The Shecayah Night Club in Paris, France

Jayden sat at the bar in the apartment he and his husband shared. The soft glow of the computer screen lit up his face and he could hear the thumping of the bass from the songs of the night club below them coming up through the floor. He nonchalantly tapped his foot against the leg of the stool he was perched on, as soon as his hair was set he would go down and do some dancing. As he waited though, he was delving into the intricacies of the french language. He made a habit of doing this wherever he and Bello traveled, and prided himself on being able to sound like a native of any country. It would be disrespectful not to learn the language thoroughly, and he often needed to find words not commonly taught to someone in a French class, such as the french equivalent of gimp. He smiled down at the french woman he was keeping chained to the bar. She was very pretty, brunette with short hair and green eyes. She had finally gotten that look on her face; she had given up, knowing she would never escape here. He hopped off of the stool and petted her quickly before going to check his hair. Ah yes, perfect. He selected some sexy clothes from his walk in closet. He had to work hard tonight, he wanted a new sound system for the television he had just bought, and he was determined to earn the money himself, though Bello was always so sweet with his money and gifts. However one of their associates had just asked for a loan again, and Bello didn't think he'd be able to actually pay back with money, so of course Jayden would do his part to help out with gaining it back. He slinked down the stairs to the club, bouncing to the music a bit as it got louder. It blasted in full force for a moment when he opened the door and softened again as he slammed it shut. The woman chained to the bar began to cry.

As Jayden entered the night club he looked around for Bello. He didn't seem to be anywhere at the moment, perhaps he had run to get something. If there was any business tonight Jayden could take care of it just as easily, probably better. The speakers were blasting music and he bounced to it a little as he slid up to the bar and ordered a drink. As he sipped on it he scanned the crowd. Anyone who was rich and beautiful would be his targets tonight. The woman at the bar hadn't died yet, so unless someone really interesting came along, he wouldn't need to be finding another pet for quite awhile. He wrapped a curl of his teal dyed hair around his finger. Perhaps tonight he would wait for someone to come to him. It was usually easier that way, and it helped to gauge how much money the person had by what they ordered for you, also how much of it they were willing to pay. Jayden's services weren't ever free, you either payed in blood or money. He leaned back on the bar continuing to twir his hair around his finger and wait.

Bello entered, looking around the bar, but Jayden wasn't here. At the bar, there was only a lonely brunette woman, and he smiled broadly. Jayden did like to keep pets, and he found it rather adorable. This one was quite pretty too, even more so with such a hopeless look on her face. As he walked by, he stroked her face.

"How beautiful you are," he cooed. "I would do so many things to you."

She went into heaving sobs as he walked away, giggling childishly. He quickly strode to the doors of the night club and blasted them open with a flourish. His eyes roamed until he finally caught sight of teal hair.

"Jayden, my love!" he called as he waltzed over. "I see that you're having fun with your pet. I'm sorry I'm late. I was just taking care of the associate of ours that tried to swindle us. I told him to stand out on the roof without moving for three straight days in a row without food, water, or rest. And I have someone watching him, and if he moves, I told him I would rape and kill his daughter. It's so amusing." He grinned evilly.

Entering the Bello's club had been relatively easy. Baldwin had encountered a little bit of trouble with the bouncer, but upon seeing Baldwin's 'other' form the bouncer had barely been able to hold the door open, his hands were shaking so much.

Upon entering, the loud, ponding rythms of rave music filled the blonde's ears, cigarettes and booze his nose. 'Yeah.' He decided quickly. 'This is definitely one of Bello's places.'

The building was intensely overwhelming to normal humans, but to Baldwin, with his super-heightened senses, had no trouble compreheding the place.

'Now, if only I can find Bello and be done with this...' His mind and eyes sscoured the club. He didn't like doing dealings with Bello, it made him feel dirty. And for a man made of plastic, that simply wouldn't do.

"Ooo, how interesting," he said with interest as he continued to scan the crowd. "It's alright that you're late, I can take care of things while you're gone. " He sipped the drink again. The people in the club were having a LOT of fun dancing, but too much. They weren't paying attention to him, and that was losing him money. "Hey, would you be a sweety and go tell the DJ to play some slower music? All the single people will probably stop to take a break." He gave Bello a kiss on the cheek as he caught the DJ's eye and made a signal. The next song would be a little less danceable, unless you had someone to dance with. Jayden smiled and scanned the crowd again. He stopped as he saw a blonde walk in the doorway. "Sweety, who's that?" he asked, pointing to the door. Beyond that he could see the bouncer looking visibly shaken. Bello looked at the man suspiciously and claimed he wasn't sure, but that they should go say hello. Jayden slid off of the stool and they walked over to the stanger. "Hello," Jayden greeted with a charming smile. "I don't beleive I've met you before. What's your name?" They stood around him in a way that would block him from going further into the club or escaping if he tried. They were very discreet about this however, neither having to feign interest in who this new stranger may be.

'That was quick' was Baldwin's first thought as the extremely womanly man approached, along with the other, who if Baldwin's memory served, was Bello himself.

"Mm. Good evening. Allow me to introduce myself, please." He paused, smiling brightly at the two men. "I'm a man of wealth..."

Turning slightly, Jayden caught Baldwin's eye, and he couldn't help raise an eyebrow, smiling wider. "...and taste. My name is Baldwin Valter, and you've never seen me before, because I've never been here before.

He let himself breath a moment, the action totally planned and fluent. He was an elegant man, if nothing else."I'm here on business with a fellow whose...name...is..." He began to crane his neck around the club, as if seeking out a target, even though he knew Bello was right there. "...Bello?"

The loud music made Baldwin's high, lofty voice lose it's power, but it retained all the calmness and charm that it would have had they been speaking privately.

Again, he thought of how much he despised doing any sort of negotiations with Bello, as sleazy as the man was, but he simply had no choice in his current predicamanet.

Bello smiled. He knew this look. He held some kind of standards with the way he looked around the club. He was looking down his nose. Standards... how utterly pointless. Of course, Bello also had standards, but... a different kind.

"Pleasure to meet you Mr. Baldwin Valter." Bello's grin bared his teeth slightly. "I'm Bello Devokhavir, the one you're looking for. How can I help you? We have very much to offer."

Delicious fresh meat. Of course, they couldn't stay afloat so easily without making perfectly legit business deals, but this one seemed different. He seemed like fun.

Jayden moved in between them and took both of their elbows. "Why don't we go down to the restaurant in the basement to discuss it? It's much more quiet there." He walked with them towards the bar and then veered to the left. He led them down stairs that spelled 'shecayah' in glowing letters on the steps. They went through a long hall with beautiful men and women in glass cases, barely wearing anything and dancing and writhing to the music above. Jayden smiled. He and Bello had given those people so many drugs they probably had no idea where they were. They went through some black double doors at the end of the hallway and into a beautiful restaurant. Quite a few people talked and laughed at the tables while they enjoyed different foods. He led them to a private room on the other side of the restaurant and they all had a seat. The music was barely audible from down here and the chairs were very comfortable. The entire atmosphere was comfortable really, lots of reds and blacks made it edgy, but comfortable nonetheless. A bottle of champagne was brought in and they each received a glass. Jayden leaned back in his cusioned chair. "So, let's discuss! What is it you need?" He smiled flirtatiously. If the deal wasn't good, maybe he could play with this man later.

Making a motion to cock his head to one side at Bello and Jayden, Baldwin placed his hands on the table in front of him and spoke kindly.

"I want to...make a trade. I need a good amount of weaponry. But not usual weaponry, I want things that are..." Baldwin needed to choose his words carefully; he didn't want to offend either man, especially not in their place of business. It wasn't that Baldwin looked down on either, he simply knew of their ways and wanted to take care not to get too involved.

Though, he wouldn't have minded getting involved on some level...

"Things that are more experimental than anything. Not weapons you'd find a normal civilian or soldierwielding.

Now came the trade part. Baldwin grinned, and flipped a lock of soft blond hair out of his face.

"In exchange, I think I have a service which I could offer quite well. You wont find anyone like me with this ability."

Bello's eyes widened in interest. Ability? He wondered what that could mean. His mind exploded with possibilities. Inside, he laughed. If he had wanted weaponry, Argyle would have been the one to go to ten years ago. He was glad that Bayle's death had shifted Argyle's customers to himself.

"I think we can find something within your interest," Bello said greedily. "It depends on what kind of weaponry you are looking for; we have some good connections for weapon prototypes and test-types. As for your ability, I'm interested to see. Once you show us what you can do, we'll determined if it's adequate 'payment.'"

An 'ability' as payment? If he was so brash as to put up such an offer, it must have been something special. If it wasn't, then he would make quick work of such a stupid man.

Bello was sizing him up, taking into consideration all that Baldwin was to see if he could judge this 'ability' the blonde spoke of for himself. Of course, he couldn't see Baldwin's 'other' form if he'd wanted to. Only if Baldwin wanted him to.

For now, he folded his hands charismatically in front of himself on the table, smiling pleasantly at the two men and attempting to get down to business.

"That would be simpl wo-o-nderful, I must say. You see I'm in need of weapons I can put to the test and see if they're wrth the mettle.

And,as for my ability..." Baldwin paused, unsure of how much he wanted to allow them knowledge of. But he had a hunch Bello and this other man were in deep with some form of supernatural buusness. It would be of no concern to show them his form. He turned to Jayden, then Bello, conspiratoril.

"Do you have a more private area where I can demonstrate?"

Jayden could tell that Bello was interested and it was okay to take him to a more private place. He'd have to hold off making some money for awhile tonight, there were other nights, anyways. "Of course we have a private place. Our home is actually located above this club. We'd love to have you as a guest, follow me." He smiled sweetly and took Baldwin by the hand. Jayden's skin was very soft and smooth. He led Baldwin out of the restaurant, Bello following behind. They went through a secret door in the wall and up a flight of stairs, emerging into a nicely furnished living room. There was a white couch, carpet and television on the right side of the room and a kitchen with a bar on the left. There was a small scuffling noise and Baldwin might have seen a foot disappearing behind the bar. Jayden led him over to the couch and gestured for him to have a seat. "Would you like a drink, or would you rather just get to it?" He went over to the bar and poured himself some orange juice.

He took the offer for a drink from Jayden, confident that even in the event it was poisoned, he would not die or be hurt. Baldwin then took a sip, and proceded to demonstrate his 'ability' with all the finesse that he was so accustomed to. He loved being flamboyant and over the top.

"How effective are your bouncers, really? Has the problem ever arisen that, you can't seem to keep trespassers out?" There was a long, dramatic silence asBaldwin paused, smirking to himself and to Bello and Jayden, the lovely couple that they were.

"Or perhaps your clients are attempting to foten to weasel our of a deal? You can never know who to trust..." This was the moment that Baldwin's hair began to fade from soft blond, to a delicate looking white color. His eyes melded into the iris, the entire whole of his eye becoming one solid blue. When finally his 'transformation was complete, he looked much older and much more fearsome than he had before.

This was when he smiled, the knowledge of eternities in his cheeky grin, the former Holder that he was. "Gentlemen, I am a man of wealth, and...taste. And, I believe I can be of some assistance..."

Jayden stared with wide eyes and blinked. Then he began to laugh. "That was amazing but wow, did you have to be so cheesy about it?" As he focused on the person before him though, he began to feel a certain...odd sensation. Like it was something very unusual, something out of place, not meant to be right here in this dimension. He cocked his head to the side questioningly. What on earth was this feeling. It reminded him of halloween but far more potent. The scary kind of halloween mind you, not the yay candy! part. Or the twilight zone, yeah, that might be more accurate. He closed his eyes and let the feeling wash over him. Oh god, it was delightfuly horrifying. He hugged himself and shivered. He walked up to the man with bright eyes. He ran a hand along Baldwin's arm to feel the feeling more closely. "What on earth are you?" he asked with a wide smile of anticipation.

"Yes, please tell..." Bello said with a grin. Unlike Jayden, he had quite a love of the extravagant. Baldwin had pulled off the performance quite lovely.

"Really, it's not some kind of magic trick?" He peered at his face and his eyes, looking for some kind of mask that melded around his face. Of course, it would make no sense for him to automatically be able to change his appearance like that. Yet, after the world of Holders and Objects, little made sense.

"Ah!" he said with glee. "I see. In the world of Holders, things like this can happen."

"My body was once human, but I believe I am part Holder now." Baldwin spoke in an echoing tongue, one which seemed to reverberate around the room for a millisecond or two after being spake.

Then the echo died down, and Baldwin licked the piercing on his lip mischieviously, grinning. His perfectly pearl white skin was like someone had ripped a hole in the fabric of the universe and formed a shape out of the hole.

Just as Jayden would have described.

"I was once known as "Prehistory", but now I am but a Seeker." Baldwin waved his hands and stroked Jayden's skin back, tenderly, with fingers that felt cold and brittle, but almost loving in a way. Baldwin, cheeky as he was, loved to do this sort of thing, as it often made him feel more connected to humans such as Jayden and Bello.

"Now...I have the ability to tell the future, and to travel through brief periods of time; a span of about a month, that's been my tested range." Baldwin grinned and took an extravagent bw for the two of them, lifting up to be sure and reveal his perfect, chiseled and beautiful body. The body of a Holder who had lived through time itself.

He grinned again, this time showing the teeth in his mouth which matched the white clor of his skin. "I can tel lyou which clients will try to skip out on a negotiation, who will cause trouble if allowed within your nightclubs, and if necessary, I can seek said people out and...eliminate them."

A simple, human wink was what followed, and the human form of Baldwin was back in his Holder's stead. There was something seductive about the way the blond, effeminate man held himself before these two, smirking to himself, and to them.

Jayden was absolutely entranced by this man. He wasn't afraid to admit he had already developed quite a crush on him. He was just so...beautiful. He knew Bello didn't mind him fooling around with other people, in fact he condoned it, as it made them quite a bit of money but he wasn't certain that Bello would appreciate him having feelings for other people. Unfortunately, Jayden's feelings were always a little twisted. Him liking something meant that he wanted to hurt it. He watched the man lick the lip piercing he had and wanted to rip it out. Baldwin also touched him, it felt odd. Cold, but Jayden liked it. He couldn't help from looking at him quite lustfully. He waited until he finished pitching his services then stepped forward before Malphas could get out a word. "You are very most certainly hired, sir." he said bowing to him. It was something Jayden very rarely did to anyone since he had started living with Bello. Baldwin probably didn't even know how kind Jayden was being with the jesture. He straightened, brushing his beautiful hair back over his shoulders and took Baldwin's elbow. "Come with me, I'll show you the club so you can get to know it better." He gave Bello a quick kiss and led the beautiful man back out into the dancing crowd. He kept his body close to the other man's and thought of how wonderful it would be to see him bleed and cry in pain.

"Hmmm..." Bello - or Malphas - as he liked to be called, stroked his chin thoughtfully as Jayden led the man away.

See the future huh? Travel through time, huh? A wide grin spread across his face. Jayden may have more personal reasons to hire him, but Malphas let the possibilities flood through his mind. A time-traveler and a seer. He tapped his fingers together.

Oh, the benefits he could reap, the power he could have. He delighted at the idea of working with this Baldwin... However... Could he be trusted?

Of course not. The two least trustworthy kinds of people in the world were Holders and Seekers. Well, besides perhaps Malphas himself. But, that didn't mean they could reach an agreement. He stood up and made his way to the stairs that led to the roof of the building.

"So, Mr. Cousteau."

Malphas smoked a cigar as he stood on the roof of his building, where a man stood before him, sweaty and pale. He looked ready to drop dead at any moment. Malphas grinned, swinging a burlap sack at his waist.

"It's been three days. I hope you learned your lesson."

Cousteau was on the verge of tears. He would be crying, if he had enough fluid in his body to produce the tears.

"Please... please, just let me go," he begged. Malphas grinned widely. He loved how it looked like he was going to crumble into dust at any moment.

"Very well. You're forgiven. You did very well, not moving for a whole three days!"

He sighed in relief, then paused and looked up at Malphas. "So, my daughter is safe? You promised you wouldn't hurt her if I did this."

Malphas grinned. "No, Mr. Cousteau, that wasn't the deal. I said if you moved, I would rape and kill your daughter. I didn't say that I wouldn't if you obeyed me. He pulled the daughter's head from the burlap sack and brandished it at him. He watched with glee as the man's face changed from relief to outright horror. He tried to wail out, but as he tried, he gagged and coughed up blood, his throat far too dry. So, he merely sobbed and hunched over, letting out a frail moan.

"I've decided I'm not going to forgive you yet," Malphas added, his eyes becoming almost deliriously wide. He reached in his pocket and pulled out a knife, and the man shrunk away. "Oh no, I'm not going to kill you. You are. If you don't cut out your own heart right here, right now, I'll be keeping you alive, just barely, to watch your daughter's head rot away."

He tossed the knife to Cousteau, who immediately grabbed it up and tried to rush at Malphas. After only two steps though, he stumbled and fell to one knee. He didn't have the strength. He looked up at Malphas, begging for relief. But Malphas just looked down at him like an evil judge.

"Time's a-wasting, Cousteau. I'll inject food and water directly into your body if you have to. And that's all that you'll do. Live. Live and keep that head company. You will never leave this roof."

The man managed to squeeze a tear out of his eye before looking down to consider the knife. His body began to heave with sobs again, and he clutched it tighter.

---

Cousteau's blood was dirtying the roof. As fun as it was, Malphas would need to get someone to clean it up later. He puffed on his cigar thoughtfully, reflecting on the day. As fun as torture was, he really did need a more exciting hobby.

He grinned again, before heading back down into the club to see what Jayden and Baldwin were up to.

Baldwin entered back into the noisy part of the nightclub with a smugness to his demeanor and a spring in his step. He could feel it coursing through Jayden's body; the desire to hurt. To cause pain.

To cause HIM pain.

And the strange thing was, he wasn't quite adverse to this. He didn't know whether it was sexual or whether it was simply an inerrant desire, but something in him pulsed for it. Oh well, whatever will be, will be. He turned to the other man, smiling gently.

"So, I take it you've taken a liking to me...shall we discuss how things would be if you and Bello choose to employ me?"

Loud music panged in waves at Baldwin's ear drums. And he reveled in it, just for the night.