sigh. Really now... Her mother had fallen for this guy?... It was hard to help it, seeing as Mayanna had inherited most aspects of her mothers calm personality.

As Atticus and Dryac both sized eachother up, Maya took the opportunity to look closely at the one who was her father. He always seemed to jump to conclusions... Headstrong... She shook her head, sighing again.

It was at this moment she reached out a hand, placing it on Atticus's arm in a very strange imitation of how Nemesis would comfort someone.

"Don't worry about it. Bando wouldn't let him hurt me anyway." She smile slightly, aware that the detective probably couldn't see it, but doing it all the same.

Maya simply listened, her hand still on Atticus' arm. She showed little surprise when Dryac revealed he'd already discovered they were related, though her mind was saying otherwise. Then again... It was just a little obvious. Mayanna looked too much like Nemesis and had the same aura as Dryac. It wasn't exactly difficult to decipher.

She simply closed her eyes and thought about it, before glancing at Atticus first and speaking. "I believe your job is done..." She smiled slightly. "I'll pay you after I've sorted this business out here." She looked over at Dryacs retreating back.

"You do not need to apologise. I already know my parents didn't know of my existance. I paid Atticus here to track down my bloodline, which led me here, to the castle of Bando, whom I knew by that time was my grandfather. The rest of it unfolded from there... Although, admittedly, I hadn't realised I'd also had an aunt."

"Indeed."

Maya looked off past Dryac as Nemesis herself emrged from shadows, her arms crossed as she came to stand beside Dryac. "It would seem, you defied my expectations..."

"You knew I existed." It wasn't really a question, but she was still slightly confused. "But... how...?"

"I was there when Niele died. I'd known she was carrying you, and I attempted to save you seeing as I could not save my sister, my twin . I believed you dead, however, and left with nothing else. I can only as.sume someone found you later..."

Maya took it in, then nodded slowly, realising that she was looking at a mirror image of her own mother. She looked at the floor for a moment... Bando was the only one still in the dark... She should probably tell him.

Nemesis smiled. "Mayanna. The youngest Old Blood."

 ((I don't really want to kick Atticus out completley becuase he's fun... XD But whatever. We'll see what happens.

Yesterday was not our shining moment in the Vampire RP... XD))

As Dryac spoke his deepest thoughts to Maya, Atticus couldn't help but smiling ever so slighty- a strenous effort for him that probably more of resemble a twitch on one side of his mouth than anything else. How touching, he thought. But how did he know he was Maya's father...? Of course, since Atticus was a pure human he could not sense the auras around him and without his eyes he could not see the threatening gestures of Dryac or percieve the clear relation between the quartet as he may have been able to before the accident that claimed his sight. A few years ago he would have been able to clear up this job with a mere glance at the players in the scene he was investigating... but those talents were behind him and he had to make do. When Dryac was finished he bowed to Maya and then to Dryac and stepped away to let the two talk in peace.

A few seconds later there was a gust of air and an unexplainable chill ran down Atticus's spine as some unidentifiable and bitter smell bit at his nostrils and cuased him to cough and choke. A moment later, Nemasis spoke and he wondered why he hadn't heard her approach...

~~~~~~~~

Bando sprinted along the vast manicured lawn of his castle, his long powerful legs pounding a steady tatto on the chilly earth. Yellow eyes gleaming in the early moon shine and pink nose held high, he was in his cat form again. Behind him Illumay and Raze ran a similar course, maybe even tring to follow his fleeting shadowy figure across the deeping dark. A sharp breeze played at his whiskers and the cold of it numbed his small body but could do nothing to abait the power of his inner sense that trace the inter- spatial course of Nemasis's shadows and led him right to there position.

He bounded up to the small group, transforming in midstep and stopped beside Nemasis. To his surprise, Dryac looked very upset and Maya and Nemasis didn't look terribley pleased either... There was also a fourth person standing back from Maya with his features covered by a trench coat and hat... The same figure he thought he had seen on the steps yesterday morning and also in the shadows of the main hall. So he hadn't been imagining it all!

"What goes on here?" Bando demanded irrateably.

Dryac turned back when Maya seemed to sound okay, he still was digesting all of this information, I tell you, first losing his memory and being tortured by vampire hunters, then finding out your mother's dead, regaining your memories, and then discovering that you had a daughter, he had by far had the past few weeks of any vampire's life, and it was beginning to give him a headache.

Ryac followed Bando out of the castle and across the vast lawn with ease, he could keep up with almost anyone, it seemed to be only Dryac that he had trouble with, "CHARNA! I hope he's alright!"

Nemesis didn't turn at the sound of Bando's voice, and neither did Maya, seeing as she was facing that direction anyway. Raze had followed Bando, and now stood behind the first ever vampire with a slightly confused ex
pression.

Once Bando had come to a stop, Nemesis looked over her shoulder at him, a small smile on her face.

"You dont need to worry. We we're... Just getting to know eachother... In a family sense"

Raze raised an eyebrow, and Illumay then appeared, walking over to stand by Nemesis and looking as confused as the rest of them. The rest of them, of course, being Bando and Raze.

 ((Argh, Reu, why did Ryac have to have another hue of orange for his dialogue?! XD))

Bando looked puzzled at Nemasis. "In a family sense? Why, whatever do you mean, my dear? Have you decided to adopt young Maya?" He luaghed, never guessing the true intamacy of the situation.

~~~~~

Atticus heard the other three approach and wondered further why he hadn't noticed Nemasis. At that moment he decided that he would do a little investigating on his own, with or without a client!

~~~~~

Pete shuddered angrily under a shroud of darkness. Maya had come to her secret spot as he knew she would but in no time a mob had *censored*embled there as well! He had no chance to push her buttons further and could do nothing but watch and sulk. Later, he'd get her... if only cleaning up the dining room and kitchen hadn't taken so long...

((Ryac speaks orange, lol.))

Ryac drove to a halt as he reached Dryac, seeing everything was fine he breathed a sigh of relief, "I see Charna is feeling generous today Cousin." "Charna is very generous, she decided to give my daughter life."  with that Dryac placed his hand on Maya's shoulder and nodded at her, turned on his heel and began to walk towards the castle, overwhelmed by it all slightly.

"Your duaghter?" Bando choked looking suddenly very taken aback. "But then... then I'm your Grandfather, Maya! And Nemasis is your Aunt! Did you know all along?" He cried in shock and despair. 

"Why did you never tell me...?" Suddenoly he looked much more tired and much older than before.

Maya didn't make eye contact with the Old man. Of course she knew... She didn't say becuase she couldn't.

Nemesis put a hand on Bando's shoulder. "I believe she probably did. Seeing as she found you, did she not?... This has been quite a turn of events for all of us."

Illumay was slightly overwhelmed by the number of emotions swirling in the air at the moment. Wow. It was absoloutely cluttered.

~(crappy post. Dx *braindead*)~

Dryac placed his hand on his cousin's shoulder, but his eyes lost concentration as he caught a strangely familiar scent, he whisperred to Ryac, "Go cousin, get Bando and Nemesis, keep little Illumay over there, the hunters have sent one of my old enemies for me, I should be able to handle this for a few minutes without killing her, but I'm gonna need the rest of you to come and restrain her, I'm gonna need information." Ryac nodded almost immediately before turning and running over towards Nemesis, Dryac then turned to face the statue behind him, the eyes had gone from stone to a red glow, the glow of blood-lust. "Welcome back, I was wondering how long it'd take for the hunters to send their lead lackey."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Rival:

This rival was a vamprie, her main ability was to be one with the earth, therefore she was blessed with the eternal beauty of mother nature, and she could morph into stone whenever, a handy disguise for one working with the hunters.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The rival turned into her normal self, stretching to work out the few kinks that are developed when in a statue form, "Well, well, well old blood, here's me thinking I would have to wait a few mroe days for you to notice me, I was actually about to surprise attack you, but what fun would that be?" "Come and get me child."  The female vampir's eyes flared with a crimson red when Dryac had called her a child, falling for his ploy perfectly, sahe lunged at hischest, claws first, Dryac slapped her hands out of the way before driving his fist into the side of her skull knocking er sprawling, as she was regaining her balance he looked behind him,w anting the others to arrive before he had to kill her, after all he didn't want Illumay to get hurt.

Dryac saw the smirk on Pete's face and snapped, his eyes turning the exact same crimson colour as his rival's had a few moments before snapping his fingers, causing the musket to dissapear, simply an illusion, he really flitted and threw it, but as he turned his rival stood and lunged towards him again, letting her bloodlust drive her completely, her first mistake.

As she reached Dryac, he raise his right knee and smashed her nose, spreading it across the majority of her face, he then used the front two knuckles of his right hand to smash her face into the ground, "Is this all you have? honestly, you're weak for a frontline lackey." "YOU IDIOT! They really did a number on your memory didn't they? I'm a mix breed like you, only I'm dagonic rather than demonic, the dragons have always been more graceful than the DEMONS!"  The rival spat the last few words out, she changed into a magnificent dragon, Dryac smiled, he morphed into his Demon form, stretching his arms wide, wrapping his hands around her throat, only removing one to punch her in the face.

((KURROOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!))

Pete was neither alarmed or fooled by the illusion for an instant. The darness that ran thtough his blood made good his judgment and he knew exactly where his weapon fell. No matter. Regular weapons were of little use against such annoying prey. He would wait until one or the other was dead before finishing off the surviver and then slink away unseen in search of better game. Without thinking about it he put a hand to his pocket to make sure his treasure was still there...