"Its always darkest before the dawn"
-anonymous
Janus put down Veronique's letter, and fought desperately to control the Beast. Now was NOT the time for a frenzy, however angry that bitch's revelation made him. Now was the time for cold rational thought. He needed to decide whether or not to inform the others about the traitor in their midst. Normally, of course, the pack would HAVE to be told, so that justice could be done. But now, with a strong Camarilla presence AND a pack of Lupines arrayed against them, the Magnificent Seven could not afford to divide their attention. In an ideal world, he would keep it quiet, and just arrange for the bitch to die a glorious death in battle.
Which was why he was most worried that the Lasombra had made two copies of her confession, one for him and the other for Simon. Her 'Mad Love'. Janus smirked slightly at that, thinking that under other circumstances he would have looked forward to ribbing the Malkavian about that nickname. He could just imagine the scene: him and Jeff repeating the phrase in high falsetto tones, while Simon cursed them out and Veronique blushed. Jesse and Bubba would be on the floor, laughing themselves silly, while Tariq sat in a corner and pretended to be above it all, until you looked at his eyes and realized he was laughing like a loon inside…
The Tzimisce warrior shook himself. Those carefree, innocent (well, for Sabbat vampires) times were gone for now, and might possibly be gone forever. How can things be as they were when we've been betrayed from within? A pack's strength came from the fact that all its members trusted one another. With Veronique revealed as a traitor, it was only a matter of time before his packmates- his FRIENDS- began to suspect one another. Before long the Magnificent Seven, a pack which had been a byword within the sect for strength and unity for almost two centuries, would fall apart in a storm of accusations and bloodshed
He looked across the makeshift desk at his Priest. Simon seemed unusually calm. All his typical twitching was stopped and he appeared normal. Janus knew what would happen next. Simon would explode with rage, possibly straight into the arms of a world-class Frenzy. He would demand a Wild Hunt against Veronique, and according to Sabbat traditions, Janus could not refuse. This was one area where the ductus HAD to obey the priest, or be branded a traitor himself.
But Simon did none of these things. Instead he leaned back and sighed deeply. Reaching up with one hand to rub his eyes, the priest said "Well, as Bubba might say shee-eyt. Just what we needed, huh boss? How the hell are we going to keep this from the others?"
Janus was surprised. The letter was a wet dream to a paranoid like Simon. Proof of a vast conspiracy against him, against the pack, involving someone close to him? He should be going nuts, calling for Lasombra blood at the top of his lungs. Instead he just seemed…sad and hurt, much as Janus felt. "Simon you're, uhm, you're…taking this very well"
Simon paused for a minute. His face expressed confusion at what his leader had said. The, understanding dawned. "Oh! You mean, because you think I'm… that is, because I'm", he stopped and sighed, a long sound of deep weariness. "Day for truth, huh boss? Get the bitch in here, I'll explain everything. Then we'll see what's what, ok?"
Deeply confused now, Janus did as Simon asked. He opened the door of the slaughterhouse foreman's office (which he had appropriated as his HQ) and said in a calm voice "Veronique, could you please come in here for a minute?"
As the Lasombra traitoress mounted the metal staircase, Janus prepared to restrain the Beast, so that he wouldn't rip her to shreds the second she entered the room. He was very surprised, therefore to find that neither he nor the Beast was enraged. Instead he just felt… empty and sad. To his amazement and horror, he felt tears of blood pooling in his eyes. He glanced at Simon, hoping against hope that the priest didn't see him in his moment of weakness. But Simon wasn't even looking at him, instead focusing his gaze on the door. His face was set in an emotionless mask. He was, however, holding a handkerchief out to his leader.
"Perfectly normal reaction, boss" Simon said without shifting his gaze "Anger at the betrayal turns to grief at the loss of trust and friendship. Textbook stuff; I saw it all the time in the Psych ward. No shame in what you're feeling."
Janus was unused to being comforted by the mad priest, and was uncomfortable with the emotional vulnerability of the moment, so he simply grunted and dabbed at his eyes with the proffered hankie. In guy-talk this meant 'thank you for your reassurance, but speak of this to no one'. Simon was a man, he'd understand.
Veronique eventually opened the office door. She entered silently, her eyes downcast. She very carefully avoided Simon, though whether she feared his insanity or his rejection Janus couldn't guess. She sat down at the near side of the large desk in the center of the room. Simon and Janus moved to the other side.
"Veronique DuMars you have lied to us" Simon said, his voice taking on a solemn tone. This was the tone of voice he used in all when he performed the various ritae of the Sabbat, when he spoke not as Simon the Malk but as the Voice Of Caine to the pack. "You have lied to your pack and your clan. Do you admit this?"
"I do" she said in a small timid voice "I betrayed you and our sect". For some reason he couldn't explain even to himself, this made Janus go back to being angry. He felt the Beast rise, and wasn't particularly inclined to fight it. But before he could act, Simon beat him to it.
The priest slammed his hands down on the desk and thrust his face forward, so that he was inches from hers. "DO NOT LIE TO ME AGAIN!" he roared, in a powerful voice more like that of an angry god than a scrawny lunatic. "YOU ARE NOT OF MY SECT YET!"
The room was very still for a moment. Janus felt his mind, normally the quickest of the entire pack, trying to shift gears without a clutch. The Lasombra seemed to be faring no better.
"W-what? Simon I AM Sabbat… and a traitor to the Sabbat" she stammered, now looking at Simon with a mixture of fear and bewilderment.
Simon visibly collected himself and spoke again, this time more quietly. "You really think that, don't you? Veronique you can't be Sabbat because YOU NEVER UNDERWENT THE CREATION RITES. Therefore, since you are not True Sabbat, you cannot be a traitor. How can one betray a sect one is not a part of?"
Janus was stunned. It was true. No matter who your sire was, or where you'd fought, the Sect didn't consider you True Sabbat until after you completed a Creation Rite determined by your sire. Still…
"But Simon, she still passed info to this… justicar… and has to be punished. Sabbat or no, she has to die the Final Death."
"Does she?" Simon asked his leader, a small smile on his face "Tell me Janus, since when to we hold uninitiated vampires to the laws of True Sabbat? Because as I remember it, its only if they refuse to join us that we kill them". Turning back to Veronique, he asked her "Do you wish, now, to join the Sabbat? To join us in our battle against the Ancients who would make slaves of us all? To fight for Caine Our Father in the Final Nights ahead? To pledge your unlife to our sacred cause? "
Veronique looked to Janus. For the first time since she had handed him her letter, Janus saw hope on her features, and felt the stirrings of hope in his own dead heart. He nodded.
"YES!" she cried, bloody tears of joy in her eyes "Yes yes oh yes!"
Simon laughed "Well I guess that's clear enough."
Veronique looked intensely relieved. Janus supposed that was natural enough in her situation. She'd come into this room expecting to meet her Final Death and instead had been redeemed by her 'mad love'. Janus snickered, though he covered it with his hand. Oooohhh yeah, me and Jeff are going to have a LOT of fun with Simon the next couple of nights. He was thrilled that his priest had come up with this perfect solution. Though there would lengthy explanations later, not much had changed (he hoped). Still one thing bothered him.
"Simon, you promised me an explanation for your… surprisingly normal behavior. I don't mean to look a gift horse in the mouth but…" he trailed off, unable to think of a non-confrontational way of saying 'why haven't you gone apeshit on us?'.
Simon looked like a kid caught stealing cookies. "Damn. I'd hoped you'd forgotten that. I suppose I owe you two an explanation. I imagine you both thought that I would be calling for Lasombra blood by this point, correct? After all what good paranoid schizophrenic wouldn't seize on this episode as proof of a vast shadowy conspiracy? Well, Veronique you aren't the only the only one with secrets.
See, I'm not actually a paranoid. REAL paranoids aren't 'sporadic' , as any Psych student could tell you. I've been putting on an act ever since I met you guys, and quite frankly I'm amazed its worked. Not just because of the holes in my performance; most people know squat about mental illness and assume that paranoiacs act the way I did, so it worked a lot better than an accurate portrayal would have. Heh, I actually tried acting like a real paranoiac and everyone thought I was hamming it up. So, I went with the half-assed paranoia, and noone's asked any inconvenient questions. But you guys were my pack, and keeping secrets from you has been murder. But my problem is just too humiliating."
Janus could only shake his head. He was saddened at his packmates lack of trust; while the Magnificent Seven might kid one another they never did so about truly sensitive topics –they were that great rarity; a pack of killers who genuinely liked one another. Virtually no one ever commented on Jesse's looks, or Bubba's lack of education; such things were simply off-limits to even the most boisterous banter (though Simon himself sometimes crossed the line, especially when he was pissed) and that was just understood. That Simon could doubt that made Janus question how well he really knew his packmates.
But Simon surprised him again. "I know you guys wouldn't rag on me about it; but just having you KNOW would be bad enough. See, I'm afraid of the dark."
Some of what Janus' (and presumably Veronique's) feelings must have shown on their faces, because the Malkavian became defensive. "I know I know. A vampire who's scared of the dark, how pathetic is that? Well let me clue you in, injuns (1): I died same as you. I came back same as you. But, see, I REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED IN BETWEEN!"
Simon paused to let that sink in before continuing. "And what I remember most though is…teeth…claws…screaming…and darkness. Total darkness." He shivered. "That's why I act so jumpy all the time. Even the nights in the brightest city remind me of that Abyss I was in. Every shadow appears to be a gaping portal back to Hell. Its horrible, and sometimes I just want to scream. But even when I was a fresh Recruit (2), I knew enough to keep my damn mouth shut. One slip of the tongue and I'd be a bitch (3) forever. So I chose to be 'Simon the Paranoiac'; the jumpiness corroborated the story pretty good, and noone really cares too much. It was hellish but what else could I do? So, now you know my Big Dark Secret."
Janus was silent. To think that his packmate –his FRIEND- had been going through sheer Hell every night, and had never shown any sign. Janus tried desperately to think of something -anything- to say, but came up dry. Veronique had considerably better luck. She walked over and enfolded the priest in a wordless hug. Simon'' limbs went rigid at first, as his Beast initially balked at having another predator that close, but after a moment he awkwardly returned the hug.
Janus smirked, and left the room. For one thing, he wanted to give the 'lovebirds' time alone. For another he knew that Simon would want a vaulderie ASAP, ostensibly to prepare the pack for what might well be their last battle, but actually to welcome their 'new' member. That meant they'd blood after, and although sucking down cow blood had been good enough so far, they'd need the strength only human vitae gave. Eh, we'll just drain one or two of the ghouls. Not like we need 'em all now anyway.
End chapter.
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Wow. Bet you guys thought I'd never update huh? Sorry about the wait, and I hope the long chapter makes up for it a bit.
First off, lets explain the numbered terms. I've found a copy of Players Guide to the Sabbat (as well as the Camarilla version) and thought it'd be fun to toss in some Sect slang. And it was!
injun or Indian: a member of a nomadic pack.
Recruit:A vampire Embraced against her will, usually (but not exclusively) in the interests of providing cannon fodder for the sect's conquests.
Bitch: A newly inducted Sabbat or a Sabbat of low status.
Also, I want to thank irenadel. Her comments about Simons illness way way back in ch4 started my brain along on the path that lead to his revelation just now. So, kudos to you madam, and kudos again! (heh, newsradio)
Now for some bad news. I've been drafted. I enter the army for a period of 1 year beginning in may. I'll try and finish as much as I can beforehand, but afterwards updates'll be a bit rare. This story in particular should only run two or three more chapters, and Vote Brujah a bit more.