Filanticu
"You can help her." Solaris jerked her head towards Linda. Perhaps the cat could be of use to the engineer.
""Wait a second, what about the men? I don't think I've seen any of them since we ended up in the prison."
That was a good point. Solaris looked around and indeed saw that not of the male half of the crew was anywhere nearby.
"Mister Jonathan?" she said, looking at the heiwan with confusion.
The only man in the group made an expression of annoyance. "Do we really have to?"
"Mister Jonathan!"
"Okay, fine, fine! Jeez."
Another half hour of paperwork, cajoling, two disappointed operators of a Probe-atron 4000, and another trip to the gift shop later (Solaris somehow ended up buying sunglasses with lenses that changed colors), all the Caroline crew who had been arrested were free, present and accounted for with all their clothes returned to them finally.
"This is the most ridiculous thing to have ever occurred in my life." The captain grumbled.
Tranquility - with Rhizon Vei
Vei had sung in a different language. Tebigon felt it only fair that he try the same. He flipped through the options until he found one he was familiar with and brought it to play. The guitar and drum beat began.
"Solti ola i
Amaliche cantia masa estia
E sonti tolda i
Emalita cantia mia distia"
It had been so long since he'd tried to sing this. He knew he was stumbling over words. Maybe he had been relying on translators too much these days. Still, his voice was strong and steady. Thankfully the tune did not require him to hit those awful high notes he had always been terrible at.
With all that, he felt entitled to a score higher than 88. Which is what the machine handed out to him. Tebigon frowned. "Must be broken."
edited 8th May '15 2:10:44 PM by Parable
Filanticu Prison Exit
"If you would like to further discuss methods of improving the efficiency of your probing techniques, please do not hesitate to email or call me," Bobby said to the probe operators as he was being released. "We intend to eventually leave this planet, but until then I will be available for multiplexed conversations. Additionally, I have sent an electronic message to your department, with a report attached for your perusal."
With that, and after a brief stop to reclaim his items, he knuckle-walked back to the main group, snow globe in-hand. "Captain Solaris, it appears as if you have decided to indulge in the purchases of tourism-fueled judgment as well," he said.
Filanticu Prison
It took a few minutes, but after circling around the area of the baths, Jenny could say beyond a doubt that she had no idea where Reginald was. With a humph, a crossing of her arms, and an off-colored comment under her breath, she decided to head back to where she came from and give the proper authorities a piece of her mind.
By the time she got back a half-hour later, it appeared as if the ashkathi, the human, and the aht had been released to their friends, and that their Captain seemed to have gotten yet another garish accessory. Regardless of what hijinks they had gotten into, now was not the time for that. Now was the time to give the FMS officers a stern line of questioning.
"Excuse me!" she said to the receptionist at the prison. "My dog is missing. He was with me when I was taken into custody, and I demand to have him returned to me at once."
Attitude is prohibited
[Filanticu Prison]
Linda was thoroughly pleased to be dressed again. Aside from having been a totally humiliating experience, Filanticu felt like a breezy place, and the towel had not helped with that at all. She was also quite pleased to have Rosemary aboard, primarily because the thought of no longer having to endure Bobby's gruel absolutely thrilled her.
The happy feelings came to an end very abruptly, however. You can help her, the captain had said, motioning towards her. Linda looked behind her, confused, and then back to the captain, still confused. Then she connected the dots. "Help me ?!" Linda began, incredulously. A lot of protests tried to come out of her mouth all at once and ended up jammed in her throat, ultimately resulting in no words at all. You want to hire some crazy, random nisi you met in jail? And you want her messing around the engines and the reactor?! Linda thought. Man, does this captain just hire anyone?
After a few moments, as the captain headed back into the prison to harangue the staff for the release of the male crew member, Linda sighed resignedly. Maybe I can get her to clean the coolant tubes or something. She didn't have much faith in the engineering ability of any nisi, much less the one who had ruined her relaxing time in the choco-bath and gotten her arrested and probed.
During the half-hour the captain was battling the guards (in a non-literal sense) and filling out paperwork, Linda had drifted into the gift shop and was seriously contemplating buying an overpriced keychain with a miniature Probe-atron 4000 on it. Abruptly, she realized what she was doing and tossed the keychain back where she'd found it, as though it had suddenly grown hot and burned her. And about that time, the male crew members came back. "Oh! Bobby!" She said, rushing over to the Norb Unit. "When we get back to the ship, could you get me a full inventory list of all the loose, handheld equipment we have down in Engineering?" She wanted to know if anything ever went missing. "You know, just in case." She successfully resisted the urge to shoot a dirty look in Ligia's direction.
Not entirely dead.
For the Horde!
Filanticu Prison — With Maros and Rosemary
Maros was following Bobby and Hrof, glad to be out of this prison. He had been violated enough while he was here. He nodded at Johnathan thankfully, then looked at the two women standing by the captain: Rosemary from earlier, as well as a Nisi. Maros tilted his head when Linda asked about the inventory... wasn't that Arij's job? Nonetheless, he said nothing, but was glad to see his fellow crewmates.
Rosemary waved at them cheerfully as they approached, then looked over at the captain. "Thank you for giving me this opportunity! I promise I won't let you down!" she exclaimed. Seeing the diverse crew, she frowned a little bit though. She was used to cooking Terran cuisine. How in the galaxy would she satisfy so many diverse tastes? For instance, Sirians and Nisi were mostly carnivores and Heiwans were vegan. And that was just to name a few!
Tranquility — With Rhizon Vei
Rhizon Vei's eyes lit up when he began to sing. This was an old Snailian song, and though she didn't know the lyrics, she had heard the song being sung by some of the Snailian delegates during one of her visits to the Snailian embassy. She smiled at him coyly as he finished up.
"You have a handsome singing voice, Lord," she purred. "Thank you for spending time with Us. We have enjoyed Our visit. However, this one must return to its duties. Surely, you understand that, Lord?" she asked, leaning onto the table and grinning.
edited 8th May '15 10:26:39 PM by AllHailThrall
I can still hail the Horde even though the company has shamed us. Strength and Honor even if Blizzard has neither.
THE SLORG!
Earlier, Hrof gave a slight chuckle after hearing Bobby's story. He may not have considered himself officially off duty, he knew he couldn't really do anything in this jail cell anyway, so there was no harm in letting himself relax a bit. He then made a simple comment on the absurdity, and recommended that Bobby let Maros have a turn.
After they were rescued, the first thing Hrof did once out of the cell was go get his suit and put it back on. It wasn't that he felt any embarrassment at the female crew seeing him, in fact as soon as he saw Solaris he straightened his back and gave her a salute, still in his birthday suit; rather it was that he needed to get himself back to operational parameters, and that meant getting his armor back on. The second thing he did was return Linda's stuff to her that had been confiscated as his own when they were arrested. With that done, he returned to Solaris to resume his regular duties.
Meanwhile, a certain nisi felt annoyed that the human captain had simply passed along her debt to a different human. Ligia followed this other human woman as they moved around the prison, recalling that she had been specified as part of the first human's crew. Ligia now got the thought that, if this human didn't make her repay the debt until they were back on the ship with Ligia still tagging along, she could effectively nab a free ride off this unbearable planet.
With nothing particularly interesting going on now, Ligia was starting to get bored, but with her hearing she still caught part of what the human said to the norb frame.
"When we get back to the ship, could you get me a full inventory list of all the loose, handheld equipment we have down in Engineering?"
Now it made sense to Ligia; this human was in the engineering department of the captain's ship, hence why the captain would send Ligia to help her after she's mentioned being a tinkerer. She might actually get to do some tinkering work on their ship; the thought made Ligia excited, and now she could hardly wait. "How much longer humans staying here?" Ligia asked, her ears perking up.
edited 11th May '15 1:19:46 AM by FirockFinion
You are reading this.
Dreams of Revenge
Filanticu — Erruan
Erruan was less than pleased by Solaris taking on Ligia as part of the crew. In the back of her mind she hurriedly re-added the need to conduct an extensive background - not to mention making sure the nisi didn't get anywhere near her equipment. She wouldn't put it past the feline alien to get her to have an "accident".
Her second trip through the gift shop netted her a t-shirt that bore the caption "Pros Before Probes". It was tacky, yes, but it was Erruan's kind of tacky. Albeit she would never admit that to the rest of the crew. She had standards, dammit!
Azunn's Office — Azunn
Azunn mulled over the implications of what had been discussed. He privately suspected that Byss had been bluffing, but it paid to take such things seriously. His mind was already turning over potential strategies to defuse the threat. Privately he wished that he hadn't reacted to Byss initially; it might have been exactly the sort of reaction she was looking for. But it was too late to do anything about it - instead, he would just have to roll with the punches. Ideally he and Byss would be friends, but Azunn held no illusions about how the majority of the Savages viewed his kind. He would not allow sentimentality nor his personal politics to interfere with his duty to his nation.
"I want this room and its surroundings swept for bugs," said Azunn to his CAPT, who had just returned from escorting Byss from the embassy. The Nisi ambassador's reactions had been erratic from the start - suspiciously so. It might have been seen as paranoid to assume that she had used it as a cover to plant surveillance devices, but a little caution never hurt anyone. He would also try to obtain an updated dossier on the Nisi ambassdor in hopes of learning why she had reacted the way she did - and, perhaps, gain some leverage.
Locking you up on radar since '09
Filanticu Prison Exit
Bobby nodded at Linda. "Command accepted."
Filanticu
"Captain Solaris, it appears as if you have decided to indulge in the purchases of tourism-fueled judgment as well,"
That was without a doubt the most accurate way of putting it, Solaris realized. She whipped off the just-purchased sun glasses, disgusted with herself for being talked so easily into buying overpriced trinkets. Accursed birds and their accursed, compelling sing-song voices.
She was aware of Hrof standing nearby and for a moment her mind went back to a little while earlier before she shoved the image of his naked physic out of her mind with a reddened face.
""How much longer humans staying here?"" One of the new crewmembers asked.
"Humans stay here as short as possible." Solaris reassured her. Vague, but the captain could not be sure just how long they would be here. As much as she wanted to be as far away from the moon and its overeager police as possible, the crew deserved some downtime, and she still needed to finalize a deal for the return journey to Verandi anyway.
In the meantime, they could ride chocolate cows, sample chocolate dumplings, participate in the choco-battle with fudge bombs and milk blasters...
Solaris blinked and shook her head, trying to block out all the flashing signs making their way into her brain.
"Whatever you do, just stay away from security robots and rampaging cows! I have business to attend to back on the ship. Security, make sure they stay out of trouble please."
By now, the artificial daylight was fading away, bringing night to the moon. The multicolored stones that made up the streets would light up when someone stepped on them. Considering the vast amount of people still walking everywhere, they created a dim rainbow glow from the bottom up, while spherical balls of light created from holoprojectors speckled the area above everyone's heads.
No sooner was Solaris gone did the group hear another female voice calling out their names.
"Hey, guys! Where you all been?"
Arij and the two Verandi girls she had been conversing with earlier had spotted the recently jailed group and ran up to meet them.
For the Horde!
Filanticu
Maros and Rosemary saw the rest of the crew approaching, and Maros was relieved to see them, eager to get back on the ship. Rosemary, however, looked over at Solaris. "Are these the rest of the crew?" she asked. She then turned over to them and smiled. "My name is Rosemary. I'm a Rhizon construct... or rather I was. But that's not important— right now what's important is that I'm your new cook! You won't have to worry about your diet when I'm aboard!" she explained cheerfully. Maros simply glanced at the group and nodded, thinking about places he would much rather be than Filanticu.
I can still hail the Horde even though the company has shamed us. Strength and Honor even if Blizzard has neither.
"Cook? Oh, sweet, that's awesome!" One of the girls said. "Perfect timing too! Look what we bought!"
She turned to look down the street. "Boss Man! Come on, bring it over!"
Those who followed the direction she was shouting in would see First Mate Yeslah pushing a large, black and red device towards them. Various drills and spike protruded from the exterior. A container pumping what looked like water on fire rested on the top. Long, metallic cords wriggled from the sides, as if looking for prey to grasp. On the side were letters written in Heiwan.
"They were on sale down in the Kitchen Section!" the girl exclaimed. "Behold, the Smooth-atron 4000. Guaranteed to make the best smoothies in the Galaxy! Or that's what they said anyway."
Over at the prison lobby, the Filanticu security officer manning the front desk looked at Jenny, looked behind Jenny, looked at Jenny again, then looked behind her one more time.
"That dog?" She said, pointing behind Jenny.
Reginald strolled into the lobby after a polite security officer held the door open for him. Clean, well-groomed, wearing a tie-dye neckerchief and the same glasses Solaris had bought.
Dreams of Revenge
Filanticu — Erruan
"Yes, ma'am," said Erruan. She had a feeling that - if the chocolate baths incident was any indicator - that keeping the crew out of trouble would be a rather tall order. The nisi in particular would prove a problem, particularly as she was the one who instigated the whole mess in the first place!
Even if she felt that on occasion the Heiwans were obsessed with art, Erruan had to admit that the night time lighting was a beautiful spectacle. She was more used to Sirian warships' stark, artificial lighting, which cast everything into sharp relief. Her reverie was brought to an abrupt end by the return of Arij and two Verandi crew members.
The sirian stared disbelievingly at the Smooth-atron 4000. She almost pointed out that it looked suspiciously similar to the Probe-atron 4000, but she thought better of it. Secretly, she was thankful that her helmet was completely featureless.
Locking you up on radar since '09
Filanticu Prison Exit
"REGINAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALD!" Jenny shouted happily, seeing the cleaned dachshund. She shuffled towards him with a flurry of steps, then scooped him up with all three hands and pressed his face to her cheek. "Ohhhhh, who's a good boy. You are, yes you are. I missed you so much Reggie Weggie, I thought you were lost and all alone, wandering the streets and alleys. But you managed to do well for yourself, didn't you? You have a new outfit and everything."
Also the Filanticu Prison Exit
"Order understood, captain," Bobby said with a content-seeming nod. He knuckle-walked his way over to the nearby Chocolate Combat Colosseum, where a multitude of corporations seemed to be sponsoring the events, as the teams were each creatively named after the sponsoring brand. For some reason, the attendant behind the booth placed him on the team called Merciless Miisny's Milky Murdermonkeys.
Securing his snow globe in a rental locker, he proceeded to head to the armory. Due to his high strength, low speed, and considerable bulk, he was auto-confirmed for the Heavy class, and equipped himself with a Cocoa Chain Gun. He then placed a bandoleer over his shoulder and chest as he waited for the rest of the competitors to arrive.
Attitude is prohibited
[Filanticu Prison >>> Choco-Con]
Linda looked at the Smooth-atron 4000, aghast and horrified. She walked all around it, inspecting it, then she stopped in front of it, hands on her hips. "Are you sure it makes smoothies?" She said. "Are you sure it doesn't summon the undead?" Its startling resemblance to the frightful machine she'd avoided meeting not long ago, and its bizarre appearance in general, raised all kinds of questions. Questions she wasn't entirely sure she wanted the answers to. She felt almost as though she was faced with the prospect of learning some kind of forbidden knowledge, and that as tempting as it was, she might regret it later.
Then she shook her head, decided that she was being dramatic, and simply said "Whatever. If that freaky thing breaks, I'm not fixing it."
And with a quick goodbye, she headed off in the general direction the Choco-Con. Though, after having been through such a terrible, chocolate-related experience, she wasn't really in the mood for anything the convention had to offer. Her skin still smelled like chocolate, though it was hard to tell given that the whole con smelled like chocolate. After wandering aimlessly for a while, she found herself with tickets for the Chocolate Combat Colosseum's upcoming fight...
Not entirely dead.
Chocolate Combat Colosseum
As he continued to wait for team selection to finish up, Bobby began the process of selecting his secondary weapons. For his grenade, he settled on the Bananabomb - a cluster of cream-filled bananas that would coat anyone nearby with a wave of whipping cream.
THE SLORG!
After walking out of the sirian embassy, which she hadn't placed any bugs in, (Nor had she had any bugs on her person, in case they were scanning for that too.) Byss sighed and adjusted a few of the pins on her jacket, then started walking home to the Savages embassy. It was a slow, calm walk as she took in the views of the bustling station. She thought of how only around half a year ago she was an internationally wanted criminal, and now she was here on a station filled with every known sapient species in the galaxy. She couldn't help but crack a small smile at the thought.
Once she reached the Savages embassy and walked inside, her mother moved over to the door to greet her. "Byss! I was worried when you didn't come back with your sister and cousin-" her mother started, but Byss waved her down.
"I'm fine, mother. I'll be having an appointment shortly" Byss said, and started walking past towards her office.
Her mother seemed confused at this. "We have no appointments today" her mother stated simply.
"We do now" Byss responded, without turning back. After entering the office, she went over to a cabinet, which she pulled a large bottle of wine from; she then took a few chugs from said bottle, sat down at her desk, and started to count the seconds. She got to forty two when the door opened, and a figure walked in. A nisi woman, in a white dress, and a stylized white mask.
"You summoned" the Red Claw stated simply, in a monotone, after the door slid close. "You got something at the sirian embassy" she noted, still in monotone.
Byss wasn't looking at the Red Claw, and was instead examining the details of the wine glass' label. "The head. Pkin Goldenkit" Byss answered, not explaining further; they both knew what she was talking about. "How long?" she asked.
"We know where she usually hides out. Should be back in a few months" the Red Claw estimated, "barring any complications."
"Are we expecting complications?" Byss questioned, now finally looking up at the Red Claw.
"... Not all of the Red Claws agree with Caniet's plan" the Red Claw admitted, slightly hesitantly. "There are concerns that some may take action against it."
"The Red Claws have never acted against the Warlord before."
"This is different; we've never been asked to take on this kind of task. If anything would cause betrayal within the Red Claws, this is it."
"What might they do?"
"Usurp Caniet, likely kill her. Then kill you. With a new Warlord and ambassador, Caniet's plan would certainly fall through."
Byss was silent for five whole seconds before speaking again. "... Are you loyal to Caniet's plan?"
There was the vaguest impression of a smug smile behind that white mask. "Of course. That's why I'm here talking to you." With that, the Red Claw turned and left the office silently. A few moments later, the door opened again, and Chusime poked her head in to check on Byss.
"Everything okay, Byss?" Chusime asked.
"Everything is going according to plan" Byss said, though her tone almost seemed to imply that wasn't a good thing. "Just hope that if there is a nisi god out there somewhere, she's helping us" she added in a dour tone. Then she started chugging the rest of the wine bottle; the sooner she could fall into drunken unconsciousness, the better.
Hrof gave his usual short and simple, "yes captain" after Solaris told him and Erruan to keep an eye on everyone.
Ligia, facing the prospect of staying around here any longer, actually took off to follow Solaris. "Ligia need to get ship from dock anyway, will come with captain" Ligia mentioned as she followed. Hrof watched them go, pondering something.
"... Where's the rest of them?" Hrof thought out loud, then turned to see that Bobby and Linda were both wandering off, though thankfully in the same direction. He followed Linda, sticking with her while still taking in the sights of Filanticu; and more importantly, was recording them on his helmet again.
edited 25th May '15 10:27:23 PM by FirockFinion
You are reading this.
Filanticu
"Ooh, you're signing up for the Murdermonkeys too?" One of the girls with Arij asked after peering around Bobby's large frame. "Stellar! We're so gonna kick their asses!"
The asses she was so confident in kicking belonged to the other girl and Yeslah. Both of whom had signed up for the Bodacious Bopete's Bizarrebaars team. Both were equipping themselves with chocoblasters, one three times bigger than the other, and milkthrowers.
Linda and Hrof would find the stadium crowded with eager spectators, everyone looking for good seats and bringing dinner with them. Thankfully, chocolate was not the only thing on the menu; many styles of pasta-like dishes, roasted or baked edible plants, and drinks aplenty were available from the FMS food stands outside the seating area. Cooling units under the seats periodically turned on, keeping the crowd from being smothered by the breath and body heat of hundreds of beings.
A giant timer light up the center of the stadium. There were several sets of numbers, all of them going at the same pace, indicating the battle would begin shortly.
Meanwhile Solaris was on her way back to the docks. The ship was not her destination, however. Instead she was walking towards the more quiet area of the moon, the more expensive eateries for ship crew members willing to fork over some extra cash for higher quality meals. If she was going to work, she might as well show some class while doing so!
And she was hungry. Skipping breakfast had been a bad call. But it was not like they had any good food on the Caroline anyway. Ah, yes, that should be her first order of business, check Arij' list of things to buy, approving and adding whatever she felt necessary. Maybe since they had a full time cook she should add more food ingredients?
Wrapped up in her thoughts, Solaris did not even notice Ligia presence. Several people passing by gave her a scowl and covered whatever monetary units they had with them though.
Tranquility - with Rhizon Vei
"Pray tell," Tebigon said, "what was so unimportant that you could take time off to go karaoke but important enough that you have to leave after one song?"
For the Horde!
Tranquility — With Rhizon Vei
"This one has duties to perform," Rhizon Vei replied. "And this one is an ambassador. It has been called back to the embassy to report. Besides." She smiled with a bit of a twinkle in her eyes. "We could not simply ask you to perform another song. Surely you are a busy man," she purred.
I can still hail the Horde even though the company has shamed us. Strength and Honor even if Blizzard has neither.
Chocolate Combat Colosseum
"It is a pleasure to meet you, fellow teammate," Bobby told the girl. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Employment Unit Bobby, but most lifeforms find it convenient to refer to me by a shortened name, such as Bobby. You may call me Bobby."
Filanticu
Jenny, by TOTAL AND UNPLANNED COINCIDENCE, happened to be heading in the same direction as Solaris, and NOT FOLLOWING HER. "Oh, funny running into you here," Jenny said to Solaris. "You know, I hear the food around here is pretty good. Let me buy you dinner, won't you? As thanks for getting me out of there? I know Reginald has a silly code of honor that won't let him rest until he repays his debts, and you don't want him to be sad, do you?"
She held up Reginald to Solaris, his little dog face looking into the captain's eyes, and their eyewear matching.
Attitude is prohibited
[Chocolate Combat Colosseum - Stands]
Linda hadn't noticed Bobby enter the Colosseum ahead of her, but once she'd gotten inside and started looking for seats, she noticed Hrof following her. "I don't believe it!" She laughed. "You bought tickets to this?" She shook her head, grinning. "Maybe you're not as much of a hard-ass as I thought. Come on, hurry! Lets get the good seats! I don't want to get stuck behind some jerk with huge wings!"
She started to walk down one of the rows of seats, then paused and looked back at him. "Unless you're here babysitting me or something. In which case you're still a hard-ass and you need to loosen up." She said with a sly grin.
Not entirely dead.
Dreams of Revenge
Filanticu — Erruan
Erruan quietly noted where everyone was going (or at least a rough approximation of where everyone was going). Turning to Rrivel, who had totally been there the entire time, she said, "I'm going on ahead. You keep an eye on the crew Hrof doesn't have covered."
With that done, she walked onward, keeping tabs on the crew members she could see (as well as any potential risks). Eventually, she came across a sign proclaiming that a herd of chocolate cows were just a short distance ahead. Erruan suspected that a good cluster of the ship's crew would be making their way over to the attraction and so - even if she wasn't thrilled to have to deal with yet more cows - she decided she'd stake out that location.
Locking you up on radar since '09
THE SLORG!
Hrof had followed Linda in silence even as she made her comment about him maybe not being a hard ass. After her second statement though, he contemplated this for a moment, then spoke. "When you are performing your paid duties in engineering, do you consider yourself as being a 'hard-ass' that needs to 'loosen up'?" Hrof asked rhetorically.
Following Solaris, Ligia did of course notice the way people were looking at her, and as any decent nisi, felt proud. That's right, fear Ligia! Not get in Ligia's face with stupid talk Ligia thought to herself, grinning a bit wickedly.
Eventually Ligia realized that Solaris was not actually heading to the docks, and prepared to split away. Ligia just wanted to get to the docks and check on her unfinished fighter and the gun that the Heiwan authorities had made her leave in it. But then, her stomach rumbled, and she remembered how long it'd been since she had eaten either; the amount of lactose including chocolate around had made Ligia forget about eating until now. The places around here were a bit pricey for Ligia's taste, but she did still have some money from her modeling gig. One meal couldn't hurt.
... Oh yeah, and maybe getting to know the human captain a little better wouldn't hurt either, but honestly Ligia didn't much care about that.
edited 2nd Jun '15 3:17:40 PM by FirockFinion
You are reading this.
Tranquility - with Rhizon Vei
Tebigon did not notice anyone contacting her but decided not to press the matter. Maybe there was some plant method of communication he was not aware of. "Business calls as always." he said. "Before you depart, however, I would like to inform you in case you were not yet aware, that His Majesty the king has passed away. Queen Amelia is not expected to alter the relationship between the Empire and Rhizon in any significant manner."
Filanticu - Chocolate Combat Colosseum
"I know who you are, Bobby." the girl said. "Not like we don't live on the same ship. Now come on, lets go!"
20 minutes later, the fight began. A battle royal among ten pairs of two, slugging it out in the arena. Chocolate bombs were dropped by diving Heiwans - and most of the participants were Heiwans. Many of the grounded participants began shooting their milk blasters into the sky. A Rakashan hid under an Amalah while returning fire from the many winged enemies. Two teams of He-Tai joined up to formed a circle on their hind legs, blasting away with abandon. One luckless Snailian was totally covered in donuts barely 20 seconds into the battle.
Above the arena a monitor for all the audience to see kept track of how much "damage" each person was talking. The Yeslah-Sennal Team was still kicking, while the Bobby-Solaris Team took a drop in points after Solaris got hit in the face with a whip cream grenade.
edited 12th Jun '15 1:47:28 AM by Parable
Filanticu - with Solaris
Jenny's appearance was sudden and random enough to cause Solaris to freeze for several moments, staring into the eyes of a dog with eyewear matching her own. She took a startled step back before realizing what she was looking at.
Reginald was a cute dog, Solaris has to admit. The glasses looked good on him, matching the gaudy atmosphere of Filanticu, which in this case made the dog a complimentary piece of his surroundings rather than a starkly alien outlier. The cloth around his neck was not a color she would have chosen though. Too small, not enough material to make the bow tie stand out more. It did do an adequate job of covering Reginld's less colorful fur though, keeping with the Filanticu theme.
She patted his head, then looked past the dog to Jenny.
Her first question: Were you following me? Went unasked. Instead she said, "You'll buy?"
Then she noticed a second crew member in the vicinity. "You're here too?" she said to Ligia.
Tranquility - Two Months Later
They called it the Golden Egg. No one was sure just where the name came from, the ship was not even gold colored, but it stuck some hundreds of years ago and all attempts by the Shining Palace to convince the press and public to grace it with a more dignified title had proven in vain. So the Queen of Verandi arrived at Tranquility in the royal space yacht, the Golden Egg.
Queen Amelia fought the urge to move around in her chair while the ministers continued the same conversations they had been having since leaving Zaphnath. Rioters on Jemmeca, the collapsing infrastructure on Borcatta, the typhoon on Tyonii. Lord Ayanon wanted lower tariffs on Knotar goods. Lady Nehru wanted the military to look at her designs for a new quake bot. Lord Harrison was accusing Lord Ceniceros of poisoning him again.
"Be it overdue that our honored elders follow nature's course?" One minister grumbled. "Long has it been since they departed the world of today, three centuries ago are to them as last May. That we could live in that yester-year, these addled elders could indeed inflict nature's silent killer upon one another!"
"In mirthful truth, they came to this world a century off their proper place." Another quipped.
"Being that-" Amelia began before being cut off.
"Is not the sister's grandchild now the power of Harrison's estates? Impart upon her word to put away her antiquated patriarch, and like the unloved heirloom he shall gather dust, rust, and wither away!"
"Friends, friends! The Lord's concern are those destined for judgement on the morrow. . Jemecca -"
"Jemecca, Jemecca, Jemecca! For stars' sake, let me hear no more of her. Every breath partaken for that problem planet tempts I to partake in our honored elder's pastime! Did not Alabaster, of fair blood and sound mind, and the earl himself swear upon their honor to set right the troubles inflicting sleepless nights upon the capital?"
"Tis tomorrow I voice my concerns for. Be it so that the matter is settled now, but is it not the nature of a weed to spring again? They who traded the library for live munitions are a pestilence, strangling the fruit of life. Mayhap they spread their blight to other, dare I say to ports? Many a pretty coin will be lost to the vortex.
Amelia tried again, "Maybe we could -"
"Oh, if you can look into the seeds of time, And say which grain will grow and which will not, speak then to me. Ye of little faith! For what on Alabaster's countenance betrays your lack of confidence?"
"Nay, 'tis not the worthy fellow that I speak ill of, but the princes they aim to please. Dotards all so dense they should have their own event horizons. Ay, those dense, those craven wretches with bloody traditions, with traitorous lusts that have the power so to vex me so!"
"In these times we would do well to remember my great grandfather. Summoned the notables he did, for wine and merry making in the stratosphere. Once assembled, dropped the house like a chandelier"
"Did not the wife of Tebigon accomplish the very same?"
"Just to him, and happy for him she failed."
The ministers laughed and Amelia forced a weak smile onto her face. The casual attitude towards death everyone besides her seemed to share was unnerving. The old ways were not as gone as they seemed to think, if such conversation was normal. For the life of her, Amelia could not recall a time when the ministers talked with such openness about such a morbid subject. Certainly not in the presence of her father. Then again, her father had frowned up such levity even in speech, and a withering stare more often than not was all that was needed to end a line of conversation he did not care for.
A knock on the door, a royal messenger entered and bowed. "Your Highness, we are about to come arrive at Tranquility."
"Excellent!" said one of the ministers. For the first time over an hour he turned to address the queen. "Your Grace, the shuttle awaits, your party stands ready. Lord Tebigon already makes to greet us with assembled dignitaries. Bear yourself like a true-born lady, let your countenance be gentle and your words few. Spirit you away we shall, straight to the embassy to prepare for you conference with the Izeran empress."
"Has the empress Tanis arrived?" Amelia asked, eagerness entering her voice for the first time.
"Not yet, but Tebigon assures her presence in a fornight."
Amelia tried not to look disappointed at the news. Rising from her seat, she dusted off non-existent dust particles from her dress and began striding over to the shuttle hanger. Time for another day of pageantry.
Tebigon, Seo, much of the Verandi embassy, and a host of other ambassadors and GN staff - including an unprecedented amount of security - were already at the docks, watching the shuttle land. Out stepped more guards, some Verandi nobles and at a young woman in a pale yellow and red dress. Reddish brown hair sweeping past her chin, and wide hazel colored eyes winced while they adjusted to the brighter lighting inside the space colony.
Reporters and spectators were all fixated on her. Noticing them, she put on a gentle smile and gave the cameras a small wave. Tebigon and Seo strolled up to her and both dropped down, kneeling in respect.
"Your majesty, Queen Amelia." Tebigon said, still down. "Welcome to the Galactic Nations."
Farther away, out of earshot, Triple Alliance Ambassador Zelophehad was with the other ambassadors murmuring, "She's shorter in person."
edited 17th Jun '15 1:16:19 AM by Parable
For the Horde!
Tranquility — With Rhizon Vei
Rhizon Vei smiled. "We were not aware, Lord," she told him. "We have heard many things about your people but this is news to Us. Thank you for the information. Until We meet again, Lord," she finally said, and she turned and began to saunter back towards the Rhizon embassy.
Two Months Later — With Koruuna and Rhizon Vei
Koruuna and Rhizon Vei were among the ambassadors gathered to greet her majesty when she stepped off of the Golden Egg. Rhizon Vei seemed disappointed but in other ways did not show her emotions at all. Koruuna was watching the Verandi bow to the queen, and Koruuna glanced over at some of the other ambassadors. "I have seen the Queen before, when she was a princess. I spoke with His Majesty King Hemant on the High Council's Behalf, but that was over screen. I have never met her in person." Rhizon Vei simply crossed her arms, not really paying attention to Koruuna all that much. Instead, she replied to Zelophehad.
"Humans tend to be shorter than Us," she simply stated. Koruuna looked over at Rhizon Vei.
"But aren't you all engineered to be tall?" Koruuna enquired. Rhizon Vei looked a bit insulted.
"Engineered? We are not 'engineered'. We are spawned. We do not use Other machinery," she snapped, but re-composed herself and looked back over at the Queen. Koruuna shook her head and looked that way as well.
I can still hail the Horde even though the company has shamed us. Strength and Honor even if Blizzard has neither.
Filanticu - Lockup (Men's)
"Input accepted," Bobby said. "Disclaimer: All characters and events in this story are fictional. Any resemblance to reality is coincidental. The title of this story is Small Pixel's.
"Last night I visited the fastest restaurant I have ever been to. It was located right in the middle of an archipelago just outside of town. The name of the place, 'Small Pixel's,' was lit up with big garish green lights. The seats were red and big and the chairs were less than round, but the atmosphere was slow nonetheless. A 6am or so passed, and then a waitress came up to me and said, 'Hi, I'm Slimy, and I'll be your server. May I take your order?'
'Fire!' I said. 'It's about time. I've been sitting here for a 6am! I'd like a bowl of peanuts, the apple and meat dinner plate with extra meat, hold the oranges, and a canteen of water.'
"My food came promptly — it took about a Wednesday, by my watch. I must say, I enjoyed the meal, especially the meat, though I spilled some water on my shirt. I had the leftovers put in a bag so I could take it home. I'm going back tomorrow."