Exeunt...(THE EXIT THREAD)

The gardens are a mess. Guests are everywhere and chaos reigns supreme. Sirens sound as the fire crews battle the raging inferno at the front corner of the ballroom. Policemen hurry here and there along with paramedics, taking care of people as they emerge from the ballroom in various states of health.

The quiet tranquility of the gardens has been shattered. If one weren't nearly deafened by the sound of the sirens, one might hear the weeping of the women or the shouting of the men. A few brave individuals attempt to go back into the burning building, but are blocked off by police.

No one knows how or why, but it is obvious to all that this event was targeted for some sort of terrorist activity.


((ooc: You may (and must) post once, and only once in this thread. Once posted, your character is out of the event. Policemen will take statements later on, and there will be some reporters hanging around. Thanks for exploding with us!))

She awoke in Panos's arms in sharp pain. He was carrying her at almost a run from the Mansion.

The last thing she had remembered was walking away from the bar towards a table that was closer to a window. She had wanted to overlook the event and she was always quick to find a table with no one behind her. It was a paranoia she had.

Quickly she turned her head to look back at the Mansion. There were flames and smoke billowing from the great building and inside you could still hear glass shattering and people screaming.

She remembered the explosion then.

Pulling a large shard of glass from her dangling forearm she winced and looked up at Panos.

Put me down.

His brow furrowed together and and he frowned at her. His face was smudged with soot and his regrown hair was grey with ash. He did not put her down. Instead once they got a clear distance away from the danger he stood amongst the others and continued to hold her.

There had been no warning when the explosion erupted through the Mansion. He was ten steps behind Chryseis when it happened as he had taken one last quizical look back at Shay and her random partners.

By the time he had turned back around Chryseis was pinned to the floor at her forearm by mangled window bits. There was smoke and screams as he rushed to her. SHe must of hit her head on the floor when she fell because she was out cold. The bottom of her gown was on fire and he threw his coat over the small flames to put them out. With a kick he had broken what wood and glass that had held her arm down and he scooped her up.

Now as they bolted out the front of the mighty doors admist the scramble of others he looked over his shoulder. Where was Shay? Was she far enough away from the windows that she hadn't gotten hurt? Was she still inside?

Her hercules of a lover could save her. He needed to get Chrys away from the danger.

Put me down.

He looked down and frowned. Chryseis had woken up and was currently picking the glass from her wounds. Hadn't the woman noticed her charred legs and gown? Ignoring her demand to show how strong she was, Panos continued to hold her as he came to a stop by a group of others. She didn't struggle.

He watched the doors for others.

Maeve settled herself into Nic's arms as he scooped her up. The kiss on the cheek surprised her more than a little, and she blushed slightly. She more than willingly buried her face against his shoulder as she felt him moving toward the doors. She had no desire to see anymore than she already had.

She felt the heat from the fire lessen as they stepped through the door into the garden and a cool breeze sweep over her. She was just grateful they'd made it out relatively unscathed. She knew from the fear and pain she'd been sensing and screams that could be heard others were not so lucky.

She dimly realized that Sorin had returned for Fiona and had taken her out of the building as well. At least her friend was safe. She hoped that the rest of the clan was as well. This night definitely had not turned out how she'd expected.

She raised her head and peered back through the door into the chaos beyond, and a tear slipped down her cheek for those left behind. She lowered her head once more and mumbled against Nic's shoulder. "Let's get out of here."

Rorri stumbled from the stage entrance, the fire was all about, she didn't notice the screaming or charred broken bodies strewn about, but only that she had to get out, though from where she wasn't sure.

She stumbled about, clearly skaken, one emerald eyes blood stained that cast a crimson shadow over her vision, she wasn't even sure where she was except that she needed to get out and that it was hot.

Strong hands grabbed her and like a child about to wander into the street she was yanked back as part of a second floor balcony came crashing down in a fiery haze. Someone was yelling, maybe several someones and someone shoved something painfully against the back of her head, or was it the side?

A moment later, barely able to see and unable to walk straight, she was led to another group of people and given to them like some awkward child. People were whispering, saying things in echoes and verse she couldn't understand and someone was holding her down while someone else did something to the side of her head, then there was the sting of something distant into her arm, had she been fighting back?

Then all started to go silent as her vision slowly doubled and the world slowly tilted and fell to it's side as if played in frames before fading out...

Addison resisted very little when Val grabbed his arm and pulled hard, forcing him to follow along behind her. He was shoved hard by a scared looking guy on his way out, causing the red head to stumble forward faster, colliding with Valentine's backside with a "urgh."

It wasn't as panicked - or...there weren't as many people left rushing out the door...it might have been because he'd paused, waiting behind for Jan...who was still no where to be seen. The red head was tempted to try and jerk his hand from his grasp and go back, search the area and see if Jager was ok. There was a problem with that 1- Val was stronger than him and he got the impression if he jerked his hand, she'd just hold on tighter...and 2. There were a lot of people behind him, blocking his way.

The knowlege didn't keep him from trying though. Losing one was bad enough, but if he had another master/mistress go on him, he would be officially cursed...

(OOC: Addison out behind Val)

It wasn't Val's usual style to drag people out of burning/exploded buildings. But it was a hell of a way to ruin and evening. Sure, bombs and explosions had their place but she didn't want to be on the receiving side of them.

Sliding her own small frame between fleeing guests was easy enough and half pulling, half leading Addison out didn't take too long. Not needing him to panic after the fact she kept half an eye out for Jan as they left.

Finally, clear of the building she groaned. EMTs, fire crews, panicky people; the sooner they got out of here the better.

((OOC... yup officially out and still had permission to drag Addison around 8^) ))

Simon carried Carol out through the only exit with people streaming out around them, some knocking him forward a bit but he remained at his spot. Gently letting Carol down Simon waited for the rest of his clan to exit - if not he had every intention on going back in. Simon waited patiently as the fire truck sirens wailed around him.

((OOC - Simon out, pending something /shrug))

As soon as Carol's feet touch the ground, an EMT came up and looked at her face, checking her for any more cuts.

'I'm fine, I'm fine. Shoo.' Carol pushed off the EMT into the direction of some other guests who were far worse and stood next to Simon, waiting for the rest of the clan to come out. She laced her fingers with his, praying for the best.

((ooc - Carol out pending whatever))

Sorin walked out with Fiona on his arm and waved a negative hand at a fireman offering a blanket and a cup of something warm. It would mean staying around here longer than he cared to and answering questions that could easily be done over the phone.

He looked back at the blazing building and weighed the probability that there were any of his clan or other important people worth saving inside. Scanning the lawn, most were here already. Let one of the Hunt play hero then, that was what they were good for.

Smiling at Fiona, he arched a brow at her dress which did seem to have weathered better than some of the others. Black had been a good choice for an entirely different reason from the looks of things. He reached up and pulled out the remaining combs that held her hair half way up. Running his fingers lightly through the loose waves, he enjoyed the silky feel of it more than he expected. Settling it down around her shoulders, he said.

"Well despite having come through an explosion. I would have to say you still look marvelous. Though I believe we should find something more suitable to wear."Â?

Deciding to forgo expecting a valet in this chaos, Sorin walked towards the parked cars and looked for his driver. He believed 'more suitable' could be just about anything but at the moment one of his bathrobes would be ideal.

"Let the other drivers know that we are safe and sound and tell them to report back on the status of the other Anantya."Â?

Opening the door for Fiona, he waited for her to get settled before also sliding inside. They drove silently past the large building, fire reflecting off the black limousine and in the steel grey eyes that watched behind tinted glass.

((OOC: Out, thanks for the party ))

Jan thought he saw a flash of red hair, several even. That could be Nova and Addison...or complete and total strangers. He followed just in case.

"That might be them!"Â?

He jogged a little in order to try to catch up but slowed down again as he realized he was towing Theo behind him and she might not be up to running around in this chaos.
It was good luck that they had managed to get a good distance from the kitchen before the blast. Their previous location would have been worse. Good thing Theo insisted they go inside.

Once out on the lawn, he turned to her.

"Feel a bit better? Its a good thing you heard what you did."Â?

Looking around that the milling people, policemen, firemen, and the media. It looked like a crowd waiting for a fireworks display. Of course the show stopping bang already happened, perhaps they were hoping for an encore. It was going to be harder to find people like this.

"If I lift you up would you look for the others?"Â?

This plan could work and they would probably annoy people at the same time. Perfect.

((OOC: Out when Theo goes ))

Well, this wasn’t exactly how’d she’d envisioned this evening ending. No, she had expected to mingle, dance… not be escaping a ragng inferno. That the situation was annoying was an understatement. Ignoring the mass of humanity, she followed Sorin across the lawn, her thoughts scattering in too many directions to follow. She let them, trusting Sorin to guide her back to his car.

When he stopped to let her hair down, she looked up in surprise, unsure what to make of the way he was looking at her. She had not expected gentleness from him and she was a bit horrified to realize she was blushing a little. A look down at her dress added to her confusion. It wasn’t too bad, but it was no longer wearable. Anger stirred, but she let it go, more interested in the subtle change she saw in Sorin.

“I believe I’d rather forgo the explosions in the future. But thank you for an… exciting evening?”

She slid into the car, grateful to be away from that mess. There was much to do, but at the moment, she simply did not care. More than anything, she wanted a bath. The smell of fire in her hair and clothes was too disturbing and she did not want to relive those memories, not tonight.

No, tonight, she wanted to forget the past. The future was here, with her now. Staring silently out the tinted windows.

(OOC ~ Out ~ Yikes! That was... exciting? Woot!!!)

Tai made it as far as he could, past the gardens and out onto the grass before he literally ran out of steam and fell to his knees. He deposited Yuu as carefully as he could, and they were immediately attended to by paramedics.

Tai waved them all away, but accepted a blanket when it was offered; it would cover the tattoos showing through his missing sleeve and open collar. The place was crawling with media and cameras.

He agreed to go along to the hospital for the purpose of making sure Yuu was taken care of and getting her safely back to the Piazza. Aside from that, he had no desire to be poked and prodded himself.

((ooc: Tai out))

As Tai gently put her down, Yuu decided to take a moment and cry like a girl. The pain in her chest and ribs were so intense that she was on the verge of screaming out when the EMT's came for her. She reached out and grabbed for Tai as they put her on a stretcher, tears streaming from her eyes.

She saw him standing there, blanket wrapped around him, with the mansion behind him, huffing and puffing black smoke. Yuu decided to lay her head back and let the pain engulf her as they put an IV in her. Finally passing out was the best part of the entire evening.

((OOC Yuu out and in some pain))

Going in the opposite direction from everyone else was never an easy thing, and when one was in a hurry it was even more trying, but Nova pushed her way along and soon enough came close to the fiery pit. There didn’t seem to be any way to the other side of the foyer, but she was certain Jan was on the other side, so there simply –had- to be some way. Still, that fire was a seriously scary thing and for a moment she didn’t know what to do.

That problem was, however, solved quickly enough when a rather built man with dark skin and a shaved head pulled on her arm. The roar of the fire was too loud to clearly make out what he was saying, but when she looked over his shoulder and saw a head full of dark curls rushing for the doors, she pushed absently passed the man and made her way over there as well.

Of course, once she got outside she managed to lose him again. Dammit! Still, she was almost positive she had seen him and just hoped they could find each other soon. The rest of the Tacharan had made it out safely, it seemed, and it looked like they might be forming up to go to Duibne, where they could all gather up and maybe figure out what the hell had just happened.

/ooc Nova out

Christian had turned to look for Theo only to find her missing. He and Dani parted ways as he went to search for the other Evenhet. He called to check in with the security already here via the earpiece that he was wearing. A passing waiter had brushed by him headed towards the balcony and though he would normally let such bad behavior go, Chris noted that something was just not right. He decided to follow the man.

He was halted in his pursuit by a woman grabbing him by the shoulders and exclaiming loudly that she -loved- a man in uniform. Not very helpful, Christian smiled graciously at her and nodded his head in the direction of the balcony. She didn't take a hint.

" My daughter..."Â?

Finally he picked the woman up and set her down again off to the side. Theo was spotted coming back into the building but her aura clearly stated she was in distress over something. Heading that way, Christian was knocked off his feet in the blast. He barely managed to roll to the side away from a large light fixture that came crashing to the ground.

Standing up, a quick stock of himself proved nothing was injured to the point of worrying about. Christian sent to Alfarinn first and confirmed his elder's health before looking around for Danielle. Theo had been ahead of him and through the haze and darkness he could make her out getting to her feet with the help of a young looking man. It appeared she trusted him so Christian left her to find her own way out for the moment.

Spotting, Danielle, He visually checked her for injuries before letting her know that Alfarinn was alright and helping her out of the building. He sent Alfarinn an update on Dani as well and left her in the capable hands of a fireman, knowing she would soon be busy on a phone.

Heading back into the building, Christian started searching the flickering darkness for people trapped or unconscious. He noticed he was not the only one checking over the wreckage, nodding his head to the large African American, Christian took one side of the room by unspoken consent and they worked their way through the wreckage pulling people out and handing them to the firemen coming into the building to do the same.

Eventually the fire became so bad that he had to leave the situation up to the humans in protective gear. Hopefully everyone was cleared out, he shuddered to think he had losing someone in there.

Barking orders over the communications link and checking his invitation list against the headcount that some of his men managed to complete proved that Evenhet was safely outside. He would have to wait like the others to hear about the rest.


((OOC: Theo's aura w/ permission, Dani moved with permission, Palmer spotted w/permission. Out))

Theo had to move quickly to keep up with Jan, but found the action somewhat energizing in the midst of all the madness. The crowd was a little difficult but she held together alright and soon they were outside on the lawn, looking about for familiar faces.

She turned in surprise when Jan explained that her hearing had been a good thing, and could only nod her head mutely at his question. She did feel better but now the shock was wearing off and a sort of sick feeling was replacing it.

Even feeling a little woozy, she readily agreed to Jan’s plan to find their people, as it would be quite fun to sit on Jan’s shoulders and look pretty. It took a little maneuvering and some adjustments to the dress, but in the end they managed acceptably well and she sat on her new perch with her hands tucked neatly under Jan’s chin for balance.

Quite pleased with this new vantage point, Theo looked around at the crowds of people milling about, keeping an eye out for bright red hair and realizing that she had no idea what Jan’s sister looked like. She gave some passers by a merry wave, deciding it was quite fun up here, before going back to her very important job.

/ooc Theo out

Stalking around the perimeter of the room, blending with the ample shadows and smoke, he ensured Nova had a good, clean exit. Keeping an eye on two men going through helping partygoers, he skirted his way out and along the exterior wall, wanting to remain unseen if possible. He didn't see anyone watching the folks exiting, but that didn't mean they were not there.

Taking a quick and unseen tour of the perimeter before the fuzz arrived, he looked quickly around the exterior for any strangeness before heading back to Duibne for the update. He'd call in on the way announcing his lateness.

Dropping into the sewer a few blocks out, he headed home.

((ooc: Alec out after relieving his paranoia))

He carried the unconscious bundle in his arms through the entrance and handed it to one of the firemen. From outside, Alfarinn called Natt and his family to him. Sitting down to concentrate, he accepted a blanket and a mug of something warm, appearing to look like a kid stressed from the experience so that people would leave him be for the time being.

Calling over a security guard, he took the man's earpiece. Through the eyes of the crows, Alfarinn was able to get a good view of the lawn and began quietly listing off the names of the Evenhet he could see from over head.

Once they were accounted for, he started searching for the Anantya and Tacharan he had spotted in the building. Thaddeus found him there perched on the back bumper of a fire truck with his head in his hands.

"So do you think whatever was attempted here was successful?"Â?

((OOC: Thaddeus and Alfarinn out ))

He looked up and wrapped an arm around his companion's waist and leaned his head against Thaddeus's side as he waited along with the rest to know some kind of answer to that question.

Shay was exhausted. She had started the evening weak and feeling happy, but not in peak form. She was now ending the evening barely able to stand, or see, but still happy. She and Alexi were alive, and together.

Holding on to Alexi had dual purpose. She was able to maintain pressure on his wound, and she was also able to follow along with him as they made their way out of the building. She tried her best to keep up, not wanting to hinder him in any way, but he seemed to understand, and shortened his stride a little.

The cries and moans around her, she tried to block out. She could offer no help to anyone in her present state, and needed to keep her focus on making their way to the car. Selfishly, Shay just wanted someone to dress her injuries, fix her eyes, make sure Alexi was healing, and then to sleep. She wanted to sleep for days. She wanted to sleep until the time when she could wake up and resume her life normally again.

If that was possible.

Hugging him as best she could, Shay didn't bother to try and talk. They were both alive, and there would be time later for talking. Except one thing she felt compelled to say to the man in her arms.

"I love you Mathias."

Once again she had been reminded just how fragile life could be, and she never wanted to take that for granted. She never wanted to regret having missed a chance to remind him of how much he meant to her.

"Let's go home."

(Shay & Mathias out)

Palmer was just reflecting on being the biggest cad in the world and wondering what on –earth- had happened to Thaddeus’s hair, which the Anantya had always been so neat and careful about, when the blast knocked him to his hands and knees.

Fortunately for him, his abilities made him tougher than most and he was on his feet again fairly quickly, with only a few seconds of time unaccounted for in his memory banks. Looking down at the floor, he carefully pulled out his sunglasses, which were thankfully still intact, and put them on his face to counter the painfully bright blaze of the fire.

His heart went through several very bad things when he spotted what he was sure were Thaddeus’s legs sticking out from under a nearby table, like some twisted wizard of oz parody, but when he went over to tug on one ankle he was quite relieved to find that the rest of the blonde’s body was, indeed, quite attached.

“You owe me a letter. I’ve come to collect.”


Thaddeus blinked at him uncomprehendingly and Palmer sighed inwardly, always disappointed when one of his smart assed remarks was missed. He helped his friend, who still looked more than a little dazed, to his feet, and surveyed the room, accessing what he could do in the situation before double checking to see if Thaddeus was okay. After deciding the nightsman was reasonably alright, he got the blonde moving out toward the door with only a little in the way of protest.

Then it was time to turn back. Thaddeus was right, they needed to get their people out, but in Palmer’s mind that simply meant getting as many people as possible to safety. He looked around for The Lovely Valentine but didn’t see her and couldn’t spend nearly as much time as he liked looking for specific friends with all that was going on. Luckily there seemed to be others who were thinking along his lines, in particular a man dressed sharply in a red military dress uniform. Wondering if he was looking at a fellow huntsman, he nodded his understanding and made a gesture of his own to indicate his half of the ballroom and set to work, guiding out some who needed a little push to deal with the shock and move their feet, but carrying out many more for the human medical people to take care of.

All too soon, though, he felt the hands of firefighters on his shoulders, ushering him out into the chill night air, where he resolved to look for Thaddeus, who he assumed would know the state of Anantya.

/ooc Palmer out, permission to see Christian and be properly impressed with teh pimp uniform.

Dani was chatting away with a group of reporters, putting on a cheerful and pleasant face while explaining that there was no way in heck they were going to talk to Arin right now, when the explosion quite suddenly cut everything off in mid sentence. She landed in a heap of cameras and two journalists, one of whom shook himself and stood to begin snapping photographs.

Some people!

The other was a little dazed but otherwise alright, even for breaking her fall, and when Christian came over to give her a look she was quite ready to attack this problem with sheer force of will. Understanding that she was to go outside, she did what she could to help those who needed it in the crowd. As soon as she could hear well enough again she was on one phone call after another with various people from Meridian who had decided to skip the evening’s festivities.

In short, she was keeping so busy that the reality simply hadn’t had time to hit.

/ooc Dani out

Rachyl guided Meegan to the garden wall far opposite the exit from Hillsdale House. The blood Meegan had screamed about wasn't flowing, so Rachyl didn't think it was her lover's.

Meegan was in shock, though, as Rachyl sat her on the wall and looked her over. Thankfully, the reporters were far away and the only other people nearby seemed to need medical attention.

Rachyl probed Meegan's hair gently and found a few bits of... something, covered in blood, leaking blood, and flicked them out of that elegant coif.

Not even needing to lean over, Rachyl moved her face close to Meegan and stated low and firmly, "The blood is not yours or mine."

Meegan nodded numbly. Rachyl marched over to an EMT technician who was just standing around. Grabbing his arm, she dragged him over to the wall where those other people were sitting or laying, injured. "There's people over here who are hurt, too."

The technician snapped into action, even calling over a couple of his compadres, to assist those along the wall.

Fallon had led them outside neatly with the crowd while Cyrus continually scanned the area for a further attack and to verify his clanmates made it to safety. Once he spotted Sorin and his Evenhet date he was relieved. Finding all his clanmates would be impossible in his present skin but he attempted anyways.

Logically he knew they should stay and give statements but his insticts were to head up the nearest biggest tree and not look back. "Lets head back to the Manor."

Making the way to the car was easy, avoiding human fire and emergency workers was not. There was no way he wanted them to look at his back as it healed, though he would need to get the large shard of something out. Directing Fallon towards his very anxious driver the two left the scene.

((OOC: Permission to remove Fallon from the scene had been granted. Can this count as her "out" as well?))

Mere seconds before the building collapses two firemen emerge from the wreckage, bearing a woman each. Neither is conscious although one looks like she's resilient; already on the mend, in fact. That one is surrounded by familiar faces, while the other is removed by ambulance.

((ooc: Lotus: Your clan is waiting for you.

Rene: Have a good rest, Nachton Hospital is one of the finest in the world and no one's died yet from a little smoke inhalation!))