Interview with the Vampire, Aetolian Style!

Satomi slowly crosses her right leg over her left, taking a moment to adjust the way her skirt sits on her thighs, "So.. you wanted to speak with me?"

Xigbar nods, sipping his hot chocolate, looking at Satomi thoughtfully. "I did, yes." He ponders a moment, reaching into his pack to take out a quill and a leather-bound tome, opening a blank page and setting it on his lap. "One of my requirements for Knighthood is to interview one of the Undead or Vampire race in order to learn why you chose such an existence."

Satomi nods her head slowly as she runs her gaze over the barmaid, licking her lips slowly as she offers a small smile, "I see.. The answer is always very simple, you know.. though I suppose people may rationalize it differently."

Xigbar sets his cup down on the table and takes up his quill. "Well then, I suppose I should start with the most obvious question: Why did you choose to be what you are?"

Satomi sniffs lightly at her cup, her attention focused forward, "I did it for revenge. Originally. You see, I never had a choice between life or death." Her nose wrinkles delicately, as if her memories bring about unpleasant scents, "I died when I was sixteen years old. Murdered, actually."

Xigbar begins scribbling notes in his parchment, stopping to look up at you with a shocked expression. "Murdered, you say? Who would want to murder a sixteen year old girl?"

Pondering the question he just asked, Xigbar shakes his head and waves a dismissive hand casually. "Actually, I know the kind who would do such a thing. I have a similar history, miss. I was right around the same age when my parents were murdered in front of me. I was almost killed as well, until I was saved by a Paladin.

Satomi nods her head emphatically.

You ask Satomi, "May I ask who it was who murdered you?"

Satomi smiles faintly, "I didn't have any Paladins to rescue me. No, no, all I could do was pray that things would be alright, that it was all a dream... Hrm.. hrm.. It was my guardian, at the time. A miserable wretch of a man who provided for me, and in return I made sure everything was tidy, neat, and ready."

Xigbar frowns, jotting down some notes in his tome. Looking up, he says softly, "You poor woman, it sounds more like you were a slave than anything else. What reason did he have to kill you?"

Satomi lifts her cup, her smile amused, "Alcohol. Drunken rage is quite the thing."

Xigbar sighs softly, the story saddening him visibly. He reaches out and places a hand on Satomi's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze before retreating it back to his page. "Alcohol is a dangerous thing to those who cannot control themselves. It is why I do not drink, it brings nothing but bad things," he says softly, making another note in his tome.

Satomi nods her head as she watches you, still smiling, "You are different from many of the other breathers I encounter. From Enorian, in any case. They all seem intent on burning me alive."

Moving his gaze from his tome to Satomi Xigbar chuckles softly. "I am a very polite man. I invited you here, so I would not be in any way hostile to my guest. If we met on the battlefield, however, that would be a bit different, though I was always taught to show respect and manners to those who I do not know."

Satomi laughs softly in return before responding, "If I was into men, I think I would like you. Very much the gentleman.. and so very big." She stares a moment before giving her head a shake, "In any case.. I am sure you have more questions?"

Xigbar blushes slightly, shifting his position in his chair and clearing his throat, his gaze immediately returning to his tome to attempt to hide his blushing. "Well, um, thank you, miss." His voice trails off for a moment before regaining its volume, "So what happened next? You said he murdered you, and you wanted revenge. Why not pass through Lord Dhar's Underhalls and return to seek your revenge? Why would you seek out such a drastic measure for revenge?"

Satomi gives her head a slight shake, "I was a nobody.. I spent two years within the Underhalls, lost, wandering. I was terrified.." She shudders gently, her eyes dimming as she looks down at her legs, "I am an open book to handsome faces.. don't fret overly much."

After scribbling a few words in his tome, Xigbar nods slowly, pondering. "Everybody is someone, miss. Regardless of your upbringing or your origin, you are never a nobody unless you choose to be. I am sorry to hear that you became lost in the Halls. I cannot imagine how terrified you must have been. How did you find your way?"

Satomi shakes her head, "I.. do not know, to be honest. All I heard was a whisper. There was a gentle tugging on my soul, and so I sought it out. It was like the kind of itch you cannot scratch, no matter how hard you try?" She places her left hand lightly on her thigh, idly caressing the bared skin as she continues looking down at her legs, speaking in a soft, clear voice, "In any case, I eventually found myself to a.. I want to call it a doorway, but it was not. I knew I had to pass through it.. that I would no longer be lost.. that the anger that had been slowly building would be satisfied if I went through it."

Gently stroking the whiskers hanging from each corner of his mouth, Xigbar nods slowly,
making notes in his tome. He shakes his head at a comely barmaid before speaking. "I see, I can imagine that
would be a hard feeling to describe. What happened next? Did you wake up?"

Satomi nods her head once, her gaze returning to you, "Oh, I woke up. Buried in the ground. My body was still broken, and I started screaming in absolute terror and pain.. Simply imagine this. You open your eyes but see nothing, because they've been eaten away due to your body decaying for two years. Worms and bugs eating at the remnants of your flesh. Your body unable to move because of atrophied, if not simply missing, muscle tissue.. and the panic that that would all entail. I spent a week underground, my body rebuilding itself. Driving out the insects, and the dirt.."

Xigbar shifts uncomfortably in his chair, "I can see how terrifying that must have been for you. So you spent a week in the ground, and your body began to regenerate itself...interesting. I presume at this time you realized that you had become undead due to your lengthened stay in the Underhalls?"

Satomi shakes her head, a dry chuckle slipping from her lips, "Actually, no.. I was still that naive girl. I did not know what had happened, or where I was. I thought I was being punished.. until my strength started returning. Then I grew confused.. but a week underground is long enough to crack a mind, at the very least." She shrugs lightly, "I cracked a little, down there."

Xigbar frowns, shaking his head, more to himself than to you. "You seem sound of mind to me, miss. Though you've had many years to restore your mind. Tell me what happened next."

Satomi leans sideways in the chair, taking a sip from her cup, "When I finally grew strong enough, a voice whispered to me. 'Rise,' the voice said. It was deep.. masculine.. and felt like it came from the earth all around me. Rise.. and rise I did, clawing my way to the surface. I was stronger than before, and eventually I burst free. I was buried just outside my old home. No marker, no grave, just a hole in the ground."

Xigbar leans forward in his chair, an eager look upon his face. "So who was whispering to you?"

Satomi grins broadly, "Lord Ivoln, of course. He is the one who grants life to all Undead. He is the Father, as Auresae is your Mother." She licks her lips slowly as she leans back in the chair and crosses her arms, "He birthed me from the earth, and I was, and will forever, be one of His children as a result of it."

A half-smirking grin is revealed upon Xigbar's face as he makes another note in his tome. "Forever is a long time, miss. If it is not something you wanted, nor asked for, why have you stayed one of His children for so long? Much as you said, my Inesse, Lady Auresae, has the power to cleanse one such as yourself with Her Fire, should you ask for it."

Satomi wrinkles her nose gently, "Life was what happened before I died.. and Living was what happened after my rebirth. I cannot imagine changing that."

Xigbar gives you a puzzled look. "Being Undead is not living, miss. Though I understand what you mean...you carried out your existence after you were reborn from the Earth."

"Everyone deserves a second chance at Life," Xigbar speaks softly, smiling at you. "You were so young when your Life was taken from you, yet you have never wondered what it would have been like to grow up, to age, to breathe?"

Satomi shudders gently, "Aging.. I couldn't even imagine it now.. and breathing seems so cumbersome.. I don't know how you do it." A small smile lifts her lips as she points at you with her right foot, "You're sweet to say, though. Thank you."

Xigbar laughs out loud, shrugging at you. "It is merely a reflex, miss. It's not something cumbersome or something you have to remember to do, it is involuntary." He takes a few exaggerated breaths, grinning. "See?"

Satomi sticks her tongue out at you, "You're just playing with me, aren't you? Men!" She humphs with a small, barely suppressed giggle, "Okay, smart guy, what's next?"

Xigbar chuckles, waving a dismissive hand. "Very well, miss, since it seems I cannot convince you of the wonder of Life, what happened when you rose? What did you do?"

Satomi offers a light shrug, "I did the first thing that came to me. I went home. Surprisingly enough, it was empty. The old man probably died without me there, so I thought, so I stuck around.. ate some maggoty food.. and then stumbled onward."

Grimacing at the thought of maggot-ridden food, Xigbar makes an awkward 'blegh' sound, "That does not sound like a very delightful meal. So you never found him?"

Satomi says, "Not in this life, no.. So.. skip forward a few months of wandering, I managed to make my way to Bloodloch. It was there that I learned what I truly was.. and it was there that I was introduced to the Carnifex Knights."

You say, "I see. The Carnifex. I was a Carnifex for a time, quite a few years back. Their ways are a bit...disturbing to me."

Satomi says, "I was only drawn to them from thoughts of revenge. If my.. father.. had indeed died, how better to rip is soul back into my grasp for a little.. retribution?"

Xigbar ponders, scribbling a few notes in his tome, nodding. "So fast forward to the present. What do you stand for? What are your ideals? What makes you, well...you?"

Satomi says, "I stand for Knowledge. Knowledge of all things. Whether you are alive, dead, Consanguine.. it does not matter. All that matters is the pursuit. I care about the continuation of our world."

Xigbar rubs his chin thoughtfully, then grins. "Knowledge is a powerful thing to behold. Also, by 'our world', do you mean the world of the Undead and the Consanguine, or the world as a whole?"

Satomi says to you, "The world as a whole. Whether Enorian likes it or not, sometimes, you need to delve into the darkness to find the correct answers. Just like you may need to burn in the light."

You say, "You are correct in that, miss. If I had not become Undead, even for a short amount of time, I would not have realized it was not what I was meant to be. It would not have brought me to where I am today, bathed in the Flames of Inesse, on the precipice of Knighthood."

Xigbar makes a few final notes in his tome, nodding. He closes the tome with a loud, papery 'clap' and smiles at you. "I think I have what I need, miss. Was there anything else you wanted to share with me?"