[Town ~ Hotel (Lobby)] (Chelsea, Creature, Hana Matoi, Lt. Ross, Striker Fifteen (Maya))
"Oh— Chelsea Ibbots, uh, private contractor," Chelsea said.
Creature gave a half-bow. "And I am her associate—"
"—Creature," Chelsea interrupted, "is my servant."
He coughed. "Well, yes."
"Do you know what that—" Chelsea broke off when another explosion rang out from the street. She ran to the window and pressed her nose against the glass. "Jesus. Something's going on out there. I'd thought this place was too small for any real action."
"It seems you were wrong about that," Creature said, his eyes wide.
"But, see? I was right to be paranoid," she said, just shy of saying I-told-you-so. She stepped away from the window. "Are they with you, or—?" she asked Lieutenant Ross.
PAINKILLER
[Town ~ Bed & Breakfast (Main Hall)] (Davey, Jim, Irina, Samuel, Minerva, Amy, Maya)
Upon pointing out that Minerva had slipped away, Samuel raised his alarm. He mouthed, "Shit."
He made a move for the door, but he felt daggers on the back of his head—definitely Irina's eyes. It was true, as she glared at him. "Please, if she wants to fix it herself, let her."
That was, until someone shouted, "fire!".
Samuel fell back and Irina held Amy even closer.
After the vibrations stopped, Irina unclenched her eyes. She found herself grasping her head. She looked all around—seeing no blood, glass, shrapnel, or anything. Or even Amy. She'd already made a run for it.
She heard Davey's call for moving on. She darted to the staircase, but stopped part-ways before realizing she'd forgot somebody. "Samuel! Get up!"
Samuel instantly went for duck-and-cover. After the flash, he closed his eyes tight. There was that whirling, whirling, whirling. Distant shouts, and radio chatter. Blades of air craft, and suddenly, silence. Then Irina's voice. It snapped him out.
After the Colonel recovered and placed himself back into reality, he went to his feet. He shouted after Davey and Irina, "G-Go on without me."
Irina barked back, "Samuel, this is not a battle, come on."
"I know, but that girl..." He waved a hand at her, to shoo her off. "Just go, Irina!" After that, he bursted outside.
Irina went up the stairs half-way. She paused to look back for Davey. "C'mon, Davey, not leaving without you," she declared, holding her hand out to him.
From there, she heard Amy's distant call. She and Maya made it out all right—but Connie was still uncounted for.
[Bed & Breakfast - Outside]
Samuel ran outside, gun out. There was remaining smoke, but nothing around appeared to be damaged. He sighted the girl right off, and ran towards her. "Min-Minerva, are you..." he begun, only to see the new arrival.
He swore for a moment before that he saw some form of a force-field. He blinked wildly, and managed to compose himself enough to ask, "Sweet God, did you—stop that thing? Who the hell are you?"
[Town ~ Outside the Train Station] (Col. Von Strauss, Comm. Todd Kimball)
Todd found it very hard to believe it. To preserve the other's possible ego and possible truth, he just nodded and watched.
It was then Cynthia arrived in the nick of time, not only injuring the Captain, but appearing to make him squirm.
He shouted "fire". Todd quickly went to his ears as his eyes widened. Through it, he saw all that transpired: the force-field, explosion, and all.
After the split-second horror ended, he chuckled in disbelief, and said, "You've got a helluva enemy, there, Colonel. I don't blame you anymore."
Todd heard a familiar voice. He glanced around. He squinted into the smoke, trying to make out the figures in the wake of the explosion. It couldn't be.
Todd will notice Samuel soon. Not right now. This post has gone on too long. DX
Life is hard, that's why no one survives.
[Town ~ Bed & Breakfast (Main Hall)] (Davey, Jim)
"Damn it!" Jim quickly jumped to his feet after he had hit the ground from the 'kruiser fire. Steadying his breath, he held out his hands towards Davey, "I have no intention of letting harm come to anyone who doesn't belong in this fight.. But in order for me do anything about that, I'm going to need my guns back."
Noticing the sudden arrival of Cynthia, Jim smiled. "Well this is unexpected. This could turn in our favor."
[Town ~ Outside the Bed & Breakfast] (Capt. Greer, Minerva, Cynthia, Samuel)
It took a few moments for what happened to process in Minerva's mind. When it did, she proceeded to faint on the spot, dropping like a sack of potatoes.
Cynthia looked to her right when Samuel spoke to her, "I am Cynthia of the Azure Knights." She turned back to face Captain Greer before charging to the left, keeping Minerva and Samuel out of the line of fire. She held up a hand, projecting a shield.
Captain Greer opened fire upon the young knight with his machine gun. The bullets were deflected by the shield, slowly turning it a red hue with the sustained impacts. Cynthia jumped into a dodging roll as the shield exploded into dissipating fragments, bullets impacting the ground where she was.
The knight closed the gap with the tank commander, and swung her sword upwards. Greer jumped back, narrowly avoiding the tip of the sword as it cut through the air in front of him. He tried to slam the butt of his gun at Cynthia, only to connect with the metal gauntlet. Captain Greer used his gun to block the series of strikes Cynthia unleashed on him, forcing him back slowly.
Holding her sword with two hands, Cynthia channeled her magic through the blade, giving it a slight glow. Sword held high, she swung down, sword rending the machine gun in half.
Greer stumbled back, discarding the now useless weapon. Backpedaling, he pointed towards the Bed & Breakfast, "FIRE!" A moment passed as neither landkruiser fired their guns, due to a flickering glow directly in front of their barrels.
Cynthia pointed at the treads of the Storm Fox, a ball of light forming at the tips of her index and middle finger. A beam of white light surged forth, sweeping slowly down, melting through rubber and warping one of the wheels of the gray anti-air 'kruiser. First objective done, she moved her hand, focusing on where she believed the ammunition was held.
Her attention switched to Captain Greer as he swung his right fist at her head. She threw up a shield to block the blow... which promptly dissipated when the gloved hand struck it. Greer's fist connected with Cynthia's head, causing her to drop her sword in surprise. Captain Greer kicked the sword away, only to be tackled to the ground by the young woman.
[Town ~ Bed & Breakfast (Main Hall)] (Davey, Irina, Jim)
Davey struggled to steady himself in the turmoil that followed the tank fire. Even though it hadn't seemed to hit the building, it did plenty enough just in rattling everyone inside. There was crying, shouting, and silent horror. It was all Davey could do to keep standing upright. It brought him a little relief to see the others—at least some of them—follow his instructions, however, just as Irina seemed ready to go, Samuel—ever the war hero—decided to take up arms against the small army outside. That certainly twisted the situation up well and good.
Irina, seemingly accepting that the colonel would do as the colonel saw fit, now called to Davey. He, still standing square in the middle of the main hall, looked to her. She seemed pretty obstinate.
He let himself be distracted for a moment by Jim, who, very reasonably, wanted his weapons back. "Oh-! Yes," Davey nodded, handing back the man's rifle then fishing out his two revolvers, "of course, of course. If you can make use of them, b- by all means, do."
Once the Jim's guns had been returned, Davey made his way over to the stairs and Irina, flinching at the sound of more gunfire, though fortunately of a much lesser caliber than the tank shot from before. He pulled in a deep, shivering breath, looking smaller than ever down at the base of the staircase.
"...I have an idea," he said, though the words came out so quietly that they were hard to hear over the yells and general ruckus outside. So he looked up and repeated, "Irina, I have an idea. Your bike, it's, uh- it's out there, isn't it?" he pointed to the front door, then flinched again as the distinct cry of "FIRE!" came again. However, this time it wasn't followed by any explosions, less still any damage to the building.
Doing his best to shake off the fear, Davey quickly pressed on, "I was thinking- I was thinking, there's a lot of commotion out there. They might not notice someone of a slightly smaller scale, say, minding his own business, discreetly—with the utmost discreetness—moving to a parked vehicle."
Before Irina could voice an objection, he quickly added, "andwhatdoyouwannabet that- that Samuel is in over his head out there? Someone's got to bail him out." He stared earnestly at her—about as earnestly as a short, whisker faced, otter-looking-thing could.
every little word and every little step
Crazy Kiwi
Northern Desert
[Hazel, Vicky, Yamiko, Mari, Kaitlyn, Kris and James]When Mari asked about food, James looked up from the fire with a smile. "There's another batch of johnny cakes almost ready. You're welcome to have some. We've also got jerky and pemmican if you want."
Kris set aside the dough she had mixed and foraged around for more of the dry scrubby vegetation to feed the fire. Kaitlyn joined her under the pretext of helping her gather fuel and jerked her head in the direction of Yamiko and spoke softly so her voice wouldn't carry. "What's with te wahine koretake over there?"
Kris grinned, understanding the Māori words perfectly. "Dunno. She does seem to be in a bit of a mood, though, doesn't she?"
Kaitlyn nodded. "It'd be interesting to know the nature of the 'disagreement' that resulted in them leaving the other group."
[Town (Outside Bed and Breakfast)]
"Guys?" Amy yelled again, "Guys! Hurry! We have to go!"
No one was coming out. Amy was sure they could hear here, and yet, she didn't see a single familiar face come to the balcony Perhaps they wanted to get involved with all this, which baffled her completely.
You have got to be shitting me. Maya signed, before turning to Amy, We can't wait on anyone; we have to get out of here. Now.
"B-But," Amy stuttered, "What about the others? What about Connie? What about Davey? Sam and Irina?"
They can catch up if they decide to stop fooling around. Right now, I'm not going to-
Amy heard 'fire!', which made her grab Maya's arm and hide behind a nearby bush. Thankfully, no one was coming over; it seemed that they were too busy dealing with Minerva.
Amy looked up worriedly at the Bed and Breakfast, still unsure about leaving the others behind. She didn't want them to feel like they decided to leave them so soon. She didn't want any of them to feel betrayed, or worried that they got killed by the tanks.
That, and she had no idea how they were going to get out of the town by foot. That was nowhere near a good idea. And trying to take their plane out would be practically suicide. They needed some sort of alternative way to leave.
Then, an earlier conversation came to her head, and her eyes widened.
"Horses!" She said and signed, "Sam and Davey said something about horses being here! If we can get to them, we can ride our way out of the desert!"
Maya blinked. You think they're still here? With all of the commotion, I'm pretty damn sure they got startled and probably took off.
"Maya! We can't think like that right now!" She stood up and held Maya's hand, "Please, just have some faith in this, ok?"
Maya sighed, before shrugging. Lead on. If you see any of those attackers, let me know, and I'll gut them like a fish.
With one last look at the Bed and Breakfast, the two dashed away.
edited 14th Jul '16 4:49:34 PM by Masterofchaos
Attitude is prohibited
[Town] (Outside Hotel (James' Car) >>> Bed & Breakfast (Roof))
Rin opened her mouth to reply, but quickly shut it again as a sudden explosion echoed through town. She scooped Pancake up into her arms, got out of the car and hastily handed the little feline to James. "Get inside," she said to him. "Maya can keep you safe if you'd like. Stay near the rear exit if you can. Stay safe." Then she turned, jumped and rocketed into the air, leaving only a relatively quiet whoosh noise and a cloud of dust in her wake.
From high in the air, she got a fairly clear view of the scene, though that didn't do much to help her assessment of the situation. She'd fought tanks before, and although these ones looked a bit strange, fundamentally they seemed largely the same. But this wasn't her homeland, and the battle lines were unclear. She was more inclined to attack the tanks, given that they were firing in the town, but what if whatever they were shooting at was worse? There certainly seemed to be other strange events occurring.
She quickly descended to the Bed & Breakfast's roof for a closer look. Perhaps, she thought, she might even be able to overhear something important. But if the situation seemed to escalate in any way, she resolved to attack the most destructive party. And for the time being, that seemed to be the tanks.
[Hotel] (Lobby)
Maya jumped to her feet at the sound of the explosion. "Tank shell?!" she whispered to herself. Then turning to Hana, she said, "Commander, the area is no longer safe. We should leave immediately."
"I suspect we're not in any imminent danger," said Hana. She stood rather leisurely and walked right over to the lieutenant, Chelsea and Creature. "Excuse me if I'm being presumptive," she said, coolly, to Ross. "But I believe you know something about the commotion outside. Perhaps you would care to enlighten us?"
Maya stuck close to her side. "Commander, please..." she muttered.
"And as for you," Hana continued, eyeing Chelsea. "I might just have a job for you yet. Would you accept gold bullion, by any chance?"
Not entirely dead.
[Hotel-Hotel (Main Hall)]
The explosions nearly made James jump out of skin, though John seemed to be completely still.
Well, James thought, There goes the idea of laying down.
He gently took a scared, meowing Pancake into his arm, and let her curl up near him. Once they got inside, the hotel was in chaos; people were panicking left and right, confused about what was going on. The hotel staff tried, in vain, to calm everyone down.
James sat his beloved down on a chair, and put Pancake on his lap. To relief, he got another response; John pulled Pancake near his face and snuggled her. It seemed that, very slowly, he was coming back to reality.
"I'll be back." he said quietly, "I'm going to find this Maya Rin mentioned. I won't be long. I love you."
John nodded.
Thankfully, as soon as James around, it seemed that he had found who was for. At least he hoped he did.
"E-Excuse me." he said, "Which one of you is Maya? Rin told me to find you."
edited 14th Jul '16 11:52:16 PM by Masterofchaos
Small Valley/Valley Of the Dead God
Honesty was so overrated.
The Acting Commissar’s mind stood firm against Blair’s magic, gaining its free will back, and Blair withdrew the minor influence he had exerted over the man. He noted that something changed about the state of the Dead God, just temporarily, but he did not know what. Nevertheless, he was not alarmed.
Blair!
He ignored Roscoe’s psychic call as he tried to contend with the commissar. “There are always others,” he said patiently. “I know this myself. I know how to find them. And I know how to make them disappear. It’s nothing unusual for me.” As he had just mentioned, Blair was a prince. Not an actively ruling one; more like on the run from the place he was rightfully meant to be ruling. Still, he did have that influence. There was no confusion of loyalties in the Fae courts; any of the “Fair Folk” would do as Blair asked, their fear of him outweighing any supposed loyalties they had to his royal parents.
Blair, something is coming!
That was when Blair felt it, and then saw it, or rather sensed its formation behind him before the light filled the area. Blair was nature, but even while trapped in her human form Roscoe was the cosmos, and she had been the first to notice a disturbance in the time-space continuum. At some point he would have to start paying attention to her warnings. Now he’d never hear the end of it.
As the distortion closed, Blair identified the beings that emerged from it without turning around to look at them. His affinity for nature extended just past the Small Valley - to ensure that Roscoe was safe and because the valley itself was too disturbing - and his affinity for magic did the same; they were extra senses to him, like seeing in a wide circle around him without having to move.
Two humanoids, one almost as tall as him and one noticeably shorter. An avian of a variety Blair was not familiar with. And… a psychic weapon, sheathed for the moment. Its aura reminded him of something.
The taller man was reading as some form of supernatural as well, while the shorter one and the avian sensed faintly of magic. With all the magic already present among the travelers… it seemed they all attracted each other.
He kept his gaze on the commissar and sighed a bit when the other soldiers took up defensive stances, guns drawn. How he hated guns. Brin picked up a chunk of the earth, an impressive move; but Blair remained where he was. As irritated as he was by the interruption of these new arrivals, perhaps he could use it to his advantage.
The group was approaching. Still with his back to the new arrivals, Blair listened to one of them speak, heard the voice's tone, measured the length of their footfalls, observed their carriage, noted the wind or at least what could be considered wind, used his sense of nature to determine all he could about them. He was careful not to expend any magic. “Behind me, to my seven o’clock and your one o’clock, five hundred feet and closing. The speaker is six foot one, give or take some centimeters. His hands are raised above his head. An aristocrat of some sort, also here to study the Dead God. Not part of our group, and I’ve never met him before in my life. With him is a shorter man, more heavyset, and carrying a high-powered weapon. They arrived with a large bird of prey. The tall one has on him a weapon of advanced technology with some supernatural elements, so it is possible he is speaking the truth.”
Zekarim would hopefully have noticed that Blair managed this description still without having turned around to look, and that he had not done so by magic or trickery. Blair raised an eyebrow at him. "Just so you see I am not kidding you about my power or influence.
“Waking the Dead God might actually help us. It’s always nicer to study a thing when it’s alive.” He tilted his head at the commissar. Granted, of course, that said thing could and would probably destroy them all and their only hope of survival likely lay with the individual whose powers he had taken away, but there was no need to mention all that. “As for me, I have been nothing but honest with you, painfully so. I have no intention of doing otherwise. We merely wish to negotiate. Now, please have your soldiers put down their weapons, and none of us here—“ still not having turned around, he held up a hand to indicate the new arrivals, especially the one with the rifle “—will use ours. We’ll simply discuss a bit more what can be done to satisfy our needs and your safety.” He gave Zekarim a warm and genuine but slightly strained smile. Honest negotiations were not his strong point, but it seemed he would have to work that particular angle, for now at least.
OOC: My understanding is that there is a very large distance between the Small Valley and the Valley Of the Dead God, considering how far Brin and Blair had to go to reach the latter, and that Miyuki and Hoshi are flying overhead. But KC can confirm or deny that. OOC: edit: confirmed already in the OOC thread, but leaving the note there to avoid confusion as to what was there before.
edited 14th Jul '16 10:12:12 PM by savlamar
Friendly Neighborhood Lich
Trail to Mountains - Wagon (Zuri, Nemaforte, Iraal, Scents, Teri, Wolfe, Gwion, Oswald)
I'm excluding Katya because Slysheen dropped out of Frontier.
While Zuri was still in a facepalm, she heard Iraal mention that some pre-technological human civilizations had holes in their skulls too, as well as some other bipeds and whatever bevorans were. At this, she just had to perk her head up, giving Iraal a bewildered look. The orl seemed fascinated with the subject, and even went so far as to ask Nemaforte about a medical sample...
"What - you can't be serious!" Zuri blurted out, her face flushing pink. "I've never heard of human civilizations having actual third eyes - except in mythology anyway. "And you can't just ask someone for a sample of their brain..." She cut herself off, seeing that Iraal was just as embarrassed about this as she was, and so she too decided to look away... at Nemaforte. Now that she looked, she could very faintly make out a shallow bump on the witch's forehead, though it was further obscured by the shadow of her wide-brimmed hat.
Nemaforte, meanwhile, seemed entirely unfazed by the situation, putting on only a slight smile in response to Iraal's question about a medical sample. "A sample? Of what?" she asked, to nobody in particular. "Maybe you can put part of my aura in a fair kind of special bottle?"
Zuri snorted. "That I'd like to see. Bottled aura. Is that even possible? I'd think the bottle would have to be magically consecrated in order to contain aura." Sighing, she decided to listen in on what Gwion had to say... and she found it rather interesting. Apparently the cyborg had known of many other worlds, which probably had widely varying forms of technology and/or magic. That explained why he didn't have a negative reaction to the students' explanation of the shadowy beings like the others did. She smiled as she looked at him and his artifical red eye.
"That's very interesting," she told Gwion. "I imagine you must have seen, or at least heard about, plenty of ghosts and other such spirits, then. What I wouldn't give to visit such a place..." Her voice trailed off at the end as she gazed off into space. And maybe ask them some questions about communicating with the dead.
"There is grief in your aura," Nemaforte noticed, leaning forward and gazing intently at Zuri. "What is there trouble?"
"Oh uh..." Zuri blushed again, gazing back at the Orenyan herbalist. But then she had a peculiar thought - what if Nemaforte knew about it? But she wasn't sure if now was the time to ask. There was a pause, during which she noticed that the wagon was moving again. "it's, well, quite a long story. For now let's just say that throughout my life, I've had much curiosity about ghosts, the afterlife, and uh, such. Also, where'd Katya go? Anyone seen her before we left? She seems to have ninja'd on us..."
She looked around the wagon, but the Russian bounty hunter had somehow disappeared.
Northern Desert - Ritual Site, Picnic (Vicky, Yamiko, Mari, Hazel, James, Kris, Kaitlyn)
Vicky laughed right along with Mari when she mentioned the flying. But then she mentioned being hungry, upon which James invited her to have some of the johnny cakes among other things.
"We got like a bizillion different kinds of jerky ourselves," Vicky mentioned. "I didn't even know there were so many kinds besides that processed beef stuff you find in grocery stores. Plus a bunch of nuts and dried fruit and all that other stuff, and most importantly, water. You're welcome to some if you'd like!" She rummaged through her large rucksack and took out a large canteen and a couple bags of jerky and almonds, pulling out some other random things as well, half of them telekinetically. Along the way, her hand brushed by part of the tent that was in there... which depending on how long they were going to stay here, they might need soon.
"Flying is actually wicked fun with telekinesis," Vicky mentioned, "and admittedly that's part of the reason why I studied it, though I've also really wanted that ability for the past several years. I used to think I could be a superhero with that power!" She was speaking a little bit more quickly and excitedly than usual, as for some reason she felt a lot more energetic than usual. "Although, super strength would be neat to have... though telekinesis sorta covers it. Also, I like how you're wearing bells in your hair. That's a neat idea actually." She didn't actually see any bells on Mari, but rather heard them when she tilted her head.
Yamiko, meanwhile, had remained quiet ever since handing off explaining their situation to Vicky, occasionally swaying a tiny bit from side to side, as she felt inclined to do so. At one point she looked up at the sky, and put on an awkward grin when she saw that the clouds were green (in her mind, anyway). In fact, the clouds seemed to be singing, somehow... though it was more of an ethereal hum of sorts. Like the subtle echo of the thoughts of angels, which Yamiko picked up just like the thoughts of others that sometimes entered her mind.
Just like the thoughts of others... no sooner did she think that did other thoughts surface in her mind, though she knew they were not her own. Out of whimsy it seemed she closed her eyes and began a gentle focus on said thoughts, even if a bunch of them were blurry gibberish. But there were a couple that were clear, manifesting as voices that spoke to her.
"I wonder what sort of disagreement they had..." "...of course, a Marine is distinct from a soldier..." "that wahine seems a bit moody..." "I wonder what sort of disagreement they had..." "...they left the group..." "...behaving rather unusual..." "a disagreement"...
Yamiko suddenly returned to reality and looked around, confused and a bit nervous as well. She was especially wary of James, Kris, and Kaitlyn. They were suspicious. They were, in all likelihood, going to ask about it soon. And yet, something in her mind told her not to wory about that just yet.
Northern Desert - Ritual Site, Rip's Truck
Lupin raised his eyebrows at Rip's explanation of the stone's origin. Now it all made sense, and it was no wonder the aural presence of the stone seemed foreboding to him. The stone reminded him a bit of an incident he had read about in the news where people, mostly teenagers and young adults, experimented with ouija boards and ended up inviting unfriendly spirits into their home. It also reminded him of one of Merlin's ramblings-on about supernatural matters, something about haunted places and cursed objects and how there is some sort of "memory" associated with them. The more he thought about this matter, the more he wished he had listened to Merlin a bit more closely while explaining these concepts.
While Rip was talking, Lupin saw a sudden flash of sorts emanating from the rock, except instead of light, it consisted of that same dark purple aura he saw beforenote . The aura around the stone was much stronger and deeper in hue for a few seconds, before returning to its usual thinness. While it did, the vision that Lupin had seen of him and Yamiko in the nightmare he had flashed back before his eyes, this time to the point that Yamiko's voice (or something that sounded like a voice) seemed to be speaking, perhaps right from the stone. Was the spirit Rip had mentioned someone who had passed away? Perhaps even someone close to him? Or was that his own fears clouding his judgment of the situation?
Meanwhile, the aura around Rip himself was a muted vermilion in shade, and had retracted a bit closer to his body. That didn't tell him anything, but the obvious look of agitation on Rip's face did, especially towards the end. It intimidated him a bit, as he still was not quite used to having to face such edgy people face-to-face (his usual instinct was to sneak away if things got a little harsh). Clearly this was a no-nonsense bloke who wasn't exactly open-minded.
And then Rip mentioned that the stone was under control... either he was lying, Lupin thought, or just plain oblivious to how the stone moved around on its own. One thing he knew for sure from what Merlin used to say, was that it was never a good sign when objects started moving on their own, especially when the controller of said object was not apparent. Still, Rip seemed pretty adamant about the state of the stone, which led him to wonder why he decided to bother approaching him just now. Especially with the whole "tell me something I don't already know" bit.
Lupin decided to start his reply with a shrug. "Unfortunately, I'm not a mind-reader, so I don't know what you already know, besides what you told me. And quite frankly, if you truly believe the stone is under control, I dunno why you even bother asking for my input." He sounded calm enough in his words, although with a hint of exasperation. He didn't know quite what to do at this point. Talk about what he knew about spirits of the dead and how they handle being attached to objects (read: not very well), Rip would consider that lecturing. Ask him more questions about the stone, Rip would grow more impatient.
Then again, Rip had at least bothered to tell Lupin about the origin of the stone, so perhaps there was a possibility that Rip really was concerned about it. Maybe he just had to try a different angle. "Well, obviously you know more than I on where the stone came from," he decided to finally say, "but have you considered what the spirit wants? Because, and correct me if I'm wrong, it seems like it might be trying to return to where it came from. If that's the case, then my concern is that the spirit might resort to more drastic measures than moving the stone around, that it might hurt you or those around you in the process."
Come, my child of the devil. Your mother is calling you. Hear my call in Hell's grand hall, where all our dreams come true.
[Town ~ Hotel (Lobby)] (Chelsea, Creature, Hana Matoi, James, Lt. Ross, Striker Fifteen (Maya))
It wasn't often that someone offered to pay Chelsea in gold bullion. In fact, she wasn't entirely certain what gold bullion was. She had pegged the lady for the type that would pay a ludicrous amount in Indian Rupees under the name J. Smith, which would be delivered through a bank in Monaco. But apparently, this was the real deal. The big time. Gold would get her into school— or better yet, it would get her the pocket of some major industrialist. No more being a hit-girl, she could call herself an assassin.
"G-gold?" Chelsea stammered. She shot a look out the window. She straightened her shoulders. "Yes, ma'am, I would. Just name the job and your price."
"Wait," said Creature. "We don't know what's going on or who these people even are, should we really—"
"Shut up, Creature," Chelsea said. "Asking too many questions gets you in too deep. Just go with it."
Attitude is prohibited
[Hotel] (Main Hall)
Hana glanced over her shoulder at James very briefly, smiled at the mention of Rin, and returned her attention to the lieutenant and Chelsea. "Well," she said to the latter. "Let's just see how everything plays out first."
Meanwhile, Maya turned around. "I am," she said to James. "I'm Maya. You're, um, a friend of Rin's?"
Not entirely dead.
[Town ~ Hotel (Lobby)] (Maya, Hana, Chelsea, Creature, Lt. Ross, John, James, Pancake)
The lieutenant adjusted her stance. "The landkruisers out there belong to the Balamar Empire. We're trying to apprehend a supposedly dangerous escaped prisoner. I really don't see why that had to go to those lengths. It's just one freaking amnesiac girl!" She shook her head. "Anyway, I'm going to see what my comrades are up to."
She walked over to one of the hotel windows. Peering out, she immediately noticed the Black Wolf sitting idly nearby. She wondered what could have possibly made the crew abandon it, and where they had run off to. She shook her head again, How undisciplined.
[Town ~ Outside the Train Station] (Col. Von Strauss, Comm. Todd Kimball)
Observing the breakdown in the fight between Cynthia and Capt. Greer, the Colonel propped his left arm on his right hand as he clutched his brow. "This is getting annoying..."
[Northern Desert ~ Near Ritual Site] (Hazel, James, Kaitlyn, Kris, Vicky, Yamiko, Mari)
Mari eyes went wide for a moment when Vicky mentioned the bells. Aww, crap. I knew I forgot something... She took a swig from her flask, before regaining her poise. "Where I come from, people with those kinds of abilities pretty much are super'eros. Of the 'On-call by the Government' kind. Kinda like me."
Mari nodded towards James, "Thanks, mate!" She grabbed some jerky before sitting down. Her stomach growled slightly before she bit into a piece of jerky.
[Hotel (Main Hall)]
James scratched his head. "Uh...kind of. You could say that we're friends. Anyway, I'm James, and that's my fiance John over there. He's kind of...out of it right now."
He quickly looked back worriedly at John, then returned his attention to Maya, clearing his throat. "I, uh, decided to come to you because Rin said you could keep us safe with all the bullshit that's going on. We just out of a desert with some weird ass creatures, and then we came back to town only to find a war zone. Basically, our day's kind of hectic."
He gave a heavy sigh. Fucking... TANKS.
"Anyway, I see that you're about to head outside. Are you sure you want to go out in all that chaos? I mean...we don't even know what the hell's going on."
PAINKILLER
[Town ~ Outside the Bed & Breakfast] (Capt. Greer, Minerva, Cynthia, Samuel)
Samuel scurried to Minerva. He picked her up again, and saw that she clocked herself out.
He couldn't help but feel impressed of Cynthia. She had some sort of magic at her command. Lightning, shields, the whole shabang. She was also very capable. If she was from the same world as Greer and Minerva, he couldn't guess what their wars were like. If we had what she got in the war, Hell, Serenica would've won! he thought.
As she got into a close-quarters scrape with the Captain, he figured it was a good time to escape. With the target girl in his arms, he eyed all directions. Should he go back inside? Should he try to escape? There were enough tanks all around.
He wanted to call out to Cynthia. But he was within earshot to their attackers. He might as well announce he was thwarting their plans.
Samuel decided a different approach. He went back inside.
[Town ~ Bed & Breakfast (Main Hall)] (Davey, Irina, Jim)
Irina gave her companion a quizzical look. "I hope they didn't touch my bike. What are you implying, Davey?" Her eyes moved to their room—wondering if the girls were waiting for them. But Davey's proposition brought her back.
She could've waited for an answer, but time was of essence now. Irina motioned her head in the direction of the front door.
Samuel entered with the girl in his arms. "Heyo Jim, I see you're still here," he commented nonchalantly. He gave a glance towards Irina. "Very lovely woman out there. With the way she's carrying on, she can probably kick my ass. Oh, and here's your girl, Jimmy." He raised Minerva up a bit. "Know anywhere I can put her?"
Irina sighed. Somehow, it managed to convey relief and exasperation. She then looked to Minerva—who was out. "Take her up to my room. I think it should be safe." She pointed up the stairs. "It's the room on the left. Set her on one of those beds."
Samuel nodded and headed up.
"Once he gets back, we're outta here, Davey," Irina said. "The three of us can fit."
Samuel returned quickly. He came back with Irina's duffel bag. He handed it off. "What's the plan?"
"Getting the hell out." The woman said as she shouldered the bag.
"All right. Jim-bo, take care of that girl, all right? And take her to a doctor. She shouldn't be passing out like that."
[Town ~ Outside the Train Station -> Outside Bed & Breakfast] (Comm. Todd Kimball)
Todd's eyes widened.
Samuel.
Todd broke off from the Colonel, and begun running for the Bed & Breakfast. By the time he reached it, Sam already went inside. Todd ground his teeth.
He then saw a hoverbike. It wasn't military grade. Must mean... No, that girl, Valadah.
He removed his gun, and stood behind the corner, near the hoverbike. He waited for the right moment.
[Outside]
Irina and Samuel snuck out the front as fast as they could—like a mouse in a cat hunt. She hopped atop her bike and started the engine. Samuel climbed on behind her. "Davey," she called, "get on."
It was then did Todd appear from the corner. His gun was raised, pointing at Irina. Samuel saw him out of his peripheral. He got off the bike, and blocked her.
"Todd?"
He smiled for a moment. "Long time no see." He frowned. "You didn't give me the right thing, Sam. How's come?"
"This is not the right time, Todd," Samuel replied.
"I'm aware. Now, I don't want to get your girl here involved. Even though I'm sure she's on the list of terrorists. Irina Valadah, correct?"
Irina was staying still. She stayed silent. She refused to face him.
"You were seen a year ago with the likes of Nosferatu, that occult. And you, Sam, are no better. I know what you've been doing with her."
Samuel laughed in response. "You're right. She's not involved. You want me. So let them go."
Todd lowered his gun. "Very well. Leave."
Irina kicked at her engine again.
edited 16th Jul '16 6:37:18 PM by electronic-tragedy
Life is hard, that's why no one survives.
[Town ~ Bed & Breakfast (Main Hall)] (Davey, Jim, Samuel, Irena)
Jim holstered his revolvers, nodding at Samuel and Irena as they left. "I'll make sure to take care of her." Turning to face the fight between Greer and Cynthia, he began reloading his rifle. "Well, I've had to deal with worse odds. Like that time in Karzia with Dr. Gram."
Realization of what Irena said sank in, "I'm not sure leavin' Minerva here is such a good idea. Those idiots might very well try and level this buildin'... Shit." Jim headed towards the stairs, aiming to take the girl under his care to another location.
edited 17th Jul '16 4:39:51 PM by WillDeRegio
[Town ~ Bed & Breakfast (Main Hall —> Outside)] (Davey, Irina, Samuel, Todd)
"Well, in short-"
The sound of the front door opening and Samuel's subsequent reentry cut Davey off before he could get so much as a thought out. However, the colonel's reappearance countermanded a big part of his plan anyway, and Davey couldn't help but feel a little impressed—not just at the colonel's guts, but also at the swiftness with which he had returned, girl-in-arms, neither of them worse for wear.
"Ah, back so soon, Samuel?" Davey asked, doing his best to wring out whatever dryness he had left in him.
He let Samuel and Irina briefly discuss things, taking a few steps away to try and get a look through a window at the conflict outside. His ears twitched slightly as Irina called him back to attention.
"Ah... of course, good plan," he said after she told him—in much fewer words—a plan that sounded very similar to his own. Any disappointment Davey might've felt by not being able to enact his version of it was quickly quashed by more pressing concerns. He closed his eyes and thought for a moment. Had he seen Connie leave with the others? Had she gone to the balcony like he had instructed? He opened his eyes and looked upstairs. As far as he could see, no one was there on either side, so she must have left. In the time he had known her, Connie had never shown herself to be the type to curl up into a fetal position when things got heavy, though that wasn't to say that she always responded rationally.
A few moments later, the bedroom door opened, and Samuel returned. Davey's eyes lingered on the door for a while longer, but no one else came out. She must have gone. She had to have gone. As his companions departed the building, Davey found himself automatically following along behind them, though his gaze remained on the main hall until he had set foot outside.
"If this place gets demolished on my watch, Margaret's going to want to have a word-"
He faltered in mid step while mounting the hoverbike, watching the colonel in confusion as the man got back off the bike, despite their big hurry. Then he noticed the blond man with his gun raised at Irina. Davey immediately tensed up. One hand remained on the hoverbike, the other slid down to his side, and began creeping towards the holster at the back of his belt. He let the scene play out for a while, trying to get a read on what was going on. There was a clear history between Samuel and the blond man, Todd. The name, as spoken by Samuel, seemed familiar, but in the suspense of the moment, alongside the ensuing fight and presence of tanks only a few yards away, Davey, oddly enough, couldn't remember why.
"Now hold on," he said, eyes flickering between Samuel and Todd, "Samuel, what's this about?"
every little word and every little step
[Town (Main Hall)-Bed and Breakfast]
They didn't get too far.
Amy abruptly stopped running, to Maya's confusion.
Why'd you stop?! Maya signed, We have to-
"I'm going back!" Amy yelled, running back to where they came, "I'm not leaving my friends behind! Come on!"
Maya's eyes widened, before dashing after Amy. This seemed like a futile idea, but once Amy had a plan, there was no way to convince her to change her mind. Plus, perhaps Connie was (somehow) still there, and there was no way a defenseless sixteen year old could survive such turmoil. Maya would feel awful for leaving her in danger.
They kept running until they made it to the front of the Bed and Breakfast...where they immediately saw Samuel and Todd in some sort of face off.
Shit! Maya signed, He's gonna shoot!
"No! Don't hurt Sam!" Amy begged, running towards Todd, "Leave him alone!"
With enough force, Amy rammed into him to knock him to floor and pin him down, while Maya took out her knife again and placed it directly at Todd's throat, ready to strike at any moment.
"Run!" Amy said to the others, "Go! We won't let him hurt you!"
edited 17th Jul '16 5:43:38 PM by Masterofchaos
[Town ~ Outside the Bed & Breakfast] (Capt. Greer, Cynthia, Davey, Irina, Samuel, Todd)
Cynthia hesitated as she had her hands around Capt. Greer's neck. The captain grinned, "You don't have it in you to kill me, do you? I on the other hand, do."
"I-I must stop-" The young knight's eyes went wide as a sharp, cold pain erupted in her side. She was pushed away by the captain as he wiped the blood from the black combat knife he held. Cynthia held a hand to her side as her blood began staining her tunic. Looking up, terror flooded her face as the Balamarian captain leaned his foot back.
Greer kicked Cynthia in the gut, causing her to roll over, face down in the dirt. "Hn~heh heh heh, you nothing with out your magic." He kicked her in her injured side, soliciting a grunt from the knight. He placed his boot over her back, grinning like a mad man, "You fools think you can stand up to the militaristic might of the Balamar Empire?" He stomped down hard several times on Cynthia's back, causing her to cough up blood. She turned to look up at her assailant as he continued, "You are nothing but a pathetic. Naive. Imbecile." With each emphasized word, he stomped on Cynthia's head.
Paying no attention to the others nearby, Greer laughed again as he walked away from the battered and bleeding knight. He turned around, drawing his service pistol, "Prepare to die, royalist scum!" He chambered a round and aimed at Cynthia's head as she lay unable to defend herself.
[Town ~ Outside the Train Station] (Col. Von Strauss)
The Colonel's disapproval of the captain's grew as he began repeatedly stomping on Cynthia. The woman may be an enemy, but she was still a human being. His mustache bristled with fury as Captain Greer prepared to deliver a coup de grâce.
"Captain! STAND DOWN, now! She is more valuable alive!"
Captain Greer turned his head towards the Colonel, smirking. He aimed his pistol at Von Strauss, "On the contrary, it is you who should stand down, traitor."
"What is the meaning of this?!" The Colonel reached for his sword, stopping when he felt the awful chill against his back. Behind him stood two identical soldiers, dressed in all black, bearing the insignia of the Balamarian Military Police: a watching eye.
One of the MPs spoke, voice altered behind the black mask, "Colonel Abraham Von Strauss, you are under arrest for acts of Treason against the Balamar Empire. Relinquish your weapon immediately, or die where you stand."
The ornate saber clattered to the ground as the Colonel's face turned deep red, seething with rage.
edited 17th Jul '16 10:24:35 PM by WillDeRegio
PAINKILLER
[Town ~ Bed & Breakfast (Outside)] (Davey, Irina, Samuel, Todd, Amy, Maya)
Irina filled Davey in, "That's Commander of the Royal Guard, Todd Kimball. He and Sam were in the war together. Remember the story?"
Even as he stood before him, Samuel recalled the image of Todd, standing before an aged audience, recieving medals and his promotion. Before you is now the Commander of the Royal Guard, Todd Kimball. He remembered Todd's stern, sad eyes. He stepped into a life he chose. But he wasn't happy.
"Commander of being a Royal Deserter," Samuel muttered.
Todd jerked the gun again. "Just give it back, Sam. After all this, we don't have to look at each other as enemies. We can be together again. We can—"
Before much else could occur, Todd heard a high voice behind him. As he turned, he got the wind knocked out of him. And next thing he knew, there was a knife at his throat. He'd never seen them before, but he didn't care much about the fact. "Get—off of me...!"
Samuel ignored Amy's pleas. He instead got Todd's gun away from him. "Tell Maya to get off of him. He's no dangerous now."
Todd shouted, "This is just me and Sam! All of you, leave."
As if it almost was timed perfectly, commotion erupted nearby. Irina looked ahead, seeing men getting after each other. Ok, now we gotta get out of here. Irina grabbed Davey's hand—or paw— and pulled him up onto the bike. As the engine kicked back on, the bike started to rise off the ground. "Maya, Amy, head for the western edge of town. Away from here. It's getting rough out here."
Samuel nodded. "Yeah, get going."
Life is hard, that's why no one survives.
[Bed and Breakfast-Town (Main Street; West)]
Amy looked between Todd and Samuel. "B-But...but he-!"
Maya helped Amy to her feet. Come on. We can't stay here. It's getting worse; we have to move.
"But...I..."
There wasn't any point in arguing. Neither one of the girls knew who this man was, and it seemed that this was between him and Samuel. There was no point of continuing to get involved. That, and there were more people showing up to fight each other. They couldn't stay here for now,
Amy faced Irina with a stern look on her face, "You better meet us there! Don't get hurt!"
She gave one last worrying glance at Samuel, before darting away, still holding Maya's hand. They ran until they finally managed to get to the horses, which were surprisingly still in there, though a bit rattled. Amy still hated the idea of being with horses instead of flying through the skies, but right now, she had to put her feelings on the back burner.
Maya helped her friend on the horse, before hoping on herself.
"You know how to ride a horse?" Amy asked.
Nope. Maya signed, But I'm gonna try.
Amy laughed nervously as the horse trotted to the edge of town. They waited anxiously for their friends to finally show up, hoping and praying that they didn't get in the crossfire.
Attitude is prohibited
[Hotel] (Main Hall)
"She said that?" replied Maya, apparently a bit surprised. "Right, okay, yes," she continued, newly determined. "Stay near-by, and I can keep you safe. As for where we're going..." she glanced back at Hana, who seemed content to just stand and wait, for the time being. "Ideally, we would get as far away from the apparent danger as possible. These walls won't be much help against a tank after all. But, um, uh..." her cheeks turned a bit pink as she quickly glanced over at Hana again. "I suppose we're not in any imminent danger here, so..."
[Bed & Breakfast] (Roof)
Rin watched with increasing concern. The situation certainly seemed to be evolving, but she still couldn't tell who was who, or even who owned the tanks. She managed to catch a few names from her observation and eavesdropping, however. The 'Balamar Empire' seemed to be the faction of people operating the armour, seemingly led by one Captain something-or-other, who was also in the midst of what seemed to be a coup of some kind. Between that and the way he'd been beating that woman, Rin determined that she didn't much like the man.
The battle lines seemed a bit clearer now. The Captain so-and-so was now the one in charge of the tanks, and that made him a substantial threat. Even so, things were not yet clear or urgent enough for to to justify charging in...
Not entirely dead.
[Town ~ Railway Street (Outside Bed and Breakfast)] (Davey, Capt. Greer, Cynthia, Irina, Samuel, Todd)
Davey nodded his comprehension, the story, of course. He couldn't recall all of the details, but remembered enough to pinpoint who Todd was. Sam's former ally, and something more. Apparently the man still harbored feelings for Samuel, in spite of all that had pulled the two apart. Davey only hoped that Samuel could leverage those feelings wisely.
Still, his hand remained close to his holster. At least until two very familiar teenage girls rounded the corner and proceeded to drive Todd straight to the ground.
"Amy? Maya?! Didn't I tell you-"
He cut himself off. It was of little use. Still, they had managed to take down Todd, leaving Sam to disarm him. The most immediate situation—though perhaps not the most concerning—seemed to be under control. Something still seemed off, but Davey felt satisfied enough to leave with Irina. He climbed onto the hoverbike with Irina's assistance. Not out of necessity. Politeness, he thought, imagining even then some smirking face behind his back.
As Amy and Maya skedaddled, Davey adjusted himself on the hoverbike, trying not to seem too enthralled when it began to rise off the ground. He got ahold of himself and turned his attention to the colonel. "Take care, Samuel. Don't let Irina miss you for too long. Vigilance is the word."
He settled in for departure, trying to clear his head of the chaos surrounding it. Amidst all the engine buzz of both the tanks and the bike, mixed in with nearby yelling, he thought he could hear something dark, sickening, and full of pain. A hell of interpersonal conflicts had descended upon Margaret's bed and breakfast. Part of him felt vile for abandoning it all to fate.
every little word and every little step
[Northeastern Desert Trail: Wagon (Teri, Wolfe, Gwion, Nemaforte, Zuri, Iraal, Scents, Oswald)]
Stopping listening to the conversation between the magic users - at least temporarily - Iraal stared at Gwion from behind her glasses. Her social software sent her a reminder (which she herself had added in the past) that some humans found this slightly unsettling, and so she deliberately took a moment to blink.
"Yes," she said, "I was saying that while you did not seem familiar with the particular anomalies we have encountered, in general you seem far more familiar with magic and the observably supernatural than anyone else besides them." She waved an arm in the direction of Zuri and Nemaforte.
Her sunglasses drifted in the direction of Nemaforte. "I don't suppose you would have any idea how to bottle someone's aura?"
She glanced at Zuri. "Actual working third eyes, no. But some pre-technological cultures - not, as I said, just among humans - have believed in the positive spiritual and/or medicinal value of having holes in their skulls. It's not really my department, though - I'm more focused on spacefaring civilizations."
Meanwhile, Scents moved so that she was next to Teri and Wolfe's part of the wagon. She glanced at Oswald, still weirded out by - just about everything to do with him, really. But she wasn't sure what to say, so instead, she turned her helmet in the direction of the humans. It wasn't really necessary, but it was polite.
"Hey - can I ask you something?" she began. "I've been getting the feeling that you aren't really used to the tech the doc and I have been using."
The wagon continued to roll on, slowly approaching the mountains.
Not going to have anyone remark on Katya disappearing, because dropping out without explanation for OOU reasons is better to leave unremarked IMO.
[Bed and Breakfast (Main Hall)-(Stairs)]
Amy was holding onto Irina tightly, like a young child clinging onto their mother, when she heard the explosion.
She screamed, and buried her face into Irina's chest, sobbing.
Maya couldn't hear the explosion, but she could feel the violent vibration through her feet, and in an instant, knew that staying here would be mean their deaths.
She wasn't going to leave anybody behind, so she grabbed Amy's arm, then rushed up the stairs. She would've grabbed Connie too, but it seemed that she already had a head start. She only hoped that Samuel, Davey, and Irina would follow them.
None of the people made it to the balcony yet, which was a relief; but it was also a time limit. She needed to haul everyone's ass out of there before things got worse.
Amy! she signed, turning around, I'll drop down first, and I'll catch you. Ok?
Amy tearfully nodded.
Maya grabbed the wooden ledge on the side of the building and slid down. Once she got to the bottom, she opened her arms up, waiting for Amy to jump.
Amy nervously looked down, then at hotel, then back down at Maya, before holding her breath, then leaping. Like Maya had promised, she caught her, which would be rather surprising considering how different Amy weighed from her.
"Davey!" Amy called, once Maya set her down, "Irinia! Sam! Come on!"
edited 12th Jul '16 5:14:54 PM by Masterofchaos