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[sub][color=c0c0c0]"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."[/color][/sub]
[hr][color=c0c0c0][b]Location:[/b][/color] Almack's [/center][hr][hr]

	The mood and body language of most of the people in Mary's circle hinted strongly that there were other dramatic elements in play long before she entered the scene. Much as the talented Apostolic would have loved to lend her support with this possible social crisis, there were more pressing matters afoot. The serene look of the young woman was replaced with cold, prideless determination. They all had bigger problems that needed impaling right then. 

	But the thing about crisis was that it had ways of revealing truths about people. The Duke, Rutherford, revealed what Mary supposed was either denial or anxiety; whatever the case he felt the need to vacate the immediate area and leave the woman to which he was betrothed to fend for herself. The woman herself, Millicent, thought to protect her family with zero regard to the Duke. It was a telling action. Likewise, the Captain who had chiefly ignored her presence thusfar gave her (and everyone else) a curt farewell and left to inform his father. It was a curse and a blessing, Mary supposed, having family. 

	From Mary's standpoint, all of this was tactically a bad idea. Perhaps it was time she spoke up. A voice with more assertive experience than her slender frame would have suggested interjected into the situation before more people decided to go it on their own. [color=c0c0c0]"The Soulless are not in this room, so far as I can perceive, my Ladies. It cannot be assumed that we would have an element of surprise, as I suspect that the Presence Guards were intentionally disrupted, likely by persons or forces still present for the purpose of allowing the [i]Inanimati[/i] entry onto the grounds. I am shocked that this was not immediately reported to the authorities and this event cancelled."[/color]  

	Mary looked around the room; the people and walls, ceiling, fixtures. She noted the location of the room in comparison to the doors leading out of it, possible access points and paths of escape. Which door Rutherford used most recently in his exit, the direction Millicent took, and the present location of Fryor. The other women were getting ready for a fight, and truthfully, so was Mary. It was rather hard [i]not[/i] to be ready for a fight when your forearms were covered with wraps drenched in holy water, wearing a long chain rosary about a wrist, and hefting a blessed light halberd like you're a Pontifical Bodyguard. [color=c0c0c0]"The whole affair reeks of incompetent negligence on behalf of the venue's benefactors; that or this whole event is a trap. The persons responsible would surely have taken note of a handful of Trained opponents as they entered the building."[/color] 

	Her thought process sped into some alarm as a realization dawned upon her. There was a meeting of Trained leadership in this place, and this was likely one of the first public outings of Her Grace, the Grand Duchess Elizaveta Romanova. Mary looked to her new friend, intoning in a quieter voice, [color=c0c0c0]"Or just one [i]very important one[/i]."[/color] She looked for any sign of soldiery or security. If this was a trap, they had already stepped into it. Mary had an obligation to see to Elizaveta's safety, and she intended to carry out that duty. [color=c0c0c0]"She's right. These people shouldn't be in here. We need to secure this area [i]now[/i]."[/color]