Chapter 4: Chapter 3: Beginning A Great Hunt 

I study the convention's welcome desk, a small table manned by two staff members that has been covered in demonic horror iconography. Convention-goers are funneled towards the thing by other staff members and by a set of speakers that are placed in such a way that the easiest way to walk past the doors leading into the hall is just to follow them.

The desk is staffed by a white man and an asian woman, with the man wearing clothes one might expect to see on this world's version of the evil-genius archetype and the woman wearing an outfit that mixes sexiness and horror inspired by tales of demons and devils. Both of the staff members are consummate professionals and they expertly use their technology, what I recognize as a laptop and a tablet thanks to the knowledge in my player's handbook, to register guests and give out badges quite efficiently.

While the rest of my servants and allies turn their gazes elsewhere I watch the two staffers. Neither of them strikes me as exceptional or anything, but they do make easy first targets, and I can definitely do worse than keeping my targets simple. The two are well-positioned relative to my objectives for being here, since they are convention staff and they can also give me easy essence this early on...

All it takes for me to decide to act is a few moments of deliberation. I mentally reach out, which is an odd feeling, and when I sense my mind about to reach the two of theirs I sharpen a portion of my will into a thin, psionic scalpel and with precision I target them with it. I skillfully cut into their minds and effortlessly determine where their priorities lie by looking at their thoughts and feelings.

They are both dutiful individuals who value the work they do, despite their surprising status as "Temps". It seems this country's economy is in a rut so a lot of young people do temporary jobs rather than have steady employment, which is surely a less than preferred state of affairs for many people in this country's government. Nevertheless, I am not here to respect or get to know these individuals, but to do something altogether more sinister; transform them.

I do not transform either of the staffers into vampires. I probably will do that, for some other people at the convention, but it's not what I want from the staffers. Instead of converting the staffers into immortal creatures of the night, I dominate the two by using my "Dominating" focus. I warp their priorities and objectives, twisting their minds and making them my newest servants.

For a brief instant their eyes glaze over as this happens, but they continue to do their work since part of the impressiveness of the "Dominating" focus is that it cleverly alters someone's priorities without affecting their initiative or their ability to improvise. I sense two new trickles of essence begin to flow into me as a consequence of my usage of my power, since "Dominating" someone also causes them to pledge everything they possess to me, which fulfills one of the requirements of one of the five fonts of essences; "Oaths".

The two new fonts of essence are far from impressive, but they don't need to be this early on for them to matter, especially since they are passive and will generate an endless amount of essence over time. I also sacrifice a small portion of the essence they are unknowingly transmitting to me to ensure that I don't steal knowledge, skills, and abilities from them due to my major sanguine ability known as [Absorption].

The powerful ability allows me to either drain my victims of their knowledge, skills, and abilities, or merely copy their knowledge, skills, and abilities, and I am electing to keep these servants useful. Even if I have to sacrifice a tiny portion of the already small amount of essence the two former-mortals give me, the power is still handy as I feel it enhancing my knowledge of this world in meaningful and immediate ways.

 I feel my specific, modern-day knowledge of things like pop-culture, technology, and even specific politics is improving in leaps and bounds. I now know the names of musicians, artists, celebrities, and of things like "Social media" and the "Internet" in more meaningful and tangible ways than I did before. It's all deeply helpful, if sometimes biased, knowledge.

I have no immediate orders for either of my newly created servants, but I'm also not quite done transforming them just yet. I follow up my usage of the "Dominating" focus with a quick usage of a single major sanguine power; [Enthrall] 

As I do this I watch the power wash over the two staffers, and transforms them subtly. They both become immortal, slightly better looking, more charismatic even in their most casual interactions with people, and I sense the essence they'd give any of my vampires who fed on them, or even myself, grow in both density and quality.

This even applies to the pittance of essence their pledges to me, caused by me dominating them, generates, and I smile softly as I feel both of the two staffers become better sources of essence. This boost is pleasant, even if it's not exceedingly dramatic, and it, coupled with the essence I get from my brides means I am beginning to slowly grow my essence stores.

[Enthrall] is a handy power I intend to use on many of my servants, especially in moments like this wherein I am just starting out a journey in a new place and could use a quick bolster to my essence reserves. When it's done washing over the two I quietly inform my vampiric spawn that I have just created two new servants for them to feed off of later tonight which delights the two of them and makes me chuckle.

I allow myself a second to continue to watch the two staffers before I turn away from them. During that second I momentarily considered practicing using [Hypnosis], one of the darker major sanguine abilities, but I was able to decide against that course of action without much difficulty. [Hypnosis] is powerful, and I don't doubt that I'll have plenty of opportunities to practice using it in time, since it's such a laughably handy ability.

I study the badges that different people are wearing and note the differences between them. They are all simple things that are eye-catching but cheap to produce. This makes sense since there are already hundreds of people in the convention center, and at the convention's height it might bring a few thousand people into the center.  

All it takes for me to make the sort of ones they give to the most elite guests is for me to use a small amount of essence roughly equal to the amount I get from the two dominated staffers in a quarter of a minute is a moment's concentration and a usage of the "Emulate" ability all essence-manipulators possess. I chuckle when I feel a badge in my hand and I put it on the same way that the other convention goers are wearing them.

The thing is lightweight and feels good against my neck. I allow it to settle there before wandering over to a corner of the hall and partially deactivating [Shadowblank], after using [True Shifting] to morph my clothes into something loosely resembling this country's idea of casual clothing. I don't deactivate [Shadowblank] completely but I do deactivate it enough for people to see me.

---

The vampire lord quietly tells his allies to expend some essence and to create badges of their very own, as well as for their spawn. His brides eagerly obey this order, and moments later when all of the creatures in his retinue have badges they all slink off to different corners and cease being invisible, in the cases of the brides, and corporealize in the case of the spawn.

The three women are dressed in clothes that make them look like something out of a horny fanfiction's writer's wet-dream, and the two spawn wear futuristic clothing that doesn't look terribly out of place here, so neither group draws any special attention to themselves. Warren notes, when he spots all of his companions, that despite being the leader of the group he is the only one even remotely interested in blending in which amuses him slightly, as does the fact that in some sense his decision to look casual is the oddest choice he could have made given his objective.

For the next few minutes the group continues their individual hunts. Warren seeks to use his newfound knowledge of this world's celebrities and famous people, and he shares this knowledge freely with Gregory, as both men know how effective either dominating or converting the right celebrity can be as a tool to secure many future fonts of essence.

Marishka continues her hunt for the supernatural, eagerly exploring the grand hall of the convention center. Aleera leers at various strong-looking human men, from bodybuilders wearing zombie costumes to staff security who eye entrances and exits like hawks. Verona's eyes hungrily scan her surroundings, with her effortlessly using [Mindlink] to study those who draw her eye for more than a few seconds.

Aleera is the possessor of the "Savage" focus, a focus that hugely elevates the physique of sanguinarchs and dark brides who possess it. Her petite appearance is something she likes on an aesthetic level and it hides the fact that as far as raw physical power goes she's the heaviest hitter among Warren's allies and servants. Marishka possesses the "Cultured" focus, which makes her a skilled diplomat, mage, and essence-manipulator.

Verona possesses the dark "Dominating" focus, which historically was not Warren's favorite focus. The dark powers conferred to Warren by the focus are valuable, and both Verona and Warren are aware of that, but Warren often felt there were better options to use than the permanent powers of that specific focus. Verona actively enjoys the powers she can wield, and she likes knowing that the minds of mortals and even gods can be reduced to her playthings, provided her master allows her to unleash her psionic abilities against his enemies.

The busty raven-haired woman is a deadly enemy and a skilled huntress. She is using her psychic powers to research the convention attendees, her eyes filled with a disturbing hunger. Of all of Warren's brides she is perhaps the most sadistic, and her sadism is evident to anyone who gazes into her eyes. However, in the off-chance that anyone other than her sisters or Warren was unlucky enough to do this they'd just be hypnotized into following her to a secluded place where she'd drain them in ways that would mentally scar anyone unlucky enough to see or hear them, and use [Absorption] to make them forget what they saw.

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Marishka's masterful usage of magic is so skillful that she's already cast spells on herself to allow her to understand any languages her heightened senses allow her to hear people speaking in. She is steadily sharing knowledge of these languages with her sisters the spawn, and even Warren, though Warren possesses a perk that renders this unnecessary.

"By the end of tonight I'd like all of us to have turned at least one person into a vampire. If we're going to turn the convention center into a part of our dominion, quickly, it'd be good for us to have built up a small force of essence-gatherers before Saturday and Sunday." Warren tells his allies and servants, which causes all five of them to smirk mentally.

"Master, what type of farm are you hoping to create here?" Gregory asks, speaking to his sire telepathically. Warren considers the question for a moment before replying, speaking to his servant in the same manner as Gregory asked it.

"I think this convention center could easily become a lot of different types of farms. Whether we do something like create a brothel underneath the center, or use magic and essence to make it an arena, there's a lot we can do here. With enough essence-gatherers, or even just dominated servants, we can begin to do some of that right away." The sanguinarch utters, which causes Gregory to nod. The magnum opus vampire knows enough about essence to know that his master's response accurately describes two perfectly viable ways to farm the stuff.

Even as he speaks to Gregory, Warren's multifaceted mind is not idling. The vampire wants to be a master of efficiency and so he initiates a private conversation with his brides 

"If we were aiming for maximum efficiency, how would the three of you recommend that we go about building some early essence farms?" The sanguinarch asks, openly seeking to take advantage of the centuries of experience that the three women have with being sanguinarch-adjacent beings. The three women are silent for a moment, while Warren thinks about how to most efficiently act upon whatever advice the three women have to offer.

Sanguinarch powers, even beyond free-form ones such as vampire creation and the "Emulation" essence-manipulator power that allows a sanguinarch to do most anything so long as it doesn't include something like killing another ascendant outright and is just a one-time effect, are wildly adaptable. Warren possesses the power even to do something like create one thousand exact clones of himself if he wants to, using [True Shifting].

Warren's power set, in some ways, is perfect for adventuring. He can do things like absorb knowledge, abilities, and skills from those he kills, and he can instantly turn non-magical humans into his servants and worshipers. He has a flexible set of abilities that allow him to do a lot with a little.

"Well... Do we even have a place to spend the night? We don't need to sleep, but having a base of operations would be wise." Asks Verona, her mind focused on the present and the immediate future, rather than thinking about things a few nights away. This question causes Warren to consider the importance of the immediate future, rather than events a few nights away.

"Hmm... No, we don't, but that can be corrected without any real problems. We can go to the biggest and fanciest hotel in the city and take over the penthouse suite without any meaningful problems, with just a select few usages of even of simplest powers." Warren replies, truthfully. Even without flexing his creative thinking skills, Warren can think of a few different ways his forces and himself can secure a pleasant bed to sleep in, such as by turning people into vampires, or even just by dominating and enthralling a handful of people.

Warren's remarks are enough to satisfy Verona. He isn't wrong in his remarks, and Verona knows that when the time comes she may well get a chance to flex her skilled uses of her mighty powers.

"Well if you know, more or less, what you want us to do tonight... Then I think we can safely focus on the present? There are certain areas that more easily lend themselves to becoming essence farms than others." Marishka says, over the mental connection that ties together all four individuals a few moments after Warren's remarks.

"I find that some of the best places to harvest essence are places like prisons and hospitals. Prisons are rife with violence and often poorly watched over, making them easy places for vampires to infiltrate or just good places to select people to turn into vampires in the first place. Hospitals are filled with desperate people who are eager to make deals that allow us to put them in debt to us, and that is a plentiful source of essence." Marishka utters, quite coldly.

"In that same respect, a surprising amount of essence can be gathered in places like schools and universities. Bullies can be quite helpful to a sufficiently clever essence-manipulator..." The vampire says, a cruel twinkle in her eyes as she reflects on the times she's masqueraded as a bully to trick someone into making an unfair deal. A few moments later Aleera begins to speak up as well.

"As the sister with the 'Savage' focus, I think I'll also be the one to point out that many of your kind favor mucking about with... unsavory characters. In some societies this can refer to joining up with dictators, but most commonly it means aligning oneself with local criminal elements." Aleera explains, and for a moment Warren can see her focusing, mentally, on memories she has of entering criminal headquarters and taking over them with applications of extreme violence.

"That said, there are other options. Taking over local government is always a viable move for sanguinarchs, as it is quite easy for even a weaker sanguinarch to dispatch whatever paltry means of protection a mayor has gathered around himself and then convert, dominate, or otherwise control the mayor. And mayors can be quite influential in the right cities." Aleera tells her master and reminds her sisters. This causes Verona to smile and to speak next.

"Moreover, in cities like this, you have one compelling edge as far as essence farms and dominions go; 'Eminent Domain'. That is the name of a 'Dominion' perk you possess, which makes it so that your dominion will grow so long as you gain essence in it. These tightly packed cities are perfect for abusing that power, as even small dominion-wide growth spurts can easily expand your influence into new buildings, new businesses, and new homes." Verona explains, sagely.

"'Eminent Domain' is also synergistic when paired with 'Gluttonous', another hefty 'Dominion' perk in your possession. 'Gluttonous' increases how much essence you gain when you feed within your dominion, even if that 'feeding' is the passive 'feeding' that occurs because your dominion itself transmits essence to you." The sagely figure reveals, causing her to smile. This is the point at which Warren himself smiles and decides to speak up.

"So I see we all have disparate views on how to speedily get to work building up the sort of... cosmic infrastructure we would best benefit from. Well that's not a bad thing. I am unsure of whether you have noticed, but I seem to be untethered to the dominion I built up before my resurrection. I can only imagine how much of a devastating blow to my ability to use my full power that is, but rather than worry about that, I'd rather we move forward. So I am proposing this as our current plan..." Warren begins, stepping up and preparing himself to truly lead.

"I don't mind our disparate views on how to go about things from here. Our different opinions, coupled with the true power of [True Shifting] allows us to both go about our separate objectives as well as our shared ones. So I would like to propose that we begin our first great hunt." The deity explains, causing his followers to look at him excitedly.

"Why don't we all keep a body here at the convention, pursuing my stated goals, and use [True Shifting] to pursue our own disparate objectives? I can go ahead and secure us a penthouse suite in some swanky hotel, while you all go ahead and go after the different places you enjoy going after? As far as my understanding of essence goes, nothing you told me is wrong, which means that a lot of this boils down to a difference of opinion. We can take advantage of that difference of opinion and have it all." Warren greedily tells his wives. Their eyes twinkle with a mixture of joy and delight, as they prepare themselves to enact Warren's schemes.

Each of the women is practically overcome with joy at the thought of being unleashed on the public. They all nod in agreement with their husband, and subtly use [Shadowblank] to hide the clones they create as the clones free themselves from their creators and dart towards the convention center's front entrance. The perfected clones giggle excitedly as they dash towards the exit of their birthplace, quite happy to be free to go and conquer new destinations in the name of their master. Even Warren's own clone frees itself from him, and invisibly scampers out of the center, as the original body of the sanguinarch smiles darkly.

"Divide and conquer, with none of the downsides..." The man mutters, even as he prepares to hurl himself into the convention's activities. And his timing is perfect, since at this very moment a staffer not under his influence opens a distant door and begins to speak, announcing the first event of the convention; a quick ceremony honoring the con's speakers who have just arrived.

Warren turns in the direction of the staffer, smiles at him, and begins to walk towards the door leading to the events room in which the ceremony will take place. His current smile is the widest one to have appeared on his darkly handsome face since he was resurrected.

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