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Welcome to the Character Development Threads! These shared story exercises allow you to develop your characters in a setting shared by other authors and their characters. No sign-up is necessary; simply look over the last few pages and hop on in. If you need questions answered or a recap, head over to our discussion thread and ask; we’re happy to help. There's also a trope page (with location descriptions and other info).

Archipelago is semi-casual — no violence on the central island, but the rest are fair game. Other islands are built on-the-fly by the tropers whose visiting them, but you should probably grab a few others before having your characters head off — there's not much point wandering an island alone, since this is supposed to develop characters by bouncing them off one another and putting them in unusual situations. Be sure to communicate with the tropers you go with so you're on the same general page.

With thanks to, among many others, Gault, who came up with the initial idea, Nrjxll, who wrote the first draft I shameless ripped off, and the various people who contributed to the trope page location descriptions.


[[Current Time: Early Morning]

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE FULL INTRO FOR THIS THREAD 

This has made the hub island something of a designated neutral ground for various strange characters and dimensional travelers. A small cluster of buildings has sprung up near the one natural harbor and its dock: a couple of bars, a couple of casinos, several shops, and even the cheap but comfortable Pax Island Hotel. This is not a tourist trap, though, as much as amenities for the visitors that come here for various reasons. The Hotel's entrance leads out to a central square, with a shamelessly cheesy tiki bar calling itself the Big Kahuna and the Pax Island General Store being the most obvious, though not the only, services.

Inland, the island is covered in jungles that rise steeply into a central mountain, covered in ruins that don't seem to exactly match any of the local cultures. Apart from that, though, they're harmless and unrelated to the area's strangeness. The population on the island, humans of mixed origins, are quite used to the strangeness of their island, staffing the amenities and filling newcomers in but otherwise keeping to themselves.

Beyond this hub island, the archipelago grows more mysterious and dangerous. Fogs often cover the ocean, and compasses and other forms of navigation don't always work right. There are at least a half-dozen other islands at any one time, but that's all anyone can say for certain. The docks on the hub island offer numerous boats for visitors to travel to these islands, either under their own control or with the aid of a local sailor. Of course, there's always an element of risk involved with visiting these islands, because you never know quite what you'll find. One rule has proven consistent, though: any truly catastrophic event on an island tends to result in it vanishing into the fog, never to be seen again.

edited 27th Jun '14 6:59:52 PM by KillerClowns

Sonzai Since: Sep, 2010
#2001: May 17th 2014 at 3:20:42 PM

[Big Kahuna]

"Nope, not for curse removal," Hisami said, "unless you were cursed multiple times. If you were originally a frog that got turned into a prince, and then into a duck later, it gets a bit more complicated."

"The curse removal will return you to your natural state, whatever that is," she said.

Blackfire667 Attitude is prohibited from The Virtual World Since: Jan, 2011 Relationship Status: Pining for the fjords
Attitude is prohibited
#2002: May 17th 2014 at 4:24:52 PM

[Nulbarak Island]

"Climbing?" Said Tamara. "I can't say I'm much good at that... I can fly, but only short distances." She scratced her head. It was a little bit embarassing to admit the limitations of her flying ability, as many of her peers were better at it than she was. The others had no way of knowing that, however. "What's your idea, exactly? This place sounds pretty fortified, even if there's only four guys outside."


[Azatha's Fortress - Throne Room]

Upon inceneratiing the flowrers, the robot would find itself consumed with numerous unanswerable questions concerning the nature of its existence, and indeed, the very nature of existence itself. It would become so overwhelmed by existential terror that it would scarcely be able to function.

Sam put his hand over his heart. "You wound me." He said. "I came here in good faith, and you treat me like this?!" He said, melodramatically, as he swooned. After a moment, his grin returned and chuckled. "Ah, but very well. If it's business you want, it's business you'll get." He waggled his eyebrows.

"That." He said, pointing to the interdimensional door. "I'd like that. Or one of those, if you happen to have some spares lying around. And the currency of this exchange?" He put his hand to his chin and pondered for a moment. "Hmmmmmmmm." He said. "How about nuclear energy? Fusion potential. We'll start at... Roughly equivalent to a Brown Dwarf star?" He smirked. "I'll even throw in a few tons of antimatter, just because I'm such a nice fella."

Not entirely dead.
Yomegami Since: Jan, 2011
#2003: May 17th 2014 at 6:58:41 PM

Moon

Kaguya took a few normal steps forward once Cyana had finished to find that she didn't go flying off with every step.

"That's much better; thank you," she replied with a small bow of her head, "It's funny how most would love to go bouncing everywhere, and I still find I prefer Earth gravity." She shook her head. "Ah well. Maybe I'll try the moon's gravity later on."

With that, she quickly made her way to the buggy. As soon as she did, she circled around it, examining it.


Town Center -> Hotel (Lobby)

Hayate slipped inside the hotel as soon as Nathan got the door. He was about to head upstairs, but his attention soon fell on Thomas, who appeared to be speaking with the desk clerk.

"There is Thomas, in the event you wished to know where he was," he said to the others, "He appears to be in the middle of something, by the looks of things, so maybe it might be best to wait until he is finished." He glanced towards the stairs. "In the meantime, I am going to check on Kaguya. If you haven't returned to your rooms by then, I shall return shortly."

He then headed up the stairs.


Big Kahuna

Selena just watched as Hisami and Jackson conversed, wrinkling her nose from the vodka's stench. Blegh, alcohol. It made people do the outright dumbest things, and yet people kept turning to it hoping to dull their problems.

Jackson seemed awfully apprehensive about the whole thing, which she couldn't blame him for. Hisami seemed like a decent enough person so far even if she appeared to be somewhat full of herself, but it was also true that they'd known the person for all of...what was it, an hour? For all Selena knew, she could just be aiming to screw Jackson over even more than he already was.

Icon by Civvi the Civilian!
Masterofchaos Since: Dec, 2010
#2004: May 17th 2014 at 8:19:57 PM

[Hotel (Lobby)]

Thomas sighed. "I don't know. He's not giving me his name, and at this point, I don't think he will." He slammed his hand on the desk, "SHIT. Don't tell me that he seriously..."

He then noticed that Hayate and the others came inside, which was the only thing that was preventing him from getting any angrier.

"Hey, where's Iris?" Nathan asked.

"She left." Thomas said, "She said that she was leaving tonight and she'll pick Howell up in the morning. She figured that everyone needed a break from her...Howell more so." He then looked back at the phone and sighed again, "Right now, I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to reach the man that turned Jackson into a duck."

"I'll help." George said, "Nathan, can you bring Howell and Adam upstairs? I don't think Howell got to see his room yet."

Adam patted Howell's back, offering a reassuring smile. "It'll be ok."


[Big Kahuna]

"Uh-huh." Jackson said, quirking an eyebrow, "Luckily, I've only been cursed once. Also...I hope you remain true to your word. Being tricked was the exact reason why I got into this mess the first time, and I don't want the same scenario to happen here."

Sonzai Since: Sep, 2010
#2005: May 17th 2014 at 10:05:27 PM

[Azatha's Fortress - Throne Room]

Upon being inflicted with existential terror, the robot did not possess nearly enough capacity to properly process the experience, much less the questions at hand, and so promptly exploded.

"Nice," Azatha said, looking at the robot, "damn cheap minions." Then, to Sam, she said, "well, that's a start. But first, what exactly do you mean by 'fusion potential'? Because, unless you flunked out of Astronomy 101, you'd know that the very definition of a Brown Dwarf is that it can't fuse hydrogen due to its low mass. So, if that's what you're referring to, you're trying to cheap me out. If, on the other hand, you're referring to the total potential fusable energy, up to Iron, then, well, that's much more like it. Either way, exactly what form of payment is this in? I don't want to have to fuse the hydrogen myself, I have plenty of generators like that. I'd prefer the payment in an already-usable form - the antimatter is a great example."

"However, those interdimensional doors aren't cheap you know, and that's the only one I have," she said, "very powerful if put in the wrong hands, too. How do I know that giving you one won't put me on Interdimensional Patrol's 'Most Wanted' list (although that would significantly improve my villain cred.) What exactly are you planning on doing with it?"


[Moon]

"I don't think it works anymore," Cyana said to Kaguya, appearing next to her, "although I could try to start it up for you if you'd like?"

If Hayate knocks on, or opens the door to their room, then Kaguya would suddenly find herself back on the balcony where she was before, back to normal, with Cyana nowhere to be seen.


[Big Kahuna]

"I promise you'll be perfectly fine," Hisami said, "but I can see why you'd be nervous, given that I appear to be some random stranger with magical abilities. Hmmm..."

"I suppose there's no way for me to fully convince you, although I do have my official Onmyōdō certification, a community service award, and my school badge, if that would help." She pulled out a certificate of authorization to perform Onmyōdō, apparently signed and sealed by the Japanese government, indicating certification for magical abilities. Her community service award was given apparently for helping clear tsunami debris from small towns in northern prefectures. Her school badge looked like an id, and said, 'Hisami Minamoto - Official Youkai Advisor and Assistant - Full Access - Mitoshin Academy'. She set these down on the table for Selena and Jackson to look at.

"Does that help at all?" she said.

edited 17th May '14 10:10:12 PM by Sonzai

CrystalGlacia from at least we're not detroit (Living Relic)
#2006: May 17th 2014 at 10:44:25 PM

[ruins library]

A mechanism? Kunstler smiled faintly and approached the painting; Marla would have loved fiddling with this. Heh, he felt sort of like... 'channeling' her. Damn it, he wanted to channel her for real. Could you channel a ghost in the realm of the living? Fuck it; he didn't even know if there was anyone in Daneivis who could do that, and he was sure he couldn't pay for their services.

"May I see it?" Marla was on his mind; whenever he saw opportunities to tweak something in her earliest creations, he always asked first out of respect.

"Jack, you have debauched my sloth."
Night The future of warfare in UC. from Jaburo Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: Drift compatible
The future of warfare in UC.
#2007: May 17th 2014 at 11:09:40 PM

[Hotel Lobby]

Samuel peered closely at the clerk. "I know people who'd insist that you should be dead, instead of back to work. They're wrong, but still. Lot of research mages would trip over themselves to have seen that happen, and how it was undone." He was curious himself, though not overly so. Such things were very likely beyond his personal ability to duplicate, and possibly beyond his ability to properly comprehend.

Nous restons ici.
Ryuhza Brother from San Diego County, California Since: Feb, 2012 Relationship Status: Tongue-tied
Brother
#2008: May 18th 2014 at 2:04:39 AM

[Pax Island ~ Hotel (Lobby)]

Duncan recoiled slightly at Thomas's outburst, though he was beginning to look less worried, and more tired and annoyed. While Thomas was busy addressing those who had just entered the hotel—and were apparently among the people who had been checked in while he had been subdued as a bug—Duncan glanced back at Samuel, meeting his stare with a guarded one of his own.

"Well, I..." he started, frowning and scratching the side of his mouth just past his moustache, as he tried to think of something to offer the man, "...you're definitely talking to the wrong person about that. I haven't had many personal experiences with magic, I haven't studied... well, what there is to study about magic, I didn't even get a very good look at the guy. I'm just working a temp clerk job, nothing more." His eyes turned towards Thomas again, "Maybe he can introduce you to this 'Mud' character, but he sounds like trouble; like a bit of a nutcase. I mean, what would motivate a man to turn a paying customer into a duck at random?" He laughed, shaking his head as he added, "It's crazy."

When it seemed he might have Thomas's attention again, Duncan tapped the phone and asked, "Have you specifically asked for the name of the person you've called?"


Immediately upon hearing news that his sister was not in the hotel, Howell raised his head and lifted the brim of his hat.

"She's not here?" He asked, sounding rather confused, despite Thomas delivering the explanation immediately after delivering the news. He glanced around the lobby, as though he expected to see her leaning against a distant wall with her arms crossed, glaring at him. She wasn't, of course. She was nowhere to be seen. Not so much as the quietest echo of her could be heard. She left. She had left.

"She's not here." he repeated. A confirmation. Still holding onto the brim of his hat, he brought the drawstring down below his snakelike snout, then took the hat itself off, letting it rest on his back again. His expression had gone rather blank. Not blank like the stare of someone in a trance, but more in the nature of his typical neutrality; neither up nor down, neither warm nor cold. Neither here, nor there.

Howell walked over to Nathan, looking up at him in a way that could be called expectant, if anything.

They'll turn your world around
KillerClowns Since: Jan, 2001
#2009: May 18th 2014 at 10:48:05 AM

[Ruins library]

Aseyu hurriedly stepped aside and motioned to the picture. She said, "go right ahead. I'm not a big one for puzzles, so if you have any suggestions..." she then looked over at Joseph. "You too. I'm sure you're tired of engimas, what with your own, but if you have any clever ideas, I'm all ears. Although... hmm..." she headed to the center of the library and crouched, hand on the very center, listening and feeling for anything happening, or any results of the others' experimentation.

Night The future of warfare in UC. from Jaburo Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: Drift compatible
The future of warfare in UC.
#2010: May 18th 2014 at 12:05:22 PM

[Hotel Lobby]

"No argument." Samuel agreed with Duncan. "He's a problem for the combat branches." He paused to take in the newcomers a for a few moments.

Nous restons ici.
Yomegami Since: Jan, 2011
#2011: May 18th 2014 at 2:30:34 PM

Moon -> Hotel (Room 212 - Balcony -> Inside)

"I'd honestly be surprised if it did still run," Kaguya replied as she continued examining the buggy, "I know there's no atmosphere here, but it was made such a long time ago-"

She got cut off when, unexpectedly, her surroundings devolved into nothing more than a pinprick. The next thing she knew, she was back on the balcony of her room at the hotel. She again felt somewhat woozy, though this time it wasn't anywhere near the degree it was the first time and she recovered quickly. She then looked around in confusion, trying to figure out what just happened. She certainly wasn't done looking around, and Cyana didn't seem like the sort to boot her back without warning. So why did she get dumped back here all of a sudden?

"Kaguya!" came Hayate's voice from the other side of the room's door, followed by his scratching. Cyana did say something about her returning to normal when someone tried talking to her, so that was probably her answer. She wasn't expecting it to be that sensitive, though.

She sighed. She was really disappointed her trip had to be cut short like that. It was really nice to be excited about something for once, and Hayate had to go and ruin it. Then again, he had no way of knowing what she had gotten herself into, and at least she was here to immediately respond to him and leave him worrying like Howell had done to Iris.

"Just a second, Hayate-sama!" she called out to him before taking another look around. She seemed to be completely back to normal; she felt solid enough anyway, and she wasn't glowing anymore. The moon looked exactly as it did before Cyana showed up. She couldn't see Cyana anywhere; presumably, she was still back on the moon since Kaguya doubted she saw that coming. She'd worry about whether or not she too would return later; Hayate was a little more pressing. After one last look at the moon, she went and got the door for him.

"I am happy to see that you're still in good condition," Hayate said once she had done so, "Did anything happen while I was so occupied?"

Kaguya looked over her shoulder and paused. Should she tell him just everything that had happened? Would he believe it if she told him, and what would he think if he did? Even if it was not quite as bad as Howell, it was much the same thing and she doubted he'd be happy about that. On the other hand, he'd probably be angrier still if he found out she was lying, and Cyana would probably be returning any moment if she had any intention of returning at all.


Big Kahuna

Selena looked over everything Hisami pulled out.

"Well, you seem like a good enough person to me, and you haven't done anything to make me doubt you otherwise," she said, "You do seem to be trying a little too hard, however, and somehow that just makes me suspicious. It's ultimately up to Jackson as to whether or not he wants to go through with it, but just so we're clear...."

She glared at Hisami right in the eye, "Given that I come from a place suffering from zombies, it may not be surprising to hear that I've seen plenty of people get fucked over. I even cared about some of those people. While I may not have known Jackson for as long as I known them...if it turns out you're lying and just aiming to make Jackson worse than he currently is, one way or another, you're going to be sorry for it."

Icon by Civvi the Civilian!
CrystalGlacia from at least we're not detroit (Living Relic)
#2012: May 18th 2014 at 3:49:23 PM

[ruins library]

Kunstler pressed the center of the painting as Aseyu had done, using his palm instead of a finger. He waited a moment, listening for a sound or a response from Aseyu, then went around the center of the painting, pressing and listening all the same.

...What if the positions of the bookcases had to do with this? Nevermind; gotta test one thing at a time.

"Jack, you have debauched my sloth."
Yomegami Since: Jan, 2011
#2013: May 18th 2014 at 4:05:01 PM

Ruins (Library)

As Kunstler placed his palm on the center, he would likely find that the depression was clearly in the shape of a handprint, and that was exactly what he or anyone else in here needed to do in order to make any progress. The mechanical hum from before returned, this time much louder. As it faded, it was replaced with more mechanical whirring as the painting flipped up and retracted into the wall.

The hidden area was largely just a blank stone wall, contrasting mightily with the wood that surrounded it. The retracted painting, or rather the bottom of it, could be seen fitting neatly into a slot along the top. A second slot along the bottom revealed the bottom of another painting, although there seemed to be no obvious way of getting it out.

In the center of the newly exposed area was a small, square-shaped, red button that looked like it might light up if it were to be pushed.

Icon by Civvi the Civilian!
Ryuhza Brother from San Diego County, California Since: Feb, 2012 Relationship Status: Tongue-tied
Brother
#2014: May 18th 2014 at 4:34:01 PM

[Pax Island ~ Ruins (Library)] starting essentially where Aseyu's last post left off

"Well at least we know that his puzzle has an answer, right?" Joe said, glancing back at the painting. "One we can probably figure out without leaving this room too." No sooner had he spoken the words than his head suddenly was filled with thoughts of numerous, bizarrely complex solutions, ranging from scavenger hunts off in the ruins outside for some switch that would need to be flipped before the painting would do anything, to inexplicable ritualistic behaviors that would be necessary to activate the painting, like licking it while hopping on one foot— but only after reciting a poem. If the puzzle was meant to be solved, then the solution wouldn't be so impossible to logically work out. But if the secret was supposed to remain undiscovered, having the key exist in the shape of something so outlandish that none but a select few would ever know of it seemed like a pretty good way to go about it. But then why would they hang a painting of the floor open in the first place? Unless it was a red herring to throw them off from the real secret that was somewhere else entirely.

Or perhaps Joseph was simply over-thinking things again. Thinking in too many 'what-ifs'. What if, the minute I step outside, I trip and brain myself on a rock? I guess I'd better just move in here. Or maybe I should ask Aseyu to carry me. He had himself an inward little laugh and shook his head. Yeah. 'What if?'

Refocusing his attention, he let his large eyes wander back to the painting, though he wasn't sure the image itself would yield any further clues. So he stepped to the side and pressed up against the wall that the painting was set upon, trying to spy the way in which the painting was actually attached to the wall, but there wasn't enough open space between the two to shed any light on any such thing. "Well... I'm no engineer or architect or... eh, it's a long list." Joe said, stepping aside from the painting and waving his scrawny arms towards it, inviting Adrian to approach. "You have a go at it, if you like."

The man did, and managed to get what seemed seemed to be the desired reaction in one try. "Oh. Okay. Cool?" Joe said, sounding more than a little dumbfounded at the simplicity of the painting's activation. "So you pressed the painting like a button, and we've got... another button?"

edited 18th May '14 4:34:30 PM by Ryuhza

They'll turn your world around
Masterofchaos Since: Dec, 2010
#2015: May 18th 2014 at 7:43:07 PM

[Hotel (Lobby)]

Thomas shook his head. "Tried. He won't give me his name, so I don't know who it is."

"Then I'll do it." George said, taking the phone from Thomas. "You still there? Well, if you are, can I speak with your boss if you're working with someone."

While George talked on the phone, Thomas turned to Samuel. "Basically, Mud is a man who...supposedly works here. I met him earlier, and he had this unusual vibe to him. I had a feeling there was something wrong about him, but I didn't realize until my son's friend got turned into a duck." He rubbed his forehead, "Now I'm trying to figure out how the hell am I going to get this man to turn him back. If I can get him to."


[Hotel (Upstairs)]

Nathan led Howell and his brother upstairs, then stood by the door.

"You're room is 311." he said, addressing Howell. "If you need anything buddy, just knock on the door. I'm at room 310."

Adam yawned and rubbed his eyes, "Where will I sleep?"

Nathan patted his brother's head. "Either my room or Howell's room." He glanced over at Howell, "Unless, of course, you want some alone time."


[Big Kahuna]

Jackson was surprised that Selena was defending him. Even though the two of them weren't really close (in fact, he thought she'd still be a little bitter at him for the incident back at the city), she still had his back. It was a pleasant surprise though.

"Wow....um..." he said, blinking. "T-Thank you. Thank you so much, Selena."

Sonzai Since: Sep, 2010
#2016: May 18th 2014 at 7:56:02 PM

[Room 212 Inside]

Blue text suddenly appeared on a mirror in front of Kaguya in the room, as if the mirror was a large monochrome computer monitor.

'You have one new message. Display? _' it read, with a flashing cursor at the end and everything.


[Big Kahuna]

Trying too hard? This is like 1/100th of my qualifications, it's so hard to find a balance these days, Hisami thought, everyone just loves to be suspicious.

"I promise again to do no harm, and do you think I'd bother with all this if I was just going to do something stupid anyways?" she said to Selena.

Also: Zombies? Really? Jeez, I don't even think those are possible, Hisami thought.

"Either way, it's up to you," she said to Jackson, "I won't do anything unless you specifically request it, so what is it? Yes or no?"

Yomegami Since: Jan, 2011
#2017: May 18th 2014 at 8:31:43 PM

Hotel (Room 212)

Kaguya was about to turn back to Hayate when a mirror off to the side caught her attention. She couldn't quite remember seeing it there before, although whether or not it appeared out of thin air or was there and she was just noticing it now was not her concern. The only reason she noticed it at all was that, for some extremely odd reason, there was computer-like text on it.

She raised an eyebrow upon seeing it and after reading the message on it. It might just have been Cyana, although this seemed a little out of her abilities. Then again, Kaguya had no way of knowing just what she could do in full; quite the opposite, really.

"...Kaguya?" Hayate repeated, his eyes narrowing slightly, "Just what were you doing...?"

Kaguya frowned before turning back to him. "Nothing life-threatening, but...maybe you should see for yourself." With that, she stepped into the room and beckoned for Hayate to follow her. He did so and positioned himself to her right, and that was when Kaguya drew his attention to the mirror.

Hayate looked at it for a few moments, looking somewhere between confused, intrigued, and maybe a little surprised. "What by Inari...?"

"I don't get it either," Kaguya replied, before looking back at the mirror herself. She honestly had no idea how to respond to this, especially when it was presented in the manner it was. "Er...Y? Yes?"


Big Kahuna

"Eh, it's just business as usual for me," Selena said to Jackson with a somewhat dismissal wave of her hand, "It's just that I've had enough death and general madness to last a lifetime, and I'm not in the mood to let it ensue here."

Then she turned back to Hisami. "You'd be surprised at the nerve of some, I'll tell you that much." She shook her head, "Either way, like I said you don't seem to be the sort that would fuck a poor boy over like that. I'm just warning you."

Then back to Jackson. "So mate, what's it gonna be?"

Icon by Civvi the Civilian!
Sonzai Since: Sep, 2010
#2018: May 18th 2014 at 11:12:56 PM

[Hotel (Room 212)]

In time with Kaguya's speech, the words 'Er...Y? Yes?' appeared typed on the mirror, in a purple color.

Shortly thereafter, the words 'Eh, close enough. Playing audio message.' appeared below on the next line, in the original blue color.

The words then disappeared, as Cyana's voice was heard from the mirror, "hey Kaguya, aren't you going to introduce me to your friend? I'm outside near the Balcony. Cyana."

If Kaguya were to look outside, she would see Cyana hovering just off the Balcony railing, waving at her.

Night The future of warfare in UC. from Jaburo Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: Drift compatible
The future of warfare in UC.
#2019: May 19th 2014 at 1:19:59 PM

[Hotel Lobby]

Samuel winced. "Kaiser. A mage, a pretty good one, and a headcase. I wonder how he got past the local rules, though. It seems to me turning someone into a duck is...rather injurious." If they were somewhere different he'd be calling in the clans on Mud, but here such behavior was outside his remit here...at least to a hazy point somewhere between serial and mass.

Nous restons ici.
Ryuhza Brother from San Diego County, California Since: Feb, 2012 Relationship Status: Tongue-tied
Brother
#2020: May 19th 2014 at 2:28:32 PM

[Pax Island ~ Hotel (Upstairs)]

Howell retained his inscrutable expression all the way up the stairs, until they had finally arrived at the doors to their rooms. His eyes fell upon the door to room 311 as soon as Nathan mentioned it, and he only broke his gaze to glance at the man and his younger brother.

"All right. I'd like to say thanks, but it's..." he began, his gaze slowly drifting away from the two, along with his voice. After a moment of contemplation, he returned his eyes to Nathan. "...Thanks." he then looked at Adam,"You can sleep with me if you want, if you don't mind the small risk of nocturnal biting." He smiled, mischievously drawing attention to two rather particularly fang-like teeth as he did so. It was all the jubilation he could muster before turning around and facing the door to his own room.

He approached it carefully, as though there were still some chance that Iris would be behind the door, waiting for him. He knew it was a ridiculous idea, but that didn't stop him from exercising a bit of caution. And if she was behind it, would that be a good or bad thing? At least a little of both, but ultimately, it'd be for the better. Despite all she had slung at him in the restaurant, Howell had still done wrong to his sister, and he needed to make up for it properly. But how could he, if she wasn't there?

He took a deep breath, then carefully marched over to the door and took one hand out of his pockets. He glanced down at it, then at the door handle, then down at his hand again. He stuffed that hand back into his pocket and withdrew the other one. It was with that hand that Howell slowly reached for the door handle, grabbed it, and turned, fearing already for what demons the sound might stir awake.

The handle moved a tiny bit, then refused to budge any further. Howe tried again, but the handle only rattled uselessly. Blinking confusedly, he looked back at the others.

"The door doesn't like me." he said, sounding almost depressed, "And it's locked. I need a key card or something."



[Pax Island ~ Hotel (Lobby)]

There was a rustling sound from the other end of the phone call, then a crackling blast of air, then, "Ah... just about to hang up too." came the man's voice. "I'm the sole proprietor of Pax's magical aid hotline, if you've got some questions, you can ask them to me."

Duncan set down his pen and folded his arms, shrugging. "I'm not sure myself, to be honest. I haven't been working on the island all too long, and I don't know anyone here who possesses something beyond a vague understanding of the island's protective magic. I would agree that changing a person into something else without his express consent seems like a harmful thing to do, but maybe it's debatable. Maybe it has to do with... intent? Circumstances? Whatever the case, he seems to have worked his way around it..."

edited 9th Aug '17 5:10:11 PM by Ryuhza

They'll turn your world around
TeraChimera Since: Oct, 2010
#2021: May 20th 2014 at 1:54:18 PM

[Nulbarak Island]

Around the tower, the ravens vanished, winking into thin air.

"It's simple," said Askeda. She hopped off the branch as a raven and landed on the ground in her normal form. "Me and someone else go up the tower and take out the two up top. Doesn't really matter how. The rest of us are responsible for the two down below, who shouldn't be that big of a problem, judging by how they can't keep their mouths shut for half a second."

She glanced around the group. "Unless someone else has a better idea?" The way she phrased it, it sounded more like an actual question, rather than a sardonic rhetorical one. She was open to suggestions.

KillerClowns Since: Jan, 2001
#2022: May 20th 2014 at 3:50:36 PM

[Nulbarak Island]

"No," Layi admitted. "And I ain't young enough to do any climbing, either, so looks like I'll be down here. Even if you can fly me up, I think I'll pass." She looked around. "Who's up for going up with Askeda, then? Volunteers? Askeda, Tamara, either of you have a way to get someone up if they can't do it themselves?"

[Pax Island ~ Ruins (Library)]

Aseyu headed over to the button and said, "okay, boys, here's what we're going to do. On the count of three, I am going to press this button, and then get the dead gods out of the way in case there's some sort of surprise. You two? Should probably already be out of the way by then. Got it?"

She stood by the button and began counting. "One..."

"Two..."

Waiting on reactions from others, possibly including objecting to this plan, before Aseyu hits three.

CrystalGlacia from at least we're not detroit (Living Relic)
#2023: May 20th 2014 at 4:25:28 PM

[ruins library]

Well, he was just going to tell Aseyu to move a bit and hit the admittedly out-of-place yet attractive red button, but okay. Kunstler had no objections to this plan, and remained near the button.

Joseph, however, was probably going to be a different story from what little he had seen...

"Jack, you have debauched my sloth."
Ryuhza Brother from San Diego County, California Since: Feb, 2012 Relationship Status: Tongue-tied
Brother
#2024: May 20th 2014 at 5:15:48 PM

[Pax Island ~ Ruins (Library)]

Joseph clicked his teeth nervously, but it seemed there would be no time for hesitation. He crossed his arms and hunched slightly in an almost defensive manner, glancing warily between Aseyu and the button.

"All right..." he said, just before Aseyu began counting down, "it's- well, we haven't had the best of luck with mysterious bright red things today, y'know? I'm just hoping this place's magic holds out if we end up summoning an evil leprechaun or something."

With a quick smile that did little to disguise his sudden tension, he stepped away from Aseyu, putting a decent amount of space between him and the button even before it was pushed. He hadn't even considered any sort of danger resulting from pressing the button before Aseyu had brought it up, but now that it was in his head...

They'll turn your world around
Masterofchaos Since: Dec, 2010
#2025: May 20th 2014 at 6:53:47 PM

[Big Kahuna]

Jackson took a deep breath. He still felt nervous around this woman, but since Selena had made it clear what would happen things went wrong, he knew now that he still had someone that had his back. Now the only thing left to do was hope that his duck days were over.

"Ok." he said, "Let's get this over with."


[Hotel (Lobby)]

Now that Thomas thought about it...he didn't try to catch his name. He let his anger overwhelm him so badly that it completely slipped his mind. Shit.

Thankfully, George was on the phone.

"Ok, sir," he said, "I'm looking for someone. He goes by the name of Mud, and he supposedly works here at the hotel. Do you have any records of him?"


[Hotel (Upstairs)]

Nathan blinked. "Really? ...Man." He shrugged, got his key, and opened his door. "Guess you're hanging out in our room then. Don't worry; I'll sleep on the couch. You can sleep anywhere you want."

Sorry for the shortness. Testing/Studying fried my brain.


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