The east side of the city is the very heart of Sacrosanct - it's unique skyline is a clash between modern sky rises and small Victorian-inspired storefronts. In the heart of downtown, the sleek colored glass buildings reign supreme though their old-world roots can be seen in the most peculiar places from the lamp post styled electric street light to the stone sidewalks. The old world architecture slowly returns the further from downtown you travel, however. It's here that magic thrives, it hums in every stone and can be felt in every breath. Often, newcomers to the city may become overwhelmed by such sensations but, eventually, it becomes an ever-present feeling that's hardly noticed.
City Creek Center
Dark Hunter Department
Inner Sanctum
Red on the Water
Starlight Tower
The City Creek Center is an upscale open-air shopping center centered in the heart of downtown Sacrosanct. With its numerous fountains, foliage-lined walkways, and bubbling streams, City Creek Center offers three blocks of chic boutiques, delicious dining, and the newest showrooms.
The City of Sacrosanct's Dark Hunter Department's primary concern is the safety of all of Sacrosanct's residences. Their public safety responsibilities include code enforcement and supernatural crime prevention. The Sacrosanct Dark Hunter's Department follows the directions of the International Dark Hunter Council and serves as a local point of contact for any Dark Hunters working within the Council's ranks.
The Inner Sanctum is an independently's owned specialty coffee company and cafe with a singular focus: quality. A hidden gem on the side streets of the busy downtown, the Inner Sanctum source's the world's finest beans and local treats. From it's delectable pastries to the exquisite latte art, the Inner Sanctum is dedicated to both its craft and the customer's experience. With beans roasted in house and every cup prepared by the best baristas, you will never be disappointed at the Inner Sanctum.
Owner Alexander Macedonia
Barista Alexis Wilde
Nestled in a pleasant alcove that is but a stone's throw away from the dazzling labyrinth of downtown, Red on the Water is a spectacle in its own right. Renovated in the style of a classic Irish pub with a dash of modern flair befitting the city that boasts it, this up-and-coming venue is the perfect place to snag an impeccably prepared home-cooked meal and enjoy the city's most impressive collection of brews from Ireland and beyond. You and your guests are sure to be mesmerized and invigorated by the energetic offerings of the live Celtic band to be found here every weekend.
Home of: Elysium
Owner Isolt Marcello
Co-Owner Damon Marcello
Waitress Yumi Chizue
With one hundred floors and a 125-foot spire, the Starlight Tower rises high above the Sacrosanct skyline. More than just a landmark, the Starlight Tower offers a unique mix of restaurants, shops, and offices spaced throughout the building. Organized into nine verticle zones, each of which features a sky lobby and a light-filled garden atrium which merge the upscale interior with a faux landscaped exterior setting.
a new world hangs outside the window
beautiful and strange
it must be I've fallen awake
I must be
Buffy's limp frame settles against the cool and moist bricks of the exterior wall with a low thud and a short sigh. She teeters some on her own, trying to find her balance against the wall and on her feet without leaning too much against the vampire, but her fitful attempts are just that -- uncoordinated and futile. Still, she manages to take a deep breathe through her open mouth, one of relief and release. She has the sudden urge to smoke a cigarette but has none on her and probably couldn't lift her fingers to her lips anyway. So instead she takes the handkerchief when it is handed to her, slowly her fingers coming to grasp loosely at the fabric. She tries to nod in acknowledgement to Sebastian but she still can't see his face in full clarity, so instead she hovers silently, perched crookedly against the wall, and rubs his handkerchief around her sweating neck and forehead, and against her wet lips.
She rambles. "Faaaaaack. FUCK." She is wholeheartedly embarrassed.
The charm of the handkerchief isn't wasted on her. Her brown-eyed gaze hovers on it, the dampened spots from her own doing, as it sits idly in her hand. Buffy has given up hope of physically overcoming whatever this was, be it a drug raging through her blood or the alcohol that had poisoned her to the point of being rendered useless. But her mind, for the most part, seemed in tact. That was the worst part of all of this -- knowing what was going on to and around her, but not being able to do anything about it. Sebastian was her savior tonight. She could not begin to express how appreciative she was and that was beginning to make her feel overwhelmed. The dark hunter had treated him so terribly during their previous altercations. Like most vampires, she had judged him harshly. Buffy knew the second she heard his voice at the bar tonight that he would help her. She knew she had nothing to fear, and that she could trust him in this moment. She couldn't explain it, but she felt it in her gut. It scared her. But if it wasn't for Sebastian, there was no telling how or when or if she could have managed to make it out of that bar and away from those men.
She listens when he asks her about going home but says nothing. Just as he moves to collect her, the dark hunter suddenly chokes up. The muscles in her body become stiff. And then she begins to cry. It sounds like blubbering nonsense at first. But the wails come eventually. They are loud and deep throated and heartbreaking. Warm tears gathered in her bottom eyelids until the amount of moisture became too great, and they dripped quietly down her sweating face. It was as if the flood gates had been ripped open inside of her, and every terrible, gut-wrenching feeling she'd felt since Jason and her mom and Leslie came rushing back to the forefront of her mind. In this awful moment, she leaned further into Sebastian and waited for it to be over. It was as if those years in between, in which Buffy had worked so diligently to build up a stronger outer exterior, had been wiped away.
Her muscles fell limp against as Sebastian lifted her. Buffy cradled her head against his chest as her sobs transpired into muted whimpers. Her body trembled from the damp and the cold. Eventually she managed to squeak out a raspy, "Dupont Circle."
GIA BUFFY JONES