Hello and welcome reader, to the 29th installment of the Character Development Threads! These shared story exercises help budding writers develop their characters alongside the characters of other budding writers. No sign-up is needed; just jump right in with your characters. It is recommended that you read the thread page and the last couple of pages before starting.

Discussion Thread —Thread Page — Trope Page — Town Map — Wilderness Map

This is a "Main Series" thread and, as such, an element of risk is expected. Rules and participation guidelines may be found on this page.

The thread page groups active characters under the areas in which they are active, enabling you to see who is at a given location in which you might be interested or to find out where to go to encounter characters with whom you wish to interact.

Kindly add your own characters to the thread page, with a link to their initial post, under the area in which they are located and update the page if they change location.

Bear in mind that if your characters are arriving at a location, they are likely to know little more than what they see and hear as they arrive - what the location looks like, what other characters are there (both of which can be read on the thread page) and the last few lines uttered and actions taken as they are arriving (which can be found in the last few posts for that location in the story thread itself), so inserting characters need not be a terrifying or arduous process. In most cases, they don't need to know more than what you yourself can glean from reading just a few posts.

If you need help, have any questions, or want a quick recap (if the page count is daunting), head over to the discussion page, and someone is sure to help you out!

To help guide character interaction, having your character come in with at least one short-term and one long-term goal or motivation is strongly recommended. It is not required, but it does make it easier to drive the plot forward. Feel free to come up with rumors about what treasures, adventure, locations, and dangers may be found in the setting - they need not be true or accurate, just some hook on which to hang an adventure.

The setting is specifically designed to be a vast sandbox into which details can be inserted by participants (for example, you are free to decide that there is a particular temple in the midst of the forest in which something may be found or that there is a particular shop/hotel/restaurant in a section of the town), if you come up with a location that you desire/expect other characters to visit, please add it to the thread page as a sub-location of the relevant area.

Things change as the story progresses. If, for example, a massive battle occurs at a location and the area is now strewn with bodies and buildings are damaged, kindly update the thread page to reflect those changes, in order that other participants have an up-to-date description of the location prior to sending their characters there.

Special thanks to all those who helped in getting the original thread launched or provided ideas and feedback. In alphabetic order, they include:

Blackfire 667, Collen, Corvidae, daird, Darkblood Carnagefang, Eterna Memoria, Gault, Kkutwar, Killer Clowns, ladytanuki, Masterofchaos, nrjxll, Pyxo, Slysheen, Tro Partner, Will De Regio and especially Wolf 1066, whose original post I have shamelessly copied with only minor alterations.

Apologies if I missed anyone - just let me know and I'll update the post.

The dawn of another day rises across the land, heralding fresh morning air, clearer heads, opened doors, and new arrivals.

Between dimensions, and linked to the rest of the multiverse, lies a strange post-apocalyptic environment made up of various regions strewn with the remnants of past glory - ruins, lost technologies and magic. Here and there, nature has found its way back amongst the ruined temples and towns.

In the midst of the blighted landscape, a fresh new town has emerged - a synergy of technology, nature and magic; clean and eco-friendly; a beacon of hope for a brighter future - where travelers can rest, recharge their batteries (both literally and metaphorically) and get whatever they may need - technological, magical or otherwise - to aid them on their adventures.

New arrivals can turn up by diverse means in the transportation area in the north-western part of the town or by whatever other means they deem appropriate. Here they may also find for rent, lease or hire, any transport they desire from riding animals to vehicles.

The wilderness areas have not been fully explored since the mysterious apocalyptic events that ravaged the area some time ago and no one is really sure what's out there - but rumors abound.

All that is known for sure is that both magic and technology have existed here for a long time, so anything is possible...

Current Time: 10:00 AM

Current Weather: Sunny

See the thread page for updates.

Edited by Ryuhza on Feb 22nd 2023 at 1:14:28 AM

[Outside Jobe's Farm - Ethani aq'Iqine]

A towering, heavily-built soldier knelt, head bowed, towards the sun. She held out her assault rifle as though an offering, letting the rays of light play across the weapon's wood and steel. Her skin was a light shade of brown, well-tanned by the sun of her world, her eyes were green, and her hair was kept in a military crew cut dyed crimson with henna. Those without magical sensitivity would notice she seemed prepared for war: she was armored in a ballistic jacket, combat helmet, and forest camouflage, and was armed with a boot knife, machete-like sword, and revolver in addition to the rifle. Those who could sense the arcane would also notice she was wreathed in dark, entropic magic: a barely-controlled beast with a hungry will of its own.

She had already done much this morning. She had accepted some of the breakfast Jobe offered; her faith's dietary restrictions did not allow her to accept the bacon, for it had not been hunted wild, but she'd accepted the pancakes gratefully. Hospitality was the first virtue, and Jobe demonstrated it in spades.

Jobe had asked how she'd slept. She'd said it had been peaceful. She did not consider this a lie; there was something impersonal about the nightmares that had haunted her sleep every night since she had accepted the gift of magic. Some said the monstrous images were the torments of those whose immoralities had made their journeys after death especially hard. Others claimed they were echoes of the the dying screams of once-great civilizations, destroyed at their apexes by the depths of their own vices. Either way, in the nightmares, she was only ever an observer.

Now, Ethani of Clan Iqine prayed, with a quiet, dignified piety, to three of the Xayusa pantheon's gods. "O Great Kataxula, Goddess of the Sun, hear my prayer. Today, I hunt, matching heart and wits against the beasts of this world. O Kataxula, Patron of Those Who Hunt, may you see fit to grace me with endurance and victory, and I shall honor you in the feast to come. O Soqaxil, Whom All Shall Meet, may the spirits I send unto you rest in peace, and bear me no enmity in the journey to come. O Xeqa, Fearsome Monster of the West, may my weapon serve well and strike true. And O Xeqa, She Who Chained Entropy, may the fearsome beast your grace has granted me serve me well, and bring ruination and terror to my enemies."

Edited by KillerClowns on Aug 3rd 2022 at 11:30:25 AM

So, as mentioned before, several of the characters have gone through some overhauls. John is now Amandus, Maya uses they/them pronouns, and Amy is Afro-Latina. So just pretend they were always like this in the previous thread now lol

[Hotel-Room 305]

Nick, a boy with umber skin and a black buzzcut, was the last one to wake up, yet again. He rubbed his brown, almost black eyes and looked over at his friends.

Jackson was blond boy with light brown skin and light blue eyes. He was sitting in the corner, apparently working on something. Maya was doing pushups on the ground. They were light brown, had a long black ponytail, and pink eyes. Amy was talking with Maria, happily flapping her arms as she did so. Amy was a fat, black girl with the same skin tone as Nick, and had short, pink puffy hair and hazel eyes. Maria had purple eyes—with her left eye covered by a black eyepatch, a slightly lighter shade than Amy, and long, curly black hair.

Once they saw Nick was awake, they waved.

"You're finally awake, you lazy ass?" Jackson said in a strong cockney voice.

"Can you blame me?" Nick said, "Last night was hectic as hell. Got any ideas on how we're gonna stop Mael?"

"That's what we've been waiting on you for!" Amy said, "Adam's in the bathroom, as as soon as he comes out, we'll—"

As if on cue, Adam stepped back in the room.He was also a slighlty lighter shade than Nick and Amy, and had dark blue eyes and long red hair that stopped at his midback. His expression was...unusually calm.

"You okay, buddy?" Maya signed.

"Hmm? Oh. Yeah." Adam said, smiling. "I was just thinking. So, uh, you said you figured out how we're going to ambush Mael, right? Did you already talk to Mr. and Mr. Richman about it?"

"Well, we're still making sure Nick's uncle got plenty of rest, dear," Maria said, "But first thing's first, we have to catch up with David and Joseph. If they're still willing to be around us."

"Right, right." Adam sat on the floor, "So, Jackson, what's the plan?"

"Nobody is going to be bait, that's for sure," Jackson said, "But I do think we're going to try to pinpoint his exact location. He's a smart and careful man, so we're gonna have to find a way to make him finally slip up..."

And that's as much energy I have for now, lol

_{^< cont. from} Olympic Wilderness _^> Joseph


At the foot of a steep mountain face, under a brilliant midmorning sun, there was a lively crowd of people, gathered together for a large group picnic. They milled about with aimless cheer, content in their shared moment, with their shared company. Blissfully unaware of the person clinging to the face of the steep mountain high over their heads.

He was hardly a remarkable person; seventeen, of average height, average weight, and a messy head of hair he didn't know what to do with. His nose was too large and face too soft to be seen as particularly handsome, yet his features were too plain to be otherwise intriguing. A face for glancing past, lost easily among the crowd below, where he spoke too quietly to be heard, and too infrequently to be remembered. The kind of person whose existence or absence held equally little sway over the lives of others.

He told himself that it was okay. He told himself that blending in was the same as belonging. He told himself that the cold isolation he felt in that crowd was nothing more than confusion. But as much as he told himself these things, it wasn't enough to stop him from leaving.

Compelled by passions too pure to speak, he'd climbed away from that crowd. Above their eyes. Above their sound. High above the consideration they shared so poorly. To a place where none of it would touch him anymore.

As he came close to the top of the sharp mountain shelf, he could see two familiar figures standing at the edge above him.

Henry, the only friend he had left in Issaquah, with his ball cap tipped back and the wind blowing his black hair into his face as he looked down. He didn't smile. He didn't need to. Just a look, and the climbing boy was lifted.

Bonnie, the rabbit-eared girl he'd met in the longest, weirdest dream of his life. Her ears stood high as she knelt down, coming slightly nearer to him. And that was all. Just the nearness, and the climbing boy was lifted.

Lighter than air, weighed down by nothing, he was barren and without shame. The care he felt was enough to clothe him. And with one last great shove off, he would be there, dressed in it all.

If he could just pull himself up.

If he could just pull.

If he could just ignore the laughter, and the shocked swears, and that buzzing silence.

If he could just keep himself from looking back, from seeing the swarm of people miles below, all staring with their cameras pointed, taking that moment from him.

If only he could stop his brain from recognizing the faces of his classmates, his teachers, his neighbors and doctors. Strangers in the street and passing cars. Long lost friends and family. His mother.

If only there were a single face among them that showed even a semblance of understanding. Something he could take away from that mess beyond the confusion he already knew, reflected en mass right back at him. Countless faces, flush with the same unbridled judgement he so often cast upon himself. He could barely handle it then.

If only he could have pulled himself up.

But when he lifted his eyes back to the edge, he found it vacant. He had no friends waiting for him. He had nothing but a view of all the people who would never look at him the same way. Maybe they would go back to ignoring him. Maybe they would pretend. Maybe it didn't matter. His arms were tired, and he had nothing.

As he plummeted to the ground, he closed his eyes and felt the strangest sensation just past his legs; a phantasmic force halting his fall and sending a tingle up his spine. At the same time, a whisper seeped into his mind, enveloping it all and screaming without sound.

"Do not waste this."

_^<  Hub Town - Hotel, Bonnie & Carol's Room _{^> Henry, Joseph, Bonnie, Carol}


Joseph awoke with a start, seizing the rushing air around him as it turned into blankets. He drew his arms and legs inwards and lay there curled up for a while, waiting for his heart to steady.

Okay, he thought, I'm not falling and, he quickly checked upstairs and downstairs, and I'm not naked. From those first impressions, life seemed pretty good.

He vaguely remembered the night before— shaken awake from a hard-won sleep in the bumpiest truck bed he'd ever known, then walked into the hotel and marched around for what felt like several discount eternities before arriving at the right room. Then of course there was much fussing about who would sleep where, with Henry insisting that Joseph take the second double bed for himself, and Joseph likewise insisting that he didn't mind sharing, and both of them insisting that Carol and Bonnie keep at least one bed for themselves.

Eventually they must've realized that sleep was out of the picture until they'd cleaned up, what with the crusting remnants of moufreta carcass still dotting their outer layers. Thank goodness the hotel's laundry service operated late.

The one vivid memory he had of that night was of the shower. It was the first shower he'd had in two days, and if he could have, he would have stayed in there for hours. There was an immediate zen as the water hit him, bringing a calm unlike any he could remember. Somehow, under that rush, his thoughts and feelings came together in perfect measures, without the need for fear. Like his Rubik's Cube of a heart had temporarily been solved. Maybe it was even worth listening to.

But all too quickly, he'd had to concede that clean was clean, and that others still had yet to wash. And anyway, that bed was sounding cozier and cozier.

And hell, it was. Cozy enough for Henry to give up on roughing it in the room's only other bedlike adorning: a chair that—while reasonably comfortable—simply did not pass for cozy. Which was how he wound up snoring softly at the other end of the bed, all hemming and hawing long since forgotten.

The pounding in Joseph's chest settled down, but for some reason the strange sensation he'd felt as he was falling persisted. He looked across to his feet, trying to spot the source. His heart skipped a beat as he spied a large, dark tendril, draped around the foot of the bed. Immediately he tried scooting backwards, only to be met with resistance from the tendril itself, a tug-of-war that sent him careening off to the side, here he wound up slipping out from under the covers. He flung his hand out blindly for something to cling to, but wound up only seizing more bedding. After dangling off the side for a moment, he toppled out of bed entirely, landing on his back with a quiet, breathless grunt.

Looking up from his dazed slump, he saw at last that the dark tendril—which was still wrapped securely around a small post at the foot of the bed—connected back to himself, threading a line down beneath his legs, as if he was sitting on the other end.

Oh, right.

Joseph was not, strictly speaking, human. At least, not anymore, or not at that moment. The change had first happened roughly two nights prior, back in his bedroom in rural Issaquah. One night he was a human being, going on seventeen strong-ish years. The next morning he was a black and white man-sized lizard-amphibian thing, and efforts to restore his former self had proved short-lived. What exactly he was, and why he was it, he still hadn't a clue. 'Were-salamander' was the best they had come up for it, though he'd never heard of any such thing.

He had a long, protruding face, with two large eyes, set quite wide, though not quite forward and not quite at his sides. He could still see in front of himself, but if he placed a finger or two square between them, his eyes would miss it, even at their most crossed. His nose was flush with his mouth in a rounded amphibian snout, with two small nostrils adorning either corner-esque region. His teeth were somewhat pointed at the front, but blended back into familiar molar-like shapes at each end. His hair had all fallen out, leaving the top of his head adorned only with smooth skin. It was black across most of his body, but white from the bottom of his mouth down to his jaw, neck, and all along his belly— the same coloration as roughly two thirds of an Oreo cookie. His neck was about as wide as his large head, stretching out the ill equipped neck of his shirt. His legs were a bit shorter than before, settling slightly more squat, though they still held him upright. His torso was a little longer, and both his hands and toes were tipped with claw-like nails, overtaking the ends of his digits. Lastly, he had a large tail extending from the back of his partially sundered boxer shorts. It was over five feet long, nearly as wide as both legs put together at its base, and gradually tapering off to a narrow tip. And it was quite flexible, as evidenced by his inadvertent life-saving maneuver.

Staring at it, he tried to relax its death grip on the bedpost, but only managed to wiggle his toes and flex his derriere.

Sighing, he laid his head back against the floor and closed his eyes, making a sort of mental map of his body through all its sensations. At first he couldn't find his tail at all, but for the dimmest of feelings, like the numbed-out echo of a limb. But as he focused on the surrounding areas, it became a clearer, more immediate thing. From there, he was able to find some control, relaxing and unwrapping from the bedpost, before coming to rest against the floor.

It was still so alien to him, in part from the own mental blockades he'd put up, but in much greater part because he, like most human beings, had simply never had a tail before. It wasn't even like learning to walk again—which was its own issue—it was learning something brand new; something that sent a shock to his system every time he really thought about it.

Still, he thought, if I ever actually fall off a cliff, maybe it'll come in handy.

Finally free of his bedside bind, Joseph was able to turn his mind to more important matters, like how hungry he was. Between the excitement of the previous day and his own weariness by the end of it, he hadn't had a proper meal since Issaquah, if Henry's leftover pizza reheats could be considered as such. Now, even the thought of stale pizza crust was enough to get his mouth watering.

First things first, was anyone else awake? Henry's quiet snoring, but if Carol or Bonnie were likewise, they must've been even quieter. With a stretch and a giant yawn, he rolled himself to his knees and stood, surveying the room for his roommates.

"Helruo-oo?" he cooed softly, only slightly mangling his first word of the day. Even with intact vocal cords, managing words past an oversized tongue and a lack of traditional lips was no simple feat.

I'll get better. Somehow, I'll get better.

Edited by Ryuhza on Feb 13th 2022 at 1:07:59 AM

Jobe's Farm (Maelys, Mist; Ethani)

The blue and red-haired valkyrie, Mist, had risen with the sun this morning. While still in her underwear, she performed some light exercises outside of her benevolent, and quite lovely, host, Aseyu ul'Valmoth's tent, as to not disturb the Qorisayane's sleep.

After completing a hundred repetitions of push-ups, sit-ups, crunches, and the like, she headed inside the farmhouse to wash off, bumping into Jobe along the way. One detour of breakfast later, she returned to Aseyu's tent, to equip her gear.

She donned her padded undergarments, over which she pulled on her chain hauberk and leggings, buckled on her red and steel brigandine vest, and finally, slipped into her black Wellington boots. She then grabbed her shield, a large, round afair composed of reinforced wood and iron, colored red with silver accents forming the shape of a cross in a wheel, with the center point being a ring around the boss of the shield, along with her collapsible winged spear, a mechanical device sporting a bifurcated spearhead forged from patterned steel and imported orichalcum wiring, allowing for the channeling of magic through the blade.

Upon the rooftop of the quaint farmhouse was the undead, combat-trained maid, Maelys. Due to an incident in her past, she had a mystic, life-preserving crystal embedded in her chest, keeping her body from breaking down, and in fact, capable of repairing her body like "new". This, however, left her with ashen skin, black veins, and bleached hair, the latter of which she dyed black.

Dressed in the traditional afternoon attire of a Victorian-era housemaid, she had laid on the rooftop all night long, staring down the iron sights of her 20mm anti-material rifle for any sign of the wild pigplant boars that she and the others had been tasked with slaying.

Upon noticing that some of the others were up and about, the maid arose from her prone position, she returned her over-sized firearm to the mysterious folds of her dress, where she kept all of her other, various firearms, and proceeded to walk off the roof of the farmhouse.

She hit the ground with a dull thud, landing on her feet, and startling Mist in the process.

"Gah! Doesn't that hurt?" the valkyrie asked of the maid, to which Maelys shook her head.

The pair of them noticed Ethani ahead of them and walked over to bid her a good morning.

Hotel Lobby- Rebecca

Any place that serves as a multiversal nexus is bound to attract its fair share of odd events, and the local hotel was no exception. In point of fact, there was a corpse in the lobby. But what was really bizarre was the fact that said corpse wasn't entirely dead.

Rebecca sat down on a lounger, simply watching the world go by. The most powerful necromancer in the whole world of Melacara- if only by default- reached her consciousness out, feeling the strong magical energies around her. A stray, straw-like red hair came across her deep green eyes, and she casually brushed it away from her rotting face. A red cloak, famed and revered across her home, kept her warm, a jet black stylized rose emblem across the back. Those of an arcane bent would note a steady pulse of black, necrotic energy coming from her chest once a second like clockwork, never varying or changing.

The undead let out a contented sigh. Things were good, these days.

Hub Town: Town Square

There was a brief flash of light on the north side of the town square. The nearby passerbys showed some annoyance, many covering their eyes to avoid ending up being blinded by the light, but otherwise paid no mind to it. Nor did they pay more attention to the person which said light had left behind. A small, gaunt man, clad in only a pair of tattered pants and a cloth hood over his head, his skin a faded hue of blue, sporting tatoo-like marks on the back and shoulders.

Nasur looked around, carefully inspecting his surroundings. This town, or at least this side of it, seemed rather... drab. Simple, brown houses, all looking the same. Not remotely close to what he was accustomed to back at his former home in Nocturna, the towering spires and the massive mansions and gardens of the Inner Circle, all clad in the characteristic heavily ornate architectural style that distinguished it from the Middle and Outer circles. A place where only the wealthy, influential, and powerful would live, and wear attires that would match the district's splendor... which as of now, Nasur did not even come close to match. With his rags and emaciated body, he would look out of place even in the lowest of slums.

That being said, compared to how he had been and felt in the last cycles of time, before his encounter with his new companion Joseph, there had certainly been improvements on his condition. A night of sleeping near the engines of the WFS Hummingbird, soaking part of the energy created in there (with permission of the palce's hosts, of course), had made wonders to sate Nasur's constant hunger. Now, his body felt stronger, and although still thin, he had recovered some muscle mass on arms, legs, and torso. His hunger for mana, although still ever present, was now alleviated, more of a simple annoyance ont he back of his mind. It would not last, but hopefully long enough so he could find an alternate source of substenance.

His jittery disposition was now less because of his state of his hunger, and more because he was in an unknown city, not knowing how potentially dangerous its inhabitants could be, and with no real way of defending himself. He had been told to look for his companions on the 'Hotel', but it would be harder that previously thought, with all these same-looking buildings. Some buildings, however, did look different enough to catch Nasur's attention. He walked around the square, thinking if it would be a good idea to inspect each and every place that stood out. Maybe he could wait a bit until they came out. If not, he could start the search himself. And if he ever came under danger... Well, he had survived the endless caverns that separated Nocturna from the sruface, and the Wasteland that came after. Surely he could survive this town.

Hotel ~ Bonnie & Carol's Room (Bonnie, Carol; Henry, Joseph)

The sound of someone falling from their bed roused Bonnie from her slumber. The young woman was a lagokin, a race of humans with rabbit ears and tails. Said ears, the same brown color as her shoulder-length hair, were perked up, as she scanned the room with her green-flecked, hazel eyes. "Carol?" she murmured.

Having fallen asleep on the way to the hotel the previous evening, her comrade-in-arms and girlfriend, Carol, had simply carried her up to their hotel room and placed her in bed still in her Cadian military uniform: a khaki safari jacket, black undershirt, a khaki pants, black combat boots, and a deep indigo military tunic with a black leather belt. Red and black asterisk insignia were quite visible on the upper arms of her tunic, with the black portion of the asterisks forming the letter Y.

Yawning softly, Bonnie's gaze finally caught sight of Joseph. She waved to the young salamander-man, as she rolled herself to a sitting position. Glancing to the vacant side of her bed, she noticed a crumpled-up undershirt, a patch-covered safari jacket, and tunic, as well as a discarded towel. Sniffing slightly, she smelled various foodstuffs being fried in the kitchenette their hotel room had. "Oh, seems Carol's cooking us some breakfast," she said, before rising to her feet, "I should go help her out."

In the kitchenette was Carol, a young woman with long, red dreadlocks, piercing red eyes with black sclera, and long, pointed ears, wearing only her khaki pants and black combat boots with an apron she had found. Her olive skin was marked with numerous metallic scars, from bullet wounds to slashes and stab wounds across her body.

She was currently in the process of frying some canned pork luncheon meat she had procured from the kitchenette cupboards, along with some eggs when Bonnie came in.

The lagokin medic was immediately fascinated by the various electric appliances of the kitchenette, things her world had yet to develop. In particular, she was taken in by the toaster, which she quickly figure out how to use, toasting copious amounts of pre-sliced bread (another thing her world had yet to develop).

"You guys seem to be sound sleepers," Carol said to Bonnie, "Took a shower and everything, and yous three slept right through it. Though it seems lizard-boy is up now. Took you two long enough," she said, flipping a slice of ham.

"His name's Joseph," Bonnie said, "And we were up pretty late last night. Not all of us are capable of neglecting sleep like you," she said, putting another set of bread in the toaster.

"Hmph, anyway, you should let them know breakfast will be ready soon," Carol said, gesturing towards the still sleeping Henry.

Bonnie nodded her agreement to Carol, before heading out of the kitchenette to get Joseph and Henry to head to the table their hotel room had, where Carol had already placed some fried canned mushrooms and baked beans.

Edited by WillDeRegio on Aug 4th 2022 at 3:39:49 AM

[Outside Jobe's Farm - Maelys, Mist; Ethani aq'Iqine, Aseyu ul'Valmoth]

Ethani turned to Maelys and Mist. Her prayers complete, she stood, and elbow low, brought the knuckles of her right fist to her sternum in a sharp greeting. "Maelys. Mist." She nodded in approval at Mist's traditional hunting weapons in particular. It showed more confidence than Ethani had in herself; she would stick with her assault rifle. As to Maelys... she looked at her skeptically. "Are you planning to hunt in that? I would worry about the skirt interfering... but I will trust your judgment."

Aseyu then slid out of the tent. This would doubtless attract attention, as Aseyu of Valmoth always did. She was a remarkably tall, athletically lean woman, with short black hair, steel-grey eyes, dark skin, and sharp, beautifully elegant features. Though she was nearly forty years old, and did nothing to disguise this, a mixture of fortunate genetics and healthy living had seen her age very gracefully. She was clothed, technically: a bright red silk dressing gown with abstract black whorls, it was tied closed and reached only to her knees. Aseyu had spent some time ensuring it properly looked like she'd haphazardly thrown it on, and that it was a single unfortunate pull away from a memorable wardrobe malfunction. (It was not, thanks to expensive custom tailoring and some clever tricks Aseyu knew involving pins, tape, and the like.)

Ethani raised her eyebrows but gave Aseyu the same flawless salute she'd given the others. Aseyu returned it, though hers was a more languid gesture, vaguely bringing a half-closed hand to the area in front of her sternum, flexing it slightly towards herself, then letting it drop. "Good morning," Aseyu said to the others. She stretched, then said, "I normally don't sleep in so late, but I hope I missed nothing?"

"Our host provided breakfast," Ethani said. "There should still be plenty before the boar hunt."

"Good idea," Aseyu said. "I can hardly hunt on an empty stomach, can I?" Before heading in, however, she turned to Mist and said, "you seem well this morning. You slept soundly, I presume?"

Edited by KillerClowns on Aug 2nd 2021 at 10:34:07 AM

_{^< cont. from} Hub Town - Hotel, Bonnie & Carol's Room _{^> Henry, Joseph — Bonnie, Carol}

Joseph rubbed his eyes (taking a moment to reposition his hands from what he was used to) and smiled, blinking away the bleary remnants of sleep.

"G'mormig Bonhulie," he tried, wincing at the result. With a sorrowful sigh, he turned away, murmuring something about 'bafhrum' before heading off to the bathroom. There, he splashed water on his face, quietly practiced enunciating the word 'morning', and avoided the mirror.

On their bed, Henry still slept soundly, even spreading out a little with Joseph out of the way. Henry was a young Puyallup man of 22. He was fairly tall and heavily built, with a roundish face and soft features. Unparted, his black hair covered his eyes in front and came down to just above his shoulders elsewhere.

He stirred only slightly at the talking, the bit of bustle in the kitchenette, and the smell of fried breakfast. He stirred a little more at the cry of shock when Joseph nearly shut the bathroom door on his tail, and then, a little while later, at the soft thumping against his blanketed arm.

"Mmrm," he protested, turning over and drawing the blanket further up his shoulders to defend from this cruel assailant.

"Hemry. Hey. Pss ps pssh. Waygup. Wagey wagey." Joseph cleared his throat, "Wa-key, I mean."

"Pffph." Henry waved him away from beneath his blanket, "Wakey yourself."

"Um... yeah, I'll get around to it. But for now there'shum breakfuss. Looks real good." Normally, Joseph wasn't big on mushrooms, but his growling stomach wasn't bluffing.

Henry peeked one eye open. "Is that what I'm smelling?" Before the answer could come, he caught sight of his salamandrine friend, and a realization seemed to surge through him. "Aw no-ooo..." he groaned, grabbing both ends of his pillow and covering his head, "I'm not ready for today."

"Maybe some breagfush will-"

"Cats can breakdance on stilts before I'm ready."

Joseph could only blink, turning to Bonnie and shrugging at his friend's somewhat confusing obstinance.

Thinking that perhaps a sample would be more convincing, he moseyed over to the kitchenette, where Carol was still cooking. He gave her some space so as not to intrude, and because—if he was honest—he found her a little intimidating. Moreso when he realized how little she was wearing up top. Somehow, standing in naught but a t-shirt and boxer shorts did little for his own confidence.

"M-m-m..." he began, quickly patting his collar, as if it was just an incidental throaty murmur. "Morning Carwol. Good, maybe even. I guess we'll see. Um." His eyes ran a winding course around the kitchenette, trying to chart a path to the stovetop that didn't cross her barren back. "Hey that smells good. Whatcha... whatcha cookin'?"

[Hotel-Room 307]

He heard the sound of water flowing, which instantly woke James back up from his slumber. James was a man with dark skinned, a low buzz cut, and dark brown eyes. Currenlty, he had a look of confusion, staring at the empty bed.. Where's—

The water stopped, and the bathroom door opened. Another man appeared, also with dark skin, but this time he had long dreads that stopped at his midback, and dark brown—almost black—eyes. He smiled brightly. "Morning, love."

James stood up from the chair. "Amandus!"

The two men kissed for what seemed like a long time, before pulling away. James then pulled his husband into a tight hug. "Oh my God, you're okay! I...you were so weak yesterday and—-"

"I'm still feeling a little woozy," Amandus said, "But now I can actually walk around and talk normally." The two pulled away. "I'm so sorry I put you and the others through that. We should've been focused on stopping Mael and I derailed everything."

James shook his head. "Nonsense. You're always going to be my first priority, okay hun? Now, promise me you'll tell me what's going on from here on out."

"Of course." Amandus rested his forehead on James's forehead. "Now...we should probably go get the others for breakfast, then talk about our next move. I want to make sure our son is okay."

James chuckled lightly. "Son...it feels nice to say that again. Come on, dear. I'm sure they're waiting for us."

Mael will come...Soon.

Town Square (Samelin, Rosafa, and Devad)

There was a brief flash of fire as a small, crude doorway opened in reality and roughly deposited three strangers not quite in the middle of the square before vanishing again.

At the fore of this trio was a person of indeterminate gender, who calmly regained their feet and dusted themselves off. They wore a three-piece suit with a dark red longcoat, dark green vest and pants, and a pale pink collared shirt. Their face was ovular, with slightly-sunken cheeks, almond eyes, a strong chin, a wide nose, and full lips, which were now resolving themselves into a confident smile. Their skin was olive, their eyes were dark brown, and their hair, which was cut short on the right side but allowed to grow shoulder-length on the left, was black. Perched atop their gently pointed right ear was a tiny metal beast that resembled a hyena, except that it had hooves and its neck was long enough for the head to hang down into this person's ear. A small red gem glowed ominously in the beast's eye socket. Just behind the ear was another small red gem, embedded directly into the side of the head. They called themselves Samelin Wayward, though Gods alone knew if that was their real name.

Slightly behind and to the right was a young woman, who was patting out a small flame on her shoulder with a look that suggested that this was an annoyingly common occurrence for her. Her skin was tanned, her face heart-shaped with a sharply-pointed chin, her large eyes were a vivid green, and her black, shoulder-length hair was tied back, exposing her small, mouse-like ears. She wore denim overalls over a pale pink t-shirt, and heavy boots. A messenger bag, bearing a stylized hand insignia upon it, hung at her waist. She was called Rosafa Hysi.

To the left was a man, tall and lean but muscular. His skin was ash-white, his hair only a shade or two darker and cut into a mohawk. His facial features were heavy and sharp, with a wide, flat nose, heavy brow, wide-set eyes of gold (with elongated pupils), and sharply-pointed ears. He wore a dark tank-top, cargo pants, and heavy boots. He had been disoriented upon arrival, but wrenched himself back upright. He was named Devad Imari.

"Hooray!" Rosafa cried, in an accented voice that someone would probably label "The Old Country", "The portal worked! And did not kill us!"

"Outdone yourself again, my love," Samelin replied fondly, in an accent that sounded like someone trying to impersonate a cowboy.

Devad looked around, bewildered. "It actually worked..." he murmured, in a gruff voice of unusually high timbre.

"Don't sound so surprised, big man. Haven't I told you that our Rosafa's a genius?"

"Hmmph. Forgive me, Rosafa," Devad said, suddenly sincere, "I did not mean to imply a lack of faith in your engineering abilities, only that I did not believe it was possible to jury-rig a portal device."

"Oh, that is quite alright," Rosafa demurred, "I half-expected it to blow up."

"Well, it lasted long enough for us to go through," Samelin said, "And now we're here in scenic..." They paused, as though they'd suddenly run out of cue cards. "Where in the nine hells are we, anyway?"

Edited by StrixObscuro on Aug 7th 2021 at 10:23:01 AM

Town Square ~ Notice Boards (Damia)

By the notice boards was a tall (around 5'11''), pale, slender woman with long, vibrant red hair, drawn up in a bun, and bright green eyes. She wore a white silk button-up blouse, white silk pants, a black silk cravat, white gloves, black boots, a black cross belt, with a silver plate where the belts met across her chest, engraved with a sun wheel, a silver cartridge box and a bolt-action carbine rifle on the right hip, and a silver-handled cavalry sword in a black and silver scabbard on the left hip. Completing her outfit was an unbuttoned, black, ankle-length wool coat, worn with the hood up.

Her name was Damia, and she was a battle-priestess of the church of Rhiannon.

She had been tasked with putting up wanted posters for individuals who had been causing trouble for the organizations aligned with the church. Brandishing a staple gun, she tacked four posters to the notice board, one by one, neatly in a row.

Once she had finished, she turned and walked away, heading towards the northern part of the square. A flash of light from out the corner of her eye caught her attention, drawing her towards its source. Unable to pinpoint a source for the light, she nearly ran into a person much shorter than her.

"My apologies, good sir—" Her voice trailed off as she peered intently at the blue-skinned man in front of her. Unsure of what to make of him, her hand drifted to the handle of her sword. "What are you?" she bluntly asked.

Jobe's Farm (Maelys, Mist; Aseyu, Ethani)

Mist returned Ethani's salute by raising a hand to her forehead, with Maelys giving a polite bow.

At Aseyu's skepticism of Maelys' uniform, the maid performed an impromptu backflip, causing Mist to step to the side as Maelys followed up with a low, mid, and high roundhouse kick in quick succession.

"In addition to being proficient at kickboxing, I have to keep up with my immediate mistress, who treats any sufficiently interesting vertical surface as a challenge," she explained, "My uniform contains plenty of elastics."

Maelys then gave the same polite bow to Aseyu, while Mist blushed at the Qorisayane's choice of attire.

The mention of breakfast took Mist's attention away from Aseyu for a moment. "Aye, Breakfast sounds pretty good. Worked up a bit of an appetite this morning exercising," said the valkyrie. Maelys silently nodded in agreement.

As they headed inside, Mist turned her flushed face to reply to Aseyu, "Yeah, I slept pretty well last night. How 'bout you?"

Hotel ~ Bonnie & Carol's Room (Bonnie, Carol; Henry, Joseph)

With the boys getting out of bed, Bonnie smiled slightly, only to frown at Henry's dismay. "Look," she told him, "I promise we'll find some way of dealing with this." She then smiled at Henry's quip, "Be careful what you wish for," she told him, before gently waving Joseph towards the kitchenette.

Carol glanced Joseph's way as the salamander-man entered the kitchenette, "Mornin' t'ya, too, bucko," she replied.

She glanced down at what she was cooking, before reaching over for the can that she had gotten the meat out of. The dark elf scowled, squinting at the (rather large) text on the can, "SPAM?" She shrugged, before nodding her head towards the table, "We got SPAM and mushrooms, SPAM and beans, and we'll be having SPAM and eggs coming right up," she told Joseph, as she cooked the scrambled eggs and spiced ham together.

The wanted posters Damia put up:

Edited by WillDeRegio on Sep 6th 2021 at 4:43:29 AM

_{^< cont. from} Bananaland _{^> Joseph, a bushel of the land's finest fruits}


"Well done, Joseph. Well done."

Joseph smiled bashfully through the ripe old banana's back-patting. "Aw, come on Professor Splits, anyone could have deciphered those old tablets."

"No Joseph, the cosmic chips had lain dormant in our sunflower spring for generations. A cavalcade of our most brilliant scholars gave into despair." The professor aimed a peel square at Joseph's chest, "Only you persisted. Oh and to think that it all came down to abstract wonderings we had discarded as worthless so long ago— clearly a great reevaluation is in order. In fact, from now on I elect that every instance of the word 'scatterbrained' should be replaced with 'Joseph-minded', in your honor."

"Eh-huh-huh... that's- that's a bit much. But y'know, to come back to what I said about a banana being nature's boomerang-"

"And," a stocky, yellow and brown banana stepped forth, sheathing his distinctly arched chocolate blade, "your performance at the Profiterole Prairies— simply astounding."

"Astounding? Oh no, I just thought we should probably maybe listen to-"

"Joseph," the banana removed his Magic Shell helmet, holding it under his left peel as he looked deep into Joseph's eyes, "You stayed your hand instead of acting rashly. In a thousand years, I would have never thought we'd mix so well with those Creampuff people, soft and foofy as they are. But when I met my dear Avice, my eyes were opened." With a deep, grueling sigh, he hung his head. "Would that I could ever learn to hesitate as vehemently as you do, perhaps I would not be so deeply bruised."

"Captain Chiquita..." Joseph reached out to the forlorn banana...

...who took his hand in both peels and grinned broadly. "We're getting married tomorrow, and I want you there as my guest of honor!"

"Captain Chiquita!"

From the steps of the great aisle, the Queen of Banana Hearts descended, adorned in maroon and as golden as the great bunch in the sky, "And let's not forget how you singlehandedly put a stop to the ethylenic epidemic."

Joseph scratched at his cheek, pondering what she was talking about. "You mean when I dropped a banana peel into the Well of Timely Solutions? That was just an accident; I mean total dumb luck. I couldn't possibly take credi-"

"And what expertly applied dumb luck it was. Without it the cure may have never been created, and certainly not so quickly. Joseph, as a special token of our eternal gratitude, from all of the Royal Musaceae Family to you, we present you with this traditional selection of banana pies."

A long table rolled in before him, containing a veritable rainbow of pies, each garnished with its own ornate arrangement of toppings and spectacular crusts all around.

These aren't for you. Just as his misgivings were giving way to delight, a dreadful voice rose up from within. You didn't do anything to deserve this celebration. You've never done anything in your life worth celebrating. There's obviously been some sort of mix-up, and now you're taking advantage of these bananas. And isn't it kind of sick that the pies are made of-

"Would you shut up?" Joseph shouted at last, reaching in and plucking the voice out, holding it up into the air. He gestured at the table, "Look at these fantastic pies. Can't you just be happy?"

The voice hung limply. ...they look pretty good.

"Okay. Now stop being a dick or I'm not going to share."

He put the voice back and returned his attention to the pies at hand. "There's so many different... I never knew bananas came in this many colors! And they all look so delicious..."

"They are delicious... and more." The Queen waved her peel across the table, "For you see, each pie before you shall reveal an aspect of your destiny."

"The blue will reveal the person near to you who most needs kindness."

"The green will show you exactly what you must do to feel whole."

"The red... the red may be most important of all. Come closer. Gaze into it until it is all you see, then rest your eyes. See yourself, then drink in its aroma, and see the pie. See yourself in the pie. See the pie in yourself."

Joseph did exactly as instructed. "Ohh... banana-y."

"Now listen to me as dearly and sincerely as your inner spirit can muster, as this one goes all the way back to the core. This one, brave Joseph, will-"

A sudden violent hacking broke out in the audience.

Joseph and the Queen turned to see who had the gall to disrupt such a vital moment. There, nestled among the sunny citizens of the banana court, was Connie, desperately trying to stifle a second bout of coughing with her sleeve.

He glared at her, laying there in her bed and coughing it up like nobody's business. Then he sighed, returned his attention to his pies and the Queen, and—

In her bed?

He turned to look back at the crowd

_^<  Hub Town - Hotel, Room 509 _{^> Joseph, Connie, David}


and realized the terrible truth.

"Dammit," he grumbled, "s'gonn get... the red pie."

Connie froze for a few seconds and shot him a sideways glance. When he didn't make any other odd noises, she resumed what she was doing, which—from what he could tell through his fast falling eyelids—appeared to be inspecting her hand and stifling another cough, before covering her face entirely.

Joseph closed his eyes to great relief and turned over in his own bed, tail tangling slightly in the covers. She's still sick, was the last conscious thought he could recall before sleep overtook him again.

_^<  Observation Pod 28 _^> Joseph


Being shut in an alien space pod wasn't so bad. The getting there was kind of a mess—abduction was never a picnic—but being there wasn't awful. Maybe standards differed wildly from species to species, and he'd gotten lucky. Whatever the case, he wasn't going to complain. He had a cushy pad to lay on, enough arm space to keep from feeling claustrophobia, a domed glass roof to look out of, and a pleasant ambient light, bouncing back minty green. It reminded him of being stuck in a hollowed out jelly donut.

He lay there curled up for a while, undisturbed until the faint chatter of two voices became audible. They'd come and gone a few times already, never growing beyond indistinct word sounds, but now they were close enough to be heard.

"...book with local listings somewhere around here," said the first voice. It was deep, masculine, and somewhat withdrawn, or perhaps withheld, if one knew the difference. Something about it tickled Joseph's memory with a jackhammer, yet could not breach a connection. It was probably because he was dreaming, but Joseph didn't know that either, so please don't tell him just yet.

"You're making this out to be a bigger ordeal than it is," declared the second voice. It too was masculine, but not as deep. A little weathered, but with a lightness to it. This voice Joseph did not know at all, so don't bother disturbing him with any harebrained theories.

"I know how it's done," it continued, "I've been around the roost." There was a rapid pattering on the floor. "I can show you just as easily."

"If only I had your confidence," the first voice grumbled. "There just ain't enough time; gonna need your help and more to get this thing into shape."

"The worrying, the worrying. How is it you still have that dark head of hair you anxious old coot? You're in fine enough shape for— "

There was a sudden silence. A few seconds passed, and the second voice returned with hushed excitement.

"...be still my beating heart. This is too precious. This is too, too- oh look at his little nose!"

Joseph crawled to his knees, lifting his head as high as he could to see out of his dome. The aliens looked like massive arrangements of bubbles linked together by sinewy threads. They were vaguely humanoid, though any discernible limbs appeared and disappeared like momentary mirages. One stood by a pod much like Joseph's own. The other a short distance away, flipping through a massive tome. The only visually distinguishing elements he could make out was that the latter alien had a dark head of hair.

"Is it a he?" asked the alien near the pod.

The turning of pages halted for a moment as the hair-bearing alien (seemingly) looked up. "Davey? Ask him yourself. But... yeah. As long as I've known him, yeah."

"His name's Davey!?"

"David to you. I call him Davey." He turned another page, then stopped again. "Look, don't... don't stoop over him like that. Let him sleep."

Not listening, the alien near the pod reached in. "Does he like being scratched behind the ears?"

"What are you-? Hey," the alien with the hair glided to the pod, seizing the hairless alien's bubbly appendage with one of his own, "knock that off. I'm serious. Don't go petting him, especially when he's asleep. He's a person, and my close friend."

When did David become friends with a bubble alien? Joseph wondered.

"Of course. I'm sorry, I forget myself."

"Just think about it for a moment. How would you like it if a complete stranger started stroking your face while you were asleep?"

"Well, if it were you..."

"A complete stranger."

"No, you're right. That was terribly, repugnantly invasive of me."

They both were silent for a few more seconds. "Looks like he's still asleep, lucky for you. Hell of a first impression you'd have made."

"Too true, I say, too true. And in case he is listening, please accept my humblest apologies, sir David. I meant no harm."

The alien with hair gave a quick sniff of a laugh, then returned to his discarded tome. "Haven't you been around changed persons before? Mister 'been around the roost.' "

"None so drastically." The hairless alien finally stepped away from the pod, gesturing back, "And I must say—I hope this isn't troubling—but he is very cute."

Another sniff. "I advise you find something else to remark on. And you'd better get used to being around changed folk."

The hairless alien paused, facing the haired one with an arrangement of bubbles that somehow meant confusion. And then, realization. "Oh! The other one!"

Joseph dropped back out of sight, instinctually returning to a 'defensive sleeping' posture.

"How is it that you're holed up with two of these fellows?" the hairless alien continued as his footsteps came closer to Joseph's pod. "Animal magnetism?"

"Bit of chance, bit of circumstance. Bouncing around the right places, near enough for rumors to do the rest. Magnetism of a sort, maybe. Not that I ever intended on being a buoy for all these lost kids, changed or otherwise. There's Connie too, remember."

Connie and David both, Joseph thought, now feeling a little cross. No one ever tells me about the bubble aliens.

"Oh, the poor thing with the travelers' wheeze. How is she?"

"Well enough to head out into town, seems like."

"Good for her. No one should be chained to their bed in a place like this. Too much to be explored; we need all hands on deck." The footsteps grew closer, until Joseph could hear the hairless alien looming right above his hollowed out jelly donut pod. "And who is this?"

"Joseph. Also a 'he', as far as I'm aware."

Joseph held very still. Almost too still for someone supposedly sleeping.

"Hmm..."

The alien above his pod lingered, steeped in great deliberation. Seconds turned into minutes. Minutes turned to hours. Hours skipped to years. Years turned back into seconds, rewriting time as we know it. Finally, at long last...

"...well he's not quite as cute as the other one."

_^<  Hub Town - Hotel, Room 509 _{^> David, Joseph, Orti, Rip}


"Hhheeyyy!" came Joseph's groggy complaint. He rolled over to glare up at a very unfamiliar face.

The face belonged to a tan-skinned man who stood beside Joseph's bed. It was well worn, adorned with the venerable lines of an age thoroughly spent. He had a scraggly beard along his jaw to his chin, the same taupeish brown as his thick eyebrows and wavy hair, parted and swept evenly to either side of his forehead. He wore a caramel corduroy sport coat, a blue linen vest with a floral pattern beneath it, and seemingly nothing beneath the vest, though he did have an assortment of necklaces dangling about his chest.

At a glance, he looked to Joseph like a scruffy sailor who'd just stepped off a boat made from a paper bag. Or maybe just a windblown paper bag itself come to life.

"Oh, I've really put my foot in it now," the man said, looking back at whoever else was in the room. Turning back to Joseph, he tried to course correct. "I am right sorry about that; I meant no disrespect. You are cute, especially for a... your..." he gestured in futility at Joseph, but couldn't find a word that wouldn't come back to bite him. "What I mean is," he indicated David's bed, "it's stiff competition. And I must say, those eyes of yours make all the difference— why look at those glacier blues."

Joseph sat up, blinking slowly as he transitioned back to reality. He couldn't quite keep pace, but he knew he was being complimented. Even if he wasn't sure he did anything to deserve it, he liked being complimented, so he smiled. "Okay, you're off the hook."

The paper bag sailor man smiled in return, looking genuinely relieved. "I won't forget this kindness." He reached into his coat to fish something out, before realizing that he hadn't introduced himself. "Ah, my manners... Ortimartl Geccè. Orti Geccè, to Rip's esteemed company."

Without withdrawing his arm from his pocket, he extended his other arm across it to shake Joseph's hand. Joe took it, shaking it for a few dull seconds before realizing he should probably say something in return.

"Good to meet you, Orti Get...cha?"

"Geccè."

"Getscha."

"Geccè."

"Mornin' Joe," Rip interjected, barely lifting his head from a dark, hardcover booklet.

"Oh! Yeah. Right. I'm Joseph."

"A pleasure, Joseph. And 'Orti' is just fine." He finally ceased their accursed handshake with one firm motion, before stepping away. "Sorry for yanking you out of your slumber early."

"Oh no, I was gonna... get up anyway."

"Got plans?" Rip asked.

"Uh, not exactly. I mean nothing big, but... where's Connie?"

"Out. Look for her if you like, but listen," Rip put his book down and faced Joseph directly. He was a fairly tall man, about forty, though his demeanor may have made him seem older. His dark brown hair was cut short atop his head, though he also wore a pair of long sideburns and a mustache, with only a small patch of hair beneath his bottom lip, and none whatsoever across his chin. His quiet eyes were the same color, shadowed at that moment behind a pair of wiry reading glasses. He was clothed in only an undershirt and some dark, braies-like trousers. "After yesterday... if you or Davey need to take it easy, if either of you need to treat yourself to something nice, consider any expenses paid for."

"Really?"

" 'Course. My favours are your favours."

"Well... cool! I mean, thanks."

Rip waved it off and returned to his book. Joseph threw off his covers and rolled backwards out of bed with a sudden gusto.

"That sure got him up and at 'em." The man murmured, raising his eyebrows.

Orti draped his hands and head over the other man's shoulder. "Oh, I love how protective you are."

Down on the floor, Joseph crawled over to his bag to grab some fresh clothes. Making a quick selection, he bounded to the bathroom, tugged them on, gave a glance or two at the mirror (thankfully he didn't have to worry about bedhead), and with a final ciao, left their hotel room.

Out in the hall, he made note of his plan:

Firstly, meet back up with Adam and the rest of the gang.
Secondly, ask if their moonstones would do anything to relieve sickness.
If yes, then use the stones on Connie.
If no, then seek another remedy. He had a bit of a blank check, after all.
Also, find out if the moonstones could help someone from a distance.
If no, then find Conne.
If yes... self explanatory.

It seemed as simple as a plan could be, until he got into the elevator and realized he didn't know which floor Adam was on, let alone his room number. He had a few room numbers belonging to Claire—the would-be truck filcher turned obliging ally—but that was it. Rather than investigate on the off chance that Claire knew their number, risking missing them if they departed the building from another floor, Joseph figured his best bet was to set up a one-man stakeout in the lobby until he spotted someone he knew.

_^<  Hub Town - Hotel, Lobby _{^> Joseph — Rebecca}


And so there he was, sitting on the same fountain edge that he had sat upon with David the night before, keeping his 'glacier blues' peeled for any one of over half a dozen people.

Joseph himself bore a more than striking resemblance to another occupant of that very same hotel: a man-sized, black and white salamandrine creature with a long face and longer tail. The only obvious difference lay in the clothes he wore, both because they were plainly different than the other occupant's, and because his were clearly tailored to the dimensions of his form, rather than roughly adapted clothes intended for someone of a considerably different shape.

He had on a short sleeved button-up shirt with a bright but somewhat muted tricolor pattern of wide vertical stripes. It was tucked into some plain medium-gray pants made of a particular linen-like material popular for its supposed protection against the ambient energies of The Will of the World. And then he had on shoes. They were white. They had laces. They weren't very exciting.

He'd always wanted to dress a little more stylishly, but when he learned he'd have to get most of his clothes specially tailored like David's (lizard-like bodies were far from commonplace, even on Janus) he'd erred on the side of the economical. Nothing too striking, but nothing too offensive to the eyes. Once, he'd tried decorating his tail with a headband. No one had said anything, but he couldn't stop thinking about it for an hour, at which point he'd discreetly taken it off, never to return to his abaft appendage. He didn't want to risk consigning half his wardrobe to a similar fate.

On the flipside, maybe it was just another self-conscious barrier he needed to break through, and what better way than to do it than by giving himself nothing else to wear?

Maybe someday.

For what it was worth, he did have on two fuzzy, blue wristbands, just because he liked them. And why not?

He dangled his legs against the fountain, casting restless glances around the lobby. His heart stopped for a moment when he caught something out of the corner of his eye, and then something at the center of both eyes, until little doubt remained. It looked as though someone had deposited a dead body into one of the lobby's comfortable chairs. That or someone had gotten a little too comfortable for a little too long.

Edited by Ryuhza on Jun 18th 2023 at 4:11:54 AM

Rebecca- Hotel Lobby

Rebecca could feel eyes staring at her. She'd more than gotten used to it- every witch who joined the Midnight Roses did it at first, to the point where it was often considered a rite of passage amongst members of the coven- but there was still the issue of politeness, damn it! The lich stood up, smoothing out a fold in her cloak.

She looked at the newcomer herself, trying to judge him. Some sort of... lizard-person? Have to admit, that's a new one on me. But he didn't seem openly hostile, which was more than enough for her. "Hello there," she said as she gave him a friendly nod. "I'm Rebecca Van Zant, sorceress extraordinaire. It's a pleasure to meet you, good sir. Mind if I get your name?"

[Jobe's Homestead (Mist, Maelys; Aseyu)]

"I slept soundly," Aseyu said, "thank you". While her culture considered dreams a normal morning topic, in a way that is seen as tacky in much of American culture, this hardly mattered for Aseyu. She simply did not dream; a common trait among those able to nullify magic's touch as she could.

As they entered the farmhouse, they saw that Jobe had set out several more plates of pigplant bacon, eggs over easy, and toast. (Ethani's untouched bacon had been divided among the rest of the plates.) Aseyu took a piece of the bacon from the nearest plate, and curiously nibbled on it. "Hmm," she said, "that is quite nice. Quite an unusual texture, but the flavor is better balanced than I would expect."

Then she turned back to Mist. "Before I get dressed for this hunt," she said, "I'd like to at least have a shower. Hopefully, I can convince our host." As she said this, she was quietly gauging Mist's reaction.

[Jobe's Farm (Ethani)]

Leaving the other women to eat, Ethani pulled out a pipe, filled it with fine tobacco, and lit it with a touch of magic. Her magic's effects on the physical world was theoretically limited to entropy, but with precision, certain chemical processes could be induced and accelerated, especially to increase the net entropy of the universe. Ignition, in short. She had no answer as to why the initial flame was a black that drained the nearby light, but once the chemical reaction began, the pipe sustained itself naturally.

Then began to patrol the borders of Jobe's farm, stopping occasionally to take a drag from the pipe; the smell of sweet tobacco filled the air around her. She didn't expect trouble, but the day was pleasant, and she saw no reason to be inside.

Edited by KillerClowns on Aug 13th 2021 at 12:11:19 PM

_{^< cont. from} Hub Town - Hotel, Bonnie & Carol's Room _{^> Henry, Joseph — Bonnie, Carol}


"Maybe," Henry grumbled from within his pillow. "But when? We had magic 'do anything' rocks in our possession—" he unfurled his pillow and sat up, "which should not be swallowed, by the way. Had a cool nightmare about that last night, and I don't- I don't want to describe what happened to the person who swallowed them. Anyway, we had those crazy gemstones—an actual miracle cure—and even they didn't stick."

Joseph tilted his head in some surprise at the familiar can. "Oh! Well... thath's very... huh." He glanced around for a window of some sort, "We are shtill in... not on Earth, right?"

He supposed it made some amount of sense. If he and Henry could travel to this other world, bringing with them all their Earthly things, who was to say many others hadn't done so before them. It seemed only fitting that something as ubiquitous as SPAM would breach dimensions.

"Well great," he decided, "I got juss the appetite for SPAM." With that, he sashayed out of the kitchenette, humming a particular tune as he headed over to his and Henry's bed. "Hey Hemry, are you down for some..." he puffed up his chest and put on a nasaly sing-song voice, "SPAM in the plahye where you live? Ham and pork! Think about nutrishum, wonder whass inside it, oh b-"

Henry stared blankly at him.

"...boy. No? You never heard...? Okay." He sighed, quite deflated. "Well dang it, they aren't gonna get it."

_{^< cont. from} Hub Town - Hotel, Lobby _{^> Joseph — Rebecca}


Joseph felt himself freeze from the inside out as the supposed 'dead' body lifted herself from the couch and faced him. He knew he should have stopped staring an eon ago, but something got it into his head that if he stayed completely still, didn't breathe, didn't even blink, then she wouldn't see him. He was unsure where the tensing of muscles stood in the equation, a question that seemed mightily prevalent as his hands gripped the edge of the fountain, pressing tighter and tighter.

Whatever the case, either the cadaverous woman was in the habit of greeting the general empty spaces of hotel lobbies, or he was still quite visible. He gave a quick glance to the side, in hopes that there might have been another guy sitting right next to him and staring even more openly than he was. Something really worth giving attention to, not his meager big-eyed ogle. But alas, neither the truth nor a fortuitously rude stranger was on his side.

Up against a wall, there was no sensible choice left but to face this challenge head on and present his name to this Rebecca Van Zant (sorceress extraordinaire).

"Joseph. McWeller. I mean Weller JoeMc. I mean Joseph Weller. Tea. In the middle. No Mc at all. Actually."

His statement was punctuated by a quiet plock as his tail slipped from the fountain's walled edge and dipped into the water behind him. He wondered for a moment if Rebecca was the type of zombie lady who would try and assist him should he very accidentally topple all the way into the fountain, or simply cut her losses and seek out less moisturized company.

Edited by Ryuhza on Aug 17th 2021 at 2:36:06 AM

Town Square (Samelin, Rosafa, Devad, Nasur, Damia)

Samelin's eyes fell upon the notice board nearby. Years of having to relocate under less-than-ideal circumstances had given them an appreciation for notice boards as a way of orienting themselves. They turned to Rosafa. "How about it, darlin'? Feel like making some trouble?"

Rosafa smiled. "Naturally." She offered up her hand, which Samelin gallantly took as they led her toward the notice board.

"For Goddess' sake..." Devad muttered as he followed after the pair. "Do we have some sort of objective in mind?" Sam had an irritating habit of making decisions that seemed impulsive, but which later turned out to be part of a scheme. Of course, other times, the impulsive actions were just impulsive actions; Devad was half-convinced that Sam deliberately switched things up just to annoy him.

"Simple reconnaissance. We need some sort of idea of what this world's like. Also, I do believe some of those posts are bounties. Lady put 'em up looks like a government type."

"Don't look so cross, Devad," Rosafa said. "It's only a couple of notices. How much trouble could they cause?"

Edited by StrixObscuro on Aug 14th 2021 at 2:41:17 PM

Hotel Lobby

"Well then, Joseph, the pleasure is all mine." The dead woman bowed low, showing a fair around of decorum. "Tell me, what brings you to this place? Excitement? Treasure? Something else? I do enjoy meeting new people, and I could use a traveling companion on my journeys. Being alone in the wilderness can be... problematic, shall we say?" Rebecca sat back down, eagerly awaiting Joseph's response.

_{^< cont. from} Hub Town - Hotel, Lobby _{^> Joseph — Rebecca}


Joseph fished his tail back out of the fountain, deciding not to risk soaking himself over a bit of undead social anxiety. Corpse or not, Rebecca seemed nice enough. She just wanted to talk, and she didn't even appear to be particularly upset about the staring. Like I'm one to stare.

So then, what had brought him to that place?

"To the lobby...?" Joseph wondered aloud. Still caught up in his own little mission, he hadn't quite connected Rebecca's spiel about excitement and treasure to the bigger picture. "I mean, I was more down here to find some friends of mine. I didn't hear anything about treasure, but- oh!" He slapped his hands over his eyes and shook his head. " 'This place'. Duh."

Sighing, he dropped his hands and started again. "Actually... I'm kinda here as part of a bigger group. I'm not the one to call the shots about where we go, but I guess there's s'posed to be an event or something like that coming up here in town. You know, it's on the way, it's something to see. And in the meantime, there's no shortage of odd jobs to be done, so I help out with that. As much as I can, anyway." He tried very hard not to let his mind run him through every little mistake he'd made the day before.

"And yeah, the wilderness," he shook his head, "tell me about it. I was out there with a crowd and I still didn't feel safe. If I'd been alone, I'd probably... wait." He turned his long, lizardy head to face Rebecca directly, blinking twice. "Are you asking me to be your travelling companion?"

Jobe's Farm (Maelys, Mist; Aseyu, Ethani)

The maid and the valkyrie each took a seat at the table. Mist helped herself to a plate of food, while Maelys only took a single slice of toast. She quietly chewed on a piece of dry toast, her expression blank.

Mist elbowed her friend, saying "Just toast?" She then plied more food onto Maelys' plate.

The maid's breath caught as she glanced down at her plate. Turning her head to the side, she sighed softly, before livening up slightly. She began spreading butter on her partly eaten slice of toast.

"She gets like this sometimes. If you don't pay close enough attention, she'll run herself into the ground," Mist explained, before stuffing her mouth with some of the delicious pigplant bacon. She sat, briefly wondering what a pigplant would classify as, a pig or a plant?

Mist then turned to reply to Aseyu, "You know, I could use a shower. I did work out this morning. While Maelys does have some tricks up her sleeves when it comes to cleaning, there's no fun in that," she enthusiastically said.

Hotel ~ Bonnie & Carol's Room (Bonnie, Carol; Henry, Joseph)

Bonnie was staring out the room's sole window, on the far wall across from the door. "This isn't Aria or any of its connected worlds, nor this Earth of yours. An entirely different world altogether," she said, "We came here voluntarily. You on the other hand..." She trailed off for a moment, before continuing, "Things like this have happened before, and with enough study, discoveries can be made. Connections, formed. Unfortunately, this subject is out of my depth. I am sorry."

Meanwhile, Carol finished setting the table. With all the food finally prepared, she took off the apron and set it aside. Upon heading over to see what was taking so long, Carol ended up walking in on Joseph's singing.

Both Bonnie and Carol shared the same, dumbfounded look as Henry at the song. They stood there for a moment before Carol spoke up, "Breakfast's ready, come and get it while it's still hot."

Town Square (Samelin, Rosafa, Devad, Nasur, Damia) "Well, what do they say?" Rosafa asked, as Samelin scrutinized the posters.

"Bunch of wanted posters, looks like," Samelin responded. "Someone's got a problem with terrorists. And demons. And the undead." They turned to their companions. "Could be a good way to make some money while we're here."

Devad grunted noncommittally.

Hotel Lobby

"Yes, I would. A companion makes the miles go by so much faster, and having someone to watch my back makes me a lot more comfortable. Just because I am what I am doesn't mean I'm invulnerable or anything." Rebecca stood up and languidly stretched herself out, looking at the lizard-man.

"That said, it would be a good deal better if you were trained in combat in the like. It's apt to be dangerous out there, from what I've heard."

[Hotel Hall-Hotel Lobby]

After a nice reunion with James and Amandus, and a declaration that Mael would be stopped once and for all, everyone decided to finally get something to eat. Even with the mission at hand, it felt great to get a moment to breathe.

"It's probably going to taste like half baked pancakes and waffles," Maya said, "But it's better than nothing."

"Maybe we can mix it up with fruits!" Amy said excitedly, gently scratching Pancake's chin, "I'm getting hungry thinking about it!"

"We should also see how Joseph and David are holding up." Nick said, "Poor bastards went through the wringer yesterday."

Adam looked down, a twinge of guilt going through him. "Yeah...they were." He shook his head and clear his throat. "They're probably waiting on us."

Once they reached a corner and turned, they saw Rebecca talking to Joseph. They weren't sure what it was about, but she didn't seem like she was making him uncomfortable, to their relief.

"Making some new friends?" Maria said, lightly giggling, "Aww, you beat us to it!"

Jackson looked around. "Are you by yourself? Where's David?"

_{^< cont. from} Hub Town - Hotel, Lobby _{^> Joseph — Rebecca — Adam, Amandus, Amy, Jackson, James, Maria, Maya, Nick and Pancake too}


Huh. She certainly doesn't wait around, Joseph thought, before regarding her appearance once more. Maybe she's already spent enough time waiting.

"Well, I'm training in combat." He recalled how difficult it had been to fire at David's truck thief the previous day. And not just the matter of aiming. "Sort of."

He shook his head, "Look, I'm flattered, but like I said, I'm kinda already tied up with this other thing. I'm waiting for some friends, and then I've got this other friend who I'm gonna help with something, and y'know, it could take the whole morning." He shrugged, "But maybe after, I could-"

Joseph caught a glimpse of his arms. Of the scabbed-over scrapes across his elbows, and the embedded bits of sand that hadn't washed out. He remembered his spirit feeling worn down to a nub. His legs burning, his lungs pounding and dried up. He, tired and broken.

"Um... maybe I could help you find someone more suitable. Combat trained and all that."

It was then that Adam and the entire Hunters ensemble arrived in the lobby, wasting no time in beelining to Joseph and Rebecca.

He met them with a bright smile (tinged only slightly by his overwhelmed nerves), answering Maria with another shrug and, "I guess I can't help it."

Looking back at Rebecca, he indicated the small crowd. "These are some of- er, a lot of my friends." Then he did the opposite, "and this is Rebecca Van Sant," who I only introduced myself to a minute ago, but if we're moving fast then we're moving fast.

To Jackson's inquiry, he said, "Yeah, I'm by myself at the moment. David's still asleep and I think I'm just gonna let him sleep as long as he wants."

_{^< cont. from} Hub Town - Hotel, Bonnie & Carol's Room _{^> Henry, Joseph — Bonnie, Carol}


"Issa song," Joseph murmured. "Weird. Weir' Al. About SPAM. I uh..."

Feeling suddenly quite hot in the face, he cleared his throat and slowly raised a hand to shield his eyes from the three looks of bewilderment directed at him. Then he walked as calmly as he could to the dining table.

He nearly made it without stumbling over his dragging tail.

"...I'll live," came his weary, floor-bound voice.

Still sitting up in bed, Henry rested his head against his hands, shaking it slowly. "My concern is time. If we can get our hands on more of those magic rocks from yesterday, they might be able to get us back home. Or we can try going back the way we came, but that leaves a lot of dangerous ground to cover, and the only landmarks I remember besides the campground were these stone ruins. Either way-"

"Hey, what's the hol'up?" Joseph asked, having successfully clambered up and into a sideways-turned seat. "We can talk over breakfast, can't we?"

"The holdup is I'm tired Joseph."

Joseph simply cocked his head and gestured emphatically at the plate of food in front of him.

"You didn't have to carry yourself yesterday. I had to carry you yesterday. Running from a dragon."

"Wyvern."

"Big, fire-breathing lizard with wings. Remind me, was it me sitting on your back while you ran for both our lives from that dr- ...wyvern?"

"Yeah, well you didn't havtha go through what I went through." He fumbled with a fork, trying to grasp it as he normally would. The clawed tips of his fingers kept slipping across the handle, so he just wrapped his hand around the whole thing and stabbed it into a pile of eggs.

"Doesn't seem to have left you much worse for wear," Henry muttered, finally throwing his blanket off.

"Oh yeah?" Joseph scoffed, giving Henry an incredulous look before scarfing away his eggs. "You wanna trade?"

"Don't tempt me," he said as he climbed out of bed. With the rest of his attire having either been either splattered by moufreta guts or donated to Joseph to then be splattered by moufreta guts, he was left with nothing but a pair of black boxer briefs to cover him. Undeterred, he made his way to the table and took a seat.

Joseph glanced at Bonnie and Carol, then lowered his eyes as a somber look overtook them. "Well, it's not like either of us actually fought off the wyvern."