The Gambit - RP Thread

The lack of shock from seeing a door appear in the middle of the cafe might have bothered Ferald, if he hadn't been busy watching the spectacled man actually walk through it, simply vanishing from his point of view. He stood from his chair and made straight for the door, knocking over a waiter who probably had been on his way to deliver that iced coffee. The door was wreathed in a dim green glow, and seemed to beckon Ferald towards it, though that only faintly registered in his mind.

Charging into doors that magically appear in the middle of a room doesn't rank high on my list of good ideas, but I'll be damned if I'm going to let this chance to find some answers get away!

He drew his sword, briefly considering whether or not it would be of any use, and stepped over the threshold.

Thankfully for Rachel she was giving the Servant her back when it attacked, so she could protect Clive with her body from any stray spines. At the end of the barrage only one of those buried themselves in her body, somewhere on her lower back.

The rider briefly grunted in pain but her wound was nothing serious. Letting the engine of her motorcycle roar she drove in a half circle until she was facing the end of the alley "Well this was a nice chat. Take good care of the hound for me, Grannie"

Without any further words Rachel drove off at full speed, heading towards the center of town "Clive, you alright?"

Aanki crossed his arms and grinned. "Hora! That was fast. Good to see-" He blinked at the sight of Jason.. "Er, wrong door, brother. You're not-"

Johann cut him off. "No, come in, we appreciate all comers." Aanki made a face, his fists clenching slightly, but Johann ignored him. This was, after all, the perfect oppotunity to deprive the enemy a recruit. Of course, killing him now would just scare off their own Gifted... He hadn't gotten his position through impatience, though. "You as well, sword-wielder, although... There's a girl outside. Looks a bit European. Would you mind bringing her too?" He put a compelling quality into his voice- The echoes of te battle outside were beginning to put him on edge, and while he had absolutely zero doubt in his ability to defeat an Officer, there would almost certainly be collateral.

The White Officer flinched and threw her cloak up, the spines striking the thick fabric and stopping cold. As she stepped into a fighting stance, she saw Rachel driving away. "Cold-hearted bitch!" she called, then turned to the task as hand. "That wasn't very polite, caanin. Treat your elders with more respect." She notched and fired an arrow with one swift motion, hitting the wolf creature in the leg.

It stumbled, bristling. "I am older than you will ever be," he said, launching another barrage of spikes before bounding forward. "I have existed since the First World! A true Servant, created by the Golden Gods and surviving centuries under Root! Older than even Omega, I am!" The White Officer had managed to blocked the spines, but she went down like a sack of bones under the creature's heavy weight. "Don't you dare look down at-"

Something small and sharp struck him in the gut. He whimpered, before blasting apart in a golden cloud of dust, the Officer's bloody dagger remaining where his gut had been.

She picked herself up. They always fall for that one," she muttered. A cordcutter in the pocket, always a surefire defense against..." She noticed a soft growling nearby. "Oh, for-" The second caanin hit her from behind, its claws tearing into her back.

"You should know we always come in pairs," he snarled, claws ripping apart the old woman's back. "Now die!" He raised both clawed hands to deliver the killing blow.

edited 4th Jun '11 9:46:38 PM by Hydrall

"Am I okay? Am I okay?!" Clive replied incredulously over the howl of the wind rushing past his ears, turning his head to look back at her worriedly, "Of course I'm fine! What about you? Shouldn't we get you medical attention? I mean, I can understand if you don't want to go to an ER. They'd ask questions. But I know a guy I could call, he's kind of an ass, but..." he trailed off, realizing he was about to start rambling.

edited 4th Jun '11 10:00:05 PM by darksidevoid

Despite their words of welcome, Jason couldn't shake the feeling that he wasn't supposed to be there.

The hesitation of one of them further cemented his conviction, and he backed away slowly, looking rather nervous.

"I'm... not supposed to be here, am I?"

"Now... l-listen. If you try anything strange... I'll - I'll..."

He held up his arms defensively, though his shaking made it clear that he was completely inept at this sort of thing, i.e self-defense.

He wondered if he should make for the door. Considering the circumstances, it probably was a good idea.

edited 4th Jun '11 10:08:10 PM by troydenite

Suddenly feeling oddly at ease, Ferald nodded, and walked back through the portal. He glanced about and noticed a familiar feeling as he glanced at a young woman leaning against a wall. It was the same sensation he'd felt from from the spectacled man; he knew that she was the one he had been asked to find. His sight began to distort again, this time quickly snapping back into focus, revealing a green aura about his target. The significance of the difference in color eluded him, though it hadn't surprised him, for some reason.

As his head cleared from the sensory shock, the aura faded into a lingering green static.

He called out to the young woman, "Miss? Excuse me, but I'm afraid I have to ask you for a moment of your time."

Alex's eyebrows raised and his mouth opened a bit. "Hey!" he said, turning toward Jason. He gestured to the mark on the back of Jason's hand. "You're like me! Look." Alex revealed the mark on his ankle. "Have odd things happened to you today? Have you met others?"

A circle, with a cross in the middle. Different from his....

"I....I...."

This is not good.... The feeling of dread increased.

Something snapped in his mind, and he bolted for the door, frantically swinging it open and dashing outside.

Flabbergasted, Alex was again alone in the orange wooden room with Aanki and Johann. They'd come and gone so quickly. "They weren't even here for five minutes. And why did the second one run from me?"

Alex turned back to Johann. "Aren't you supposed to be helping them? Why didn't you do your tendril thing? I would have bolted out just as fast as that guy."

edited 4th Jun '11 10:31:18 PM by Grain

Rachel merely laughed "Ehehe there there, don't worry too much I'll be alright. Remember that I'm not human anymore... Though I may need the services of that friend of yours"

Rachel still did not lower the speed and she didn't seem all that concentrated on the driving. Still somehow the bike make it through all the traffic, weaving through the gaps between the vehicles easily. They were approaching the more well off center of the town... where Rachel stopped right in front of a rather luxurious hotel.

"Well this should do nicely... The Sovereign?" The rider read, while absentmindedly taking the spine off her skin "Say, want to try the good life for a while? Or if you prefer it we can go to your place"

"I, um, sure." Clive blinked. "Here would probably be better. Too many people know where I live, and since we're apparently being hunted... Isn't this a little, er, costly, though?"

Rachel stepped down from her bike, throwing the key at one of the valets before stepping in front of Clive to wink at him "Don't worry about it, you're with me. I'll show you a little trick... and once we're settled down how to do it"

With that she started marching towards the entrance, her wound mostly hidden from view due to her jacket and her pace giving no indication that she had ever being harmed. She briefly looked back at Clive and smiled as she asked "Are you coming?"

A few minutes and a nice discussion with the one the hotel manager later Clive and Rachel entered one of the biggest suites the hotel had to offer. The place was quite nice, the decoration had a lot of woods and reds, a fact that definitely made Rachel smile. Blue and black were more her colors but as she was representing Omega red was certainly fitting for the occasion.

They also had a pretty nice view of the city as their room was quite high up in the hotel. Rachel walked over to the nearest couch and just plain dropped on it, resting her boots on the coffee table.

"Well, make yourself at home before we call your friend"

edited 5th Jun '11 12:03:17 AM by daltar

Panting heavily and in a cold sweat, Jason ran outside of Cafe Eve and leaned on his bike, catching his breath for a moment.

What was up with him? The guy asked him a question, and he just instinctively made a dash for it. It was like... something was warning him. Everyone in the room had been surrounded by green symbols, same as the ones on that man's hand... except him.

He mopped his brow for a moment, then blinked in surprise. A trail of blue infinity symbols, leading somewhere...

Intrigued, he followed.

What?

A... figure in a shredded white cloak, with a... thing on top of it, clawing at the figure.

Without thinking, he skidded to a halt, and rushed at the... wolf thing.

"Stop it!"

Fear and alarm powered his blow more than anything else, and as he swung his fists at its back, one thought was going through his head.

I'm going to die.....

Unbeknown to him, and quite unintentionally, his hands were surrounded by a blue glow, increasing his strength a hundred-fold....

edited 5th Jun '11 2:47:42 AM by troydenite

"You're safe now."

Safe. Between the panic and confusion and anger and desperation raging in her mind something about the woman made her feel safe, something she hadn't felt in years. Add that to the aching in her muscles and throbbing, coursing pain rushing through her veins, and it was all she could do to lower herself to the ground before she fell into a dead sleep.

edited 5th Jun '11 4:24:59 AM by Aralyn

Aanki glanced at the Saint. "You aren't going after him?"

The response was a noncomittal sound. "It is regrettable, but of no consequence. We've lost a hostage, but we still have our recruits."

The caanin was struck by Jason's fists- For a moment, it just looked surprised at the ambush. Then there was an incredible crack! and a shockwave.  The wolf creature was blown off of the Officer, smashing into the wall a good distance away. He raised one hand weakly, then burst into golden dust. 

The Officer lay, occasionally twitching or moaning, her back torn to ribbons by the creature. She would probably die of blood loss soon; it was only her toughness as a Cultist that was keeping her up. Unable to muster the strength to heal herself, she was dying by inches.

Jason stood there for a while, stunned.

"What.... what the hell? How did...I do that?"

Then, realizing that the cloaked figure needed help, he knelt down beside it.

"Are... are you okay?"

Rolling her over onto her side gingerly, he was rather shocked to find... an old lady?

"It's...um... it's ok, Ma'am, I'll get a doctor....."

Pulling out his mobile phone, he began to dial for an ambulance.

Then, struck by a sudden impulse, he knelt down beside her again, and touched her gently, holding her hand.

"It'll be okay..."

His hands began to glow blue once again, but this time they were lending power to the White Officer, giving her enough energy to heal herself.

"What?"

He looked down at his hands with wonder, but still held on. Maybe it would do something.

edited 6th Jun '11 3:25:58 PM by troydenite

Jack stared in shock, unable to move or speak as an elderly woman swooped into the alley, taking out the last of the dog-things. Moments later, she was attacked by the final creature, which was in turn taken down by a man who had appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. He began to shake, collapsing to his knees.

Sa-safe... Am I? I'm alive... Jack thought dazedly. Who... are these people? No. I don't have time to ask that. He looked up as the newcomer dialled an ambulance for his first rescuer, and a shaft of guilt buried itself in his chest. He was a medical student; surely he, of all people, should be the first one to do such a thing.

Blue light gathered around the strange man's hands as he leant over the woman, trying to comfort her. By now, Jack wasn't even surprised.

There was a small sound nearby, and he glanced over. A girl lay unconscious on the ground, in fairly bad shape. Quickly, he scrambled over to her. Whatever the blue light did, it seemed to be helping the elderly lady.

He has a mark... Maybe...

Cautiously, Jack leaned over and touched the unconscious girl's arm. A tingling sensation ran down his arm, and white droplets of light splashed from his hand, skittering towards the girl's bruises and glowing for a moment before fading away, taking the purple marks with them. Jack jerked his arm back, eyes widening, before timidly returning his hand to the girl's arm. The white light returned, spreading across the girl's body and glowing a moment before fading, taking minor wounds away with it.

Magic...?

Clive glanced about the room with interest, eventually pouring himself a glass of water and draining it. Walking over to the window to gaze at the cityscape, he pulled out his phone, dialing his "friend". It took several rings before anyone picked up.

"Burgess," he announced flatly, "it's me." There was a long string of excited chattering on the other end of the line, and the Gifted sighed. "Right in one." 'Burgess' started to say something, but Clive cut him off almost immediately. "We'll discuss your rates once you get here... The Sovereign hotel." He rattled off the suite number. "...Yes, I know... puncture wounds by various needles, still embedded... Yeah, that was my reaction, too. Also, pick up my things for me, will you? ...It doesn't matter, you're still going to do it. I know how you work, Burgess. You can't resist the temptation to find out what's really going on right now, can you?" It wasn't really a question. "Good, see you then."

Abruptly, he hung up and dropped heavily into the plush-looking red velvet office chair sitting at a nearby desk, then wheeled himself across the floor to Rachel. "He says thirty minutes, but it'll probably be more like forty-five. You want anything to drink?"

"You kids these days and your hooliganry and your biker gangs and your tattoos and your chai lattes and your murder simulators..."

While Old Man Leo continued to rant with no end in sight, Ludovico Burgess, the best back-alley doctor in Vessels, stood from his corner and strode over to the counter. "Oi, Fabio! Clive said he wanted me to get his stuff for him." Apparently this wasn't an unusual occurrence, because the owner handed over the items without question. "Tell him I said hi, alright, Ludo?"

"Yeah, sure thing." The bespectacled, brown-haired man headed out to his car, looking quite excited.

edited 6th Jun '11 3:03:27 PM by darksidevoid

The old woman coughed once, then move, her hand shoving Jason's away. "That's enough, I'm not so old that I can't do it myself!" She sat up, the awful wounds on her back vanishing even as the rips in the fabric closed. Her expression softened slightly. "Thank you, sonny. A good hit, that was. But instinctual! You need training!" The Officer glanced over at Jack. "And you, don't mess around with her, you don't know-" She stopped, open-mouthed with surprise. "Well, what do ya know? Two people with instinctual magic in the same city! What's next, a symbolless magic user?" She shook her head. "At this rate, she'll turn out to be one too, and then where will we be? You'll all be blowing yourselves up in your sleeps!" She shook her head and stood up, stretching the kinks out of her back. "Name's Amber Leone. Some folks call me Granny Leone, for reasons I'll never understand. You all?"

edited 6th Jun '11 3:37:32 PM by Hydrall

Jason stepped back for a moment, mouth opening and closing in shock. For a moment, no words came out. Then, he spoke. “Magic?..... Training....?”

His voice was panicked.

“What- what are you talking about? I’m not some wizard or... magician! I- I work at a fast food store, for crying out loud!”

This can’t be happening...

“This has to be a dream. All these things that have been happening... glowing trails, wolf-monsters... they can’t be real...” he mumbled.

"Tell me they aren't real...."

edited 7th Jun '11 12:58:52 AM by troydenite

"Yup" Rachel answered as she leaned closer to Clive in order to take the glass he held in his hand. The young man had almost drained it but she didn't need a lot of water for what she was about to do "Go to the mini bar and find me the strongest drink in there... Then come back here and we'll find out what kind of magic tricks you'll be able to perform"

The black haired woman then grabbed a piece of writing paper and laid it on the coffee table... after which she proceeded to place eight drops of water in a circle on it.

Now some Control magic and wait for the boy to bring me my drink

George woke up with a yawn.

A cold blue light stole through his curtains, it was day four of summer holidays for Uni students.

It was six o'clock in the morning.

For a moment he was tempted to just flop back down and have another hour of sleep; he was about to do just that when he heard a loud knock on his front door.

"Blimin' heck, its six in the mornin, can't you people just leave me in peace?".

He opened the door and found the delivery man smiling at him.

"Delivery for Mr Quimbly at 5/9 ledgers road". The delivery man handed a fairly large ducktaped box to George. "Have a nice day. The delivery man left but not before pointing to his forehead with a raised eyebrow.

"You too", George quickly closed the door, picked up the box and carried it to the kitchen; there he began to unwrap it. He opened the box only to find that it was empty all except for a little slip of paper, on it was the message:

Meet at Cafe Eve.

"What the heck?".

edited 6th Jun '11 11:22:51 PM by Lechuguilla

"As you command, Miss Cultist!" Clive gave a mock salute, gliding his impromptu transport across the room again to the ludicrously well-stocked mini-bar.

Thankfully, it seemed the hotel staff had arranged the bottles by alcohol content, so the strongest brew wasn't particularly hard to find. As he read the label, however, he couldn't help raising an eyebrow. Weeeeeeell, this is almost certainly illegal. Or... maybe not? Damn my lack of drinking knowledge. 160 proof. At least it seems to be heavily flavored to make up for the concentration. I wonder if they intend for their highest-paying customers to die of alcohol poisoning? Then again, he glanced back at the woman on the couch, she did say she wasn't human. Hah. Let's put that to the test, then. This will be a fascinating experiment to observe.

Snagging a glass and shoveling several cubes of ice into it, he wheeled back over to Rachel, setting the glass and mid-sized bottle carefully down next to... whatever she was doing with that paper. So," he began, steepling his fingers and leaning forward in a clear show of interest, "how does this work, exactly?"

"Well this a little ritual to find out what kind of magic you can do. Well technically you can do all eight kinds of magic but most people are strongest in one or two kinds" The Cultist woman said while grabbing the bottle... and the moment she touched it the cork on it flew off by itself. Acting like she didn't even notice that she served herself a full glass of the potent liquor "This is pretty old school, a hassle and a rather inefficient method of finding out what you are good at, but the guys at Omega haven't shown m... -Fuck...!"

Rachel stopped her explanation midway as she tasted the drink that Clive handed her. The woman closed her eyes and with her free hand she slapped her knee a couple of times as she recovered from the potent taste "This shit is rough!"

Still, even though she said that, the woman promptly drained the glass and started to serve herself once again "Anyway... I've done most of the magic... just touch every drop and one or two should change in color to the ones representing the disciplines"

George closed his eyes for a moment then opened them again to see if he had woken up yet, nothing had changed.

"This is ...... wierd".

That delivery man was acting wierd as well, pointed to his forehead or somthing.

George went over to the nearest mirror and started in shock when he found that there was a silvery grey Omega symbol on his forehead.

Well if this dosen't crown it all, better get it washed off now.

edited 6th Jun '11 11:21:07 PM by Lechuguilla