Ephalon - Triumvirate
Chapter 1 - Desperation
Ephalon - Secret of Redstar
Chapter 1 - The golden palace
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With the advertisement over, the television's volume lowered at the behest of one Rose Mary Haroldson, a dark-skinned, human woman in her late thirties, who currently resided in the Ceruleus household. Her day job involved teaching university-level history as well as assisting in various projects at the Enterra National History Museum.
Beside her, on the comfy black leather couch, sat a dragon-human hybrid man of thirty-six-years by the name of Alexander Ceruleus, the CEO of the Ceruleus Organisation; a company revered throughout the city of Maya for its community supportive nature. A few months ago, Alex's mother, Daerah, was murdered in their own home. Ever since then, he's been searching for the one responsible; however, after a nasty encounter with the killer, Mister Ceruleus found himself at death's door.
Through a miracle, Rose somehow stabilised Alex's condition, which granted him enough time to hold on until he reached the hospital in Crato Ora. There Miss Harodlson's boyfriend recovered until he was strong enough to return home. Although Mister Ceruleus survived the ordeal, it left him with a horrible spiral-scar along his entire left arm. Whenever he grew frustrated or angered the blue-tinted wound re-opened and poured forth his life essence, a painful reminder of his failure to apprehend his mother's killer.
"You know, I never liked Redstar. Their monopoly position makes me distrust them, and don't even get me started on those awful corny advertisements; they don't exactly inspire." Alex peered over at Rose and found himself unable to agree with her sentiment since he used many of Redstar's products for his firm.
"I think you're wrong about that. Redstar is a company like any other. They might not be an honourable establishment, and perhaps they even extort people a little, but they have made great advances in medicine over the years. I wouldn't write them off just yet."
Rose crossed her arms regretting that she'd brought up the subject. She'd been living with Alex for over a month now, and although their time together started well, tensions have steadily grown, and not in a good way. Miss Haroldson thus made it a point to avoid conflict or disagreement whenever possible, hoping to keep the mood positive. However, for sanity's sake, her concerns needed airing.
"Alex, I need to talk to you about something that's been bothering me." The Ceruleus CEO perked up, all ears to her plight.
"I've noticed you become more distant as of late. You've not been talking as much since that first week I moved in, and it's honestly worrying me. So please, tell me, is there anything I need to know?" Alex's eyes lowered towards his left arm, contemplating how best to reply; however, the six o'clock news popped onto the television screen and urged him to turn up the volume as its main headlines hit close to home.
"Good evening everyone, I'm your host Luke Cario. We have breaking news just in; there's been another report of a missing person near Ruby Street, one James Sutherland. This is the third incident so far in as little as two weeks. Our hearts go out to the affected families and friends, who've offered a statement urging everyone to be cautious when visiting Ruby Street. Many people believe these disappearances are connected to the increase in drug trafficking surrounding the narcotic known as 'Sparkle'. Substance users who are unable to pay their debts are often threatened with their lives. In this instance, the affected families stated to have no knowledge of their loved one using the drug. Even so, we may be seeing the consequence of such threats finally being enacted."
Alexander grew infuriated by the prospect of people being kidnapped or worse, murdered on his turf, so much so, that the left sleeve of his white shirt stained crimson. Rose noticed the blood and grabbed him by the shoulder.
"Alex, please calm down. Look at your shirt!" The sudden shout stirred the man from his bout of silent rage and made him gasp at the amount of blood that had seeped into his clothing.
"Oh, crap, not again. Sorry, it's so hard to keep my cool when this kind of stuff is going on right at my doorstep." Alexander got up and rushed upstairs to clean his wound. Rose waited a moment before following, picking up a fresh shirt en route. She came to a halt in the bathroom's entranceway, and leaned up against the inner post, from where she observed him attend his wound.
"You know, if you're so concerned about it, how about we go there together and do some investigating? Besides it would do us both some good to have a change of scenery, don't you think?" The suggestion enticed Alex to look over his shoulder, all the while washing his wound under a steady stream of lukewarm water. Rose's ever-supportive nature coaxed his painfilled expression to make way for a gentle smile.
"You know what, you're right. I think it would be enlightening and perhaps even entertaining to visit Ruby Street, together."
For the occasion, Rose chose a casual outfit; first, sliding herself into a light-blue, V-neck t-shirt and a dark-blue skirt that reached just above her knees. Shoe wise she decided to go with a pair of white, laced, ankle-high boots, and as per usual, she wore her mother's necklace, one lined with the incisors of deceased Ancients. Alex, on the other hand, put on his usual attire, consisting of a fresh white, long-sleeved shirt, a light-brown suit vest and matching coloured pants. He completed the outfit with a pair of brown dress shoes, as well as his, required for proper vision, rose-tinted glasses.
The duo exited the Ceruleus house and stepped into Alex's black sedan. Rush hour neared its end, so with only minor delay, it took them a little under three-quarters of an hour's drive to reach the southern portion of the Melderra district. Given the popularity of Ruby Street during the evening hours, their search for a parking space nearby ended up taking them almost a full twenty minutes. After airing their mutual frustrations with regards to Maya's inner-city traffic, the couple sauntered over to Ruby Street, noticing a significant increase in pedestrians the closer they got.
"You ever been to Ruby Street?" Rose asked.
"I've been through here during the daytime on a few occasions, but honestly, I can't say I've visited during the busy hours." Alex's reaction enticed a sly grin on Rose's face. The woman suddenly grabbed the hybrid man by the hand and dragged him along until they stood at the crown of the street. Together they gazed at the glorious scene in front; bright, flashing, neon lights, an imperceptible number of signs for clubs and bars, the sounds of laughter and merrymaking, all of which coalesced together to instil a powerful impression that they were in for a thrilling time.
"Back in my late twenties, I visited here with Margaret a few times, and let me tell you; it was fun." Alex couldn't help but smirk due to Rose's infectious enthusiasm.
"Lead on then, my dear lady, but don't forget, we came here with a purpose." The reminder of their original intent was a slight downer on Rose's mood; regardless, she agreed to try and stay focused on the task at hand. The couple's attire felt very mundane, boring one might say, when compared to the more colourful and expressive outfits presented by other Ruby Street goers. The warmth that exuded from the crowd staved off even the cold night air, so much so, that it enabled several folks to run around half-naked wearing little more than a pair of shorts. Supposedly, the glitter which covered the rest of their body worked well as an alternative to actual clothing.
The scene around overwhelmed the couple, making it difficult to determine where to go or who to question; however, the answer to this conundrum came to them in the form of a regular clubgoer. The instant the male human saw the lost expression on Alex's face, he felt the need to intervene.
"Hey there, man. I couldn't help feel your vibes. Are you looking for anything?" The Ceruleus CEO stared at the stranger, unsure how to respond; Rose, on the other hand, thanked the person for his offer and immediately replied.
"We heard about the latest missing person on the news, and we were wondering if there was anyone around who might know anything about it?" Miss Haroldson's response caused the man to take a step back.
"Wait, you aren't with the people in blue, are you?" Both shook their head at the same time.
"Cool man, the law ain't welcome in these parts. Just leave us partygoers alone, I say. Anyway, I'll give you a push in the right direction. The owner of club Aurelia, he's the one you need. That funky dude knows everyone and everything that goes on in Ruby Street." Rose and Alex looked at each other and shared a quick smile; however, neither knew the location of this venue.
"Where can we find this place?" Alex inquired.
"It's on the south side, my man, in the centre where all good things come together. Just keep going until you reach the golden dancing Goddess, then you know you're in the right place." The couple thanked him for his guidance and proceeded further. The deeper into the evening they got, the busier the street became. Eventually the aforementioned 'neon sign' came into view, and sure enough, below was the establishment's name, club Aurelia.
Large sandstone blocks surrounded the entranceway of the club; each one embellished with golden metal piping, shaped into old Antonic scripture. Rose remarked upon the design of the letters, as she recognised its style from her research; however, she couldn't decipher its meaning.
Her partner had other priorities as he noticed the waiting line in front and groaned, knowing full well it would take ages to get inside; worse still, it didn't appear to be moving at all. Rose examined the entranceway herself and saw there was a sign denoting VIP's could skip the line. Without saying a word, the woman stepped to Alex's right side and wrapped her arm around his. She guided him with a confident stride towards the enormous draconic bouncer at the door.
"Stop, go no further, back of the line please unless you have invitations." Alex stared at Rose, relying solely on her judgement as she'd dragged him into this situation.
"Sir, do you have any idea who this is? This man is Alexander Ceruleus, the boss of the Ceruleus Organisation." The bouncer had never seen either of them before and needed a moment to ruminate the name as it sounded vaguely familiar. Rose, meanwhile, continued to proclaim various examples of Alex's exploits and appearances throughout the past year. After a tense minute of exposition, the mention of his father, Falon, caught the bouncer's attention.
"Ah, yeah, I remember him. I used to work for the man. He was the one who told me I should switch jobs. He said this one suited me better, and you know what..." There was a long uncomfortable pause before the bouncer finished his sentence.
"He was right. I do like this more. So, you're his son, eh? Well, I hope you're as smart as he was, head on in." The couple thanked the man and received a plethora of vile sneers from everyone waiting in line.
Beyond the door was a small hallway which led into a large open area decorated to mimic a miniature version of one of the old temples found in the Great Eastern Forest of Erafar. To further enhance the ambience, varying levels of yellow lighting encompassed the entirety of the club, the most bright of which shined down on the palm trees which jutted out amid the central stone structure; however, those very same 'trees' doubled up as dance poles for scantily clad strippers to twirl around and show off their curvaceous bodies. Alex paused a moment to admire one of the dancers, but Rose took notice of his staring and bumped his arm hard enough to catch his attention.
"You know, if you like it so much, why not get one installed at our home? I'm sure I could show you a few special dance moves." Even though they'd been living together for a good month now, they'd enjoyed very little physical intimacy. Alex's perpetual excuse was that his arm hurt, not a lie, but something he relied on an awful lot. Regardless, her remark earned a big gulp from the man, leaving little in the way of recourse beyond encouragement, as even he had to admit, the idea was enticing.
"Let's go find this Hathor character, shall we?" Rose added, not wanting to leave Alex standing around, looking like a fool. He concurred and led the way, following the path around the central structure whilst taking in the exotic beauty of his surroundings. The far end of the temple had a hatch through which people could crawl inside. A quick peek into the hole revealed numerous hot tubs within. The lighting was dim, but it didn't take a rocket scientist to know what was going on. Rose smiled at the sight, making a mental short-list of the things she'd like to do with Alex on a subsequent less business orientated visit.
One of the more secluded side areas had a raised platform upon which stood a table encompassed by an abundance of real palm trees. Amid the exotic bush sat two individuals chatting away and observing the goings-on within the establishment. One of them perceived the out-of-place couple's searching behaviour and recognised one of them. The observer shot up to their feet and hurried down to greet them.
"Oh, it's you! It must be you! Mister Ceruleus and your yet unknown compatriot. Your arrival was not foretold, but most appreciated. Come hither, follow and let us converse; drinks are on me." The couple looked at each other in search of insight; however, neither knew who this mystery person was. Rose and Alex took a seat beside this individual, at which point they noticed the raised platform had a more neutral white light shining down upon it, granting a clear view of this character.
The individual appeared human, though lacked any upper body clothing apart from a collection of jewellery, which included earrings, necklaces, bracelets, wristbands, and some golden nipple piercings, complete with chain attachment between them. Furthermore, it was impossible to tell if this person was a man or a woman, neither their appearance nor voice indicated this either way. They were truly androgynous. Once everyone was seated, the person dimmed the lights setting a more comforting mood.
"Welcome to club Aurelia. I'm your host and proprietor of this fine establishment, Hathor." Rose thanked the host for their hospitality, but Alex remained vexed, still unsure how best to address this person.
"Come now, Mister Ceruleus. Have all your years of hanging around uppity office management made you incapable of speaking with someone a little more, eccentric? You are among friends here, articulate your thoughts, I shall not judge." Alex grinned as this individual was surprisingly perceptive of his initial inability to follow up the conversation.
"Very well, before we talk further, I need to know one thing. Are you a man or a woman?" Hathor prefaced their subsequent response, by first pushing their chest forward whilst placing their hands at their waist; all in order to evoke a visible dissatisfaction at the question even being asked.
"Really now, Alex. Must you speak in such black and white minded terms? Male, female, what does it matter what I am? Some here call me mistress; others call me master. I find all these terms endearing and do not mind which is used. However, in your defence, I do tend to forget about the narrowmindedness of the outside world. Therefore, I shall make it easy for you. You may address me in your brain space as male; however, I might change my mind during a future encounter." Unlike Alex, Rose was having a blast as she loved the way Hathor presented himself, genuinely endeared by the teasing mannerisms and mischievous word choice.
"Thank you. This is... my girlfriend, Rose Mary Haroldson." The club owner immediately noticed the pause and re-assessed the situation, becoming aware of a sudden increase in tension between his two guests.
"A partner to be? How wonderful! I'm surprised I've not heard a word about this yet. I have no doubt there must be a reason for it, so I shall not pry; only celebrate!" Hathor stopped his address, and looked to his left, towards the fourth person amid the group.
"Keith, would you be a dear and fetch us some suitable drinks for the occasion?" The person bowed and trodded off.
"Mister Ceruleus, would you grant me a moment to indulge?" Alexander wasn't sure what the host meant, but Rose agreed on his behalf eager to hear Hathor speak more.
"Excellent, I see you have a symbiotic relationship, making choices for each other with no problems attached. Wonderful, simply wonderful, but, I digress, back on topic. I'm well aware of your exploits throughout the past few months. Specifically, pertaining to your fervent unwavering effort to try and find Daerah's murderer. Bless that woman, and may her spirit rest well. I even heard whispers that you almost died whilst confronting the supposed killer. That's quite some dedication, sir." There was a momentary pause, as Hathor's focus shifted onto Rose.
"Your partner here, even though I wasn't aware that you two were an item, has also made quite a few headlines. You two may recall a tiny incident surrounding something called 'The Skull Mask of Arack', the main attraction in a big museum heist thwarted by a history teacher; the very same one who found the artefact in the first place. I believe her name was... Rose Mary Haroldson. What a coincidence that the name of this lovely woman in our company is the exact same?" Hathor suspended his monologue as he was desperate for a drink. To his delight, Keith, right at that instant, returned with requested beverages. Alex, however, took the opportunity to call the host's monologue into question.
"An interesting story Hathor, however, I fail to see the point in its recount? Perhaps you'd care to share with the class?" The inquiry's tone prompted a bout of laughter from the eccentric host; it appeared he'd achieved his goal in getting Alex's full attention, and was most pleased.
"Excellent question! Allow me to illuminate the reason for my retelling. I like to run a clean business, Mister Ceruleus. I don't enjoy unnecessary complications from doing otherwise. A person of your standing is always welcome, of course, but your reputation, as of late, seems to bring a lot of investigation in tow. I don't want any police disrupting my operation, even if I have nothing to hide; their mere presence irks me." The Ceruleus CEO understood what Hathor implied, and given the host's endless perspicacity, it was a safe bet that he'd know the nature of his next question.
"Do I even need to ask what I came here for? I assume you know." Hathor downed the rest of his drink in one go and slammed it on the table, quite disgruntled.
"Fine, I suppose nothing I say will dissuade you. You're as stubborn as your father was. Yes, I've had runnings-in with Falon before. I know what the dragon side of your family is like, all too well in fact, as it's clearly on show today, now isn't it? Don't bother answering that. You came here to inquire if I know anything about the recent disappearances of those four clubbers and if there's a connection with that damned drug 'Sparkle'." Alex concurred everything Hathor stated was correct; however, Rose picked up on something that sounded off.
"Wait a moment; you said four clubbers. The news only reported on three so far. Care to explain that discrepancy?" Rose's astute notice of the error caught Hathor off guard and impressed Alexander quite a lot.
"I-I g-guess they missed it?" The rather lack-lustre response convinced neither that he was telling the truth, and a brief austere glance was enough to force Hathor into confessing.
"Alright fine, so what if I knew there was another? I can't have the police snooping around my premises. The woman in question was a barmaid who worked for me. I've told everyone to keep quiet on the matter, for the reasons I mentioned." The explanation was understandable as neither Rose nor Alex felt any reason to doubt Hathor's sincerity, at least for the time being. Right as they wanted to ask another question, a white-scaled humanoid dragoness stepped up to the table and held out her hand towards Hathor.
"Look at what I found one of our customers trying to give me, to me! Can you believe it? I don't want this shit; it's freaking poison as far as I'm concerned. I had the bouncer kick the guy out and ban him. I made sure everyone followed club policy." Hathor blinked at the dragoness, and exchanged numerous glances between her and his guests, adding a few extra hand gestures not to talk anymore.
"Well now, Hathor. It seems I don't need to ask you after all. I think I'll have a nice chat with this lovely lady instead." The white dragoness suddenly realised that she'd shared too much, eyeing Hathor for guidance. The host yielded and told her to answer their questions regardless of what they entailed.
"Very well. What do you need to know?" Before asking his question, Alex took a moment to scrutinise the appearance of this individual. The woman was a dragon walking around as a humanoid, of that there was no doubt. She had an elongated maw and the back of her skull tapered off into a single point equal distance to the tip of her nose, which was shaped like a small kite shield. Around her neck, she wore a stack of metallic rings adorned with a metal clasp displaying a blue sapphire gemstone of immaculate design.
Her eyes were crystal blue with a black slit, and surrounding them a deep-blue eyeshadow; however, it wasn't make-up. White-scales covered the majority of her body, which unlike the front of her chest, consisted of larger grey ones. Dangling behind her frame, was a tail complete with a spaded tip. Rose noticed Alex's 'gawking' and took the lead to ask a question of her own.
"What's your name, Miss?" The dragoness took a step back and curtsied, even though, all she was wearing at present was nothing more than a blue-thong mini-bikini.
"My stage name is Miss Bluestreak. But, I'm guessing you're asking about my what my friends call me? It's Asura. My privacy means a lot to me, so I hope you'll keep that in mind." A remark she made on purpose, and one she hoped Alex would respect during his interrogation.
"So, Asura, you're holding a vial of 'Sparkle' correct?"
"Yes, one of my clients decided that feeling me up wasn't enough and wanted to make things more 'exciting'." The expression on Miss Bluestreak's face was a clear indication she didn't appreciate being made to feel worthless.
"May I take a look?" There wasn't even a second of hesitation as Asura handed it over to Alex; after all, his fingerprints were now on the vial. The Ceruleus CEO inspected the container noticing the capped end was made of soft rubber, the kind that was easily penetrated by sharp needles. The contents consisted of a blue liquid with a stream of white glowing particles within. It was easy to understand why this substance was called 'Sparkle'.
"Alright, so he gave you this to spice up the encounter. Is that a common thing?" The question evoked a glance between Asura and Hathor. Her employer gave a quick nod, more than enough indication to know how to respond.
"It's not the first time it's happened, but as I mentioned when I got here. It's club policy to confiscate the stuff and kick the patron onto the street. They also get added to the banned list, with a memo denoting the reason. The bouncer has an excellent memory when it comes to these people; he never forgets a face."
"Alright, is there anything you can tell me regarding the source of this stuff?" Asura shrugged, she didn't know, however, after giving it some thought; she suggested he return to Ruby Street during the morning hours. Miss Bluestreak suspected that whoever was dealing in Sparkle likely did so in the daytime. Her reasoning followed that the bright colours it emitted would be a dead giveaway during the darkness of night.
"That's a fair point, an odd design choice if you think about it. Unless, it wasn't a choice, but rather an inherent effect of the compound." Alex's supposition sparked a series of intrigued reactions from everyone at the table as none around had yet considered his hypothesis. Rose and Alex took a minute to confer amongst themselves and decided they'd follow up on Asura's advice.
"Thank you for your time and hospitality, Hathor, Miss Bluestreak, and thank you for getting the drinks, Keith. I assume you don't mind if we take this off your hands?" Alex stated whilst getting up; a sentiment which Rose echoed. The host peered at the vial of Sparkle and reiterated, it was theirs, as long as the police wouldn't come snooping around later; otherwise, he'd no longer be welcome. The Ceruleus CEO assured Hathor, he'd try his best to avoid getting law enforcement involved.
The couple exited the establishment and made their way back home. The return trip, for the most part, was spent in silence as they were both tired out from the evening's events; neither was used to the busy environment of the club scene.
Once inside, Mister Ceruleus proceeded to a hidden safe he'd installed in his mother's former study. He placed the vial of Sparkle within, hoping it might come in handy at a later point. At present, Rose and Alex slept in separate rooms, in part due to their jobs starting at different hours, and because Alex claimed to prefer to sleep alone. Miss Haroldson didn't hate the arrangement per se, after all, Daerah's old bed was incredibly luxurious; yet she held out hope that given enough time, he'd come around.
Before going under, they kissed each other as they had done every night prior, a passionate exchange filled with lust and vigour, one that would entice any 'normal' couple get down to business. Nevertheless, Alexander remained reluctant, the reason for which Rose still needed to uncover.