Events from “Bubble”
Notes by Anthony
“George asked me what happened, and I told him to stay quiet. There were monsters upstairs, and one had just stabbed Joan. Joan’s last act had been to shut the door and tell us to stay inside. And listeners, I’ll be honest with you. Part of me, a big part of me, just wanted to curl up under the covers and stay inside with Ben. Shouldn’t I listen to Joan? I had gotten the children to safety by convincing a sniveling, pathetic demon that I was the bigger fish. I couldn’t pull that same kind of trick with three vampires who’d come looking for a fight, let alone convince them to let Joan go. If Joan couldn’t win, how could I?
“But I couldn’t stay a scared little radio host forever. And I wouldn’t be alone. George was at my side, ready to fight. I sent Ben to hide in the Crypt and followed George upstairs in Obfuscation. Fortunately, George had watched Theodore open the heavy lock a couple times, so he was able to unlock it without a sound. We listened as the Ant Man told the other two to look around for any Kindred. Then the Ant Man picked up Joan’s limp form and walked to the parking lot. George slipped out ahead of me and disappeared. I pulled Blood from the Beast again to make myself just a little bit faster. I closed the door and tried to follow in Obfuscation, but one of the two vampires noticed me right away.
“Have you ever had a terrible boss or teacher, dear listeners? You know the kind. The one that thinks they are the greatest thing since sliced bread. That he or she is the only competent person in the room with true vision and purpose, and the rest of us are just drooling toddlers to kick over on their way to success. Well, okay, that metaphor got away from me. Call us after the break and tell us the stories of your worst bosses. Though, I don’t have phone right now. Maybe write us a letter at the station? I’m sure Patricia will forward my mail to my apartment if it hasn’t been burned down by time-traveling evil vampires yet.
“Anyway, back to the most terrifying night of my unlife yet. As this vampire stalked towards me, I dropped obfuscation and drew myself up to my full height. I squared my shoulders and planted my feet firmly. I tried to embody the most imperious, bossiest lady I could imagine. Something of an amalgamation between my seventh grade history teacher and the head librarian at UVA. Someone who had created these strange creatures and could smush them like an ant if they so much as thought about disobeying me. I drew upon my power of Inner Image and told the closest vampire “I am Colette. I am the one who gives you orders. I am the one you obey.”
“And it worked, dear listeners. I saw this monster in its head. She, or he or it, takes on many forms. One of those Tzimisce, if I had to guess. In her war form, she looked like a praying mantis centaur with a masculine midsection and feminine face. And right now, so did I. I could see its eyes go wide as the image took hold and rewrote the memory of the scared, overweight radio host it had seen a moment ago. The vampires called me “Priscus” and “Your Grace,” but they were confused about why I was here, since these hadn’t been my orders. They stopped their approach and waited for my instructions.
“And, listeners, now is the time for the pop quiz. If you recall, Cedric had said the Cobweb is a dimension all our own, and only Malkavians can enter it without going mad. Therefore, others can be drawn in. And if they do get drawn in, they go mad. And insane vampires probably don’t break down heavy library doors and eat helpless radio hosts. I didn’t have time to worry about any consequences beyond that. I had to act.
“I told the vampires that I, Colette, had learned something new since I sent them here. The Malkavians had hidden something dangerous below, and I needed to reshape them in preparation. We would attack their stronghold together. All they needed to do was open their minds to me. The one I had directly used Inner Image on listened, and I pulled it inside my mind palace. Otherwise known as the sound booth at WRXL 102.1 FM. The other became suspicious and asked me for something only Colette would know. Apparently, this one was familiar with Malkavian mind tricks. But not familiar enough. I used Dominate to convince it that I had given it all the information it required, and when it believed me, I drew the creature inside the Cobwebb radio station as well.
“It sounds so easy when I lay it out like that, doesn’t it, listeners? The plan worked like I had intended. I had just moved a few feet, but I was exhausted. I had spent too much mental energy on maintaining their mental image of Colette, dominating them, and pulling them into my head. I had no idea what George was doing. Maybe he had succeeded in freeing Joan from the Ant Man, or maybe he was bleeding out in the parking lot. Blood began flowing freely from my nose as the two vampires stared blankly ahead. I felt my tongue reach out and swipe at the blood. I hadn’t intended to do that. A laugh bubbled in the back of my mind. I felt frozen in that moment for a very, very long time.”