money, vaults & designer shoes - anatoly

[Cecile Saxe-Meiningen]

PANDORA'S BOX ISN'T SO PRETTY

[atrb=valign, top][style=border-left:4px solid #fa7a7a; font-size:10px; line-height:13px; padding-left:8px; text-align:justify; text-transform:lowercase; padding-right:8px;] It was typical that on her first day at her new job the heavens have completely opened and there was not a dry particle outside, today was definitely going to be an umbrella day. Since taking the leap and jumping across the pond from Europe she had half heartedly expected it to be permanently sunny and warm over here, but she guessed only places like Africa were like that, right? Rolling her eyes as she took one last look out into the city from her apartment, she proceeded to walk out of her bedroom and straight into the bathroom. She had to admit that her new apartment kind of compensated for the weather, she thought the penthouse back in Berlin was snazzy, but this was just a dream come true. It had every gadget and gizmo any girl could ever dream of, which was a huge perk for her. The bathroom itself was all marble from head to toe, blends of white and stone colors she thought it looked so natural, and peaceful; all bathrooms should be peaceful. Just above the two sinks was a huge mirror which took up most of the side wall, looking into it she saw her normal morning face and sighed. Just like every girl, she had things that she didn’t like about her appearance she knew for a fact even super model’s had issues with some things on their body. With Cecile it was her cheek bones she absolutely hated them, she even considered have cheek fillers at one point then decided against it, she thought it made her look too European; and it sort of went against her personal image. Forgetting all of that she did the usual routine of shower, cleanse, polish, and moisturize what every other girl does to make herself pretty for work. She often laughed at the thought of women who said that looks didn’t matter, only the ugly bitter women said that and Cecile knew first hand that the better you look, the further you can go no matter how good you are at your job. Luckily for her, she had both of these things on her side for now, the thought of wrinkles made a slight shudder down her spine. Picking out a chrome colored Stella McCartney piece which she had bought on a business trip to London, she quickly zipped it up and it fit perfectly to her body. Under the blazer she put on a silky black blouse, and to match a pair of strikingly high Christian Loboutins, she loved the red flare underneath. After setting her hair into a high bun with a black ribbon and some clips, she was almost done until she heard the all to familiar rasp that made her go all warm inside. Walking out of her room and into the living room of the apartment, set up against the wall was a huge tank and inside was her precious Zombi. He was a mixture of green and deep reds like a tribal flag he writhed inside, his tongue whizzing in and out of the air, feeling for vibrations. “you know it never ceases to amaze me how good you are at pulling off being a normal snake, at least I don’t have to feed you mice and stuff though.” She lulled at the huge constrictor as pulled him out with ease. He gradually started to coil around her neck and arms to support himself as she sat down on the leather corner sofa. “I know surprisingly I’m not all that big on mice my self, why do you look done up this early?” his voice wasn’t aloud and the whole apartment was silent however, the spirit like buzz roared inside Cecile’s mind. “It’s my first day at work stupid, and I have a big job on so you know the score. So you stay here and look after the nest till I get back. Wish me luck.” Her voice was a chipper as she got off the sofa and left the huge snake curled up in the corner. “Ok, but you won’t need it. Be careful, try and be nice.” Zombi wasn’t sure if Cecile was paying attention to his response as she picked up her Hermes and walked out of the door. Cecile didn’t need a car to get to work, as it was literally right around the corner thanks to the apartment being in the centre of the City. Just before she got onto the street she pulled a sleek navy umbrella out of her bag and put it up, no bad hair days on the first day for her. After a few hundred yards she appeared at the bank, it was the biggest one in Arc City of course and the building just seemed to touch the sky from where she was stood. Her day started pretty boring, being showed into her office which was pretty impressive really but most of the others in the building looked like this, and also where everything is by an insanely tedious little man she just wanted to pull her own hair until she was told about her first job. “So your first client is new to the City just like yourself, from what we have heard he is moving here from Russia and is putting a huge amount of money into the bank so you need to make sure that that process is smooth. His father is pretty big time over here, so make sure you have service with a smile hun.” Trevor’s grubby little voice made Cecile cringe as he walked out of the room, and now all’s she could do was wait for her first wealthy client. [/style] [STYLE=font-size:10px; padding-left: 12px; font-weight: bold]words: 950 tags: anatoly notes: first day on the job, we have all been there! credit: template made by oxymoron! of btn[/style]

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[Anatoly Khlystov]

“Get the fuck up, you spoiled son of a –“began Dantalion, but he didn’t get to finish his sentence because the digital alarm clock came flying from the bedside table hurled by some unseen force. If Dantalion had not dodged, it would have hit him squarely on the face. The alarm clock smashed against the wall, sending bits and pieces of plastic and electronics everywhere. Dantalion glanced down where it landed and started grinding his teeth in utter frustration. There was fire in his eyes…no, there was literally fire and it blasted down on the remains of the alarm clock reducing it to melted slurry. Oh how he wished he could do the same thing to the boy. What he hated the most about being called into servitude, was that the Khlystovs seemed to take the liberty of making use of the Goetic demons as their staff! Right now he took the form of a young butler. He had a handsome face with olive-toned skin and long hair that reached until his waist. Right now his hair was in two braids that hung over either shoulder. Tolya made him hide under the name Dan Talon, and Dantalion didn’t see the wit in it at all. Dantalion remembered that it was just a few centuries ago that he was used for malevolent purposes; he was summoned to bring down monarchs, topple castle walls, and impregnate virgin princesses! And what was he forced to do this morning? Iron this little brat’s underwear and cook his Eggs Benedict!

Dantalion strode up to Tolya’s bed. It was a giant four-poster bed made to fit like five people but the kid had it all to himself. At the center of the bed, the pillows were stacked up to make a pillow-fort with the blanket draped over it. Tolya was inside and still refusing to get up. Dantalion continued walking until he smacked nose first into an invisible barrier. When the fuck did the kid put this thing up?

“Tolya! You’re going to be late for the bank!” shouted Dantalion. A hand poked through from within the pillow fort, it was the kid’s and he was actually flipping Dantalion off. The Duke of Hell slammed his fist against the barrier and sparks of magical energy flew around and there was a sound like a peal of thunder. Large cracks appeared across the barrier but it was a testament to Tolya’s magical prowess that it didn’t shatter from a blow by an 8th circle demon. Dantalion raised his hand over his head and a sword of demonic energy and hell fire materialized in his grasp. He took the handle with both hands and was just about to go Brave-heart on Tolya’s barrier when suddenly someone else walked in. Dantalion’s sword stopped in mid swing as he turned around to face the new arrival.

“He’s still not up yet?” asked a melodious and bell-like voice. Entering through the doorway of Tolya’s room was a stunningly beautiful woman of Chinese and French descent. She was wearing a dark grey blazer over a bright blue blouse. The blouse was tucked into a black pencil skirt and for her shoes she wore turquoise colored six-inch heels. There was a string of white pearls around her throat and her earrings matched. Her name was Sophie Yaofu, secretary to Vsevolod Khlystov, Tolya’s dad. Beautiful as she was, she was every bit a demon as Dantalion.

“Are you kidding? I’ve been at this for nearly an hour!” said Dantalion irritably. He lowered his hand and the manifested energy blade disappeared. He stepped back while gesturing towards the bed at Sophie. “Go ahead, you try. For some reason he listens to you.” He said.

Sophie flashed a smile which made her face seem even more beautiful if that was possible. “Isn’t that the biggest lie of the century? He doesn’t listen to anybody, so sometimes you gotta use actions not words.” With that Sophie suddenly materialized her own weapon. It was a long metal spike attacked to a chain. She caressed the length of the spike and it responded by nuzzling against her cheek as if it were some strange metal snake or something. She then grasped it by its length and hurled it like a javelin straight towards Tolya’s bed. The spike flew, dragging the attached length of chain behind it before it made contact with the barrier. It embedded itself into the carrier causing more sparks of demonic energy to fly around. The spike turned red hot where it was trying to pierce through the magical wall. A few seconds then there was a shattering sound that echoed about the room as the spike broke through. The chained-spike, no longer heated, moved with a mind of its own entering through the pillow fort and wound around Tolya’s ankle. Sophie gave a toothy grin before she yanked on the chain and unceremoniously pulled Tolya out of bed. He hit the floor with an audible thud and a rather miffed expression on his face.

“Damn it Sophie! You could have just yelled at me.” said Tolya as he stood up massaging his bottom. He was just in some boxer briefs that had some blue race cars printed on them. Even just out of bed, it was obvious that Tolya was a very handsome boy. He had a cherubic countenance to his face and his muscles were toned in a way that most people would have found desirable.

“Don’t give me that Tolik. Now get dressed and brush your teeth, or else I’m coming back up to do it for you.” with that she spun on her heels and walked out the door. Dantalion started snickering where he stood which earned him a venomous look from the kid. Dantalion returned it with a smile that was just dripping in self-satisfaction.

Toya rolled his eyes before he spoke. “Shut up Dan…now where the hell’s my breakfast.”

---

The sleek black limousine sped through the streets of Arc City. It hit a few traffic jams, but the sigil emblazoned on the grill functioned something akin to a silent siren. As soon as somebody saw the insignia of the Khlystov family, they made way not very eager to have a road-side spat with one of the most powerful crime syndicates in the city. In the car there were three passengers.

Tolya let out a loud and giant yawn. He was still sleepy, last night’s adventures had kept him up really late. He had totally forgotten that he was supposed to go to the bank this morning. Tolya was the son of an extremely wealthy businessman; as such he was entitled to his own personal bank accounts. Unfortunately, his bank accounts were either Russian or International. He didn’t have any for the United States yet, or for Arc City for that matter. He had just arrived in the city a few weeks ago – not to mention a lot of stuff happened before he actually really got to settle down – so there were still a lot of errands here and there to run. Today was meant for him to open an account in the First National Bank of Cabal and divert some of his funds into there. He looked towards the window and checked his reflection; he was a lot more cleaned-up now which really brought out how handsome of a boy he was. He was dressed in some black slacks, a navy blue shirt and a dark grey vest. His black tie was at the moment undone but hanging around his neck.

“…So, here are the papers from that bank in Switzerland, and here are the ones from Monnaco…Tolya are you even listening to me?” that was Sophie; she sat across him rummaging through a lot of boring paper work. She had been talking for the entire ride but Tolya hadn’t heard half of it.

“Not so much…” answered Tolya blandly. He hated these kinds of things; he’d much prefer to just have slept in. He built a really nice pillow-fort earlier, maybe he could make one again but this time it had to be bigger! Dantalion also sat across him, beside Sophie and dressed in his black butler’s uniform. He seemed to be preoccupied with torturing some fly he had caught buzzing around the car earlier. From what Tolya could see, the freak had been vivisecting the insect, taking out its individual organs whilst keeping it alive. Dantalion was pretty twisted…especially when he was bored.

“Well you really should! This is important.” She exclaimed, turning back to the papers she spoke. “How about you, Dan? I hope you were listening.” Dantalion, upon hearing his name, pulled his attention from the fly and turned to the side to look at her.

“Not so much…” he replied. He closed his fists around the fly and called up a little fire to cremate the thing in his hand. He was smiling at first but he quickly lost it as Sophie stared him down. She rolled her eyes before turning to Tolya and leaning forward in order to fix his tie.

“Whatever, both of you can just figure it out once you get to the bank. There’s going to be someone there to guide you through the entire process anyway. Her name’s Cecile Saxe-Meiningen.”

“Wait, you mean you’re not coming with us?” Dantalion blurted out in surprise. It seemed the prospect of doing a bank errand with Tolya alone didn’t appeal to him. Well what the fuck! It didn’t appeal to Tolya either. He was about to mouth-out but Sophie pulled the tie tight and choked the words back in his throat before he could say them.

“I’m already late for work, and there are new shipments of lithium coming in. I have to make sure nothing goes wrong or our entire inventory is messed-up until December.” she said. She collected all the papers and placed them inside a folder before handing it to Dantalion. “Here, just take it Dan! Stop complaining!”

Dantalion took it grudgingly but in silence. Soon enough the limousine stopped. Tolya looked out the opposite window and saw that they were in front of a giant building of dressed-stone. There was a certain Parthenon-esque vibe to the architecture but then again Tolya knew nothing about architecture, so who was he to say. Up on top the words The First National Bank of Arc were emblazoned in gold letters. Dantalion went down first and held out the door for Tolya. Sophie didn’t move, the limo would bring her to Khlystov World Tower…or wherever the hell she needed to go for work today.

“Don’t forget the deposit slips, they’re all there. And also the –”

“Yeah, yeah…have a friggin nice day you lucky bitch.” said Dantalion as he practically slammed the door in Sophie’s face. It seemed that Sophie thought it more important to get to work instead of arguing with Dantalion because the limo drove off right away. That left Dantalion and Tolya beside each other, and they turned around to face the bank building.

“You wanna play hookie? Take me to the arcade?” asked Tolya.

“After the stunt I just pulled? I won’t hear the end of Sophie’s bitching if we don’t at least finish this damn bank bullshit. You humans and your money-handling systems. I liked it better when you all kept it in your houses and killed each other for it. Come on then, the sooner we start the sooner we finish.”

The two of them walked inside, and they were immediately met by someone from the bank. The sleazy man said a couple of things, mostly compliments and other kind of suck-up to Tolya. They were probably hoping that through him, it would reach his father. The man continued to talk while he led them through the bank until finally they stopped.

“So this is Cecille, she’ll be handling your transactions.” said the man. Tolya barely noticed, but his eyes did narrow towards the lady. She was a magic user, Tolya was a pretty good sensor and right away he could tell that she possessed magical abilities. Tolya was many times stronger than she was, but when compared to most other mages she was pretty powerful herself. She must have come from an old line of magical blood or something. She had probably already sensed him. Tolya never got the hang of hiding his magical aura, it was always flaring and letting everybody know how much magical power he could wield. Sometimes it was a good thing, other times not so much.