November 22, 1800. 7:03 p.m.
factory basement
"And we have enough blood for the next few nights?" Carleigh asked. "Because we can't come back here."
"I was collecting it all last night." Sharma answered. "There should be enough for a week, maybe two. And that's if everyone takes only what they absolutely need. We won't have enough to last us much longer..."
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it...." Carleigh sighed, crossing the final item off her list and putting her notebook away.
"That's a very foolish strategy..."
"Do YOU have any better ideas?
Sharma was saved from answering by a large chair flying down the steps of the basement. The two Cainites occupying the area, both safely out of the chair's path of flight, watched it smash into ten or twelve peices upon hitting the stone floor.
"Sugar, that's not going to solve anything." a voice from above said calmly.
Upstairs, a very angry Sugar Kelly faced Maria, Mika, and Seldes with pure fury in her eyes.
"I will NOT leave! You just want to run away?! Forget it! I have a score to settle with those bastards! I'm going back TONIGHT! Dammit, I almost had them! If it hadn't been for that girl, I would've--"
"Sugar!" Mika interrupted. "The men you fought were only the tip of the iceberg! Can't you see the Society of Leopold has taken this entire city?! There is no prince. No archbishop, either. No other vampires AT ALL, Sugar! They were waiting for us. They knew we came here. Unless we get a plan going..."
"They eat the likes of you for breakfast, Kelly." Courtney piped up from the other side of the room. The Lasombra sat perched on some table that had probably been used for tailoring.
"What did you just say?!" Sugar spun to face the girl.
"You heard me." Courtney sneered. "These guys drove elders out of this city, Ravnos. You think you can just walk in there and take them on? You would have been dead last night if it hadn't been for me and the Gangrel. A little girl staked you in the back. I've never witnessed such tactical incompetance in my unlife."
With a cry of absolute hatred, Sugar lunged forward. Mika barely caught her in time to save Courtney's throat from beong torn out.
"Sugar, calm down!" Maria yelled at her to no avail.
"See?" Courtney taunted. "I suppose you go into battle like that too. No plan, no strategy. Just anger and brute force. No wonder the little girl staked you." she hopped off the table and sauntered out of the room.
"I'll KILL you!!!!" Sugar screamed at the top of her lungs.
"Sugar, stop." Seldes placed a hand on her arm. "We have the Society of Leopold around the corner, not a night's ride from our haven. The last thing we need right now is internal feuding."
"Tell that to HER!" Sugar raged.
"I know, I know." Seldes said soothingly. "But she has a point. You need to have a plan when you go into battle, not just anger and force. Because I'm sure the vampires who fought for this city originally had plenty of that."
"I can't believe you're taking her side..." the Ravnos grumbled.
"I'm not. I'm saying we need a plan before we try to defeat a Society stronghold. The only reason it has anything at all to do with Courtney is because she mentioned it."
"So we're just going to run? Retreat back to our haven? Give them exactly what they want?!"
"Sometimes that's the best strategy." Maria pointed out. "If they think they've scared us away, they're more likely to let their guard down."
"Yeah, sure." Mika snorted. "I'm sure the former prince of this city thought the same thing. The Society knows our tricks. They don't assume anything until they see the dust pile."
"So what do you suggest we do then?" Maria demanded with no small degree of annoyance. "Go and try to fight them tonight?"
"Of course not. We go back for now. We have to. But don't think for a minute they'll let their guard down. They won't be taking any chances knowing vampires are anywhere near here. So we can't afford to take any either."
"Absolutely right." Carleigh said as she came up from the basement. "Which is why I don't think we should all leave together. Perhaps we could trickle out, leave by different ends of the city..."
"And leave them some more time to come find us?" Mika asked incredulously. "Courtney and I weren't sure if we were being followed or not. We need to get out of here as soon as possible."
Sharma pushed past Carleigh and headed outside.
"Hey, tell the others to get their horses saddled, will you, Sharma?" Maria asked as the Assamite walked by her.
Sharma nodded stiffly and disappered out the back door.
"The others already have their things together." the Giovanni continued. "We're ready to go as soon as the horses are."
Carleigh sighed. All that planning gone to waste.... She shrugged and followed Maria and Mika outside.
"Sugar?" Seldes glanced at the Ravnos, who was now sulking in a corner. "We're leaving."
Sugar said nothing.
"We'll be back. We have to know what we're doing before we do it. You understand that, don't you?"
Still no response.
Seldes sighed. "We're not going to leave you here, so don't even entertain the thought."
After a pause, Sugar turned to him. "Why must you always be so...." she trailed off.
"So what?"
"So....." she waved her hands erraticaly in Seldes' direction. "So...I don't know!" So....YOU!"
"Just can't help it, I guess."
Sugar shook her head. "Someday I'm going to figure out how you always manage to be so you." she warned as she headed outside to saddle Jack.