Description: A vampire in Mexico, in the middle of the day and holed up in a cantina. An unsuspecting hawk and a werewolf enter, and a bit of awkward socializing ensues.
Sonora, one of the 32 federal states of Mexico. Found in the Northwest portion of the country just across the pond from Baja California, it is also the ancestral home of the Thunderfoot tribe, which is comprised of much of the Sonoran desert plains. It is a diverse area in regards to wildlife, and when one thinks the Wild West, this could stand in for any movie.
T. Hawk drives his pickup truck across a stretch of desert highway with the windows down. Due to his immense size, his truck is suitably on the big side too, though an old model, weather beaten and having seen plenty of off roading; it's not some city slicker's vehicle, that's for sure. It's a working truck. The enormous man often takes long drives when not engaged in work; increasingly he has taken to moments of solitude. Perhaps even looking for something. What that something is, he hasn't figured out yet.
The missing girls, the struggling tribe, the fighting circuit...these things often popped into his head. Going off like this helped clear his mind.
A roadside cantina.. probably a nice saving's grace in the sunscorched lands of central America. Or, atleast, it's all sunscorched according to Marilda. Dressed up as she is in that fullbody black leather, overheating is likely an issue. Especially with a hood on!
Sitting quietly and keeping to herself, nursing a slowly warming glass of water on the bar with a heavy sigh. Her cithara zipped up safely in its case on her lap, and all her limbs staying inline with her frame, she's not really looking like a social butterfly. Like, at all.
Hawk sees the cantina ahead. Might be good to stop. He pulls the truck into the parking lot, kicking up dust from the unpaved gravel land around the place. He gets out and the truck noticeably jiggles from side to side after his weight is freed from it. He pushes the door open and enters; 7'7" and heavily muscled, his expression hard as stone with a deep frown, eyes scanning the place in case he happens to run into someone he knows. Nothing. He takes heavy steps to the bar and sits down just a seat away from the woman in black, though he might as well be sitting right next to her. "Water," he grunts out to the bartender. He keeps his arms resting on the counter.
Not really looking to the entrance, Marilda doesn't quite notice the newcomer. As large and imposing as he may be. Not until he asks for a water does Marilda turn her head, eyes hidden under the shade of her hood and sunglasses, but she is certainly surprised. Not wanting to make trouble, she quietly averts her gaze and sips lamely from her water. She withdraws a little, physically, tucking her elbows in and turning ever so slightly from Hawk.
Hawk notices the woman's slight movements but makes no mention of it. He's used to his presence being intimidating to others. "Turn on the news," he asks the bartender, as his water is handed to him. Cold and refreshing; he takes a deep drink as the television mounted in the corner is switched to the national news channel. "Violence between the Chapas cartel and federal forces escalated this week starting with a surprise police raid on a drug compound in Chihuahua..." the newscaster says. Cartel members are shown either dead or arrested, some mugshots showing them with sunglasses or hoodies. This makes Hawk give Marilda another look as if scrutinizing her from the report.
Oh, television. It's something Marilda hasn't heard much and also seen few of, but there's one now. Something about violence and other words she attributes to lost in translation. But the look she spies from the corner of her eye, that's not something she can really ignore... especially from such an imposing... male. She quietly turns her head back around, sipping her water for a moment.. then she speaks up in a cracked, almost whisper. "Hello."
Her sunglasses seem to be foreign, judging by the brand insignia on the left side of the frame, and the hood on her jacket is leather and inclines forward, more utilitarian than any teen's hoodie. It probably should belong to someone considerably older than the visible portion of her face suggests.
Hawk doesn't answer for a moment. He's taking in her unusual clothing. Definitely a gringo, but out here? "Hi," he replies. His eyes are much like his namesake's. "Long way out, for a tourist."
Marilda seems a bit brightened that she's acknowledged in a warm enough manner. Then there's the comment which makes her uneasy. She can't really read this exchange too well. "I didn't think it'd be such a.. warm walk between port cities. Or quite this sunny." she explains. "And arid. First time in an actual desert." an admission that brings colour to her face. But it's faded and pale, like her complexion.
Hawk remains frowning. He takes another long drink of water and already he's going to need a refill. "Make sure you replenish your electrolytes. They have gatorade here. Or get pretzels, nuts...just water won't cut it," he then advises. The news goes to a scandal involving a star football player and tax fraud. "You sticking to the road?"
Marilda returns a similar expression. Oh, actual... food stuff. She'd kind of been coasting along on that, but her other needs are making actual digestion a chore. "I think I'll, hm.. enjoy the company here until the sun's a bit lower. And yes, I am keeping to the roads for a sense of direction." she answers, giving a half smile.
The big man shrugs. "Suit yourself. Gets cold at night, though." She looks properly insulated with all that clothing...the thought strikes him that she might actually be albino. It would explain all the stuff on her. He inwardly marvels at her just walking out here in the middle of the desert. "You headed somewhere?"
Marilda nods. "The cold and dark is what I'm more suited to." she states, smiling. "But, to answer you, I was just planning to travel south until I hit the nextport, marine or air." she explains. "Then I'll see if I can get a trip to somewhere else I haven't been. I have a lot of free time, and a little bit of money left for travel, why not?"
"Free, roaming spirit, huh?" Hawk remarks. His expression softens a little. "See new things, enjoy the journey, that sort of thing?"
Well it was confirmed; deserts suck for fur. This was the first time she'd ever been to Mexico and typically speaking, she didn't like making public appearances in places other than Southtown, but after hearing some possible reports of Darkstalkers, Azumi took it upon herself to travel. While normally she might hide her wolfish appearance, in this heat...it just wasn't worth it.
Deciding to catch a break at a relatively quiet looking Cantina, the werewolf pushes open the doors to the place while taking a deep breath of cooler, not-deserty air. After passing reassuring waves towards the locals that might have gathered here, she takes a seat at the bar along with the others, and looks over the drink selection for a moment.
With a small shrug, Marilda starts her answer. "After being widowed, I've been taking more time with life. I'm travelling so I can meet new people, commune with the land, and see what kind of progress has come to the world outside of my homeland in Romania." she's being honest too, no doubt about it!
A new arrival comes by, smelling of wet fur and almost heatstroke. Marilda seems a bit tense about this, but doesn't avert her notable gaze from Hawk.
"My condolences," Hawk says. "Lost some people myself." Romania, huh? That was definitely a long way...but you could meet anybody out on the road. "Journeys clear the mind, even if for a moment," he muses. He is about to say more when someone else comes in and Hawk happens to turn...and sees a walking wolf. His expression finally changes as he jaw drops a bit, puzzling as his mind attempts to process what he sees. That is...a very good costume. He decides to try and not get distracted, looking back to Marilda. "Just watch out. Outlaws might see you, think you got valuables on you...not as bad as near Juarez, here. But, be cautious anyway."
Azumi notes the other two sitting at the bar and passes them a polite wave...giving the impression that this was certainly not some sort of costume. She raises her hands towards the bartender and places a quiet order for some orange juice before tending to the sand she'd gathered in her travels, taking the time to start rubbing her forearms to get rid of it...though careful to only send it towards the ground. She speaks in a pleasant and conversational tone.
"Hey there you two, are you guys locals?"
Marilda gives another, more understanding, incline of her head to Hawk, and an agreeing one to his word of wisdom. Then, there's that jaw-drop which has her raising her brow above her spectacles. Black hair, she's certainly not an albino, unless she's dying it! She hums. "Is something.. wrong?" she asks of Hawk before acknowledging his talk of outlaws to keep an eye for. "Yes, the television mentioned that just now."
Then there's the question from a newcomer. While Marilda really doesn't want to see what made such a man drop his jaw, she braves a turn of her head to spot ... oh, a werewolf. Such legends exist in Romania, and Marilda deeply, deeply wants to go away now. Go far away. "I'm not a local.. no." she responds hesitantly.
Hawk sees the werewolf talk to him but still can't quite believe what he's seeing. There were stories among the tribe about skinchangers but...those were just stories. He reasons this must be due to extensive cosmetic surgery. Either way, he decides he doesn't want to know the story. Instead, he answers, "I'm local. Why, you need directions?" the giant man asks, taking another drink of water. Marilda gets a glance, but now his attention is on Azumi.
Azumi looks at the reactions she was getting from both the girl and the beefcake and tilts her head a little bit, her glass of orange juice being slid into her hand, while she drops a few bits of region specific currency for the tender to have. It wasn't overly generous, but it'd pay for a few refills.
She addressess T.hawk first, as Marilda hadn't quite posed a statement that posed a direct response. She shakes her head towards his question and speaks up.
"No...I can get around decently enough...but all this blasted sand...anyway, I'm here on some reports of supernatural activity. You know...people that look like me. Seen anything suspicious?"
Being ignored for the moment, Marilda just centralizes her eyes back to her water and takes another tiny sip. She even adjusts her sunglasses and cringes. The wolf is on a hunt, and this frightens her deeply.
T. Hawk folds his arms. He looks back at Marilda. Is she nervous? Well, he can't blame her. "No, I haven't. I just drove in a few minutes ago. Things have been quiet," he answers the werewolf.
Azumi takes a polite sip from her drink while T. Hawk answers her question. She passes a glance toawrds Marilda for a moment before speaking up again. "Rats. I'm here to find if anyone...of that nature needs any help. I work with a group that's planning on making a safe place for people like me. There are quite alot of people who make a habit...or even sport of hunting those like me. It's really pretty needless. I'd heard that there might be someone like that here. If the reports are wrong, then they are wrong, but I hope I find them before it's too late."
Marilda's expression shifts to skeptical. "I haven't seen anyone in my trip about here with... fur." yes, that's honest. No she doesn't look from her drink, for now. Another sip and a quiet shiver. She's going to leave soon, despite how rude it might be to this new friend she's making in Hawk.
Hawk's frown deepens. "No offense, but you can save the story. Whatever your goal is, it doesn't concern me. I haven't seen anything unusual, I'm just here for a drink." He decides he'd better get going, anyway. Before more weirdness decides to turn up. Hawk pays his tab in cash. He glances to Marilda, expression unreadable. "I'm Thunder Hawk. T. Hawk for short. You ever wind up in Thunderfoot territory, look me up. We can ensure you safe passage south or east to Baja if you really need it."
Azumi raises her brows as she's quite harshly shut down for a simple question. She frowns towards T. Hawk as he turns up to leave and shakes her head in annoyance. "Look, I don't mean other werewolves. I mean anyone who has problems. Humans with supernatural powers, vampires, weird other creatures I hadn't heard of. All I'm trying to do is prevent some problems. That's all. But I see there is no help to be had here. Glad to know the people of Mexico are so passionate about those who need help."
She upturns the orange juice and downs it just as quickly as it had came and sets it off to the side before standing up and starting to make her way towards the door.
Marilda gives a bow to Hawk. "I'm Marilda Barbat. And I appreciate and will keep your offer in mind, Hawk." she replies. Then she looks to the fleeing Azumi and quietly reaches her hand out. "Let me come with you, strange one." and she lifts her cithara and stands herself. "I want to talk." if allowed, her gloved hand reaches for the girl's fur.
Hawk, in his disbelief, feels angry at what he percieves to be some lunatic trying to dupe him about supernatural creatures. Did he look like a fool? He stomps out into the hot sun, opening his truck door and getting in. He fumes silently. The nerve. He slammed the door shut, hard, started up the truck and swerved back onto the lonely highway. Nature. He would get back to nature for a little while and forget about cartels, strange black clad women and wolves that walk.
Azumi stops when she feels her hand being grasped by someone...and turns to face Marilda. Unsurprisingly, the fur makes for a comfortable surface to grab. Her ears perk forwards as she listens and the anger from the large man's dismissal of her cause starts to fade. She takes a step backwards and gestures towards the door. "Really? We can step outside and talk in private if you want."
Marilda is... saddened by Hawk's exit, pouting... maybe she had taken it personally? But smooth something to hold onto helps, and she nods to the wereninja. "Yes, privacy. Some of that." she replies, her accent thickening and becoming pronounced in her sadness.
Azumi makes her way outside of the building and after double checking the nearby road for traffic, she crosses it without issue. She finds a nearby spot not too far from said road where there were a few rocks, a couple of them waist high. Taking this as a great sitting opportunity, she takes a seat on one of them and props up one of her legs. She gestures towards Marilda to follow. Once in conversation range, she strikes up the conversation.
"This should be good enough. So what is it that you wanted to talk about?"
Marilda keeps behind the were and crosses the street. This sunlight and heat suck... really, they do. She stands near Azumi and eyes the girl taking a seat. "You mentioned vampires." she starts. "What sort of help did you mean, specifically."
Azumi's tail swings from side to side pleasantly as the two were talking, eventually pulling her knee up to rest her head upon. She gestures with a palm out to the desert, indicating a wide open space. "Same help as anyone else. I'm apart of the Full Moon Society, which is a group that helps out those who might be hunted by humanity for not understanding. Kind of like that big guy we were talking to before, but worse. We're in the process of building a place for us to all live in peace. Provide help to those who need it. The same offer would be open to a vampire, but I know with them and their practice of Sires, they tend to keep an eye on those they create. Quite a few I've come across are quite wealthy and had themselves set up somewhere with either family or power or both."
Marilda listens patiently to the answer(s) given, and shrugs. In the end she sighs. "I'm a widow, with no other family or real friends to turn to." she starts. "I haven't met another of similar kind to myself, and know nothing of said hierarchies. I came unto this.. sickness as my late husband did, suddenly and with no precursor. Except that I seem to be surviving with it." she replies. "If you are offering shelter and community, I may take up your offer."
Azumi's brows perk up as Marilda implicates herself as this probably vampire. A quick sniff of the nose was enough to prove that yeah, this lady definitely is...weird. Or at least far more than she seems. That tail continues to passively wag as she speaks. "Oh? I'm sorry to hear all of that. Granted, I can't say I've met every Vampire but...I know that's how things have a tendency to shake out. I have friends who can help put you up and keep you safe. And if you need any help controlling said abilities, I'm sure we can find someone to help you out. But if you want to take up my offer, you should come to Southtown. It's a really big city, filled with lots of action if you know where to look...or peace and quiet, if you are looking for that too."
Behind the scent of pine and forest that clings to her, she is mostly human. Sickly, but human. "No, controlling them isn't a problem. Maybe making them easier to use would be a better start." she murmurs. "Not much use to them at the level I can use them currently." she sounds a little upset. "I've visited southtown before... I fought on the roof of one of the highschools on a televised event. But I had to leave, with sunlight coming in."
Azumi blinks at that explaination...and then looks up towards the bright sun with lowered ears. "Oh...ah...sorry. We can wait until nightfall to talk or you could catch up with me in Southtown. I didn't realize being out here would be such a bad thing for you. In either case...a televised fight? Are you in the Neo League as well? I just joined up not too long ago and had two fights myself...neither of which I won but...you know...details."
Marilda shakes her head. "No, not the Neo League." she replies. "Maybe soon, I'll see about it. And don't worry, sunlight just burns my skin... easily. And lights hurt my eyes, hence the glasses." she explains
Log created on 14:52:47 02/08/2015 by Marilda, and last modified on 21:20:12 02/08/2015.