everyonelives | i'm leaving you my last curse

( Faith started it! )

I hope our move is swift and merciless.

( She looks at the layout of the boat. )

Will Wallace and Corsair be in the casino?

No.

[He shifts the maps and taps the VIP deck.]

They have personal quarters on the boat. Once things get messy, they'll probably barricade themselves there, but Ezra and I will get to them while you deal with the vampires.

Take one fighter with you two. I don't care who. But, it won't just be you two.

( That doesn't feel right. )

I heard from Mia that we're going to have eyes in the sky, which means I think her brother William is joining, but I wouldn't be surprised if someone turned into a bird.

( "William's on the roster," Faith confirms. "Insisted." She shrugs, can't blame him. Though he doesn't like the carnage as much as she does.

"William Queen," Rhett asks, always aware of his male entrepreneurs, turning to his wife. "Oliver Queen's son."

"Mia's his daughter, so. Checks out," Faith adds, taking a seat and straddling one of the chairs from the back. )

[Oliver Queen means nothing to Rusty, billionaires are not the kind of power he tends to deal in, so all of these names mean nothing to him and given his concerns:]

Is he human?

["He is. If I remember correctly - " Scarlett pauses as she goes back through the six degrees of separation. "Mia is Wes' boyfriend's roommate, William is her brother who is also dating Mickey's friend." Scarlett is a social creature, she is required to know everyone's names before she meets them.

This also does not matter to Rusty.]

Does he need to be our eyes while being on the boat?

["No, he does not." Mia swings in, her gear over one shoulder. "We just have to find the cameras so that he can hack in. Might need a hard link in."]

( "Very good," Rhett chides Scarlett, winding a finger in her hair. She does have very pretty hair, and everything else. "Mickey is Wes' boyfriend," Rhett clarifies, not that Rusty deeply cares.

William comes in, his own bag slung over his shoulder.

"Brought my suit and everything," William says, feigning disappointment. "Don't worry, I'm used to being the one not in the field. Opening the flap of his bag, he pulls out a pouch and tosses it down onto the table, momentarily eyeing the plans. "There are earbuds in there so we can all stay in communication, and so I can communicate with you guys. Let you know guard sweep schedules. Staff numbers. Impropriety. Mia filled me in on the ship. Vampires. Gambling. Sounds like a party to me." )

It's not a party. It's a facade. Because, behind the gambling and party are trafficked humans and well-fed vampires. And two very powerful witches I'd like to meet personally.

And put down for good.

[To say the least.]

Looks like we're just waiting on Ezra. As soon as he gets here we can run through it.

Thank you for coming on short notice.

( William shakes his head, pulling out his laptop before setting out a hotspot and plugging that in, working through his setup.

"Wouldn't have missed it."

Ezra is the last to arrive, the door shutting behind him in an echo, and he realizes that.

"What, no welcome mat?" he asks, dropping his bag down by the door and joining the others. )

We're not going to be staying here long enough to need one.

[He gestures to their final member.]

Everyone, this is Ezra. Ezra, everyone. Let's get started.

[And he will walk them through it just as he did for Buffy. Getting on in Arcadia, and the point at which they'll be able to make their move. The illusions required for those who would draw suspicion aka anyone not Damon, Scarlett, Rhett or Melanie.

That being said, he glances over at William.]

What would you need for access to the security system. The security office is here.

[He taps the room in question.]

I'm not that well versed in technology.

( "Witch 2 in this case," he says, raising a hand and taking a seat -- well, he doesn't really know who to join, to be honest. No one here is his biggest fan. but faith's hot and a stranger, so he drops down next to her, salutes.

she spins her chair to face boss man.

"Remote access," he says, pulling out a black drive with a blinking red light. "Someone needs to slip it onto the back of their monitor," or underneath. "And then I'll have eyes. I won't know how difficult controlling their systems will be until I get access." )

Okay. Then one of us will focus on the security office first and foremost, before any moves are made.

[Mia reaches over to take it from him. "I've got it." She'll be able to get in and out quickly, hopefully.

Rusty nods because good, one less thing to worry about.]

I brought assorted weapons for you all to choose from, as you probably couldn't get yours on the plane on short notice, but if there's anything that's not here, let me know and I can try to obtain it before then.

( Buffy, over on the rack pulls a metal rimmed wooden stake that feels good in her hands -- walking along. Faith chooses a familiar looking knife, for old times, Rhett likes his hands and fists, but will take a gnarled, older stake.

Ezra pockets a few smaller knives, that will be good to fling magically.

Damon, too, grabs a stake, this one -- painted red, but it's wooden. He shrugs at the drama.

Buffy lands at the end of the rack on a machete, but gold. she swings it. )

We can get weapons on board?

[He nods.]

They won't check for that. Hunters sometimes make excellent appetizers for the main course.

[They are not the first to try and take on the Riverboat. Hopefully they'll be the most successful.

Mia gravitates towards the collapsible bow, and wooden arrows. The arrows can be melee weapons if she doesn't wind up somewhere she can be a sniper. Scarlett and Melanie pack assorted blades, and Stefan also picks up a stake for personal use later.]

Wallace and Corsair have their own cabin on the VIP Floor. Ezra and I will be prioritizing rooting them out. The rest of the vamps are yours to contend with as you see fit.

Hunters as an appetizer. Who'da thunk.

( William does grab a stake and a knife, just in case the fight comes to him off site. He doesn't know how high tech they are.

Faith turns back, raising a hand.

"Will it be obvious which fish are friends and which are food?" )

That I can answer.

[Scarlett holds up a finger.]

Since the Riverboat is often a recruiting tool as well as a feeding trough, those with the Tower will be wearing a specific broach.

[She holds up hers, a silver rook piece wound in ivy.]

There will likely be other vampires without it but once the fun starts, I'm sure they'll choose a side - and likely not choose wisely.

More fun for us, then.

( She sucks in a breath, looking over at everyone, before moving to the front with Rusty. )

Normally, this is where I would tell you to save who you can. But, none of us in this room want this to be traced back to us. The Ivory Tower holds grudges. And I've been told they have ways to arbitrate their grievances. Besides, the victims are also employees. I hate it. And I want to do something about these types of operations after this, but read my lips. No survivors.

[Mia isn't one to normally push back against Buffy, but she just wants to make sure she's clear on the orders.]

If the humans are being fed on, they're probably not on vervain, right? Couldn't we just compel them?

["Compulsion isn't foolproof," Stefan replies. "And their way of arbitrating things is ... complicated."

Scarlett offers the younger woman a soft smile. "If we're fortunate, perhaps we'll arrive after dinner."]

( "Compulsion can be undone by the right witch," Rhett says, making it clear that it is not a foolproof method in this case. Even if that is tragic. (It is.) But that is war. )

Is there a schedule they normally use? ( she asked Rusty. ) A time where there are no humans on board? Like, a restocking?

( She needs the option if she can get it. She doesn't think she can get it. )

Usually between stops, depending. We're also getting on early enough that they may not have gathered their prey yet.

[They usually gather small groups as they go.]

If we get there early enough we can send away any potentials that are looking to get on with us.

Okay. Let's start there. Minimize the casualties we don't want. But, once we're on deck - we can't deviate.

( And with that, if there's nothing else, everyone will separate, get dressed. Prepare. Say their prayers and Ezra will work one-on-one with everyone to cloak them. )

[And once everyone is ready, they head out to the dock and await the arrival of the boat. It doesn't take long for it to appear, a large riverboat with gleaming lights and the sound of laughter and slot machines echoing through the night. As it comes to a stop for the group, the boat comes to a stop, and a suited vampire looks down the gangplank.

"My, my Scarlett. What have you brought us?"]

Just a few friends, Johnny.

[She flashes him a winning smile as she makes her way up onto the gangplank.]

Have room for all of us?

["For you? Always."]

( while scarlett makes nice, buffy and faith do their best attempts at persuading any arrivals to come back later on, to come back the next day, or in faith's case for one difficult - probably desperate - kid, to scram. (Faith 9) (Buffy 18) Buffy successfully turns people away, one knowing curly haired brunette keeping a few friends away, too. She convinces her friends to go get something to eat. Faith is laughed at, ignored, and has never been the charisma of the group. one slips out of her grasp when she chooses brute force, and two are straight knocked out. one plunges into the water, but not anywhere near the boarding process. she yells if they know whats good for them, they'll get themselves a new lease on life.

gathered together, they await docking. buffy and faith in dresses to die for, but that they can fight in, ezra in a handsome blue suit, rhett in a signature tuxedo with a blood red pocket square.

ezra has cloaked everyone but the o'hara's

the o'hara's get their people approved, if not for fashion, for fang function.

rhett leaves the group behind to greet lorenzo. )

My good friend, how are the tables today? Is lady luck shining down upon me?

( william successfully talks himself into the control room on land as a diagnostician for the network. (he intercepted the real diagnostician and sent him quite a sum of money and a plane ticket from a dead aunt. the aunt isn't dead. who checks these things) he bumbles in in a suit to get them to underestimate him. oh, he thought because he was called to help that he might get a sneak peek. maybe some gambling in.

but, no, he's there so the security guys can head out for a snack and find any other willing recruits. or, they'll just eat them.

which is great for him, because they leave him to do a several hour diagnostics on the system.

on their comms, he speaks: "I'm in. They bought my pathetic plea to join the festivities on bored and want nothing to do with hours of boring network scanning. Mia, once inside, focus on the security office on board." He at least has access to the cameras on land. "Faith, why is someone completely soaked climbing out of the Mississippi river?"

"Thought he looked thirsty," she shrugs off.

"It's fine, he's disgruntled but he seems to be moving in the opposite direction. )

["Stay safe," Mia murmurs into the comms as she takes Rusty's arm and he helps her up onto the deck. The illusions itch, but the job she's here to do gives her purpose. She immediately lets her eyes begin to scan as she and Rusty move through the tables to spread out from their group.

Stefan stays close to Buffy, keeping his posture casual. He sees a few faces he recognizes from his last trip to the Riverboat, but a lot of new ones. Then again, this place does have quite the turnover.

"What a pleasant surprise, Lorenzo trills as he makes his way closer. "And I think you won't know until you play. That is how this all goes."]

Well, if you are going to play, I am going to find us some refreshments, darling.

[Melanie glances over to Damon. "Craps or cards?"]

( Despite being around witch nieces and Willow, this is the first time Buffy has ever been cloaked like this. It does feel a bit like she wants to jump out of her second skin, but her and Stefan's alabaster, Transylvanian goth make-over she spots in a passing mirror is doing the trip. Other vampires are taking to them like cats to cream, keeping their eyes on them.

Buffy feels the stake holstered to her thigh and the machete along her back. cloaking is useful for carrying a machete onto a ship with vampires. )

Do you think he went a little overboard with the Bram or the Stoker? ( Turning a corner by some slot machines, she sees people matching their illusion's aesthetic. ) I stand corrected. Now I feel underdressed.

( Damon adjusts his blonde illusion's hair, before getting with the program and offering Melanie his arm.

"Let's roll the dice," he says, steering her toward the craps tables.

Rhett keeps his gaze on Lorenzo, oozing charm as he thanks his wife. Normally, this might perturb her, not giving her the attention, but they have a job to do here. And Lorenzo is on his list. The very top of the list of vampires he intends to stake.

"You drink on the job, don't you? Join us for a hand, Lorenzo. Regale us with tales from the river. I heard a rumor an entire fraternity disappeared." )

[Lorenzo gives him a wink as he settles at the table. "You know the trappings of the young, my friend. They like to play with an element of risk, no?" They come to gamble - they just don't realize they're gambling with their lives.

Stefan flashes her a smirk in return, before nodding.]

The Tower is knowing for their dramatics. They ... commit to the bit?

[Melanie and Damon head over to the craps tables, settling on the edges and Melanie flashes the group a smile. "Mind if I try my luck?"

"By all means," they reply, passing her the dice, and she rolls them in her hand before raising an eyebrow in Damon's direction. "Would you like the first throw or do you mind ladies first?"

Mia finds the corridor she needs to get to the security room (14) and glances to Rusty. He nods in acknowledgement and moves casually into position at the bar as Mia slips through (6 vs. 1), while Rusty engages the person nearest to him with a fair amount of charm (18), blocking the view.]

( And, they do like a good romp."

Fraternity or sorority, if adventure or debauchery is promised, they are not far behind. It isn't hard to get the right man or woman at Mississippi U to wrangle their friends.

Stefan's long, black ringlets are something. Buffy suspects Ezra's spell has to be grounded by something. Case in point, Mia's reflection passing by a few mirrors reflecting the girls from The Craft. )

That they do.

( She waves off a passing blood tray, but grabs a glass of something alcoholic to not stand-out.

Damon smirks, leaning forward, making his contribution: a flirtatious blow on the dice in her hand.

"Go for it, dollface," he says.

Rusty holds the person's attention, obstructing their view and their attention. As dark as Rusty is and haunted, he can turn on the charm when he wants to. He looks like an aged Tom Welling and whose type isn't that.

The corridor doesn't go for long before Mia finds the door. It's sliding, with a window on it. Inside sit two members of security and one leaning over the two of them. Out a porthole, she sees someone smoking and looking out onto the deck.

Two men in security uniforms look up, spotting Mia by the window, the one leaning over is very fixated on something he sees on the screen. Security Guard 1 slides the door open. (17, 16, 1)

"You shouldn't be back here," he says. )

Edited 2025-07-10 02:29 (UTC)

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