[CENTER][H3][B][COLOR=red][hr]C L A I R E  " N O C T I S "  Q U I N N[/COLOR][/B][/H3][sub][i]Larrisa, Crescent City[/i] | Afternoon 
[i][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kTMB2UqQs4]Please?[/url][/i]
[Lord Wraith] - ADD AN @ SIGN YOU DUNCE
[/sub][/CENTER][hr]

Archie's attempt to reach out his hand went wholly unnoticed by the woman. Her eyes were locked on the corpse, a grim fascination bubbling behind them. Whatever had attacked this man was truly bestial. Claire tilted her head to the side, watching with a strange fascination as the stranger started his examination. She wasn't able to make much of it herself, except for the obvious fact that the body had a massive gash in it's throat. The fact that someone like Archie, an apparent expert at this sort of thing, had been around was a stroke of good luck for Noctis. If the odd man hadn't been there, the Venari wouldn't have known that the victim's body had been drained of it's blood. [i][color=ed1c24]'Narrows things down a bit.'[/color][/i] Claire went through the list of monsters known for sucking blood out of their prey. It wasn't a long one, and the number of beasts like that native to North America was even shorter. [i][color=ed1c24]'I'm betting on a Chupacabra or Vampire.'[/color][/i] Her initial assessment, while accurate to the blood being drained out, didn't fit with the way the blood was obtained. A Vampire's bite was typically far more precise than the grizzly mauling this man had received. Chupacabras almost never attacked people, typically getting their blood from pets or farm animals. Either the young Venari huntress hadn't heard of this particular monster species, or...

[color=ed1c24][i]Or it really is a serial killer and I'm wasting my time.[/i][/color]

The forensics scientist she had recently recruited began to empty out his satchel, drawing Claire out from her thoughts, curious what he was up to. He didn't go for any of the tools, but rather an ancient looking book. [color=ed1c24]"What is..."[/color] She muttered, leaning over his shoulder to get a better look at the leather bound tome. The moment Archie opened it and started to flip through the pages, the Venari recognized the invaluable item he held in his grasp. A bestiary! This random loser actually had a real Venari bestiary in his possession. Quinn's first instinct was to try and take it from him. After all, she was the Venari here; he couldn't know how important the book he held really was. Noctis stayed her hand for the moment when he stopped flipping through the pages. The illustration of the disgusting, long tongued beast was the only thing Claire could understand. All of the descriptions were written in languages she didn't know. Hell, Noctis's didn't even know the two tongues were Korean and French until Archie pointed it out.

From what her translator could make out, the beast drained the blood of it's targets with it's tongue after tearing open the victim's throat. That fit the crime scene in front of them to a tee. The rest of Archie's speech was lost on the huntress. She was too busy looking at the book over his shoulder, desperately trying to figure out what it said on her own. Claire Quinn was a Venari by blood. She should be able to figure shit like this out on her own, without the help of some...mundane man that couldn't even hold down a job working for Crescent City's police department, without a doubt the most incompetent department in North America. Claire despised having to rely on anyone but herself. Other people would only ever get in the way. However...

[color=ed1c24][i]I can't read any of this shit.[/i][/color]

Kletus, her scribe and the only other Venari she knew, wouldn't be any help. His own bestiary was incomplete at best, and hadn't been updated in decades- the mechanic hadn't thought he'd need it anymore after the Order broke down years ago. A real, completed tome like the one Archie had would make hunting monsters so much easier. Claire might actually be able to prepare to fight these things whenever they popped up. Even if Claire simply took it from him, neither her or her master could understand the many different languages it was written in. They [i]might[/i] be able to use the internet and other sources to translate it all into English, but Claire was far from a linguist and Kletus was a [i]God damn mechanic.[/i] Trying to work through a full, hundreds of pages long Bestiary would take forever- and they were both incredibly busy already. Claire had no other option other than to play ball with this...guy.

[color=ed1c24]"Oh, I more than believe."[/color] Claire wore a smile she didn't mean.[color=ed1c24] "I deal with this kind of thing all the time. If you've got that book, you've probably heard of the Venari, right?"[/color] She stood back up to her full but none too impressive height.[color=ed1c24] "I'm a monster hunter, in other words. I kill the freaks that do stuff like this. I'm pretty new at it, and I don't know much, so..."[/color] Claire hated to do it, but she needed to guarantee this guy would help her. She could knock him out and take the book if he refused. [color=ed1c24]"How would you like to join me in hunting down the thing that did this? I figure we...can help each other."[/color] Noctis took a step closer to the scientist. [color=ed1c24]"Please?"[/color] She tilted her head a little and bit her lip, looking up into his eyes in a way that made her want to puke. [i][color=ed1c24]'Come on you awkward little nerd.'[/color][/i] Noctis thought to herself. [color=ed1c24][i]'Take the bait so I don't have to hurt you too.'[/i][/color]