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[Zalika]

Zalika watched, almost dismayed, as the show that she had commissioned was still going on as planned. The elegant twirl of the dancers as the female opera singer sang her pretty little heart out was almost perfect, but no one but the sharpest vampire would have noticed a footwork slip. She never would have allowed it, if she was still in charge.

Dancing, dancing, ever dancing. The girl was singing for her freedom, trapped under the harsh imprisonment of her father, a man misguided in his attempts to protect his only child from the curse bestowed upon her because of an action he had committed before her birth. Now, the caring man had turned into a monster, barely allowing his daughter to do anything, and she planned to run away. At the moment, only one of the performers on stage was human, but the audience either didn't know, or didn't care. Later, of course, they would find out what this terrible curse was, and Zalika couldn’t bear it. Before all of this, she would have been watching in the wings, ready to give advice, and watch the faces filled with disbelief at what the actors could do. This was the first show in the world that would show a real, live vampire feeding, and she wanted to be able to bow at the end of the production. Not that she could now, of course.

Jaw tightening, she stood, and started to walk out of Broadway. She daren’t go back to Blood Theatre, her beloved creation, as she knew who would still be there, but she had to see her best performance to date before moving on. Other patrons tutted and sighed heavily as Zalika moved past them, but they obviously didn’t know who she was. She didn’t frequent Broadway as Master of the City, and when on stage, she rarely lifted her hood, the only way to keep an air of mystery around her. She merely called herself the Soul of the Production, and the audience loved it, clapping and joyous, but probably only paying attention to the actors and actresses behind her.

As she reached the back of the doors, she looked back towards the stage. The twinkling of the costumes matched the bright shine of tears on her cheek, the vampire distraught that she would have to go, and never see this again. It was just too painful, knowing that as soon as she left the theatre, she could never return, or risk a fate worse than death. She didn’t know Kaniel at all, but with his power, she would force everyone to their knees around her, making sure that no one would ever try to overthrow. If she were in his position, she would have killed the old Master of the City outright, instead of banishment.

The gold filigree of the door handle was smooth and cold to the touch, Zalika staring at it, as if it was the knell she was waiting for. Colours were dimmed because of the current performance, but she could see the finery in her mind’s eye, the memory burned into her soul. In a way, she had wished that she had never come to New York, but so much had happened that she didn’t want to regret.

Turning the handle, Zalika quietly opened the door, concentrating on not making a noise. Behind the door, however, was something she hadn’t expected.

[Kaniel]

Zalika was an obvious liability. Kaniel had ordered her to stay with the Council in France, and the next thing he knew, he could sense her power on his doorstep! Respect was worth nothing in these modern times, which was shown easily by the fact that Kaniel had felt her presence enter the invisible boundaries of his American dominion. He had been relaxing at the Theatre, deciding that he would find a modern penthouse for himself when he had felt the dark aura of controlled fear return. Not wanting to give the wrong impression, he knew that he would have to be the one to see her, and question her actions.

He leaned backwards slightly in his chair. If he were Zalika, where would he go? A spurned Master of the City, sent to another country… why would she come back here? To challenge Kaniel’s position? No, she was an intelligent creature, and knew that she had no chance of stopping him getting what he wanted. So, what, then? A wry smile spread across Kaniel’s features. If he were Zalika, the great entrepreneur, he would go to the Theatre. Well, obviously not Blood Theatre, as it would be obvious he would be here, but another theatre.

Remembering the new production that he had allowed go ahead as scheduled, Kaniel had a flash as to where she would be. He hadn’t bothered going to see it, as he was never exactly a theatre-visiting vampire, and wasn’t completely interested in the running of Zalika’s businesses. Then again, if he didn’t at least try, the human authorities would realise that something was up. Zalika would always prepare her theatres for whenever she went away. Now, Kaniel couldn’t even recall the name of the piece. It wasn’t important to him, which had upset some of his employees, but he didn’t exist to make their lives happier, or to praise them for something he didn’t care for.

The Lonely God stood up, moving to the door to pick up his long, tan coat. The piece reached past his knees, trailing beside his ankles, a muted colour against the bright white converse trainers on his feet. Opening his door, he then walked out into the street, the darkness only controlled by feeble street lights that shone brightly for only a few feet away from their source. Kaniel hurried along the paths, hands in pinstriped pockets, face without a shadow of emotion. He just hoped he would reach the theatre before she left.

Almost ten minutes later and some directions from passers-by, Kaniel found Broadway in front of him. He felt like an idiot for missing the neon signs, but he had more on his mind than that. It just reminded him that he would have to purchase some maps, and study every inch of the City much more closely, to stop that from happening again. He stepped through glass doors, converse sinking slightly in luxurious carpet, as he found which way to go for the only place Zalika would dare to stand and watch. He tried firstly in the eastern wings, but there was no sign of her, until he moved to the western side. Kaniel paused behind the doors, trying to get a sense of her, and there she was. The power was so close he could taste it.

As the doors slowly opened, an eyebrow raised on his face. Zalika stood there, without a word passing her lips, leaving Kaniel the one to first utter a word. “Zalika. What a surprise.” The words held nothing to them, apart from the slight sarcasm in his intonation. “You are supposed to be in France. Come with me.” He turned from her, and walked ahead, knowing where he could find a private room to talk to her. A short walk later, and they had their privacy, Kaniel holding open the door for the vampire, then entering himself. “What are you doing here? I banished you from New York, and barely a few days later, and I find you skulking.” He sighed. “Did you forget that I can sense your power from a mile away?” The last was obviously just a human metaphor, but it still made sense in his own mind. Staring at her intently, he waited for a response. This would be interesting.

[Zalika]

Finding Kaniel standing right in front of her forced a torrent of fear to wash up to the surface, which Zalika found more than difficult to try and control. He may only look like an ordinary man, but the power that caressed him was more than terrifying. Zalika had always believed that only she had this power over fear, making her into some amazing being in her own right, but to find something which could drag her own horror to the top of her emotions was just something that she had trouble dealing with.

“Kaniel.” The name was so much more than just a word: it made her think of the angelic names of the Christian Church, making it even more surreal. Being faced with that type of immortality also terrified her, though, but for a different reason. Would she survive that long, until she became the infamous being that Kaniel was? Perhaps not, but it just didn’t seem natural. Yes, she was a vampire, but she understood that she would cease to exist one day, and she was at peace with that. Kaniel, however, was older than even he knew, and it… it just wasn’t right at all. “I…”

Before she could really answer, Kaniel turned, ordering her to follow him. France. After his sudden appearance, the rest of the vampire Council had taken her back to Paris, and explained everything. She had been dumbfounded at first, but she quickly got over it, thinking of New York. She had been told to go to Paris, and she had gone, but her heart pined for her status, and her people. She had just properly secured an alliance with the Pard, for fuck’s sake! Everything was going so well, and now it was in ruins. She had no idea what this new Master was like, which was even worse, considering how important New York was in the supernatural world.

Still, she followed. The gentle familiarity of Broadway was the only thing that soothed her, the temptation of soft curves and graceful arches reminding her of her reign in the City That Never Sleeps. Oh, how true it was! Having productions starting at the romantic time of midnight, and going on into four and five o’clock the next morning was one of the things that Zalika loved about having her own place, doing whatever crazy thing she thought may gain a little more publicity. Now, though, as the pair travelled through the inner sanctum of the theatre, the walls felt as though they were closing in on her, the threat of what could come next making her heart hammer steel into her chest.
The room was before them, and, like a gentleman, Kaniel opened the door. Going inside without question, Zalika took a seat, staring intently at the new Master of the City. Bastard. “I wanted to see my production… I spent so damn long getting prepared, and you don’t even seem to care. What will my – the – Theatre become without me? You don’t even care about it!” Oh well, Zalika was convinced that Kaniel was going to punish her anyway, so there was little point in pretending. He could probably sense that, anyway.

She looked downwards, concentrating more on the carpeted floor. “Damn it, this is my home now. I hate the Council chambers; I just want to be part of life again. I want my status again… I want my City back.” Through the sentence, Zalika became quieter and quieter, lamenting the loss of the things that meant the most to her. “I just want to stay. I… I’ll do anything to stay.” That was the last sentence she wanted to say to Kaniel, but it was true. Where could she go, once she found a place that she could fall in love with? It wasn’t Egypt, far from it, but it meant so much to her. He had to have at least some compassion, didn’t he?