[First Floor Restaurant]
Melvin shook his head. "No, no, go ahead. Room for everyone, isn't there?"
He took another sip of his drink, savoring the flavor. "This is... this is really... some'in'. Where has this been all my life?"
"Who're you guys? Have I met you 'fore?"
edited 6th Sep '12 2:29:11 PM by Collen
Gave them our reactions, our explosions, all that was ours For graphs of passion and charts of stars...Ah...shit, running outta time...
"I don't think so," Gabrielle said to Melvin. Cain gestured to the bartender and asked for a strawberry soda.
"Well, I suppose I should introduce ourselves. My name is Gabrielle Davidson, mage of the highest credentials, this is Cain Stellark, another mage, but much, much, much more powerful than I," she gestured to the grumpy guy with the wing, "And this is Robert Beaufort," she gently lay a hand on the big, muscular Robert.
"May I ask what is your name?"
"Life is eternal; and love is immortal; and death is only a horizon; and a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight." - R. W. Raymond[First Floor Resturaunt]
Melvin smiled pleasantly. "Ooh, right, um... My name's Melv'n Morr's. Nice to mee' you. Er, when you say you're a mage, you mean you heal people, or 're you jus' magicians? 'Cause I'm sorta both. Um, and there's a diff'rence, but you're not from my worl', prob'ly, sooo... It migh' be a little bit differ'nt."
Gave them our reactions, our explosions, all that was ours For graphs of passion and charts of stars...[Restaurant]
Nodding to the newcomers but paying them no heed for the moment, Malo considered her martini. Then, hoping to keep the topic away from her and the messes of her homeland, she said, "so, uh, Luka. People who end up places like this usually have some stories to tell. If they feel like it. I mean, I'm just a glassmaker. But," she turned to Kazuko, "Kazuko here's a journalist, which I'm sure has given her a lot to talk about." Turning back to Luka, she asked, "what is it you do?"
edited 6th Sep '12 4:44:05 PM by KillerClowns
Kazuko, Malo, and Crystal Glacia's characters weren't in the same group as Melvin anyway.
[Restaurant]
Kazuko shrugged, not sure who Malo was asking. In case it was her, she spoke up. "Stories? Not really. I find and shape people's perceptions of stories, not get involved in them myself. Simpler that way. Stories are... messy."
[First Floor Deck]
The Praetor-Ambassador bent his neck to look Samuel directly in the face. "I think we are speaking of different ideas of God, you and I. A truly Divine being is not some mere old man in the sky with powers beyond baseline mortality's. A true God is limitless. You can no more kill It then you can kill the universe itself."
Even less so, when I think about it.
He backed up, turning his head from side to side to get better "views" of the passerby. "You spoke of a Time-Space Administration Bureau. Tell me, do those words mean what they sound as if they do?"
[Restaurant bar]
Jane recognised Cain, These must be the 'companions' that he mentioned. As she was about to say hello again, she noticed Melvin's speech slurring. "You okay, what was in that drink?"
She stared at her own empty glass for anything unusual but there was nothing, Never be too careful.
My name is darthnazgul and TV Tropes has ruined my life.[First Floor Restaurant]
Melvin peered into his drink as if trying to decipher a particularly challenging code. "Uh... no, don't think so, jus' n'rmal drinnnking... stuffs. I feel perf'ly fine, th'nk 'ou very much. I's jus' tha'... stuff is weird an' slurrin' is p'rfectly n'mal. On'y thin' different is tha' there's mis' comin' from my mou'. But i's not harmin' me, so i's fine. 'ou shoul' try this, i's good."
With a quick gulp Melvin finished off his drink, setting the empty glass down with sudden force. "Tha' was good. Annnyway, how're you? Wha's goin' on in 'our life? Got any kids? Wife? Husban'? What'ver?"
Gave them our reactions, our explosions, all that was ours For graphs of passion and charts of stars...[First Floor Deck]
"Yes and no." Samuel paused, thinking about how to explain it for several seconds. "The Bureau was originally created to clean up after a war in which weapons were used that could alter or destroy the very nature of reality. Something like two thousand inhabited worlds, most of which had histories of thousands of years, were put to the sword in less than two weeks. Planets and stars were literally wiped from existence, matter and energy destroyed." It was never a pleasant thing to recount the fall of Belka, the greatest interstellar civilization to exist until it decided to one day destroy itself, and his tone reflected that, formalized and a hint of anger. And his mother's family was Belkan, too, so there was a personal aspect. "The weapons used were so horrific in extent and effect that the Bureau was created by the only other interstellar power, with the mandate to seize and destroy such weapons and to control or destroy the technologies that made them possible."
A moment, and then he continued in a less-formal tone, taking a step back since the other seemed interested in the goings-on. For Samuel, keeping his head on swivel never entirely stopped, though it did slow down significantly. "Much time has passed and the responsibilities of the Bureau have expanded a great deal. The Bureau ultimately absorbed the government that created it and took responsibility for what little was left of Belka, but to control and prevent the misuse of technology, or anything else, able to change or damage the fabric of reality remains a core mission."
Nous restons ici.[First Floor Deck]
The Ambassador dipped his head. "So, there is still no time travel in your world, then," he said sadly (though the sadness would perhaps not be apparent to a human). "That is indeed a pity. I would have liked to have been able to think that in some universe, I might have been able to meet the Prophet."
He looked up, head swinging back and forth. The disks over his eyes briefly flickered with lines of pale light. "My culture was born from something... very loosely similar. The weapons were far less destructive, and - at least in this age - we know why the first gluvpaki chose to destroy themselves, but all the same, something of common ground?"
Outside -> Ship(Deck)
Jacob frowned as Melvin flapped his wings and became airborne. The latter was pretty fast, faster than Jacob had expected anyway. If it came down to a fight, he'd definitely need Michael's help to take him down. He looked after Melvin until he landed onto the ship's deck, and then turned back to Alice with a smile.
"Yes, I think we should," he said in response to Alice's question. "Here, let me help you with that," he said gesturing to Alice's suitcase and, before she could protest, he lifted it and headed for the ship.
As he reached the top of the stairs to the deck, he let go of the bag and reached for his gun. Nothing. He'd forgotten that he'd handed it to Michael. He quickly pulled out his cellphone and called Michael on speed dial.
"Michael..." he said with as much urgency as he could, "You need to get out here right now...no time...the deck...because there's a fricking dinosaur here...Yes I'm serious...Hello?"
Ship(First Floor -> Deck)
Michael waited for Jane to finish the introductions and replied, "I'm Michael. Nice to meet you too." But no one started a conversation with him. Suddenly, Takumi teleported to their midst. His appearance was like a Chimera's, but since it seemed he came with Patricia, he probably wasn't from Gaia. But since he could teleport, there was a chance he had magical powers.
As Michael was about to ask Takumi about his powers, he was cut off by the another member of the group. He tried to join in at various points, but the result was the same. Feeling dejected, he took another sip from his can, thinking, 'Who the hell am i kidding? It's always the same. Even here the people just talk around me.'
As the group started to break apart, his phone rang. He looked at the screen. It was Jacob. He answered the call, "Yeah?...Whoa, whoa, slow down...Where are you?...What's the problem?...Seriously?...Sweet." As he cut the call, the Teleportation Rune came up, which he pressed. He teleported onto the deck. He saw who Jacob was talking about, though he was slightly confused by the fact that it was wearing a robe.
"Give me my gun," Jacob urged Michael.
"No, we can make do with it," he said, picking the Fireball rune from his gallery, he walked up to the robed dinosaur and asked, "Umm...what exactly are you?"
Aqueos, I'm really really sorry you had to wait so long for me.
sorry about the hurried pace of my post, i'm running out of time. Need to get ready for classes.
edited 7th Sep '12 7:22:05 AM by Elfhunter
If I knew how I know everything I know, I'd only be able to know half as much because my brain would be clogged up with where I know it from"I develop firearms," he said with a vague enthusiasm. "Actually magicked firearms, ones that enchant the shot rather than the other way around. But I'll stop before I bore you." Luka began to instinctively scan the room. He didn't like being in the presence of drunks, to say the least, let alone with Anna around.
The waiter returned with their slices of creamy, tangy key lime pie, the plates delicately balanced on his arm.
Anna looked up at Malo as the plate was set in front of her. "Luka used to work for a really rich glassmaker. As a housekeeper, because Mr. Kunstler has a big house. You look as tall as him." She thanked the waiter and he played along, giving her and her weird little toy a warm smile.
"Jack, you have debauched my sloth."[Restraunt]
Malo nodded, showing some interest. (Aseyu, Iveya and Rachel had already filled her in on the benign nature of magic from elsewhere.) She knew magic and firearms tended to go together well. The Crimson and the Damur practiced Anti-Magic arts that depended on physical contact, and mages tended to be frail anyways, so mages had taken to guns eagerly. That said, directly combining them was new. She moved slightly, so that she, Kazuko, and Luka were in approximately an equilateral triangle, and nodded, waiting for somebody to carry on.
[Restaurant]
Kazuko let out a slightly-exaggerated sigh and leaned forward on her bar-stool, propping her head up with one arm. "Magic. What the hell is it with other worlds and magic? Why isn't anybody here from the Universe of Pacifist Orl?"
She looked over at the little girl, then down at her menu, and sighed more genuinely. "Don't mind me," she added, "too much anyway."
[First Floor Deck]
"Some, yes." A pause. "Actually I won't rule out the existence of time travel. I've seen enough physics gone wrong to believe it possible, but I doubt it could be controlled well enough to suit your purposes."
He glanced at the two newcomers and heard the phrase "give me my gun", and that got a reaction, as he turned quickly to regard both of them, and over the black outfit he was already wearing materialized a black longcoat with silver trim. "We're all friendly here, right?"
edited 6th Sep '12 8:21:43 PM by Night
Nous restons ici.Ulrich emerged from his room, slipping his keycard into his pocket and letting the door swing closed behind him. He'd ended up near the end of the corridor, and now he killed time on his walk back to the restaurant by reading a text from Tigris. She'd asked if he'd made it onto the ship, and whether he was going to give himself an ulcer or actually relax for once. He responded with a simple "Yes," grinning as he imagined her glaring frustratedly at the screen upon receiving it.
He'd expected to have the place nearly to himself, but he was a bit disappointed to see there were already nearly a dozen others inside, clustered at the far end and apparently deep in conversation. No matter—now that he thought of it, a quiet meal alone did sound less appealing than an interesting conversation with one of the interdimensional travelers. Hell, one of them might even know the same vile names he knew...
You're not supposed to be working.
Sighing, he scanned the menu. Half was standard American fare; the other side was a passable imitation of seafood and the requisite "delicacies" for the hoity-toity crowd. Expensive and no substance behind it. But he was on vacation, after all...
He ordered crab legs, which he'd only had once before, fries, and a white ale. The cultured pricks would find that an uncouth combination, but to hell with 'em. It was all excellent. He ate in silence, but he took his time, watching the others. It would only be a matter of time before a conversation made its own way over. It always did.
edited 6th Sep '12 8:50:07 PM by BrainSewage
How dare you disrupt the sanctity of my soliloquy?[First Floor Deck]
The Ambassador rose to his full height as he turned to face the two newcomers. He examined the two humans, neither of which seemed to be giving off any truly dangerous indications (at least, none that his "spectacles" could detect). Of course, there was the rather unexpected way one of them had appeared...
"Hello," he said pleasantly. "I am Praetor-Ambassador Hurraek of the Gluvpaki Theocracy. Who might you be?"
edited 6th Sep '12 8:59:40 PM by nrjxll
[Restaurant]
As Melvin's speech became more and more slurred, Cain wondered what he was drinking. If it was alcoholic, it didn't look like he could hold his drink very well. Oh well, he wasn't exactly planning to get buzzed this early in the day. That was for when the sun went down.
Gabrielle patiently explained to Melvin, "A mage is a person who practices magic. It's a very general moniker. I know first-aid and stuff, but I'm no healer. I have a degree for engineering—for magic, to be exact. I blend technology and magic together. It's my job. Cain here is the healer—it's what he's officially trained and licensed for, but that doesn't really stop him from doing...whatever." Cain smiled serenely. It was shocking to see how childlike and innocent he could be.
Cain turned towards the lady behind the counter and ordered a large grilled chicken sandwich, curly fries and a tall chocolate milkshake. As he waited, he fiddled with the inch-long claws and occasionally fiddled with a feather. He saw Jane was there. She looked apprehensively into her empty glass, which made him apprehensive too. He prodded the contents of his soda with his magic, detecting anything off with the skills he learned from his apprenticeship. The drink wasn't tampered. So it must of been just Melvin.
"Life is eternal; and love is immortal; and death is only a horizon; and a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight." - R. W. Raymond[[First Floor deck]]
Alice is a bit confused when Jacob picks up her suitcase and carries it off, acts of chivalry are generally some sort of flattery. Still the suitcase is heavy so she follows Jacob through the ship and up the stairs.
Clearly Jacob is a bit intimidated so he calls in his "travel partner" to ward off whatever they've found, but Alice isn't worried, she has faith that something without a ticket and without vocation couldn't get on the ship. Sure enough it speaks, and though it strikes her as a bit odd she's gone into this with an open mind.
She smiles to Praetor-Huraek of the Gluvpaki Theocracy as he is properly known, "I am Alice Analyst, a citizen of the city state Cæcus, part of the confederation of allied colonists." It's wordier than usual, but she'd rather not have a faux pas by accident.
edited 6th Sep '12 9:20:28 PM by Aqueos
Bet you didn't see that coming[First Floor Restaurant]
Melvin flinched. "'Ey, watch where you're pokin' tha' thinnn'. Cou' of 'urt some'ne. Whi' is more than my drin' has 'ver 'one. Wha's the big deeeal, 'nyway? It's strooon'. No' your av'rage cup 'o... 'coholic 'rink."
"Tell me, Cain," Melvin said, still smiling, "how's 'our job a' a 'ealer? Do ya save 'eople? Does ev'rythin' 'ways turn out 'right in the ennnd? Ever let so'body die, Cain? Ever?"
Gave them our reactions, our explosions, all that was ours For graphs of passion and charts of stars...[Restaurant bar]
Despite knowing Melvin very little, Jane could tell this wasn't his usual nature. That didn't make the sting of his questions any softer. "I- I. . ." A family.
"I d- don't really. . . have. . ." She slumped onto the bar, it hit harder than it should have but she let the question get to her. The subject always did, there was no one she could call husband, son, niece, uncle or mother and truly mean it. She sighed, "Barman, give me the medicine."
She grabbed the new drink, stared down it's unnaturally thick contents and slammed it down her throat. The affect wasn't as fast as she hoped, still resting her face against her forearms.
edited 7th Sep '12 5:26:19 AM by darthnazgul
My name is darthnazgul and TV Tropes has ruined my life.[first floor restaurant]
"That's okay." She smiled adorably at Kazuko. "Besides, your hair is pretty. It's green, like aliens." She seemed to give the toy green alien plush sitting at the table a knowing glance into its two black eyes, a quick glance back to Kazuko, then she dug into her pie.
Luka glanced over the woman and the thing on her shoulder. Looked kind of like an oversized pill bug; maybe it was some kind of robotic pet. Nevertheless, he sensed some vague interest and continued. "It's a great field to be in if job security and pay are what you're after- there's always some kind of scuffle going on in Promethian territory, and the warlords want all those young recruits to have the best guns." He took a bite of pie, his expression not quite neutral as though he was trying not to think about something.
edited 7th Sep '12 1:38:29 PM by CrystalGlacia
"Jack, you have debauched my sloth."[First Floor Resturaunt]
Melvin gave a booming laugh. "You know sorr'w, don't ya? No fam'ly? No kids? Funny, ain't it, how a' one poin' you're thin'in' you're on toppa the worl' 'n then bam, pe'ple you care 'bout are dead. Life's 'lentless like that. People die 'n it's all your faul'. You coulda done somethin' to save 'em, but didn't - an' then you don't know who's gonna die, who's gonna live - hic - but tha's okay becau' 'ventually it'll all be perf'ly fine. Ev'rything'll be better in the end, won't it? They'll all come dancing back, won' they, laughin' 'nd prancin' aroun', won't they. Tha's what they're sayin', it'll all be fine." He laughed hysterically. "An' who knows, maybe they're righ'. Maybe this'll all turn out to be a dream an' the worl' is all happ'ness an' rainbows!"
Gave them our reactions, our explosions, all that was ours For graphs of passion and charts of stars...Ship (Deck)
It was took all of Michael's effort to stop his jaw from dropping when the dinosaur declared his name and title (at least, he hoped it was a title), but then girl next to Jacob came up with an equally long designation. Well, at least Alice was easier to remember.
"I," Michael replied, unnecessarily extending the syllable, "am Michael, and this is Jacob."
"Yes, of course," Michael replied to Samuel and, attempting to diffuse the tension, added, "Jacob was just about to leave."
"No, I..." Jacob started, but was interrupted by Michael raising a hand. The latter pulled out a ticket and a key card from his pocket and thrust then into Jacob's hand.
"Go. Now. Please," Michael urged Jacob.
Jacob looked from Michael to Hurraek to Samuel and back to Michael. From the looks on their faces, it was best to walk away for now. "Tch, fine whatever," he said and made his way inside the ship.
Michael sighed with relief as he watched Jacob leave. He turned to Samuel and Hurraek and said, "I'm sorry about him. Being in such close proximity to so many otherworldly people has made him a bit...edgy."
Feel free to ask why he's on the cruise in the first place if that's the case.
Also last post for the day.
edited 7th Sep '12 1:32:06 PM by Elfhunter
If I knew how I know everything I know, I'd only be able to know half as much because my brain would be clogged up with where I know it from

[Second Floor to Restaurant]
The trio had arrived at the Restaurant, and found that a small crowd had already. "Maybe we should join them," Robert suggested. Gabrielle felt that the crowd was not hostile, but instead she felt an amiable atmosphere, and since it WAS an interdimensional cruise, it would seem fitting to converse with others besides themselves. Cain shrugged, not really caring.
The three of them approached the bar area where the others were speaking, and Robert asked, "Hello. Do you mind if we sit next you?"
The area where Malo, Tazuko and Melvin are.
"Life is eternal; and love is immortal; and death is only a horizon; and a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight." - R. W. Raymond