Chaper 14: The Blessed

[Li Violette]

After Rutheven leaves, I am left alone with Isvara. Dinner has been called, but I am not very hungry. I stand there and watch some of the guests line up for food.

"So, I take it this is your first banquet of the Blessed. I have been to many of them myself. They are all...somewhat similar anyway. What do you think? How do you feel about being one of the Blessed?" I ask him.

I make a mental note of the animosity between Annette and Rutheven. I find it interesting. But she is an old and exciteable woman. I am not sure what got her goat, but, I won't look too much into it.

[Master Scrag]

"We cannot eat until the blessing has been said," a voice from behind the crowd says. Before the physical appearance of The Master is made know, his stench is. The smell of dead leaves, decay, and swamp travel ahead of him on the cool early winter breeze. The crowd opens before him, quickly like the parting of two waves. There he is: Master Scrag. He wears a long cloak of dead vegetation. His hair is long, gray, and snarly. He walks slowly to the front of the line of the Blessed. His nails are long and black. His skin is brown and wrinkled, with a slightly grayish, almost moldy texture to it.

He moves slowly until he is standing in front of everyone, with a large table of food behind him.

"We are the Blessed, the strong ones...who have inherited the Earth..by the sharpness of our minds, the power of our will, the strength of our bodies, or the beauty of our features. We are the Blessed, so we honor ourselves, and our own greatness, for each of us is godlike, and no one godlike should ever humble themselves before a god. This is the way of Father Manala. This is his will for mankind...that each individual be great. So we are here today, not to pray to a God, but to praise ourselves, and to be thankful that we are the Blessed...that we became capable people...leaving the vast majority of humanity behind us..to the curse of mediocrity and misery.." The Master speaks.

When the Master has finished given this blessing, he raises his arms.

"Now you may feast!"

[Jack Kruschev]

(Oh my, Scrag, what a wonderful post!)

I pause for a moment and listen a pretend to pray as Master Scrag says the blessing. After which, I continue my conversation.

"I can't go into a particularly large amount of detail due to the fact you haven't made anything of a commitment to the plan and that I, myself, haven't put a particularly extensive amount of though into it!" I chuckle out.

"Basically, I will soon come into the control of Genetech. Dr. Hoito is growing old and rotten, it's only a matter of time before he dies or simply retires from the business. I feel a new age for Genetech coming along. No more will we deal with the insecure bits and pieces of crap like inventing radiation-eating plants and creating better animals that will only be devoured by the rich and undeserving. I want my plan to work. But in order to accomplish my plan, I'll have to have the allies to back me up when the moment comes to strike at the throat of my enemies. You've been in business similar to the one I'm trying to accomplish, we both know that it doesn't matter who your enemies are, so long as you have the right friends."

[Dr. Lonnrot Kukkanen]

"Suddenly I am," I think to myself as I see Mollie's face.

"Absolutely," I say as I sit down and remain looking at her face. "As I'm sure you know, I'm a Master Psychologist for the Manalists. What are you, besides blessed by Father Manala himself?"

[Mollie Marionette]

"Actually, I wasn't aware of that." Mollie responds politely. Should she have known that? The small blonde woman was so out of the loop sometimes. It was rather bothersome.

"But it is interesting, a master psychologist. Sounds like a demanding position."

"I own and operate a toy store." She responds, smiles a little sheepishly, fully aware of how immature it sounds. But shes proud of her store, and enjoys it very much.

[Dr. Lonnrot Kukkanen]

Lonrrot already knew that...Why did he ask? He could tell her everything that was going on and that has ever happened in her whole life. Every thought, every wish, and every passion. At this moment, Lon didn't feel arrogant and stuck-up, like he usually did. He didn't want to be that way, for whatever the reason.

"Being a Master Psychologist is a demanding position, but it gets easy once you get used to it. What's running a toy store like?"

[Mollie Marionette]

Mollie sat down next to Lonnrot, assuming the seat wasn't taken, and takes another sip of her drink before setting it down.

Her left hand, so rarely still, tapped out a tune, silent to anyone but her, on the inside of her right knee. She wasn't nervous or anything, she just didn't like not having anything to do with her hands.

"Its not all that difficult." She states. "And I find it to be entertaining. I love children, and their often in my store." A smile plays across her lips.

She notices some people standing in line for food, but doesn't feel hungry, and decides against joining them.

[Dr. Lonnrot Kukkanen]

Lon couldn't stand children. He could tolerate their insignificance, but he would go to great measures to not be around them. Even as a child, he preferred adults and usually worked alone because of this.

"Really, so you like children?"

[Mollie Marionette]

Mollie nods. "Yeah, I really do."

"They're so cute, and innocent. Even when they get in trouble, its not like they really know its wrong. And they're all so sweet. I think they're wonderful."

"How about you, do you like children?"

[Dr. Lonnrot Kukkanen]

Lon was stuck. He didn't quite know what to say, but he was a terrible liar, so it would be obvious if he lied.

Knowing all this, he simply told the truth.

"I cannot say I do. Even when I was a child myself, I preferred adults. I'm unsure why I do not enjoy children, but I don't enjoy them at all. Sorry."

[Mollie Marionette]

Mollie shrugs. "No big, I mean to each their own, right? Some people like kids, some people don't. Variation in opinion is always welcome."

She takes another sip of her drink, and all this talk of children leads her to think for a moment of her store. Did she lock the door on her way out? Shoot. But no, her store manager would lock up for her. She pushed the thought the the back of her mind, and brought herself back to the conversation she found herself in.

"Besides psychology, what are some of your interests?"

[Calithin Crest]

I'm just minding my own business in the kitchen, icing my forehead and listening to some messages left by the office on my phone, when I notice Annette Rosenthal walk in. Obviously my company does alot of banking so I know who she is, although brokers tend to handle the actual face to face operations and I've never met her personally.

She seems a little frazzled and I'm curious as to why, but, it's none of my business and I think it would be rude to ask so I just sit and watch attentively. I hear she's kind of a grinch anyway, and my head already hurts.

[Isvara Sharma]

Isvara acknowledged Ruthevan's advice on the old lady: don't anger her at economic council meetings. The vampire then left Li and Isvara towards another group of individuals.

Li then asked Isvara a question about how it felt to be one of the Blessed.

"Well, I don't really know how it feels. I suppose its 'great', but other than that, I don't wish to let it get to my head. An inflated ego can lead to one's demise," he replied. Isvara then noticed the food, a whole array of genetically engineered meat. He was of course, a vegetarian.

"Anyway, I'm not in the mood to eat. I'm on a low caloric diet which often correlates to a longer life span."

He then smiled and pointed at the food.

"Aren't you going to eat?"

[Dr. Lonnrot Kukkanen]

Other than psychology? Lon lived for that one subject, anything else was truly foreign to him. He had never been good at sports, fighting, or anything else but the mind for that matter.

But now was a time to be honest and be quick.

"Reading," he blurted out suddenly to answer her question. In an attempt to make a recovery, Lon added on, "Reading...I enjoy to read."

[Li Violette]

"None of the foods interest me. Anyway, I supposed to be on a diet, since I am in public so much." I state. I watch Scrag give a Blessing and try very hard not to pinch my nose when he walks past me. Others are helping themselves to the food, but I remain behind with Isvara.

"Tell me more about your company. When did it start up and who else works with you or for you?" I ask him.